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|Local Government Finance (England) Special Grant Report (No. 89) (HC 415) on Children's Services (Quality Protects) Special Grant Report for 2000-01 and 2001-02
Dr. Pugh: We have a few questions, some of which go over the same territory as previous ones. We wonder why we are here to verify awards that have already been made; to make any change in them would create upheaval across the country. We wonder, too, why five years is the magic figure for the funding programme, because children's needs remain in place after that. All money is welcome, but local authorities fear that there will be a tapering off and that the needs will be there but the funds will not. We question why the Minister thinks that a special grant is the most effective way to proceed.
I draw the Minister's attention to queries about the equity of the arrangements, and underline the point made earlier, that London boroughs have a disproportionate weighting in the funds that they receive. The Minister may care to comment on the following examples. Westminster has 91 children who are defined as at risk and 267 who are cared for. Sefton, the borough mentioned by the hon. Member for Crosby and by me, has 130 on the register of at-risk children, and 317 who are cared for. That is many more, but if we examine the comparable funding for the two boroughs, we find that Westminster receives £1.7 million and Sefton only £898,000. We are grateful for that money, but we wonder why we, too, do not receive £1.7 million.
If I understood the Minister's response when she was pressed on that point by my hon. Friend the Member for Cheadle (Mrs. Calton), she said that funding was in line with the standard spending assessment. That just seems to compound the evil. If the funding is in line with the SSA, why is it made through a special grant? Either the SSA is sound and can be beefed up to accommodate the needs of children, or we need a special grant to deal with special needs. If it is the latter, why are we slavishly following the pattern of the SSA, which is woefully inadequate?
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Finally, in examining the figure awarded to Birmingham, which is significantly high, I am reminded of the Government's policy of earned autonomy and the fact that the social service department in Birmingham has not had an unblemished recent record. Is the award in line with the policy of earned autonomy, and if so, will it continue to be? I do not support that policy, but the Minister and Government do. Are social service awards in line with that policy or will they simply respond to need? I press the Minister principally on equity. As she will recognise, children's services budgets are extremely volatile, so we should fund need and not on the basis of a preconceived pattern that even the Government, in a White Paper, have acknowledged is inadequate.
5.1 pm
Mrs. Calton: I shall try not to go over ground that has been already covered, more than adequately, by the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton) and my hon. Friend the Member for Southport (Dr. Pugh).
I would like to tease out the criteria that have been used for determining the sums involved. I understand that SSA is important, but annex B says:
Sir Paul Beresford: In the light of the comment made by the hon. Member for Crosby, would the hon. Lady, as an ex-social services chairman, agree that although there always wereas there always will bedifficulties with local government finance, it was nice for elected local members to use their own criteria to decide how they would allocate money from a top grant? It is also worth noting that local authorities had worked on adoption, fostering and many other actions for many years prior to the special grant.
Mrs. Calton: I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question, but I must say that to agree would pre-suppose that everything was fine until a couple of years ago. Everything was not fine, including the social services department in which I was involved. I am trying to be even-handed. I am asking for complete transparency, which we do not have.
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My hon. Friend the Member for Southport asked why we are here, as did the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham. If the funds have already been allocated or decided on SSA, what is the purpose of today's Committee? I do not understand what would happen if we turned the report down, although I think that we would have to have a further sitting, and we would have to agree the report at some point. It worries me that, eight months into the financial year, we are being asked to agree a report when eight out of 12 parts of the money will have been spent.
Why are we considering a grant for Westminster city council for the last financial year? Has it not already closed its books for that financial year? How can we allocate money in such circumstances? According to the documentation, it is a requirement that the money be spent in the financial year to which it applies. How can the money be spent in the year to which it applies if we are only now agreeing that it should be retrospectively applied?
I am a new Member, and I do not know how these things are done. Why have all the signatures in the report been written by the same person?
5.5 pm
Miss Julie Kirkbride (Bromsgrove): I join my colleagues on the Opposition Benches in using the short duration of the Committee to examine the distribution of the Government's grant to the relevant authorities. I share the wonderment of the hon. Member for Southport at the figure for Birmingham, which is £5,677,025 for this financial year. That is way abovealmost doublethat for any other authority, with the exception of Manchester and Lambeth, each of which receive more than £3 million.
I wonder what kind of scrutiny the Government have applied to the figures. Birmingham is my neighbour, so I have some experience of the gross maladministration of Birmingham in providing services, especially in relation to the social services budget. Like mine, the Minister's constituency is on the border of the Birmingham conurbation, and various nursing homes, for example, share referrals from Birmingham and Worcestershire.
What is happening in Birmingham is truly disgraceful, and the Government seem to be collaborating and co-operating by awarding a grant that seems so utterly out of kilter with other relevant and comparable authorities. I hope that the Minister will justify Birmingham's position. Whenever I discuss with Ministers the circumstances in Birmingham, especially in relation to nursing homesresidents of homes owned by Birmingham council pay double the amount that residents pay elsewherethey seem to take seriously the authority's gross financial incompetence. The award for children's social services beggars belief, and we shall listen with interest to the Minister's comments.
In comparison with other authorities, my authority, Worcestershire, does reasonably well. I wonder whether that has something to do with the state in which the last Labour administration in Worcestershire left the financial circumstances in
Column Number: 13relation to children's social services. I understand that there was an overspend of some £4 million when the Lib-Lab administration was thrown out of county hall in Worcester. I am sure that the Minister will be delighted to learn that that figure has been cut by half under the new Conservative administration, but it still needs improvement, because the Labour-controlled council left great problems. We do tolerably well in terms of the supplement that we have been given, which will certainly help our financial problems and to put matters right. However, the Minister will share my disappointment
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: Would the hon. Lady be kind enough to let me know how many people live in Worcestershire and, given that she knows Birmingham so well, let me know
The Chairman: Order. The hon. Member for Crosby (Mrs. Curtis-Thomas) should keep to the report before the Committee.
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: My remarks were in direct response to those of the hon. Member for Bromsgrove. I was merely seeking some illumination.
The Chairman: We must stick to the report before the Committee and not stray on to what is happening in various areas.
Miss Kirkbride: One would have thought that the hon. Member for Crosby had been here long enough to know the rules by now.
As I was saying before I was interrupted, although Worcestershire does tolerably wellas I expect the Minister would agreewe still do not do very well compared with local authorities in the south-east. One would have thought that, in introducing the special grant, it would be helpful to introduce some new rules, so that Worcestershire could be dealt with fairly in respect of social services provision. If some new rules had been introduced, perhaps the in-built unfairness in grants allocation towards the south-eastespecially towards Hertfordshire, which has managed to land more than £2.3 millionwould not have been allowed to continue in these grants. Will the Minister say whether, when the Government introduce their local government finance reforms, those figures will be changed to eradicate those disparities, which are difficult to understand, although I appreciate that they are part of the local government settlement, which the report unfairly mirrors?
We look forward to the Minister's response to the specific point that I raised earlier, which was amplified by my hon. Friend the Member for East Worthing and Shoreham, who quoted figures on adoption. There is a pressing need for more foster parents and for more people who are willing and able to adopt. Although it is relevant to set targets for the educational achievements of children in care, it seems to me from my casework that so many children in care are damaged emotionally that, until some stability can be brought into their lives by a parent or person acting in loco parentis, who can establish a relationship with them and make them believe that they are cared for
Column Number: 14and wanted, all other targets will not help in achieving what society requires to be done. That is, somehow to scoop up children who are not wanted or whose parents cannot look after them and find alternative parents for them.
5.13 pm
|©Parliamentary copyright 2001
|Prepared 17 December 2001

