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Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees: Review of Regional Support Hubs (AR2006-160-03), 15 Feb 2007
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- January 12, 2009
United Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services (UN OIOS) 15 Feb 2007 report titled "Review of Regional Support Hubs [AR2006-160-03]" relating to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The report runs to 5 printed pages.Note
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UNITED NATIONS Office of Internal Oversight Services UNHCR Audit Service Assignments AR2006/160/03 15 February 2007 Audit Report R06/R004 REVIEW OF UNHCR REGIONAL SUPPORT HUBS Auditors: Alpha Diallo Krishna Menon Anita Hirsch Humphrey Kagunda Gesine Aden ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- UNITED NATIONS NATIONS UNIES Office of Internal Oversight Services UNHCR Audit Service REVIEW OF UNHCR REGIONAL SUPPORT HUBS (AR2006/160/03) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In June to November 2006, OIOS conducted an audit of UNHCR's Regional Support Hubs (RSH) in Ghana and Kenya as well as Headquarters' role in monitoring and managing the RSHs. The audit covered the functioning of the RSHs, the nature and quality of services provided, the procedures and practices of the functional units at Headquarters and the Bureau for Africa in assessing and planning the use of regional resources. The Bureau has accepted most of the recommendations made and are in the process of implementing them. Overall Assessment � OIOS established that there was overall satisfaction with the work undertaken by RSHs and the regional global officers although the functioning of the RSHs could be improved to ensure they are more effective and efficient in achieving their objectives. As UNHCR is considering outposting in the near future, it is essential that the RSH lessons are learned and that clearer objectives and expectations for outposting functions be defined from the outset to allow for the measurement and evaluation of the benefits obtained. OIOS findings and recommendations � The RSHs have been established in Ghana and Kenya. While the RSH in Kenya met most of the criteria for determining the location of the RSH, OIOS found that the position of the hub in Accra was less than ideal in terms of logistics, language spoken locally as opposed to that in the region covered and UN presence. In OIOS' view, the cost and logistics aspects may not have received proper consideration prior to determining the establishment of an RSH in Accra. � The Bureau for Africa and most functional units at UNHCR Headquarters foresaw benefits for the RSHs in terms of proximity to the operations and the ability to react quickly in addressing areas of concern and the provision of assistance. Most functional units found tangible benefits emerging from the regional global posts, although these could not be measured. � The creation of new posts at the RSHs had not been preceded by a needs assessment based on clear criteria of the expected added value. Also, considering changing strategic objectives and operational priorities, a post-by-post review had not been regularly and systematically performed. � In reviewing the country coverage of each regional function, there did not appear to be any consistency in a given RSH, nor was the coverage in-line with that of the desks. Considering ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- the number of countries in both regions, the Bureau for Africa and functional units should agree on a more realistic coverage based on predefined criteria and a fully documented needs assessment involving field operations. � Work procedures and reporting varied from one RSH to the other and interaction between the two had been limited. More interaction would ensure synergies are achieved by the sharing of best practices and experiences resulting in efficiencies and reducing the duplication of work. The Bureau stated that more interaction between the hubs has taken place and will continue. � The regional global posts should serve the Bureau's strategy in their own specific field of expertise. It was indicated that sometimes strategies as implemented by the regional officers conflicted with those of the Bureau or that the agenda of functional units prevailed. The desks, identified as the principal Bureau interlocutors, admitted having little input in the planning or feedback for regional functions. Strategic planning meetings with all stakeholders of respective RSHs would allow for better global planning and arbitration on the RSHs operational plans. The Bureau for Africa agreed to OIOS' recommendation and stated it would be taken into consideration as part of the overall strategic planning exercise. � An improved consultation process was necessary for the development of the regional global officers' workplans. Improvements as to the development of workplans by the Kenya RSH were evident in 2006. An effective consultation process would ensure that country operations' needs were properly reflected as well as achieving buy-in to the plan from the representations. In response to the draft report the Kenya RSH also stated that they had developed standard operating procedures, which ensured that flexible workplans were developed in consultation with functional units, desks/Bureau and representations. OIOS suggests that the standard operating procedures be reviewed, and if approved, be finalised for use by both RSHs. � For assessing the performance of regional global officers, OIOS ascertained that due to multiple reporting lines there was a lack of clarity and understanding regarding the chain of supervision and command. Some units have almost entirely delegated the responsibility of the Performance Appraisal Report to the hub manager, on the grounds that they are not in a position to judge the performance of the regional incumbents. OIOS recommended that a process be established to ensure there is systematic feedback on the quality of services provided, as well as clearer reporting lines for regional global officers. The Kenya RSH was of the opinion that these were clear and that functional units assessed function competencies with the hub manager focusing on core competencies. February 2007 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER Paragraphs I. INTRODUCTION 1-6 II. AUDIT OBJECTIVES 7-8 III. AUDIT SCOPE AND METHODOLOGY 9-10 IV. AUDIT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS A. Country location 11-13 B. Added value of the Regional Support Hubs 14-16 C. Needs assessment 17-23 D. Country coverage 24-28 E. Bureau's coordination role 29-32 F. Review of regional functions 33-52 G. Promotion of the regional services 53-56 H. Appraisal of the regional global officers 57-65 I. Client satisfaction from beneficiary offices 66-71 J. Conclusion 72-74 V. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT 75 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I. INTRODUCTION -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


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Santa and I were chatting it up this morning in our Christmas plaza.
He told me about two little girls who visited with him earlier this week.
They looked to be three and four years old. Cuties.
After their chat, Santa added: "Oh, and girls — thank you so much for those delicious cookies you left for me last year on Christmas Eve. They were extra yummy!"
Those pixies' eyes grew wider and wider … until one piped up.
"Then how come you took the plate?!"

subset: commoncrawl


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April 27, 2010
Google Buys LabPixies
"One of the first developers to create gadgets for iGoogle was Labpixies. Over the years, we worked closely together on a variety of projects, including the launch of a number of global OpenSocial based gadgets. Recently, we decided that we could do more if we were part of the same team, and as such, we're thrilled to announce the acquisition of Labpixies. We are looking forward to working with Labpixies to develop great web apps and leverage their knowledge and expertise to help developers and improve the ecosystem overall," mentions Google Code Blog.
iGoogle really needs some new ideas to remain relevant. The updated interface launched in 2008 and the social gadgets launched last year weren't very popular. For example, the NY Times Crossword gadget developed by LabPixies only has 92,000 users, although it was a featured social gadget.
9 comments:
This should be interesting for Android game development.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousApril 27, 2010 at 11:45 AM
iGoogle needs a lot of improvements to remain relevant:ReplyDelete
One of them is the interface. The top of the page (the one which contains the search engine) is too big, and should be smaller. That space is necessary for gadgets. The design of the boxes and tabs are a bit ugly, even when you change the theme. Characters in the tabs are too big also... is all that space that necessary? NO! (at least for most of users).
The "Updates" tab should be replaced by a Buzz tab, and social gadgets should send their updates in there.
One very ANNOYING thing in iGoogle is when you are playing a sudoku and the page refresh itself and make you lost the game. I sent a lot of suggestions and feedback about that.
Besides, it need a bit of more "web 2.0" features.
- AnonymousApril 27, 2010 at 11:57 AM
Oh, and I forgot: the "Friends" tab and the Chat box should be unified to save more space.ReplyDelete
That's interesting. Congrats job LabPixies! The funny thing to me is that I used iGoogle initially and then it started to become overwhelming due to all the gadgets. Maybe it was buggy initially and it turned me off, but I'm not sure why I went back to normal Google rather than iGoogle. Maybe I'll try that again.ReplyDelete
I'd like to see a simplified version of iGoogle (iGoogle Lite) that looks like the classic Google homepage, but lets you add a custom background image and mini-gadgets for weather information, Google Calendar agenda, Gmail messages, news etc. The initial version of iGoogle looked like this.ReplyDelete
Google is starting to position itself as a content provider.. specially on mobile device mainly those using Android!ReplyDelete
I sure hope they get to create that killer apps for Droid!!!
Alex, that iGoogle Lite idea is great...iGoogle has become bloated/cluttered and they've locked down how much you can alter its appearance since inlined gadgets are no longer allowed.ReplyDelete
I feel the same way - iGoogle has become way too bloated. I've recently changed my iGoogle homepage to just news feeds. I think if they would more seamlessly integrate other social media (like Facebook and Twitter) then it would really be a hub for most Gmail users.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousMay 30, 2010 at 12:28 PM
I had internet tv gadget from labpixies on netvibes. Comes google and eat that gadget and now it is gone. I stopped using igoogle that sidebar drove me crazy. At first one could simply work around it now it simply takes up space. Netvibes is actually better than igoogle and hope I do not give ideas to google to snatch netvibes. maybe I should one day work at google and really listen to the users and remove that igoogle sidebar.ReplyDelete


