text:
There are several pairs, or axes, of tonal qualities:
or120 at aol.com (OR120) wrote:
>I was a Laney dealer when they were 'reintroduced' in the mid eighties. The primary reason was that I had always been a big Sabbath fan, and owned an old 60 watt plexi Laney, and 4x12 cab (I still have the cab). The press, and quotes from Iommi, which were backed up by the video he had out at the time, was that he used Laney primarily through Volume IV, and used Marshall's then, and later went to Boogie, and eventually back to Laney.
>Also (and this again is repeating what I was told by Laney and perportedly
Iommi), no inline effects, just cranked, and Fane speakers, which had a boxy
sound with the amps wide open. His first couple efforts used P-90's (my fave),
and then some custom made pu's, I forget. I have seen pictures of Iommi w/
humbuckers, and a video of Iron Man from the early 70's had him using Orange
amps (still my favorite as far as big amps). I have a really cool video of Sabbath
from Paris in 1970, and Laney was the back line. This video is available from
the video dealers at the guitar shows I exhibit at, man it's bad-ass, even Ozzie
sounded great and they let him have center stage! :)
I promote paying attention to the principles of Amp Tone, rather than particular brands.
I'm glad you mentioned Volume IV by Black Sabbath. There is an interesting, key tone-combination there, in the song "Cornucopia". On one channel, the power-tube and speaker distortion sounds crusty, and on the other, it sounds liquidy. This are the opposite poles of the Amp Tone spectrum (I don't mean the blues vs. shred, that is, power vs. preamp, spectrum, or hard vs. soft types of power tubes). How did he do it?
To get the crusty tone, turn up the amp's Bass tone knob, and turn down the amp's Treble tone knob. To get the liquidy tone, turn down the amp's bass tone knob, and turn up the treble.
This technique also works when placing an eq stage before a preamp distortion stage. Even without an eq pedal, you can test this technique right away by using the neck pickup and turning your guitar's tone knob to minimum treble -- there, you have a crusty Sabbath tone.
Try hitting the low E string hard, then playing the thin, high E string while letting the bass string ring -- you get a ring modulator (buzzing-noise) effect.
For the buzzing noise behind the "Paranoid" lead, stand next to your amp such that your guitar picks up the 50 or 60 Hz hum of the AC power line, interfering with your solo.
Amptone.com ultra gear-search page
Home (amp tone and effects placement)


text:
"You know what freedom is? It's something people say they want when they're afraid they can't have what we all really crave: somebody to love. You think love is just these little, these little kissing games of the world you play..."
In Kissing Games of the World, author Sandi Kahn Shelton details an unconventional family, making their way through life, without the typical parameters of what defines a household.
Jamie, an artist and a single mom, is raising her five-year-old son, Arley, in the same house as Harris, a 60-something construction worker raising his five-year-old grandson, Christopher, on his family's Connecticut farm.
The group came together in the most unlikely of ways, but despite the unusual conditions, their situation works...and there's nothing physical to it, despite what everyone in town speculates. Arley and Christopher are best friends, raised like brothers, with the four coming as close to a family as any of them has ever known.
The two have complicated pasts, with Jamie having moved to Connecticut to escape a relationship with an unpredictable graffiti artist who is unfit to parent their child, and Harris having taken on his grandson when his equally unpredictable son, Nate, is unable to raise him after his wife's sudden death. For Harris, it's a way to make right his past, having left his wife and young son years earlier.
But, when Harris up and dies one day from a heart attack, Jamie's carefully constructed world is thrown up in the air. Her permission to stay on in the house is questioned, especially when Nate returns to (somewhat reluctantly) collect his son and settle his father's estate. Nate is estranged from the family, having spent the past five years on the road as a successful salesman, but with no stability and no knowledge of how to reacquaint himself with his son and raise him in his chaotic lifestyle.
Nate takes Christopher on the road with him, and Jamie and Arley move back into her sister's condo...and they try to navigate in their new worlds, with hits and misses along the way.
This book is both heart-breaking and heart-warming, and Shelton's writing is immediately engaging and sustains itself throughout. She makes us care about all of these characters...and keep caring about them even through questionable decisions and actions.
There is a lot of emotion here, with the breakup of the two close-knit boys, each having already experienced a fair amount of loss in their short lifetimes. At its heart, though, are the journeys and evolutions of Jamie and Nate, as they struggle to find out who they really are and what they really want, and need, from life.
I'm going to have to go back and read Shelton's earlier work, What Comes After Crazy and A Piece of Normal now that she is on my radar. Highly recommended...
Sunday, November 30, 2008
6 comments:
I would never have guessed the plot from the title of the book. Your review makes me want to read it.
- November 30, 2008 at 10:28 AM
- Belle Wong said...
What a fantastic review. I want to read this now, too.
- November 30, 2008 at 1:09 PM
Thanks for the review - I'm adding this to my wish list.
- November 30, 2008 at 3:10 PM
This was a delightful book, wasn't it? I'm glad you enjoyed it.
- November 30, 2008 at 9:30 PM
- Dawn @ sheIsTooFondOfBooks said...
I'm seeing more and more book covers that feature the back of a woman's head ... *The 19th Wife* and *Who by Fire* come to mind. Interesting, isn't it?
- December 9, 2008 at 2:27 PM
- Jim Rhodes said...
It's a nice review. You can share it https://writemypaper4me.org/blog/research-papers-writing here on my website. I will be grateful for that.
- December 20, 2019 at 6:07 AM
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
Freedom dreams
My mother has a tendency to dream out loud. I think it has something to do with her regular morning meditation. In the quiet darkness of her bedroom, her third eye opens on to a new world, a beautiful, light-filled place as peaceful as her state of mind. When I was growing up, she never had to utter a word to describe her inner peace; like morning sunlight, it radiated out to everyone in her presence. Her other two eyes never let her forget where we lived. The cops, drug dealers, social workers, the rusty tap water, the roaches and rodents, the urine-scented hallways and the piles of garbage were constant reminders that our world began and ended in a battered Harlem/Washington Heights tenement apartment on 157th and Amsterdam.
Yet she would not allow us to live as victims. Instead, we were a family of caretakers who inherited this earth. We were expected to help any living creature in need, even if that meant giving up our last piece of bread. Strange, needy people always passed through our house, occasionally staying for long stretches of time. We were expected to stand apart from the crowd and befriend the misfits, to embrace the kids who stuttered, smelled bad or had holes in their clothes.
She simply wanted us to live through our third eyes, to see life as possibility. She wanted us to imagine a world where gender and sexual relations could be reconstructed. She wanted us to see the poetic and prophetic in the richness of our daily lives. She wanted us to visualize a more expansive, fluid, 'cosmospolitan' definition of blackness, to teach us that we are not merely inheritors of a culture but its makers.
I came to black nationalism filled with idealistic dreams of a communal society free of all oppressions, a world where we owned the land and shared the wealth, and white folks were out of sight and out of mind. It was what I imagined pre-colonial Africa to be. Sure, I was naive, still in my teens, but my imaginary portrait, derived from the writings of Cheikh Anta Diop, Chancellor Williams, Julius Nyerere, Kwame Nkrumah, Kwame Ture, gave me a sense of hope and possibility about what a _post_-colonial Africa could look like.
Very quickly, I learned that the old past wasn't as glorious as I had thought – though I still believe that it was many times better than what we found when we got to the Americas. The stories from the former colonies – whether Mobutu Sese Seko's Zaire, Idi Amin's Uganda or Forbes Burnham's Guyana – dashed most of my expectations about what it would take to achieve real freedom.
In college, like all the other neophyte revolutionaries influenced by events in southern Africa, El Salvador and Nicaragua, Cuba and Grenada, I studied third-world liberation movements and post-emancipation societies in the hope of discovering different visions of freedom born out of the circumstances of struggle. I looked in vain for glimmers of a new society, in the 'liberated zones' of Portugal's African colonies during the wars of independence, in Maurice Bishop's 'New Jewel' movement in Grenada, in Guyana's tragically short-lived 19th-century communal villages, in the brief moment when striking workers of Congo-Brazzaville seized state power and were poised to establish Africa's first workers' state. Granted, all those movements crashed against the rocks, wrecked by various internal and external forces, but they left behind at least some kind of vision, however fragmented or incomplete, of what they wanted the world to look like.
I fell in love with the young Marx of _The German Ideology_ and _The Communist Manifesto_, the visionary Marx who predicted the abolition of all exploitative institutions. I followed young Marx, via the late English historian Edward Thompson, to those romantic renegade socialists like William Morris, who wanted to break with all vestiges of capitalist production and rationalization. Morris was less concerned with socialist efficiency than with transforming social relations and constructing new, free, democratic communities built on, as Thompson put it, 'the ethic of co-operation, the energies of love'.
Little to say
The socialists – utopian and scientific – had little to say about that, so my search for an even more elaborate, complete dream of freedom forced me to take a more imaginative turn. Thanks to many wonderful chance encounters, I discovered Surrealism, not so much in the writings and doings of André Breton or Louis Aragon or other leaders of the Surrealist movement that emerged in Paris after World War One, but under my nose, so to speak, buried in the rich, black soil of Afro-diasporic culture.
In it I found a most miraculous weapon with no birth date, no expiration date, no trademark. I traced it from the ancient practices of _maroon_ societies and shamanism to the metropoles of Europe, to the blues people of North America, to the colonized and semi-colonized world that produced the likes of Aimé and Suzanne Césaire and Wifredo Lam. The Surrealists not only taught me that any serious motion toward freedom must begin in the mind, but they also have given us some of the most imaginative, expansive and playful dreams of a new world I have ever known.
In that respect, they share much with radical feminists, whose revolutionary vision has extended into every aspect of social life. Radical feminists of color, in particular, have revealed how race, gender and class work together to subordinate most of society and complicate easy notions of universal sisterhood or biological arguments that establish men as the universal enemy.
Like all the other movements that caught my attention, radical feminism, as well as the ideas emerging out of the lesbian and gay movements, proved attractive not simply for their critiques but also for their freedom dreams.
Black intellectuals associated with each of those movements not only imagined a different future, but, in many instances, their emancipatory vision proved more radical and inclusive than what their compatriots proposed. Those renegade black intellectuals/activists/artists challenged and reshaped communism, Surrealism and radical feminism, and in so doing produced brilliant theoretical insights that might have pushed the movements in new directions. In most cases, however, the critical visions of black radicals were held at bay, if not completely marginalized.
My purpose is to reopen a very old conversation about what kind of world we want to struggle for. I am not addressing those traditional Leftists who have traded in their dreams for orthodoxy and sectarianism. Most of those folks are hopeless, I'm sad to say. And they will be the first to dismiss me as utopian, idealistic and romantic. Instead, I'm speaking to anyone bold enough still to dream, especially young people who are growing up in what the critic Henry Giroux perceptively calls 'the culture of cynicism' – young people whose dreams have been utterly co-opted by the marketplace.
Young faces
In a world where so many youth believe that 'getting paid' and living ostentatiously was the goal of the black-freedom movement, there is little space to even discuss building a radical democratic public culture. Too many young people really believe that is the best we can do. Young faces, however, have been popping up _en masse_ at the anti-globalization demonstrations, beginning in Seattle in 1999. The Black Radical Congress, launched in 1997, has attracted hundreds of activists aged under 25, as did the campaign to free Mumia Abu-Jamal. The question remains: what are today's young activists dreaming about? This is a crucial question, for the most powerful, visionary dreams of a new society don't come from little think tanks of smart people or out of the atomized, individualistic world of consumer capitalism, where raging against the _status quo_ is simply the hip thing to do. Revolutionary dreams erupt out of political engagement; collective social movements are incubators of new knowledge. The great works by WEB Du Bois, Franz Boas, Oliver Cox and many others were invariably shaped by social movements as well as social crises such as the proliferation of lynching and the rise of fascism.
Progressive social movements do not simply produce statistics and narratives of oppression; rather, the best ones do what great poetry always does: transport us to another place, compel us to relive horrors and, more important, enable us to imagine a new society. It is _that_ imagination, that effort to see the future in the present, that I call 'poetry' or 'poetic knowledge'.
Recovering the poetry of social movements, however, is not such an easy task. For obvious reasons, what we are against tends to take precedence over what we are for, which is always a more complicated and ambiguous matter. Such dreaming is often suppressed and policed not only by our enemies but also by leaders of social movements themselves. Desire can be crushed by so-called revolutionary ideology. I don't know how many times self-proclaimed Leftists talk of universalizing 'working-class culture', focusing only on what they think is uplifting and politically correct but never paying attention to, say, the ecstatic.
I remember attending a conference in Vermont about the future of socialism, where a bunch of us got into a fight with an older generation of white Leftists who proposed replacing retrograde 'pop' music with the revolutionary 'working-class' music of Phil Ochs, Woody Guthrie, pre-electric Bob Dylan, and songs from the Spanish Civil War. And there I was, comically screaming at the top of my lungs: 'No way! After the revolution, we _still_ want Bootsy! That's right, we want Bootsy! We need the funk!'
Despite having spent a decade and a half writing about radical social movements, I am only just beginning to see what has animated, motivated and knitted together those gatherings of aggrieved folks. I have come to realize that once we strip radical social movements down to their bare essence and understand the collective desires of people in motion, freedom and love lie at the very heart of the matter. Indeed, I would go so far as to say that freedom and love constitute the foundation for spirituality – another elusive and intangible force with which few scholars of social movements have come to terms. That insight was always there in the movements I've studied, but I was unable to see it, acknowledge it, or bring it to the surface. I hope to offer here a beginning.
This article is from
the November 2002 issue
of New Internationalist.
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text:
It's been a long time since we've needed a publicity photo, but here is one that was recently taken in Steve's backyard by photographer, Brian Dettor. From left: Steve Farac, Mick Orton, Dain Bedford-Pugh and Carl Upthegrove.
Note: Dain is not wearing sunglasses and he is the only one not wearing a white shirt. Conspiracies, anyone? 🙂
Categories: About Us, Photos, The Silvers


