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Blake Shelton And Miranda Lambert — Who Is Cheating On Whom, Here?
Okay, I have to excuse myself here, because I haven't been following the Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton relationship drama as closely as I should've been. I'm not really what I'd call a country music fan, and I'm embarrassed to say I've never gotten into The Voice, either. (I know, okay?! I get it. It's a great show, quit guilt-tripping me.) But what I am is a dedicated student of the celebrity relationship, and I can't believe I've been neglecting Miranda and Blake as a case study. There's been a ton of rumors swirling about infidelity on both sides, so let's just start from the beginning and sort this out. Because if somebody's cheating on somebody else, I aim to be the one to find it out.
Miranda and Blake met in 2005, when Blake was still married to his high school sweetheart Kaynette Gern, whom he wed in 2003. They later divorced in 2006, with many sources speculating that their relationship ended because one had begun between Blake and Miranda. The two of them began dating that same year, then got engaged in 2010 and married in 2011. And here we find ourselves in 2013, dogged with rumors of infidelity, so let's get to 'em.
A month or so ago, Blake was rumored to have cheated on Miranda with a musical artist named Cady Groves. The two of them exchanged some flirtatious DMs on Twitter, leading to speculation there was something going on. Those rumors were only fueled by the fact that Miranda has admitted to going through his private correspondences — both Twitter messages and texts — because he's surrounded by so many attractive women. For her part, Miranda has recently been linked via the rumor mill to a feller by the name of Eric Church, whom she toured with shortly after Blake proposed in 2010.
"She just wouldn't keep her hands off Eric. Miranda was getting really frisky with Eric. [Miranda and Blake] postponed their wedding invitations going out because of Miranda's behavior. [Eric] had to kick Miranda off his bus a couple of times. She was getting too close for comfort."
Well I'll be hot-damned! Both Blake and Miranda continue to deny the rumors, however, making light of them on Twitter and, in Blake's case, giving an interview to People Magazine about his marriage, saying:
"[I tell Miranda], 'I have nothing to hide from you.' That's always been our policy: 'Here's my phone. Go through it.' That's really the kind of trust we have. There are no secrets. [I'll say,] 'Go dig through my drawers or my computer if you feel like you need to.' And that's been a really good thing, because I don't want her to ever have any doubts."
Okay maybe this is just me, but I don't know if I'd be comfortable in a marriage where I didn't trust the other person enough not to go through their phone. It's nice that he makes that option available to her, but to me it's a telling detail. If that's a crucial tenet of their marriage, I have to assume there's a baseline of distrust in there somewhere, right? Or else you'd trust him to do whatever he wanted on his phone without worrying it was something shiesty? Just an opinion.
(Image: FayesVision / WENN.com)


text: Welcome to the Leadership Department !!!!!What is Leadership?Leadership is a group of students, from all grade levels, that work together to better our school and make sure that a student voice and perspective is provided in all school affairs. Leadership members get involved in school wide activities and key school issues. They serve on school councils, plan school dances/lunch activities, and even make periodic presentations to the School Board of LAUSD.Leadership has its own class during the day to take care of business and two teacher advisors. Any student can be a part of the Leadership class once a student has gone through the official admittance process, which takes place in the Spring. Also, those students who win positions in our Student Body Elections become permanent members of our class for the whole year. Our elections take place in the Spring as well and below is a list of all the school positions each track has that one can run for. President Vice President Secretary Treasurer Historian Public Relations

subset: commoncrawl


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Are you looking to identify, nurture and polish your communication skills? The right place has just opened for you. Articulation, a division of Rhymin & Partners (Coaching and Consultancy), is a training centre that specializes in communication courses and programs segmented for organizations, adults and youth.
All the courses are conducted by Stuart Lee, who is a seasoned trainer and Toastmasters member. Stuart has been training in Brunei for the past few years to government agencies and corporates. I attended his "Getting Things Done" (GTD) course before and I was amazed at how comprehensive he was in helping us understand how to be productive and I was quite moved, considering how unproductive I can be and a huge procrastinator. It's not surprising since he is a speaker who has won many speech contests, the most significant being the first District (Brunei, East Malaysia, Indonesia) champion from Brunei in 2013.
Stuart Lee mentored two speakers,Pooja Shivanand and Allen Ang and both were successful, reaching the highest accolade in respective categories of Toastmasters contest. This contest was held in Brunei last October 2016 where they competed against Malaysia and Indonesia for the contest.
Since then, he has trained hundreds of speakers. He has an innate ability to identify potential in speakers and nurture their talents to proper skills. He has mentored a few international speech champions in Toastmasters, and one even made it to Finals of the World Championship of Public Speaking. That's one impressive record!
One thing about Stuart is he uses somewhat unconventional methods in his training, not just textbook theories. He understands the psyche of speakers who have stage fright or going blank during presentations, so his courses are suited to help nervous speakers overcome these problems. He also believes it takes meticulous trainings to convert 'talent' into skills, as he has seen many speakers who are even naturally talented, but are unable to channel the gift into proper, controlled skills. So being talented doesn't mean you have what it takes.
