text:
by Pete Bodo
This afternoon, I attended a luncheon given by at the New York headquarters of the international Paul/Weiss law firm, where John P. McEnroe was a partner for over 25 years and today is "of counsel" (I think that means he's retired). The firm hosted a reading and book signing session by Patrick McEnroe, from his newly published book, Hardcourt Confidential: Tales from Twenty Years in the Pro Tennis Trenches. As many of you know, I was Patrick's co-author.
Over the coming days, I'll be cherry-picking portions of the book because of their relevance to Wimbledon - about which Pat has quite a bit to say. Yesterday, Pat taped a segment for the Charlie Rose show, and next Tuesday he's going to be on the Imus show; they're just part of his extensive promotional tour. Many people don't know it, but Patrick worked as a sportscaster for Imus years ago, when he was fresh off the tour. He ended up quitting - on air. He just took off the headphones and up and walked out. I understand Imus, who's not exactly known for his sensitivity, is miffed that in his book, Pat called Imus's wife a "pain in the *ss." So we could have some fireworks in store. Pat will be doing that show from Wimbledon, as he leaves for London on Friday.
Here's a snippet from Pat's chapter on Wimbledon:
On the first day of Wimbledon, I always make it a point to get out hours ahead of our broadcast time, just to stroll around, breathe in the atmosphere, and check the lay of the land. I get there before the nets are up. The lime-green courts look pristine, especially against those green-black backstops and dark, empty seats. No matter how often I've done it, I always feel a little bit like I did on my first trip to Yankee stadium – and never moreso than when I walk through that dark little tunnel leading out to Centre Court, toward that gorgeous turf, tennis's most significant quarter-acre, bathed in the growing sunlight. Those first mornings I go up to the roof of the broadcast center where I do a lot of my work. The BC is a huge brick building on the perimeter of the club, overlooking Court 18 and other field courts stretching away toward the No. 1 Court stadium. I watch the grounds crew as they fiddle with the various courtside fixtures, the netposts, umpire's chair, and fences and chalk lines.But mainly, I'm waiting for the guys with the big stick. The one I call the Wimbledon pole. When they arrive, the men set up the eight or ten foot-tall pole with a tennis ball balanced on top. One of them operates a little triggering mechanism, and the ball drops to the turf. Then they measure the height of the bounce. It's pretty comical – just another Rube Goldberg feature of Wimbledon. Before the main scoreboard went electronic (and that wasn't so long ago), they actually had a person running around like a mouse on a narrow passageway inside the scoreboard itself, manually (and frantically, over the first few days) flipping wooden numbers to update the scores for the spectators looking up from the walkway below. During my playing career, I had a little ritual; I liked to bounce the ball three times before my first serve, and two times before my second. At Wimbledon, I wouldn't bounce it as much as have to throw it at the ground, just to make it rebound high enough off the spongy surface to reach my hand. In fact, on at least one occasion I decided not to bounce the ball anymore at all. It was a frustrating waste of energy. These days, though, when the bounce-testers drop the ball off the big stick, it bounces about waist high, even with no force behind it. This change may have saved Wimbledon, which just about fifteen years ago stood in danger of becoming an anachronism – an arcane tennis ritual having no real relation to the contemporary game. Advances in racket technology and a generation of gifted, hard-serving attacking players led by Pete Sampras threatened to turn grass-court tennis into something like farce – a serving contest, with rallies as rare as bluebird skies over chronically drizzly London. Who can forget matches like the Wimbledon semifinal Stefan Edberg lost to Michael Stich in 1991? There was only one break of serve in the entire match, and it was Stich who was broken; yet he went on to win the match, 4-6,7-6,7-6,7-6. . . Some thought that the game on grass was passé, but apparently all those guys in the green-and-purple AEC ties never got the memo. Two of the other four majors (the Australian and US Opens) had moved to new venues in response to the increased demand for relevance (as well as seats) in the Open era. Significantly, both had abandoned the private club, and turned away from grass in favor of slower, more common and versatile hard courts. The British wouldn't dream of leaving Wimbledon, the AEC wouldn't think of abandoning grass, and on top of all that the players still were obliged to wear predominantly. Serves them right. But time and again, the AEC has shown an amazing ability to respond to the challenges of the rapidly moving Open era without throwing out the baby of tradition with the bathwater. And what steps the AEC took to tweak their tournament were always examined from all points-of-view, mulled over, analyzed, and thought-out with patience that could easily be mistaken for reluctance. Decision making at Wimbledon, whether it concerned the composition of the courts, the new Millenium building, or the retractable roof, breathed new meaning into the words, due diligence. The one word you'd never, ever associate with the Lords of Wimbledon is "panic." So, just as the "grass is dead" movement reached a fevered pitch, the tournament was already considering - and making - the changes that would radically transform Wimbledon's lawns, and the way tennis is played on them. The club is pretty coy about this, having admitted publicly only to ripping out the mixed strains of grass in favor of 100 per cent perennial rye grass (a hardier, more durable grass) starting in 2001. But Wimbledon veterans, including most players, think the balls are slower as well. And many say that the courts are firmer and harder than ever before.
Hence, the waist-high bounce off the Wimbledon pole.
Over the coming days, we'll be looking ahead to Wimbledon. On Friday, I'll have some thoughts on the men's draw, and Bobby Chintapalli will be picking highlight WTA matches on the women's side.
I see that Kim Clijsters laid a one-and-one pasting on her talented countrywoman, Yanina Wickmayer, today at Eastbourne. I'd say that Justine Henin's oft-affirmed ambition to add at least one Wimbledon title to her collection is a pretty daunting task when you consider that in the past 9 years, one or the other of the Williams sisters, Venus and Serena, has taken the title a whopping seven times. Henin has her work cut out for her. And so does Clijsters.
Hi, Alexis! (And Arun!)
I didn't know that. Love me my Hewitt, so I'm happy to hear it, then.
"So... because Spain loses to Switzerland in the World Cup... some fans actually want to make Wimbledon some kind of 'grudge' tournament for revenge? Oh please!"
Consider the possibility, Alexis, that this was suggested as a joke. Lighten up, will ya?
Re: Tari
Is this THE Tari?
Yes! Hello, Liron!
L.Rubin... excuse me all to Hell! I don't have my 'sarcasm' button working on my laptop so that it can interpret what every poster means by just their text. Besides, I don't think I was wrong. So lighten up yourself.
"So lighten up yourself."
Oh, snap! In the spirit of a recent TMF commercial, just think about how such insults make me feel!
Your humor button is also on the blink today, as it usually is when someone makes a teasing remark about TMF. Are you TMF's mom, Alexis?
*bites nails nervously*
*waves to everyone* *gives Tari a bearhug*
Um, let's talk about Gilles winning 2 consecutive matches instead? ;)
LOL @ your 3:28! BTW I think I'll now ask my sister-in-law if these comfortable slacks that I just changed into for my flight home make me look fat! That question would be responsible all by itself for quite a few assaults if the old "polite lies" rule didn't exist. :)
This link is for Jamaica Karen and any new (like me) Dustin Brown fans. Beating Verdasco 13-11 in the third is quite an achievement for the #105 player, even if it is in a amusingly-named pre-Wimby exo -- The Boodles Challenge!
Hi ya, Jax!
*skitters in*
jackie!!!!!!!!!!!!! gilles won in 3 sets matches of course! Patented gilles manner, no? :) nice to see him back and winning. :)
ruth - dustin was in the boodles? exo or not that is a nice result for him.
Jamaica Karen told us about Dustin's win in the previous thread. Good win indeed for Dustin.
Thanks, MA. And yes, indeed, jb.
Now, I'm off to the airport. Catch you guys later when I'm back home!
Tari, still there? How are you?
JB!!! And in a 3rd set breaker no less.
Ok, so i'm back. And only slightly tipsy, darn it all.
Hi everyone.
DONT mention that. You know what i mean. So, let's talk some tennis instead. Yes, let's do that.
Hi Jackie, i see you are here. Congratulations on that ex-husband. It's kinda refreshing to see you still supporting him after the "divorce".
I saw that Nadal was seeded No.2, and Fed No.1 for Wimbledon. Not surprising, IMO, and i dont think it can lead to many arguements, considering that (i believe) the seeds are determined in a mathematical way. So, if the numbers say it, that's what it is. Besides, and this is the ultimate and absolute truth, there's nothing worst for us in Minionland than being favourites. NOTHING. The black legend always strickes back. But i'm digressing, and i dont want to go there. Back to the seeds, i thought maybe RAndy could get to the Top 4, and leave Nole out, but i guess he didnt have enough grass points. So there's a bomb waiting in the QFs for one of the top guys. Personally, i hope he falls in Nole's quarter. That would make the draw more balanced.
Also saw that apparently Nadal has confirmed his presence in the Tokyo (?) tournament. Apparently, the stupidity has invaded all of us in Minionland today.
Mr. X! I'm loyal, what can I say. Or just fair-weathered. :)
Indeed. Formulas are formulas.
Yep, i dont really see where the discussion can be in this matter.
The guys at Wimbledon want to give some weight to grass performance, which sounds right to me. The grass season is very short (more like non-existent), so they give some extra weight to add to the ranking points to what players have done on grass in the last year. It's not like the players can go around picking up points to raise their seeding, since there arent really grass tournaments.
Besides, Fed's the favourite. No Spaniard should allow anybody to call him, her, or his/her team favourites for quite a long time.
Apart from that, i see that Kim delivered another thumping today. She seems to be in good form looking ahead to Wimbledon, although it looks tough for anybody to challenge the sisters. Good to see the Queen of Nastiness winning some matches too. Maybe there will be the chance to enjoy some of her nastiness, and she wont lose before the tournament even gets to the first week, like she did in RG.
Hi Jackie and Mr. X.
Did I miss Tari?. Again?
OK so let's talk about something marginally related to this blog. It's Bloomsday!
You know that Leopold Bloom on whose behalf everybody and his uncle is having a great time in Temple Bar (Dublin).
I'm watching you, Mr. X. How many drinks and what sort of alcohol did you have?
Some people (meaning tennis players) will never learn. More points to defend next year and more unnecessary risks taken. I don't want to hear anyone of team Nadal complaining about the LPG.
""So, if the numbers say it, that's what it is.""
Ah...if only my thesis adviser would accept this line of reasoning ;-).
Hola Mr. X. Hope you found some good alcohol.
Hi, Jackie.
Did I miss Tari again?. Meh.
Mr. X,
How is it going?. I hope you have joined the Joyceans to celebrate Bloomsday. You know that Leopold Bloom on whose behalf everybody and his uncle is celebrating in Temple Bar in Dublin. What I really want to know is how many drinks did you have and what sort of alcohol was involved.
And Team Nadal keeps giving. More points to defend next year and more risks involved. I don't want to hear a word about those LPG's.
zenggi and Pspace,
Actually, my previous post earlier today was from work, and i still stayed there a good couple of hours after that (we had to recover the time we had spent watching that thing i really dont want to mention), so it's only been a number of beers with my buddies once i got home. There was another match on TV, but we didnt really watch it. We were still seeing the previous match in our heads, over and over.
Overall, not really drunk. Only slightly tipsy. Not nearly enough. Still quite mad. It was our time. It had to be our time.
See, now you've done it. I blame the 2 of you for this. I was discussing tennis!:)
Good Lord,
Can Typepad get tipsy as well?. I had given up on it and I had to write everything again. Why?
About the most recent (but probably not the last) stupid scheduling decission from Team Nadal, the only explanation i can find is that they are also in a troubled state of mind after the events of today. Maybe clarity will return to them tomorrow.
Seriously, i thought reason had prevailed with the good decission of skipping Barcelona (which by the way, paid off, big-time), but apparently not. All that saying that they are gonna be more careful with the schedule, and now this. Insane.
You should educate your boss, Mr. X. Recover time working after the thing that never happened? Tsk.
I was talking about tennis as well. Tokyo...
Hi zenggi! Always nice to see you.
Oof, and where are my manners (going OT is way too ingrained now, thanks to the DC!). Really looking forward to Pete's book.
Federer and Nadal are unusual in that they have made it to so many RG and Wimbledon finals. However, grass remains a DIFFERENT surface to play on, so the seeding formula makes sense at Wimbledon. I doubt that Nadal expects to open on Monday; I doubt he would accept if Federer "graciously" offered- Nadal has a lot of pride from what I can see, and he wouldn't want a charitable honor passed on to him.
We are the Swiss, mighty mighty Swiss:)
Nadal certainly wont open on Monday, neither should he. In his public comments before Wimbledon, he has said that he will prectice hard to reach the appropiate form when he starts on Tuesday.
And that's the way it should be. The defending champion opens center court on Monday, and Federer is the defending champion. If Nadal couldnt do it last year, it's too bad, but that shouldnt be an arguement to make the same thing happen this year, when the defending champion will actually be playing.
Now I know for sure that Typepad is tipsy. I've waited 5 minutes for my comment to appear.
Hi Jackie, How was your weekend?
I'm going to sign off but I'll read your answer if you want to share something with us.
See you all tomorrow.
zenggi, I'll give Typepad a talking-to. :) Weekend was great, though I was bummed to see the drama in the DC. Will give it a mention on Friday. Hope you're well!!
Mr X, I won't mention that thing you don't want to talk about, but because I am not a World Cup expert, what happens now?
I assume Spain still has a chance to advance from their group if they win the rest of their matches??? Please say this is true!
The British also have something they don't want to talk about, so maybe the Spaniards and the Brits can get together and not talk about things together.
Drama? Today was drama, Jackie:)
And it will only get more and more dramatic. I think i'm gonna need some valium. Or maybe we'll just lose the next match and it will all be over.
Anyway, it's pretty obvious i havent gotten over it, so i better go to sleep. Tomorrow will be another day, and i hope it will be better. Today, quite frankly, sucked.
See you tomorrow, everyone.
I be sad that my seeding calculations a page ago seem to be for naught :(
Quite a few posts lamenting the supposed unfairness of Nadal not being seeded #1 at Wimbledon. To be fair however, most that reiterate that statement don't seem to be any of the TW regulars (I lurk a lot, the regulars be familiar to moi ;p).
I went back and had a look see at the calculations, and found out that had Federer skipped the entire clay season, he would still have been seeded #1 at Wimbledon.