text:
Game of Thrones' Gethin Anthony plays the highly face-punchable William, an immature and selfish American travelling around Europe with his best friend Jeremy. Copenhagen isn't on the itinerary by accident: William's father, whom he feels some deeply unresolved emotions for, was born here.
Copenhagen (7/10)
- By Bart Hartgring
- in Uncategorised
- 0 Comments


text:
时间:2023-09-17 20:11:02
The Majestic Opah Is The Worlds First Truly Warm Blooded Fish!大月鱼沦为世界上首例温血鱼类The Opah is a striking fish species that can grow as large as 7-feet in diameter and weigh over 100 pounds. Also referred to as moonfish, the giants that can be found in both temperate and tropical seas reside at depths of 150 to 1,300-feet where the waters can be extremely chilly. Scientists have often wondered how the fish can withstand the temperatures given that they lack typical deep sea dweller characteristics like a large heart. Now thanks to some curious California researchers that mystery has finally been solved - The Opah has warm-blood!月鱼是一种大型鱼类,它直径能长到7英尺,重达100多磅。在温带和热带水下150-1300英尺深度的极寒海域中都可看见它的身影。科学家经常对月鱼如何能忍受这样的温度深感怪异,因为它的心脏并不像其他深海生物那样大。
现在,奇怪的加利福尼亚研究者再一找出了这个谜题——月鱼是温血鱼类!The chain of events leading to the discovery was accidental. It all began in 2012 when Southwest Fisheries Science Center researchers Owyn Snodgrass and Heidi Dewar caught a few more Opah specimens than normal during a research trip off the Southern California coast. Since very little was known about the elusive fish, the scientists decided to take advantage of the unexpected catch and sent some tissue samples to their colleague Nicholas Wegner for dissection.找到这个结果纯属偶然。在2012年,西南水产科学研究中心的研究员Owyn Snodgrass和Heidi Dewar在去南加利福尼亚海岸做到调查的路途中,恰巧多捉了些月鱼标本。
由于对月鱼的奥秘理解极少,他们要求充分利用这次车祸的捕捉,送来了一些的组织标本给他们的同事Nicholas Wegner做到解剖学。While the researchers had expected to learn some intriguing facts about the fishs lifestyle, they had not anticipated anything earth shattering. Even Wegner, who specializes in the respiratory adaptations of fast-swimming fish, later admitted that he had always thought the Opah was just another sluggish cold-blooded deep-water species.研究者们本来是期望对月鱼的生活方式多理解一些,从未想要过能有如此难以置信的找到。
专心于游动飞快的鱼类的排便适应环境研究的Wegner后来也否认,自己仍然以为月鱼只是幼稚的无情深水鱼类。So you can imagine everyones surprise when Wegner discovered that the opahs gill tissue is webbed with red and blue blood vessels or rete mirabile. These surprising findings have resulted in a new respect for this fish. According to Wegner, All indications are that this is a very fast fish and an active predator . . . Specialized for living deeper than those other predators. This shows how much we still have left to learn about the amazing marine animals that reside in our oceans.所以,你可以想象当Wegner找到月鱼腮部的组织遍及红色和蓝色的血管时,人们有多么吃惊。这个难以置信的找到也使人们对月鱼产生了新的敬畏。Wegner回应,"月鱼游动飞快,擅于猎食,比其他捕食者生活的水域加深,这些都印证了这个结果。