An auditorium for training purposes
Over the years of training adults in government agencies and corporate companies, Stuart realized it's best to start speakers early, especially during their teenage years. Good news is that he now even has courses specially catered to youth. Stuart believes the youth must be able to communicate to complement academic excellence. So among the many courses that Articulation offers, I find "Presentation Skills for Youth" to be of much value. I've seen many students in our local schools fear speaking and presenting in public. Even some of the smartest students are uncomfortable when asked to verbalise their thoughts in front of people. This could hinder not only their academic performance but also their future career opportunities. These are soft skills that are not taught in local schools. So this course is meant to prepare the youth to speak up in schools and tertiary to achieve their full potential.
Another flagship course is "Presentation Skills for Adults", which is designed to help working individuals who are afraid to speak up at work and miss opportunities for growth in career. The course teaches them to deliver presentations, and articulate ideas during meetings among others. Both these presentation courses are over 8-weeks period.
There are also many other courses such as skills for interview, pitching, business English etc. that you might be interested in.
The courses will be conducted at Articulation Training Centre which is a customized stage to simulate public speaking experience. Speaking on the stage will definitely be a tough experience, but it will help to prepare the participants to battle stage fright. I think this is a great venture since communication is a life skill and being able to communicate effectively can take us places.
Personally I always learned a thing or two whenever Stuart gives his evaluations in toastmasters when it comes to speaking and presentation skills. It was also one of the main reasons I joined toastmasters so I have more opportunities to benefit from his sharing. I'm glad that he has ventured into training of his own. Congratulations, Stuart!
If you wish to know more, go to www.articulation.co or visit his Facebook Page or simply contact him at firstname.lastname@example.com
Who will reign champion?
It's contest season once again for the Brunei toastmasters and I'm excited because of the line up itself. To me, this is the real deal.. The Wrestlemania of speech contest for Brunei.
There are four participating clubs are Brunei Speakers' Club (the mother club), OTTERS Club (Seria), Brunei Advanced Speakers' Club and UBD Toastmasters Club (UBD). Recently the three clubs held their respective club contests to determine the top two winners to represent their respective clubs.
The sole winner of Area K6 contest will then represent Brunei in the next round which will be held in Kota Kinabalu, sometime in April 2017.
Last year, the champions were Pranika Lama for International Speech and Julius Hong for Tables Topic Contest. This year, Pranika, chose not to compete while Julius is still in the running to retain the Area K6 title.
UBD contestants were dominant in last year's contest. So let's see we will have another representative from UBD or will we have new faces in this upcoming contest.
The Area K6 Contest will take place this Sunday, 26th April at 1:30pm at iCentre. All the best to all the contestants. I missed the cut again this time round but there's always be a next time.
You can follow @ubd_toastmastersclub @bruneispeakersclub @otterstmc on their IG for updates.
The top 3 winners of the International Speech at UBD Toastmasters Contest. Nabil Abdul Kadir, the champion and Theressa Chong, the runner up, advanced to the Area K6 contest this Sunday.
This was the contest at the Brunei Speakers' Club. Congratulations to all the winners and the top two will proceed to Area K6 contest
Let's not forget the winners of OTTERS contest a few weeks ago. All of them will be contesting and vie for the champion of Area K6.
Theressa Chong. Kind and caring, Theressa is a nursing student at Universiti Brunei Darussalam. A spicy food aficionado and a deft badminton player, she is always full of energy. She will be directing that energy in her first Area contest with her speech entitled "Insecurities".
Allen Ang. The cute and charismatic Allen is the reigning Toastmasters District 87 Humorous Speech Champion. His speech "Take That Shot" for the Area contest is a detour from (or a means to achieve) his true mission – the Father/Husband of the Year award. Will this be his shot for the title? We shall see.
Nabil Abdul Kadir. The golden voice Nabil surprised many with his inspirational speech. He's currently a a student of Health Sciences at Universiti Brunei Darussalam. A keen learner, he has been learning basic Mandarin on his own. We wonder if he'll use his newfound knowledge in his speech entitled "Look At The Bright Side".
Amran Jamaluddin. He's been known as the Superman of Brunei toastmasters and he currently works at Butra Heidelberg Cement. He shows that an expert crane operator when seated in front of a computer can create wonders with words, with his speech entitled "The Making Of…"
Youth Leadership Program
With the guest of honour from the Ministry of Education and the graduates of Youth Leadership Program. Also in the picture were the management of Sports School and members of UBD Toastmasters Club
The happy faces of the graduates. We really gonna miss them
I witnessed something amazing and rewarding last night. It was the graduation of the Youth Leadership Program facilitated by Pranika Lama who chose Sports School to conduct the seven session workshop to 20 students of Sports School. The module is part of the Toastmasters program and more of an outreach program consisting of one to two hour sessions that will enable participants to develop communication and leadership skills through practical experience.
The 20 students were pre-selected by the teachers at Sports School and in this program, they were taught to
• Evaluate present speaking ability
• Organize and give speeches
• Give impromptu talks
• Control voice, vocabulary and gestures
• Give constructive feedback and more
So it was good to see students improving gradually in a space of seven weeks (the program started in February). I remembered that a few of them couldn't say blurted out a few words or sentences but it was a different story as the weeks progressed. I'm just simply amazed by their growth and I believe this will have a positive impact in their education and also in their lives.
