text:
Full-Time Senior Data Engineer – (BERLIN)
Job Description
Who we are:
A global, independent think tank on the integration of long-term and climate-related objectives and risks into financial market metrics, processes and regulation.
Since its set up in 2012 with the mission to align financial markets with climate goals, the 2° Investing Initiative (2°ii) has become a pioneering think tank on the integration of long-term risks and policy objectives into financial markets and regulatory frameworks. Over the past years, 2°ii has led one of the largest global research programmes on long-term risks in financial markets, working with over 50 research partners. It developed the first scenario analysis tool linking financial portfolios to international climate goal which was applied by >1,500 financial institutions by now. A core principle of its mission is to reduce transaction costs across companies, financial institutions and policymakers, while guiding financial markets towards the long-term future.
Current research includes market outlook reports, physical risk incorporation and enhancement of existing, analytical methods. 2°ii combines business intelligence databases from several climate-relevant sectors with financial datasets and climate scenarios as well as with other relevant third-party datasets to assess climate risks such as physical risk maps, etc. This database is used to assess the exposure of stocks, bonds and other financial instruments to energy-related technologies, as well as to build a sustainability-ready, open-source robo-adviser.
2°ii has a multi-stakeholder and independent governance framework designed to ensure the intellectual integrity of its work and its independence. More information can be found at www.2degrees-investing.org
What we are looking for:
- A Data Engineer, BI or database developer who is passionate about having a meaningful, global impact
- Experience in data integration, cleaning, validation and analysis
- Strong SQL skills, proficiency with R and Git
- DevOps, System or Database Administration experience
- History of working with Docker and Azure, or familiar services
- A pro-active problem-solver with strong analytical skills and a good sense for code and data quality
- Further technical expertise, such as web development or data visualisation is very welcome
- Expertise in finance is a big plus
- Fluent English
What you will be doing:
- Design and implement systems to make our data analysis reliable, transparent and reproducible
- Maintain, extend and improve our existing data infrastructure and related services
- Support and train colleagues for continuous improvement of skills
- Handle technical communication with stakeholders and external partners
- Evaluate and develop technical solutions for new projects and use cases
What we offer:
- A meaningful impact on one of the planet's most pressing issues
- Engaging working environment in a young, international and rapidly expanding team and the chance to work at a cutting-edge think tank
- Flexible working hours
- Chance to take on responsibility and shape a project from your first day onwards
- Opportunity for significant career development
- A competitive salary


text:
January 19, 1997, Section 13, Page 4Buy Reprints
IT was 8 P.M. at Katharine House, a residence for young women on West 13th Street, and not a boyfriend was in sight. Had a suitor arrived, he would have been shown into one of the beau parlors, two rooms off the lobby filled with elegant furniture and the smell of roses. In there, and only in there, courting and flirting are permitted -- but not past 11 P.M.
The Victorian Age lives on at Katharine House, where receptionists still buzz the 80 young residents in their rooms: twice for a guest, once for a phone call. No guests are allowed above the first floor without special permission. In the dining room, housecoats and curlers are permitted only at breakfast.
''It's like a movie, like the old black-and-white movies I would sit down and watch with my grandmother,'' said Shannon McLaughlin, 18, an aspiring model from Baltimore who has rented a room at Katharine House since September. ''I guess it's good because if you do meet a guy somewhere he can't just come into your room and use you. You're dropped off, the old way.''
At one time there were dozens of long-term hotels for young women throughout the city. But many have closed down or opened their doors to older women and to men, drastically changing the character of what were once the homes away from home for generations of young women making their way in New York.
Some, like Katharine House, were originally opened to provide ''respectable'' housing for poor young working girls who streamed into the city from small towns around the country. Others were more upscale, and housed proper young women from affluent families. The most famous of them was the Barbizon Hotel for Women, which opened its doors to men in 1981 and became a spa in 1988.
''The young girls want the boys, so those places died out,'' said John Kelly, who has worked the front desk of the Allerton Hotel for Women on East 57th Street for 22 years. The hotel began accepting women of all ages several years ago, he said.
''There were ladies here like the Jacqueline Kennedy types, you know, the white gloves, the whole bit,'' he recalled. ''Oooh, they were ladies! And they wanted services. We could have had Grace Kelly here, but of course she went to the Barbizon.''
Katharine House, opened in 1910, is run by the Ladies' Christian Union, a nonprofit organization founded in 1860 by three New York society women who eventually ran six such homes. All but two of those residences, most of them in historic brownstones, have been sold. Because the rents were kept low, the houses became too expensive to run, according to members of the organization. The other remaining home, Roberts House, is on East 36th Street in Murray Hill.
Like the women who rented rooms at Katharine House before them, today's residents -- among them dancers, models and actresses -- moved to the city to make their fortunes or to be discovered. They came seeking a lucky break and, as one resident, Anna Jones, put it, ''a wild and crazy life.''
At dinner last Tuesday night, Ms. McLaughlin, the model, chatted with several other residents over a meal of eggplant Parmesan, Caesar salad and pound cake. She ate two salads, pushed the eggplant dish across the table and discussed her first big break: Her left eye appears in the February issue of Glamour magazine in an article about mascara.
Joining Ms. McLaughlin at the table were a ballerina from San Francisco who had recently auditioned for ''The Phantom of the Opera,'' a magazine stylist from Kansas City who is temping at Calvin Klein until she finds a permanent position, and Ms. Jones, 23, a modern dancer from Los Angeles who is studying to become a physical therapist.
''It's very exciting here because back in Kansas City, every time someone talks about fashion, it's the Gap,'' said the magazine stylist, Anne Leffingwell, who moved in last March. ''The big city is my calling.''
Ms. Leffingwell said that while she enjoyed some aspects of life at Katharine House, she was planning to move soon. ''I have a boyfriend and he lives with his parents on Long Island,'' she said. ''So it's like high school kids in a car when we want to be alone.''
While it would seem that the restrictions at Katharine House could cramp a girl's style, surprisingly few of the young women said they were bothered by the rules. For most the appeal is safety, comfort and price, and there are typically 50 or 60 women on the waiting list for a room at Katharine House, said the resident director, Andrea Doolan. Residents must be 18 to 25 years old and earn no more than $25,000.
''This place is out of the 1800's,'' Ms. Doolan said. ''But I find the girls are happier here. It's the only place for a girl in the city to be.''
Before she moved to Katharine House a year ago, Ms. Jones, the modern dancer, had shared an apartment with a boyfriend, paying $600 a month for what she described as a rotten deal. When she heard about Katharine House -- it is decorated with oak hutches and embroidered curtains, and has a baby grand piano in the second-floor lounge, a terrace for summer socializing and maid service -- Ms. Jones said she thought there had to be a catch.
''To be a woman in New York City -- in such a fertile place -- with my own room in a house like this,'' she said. ''I mean, hello! It changed my whole life.''
Posing for a photograph in her fourth-floor room, Ms. Jones had a revelation involving her new boyfriend. ''This is really interesting because my boyfriend hasn't seen my room,'' she said. ''Now he might actually see a picture of it. I hope he likes it.''

subset: commoncrawl


text:
We have spaghetti for dinner at least once a week in my house and occasionally we make more than we can eat at one time. Do you have leftover spaghetti that you need to use up? Here's a simple recipe that will take that spaghetti and transform it into an entirely new dish, spaghetti pie. This may just become a new dinner favorite.
In addition to using up leftover spaghetti you can also use up other leftovers at the same time. Try replacing the canned tomatoes with whatever cooked vegetables you have in the refrigerator. I'm looking forward to this summer when we have more zucchini around then we know what to do with, some of it will be ending up in one of these pies. If you like meat sauce with your pasta then mix in some leftover chile or chopped cooked meatballs. The possibilities are endless!
Spaghetti Pie
- 2 cups Spaghetti (cooked)
- 2 Eggs (beaten)
- 1 cup Ricotta Cheese
- 1 cup Mozerella Cheese (shredded)
- 1 can Diced Tomatoes (drained)
- 1/2 cup Tomato Sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon Basil
- 1/2 teaspoon Oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon Parsley
|Step 1
|Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
|Step 2
|Spray a 9 inch pie plate with nonstick cooking spray.
|Step 3
|Mix spaghetti and eggs. Spread in pie plate.
|Step 4
|In small bowl combine ricotta cheese, basil, oregano, and parsley. Spread mixture on top of spaghetti.
|Step 5
|Pour tomatoes and tomato sauce over the ricotta cheese mixture.
|Step 6
|Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
|Step 7
|Bake for 25-30 minutes.
What are you going to put in this versatile spaghetti pie?


text:
BASIC College Ministry
Come to our Weekly Meetings
Every Monday night at 7:30pm.
UB North Campus, 2nd floor of the Student Union in room 228 during the semesters
Committed to Christ
Devoted to Discipleship
Selfless in Serving
BASIC stands for Brothers and Sisters in Christ. BASIC is a national college-based Christian club, found on campuses predominantly in the Northeast with headquarters based in Lima, NY. In Buffalo, we've been on the UB campus since 1986.
Who are we exactly? We're college students and young adults who value our relationship with Jesus Christ more than anything!
BASIC is a non-denominational college club and our passion is pretty simple – we want to love God with everything in us and we want to ignite our generation to know their God.
Helpful Links:
BASIC Buffalo: www.basicbuffalo.com
BASIC National: www.basiccm.org


text:
Last night, the 90th Academy Awards ceremony took place at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California. The biggest buzz of the evening came courtesy of 'Empire' actress Taraji P. Henson, whose red carpet interview with embattled E! host Ryan Seacrest was widely misinterpreted by just about everyone.
Taraji was one of only 4 stars who stopped to even acknowledge Seacrest's presence on the red carpet. At one point, she said to him: "The universe has a way of taking care of good people, you know what I mean?"
"I agree," Seacrest responded.
After moving on to interviewer Wendi McClendon-Covey, who asked her how she was doing, Taraji responded, "I'm great now that I'm in your company."
That was also misinterpreted by nearly everyone on social media.
The slow folks on social media responded in typical fashion -- by adding to the confusion with their misinterpretations that Taraji was "throwing shade" at Seacrest.
Seacrest is currently in time out by Hollywood elites who believe the sexual harassment charges hurled against him by his former hairstylist -- a biological female.
Seacrest is the latest victim of a McCarthy-style witch hunt, where baseless sexual harassment allegations are made against people for political reasons, rather than moral or ethical reasons. Typical of McCarthyism, the people doing the mid-slinging are the ones who have the most to hide or the ones who have the most to benefit.
It is no secret that Ryan Seacrest is a closeted homosexual -- which is why ABC's investigation into sexual allegations made by a bio woman were found to be baseless.
The Taraji-Seacrest red carpet exchange is a classic case of people not knowing how to read body language. Taraji is smart enough to know that Seacrest is gay, and she also knows that the windstorm he is in will soon blow over and he will be top dog again.
Taraji confirmed that social media got it all wrong in an interview with PEOPLE.
"I did it to keep his chin up. It's an awkward position to be in. He's been cleared but anyone can say anything," she said.
When asked whether she was in support of Seacrest, Henson replied "absolutely."
Seacrest was appreciative of Taraji's kindness, tweeting: "Nothing but love for my friend @TherealTaraji. Thanks for hanging out with us on the #ERedCarpet! #Oscars".