text:
American-Uzbek Chamber of Commerce Business Forum
Hyatt, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Tuesday, October 23, 2018
As delivered
Thank you for that kind introduction.
I am pleased to be here to express the U.S. Government's commitment to Uzbekistan as we continue to work together to improve the business opportunities between our two nations.
Thank you to the American-Uzbekistan Chamber of Commerce for organizing this event.
And thank you to the distinguished guests and hosts from the government of Uzbekistan.
I want to applaud the successful political and democratic reforms that are underway in Uzbekistan, and to encourage your continued commitment to them.
Such reforms are improving the business and investment climate of your country, and they are leading to a new era of growth and prosperity that will benefit the citizens of this country and those in the region.
It was my pleasure to dine with President Mirziyoyev when he visited President Trump in Washington this past May.
We look forward to working with him and the Government of Uzbekistan at making your goals — such as membership in the WTO — come to fruition.
Having traveled throughout the world both in my capacity as Secretary of Commerce and during my career in the private sector, the types of reforms the President has embraced here are essential to establishing the certitude that companies need to open operations in the local economy.
Once companies feel comfortable and begin to invest, the national economy will experience a strong and virtuous economic cycle of growth.
Companies that are confident in making investments hire local workers.
They create innovative products; take risks; invest in new equipment, factories and research; they export and import; and they generate tax revenues that lead to social and cultural benefits that extend far beyond the business sector.
With that in mind, congratulations to the Government of Uzbekistan for partnering with the U.S. on the successful "U.S. Business Week" event held last week here in Tashkent.
The meetings of the U.S.-Central Asia Trade and Investment Framework Agreement Council were also hosted last week by the Uzbek Ministry of Foreign Trade.
The Office of the United States Trade Representative was part of that effort to bring officials from across the region together to find ways to increase trade among our nations.
As President Trump discussed with President Mirziyoyev in their Oval Office meeting in the White House in May — as well as when they met in Riyadh, and again in New York City — the United States is committed, absolutely committed to being a strategic partner in your growth and development, through trade, investment, and your outreach to other nations in Central Asia.
We are already seeing positive results from these efforts.
American companies are far more engaged than ever before in Uzbekistan.
The U.S. Commerce Department is working with the Uzbek Government in expanding trade in the region.
Our Commercial Law Development Program has five working groups involved with the Uzbekistan government addressing technical and legal issues associated with trade, protecting intellectual property rights, and encouraging the economic empowerment of women.
This U.S.-Central Asia Trade and Investment Framework Agreement Council also discussed upgrading Afghanistan's status from observer to being a full member.
The United States supports Afghanistan's full membership because of the importance of integrating Afghanistan into the Central Asian regional economy.
There are many other important initiatives being undertaken now that the Uzbekistan government has embraced its reform agenda.
Just last week, on October 17th and 18th, the U.S. Agency for International Development and the Uzbek Ministry of Foreign Trade co-hosted the Central Asian Trade Forum in Tashkent.
This was the first time this annual event was ever held in Uzbekistan, and it reflects the opportunities that exist for investment in Central Asia's most populous market.
This year's forum was the largest ever, with more than 1,600 government and business leaders from 25 countries in Central and South Asia, Europe, and the United States. The forum saw agreements for over $54 million in future deals, and many contacts were made that will further strengthen regional trade cooperation.
Many U.S. companies attended the event, including General Motors, General Electric, Visa, Procter and Gamble, Citibank, and Coca-Cola — to just name a few.
Thank you to the American Chamber of Commerce for partnering with USAID in making that forum such a success and I am looking forward to meeting members of the American Chamber of Commerce later on today.
The "U.S. Business Week" held here last week also fulfilled a commitment made by President Trump and President Mirziyoyev during his trip to Washington in May.
It, too, was a big success.
But we know there is more work to be done.
It will be important for Uzbekistan to establish and maintain a track record of transparency and rule of law.
Adopting global business practices is required in government procurement, customs procedures, and in the protection of intellectual property, in taxes, and in regulations that impact exporters, importers, and investors.
State control of the economy will not lead to the growth that can be generated by private-sector investment.
A free market inspires indigenous entrepreneurship and innovation whose benefits extend well beyond business and industry.
Creating a system that allows people to fail — so that they can learn from their mistakes and apply those lessons in their next endeavor — is an essential ingredient for long-term success.
State-owned enterprises and government subsidies to keep inefficient companies afloat tend to work against the interests of society.
They stifle growth.
In the United States, anybody who tries to create a company and fails is not chastised for their failure, but is heralded for their efforts.
And even the biggest companies are allowed to fail — Sears being the latest casualty.
People learn and move on. They start new enterprises.
Companies with the world's highest market cap are all American firms, and they did not even exist until fairly recently.
Apple, Google, Amazon and Facebook were created in people's basements, garages, and college dorm rooms.
All four of those companies — and many others that are not beholden to state controls — have transformed the global economy.
They have created jobs for millions and millions of people.
And established companies that continue to thrive — like those of you in the room today — are consistently reinventing themselves.
They cannot sit still. They are always on the edge of uncertainty.
They must constantly improve their own products.
They embrace new technologies and business systems.
Economic freedom does more for a country than any other activity.
And so does opening up government procurement.
When contracting with U.S. companies on public tenders, the citizens of Uzbekistan can be guaranteed that there are no shady deals involved.
The 1977 Foreign Corrupt Practices Act prohibits U.S. companies from engaging in any type of corrupt practice to win contracts.
The law is strictly enforced by the U.S. Department of Justice and has been instrumental in fighting corruption.
It provides officials and citizens of this country with a guarantee that when they do business with a U.S. company, they know that there are no clandestine deals, no lousy terms to a state-backed loan, and no exchange of cash-laden briefcases.
When you do business with American companies, a new generation of aspiring Uzbekistanis gains experience in corporate governance and best practices.
They apply what they have learned to local enterprises.
President Trump commended President Mirziyoyev's efforts to build bridges and relationships between Uzbekistan and its neighbors.
Doing so will facilitate the success of every country in the region.
The United States hopes that Uzbekistan will continue to play a crucial role in creating stability and prosperity for the broader Central Asia region.
As you work towards a bright future of opportunity for all of the people in this great and important region of the world, please know that the United States stands with you.
My being here today is proof that that is the case.
Thank you very much!


text:
I love attraction marketing strategies. But one of the challenges with this type of marketing is that you have less control over who contacts you.
You might generate excellent leads. But you will also attract not-so-great prospects.
The key to making it work? Take active steps to weed out bad prospects early and efficiently. That way you can focus your valuable time and attention on the right prospects.
Or taking more time off!
When (and When Not) to Weed
Before we go too far, there's one important caveat to the advice I'm about to share:
When you're just starting out, you need to adopt a "Say yes to everything!" mindset.
This doesn't mean that you have to literally say yes to everything! But you do want to open yourself up to as many opportunities and potential clients as possible.
That's because when you're in an early launch stage, you're trying to build momentum. You're trying to get some practice and grow your confidence. And you can only do it by taking on clients … even if they're not your ideal clients.
However, as your business grows—and you become less concerned about finding clients and more concerned about managing your capacity—you can start to weed more aggressively.
So with that stipulation, let's take a look at what you can do to weed out bad prospects.
Get Clear on Whom You Want to Work With
The first step in weeding out bad prospects to understand whom you want to work with.
If you're just starting out, you may not have this clarity yet. But the more clients you work with, the clearer it will become.
The guiding principle here is that you can't serve everyone. Often, we see traditional businesses serve the masses, and we think we need to do the same.
Not true! We're not Walmart. We don't have that kind of capacity. We're not looking for volume here. So getting clear on whom you serve best is a powerful tool in weeding out "bad" clients.
Communicate This on Your Website
As you start to figure out which clients you serve best, communicate it on your website.
When you do this, people who find you through random searches will start to self-qualify. They may see that you specialize in a particular industry or project type and decide that you're not a good fit for them. Which is a good thing!
You can also communicate project types or industries that AREN'T a good fit—but you have to do this carefully. You don't want to alienate or offend.
However, if you're regularly receiving a certain type of inquiry that you don't want to pursue, this can be a useful approach.
Implement an Intake Form on Your Website
Having an intake form (also known as a pre-qualification form) on your website is a more decisive way of reducing the number of "bad" prospects.
Again, this isn't something you want to do if you're still building your business. At the early stages, you want to remove obstacles that might prevent people from reaching out to you.
But, if you're more established—and you're spending too much time on the phone qualifying prospects—then a pre-qualification form is a great way to optimize your process.
Simply add a "Request a Quote" call-to-action button on your website with a link to an intake form. Interested prospects can then fill out the form and submit it online.
What questions should you include on this form? Typically, you would ask:
- Prospect name
- Contact information
- Project description
- Timeframe
- Budget
You can also include questions you've found useful in qualifying phone calls.
Try to keep the form short. You're not trying to encapsulate your entire qualifying process into one form! Rather, the form is a preliminary qualification step which will help you decide whether to proceed with a phone call or not.
To optimize this process further, you can also set up an auto-responder email that automatically confirms receipt of the form when submitted.
You Can't Serve Everyone—Nor Should You Try
Weeding out bad prospects becomes increasingly important as your business grows and evolves.
If you're still getting established, don't weed too enthusiastically or you'll risk undermining your efforts.
But once you are more established, you can start to be more selective … and start passing on "bad" prospects and landing more good ones.
By the way … whenever you're ready, here are 4 ways I can help you grow your freelance business:
1. Grab a free copy of my training class for writers who are new to freelancing.
It's called "The 3 Magic Levers: How to Get Your Writing Business Off the Ground and Land Your First Paying Client." — Click Here
2. Download a free copy of my book for ESTABLISHED writers/copywriters.
You'll discover how to quickly and predictably reawaken dead leads, generate new client opportunities and convert not-yet-ready prospects into freelance writing clients. — Click Here
3. Join our "Get Better Clients Academy"
You'll get a personalized action plan based on where you are today in your business. Plus all the tools, scripts, checklists, cheat sheets and templates you'll need to escape feast-or-famine … grow your income … and land clients who love and respect you. — Click Here
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Throughout history, Democrats/Communists/Socialists/Progressives promised to deliver utopia to people in exchange for their liberty. The primary tool Democrats/Communists/Socialists/Progressives used and still plan to use to deliver utopia is an administrative state made up of "experts" who will regulate every aspect of people's lives via legislation that gives them unlimited power to reign over their subjects. Maybe you've heard the expression "let go and let God." Democrats/Communists/Socialists/Progressives ask you to "let go and let the bureaucrats."
America's leftist politicians routinely ask the American people to put their lives in the hands of the bureaucrats who occupy permanent positions in the administrative state. For instance, Democrats want you to surrender your health care to a federal bureaucracy that routinely fails the taxpayers who employ them. Imagine eliminating the health care private sector and replacing it with a system controlled by experts who know nothing about the treatment or business side of health care. Think about it, Democrats want to turn over the entire health care industry to bureaucrats, bureaucrats like those who are responsible for allowing Alexei Saab, a long-standing member of the Hizballah arm known as the Islamic Jihad Organization (IJO), to enter the United States under their watch, granted him U.S. citizenship, and recognized his sham marriage to another terrorist who overstayed her tourist visa.
According to court documents, from 1996 to March 2019, Alexei Saab, aka "Ali Hassan Saab," aka "Alex Saab," aka "Rachid," provided material support to the terrorist group Hizballah. while residing in the United States. The FBI's investigation revealed that Saab was a member of the IJO, which is a "sophisticated, highly compartmentalized component of Hizballah responsible for the planning, preparation, and execution of intelligence, counterintelligence, and terrorist activities for Hizballah around the world." Saab traveled to Lebanon on numerous occasions to receive training in "IJO tradecraft, weapons, and military tactics, including in the construction of explosive devices." Saab was a well-trained, dedicated terrorist who wanted to destroy America.
In 2005, the experts at the U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) received a naturalization application from Saab, conducted a "thorough" background check, and determined the well-known Middle Eastern terrorist would make an outstanding American. The bureaucrats were so taken with Saab, that in 2015, they approved his marriage to a Middle Eastern woman in the U.S. illegally who assisted her "husband" in planning attacks on targets in various U.S. cities; excellent work, experts.
The idea that an army of bureaucrats can create paradise on Earth is absurd. It is foolish to think that a government that issues social security checks to deceased individuals, approved the prescription opioid Oxycontin, the drug that started an epidemic that has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives, and countless other fatal missteps have the ability to do anything other than defile, debase, and destroy everything it touches is fantastical.


