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US stake in Japanese trade; How Japan's farmers block imports
| Tokyo
Giving in to American pressure to remove import quotas on agricultural products would be tantamount to ''political suicide.''
Many members of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) believe this. And the powerful farmers' lobby has begun a campaign to ensure the politicians don't forget.
The United States is already the main supplier of basic foodstuffs, but it wants to export more to help cut the Grand Canyon-size gap in its trade with Japan.
Although members of the Tokyo government are showing willingness to open Japanese markets, they may have a hard time convincing the entire government.
The LDP has remained in power for 30 years largely because of the farm-bloc vote. At least 60 percent of its parliamentary members represent rural districts.
These include many of the party figures who are struggling to be next in line for the premiership.
Even if not directly involved, these men need wide-ranging factional support to promote their political ambitions - which inevitably means satisfying the rural lobby.
Of 27 residual import quota items, 22 are on agricultural products. Washington wants to see them all scrapped; particularly the restrictions on beef , oranges and other citrus fruits, and tobacco.
The Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries Ministry is opposed. Its current head, Kichiro Tazawa, comes from an LDP stronghold in Aomori, northern Honshu, one of the country's most important farming and fishing areas. His wife manages a large farm there.
Other key members of the Cabinet and LDP hierarchy face an equal need to heed the farmers.
Heading the list is Prime Minister Zenko Suzuki, who has a fishing background and represents an important cattle-raising and farming constituency.
International Trade and Industry Minister Shintaro Abe and chief Cabinet secretary Kiichi Miyazawa -- both seen as possible future prime ministers -- represent a major citrus fruit-growing area.
Ichiro Nakagawa, director general of the Science and Technology agency, upholds the interests of the beef and dairy industry on Hokkaido. Finance Minister Michio Watanabe is dependent on votes from the country's main tomato-growing area.
The Central Association of Agricultural Cooperatives (Zenchu) has issued a warning to men like these that succumbing to American pressure for import liberalization ''would have a devastating affect on individual farmers and rock the very foundations of Japanese agriculture.''
Japanese beef-eaters now pay a high price for the inefficient, uneconomic nature of domestic cattle breeding and dairy farming. But Zenchu says Japanese farmers cannot possibly compete with their US and Australian counterparts, who have the benefits of ''wide open spaces.''
Orange growers are also at a disadvantage. They are unable to lower costs through large-scale mechanization, since at least half the crop is grown in mountainous areas.
The United States has only a 1.4 percent share of the Japanese tobacco market. Government officials say removal of import restraints would seriously hurt some 104,000 domestic tobacco farmers, whose product costs twice as much as American tobacco and falls far behind in quality.
Agricultural Ministry officials constantly trot out the argument that removal of import quotas would not necessarily help the US. Instead, it could mean a flood of cheap Australian beef, and Brazilian and Israeli oranges.
Increased beef imports, they warn, would also mean less demand for animal feedstuffs, which would cut heavily into purchases of American grain.
Fruit importers also aren't keen on trade liberalization. They enjoy high profit margins, estimated at 40 percent on Florida oranges.
Everywhere the government looks for ways to meet American demands, political problems loom. Trade Minister Abe, for example, reportedly would like to liberalize leather-goods imports to please both the US and Europe.
But the local leather industry is in deep financial trouble, and, consisting almost entirely of small firms, is stoutly resisting attempts to remove its protective shield.
An extremely sensitive social issue is involved. Many leather workers are members of the ''burakumin'' (similar to India's ''untouchables''), who are still discriminated against, even though this is illegal. Should they lose their jobs because of cheaper imports, it is highly unlikely they would find work elsewhere.
In their campaign for trade liberalization, the Americans have found an unlikely ally in former Prime Minister Kakuei Tanaka.
Tanaka comes from a rice-producing area that is not directly involved in the current controversy. But the former prime minister, now on trial for alleged involvement in the Lockheed aircraft bribes scandal, has been volubly harrassing his colleagues to accept the US demands.


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Breast cancer awareness campaigns are great, but they should be expanded to provide more clinician education on health disparities and to target women most at risk.
Breast cancer awareness campaigns have been in the top news for many years now. However, activities to promote screening and other early diagnostic tools for breast cancer started to develop in the United States and around the world in the early 1980s. Although most people recognize the importance and effectiveness of these campaigns, some still fail to take the necessary steps for routine screening so that breast cancer, if present, can be diagnosed and treated in the early stages.
Recent controversies regarding the advantages of breast examination and mammography as screening methods for early breast cancer diagnosis have sparked debate in the public sector as well as in the medical community. Regardless, the American Cancer Society still recommends that mammography screening should begin at age 40 and supports the benefits of clinical and self breast examination.
Breast cancer continues to be a public health care problem in the United States. About 1 in 8 US women (approximately 12%) will develop invasive breast cancer during her lifetime. It is estimated that 232,670 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in US women in 2014, along with 62,570 new cases of in situ carcinoma. Of these women, approximately 40,000 will die of their disease. In spite of these alarming numbers, breast cancer incidence rates and deaths have been gradually declining.
Early detection and decreased mortality from breast cancer in recent years has been influenced by public awareness campaigns, screening programs, clinical and personal breast examination, widespread use of minimally invasive techniques for diagnosis, and new therapeutic options. Despite these advances, ethnic and educational disparities exist for diagnosis, survival, morbidity, and mortality.
In general, ethnic minority women are diagnosed with more advanced disease and experience greater morbidity and mortality. Although breast cancer is most common among white women, the disease is most likely to develop in African American women at an earlier age. In addition, African American women are more likely to die from breast cancer.
Among the issues to consider when evaluating different ethnic groups are lack of knowledge about breast cancer; medical care issues, such as insurance, cost, and amount of time spent with a physician; cultural sensitivity of providers; traditions; religious beliefs; language barriers; cultural factors related to beliefs about illness; gender role expectations and family obligations; and social and familial support.
For awareness campaigns to become more effective, it is necessary to implement new strategies that benefit all women in need of high-quality medical care regardless of economic, ethnic, or cultural background. The accomplishment of this goal requires educational programs that focus on cultural and language background of patients, integration of family members as potential key participants in medical decision making, economic support for those without medical insurance, health care support to receive adequate treatment and care after surgery, and the need for health care providers to become more culturally sensitive.
Educational campaigns during Breast Cancer Awareness Month are targeted to the general public. However, efforts should also be focused on educating health care personnel and women's health physicians about health disparities related to breast cancer screening and diagnosis, since these clinicians are the first line of defense in the battle against cancer.
As physicians, we carry an enormous responsibility toward our patients and our role is extremely important in both prevention and treatment. It is crucial to widen these campaigns to involve the medical community and ensure clinicians have more up-to-date information tailored for educating, screening, and treating minority groups. It is ultimately our responsibility to provide patients with a high-quality service that fulfills not only their physical requirements but also their educational and emotional needs.