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Humanity has been flying in space for 50 years now, but we are still confined to a single planet — Earth.
If it took only eight years to go from no humans in space to the first man on the moon, why haven't humans colonized Mars and other worlds yet? Or at the least the moon?
"NASA's plan as of 1969 was to have a human Mars mission by 1981, a permanent moon base in the '80s and a permanent Mars base in 1988," said Robert Zubrin, president and founder of the Mars Society.
Interplanetary human voyages pose definite scientific and technological challenges. One would have to deal with the rigors of travel — issues of food, water and oxygen, the deleterious effects of microgravity, potential hazards such as fire and radiation and the fact that any such astronauts would be millions of miles away from help and confined together for years at a time. Landing, working, living and returning from another planet would offer a host of challenges as well. [Vote! The Best Spaceships of All Time]
Space exploration versus politics
Still, the main reason that people have not yet voyaged past the orbit of the moon is mostly a political one.
The era of human spaceflight began on April 12, 1961, when the Soviet Union shocked the world by launching cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space, into orbit. At the time, the so-called Space Race was under way, with the United States and Soviet Union both working to land a human on the moon first. That race ended with NASA's historic Apollo 11 moon shot, which landed astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the lunar surface on July 20, 1969.
"The Cold War is over," said Bill Nye, executive director of the Planetary Society.
Back in the early days of human spaceflight, the United States and Soviet Union were locked in the Cold War, a life-or-death struggle that spurred the space race for control of the ultimate high ground.
Since then, however, "we've had a major failure of political leadership in this country when it came to human spaceflight," Zubrin said. "It'd be like Columbus coming back from America and Ferdinand and Isabella saying, 'so what?'"
A question of will
Although one "can talk forever about the technical problems, those are red herrings," Zubrin said. "You can talk about the risk of being exposed to radiation in space for years, but cosmonauts have already had larger cosmic ray doses at the International Space Station and Mir. This isn't a question of technical challenges — it's a question of will." [The Best (and Worst) Mars Landings]
"You can say it's risky, but imagine all the risks human spaceflight faced in the beginning," Zubrin said. "When Kennedy gave his speech in May of 1961 about putting a man on the moon, we had 15 minutes of human spaceflight experience, and yet we went."
"My uncle landed on Normandy beach," Zubrin said. "They didn't hold up the Normandy landing until they knew it was safe. If you're going to wait to go to Mars until it's going to be safe, you're never going to Mars."
The goal now "is toget people to realize the value of human spaceflight," Nye said. "When we explore with robots, we make discoveries, but not nearly as fast as with people, and not in the same engaging way."
"This is really a challenge of who we are, what kind of people we are," Zubrin said. "Are we willing to accept challenges and embrace risk? Or are we ultimately resigning from our role as a nation of pioneers?"
Follow SPACE.com contributor Charles Q. Choi on Twitter @cqchoi. Visit SPACE.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.


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Warm Reminder
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We are just over a month away from the launch of Microsoft's contender to the iPod Touch, the Zune HD. Microsoft has put all its creative forces behind the upcoming Zune HD portable media player, and by the looks of it, the iPod Touch is up for some serious competition.
From April onward, we have seen plenty of leaked information about the Zune HD, from marketing pictures to specifications, pricing, and availability. So there is enough info out there to make a healthy comparison between the Apple iPod Touch and its upcoming rival, the Zune HD.
The chart to the left (click to enlarge) puts head-to-head some of the concrete information we have on the Zune HD so far and the latest (2nd generation) Apple iPod Touch.
Availability, Price, and Display
Microsoft confirmed the launch date of the player will be September 15, with pre-orders available from September 8.
But first, it all comes down to money: Amazon leaked the pricing for the Zune HD on Tuesday. According to Amazon's pre-order page, a 16GB Zune HD will cost you $220 and the 32GB model will come at $290. Microsoft has put on some aggressive pricing in place for the Zune HD, hence the player will be $79 (for 16GB model) and $109 (for 32GB model) cheaper than the iPod Touch.
Pricing aside, the Zune HD also features a 3.3 inches OLED screen. Although 0.2 inches smaller than the iPod Touch's, Zune HD's display technology does not require a backlight to function, thus using less power and can operate longer on the same charge.
Internet Browsing and Connectivity
A first for the Microsoft Zune line of players will be inclusion of an Internet browser. The Zune HD will come with a specially designed version of Internet Explorer Mobile. Apple's Safari Mobile is already well known for speedy page rendering and hands-on test with the Zune HD have yet to prove the new player's capabilities.
The Zune HD will be able to stream music over Wi-Fi, something the iPod Touch cannot do out of the box. But the iPod Touch can stream music over Bluetooth (via A2DP) to compatible players. It is yet unknown if and what kind of Bluetooth technology the Zune HD will use.
Other advantages the Zune HD has over the iPod Touch is the built-in HD radio tuner, and the possibility connect the player to a TV via a dock (sold separately) and play HD video files.
Music, Games, and Applications
The new Zune HD will also come with Zune Marketplace — basically a music, video and podcasts store. Zune Marketplace uses a subscription model for music downloads while Apple sells songs individually.
It is yet unclear whether games and other types of software will be available after the Zune HD launch, but the powerful NVIDIA Tegra processor in the player could as well signal a new era in Zune HD games. The strength of the iPod Touch is the Apple App Store, which now has over 60,000 applications and games available for the device.
Feature-by-feature, the Zune HD and iPod Touch are very similar and the apparent price difference seems to put the advantage over the new Zune. But Apple is also expected to refresh its iPod line in September, introducing a 64GB iPod Touch and lower prices across the line. Meanwhile, there are still some unanswered questions about the Zune HD's battery life and how good it will be as a gaming platform.


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Windows XP usage finally falls below 50% markBy Emil Protalinski 43 comments
At the end of July 2011, Microsoft can say that Windows XP finally fell below the 50 percent mark. In other words, Redmond's decade-old operating system is now used by less than half of all Internet users.
Windows XP's market share is eroding, and Windows in general is slowly slipping as well: between June and July, it fell 0.63 percentage points (from 88.29 percent to 88.76 percent). At the same time, Mac OS gained 0.22 percentage points (from 5.37 percent to 5.59 percent) and Linux gained 0.03 percentage points (from 0.95 percent to 0.98 percent). Unsurprisingly, mobile operating systems gained share.
In the same time period, Windows 7 gained 0.74 percentage points (from 27.13 percent to 27.87 percent). Windows Vista meanwhile slipped 0.28 percentage points (from 9.52 percent to 9.24 percent) and Windows XP fell 1.19 percentage points (from 51.13 percent to 49.94 percent). In about a year's time, we should see Windows 7 pass Windows XP altogether.
By the end of 2010, Windows 7 had grabbed 20 percent of the market and at the end of April 2011, Windows 7 passed the 25 percent mark. Last month, Microsoft announced that Windows 7 had sold more than 400 million licenses in the last 21 months. This means that Microsoft is selling just fewer than 20 million licenses per month. Back to school season is coming up, followed by the holiday shopping frenzy, so that number should remain stable till 2012 at least.
Although Windows 7 is growing its share very quickly, the ancient Windows XP is still dominating. Microsoft knows this and is making its own attempts to woo users off the platform. The software giant still supports those using XP, despite its hate for the ancient OS.
On April 14, 2009, Microsoft retired Mainstream Support for XP, and with it, support for IE6. The company is not planning to retire Extended Support for the operating system until April 8, 2014. If the company ends up releasing XP SP4 (highly unlikely), it will retire support for SP3 (released in April 2008) two years later, or in April 2014, whichever comes first. In short, Windows XP will continue to be officially supported by Microsoft for about three more years. Despite the support options, Redmond still wants XP and IE6 to die.
Three months ago, even the National Security Agency (NSA) began advising users to upgrade from Windows XP to either Windows Vista or Windows 7. Furthermore, the organization says that when possible, choosing a 64-bit version of Windows is recommended.