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As much as I enjoyed staying at the Lastarria Boutique Hotel, there was one little problem. The floorboards creaked quite loudly when walking on them. I was always worried about waking folks. Then the folks staying in the unit above us got back at about 2am; slamming the door and stomping about. I couldn't get back to sleep! Our shuttle came to pick us up at 5am and I was exhausted by the time our flight left at 750. In what I would consider a great stroke of luck, when I booked our flight to Hanga Roa, I noticed how cheap the business class fare was, so I just jumped on it. The prices for business class on the return was somewhat prohibitive, so that was a no-go. I was just glad to be able to sleep for a couple of hours during the 6 hour flight to Hanga Roa. LAN has fairly new 787s which are quite comfortable. There's one flight a day; to and from Hanga Roa. Five days of the week from Santiago and two from Tahiti; that's it. So it seems like quite a big deal when a flight arrives.
The place we were staying at had arranged for a shuttle from the airport. First thing you do after going down the stairs and walking off the tarmac is to go and get your tickets for Parque Nacional Rapa Nui. Most of the island, other than Hanga Roa is a National Park and you need admission for two of the sights. The tickets are good for 5 days from the first day of entrance; though you're only allowed one visit to Orongo and one visit to Rano Rarako. Also, there seemed to be random checks at various sights.
Having checked no luggage meant that we got to our shuttle quickly as the exit mob soon formed. It might look like a lot of people, but there really weren't any crowds at any of the sights we visited. Everyone else in business class on the flight (it was a Monday morning) seemed to be construction folks....I guess they've made this journey many times and have a nice stash of miles.
Funny thing; the place we were staying at; the wonderful Marae - Cabañas Premium was maybe a 15 minute walk from the airport! We could have walked over! The woman running this little compound of 3 cottages; named Vero was just fantastic. The cottages were huge! She also coordinated a vehicle for us; the Missus didn't want a tour, so we got a little Daihatsu Terios which was just perfect for our needs.
Of course, as soon as the vehicle arrived, the Missus just needed to see some Moai! So, to get adjusted to the vehicle, I drove thru the single main street of Hanga Roa, Atamu Tekena, and went to the North end of the town. I was told to look for the "cemetary". I found some parking on the street.......
Just north of these replica Moai along the rugged shoreline is the area known as Ahu Tahai.
There are three "Ahu" (shrines) here.
"Vai Ure" has five Moai of various sizes and in various states. Right to the north is Tahai. Worn and eroded; this Moai has a gaunt haunting look. Right past Tahai is Ko Te Riku, with the traditional top knot called a Pukao, which were carved from a reddish volcanic stone known as scoria. We'd actually visit the single quarry that produced the pukao later on the trip. For some reason, the eyes, which were painted based on a replica found during the 70's kind of creeped me out.
Easter Island had always been on the Missus' bucket list and She just couldn't take enough photos of the Moai......she'd take nearly 800 during our short time in Easter Island.
After the Missus had Her fill of photos, we decided to grab lunch. So we headed back to Hang Roa proper. Unfortunately, this being Monday, lunch option #1 was closed (named Casa Esquina they'd also be closed on Tuesday), as was option #2. We had parked the car along the main street on Hanga Roa.
We saw that this place was doing some pretty good business. A shop named "Club Sandwich".
The place had an interesting mix of tourists and locals. I'd come to find out that this was one of the more affordable places to eat in Hanga Roa.
So we decided to order a couple of things....I saw a couple of huge burgers being delivered to tables....it was just too much. So we ordered two empanadas and I was curious about the Hot Dog with Egg....Chileans love their hot dogs.....man, this was pretty over-the-top.
The bun was toasted, but really nothing special; nor was the hot dog. The best thing about this were the eggs......good eggs on Easter Island.
Not having really researched the empanadas, we were surprised at how large they were. The Missus got a cheese, which we ended up having for breakfast the next day.
I got the sausage version.
The good? Well, the salsa like condiment, which is basically Chilean "pebre" was really good, nice balance of spice-acid-salt. Think of this as a "pig-in-a-blanket" enrobed in an empanada shell...with cheese, lots of gooey cheese.
The meal was quite inexpensive; but not quite what the Missus thought we'd be having on Easter Island. Me? Well, this was island life.......especially walking into the markets.....it reminded me of visiting my grandparents; both in Honolua and Lana'i during the 60's and early 70's. And even growing up....Vienna sausage, Hot Dogs, Spam.......not very much in the way of "green" going on unless it was from your garden. It was all quite familiar.
Club Sandwich
Atamu Tekena
Easter Island, Chile
We did some quick shopping and headed back to our home away from home........
We had a nice nap, then headed back to town, taking the round about way along the ocean side. It was time for dinner, but unfortunately option #1 was closed the entire time we were there....and for some reason, due to darkness, I couldn't find option #2, which was the same option #2 we looked at for lunch. By now, the Missus was frustrated and told me, let's just head back and have the cheese empanada....talk about desperate times. Along the way, we passed what we thought was a little restaurant. Turned out, this was a sports/karaoke bar......man, just like home! Named Piroto Henua. Since we were along the main road right across from the airport, I just went to the side and the Missus ran in and asked about parking....which was in the lot behind the place.
This being a Monday night, not much was going on.
But he made the Missus a Pisco Sour to Her standards (not too sweet).....
And I got a bottle (I already had a six pack in the fridge that I hadn't touched) of the local brew; the Mahina Pale Ale.
Typical; light, nice, white head, slightly fruity, easy to drink.
Looking at the menu, I decided on what I thought would be a typical bar dish.....and decided on the Chorrillana Classico. The origin of which is subject of debate; it's either Peruvian originating from Chorrillos or classic Chilean pub grub. But at this moment, we really didn't care.
Loved the flower presentation by the way. For me, this tasted like Lomo Saltado...with much more fries, crowned with fried eggs.....so for a San Diego; think of it as thick cut carne asada fries topped with an egg. Talk about classic bar food.
I believe this was 11,000CLP; about $16.50. This wasn't bad at all, except for the papa fritas which were a bit on the cardboardish side. Still, what do you expect? We quickly found that the eggs on Easter Island tasted really good. I'd take this over TGIFriday's any day of the week.
Piroto Henua
Hotu Matua
Easter Island, Chile
Funny thing, we were now on the road in front of the airport. Our cabanas was close by. The Missus had some landmarks in mind as to where to turn....unfortunately, the landmarks were statues alongside the airport. Remember that I mentioned that the airport features one flight a day? So what happens after the flight leaves? Well, they close down the "International" Airport of course. So that side of the road was completely dark. Still, this is Hanga Roa.....I had recalled a stone wall and some shrubs and turned there. Island life remember? As in typical instructions when I was growing up...."go mauka, turn left befoa' da long stone wall....wen' you see the white wall on your left and the beeeg hedges on the right, you dea', ok"?
OK.......just like home.


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1966 Alaska Light Truck License Plates
SKU: Various Excellent Minus
A pair of NOS 1966 Alaska Light Truck License Plates, these classic '66 AK Pickup Tag has 1867 North to the Future 1967 on the bottom, at the top is Alaska and 66. The color of these pickup tags is dark blue with gold letters. These tags are unused but do have a couple of light flaws here and there and will grade excellent minus. We have more than one set of these 1966 Alaska Light Truck license plates available for sale at Brandywine General Store so you might receive a different DMV registration number than in the picture, but all will be in the same excellent minus condition. We also have a single 1967 Alaska light truck tag which would be great for a collection or birth year run.


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Fresh from the stable of Papertrail Records, we PRESENT Karat Kid with another single "Mama U Carry", as a birthday gift to his fans and music lovers.
After the successful release of"Galilee", featuring one of Nigeria's hottest acts, Patoranking which had a lot of buzz and "Bamijo" which had so much love from his fans.
"Mama U Carry" was produced by the ever prolific D'tunes.