Nadal won everything during the clay run, so his post-seeding ranking points remain at 10245 points.
Federer's points on clay in 2010:
Rome - 10, Estoril - 90, Madrid - 600, RG - 360; Total = 1060 points.
So Federer's post-seeding ranking points for Wimbles sans clay would be:
11425 - 1060 = 10365 points, which is still higher than Nadal's current points.
Is also sad at once again seeing how many points Federer could have gained post-AO.
C'est la vie.
Just before I go. I wouldn't mention it. In Europe such a "drama" would have taken place in the 60's. But it's a big wide world and probably due to the debate and reactions some people has learnt that it wasn't offensive to the majority of the women. Live and let live.
OK, Mr Rick, i'll make an exception, but only for a minute before i leave:)
This is what happens now: there are 2 more matches left for Spain in round robin. If we win both, we advance to the next round (i dont know if that's mathematically guaranteed, but i'm pretty sure). If not, even with a tie in the next 2 matches, Spain is pretty much out of the World Cup. Simple.
They say (and it's true) that in the World Cup things really heat up when we reach the knockout rounds. Well, for Spain, things have just gotten hot. From here on, every match is basically a knockout match. Win or go home.
Really off.
Mr X Good to see your still breathing after last night I held grave fears for you
Well, the Tokyo tournament isn't until October 4, so I don't see it as a problem for Rafa's playing schedule.
Once the USO is over, he'll pretty much have the whole month off, except for Davis Cup, before heading to Tokyo. Shanghai starts the next week, so it will be a good warm up.
The fall hard court season has never been much of a favorite for Rafa, so he might as well go off somewhere new where he can make a lot of money, make all his Japanese fans happy, and have some fun. I would love to go to Japan if I had the chance.
Mr Rick Well Japan is not that far from Aussie
I will have to get my Kimino ready Chanel inspired of course
If Rafa plays in Japan
Anyway for me I will just concentrate on Wimby.
I just want Rafa to remain healthy for the rest of the season and be able to compete at a high level.
Reading his latest comments he thinks the same.
Thanks a lot mr X. okay, fingers crossed here BIG TIME that Spain pulls through - they are an awesome team and I know how much it would mean to everyone there. VAAMMMOOOSSSSSSSS España!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
AM, we would love to see a Kimono-wearing, Gucci-sunglassed, Chanel bag-clutching Aussie in the Tokyo stands. And I think its the kind of outfit that should bring your guy extra good luck. But if it just blinds him, he probably deserves it after all those carnival-type outfits he has been wearing, sheesh...
'evening folks! I just got my Hardcourt Confidential in the mail. Can't wait to dig into it. It's got pictures and everything!
What has team nadal done now? I missed the latest.
Mr Rick Is there a tournament in Mardi Gras land?
Rafa with his current gear would blend in perfectly there
Except he would have to wear Carmen Miranda Headgear
Mr Rick Though praise indeed
At least that Pink Tee wasnt seen at RG
Hell Peril that thought from last year
Having seen Rafa play at RG in 2005 I want that Rafa back
Pfft to his current gear.He is no Bull at all.
Hell have you seen his USO night kit
Spider Man in green fluro shoes.At least they wont need to put on the lights those shoes will light up the court
I wont spoil it for anyone what he is wearing to the AO 2011 but Ugh! and seeing I am going nect year I will have to sit him down and give him a good talking too.
Programming Alert:
Sampras/Rafter Wimby'00 final on TTC starting now.
Arun: I didn't watch sampras then so i don't think i'll start now. :)
Little white lies be darned!!! I want my fed back, and that's no lie, little or no!
Ok so... I've shuuuuuuned all things tennis-related since Paris, what's this about nadal camp being cautious?!?
*waves to la Tari!!!*
Ahhh Arun You got me
Pete has that one
Like hubby has everything on Sampras
Sniff and more Sniff
Why do they have to show That One
What about Pat at the USO no?
They are showing the Wimby classics during this week, AM.
Maybe they will show that Rafter-Pete USO SF during August.
Arun I guessed that
Still the Pain of it all
Thank goodness hubby is on his tractor if I told him that he would pull out his tape
Like I have seen that 1000000000000000000000000000000000000 times already
Good evening All. I have some excellent news that I wish to share with my fellow tennis lovers here. I know that most of you are aware that I recently relocated to Jamaica. One of the biggest problems that I faced was the lack of tennis coverage on the channels here and my many communications with my cable provider.
Tonight, while searching through the various ESPNs to ensure that I have the start times for Wimbledon as well as check to see whether I will get all day coverage as what I have become accustomed to, I saw that my local cable provider has now added Tennis Channel to the line up.
If there is anyone else here in Jamaica (talking to you Antoinette) or if there is anyone here who may be thinking of visiting during Wimbledon and your hotel or guest house has Flow, feel free to turn to Channel 717 for the Tennis Channel. So excited.
Karen Great news.
So halftime of S. Africa/Uruguay (earlier today). Have the TV on in the living room; at my desk in the study, half an ear on the proceedings the next room over. ESPN's studio crew is wrapping things up. I sorta hear a few commercials afterward -- muted white noise, waiting for the sound of the announcing crew to welcome us back to so-and-so stadium. I check an email -- momentarily forget about the game -- then I hear it, the sound of a thousand bees coming from my living room, no announcers voices, just those soccer-loving bees. Yep, that's the sound that welcomes viewers back to the second half of S. Africa v. Uruguay -- commercial/cut/bees.
Semi-related note, ESPN/ABC has Fowler at the WC. Can't say I'll be too pleased if he's not anchoring at Wimby. Much as I don't mind Chris McKendry, she ain't Fowler.
OT but could not resist
PRETORIA, South Africa -- Diego Maradona made stinging comments about fellow soccer greats Pele and Michel Platini on Wednesday after the pair criticized Maradona's performance as Argentina coach.
Maradona said he was not surprised by their comments and that "Pele has to go back to the museum."
I love you Diego Maradona you lunatic!
Hi AM, after berating my local cable company for months, I had to send them a nice email thanking them for giving me the Tennis Channel. And it came just in time too as tomorrow night is my favourite Venus moment of all time. The 2005 Wimbledon Ladies Singles Final. That was when Venus believed and all her fans who had been suffering for so long rejoiced and jumped with joy for her.
So... because Spain loses to Switzerland in the World Cup... some fans actually want to make Wimbledon some kind of 'grudge' tournament for revenge? Oh please!"
alexis i sure hope u did not take my ranting in the first degree, coz that would be weird,its just a football game i was just venting my disapointment, they didnt get kick out of the tourney yet(that honor is reserve for france tomorrow, lol,evil grin)
plus i thought it was hilarious/ironic when i realize spain vs switzerland = rafa/ roger also that's why i came here and said so,its just an angle to work from in rafa's triumphant return to wimby( this girl is optimistic)
i went shopping afterwards, forgot all about it, won't see much of the world cup or wimby as i'll be travelling to paris, maybe london too...
omg i might get to go to wimbledon aaaahhhhh well at least take a pic walk the ground, watch a match on murray's hill lol...later peeple , all's good!
chillaxing with jack johnson cd "to the sea"
JK, the last time I was in Jamaica I saw some locals with the Tennis Channel in their house. Over time as I saw your frustrated posts I did wonder about the neck of the woods you had moved into but did not know the country well enough to comment. Good to know your provider had provided. All they needed was prolly a firm request.
Thank you Maradona and Switzerland. Some-one had to get the fun into the World Cup.
Geez, where are the human foibles and drama, the players who as eccentrics, nutsy coaches, reckless chaps, the guys that show wild personality at the Mundial. We have seen every team and we still have not seen any memorable characters...the stuff that makes you really love the humanity on display every 4 years. In the next three weeks I hope all ruckuss breaks out...
I'd like to second the proposal above that RG implement a clay-based seeding system similar to the Wimby grass metric. It would be fairer to players and make for a better balanced draw.
Well then in that case it should be right across the board in all slams
thebigapple@9:34 -- agreed.
Will you be giving all your earnings on this report to Pat? 99% of the words are his!!
Nice excerpt. Thanks
They should just make draws random. I'd like to have the possibility of a Fedal first round....given that a certain Swiss fails to make finals these days. There's just a 1 in 127 chance of it happening...so it's prolly as fair as the current system.
Psapce You are too cruel really?
Arun: Thanks for the Sampras/Rafter tip! One of my favorites.
AM: I forgot what a discerning man your husband is. :)
Howdy, everyone. As of 6 pm today, I was still unable to access typepad to post, but since the comments haven't gotten too loaded up I think I'll hold off until tomorrow, a.m., at which time I'll have a special little feature from Master Ace.
Apparently most of the contenders in grass, Roddick, Nadal, djok, etc all tested the bounce in grass and summarily (by design or not) to rest. Meanwhile, Roger in a gimme grass title lost to Hewitt.
Apparently, Roger does not measure up of the ball bounce in grass anymore.
I will not be surprised if Roger is eliminated in the first week.
AM, hehe, think about it...the first week of a slam is snooze city anyway. Who the hail wants to see Federer play Devin Briton or Rafa play Mina...ridiculous.
JohnC -- I'd even go two steps further and say, 1) have select-seeding committees at each Slam, and 2) use a wider-range of criteria for selecting (even a subjective element) than what Wimby uses. Case in point, what's the percentage of people who really believe that Djokovic has the third-best chance of winning the tournament? Granted, it's not as obvious as Andy Roddick, your fifth seed at Roland Garros, but it's still noticeable.
Having said that, watch Nole go win the thing.
Fangoria NP has also mentioned that a few times as well
I dont know about discerning lol!
Hey I know Pete Samrpas front back and centre and them some
Know I dont mena his bodily parts either
Pspace Well its nice to snooze in the first couple of rounds
Fans then are given a chance to build up there
Frazzle Mode!
Just to go slightly OT...there is this rather amusing incident in the NFL about this defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth who is refusing to play for a team because he has a philosphical disagreement with their strategy! The Redskins wanna play a 3-4 D and he gets to make more plays in a 4-3 D...so he's not showing up. Jeez....and he collected a check for 21 million dollars. Anyway, the skins have a history of poor free agent signing...how the hail do you offer 100mill to a guy who tried to kick in some1 else's face.
""Just to go slightly OT""
Ummm...I can't imagine Roger or Rafa doing something like that. Just to justify the _slightly_ OT.
@ 08:13 PM chanting seventeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Uh...siggy? Is that you?
Speaking of that kind of behavior...
I had a hilarious conversation with a guy at work today.
He was talking about a comedian who says that all pro athletes should be *required* to take steroids.
My coworker said (only half-joking), "I totally agree! I mean, can you imagine the incredible brawls that would happen? That would make all sports more exciting!"
I said, "Oh pleease, just because you love MMA doesn't mean that everyone wants that sort of stuff in their sport!"
He countered, "Think of it! Federer and Nadal getting in a fistfight in the middle of a match? No one would talk about anything else for weeks!"
I've been laughing about that mental image for the last few hours:
A 'roided out Federer and Nadal in a free-for-all on the hallowed grass of Wimbledon...
I thought "chanting" might be Pspace's former adversary.
AM: I think it is the height of good taste to watch Pete Sampras' Wimbledon matches from any angle.
LOL, vetmama. Does 'roided Federer have muscles on his left arm? Otherwise, this fight is gonna be a no contest ;-).
AF, who do you mean? The faux French is trademark siggy.
Pete is losing at this point. But I think he will pull out this 2000 match against Rafter so I am not frazzling. Mad, Mr. Fangorina says, but not frazzling.
I guess it could be Beckham, but I thought the exuberance and the "la Tari" sounded like siggy.
She always seems to breeze in and out before I can blink.:)
Oh Beckham! Where did she go off to...prolly watching World Cup?
Spacie -- ah, ok. Just the Federer attitude kinda reminded me of a certain poster who shared the same name with England's former futbol captain.
Vetmama Siggy has used soo many disguises
I have lost count lol!
I love the Sweet Sixteen one,though it took me forever to type the thing
Fangoira Sopken like a true Sampras fan
Fact: Every legend has had some miraculous escape (translation: his/her opponents choke). Except that, THIS era is overanalyzed with some snark inflation. Thank you, Internet.
The idea of a physically-aggressive Federer, even with a buff left arm, is worthy of a laugh.
He may be physically intimidating on a tennis court, but off-court?
I bet I could beat him up.:)
...which, for some strange reason, is rather endearing to me.
Go figure.
vetmama, hehe, yes...chuckle-worthy indeed. I'm not sure if Federer is intimidating even on the tennis court*...it's more that his game makes you wanna sit down and write poetry, which can kinda distract from the business of winning ;-). Sorta like when Devin Briton played against him, and he said he was hitting to Fed's fh just to see the shot.
*-I have not see Federer live. Rafa is one scary dude...I would not mess with him.
Pspace hey leave my boy alone no?
off court he is someone every mother would wish to have ok
Actually, Pspace, I think the loveliness of Roger's game even distracts him from the business of winning sometimes.
Almost felt that way with last years' USO, and with Halle last week...
He was playing so beautifully early on that he got lulled to sleep by his own game...or maybe he was bemused enough to be working on an epic poem in his head about his place in tennis history...and before he knew it his opponent had hit the gas and he was standing there with the runner-up trophy.
The siren song of the Federer Game.:)
AM, sure. Every mom wants a son who can also serve as bodyguard, no? ;-)
vetmama, hehe, yeah. I think he mentioned a few weeks ago (in RG perhaps) that his game entertains him. Oh well...not the worst thing, when you've been a pro for like 10+ years. Anyway, in the Rusty match, the missed OH on BP in the second set seemed like the key mistake. If he makes that, he prolly takes the set...as Rusty was a bit down with losing the first one. Anyway, it's always like this with declining champs...first it's not there when you really need it, then it's not there most of the time, and then you retire ;-).
Personally I blame it on the hair
Roger is in need of a trim
Pspace We all know out boy is not "one dimensional"???
AM, you're only saying that to get a rise out of me
*wags finger*
BTW, has Hermione gone back into heat yet?
Vetmama LOL!!!!!!! knew you would bite
Ok nothing drastic? just a little snip here and there no?
I love his hair
She has calmed down for the present
Just waiting for the next time she come into heat Ahhhhhhhhhh!
You must have some kitty pictures, right?
I'd love to see these bundles of mischief.
I saw a patient today who's name was "Bad Kitty".
I also had a vet friend who's cat he simply named "Bad".
I loved to hear him call her.
"Here, Bad! Baaaaaad!"