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A Short Story- From Cup to Bag
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Each bag is made using 65% PET (unused previous Jameson plastic cups) and 35% cotton. As we move away from using single use plastic in Pernod Ricard, we wanted to safely and responsibly eliminate the material from our merchandise offering. We had approximately 302,000 plastic cups sitting in our warehouse. Instead of sending these to landfill, we decided to repurpose them and give them a new life. At the same time, we were running low of our popular Jameson tote bags so felt it was a great opportunity. We hope you like their story.
Available to buy in our Brand Homes stores in Bow St and Midelton.


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I make something close to the german bread dumplings, but call them matza balls and serve then in clear chicken broth with some light veggies. We all love that around here.
Stale bread is a given in most households; even the best-intentioned foodies will occasionally find themselves staring down a rapidly drying loaf of white bread with no idea how to cope. Throwing away food isn't just a waste of money — it's a downright shame. (See also: Waste Not, Want Not: Stop Throwing Away Your Food!)
Bread is a varied and delicious staple that is delicious fresh and yet still incredibly useful when past its due date. In fact, one of the better supermarket/bakery deals that can be had is bags of day-old bread. A bakery near my house sells large bags of day-old bread for approximately $2, and it includes things like scones, cinnamon rolls, and raisin bread. Perhaps I could bake these things on my own for less, but considering what an untalented baker I am, these leftover bags are a real bargain. Check with your local bakery to see if they sell or even give away their day-old extras — you might even be able to make an entire meal out of a freebie bag of bread.
Here are some ideas on how to make the most of your leftover loaves.
You can have French onion soup without a cheesy toasty topper. Well, OK, you can, but no one will want to eat it. Try Alton Brown's recipe for the perfect French onion soup, but remember that your bread topping doesn't have to be perfectly even or perfectly round. You can toss a handful of stale bread on top of your soup and still find plenty of room for the cheese to settle in.
Stale bread and eggs were somehow made for each other. If you love soufflé but aren't in the mood to worry about it rising or collapsing, use this shortcut recipe for cheese, onion, and bread soufflé that is easy as pie. Love having quiche for brunch? You can even use that healthy, high-fiber bread for a delicious weekend quiche.
Is stuffing too obvious a use for stale bread? It's my favorite, so I can't resist. The only dish at Thanksgiving that I would be heartbroken without, savory stuffing is a sure-fire accompaniment to any poultry-based meal. A small helping of rich, delicious stuffing can save a dry turkey dinner from despair or add some oomph to an otherwise normal chicken sandwich.
Stuffing doesn't always have to be served alongside fowl, though; it's also wonderful next to baked tilapia or oysters. Because stuffing has so many regional variations, you are free to branch out and try out all kinds of different recipes. Stuffing is also very forgiving — it will accept the presence of all kinds of other flavors, including squash, broccoli, spinach, sausage, nuts, cranberries, and more.
Just how handy are breadcrumbs? You'll never know until you have your own stash in waiting, ready to top macaroni and cheese and casseroles, to coat your filet of fish or famous fried chicken, to use on top of cakes and cupcakes, or to coat the bottom of a cheesecake when you are low on graham crackers.
Breadcrumbs are incredibly easy to make — just bake your stale bread on low heat (say, 150°F) in your oven or toaster oven until the bread is extremely dry and brittle. Then place the bread in your blender or food processor and churn until you have a golden brown crumbs. Further drying can be achieved in the oven or on the counter.
You can add herbs and salt if you want a savory mix for dishes. Add some brown sugar, cinnamon, cocoa powder, and coconut flakes for a delicious ice cream topper, or leave the crumbs plain for versatility.
Freeze breadcrumbs in an air-tight container for maximum storage time.
Probably one of the best-known uses for stale bread, meat loaf can be a family favorite if you make it right. Breadcrumbs are often added to meat loaf in order to add heft and save money, and they can also act to make meat loaf more tender by keeping the protein separated. The best meat loaf recipe that I have ever tried called for crushed saltine crackers, but crumbled stale bread is a logical (and inexpensive) substitute.
Meatloaf doesn't just have to be made out of beef, of course. Salmon loaf (top with dried dill and sour cream) makes a wonderful treat either hot or cold.
Did I forget to mention crab cakes? Like meatloaf, crab cakes are held together by a small amount of egg and a sprinkling of breadcrumbs (also, I've learned that using one chopped scallop per crab cake will add a certain cohesiveness to the patty without changing the flavor). Used canned crab for the best, and cheapest, results.
OK, so let's say that what you really want is fresh bread. You can always refresh your stale bread using this trick.
Think you know how to make cinnamon toast? You probably do. But we're talking about cinnamon toasts. You've never made cinnamon toast quite like this. It's the perfect way to use up fluffy-but-stale white bread, and the results last for days and are a perfect treat to take with you to a party (scroll down a bit for the recipe and pictures).
I'm a big fan of bisque as a pre-meal appetizer (slowly sipping a cup of bisque will help you eat less in your main course), and stale bread is a great carbohydrate that you can use to thicken your soup if you lack potatoes or yams. Just toss the bread in and let it get mushy like the veggies, then blend carefully in batches.
If you don't feel like blending, bread soup is big in Italian cooking, so try out a new recipe while using up leftovers.
Bread salad, also known as panzanella, is a nice change from regular old lettuce-and-dressing and often a hit at parties. Remember that the word "salad" comes from the Latin word for "salt," and it refers to salted things, not necessarily to veggies. If you want to throw a can of artichoke hearts, some sliced tomatoes, a few handfuls of stale bread, some leftover chicken, and some dressing in a bowl and call it a salad, you're well within your semantic rights to do so.
I don't have a big sweet tooth — I can honestly pass on most candy, ice cream, and even pie. But bread pudding? Nearly impossible to resist. Also, it turns out, it's incredibly easy to make. I avoided making bread pudding because I was terrified that it would end up being as tragic as my cheesecake disaster, but bread pudding is delicious and simple. It's a good way to use up dessert-y breads, but don't let the rosemary loaf go to waste — just combine the flavors with complementary tastes, like rosemary with lemon.
Similar to bread pudding (and yet different) is fruit charlotte. A good way to use up both old bread and excess apples, charlotte may not be the healthiest dessert, but it's certainly among the most warming.
Hey, half the point of grilling a sandwich is to get the bread nice and crispy, and with dried sliced bread, you're already halfway there. To get a perfect grilled cheese, I lightly butter and grill both sides of the bread before applying the cheese. That way, the bread is extra crispy on both the outside AND the inside, and the cheese melts faster.
Feeling like you want less bread and more filling? Toast stale slices, and then top with anything you like, from olive tapenade to leftover meat loaf. Any variation of bruschetta will do, and the crunchy, toasty base will hold together better than fresh bread in the face of moister toppings.
French toast practically begs for the use of stale bread, and there's no reason to limit this tasty treat to breakfast time — you can enjoy French toast for dinner, too. I personally love all flavors of French toast, but my new favorite involves spreading one side of the stale bread with a light layer of cream cheese (or chevre), and the other side with a tart jelly (like cherry or marmalade) before dipping it in egg batter and cooking.
French toast doesn't have to be limited to large slices of sandwich bread — a popular snack in my household is French toast bites made of slices of tiny French baguettes that are past their prime.
Nothing can be easier than turning stale bread into delicious gourmet croutons for soup and salad toppings. Simply toss the bread in a mixture of olive oil, dried herbs, and salt and toast until golden brown. You can add parmesan cheese after toasting (adding it before toasting might cause some burning).
Croutons are great for fondue and also to top off a particularly gourmet Bloody Mary.
Are all carbs created equal? Could you substitute bread for rice or potatoes? There are some who might disagree, but consider that a very popular Moroccan dish is basically a chicken stew poured over day-old bread. You don't even have to make Moroccan bread to make this dish. Just tear us slightly stale bread into bite-size pieces and smother the bread with your own curry, Irish stew, or whatever floats your boat.