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Tejay van Garderen off to strong start with best young rider's jersey in 2012 Tour de France
Tejay van Garderen is happy to hold the white jersey, but knows the race is about putting Cadel Evans in yellow
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
LIÈGE, Belgium (VN) — BMC Racing's defense of the maillot jaune opened with the team taking the best young rider's jersey, thanks to the strong legs of Tejay van Garderen.
Van Garderen, 23, torched the prologue on the opening day of the Tour de France — his second — on a blustery Saturday afternoon in Liége, finishing just 10 seconds off the winning time set down by RadioShack-Nissan's Fabian Cancellara. He finished fourth and was the best-placed young rider, just one second up on Team Sky's Edvald Boassan Hagen, also in the white-jersey competition.
"It was crazy, just the adrenalin rush of being in the Tour. This is the start of three weeks. It's an incredible feeling. I got chills," he told reporters at the finish line just before receiving the white jersey given to the Tour's best placed young rider.
Van Garderen rode the technical prologue course smoothly, an impressive feat given its bends, winds and brief sections of cobbles. Many riders, such as Peter Sagan (Liquigas-Cannondale) suffered technical lapses and lost time.
For van Garderen, the fourth-place finish is a validation of his arrival as not just a strong young rider, but a strong rider, period.
"I gave it my all and I am happy with my performance. I am learning a lot from Cadel (Evans). Being a GC-style rider myself, I can learn a lot by helping, so hopefully in a few years' time, he can pass on the torch."
The Bozeman, Montana, native's 2012 results include a fourth on GC at the Amgen Tour of California and fifth at Paris-Nice.
"Normally I have a good prologue, so I wanted to give it a go," he said. "(The white jersey) is not a team goal. We come here with the top goal of putting Cadel on the podium, but anything can happen."
Riding for Cadel
Van Garderen will be called upon to shepherd Evans through the high mountains of this Tour, of which there are plenty. La Planche des Belles Filles (5.9km at 8.5 percent average), the Col du Grand Colombier (17.4km at 7.1 percent), the Col du Tourmalet (19km at 7.4 percent), and the Col de la Croix-de-Fer (22.4km at 6.9 percent) can all lend shape to the race. It's van Garderen's job to be the last teammate with Evans, and something he's been looking forward to all season.
"That's what I've been training for, and expecting of myself. I'll do my best," van Garderen told VeloNews. "If I can be there, with Cadel up through the last climb, then that will be a success for me. If can Cadel can come to Paris in yellow, that's a success for me, him, the whole team."
There is a feeling at BMC that anything other than a Tour defense would be a failure, fair or not. This is a team that lines up with a singular mission — don't expect them to try to win stages, unless Philippe Gilbert has the legs for a late-race attack — and isn't carrying anyone for the sprints.
This last may be the team's only definitive advantage over Team Sky, which will still try for Mark Cavendish, in addition to the general-classification pursuits of leader Bradley Wiggins, who showed he was razor sharp, nearly winning the prologue and putting nine seconds into Evans.
"Right now, we haven't really thought of the possibility of losing the Tour. The thing is, a podium in the Tour is still huge. But we haven't really given that any consideration. We're firmly set on winning this Tour de France," van Garderen said.
The American said the team is aware of the pressure to defend yet remains relaxed.
"I've actually been shocked at how relaxed it's been," he said. "We have dinner every night, Cadel is joking, and someone will set a bottle of wine on the table. And we'll drink half of a bottle between nine guys."
Asked if Evans can best the Briton, who has displayed staggering form this season by thoroughly controlling Paris-Nice, Critérium du Dauphiné and the Tour of Romandie, van Garderen likened the 2012 Tour to a boxing match.
"He can beat him. I have this comparison, where it's kind of like the boxer and the fighter. I keep thinking of 'Rocky IV.'
"Wiggins, he's like the boxer. He has all these wires and numbers and gadgets. And he has people looking after him, and everything is so scientific with him. But then, Cadel, he just rides hard and fights like no one I've ever seen. He can suffer more than anyone I've ever seen.
"It's like Rocky versus Ivan Drago. Rocky still wins."


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We have some proof that Wilson Betemit may be alive in the form of his presence in the lineup on Thursday night, as the Orioles try to go, what, 16-1 over the last 17 games to get back to 93 wins? I'm sure Betemit is just what they need. That would be the same Betemit who seems to have been rushed back because his rehab time ran out and has looked like he will not be generating any more offense for the remainder of the season.
Your starting nine against surprise starter Phil Hughes:
So lineup vs NYY: McLouth 7, Machado 5, Davis 3, Jones 8, Markakis 9, Betemit DH, Hardy 6, Wieters 2, Roberts 4. Chen 1.— Dan Connolly (@danconnollysun) September 12, 2013
Yankees manager Joe Girardi appears to be going with Hughes tonight because he is a known quantity. The thing is that what's known about him is that he sucks. The Orioles have failed against their share of crappy starters this season.
In general, they have failed against Hughes, in fact. They either need to reverse their career numbers or hope that Nate McLouth, Manny Machado, and Nick Markakis carry the day. Given that the Markakis who accumulated those numbers against Hughes has vanished into wherever his power went, it's probably more likely just up to McLouth and Machado.
The Yankees lineup that will either destroy Wei-Yin Chen or whatever reliever whose turn it is to blow the game tonight:
Gardner 8, Rodriguez Dh, soriano 7, cano 4, wells 9, Nunez 5, Reynolds 3, Ryan 6, Stewart 2, Hughes 1 #yankees— Meredith Marakovits (@M_Marakovits) September 12, 2013
It is a suddenly fearsome Yankees lineup that's firing on many cylinders with A-Rod, Alfonso Soriano, and Robinson Cano all proving to be tough. No one on the Yankees has seen a ton of Chen, but we all know what can happen in a hurry. Maybe the inevitable home runs will be solo home runs, and maybe the O's can hit some of their own against Hughes, who's given up 23 home runs so far this year.


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The BBC has taken the inexplicable decision of promoting fake news site Skwawkbox on the News at Ten. Skwawkbox is not simply a left-wing or Corbynista news site. It deliberately peddles knowing untruths with the aim of going viral and misleading its audience – it is the definition of fake news. The BBC gave Skwawkbox's lone author anonymity – Guido can tell you he is a far-left conspiracy theorist called Steve Walker. What on earth is the BBC's media editor Amol Rajan thinking giving this nutter the platform of the News at Ten?
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Due to the COVID-19 outbreak, we will have some new protocols for getting tattooed at Never Say Die Tattoo. They are as follows.
We now have the capacity for walk-in clients.We will be keeping our door open when we have availability for walk-ins. If the door is locked, then we are busy tattooing. However, it is still best to give us a call ahead to see how we are booked for the day.
Clients will be screened for fever and symptoms upon arrival and If clients show a fever, or symptoms of infection, they will be asked to reschedule.
Upon entry, clients will be required to sanitize hands, and wear a mask for the duration of the procedure.
If clients wish to take a break, they will be asked to re-sanitize, and re-mask before continuing with the procedure.
We will be maintaining the utmost sterile and sanitary environment for you to be tattooed in. We ask that you help us keep it that way by adhering to our new policy.
Also, due to changes in our procedures, we have had to raise our costs, as it now costs us more to maintain the proper, safe environment for your tattoo procedure. Our artists' rates differ so please consult your artist for their current rates. Our shop minimum is now $100.
We take deposits for all appointments and all custom artwork. Your deposit will be a minimum of $100 and will increase due to the size and nature of your artwork.
All deposits are non-refundable and non-transferrable. If you would need to cancel your appointment, a 24 hour notice is required or your deposit will be forfeit.
Deposits for custom work are also only good for the original concept. If you were to change your mind after a deposit was made for original artwork, we will require an additional deposit for the new concept.
If you have an appointment and can not be bothered to give us a call, you will lose your deposit. It is not fair to the artist that had that time set aside for you, and it is not fair to the people that are waiting for months at a time to get tattooed.


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Photo Credit: clinique.com
If you're already in love with Clinique's Chubby Sticks for lips and eyes – and who isn't? – you're going to positively flip over the newest addition to the chubby family. Clinique launched a new Chubby Stick Cheek Colour Balm ($21) for a blast of glide of color and contour to enhance your cheekbones.
These creamy little cheek colour sticks give you an instant glow with minimal effort. The look is natural and healthy-looking, and it's practically goof-proof. Two swipes – one on each cheekbone – blend with fingertips and you're done. There are four neutral shades to choose from – Robust Rhubarb, Amp'd Up Apple, Roly Poly Rosy and Plumped Up Peony. These are all very wearable and suitable for most complexions, except perhaps for very dark skin types. We are huge fans.
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The Richard Rogers exhibition at the Design Museum is very good. You should go. It's full of those lovely models that architects make.
Those models must make for brilliant "pitch theatre".
But it's also got great typography. Those great big signs are gorgeous. Really lovely.
But you should go because, in a bit of a shock for the Design Museum, the other exhibitions are worth seeing too. There's some very cool, interesting and playful stuff from Industrial Facility and there are some colourful photographs from Tim Walker. And of course they let you take lots of pictures.