subset: commoncrawl


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Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Scrapbook page - Lap of Luxury
For this page I used some of the pretty patterns from the Lap of Luxury Designer Series Paper. I love the two sided pattern papers from Stampin' Up! and this set is no exception - it's definitely one of my favorite DSP's! The script on the long strip says "Life is Beautiful" and although I covered most of it up, it still makes me happy that it's there. I hung my year tag off an Antique Brad with some Very Vanilla narrow Grosgrain Ribbon. I used a few of my Favorite punches on this page - Decorative Label and Scallop Edge Border. And of course I included a few of my Favorite Rhinestone Jewels on this page as well. I stamped the title piece with Contempo Alphabet and Heat Embossed it - my favorite technique - onto a piece of Elegant Eggplant cardstock die cut with the Top Note Die for the Big Shot.
Here's a closer look at the Decorative Label piece and the turned back corner. I just rolled the corner of the Lap of Luxury DSP paper and adhered it down. Then I adhered a piece of Very Vanilla Cardstock behind the turned down area and added a few of the Rhinestone Jewels to the front.
My Stampin' Events
Current Stampin' Up! Promotions
Mary Rindal is an Independent Stampin' Up! Demonstrator in Greenwood Village, Colorado.
Posted by MaryR at 10:55 AM
Labels: contempo alphabet, scrappin
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- News and updates from Diane & Liz [2:07]
- Safer skincare: hair dye [13:50]
- Listener question: how to eat sardines [20:11]
- What we've eaten so far today [26:36]
- Final thoughts [32:29]
Subscribe to DianeSanfilippo.com
Join our Healthy for the Holidays Facebook group
The episodes are also available in iTunes, Spotify & Stitcher.
You're listening to the Balanced Bites podcast episode 320.
Diane Sanfilippo: Welcome to the Balanced Bites podcast. I'm Diane; a certified nutrition consultant, and the New York Times bestselling author of Practical Paleo and The 21-Day Sugar Detox. I live in San Francisco with my husband and fur kids.
Liz Wolfe: I'm Liz; a nutritional therapy practitioner, and author of the Wall Street Journal best-seller Eat the Yolks; The Purely Primal Skincare Guide; and the online program Baby Making and Beyond. I live on a farm in the mystical land of the Midwest, outside of Kansas City.
We're the co-creators of the Balanced Bites Master Class, and we've been bringing you this award-winning podcast for more than 6 years. We're here to share our take on modern paleo living, answer your questions, and chat with leading health and wellness experts. Enjoy this week's episode, and submit your questions at http://blog.balancedbites.com or watch the Balanced Bites podcast Instagram account for our weekly calls for questions. You can ask us anything in the comments.
Remember our disclaimer: The materials and content within this podcast are intended as general information only, and are not to be considered a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Before we get started, let's hear from one of our sponsors.
Liz Wolfe: This episode of the Balanced Bites podcast is sponsored by Primally Pure Skincare. Primally Pure makes skincare products that are truly natural and nontoxic. Using ingredients like tallow from grass-fed cows; organic and fair trade coconut oil, and organic essential oils. In addition to being safe to use, their products also provide users with real, noticeable results. At www.primallypure.com, you'll find their bestselling natural deodorant that actually works; face mists made from locally sourced and organic hydrosols, and their newest product, nature spray, an all-natural insect repellant.
You'll also find Diane's favorite Primally Pure product, dry shampoo, and my favorite, the Everything Spray. As a special bonus for you, Primally Pure is offering a free lip balm with your first purchase of one item or more. Simply add a lip balm to your cart along with any one item, and use the code "balancedbites" during checkout to receive one of their lip balms for free with your order. Head to www.primallypure.com and check out their range of safe and effective all natural skincare products.
1. News and updates from Diane & Liz [2:07]
Liz Wolfe: Alright, everybody. It's me, Liz and Diane. Again. Hi friend.
Diane Sanfilippo: What's up?
Liz Wolfe: What's up with you?
Diane Sanfilippo: Like what's actually up with me, or just like, what's up with you?
Liz Wolfe: No, what's actually up?
Diane Sanfilippo: {laughing}
Liz Wolfe: Can I tell you. I just told my husband that I couldn't listen to his Voxers right now because I'm recording a podcast, and he just sent me three Voxers.
Diane Sanfilippo: Does everybody know what Voxer is?
Liz Wolfe: Eh, I don't know but they should.
Diane Sanfilippo: It's like a walkie-talkie app that we love to use. And you're probably supposed to mostly use it for quick things you want to tell someone, but I tend to ramble on for like two to three minutes. And then my thumb hurts from holding down the button.
Liz Wolfe: I get like 5-minute Voxers. Yeah, your thumb gets tired? You know you can set it so you just tap it, and you tap it again to stop, instead of holding your thumb down.
Diane Sanfilippo: I think that could be problematic for you if I learn how to do that, so I'm just going to encourage myself not to.
Liz Wolfe: {laughs} OK.
Diane Sanfilippo: Because poor Liz gets like 3-minute Voxer messages from me. Multiple times a day. Anyway, what's new with me? Preorder goodies for the 21-Day Sugar Detox Daily Guide. I think that we will probably have them live on the website as soon as this episode is airing. So head over to www.BalancedBites.com. Or you can probably find the details at www.21DaySugarDetox.com. I'm saying probably as if I don't have control over this. But I know we're actually in the process of redesigning the 21-Day Sugar Detox website. So I don't know what will be happening there. But you'll definitely be able to find it all over the place. But we've got Diane's Salad Madness eBook as a free gift for you guys. We've also got the Practical Paleo Holiday eBook as a free gift.
And something else that's super huge, but I'm kind of nervous to tease about it on here, so I might have to wait another couple of weeks to reveal it. It may already be there, so if you go check out what the preorder goodies are, it's pretty much the best thing ever that I could think of. I was like; what could we do that would be hands down the most amazing thing to give people from anything that I could possibly offer of stuff that we've got going on?
Liz Wolfe: Oh my gosh.
Diane Sanfilippo: So you guys are really going to like it.
Liz Wolfe: This sounds like a big deal.
Diane Sanfilippo: I mean, it's a big deal. To me. Because I just; I will have to share more details another week. But all that being said, also the online program for the 21-Day Sugar Detox is getting; which is a wink, wink. Is getting a big overhaul. There will be video content. The content is actually going to align really well with the daily guide.
So it's just going to be a different sort of multimedia experience if you are somebody who loves that information each day, but a little bit at a time so it's not too overwhelming and you can just know what you need to do each day. Which is what the core of the daily guide book is all about. It's just; you've got a lesson. You've got some daily dish from me. You've got recipes. You've got a full meal plan that's super easy to follow, all done for you, written out.
You have to do the cooking, and the shopping and all of that. But you don't have to do the thinking, how about that? Anyway, so many great things coming and I'm really excited about it. So check that stuff out. Check out the show notes of this episode; I'm sure we'll link to all this good stuff.
Oh, there's one other thing I've got also a Facebook group. We'll link to this also from the show notes from this episode. I'll probably have it linked also through the Balanced Bites podcast Instagram link tree thingie jiggie and also on my Diane Sanfilippo Instagram link tree. But I have a Healthy through the Holidays group on Facebook that I'm running where myself and my team are going to support you through the holidays.
So November and December, just such a crazy time for everyone with parties and all of that. Sure, there might be some of you who want to do a sugar detox or something, and you're feeling really good about it. And that's fine. But I don't want anyone to feel pressured to do that over the holidays. But we're going to be talking about all different topics, like how to handle going to holiday parties. What kinds of recipes will be delicious for you and for your friends and family. All different tips and strategies and tricks to getting through the holidays and staying healthy and not going off the rails.
So check out that group; Healthy through the Holidays on Facebook. It will just be a limited time group that I'm running, and I'm going to be going live in there a bunch to kind of encourage you guys and help out and answer questions. That's going to be coming up. So stay tuned for that. What is going on on your side of the computer, Liz?
Liz Wolfe: {laughs}
Diane Sanfilippo: Like, through the glass here.
Liz Wolfe: Well I don't have as many fun things as you do, but I'm really excited that you and I just confirmed or nailed down that we will be at the NTA conference in March. Now that I've said it on the podcast, we can't go back and change our minds. But in March; and that's what's, March 2 through the 4 I believe?
Diane Sanfilippo: I'm not sure of the exact dates, but I think it's the first weekend.
Liz Wolfe: I think so too. And we will be there; I believe what we're going to be doing is something just before the conference. Something official with NTA before the conference and I don't know; are you going to stay for the whole deal and have a booth like you did last year?
Diane Sanfilippo: Probably. Which means I'll probably rope you into being {laughs}.
Liz Wolfe: Yeah.
Diane Sanfilippo: Being at the booth. Well, the booth we have, we talk about the Master Class, we talk about the Coaches program and all the programs that we have. And I think we are going to be teaching something the day before the conference starts. So for anybody; we know we have a ton of NTA enrollees and grads and all that for anyone who is thinking about going to the conference. Just a heads up now that our event, whatever we're doing, is probably the morning before or something. So make sure you're getting; I think it's in the same area. To the Portland area a couple of days ahead. I don't know if the conference starts on a Friday, but our thing might be a Thursday or something to that effect. So I just want to make sure everybody knows to make your travel plans accordingly. Because we want to see you.
Liz Wolfe: We want to see your smiling faces in person, and not just behind Instagram handles.
Diane Sanfilippo: For sure.
Liz Wolfe: So that will be really great. And my personal news is; I'm looking for a new hashtag. Well, that's not the news. But this is a little more personal. I've been wanting to; I'm very fulfilled by working, so I've been wanting to work more than I have the last two and a half years. So I was toying around with the idea of hiring a nanny for a couple of days a week. And we ended up finding somebody who is so awesome. And her name is Colleen and we're just super excited.
Here's what's funny, though. In the time between when I decided I needed a nanny and when we found Colleen, we actually were able to get a couple of days of PDO each week. So that's 5 hours a day, a couple of days a week, so I can work during that time. Last year, she had PDO one day a week. And this year I can take her two to three days, which is going to be amazing, and has been for the last couple of weeks. And I realized I still wanted more help, but I didn't want to spend less time with my kiddo.