text:
By Mike Scott
Movie writer
When "Extract," the newest comedy from writer-director Mike Judge ("Office Space," "Beavis and Butthead Do America"), hits theaters in September, there won't be a single frame that was shot in New Orleans, not a single major local actor in the cast, not a beignet or Sazerac anywhere to be seen.
But that doesn't mean the Crescent City didn't have a hand in the film's production.
This week, veteran Hollywood composer George S. Clinton -- no relation to his P-Funkness -- was in town conducting a band of local musicians through his playful score for the film.
"Extract" stars Jason Bateman as the down-on-his-luck owner of an extract factory, along with Mila Kunis, Kristen Wiig, J.K. Simmons and a grungier-than-usual Ben Affleck. It will be released Sept. 4 by Miramax Films, although curious movie-goers can catch the trailer starting Friday, when it will run before all showings of the period romance "Cheri."
"I have lived and recorded in almost every great music city in this country and even abroad," Clinton said Tuesday, "and New Orleans is one of the ones that I hadn't. To me, it was a real honor and pleasure to be down here and have the musicians who grew up in this culture bringing that kind of energy and identity to the music."
That doesn't mean the movie will boast a New Orleans sound, however.
The first day of the two-day session at the Music Shed recording studio on Euterpe Street saw Clinton assemble a quirky selection of instruments, which he said was intended to produce a playful tone to match that of Judge's ensemble comedy.
"For the rhythm section, I used a bouzouki, which is like a Greek mandolin even though there's nothing Greek about this music -- I just love the way it sounds," Clinton said. "I used an acoustic guitar and a bass and this strange little instrument called a Strumstick."
The centerpiece, however, was a collection of extract bottles of varying sizes, on which a percussionist tapped out melodies with a metal rod.
On the session's second day, Clinton directed a 15-piece chamber orchestra. As the musicians -- many of whom are members of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra -- played, Clinton conducted while watching the film on a video screen.
"I didn't want it to be a big orchestra," he said. "I wanted it to sound more intimate and quirky, and less slick and Hollywood."
But the question remains: What drew Clinton to New Orleans? An Emmy-nominated composer (for HBO's "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee"), who boasts dozens of composing credits ranging from the 1983 Cheech and Chong movie "Still Smokin'$?" ("That was my first break.") to 1997's "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery" to next year's Dwayne Johnson comedy "Tooth Fairy," he's got no connections to the city.
A big part of the equation was the state's filmmaking incentives, which extend tax credits to movie soundtracks recorded in Louisiana. "That was a certain part of the lure," he said. "But that alone wouldn't have done it."
Clinton also credits what he described as a compelling presentation made by the state's office of film and video on a trip to California to trumpet the state's film production base. Similarly, he said, a number of composer friends of his -- Jay Weigel, Terence Blanchard, Chris Leonard -- assured him local musicians and facilities were up to the task.
While local film industry officials saw Clinton's recent scoring sessions as another example of the maturation of the local film scene -- which lately has seen a growth in post-production pursuits -- Clinton saw it as a great opportunity for a family vacation.
"I think the only time I was here before now was when I was 8 years old," he said. "I grew up in Chattanooga (Tenn.), and I came down here with my mother and my grandparents. The only thing I remember is powdered sugar."
This time, he brought his wife and 19-year-old daughter, Jessica, who also is his assistant on "Extract."
"We got here Friday, and we've been here at the Royal Orleans hotel here in the French Quarter. We've had a wonderful time," he said. "It's beautiful. We had brunch on Father's Day at Commander's Palace -- that was just amazing."
He added: "I really loved coming down here, because I feel like I got a little hot sauce in the music that I wouldn't have gotten anywhere else."
And would he entertain the idea of recording in town again? "Oh, I'll do it," he said, pausing before adding, "There's a lot of restaurants I haven't been to yet."
WRAPPED, on Sunday, "Jonah Hex," the supernatural Western starring Josh Brolin, John Malkovich, Michael Shannon, Megan Fox, Will Arnett and Michael Fassbender. It had been shooting in town since April 13. Based on the old "Weird Western Tales" comics series, it is backed by Warner Bros. and directed by Jimmy Hayward ("Horton Hears a Who").
ARRIVING, Monday, for a five-week local shoot, the Kevin Spacey indie ensemble comedy "Father of Invention," co-starring Johnny Knoxville, Craig Robinson, Camilla Belle and Heather Graham. Trent Cooper ("Larry the Cable Guy: Health Inspector") will direct.... Last Tuesday, on DVD, the little-seen indie drama "Phoebe in Wonderland," co-starring local actress Patricia Clarkson, who appears in local theaters next week in the Woody Allen comedy "Whatever Works." ... Next Tuesday, on DVD, the locally shot action film "12 Rounds," starring John Cena as an NOPD cop and directed by Renny Harlin; and the atmospheric musical "Dark Streets," which closed last year's New Orleans Film Festival and features a number of local musicians on its soundtrack.
Movie critic Mike Scott be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com or 504.826.3444. Read him online at www.nola.com/movies/ or follow his Twitter feed at twitter.com/MikeScottTP.