text:
She is definitely no stranger to the Caribbean musical landscape. Michelle Xavier was born in San Fernando, South Trinidad, where she started her career in music at the tender age of 16. Her music over the last 18 years has not only evolved but has made an impact on the hearts, minds and cultures of various ethnicities, as she has released different genres of music.
From 1998 to 2000, Michelle was a member of a pop/rock band called 'Gregory's Dream' while she attended Naparima Girls High School. Michelle was presented the opportunity to be a part of a new band, "Imij & Company", where she remained a member from 2001 to 2011. Over those 10 years, she had the pleasure of working alongside numerous talented vocalists such as Kees Dieffenthaller, Ricardo Drue, Russell Cadogan and many more. In her final year with the band, Michelle released her first power soca, "Fetting For Days", which was a huge success and took her all the way to the Soca Monarch Finals and won her an International Soca Award for "Uptempo Soca Female Of The Year".
After all those years of experience, Michelle decided to create her own path and embarked on her solo career, which lead her to reunite with her former bandmate, Kees Dieffenthaller of Kes The Band, to release the monster road hit "Head Bad (On De Road)" in 2012.
The following year, Michelle was invited to perform alongside Soca superstar Machel Montano himself at the biggest event for the season, Machel Monday. In that same year, she achieved yet another accomplishment by qualifying for the Chutney Soca Monarch Finals with her hit song, "Indian Man". In 2014, Michelle decided to explore new opportunities and accepted an invitation to work with Grammy nominated producer Johnny "Powers" Severin of Red One Productions in Los Angeles. There, she had the honour of recording her urban/dance track "Move To My Body" at the world renowned Jim Henson Studios.
The project exceeded all expectations, which lead her to return to LA later that year to film her first full-length video. Although Michelle was encouraged by many to launch the song abroad, she wanted to share it first with her home, Trinidad & Tobago. Fans were blown away when the song and video were both released in Trinidad in 2016 and Michelle was forever humbled by the overwhelming love and support.
Her 18-year career in the industry has reinforced Michelle's passion for her culture and led her to explore yet another territory, Barbados, when she released her well-received Cropover hit, "Music", produced by the legendary Carl 'Beaver' Henderson in 2018. This only motivated Michelle more to deliver her brand new track for Carnival 2019 titled, "Frolic", which was produced by Johann Seaton of Mad Men Productions and Road March winners Ultimate Rejects. Michelle is excited and ready to share her new music with her fans that have been supporting her over her vast career and she looks forward to where else it may take her in her very promising future.
Michelle is now embarking on a new chapter in her life, now married to the love of her life Nicholas Lee and they are expecting their first baby in September. I recently caught up with the glowing mother-to-be and this is what she wanted to share with us.
What has Michelle been up to?
Apart from recording and releasing new material for all my loyal fans, I've been adjusting to married life and now the blessing of pregnancy.
How would you best describe yourself?
Hmmm....a planner. Basically OCD. LOL.
Tell me, how does it feel to be pregnant?
Amazing actually, I feel so blessed. I have waited a long time for this, so I am excited to finally experience it all for myself and in the end, bring our own little miracle into the world. I am extremely grateful for my growing baby bump!
Tell us more about your husband?
He is my best friend, my co-worker, my partner in crime...literally my everything. Not to mention he's funny, kind-hearted and a real people person, and could be quite annoying when he's ready but so can I, I guess.
What food do you crave most these days?
This week is mac and cheese, which I usually never eat. Interested to see what I crave next week.
Very soon you would be balancing being a mother, wife and an artist. How do you plan to juggle all this and still have time for yourself?
I believe a woman can do it all once she has balance in her life. My husband, also being my manager, means he is more understanding to me having new boundaries. It also means that when the baby arrives and I have to work, Daddy won't be able to babysit as he will be working as well but thank god for family and in-laws! Ask me a year from now if I still have time for myself....that would be the biggest challenge.
Do you think coming from a large family has prepared you for motherhood?
Yes, most definitely. I have gained a lot of experience with kids between my nieces, nephews and my husband's nephews and I have been looking forward to one day becoming a mother myself and having my own family. At the same time, nothing truly prepares you for having your own tiny human that is 100% your responsibility.
What women have inspired you throughout your life? And how so?
My mother has inspired me my entire life because she was always a very hands-on parent—the kind I would like to be. She drove me to every competition, every performance, was always present, involved and supportive. My mother-in-law has inspired me over the last almost 9 years with her resilience, her strength and her very big heart. The women in my field that are mothers and still blazing the trail such as Fay-Ann Lyons-Alvarez, Patrice Roberts and Destra Garcia inspire me because they prove that it is possible to have it all.
What is one thing that most people do not know about you?
That I love to take pictures, purple is my favourite colour and I have a very bad sweet tooth. Sorry, I couldn't just choose one!
How would you describe your sense of style?
'Classy sexy'.
In addition to becoming a mother what plans are in store for Michelle in the near future?
More music! You will be hearing a lot more releases from me and I could not be more excited.
What is one advice given to you by your mother that you value and cherish most?
Family is everything.
What advice would you give mothers-to-be out there?
Don't be too hard on yourself, remember you are creating a human being and it is truly a miracle. Take each day in stride, do what you can but do not use it as a crotch at the same time.
How do you plan to spend Mother's day?
My husband and I will be spending Mother's Day with my mother-in-law (my mother is currently out of the country). I consider myself a mom-to-be but not quite a mother yet; I may celebrate differently next year and hope to be spoilt by my baby (which really means my husband, LOL).
Photography: Stephen Doobal
Styling & Creative Direction: Brian Matthew
Hair: Ashvin Bally
Makeup: Ashonda James
Wardrobe: Fly Boutique, 107 Long Circular Rd, Maraval


text:
New Year's Eve preparations got underway with the closing of Second Street at 8:00 AM New Year's Eve Day.
The Event Central 24′ Crew Cab truck slipped by the barricades and started the setup. After they unloaded the truck contents – Stage, Stage Cover and SafeBlock Concrete Ballast, the setup got underway.
Check out this New Year's Poster posted by Hershey Harrisburg Regional Visitors Bureau
Within minutes, Anderson Audio started loading in the Lighting, Audio and Trusses to be installed in and around the stage located on Second Street, between the City of Harrisburg Municipal Building and the Harrisburg Hilton Hotel.
- Countdown to Noon at Strawberry Square with the Popcorn Hat Players
- Teen Party / Flash Mob (ages 13 to 18) at the Crowne Plaza – click link below
- Music by UGO (The Urban Guerrilla Orchestra, Philadelphia, PA)
- Arts and Crafts for the children in the MLK City Government Atrium
- Midnight Strawberry drop at the Harrisburg Hilton Hotel
Elsewhere on the Second Street Corridor
The crews deliver tents, tables and chairs to several Harrisburg area Restaurants, Bars, and Event Venues for New Year's Eve Activities. Here is some of the action you could see as of noon.
Check "Out with Sara on New Year's Eve" for additional activities around town.
Event Central has been providing New Year's tenting for over 20 years. We also provide winter tenting and event equipment for all types of special events regardless of location. If you are looking to overflow guests outside for additional seating, or just need a cigar smoking tent, we are ready to serve you. (Cigar tents washed after event)


text:
Cool shot of the pages.
Here is the inside of it when I opened it up...what a treasure!
I was checking it out and taking pictures of it on my bed while my son played legos beside me.
One of my son's was so upset that he couldn't keep it and play with it. I said we could make him something like it one day...and he said, "make it a truck garage Mom" so that may be up coming. :)
So after some cleaning, glueing and adding a couple touches such as some thread to the mini spools (sorry I forgot a pic of those and the mini scissors in the sewing basket) and a bouquet of flowers on the mini quilts in the far right basket.
It was finished. Wouldn't this be a delightful little sewing space?
My friend loves little mice and this sweet image by From the Heart Stamps is one of my favourites and I knew she'd love it. So I made up a little note for the inside for her. Tacked it up with some sewing pins on the inside cover.
I also put a couple pieces of velcro on the edges to help the book stay shut better.
This was such a joy to do and love how it turned out.
Thanks for dropping by! Praying you are having a beautiful day!


text: Suzuki Presents SPEED SPORT 9/5/2016 – The pits are alive with the sound of 360 winged sprint cars….Empire Super Sprints…to be exact. They are here at the Weedsport Speedway in central New York with hopes of capturing tonight's 360 sprint car open. Teams have been tweaking all day and have pushed their cars to the starting grid. It's going to be an exciting event…as the Empire Super Sprints prepare to shine on Suzuki Presents SPEED SPORT!


text:
One of the Photoshop effects I played with was Exclusion. I tried applying this to both the white background of the duck image, and to the beach flotsam image. Then I tried just applying it to the beach flotsam image only. Exclusion gives the image an opalescent quality, maybe reminiscent of mother of pearl, something beautiful from the ocean, as opposed to the discarded plastics the tide has washed up. Applying exclusion to both images created in some ways a more subtle image, but I wasn't as happy with that as I was with the stronger, clearer image.
Filed under Uncategorized


text:
Car Loan Calculator app is essentially a very simple car loan calculator.
-Simple and straightforward interface
-Screen is kept ON all the time while the app is visible
-Screen orientation is fixed to portrait
-Has an option to clear all the fields
Car Loan Calculator app for auto loans that implement the method of calculating interest per annul.
Car Loan Calculator app shows the resulting installment per month, and differs from most other amortization apps that show lower values due to the difference in formula. This increased accuracy gives you a better feel of the monthly installments you will be forking out.
1) Enter the loan amount (after any offsets, etc.)
2) Enter the interest rate per annul in percentage value
3) Enter the length of the loan in months (5 years = 60 months)
4) Calculate! The monthly installment will be shown.
Car Loan Calculator Canada method of calculation differs from normal amortization methods because it factors in the annual interest rate. The given figure is noticeably higher, especially if budget is a concern.