subset: commoncrawl


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I coach Stage Hypnotists. Every year, I do one or two sessions where I bring future stage hypnotists to a county or state fairgrounds and I put them on stage and I coach them in a very personal, intimate setting. (http://stagehypnotist.co) I encourage the students to ask questions before the class and am there to answer questions anytime they need me after the class as well. The following is an answer to someone asking me how to "Find the Right Music."
Finding and adding music to your act:
One problem you will run into is if you use copy written music, when you go to post your videos on youtube, you may have problems with copyright infringement. Sometimes they are only blocked in certain countries (Enya music can't be played in Germany) or they will put advertisements on your youtube videos without asking permission - but the music rights dictates they have the right to do this.
• I do a lot of iTunes searches. One BIG advantage to using iTunes is I get the album cover art with the download, and this makes it easier for me to see the song on my iPod as I look for the sound bite.• I have purchased copyright free libraries of music (these are filled with a lot of junk, but if you find that right sound for something, the price does not matter.)• I have software on my computer and can pull Youtube and Vimeo files off the internet and strip out the music or sound effects from the video.
04/23/17 Pop Top Blog
I have been collecting pop tops since my daughter was 15. She just turned 25, so my collection so far has taken me nine years or more. My goal is to collect one million pop tops. I tell people, "I do not expect to have 1,000,000 of anything else in my lifetime and I want to leave something for my daughter." The truth is, I want to show people what one million looks like. I estimate my one million pop tops will fill the back of my pick up truck bed including the camping shell. One million multiplied by one million is one trillion. If our national debt is 19 trillion, then it will take 19 million pick up trucks filled with one million pop tops each to equal our national debt in pop tops.
People tell me they collect them for Ronald McDonald house, and this is honorable, but the value of these pop tops is so little, they might realize the effort is not worth the reward.
May I share some basic statistics with you? To collect 1,000,000 pop tops @ 1,000 a month it will take me 83 years to reach my goal. I am doing much better than this thanks to alcoholics and people who drink a lot of soda pop helping me, but after 9 years, I think I am at about 250,000. Pop tops weigh 10.4 oz. per 1,000. Therefore, my 1,000,000 pop tops will weigh 104,000 ozs. or 650 lbs.
Today's price of Aluminum (April 2017) as a commodity is selling for 88¢ a pound. One million pop tops is worth approx. $574.00 if I got the full commodity price for them.
I know, you are saying they help with dialysis. No, not true. It's a myth.
You say, "the aluminum is far purer than the rest of the can and it is used for hypodermic needles." Also a myth. The aluminum in the pop tops is no different than the can it came from.
Do they help buy wheel chairs in Canada? Yes, but again, the value of the pop tops is far less than one might think and you are far better off donating $10 to the cause of your choice and giving me your pop tops to help me meet my 1,000,000 goal. $10 worth of pop tops at 88¢ a lb. is 11.36 lbs. of pop tops. at 10.4 oz per 1,000 pop tops this is 17,483 pop tops or a little more than four - one gallon milk jugs filled with pop tops.
SNOPES says: (http://www.snopes.com/business/redeem/pulltabs.asp)
Pull Tab Redemption Rumor
Do pull tabs from aluminum cans have special redemption value for time on dialysis machines?
CLAIM: Do pull tabs from aluminum cans have special redemption value for time on dialysis machines.
ORIGINS: A legend this good-hearted should be true. But it's not. And a lot of really nice people end up sadly disappointed when they eventually discover all their hard work pretty much went for naught.
Pulltabs have no special value that makes them redeemable for time on dialysis machines, or indeed which make them worth far in excess of their ordinary scrap metal recycle value. While a handful of charitable concerns, including McDonald's Ronald McDonald House and Shriners Hospitals for Children accept donations of can tabs, said tabs fetch such groups no more than the items' ordinary recycle value of about 10¢ per lb..
The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) says this of the dialysis rumor that has been dogging them for quite a while:
A false rumor that has plagued the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) and the aluminum industry for decades has recently resurfaced, perhaps fueled by the Internet. Individuals and groups believe they can donate the pull tabs on aluminum cans in exchange for time on a kidney dialysis machine. Such a program has never existed through the NKF, nor have there ever been programs through the foundation allowing people to exchange any type of item (box tops, product points, etc.) for time on dialysis.
I don't think anyone is ever going to figure out where what have come to be called "redemption rumors" first came from. The notion of something of little value (pull-tabs, empty cigarette packs) being collected by good-hearted people and then turned over to a public-spirited company who would redeem them for an item that would help the less fortunate (time on a dialysis machine, a wheelchair, a seeing eye ) goes back a long way — ours is far from the first generation to fall for this canard.
A 2002 article described a common experience with the rumor:
Back when 15-year-old Elizabeth Bohli was in the third grade, she had a friend who had a friend who had leukemia. Word was that the sick girl's doctor told her about a program in which the Coca-Cola Co. would pay for one chemotherapy session for every 1,000 aluminum pop-tops collected.
Elizabeth remembered that program when her 12-year-old sister, Jenny, was diagnosed with melanoma in September, and a massive collection drive began at Pelham High School. For two months, students, teachers and parents brought in thousands of the tiny aluminum objects. Soon, other schools were calling, asking how they could donate their pop-tops. Word spread to churches, which eagerly jumped in to help. And one friend told another, and another and another. Since then, the pop-tops campaign has gone, well, a little over the top. As of this week, more than 276,000 had been collected.
But none of that metal will translate into free treatments for Jenny. "It was just an old myth," she said this week. Jenny's mother, Jo, called Coca-Cola recently, feeling as though she held a winning lottery ticket in her hands. Then she asked how she could cash in the pop-tops for money to pay for her daughter's immunotherapy treatments. At first, there was laughter. Then the voice on the other end told her there's no such program.
"She actually laughed because she couldn't believe that the kids had collected so many," Bohli said. "To me, it was just so outstanding that these kids made such a fantastic effort to help Jenny."
Walker Jones, community relations director for Coca-Cola in Birmingham, said that while the company works with some cancer-related charities, it does not redeem pop-tops for medical treatments. Jones doesn't know who perpetuates the pop-tops rumor, but it has been fizzing around for some time. "I think the myth has been going on for over 20 years," she said.
There's nothing special about pull tabs which makes them exchangeable for time on a dialysis machine. These bits of metal are worth nothing more than the ordinary recycle value of the aluminum they contain.
Though rumor claims pull tabs are especially valuable because they're made of "pure aluminum," they're actually formed from an aluminum alloy, just like the rest of the can (albeit of a slightly different type).
A million pull tabs have a recycle value of about $366 U.S. And that's before you factor in what it costs to collect, store, and transport them to a recycling center which will pay cash for them. When you consider the time and effort it takes to collect a million of anything, it's a wonder anyone would go to all that trouble for a mere $366. Far better to ask everyone you know for a penny in place of each pull tab they would have given you — at least then when you were done collecting your million, you'd have $10,000 to donate to your charity.
To put this in even clearer perspective, 100 pull tabs have a scrap metal value of about 3½¢.
That old "something for nothing" dream gets people every time. Spring 1997 produced a poignant example of this madness in the form of a news story about a crippled child in a remote Canadian community and that community's good-hearted belief that if only they could save up eight million pull tabs, they could get her a much-needed wheelchair. The local community health center made a project of collecting these little bits of metal, and it was only after they'd gathered more than a million that they realized not only didn't they have a buyer for them, they also hadn't figured out how they were going to transport them from their town (roughly 2500 miles north of Montreal) to any place with a recycling plant:
"We just thought we needed eight million tabs," said Linda Tucktoo, who helped organize the drive and assumed there was a program to trade tabs for wheelchairs. "I didn't know it was so much trouble."
Charity groups and the aluminum industry say they have been fighting misconceptions about collecting pop can tabs for years. "Unfortunately, it's one of those urban myths," said Denise Bekkema, executive director of Storefront for Volunteer Agencies in Yellowknife. "We actually get calls, probably about two a year, from people who have collected oodles and oodles of tabs from pop cans and then wanting to donate them to make wheelchairs. But there's actually no such program."
This tale had a happy ending in that the Royal Canadian Legion arranged and paid for the transportation costs of getting all those pull tabs to a recycling centre, someone else donated a used wheelchair, Air Canada shipped the chair for free to the little girl, and a Canadian wheelchair manufacturer also offered to make a brand-new chair for her.
Others whose hearts were in the right place haven't been as fortunate. The experience of Dave and Beryl Hodge of Houston is typical. They saved pull tabs for two years, enlisting the help of friends, neighbors and relatives in their project. A local service club (who had themselves been taken in by this rumor) had led them to believe these tabs could be redeemed for dialysis treatment for a kidney patient:
"It's folklore. It's something that people want to believe, and people are just heartsick when they find out no one will redeem these things." Mrs. Hodge, 64, said she was indeed heartsick when she recently learned her time, energy and tabs were devoted to a non-existent cause.
"We had so many people saving these for us that it reached the point where every time we'd see a friend or neighbor, they'd hand over some tabs to us," she said. "We had family back in Connecticut mailing them to us. We were turning cans without the tabs over to the senior citizens at the YWCA, and they in turn were giving us their tabs."
Rumor not only dashes the hopes of those trying to do a good deed; it also causes endless headaches for those in the recycling business:
"We don't even take tabs and we've never advertised that we do," says Phil McEvers of Houston's American Reclaiming Corp. "But it's not unusual for us to get 30 or 40 calls a day from people who say they've heard these things." While some Houston recycling companies do buy tabs, dealers say the prices range from about 10 cents to 28 cents per pound — much less than prices purported for gallon quantities.
"People will come up here and just swear to you that these tabs can get an hour for somebody on a (dialysis) machine, and nothing you tell them will convince them that it's not so," says O'Neil Short, president of Houston's Micon Recycling. "Some of them come with the gallon containers wanting $75 a gallon, and when we explain it's not worth $75, they pull out of the driveway mad."