subset: commoncrawl


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Home > News > Neutron Science, Nanoscience, & New Simulations
September 25th, 2003
Neutron Science, Nanoscience, & New Simulations
Peter Cummings, director-designate of the Nanomaterials Theory Institute of the Department of Energy's Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences (CNMS), to be located at ORNL, says "Theory, modeling, and simulation will be essential tools for both the interpretation of data produced by neutron scattering and the guidance of experimental measurements of phenomena at the nanoscale." In collaboration with experimental programs at the CNMS this institute's personnel will develop or improve computer models that describe material features, from the single electron, through atoms and molecules, to functioning nanodevices.
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Calligraphy Lettering Styles
... [More...]
|Handwriting Style Calligraphy Letters
Handwriting style letters from A to Z. Here's a great looking calligraphy design with handwriting themed letters. Print them for free.
These letters are made in the Hanford Script which was created in 1997 by Roger White.
A nice calligraphic handwriting style design, disconnected and formal. A non-flowing script that's separated and slightly sloping.
These printable handwriting style calligraphy letters are available for free download.
Created in White Font on a Firebrick background. It's very legible and clear.
Information. Handwriting Calligraphy Letters - 26 Letters to Print - Letters in Calligraphy
Handwriting Calligraphy Printable Letters from A to Z
We hope you enjoyed these Handwriting themed calligraphy.
Download and print hundreds of Free Calligraphy Letters on our website.
|More Calligraphy Letters Below


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Featured News - Current News - Archived News - News Categories
Former elementary school to bring expanded affordable housing to Tonawanda
First Niagara Financial Group Inc. announced it is providing approximately $4.6 million in financing serving as construction lender, permanent lender and low-income housing tax credit equity investor (through Raymond James) for People Inc.'s Highland Avenue Apartments in the City of Tonawanda. In addition, First Niagara, a member of the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York, applied for and secured a FHLBNY grant providing additional funding of approximately $182,000 to People Inc.'s project.
People Inc. will use the funding to support the renovation and reuse of the 1920s-era building, which, until 2009, was the site of Highland Elementary School.
Through Highland Avenue Apartments, People Inc.'s 125th housing project in Western New York, the nonprofit human services agency will create 38 affordable housing units, including 15 that will be designed and designated for individuals with developmental disabilities and traumatic brain injuries. The one- and two-bedroom units will rent for between $450 and $650 per month.
"First Niagara is pleased to be able to provide support for this great project and to partner with an organization like People Inc. that shares our vision for a diverse and thriving community," said Alexandra Wehr, First Niagara senior relationship manager for middle market lending. "The Highland Avenue Apartments will be an impactful redevelopment project that will help meet housing needs in our community."
"We were pleased to work with First Niagara on this important project," said Rhonda Frederick, CEO of People Inc. "Their financial support is enabling us to renovate a long-vacant public school and create a safe, quality and more modernized residential space for clients and others in the community."
People Inc. is also receiving $1.9 million in financing from the Homeless Housing and Assistance Corp., $1.4 million from the New York State Office for Persons with Developmental Disabilities, and $76,000 from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.
People Inc. provides programs and services to more than 12,000 people with special needs, their families and seniors throughout Western New York and the Finger Lakes. Since 1971, People Inc. has assisted individuals to achieve greater degrees of independence and productivity. To learn more, visit www.people-inc.org.
First Niagara, through its wholly owned subsidiary, First Niagara Bank N.A., is a multistate community-oriented bank with approximately 390 branches, $40 billion in assets, $29 billion in deposits, and approximately 5,400 employees providing financial services to individuals, families and businesses across New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Massachusetts. For additional information on First Niagara, visit www.firstniagara.com.


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Get started with Visual Studio by learning how to use breakpoints to step through your code and debug it. Download Visual Studio for free at www.visualstudio.com/communityRead More
Speaker: Dmitry Lyalin (Microsoft)
Get started with Visual Studio by learning about features in the editor, like the code map, IntelliSense and Light bulbs. Download Visual Studio for free at www.visualstudio.com/communityRead More
Get started with Visual Studio by learning some features that will help you be more productive. Download Visual Studio for free at www.visualstudio.com/communityRead More
Get started with Visual Studio by learning about additional extensions you can install, like the GitHub or Web Essentials extension. Download Visual Studio for free at www.visualstudio.com/communityRead More
In this video Scott Hanselman introduces Visual Studio Community 2015 is a free, fully-featured, and extensible IDE for creating modern applications for Windows, Android, and iOS, as well as web applications and cloud services. Download it today for free at: www.visualstudio.com/communityRead More
Visual Studio 2015 has released. In this episode, Robert and Dmitry Lyalin highlight and demo ten of their favorite features. Robert shows: Custom Window layouts [07:30]. Customize the position, size and behavior of windows to create window layouts that work best for various development workflows. Debugging Lambda expressions [11:00]. Evaluate lambda expressions in the Watch, Immediate, […]Read More
Over 20 million code samples from MSDN, StackOverflow, Github and many more are put at your fingertips. Developer Assistant combines power of Bing Code Search capabilities & contextual help in day-to-day developer problems like resolving code errors, searching for projects & code samples.Read More
Developers are building apps with an increasing number of services, yet the service technologies are evolving just as fast. How will developers keep up? Visual Studio 2015 brings a modern service consumption experience that enables each service the ability to tailor their consumption experience, prompting the developer for the relevant questions they need to get […]Read More
Angular is an extremely popular JavaScript library used by developers to build web and mobile client apps. Visual Studio 2015 improves the HTML and JavaScript editors to help developers building with Angular, and many other libraries. In this video, I'll show you how to build a simple Angular app, showcasing new features in Visual Studio […]Read More
Learn how to diagnose issues much faster with IntelliTrace's Historical Debugging in Visual Studio 2015 Enterprise. This video includes a quick introduction to IntelliTrace as well as a walkthrough of fixing a bug using Historical Debugging.Read More
With the evolution of the .NET framework in 2015 our package management resources for the .NET framework have also evolved. In this video, we'll learn how to get started adding package references with the updated NuGet interface in Visual Studio 2015. We'll also learn how to upgrade out current packages and how to uninstall packages. […]Read More
Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) and XAML combine into a rich presentation system for building Windows desktop applications with visually stunning user experiences that incorporate UI, media, and complex business models. Visual Studio 2015 has a number of new features like a .NET Compiler Platform ("Roslyn") based XAML Language Service, brand new Blend for Visual Studio 2015, […]Read More