Semmelknoedel are German dumplings that are a little bit like Italian gnocchi, but are made using stale bread and milk. Enjoy in a soup, topped with mushroom gravy or marinara, alongside meats and fish, or however you like your dumplings. Create a slightly sweeter version (minus the garlic, pepper, and herbs) and eat warm with honey, almonds, and ricotta cheese.
OK, I've heard that bread isn't good for birds and all that. I'm sure that the Audubon Society would have me stuffed and mounted for saying so, but seagulls aren't really birds, are they? No, they are just big, flying cockroaches, and bread won't hurt them at all.
How you store your bread depends an awful lot on the kind of bread it is. When I buy "artisanal" loaves of bread from the supermarket, I do so with the understanding that the bread will last approximately four days on the kitchen counter, wrapped in a paper bag and then loosely in a plastic bag. Regular sliced bread from the bread section of the store (as opposed to the actual bakery) can last for as long as two weeks, so long as the last week is spent in the fridge. Your own storage methods and preferences probably depend a great deal on your climate and your ability to spot the first few strands of mold.
Incidentally, if you see a loaf that is just starting to mold, there is no shame in cutting off the fuzzy part and saving the interior.
The freezer, though, is where stale bread goes to await its reincarnated fate. If you've never frozen bread before, Martha Stewart can tell you how to do that. Much of my bread ends up in freezer-safe Ziplock bags, which seem to do the trick. I don't recommend keeping bread frozen for more than six months, but how long you can tolerate the bags of bready scraps might also depend on your type of freezer and how much space you have.
Disclaimer: The links and mentions on this site may be affiliate links. But they do not affect the actual opinions and recommendations of the authors.
Wise Bread is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
I make something close to the german bread dumplings, but call them matza balls and serve then in clear chicken broth with some light veggies. We all love that around here.
I always gather up all our bread scraps and soak them in water i have boiled potatoes or vegetables in and feed them to my chickens. It always comes in handy to have a stash of bread in case I run out of food and haven't got time to get to the store.
The problem I've run into with freezing bread is that each slice ends up with some pockets of wetness, so when I pop it into the toaster oven, it doesn't quite toast up evenly -- some parts are nice and toasted, while other parts are still cold and wet. Any way to get around that?
My wife makes a German recipe called Butterball soup. It uses breadcrumbs to make what looks like meatballs, which are then added to chicken soup. A Christmas favorite around our house.
One word: Stratas! Just mix 4 eggs with 2 cups of half and half, milk, cream or whatever you have on hand, about half a loaf of stale bread cubed and pretty much any combination of cheese and vegetables that you would want to eat with eggs. Put it all in a sprayed baking dish and bake at 350 for about 45-50 minutes or until it is browned on top. Delish, easy, reheats well.
"...but seagulls aren't really birds, are they? No, they are just big, flying cockroaches,..."
So funny and true, I just love this! :-)
If you don't use a whole loaf of fresh bread fast enough to keep it from getting stale, just freeze half the loaf. Make sure you don't stack anything atop in in the freezer, unless you like deformed bread. Let it thaw on the counter for a half-hour and it'll taste like it's a day old.
What, no mention of 'garlic toast'? Kind of like garlic bread or texas toast -- just take your stale bread slices, spread them with olive oil/margarine/butter/what-have-you, sprinkle with salt and spices (garlic powder/dried basil/oregano/etc), maybe a little parmesan if you have it around, wrapping all the slices in some aluminum foil and baking for a few minutes to heat it all up. This is a great accompaniment to any meal, but in particular spaghetti plus soup of all kinds...
Breadpudding is my all time favorite for recycling old bread. No one ever knows the difference and it's tasty.
Very good ideas! I will definitely use some of these. Definitely using my stale bread to make french toast.
I just came across this post while searching 'uses for stale bread'
What a gold mine! Thank you! I am new to blogging and would love to share your blog with my readers too! Could you let me know if that would be ok? Do I just link it back to you after mentioning? (like your references in yours)
Thanks again, what a great post.
Large supermarkets now bake and sell the same day/night. Next day (all day) they fresh baked more breads. Since cannot be bothered to make own bread. I wouldn't buy anywhere else since can have fresh baked bread right then or from one hour before. A medium white loaf from a large supermarket when stored in cupboard or bread bin. Can last up to 10 days sometimes less then go hard.
If kept in the bottom of fridge but not in vegetable draws. Will keep 2-3 weeks for medium slice and then start to mould, it can still be soft to touch. Those lightweight slimming breads more so and can go two months and still be soft when in fridge in their still unopened bread plastic bags. Though also by then have gone bad white mould, but not yet green mould. Must be some other ingredients they use on those breads.
White Mould as seen on white bread appears on all breads of age. Close look at old bread you will see it. Whiter than what was there previously. I have checked this with a few slices to verify it does go whiter for some reason before it moulds green.
I wouldn't use bread that has this white or green mould.
Bread without mould I don't mind toasting for consumption, nice with chips.
Bread will stay fresh when frozen. Though the thawing for some can be a problem. If have a fridge that ices up inside the bread bag. Best then would be when thawing to take bread out of the bag and dry the bag (without contamination).
Then put thawed bread bag in the bag and use the seal-tie-clip to maintain freshness while using it. When sealing without squashing bread expel the air from the bag to stay fresh longer.
Quote: "if you see a loaf that is just starting to mold, there is no shame in cutting off the fuzzy part and saving the interior."
I'm sorry, but this is very bad and dangerous advice. Mold grows in a network of tiny root-like strands called hyphae that grow throughout the entire loaf of bread and are invisible to the naked eye. The fuzzy part that you see on the outside is merely the spores that form at the end of the hyphae. Once spores appear on the surface, the entirey bread is moldy and should be thrown out.
Many people will tell you that they've always cut off the spore-covered part and ate the rest, and never got sick. But the toxins accumulate in their tissues over time and damage the liver and kidneys. They can also cause breathing problems, allergies, neurological problems (i.e., mental illness), and even cancer. So please do yourself a favor and dispose of the entire moldy bread, after wrapping it in a garbage bag to keep the spores from spreading everywhere.
Bread is actually really bad to give to birds. It expands in their stomach and actually has no nutritional value, so a bird with a bread diet will inevitably wind up with malnutrition and die. Please, don't feed birds bread.
It is okay to give them bread if it has been soaked in water so that it has already expanded. I have feeding it, along with other things like seed and fruit to the birds that visit our garden for 20 years. The sparrows like to give it to their young, who appear to continue to thrive. They are bright enough to not just stick to the bread, they will eat insects etc too.
Thanks for this post... I was trying to figure out what to do with the bread we always seem to have leftover. I didn't even think of all the cooking purposes. I was mostly trying to figure out if I could feed it to the birds without doing any serious damage... seeing I give my family carbs, I don't really feel too badly giving our local birds carbs too. If only we had some local flying cockroaches... ;)
I defrost my frozen bread in the microwave. I have a 1000 watt microwave and I put the bread in a plastic bag or the bread wrapper without the tie for 4.5 Minutes on level 3. I also defrost two to four slices in the microwave for 20 seconds on high. The slices are warped in paper towel.
We heard the same thing about the birds so we switched to feeding ours to the turtles and fish in the pond at our local park.
You might think so... do you keep track of the birds to see the longterm effects? Scientific research exists for a reason - to help us grow, learn, and do better. Bread is bad for birds. Period. Whether you think so or not. I can't think of a reason to feed birds other than that you enjoy them and are trying to help... if this is true, don't ignore the facts that you are actually hurting them by feeding out bread.
Just click the words Cinnamon Toast within the Cinnamon Toast article... it may take you to the article.
Awesome ideas, and thanks for them. You could eliminate the one about feeding it to birds though. Whether or not Audubon would stuff you for it, bread is better off in the trash can than being given to wild birds. The detrimental effects of that are far reaching. And yea, gulls are birds not cockroaches. Pretty amazing birds deserving of a bit more respect... and not in need of stale bread.
Get over yourself. They swarm to our trash bins and steal what we don't give them, rat-like birds. A little bread from the kitchen won't hurt them.