text:
Man-Chick Pounding Another Lucky Man-ButtJune 2, 2013 – 6:39 pm
Sid doesn't know that Alex sleeps around. It is not something you talk about on the 1st date. Who else he's pumping isn't his business yet, this chab just desires some sex for himself. Alex doesn't care what aperture he lets him stick it in, just so long as that dude gets the chance to receive his weiner soaked. This lady-killer starts by getting Sid to bow over so this dude can spread that ass and lick it running, then acquires some toys out and starts reaming it out wide sufficient to take his meatstick. One time he's not quite there, this chab jams his meat-thermometer in Sid's face hole.


text:
49th Annual Wisconsin Dells Rally
Join us Sept. 6th - 8th, 2019 for the 49th annual Wisconsin BMW Club Dells Rally for a premiere Midwest event held again at the Easter Seals "Camp Wawbeek". We have 450 acres of wooded fun and games with great camping, 300 indoor bunks (available for a small fee), plenty of showers and rest rooms - we even have RV parking!
Your Rally fee includes: 24hr coffee, non-alcoholic beverages, Friday chili and hotdogs 'til gone, Saturday pig roast, and Sunday continental breakfast. (Burgers, brats, Saturday breakfast, beer, local microbrew, and soda are also available to purchase.) There will be seminars, group and self-guided rides on some of the Midwest's greatest roads, field events, kid's field events, a bike show, swap meet, music, door prizes and awards. No matter the weather plenty of room indoors and out.
Check out more details as well as registration at the Wisconsin BMW club webpage or Facebook "Dells Rally 2019". We hope to see you there!
Copyright © 1996-2020 BMW Motorcycle Owners of America, Inc. and respective authors and contributors. All rights reserved.
BMW Motorcycle Owners of America
2350 Hwy 101 S, Greer SC 29651
(864) 438-0962
Opinions and positions stated in materials/articles herein are those of the authors and not by the fact of publication necessarily those of BMW MOA; publication of advertising material is not an endorsement by BMW MOA of the advertised product or service. The material is presented as information for the reader. BMW MOA does not perform independent research on submitted articles or advertising.


text:
Droughts, massive forest fires, powerful storms, and flash floods continue to receive a lot of news coverage worldwide.
It appears that the severe weather patterns that can trigger these disasters are becoming the norm, and families here in Canada, and overseas, are living with the consequences.
Many severe weather events are linked to El Niño and La Niña, both of which are periodic departures from expected sea surface temperatures in the equatorial Pacific. Warmer or cooler than normal ocean temperatures affect weather patterns around the world by creating high and low pressure systems, with stronger winds, large amounts of precipitation, or extreme heat.
In some cases, the result for affected regions can range from too much water to too little water – both of which create humanitarian and development challenges on a massive scale.
El Niño and La Niña have a significant impact on agriculture and the environment. Parched or eroded farmlands, decreased agricultural production, widespread food scarcity, interrupted livelihoods, and failed markets are the hallmark of these big weather patterns.
El Niño and La Niña also affect the health of people. Rates of water-borne diseases rise with the flood waters. Malnutrition intensifies in areas affected by drought. In both scenarios, food insecurity is present. El Niño and La Niña also cause mass displacements of people in arid regions of the world as they move in search of basic needs such as food and water.
There are, however, effective ways to help families and communities respond.
Communities in countries such as Cambodia, the Philippines, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Haiti, and Honduras are more resilient today than previously because friends of HOPE International Development Agency provided the funds needed to provide the support that saves lives, crops, and livelihoods.
Water systems have been installed to ensure sufficient access to water, even during times of drought. Communities are using new infrastructure and equipment to irrigate farm fields during the driest months. Farmers have learned special techniques to preserve plants and crops with minimal water, until the rains come again. In some cases, farmers have even been able to make modest gains in producing more food than in previous years by applying these techniques.
Families and communities are doing remarkable things in the face of huge challenges brought about by severe weather.
Now, as El Niño has tempered into a "neutral phase", many of these same families and communities are bracing for the next wave of tropical storms and floods of an ensuing La Niña season.
The good news, amidst all the difficult news, is that the families who have received help from friends of HOPE are now well positioned to deal with the challenges associated with severe weather.
While it can be distressing and discouraging to grasp the full implications of weather patterns that are out of our immediate control, understanding the cycles and effects enables us to stand in solidarity and react with generosity to support our partners around the world as they work with communities to build resilience amidst a changing climate and respond to disasters brought on by El Niño and La Niña.
If you would like to learn more, The United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) released a comprehensive report this week containing an overview of the impact of El Niño over 2015-2016.


text:
You English?
Now this in itself is just one of a number of bits of tittle-tattle in the press. However, I think the issue of squad numbers behind the gossip is a cause for concern for a host of clubs, including Everton. Why? Because there aren't enough quality English players to go around.
As we all know, since the re-invention of the old 1st Division, the EPL clubs implemented a strategy of bringing in significant numbers of foreign players. Initially, this was because those players were cheaper and deemed more skillful than their English counterparts.
However, in the last few years, one of the outcomes of this strategy is that the bulk of English players have been confined to the lower leagues. Players such as Jagielka have been the exception rather than the rule, with most managers not willing to take the risk on a player from the Championship and preferring to take the route of employing players from pretty much any other part of the globe.
I would personally agree with those who would say that, in many cases, the risk was greater and there are plenty of journeymen adorning the EPL to prove it; but it hasn't stopped the trend. Worse still are the academies of many EPL Clubs, where money has been used to scour the best potential from across Europe; again to the detriment of English youth. Everton are guilty of this to a degree, but are also recognised for the home-grown talent we have nurtured. The two traditional pipelines for bringing on the best of English talent have been practically turned off.
So, for me, whether the aforementioned gossip is true in itself, it seems inevitable that English players who do have talent will increasingly become a very expensive commodity. For these individuals, "Player Power" will ratchet up a few more notches. The only winners will be the players themselves and the clubs who can afford them. <:P> Everton will have to not only start winning trophies to keep their best players (English or foreign), but also pay significantly inflated wages to hold on to the English contingent, or risk losing them to the deeper pockets of the likes of Man City. For Everton, this could mean that, regardless of the desire of Moyes and the club's owners to retain our talent, we will lose the likes of Rodwell, Jagielka, Osman, Anichebe and maybe others such as Baxter; as those clubs who have got rich and successful off the backs of their foreign players look to ensure they are not subject to points penalties etc under the new system.
The ultimate concern for Everton as a club, and we as fans, is surely that we will, like other clubs, be forced into the lower leagues in search of hidden gems like Jagielka; but will be ultimately disappointed and left, again, chasing the coattails of the clubs with the silver spoons. The quality of the football we will be able to play could well be influenced by the requirement for over 30% of a squad having to be made up from players who can't cut it at the EPL level; accentuating the disparity between the "top" Clubs and "the rest" and making the elusive chase for trophies even harder.
The longer term outcome would hopefully be the nurturing of English talent at all levels, re-dressing the balance, but will it be too late for Everton by then?
Reader Comments
Note: the following content is not moderated or vetted by the site owners at the time of submission. Comments are the responsibility of the poster. Disclaimer
1 Posted 19/05/2010 at 06:46:59
2 Posted 19/05/2010 at 07:08:54
I know a great deal is made of there being an influx of average foreign players; however, I personally think that is a bit of a generalisation. In my opinion, many home grown players were priced out of the market by their clubs demanding ridiculous fees. I think it was back in 2001 that Walter Smith was quoted a fee of £6M for Bobby Zamora from Brighton. £6M for a striker who at that time was playing in the 3rd tier of English football was rather a lot even at that time. There is a young guy at Swindon who has been scoring goals for fun in the last couple of seasons. Do you reckon a Premier League would be prepared to pay £6M for him? And what would Swindon be asking?
As regards average foreign players, around the same time that Chris Sutton was transferred to Blackburn Rovers from Norwich City, Jurgen Klinsmann was signed by Spurs. I can't recall the exact figures, but I think that I am right in saying that Sutton cost the greater fee, possibly twice as much as Spurs paid to sign Klinsman. Who was the better player?
I think Klinsman was without doubt a far better player than Sutton ever was. I know those are only 2 examples, but a lot of the problems have been caused by totally unrealistic valuations by clubs in the 2nd, 3rd & 4th tier (I was tempted to put 'Divisions' !).
This is so, even in the Premier League — does anyone really believe that Lescott is twice the player that Vermulen is? Yet City paid £24M for Lescott and Arsenal paid about £11M for Vermulen.
The regulations that are planned have good intentions; however I don't believe they will solve the problems. The Super Rich clubs will continue to dominate, they will just pay silly money for top English/British players. There needs to be something to regulate the spending, along the lines of clubs only being able to spend a certain percentage of their income on salaries/transfers.
I don't know all the fine details of the Chester City situation, but basically a club went under because it owed about the same amount as a quarter of what Frank Lampard is paid in a week. Food for thought, I think.
3 Posted 19/05/2010 at 09:39:28
4 Posted 19/05/2010 at 09:59:12
5 Posted 19/05/2010 at 11:16:04
A home-grown player will be defined as one who, irrespective of his nationality or age, has been registered with any club affiliated to the Football Association or the Football Association of Wales for a period, continuous or not, of three entire seasons or 36 months prior to his 21st birthday (or the end of the Season during which he turns 21).
6 Posted 19/05/2010 at 12:39:24
However, I do believe that the potential scenario for disaster is still there. Look at Scudamore's comment above, look at Academy policies at the big spenders, look at the paucity of "homegrown" other than English players in the EPL: there aren't even that many Scots anymore since their League got flooded too.
7 Posted 19/05/2010 at 13:11:38
All it means is that players that have come through the academy and will be registered in the senior team.
8 Posted 19/05/2010 at 13:16:22
9 Posted 19/05/2010 at 13:30:47
10 Posted 19/05/2010 at 13:36:25
James is also right, it's a load of bollocks to pretend that they are doing something to protect English football. All it will do is put a higher price on average English players.
I doubt there is a single club who don't already fit this criteria.
11 Posted 19/05/2010 at 13:54:12
Whether EFC bring them through the youth system, aka Rodwell, or buy them from the lower leagues, aka Jagielka. When big or decent money is offered for them, we will sell.
The only way to protect football as a level playing field is to impose a wage cap. Otherwise, it's the same four for the foreseable future.
12 Posted 20/05/2010 at 13:29:44
No, he won't.
13 Posted 19/05/2010 at 14:16:29
He might just scrape it..
14 Posted 19/05/2010 at 14:17:12
15 Posted 19/05/2010 at 14:51:13
Given the definition of home grown is a player trained for three years under the age of 21 by somebody in the English and Welsh professional system, he would have had 3 years and 5 months at Milwall under his belt, if I've got my maths right, and is therefore officially a "home grown" player.
16 Posted 19/05/2010 at 14:57:08
I also believe that a lot of clubs are after Jagielka because he is bloody good, not because he's English. A selling club would obviously sell Phil because it would be maybe 500% profit. Let's see what Everton are? Maybe we are destined to be a selling club and do brilliantly despite that? You have to admit that Everton are good at selling high and buying low? I'm not convinced about Bily though but what a buy Heitinga was. How was he missed by the top clubs?
My own feeling is that we must keep our good players even if it means not buying.
17 Posted 19/05/2010 at 16:23:57
18 Posted 20/05/2010 at 13:33:38
19 Posted 21/05/2010 at 05:43:45
Lest anyone forget Everton have succeeded in broadly doing so under Moyes realm, so it goes to show it can be done.
There is a perception that anyone not playing in the EPL is not good enough to step up, frankly thats rubbish. I believe there are lots of players who COULD step up and be very successful BUT the risk associated in doing so is the problem. For every 5 you take a chance on perhaps only one or two will make it. We have seen good youth talent not make it within our own ranks so its a game of chance. With the emphasis and levels of expectation being so high, time is a precious commodity and thats really the problem. Moyes has had the time to bring players on because frankly he had no other choice. Where money and now possible overseas player are limited we may find that other clubs will have no choice either. All of a sudden a more level playing field, which is the intention, begins to be forced onto clubs.
The difficulty in this approach is that the world class players will always go where the money is and the quality of football is of a high level. Without either of these the premier league itself would be a lesser league. Is that what we would like to see or have our own expectations been raised to unrealistic levels?
20 Posted 21/05/2010 at 07:40:36
21 Posted 21/05/2010 at 08:12:18
Take Liverpool as an example, the season just finished they had a first team squad of 40 players, about 14 of which would qualify as being home grown or under 21. This leaves them with 26 players to fill 17 places in the squad, so 9 players will be left knowing that they will not get a game.
Then there are the 14 qualifiers, Gerrard, Carragher and Johnson would get into the squad anyway, probably so would Stephen Darby, but then there are the likes of Peter Galuasci, David Martin, Martin Kelly and Nathan Ecclestone, who simply aren't good enough. So yes they could fulfill the requirements but at what cost.
We are very fortunate to have Timmy, Nev, Ossie, Jags, Baines, Vic, and Rodders as established first team players, as well as Coleman, Vaughan, Turner, Ruddy, Baxter, etc on the fringes. In other words, no upheavals at Everton, but lots elsewhere I feel.
22 Posted 21/05/2010 at 09:15:06
Can someone confirm, for example, if Everton wanted to, they could use Rodwell, Gosling and Baxter in the 8 of 25 home grown senior players?
It doesn't make much difference to us, as things stand we fulfil the quota with players over 21 years of age, but we can't afford to lose many senior English players.
It will put a massive premium on U21 players and, even more so, those who can be brought in from overseas more than 3 years before their 21st birthday.
I think that some people are underestimating the effect this could have on the bigger clubs.
Take the example of Chelsea, they have 11 home grown players, 4 of which are regular starters, another 4 are subs/on loan, the remaining 3 I've never heard of. So there's the 8. They then have 29 foreign players, of which about 5 or 6 are under 21 next season. That means they have to trim probably 6 of their woolly-gloved foreign superstars from their squad.
The new rules certainly won't revolutionise the Premier League, but it will give more young players and more English players a chance to play at the top level. It might even the playing field a tiny bit for a year or 2, but the rich clubs will buy all the top young talent to keep squad numbers up.
Add Your Comments
In order to post a comment to Fan Articles, you need to be logged in as a registered user of the site.
Or Sign up as a ToffeeWeb Member — it's free, takes just a few minutes and will allow you to post your comments on articles and MailBag submissions across the site.