text:
I had for my winter evening walk--
No one at all with whom to talk,
But I had the cottages in a row
Up to their shining eyes in snow.
And I thought I had the folk within:
I had the sound of a violin;
I had a glimpse through curtain laces
Of youthful forms and youthful faces.
I had such company outward bound.
I went till there were no cottages found.
I turned and repented, but coming back
I saw no window but that was black.
Over the snow my creaking feet
Disturbed the slumbering village street
Like profanation, by your leave,
At ten o'clock of a winter eve.
Poet: Robert Frost
Poem: 6.
Good Hours
Volume: North of Boston
Year: Published/Written in 1914
Poem of the Day:
Apr 9 2003
Are you looking for more information on this poem? Perhaps you are trying to analyze it? The poem, Good Hours, has received 21 comments. Click here to read them, and perhaps post a comment of your own.
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The Jackson County Panthers are pumped up for the fall.
They wrapped up spring practice on Saturday with their annual scrimmage game. The team, split into two groups, had a strong showing, with the white team winning 32-14.
As the team moves into the summer, coach Billy Kirk says they take 91 kids with them out of 93 that originally came out.
Jalen Banks sends the ball on its way during last week's spring practice. Photo by Brandon Reed
Panthers wrap up spring practice
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text: At their December 20 meeting, the City Council created a special housing subcommittee to conduct a community process to identify a housing action plan. This might include changes to development standards and procedures, allocation of financial resources, review of rent control issues, and modification of impact fees, as well as other actions. If you would like to be get involved, please send an email to Rebecca Mansour at email@example.com


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JUST JINJER Release New Single - 'WONDERFUL WORLD'
- Written by Press Release
- Published in News
JUST JINJER have released a brand new single, WONDERFUL WORLD. After a seven year hiatus from the recording studio, and a multitude of life experiences, the band have quietly put the finishing touches to a brand new body of work that has been a year in the making. WONDERFUL WORLD is the first single from the new album EVERYTHING SINCE THEN, set for release November 2015.
"Live your life while you're waiting, pack up and go. You know it's a wonderful world."
Parts of the new song have been around for quite a few years and it was officially recorded in July this year. The 'wonderful world' line was one of the first lyrics combined with the original demo and seeing as the band have always been about upliftment and positivity, they decided to expound the idea from there. The band introduced 'gang vocals' for the first time, whilst the song still features a big and uplifting chorus, signature to the their previous work.
"With WONDERFUL WORLD's universal appeal, young and old will be able to identity with the song. Although the world is constantly in turmoil and quite sad at times, beyond that, this truly is a wonderful world. Fans will be taken on a 3 minute journey of dreamy happiness and hopefully a sense of well-being and calm will follow.
"We think this is a strong opener from the new album seeing as it's just the right amount of everything (old vs new sounds). It's different enough, but it is also definitely still us." - Ard Matthews.
JUST JINJER are also thrilled to announce their first show in London since 2010, taking place at the Clapham Grand Theatre on the 24th of November 2015. Fans can expect a fiery new live show including all the hits of years gone by, plus brand new songs from their upcoming album which is still to be revealed, and which will be on sale at the show.
EVERYTHING SINCE THEN, the band's first full album release since their 2006 self-titled international album, is set for release in November 2015.
Pre-order the album on iTunes here, and receive WONDERFUL WORLD instantly!
Follow JUST JINJER: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram


text: Home » News » New Assassin's Creed 3 screenshots look stunning New Assassin's Creed 3 screenshots look stunning MIG-31 October 6, 2012 News They appear to be a mix of multiplayer and single-player shots, some offering a glimpse at the single-player campaign DLC expansion, The Tyranny of King Washington. Ubisoft announced the first Assassin's Creed 3 DLC details earlier this week, revealing a Season Pass that will offer access to five game add-ons within six months of the game's release, including "an all-new single-player campaign" called The Tyranny of King Washington. The publisher has confirmed an Assassin's Creed 3 release date of October 31 on PS3 and Xbox 360, with a PC release to follow on November 23. A Wii U version will be available at the console's launch. Thanks to CVG Share On


text: Select an international website Zoover.at Zoover.be Zoover.ch Zoover.com Zoover.com.tr Zoover.com.ua Zoover.cz Zoover.de Zoover.dk Zoover.es Zoover.fr Zoover.gr Zoover.hu Zoover.it Zoover.lt Zoover.nl Zoover.no Zoover.pl Zoover.pt Zoover.ro Zoover.ru Zoover.se Home Destinations Accommodations Add review Add review Add photos Add videos Add new accommodation Add attraction Home Add review Netherlands Northern Brabant Boxmeer reviews Boxmeer Reviews (1) Photos & videos (30) Accommodations (6) Attractions (109) Weather forecast Map Tips (0) More Question and Answer (0) 7.9 7 reviews See all reviews See all reviews Find Hotel Deals From € 65 Find the best deal View all photos Would you like to know what other people thought of their holiday in Boxmeer? Then take look on this page at the reviews written by other travellers. Did you spend your holiday in Boxmeer? Then you can add your review here. Boxmeer scores a 7.9 out of 10, based on 7 reviews read more Would you like to know what other people thought of their holiday in Boxmeer? Take a look at the reviews of other travellers about Boxmeer. Have you been on a holiday in Boxmeer yourself? Add your review here. - - - - Less text Find the best deals Most visitors found the best deal for Boxmeer with: 1 Booking.com Check price TOP More suppliers Collapse 1 English review for Boxmeer 9 1 Review Appreciation 9 Nightlife - Culture 9 Surroundings 9 Atmosphere - Care for nature - Language: English (1) All (7) ------------ Dutch (7) French (1) Italian (1) Party types: All (1) ------------ Travelling alone (1) _._ 9 frank, 06 August 2007 Nightlife - Culture 9 Surroundings 9 Atmosphere - Care for nature - With its hedges and the centre, Boxmeer is a good place to take a walk or a bicycle tour to visit all the sights. Cultural centre De Wejer offers all the possibilities for theatre, library, dance, music, art and clay courses. The castle is worth visiting Actions for Boxmeer Add review Add photos Add videos Add new accommodation Add attraction Print reviews Attractions in Boxmeer Castle Boxmeer Heilige Petrus Basiliek Beeld Sylvia Millecam Zwembad Het Hoogkoor Information about Boxmeer Weather Boxmeer Map Boxmeer Photos Boxmeer Videos Boxmeer Question and Answer Boxmeer Destinations nearby Afferden Gennep / Milsbeek Heijen Oeffelt Overloon Beugen Rijkevoort Zoover link on your website Click here for all Zoover widget options


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A day at Great Divide is often a lot more than just riding up and skiing down. Our mountain is full of many adventurous secret places to explore. We often have special events that are fun to watch or join in, whether it's a sundeck BBQ, an equipment demo day, or live music in the Missing Lynx Saloon.
Pre-Season Sundays…Ticket Office & Rental Shop open for Season Pass pictures and seasonal equipment leases and sales. Every Pre-Season Sunday starting September 10. 10am-5pm.
Oct 23… Snowmaking begins
Pre-Season November……PocketPark!
Before Thanksgiving…..Our snowmaking crew will try to help us be Montana's FIRST ski area to open the season.
Wednesday November 22: School's Out Ski Special Grades 1-12 $20 tickets! 9:30-4pm.
Thanksgiving Thursday November 23… 9:30am-4pm
Friday November 24….. 9:30am-4pm
Thanksgiving Weekend: Saturday November 25 & Sunday November 26. 9:30am-4pm.
Early December Weekends…
- Friday December 1, the first of 16 Fun Fridays!
- Fridays December 1 & 8. 9:30am-9pm. $10 tickets after 4pm. Live Music.
- Saturdays December 2 & 9. 9:30-4.
- Sundays December 3 & 10. 9:30-4.
7th Annual "King of The Mountain"… Sunday Dec 17, 3-7pm. Crazy Races, FREE Long Sleeve Tees, Dinner, FUN!
College Credit Days $20 w/current ID December 15 – 31, 2017 & January 1-15, 2018.
Open every day of the Holiday Break: Friday December 20 – Monday January 1. 9:30am-4pm*
*Sunday December 25… Closed Christmas Day.
*Fridays December 15, 22, 29. Open until 9pm, $10 after 4pm. Live music 6:30-9:30pm.
*Sunday Dec 31… 9:30-6pm, Then: Torchlight Parade & Fireworks 6-8pm. Public participation encouraged.
January 3 – March 10, 2018
College Credit Days $20 w/current ID Jan 1-15 & All operating days in March.
Wednesdays & Thursdays… 10am-4pm.
Fridays… 10am-9pm, $10 after 4pm. Live music 6:30-9:30pm
Saturdays & Sundays… 9:30am-4pm.
Friday January 19… School's Out Ski Special $10 Student tix 10am-9pm.
Family Holidays: When Mom or Dad buys a lift ticket, son or daughter get FREE lift ticket….No age restriction!
- Monday January 15… Martin Luther King Day 9:30am-4pm.
- Monday February 19… Presidents Day, 9:30am-4pm.
THE MONTANA SnoRodeo! Saturday March 10th. Rodeo Cowboys and Cowgirls compete in hilarious "Rodeo on the Snow" events on skis. Your Host; Dave Whitmoyer. Sundeck BBQ, Dance to live country band, and the infamous Ski Boot Dance Contest.
March 11 – March 31, 2018
Wednesdays, Thursdays & Fridays… 10am-4pm.
Saturdays & Sundays… 10am-5pm.
Weekend Sundeck Bands & Bar-B-Q's Whenever the weather is wonderful.
April… As long as the snow is skiable, we'll pick the best weather day of each weekend, 10am-5pm.
Easter Sunday April 1st….Kids candy egg hunt on skis. 1pm
WATERPARK! Sunday April 8th….Skim or Swim the big lake on the snow right in front of the lodge deck. Sundeck Band & BBQ. A great way to send off the ski season.