So Colleen absolutely loves cooking. She loves gardening, she loves animals. She's very into sustainability and real food. And all that type of stuff. So rather than having her watch the kiddo and still spending time cooking, cleaning, doing extra stuff with the dogs and things like that, we're actually going to have Colleen do our shopping and cooking. So basically we found an amazing situation where I can take some of the stuff I don't particularly like doing off my shoulders that takes up time; time away from my kid and time away from work. So rather than having her watch the kid, we're having her do some of the other household stuff.
So I'm looking for a new hashtag for what Colleen cooks for us. Maybe It's going to be Colleen cooks because I can't; or Colleen cooks because I won't.
Diane Sanfilippo: {laughing} That's amazing.
Liz Wolfe: But I'm excited because she's a foodie. She really enjoys cooking and she loves making vegetables. And we've just been in such a rut for a long time. Because when you're thinking about other things and prioritizing other things, you just stick to the same three or four things that you know.
Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah.
Liz Wolfe: We haven't been eating enough vegetables. We haven't been eating enough freshly prepared stuff. So I'm really, really excited. She's going to meal plan. She's going to help us reduce waste. And it should be really awesome. So I think Colleen will probably become a regular mention on my podcast and social media.
Diane Sanfilippo: I love that.
Liz Wolfe: Yeah.
Diane Sanfilippo: I think people may not realize that you are pre-foodie. You're into food.
Liz Wolfe: I love food.
Diane Sanfilippo: You love going to a restaurant; but I don't know. I think some people assume to be a foodie you also have to be cooking and trying a lot of new recipes at home, and I don't think that's really true. You really appreciate when we would; I know when we were touring. Or doing our seminars. We would find a cool restaurant, like a farm to table place. You would really get into it, and want to try all the things.
Liz Wolfe: Yeah.
Diane Sanfilippo: And we would order way too many dishes and just taste everything and take it all home to our hotel refrigerator. But yeah, I think that's such a great idea. That's a huge know your strengths thing and know what you really want to do.
Liz Wolfe: Yes.
Diane Sanfilippo: And it's like; you don't want to not be with your kid. Not that anybody; whatever. Just go with it here. It's that the cooking and cleaning and prep of all of that; the food is really more of the thing that you don't want to do. I think that's good information, because that wouldn't be me.
Liz Wolfe: Yeah.
Diane Sanfilippo: I actually really love to cook. And that's fine too. So yay! I'm so excited for you.
Liz Wolfe: I am too.
Diane Sanfilippo: And I love grocery shopping. It's guilt free shopping for me.
Liz Wolfe: And she lives in the city, so she can go to the farmer's market. She can help us eat more seasonally. And she's going to come up two days a week to do the food and the food prep.
Diane Sanfilippo: Love it.
Liz Wolfe: And the other thing was I realized when I do have extra time, one or two of those days when the kid is at PDO, I will go home and cook and clean. Because I feel like I can't work unless the house stuff is done. Unless we've got food for the week. That's when I've been using that time to go shopping and do domestic things rather than work. So now, I don't have that excuse. {laughs} Because that stuff is going to be done and I can actually work when I want to work, be with my kid when I want to be with my kid. And I'm just really grateful that it all worked out.
And I feel like this is realistic for a lot of people, but maybe we just don't think of it that way. We hire a babysitter so we can go do our errands. Well maybe you can hire somebody to do the cooking and the shopping, and you can get quality time with the kid. Compartmentalize things a little bit more. Which is something that I really needed to do, because everything was just kind of bleeding into everything else, and I wasn't getting anything done. So it should be awesome.
Diane Sanfilippo: That's a #Obligerproblems.
Liz Wolfe: Mm-hmm. Totally.
Diane Sanfilippo: I'm like, I don't feel like I should be doing all of those things.
Liz Wolfe: {laughing}
Diane Sanfilippo: So it's definitely Obliger. But most people are Obligers, so good to know.
Liz Wolfe: Yep.
2. Safer skincare: hair dye [13:50]
Diane Sanfilippo: Alright, let's dive into a safer skincare. Which doesn't just mean skincare. But safer skincare segment here. I got a question recently that says, "Hey Diane! Do you use a safe hair dye? If you do, just curious if you could talk about it in your next Instagram story." Well, maybe she wanted it in my Instagram story, but I do not. So I'm going to defer to Liz to enlighten us on some of these topics. I did try henna once, and it just wasn't my jam. But I only have my hair colored maybe once or twice a year, I think. So why don't you tell us about some safer options, Liz. I think that would be really good to hear about.
Liz Wolfe: Sure. For some reason I'm getting this feeling of de-ja-vu right now. I feel like we must have talked about this at some point in the last six years. I don't even remember because I feel like I've talked about this before. But things might have changed.
So for a really, really long time, I was dying my hair with henna. I have some grays, and henna is basically an herb with a pigment that will bind to; I don't know if it's the keratin in your hair. But it will bind to your hair chemically. So it is basically a dye. And there are different things that you can blend with henna to kind of change the tint that it gives your hair. But pure henna will make grey or white hair a super rich coppery red color. And you can kind of tint that a little bit differently, depending on what you add to it. So it's really lovely. And henna is totally safe. You cannot always dye over henna. Henna won't be dyed over.
So a lot of the hennas that hair dressers traditionally consider unsafe are not actually henna at all. It's like henna mixed with different chemical salts or henna mixed with other things. So the problem is not the henna, it's the chemical salts. So actual pure, herbal henna that I always got from Hennaforhair.com which is an amazing resource. It tells you all about how to tint the henna. Different herbs you can use to change the color. It's a phenomenal resource. So I always got their henna and their cassia and their indigo to do my hair with.
But henna is totally safe. You can't necessarily dye over it, because I just don't know that it works. I think you have to grow it out to color your hair a different color. But you can use henna over other hair dyes, which I think is really cool. So you don't have to wait for your hair to grow out to start using henna, necessarily.
But henna is like the most natural, most historically used option, I think, for natural, safe hair dye. It smells like hippies. It is a mess. It's like slathering mud all over your hair. If you don't have a great showerhead that you can detach and bend your head over your bathtub and get all of it out. You might want to reconsider using it. It was easiest for me to use in the summer when I was using it because I could just go outside and blast it out of my hair with the hose. {laughs} So that would work. But you can't do that in the winter, obviously. And our water pressure isn't great.
But I did use it for quite some time, and I loved it. When I got pregnant, the smell kind of bothered me, and then after that I just didn't have the time. It is an investment. You have to set it. You create the mixture overnight. You apply it to your hair, which takes quite some time. Some hair dressers will do it, but there aren't a lot out there that are going to do that. And then you have to sit it on your head for a while, and then you have to wash it out. So it's a whole process.
So for a while, after I stopped using henna, I tried using Hair Print. Which is kind of; I guess it's a sciency formulation that's supposed to return; it's supposed to reactivate melanin. So it's supposed to return your gray hairs to their natural colors. It's not supposed to affect the other hair on your head. I found it to be a little bit labor intensive. You have to apply it within a certain period of time, and then you have to apply it again. I suppose if you have shorter hair, it's a little easier to use. But I've always had; not so much now, but I've always had much longer hair so that was a little bit annoying. And I felt like it also colored my scalp a little bit. And that took a while to wash away.
So I stopped using Hair Print, but I do know some people that really, really like it. And I know a lot of people, for a more conventional option that's free of the standard really bad ingredients in hair dye is Madison Reed. I haven't tried it, but I know a lot of folks that are really chemically sensitive that use it, and they do well with it. So that's encouraging.
I think I will go back to henna eventually. I did start going to the salon and just having them dye my hair with whatever probably about; I don't know, maybe a year ago. I was like, this is just a season, I'm not going to do this forever. But I just need to feel not like garbage with gray hairs hanging out everywhere. Not that there's anything wrong with gray hairs, I'm just not ready. I'm just not ready. So I started just going for a little self-care and whatever.
And I do feel like over time my hair has actually gotten thinner. And I don't know if I can blame that on the hair dye or the chemicals or if it's just stress. But I am excited to go back to henna sooner than later, because it does make your hair so thick and beautiful. And it just nourishes your scalp. So if you have time for henna, and the opportunity to try it, I would totally do it. I really do like it. Just remember, you can't lift it off. You can't use chemicals to remove it or anything like that. You're kind of stuck with it if you do the henna. So, those are my favorites. Or my suggestions, anyway. Not necessarily my favorites.
Diane Sanfilippo: Today's podcast is sponsored by Vital Choice seafood and organics. Purveyor of premium sustainably sourced seafood and a certified B corporation. Vital choice offers a wide range of fish, shellfish, humanely raised meat, protein rich bone broths, and paleo friendly snacks like organic dark chocolate, super antioxidant trail mix, and bison jerky. My favorites from Vital Choice are the king salmon and the scallops. And Liz's favorites are the salmon and the tanner crab. www.vitalchoice.com is your source for real food.
3. Listener question: how to eat sardines [20:11]
Liz Wolfe: Alright, we have a listener question. This one is from two; Heather and Manny. "Hi lovely ladies! You girls rock, and I love your podcast so very much. Not much time to type a bunch, so just giving my quick question. How on earth do you eat your sardines? Meaning, when you open the can, what do you do? We want to be sardine eaters, but we have a really hard time. We've checked websites and blogs for recipes, and we've tried a few, but we always feel like we need to clean up the first. That we just have the sardine filet, and it's so much effort and so gross. Yuck! We know everyone usually just chops it up and eats it, bones organs and all, but really? Any advice? Keep up the amazing work. From sunny South Florida, post Irma, Heather and Manny."
Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} I love this question.
Liz Wolfe: I do too.
Diane Sanfilippo: Really!?
Liz Wolfe: I did a YouTube. I didn't know there were organs in there. Maybe there are. But I've always; the bones are just kind of chalky. They just kind of…
Diane Sanfilippo: They're so little.
Liz Wolfe: I know Vital Choice, I think, has some sardine filets that don't have the bones. But I always eat the bones for the extra nutrition. I always was kind of excited about that.
Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah.
Liz Wolfe: I did a YouTube video a long time ago about how to eat sardines, I think. Or why you should eat sardines. So you could look for that. But I always just kind of dump some mustard on top and eat it right out of the tin. {laughs} What are your suggestions?
Diane Sanfilippo: I know a lot of people do the mustard. And there are some that come with different sauces. There are some; they come in a white tin, and they're wild, maybe from Portugal, that I think you can get them at Whole Foods. I don't know where else. And they come with lemon, or they come with tomato sauce and things like that. So that's when you get into it; those are pretty good.