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Click here to access the Tanksim website
The Web's #1 BBS for all submarine and naval simulations!
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Nooooob, looking for a tank game
Hi all.
I'm looking for a tank game to buy. Does anyone have any recomendations? The historical setting doesn't bother me.
Gamewise, something that sits between aracde and full sim. While I can see both being fun in their own way, I'd rather not play a game which ignores any sense of realism and/or physics or play a game where I have to press 34 keys just to move 6 feet forward, before stalling
I did look at World of tanks and War thunder but decided against them both. They both look fun in thier own way, but I'd rather rather be playing against tanks of the same era, rather than a mixture of old and new and playing against people who can own the opposition just because they can buy upgrades & premium, doesn't appeal.
Thank you for any suggestions.
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I highly recommend Steel Beasts. I was an avid player for many years. The price to own it might seem high at first, but there are many options which allow you to try it for a limited time at very little cost. (E.g.: US$9.50 for 1 month.)
It is a sim, and you can spend days learning what each switch does in a particular vehicle. (It is actually used by [IIRC] nine different armies to train their tank crews.) However, you can also play it exclusively from the map screen and just direct your units where to go and let the AI do all the dirty work, or even script out the movements in the planning phase before the mission starts and sit back and watch it unfold. Or anywhere in-between. There are quite a few missions included and at least one campaign, and there are many more missions available for download on the forum site. The mission editor is extremely powerful and allows for randomization such that even the designer of a mission might not know exactly what to expect, and makes replay-ability very high.
The graphics aren't the best (the game is over fifteen years old now), but the devs have spent a great deal of effort making sure the physics are accurate. And there are constant updates improving everything from features to graphics. There is a huge number of vehicles to choose from, most of which can be crewed by the player. I think all are post WWII. There is no DLC in terms of weapons or vehicles, you get everything up-front and everyone is on a level playing field. The only advantage comes down to skill and tactics.
There are no dedicated servers. Each online game must be coordinated in advance with one player acting as the host, but there is a community game every Friday night at 10 p.m. EST and many "virtual units" which meet regularly and welcome newcomers. The online community is second to none (many RL current and ex-tankers) and the members will gladly help any noobs learn the ins and outs. It's relatively easy to learn the basics, but mastering the strategy may take a lifetime. Occasionally, there will be an online campaign lasting several weeks.
IMHO, when it comes to tanks: there is no equal to Steel Beasts. The devs are totally engaged with the community and regularly post in the forums and respond to civilian requests for in-game content whenever they can. (Although their military customers do take top priority.)
Feel free to ask me any questions you may have about it. There are also plenty of videos on YouTube. Here is one I made of an online campaign I played in a few years ago:
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Thanks Nathaniel, I'll take a look.
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Here's some options you might want to consider. All are unashamed tanksims and like any of their kind there is a learning curve and a lot of keystrokes, though you can get by with learning maybe a dozen or so.
Panzer Elite, WW2 - old but looks acceptable with one or more of the available mods, still available, still modded and still one of the best-equipped and most playable: https://combatace.com/forums/topic/9...er-the-tigers/
Steel Fury - Kharkov 1942 - WW2 - more modern and very good graphics, still mostly Ostfront but excellent range of user-made missions and playable AFVs available, especially with the STA mod:
Steel Armor -Blaze of War - Cold War - an improved tanksim from the makers of Steel Fury, in the same league as Steel Beasts as regards realism IMHO. Few mods and just two playable tanks, and a steep learning curve if you want to get into the wargame mode as well as the tanksim mode:
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Thanks 33lima, there's some good looking screenshots there!
I confirm Steel Beasts. Check the ressource sticky thread at the top of the forum list. Its the benchmark title in the tank genre. Its the most realistic tank sim you can find. Thats does not mean you should be afraid of having to learn many things like you would for a complex flight sim ockcpit, procedures and the likes. SBP is easy to handle, but the mission may be difficult to master, since tactics are trump, and failing here is unforgiving. Newcomers will die a lot in the beginning, and hardly know what hit them, form where, and why. So, the sim is very accessible, but very challenging to survive. Over a dozen Western tank armies use the software in cabin simulators or classroom networks to train. Other tank games play tank battles. Steel Beasts fights them properly.
If you feel nuts, consult an expert.
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Featured Session ~ Brooke – Mad Men Inspired Styled Senior Portraits ~ Kennesaw GA / Cobb County ~ {Atlanta, Alpharetta, Johns Creek, Lawrenceville – Senior Photographer}February 21, 2014
Are you all ready to see Brooke's "Mad Men" inspired portion of her session?! I felt like a boxing announcer just then for a second, ya know that whole, "Let's get ready to rumbllllle!!" I mean, I didn't literally just yell it out loud, but in my head, that's exactly how it sounded! ;) Seriously though, I have been so excited to share these with you all!
Before we look at all the images, just a little on the behind the scenes work that went into creating this fabulous shoot. A few weeks into our planning the shoot, Brooke found the perfect dress. Literally, it was perfect – perfect style for her vision and the perfect fit!! I visited local antique shops and researched how to find period appropriate pieces. I even enlisted the help of my mother to hit some antique shops on her side of town. All of this was for the mission of finding the perfect 1950s-1960s style props to help with our shoot. After binge watching hours and hours of Mad Men episodes, I couldn't wait for this shoot!
The day of the shoot was perfect and Brooke, as you can tell, did an amazing job! If this girl didn't channel her inner Joan Holloway / Betty Draper, well my friends, no one can. ;)
I cannot wait for another "Be Unique" portrait session like this!!! It'll be tough to beat this one, for sure, but I bet there is another fabulous senior girl out there that's ready for the challenge! ;)
If you want to stay up to date with all the most recent sessions and behind the scenes, click HERE and "LIKE" and also HERE to follow on Instagram!
Makeup - Laura Briscoe Makeup Artistry


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Tropical Oasis Collection
Introducing the serenity of the tropics
We'd like to invite you to a secluded place where peace and harmony can be found. A place where you can go to escape the noise when the murmurs of this world have become too loud. And listen to the refreshing sounds of your own voice. This collection has been inspired by the purity and simplicity of the secret getaways of the tropics. It borrows elements from plaited and worn surfaces, recognizing the dedicated crafters whose tender touch can still be felt, long after their hands have let go. With this collection, we want to invite you to create your own tropical oasis, a sanctuary, a secret garden, in the only place that truly matters – your home.
Give Your Room a Natural Confidence
Our very first trend collection, Tropical Oasis, invites you to a place where peaceful harmony can be found. It has been inspired by the secret tropical gardens and the careful crafters of the tropical world. This collection erases the borders between in- and outdoor living and with its balance between handpicked surfaces and beautiful motifs it accentuates simplicity. Find your path to tranquility with this collection's raku crackles, vintage boards, rainforest mist – or wrap yourself in the soothing gemstone colors of peacock feathers.