text: Home » News » Fist Of The North Star GamePlay Demos Released Fist Of The North Star GamePlay Demos Released Stuart Davidson December 29, 2009 News Footage of the upcoming Tecmo KOEI's "Fist of The North Star" game, a Dynasty Wars spin-off entitled Hokuto Musou, has been put out on their official site. The Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 adaptation of the anime classic will combine the ultra-violent series with the characters and opponents from the Dynasty warriors games. It will boast two separate modes of play, one that will be relative to the Fist of The North Star storyline and a one that will be completely exclusive to the game, likely revolving around the Dynasty Warriors saga. Those wanting to see the footage can do so at http://www.gamecity.ne.jp/hokuto/. The Japanese release will be in March 2010 and there are no specific details of a European release available at this time. Share On


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Spencer Larsen
Originally Posted by
The American Geography Of IncarcerationPosted by JacobSloan on May 30, 2012
We may peruse neighborhoods on Google Maps, read about suburban sprawl and new city developments, but millions of Americans exist in a different, ignored geography. Via the The Funambulist:
Prison Map is a project developed by Josh Begley, a graduate student at NYU. Lets recall that 2.5 millions people are living in prison in this country. Such a project illustrates therefore a sort of hidden urbanism in which 0.8% of the American population live for a given time.
They illustrate a geography of exclusion [and] often ironically appear similar to European palaces with well-ordered classical plans.
Well, the two are build to achieve similar things. Palaces and fortresses are often build in a modular way to separate not only those who work there from there who live there (just like a prison) but also those who live there. In most grand palaces in Europe there would be several generations of a family plus concubines, and of those they would all need to be in different places with minimal contact.
Another important similarity is that palaces and fortresses were build so they would be defensible from outside attacks, this is done by maximizing the amount of walls that overview any spot outside the facility - for prisons this same arrangement is used to avoid blind spots where people can hide from surveilance.
The ordered and symmetric grounds are just a result of architects being narrowminded, better structures could easily be made by doing away with symmetry.
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This video was produced to try to get national attention to the fires that are devastating the west. This video highlights Montana,
but the message is the same for the WEST. Canada included. It is done masterfully. Please pass it on.
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We are heading for a day when the music could well die(April 02, 2010)
How is it right that outstanding musicians struggle to make a living doing what they are clearly 'born to do' while hyper-marketed drivel from talentless twerps overpopulates the airwaves, downloads and music stores?
Most modern so-called 'music' that pours out of the speakers of the world is unmitigated crap. It's performed by people who understand nothing about music – just about 'celebrity'. Such performers know little about composition, display limited musical ability, and reveal a severe paucity of noticeable talent. So why are we in this sorry situation? Where did it all go wrong? How do 'manufactured' groups (I can't bring myself to call them bands) of single or multiple gender individuals manage to rise to their moment of fickle stardom? And who the hell let this happen?
It's not the result of one isolated incident that's for sure. It's a combination of actions and effects. It's down to laziness, apathy. It's the relentless march of mediocrity. It's the power of marketing over merit. It's the ever-burgeoning power of 'give me as much as possible for as little effort as I can manage'. It's music becoming something that less of us recognise.
When I was a child, music surrounded us. I don't mean mindless computer-generated pap that emanates from the ceiling-mounted tin boxes in most malls and high street shops. Neither do I mean the low bass thud the courses from black boxes the size of Leeds mounted in a ridiculously tarted up pile of junk driven by a spotty oik. And I certainly don't mean talent-free twits prancing about on television. I mean music played by human beings on instruments. From people that learned to play instruments. Not only did some of us play instruments, many of us danced and most of us sang (although poorly in some cases). However, the point remains there was music all around us. And it was proper music. No one made it through marketing and no one suffered permanent damage to their internal organs caused by low frequency vibrations.
There was a wealth of available music whatever your taste and as the years passed the available catalogue grew wider. It was there, from Beatles to Bacharach through Grapelli to Zappa. Like, love, loath, despise it was music. Then somewhere along the way the musicians vanished and the corporation took over. Computer-generated took the place of instrument-created. And 'new' talent was only accessible through questionable television shows.
"I wanna be famous" and other forgettable quotes
There was a time when we celebrated music for its own sake not for the 15 minutes of celebrity it gives the individual communicating it to the unwary. It seems composing music has fallen before the plastic gods of celebrity. This came home to me last week. I heard one of the new breed of artificial performers reply to the question: "What drives you to perform?" And what was their reply? "Coz I wanna' be famous." Groan!
I've asked that question of thousands of bands, artists, musicians, singers, songwriters. The answers are wide and varied but I've never heard "Coz I wanna' be famous." That in itself is enlightening. The inexorable rise of fame and celebrity are an insidious poison that increasingly ferments in popular Western culture. The public fascination with celebrities (in the music industry or not) though not technically a religion or a cult, leads to idolatry. It becomes the worship of the idol rather than the substance. This worship and adoration pours on to the individual not their art. And as many so-called 'music celebrities' have no recognisable art to offer, one might reasonably ask what else remains?
Constant publicity and exposure in published media and across the broadcast airways creates fame and fame is creating celebrity. Interestingly though, the reason for the fame attached to these vacuous individuals is that most are merely 'famous for being famous'. This form of 'musical fame' is often reserved for failed soap stars, reality television contestants and pop star show entrants. Notice that I said 'entrants' – there is no requirement to win. You can be absolute shite and still get your 15 minutes of fame.
And what is to blame? The constant dumbing-down of every aspect of intellectual thought to the lowest common denominator? Is it our rabid desire to replace everything with the latest? Or is it the relentless aspiration to trash tradition and replace it with something new?
The gods of music-celebrity are ignorance, sloth, apathy and trivia. They exist to feed on the indifference that permeates popular culture. Celebrity is nothing new – but there was a time when you had to do something to become one. Unfortunately, music, that all-time mass communicator, falls ever deeper into this pit of despair while with equal speed the trite, superficial and shallow filter to the surface.
True and sad facts
Making a living is more than 'hand-to-mouth' existence. Yet it is less than superior hotel suites and private jets (lovely though that thought may be). It's supporting yourself and your family without worry. If you can do that based on something you love doing then that's wonderful. The problem with supporting yourself and your loved ones through music is unless one falls into that 'intergalactic' category of stardom achieved by only a few, most are hard-pressed to make a living as musicians.
Even bands regarded as 'famous' still argue there is little chance to forge financial security from album sales alone. The only way to keep Mr Bank Manager happy is tour 'like a crazy son of a bitch' – not my words - those of a successful folk musician who wishes to remain unsung (intentional and poor pun).
Narrowing from music in the wide sense to folk music the issues only worsen. The opportunities to 'reach the heights' are less. The genre is smaller, the field narrower, the potential to sell the product massively reduced, there is limited mass appeal. No need to continue with that thread – everyone knows the limits. This is folk music we're talking about. There could be a revival and resurgence every damn day of the week, yet even with associated marketing and media muscle there is no way that folk will command the same mass appeal. The venues that present folk acts are mostly smaller (yes I know Show of Hands filled the Albert Hall) in fact most are small to middle-sized clubs; plus a scattering of festivals.
There are thousands of folk artists – bands, singers, and musicians - each of them driven by a need to write and perform their music. Most have 'other jobs' that pay the mortgage and put food on the table. They recognise all too well that had they decided to follow another musical career then things could be different. Had they formed a boy or a girl-group with mass popular appeal (and taken part in the X-Factor or Britain's Got Talent) they might have received more recognition or should that be notoriety?
However, if you ask any of them would they care to give up or change their music the answer is no. The drive to compose and perform in a genre that instantly restricts potential and appeal is hard to define. The best reason came from another musician who also wishes to remain as a shadow in the dark recesses of their comment. "Folk music is something I have to do. Working is something I have to do. The first makes me feel good (and hopefully makes other people feel good too). The second puts bread on the table. And by the way the second enables me to achieve the first." Now there's a pragmatist if I ever heard one.
Culture in retreat and tradition ignored
It's argued diluting distinctive culture and recognisable tradition is another nail in the coffin of music. That's because the music that lives and breathes around us is often, increasingly swamped by any tradition other than our own. That is one reason perhaps why feeble-minded, young middle-class white boys adopt the street language and movements of Trenchtown or Harlem. Using 'street argot' is fine if it's the street argot of your own culture but when it's from another culture it's not only bonkers it makes the user look like a jerk. And it's probably insulting to the 'real' owners of the culture.
Tradition is no sacred cow. The boundaries must extend. The established should be challenged. That's how musical expression and form develop, grow and remain relevant. Yet most of the modern challenge appears to be to the method of distribution rather than content. The method of getting to the 'end-user' (ghastly phrase) is more relevant and important than the content. See the earlier remarks on celebrity. And it's that delivery method that has also contributed to the erosion. Technology increasingly removes the need to 'learn and master' an instrument. Most instruments can be emulated by electronics and most samples can drop in at any point in a tune. So the 'quick fix, want it now' bracket have no need to refine and work on their art. They just bash it out. The experts of the airwaves respond to the ever-increasing need for new at the expense of content by broadcasting this stuff and like lambs to the slaughter the unsuspecting populous gobble it up.
One day we'll look and find it's all gone
The future is something none of us can see. We can only recognise only trends that could lead to a possible outcome. Nevertheless, we are heading for a day when the music could well die – not simply Don McLean's tribute to Buddy but the death of music performed by humans. Perhaps music could fall so far 'underground' - the term applied to artistic movements, counter-cultures and the music of the 60's and 70's - could come to mean any music played by humans on instruments. The loyal few, like French Resistance fighters, would sit huddled around a radio listening to Mike Harding, while roving bands of Music Police try to ferret out the offenders.
And that my friends is not a far-fetched prediction. It's a trend already and like some trends it could well become a fact. Already bands and artists 'chuck it in' because they can't make a living. The frustration of feeling they are on a road to nowhere or at least a road less travelled makes them question their drive to write and perform music. Others keep on slaving away (thank goodness) and continue to create wonderful music while juggling other jobs as well.
Does this observation offer anything other than comment? Not really, but if it strikes a chord (and another one) then we had better start recognising that one day it could all be gone.