"They just flat think we're lying to them." Micon no longer will buy the tabs at all, said Short.
One of the many companies victimized by this rumor is Reynolds Aluminum. They've come up with an effective reply to the pull-tabs question: a redirection of these lovingly-collected tabs into their normal recycling program, for which they pay standard scrap metal rates. (Obviously, collecting whole cans would be far more effective, but facts have never slowed down anyone running with a good rumor firmly between his teeth.) As one of their 1993 brochures read:
This Program Might Have A Familiar Ring
False rumors have plagued the aluminum industry and the National Kidney Foundation for years concerning beverage can pull tabs and kidney dialysis. Across the nation, at various times, word has spread that aluminum can pull tabs could be recycled in exchange for time on a kidney dialysis machine for someone with kidney disease. Many well intentioned yet misinformed groups and individuals collected pull tabs only to find that there was no pull tab/kidney dialysis donation program. It never existed. Anywhere.
In some cases it was even very difficult to collect the tabs because of the fact that many cans now have a device called Stay-On-Tab ™, a design improvement to all-aluminum cans which keep the tab attached to the can after opening. Yet even then people would remove the tabs and bring them to a Reynolds Aluminum recycling center, only to find the sum of their efforts much less than they had hoped . . . no dialysis and much less money than if they had brought the cans that were originally attached to the tab.
There was nothing they could do, and nothing we could do . . .
Reynolds Aluminum Recycling Company (RARCO) and the National Kidney Foundation (NKF)
affiliates and chapters have initiated this "Keep Tabs on Your Cans" turnaround drive. RARCO and NKF are seeking groups and individuals who will recycle aluminum through Reynolds, donating the proceeds to the National Kidney Foundation local chapters and affiliates.
The group or individual collects recyclable used aluminum beverage cans, aluminum pie plates, foil, frozen food and dinner trays, as well as many other forms of recyclable aluminum, then brings it to a Reynolds recycling center. The recycler then requests that the money earned from the recycling transaction be donated directly to the National Kidney Foundation. Reynolds provides the recycler/contributor with an itemized receipt for record keeping and tax purposes. Periodically, the donations are totaled, and Reynolds sends a donation to the nearest chapter or affiliate of the National Kidney Foundation.
Diseases of the kidney and urinary tract are a major cause of illness and death in the United States. The National Kidney Foundation and its 50 affiliates and 200 chapters comprise the primary health organization in the U.S. which fights this disease. Your donation will finance research, treatment, diagnosis, detection, and cure of kidney and urinary tract diseases.
Bring your aluminum cans and other household aluminum to any Reynolds Aluminum Recycling center and ask to have the proceeds sent to the National Kidney Foundation. For the location and schedule of the (Reynolds Aluminum) recycling center nearest you, simply call (toll-free) [out-of-service number removed], or for more information write the National Kidney Foundation, Inc., 30 East 33rd Street, New York, New York, 10016.
(Reynolds has since sold off its recycling operation to Wise Metals.)
Seeing as how folks were bound and determined to collect pull-tabs for charity, in 1987 McDonald's found it a good idea to get into the act. Their Pop Tab Collection program is a response to pull tab mania, and
it at least provides folks with a place to dump the tabs they've been hoarding over the years in the belief they could use them to purchase dialysis time for an ailing child. Tabs dropped off at various McDonald's are taken to a local recycling company, and the money made from selling them for their scrap value is given to the local Ronald McDonald House to help defray operating costs.
(Ronald McDonald houses are inexpensive family lodgings located near hospitals. Families of sick children stay there so as to be close to their hospitalized child. Typically, it costs the house $40 a night a room to operate and families are asked to make a donation of $10 a night when they stay. The shortfall is made up through various charitable endeavors, of which the pull-tab collection and recycling program is but one.)
It needs be stressed yet again that pull tabs are far from "found money" — even the Shriners Hospitals for Children, another organization that uses money received from the recycling of aluminum tabs for a good cause, noted in April 2007 that the recycling price for aluminum tabs is $0.50 to $0.70 per pound, which means that even at the upper end of that price range, they're only getting about $427 per million tabs collected. Prospective donors could still do far more good by organizing a local soda can recycling program and donating the proceeds to the Ronald McDonald House (or any other charity).
THE BOTTOM LINE: No charitable organization will pay out a premium (in cash, goods, or services) for pull tabs from aluminum cans. Some of them will indeed accept donations of pull tabs, but all they pay (or receive) in exchange for those tabs is their marginal value as scrap aluminum. Anyone gathering pull tabs for charity would do far better to collect whole cans; accumulating nothing but pull tabs is like eschewing quarters in order to collect pennies.
(From time to time, various companies will run programs under which they offer to donate money to charities in exchange for consumers' collecting and returning some item of product packaging [e.g., pull tabs, boxtops, wrappers], but such companies only accept packaging from their own products, and their object in operating these programs is to promote and advertise their brands.)
Next time someone asks you to donate a few pull-tabs for a good cause, donate a few facts instead. You'll be doing everyone a favor.
Barbara "donate make your brown eyes blue?" Mikkelson
LAST UPDATED: 24 March 2012
April 3rd, 2017
A potential student asked questions about The Sandman's Stage Hypnosis Boot Camp August 13-19 at the Wyoming State Fair. I thought my long reply might be of interest.
Clinical Hypnosis and Stage Hypnosis have as much in common as pasta and bread. Both are made from grain, but that is where the similarity ends.
Does a Hypnosis Show need a quiet space to do your show?
Not necessarily, but it greatly improves the quality of the show. do you need quite around you when you watch TV, go to the theater or movies? If you want people to give the show their undivided attention without distractions - then yes, you want there to be no conflicting noise or activity going on.
Is it OK if will have several activities going on at the same time as your show?
Only if you are challenging my abilities. If you were teaching a class, would you want these same activities going on at the same time? If you are having a late night party for high school students and you are paying for a premium service, why would you want other activities going on at the same time?
We are serving dinner during this time, also. Will they need to be finished eating before you start?
Unless people are paying for the entertainment, out of their own pocket, food beats entertainment almost every time. People do not want to look up from their food to watch a show. There are types of entertainment that work during a meal. They are the type of entertainment that does not need your undivided attention including background music and belly dancers.
If you hire an act that is a visual act - magicians, hypnotist, jugglers, puppeteers & ventriloquists; then you want to begin the entertainment after people are done eating. Especially if the show requires volunteers. No one wants to get up from their meal and participate on stage while their food is sitting on a table.
Let's discuss this in more detail:
Do I need quiet because "...there will be other activities going on at the same time."
I agree to this as much as driving on the wrong side of the interstate, against the traffic.
Hypnosis shows are a LOT of FUN! Sometimes you have to make people sit down and watch them for them to discover they like what they are watching and see it for themselves. If one has never seen a hypnosis show, they are naive and won' know what they missed if you don't make them watch the show. My ex-wife forced me to go and see Wayne Newton once. I would never have gone on my own. I am SO VERY GLAD I went!!!
Can I work while other (noisy) things are going on? Yes. I do county fairs with the Tilt-a-whirl screaming and the livestock auction pointing it's speakers at me across the fairgrounds - but for a party when you have 50-500 people (give-or-take) there are some general guidelines that will (1) make the party most successful and (2) give you the most bang for your limited dollar.
I am going to deviate for a moment. Hypnotists like metaphors. Bare with me:
If you are doing a child's 7th birthday party, the standard formula is:
(1) kids arrive at 1:00 or 2:00 PM. If they arrive earlier, they will not have eaten lunch and they will be hungry. If you do not want to feed them lunch, have the Lovelies arrive at 2:00 PM
(2) Have sugary and salty snacks in bowls, over hardwood or stone floors that are easy to clean for them to snack from in case they are hungry. Finger foods are great, and will fill their little tummies with just enough that they can run and play for the first hour from 2-3 PM. Chips, Cheese Doodles and M&M's. If they are girls, give them cupcake foils to carry the snacks. If they are boys, give them baggies. (Keep the vacuum handy)
(3) At 3 PM, you gather the little Delights together. All the late arrivals are there and you play games, or have an amateur or professional show that you hired - magician, ventriloquist, juggler, clown…
(4) 4:00 - it's time to open the presents following the organized entertainment. the kids are all sitting and attentive and will give the birthday child their celebrity attention.
(5) 4:30 - give them cake and ice cream filled with lots of sugary loveliness
(6) Parents come and take sticky, 'pumped with sugar' children home where they will be crazed and animated for 30 minutes, then need a nap and probably won't eat dinner.
NOTE: If the party starts earlier, give the adorable hatchlings Pizza, Chicken Nuggets or Hot Dogs, the universal foods of 7 year olds - easy to serve, and the food will not be placed in the trash. Everyone will be happy.
This formula is created from doing hundreds of children's birthday parties for 15 years, at one time in my life. There are exceptions and there are "no rules that can not be broken" because it is a "PARTY" not a prison or school. Exceptions come into play if parents/adults are present, if there are ethnic considerations (serve ethnic food), it's a slumber party, the host child is diabetic... but you get the idea.
Let me share my experiences doing "late night safe & sober, drug-free, bash, grad night & post prom high school" events. I started doing high school lock-in parties in 1993 and I consistently do 30 of these events a year now. I sell another 30+ hypnotists to additional schools that I am not available to perform for.
Late Night parties also have a formula that seem to work for 90+% of the time. the questions this blob provoked (answered above) not only "DO NOT" fit any formula, but they break rules that make me uncomfortable. Rules that are Sort of like asking your contractor to paint a 3-story house without scaffolding. "Use a Ladder" the client said... "Or use two ladders and make a scaffold..." Yeah. OK...
Your Seniors are Not adults, but in many ways they are. I could give you a few analogies, but will save those for another blog. Let's stay with the party you are holding and your questions for now:
#1 - HUNGRY PEOPLE offered HOT FOOD wins over everything else. If you serve food, nothing else should be going on.