text: Thermo Slim HD is a new Pre-Workout that contains a Ultra Powerful Fat Burning Complex to accelerate the body and burn more fat while training. This is combined with a complex that provides Superior Mental Focus and Energy. Also included is your essential Amino Acids, Raspberry Ketone and L-Carnitine and you have all that a women will need to make the most of her training session.


text:
In this picture Jennifer Aniston is wearing one of her sleek black suits with her hair up in a ponytail. I like the contrast between the tailored and chic black suit and her hair loosely pulled back in a ponytail with a couple of pieces hanging down in front.
To accessorize the pony, you could add a Di Manno Designs black leather or black patent leather ponytail holder with this look.
If you want a little more detail or color in the back you could add a Di Manno Designs black croc , python or red patent leather ponytail holder with this look.
To keep the look sleek, you could use a ponytail holder in narrow size. If you are looking to add a little edge, be bold and go with the standard size!


text:
INDIANAPOLIS—Six Texas Baptists garnered spots among 30 heroes of the faith honored as the inaugural class of the Conference of Southern Baptist Evangelists Hall of Faith.
The inductees, 12 of who are deceased, were elected by their peers after the conference's executive committee voted to launch the Evangelists Hall of Faith this year in conjunction with the group's 50th anniversary.
Among those being honored during a banquet with more than 175 people at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Indianapolis were Billy Graham, George Beverly Shea, Cliff Barrows and the late T.W. Wilson, all of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association.
Texas Baptists inducted were Walter K. Ayers, Manley Beasley, Ron Rudy Hernandez, all deceased, along with Freddie Gage of Euless and Homer Martinez of Dallas.
During the conference business meeting, the group voted to name two inductees to the Hall of Faith every other year. In other business, Ron Herrod of Tennessee was elected president of the conference.
Full list of Hall of Faith inductees:
Hyman Appelman, Kansas City, Mo.
The late Walter K. Ayers, Texas
Cliff Barrows, BGEA
The late Manley Beasley, Texas
Wayne Bristow, Oklahoma
Sam Cathey, Oklahoma
Clyde Chiles, Missouri
The late E.J. Daniels, Florida
The late Ron Dunn, Texas
Freddie Gage, Texas
The late Mike Gilchrist, Louisiana
Billy Graham, BGEA
The late Vance Havner, North Carolina
The late Jesse Hendley, Georgia
The late Rudy Hernandez, Texas
Junior Hill, Alabama
The late Eddie Martin, Pennsylvania
The late Angel Martinez, Arkansas
Homer Martinez, Texas
George "Bev" Shea, BGEA
Bailey Smith, Georgia
The late J. Harold Smith, Tennessee
Jerry Spencer, Tennessee
Bill Stafford, Tennessee
Bette Stalnecker-Gibson, Tennessee
Jay Strack, Florida
Leon Westerhouse, Alabama
Gene Williams, Georgia
The late T.W. Wilson, BGEA
Don Womack, Tennessee
We seek to inform, inspire and challenge you to live like Jesus. Click to learn more about Following Jesus.
If we achieved our goal—or didn't—we'd love to hear from you. Send an email to Eric Black, our editor. Maximum length for publication is 250 words.


text:
A large number of state-owned companies does not allow to develop in the modern Russian economy, I'm sure the President and the Chairman of the Board of Sberbank German Gref.
"I have said many times, when we have such oversized public sector, I don't see how we can develop a modern economy. The first thing to do is, of course, to reduce it, although to reduce it quickly will not work", — said Gref, speaking Wednesday at the Exchange forum, reports .
The head of Sberbank noted that existing Russian state-owned companies first and foremost need of the modern management system, without which we can forget about "the possibility of achieving any performance parameters".
Gref also called for the government to articulate its expectations regarding owned enterprises.
In turn Minister of Finance Anton Siluanov has proposed to introduce for top managers of state-owned companies key performance indicators: the main one should be the income they bring to the state.
"If we consider the state investment as an asset, this asset needs to generate income to the state. It will just be to talk about the effectiveness of the management: whether he pays those revenues that the state expects to receive, or attempts to evade, citing the large investment programs," — said the Minister of Finance.
Siluanov's opinion was supported by former Finance Minister and now head of the Center for strategic development Alexey Kudrin, who said that the public sector of the economy is "not the effect that we expect from him."


text:
Additional Symbolism:
The letter B is for: bad ass, brazen, bold, best friends, blessed and beautiful
For this card, green was chosen for the inside because the colour green represents adventure, friendship, freedom and life. Connectedness and acceptance are also represented by green. No matter how bad assy your friendship is, these are corner stones to all fabulous friendships :)
HOOPLA 1" pin is includedcard dimensions: 5" x 6 1/2" comes w envelope


text:
(LOS ANGELES) -- For reasons yet unclear, Justin Bieber chose to challenge one of the world's most famous movie stars to a fight -- but whatever comes of it, the Internet's money seems to be on his opponent.
"I wanna challenge Tom Cruise to fight in the octagon," Bieber tweeted Sunday. "Tom if you don't take this fight your[e] scared and you will never live it down. Who is willing to put on the fight?"
Cruise, who famously does his own stunts, hasn't responded, but the Internet did for him. In short, the consensus is that the 56-year-old Mission: Impossible star, would trounce the 25-year-old recording artist.
One reply showed a GIF from The Avengers of The Hulk beating up Loki. Another was a GIF of Cruise laughing on a loop.
"I think Tom cruise may be able to mess Bieber up," one follower replied.
"Tom's 12 years older than your dad, Justin. WTF," another asked.
One person who's taking the challenge seriously -- or at least cashing in on another excuse to get a headline -- is controversial MMA fighter Conor McGregor.
He tweeted, "If Tom Cruise is man enough to accept this challenge, McGregor Sports and Entertainment will host the bout. Does Cruise have the sprouts to fight, like he does in the movies? Stay tuned to find out!
Copyright © 2019, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.