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Idol of the bobby-soxers Frank Sinatra made his acting debut - as himself - in this 1944 screen version of the Broadway show, which was released by RKO in 1944. ...
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Travels: iPhone Dump
April 24th, 2012
I seem to take more photos on my phone than on my camera so I thought it would be a good idea to dump a selection on here every so often. I will do my best to say where they were taken!
Sunset in Seoul, South Korea
This didn't have any english instructions, I didn't risk it, South Korea
KFC, Seoul International Airport, South Korea
12 hour journey from Seoul to Paris, Korean Air
Eiffel Tower, Paris
Waterfront, Palma
Blogging in hostel, Palma
Large pond, Palma
Sunrise, Palma
Cathedral of Santa Maria, Palma
Beach, 30min bus ride from Palma, somewhere on Mallorca
A day well spent, beach, somewhere on Mallorca
Lying beneath the palms, Palma
And here are a selection of boats I've seen on my travels!
Palma: Two Weeks In
April 21st, 2012
Hey everyone! Little update from me. Been in Palma for two weeks now and absolutely loving it! Still no luck on the job front but its a pretty sweet place to be searching for work. Last week I completed my STCW and met some really cool peeps. The course was lots of fun and interesting, especially the fire fighting part. Searching through pitch black shipping containers wearing breathing apparatus looking for a dummy while putting out fires, rad!
I have been dockwalking a lot the last few days trying to meet people and hopefully find a boat that requires some daywork or new/extra crew. There are a lot of people here looking for work but everyone seems fairly confident they will find something so I guess I should be too! Haha.
Anyway here are a some photos I have taken over the last few days, I also have a heap on my phone which I'll do something with soon. Take care!
Palma: My Home
April 12th, 2012
Palma: Old Town
April 8th, 2012
As promised here are a few more photos of the Old Town. It's Easter Sunday so everything is very quiet which made for the perfect opportunity to venture out with my Fujifilm X100 (which I'm absolutely in love with by the way!). The first photo shows my hostel, I will update with internal photos later, and the second is my newly purchased bike to get around the ways. Makes it a lot more fun!
The other photos are of the area surrounding where I am staying. It has a really cool feel to it both during the day and at night. There are constantly people sweeping the streets, tidying the gardens and making sure everything is perfect. I start my STCW course on Monday and that should open up a few doors to more young people here as well as some contacts/info to aid me in my search for work.
Well thats all from me for now, got a bunch of people to email and some more crew websites to register on. Happy Easter!
I Made It!
April 8th, 2012
After a few days of traveling I arrived in Palma de Mallorca two days ago. My hostel is in 'Old Town' which strangely enough is the old part of town. It is an awesome area and will head out early tomorrow and take some photos, as when I ventured out with my camera this afternoon it was way too busy. In the meantime here is a photograph of the huge Cathedral of Santa Maria nearby.


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Decreasing free playback contingent
Currently I am implementing the announced workflow changes and the first beta release will be available very soon. In the context of this release I will also make a change which will not bring me any kudos but nevertheless I prefer open communication instead of bead surprises: The next release will reduce the free monthly playback contingent from four to two hours.
Please let me explain why I've decided to take this step: The intention of the free contingent was to
- give new users the possibility to test uPod before purchasing it and
allow occasional users, who only listen to single episodes form time to time, to use uPod for free (as probably most of them would not be willing to pay for a player).
My assumption was that there would be about 20% of non-paying users. But the truth at the moment is that 80% of the active users are using uPod for free and only 20% have purchased a license. And I guess the reason for that is that four hours per month are quite a lot of time.
So why is the money so important? This has two reasons: At first it is a welcome compensation for the lot of free time I've already invested into uPod and plan to invest in the future. But the even more important reason is that uPod consumes quite a lot of costs each month. The server infrastructure in the background is an important feature of uPod as it brings us unique features like episode push and cross device sync, but the sad truth at the moment is, that the license fees do not cover the monthly costs.
I hope you understand my intention and will like uPod as much as before.


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Juniper Networks Control Board - control processor
Juniper Networks Control Board - Control processor - plug-in module
Juniper Networks transforms the business of networking. A leading global provider of networking and security solutions, Juniper Networks maintains an intense focus on customers who derive strategic value from their networks. Its customers include major network operators, enterprises, government agencies, and research and educational institutions globally. Juniper Networks delivers a portfolio of networking solutions that support the complex scale, security and performance of the world's most demanding mission-critical networks.This product is a redundant control board.
|Device Type
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|Product Description
|Juniper Networks Control Board - control processor


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I feel truly blessed and grateful that God has called me to be a part of the Crusader Family. I am honored to be the Athletics Director with a highly respected athletics program, and look forward to working with each of you to continue to build upon our already strong competitive teams.
Together, we will create more than Champions. Our student-athletes will learn important lessons in teamwork, cooperation, dedication, discipline, sportsmanship, integrity, and proper work ethics. "Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it". - Proverbs 22:6
The athletics program strives to provide a safe environment for the student-athletes to maximize their God-given abilities in a competitive setting. While we raise them up with Godly character and prepare them to play at the next level.
MVCS provides a full program of school athletics and participates in the Parochial Athletic League (PAL). Students in the 5th or 6th grade are eligible to participate in the elementary "B" division while students in the 7th or 8th grade are eligible to participate in the junior high "A" division.
In addition, we offer a boys and girls cross country program for grades 3-8 and a boys and girls track and field team for grades 1-8. Our seasonal teams are as follows:
FALL: Flag Football, Girls Volleyball, Cross Country, Cheerleading
WINTER: Boys Basketball, Girls Basketball, Cheerleading, Running Club
SPRING: Track & Field, Soccer, Boys Volleyball, Powder Puff
The world of MVCS Sports is captured weekly in our "Crusader Countdown" so you can stay up to date on what is happening.
MVCS has such amazing families who display Crusader spirit, passionate support, and give of their hearts for the success of the program. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you and am humbled to have the opportunity to team up with you and our athletes.
Serving Christ Together,
Rita Kandel
Athletics Director
"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men." Colossians 3:23


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3845 812016307
Expected Ship: in 11-12 weeks
Extra Shipping Charge: $200.00
With its fine detailing and unique accents, our finely crafted Collector's Hutch will likely become a collectible in its own right. Although great for dish and china display in the dining room, this versatile piece can be showed off in any room.
Beadboard detailing makes an interesting backdrop, and recessed sides give the cabinet a sense of depth. Finishing touches include crown molding along the top, wooden drawer pulls and routed shelves for plate display.
Our Collector's Hutch is handcrafted by Georgian craftsmen, and is inspired by early American furniture. It's made of high-quality, kiln-dried Eastern White Pine, which is both abundant and sustainable. By striving to maintain the wood's natural integrity, each piece is truly unique with variations in grain, tone and texture. Staying true to this concept, the distressed, hand-applied finish gives each piece the look of a well-loved antique.
Choose from many different colors to make a statement or call to customize, right down to the hardware! Made in USA.
• Handcrafted of 100% pine
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• Two shelves in each section
• Glass doors show off what's inside
• Two large cabinets
• Three bottom drawers for linens
• Beadboard detailing, recessed sides
• Crown molding, wooden drawer pulls
Assembled Dimensions
55"L x 18"W x 85¼"H
Shelf Dimensions
Main front 47½"L x 13¼"W
Sides 12¼"L x 10¾"W
Drawer Dimensions
Top 22½"L x 12"W x 4½"H
Middle 22½"L x 12"W x 6½"H
Bottom 22½"L x 12"W x 8¼"H
Assembled Weight, Capacity
285lbs., 200lbs.
Ships White Glove Delivery: We bring it inside
Delivery time estimates do not apply to personalized, large or heavy items (over 20lbs.) that require special shipping, items shipped directly from the manufacturer, or out-of-stock items.
Delivery estimates only apply to the contiguous United States. Saturday, Sunday and national holidays are not considered business days for these estimated transit days.