Exceptions include: {a.} music {b.} belly dancers {c.} strippers {d.} raffles {e.} speakers you 'really do not care' if the people listen to.
If you want people to ignore the performer, presenter or activity you are offering and only want them to pay attention with half-a-mind, have hot food present and expect people to eat at the same time.
#2 - FEATURED EVENTS - I am not sure what you were planning on doing at the same time as the hypnosis show, but I will assume it is games. Carnival games, inflatable games, group games, individual games, casino games ...
When your guests leave this party and talk about it for the next few years, do you think they are going to talk about:
(1) The food
(2) The games
(3) The gifts and prizes they did and didn't win ( quality prizes including: iPods, iPads, computers, bicycles, dorm room refrigerators, microwaves, etc. are the exceptions)
(4) The comedy show that made them laugh so hard, they cried.
Let's discuss formulas that work best (exceptions can be had):
#1 - Using the Hypnosis Show as the first thing of the event, used to gather them quickly into one place before they are shipped off to the off-site event.
I have had a number of schools that have had me perform at the school, in the gym or theater as the first thing of the night. All the kids gather and park, go into the show (after being searched - all wallets, money, beverages, purses, etc must be left in car) and they come in, watch the hypnosis show for 90 minutes, then they are put on busses and shipped off to the event at an off-site location. (Arcades with go-carts, H20 Parks or Bay Cruise Ships, usually). This does work, but is not my favorite formula.
#2 -THE MOST POPULAR FORMULA - done at over 90% of the late night events I have ever done - The Comedy Hypnosis Show is the last activity of the night.
Say the event goes from 9 pm - 5 am, do the hypnosis show at 3-4:30 am, and the only thing that follows is the big raffle and then they gather the raffle items and take them home. The only other thing that should follow the hypnosis show is more food - but keep in mind, very little of that food will get eaten. Few people eat at 4:30 AM. If you do serve food, make it elementary school sized finger foods like donuts cut in half, and tiny 6 oz. boxes of orange juice. if you cook a hot breakfast, make servings really tiny. I have seen enormous portions of french toast, pancakes and sausage thrown away at 5 am.
My final share: No one goes home after 4 am and drinks or does drugs. I see these events pushed to 5 am, 6 am, 7 am ... In my opinion, this is not necessary. You can end at 4 AM, and definitely no later than 5 AM and you will have fulfilled your mission of seeing the kids safe, and you will leave them saying "I had an awesome time."
>>Will you need a quiet space to do your show? We will have several activities going on during this time.<<
• I will not compete with other things going on.
• It is not fair to me and it is not fair to the audience.
• It is not fair to the audience that wants to watch the show and not have people running around, making noise, being a distraction.
• It is not fair to the people who want to do everything and you are making them choose whether to watch a featured show or participate with their friends in doing other things.
• It is not the best use of the $$ you will pay me. Let me be a feature, not just 'another thing' happening.
One last metaphor:
I have a daughter. When I do things with her, it does not matter what I want to do. I do what she wants to do because I want to be with her and spend time with her. I miss a lot of live shows at amusement parks because my daughter only wants to ride the rides. I have never seen a live show at Dollywood. I am in the live show business! You have no clue how disappointed I am that this is how it is, but this is how it is....
Don't make people choose between spending time with friends doing other activities or spending time together watching the show. So many high school students are "followers" not leaders and if they miss the hypnosis show, they will be very disappointed.
You Asked:
>>We are serving dinner during this time also. Will they need to be finished eating before you start?<<
I have Light Pencil, Dark Pencil and Pen & Ink way of recording when people contact me for Gigs.
A Light Pencil means they inquired, but that is all it was - It was a casual inquiry as to whether I am available, prices and other questions. Sometimes they fill out my form found on line here: http://alansands.com/contact. No one is promising anything to anyone else. It was just a friendly inquiry.
Dark Pencil is a more serious inquiry. It means you have asked I keep you informed of my availability because you are seriously considering me, or one of my acts for this event. Some call this a "First Right of Refusal" Again, there is no obligation on either parties side, but I have made notes and will talk to you again. I also ask that if you decide to say, "NO" you give me the courtesy of letting me know, just like you'd like me to tell you if I can no longer wait for a reply and am taking another gig that date.
Pen & Ink - Means you have requested a contract. To make me Pen and Ink something, you have to fill out my form on line - http://alansands.com/agreement - and then I will get you an agreement. I will ask for a deposit. We are "Good-to-go" as long as negative energy in the universe does not interfere.
My Cancellation Policy:
Even if you send me a deposit, even if you sign my contract, I know "shit happens." When shit happens and nothing can be done about it, I do not hold people responsible.
As long as a non-refundable plane ticket or rental car has not been purchased, as long as the performer has not gotten in their car and driven to the event, as long as another event has not been passed on to accommodate your event, I will allow someone to cancel a signed contract and I will refund any refundable / not spent portion of a deposit.
I do not wish to treat people the way airlines, insurance companies and leasing companies treat my daughter and me. Yes, it costs me money - but my disappointment is easier to stomach than your being pissed off at me. Life is short. I do not want people remembering me in negative ways over money. There are so many other creative ways I can piss you off and I am an artist, not a business man :-)
I also expect you will allow me to get you another performer of equal or better value for the same price to perform the same services if I need to get out of the agreement for any reason, whether it be a career opportunity or more money, less travel to make the same money, or any other reason that is reasonable.
I believe in Win/Win relationships.
I did a private party last night for a wealthy woman in the Omaha region. She owns a ranch with really large metal barns (the $250,000 type) and she sponsors and puts on a Halloween party for friends, church members and family. She catered the event and paid her handyman to build a haunted house that rivals any I have ever seen, anywhere!
Please leave comments here for others to read. Thank you.
Using an iWatch to do musical cues in your hypnosis show
This article is written for Hypnotists that carry a mixer with them. It will teach some basic attributes of a better mixer over a cheaper, smaller mixer with less buttons, knobs, dials and switches.
When you know how to use all the buttons, knobs and switches on a sound console the flexibility it give you is sometimes subtle but for a fickle ear or for optimizing what you are working with it does make a difference.
Metaphor: I don't know any professional photographers that use an automatic camera. They want to be able to set a white balance, set the F Stop (the speed of the shutter) and aperture (how big the lens opens to allow more or less light in) themselves. It is similar with sound. I can hear the difference and it drives me nuts when the sound is not tuned correctly, if there are no dynamics and worst of all is the sound is distorting.
Personalized Training:
In Sept - Oct 2013, I worked with two students for two weeks. Dr. Dan Anders and Brian Verrano in Greenville, NC and Lumberton, NC
In June 2014, I worked with Michael Mayo in Merced, CA.
In October 2014, I worked with Vanessa Lindgren, Jeff harpring nad Martin Baratz in Lumberton, NC.
Brian had never done a show, but had memorized Justin Tranz's routine after training with Justin, and he was able to get on stage five times, record a demo video he now uses and he was very successful at getting his feet wet and pulling off some successful shows. He also purchased sound equipment for his act with great confidence as well as downloaded Show Cues, bought the iJet remote and worked with the application and his remote to do his music cues.
Dan Anders worked diligently on writing his script, and bought a good, small sound system after he left. He has done a dozen or two shows before coming, and has since then done another half dozen shows - including one I got for him that paid him $1,200, and he seems to let me know how each show went and what he learned from our time together. (Brian Varano on left, Dan Anders on right)
In June 2014, I worked with, Michael Mayo, for five days. Michael had previously done about 20 shows, and we were able to work on some opening material, strengthen his middle act - making it run smoother so it was not so choppy - and we polish his closing so that when the show ended, the audience felt like there was some finality to the show. He also got to get on stage four times and do shows and we videotaped his shows so he will now be able to create a good demo for himself.
Every student I work with has specific, individual needs. Each student was very different than the previous student. All of them were "working it" but needed some pointers and attention to the details to make them become tighter.
Alan Sands is not a lawyer and is not a Legal Aid. Anything stated here is only Alan's current personal knowledge. If you have questions, call the USCIS at: (800) 375-5283
This blog only covers the P-1B Entertainment Group Application Process.
Alan Sands does not know anything about any other applications other than P-1B for Entertainment Groups. For all other applications, read the forms listed below or call the USCIS at: (800) 375-5283
Since 1997, Alan Sands Entertainment (ASE) has sponsored a P-1 Work Permit for a number of cream de la crème' Canadian Entertainers. There are currently (2014) ten acts on this P-1; a six-member acrobatic troupe; three juggling solo and duo acts; six acts are magicians, solo, duo and a troupe of five.
For a list of the Canadian Acts on my current permit and those that have been on my permit in the past, please visit http://alansands.com/tesseract
ASE chooses not to add other acts to the current P-1-B Permit. Please do not ask. Many of these acts have been working together for 17 or more years. All others have been members for over five years. There are no openings in this P-1-B Visa.
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Men's Track and Field
Men's Track and Field Places Fifth at Jack Christiansen
By ortiveztm on May 3, 2012
Scott Kretzmann ASC Sports Information Director PHILADELPHIA, Pa./FORT COLLINS, Colo. – Sophomore thrower Wesley Lavong (Philadelphia, Pa.) posted a season-best toss in the shot put as Grizzly athletes competed at both the Colorado State hosted Jack Christiansen Invitational and the prestigious Penn Relays in the final weekend of action before the conference meet. Lavong's provisional […]
Posted in Sports | Tagged ASC Athletics, ASC Grizzlies, ASC Sports, Men's Track and Field
Eleven Track and Field Men Win at CSU-Pueblo Invite
By ortiveztm on April 19, 2012
Scott Kretzmann ASC Sports Information Director PUEBLO, Colo. – Adams State athletes put forth winning efforts in 11 events during competition at the Colorado State-Pueblo Invitational, and saw four NCAA qualifying marks reached during their second trip of the season to the ThunderBowl this weekend. The Grizzlies previously competed at the CSU-Pueblo Open in March, […]
Posted in Sports | Tagged ASC Athletics, ASC Grizzlies, ASC Sports, Men's Track and Field