I also noticed how authentic and vulnerable the young students are and they are just no different from us too. Most of them showed their affection towards their families and this is something not are taught in schools especially in high school. This is something I'm happy that Toastmasters International can provide to the youth.
Last night was the graduation ceremony and I was close to tears, witnessing the growth on each of the participants. Parents and teachers were in attendance and they were pretty impressed with what they saw last night too.
A big shout out to Pranika Lama and her team from UBD toastmasters and not forgetting Rozana Yunos the advisor for the YLP. Some of the students craved for more sessions on the second intake of YLP which will happened pretty soon. However, the next batch will be a newer intake of students.
The late Shawn Cassidy Narcis will be proud of this achievement made possible by Pranika Lama and Sports School as they will help elevate the status of toastmasters in Brunei Darussalam.
Congratulations to all the graduates of the YLP and you have certainly made us proud. Keep on going!!!
The elected President of YLP Intake 1 – Syafiq bin Hj Ismail
Explaining the timer role by Md Amir Azri
The table topics session facilitated by Alanise Danishsya
The audience in attendance
Mohd Aniq Iskandar attempting table topics as he preferred a motorbike
He wants to be a famous football player and also a pilot
She shared about regrets
Congratulations Pranika Lama. I am proud!!
The final session before graduation as he shared about the different types of "miss"
This was taken in February, the third session of YLP
The students were already glowing by the third session
Estate Sale
It's happening today (Sunday, 19th February) till 5pm at No.21, Simpang 18, Jalan Anggrek
Mock plane models for sale
Waiting for guests to come
The Architecture Lego for sale
The Architecture Lego for sale
Check out the Coke collection and collectibles for sale
Even the Harley bike is up for auction
Macalister being the scenes and he has also been helping out in preparing for this event
Pranika Lama and Dalton Lim helping out with the Estate Sale for the past week or so
Hello Seng Yee :p
Consumer Fair is back!
The 19th Consumer Fair (CF19) officially opened its doors to the public yesterday in a ceremony at the International Convention Centre (ICC) in Berakas, officiated by Dato Seri Setia Awang Haji Mustappa bin Haji Sirat, the Minister of Communications.
The opening ceremony was initiated with the recitation of the Surah Al-Fatihah and a Doa, followed by a welcoming speech from Dato Paduka Haji Danial bin Haji Hanafiah, the Executive Director of D'Sunlit Sdn Bhd, who said that the event is especially intended to promote products and services from small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to a broader market.
More than 400 booths have been set up at the ICC this year, with several entrepreneurs from Malaysia, Cambodia, Singapore and Pakistan participating alongside local vendors.
With the uplifting theme of 'The Year Is Yours. What will you do with it?' CF19 is focused on giving back to society, and among the charities benefiting from the proceeds are the Society for the Management of Autism Related issues in Training, Education and Resources (SMARTER) Brunei, Pusat Ehsan Al-Ameerah Al-Hajjah Maryam (Pusat Ehsan), the Brunei Darussalam National Association of the Blind (BDNAB) and Children's Cancer Foundation (YASKA).
Meanwhile, a number of fun activities have been lined up for the fair, where visitors can take part in hot dog and chicken wing eating contests, an ice-cream-making contest and a cupcake-decorating demonstration.
CF19 is open to visitors from 10am to 10pm till Sunday, while on Friday it will be closed from 12pm to 2pm, for Friday prayer. Text courtesy of Lyna Mohd of Borneo Bulletin.
Thank you to the committee
The launch of the Brunei Conference 2016 with the guest of honour Yang Berhormat Dato Seri Setia Hj Ali bin Apong, Minister of Primary Resources and Tourism. Image courtesy of James Kon of Borneo Bulletin.
With the champions, Pooja Shivanand (Speech Evaluation Champion) and Allen Ang (Humourous Champion). Congratulations to the Brunei contestants on winning on the big stage against members from East Malaysia and Indonesia.
It has been two weeks and time just flew by that quickly. I managed to pull through a huge conference being the organizing chair for a toastmasters event involving over 100 international delegates plus inviting world champion speakers and a past International President of Toastmasters International. It was definitely the biggest toastmasters event to be held in Brunei Darussalam and I'm very proud of my young team for making this event a huge success.
There are so many things that I want to share about the Brunei Conference. What I went through… What the committee went through… The highs and the lows. My capability as a leader. Ahh, just so many things I want to express. There's one thing though that I learnt from the Brunei Conference and that is gratitude.
After speaking to most of the committee individually, I began to be aware of deeper things that I missed out and I thank each of them for their trust and sincerity on how I have shown up as an individual and also as a leader.
The success of the Brunei Conference was attributed to the hard work from the committee members and even the volunteers from the Brunei Gavel Club. Thank you very much for the commitment and the contribution, not only during the conference but prior to the main event. Most of the key committee were appointed since July 2015 and all the handwork truly paid off.