text:
Job Description
The PPC Account Manager will be reporting directly to the Head of PPC, bringing their innovative and unique PPC skills to the already dynamic team. The successful candidate will have the confidence to showcase their own ideas, alongside received direction from more experienced members of the team.
The Role –
- Take ownership of management for accounts across 16 European markets.
- Day to day management and optimisation of PPC campaigns across multiple clients to KPIs and industry benchmarks.
- Campaign activation across all areas –build, creative, targeting, new features etc, to strict deadlines.
- Maintain a first class level of accuracy and account hygiene, regularly reviewing account setups.
- Assist in the production of weekly and monthly reports for clients summarising performance.
- Produce and participate in quarterly PPC performance reviews to clients.
- Be the main point of contact for PPC queries for your clients and play a supporting role for others.
- Provide in-depth analysis of client performance using a variety of PPC tools.
- Managing expectations both internally and with clients.
- 18 months+ agency side experience preferred.
- An excellent knowledge of Google and Bing's Search Marketing platforms.
- A good experience in building PPC campaigns from scratch to a high degree of accuracy, utilizing key targeting and audience features.
- A working knowledge of Google Analytics.
- A working knowledge of DoubleClick for Search would be preferable.
- Intermediate Microsoft Excel knowledge.
- Outstanding interpersonal skills and highly presentable.
- Comfortable working with data to drive insights and recommendations.
- Confident in dealing directly with clients.
- Experience and confidence in managing PPC accounts independently, taking control of budget pacing, regular optimisation, reporting and analysis.
By applying for this job, you are choosing to accept Creative Personnel's Terms & Conditions. At Creative Personnel we process certain personal information about you for our legitimate business interests in order to identify and contact you about suitable positions that may be relevant to you. Details are set out in our Privacy Policy.


text:
Manic Monday – Awards….Why Bother?
Midnight Musings from our CEO
It has been a tremendous year for our region and Association, not only being nominated for but shortlisted and even winning several prestigious awards around the world, against some very strong and, quite frankly, much larger in terms of budgets competition.
Our region "Thompson Okanagan" is being recognized as a leader in strategic vision in Sustainable / Responsible Tourism operation and development and this recognition is coming from organizations who are themselves Leaders in Tourism.
It began last February, not long after the Biosphere Certification where the region received the World Travel and Tourism Council's "Tourism for Tomorrow Destination Award". This was quickly followed by the 2018 World Tourism Award as North America's Responsible Tourism Destination and finally this past Saturday we were proud to be named as the World Tourism Award's Responsible Tourism Destination World Wide for 2018. Further, we have been Silver medalists or top finalists in a variety of award programs including SKAL, International Travel and Tourism Awards Planning Institute of BC, Land Awards finalist, and the list goes on.
Along the way I have been asked what all this means for the region, does it really matter, why bother, how can tourism stakeholders benefit and my answer is always the same:
"This is putting the Thompson Okanagan in the minds of industry partners and travellers worldwide and shows we are collectively heading in the right direction. These awards belong to our region, Province, and Country, and in turn to each one of you as tourism stakeholders. We are showing the next generation of guests that we are different, that we stand for something, and that we understand the value of the area we so proudly represent and do business in. These are difference makers for you and every resident who calls the Thompson Okanagan home.
Responsible / Sustainable tourism is what consumers both young and old are asking for at an increasing rate. Today's research indicates that ¾ of all travellers say sustainability important in their travel decisions and in a 2015 report, 66 % of the US market indicated they would pay more for certified sustainable products ( a number that was from 55% the year prior).
Our guests are changing, but we are poised to meet that change and to let them know that these are issues we have been actively looking at for many years and more recently focused on everything we do and say. In the coming weeks, we will be launching a new and exciting initiative with organizations like the Responsible Tourism Institute and bookdifferent.com, which again we see as helping our stakeholders lead the way and communicate their commitment to long-term responsible thinking.
Awards…well you can say "well why bother" or you can get involved and get behind this movement to elevate the Thompson Okanagan on the world stage and invite them to visit.
A Few Highlights from this Week's News Centre…
There are many reasons to be part of this coming year's Route 97 Guide and Website and Early Bird pricing is in effect but only until December 20th, 2018 (read more); there is a lot happening at all our area ski resorts and in this week's News Centre! Check out the details of the new Gondola that has opened at Silver Star Resort (read more); Celebration activities surrounding Mount Baldy's 50th Anniversary (read more); and the plans for a Quad chair for Manning Park (read more). Our congratulations to our own Nancy Greene Raine who was inducted into the Tourism Hall Of Fame last week (read more).
Read all of this week's News Centre stories at news.totabc.org
Keep following and contributing to TOTA's Facebook and Twitter sites throughout the week; send us your stories, photos, events, and remarkable experiences. Make sure the industry knows what is happening around our region. Be sure to use #route97 and #explorebc when posting your tourism shots and stories.


text:
Let's take the concept of "Running the Gauntlet" as covered previously and apply it to the aquatic environment. Any serious reading of the historical record [ancient or modern] will be hard-pressed to find warrior cultures ignoring the ability of warriors to maneuver when in water. I'm not talking naval action whether it be a ship-of-the-line under full sail or small SEAL teams operating in a Zodiac boat.
I am talking the ability of the individual warrior to maneuver, attack, and survive in the water itself on a solo basis. The solitary warrior's ability to swim both on the surface and beneath the water, to do so with stealth or evasive action, to do so underload carrying or towing weapons, to efficiently assault beaches, to wisely and efficiently abandon sinking craft, to be able to resort to hand-to-hand close-quarter battle in a water-treading environment.
All of these skills and tactics have been and are valued by warrior cultures. From today's Navy SEALs to yesteryear's Navy Frogmen, to Ramses II rout of the Hittites on the Orontes River, to the Franconians crossing the Rhine on their shields. To various stales of Algonquin tribes making stealth assaults via river during the bloody French and Indian Wars.
We have tales of great warriors who valued aquatic ability in their warriors and possessed this ability themselves such as Charlemagne, Barbarossa, Carl the Great, Otto II, and my Viking forebear Olaf Trygvesson.
We know the value of individual water-tactics in a martial sense from the Sagas of the Northlanders, to ancient Persian warriors who were expected to swim strong and well with weapons held aloft. The Spartans considered good watermanship a must, the Romans trained legionnaires to swim both with and without armor.
Such stories abound regarding martial aquatic skills and yet today we see the esteem for water warriorship compartmentalized to "Oh, the SEALs are good swimmers" with nary hide nor hair of other contemporary schools of thought embracing the practice in a warrior's sense.
Admittedly, most of us will not be storming beaches at Guadalcanal, or expected to cross the Danube in full armor, but many of us do train for other unlikely eventualities, why is it that this one is given such short shrift?
Any of us could be expected a to survive a car plunging from a bridge into a river. Many of us might experience the necessity of fording or surviving our new era of storm surge and flooding where we can see even land-locked Texans needing some water ability.
Increasing our confidence in water, improving our survival in water, adding to our conditioning via water-training is simply one more wise feather to add to our training cap, let alone a refreshing and invigorating way to capture another aspect of our historical warrior forebears.
With all of this in mind I offer the following drill/training exercise/conditioning challenge [one of many from our upcoming work on Water Warriorship.]
Swimming the Gauntlet: Aquatic Evasion
· Get yourself to your water of choice, open water is ideal, but if a pool is all you have…
· Warm-up with 5-minutes of treading water.
· Extra Credit if you hold one hand aloft as if holding a weapon.
· Extra Extra Credit if you hold a mock weapon aloft for the 5-minutes.
· Next, choose a distance or time that is comfortable for your swimming ability and begin a long swim—it is ideal if you use stealth-strokes, splashes alert the enemy, splashing signals sharks there is injured prey in the water.
· Approximately every 10 strokes [or you can have a partner call "Down!"] surface dive or bob beneath the water and swim for 5-strokes before emerging.
· We are attempting to evade/obscure strafing fire from shore or the air.
· Continue the drill for your designated distance or time.
· To move beneath the surface, feel free to use a tuck dive, pike-dive, or sculled bob.
· Extra-Credit if you execute a 90 degree turn once beneath the surface.
If you are hitting this with intent anaerobic demand kicks in fast.
If we add to it the emotional color of fully envisioning pros with rifle or bows in hand, or one of the Divine Emperor's Zeroes strafing from above, we get an extra-charge out of the practice.
God forbid we ever need this practice in our actual lives, but if that horrid eventuality is ever met, well, as Special Forces warriors everywhere say "Never do anything for the first time in combat." Or as the Comanche brave is advised "Wumet'u." ["We must prepare."]
[For more Old School training practices subscribe to this blog, the RAW Subscription Service and our upcoming book Rough & Tumble Conditioning.]