I think there are a couple of different ways to do it. I actually don't think making a recipe with them is the best way to go for it. Because I think that's so involved. And a lot of time dealing with these fish that you may or may not be excited about. And a lot of effort, you know, to make something else.
There is a recipe for sardine cakes in Mediterranean Paleo Cooking. So it's kind of like sardines and some maybe almond flour or cashew flour and eggs and seasonings and all of that. So you could make it into a patty and do a little thing out of that.
But what I think probably two good options are, aside from that, because I do think not doing a recipe is easier. One is to just kind of treat it like you would tuna in a can, and break it up with a fork. You're going to leave the skin on it. You're going to leave the bones in there. It's ok. The skin has so much of the nutrition; don't throw that stuff away. You shouldn't be mini-surgery style on your sardines.
Liz Wolfe: {laughs}
Diane Sanfilippo: Don't get your little knife and fork.
Liz Wolfe: Like operations.
Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah, peel the skin off. We're not doing that. No. Don't eat them if you're going to do that. No. But mash them up with a fork and throw them on top of salad like you would tuna. So if you want to mix it with some healthy mayo or whatever you would do to make tuna salad, you could totally do that. Or just put it on top mashed up and then lemon, olive oil, all that stuff. And just think of it as tuna. It's really not that different.
The other thing that I know some people do is take something like a grain free cracker or gluten free cracker or something. You could do a Mary's cracker or Jill's crackers. I'm trying to think of all the ladies making crackers.
Liz Wolfe: {laughs}
Diane Sanfilippo: There's Mary's, there's Jill's, there's the Simple Mills crackers I've seen people do. They're almond flour so I haven't had them. But that, with a little bit of some kind of cheese spread if you want. I've seen people do Kite Hill almond cheese. Almond, it's like almond party everywhere that I'm not a part of. {laughs}
Liz Wolfe: Yeah, you're not invited to that party.
Diane Sanfilippo: I've seen people do that. Almond party; I'm not invited. Like an herb cheese in that way, and put the sardine piece on top of that. I feel like Cassy Joy has done that. And those are kind of the two ways. I know, for me it's basically on a salad. I haven't eaten a lot of them lately just because I'm mixing other seafood. I've got a lot from Vital Choice. I do a lot of salmon and that kind of stuff. But I know I've definitely carried sardines {laughs}. I've definitely eaten them on an airplane before. This is a running joke, I think, on the podcast where it's like, "Well if Diane is going to eat sardines on an airplane, I'm going to eat this in my office."
Liz Wolfe: Yep.
Diane Sanfilippo: Right? That was back when I was traveling to teach seminars. But yeah, those are some tips.
Liz Wolfe: That was when I gave you crap about eating hardboiled eggs on an airplane. And you were like, if that lady can eat her Panda Express.
Diane Sanfilippo: Stinky McDonald's. Yeah.
Liz Wolfe: Stinky, yeah.
Diane Sanfilippo: Or come in here and sit next to me smelling like an ashtray.
Liz Wolfe: Yeah.
Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah. Anyway. I didn't care. But that's what I would do. And I would not remove parts. If you want to get some that don't have bones to just get yourself into it, that's fine. No big deal. But the bones are a good source of calcium. And if you're not doing dairy, and you're not eating other sources of calcium, like a bunch of tahini or something like that, then it's a good source of calcium. So don't ignore it. I mean, salads seem like a good idea in sunny Florida. So throw it on a salad. Lots of lemon juice.
Liz Wolfe: Just keep eating them. You'll get used to it.
Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} That's Liz's advice. Mustard. And just keep eating them. You'll be fine.
Liz Wolfe: Mustard. Yep.
Liz Wolfe: The Balanced Bites podcast is sponsored in part by the Nutritional Therapy Association. The NTA trains and certifies nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants (including me; I'm an NTP), emphasizing bio-individuality and the range of dietary strategies that support wellness. The NTA emphasizes local, whole, properly prepared nutrient dense foods as the key to restoring balance and enhancing the body's ability to heal. Nutritional therapy practitioners and consultants learn a wide range of tools and techniques to assess and correct nutritional imbalances. To learn lots more about the nutritional therapy program, go to http://www.NutritionalTherapy.com. There are workshop venues in the US, Canada, and Australia, so chances are you'll be able to find a venue that works for you.
4. What we've eaten so far today [26:36]
Liz Wolfe: Alright, I'm excited about this segment.
Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} This is a really interesting segment to do today.
Liz Wolfe: Yeah. I think we're going to have to lean heavily on me. Maybe not; we'll see. So this segment is called what we ate so far today. There should be some exciting music there.
Diane Sanfilippo: Yes, tell them what time it is.
Liz Wolfe: So it is 2:41 where I am. It's 12:41 where Diane is, in the afternoon. And Diane, what have you eaten so far today?
Diane Sanfilippo: I've eaten nothing. {laughs} I had some coffee this morning and have not eaten. And I have my Zero app open, which is the app Michelle Tam talked about when we had her on the show several weeks ago. It's a fasting tracker. I mean, {laughs} we don't really need an app for this, I don't think. But maybe you would forget what time you ate dinner and weren't sure what time you wanted to start eating again.
So I've just been thinking about what would make me feel better. And I was like; you know what, I'm going to try intermittent fasting again. I've done it before. I just wanted to see if it could help get my energy regulated. I know a lot of my energy dips are just related to stress. But I'm very curious if adjusting my feeding window would help with that. And since I'm such a good eater {laughs} I'm not really worried about not eating enough in the window when I am eating. I wanted to see how this would do for me.
So I'm currently at 16 hours and 33 minutes without food. I did have coffee this morning with some coconut milk in it. And I'm not really concerned about that typically having some fat. Even having a tiny bit of carb, I've heard, isn't a big deal. Just like barely anything. But yeah, I have had nothing to eat so far today at 12:41. What about you. What have you eaten so far today?
Liz Wolfe: This is so bad mom. But I think I've had; the day just gets away from us, man. It was I think I ate a Core Meal bar this morning. And oh my gosh this is so bad. A Lara bar. One of those fruit and greens bars before the podcast. Ok, let me just back up and say that this day has been incredibly busy.
Diane Sanfilippo: Liz is looking at my face, and she's so worried about the potential what am I even going to say about this {laughing}.
Liz Wolfe: I mean, this is like bad nutrition podcast host situation right here. But I told everybody, Colleen's here, and she's going to fix it. {laughs}
Diane Sanfilippo: {laughing}
Liz Wolfe: So I woke up this morning and the kid needs to get to PDO. So I got her to PDO; fed and off to PDO. And I let her have an Exo cricket protein bar in the car {laughs}. So I took a Core meal bar with me in the car. And this is Colleen's first day, so right when I got back, Colleen and I started talking. I showed her around the farm. And that spilled over into when we started recording the podcast. And then after 30 minutes of tech issues, I finally remembered, you know, I've got to eat real quick. So I had one of those fruit and green bars. And then we're recording two podcasts. So I'm really hungry right now, and this is very, very bad.
Diane Sanfilippo: I'm also really hungry.
Liz Wolfe: So after this I'll eat something. So this is probably going to be a shorter podcast because we both want to eat. But yeah, that's what I've had today and it's terrible. {laughs}
Diane Sanfilippo: It's not terrible. No need to, you know, be judgmental of yourself. I think it's totally realistic. But look, the day is young. There is still food to be eaten. {laughs}
Liz Wolfe: {laughing} Pull quote. Pull quote.
Diane Sanfilippo: The day is your oyster. On another type of day; we'll just do this on other days, and we'll have what have we eaten so far. And some days it will be nothing, and some days it will be something. I mean, who knows. But yeah.
I am curious, you guys. If you are interested in learning more about intermittent fasting, leave us a comment on this weeks' episode Instagram or on the podcast show notes. Our episode with Dr. Fung on fasting was by far the most downloaded episode we had, and I don't know if that was purely; obviously that wasn't from just our typical listener base. There were lots of folks who probably found that episode, because it was more than I know our typical listeners are downloading. But if that's something that you guys would find interesting, perhaps I can find a female to talk about it versus a male just to get a different point of view. I think that would be really interesting.
And you know, I'm just going to hat tip also to Robb Wolf. Because he has been talking about intermittent fasting; not that he's the first one, either. But in our circles, he's probably laughing and maybe rolling his eyes somewhere. Like, really you guys? Now we're talking about intermittent fasting? Because I've been talking about this since probably 2008 or something, and the benefits and all of that. I know he has an episode of his podcast way back in the archives with Matt Lalande. And I believe Chris Kresser was on it, as well. Where they talked about some of the cell clean up, and all of the good things that do happen when we're between meals and we have a longer time between them. So anyway. That's essentially what a fast is.
But interesting stuff. And I think it's kind of funny that you've eaten a couple of bars and I've eaten nothing yet. So a good way to kick off that segment. I think; look, it's real. We're not going to lie just because we think it would be more interesting. I think this is interesting, though.
5. Final thoughts [32:29]
Diane Sanfilippo: Alright, Liz. Let's wrap it up with some closing thoughts. What are your closing thoughts for today?
Liz Wolfe: I feel like a couple of times during the course of this episode I was just thinking to myself, "You just do what you've got to do." And the hair dye thing. I by no means think that getting your hair dyed with conventional dyes is an imminent danger. But there are also things that we know about the chemicals used in traditional hair dyes. That if you have the time and the opportunity and can put in the effort, why not try something a little different and see how it goes. But I just want to make sure that nobody feels guilted about their choices about what their using. You just have to triage what you can, and not stress about the rest.
But with that in mind, I'm also really proud of myself for figuring out a creative solution that worked for me; like my conundrum of wanting to work more, but not be with my kid less. And I feel like I came up with a creative solution with a little bit of extra effort and creativity. So maybe just pushing yourself a little bit to find a solution that's different from what you're already doing will lead to an exciting discovery. I'm really excited about what lies ahead. And I still need that hashtag, so if anybody has any ideas.
Diane Sanfilippo: That's it for this week. You can find me, Diane, at http://dianesanfilippo.com. And find Liz at http://realfoodliz.com/. Don't forget to join our email lists for free goodies and updates that you don't find anywhere else on our website or on the podcast. While you're on the internet, leave us an iTunes review. We'll see you next week.