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I have a group of characters half is about four friends...
With You
- by 1D love
- Rating:
- Published: 23 Sep 2012
- Updated: 6 Nov 2012
- Status: In Progress
Two best friends named Amy and Brooke take a trip to london and meet one direction!Yes, sounds like any other story but I'm new at this and I tried my best. Please Give me a chance.The begining they just arrived in england and are driving to their rented home in Holmes Chapel cheshire.
Join MovellasFind out what all the buzz is about. Join now to start sharing your creativity and passion
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Jesse Jackson wants things done his way. Right down to how well his bacon is cooked.
Before speaking to hungry fans Friday at the Idella Howell Child Development Center in Middletown, Jackson stopped into the kitchen to check on breakfast. No, the bacon wasn't done enough. He made sure it went back on the griddle, even taking a couple of tries flipping the strips.


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One of the greatest challenges as a photographer is to get unique images of often photographed locations. I have been working on a blog post about my trip to Delicate Arch (the most famous & most photographed location Arches National Park) about getting a unique image of that location. In order to get unique images sometimes you have to take risks, not only with your physical well-being of your person and gear, but also with the possibility that you might not get a single usable shot. I swear I will eventually finish that post.
Last night was the Manhattan Beach Holiday Fireworks show at the pier. I realized that there are hundreds of great images of the Manhattan Beach Pier from past fireworks shows, so how the hell can I do something different?? I do not want a run-of-the-mill type and age that we've all seen one-hundred thousand times. My original idea was to shoot the entire firework show as I would shoot star trails (a constant succession of "x" length exposures that I will stack in Photoshop to show the motion of the stars as they move across the sky.) My "back-up" plan is to do one long exposure with my Lee ten-stop ND filter on my Samyang 35mm @ f1.4. I've never attempted to use a 10-stop ND filter at night, but I was guessing that the ambient light from the lights on the pier &/or the fireworks could provide enough light over the course of 10 minutes.
I organize all of my gear regular night photography gear (see my post for complete list.) In addition, I bring a small vodka tonic (instead of beer because the MBPD is out in full force,) my 10-stop ND filter, and some cleaning solution (even on a non-windy night, ocean spray will get on everything.) I should have brought plastic trash or grocery bags to keep some the ocean spray off my gear; my 850 lumen flashlight would have come in handy to get the attention of the photographer who decided to set-up right in my shot one minute before the show began and/or to scare the wild, undisciplined, unremorseful Manhattan Beach brats away from my two cameras.
I got a late start because I could not find my REI light weight backpacking chair, which is hopefully lost in my garage. I "arrive" 5:45 PM so by the time I got close to the pier I had to park halfway between my house and the beach so I probably should have walked from my house. The walk was long but pleasant, though all of the half-drunk people everywhere make me nervous that one will knock over my gear. I finally arrive on the south side of Manhattan Beach Pier a block or two north of 8th St. I throw down my camping stool and set my tripods out and run a few test shots and have a swig of my inconspicuous Vodka Tonic (well concealed in a Sweppes tonic bottle.)
When shooting at night I always use a remote cable release, be it a regular remote cable release, my remote commander that came with the Sony Alpha 850, or the timer remote that I have purchased specifically for shooting star trails. I decide to use my timer remote for no real reason other than its cool & I can see how long my image has been cooking for. After I finish taking my test shots and I get everything set up to my satisfaction, I put the remote in my pocket because I don't want to put it in the sand. After having a couple of more swigs, I decide to stretch my legs…and proceed to drag my tripod and camera down via the still-attached remote release that is still in my pocket. I guess my suspicions about a drunk knocking my crap over were justified. Lucky for me, all of my gear avoids any permanent damage other than a little bit of extra sand in my tripod head (it is old and beat to hell anyway.)
Needless to say, there were at least 25 other photographers there with tripods and a set up that was capable of capturing great images. Though I've never taken images of fireworks before, I know how to take images of fireworks (basically all you need is a camera & a tripod.) After taking a couple of test shots I realize that my exposure time was not going to be a long enough for a "star trails" style image because and I would fill up an entire 16 gig memory card in about 10 minutes—that and there was going to be too much light.
Did I mention that I was going to get two tries at whatever I was attempting because there were two different firework shows last night? It is the one-hundredth anniversary of Manhattan Beach so the folks at Sketchers decided they'd pay for a second display. I figured if my experiment didn't work at the 7pm show, I could take run-of-the-mill images at the 8:30pm show.
Here's my 10-Stop ND image taken during the first firework show:
(Sony Alpha 55, 35mm Samyang @ 1.4, ISO 800, 510 seconds. The Sony it out for 55 has a very nice focus assist mode which digitally zooms in on the image & allows you to nail that manual focus. For this image, I used that feature to zoom into the roundhouse). I had zero expectations for this shot to come out, but I was very satisfied with the results given the fact that it's an eight minute exposure, at night, on a wide aperture, near ocean which always seems to throw a rogue wave my way.
The second image was more complicated to achieve because I was using my Sony Alpha 850 with my Carl Zeiss 16-35mm f/2.8. To compensate for less light reaching the sensor, I had to use a higher ISO or use a longer exposure time (there are draw backs to both options.) I did my test shots at ISO 3200 to get my framing and focus correct, however I forgot to take set the ISO back to 800 before the fireworks show began, resulting in me shooting the entire 8:30 firework show it ISO 3200. There is so much to remember when doing next photography, especially when setting up two cameras within feet of incoming waves.
This exposure is at 21mm, f/3.2 (I have no good reason why I didn't shoot wide open,) 881 seconds, ISO 3200. I expected the noise to be much more of an issue, but upon inspecting the image on my computer it's really not that bad. It is not good enough to sell as stock, but I will make a nice & unique 18x 24 print.
In conclusion, the lesson I am trying to preach is that in order to get unique images, you need to think outside the box & not be afraid that other photographers are going to give you funny looks when you whip out a 10-stop ND filter at night. Getting a unique photo requires a fresh idea that may seem counterintuitive to how most photographers would approach it.
My next post will be about how I post processed the black-and-white image.
Here is my favorite a55 capture from the 8:30 show:
Samyang 35mm, f/1.4, 59 seconds, ISO 100. Ideally I would have been further back, but I using a wide angle on my other camera. Next year I think I'm going to try to find a spot on Manhattan Beach Blvd. looking straight down the street (showing crowd & fireworks.)
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Quote:We're proud (and relieved) to announce the 1.0 release of Aleph One. Nearly 12 years since Bungie released the source code for Marathon 2, it's finally feature-complete with the original engine and polished enough to deserve the 1.0 label. New features include full Marathon 2 and Infinity film support, including drag-and-drop; numerous improvements to the interface; OpenGL (Shader) fixes; new Lua features, and of course, bug fixes.
Accompanying this release we have a new set of data files for each of the games. Marathon has been completely updated to make it as true to the original as possible in the engine in its current state, removing M1A1's weird opening, extra secret levels, and changes to puzzles; and emulating the behavior of Marathon's triggered battles are closely as we can in Aleph One. Marathon 2 includes the full HD graphics upgrades featured in the Xbox LIVE Arcade game Marathon: Durandal, which Bungie and Freeverse have generously allowed us to distribute. Marathon Infinity includes goran's HD wall textures and landscapes, and the XBLA weapons graphics.
Each of the the three games also comes with its own theme, a widescreen HUD, and a new icon. We've changed the way they're distributed, too: they're now available as all-in-one apps for the Mac, and all-in-one zip files for Windows. Just download, unzip/mount, and double click.
http://marathon.sourceforge.net/ is up to date and should help you get the files you need. If you want to read detailed release notes for the 1.0 release, they are available at http://marathon.sourceforge.net/release ... 11201.html
We will have a press release available tomorrow for a more general audience, but we wanted to send this note tonight to give you an early start on re-experiencing the Marathon Trilogy. Our thanks go out to everyone who has helped Aleph One and the Marathon trilogy get to this point!