Though the event was over 2 weeks ago, I'm still busy with some paper work and also with my post mortem of the Brunei Conference. Now I'm taking a break for a week or so and currently outstation. I won't be blogging as much but we shall see during the course of the week.
Happy weekend, guys 😀
With World Champion of Public Speaking 2014 Dananjaya. You're the man!!!
During the Gala Dinner at The Centrepoint Hotel
I'm so glad that Phylicia Liew kept her promise to make it to Brunei for the conference. You're the bomb!!
Laurence giving her TACT badge to Dalton
Sometimes I wonder why they are not together.. They look good together :p
We had lots of fun with the photobooth from Kotak Senyum
Hello beautiful ladies
Half of the committee are from UBD Toastmasters. How they have grown so much 😀
Amran bringing the delegates from Medan around Kampung Ayer
Darren Tay sending off delegates from Indonesia at the Brunei International Airport
Celebrating Shawn and Nora's birthday after the Brunei Conference
Taken during the DCM at Seameo Voctech
Brunei Conference to kick off tomorrow
The welcoming party for the arrival of Dananjaya Hettiarachchi at Brunei International Airport yesterday
Each year, the Toastmasters Semi-Annual District Conference culminates in the final round of the Humorous Speech and Evaluation Contest, where the District Champion is chosen. In this exciting event, 30 English & Mandarin contestants from Brunei, Labuan, East Malaysia and Indonesia deliver 5 to 7 minute humorous speeches and 3 minutes evaluation on a test speaker that are judged by a panel of experienced Toastmasters. After few months of competing in club, area and division these contestants have advanced for the chance to win this prestigious accolade.
This year, Brunei was chosen to host the event at Rizqun International Hotel from 29th to 30th October. As an integral part of the conference, educational workshops are conducted by renowned public speakers, trainers and industrial leaders. For the first time, the conference will feature 2 World Champions of Public Speaking, Dananjaya J. Hettiarachchi (Sri Lanka), and Darren Tay (Singapore) who deliver his semifinal speech and Past President of Toastmasters International, Muhammed Murad (Dubai). Other featured speakers include Soon Loo, CEO of Darussalam Enterprise and a local professional speaker Stuart Lee, a productive trainer and consultant. There are also two Mandarin speakers – Lu Li Ming (Sandakan) and Liw Hui Peng (Bintulu) for the Mandarin session. This is bound to be the biggest Toastmasters event ever in Brunei Darussalam
The customary of bringing our international guests to Brunei – Jing Chew
Thank you for hosting us, Pondok Sari Wangi. Both Dananjaya and Mohammed Murad loved the food last night.
Dalton Lim (left) helping out in welcoming international delegates for the Brunei Conference 2016. Around 110 international delegates will be in Brunei this weekend 😀
The event is jointly organized by local Toastmaster clubs namely The Brunei Speakers' Club, Brunei Advanced Speakers' Club, Oil Town Talkers Toastmasters Club and Universiti Brunei Darussalam Toastmasters Club. "The Brunei conference hopes to inspire youths to be confident communicator and leader as part of their daily lives so he or she can empower others. These are the reasons why I selected such speakers to be part of the biggest toastmasters event in Brunei." shared by Organizing Chairman, Rano Iskandar. In line of Rano's vision, the conference is open to members of the public. Tickets for full day educational session are available at BND120 and BND50 for contest. While tickets for tertiary/university students are priced at BND50 and BND35 for secondary students. For more event, speaker and venue details, visit http://d87bruneiconference.com or view the agenda in the few pages pages.
World Champions coming to Brunei
When you are climbing a mountain there is a summit , in life all you find is an endless wall. You can take the easy way and slide endlessly into the darkness or take the hard way and climb into the eternal light. Either way, there is no end to how far you can fall nor how high you can climb – Dananjaya Hettiarachchi. Image taken of Dananjaya Hettiarachchi's Facebook page.
He's known as "Dan" by many and I've been following his journey on IG and Facebook and even on the internet. Though he was a champion two years ago, he still is one of the most sought speakers around the world. He has been traveling around the world and his next date will be Brunei before he heads off to Amsterdam (Holland), Hiroshima (Japan) and Richmond (USA) to cap off the year. Awesome!!!
If you meet him in person, only one word to describe him – charismatic (and super cool). He has been in a journey of toastmasters or public speaking for 10 years. He loves to inspire the thousands in bettering their communication skills and he is very popular in schools.
The Brunei Conference committee is very privilege to have his presence in Brunei on 28th October to 29th October. We are certain that his presence and his keynote speech will have a positive ripple effect on the audience and hoping for more youth to attend the conference.
If you are interested, please reach me at 8677773. Tickets are available and the prices are BND 120 and BND 35 for secondary students or BND 50 for tertiary/university students (29th October, Saturday session 9am to 4pm), BND 50 for the Speech contest (30th October, Sunday 8am). If you are interested also in attending the dinner, it will be BND 50 for Friday, 28th October and BND 50 for Saturday, 29th October.
This is slated to be the biggest toastmasters event ever hosted in Brunei Darussalam because we have three world champion speakers – Willie Jones, Dan the Man and reigning champion Darren Tay. So yes, sometime to look forward to and the target audience will be the youth, working class, teachers, parents, students, professionals, government officials and entrepreneurs.