text: Synthetic clay cuts faster than traditional clay bars thanks to the texture and synthetic make-up of the clay/polymer matrix. A traditional clay bar has only one leading edge to remove contaminants on initial contact. The unique diamond pattern found on this synthetic clay/polymer matrix creates more edges and more opportunities to remove stubborn contaminants. The comfortable foam palm pad creates less hand fatigue and is much more maneuverable than clay bars, a win-win for detail-minded enthusiasts everywhere. This is a low cost yet effective way to prep any surface before vinyl wrapping.


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Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott is overhauling his nation's overseas adoption system and wants to get Cambodia involved in the process, according to Australian media.
Abbott requested Attorney General George Brandis pursue fresh agreements and adoption negotiations, including with Cambodia, Bulgaria, Latvia and Kenya, the Sunday Telegraph reported this weekend.
The attorney general's office did not respond to request for comment yesterday, a holiday in Australia.
However, the Australian Embassy in Phnom Penh nixed the idea that adoptions might resume in the near future.
"As noted on the Australian Embassy website, the moratorium on foreigners adopting children from Cambodia under intercountry adoption arrangements, which came into force on 3 December 2009, remains in place," an embassy spokesperson said via email.
In fact, Cambodia reversed its freeze on adoptions by foreigners living outside the country in 2013. Shortly thereafter, Italy became the first – and so far only– country to re-up its agreement with Cambodia, according to the Ministry of Social Affairs.
Australia's MoU lapsed in 2001, shortly after the US banned inter-country adoptions from the Kingdom due to fears of child trafficking and a perceived failure to uphold international laws.
"It's not like that anymore; now adoptions go through strict laws and background checks" said Reung Rithiroth, chief of the adoption administration at the Social Affairs Ministry.
Rithiroth said that he would welcome negotiations with Australia, but has not yet been contacted.


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"Coming together allows us to get better at understanding and solving issues around us"
Hawa Kebe is a strong advocate of African women role models. She truly believes that each individual has a set of unique talents that are worth sharing to impact their community but also make the world a better place.
Empowering and connecting African role models
Practical apsects of Seti
How do you Reach your goals ?
It is enriching to tap in what other people have to offer. Putting forward what we call comparative advantages. We cannot have the full picture as individuals, we have to come together to offer solutions to the diaspora.
Althoug her goal is with african women and its diapora, Hawa does not stop her objectives there, she intentionnally invites women from other backgrounds. For two reasons 1) because she is open minded and love to embrace other cultures and 2) to show off african talent and stories to others.
The platform SETI started a year ago and it has offered many, from professionals to students, an opportunity to improve themselves.


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Kate Moss For Topshop
I remember when the first Kate Moss for Topshop collection dropped, you literally could not move on Oxford Street that day as the model herself posed in the store window at its grand opening, ensuring that one of the busiest, if not the busiest, streets in London was commuter hell.
I also remember seeing the collection and feeling very lukewarm about it, reason being, it was great but not Kate great. Kate Moss is a gypsy at heart, a free spirit with one of the coolest, most effortless fashion sensibilities of any woman in this world. She can wear ANYTHING and make it look good, very few people can do that, even the people of whom its often said will have limitations, but not Kate Moss. I mean, she single handedly made the skinny jean relevant again. So her first and subsequent collections just never really hit the mark for me. Too commercial, too trendy.
After four years Kate has returned to Topshop with a more seasoned, more, in her own words, sophisticated collection, and I couldn't agree more. THIS is the collection that embodies everything she is to style and fashion- edgy, bohemian, vintage rock and roll. Based on her wardrobe each piece is authentically Kate- in her own vision.
Tailoring Noir– explores evening wear with a slick edge- fringe, of course there's fringe, its Kate, but used here its both slinky and cool, as seen on the flapper style, fringe, metallic dress, its mate a cropped fringe jacket, which she wears on the cover of Vogue UK May 2014 issue, a maxi dress fringed from mid thigh to hemline, a mini dress layered in long fringe etc.
Balearic Dressing– is the more luxurious boho aesthetic: embellished smocks, suede shorts and aztec print kaftans influenced by her favourite summer holiday spot, the Balearic Islands, a Spanish archipelago.
Pyjama Dressing– more trend led but with an air of chicness. The wide leg print pants, especially, will serve the dual function as both evening and lounge wear something so typically Kate in the sense that she never, ever tries hard.
Cocktail Hour– as the name suggests, is a collection of more evening wear- star spangled and slinky pieces, cute little safe dresses like the one shoulder chiffon cocktail dresses that still have a touch of Kate and will definitely fly off the racks. But the crown jewel has got to be the satin evening gown, reminiscent of Elvira Hancock one of Moss's inspiration for this collection; such simple sophistication, such effortless glamour. Such endless sexiness.
There are day pieces too, rompers, fifties style cute dresses and those will be best sellers.
The paisley print stuff, part of the pyjama dressing, I could do without, along with the scarf hemmed blouses, that were less fashion forward and more trendy hot messes that reminded one of something from Surprise, Surprise. Topshop may be a high street retailer but Kate Moss is still very much high fashion, even if she designs for a high street brand we do not want that obvious association. There is just something different, when its Kate Moss, that we have come to expect.
This is a more superior collection to previous collections, more intricate, more evolved, hence the mark up in price. Some items, like the satin evening gown, will be produced in limited quantities, other items, the most expensive of the collection, will be available on Net-a-Porter. The rest will be produced in bulk and available in 38 countries across the globe, in-store and online at Topshop and Nordstrom.
All in all, this collection is quintessentially Kate, everything about it revolves around her and speaks to her style statement.
Kate on Kate by Kate The Great.
The Kate Moss for Topshop collection drops on the 30th of April.
Images- Topshop


text:
channeled by Jahn J Kassl
translated by Franz
Beloved Ones,
I take up on yesterday's message from SANANDA
(THE BIRTH OF NEW WORLDS, given during the light reading
on 12/13/2013 in Vienna, Remark JJK. ) and again emphasize
the fact that all of you already are ascended Masters, if you
a.)are ready to accept this gift and if you
b.)are ready to do, to give up and let go of everything,
truly everything for it.
I am the Cosmic Christ, meaning the Christ Consciousness on
all levels of Creation, SANANDA and MAITRAYA are one – what
distinguishes us – but does not separate us – is the individual
manifestation as God on the different levels of All-that-Is.
In Eternity.
Yesterday the gate into the Light has been fully opened
for you, immediately before the events reach the surface of the earth.
And today you already have the opportunity to test your mastery by
discarding your old habitual thinking, speaking and acting.
An ordinary and average life, ordinary and average thinking,
is foreign to a Master and as you desire the transformation,
but remain unchanged, then every hope is deceptive and
you will be disappointed in each expectation.
Therefore I urge you now to truly turn around your life.
It is easy if you really want it.
The Heaven is within you and if it isn't within you,
it is nowhere.
It is a well-known wisdom, which today gains new importance,
now, because humans look up to Heaven and expect the
unbelievable and the unavoidable.
Prove yourself worthy of the gift for mastery, by observing
your whole life, each moment of the day in the token of your mastery.
Each great event invisibly and slowly builds up, until it becomes visible
and at a certain moment of time spreads out over the whole world.
This "great event", that one repeatedly talks about, now forges its
way from the invisible into the visible world of mankind.
And while the divine intention is being met, in most cases
human Beings still behave totally unconsciously.
Out of two motives:1.) Due to the choice, that they want to be unconscious,
and stay in the game or
2.)Because they intuitively recognize the great event and
see it approaching and out of fear suppress everything that
would open their eyes to see it. It is because they carry
unresolved fears within themselves.
These unresolved fears form the mortar that
keeps human Beings on the lower vibrational level.
Therefore, in an additional act of grace of the Creator,
it is mandated, that each human who in the last act of this
epic event wishes to return to the Light, can also do so.
The condition for it is the unconditional exposure of one's
fears and suppression mechanisms.
Even when these have not been totally released,
a human Being can still enter into the Light, based on
God's grace, which is immediately effective and creates
a new reality in an instant.
The willingness to look at your "primal fears"
and anxieties puts everything on track and you
may hop on the train into the Light.
All is possible for God, God makes everything possible and you,
who do not want to attain your full mastery, have at least the
opportunity to step out of the wheel of darkness.
Because it makes quite a difference during the progression
towards enlightenment, if a soul is incarnated on the "SUPRA PLANET"
or on a denser level of Creation. Many of these human Beings have
spent life after life in the realms of shadows, today are full of anxieties,
and are barely able to go on and lift their sight. If these have a
minimal willingness to look at their fears, then we come to the aid
of these humans, who have exhausted their measure of individual
suffering and now seem to fail due to these unreleased anxieties.
God does not forget you, God forgets nobody.
The Christ Consciousness is all present in human
Beings – and the love that cannot be destroyed.
Each human Being is part of the ascension, even those,
who have no recognition of it. And these humans now have
the opportunity to open the door into the Light by at least
a split, so that they do not totally slide back into darkness.
I am MAITRAYA
I am pure unchangeable divine consciousness
I am the Cosmic Christ
The light world publishing and the author do not lead any
correspondence whatsoever on the texts / messages published
on this website.
The light world publishing and the author do not lead any
correspondence whatsoever on the texts / messages published
on this website.
The Birth of New Worlds - SANANDA:


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The global penetration of microinsurance cover is set to double from the 500m people currently covered to more than 1 billion by 2020, according to a statement from the Microinsurance Network. Governments, insurers and reinsurers are all expected to broaden he geographic scope and range of products as they seek to make insurance products available to more of the world's low-income people, particularly in developing nations.
"Microinsurance, which currently provides coverage to 500 million people, could pass the 1 billion mark by the end of the decade," said Craig Churchill, Chair of the Microinsurance Network and Head of the ILO's Microinsurance Innovation Facility.
The growth of the microinsurance sector has been impressive with many of the sectors products taking their inspiration from modern risk transfer techniques such as index-based insurance covers and parametric weather insurance covers. The weather and catastrophe microinsurance market is expected to continue growing in years to come, although much of the sectors potential for growth comes from micro health and life insurance covers.
A trend has also emerged for attempting to bundle both property and life covers within single microinsurance policies, enabling people on lower-income to receive easy to understand and broad insurance protection. The covers are often designed to purely enable recovery after catastrophic events which in the past had led to poverty and loss of life due to the destruction of homes and livelihoods.
"The expansion of the sector is being facilitated by the emergence of alternative distribution channels and public-private partnerships, the adoption of technological innovations as well as an increased awareness amongst insurance companies of the business case for microinsurance," commented Eugenio Velasques from Bradesco Seguros e Previdência, one of the leading insurance companies in Brazil.
The challenge, as we've highlighted before, will be in finding a way to sustain the growth of microinsurance in a commercially viable manner to keep global insurers and reinsurers engaged in underwriting many of these schemes. So many of the pilot schemes are subsidised or funded by government backed organisations and funding rarely lasts forever, so the sector needs to establish how it will sustain itself should subsidies dry up.
The opportunity for the global re/insurance sector could be huge, and the knock on effect of growing the amount of insurance premium exposed to weather, climate and catastrophe events will provide an opportunity for reinsurance and collateralized markets to provide the underlying cover for these products. The capital markets may find itself the most suitable place to offload large amounts of risk linked to microinsurance policies, particularly where the underlying policies are linked to weather and catastrophe conditions, which might make catastrophe bonds a suitable way to underwrite the scheme at the sovereign level.
The microinsurance catastrophe bond (whether commercial or sovereign), used to underwrite large index based or parametric weather and catastrophe microinsurance products, could become a very interesting investment opportunity for the capital markets. Such instruments could also tick a box in large institutional investors, such as pension funds, social impact investing aspirations which would make them a great way to continue financing/underwriting microinsurance schemes.
Microinsurance is one of the innovations of recent times within the re/insurance market and it will be interesting to see how the global re/insurance and capital markets end up supporting a sector that provides coverage to 1 billion people.
View all of our Artemis Live video interviews and subscribe to our podcast.
All of our Artemis Live insurance-linked securities (ILS), catastrophe bonds and reinsurance video content and video interviews can be accessed online.
Our Artemis Live podcast can be subscribed to using the typical podcast services providers, including Apple, Google, Spotify and more.


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Spain: Cantero; Rodri (Gaitán 69'),
Ramón Bueno, Iván Sáez, Grimaldo; Borja Martínez,
Samper (Óscar Gil 41'); Álvaro Bustos, Samu (Alex 51'), Juan
Jesús; Sandro. 4-2-3-1.
Malta: Pecorella; Bonello, Fava, Vella, Muscat; Refalo, Zammit (Cesare 41'), McKay, Spiteri (Dandolo 65'), Cremona; Montebello (Stewart 71'). 4-5-1.
Goals: 1-0. 10. Samper; 2-0. 31. Sandro (pen); 3-0. 56. Juan Jesús; 4-0. 69. Alex; 5-0. 70. Sandro; 6-0. 80. Sandro.
Spain's under 17 side are virtually sure of a place in the Elite round after thrashing Malta 6-0 in their second group game. Barcelona's Sergio Samper started things off in the tenth minute, and his team mate Sandro added a hat-trick, including a penalty after he was brought down by Bonello, to take his tally to five in the tournament. Juan Jesús (Sevilla( and Alex (Sporting) got the other two goals. Spain's last match will be on Monday against Poland, who were not able to play Montenegro today due to a rainstorm.


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text:
Five Communities Are Rewarded For Revitalizing Their Main Streets
The first Great American Main Street Awards were selected from among 240 entries from 42 states. The National Trust for Historic Preservation's Main Street Center and the Edward D. Jones & Co. financial services firm are providing the $5,000 award to five communities that have brought their streets and commercial centers back to life.
The winners include the small river town of Clarksville, Mo.; downtown Dubuque, Iowa; Franklin, Tenn., near Nashville; Old Pasadena, Calif., on the edges of the Los Angeles megalopolis; and Sheboygan Falls, Wis., along Lake Michigan.
''These five communities not only recognized the indisputable vitality that our Main Streets bring to American life; they prevailed against a virtual tidal wave of devastating change,'' says Richard Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation in Washington. ''In each case, they have revived a true spirit of community and, in doing so, set the lifeblood of commerce flowing.''
Clarksville, Mo., turned around decades of decay to transform its dying downtown into a magnet for tourism.
Dubuque, Iowa, drew five disparate districts into a thriving, cohesive downtown region.
Franklin, Tenn., reversed the flow of commerce to Nashville's sprawling suburbs and rejuvenated its own city center.
Sheboygan Falls, Wis., depended on community-wide efforts to restore historic structures and revitalize the downtown district.
Old Pasadena, Calif., overcame the trend toward ''raze and rebuild'' policies and transformed historic buildings into new residences and businesses.
A panel of preservationists, urban planners, and architects served as jurors. In addition to the prize money, winning communities will receive plaques and road signs marking the award.


text:
Frank Modell in The New Yorker.
Modell died this week at age 98 and got a nice obit in The NY Times.
Frank Modell in The New Yorker.
Modell died this week at age 98 and got a nice obit in The NY Times.
The parade sound wafting from the sidewalk Monday morning is Sidney Bechet on soprano sax playing "Maple Leaf Rag." Click on the video above to hear.
by Philip Larkin
Building for some a legendary Quarter
Of balconies, flower-baskets and quadrilles,
Everyone making love and going shares—
Oh, play that thing! Mute glorious Storyvilles
Others may license, grouping around their chairs
Sporting-house girls like circus tigers (priced
Far above rubies) to pretend their fads,
While scholars manqués nod around unnoticed
Wrapped up in personnels like old plaids.
On me your voice falls as they say love should,
Like an enormous yes. My Crescent City
Is where your speech alone is understood,
And greeted as the natural noise of good,
Scattering long-haired grief and scored pity.
Monty Python in a great sketch done live in 1982 at the Hollywood Bowl. I particularly like John Cleese's understated Lenin portrayal.
Fun fact: John Cleese's father's original last name was Cheese, but his father changed it as a young man. Somehow that explains a lot to me. Cleese is correctly pronounced to rhyme with Cheese.
Thanks to YouTuber Haunting Europe
Some people say that Nat King Cole was arguably the greatest 20th century American male singer. When I listen to a performance such as in the video above, I have a hard time disagreeing…
This recording was number one on the American charts in 1951.
Mike Twohy in The New Yorker
Gadzooks, it's Magic and Marxism.
I had an opportunity last Saturday to speak about and perform magic at this year's Left Forum, an annual gathering of political leftists, with hundreds of lectures and panels throughout a hectic weekend. The theme of the panel for which I was performing was the neurotic pitfalls of doing political work. My tenuous contribution to the other panelists' fascinating talks was a magic performance that emphasized the vulnerability of all of us—even Marxists!—of falling victim to deception and self-deception.
You can see a video of the performance by clicking on the video above.
Thanks to panel organizer Mitchel Cohen, and panelists Irene Javors, Ann Snitow, Debbie DeSpina Sophia Stamos and Margaret Stevens.
Monday morning, Roy Orbison is in your bedroom from the night before, dark glasses intact.
It would be hard to miss the obvious influence Orbison had on Bruce Springsteen.
Thanks to YouTuber MusicMike's "Flashback Favorites"
I had planned on posting a video from a magic performance I presented at the Left Forum yesterday, but I'm having technical difficulty, so until I'm able to post the video I'd like to share with you something said at the plenary session by one of the participants, the popular musician and revolutionary, Immortal Technique.
His remark was in the context of addressing the possibility of forming a truly viable leftist party in the United States, given that so many recent efforts seemed to have been failures with little impact.
His reply was this: "The reason that I've achieved the position that I have is because I have failed. Failed over and over. More importantly, I've failed many more times in my art than most people have even tried to take a chance. There has to be space for failure."
There's almost no way for an artist to be good without first being bad. Artists need the space and permission (from themselves!) to be bad. Each painful lousy performance or draft is one step closer to getting it where it wants to be.
As Samuel Beckett said, "Try again, Fail again. Fail Better."
Singer/songwriter Nick Lowe wrote a number of pop rock songs like "Cruel To Be Kind," and "What's So Funny 'Bout Peace, Love and Understanding?" that were big pop hits for other artists, such as Elvis Costello.
Lowe has continued writing and recording his own songs through the years, and "People Change," from 2007 is one of my favorites. It's a great combination of pungent lyric, catchy melody, and simple, but affecting performance.
Click on the video to play.
Robert Mankoff in The New Yorker
I was reminded today, as I stood in front of my students with my aching back, the funniest and most profound statement I had ever heard about the profession of teaching, words uttered by a veteran high school teacher I once knew:
"The amazing thing about teaching," he said, "is this: each year, you get older, but the students stay the same age."
Monday morning, Cyndi Lauper lays down the law to her parents.
Catch the appropriation of The Marx Brothers' State Room gag from A Night at the Opera towards the end of the video.
While you, Mr. Magician, are YouTubing coin rolls and card flourishes, the really cool high school students are watching videos featuring finger tutting. So, Meyer Yedid, eat your heart out, It's Finger Fantasies: The Next Generation.
Click on the video above to view the impressively impassive finger tutter, Pnut.
Thanks to YouTuber StatusSilver
The short-lived original 1998 Broadway production of The Capeman had a beautiful score by Paul Simon and Derek Walcott. And it was sung superbly by two icons, Marc Anthony and Ruben Blades.
The video above was uploaded last month to YouTube by Blades himself. In this song, Ruben Blades plays the older Salvador Agron, the so-called Capeman murderer, looking back and trying to reach his younger, 16-year-old incarcerated self, played by Marc Anthony.
I hope that someday more video surfaces, as that show really needs to be re-evaluated. It was performed for a few times in the summer at Central Park's outdoor Delacorte Theatre in 2012, but was not picked up for a longer run. If anyone is interested, I'll tell a funny story concerning my viewing of that production.
Some extraordinary examples of street art illusion—the drawings are seemingly three dimensional, but in fact they are all done on a flat street surface with paint and chalk. The illusions depend on the perspective that the camera vantage point enforces, and the projective geometry of anamorphosis.
The realistic nature of the drawings allows passersby to interact with the drawings by posing with them, further reinforcing the three-dimensional illusion.
Thanks to YouTuber Mind Blowing
Monday, the singing teen-agers on the corner wake you up at 4:00 in the morning.
In 1996, Paul Simon, along with Derek Walcott, wrote the music and book for the Broadway play, Capeman,. The critics killed the show, unfairly in my opinion, but the songs are some of Simon's best work. The play took place in 1950s New York City, and the music was an amalgamation of doo-wop and salsa. This song was one of the decidedly doo-wop influenced songs.
Click on the video to play
Thanks to YouTuber nostalgicdoowop
Mystic Descendant is the name of a shiny new periodical for the mentalism community, published by mentalist Ron Chavis. Ron, among other hats that he wears, is the genial web host of a deliberately not-so-well-known mentalism website. He has taken on the formidable job of producing a mentalism quarterly of 50+ pages, no small task, and his first issue is a low-key, but enjoyable read.
You can tell right away that Mystic Descendant is going to be different from other mentalism periodicals, because unlike The Jinx, Magick, or Syzygy, MD is not a newsletter or stapled mimeographed affair, but a perfect bound, glossy color-covered magazine (some of the publicity material likes to call it a book, but I think that's stretching it), printed on decent quality paper.
Mystic Descendant casts its net wide, covering traditional mentalism, but it's also not afraid to cover such topics as psychic readings and bizarre magic presentations as well. The one thing it is not interested in is mental magic, so if that's what you're looking for, look elsewhere. While there is discussion of methods, the focus so far is really on compelling presentations for casual and close-up performance. The periodical describes itself as aimed at "a beginner, a part or full-time performer, or a hobbyist," and I think that's a fair description. I think all of the above can find something to appreciate and enjoy here.
The contents are an eclectic mix of interviews, effects, presentations, stories, and random thoughts and that is part of the charm of the magazine. It's the kind of thing you sit in the lounge chair with, and chuckle to yourself as you're reading it. It's imaginative in its diversity, and firm in its conviction about the importance of storytelling.
You can get an idea of the full contents by clicking here, but I'll just mention that the highlight of the issue for me was the interview with Swedish mentalist Anthony Heads. He is primarily a stage performer, and it was fascinating to read about how he overcomes the reticence of his Swedish audiences to express emotion. Here's hoping to the continued success of Mystic Descendant.