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Board of Directors
Nasser Chammaa - Chairman and General Manager
Lebanese national, PhD operations research, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Bachelor of electrical engineering and computer science, University of California, Berkeley.
Chairman of the Board and General Manager since Solidere's inception in May 1994.
Other activities
Since 2007: Chairman and CEO of Solidere International Limited, DIFC. SI's object is to identify, promote, purchase, invest in, develop, market and manage real estate projects in the Middle East and the Mediterranean Basin, by leveraging the brand name, know-how and established development processes of Solidere.
Member of the board of trustees of Prince of Wales' School of Traditional Arts, London. The School's courses offer a comprehensive understanding of the philosophy and practical skills of craftsmanship at post-graduate level, leading to Masters and doctoral degrees validated by the University of Wales.
Member of the Arab Business Council, affiliated with the World Economic Forum.
2001-2005: Chairman of the board of trustees and president of the executive committee for the Children Cancer Center of Lebanon, a Lebanese non-profit center he founded for the treatment of children afflicted with cancer, in affiliation with St. Jude Children Research Hospital, US.
Order of the Cedar (Officer), 2004.
Previous positions
Head of the board of founding members of Solidere; head of operations and maintenance at Saudi Oger Ltd, a leading regional contracting, operations, maintenance and telecom provider operating in the Middle East, France and Africa; International Telecommunications Union, Bell Laboratories.
Fadi Boustany - Vice Chairman
Lebanese national, Master in Business Administration, Cambridge University, UK.
Vice-Chairman of Solidere Board of Directors since July 2009.
Other activities
Chief Executive Officer of Metropole Group, Monaco, a holding company with several businesses, mainly in real estate development and management, operating in Monaco, France, Lebanon and the USA.
Director, Fondation Nabil Boustany, Monaco.
Maher Y. Beydoun - Vice Chairman
Lebanese national, Bachelor of Arts in Economics, University of Texas, MBA, Southern Methodist University.
Vice-Chairman of Solidere Board of Directors since May 1994
Other activities
Partner and manager of various commercial companies in Lebanon and abroad.
Member of various professional committees.
Raphael Sabbagha
Lebanese national.
Secretary of Solidere's Board of Directors since May 1994.
Basile Yared
Lebanese national, Attorney at Law, holding a French and a Lebanese Law degrees. Member of Solidere Board of Directors since 1994.
Other activities
Attorney at Law with a private office in Beirut
Board Member of Saudi Oger Limited (a leading contracting and construction company based in KSA), Solidere, BankMed, Beirut & Geneva, InterAudi Bank, New York, and ESA French Management School (Ecole Superieure des Affaires), Beirut.
Officer of the French Legion of Honor.
Officer of the French National Order of Merit.
Joseph Asseily
Lebanese national.
Member of Solidere Board of Directors since May 1994.
Other activities
Chairman of Beirut Hospitality Company (BHC).
Businessman and real estate developer.
Maher Daouk
Lebanese national.
Member of Solidere Board of Directors since May 1994 .
Other activities
Landscape architect and businessman
Raja Salame
Lebanese national, graduate of the American University of Beirut in Business Administration and Economics. Member of Solidere Board of Directors since July 2012.
Other activities
Set up in 2003 Real estate and Financial Investments, Beirut, a consultancy office for high net worth individuals, developers and financial companies. Acted as investor in several of these projects in Lebanon and Europe.
Previous positions
1985-2003: local chief representative of the Republic National Bank of New York (now part of HSBC).
Twenty years experience in hospitality business in Lebanon and France.
Makram Abboud
Lebanese national, graduate of McGill University School of Management, Montreal. Member of American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA). Member of Solidere Board of Directors since July 2012.
Other activities
Vice Chairman of VTB Capital International.
Previous positions
Managing Director - Head of Emerging Market and Middle East Sales at Nomura, 2009-2011 and at Merrill Lynch, 2006-2009.
Head of Emerging Market and Middle East Sales at UBS Bank, 2000-2006.
At Pricewaterhouse Coopers, 1992-2000, held various managerial positions roles in the US, France and Ukraine.
Pierre Kamel
Lebanese national.
Member of the Solidere Board of Directors since July 2015.
Mounir Douaidy - Board Member and General Manager
Lebanese national, Bachelor in Economics, Certified Chartered Accountant (UK). Member of Solidere Board of Directors since July 2012.
General manager, oversees the Company's operations and projects, manages its finances as well as all the fiscal and administrative aspects of the business.
Board Member since 2012.
Other activities
Member of the board of directors of Beirut Waterfront Development s.a.l., a subsidiary of Solidere in charge of the real estate development around Beirut Marina.
Previous positions
Six-year experience with one of the most prominent accounting firms in London.
Sixteen years experience in finance, business, accounting and management; and in the field of real estate and construction in the Middle East, Europe and the world.
Former financial director at the Paris headquarters of the Lebanese construction group SOGEX, based in Saudi Arabia.
Former financial controller and financial director at the Paris headquarters of the real estate group Mac Construction and Stow, based in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf and UK.


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AllSeated Creates Online Network for Successful Event Planning
AllSeated is the fastest growing online network for event professionals that allow venues, planners, vendors and hosts to easily collaborate on designing successful events for free. By offering a comprehensive set of state of the art tools such as accurate 3D floor plans, seating charts, and detailed guest lists, reports, menu selections, timelines and much more.
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11/4/2018 » 11/8/2018
ICAEF Culinary Learning Journey: Texas Hill Country
2/24/2019 » 2/27/2019
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Sunday, 18 August 2013
Kid's and truth.
Before I start I should tell you that I have a fairly big gap between my front teeth. I don't notice it any more but I am sure others must. Here we go!!
About a year ago a young mother came into the bar and ordered a coffee and a juice. She was accompanied by her son who would have been 5 or possibly 6. A right little man he was. You should have seen the way he hoisted himself up on a high stool and propped his elbows on the bar counter. I liked him straight away. He seemed very clever and the way he spoke with his mother was quiet grown up. I served the cup of coffee and asked the boy if he wanted ice in his juice.
"No, thank you." he said politely. I poured his drink and put it on a beer mat for him.
"My name is Sean, what's yours?" he asked, direct and innocent. Something made me want to give him a proper answer, a thing I would not bother with for most adults.
"My name is Harold but my nick name is Squid, that is what most people call me." I said wiping the counter.
"Ok" he said "What's wrong with your teeth" His mother went bright red and looked like she wanted to drop straight through the floor. I smiled. I love the honesty of kids. They call it just like they see it.
"One of my teeth grew crooked so now I have a gap." I said, enjoying this little man and his grown up manner. He thought about that for a minute before saying.
"Why don't you get them fixed. Don't you have the money?" His mother descended into the lowest depths of parental purgatory. Fair play to her she did not stop him or say he was doing anything wrong. She just threw eyes filled with apology.
I outright laughed before saying "If I got them straightened how would people recognise me?" It just came out of nowhere. I had not planned to say that, it just, came out. The little man said no more and his mother distracted him quickly by asking him about a party they were going to later.
I like my gap, it makes me more ME!! Kids are ok too!
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Last year we made a 'Pumpkin cake' and so we've been debating what we could do this year. Aaron suggested a skull but I thought we shouldn't peak too early so we went with his second idea a Ghost cake.
It was a joint family effort as Leo 'helped' me bake the cake and then as usual I handed the decorating over to the arty one.
Leo and I made a simple Victoria sponge mixture but as we needed a lot we tripled the standard recipe.
300g castor sugar
300g butter
6 eggs
300g self raising flour
I usually cream the butter and sugar first, adding the egg then the flour gradually but Leo didn't agree with that method and chucked it all in before I could intervene, including the eggs without cracking them! I retrieved the whole eggs and then I blitzed it all with the whisk.
I cooked 3 cakes, one big one and two smaller ones as that the pans I have, it wouldn't matter what you cook it in as the cake gets broken up anyway.
Once cooled we broke the cake into small pieces and mushed it together with butter cream (that is a technical term when cooking with a toddler). We modelled it into a 'ghost shape'
(Butter cream - 280g butter, 560g icing sugar 4tbsp milk)
Using ready to roll icing Aaron then took over (my patience with rolling that stuff does not last long) and draped it over the cake.
It was quite tricky rolling the icing so it was big enough as it made it quite thin, several times it broke as we tried to get it on the cake. Eventually we rolled it on cling film which made it a lot easier to transfer. Using a small paintbrush and some black food colouring he then painted on the eyes and the mouth.
Now all we have to do is work out how we are going to transport it to the party tomorrow in one piece!
I'm not the only one who loves cake though -
Check out Jenny's I Love Cake linky, This month's theme is Halloween.


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Starbucks Corp.'s ability to integrate its closed-loop prepaid card with a loyalty program has helped drive customer usage of the company's smartphone application to make mobile payments, notes one industry observer.
The coffee giant on Dec. 5 revealed its customers have initiated some 26 million mobile transactions since the application officially launched in January.
Seattle-based Starbucks saw 3 million mobile transactions in the first nine weeks of the program.
"Not only are they using their phone as a wallet, but as a connection point to Starbucks as they can manage Starbucks card accounts, send [electronic] gift cards and get into the holiday spirit with the Starbucks Cup Magic app," Adam Brotman, senior vice president and general manager for Starbucks Digital Ventures, said in a press release.
Richard Crone, the chief executive of payments consulting firm Crone Consulting LLC in San Carlos, Calif., believes Starbucks' mobile data results show how the company has redefined closed-loop prepaid.
"They have turned their closed-loop product into a personal-use card," he says.
Crone adds Starbucks' mobile app makes it simple to connect with the consumer to help drive transactions through loyalty offers and a store-location service.
"[Starbucks] can reach that customer before, during and after every transaction and that's very valuable," he says.
The app enables users to pay for purchases by displaying a bar code on their phone's screen at checkout. The cashier scans the bar code, deducting funds from the customer's prepaid Starbucks Card account.
Customers can manage their accounts using the same downloadable mobile app that generates the bar codes.
Starbucks declined to reveal specific dollar volume associated with mobile transactions.
Crone Consulting, however, independently estimates that in nine months since the release of the Starbucks mobile payment app, it now accounts for as much as 1% to 2% of total sales.
Starbucks recently said consumers loaded some $2.4 billion onto its loyalty cards during the fiscal year ended Sept. 25.
Some 3.6 million consumers are My Starbucks Rewards members, 2 million of which have gold-member status, the company said.
Starbucks' success with bar-code technology also revisits the argument on how it compares with Near Field Communication-enabled mobile payments.
The company "didn't have to wait for all the moving parts and have 14 different stars that had to be in perfect alignment in order to launch a payment system," Crone says.
NFC still faces a business-model issue, such as who owns the consumer account and how transaction fees are shared amongst different players, industry observers have noted.
Starbucks in November announced plans to extend its mobile-payment app available overseas to the United Kingdom and Ireland on Jan. 5 (see story).
More than 700 Starbucks locations in the UK and Ireland will offer the mobile-pay capability. Starbucks has some 1 million loyalty cardholders in the region.
What do you think about this? Send us your feedback. Click Here.


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Introducing the "WEB Prompter"…. Giving you perfect eye contact. Are you tired of seeing the top of a speaker's head or never looking directly at your audience when video conferencing? Our new WP-15 web conferencing prompter provides you with perfect eye contact. By positioning your web camera directly behind our 13" x 12" wide-angle mirror, you can look directly into the lens while seeing the images & data that you need. Look like a pro. Input scripts, data or your web guests for video conferencing. The WP-15 Web Prompter features its own 15 inch HD monitor that accepts composite video, VGA and HDMI inputs. This system can be tripod mounted, stand (5 wheel base) mounted or even stationed on a desk/table-top. Use in offices, studios, Audio video departments, churches, learning labs or on location.
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