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'Andar clash ended with 22 security personnel, 90 Taliban dead'
GHAZNI: Twenty-two policemen and 90 Taliban have been killed as clash in the Andar district of southern Ghazni province came to an end. Pajhwok , Khaama , Tolo News
Terror continues as another suicide blast kills 15 cadets
KABUL: Fifteen cadets of Marshal Fahim Military University were killed and four others injured when a suicide bomber blew himself up near the bus carrying them in capital Kabul. Pajhwok
Blast near military university in Kabul
KABUL: A blast took place near Marshal Fahim Military University in capital Kabul afternoon. Three people were injured in the blast. Pajhwok , Khaama , Tolo News
Kabul mosque bombing: Death toll shoots up to 85
KABUL : At least 85 people, including six women and three children, have been killed and 64 other injured in an overnight suicide attack on the Imam Zaman Mosque in Kabul. Pajhwok , Khaama, Tolo News


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Everything posted by Maple Syrup and Ham
Twin Peaks Rewatch 49: The Return, Part 14
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesWhy has no one mentioned the ninja window cleaner, loved that bit!
Twin Peaks Rewatch 48: The Return, Part 13
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesI think Chris and Jake... But I also am excited about a full rewatch podcast if they did one.
Twin Peaks Rewatch 48: The Return, Part 13
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesSecondly on that, the fact that when Coop as Dougie first saw Sonny Jim sitting in the car he cried and felt emotional. Possibly because during his time in the lodge he has already been alerted/made aware somehow to the fate of this boy, but as Dougie he is not able to realise what that connection is as he's all scrambled. This is playing with an idea of time running in opposite directions between the real world and the red room. Almost like two trains with carriages passing each other in opposite directions, or even one just faster than the other. In this case it would be the real world moving faster than the red room to make the red room appear as a backwards motion. You can step from one train to another, but only at the right time when the doors are alligned. So once you're in the same carriage completley your space and time is moving together i.e. appears forwards/normal. However if only visiting or viewing from your world (or train) relativity would dictate that time (portrayed by motion in this analogy) is now appearing to run backwards in that other world (or motion of the train). Anyway, this is an idea of time in the lodge and real worlds that's been going through my head and i'm finding it hard to put down into words!! Are the rails forever a straight line or do the lines loop round etc... it's a rough metaphor to try and help my poor brain grasp some notion of the whole time thing in twin peaks!!
Twin Peaks Rewatch 48: The Return, Part 13
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesIn respect to this I found that the use of Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake song was interesting, partly because of the story of Swan Lake with regards to the white Swan and Black swan. Here's a brief description found on the web: The story of Swan Lake is woven around two girls, Odette and Odile, who resemble each other so closely they can easily be mistaken for the other. Originally their roles were entrusted to two separate dancers, but as there is only one brief fleeting moment when they are seen simultaneously, it has long been customary for a single prima ballerina to perform both parts, differentiating them by characterisation and general style. The action takes place in Germany in the distant past. This is obviously poignant with regards to Dougie and Mr C, but also, may allude to the fact that we will only see the two of them together but for a fleeting moment. Or perhaps only see Dale Cooper for but a fleeting moment. Secondly, the song in the scene is called Finale. A little Lynch and Frost nod at the ending of the season? The name also makes me predict bad things for Sonny Jim. The whole scene was very striking, jarring and somehow un nerving. Finale being that his finale is imminent, combined with the fact that Dougie re says the line "Seven Heaven", perhaps alluding to death. Janey-E seeming so happy and things going so well for them feels like such a bad omen for me as well, if things are that rosey, expect a change, a big dramatic Lynch and Frost style gruesome and unexpected kid death style of change. It's of course hard to tell/read into Dougie's experession but he does also seem to be pensively looking at Sonny Jim playing, almost sympathetically. This is probably a massive over analysis and unnecessary. But, that's why we're all here right?! The spotlight also made me feel this was more important a random scene than the baseball one for example.
Twin Peaks Rewatch 48: The Return, Part 13
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesAlso, any theories on wherwe the Dutchman's is? It's clearly a code as Ray has looked for it and said it's not a real place... ; How's this for an out there theory... After a quick googe of the Dutchman I found this song: "The Dutchman" is a song written by Michael Peter Smith in 1968 and popularized by Steve Goodman. At the time Smith wrote the song, he had never visited the Netherlands. The song is about an elderly couple living in Amsterdam, Margaret and the title character. The unnamed Dutchman is senile, and Margaret cares for him with a sadness over what has happened to him over the years. It is a story of unconditional love. So, we know a Margaret, Log Lady. Coud Philip Jefferies be linked to the log?!?!
Twin Peaks Rewatch 48: The Return, Part 13
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesWith the timeline's all over the place, especially in the real world and the lodge not seeming to coincide, I think that it's one ring which keeps getting transported back into the lodge via death. I figured that this was the plan of whoever/whatever Phillip Jeffries is to get BadCoop back into the lodge, as it appreared that Ray returned to the lodge because of wearing the ring, and Badcoop was sending a message to the lodge by making Ray wear the ring that the plan has not worked. It may also explain why Mike was wearing the ring in FWWM, it's a kind of safety net, where is he's killed in the real world then he's returned to the lodge.
Twin Peaks Rewatch 47: The Return, Part 12
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesHaha, would appear I went off on a tangent defending this episode. But in honesty I can see why people didn't like this episode, personally though, I like it. And I'm not saying the over analysing is wrong, I do it to an extreme at times, however, not to get worked up when it proves difficult to do so, or when bad information is given to do it with. As it's kinda the point. Straight off wikipedia, forgive my research laziness; In philosophy, "the Absurd" refers to the conflict between the human tendency to seek inherent value and meaning in life and the human inability to find any. In this context absurd does not mean "logically impossible", but rather "humanly impossible".[1] The universe and the human mind do not each separately cause the Absurd, but rather, the Absurd arises by the contradictory nature of the two existing simultaneously. Accordingly, absurdism is a philosophical school of thought stating that the efforts of humanity to find inherent meaning will ultimately fail (and hence are absurd) because the sheer amount of information as well as the vast realm of the unknown make total certainty impossible. As a philosophy, absurdism furthermore explores the fundamental nature of the Absurd and how individuals, once becoming conscious of the Absurd, should respond to it. The absurdist philosopher Albert Camus stated that individuals should embrace the absurd condition of human existence while also defiantly continuing to explore and search for meaning.[2] This screams Lynch and Frost in season 3 of twin peaks, and makes the point I tried to make previously far more coherently.
Twin Peaks Rewatch 47: The Return, Part 12
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesHey all, A friend recently pointed out that season 3 is like a movie version of the theatre of the absurd, a 1950's alternative thinking theatre genre, give it a Google and just look at the images, very twin peaks invoking. Anyway, I mention this because I feel like people are missing Lynch's inspiration and style, he doesn't want to give you answers, or have clean well explained scenes containing characters with well cemented back stories, they want you to feel uncomfortable, because life is so. The constant searching for pattern and meaning in life is absurd (referencing absurdism), and as such Lynch and Frost are forcing us into absurd link findings by purposefully not giving full back stories before diving into intense scenes, and shrouding evidence so the viewer is unaware of its importance in the whole. There's plenty of modern shows with neat well packaged story lines and predictable "mysteries", personally, I'm enjoying a show with true mystery, and you can't have mystery without misdirection. Anyway, this episode feels like absurdism. We make the episode absurd by forcing links and meaning when there is no need.
Twin Peaks Rewatch 40: The Return, Part 6
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesI laughed at the King and I comment and read nothing into it as important personally. I laughed because it instantly reminded me of the scene between Pete and Catherine when she was "disguised" as Takamora. They were at the bar and he asks "Have you ever seen the King and I?". Loved it!
Twin Peaks Rewatch 37: The Return, Part 3
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesTrue, however i'm as of yet uncovinced that the sexual activity is what caused the monster to appear, It could easily be some misdirection from Lynch and just wanting some close ups and focus on the whirring noises, he seems to be far more focused on sound effcts rather than music in this season than previous ones. If it was them who caused the thing to appear in the box then it opens up possible ideas of how emotions can cause enterances to this other world appear. Such as when Wyndham Earl found out that fear is what opens the black lodge, or love is perhaps what opens the white lodge. Still think that the glass box is a corridor rather than a room in it's own, so don't think it's an entry point as such.
Twin Peaks Rewatch 37: The Return, Part 3
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesI'll leave it there for now, I could babble on for ages! None of my friends watch Twin Peaks so I have no one to bounce ideas off, therefore you are my sounding board and thinking outloud avenue... apologies!
Twin Peaks Rewatch 37: The Return, Part 3
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesThe whole being sick with creamed corn and general black ooze/sludge, would suggest that it's BOB or a BOB like spirit who's being sick because that's what is in their stomach because that's what they feed on (fear and suffering). Why they are sick I am unsure, and it also seems that whilst this would suggest it is the start of being taken into the red room, Dougie was but DoppleCoop was not because the policemen found him in his car post crash. So perhaps this is the start of DoppleCoop's plan working, he should have been taken into the red room at that time but Dougie was instead. Was maybe Dougie made by DoppleCoop to act as a human shield, that so he was taken into the room in his place. Thus fullfiuling his purpose as Mike stated. He was also wearing the green ring suggesting he was perhaps completing a cycle. I also found it interesting how Mike knew to cover his eyes just before Dougie turned into the gold ball, has Mike seen this before? He certainly looked perturbed, he was maybe expecting DoppleCoop to be the one who was there. Speaking of rings, I couldn't help but think of the 12 days of Christmas song when Jacobi was spray painting his 5 shovels gold, rings are an important part of Twin Peaks assumiung cycles and repetition is an important theme.
Twin Peaks Rewatch 37: The Return, Part 3
Maple Syrup and Ham replied to Jake's topic in Twin Peaks Rewatch EpisodesHey there all, I am late to the forum party but having just watched season 3 I was curious as to the thoughts of others and the diorection or meaning of some of these scenes. Firstly the connection to slectricity is becoming more and more prominent this season, I particularly loved the way the plug sockets that Coop came out of after Dougie was taken into the red room looked like smiling faces observing the madness going on before them. The purple room was interesting and really scary, Lynch has really gone to town this season on his long drawn out scenes that he loved so much in season 1 and 2 (the old waiter, old man in bank, old man walking across the road in FWWM), however they seem to be more of a regular thing to build tension and intrigue rather than the "cameo scences" as they were treated as in the original series. Personally I love these long drawn out scenes! I like the idea that Coop was followed into the box, and it may be possible that whoever "mother" is that was banging on the door of the purple room is this person who followed him. She seemed aggressive and the blind lady was plenty scared of her. I went back and paused on the scene when Albert and Gordon are being shown the shadowy figure in the box, and it looks like it could be a woman, just from shape contours. Which leads to the idea of who mother is?! Also, when the blind woman went up and pulled the lever and seemingly reset the purple room below, changing the "safe teleporting box" number and the woman inside. I'm not sure if this woman was meant ro represent the same woman but before she had her eyes fused closed, maybe by "mother" or whatever is banging on the door. Perhaps suggesting the room has changed in time rather than a change in space? It is then strongly suggested that this purple room is still well within the confines of the black lodge, because it is the only place where backwards talking has been used and exhibited, and that's exactly what this new woman was doing.