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Project Description
Construction management project for the Capital District Transportation Authority involving the demolition and restoration of an historic train station in the upstate New York resort town of Saratoga Springs, with the design features of the new facility reflecting the style of the surrounding Saratoga community.
Improvements at the site included a new entrance road, new utility connections, enhancement of intermodal access and new infrastructure. Structural improvements included all new utilities, new station façade and new roof. The new structure has a larger passenger waiting area, larger windowed areas, and retail space.
he project was recognized by the American Public Works Association's Capital District Branch as 2006 Transportation Project of the Year <$10 million.


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You can find information here about guitar builders, with whom I am currently collaborating and my favorites of the last century. Photos are provided if I have them.
Hnos. Sanchis López
The sons of Ricardo Sanchis Carpio, David and German, who have been running his workshop independently for a few years, have proved worthy of representing the name of their father. They are number one for flamenco guitars in the manufacturing area. Their instruments all sound very flamenco, regardless in which price class they build. Many pros go on stage with their instruments in Spain.


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In October 1999, Dan and his wife had just had their first son, Edward, who was delivered by C-section; it was a very painful and trying time his wife. About a week after she got out of the hospital, he noticed that he was coming down with a cold.
Thinking he had the flu, Dan slept for what seemed like two days until around 3 in the morning, when he woke and told his wife that he needed to go to the hospital.
Due to the C-section, Dan's father-in-law drove him to the hospital. He went to a hospital in Waukegan, Illinois, where he was admitted for observation. Dan's health deteriorated so quickly and suddenly, he remember not being able to speak and his blood oxygen level continued to drop drastically; his physician recognized that he had ARDS and realized that if he did not get to a medical center that could properly handle his medical situation, he would not survive.
Dan was air lifted to Loyola Hospital in Maywood, Illinois; by the time he arrived at Loyola, his blood oxygen level had dropped to 2%.
The doctors worked tirelessly to save Dan's life. He was in a drug-induced coma for about a week and a half.
When they reduced the sedating medications and he awoke to see his brothers, he was initially confused but then realized how ill he had been. It wasn't until later that he was told that the doctors were extremely concerned about the reality of potential brain damage because Dan's blood oxygen level had gotten so drastically low.
When it was time for Dan to be moved from Intensive Care to a regular room, his physician told Dan that his hospital stay would probably be another two to three more months and then another three to four months at home recovering. After the doctor left the hospital room, Dan got out of his bed and started to walk to the bathroom. Though he fell to the floor and it took him ten minutes to get twenty feet, he got there.
Being a stubborn police office and former US Marine, Dan was determined to be discharged from the hospital as quickly as possible. After another week, he was off the oxygen and had all but one IV removed. Shortly after that, Dan was able to continue his recovery at home.
Like all other ARDS survivors, Dan feels that he survived due in large part to Divine intervention. When he was at his lowest, his father would have his entire family surround his bed and pray for Dan.
And although it took Dan a couple of months before he was back to full strength, he was able to recover fully. Dan will admit, like many survivors, to getting scared whenever he gets a cold or anything that has to do with his chest. But Dan feels that he is here by the grace of God, that he is living on borrowed time, and now, when he plays with his children, he gives them an extra hour or two of his his time and tries to stop and smell the roses. Life is too short.


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Choosing a Short Sale Realtor®
While short sales are typically more complicated than your average real estate transaction, the short sale process will be managed by your short sale Realtor®. As the seller, the most important decision you will make in the short sale process will be choosing the right short sale Realtor® to manage your short sale. That is where the Short Sale Specialist Network comes in handy! Like with a regular real estate transaction, your short sale Realtor will be responsible for listing your home, managing the offer process, handling the paperwork, walking you through the process, and closing the deal. However in a short sale, the Realtor® also has a large number of additional duties that he/she must perform in order to ensure a successful short sale.
In addition to standard Realtor® tasks, your short sale Realtor® will also be responsible for helping you put together your short sale package, They will also work in negotiating with your lender, working to ensure that the lender accurately valuates your home, and many more duties that involve expertise unique to Realtors who have spent years working with short sales. Without the right experience and knowledge, your Realtor may not be able to successfully close the short sale on your home.
Real Estate Short Sales & the Short Sale Specialist
Because any real estate agent can take a short sale listing, many homeowners mistakenly believe that any Realtor® can successfully close a real estate short sale. The truth however, is that the short sale process has a number of pitfalls that require the expertise of an experienced short sale specialist to navigate. From choosing the right offer, to ensuring that the short sale package is complete, to working with lenders to negotiate a short sale agreement, to ensuring that the bank is accurately valuating your home, most aspects of the short sale process – from offer to approval – require a high degree of experience and specialization unique to short sales. Below, we'll examine some of the key areas where an experienced short sale specialist can make the difference between a successful short sale and an unsold home.
Short Sale Offer
One of the key roles of a Realtor in a short sale is to market the property and accept an offer. However, unlike in a standard real estate transaction, the Realtor is not looking to accept the best offer possible for the seller, but rather the best offer possible for the lender. The offer not only needs to be high enough for the lender to accept, but oftentimes it also needs to be presented in a way that the lender is likely to accept. This isn't always as easy as it seems. For example, lenders are generally unwilling to accept an offer received shortly after listing, as the lender will see this as a sign that the Realtor could have extracted more value for the property. An experienced short sale Realtor might list the property at slightly higher than market value and let the property sit for a couple weeks before dropping the price. This way once the seller accepts a fair offer, the lender will see the property's marketing history and agree that the accepted offer was the best offer the Realtor® could obtain. Knowing how to property screen buyers to determine their willingness to wait out the process is also critical.
Short Sale Package
In order for the lender to approve the short sale, the lender will need a hardship letter as well as documentation showing that the seller experienced a hardship that affected his ability to pay his monthly mortgage payment, and that the seller has insufficient assets and income to meet his current and future debt obligations. Many lenders have very specific requirements about the type of documentation needed. One of the most common reasons for banks to reject short sales is an incomplete short sale package. An experienced short sale expert will have worked with your lender before and will be familiar with the documentation needed.
Short Sale Negotiations
Another important part of the short sale process is the short sale negotiations. Here, your Realtor® will work with your lender to ensure that the terms of the short sale agreement are favorable to you. This can include negotiating for debt forgiveness, or even cash incentives for choosing a short sale over foreclosure. An experienced short sale negotiator will know how to leverage the seller's position to obtain the most favorable terms for their client. This requires experience working with the various lenders over many years and isn't a skill that can be obtained through any training course or book.
Short Sale BPOs
In a short sale, BPOs, or broker price opinions, play a vital role in the short sale approval process. A BPO is the valuation method used by your lender to determine the worth of your home. This valuation is used to decide whether or not to approve the short sale. But unfortunately for sellers, BPOs can often be an inaccurate representation of the real world price of a home. An experienced short sale specialist will have the savvy to ensure that the broker has all the information he/she needs to make an accurate valuation, and will also work to dispute the bank's valuation if necessary. This might be done through offering comparables, showing documentation of any repairs or defects that might lower the home's value, using marketing history to the seller's advantage, and more. Without an experienced short sale specialist on the homeowner's side, an over inflated broker price opinion can derail a short sale, even when the short sale offer accurately reflects the fair market value of the home.
Choosing A Short Sale Specialist
When choosing a short sale Realtor, you want to hire a short sale specialist with many years of experience handling short sale transactions. Ensure that your short sale Realtor has successfully closed a number of short sale listings, that the short sale Realtor has experienced working with your lender, and that your Realtor has a plan to deal with any 2nd junior lien holders (if there are any). By ensuring that you hire an experienced short sale Realtor with plenty of successful short sale closings in his/her back pocket, you maximize the chances of a quick sale and your chances for avoiding foreclosure and receiving a fresh start. Contacting our Network of highly experienced Short Sale Specialists is a great start to a successful short sale!
Helpful Resources
How To Stop Foreclosure
Preparing A Short Sale Package
How To Write A Hardship Letter
Choosing A Realtor
Alternatives to Foreclosure
Questions And Answers
Short Sale Agents
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Aldelo POS Systems Offer Multiple Benefits to Restaurant Owners
Aldelo POS systems are point-of-sale solutions designed specifically for the restaurant industry. Aldelo for Restaurants is available in two versions: Pro and Lite. Each format offers different benefits for different budgets. All of these solutions provide new and established restaurateurs with a cost-effective and easy-to-use restaurant management tool.
Aldelo POS Pro makes payment processing, inventory control, customer tracking, labor management, kitchen productivity, and financial-accounting processes easier to manage. This comprehensive POS system is designed for table-service restaurants, bars, and quick-service restaurants, and can be used by owners and employees who have no computer experience.
Aldelo POS Lite is designed for restaurateurs on a budget. This software program replaces a standard cash register at a fast-food restaurant or quick-service counter. It's designed with an integrated payment-processing system, as well as delivery route and tracking features. Aldelo Lite is a good match for new or smaller restaurants, and it can be easily upgraded to the Pro version as the restaurant grows.
Here are some common, helpful features of Aldelo systems:
Kitchen display server software
Aldelo Kitchen Display Server Software connects your POS terminals to your kitchen in real time. It's designed to complement the POS terminal edition of any standard Aldelo POS system, and can make the entire order-taking and placing process much more efficient.
Liquor controller
The Aldelo Liquor Controller system is integrated with the system's POS to keep track of the number of drinks being dispensed to customers. When the bar staff members place an order into the Aldelo POS, it is transmitted to the controller for authorization (via TCP/IP).
Any orders that end up getting voided are tracked through the system. No drinks can be poured unless the Liquor Controller authorizes the request, which reduces waste and helps with inventory control in the bar.
Gift card server
Aldelo Gift Card Server gives you the ability to manage gift cards for all of your locations. The server works seamlessly with the Aldelo POS Pro Edition, making it easy for your staff to issue and redeem gift cards to customers in real time. Balances can be tracked in a single location quickly and easily.
Overall quality
In the restaurant industry, Aldelo is one of the best-known POS system brands, which can be attributed to a few reasons. Key benefits of Aldelo POS systems are:
- Easy setup
- Easy for staff to use
- Improves productivity for restaurant management and staff
- Pro version can keep track of recipes, schedules, and produce extensive reports about each restaurant process