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Bluezone Corporation presents 'Spectral Line - Cinematic Trailer Sounds', an ultramodern collection of ambiences, evolving soundscapes, nervous drone sounds, cinematic SFX, impacts, meticulously recorded synth textures, energetic transitions, rises, whooshes and more. This sample library brings you highly flexible sound design elements ( 1 GB and includes 139 WAV + 139 AIFF files ) for suspense, media trailer, cinematic drama, ambient, sci-fi and action soundtracks. All samples are named according to their content and sorted thematically. In order to give you ready-to-use sounds for your productions, all samples are royalty-free for all your commercial projects.
More info, demo and download : Spectral Line - Cinematic Trailer Sounds'
Spectral Line - Cinematic Trailer Sounds
A place to sell your old gear or new library releases.
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The remainder of this week's featured online events, highlighted in Archinect's Virtual Event Guide, include Barbara Bestor and celebrity chef Roy Choi in discussion as part of Woodbury's end of year celebration; Amanda Aman shares her travel research from the Arctic... View full entry
Foreclosed is controversial because it suggests that the state, or the public sector — conceived along with civil society in terms of multiple, overlapping, virtual and actual publics — might play a more active, direct and enlightened role in the provision of housing and, by extension, of education, health care and other infrastructures of daily life in the United States.... Simply put, can we no longer imagine architecture without developers? — Places Journal
Earlier this year Foreclosed: Rehousing the American Dream opened at MoMA in New York. The exhibition quickly became controversial, with some decrying it as elitist and paternalistic, others defending it as powerful and ambitious. On Places, Reinhold Martin, co-organizer of Foreclosed, and... View full entry
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Difference between revisions of "Lomatium triternatum"
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Revision as of 11:45, 16 April 2012
Abbreviation: LOTR
Seed sample from: 2011
Average Measurement: 9.5 x 3.3 x 1
Measurement Range: L: 7.25 - 12.5, W: 3 - 4, D: 0.5 - 1.5
Shape: Seed a schizocarp, winged, laterally compressed, and ribbed.
Color: On one seed face, there are three white ribs that run across a dark reddish brown surface. On the opposite seed face there is one rib that bisects the dark brown.
Surface: Seeds are matte.
Latitudinal Cross Section: rhombic
Longitudinal Cross Section: elliptical http://wikis.evergreen.edu/pugetprairieplants/index.php/File:LOTR_BeccaReilly_sdl_good.JPG
Basic Explanations and Assumptions:
The dimensions for the seeds are length x width x depth. The location of the hilum is used as the base of the seed, and the length is measured from hilum to the opposite apex. Where a style is present, the length is measured from the hilum to the bottom of the style. Width is measured at a right angle to the length at the widest part. Depth is measured at a right angle to the intersection of height and width lines.
Measurements included are the mean average for each measurement of ten separate seeds.
All measurements in millimeters unless otherwise noted.


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Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer has, as you may have heard, officially killed telecommuting for Yahoo employees as part of her strategy to bring the aging Internet giant back into fighting condition. "Speed and quality are often sacrificed when we work from home," reads the HR memo that officially reshackled Yahoo's remote employees. "We need to be one Yahoo!, and that starts with physically being together." It's a bold move – perhaps even a good one for the company, which has struggled to keep up with the likes of Google and Facebook. But if you work remotely, as I do, there's only one real reaction to this news: pants-soiling fear.
Thanks to Yahoo's latest corporate directive, employers across the country now have an example to point to as evidence that allowing workers to do their jobs from outside the confines of an office is bad for business. And as a myriad of Mayer's supporters have pointed out, there is ample evidence that face-to-face interactions remain the best way for a team to collaborate, regardless of the communications tools made possible by the Internet. That's bad news for anyone who makes a living from home, who may be looking at the possibility of more companies following in Yahoo's footsteps.
On the other side, opponents of Yahoo's telecommuting ban, especially working mothers who often rely on telecommuting to keep their families afloat, cite study after study showing that remote workers are actually more productive than their cubicled counterparts, take fewer sick days, and are generally happier employees.
Working from home has taught me the art of self-discipline.
For the past two years, I have made a living writing and reporting for Digital Trends (mostly) from my home office in upstate New York. And every day has been both a blessing and mildly terrifying – not because I was afraid of losing my job, but because proving myself from afar brings its own set of challenges.
For starters, I am constantly afraid to leave my desk for fear of missing an instant message from someone who needs to talk to me. Sure, I could always put my status to "away," but I do that too many times, and how does that look? Like I'm off screwing around, that's how. So even though I may be at home, with all the conveniences, I rarely take time to even microwave a hot dog for lunch, let alone go out for a bite.
It can also be difficult to prove how much work you've really accomplished during the day. As a journalist, I have the benefit of highly deadline-based work; every time I turn in a story, my editors (bosses) can see that I've been carrying my weight. It becomes far more complicated, however, when working on longer projects with lots of time spent with less quantifiable value, like research, interviews, and dreaded transcriptions that seem to take a lifetime to finish. Projects that don't pan out after spending hours or days doing legwork … well, those make me want to just crawl in hole and never come out.
The third, most commonly cited, downside to telecommuting is that it is next to impossible to stop working. My days begin the moment the alarm on my iPhone pulls me out of slumber, and slaps me in the face with the morning's news. Sure, I'm working from bed – but that also means I'm working from the moment I wake up. As for ending the work day, well, that never really happens. Once I've eaten dinner, taken the dog out, and done a few chores, I inevitably find myself back in front of my computer, working the night away.
My life as I currently enjoy it would not be possible without the ability to telecommute
When there's an Xbox staring you in the face, saying "Play me! Play me!" you have to learn how to stay on-task. When there's nobody staring down your neck, you are completely on your own to complete the job at hand – a fact that is both terrifying and massively rewarding when you get the hang of it. As a result, I have indeed found that my days spent working from home are the most productive.
Because of this, telecommuting might not be right for everyone. When I tell other people, including my parents, that I work remotely, the most common response I get is, "I just couldn't do it. I'd never get anything done." For those people, working remotely should not be an option. But for me, it's not only more comfortable, it's more efficient.
My life as I currently enjoy it would not be possible without the ability to telecommute, nor would the lives of the increasing number of U.S. workers who do their jobs from somewhere else. Perhaps that's why Yahoo's decision to ban the arrangement is so disappointing to so many people – we've made lives for ourselves thanks to telecommuting; and Yahoo has, inadvertently, made those lives far more difficult to live.
In the end, I only hope that Mayer's decision to do away with remote workers is seen by other employers as a move that made sense for her business, not all businesses; or at the very least, for some workers, but not all workers. For decades, we've been hearing that the Internet would free us from the confines of the past, including cubicles and gridlocked traffic. The shackles have started to fall off. Let's do what we can – by proving to employers that telecommuting can work, and by trusting remote employees that do a good job – to keep from clicking the locks once again.


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Articles Related to Shamanism
Many of the following articles are from the Foundation for Shamanic Studies journal, the Shamanism Annual. More about the Shamanism Annual and submission guidelines for writers.
The Shamanism Annual is free to our contributors. By making a donation to FSS, you will receive our journal and can stay up-to-date on recent articles on shamanism, along with other exclusive benefits.
The Shamanism Annual also provides a voluntary directory of individuals and drumming circles to help develop a worldwide community for healing and mutual help.
Be a part of the Foundation's efforts by donating now.
List of Articles
Shamanic Healing: We Are Not Alone
An Interview of Michael Harner by Bonnie Horrigan
The History and Work of the Foundation for Shamanic Studies
by Michael Harner
My Path in Shamanism
Interview with Michael Harner
The Shaman Unbound: A Teaching Miracle
by Susan Mokelke, J.D.
The Way of the Shaman: A Conversation with Susan Mokelke
Interviewed by Dave Phillips
Susan Mokelke, president of the Foundation for Shamanic Studies, talks about the work of the Foundation.
Core Shamanism and Daily Life
by Susan Mokelke
A Core Shamanic Theory of Dreams
by Michael Harner
The Reality of Spirits
by Edith Turner
Ethical Considerations in Shamanic Healing
by Susan Mokelke
The Need for a Spirituality Focused on Healing - Free of Politics
A letter from Michael Harner in response to September 11.
Healing the Aftermath of Terror
by Bill Brunton-Editor, Shamanism
Effective Core Shamanic Drumming Circles
by Susan Mokelke
Shamanism and Creativity
by Sandra Harner
Shamanism and the Spirits of Weather
by Nan Moss and David Corbin
The Reawakening of Shamanism in the West
by Bill Brunton
Tuva, Land of Eagles. -The Foundation's 1993 Expedition to Tuva
by Bill Brunton
Shamanism Alive and Well: The 1999 Legacy of the First FSS Expedition to Tuva
by Paul Uccusic
Power Animal Retrieval
by Lora Jansson
An Evening with an Inuit Elder
by Alesia Kunz
Why Study Core Shamanism?
by Susan Mokelke
What Core Shamanism Has Given Me
by Timothy Flynn
Michael Harner: An 80th Birthday Tribute
by Susan Mokelke
A Personal Look at Core Shamanism
by Timothy Flynn
Passion Projects: What Fuels the Heart
by Lora Jansson