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VALLEY PARK, Mo. (KMOV) -- Authorities are searching for a man they say robbed a bank in Fenton on Wednesday.
Police said the suspect walked into the Reliance Bank in the 1000 block of South Highway Drive around 9:25 a.m. and slipped a note to a teller demanding money.
Authorities said the man was handed an undisclosed amount cash and fled the scene in a silver Honda SUV. According to police, he headed east on Interstate 44.
According to reports, he did not display a weapon. No injuries were reported.
Police describe the suspect as a thin white male with a buzz haircut. He was wearing a blue shirt and dark shorts.
Anyone with information on the suspect is asked to call Crimestoppers at (866)-371-TIPS. A reward could be offered for tips leading to an arrest.
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2018 KMOV. All Rights Reserved. For more information on this site, please read our Privacy Policy, and Terms of Service, and Ad Choices.


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Know more about this business than we do? Cool! Please submit any corrections or missing details you may have.Help us make it right
Be the first OregonLive.com user to add photos or videos of Air Thai Cuisine
Most authentic food I have had since visiting Thailand place is very clean service is excellent highly recommended
I really like the clam chowder at Air Thai and the calamari is good too. I've gone a few times and it seems like the waiter doesn't like being there-not overly friendly and we had to wait a really...


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Straight from Mom's basement, it's what's hot in the blogosphere, a little something we like to call "Bloggination Domination"
- Tiger enters the Pat O'Brien Voicemail Rehab Program. Ok, not really. But the evidence is out and Tiger is soooooo busted. Midwest Sports Fans
- Night vision goggles top the list for the "Jay Cutler Holiday Gift Guide" Jay Cutler Superstar
- Anyone else feel this way? 5 reasons that the sports world feels turned upside down. Legend of Cecilio Guante
- "The Sanchise" is taking classes at the Girardi School of Sliding More Hardball
- Gunaxin asks: Who is the Most Dominant Athlete Ever? Gunaxin
- Joakim Noah hits the cover of GQ France Docksquad Sports
- So obvious. Jeter owes it all to George Costanza Global Sports Fraternity
- Put it in Beast Mode. It's the Not Top Ten Teeth in Sports NQTC
- MMA Fans Have a New Favorite Moron The Cage Doctors
- The Tiger/Elin reenactment is funnier in Chinese Josh Q. Public
- I'll take Funniest Athlete Arrests of the Decade for $200, Alex. Sports Untapped
- Sideline Quarterback! Urlacher's Comments Sink Team to New Low i94 Sports
- I'd sign Kevin Bacon. It's 10 Non-A.I. Signings to Boost Sixers Attendance FanSided
- 2 new blogs are now a part of the NESW network. The MLB blog 7th Inning Stache and an NBA blog Stacheketball
- Rasheed Goes Ethnic/Racial in his latest rant. Pippen Ain't Easy
- Bloggers can learn from Kelso. Not the safety, the That 70′s Show Kelso Blogs With Balls
- D4L Has their Heisman Trophy Projections Detroit 4 Life


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10 Things Every Person Should Know about Marques de Murrietta (Look at number 7)
Country: Spain Region: Rioja
Varietal: Tempranillo
Vintage: 2004 Colour: Red Style: Dry
Producer: Bodegas Marques de Murrietta
Marques de Murrieta is named after Luciano de Murrieta, one of the founding fathers of modern Rioja winemaking, who established the estate in 1852 in the world renowned Rioja region of Spain. Today V. Dalmau Cebrian-Sagarriga, Count of Creixell, leads the family-owned company. With a vision of innovation and respect for tradition, Marques de Murrieta is rooted in strong, historical fundamentals that shape the vision and philosophy of this iconic Spanish brand. The winery is settled near the southern tip of the Rioja Alta in the middle of the beautiful Ygay Estate, a unique 300 hectare vineyard that guarantees complete control over the grape source of the wines and is the key to the quality and style of Marques de Murrieta wines.
92 Parker Points - Robert ParkerJr
The 2004 Dalmau Reserva is sourced from a single 50+ year old plot within the 300 hectare Ygay estate. Made from a blend of 86% Tempranillo, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Graciano, the wine was aged for 21 months in new French barriques. Dark ruby/purple-colored, it reveals an aromatic array of toasty new oak, spice box, mineral, blueberry, and black currants. Considerably more powerful than its traditionally made siblings, on the palate if is full-bodied, firm, layered, and quite concentrated. The spicy flavors fall on the dark side of the spectrum with blackberry, plum, and black currant in the forefront. The wine has at least a decade of aging potential and will be at its peak from 2015 to 2030 although it can be enjoyed now with a charcoal-grilled ribeye. Marques de Murietta remains a benchmark for traditional Rioja. (4/2008)92 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
90 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar
Opaque purple. Sexy, oak-spiced blackberry, cherry-cola and vanilla on the nose, with subtle floral and baking spice qualities adding complexity. Fat and sweet, with deep dark berry liqueur flavors, a velvety texture and obvious oak character. Emphatically modern, with strong finishing spiciness and lingering jammy berry flavors. If your Rioja paradigm is the traditional style, this one will cause apoplexy. (8/2008)
90 points Wine Spectator
This plush red delivers sweet berry and black plum fruit, with chocolate and toasty oak notes that give way to a floral, spicy finish. Velvety, yet has enough tannin for grip. (6/2008)
Jancis Robinson
86% Tempranillo, 6% Mazuelo, 3% Garnacha. 24 months in new French oak. Smoky, mineral and a hint of liquorice. Lovely tangy freshness and a fresh lightness of touch. Finesse and length. 17.5/20 points. (7/2009)
Ageing Potential: 9 Years
Tasting Note:
Vineyard: Canajas single vineyard. A more than 50 year-old single vineyard located at over 480 m above sea level within our 300 ha Ygay Estate (Rioja Alta).
Recommended foods: All red meats, roasts and game. Excellent also with cheeses.
Decanting: It is recommended to decant forty minutes before serving.
Grapes: 86% Tempranillo, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Graciano.
Food Matches: Game / Venison / Lamb / Duck