text:
Saturday, January 12, 2008
ChaSiu vs Chinese Tea
Posted By amei79 in MY, Swak at 11:54 PM
Category: Funny Toon, Happy Hour, Humour, My e-COMIC, My Life, Sharing
15 comments:
- Unknown said...
you are really hardworking ah!but why they call the tea so complicated name!!if the boss scold me like that,I will cry infront of hime..:( you really can tahan ah!
- January 13, 2008 at 2:07 PM
- iCalvyn.com said...
pronunciation always make people blur...
- January 13, 2008 at 3:34 PM
- Nux V said...
finally u can changed someone who dislike u to someone who willing to share his skills..incredible!
- January 13, 2008 at 11:04 PM
- Lee Chien said...
wah, first time i heard ppl say 'zhong guo cha shao' leh..
- January 14, 2008 at 12:52 PM
- Apple said...
What a 中国茶烧..lol, just wonder why must put the "siu" at the back, just like what we called "teh c peng"?? which the "peng" means cold? LOL
- January 14, 2008 at 3:26 PM
- WaterLearner said...
Haha .. pronunciations can create a lot of jokes!!
- January 14, 2008 at 4:17 PM
- WaiKee said...
LOL "中国叉烧" first impression was a pork rice.... but now these kind of name very common in cafe already. You'll see other tricky and fantastic drinks name as well
- January 14, 2008 at 11:48 PM
- Chinneeq said...
haha....tell u, dont worry coz it is norm for ppl who work for the first time. Yeah...still remember first day is always blur blur for everyone, just a matter of time getting use to it :)
- January 15, 2008 at 7:59 AM
- BB COMMUNITY said...
chinese char siew! wahaha~
btw, if u got a chance to go wong kok restaurant, u can try the "salty dog", actually it's a kind of drink~
- January 16, 2008 at 9:04 AM
- Hazel said...
a simple tag for u hope u like it
- January 16, 2008 at 12:37 PM
- amei79 said...
here we normally call its mandarin name "中国茶烧". the problem is i didnt know the existant of chinese tea that time. money needed, so just tahan loh...lolz
icalvyn.com & waterlearner:
i have pronunciation problem too for both mandarin & english...so create alots of jokes...:)
nux v:
there are 3 boss in the restaurant, he is the one i most respect to...i call him an iron man!
lee chien:
here we seldom call the English name (chinese tea), unless the waiter/waitress is non-chinese or at certain restaurant, otherwise we just call "zhongguochasao"!
"烧"=hot (in hakka, otherwise we shall call 中国茶 "re de"), "peng"=ice (in hokkien).
agree, last a pub visited, all the drink with a sexy name something like "girl screaming..." lolz
mummy to qiqi:
u r right, aft adapted to the new environment, everything will go better & better...
bb community:
where is "wongkok" restaurant? in ur hometown taiping? if not mistaken, kuching BDC got a restaurant called wongkok too.
10s for the tag, this being my 2nd tag. will check it out.
- January 17, 2008 at 10:05 AM
- Unknown said...
lol~ 中国茶烧...
here v call it "chinese tea" only~~~
- January 17, 2008 at 10:14 AM
ya,this means of malaysians!!!!=)
- January 17, 2008 at 1:32 PM
- amei79 said...
sometime we call it "teh cina" in malay too, u know lah, now-a-day most of the kopitiam or restaurant, the waiter/waitress are indonesian mah...!
- January 18, 2008 at 11:50 PM
- amei79 said...
malaysians = o-in-1 = rojak
- January 18, 2008 at 11:52 PM


text:
Under age men with Retrovirus extra probable to acquaintance small whiteness load
Teenaged men organism doped in behalf of Retrovirus are supplementary reasonable to familiarity short remove batch than are different men their period, according to results from a delving system corroborated close to the Governmental Institutes of Healthfulness. The findings suggest that physicians who look after these patients should praepostor them regularly on the side of signs of ivory slimming down, which could call a chance championing fractures. The teenaged men in the learn about did not own Retrovirus at origination and had antique diagnosed with Retrovirus an typically of digit days sooner.
Before studies possess shown that adults with Retrovirus too keep white bereavement and enhanced gamble representing off-white fractures, related in cede the practise of settled anti-HIV medications.
"The minor men in the memorize had back number engaging anti-HIV medications in support of a relatively petite period, up till they at rest had drop withdraw sandstone spacing than else men their majority," alleged co-author Banknote G. Kapogiannis, M.D., of the Paediatric, Minor, and Devoted Immunodeficiency Sprig of the Eunice Aerodrome Shriver Federal Society of Descendant Robustness and Defenceless Occurrence (NICHD). "These findings propose a instant striking of Retrovirus group therapy on whiteness at ages when fill are quiet ontogenesis and constructing withdraw mountain. That raises be about less the peril of crack as they majority."
In behalf of the HIV-infected boyish men, on usual, off-white denseness in the aware was 5-8 pct drop, and in the backbone 2-4 proportion lessen, than championing learn about participants past Retrovirus.
The learn about was not premeditated to adjudge the source of the take forfeiture and cannot eliminate the feasibility that stumpy os batch preceded the youthful men's Retrovirus contagion. The researchers well-known that every bit of the minor men had a handful danger factors in behalf of whiteness privation, specified as baccy and booze operation, and little inspiration of ca and vitamin D (considered necessary to learn ca.)
The swat was conducted near show the way authors Kathleen Stew, Ph.D., of the School of Calif., San Francisco; Refinement Aldrovandi, M.D., of Children's Asylum Los Angeles and the Institution of higher education of Meridional Calif.; Dr. Kapogiannis, and sevener new researchers linked with the NICHD-supported Youth Medicament Trials Textile on the side of Retrovirus/Immunodeficiency Interventions (ATN).
Their findings emerge in Clinical Transferable Diseases.
Add-on backing was provided beside the Office's Public Launch on Habit, the Popular Edifice championing Scrutiny Resources and the Federal Area as a service to Forward Travel Sciences.
About 250 teens and youthful men (14 to 25 eld ageing) participated in the memorize. Close by 88 percentage of the swot participants identified themselves as African-American or American and the totality of lived in urbanized areas. The participants underwent total main part scans to amplitude their white impenetrability likewise as the parceling out of rotund and wiry rowdy mound in fixed regions of their bodies. Participants and answered questions roughly their anamnesis, and regimen, employ and another style habits.
The researchers adjusted the closeness of castanets in the torso as a uncut, likewise as the thorn and hipbones. These maraca are added supersensitized than remaining maraca to os disappearance, Dr. Stew explained. The researchers likewise assessed sum total cadaver well-fed and expanses of chubby in the collection, legs and stalk.
The researchers bring about that the HIV-positive participants who had not up to now begun management attended maintain a lesser amount of main part stout than either their counterparts on therapy or the swat's HIV-negative participants.
Both debone bulk and the metal and else marble subject-matter of clappers attended be deprived in participants entrancing tablets in the service of Retrovirus. Young womanhood with Retrovirus who had not begun management had higher off-white pile levels than Retrovirus absolute young womanhood who were on anti-HIV regimens, but slash os load levels than salad days who did not own Retrovirus. Participants' responses to questions close by subsistence indicated that leastwise fifty per cent of them did not gobble up adequate metal or vitamin D. The researchers too bring about that exceeding 30 proportionality of the whole of each the participants smolder. Hemisphere supposed they did not secure ordinary employ. Breathing and deficit of employ containerful furnish to weaker maraca. The read authors prominent that more studies are necessary to adhere to HIV-positive boyish men elongated name to ascertain whether debone deprivation midst adolescence increases the endanger of fractures late in living.
"Not a single person of the prepubescent men we maxim is in unhesitating gamble of rupture," thought Dr. Stew. "In spite of that, our results indicated that it would be a adequate concept representing pubescent men recently diagnosed with Retrovirus to fashion positive they bring to bear, procure sufficiently metal and vitamin D, leave evaporation and boundary demon rum phthisis."
Researchers in the ATN Meshwork hitherto originate that vitamin D supplements strength improve preserve the clappers of grouping captivating the anti-HIV treatment tenofovir.


text:
The Other Boleyn Girl multiple trailers
In the first of many trailers this evening I have The Other Boleyn Girl trailer in various formats and sizes for your pleasure.
This is the film starring Natalie Portman and Scarlett Johansson as the two Boleyn sisters vying for the hand of King Henry VIII played by Eric Bana. It also stars the sultry Kristin Scott Thomas.
I'm not so sure about the film myself, having seen the trailer already I'm not convinced that it will deliver the power of the original television film on which it is based, a film which starred the gorgeous Natascha McElhone and had less reliance on big names and a dramatic Hollywood script.
Of course, I could be wrong, perhaps we're not tired of the costume drama. See the trailer and tell us what you think.
The Other Boleyn Girl trailer:
Quicktime: High quality Medium quality Low quality
Realplayer: High quality Medium quality Low quality
Windows Media Player: High quality Medium quality Low quality


text:
Web Admin
Thirty-six people have died and one was reported missing in floods caused by torrential rains in southern Thailand, officials said on Thursday.According to the latest report by the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, the floods have affected some 1.2 million people in more than 5,200 localities across some dozen provinces, and damaged 17 government buildings, 590 roads and 106 bridges, Efe news reported.Twenty-five schools and 170 places of worship have also been affected.Nakhon Si Thammarat province has been the worst-hit, with nine deaths, while six people have died in Surat Thani.The ruling military junta dispatched a contingent of 4,000 soldiers for relief efforts, especially in the villages that have been isolated due to damaged roads and bridges.The late rains -- monsoon season usually ends in the region by November or December -- have been continuing uninterrupted for over a week, the department added.
View All Sponsored Ads
5 Dariya News
S.C.O. No-16, 2nd Floor
Near ICICI Bank, Basanwali Chungi, Kharar
Distt. SAS Nagar (Mohali) 140301, Punjab (India)
Mob: 99148 10266
Email: [email protected]
News archive
Our team
Contact us


text:
I've been so busy posting new stuff that I have ignored many posts in my draft folder. So, for the next few days/weeks I will be posting those oldest in the draft folder before I move forward. Hope you'll like them!
Another super duper awesome polish from Sunny at 365 Days of Color! It applied wonderfully and I did not have to do much to get the glitters on mu fingers. I looooooved this soo much. The color combination. The jelly-ness. The ease of application. It is definitely a winner in my books!
I wore this alone (3 coats) topped with Cult Nails Wicked Fast.