A big thank you also to the sponsors, partners and supporters of this event – Brunei Shell Petroleum, Progresif, Brunei Gas Carriers, Brunei Tourism under the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism, RYS Entertainment, Armtrix Enterprise, NBT, BIG magazine, AKK Design, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Rizqun International Hotel, Aiking (03), Royal Brunei Catering and many more. I would also like to acknowledge the Ministry of Home Affairs for approving this event.
So once again, If you are interested, please reach me at 8677773 and you can read more details here on our official website.
He has been a busy man with many cities he has visited this year alone
Dananjaya with Supatra Lee, a Brunei Speakers' Club member
My photo opp with Dananjaya last year in Kuching.
Another champion making its way to Brunei is Darren Tay. Back in August, Darren Tay, was crowned the 2016 World Champion of Public Speaking in Washington DC and his story revolved around bullying. 'Im still amazed the fact that the past three winners of the World Champion of Public Speaking have come from Asia. Amazing feat!! First we have the charismatic Dananjaya Hettiarachchi (from Sri Lanka) who won in 2014 and he will be invited for the Brunei Conference in October. The following year was Mohd Qahtani from Qatar in 2015.
Looking at his resume, I'm pretty impressed for a man of his age (only 27) to achieve many things. According to his website, he is a prolific public speaker, debater and professional trainer. He founded the Public Speaking Academy in 2009 and has led the Academy to scale great heights in the school and corporate domains; including the successful organization of the annual National Public Speaking Competition since 2010.
He even won the Toastmasters International District 80 Speech competition in 2009, 20012 and 2014 for Speech Evaluation and Table Topics. Amazing feat indeed. He has also published his best-selling public speaking guidebook "Express to Impress" in 2012 and looks forward to subsequent publications in the future.
So it's a done deal that he will be delivering a workshop in Brunei this October. If you are interested, please reach me at 8677773 or email at firstname.lastname@example.com and you can read more details here on our official website.
That's not all. In conjunction with the Brunei Conference 2016, we will be hosting the final leg of the Humourous Speech Contest and Speech Evaluation Contest on the final day of the Brunei Conference, slated for Sunday, 30th October. Another awesome news is that two of the finalists are members of Brunei Toastmasters (Area K6) as they won their rights when they became champion in Division level two weeks ago at Kota Kinabalu.
Allen Ang, a representative of The Brunei Advanced Speakers' Club, won for Humourous Speech Contest. With his winning speech 'My Dream Job', he told hilarious tales of the hardship of being a salesman and shared silly situations that induced fits of laughter from the audience. Pooja Shivanand, a member of Brunei Speakers' Club, won in the Speech Evaluation Contest. She is one of our talented evaluators in Brunei toastmasters and it's no surprise she made it this far. So both contestants will have to fight it out again in Brunei Darussalam to vie for the District Champion in Humourous Speech and Speech Evaluation.
On his victory and competing in the finals, Allen, a Permanent Resident in Brunei, said, "I'm blessed and grateful for the opportunity to speak in front of my hometown. The contest in KK was very fruitful, as I got to meet people who believe that contests stimulate progress, both in communication and leadership skills."
Pooja, who lectures for the Microbiology course at the Faculty of Science, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, commented, "I gratefully acknowledge the support and encouragement of Brunei Toastmasters… I consider myself fortunate to represent Division K right here in Brunei. I eagerly look forward to this opportunity to showcase Brunei talent."
The District 87 Semi Annual Conference in Brunei will also see World Champions in Public Speaking conducting educational workshops on Communication and Leadership Skills, with networking opportunities at the Gala Dinner.
The conference, open to the public, will take place from October 28 to 30. For more information, visit www.d87bruneiconference.com.
Pooja Shivanand won the Speech Evaluation Contest in Division level two weeks ago and now the District Contest awaits her
Sophia came 3rd while Roselind came 2nd in the Speech Evaluation Contest in Division Level
Allen Ang won Humourous Speech Contest on Division level for the second time. He won it two years ago, also in KK. Now he will compete in the final leg in Brunei Darussalam.
Pooja and Allen with their mentor Stuart Lee. All the help really paid off 😀
The Brunei toastmasters members
The incoming Executive Committee feted
The members of Brunei Speakers' Club during the installation night at Parkview Hotel. A few members were not present.
The incoming Executive Members of Brunei Speakers' Club during the installation ceremony. It was conducted by Stuart Lee, our Area Director for K6 (far right)
Finally after the three months into the term, Brunei Speakers' Club had its installation night for its executive committee (Exco) for their members. This was the session where the Exco for the term 2016-2017 will be pinned (with their respective pins) on their suits to formalise their respective roles in the club.