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Hell Week – Back to the Beginning
Allow me to take you back to the halcyon days of the early aughts. Wikipedia was new. Destiny's Child was still together. The first Lord of the Rings movie was coming out. And I was re-reading the Old Testament. I think a lot of people have had the experience of re-reading something like the bible and realizing that you didn't absorb any of it the first time through. This was exactly what was happening to me. As I read the bible again, I was a bit overwhelmed by a lot of the mucky stuff in it. The guy who sacrificed his daughter to fulfill a pledge. Lot offering his virgin daughters to a mob. Samson killing everyone and cutting off their foreskins. The cannibalism. The commands to kill men, women, children, babes-in-arms.
I think it was after reading the story of Jael who put a spike through the head of a man in her tent that I put the book down and asked God that timeless question: "WTF?" And I actually got an answer: "I work it all out." I remember praying about it and when I was told that God works it all out, it carried with it a sense of totality. Everything gets worked out. Everything. And I was still thinking, "WTFudge?" I felt like a shark with a beach ball – I just couldn't grab hold of the idea. It was too much.
Part of the problem was that at the time I was a pretty standard Evangelical. Which means that I was inordinately concerned with who is saved and who is going to hell. People who accepted Jesus as Savior went to heaven, everyone else went to hell, of course. Plus, I was (am) also a death-penalty opponent because of the Catholic notion that part of the reason that taking the life of someone is wrong (even if they deserved it) because it cuts off opportunities for repentance. And here were all these stories of people whose lives were being cut short – sometimes at the command of God. Of course, these were stories from before the time of Jesus, but I think that I had some notion that people who lived exemplary lives of love could be understood to have accepted Jesus unknowingly. At any rate, the idea that God could say, "I work it all out" about these crazy stories and thousands of lives that had been cut short didn't make much sense to me. Did he ensure that those who would come to faith but hadn't yet were spared? Did he say kill them all because he knew that none of them were going to be saved anyways? I know that the "right" answer is just to trust God and leave it be, but God wired me up to figure things out – and I couldn't figure this one out.
At the same time that I was struggling with my beach ball, I was a regular participant on a "Faith and Culture" message board. One day someone posted a bible verse I had never noticed before:
"This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe." – 1 Timothy 4:9-10
Well, that didn't fit with my beliefs, so I went to my handy interlinear bible and pulled out my Strongs/Vines Concordance/Dictionary and dug in. Perhaps there was a translation issue. It happens all the time. But the thing was that the verse is pretty straight-forward. It really does say that God is the savior of all people (or men, if you prefer), especially those who believe. So I checked out commentaries on the verse and found the standard explanation. It said that God is the savior of all people, but his saving action exists only as potential in our lives until we believe – thus the "especially" for believers. This struck me as a "what it really means to say" explanation. I don't trust "what it really means to say" explanations. If that's what it really meant, then why doesn't it say that?
While I was still trying to puzzle out how to fit 1 Timothy 4:9-10 into my pre-existing theological framework, the same commentor put up 1 Corinthians 15:22:
"For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive."
And Romans 5:15:
"But the free gift is not like the transgression. For if by the transgression of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many."
The person who posted these verses commented to the effect that if only those who accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior would be saved from hell, then the work of Adam has a greater effect than the work of the Christ. So God loses and the enemy wins. But scripture draws a direct line between the effect of the transgression of Adam and the redemptive work of Jesus. All die. All made alive. In fact, the effect of Jesus' work is said to be greater than the effect of Adam's transgressions.
Just as I was starting to get really uncomfortable (because the argument makes a lot of sense and was clearly being drawn from scripture) someone else on the board responded, "I'm getting sick of all this universalist crap." Universalist crap? I had never heard anything about this "universalist crap". So, wanting to know what he was talking about, I searched "universalist" on google and found my way to a site called Tentmaker. Over at Tentmaker I learned that "universalism" is the teaching that everyone goes to heaven – we all get "saved". And not only did this Tentmaker sight claim that this was so, it claimed that this was the teaching of the bible and the ancient Christian church and that they could prove it. Now, clearly I'm not a bible illiterate – I know that the bible says some people go to hell forever. So I headed over to their "Scholar's Corner" to see what such a claim could possibly be based on.
The Scholar's Corner at Tentmaker contains thousands of pages documenting the basis for their claims. It contains entire books that had been laboriously scanned in by hand explaining in minute detail bible verses, translation issues, philosophical arguments, ancient writings, church history and more to make the case that the true teaching of Christianity really is that all are saved. Over the next few months I read almost all of it. I hunted down anything I could find from other sources to check and double and triple check the claims being made. I sought out the arguments of those who disagreed with universalism to assess the case against it. And I came away completely and utterly convinced that Tentmaker's outrageous claim that the bible teaches the salvation of all men is actually true. What God had told me month earlier really was true – he works everything out. From that time forward, I have been a Christian Universalist.
As you might imagine, I was pretty excited at this new understanding and wanted to share it with others. I mean, the fact that the bible teaches that Jesus' work really is complete and that all will be saved is really good news, I thought. Only what I discovered was that no matter how well I made my case or how much evidence I provided, no one wanted to hear it. No one could make a reasonable argument against what I said, but that didn't matter. Some people couldn't believe that God is that good. Others didn't want to believe God is that good. I seemed to be the only one excited to hear that Gandhi wasn't burning in hell and, at least in time, your Great Grandma Tilly won't be either. Instead, I was accused of rejecting the clear teaching of the bible and becoming a heretic. I was afraid to say anything to the people I went to church with out of fear of being cast out. In fact, the reason I haven't written about it here up until now was because a few years ago God specifically told me to leave the subject alone for the time being because there is already too much division in the body. It wasn't my battle to fight.
But times are a-changing. Universalism is no longer such an obscure idea. People like Rob Bell and even Scot McKnight have started talking about the possibility that maybe our ideas about hell aren't all that. And even if they don't accept universalism, they are willing to allow that those who do aren't automatically heterodox. As I mentioned yesterday – there's even a film coming out this fall to discuss the topic. And at least two of the theologians invited to participate are Christian Universalists. So, the time has come for me to chime in as well.
Over the course of this week, I'll be sharing the basis for my Christian Universalist beliefs and why adopting this belief has transformed my faith life. My (somewhat tentative) schedule for the rest of this week will be:
Tuesday – A Word With One Meaning or 30? Talking about aion and aionian – two Greek Words whose meaning is at the root of the problem.
Wednesday – Eternal Punishment or An Age of Chastisement Is there a purpose to hell? Or does God just want you good and miserable? And what about the lake of fire?
Thursday – What the Hell? Where did our ideas of hell come from? Are the consistent with what Jesus thought or have we just made a lot of crap up?
Friday – From Greek to Latin and Grace to Condemnation What did the early church believe about hell? When and why did it change?
Saturday – When the Gospel Becomes Really Good News I'll talk about why Universalism has been such a benefit to my faith. And why fears that it makes Christianity and evangelism irrelevant are complete wrong. And other loose ends.
Bonus: Getting back to Hell Week A quick clarification on these posts. I'm sharing my conclusions, not making a comprehensive argument. I explain why and where to go if you want more proof for the claims I make in this series.
The links above will go live as I get each post up. I have gone back and forth over whether to enable commenting on these posts. My experience in trying to discuss this topic online is that people have a knee-jerk reaction and begin throwing out bible verses and saying goofy things without actually thinking anything through. Or listening. And like your teacher always used to say, you should hold your questions (and objections) until the end because they will probably be answered on the way. So, for now I'm going to moderate comments on these posts. If the comment is an objection that's going to be answered elsewhere I'm going to take it donw and once that post is up, I'll approve it with the link to the post with the proper information. On Sunday I will put up a final post addressing any questions or objections that come in which don't get addressed in the posts listed above. Anyone who just wants to share what their own experiences or thoughts are about each post, I'll just let those go through. Anyone who just wants to tell me I'm a heretic and dragging people down to hell with me, I'll let those go through just so people can observe first hand the quality of the discourse coming from the other side. Sound fair?
*About Tentmaker: the people who run the site have a few, er, "quirky" ideas about a couple of subjects not related to Christian universalism, including Israel and prophesy. Fortunately, they have revamped their site so that such things aren't listed out front with their arguments about the teaching of hell. I simply bring it up in order to say that if you dig something up, please do not come back and insist that the whole idea has been discredited by association. Or think that I'm supporting a political agenda along with the universalism. I'm not. A lot of the information I'll be using comes right from their site simply because it's they have the best collection of scholarly resources available in one place on the subject. Some of them are available only on their site (usually because they were the ones who scanned the material in from printed books by hand). Others are available elsewhere as well. But you really can't do any better if you are interested in the subject than going to their site and digging in.
Pass It On!
#scripture #christianity #biblestudy #spirituality #religion