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The following is a guest post by Joe Giralt and originally appeared on his blog. Joe is currently a student at The Flatiron School. You can follow him on Twitter here.
Just the Facts
- I'm a student at the Flatiron School.
- There's a frosty keg of beer that sits in the corner
- That keg is all that stands between every student and sanity after a long hard week of work.
- From when the keg dies to when we get a new cold keg is approximately 36 hours.
So can you imagine to our horror when Friday came and the keg kicked only after two pours.
After much crying, disappointment and drinking from inferior aluminum cans where the red solo cup clearly reigns supreme. Team grumpycat has decided to unite and use its ruby powers for good and fabricate a system to measure and report the amount beer being consumed.
The team (Chris, Jordãn, Ruthie and Myself) are presenting our solution in three weeks time at the Ruby Meet-up our school hosts every Thursday.
Game plan
There are two ways to approach this problem.
- measure amount of fluid that leaves the keg via measuring the over all weight of the keg as it gets lighter
- measure the fluid that leaves the keg using a flow meter.
We decided to use a flow meter because:
- scales are expensive and invasive
- Routinely calibrating scales sucks
- flow meters are cheap
- flow meters have tons of documentation on the web.
Heres a nifty little diagram that will show the basic flow of our design.
So the plan is to install a flow meter on the tube that goes from the keg to the tap.
The flow meter will connect to an arduino that will send it's readings to a raspberry pi that will then forward the data to the beer-buyers-that-be.
Seems simple enough…
I ordered everything that I needed from Amazon minus the flow meter and it will all be arriving Weds. All and all this will be a rich learning experience for team grumpycat. more to follow……
Written byFLATIRON SCHOOL
Make yourself useful.


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I think it's safe to say that most writers who have regular Internet access have used a random idea generator at some point in their lives. Why not? Ideas are hard to come by and always seem to evade us when we need them most. When people want to write but don't know WHAT to write, that missing bit of inspiration (whether it's an occupation, a setting, or a complete premise) can be filled in by a machine. Ain't technology great? Continue reading
TVTropes: The Power of the Wiki Walk
Today I want to talk about a well-known resource for writers and fans of TV alike: TVTropes.org. Whether you love it or hate it, it's impossible to deny the addictive power of this website, which makes use of the hyperlink-saturated style that has made Wikipedia infamous for drawing users knee-deep into Polynesian mythology when all they wanted to know was the name of that one actor in that one movie. The layout itself is what gives TVTropes its power to spark creative thought–if you use it correctly, that is. Continue reading
TV and Digital Scholarship: A Perfect Fit
I have a love-hate relationship (as I do with a good many things) with the conversation on the legitimacy of digital scholarship. On the one hand, I'm all for innovative forms of scholarly activity (I'm a Kindle-toting pro-tech who'd rather write a TV pilot script than the Great American Novel, so that's kind of a given). On the other hand, though, I feel like the whole topic is at an uncomfortable place right now; the way I see it, it's inevitable that digital scholarship is going to become more and more accepted, so there's not much to do right now except rail self-righteously against the Luddites who oppose it…you know, wherever the Luddites have gotten to at this point if they haven't gotten on board with the whole inevitability thing. Continue reading
TV Takeaway Unscripted: Bates Motel
Following the success of the video that Haley and I made for the blog, we decided to make another video. Except this time, we made it a little more focused. Haley is a fan of the show Bates Motel. I had never seen it, so we watched the pilot together and recorded our reactions to it.
I've had the thought in the back of my head for a while that I might like to make a commentary video, and although the editing is sub-par and still heavily favors the jump cut, I hope you'll enjoy Haley's interpretation as a fan and my response to seeing the material for the first time.
(Be warned, this episode contains a rape scene. It's not shown here, but it's discussed.)
My Top Five Lessons from the First Week of Camp NaNoWriMo
We're coming to the end of the first week of Camp NaNoWriMo, and although some days have been better than others and there are always those inevitable moments when I feel like I should just give up, I feel like I've gotten off to a pretty good start. The project I'm working on, by the way, is a Once Upon a Time episode entitled "Ghosts of the Past" (you can check out the details on my camper profile here).
My classmates expressed an interest in me talking a little more about NaNoWriMo on the blog, and while I don't think this is an appropriate place for me to write about every negative thought and bout of self-deprecation that comes up over the month (that's what Tumblr is for), I did think that this would be a good time to look back on this first week and reflect on a few of my experiences and what I've learned from them. That being said, here are the top five lessons I've learned during the first week of Camp NaNoWriMo. Continue reading
Oh Say Can You Scene: The Princess Bride
Back when I was a theater kid, we used to watch The Princess Bride in class all the time. We all knew the film, and we all knew we all knew the film. So I have this tendency to assume that everyone has seen The Princess Bride.
A couple of days ago I invited my friend Ty to watch it with me, and it turned out that he hadn't seen it. Well, you learn something new every day. Continue reading
TV Takeaway–Unscripted
One of the things I like about written communication is that it gives you the opportunity to edit yourself. Before I post anything on this blog, I have the opportunity to look over it, check my wording, and make it as good as possible. You can do the same thing with texting and e-mail too. It's great.
But recently I got to thinking, what if I showed people how my thought process looks on the first try? So, for my first video post on this blog, I got together with my friend Haley and had her ask me some questions about screenwriting.
I edited the video for time, so there was a significant amount of selection involved, but all of my responses here are unscripted. Watch and enjoy. Or, alternatively, watch and be glad that writing is my preferred mode of discourse.
By the way, we hit 'stop' before I realized that I'd mentioned a workshop without giving a time or place for it. The creative writing workshop will take place at 5pm on March the 27th at the Texas State Writing Center. It will be preceded at 4pm by a workshop on screenwriting specifically.
Elementary: A Legend Revamped (Part 2)
Welcome back for Part 2 of my commentary on the Elementary pilot. This is probably going to be my last full commentary before spring break begins, as I'll be going home to spend some time with the fam. We're going to Disneyworld–yay! A mind can't function without occasional periods of rest, and I'm sure I'll be ready to produce some high-quality content by the time I get back to San Marcos. Continue reading
Camp NaNoWriMo is coming!
Spring is on the way. Here in Texas, that means the weather is ping-ponging back and forth from 70 and sunny to 40 and stormy on a semi-daily basis. Should I wear basketball shorts and a T-shirt when I go out or would it be better to make it a sweater and a heavy coat? I don't know. It's impossible to tell.
But more importantly for us writers, the impending arrival of spring also heralds the impending arrival of the April session of Camp NaNoWriMo. What is Camp NaNoWriMo, you may ask? Well, before I try to explain it to you, I'd better tell you what NaNoWriMo is. Continue reading
Elementary: A Legend Revamped (Part 1)
I'd heard of Elementary a while back and had it recommended to me a couple of times, but it was one of those things I never got around to watching. It seemed like a no-brainer for me to watch it, considering my continued recurring interest in crime dramas (my mom keeps telling me I should "write what I know," but of course I don't listen). That and I'm a casual Sherlockian who's enjoyed the stories and some of the detective's on-screen incarnations (Basil Rathbone, Robert Downey Jr., Benedict Cumberbatch–all great in my book). Now, it's time to add Johnny Lee Miller to the list. Continue reading


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On Saturday we went to Maryland for the day. My nephew, Zack, became an Eagle Scout so we went to see his ceremony. The boys did great in the car since I bought a DVD player a few days before the trip so they could watch their videos. They were both so excited to see their cousins and aunt and uncle.
hanging out with their cousins
smelling the flowers
we went to a really cool park
listening to a bed time story from Caitlin and Zack
Ears and Cheers
1 day ago