This term Executive Committee for Brunei Speakers' Club are:
President – Jordan Yau
Vice-President of Education – Gerald Goh
Vice-President of Membership – Rano Iskandar
Vice-President of Public Relations – Rahmat Tarsat
Secretary – Heidi Rahman
Treasurer – Aziman Nasir
Sergeant-at-Arms – Awfa Nawawi
Immediate Past President – Chris Woo
The ceremony took place at All-Seasons restaurant at Parkview Hotel and I was happy that this place is ideal for hosting corporate dinner events. Furthermore, the guests commented on the wide variety of dishes and they were tasty too 😀 So I would highly recommend if you have corporate dinner events to give this place a shot.
We were also privileged to have a visiting toastmasters guest from Kota Kinabalu, Laurence Dumling, who recently visited Brunei to deliver a workshop at Brunei Advanced Speakers' Club meeting and also at Sekolah Menengah Sayyinda Abu Bakar to inspire the students.
There were some light entertainment such as table topics on toastmasters members and a speech by Awfa on "Korean Madness".
Incoming President Jordan Yau delivered a special roast to outgoing President Chris Woo who is now our Immediate Past President. Chris Woo also gave his remarks on his exco members (Macalister Mak, Jordan Yau, Supatra Lee, Gerald Goh, Pooja Shivanand, Aziman Nasir). Chis also awarded two BSC members – Dalton Lim (The most improved toastmasters of the Year) and Rano Iskandar (Toastmasters of the Year).
A big thank you to those who showed up last weekend especially members from OTTERS (Naj, Allen and Hazwan). Another shout out to Nur Ahmad, Donna Karen Balthazar-Lim and Derby Teo as returning members of BSC.
If any of you are interested to attend our weekly meetings, you can drop by Seameo Voctech every Tuesday 7:15pm and witness/observe how we run our meetings and be part of it too. It's the best place to learn soft skills on communications and leadership in a supportive environment. Don't worry, we don't bite and I will be taking care of guests that attend our meetings. So you are in safe hands 😀
You can follow updates on their Facebook Page or their official website page and also on IG @bruneispeakersclub
Rahman Tarsat sworn in as Vice-President of Public Relations
Chris Woo, Immediate Past President pinning the incoming president, Jordan Yau and vice-versa
Around 40 people showed up last weekend. Thank you for the support.
Syatrah Roslan of BSC and Hilman Omar of UBD Toastmasters were the emcees of the night. Great job too 😀
Naj, one of a great supporter of toastmasters from OTTERS.
Dalton Lim being awarded The Most Improved Toastmasters of the Year and Rano Iskandar being awarded The Toastmasters of the Year
Dalton Lim with his family friend and mentor Shawn Cassidy Narcis
The group photo
Thank you UBD Toastmasters members for supporting our installation
The sworn in Executive Committee of BSC with Area Director, Stuart Lee
The guests having a great time last weekend
What do they have in common? They are all teachers. Thank you, Laurence (center), for touching other people's lives
The Biggest Toastmasters event ever hosted in Brunei
Allen Ang, Mandarin Coordinator for Brunei Conference, Shawn Cassidy Narcis, Protocol Director and District 87 Program Quality Director, Rano Iskandar as the Organizing Chair of Brunei Conference, Gerald Goh, Marketing Executive of Brunei Conference and Stuart Lee, one of the featured speakers of the event in yesterday's press conference. Thank you so much to the local press for the coverage
Each year, the Toastmasters Semi-Annual District Conference culminates in the final round of the Humorous Speech and Evaluation Contest, where the District Champion is chosen. In this exciting event, 30 English & Mandarin contestants from Brunei, East Malaysia and Indonesia deliver 5 to 7 minute humorous speeches and 3 minutes evaluation on a test speaker that are judged by a panel of experienced Toastmasters. After few months of competing in club, area and division these contestants have advanced for the chance to win this prestigious accolade.
This year, Brunei was chosen to host the event at Rizqun International Hotel from 28th to 30th October. As an integral part of the conference, educational workshops are conducted by reowned public speakers, trainers and industrial leaders. For the first time, the conference will feature 3 World Champions of Public Speaking, Dananjaya J. Hettiarachchi (Sri Lanka), Willie Jones (USA), and Darren Tay (Singapore) who deliver his semifinal speech and Past President of Toastmasters International, Muhammed Murad (Dubai).
Other featured speakers include Soon Loo, CEO of Darussalam Enterprise and a local renowned speaker Stuart Lee, an HRDF-certified trainer and consultant. There are also two Mandarin speakers – Lu Li Ming (Sandakan) and Liw Hui Peng (Bintulu) for the Mandarin session. This is bound to be the biggest toastmasters event ever in Brunei Darussalam.
Press conference with the local press
The event is jointly organized by local speakers' clubs namely The Brunei Speakers' Club, Brunei Advanced Speakers' Club, Oil Town Talkers Toastmasters Club (OTTERS) and Universiti Brunei Darussalam Toastmasters Club. "The Brunei conference hopes to inspire youths to be confident communicator and leader as part of their daily lives so he or she can empower others. These are the reasons why I selected such speakers to be part of the biggest toastmasters event in Brunei." shared by Organizing Chairman, Rano Iskandar (myself *lol*).
In line of Rano's vision, the conference is open to members of the public. Tickets for full day educational session are available at BND120 and BND50 for contest. While tickets for tertiary/university students are priced at BND50 and BND35 for secondary students. To find out more, visit http://d87bruneiconference.com.