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Monday, 27 August 2012
Mensa Academy Wii game review
9 comments:
sounds a good one to add to the wish list!ReplyDelete
This sounds great!ReplyDelete
I love games like this, sounds good!ReplyDelete
Sounds brilliant. We like to play Brain Academy as a family - sounds like another one in the same vein.ReplyDelete
This sounds a great game for the WiiReplyDelete
Will def check it out
Fantastic! Looking forward to trying this myself! @jaxxwardReplyDelete
Looks fun. I remember doing a sample Mensa test at home when I was young. Can't remember how I scored, so I could probably do with working on the Memory discipline!ReplyDelete
Oooh - this does look fun! I'm not really one for games (other than Wii boxing) but I can see myself easily getting interested in this one! I'm glad to see it has 100 levels so there's something for everyone.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous23 February 2013 at 15:05
It also is forbidden which makes it all the moreReplyDelete
alluring to teenagers, thus the low starting age
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Take a look at my homepage; Vaporizer


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FSU Football Falling? What's Wrong With the Only Unbeaten Left
754 days. 2 years and 24 days. That is how far you have to go back to find an L on the Florida State Seminoles Men's Football schedule, which came at the hands of the then ranked #6 Florida Gators in a 37-26 defeat. So if all they do is win, why can't the Seminoles stay atop the College Football Playoff and AP Top 25 Rankings?
In the College Football Playoff Rankings, the undefeated Seminoles (13-0) sit at #3, behind Oregon (12-1 #2) and Alabama (12-1 #1). Since the CFPR were released in Week 10 of the season, the 'Noles have spent exactly 0, yes you read that correctly, 0 weeks in the #1 spot and in Week 15, Jameis Winston & Co. fell as far as #4 despite being the only undefeated team in Division 1 football. And although they have yet to suffer a loss, they have also been booted from the top overall spot in the AP Top 25 (#2), although this ranking is irrelevant with regards to the Playoffs and determining a national champion.
The Seminoles have found themselves falling in the rankings, because just as easily as they are 13-0, they could be 6-7 and instead of contending for a national championship, they'd be at home, ineligible for even the most insignificant of bowls. In 6 of those 7 games, Florida State was within one score of losing and in the other potential loss, which was a 42-31 win over Louisville, the Seminoles faced an early 21 point deficit. Only one year after comfortably being the best team in the country in terms of margin of victory at +38.8 points per game, they are ranked twenty-first (+10.7) despite playing an easier, albeit fairly similar, schedule to the one in their 2013 regular season campaign. In that 2013 regular season, there was not a single game in which they won by less than 27 points. Now, in their 2014 regular season, they have only broken this mark of winning by more than 27 points once, which came during a 43-3 rout of the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, who finish their own season at an atrocious 3-9 and in last place in the ACC.
The other most apparent reason for their struggle and subsequent ranking drop is the major dropoff in play from their former Heisman quarterback, Famous Jameis Winston. One year after putting up arguably the best freshman season of all time, his numbers have dropped in every single statistical category. Last season, on only 384 attempts, he threw for 4057 yards with a completion rate of 66.9%, while this year he has only thrown for 3559 yards on 38 more passing attempts, completing 65.4% of his throws. His yards per attempt has also seen a large drop off, going from an astounding 10.57 to 8.43 and his QBR has fallen nearly 40 points (184.8 to 147.0). However, the most glaring of all his miscues is his alarming descent is his touchdown to interception ratio. In 2013, he threw for 40 touchdowns and only 10 interceptions (a ratio of 4:1). In 2014, he has thrown for significantly less touchdowns and a staggering amount of interceptions. His 24 touchdowns and 17 interceptions (a ratio of 1.4:1) accounts for one of the most egregious drops in the history of the sport.
The Florida State Seminoles have come very close to the jaws of defeat this year, but they cannot seem to lose. The drop in the rankings, the decline of Winston- none of this will matter if the Seminoles continue to do what they are seemingly bred to do, and keep winning football games. With their semi-final playoff matchup with the Oregon Ducks only days away, we will get to see first hand if their slide in the rankings is warranted.
Prediction: FSU does what they've done all season and puts themselves in an early hole. Oregon's fiery offense and stingy defense won't allow a comeback and the Ducks will on to win. Final score Oregon 35, FSU 24.


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The Sassy Stripe Geometric Fabric is a part of the Lipstick Cowgirl Collection designed by Shari Jenkins for Moda Fabrics. The fabric is made of 100% cotton and measures 44 inches in width.
* Even though we do our best to make certain that the colors in our fabric photographs are accurate, please be aware that your display screen may show small variances in color, shade or hue.


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If you?re headed to Tanzania and looking for a unique hotel experience, check out The Manta Resort in the Zanzibar Archipelago which boasts Africa?s first underwater hotel room. Talk about innovation. Guests are 4m below the surface in a room that is on a three-level floating structure.???
Designed by Mikael Genberg, the model follows similar structures in Dubai and Sweden. A concept in the making for years, underwater hotel rooms can cost anywhere from $500 to $1,500 per night.??
Read more at BBC Travel.


text: "We were so very pleased to have Lisa officiate our wedding. Her gentle and compassionate approach allowed us to feel calm and comfortable throughout the entire process. Lisa took the time to get to know us as a couple and managed to style her wording for the ceremony in such a way that incorporated everything we had asked without it feeling long. She was the perfect fit for the most important day of our lives."


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text: James Farrell Vernon is the Jazz Ensemble director and saxophone instructor at IPFW. Before joining the IPFW faculty in 2002, he was Assistant Director of Bands, Director of Jazz Studies, and saxophone instructor at Southeastern Louisiana University; prior to that he was Professor of Saxophone at James Madison University in Virginia and served as part-time faculty at the University of Northern Colorado. He has a Bachelor's degree in Jazz Studies from Indiana University, where he was awarded the prestigious Performer's Certificate on saxophone. Vernon also has a Masters of Music in Jazz Performance from the University of Denver and Doctor of Arts degree in Saxophone Performance and Pedagogy with a secondary emphasis in Jazz Studies at the University of Northern Colorado. He has performed in venues across the country with stars like Ray Charles, Linda Ronstadt, Tito Puente, Bobby Shew, Denis DiBlasio, Louis Bellson, Al Jarreau, Roberta Flack, and the Shirelles. Four of Vernon's transcription books for woodwinds have been published. His former teachers include David Baker, Dominic Spera, Eugene Rousseau, Roger Greenberg, Gene Aitken, Craig Whittaker, and Malcolm Lynn Baker.