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Home Tags Educators
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The Delta - Spring 2018
Whether it's riding with the Cajun Navy, serving your local government, or leading your alma mater on the gridiron, these brothers are showing how we serve. Read More >
Don't Call it a Comeback!
For Matt Luke (Mississippi), Ole Miss Football is in his DNA.Read More >
Family Man. Family Advocate.
The former "Mayor of Los Angeles County" shares his lessons on what matters most in life. Read More >
A Special Message from the Regent
Regent Lee Perrett (Auburn) reminds us of the importance to govern each act by a high sense of honor.Learn More >
68th Grand Chapter
Join us in our nation's capital for a historic Grand Chapter and kickoff to our 150th Anniversary!Learn More >
All News >
All News >
Latest News
Headquarters Staff Update Fall 2018
The Fraternity is pleased to announce that several exceptional individuals have joined the Headquarters staff team this year.
Full Story >
Honoring Our Past, Investing in Our Future
Find out how you can ensure another 150 years for the Legion of Honor.
Special Message from the Regent on Misconduct
Regent Lee Perrett (Auburn) reminds us of the importance to govern each act by a high sense of honor.
Sigma Nu Launches New Mental Health Education Program
Many fraternity members, like their peers, will struggle with mental distress at some point in their lfie.
Sigma Nu Educational Foundation
The Rock that supports Excelling with Honor.
The LEAD Program is a comprehensive ethical leadership development program designed to ensure participants "learn by doing."
Sigma Nu Institute
Assist with the officer transition process and learning curve that accompanies taking on new positions of chapter leadership.
Values Based Recruitment
VBR takes a comprehensive approach to recruitment.
Helping Hand Initiative
The Helping Hand Initiative consists of two primary components: Founders' Week-of-Service and the Helping Hand Partners.
Best Practices Library
A practice, a program or process that results in or leads to performance at the "excellence" level of the Fraternity's Pursuit of Excellence Program.
College of Chapters
An intense, interactive program for our collegiate chapter Commanders focusing on chapter management, leadership, and core competencies.
The Legion of Honor
To develop ethical leaders inspired by the principles of Love, Honor and Truth.To foster the personal growth of each man's mind, heart and character.To perpetuate lifelong friendships and commitment to the Fraternity.
Community service hours reportedby collegiate chapters
Educational workshops providedfor collegiate members
Million raised for charities bycollegiate Sigma Nu chapters
More Sigma Nu Stats >
© 2015-2018 Sigma Nu Fraternity, Inc.9 North Lewis Street, P.O. Box 1869, Lexington, Virginia 24450Phone: 540.463.1869 | Fax: 540.463.1669 | Email: firstname.lastname@example.com


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According to data released by AnandTech early this morning, the new iPhone 6 and 6 plus has out-performed its rivals in a majority of benchmark tests, covering categories from web browsing and CPU to battery life and GPU performance. These are preliminary results, with the full review still in progress.
The initial testing was undertaken over the weekend by AnandTech, following the release of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus last Friday. Not surprisingly, the new A8 processor that features in the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus has provided improvements over the A7 processor present in the iPhone 5s.
Some improvements are more noticeable than others, with the web browsing performance seeing a 7 – 13 percent increase across the four tests presented, topping the charts and beating all competitors. AnandTech note that the result is not definitive enough to make accurate comments about the underlying architecture changes between the A7 and A8 processors. Some of the browser tests saw the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus topped by the NVIDIA SHIELD Tablet – but this is a tablet, not a smartphone.
The graphics processing unit (GPU) tests show a "solid lead over the competition" for the iPhone 6. The 6 Plus was also at the top in GPU benchmarks, however its scores were far lower than the smaller iPhone 6. AnandTech provides the following summary:
"It's seems quite clear that there is a significant impact to GPU performance in the iPhone 6 Plus due to the 2208 x 1242 resolution that all content is rendered at. It seems that this is necessary though, as the rendering system for iOS cannot easily adapt to arbitrary resolutions and display sizes."
Finally, the battery life tests show that Apple has managed to do something "quite incredible with battery life", according to AnandTech – again beating all of its Android rivals. The preliminary report is available on the AnandTech website, while the full report should be available in the coming days.


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NPS #1201 Vinyl Padded Premium Folding Chairs, French Beige/Beige - 4 Pack
Item #: 901-310650NPS
Model #: 12014
Brand: National Public Seating
Not yet rated.Be the first to Write a Review!
$109.99 Pack
Help with furniture delivery, assembly,...Read more + Read less -
protection plans and more.
Plus, you've got choices! You'll find options for those DIYers on a budget, those that want us to do all the work and everyone in-between. Want all the details? Get them right here.
National Public Seating® Polyfold fan back folding chair in beige color features Y-frame structure with double hinges for added stability and holds up to 480 lbs of weight capacity. Our comfortable 1200 Series premium upholstered folding chair is made with the combination of durable vinyl wrapped over 1 ¼" of soft foam on our most popular frame. This institutional-grade chair features our unique full-size double-contoured backrest, upholstered and firmly secured to the frame with six rivets. The powder-coated steel frame made from heavy-duty 18-gauge round tubing and two U-shaped double-riveted cross-braces - one in front and two in the back - to securely support the double-hinged legs. Color-coordinated V-tip stability plugs provide added reinforcement at the frame's junction and matching replaceable glides prevent floor damage. The 1200 Series meets MAS Certified Green and ANSI/BIFMA standards.
- French beige 19 mil vinyl over 1 1/4" foam seat
- Armless
- Features 18 gauge 7/8" round tubular frame
- Seat size: 17 3/4"H x 16"W x 16"D, Back size: 8 3/4"H x 18 3/4"W
- Weight capacity: Up to 480 lbs.
- Meets or exceeds all ANSI/BIFMA standards
- Fully assembled
- Folded dimensions: 38"H x 18 1/4"W x 2 1/2"D
- Two u-shaped double riveted cross braces, vinyl and foam are cal 117 rated
- Powder-coated frame, 0.9 lbs. density foam seat and 1.2 lbs. density back
- Features our unique full size double contoured back and waterfall seat, fully upholstered seat and back attached with 6 rivets
- Double hinges for added stability and durability
- Color coordinated v-tip plugs for added stability, color coordinated polypropylene glides
- Warranty: 10 Years
- Dimensions: 29-1/2"H x 18-3/4"W x 20-1/4"D; Folded: 38"H x 18-1/4"W x 2-1/2"D
- 4 per pack
|Folding & Stacking Chair Type : General Purpose
|Folding : Yes
|Stacking : No
|Upholstery : Faux Leather
|Nesting : No
|Arm Type : Armless
|Base Color : Beige
|True Color : Beige
|Arm Style : Armless
|Brand : National Public Seating
|Weight : 47.00 lbs. per Pack


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Association des Cités et Régionspour la gestion durable des Ressources
This year, ACR+ annual General Assembly will take place on 28 May 2018 in Porto, kindly be hosted by ACR+ member LIPOR. This half-day event is the perfect opportunity for ACR+ members to meet and discuss the orientation of the network. The programme will be divided into 3 different parts: ACR+ in brief and key decisions, discussion groups, social programme.
The European Week for Waste Reduction Awards Ceremony took place on 22 May 2018, during the EU Green Week, at the European Committee of the Regions in Brussels, where the honoured Jury revealed the names of the most outstanding awareness-raising actions implemented during the EWWR 2017.
Two new factsheets on circular public procurement has been published on the Circular Europe Network's database, overviewing good practices implemented by Schiphol Airport (NL) regarding its goal to generate zero waste by 2030 and ACR+ member Aalborg (DK) on learning environments in the municipal primary schools.
This publication is free for download. Available in English and French.
Tweets by ACRplus
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Status: Closed
Know more about this business than we do? Cool! Please submit any corrections or missing details you may have.Help us make it right
The team at Edible Arrangements are specialized in fruit arrangements. If you are looking for the perfect gift for your friend, Edible Arrangements is the best solution for you. More than fruit arrangements inspired by floral arrangements, the company offers fruit gifts, such as: fruit sculptures, fruit smoothies and chocolate dipped fruit.
Interest Free Payment Plans Available
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Fruit Arrangements
Birthday Fruit Baskets
Hearing Aid Dispenser #411
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Sales On All Makes & Models With 30 Day Trial
Fruit Basket
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Chocolate Covered Strawberries
Over 16 Years
Fruit Bouquets
Amplified Phones & TV Systems
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National gift service provides a colorful alternative to flowers and candy by delivering edible fruit bouquets and fruit boxes.
My Mom passed away on 9/26/11 and we received 6 Edible Arrangements. They were great instead of plants & flowers delivered to our home. So beautifully made up & yummy!!!! Thanks
Where do you go when you need bouquet of cantaloupe, pineapple, and chocolate covered strawberries! EDIBLE ARRANGEMENTS!*****They are just W.O.W*****(((((((( W ))))))))) - Is for Wonderful artistic…
Edible Arrangements Inc is located at 442 Lacey Rd Ste 4 in Forked River and has been in the business of Gift Baskets since 2005.
Edible Arrangements can be found at Lacey Rd 442. The following is offered: Produce Retailers. The entry is present with us since Sep 10, 2010 and was last updated on Nov 14, 2013. In Forked River there are 2 other Produce Retailers. An overview can be found here.
National gift service provides a colorful alternative to flowers and candy by delivering edible fruit bouquets and fruit boxes.