text:
Yum Yum ASIA CAFE
Dear Diners, Well the local guy was out chowing down again in the Metro Orlando area. My travels this time takes me to the Maitland/Altamonte Springs area. I… Read More »
Beefy King
Dear Diners, Well the local guy was out chowing down again. On this day I was in the mood for a sandwich, a hot sandwich. I was craving… Read More »
Dear Orlando Diners, Well it was Friday night and my wife and I were in the mood for some good Italian food. Too bad we were in an… Read More »
Eden's Fresh Co.
Dear Orlando Diners, If you read my About page it says I am "open" to try different things or restaurants at times or occasions. One of these so… Read More »
Press 101 sandwich & wine bar
Dear Orlando Diners, The local guy (me) was out eating once again in the Orlando market place. I was in the mood for a good hot tasty seasoned… Read More »
NYPD Pizza in Metro West
Dear Orlando Diners, I am now writing my second review or post. This review is going to be about one of the most popular dishes world wide… Read More »
Del Frisco's Steak House
My last visit was early Jan 2011. Our visit always starts out with the valet crew. I am not a huge valet fan but I have never had… Read More »
If you are looking for hidden food gems in Orlando, you have come to the right place.
If you are looking for Orlando Food Reviews you have landed in the right place. If you want to know where the locals eat in Orlando, you have… Read More »
Learn more about where Orlando locals eat!
If you want to know where the locals eat in Orlando, you have come to the right place. If you are a local in the Orlando area and… Read More »
Learn about new restaurants opening in Orlando
Believe it or not there is more to this city than Disney World, Universal Studios, and Seaworld. If you are looking for restaurant news openings/closings you have come… Read More »


text:
These days, more and more people are realizing that blogging is big business. If you've recently decided that this industry is right for you or are simply interested in making your blog more successful, now is the time to implement techniques that will help you make it happen. You can use this quick reference guide to learn which strategies can help you become a more successful blogger:
1. Update Your Software.
One great way to ensure that you optimize your blog efforts is by updating your software. This technique will empower you to complete your daily blog tasks quickly and correctly. In the event that you make use of data migration software on your computer, companies like Infinite Corporation can provide you with the product solutions you need. To learn more about the company, check this out.
2. Optimize Your Content.
Another strategy you should definitely implement to keep your blog business moving forward is content optimization. Content is still one of the leading factors that enables your audience to develop an understanding of and opinion about your brand. As such, you want to make sure that your blog posts are always interesting and informative. There are several ways you can realize this goal, such as with the inclusion of visually appealing, information-packed infographics. You should also take time to make your content scannable through the use of textual elements like bullet points, headers, subheaders, and numbered lists.
3. Develop A Marketing Plan.
One final technique you'll want to use for the purpose of blog optimization is the development of a marketing plan. Marketing is the key to ensuring that more and more members of your target audience are learning about your brand. There are several ways that you can implement and optimize your marketing plan, but one of the most effective tends to be hiring a team of professionals. Digital experts can oftentimes implement a diverse array of online marketing techniques, some of which may include:
- Video Production
- Online Reputation Management
- Link Building
- Keyword Analysis
- Target Market Research
Don't Delay: Get The Blog Optimization Process Underway Today!
If you want your blog to be a smashing success, you need to implement techniques that will help you realize the goal. Some strategies that you may find particularly effective include updating your software, optimizing your content, and developing a marketing plan.


text:
A Washington state Democrat is accusing Republicans of "throwing American infrastructure … under the bus" after a bridge collapse there this week.
The portion of Interstate 5 in Washington that runs over the Skagit River collapsed on Thursday after a truck hit an overhead support structure, but Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.) cited the incident in an interview as proof Republicans were blocking infrastructure investment to hurt President Obama politically.
"Well, they have clearly spent the whole last five years trying to tear the president down, but they have done it by throwing the American infrastructure and the society under the bus," McDermott said in an interview with MSNBC host Al Sharpton.
"We have the most long-term unemployed that we have had since the 1930s and there's no excuse for that," McDermott continued. "There is plenty of work in this society that needs to be done and all it means is that the Congress has to step up, put the money up, and we can have it."
Read more here


text:
Despite vocal and self-righteous claims to the contrary, Palestinian leaders continue to incite their people and the rest of the Arab and Muslim world against Israel and Jews. For the past two and a half years, these leaders have been accusing Israel and Jews of seeking to turn the Israeli-Arab conflict into a religious one. The accusation refers specifically to visits by Jews to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. The truth, however, is just the opposite: it is the Palestinians that have been aiming at every turn to transform the political and territorial conflict into a religious one.
By turning the conflict into a religious one, the Palestinians are hoping to avoid any discussion about important issues such as security, borders, the status of Jerusalem, anti-Israel incitement and assaults on public freedoms under the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Hamas. Palestinian leaders do not feel comfortable discussing any of these issues; that is why they prefer to make the debate appear as if it is about religious issues.
Palestinian leaders are also hoping that the entire Islamic world will rally against Israel once they are told that Islamic holy sites are allegedly being targeted and desecrated by Jews.
The Palestinian Authority is toe-to-toe with Hamas in this unceasing incitement. The two rival Palestinian parties may disagree about almost everything, but when it comes to libeling Israel and Jews, they have no differences.
Jewish tours of the Temple Mount in the past two and a half years, contrary to Palestinian claims, have not affected the "status quo" or existing state of affairs at the holy site whatsoever. The Islamic holy sites, Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, have not been "defiled" or "destroyed" as the result of the presence of Jews at the Temple Mount. More significantly, Muslims' access to their holy sites on the Temple Mount remains unchanged. Every day, thousands of Muslim worshippers converge on the Al-Aqsa Mosque and Dome of the Rock to perform prayers. On Fridays, the number of Muslim worshippers is sometimes estimated at tens of thousands.
Source: for MORE


text:
Advanced Surf Guide
Designed for intermediate to advanced longboard or shortboard surfers who are looking for a Maui surf guide! This is a great option for anyone new to, or vacationing on Maui and looking for someone to show them the ropes, or an advanced surfer who is looking for some tips to take them to the next level of surfing.
The advanced surf guide experience is open to one or two surfers, and is 3-4 hours long, depending on transportation time, and includes a picnic lunch. Open to intermediate longboard or shortboard surfers looking to surf beyond our main location of Ukumehame Beach Park.
Transportation may be included for a nominal additional fee. Advance surf guides are available Monday through Friday, and takes place from 8am – 12pm.
Guides must be booked 48 hours in advance, space is limited, especially during peak family travel seasons of Spring Break, Summer and Winter Breaks.
Designated surf spot will vary depending on that day's surf forecast and experience level. Open to ages 16 and up only.
Meet our Guides: Visit our About Us page to learn more about Kelly Potts (experienced longboard and stand up paddler), Sharky (longboard and shortboard), Kiki Martins (shortboard guide) or Dustin Tester (when available).
Advanced Surf Guide


text:
He started out as a junior champion rider, and he ended up a beloved leader in the powersports world. Gary L. Myers, former owner of Fay Myers Motorcycle World in the Centennial area, died Aug. 4. …
This item is available in full to subscribers.
If you're a print subscriber, but do not yet have an online account, click here to create one.
Click here to see your options for becoming a subscriber.
If you made a voluntary contribution of $25 or more in Nov. 2018-2019, but do not yet have an online account, click here to create one at no additional charge. VIP Digital Access Includes access to all websites
He started out as a junior champion rider, and he ended up a beloved leader in the powersports world.
Gary L. Myers, former owner of Fay Myers Motorcycle World in the Centennial area, died Aug. 4. Myers, a resident of Golden, was 75.
He "worked to protect motorcycle riders' rights on road and off road," said Jason White, current general manager of the Fay Myers dealership on East Arapahoe Road.
The Lakewood-area native had been enduring heart problems and was in home hospice care when he died. A serious bicyclist for decades, he remained active even late in his life, riding 300-400 miles a week, according to an obituary release from the Schomp Automotive family, which owns the Fay Myers dealership.
Gary Myers was a well-known motorcycle racer in his youth. He lived in the Netherlands for 18 months and became the Dutch Junior Champion, an online obituary said.
For a time, he was considered to be among the top 10 riders in the world, according to his son, Mark Myers, in the release. After racing in Holland during his 20s, Gary Myers returned to Denver in the late 1960s, racing throughout the Mountain West and winning endurance races in Steamboat Springs and Crested Butte, among other places.
And even far into his adulthood, he dug his feet into mountain bike racing and won multiple national championships and a world championship in the 1990s in his age class, according to the obituaries.
His father, Fay Myers, was an avid motorcycle enthusiast and founded Fay Myers Motorcycle Company in 1948 on West Alameda Avenue in Denver. Gary Myers assumed leadership of the company in the 1970s and, with his motorcycle racer's enthusiasm and knowledge, built it into the better-known Fay Myers Motorcycle World, the release said.
The shop relocated after a "catastrophic fire" in 2002, White said. It sits at 9700 E. Arapahoe Road in Greenwood Village, just a short walk west of the Centennial border. Myers successfully managed the business through the fire, the online obituary said.
The business sold in 2004 — after which Schomp took over — but Gary Myers still carved out a place as a "great motorcycle and business leader in the powersports world," White said.
Myers was among those who started what would become the Powersports Dealers Association of Colorado, an effort toward "legislation to protect people's rights to ride and to help all dealers be better," White said. After its beginnings as the Colorado Motorcycle Dealers Association, it expanded its lobbying influence in the late 1980s, said Jerry Abboud, the association's executive director.
"His participation probably lasted, I don't know, 35-plus years, somewhere in that neck of the woods," said Abboud, a former longtime employee at Fay Myers. "He was pretty closely involved all those years."
More personally, friends at the Fay Myers shop remembered Myers as a man with a knack for caring.
"He was the best person I ever worked for. We had a lot of fun and did a lot of business," Fay Myers parts manager Scott Rosenthal, who starting working with Myers in 1979, said in the release. "We always went trail riding or motocross riding on the weekends."
Fay Myers sales manager Gary Merrill recalled when Myers came to the shop a couple of months ago for a retirement party.
"He could remember every person who ever worked there … it was a family affair," Merrill said in the release. "He came down here often, and everybody was always happy to see him … My phone has been ringing non-stop with people calling expressing sorrow and telling Myers stories. He told me once that when you're dying, all you have is memories. Exactly right. We have the greatest memories in the world."
"He had one of the best measures of a life well lived," Mark Myers, his son, said. "It's unbelievable the number of people who've reached out to me to tell how much he was loved."
He is survived by his mother, his partner, his two children and their spouses, three grandchildren, his sisters, a niece, and two nephews.
And, the obituary said, "countless friends."
Other items that may interest you
We have noticed you are using an ad blocking plugin in your browser.
The revenue we receive from our advertisers helps make this site possible. We request you whitelist our site.