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Transmission is a BitTorrent client for the Mac and Linux operating systems. It is the most popular client on Mac OS X and the default BitTorrent client on many Unix and Linux distributions, including Ubuntu, Mandriva, Fedora and OpenSuse. Although open source and technically cross-platform in nature, the developers of Transmission have not released a Windows version of the software yet.
Transmission-Qt Win is an unofficial Windows build of Transmission which features a simple interface on top of the cross-platform back-end. The interface and functions of the Windows port is identical to that found on the Mac and Linux counterpart. Transmission is a pretty advanced BitTorrent client with powerful features, most of these already available on uTorrent and similar software with the exception of blocking bad peers with a blacklist.
Download: Transmission-Qt Win 2.50 | (13.7 MB) Open source
View: Homepage | Release Notes


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Featured News - Current News - Archived News - News Categories
by Sarah Dollendorf
Renowned for its scenic routes, the 5th annual Mighty Niagara Half Marathon/Hospice Dash 5K takes place on Saturday, Sept. 21, with appeal to runners who support Niagara Hospice Alliance Inc.
Starting off at Artpark at 9:15 a.m., the Mighty Niagara course runs for 13.1 miles through the Village of Lewiston along Lower River Road, to the Village of Youngstown and historic Old Fort Niagara, continuing along Lake Road, Four Mile Creek State Park and finishing at Porter on the Lake in the Town of Porter.
Both of the races feature courses that are smooth and relatively flat, with a slight downhill gradient from start to finish. The Hospice Dash 5K gets underway promptly at 9 a.m.; its course is available for view at www.mightyniagarahalfmarathon.com.
Having its origins as the Hospice Dash 5K in 2009, the Mighty Niagara was formed in 2011 and has become one of the best races in the area, with large turnouts leading to further success every year.
With an expectation of approximately 1,000 spectators and 2,000 to 3,000 runners from all over the northeast, both the 5K and half marathon events are expanding their paths of success this year, with entertainment on the sidelines, festivities, and rewards for runners.
"One of the best features of the Mighty Niagara is the entertainment. We have a band or musician about every mile. The bands were Paul Beatty's idea; he's our race director," said Maureen Rizzo, advancement coordinator for Niagara Hospice Alliance Inc. "It is one of the things that makes our race very unique and keep our runners coming back year after year.
"When I run other races, (it's) with music in my headphones but not when I run this race. It is more fun to hear the bands and the cheering spectators."
Remarking on this one-of-a-kind event, Rizzo added, "The end of the race goes through Old Fort Niagara and Four Mile State Park and you finish at the post-race party at Porter on the Lake Park. The park is the perfect setting; it is on the shores of Lake Ontario. There is live music, food, drinks and awards after the race, but we're the only event that offers entertainment before during and after for a great cause."
Every runner receives a Mighty Niagara race bag for registering and running. Inside the race bag are Dri-FIT running shirts, a custom "finisher" prize to all contestants, and discount cards that offer discounts at local restaurants, The Fashion Outlets of Niagara Falls and other businesses in the area. Details on these discounts can be found on the event website.
In addition, awards will be presented to the top three male and female finishers of each age group, and a $750 prize will be awarded to the overall male and female Mighty Niagara winners.
"We are always looking for businesses to help sponsor the Mighty Niagara and Hospice Dash as we like to offer great shirts, food, drinks, etc., for our runners. We appreciate our sponsors, and they have been very generous. If any business or individual would like to make a donation to sponsor the event, they can contact me at 280-0728 or [email protected]," Rizzo said.
Those unable to participate but interested in helping Niagara Hospice Alliance can visit www.niagarahospice.org, click under "events," and select "sponsor a runner in the Mighty Niagara Half Marathon" in order to make a donation to hospice in the name of a runner. Those interested in volunteering can contact Rizzo.
For more on the Mighty Niagara, or to purchase discount cards, fundraise, or to register for the races, visit www.mightyniagarahalfmarathon.com.


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Contact Information
District Administration Office
108 Saddlerock Drive
Branson, CO 81027
Jamie Odum, Superintendent
Marlene Brown, Business Manager
District Informational Summary
Branson School District RE-82 is headquartered in Branson, Colorado, a small ranching town in southeast Colorado. The District consists of two publicly funded Kindergarten through 12th grade schools: Branson School, a traditional Brick and Mortar school in Branson; and Branson School Online, a virtual school with students and teachers located throughout Colorado. The District services approximately 400 students and employs roughly 45 teachers and staff members.
Disclaimer: Please consider the context when evaluating financial transactions. Some transactions may appear improper on the surface but are perfectly normal and justifiable when placed in the proper context.
We welcome your questions regarding our financial transactions or records.
Branson School District has no waivers.


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★Book Blitz & Giveaway ★ Blind Trust by Lynda Aicher (The Boardroom) Publication date: May 29th 2018 Genres: Erotica, Romance★
Blind Trust
Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo
Jacob popped his head in the doorway. "I'm getting her now." He glanced around. "Any questions?"
Three silent head shakes were his answer.
"Good." He turned away before he quickly spun back. "It's her birthday present. Let's make it good for her." He winked, a devious smile appearing before he left.
Ryan crossed his arms, inhaled. He closed his eyes and focused inward. The slow beat of his pulse came through to provide the consistency he sought. Another inhale and he released the residual irritation that lingered.
The low hum of the air conditioner filtered into his awareness. In some ways, it amplified the silence, but he found solace in it. Gone was the stress of the day. Dismissed were the troubles that waited for him at his desk. Nothing mattered but this moment.
Which was all he had to give.
A soft gasp from the hallway yanked his eyes open. Everything froze as he waited for the woman to step through the door. Anticipation buzzed on a low note to tighten his chest and entice his dick. Four on one was always an interesting tango between observing and participating.
He'd be content to watch tonight, if the scene played out that way, let the erotic show be a teaser until he got home and relieved the tension with his own hand. Controlling the build was just another part of the game.
Jacob appeared first, his focus on the leggy brunette slightly behind him. He ushered her through the doorway, a hand on her back to guide her. A black blindfold covered her eyes and most of her upper face, which only highlighted the dark red stain of her lipstick.
This was ultimate trust given by her—to a group of men she didn't know.
The power of that surged up to pick at the multitude of possibilities. She was at their mercy. Theirs to tempt and pleasure until she begged for relief…or more.
Wavy curls draped over her shoulders, the ends grazing the mounds of her breasts pushed high by the lilac bra. Her lean form curved at the hips and enticed his gaze down to the tiny silk panties, which shimmered softly in the low light.
He swallowed, pulse increasing when a tentative smile teased her lips. He sucked in a quiet breath, thoughts spinning.
There was something familiar about her. Too familiar.
Brie. That was the name Jacob had provided, and it was probably a scene name.
His eyes narrowed, doubts forming as logic kicked in. The odds were astronomical given the number of people populating the San Francisco Bay area.
Like the cheese he detested but consumed when social situations dictated he should. Like the possible shortened name of the paralegal who worked with his law partner. Same brown hair. Same general height and build. Same nervous tap of her fingers in a run against her thumb that she failed to contain when presenting her case research.
Brighton Wakeford. Damn it.
Even if it was her, did it matter? She couldn't see him.
But he could see all of her. Every small dip and freckle that dotted her pale skin. Like the mole at the edge of her collarbone. And the one on her hip, just above her panty line.
Were there more? Would he find them all?
One night of lust and sex. That was all he was there for.
And so was she.
January 2019