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Katie is Nat's best friend, but she is basically the 4th sister. She's the one who was always there to help out, cutting out fondant polka dots and glittering menu letters at 3am. She's the one madly gluing banners together and being a stand in/second shooter for weddings. She's basically our hero.
Katie turning 30 is a big event, she's one of the last of the group to join the club. 30 is a big deal!
Nat made some special sugar cookies, so that everyone would also know of Katie turning 30. The colour scheme was purple, which is Katie's favorite, pink, black, white and of course gold! She even free handed a unicorn. The overall look was fun and whimsical, and who doesn't love unicorns?
Nat also decided to do a little styled bar cart to celebrate. The focal point was a decadent, 3 layer - cherry chip cake, brownie, chocolate chip cookie with ganache filling and drip cake, topped with spinkles and cherries. She made a giant foam board 30 and used elements that she had, such as pillar candles, long gold tinsel, disco ball, pink depression glass, gold cutlery and some cute trees to add a pop of colour. And of course there was some really great champagne. She made some simple and cute cake toppers by sticking iridescent bows from the dollarstore on skewers.
Katie had a little get together at her place for some close friends. Nat lent her some decorations and Katie made some delicious good like mini waffles and chicken, garlic bread, and bacon wrapped dates. We drank some yummy drinks and literally danced all night to a kick ass playlist compiled by her awesome BF. You only turn 30 once!
bar cart, candle sticks, long strings of tinsel - thrifted
disco ball, candles, bows, foam board, heart ornaments - dollar store
cake stands - HomeSense
pots for trees - Ikea
tassel banner - Glam Fete


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Tope Okodugha studied accountancy but, like many others, discovered her passion laid somewhere else... designing wedding dresses. She had always wanted to come to London College of Fashion and study Bridalwear. This year, it came true. After applying to the LCF X TheAssemblyhub #passion2purpose competition and winning, she was awarded an incentive to study a course of her choice at LCF.
"I was so excited, It's literally a dream come true!"
Tope Okodugha
The Assembly
The Assembly is an African-based community and platform for ambitious young creative and in collaboration with LCF announced the #passion2purpose competition. The aim was to shine a light on those unique business models that are socially conscious and prioritize the impact on the community, locally and globally.
Founder and LCF Alumnae, Pepper Chikezie, told us why she launched The Assembly:
Yoanna "Pepper" Chikezie
"Talent exists but opportunity doesn't and this is the one of the fundamental reasons why I founded The Assembly and it's something that has been reflective of some of my experiences as a minority and creative from the UK and something that is true to the experiences of many creative talents across Africa. But ultimately, I truly believe that anyone should have the opportunity to pursue their passions and achieve their ambitions as a creative."
Pepper explained that when choosing the winner of the competition, they were looking to highlight creative businesses that transcended profit-making and had a positive impact on their immediate environment and communities.
The winner
Tope's business, Maibecca, is both successful and unique. She doesn't only provide beautiful bespoke wedding dresses to her customers but also gives back to the community in one of the best forms there is: Education.
Rooting from gratitude towards an internship that changed her career path, she decided to provide young designers with a chance to get hands-on experience before, after or during their education.
"After graduating with an accounting degree, I realized I wanted to do fashion and so I took a three-month course and after that I got a styling job at Dutch multinational fabric manufacturer. I then went on to intern with of the biggest designers in Lagos.
Those 5 months interning changed my life forever. It was a good opportunity to get hands-on experience and it was one of the reasons why I decided, that when I start my business, I was going to ensure that people that need opportunities after school could get them with you.
It's a whole different ball game after fashion school. You don't just come out of school and start designing, there's lots of things you need to learn first. You need understand what a fashion business and designing is like in real life."
Once her internship was done, the only way forward was to set-up a business. She started off with dresses, but as she designed her own wedding dress and people started asking for her to design theirs, she realised it was a great opportunity.
She's now been designing wedding dresses for a year and has made about 10 bespoke dresses for 10 happy customers. Turning her home into a studio, she has hired young fashion designers to help her.
"I decided to pay my knowledge forward by helping young aspiring fashion designers to gain hands-on experience with me and earn an income at the same time! As a result of this opportunity, a lot of them are way ahead of their colleagues and peers in school; and this, getting to be a part of their success story gives me great joy and fulfilment."
Tope's time at LCF
Tope explained that coming to LCF has improved her tailoring skills and changed her design perspective. One of her highlights was our bridalwear tutor, Christina, who shared her expertise in a very fun and engaging way.
"My dresses are now more precise, I get to work from different angles, and I see things differently".
On top of enhancing her skills, she added that being LCF trained is a huge selling point. She will be able to make more outfits and get more customers at the same time. As to what the future brings, she wants to keep things bespoke and is planning on launching a bridal collection.


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In any profession, we often are able to recognize what they are purely by the clothes they wear. This can be seen in many examples such as the police, firefighters and even doctors.
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So, when it comes to this, chefs are no exception, they too are imagined in their white jackets and fancy top hat-like headwear.
Why the white jacket?
Perhaps in the modern world today, chef uniforms come in many different and exciting colors, however they are traditionally white – and not without good reason.
It was only in the late 1800s that the chef's jacket as we know it now, became popular. The double-layered jacket provides the chef with a quick solution if it becomes stained from cooking in the kitchen. The jacket could be reversed and a clean, unsoiled jacket would appear, meaning that you only need to launder it half the amount of times.
It may seem silly to an outsider that a profession based in the kitchen wears white – a color which shows up the most dirt and stains. However, it isactually the most practical shade a chef can choose to wear. A white jacket can easily be bleached many times over, making it quick and simple to clean unlike other colors which would be ruined if soaked in bleach.
This 'color' so to speak also provides evidence to staff and diners that the chef workscleanly. This is reassuring to customers that their food has been prepared in a hygienic environment.Another reason white is used is because it reflects the heat rather than absorbing it and protects the chef from the very high kitchen temperatures.
'Toque Blanche' – The chef's hat
The chef hat is probably the most iconic piece of clothing associated with the profession. Most of the chef outfit is French in origin and the hat is no exception. Known as the 'toque blanche', the hat's height determines the rank of the chefs – the highest being the head chef and the line cooks having more of a cap.
'Tour de Cou' – The necktie
The classic'tour de cou'or necktie was typically used to help control the perspiration on the neck and brow while the chef was working in the kitchen. But now professional kitchens are well ventilated and the necktie serves more of an aesthetic purpose than anything else.
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The most underrated piece of the uniform but probably one of the most important when it comes to the chef being able to perform their job to the best of their abilities. A chef works long hours and needs to have comfortable footwear which give support to the spineand also provide protection of sharp falling objects. The floor is also slippery so the shoes worn should be non-slip.