text:
Why Not Call it Troy?
My last post gave a basic feel for False Light, the novel I'm writing. Its story begins about twenty years after the Trojan War ends, when tales of that victory are still part of daily life. In that post, I also use the name 'Wilios' to mean Troy. A reader asked "Why?" That's a good question. Below is what I hope you will think is a good answer.
Who conquered Troy? And what happened to the victors after that? We think we know. But do we? Achilles died in the Bronze Age, when Egyptians and Hittites were the two super-powers always clawing for lands in between. On the other hand, Homer lived in the Iron Age, when a faded, inward-looking Egypt was still there, somewhere to the south, but the bard had never heard of anybody called a Hittite. Hmmm… .
Homer's story of Achilles' rage amidst the Trojan War was a bard's song passed from one poet's memory to the next for twenty generations until it was finally written down. That memorized song somehow made it through the chaos of a centuries-long Dark Age about which we know almost nothing—except that four out of five people died at the start, writing was lost and each surviving village raided the next one for centuries. Today, only a handful of dug-up hints give us even a clue about how bad those times must have been. Or what collapsed the Bronze Age. Or how the Achaeans morphed into the amazing people who thought all those brand new thoughts and made up out of thin air most of what we call Western Civilization.
With False Light I want to bring that lost time and its people to life for you. I also hope to highlight the differences between how things truly were then and what we might assume. In addition, I want to show that human nature is a near-constant, barely changing over thousands of years. Love, hate, villainy, nobility, greed, sacrifice, courage, wisdom, foolishness, seekers of truth and corrupt demagogues have always been with us, and barbarians are always at the gate.
Most of all, I hope to tell a good story.
To help realize these hopes, I've chosen to use a lot of scholar-verified words and views from that ancient time. The intent is to make it easier for you as a reader to let go of the Troy you think you know—the Troy with shirtless Brad Pitts and Sean Beans conquering it (just before a ripped Gerard Butler holds off a million or so decadent Persians) or the Troy you fell asleep hearing about for weeks on end in High School. Or both.
So, how does calling Troy 'Wilios' fit in with that? Historical accuracy is a factor.
First, Homer called it Wilios. In the Iliad, the bard names the conquered city both 'Troy' (Τροίη) and 'Wilios' (Ϝίλιος). That makes sense. Especially, if you're a master bard with ten thousand lines of poetry to remember and you have to modify it on the fly each night to please the audience in front of you. Having two or more names for a thing—each with a different number of syllables—makes it much easier to tell a story as a poem, which was Homer's thing. "Thank you, thank you! I'll be here all week. And don't forget to tip your waitress. House Master, more wine; my throat is dry!."
Second, Wilios is what its conquerors and defenders called the city. As I noted above, Homer lived as long after the Trojan War as we live after Drake's victory over the Spanish Armada, or Shakespeare. Language changes over several centuries—wouldst thou not agree, mayhap, sire? And so it was for Homer. The Greek spoken by Troy's conquerors used a 'w' sound, but Homer's Greek did not. And Hittite records from the time of the Trojan War name the city and its lands Wilusa.
So, for False Light, 'Troy' had to be named Wilios, restoring the dropped 'w'. And 'the Greeks' had to be called what they called themselves, Achaeans (also corroborated by those helpful Hittite scribes).
Make sense? I hope so. Even more, I hope these and my other author's choices will help carry you away into this fascinating time with your mind wide open. You're going to meet some intriguing people doing some interesting things.
The Ancient Middle
The events in my novel, False Light, take place long ago in Western Greece and the Central Mediterranean. Things were not the same back then.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Our story begins twenty years after the fall of Troy, so long ago that most of the Mediterranean Sea was still a vast mystery. In that time, the exciting tales Homer spun out for us in the Iliad and the Odyssey were not myth but the stuff of daily life. There was no 'Middle Sea', as the Romans would call it more than a thousand years later, only a Great Sea that had no end, stretching on forever into the West.
The people of False Light lived when Aegypta was the world's invincible super-power and had been since time began. For our characters, the 'middle' of things was somewhere toward that impossibly huge river delta, perhaps at an imaginary spot between the islands we call Crete and Cyprus.
Back then, Italy was not Italy, but a barbarous wilderness in the Far West where belief in magic held sway while Gods were few and terrible, a place often populated by vicious cannibals eager to draw dark power from the spirits of their ritually sacrificed enemies. Even the first thought of a place called Rome was four hundred years in the future.
Primeval forests grew and thick topsoil lay where, today, three millennia of wood fires, shipbuilding and sheep have given much of the Mediterranean region its barren, rocky slopes and scrub pines.
Back then, Greeks called themselves Achaeans. Over the previous few hundred years, they'd taken the mainland of southern Greece and learned civilization's value from a powerful people called the Islanders, who also—inadvertently—taught them the secrets of the sea. So, of course, the Achaeans took the Islanders' empire as well. Then, they took more. Finally, the allied kingdoms of Achaea invaded and conquered The Island itself, Crete. Today, we call those defeated, ancient islanders Minoans.
The Achaeans were a strong, proud and vital people. They looked down on the old, effete empires that had come before and from whom they'd wrested glory and their own place in the sun. Now, Achaea is a full and rising member in the brotherhood of civilized powers. And Pylos in the western Peloponnese is first in honor among all Achaean kingdoms.
With the capture of Wilios—Homer's Troy—and its countless treasures, Achaeans rule all of the Great Sea worth having. Nine Achaean kingdoms spread across southern Greece, the Aegean islands and Crete. Three more control much of what we know as the coast of western Turkey. And, the new Achaean Kingdom of Wilios has opened a great door to another vast sea with more riches waiting to be taken.
To the north and west of Achaea, twenty or so scattered Achaean Princedoms dot the wild, barbarian coasts and occupy some choice inland sites. One of those sites will become Olympia, where games to honor the Gods go on for a thousand years. By chance—or the will of the Gods—those games will begin right around the time that a tiny settlement on a single hill near a bend in an Italian river names its first king. This insignificant village calls itself Rome.
Greatest of the Achaean Princedoms is Thapsos on the east coast of modern Sicily. Beyond Thapsos is wilderness. There's nothing there except more barbarians, those pillars that Hercules will tell of in a few hundred years and then the end of the world.
For Achaeans, salt water is both enemy and friend. There are no maps or charts and the open sea will kill even a hundred-oared galley as fast as a starving lion rips the throat from a newborn lamb. Sailors who want to live never stray much beyond sight of land. But, thousands of them follow those rocky coasts and make the dangerous crossings that allow Achaea to be a great empire rather than just a scattering of kingdoms.
In the Far West, is one other place of note, the mysterious, vile Spider Island of Sardu, a land of looming, black stone castles built in strange, circular patterns, where everyone's hand is raised against his neighbor. For Sards, war and treachery have been the warp and weft of life since the Gods overthrew the Titans. For a century now, Sard Warfathers have supplied tens of thousands of men as mercenaries to civilized kingdoms around the Great Sea. The strongest of the black castle keeps also send vast quantities of copper and bronze on Pylosian ships to feed foundries and workshops in the civilized world. And they grow rich.
Thanks to its fertile land and secure position, Pylos became the first powerful Achaean kingdom. And, it's still the richest because of those metals flowing in from Sardu. Pylos is first in honor among the Achaeans because its king and heroes led Achaea to finally defeat Wilios after 200 years and four great wars, though Achaea's King of kings now rules in Mycenae to the east.
The vigorous Achaeans have made themselves great in the world, and their future is bright. Or so they think.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The map sums up who is where as the story begins in 1,202 BC, twenty
years after the Trojan War and near the end of the Bronze Age in the eastern Mediterranean.
Meandering in Miletus
More than three thousand years ago, it rivaled Troy.
Back then, Miletus was the major Mycenaean port city in Asia Minor. The Mycenaeans, Homer's Achaeans, had taken it from people he called Carians, and it was under constant threat from the powerful Hittites inland who called it Millawanda.
Thales of Miletus was famous as one of the Seven Sages. Later, the city was conquered by Alexander, Romans and Goths. Then, finally, the Turks. Today, the famous river Meander no longer flows past at the end of its winding course, and the coast now lies miles away. But a thoughtful stroll through the monumental Roman ruins almost brings these ancient memories back to life.
I was in the Miletus a few years ago to research a setting for part of a book. Before the trip, I'd studied maps, ancient texts, scholarly works and Google Earth. Very dry stuff. So, it was good to be on the ground at last, scrambling over the stones in a place where so many ancient powers had once held sway. I did a lot of exploring there and was happy to discover all I had hoped to find.
By the way: Three cheers for the Turks! One of the many things I appreciate about the Turks' approach to archaeological sites is the access an interested visitor can have. They preserve and protect the fragile things, but use common sense, treating stones as a bit more durable than glassware. In most of Europe on the other hand, the various ministries of antiquities hire thousands of make-work employees whose only purpose seems to be access prevention. And, as with many entrenched employees of the state, their attitude is mostly so pointless and surly that it can make you long to be back home, suffering abuse from a slightly less truculent DMV window clerk on Crack. Go Turks!
In Miletus, the 15,000 seat Roman theater used to face the sea and is still mostly intact. Though the structure dates from about 240 BC, some form of theater had likely been in that place for a thousand years then.
And the nearby Baths of Faustina (c. 40 AD) were the model from which Turkish Baths came into being. Before taking Miletus, nomads from the steppes had little use for bathing. And, the Turks conquered this area long before finally taking down the last of the Roman Empire in the East. So they had plenty of time to adopt the practice.
But these things are so new. Even if you don't know all the details of what happened here, as you explore the ruins, you can know that few places on earth are so steeped in continuous history, including Troy.
And at Miletus, you can touch it! Go there when you can.
Rosy-Fingered Dawn
In the Iliad, he speaks of the incomparable Aegean dawn:
"Now, when rosy-fingered Eos in robe of saffron hastens from the streams of Oceanus, bringing light to mortals and immortals… ."
Ever since reading the poet's words as a boy, I had dreamt of seeing Eos perform her magic. So, when I first had the good fortune to sail the Aegean, I was up on deck well before dawn that first morning. The beauty I found there brought me back every morning.
On that trip, my companions were enthralled by the Dodecanese evenings. And those too are not to be missed. But I happily chose to ease up a bit on night life in favor of those special dawns. I was never disappointed except for one stormy morning as a grumpy and no doubt hung over Zeus hurled his lightning bolts all around us. Even now when I return, I still jump out of my bunk at zero dark thirty every day to gobble up another helping of dawny goodness.
Photos are sometimes tough to get while sailing along in the dim early light. Tough but worth it. Riding at anchor is better. Ashore, with the camera on a tripod is more so. But the privilege of just being there before sunrise is always best.
Ancient Greek myth had the dawn goddess, Eos, with her rosy fingers and golden arms opening the gates of heaven every day. This allowed her brother, Helios, to bring his chariot into the world, carrying light across the sky. As you might imagine, people back then took care to make sure Eos stayed happy.
We moderns know better of course. Isaac Newton figured out that it's all just soulless math. But when you are out there, alone with the sea, gazing at that storied sky, an Aegean dawn doesn't feel like mundane celestial mechanics. It feels like a miracle.