More than 150 members of Toastmasters International District 87, are scheduled to attend semi-annual conference to support their contestants. The event is supported by The Ministry of Home Affairs and The Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism.


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A summary of what the Housing & Welfare advice service did in 2016-2017
We now have nearly 7,000 clients on our database, having added 508 new clients in the last year – 41% of all clients seen. We saw 1,249 clients in total last year and the number of the visits from those clients numbered 2,371.
Service Performance
To enable us to serve this number of clients, the Advice and Welfare team provided 461 advice sessions – 84% of all sessions and 96% if we take into account annual leave entitlement
Who came to see us?
Predominately our clients were male – in fact, they comprised 85% of all clients seen and this is a similar picture to previous years. Looking at the age profile, the younger clients in the 18-25 age group have diminished – these tend to be younger migrant workers and our older client base is continuing to grow – up from 11.5% to 16% in this year. The bulk of clients do still fall within the 26-55 group – over 77% of our clients.
Our clients come from all communities – the largest single being African clients of whom form 30.5% of our total client group, followed by a category known as "White – Other", who are largely composed of migrant workers. This group is however reducing.
Our largest single group in terms of status are British citizens of all origins – these citizens are 40% of all clients with 26% coming from Central and Eastern European nations, 18% are clients who have been granted refugee status, limited or indefinite leave.
Where in particular did they come from?
In our backyard – otherwise known as the London borough of Southwark, 54 different nationalities were represented.
Outside the borough boundaries, clients from 51 nations came through our doors.
Why did they come to see us?
Well, 37% came to see us due to a housing need and this was the single largest need documented – nearly 60% of our clients tell us that they are rough sleeping.
Apart from housing which we will cover more fully later, people came to see us to deal with benefits 13%, employment at 11%, maximising income such as getting grants or maximising benefits particularly for clients affected by disability – 10%. Lower down the list were issues relating to Housing Benefit and identity – both around the 5% mark
How have we helped those who needed housing?
Overall, we placed 224 the 464 who came to us for housing – 48%. A relatively new phenomenon has arisen which has swelled the numbers who we are not able to assist initially and relates to the additional document requirements for clients and we are relatively reliant as an in-reach service on them returning to us with those documents.
In addition, we have seen housing providers withdraw provision from clients who are receiving Universal Credit if they come from abroad unless they can prove residency in the UK.
We also have been affected by housing providers closing their waiting lists at various times which means there is an uneven flow of housing availability to us.
Why have they become homeless?
For a number of those given refugee status, it is quite simply that once leave to remain has been granted asylum support in terms of housing stops. We are seeing more clients come to us from rented properties – private and otherwise because of arrears which now accounts for 10% of all housing clients. With increasing use of sanctions and other mechanisms by the benefit agencies, clients are more likely to experience greater financial stress. Clients are moving from areas outside London or from overseas to the capital as they believe it will give them a greater chance of finding work and many are just asked to leave due to a relationship breakdown where they have no right of tenure in a property or they have just outstayed their welcome and it has become untenable.
Where have we placed our housing clients?
The two largest types of housing in which we have placed people are private rented accommodation and hostel accommodation.
We now have regular offers of housing being made to clients through emails we send out every day of housing offers made to us. They can then select what they might want to view but also reassures clients that something might come up that suits them as there is a constant flow of offers. It does demand that clients are pro-active and it is a less personal approach but given our resources it is the most effective.
We are continually looking to do more – looking for further financial resources to assist clients and a greater variety of housing offers. This work goes on and on as some landlords leave the market for various reasons.
For systematically disadvantaged groups, homelessness is more like the norm?
We know that the clients we serve are amongst the poorest and most vulnerable in our society. In a recent article by Suzanne Fitzpatrick – Professor of Housing and Social Policy at Heriot-Watt University suggests that it is a myth that we are all two paycheques away from homelessness. She suggests that for systematically disadvantaged groups, homelessness is more like the norm. Research she has completed shows and the picture given by national household surveys confirms that being younger, single or a lone parent heightens your vulnerability to homelessness and so too, in England, does being from a black or mixed-ethnic minority group. What comes out even more strongly in the research, Professor Fitzpatrick undertook is the overwhelming association with poverty.
It is also extremely distressing to see the increasing numbers of clients we see with a wide spread of additional factors that are contributing to their distress – lack of efficiency from government departments such as the Home Office or the DWP, greater levels of mental ill-health, poor employment practices to name but a few.
Thank you for helping us to work toward the prevention of homelessness and to maintain the vision of a fair and equitable society.
Click here for a fuller report of what our H & W advice service did in 16-17.