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Don't worry, this is not a scam or trick, it's a pure and simple government backed loan (FHA) with the help of our new Grant Program. We rolled this program out in November of last year, and I am finally making the big announcement. So here you go! It's here! Yay! A program that will help you take advantage of this very attractive real estate market with little cost. Continue reading


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Hundreds of priests, religious men and women and lay people from all over the country and the world came to Doylestown for the National Catholic Bible Conference June 27-28.
"Scripture: The Heart of the Father" was the theme of the two-day conference held for the third consecutive year at the National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa, which welcomed the faithful who yearned to better understand the meaning of the Bible and the teachings of the Catholic faith regarding sacred Scripture.
Hopeful and eager participants milled through the buildings with anticipation and excitement. The atmosphere was filled with the buzz of learning, a sense of the Holy Spirit and an inner calm.
Fran Novak, a parishioner from St. Rose of Lima Parish in North Wales, called the conference "very spiritual, an excellent event. The speakers were great."
This year the event's theme focused on fathers – fathers in the family, father figures and most especially our Heavenly Father.
The hosts of the conference, Jeff Cavins and Sarah Christmyer, wrote in the event program that the conference was "the ideal environment to reflect prayerfully on our conference theme. It is our hope that you will open your heart to the Father in a radical way, as you contemplate and encounter his unfailing love."
Archbishop Charles J. Chaput continued the theme in his homily for the Mass he celebrated for conference participants Saturday morning, June 28.
"Nothing is more important than building up the Christian character of Catholic families and institutions and strengthening the witness of Catholic disciples in the world," he said. "Never doubt the fruitfulness of God's Word, because nothing is more powerful or more filled with life."
This strong message was embodied in the speakers presenting on both days of the event. The nine presenters included: Scott Hahn, professor of theology and Scripture at Franciscan University of Steubenville; Edward Sri, provost and professor of theology and Scripture at the Augustine Institute in Denver; and Father Dennis Gill, director of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia's Office for Divine Worship and professor of sacred liturgy at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary.
Hahn, the keynote speaker on June 28, presented "Evangelizing Catholics: Bringing Prodigals Back Home to the Father," in which he said, "Pope Benedict XVI said the Word (Scripture) and the Eucharist are so deeply bound together (that) you cannot understand one without the other."
Describing the Scriptures as "informative, performative and transformative for our lives," Hahn said his topic was meant to express that "the new evangelization is not jargon. It is our command on high, our marching orders."
"The term 'new evangelization' was first termed in May 1979 by Pope John Paul II, repeated by Benedict and now again by Pope Francis," Hahn said. "Scripture is the heart of the Father."
Regarding the Heavenly Father, Hahn said, "God's family is not reducible to the earthly institution. (It is) an extension of the inner life of the Holy Trinity. The Holy Spirit is our breath."
Referring to evangelization as it relates to conversion, Hahn said the latter is "ongoing, ever deepened, a life-long experience, never easy. Jesus did not say 'Pick up your Bible every day and follow me.' He said, 'Pick up your cross and follow me.'
"Jesus refers to God our Father 17 times in one sermon; more than 170 times in the entire New Testament. The Old Testament refers as a whole to God our Father 11 times. The Old Testament worshipped the God of our Fathers, and in the New Testament they come to find that God is our Father."
Hahn went on to talk about the earthly fathers in our lives: "The Southern Baptist Convention did a study: If a dad goes to church regularly there is a 93 percent chance that the rest of the family will follow. If the dad does not go to church regularly, only one child in 50 will become regular worshippers.
"If new evangelization is going to help, we have to focus on fathers and fatherhood," Hahn said, adding "it is harder to be a father now than ever before."
The most striking statement from his talk referred to the importance of studying the Scriptures. "We need to study the Scriptures," Hahn said. "If the Eucharist is just a meal, than Calvary is just an execution. But through sacrifice … before they took his life, he already made it a gift, causing us to be filled with the breath of his Spirit.
"(God) wants us to become saints, nothing less, Hahn said. "There is no saint without a past, and no sinner without a future. Cultivate a hatred for sin, not ourselves," he advised his audience. "When the devil, that cosmic blockhead, reminds us of the past, remind him of the future … because he's going down. He's already defeated."
Jeff Cavins, co-host of the bible conference and director of evangelization for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, said he was "pumped about the conference."
"God the Father loves us so much … life depends upon the understanding the heart of the Father," Cavins said.
He further explained that it is important "to develop a relationship with the Heavenly Father where you can express praise (and) thanks, (and) come to know him." He said also to "pour out your love and trust upon him."
Cavins referred to paragraph 236 of the "Catechism of the Catholic Church," saying "there are two parts to this paragraph — the theology and the economy of God."
"The theology of God," he said, "is the mystery of the Trinity, the heart of the father. The economy of God is the household, the family plan for us from the Heavenly Father who reveals himself in words and in deed in salvation history."
Tying in the NCBC, Cavins quoted paragraph 133 of the Catechism: "Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ."
"If you build your house on the Rock of Christ, you'll be OK," Cavins said.
The conference concluded with a final speech from Cavins who spoke on the topic of "Abiding in the Father's Vineyard."
The participants left feeling invigorated and rejuvenated, proving a major success for the conference once again.
All 18 talks presented at the NCBC are available for purchase through Ascension Press on CDs and MP3 flash drives. Order the materials here.
Ascension Press, the Augustine Institute and the Archdiocese of Philadelphia were cosponsors of the conference.
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3 Responses
When Catholics begin to quote the Southern Baptist Convention, there is huge trouble. The SBC has a very high divorce rate because of the teachings on marriage. Many women are leaving the SBC.
The study the SBC mentions was conducted in the Netherlands. It also states that if a mother attends church at all, a child is less likely to attend church than in families where the mother does not attend church. So if we want to use this study, we must also tell mothers not to attend church.
Please do not start quoting the Southern Baptist Convention. They are in huge trouble and have a problem with heretical patriarchal teachings from the homeschool community. Catholics should know better.
I would have loved to be there Sold Out Early
As being a Group Leader of the Bible Timeline: The Story of Salvation for many years and many other Ascension Press products, with this being my first National Catholic Bible Conference was a awesome experience I will never forget. Being from South Louisiana, I cover many rural churches, who have many small congregations, were they still have a thirst for understanding the Word of God. I like many Catholics have heeded the call of both St. John Paul II and Pope Francis that is to go out and to Evangelize Catholics from the comforts of their homes and come out to not only hear the good news of the Gospels, but to help them with their faith to learn more of their faith that they may be troubled with. Many of those who are the process of the New Evangelization, don't know of the mystery of who and why the bible is written that is so important in what led to the story of the True One Church of our Catholic Faith! That is where the Bible Timeline comes in, the written books of both the Old and New Testament, the stories, the prophets, the trials and errors of the chosen of God's people and the powers of the world all in a easy to follow sequence that is so easy to follow! When I first gave the Bible Time many years ago, I thought to myself, after all that God allowed His people go through with their free will, it still amazed me that Jesus Christ was still born under the house of David. The Good Lord had it in his plan from the very beginning with the first day of creation! Thank you and God bless all with the graces of the Holy Spirit, Amen!


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Having recently returned from our mission trip to Ecuador, my head and my heart are still full of the things we discussed there. We spent time each day talking about and studying God's word. Each morning, a different person would lead a discussion. It could be around a particular scripture that's been speaking to them, something that's been happening in their life, or a question that's been on their heart.
Each evening, we would read a chapter from the Book of Ephesians, and discuss it. Two recurring themes that came up during that time were the idea of works (the things that we do for God) and priorities.
Throughout the history of the church, it seems like we keep falling back into old thought processes. We somehow convince ourselves that we have to do things to please God in order to earn our way into heaven. I have friends and co-workers that have said in the past, "I know I'm going to hell for the things I've done."
It makes me sad that this misconception exists. It seems like religion, or religious leaders, have used the idea of earning your way into heaven as a way to control people. But, in the book of Ephesians, Paul is very clear about this.
Ephesians 2:8-10
God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
So it's not about if you are good or have done good things. The Bible tells us that we all fall short of God's glory. We were all born with this sinful nature that seems to compel us to turn away from our creator. So if we all equally deserve to go to hell, and there is nothing we can do to earn or buy our way into heaven, we have to rely on something greater than ourselves for the opportunity to spend eternity with God.
And God, in his amazing love for us, made a way for this to happen through the death and resurrection of Jesus.
And now that we have this new life, we have a responsibility to do the good works that God has prepared for us to do.
Each of us have different work God has called us to. Each of us have specific talents and skills that we can use to do God's work. The work that you do might look very different than the work that I do, but it is all for the same purpose; to show love to God and to our neighbors.
So how do you know what God wants you to do?
The best we could figure in our discussions is that you will know God's will for your life when you are seeking a relationship with God. When we pray, when we give, when we read and meditate on God's word, when we spend time in community with other believers, and when we get out and serve our community.
What I think is really cool is that by using our various skills and talents, God brings us together so that the church isn't just a bunch of little Christian robots programmed by God, but we are all free thinking individuals working in concert to share God's love with this world.
But we are all busy, right? Many of us have family responsibilities, jobs (some of us have multiple jobs), we have hobbies and passions that we want to pursue, and kids that need to be moved from activity to activity.
In the busyness of life, doing God's work, and even pursuing a relationship with God can get pushed to the back burner, and eventually off the stove all together. We can get so busy with life that we forget why we are doing all the things we do.
So from time to time we need checkpoints; moments when you can ask yourself if your priorities are in line.
- What are the priorities in your life?
- What are you doing that you don't need to be doing?
- What have you said 'yes' to in your life that you should have said 'no' to?
- What work are you doing that God has called you to do?
We don't have to go to another country to do missions work to be doing God's work. There is a mission field right here in St. Pete. There are opportunities to serve and love your community right here, right now. There are people that you work with and live your life with that need to know God's love for them and God might be calling you to build a relationship with them in order to help them find the light in the darkness of their lives.
But if we are so concerned with completing tasks and checking boxes that we can't stop and take time to build real relationships with people, then what does it matter how much we can get done in a day?
Remember, we cannot earn our way into heaven. We are saved because we believe and accept the free gift God offers to all his people. And, we have a responsibility to do the work God has called us to do.
Gather with us this Sunday for our Radius social. If you've been considering getting baptized, now is your chance. Click here to find out more and sign up.