text: One of my favorite things in life is sculpting labias in clay. How did this come about? Over 20 years ago I heard Stephen and Ondrea Levine talk about the "lower heart." I'd never heard my labia/vagina called a lower heart before. They said that if the lower heart has been abused, the upper heart shuts down. I am a survivor of incest, and have done all kinds of work to heal from that abuse. Sculpting labias in clay for my own healing was how I got started: to feel good about my body, and to own my private parts as my own. Five years later, I gave birth to my only child, who was later diagnosed with cerebral palsy. After the diagnosis, I had the irrational belief that my body betrayed me, and was the cause of my daughter's disability. Of course, I knew that was wrong, and used art to forgive my uterus. Then I was too busy raising my daughter to work with clay for about 15 years. Five years ago I started up again, with a spirit of playfulness, celebration, and empowerment. Labias are sacred and usually misunderstood. How often do you see positive labia imagery? I love this creative process.


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The No Kid Hungry Maryland Breakfast Challenge, co-sponsored by the American Dairy Association North East, is a friendly competition to increase access to breakfast and ultimately get more kids eating in the morning. Last year, Ridgely Elementary School was the statewide Maryland Meals for Achievement winner!
The event at Ridgely, celebrated the importance of breakfast with special guests including, retired NFL Ravens linebacker Brad Jackson, Patricia Dombroski, United States Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Services Administrator and local dairy farmer Scott Youse.
Ridgely Elementary School was the last school in the county to offer breakfast in the classroom. About 79% of Ridgely students eat breakfast in the classroom, which is the highest percentage of the county's schools.
"It (breakfast in classroom) is a lot of work, but it is totally worth it," said Ridgely cafeteria manager Shawna Gustafson. "The students count on it every day."
Ridgely principal Roger Banko said the cafeteria staff works as a team to get the breakfast out to the students. "This is what is best for the kids."
Jackson along with Youse visited several first grade classrooms before talking to grades 3-5 students at an assembly behind the school.
"You have to start your day with breakfast," said Jackson, who said while he was on the Ravens football team, the team has nutrition coaches to make sure the players ate well. He said the school's cafeteria staff take a lot of time to make sure they are giving the students the most nutritious meals.
Scott Youse, who owns and operates Oakland View Farms, said he milks 600 cows three times a day. He told the students he takes his job very seriously, because it provides nutritious milk. "It provides you lots of energy and helps you learn."
Superintendent of Schools John Ewald thanked the students for participating in the breakfast program and for making breakfast a priority.


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Adaptive Sport
This program motivates, encourages and sustains participation and competition in adaptive sports among disabled Veterans and members of the Armed Forces through partnerships with VA clinical personnel as well as national and community-based adaptive sports programs.
The Grants for Adaptive Sports Programs for disabled Veterans and Members of the Armed Forces (ASG Program) provides grant funding to organizations to increase and expand the quantity and quality of adaptive sport activities disabled Veterans and members of the Armed Forces have to participate in physical activity within their home communities, as well as more advanced Paralympic and adaptive sport programs at the regional and national levels.
Warrior Games
The DoD Warrior Games feature eight sporting events with approximately 200 athletes representing teams from the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, U.S. Special Operations Command and British Armed Forces. Adaptive sports and athletic reconditioning activities play a fundamental role in the recovery, rehabilitation and reintegration of our service members. The events of the 2015 Department of Defense Warrior Games embody the spirit of the U.S. and British Armed Forces, and celebrate the triumphs, personal courage and of our wounded, ill and injured service members.
Competitive Shooting
NRA's Competitive Shooting Division offers a wide range of activities in all types of shooting, for everyone from the novice to the world-class competitor.
The NRA sanctions over 11,000 shooting tournaments and sponsors over 50 national championships each year. If you have any questions about the division, please call one of the numbers listed in the Competitive Shooting Functions Directory or, for more general competitions information, call 1-877-672-6282.
The NRA Life of Duty is available exclusively for Active-Duty Military thanks to the generosity of millions of NRA members and our sponsors, active-duty military receive valuable discounts on NRA membership and exclusive NRA Life of Duty benefits not available to anyone else.
Veteran Athlete Training Allowance
The United States Olympic Committee supports Paralympic-eligible military veterans in their efforts to represent Team USA at the Paralympic Games and other international competitions. Wounded, ill and injured veterans who demonstrate exceptional sport skills and the commitment necessary to pursue elite-level competition are given guidance on securing the training, support and coaching needed to qualify for Team USA and achieve their Paralympic dreams.
Through a partnership with the Veterans Affairs, the VA Paralympic Program Office helps to provide a monthly assistance allowance for disabled Veterans of the Armed Forces, as authorized by section 703 of the Veterans' Benefits Improvement Act of 2008.
Through the program, the VA will pay a monthly allowance to a Veteran with a service-connected or non-service-connected disability if the Veteran meets the minimum military standard or any higher standard (i.e. Emerging, Talent Pool, National Team) in his/her respective sport at a recognized competition.
Athletes must also have established training and competition plans and are responsible for turning in monthly and quarterly reports in order to continue receiving the monthly assistance allowance. The allowance base per-month rate for an athlete approved for monetary assistance ranges from $566.97 up to $1,070.40 depending on the number of dependents.
Find an official Paralympic Sports Club
Through partnerships with the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, the USOC Paralympic Military Program has impacted the lives of thousands of injured military personnel and veterans. Service members and veterans looking to get active in sports in their communities can visit FindaClub.USParalympics.org to locate a program in their area. Most people with physical or visual disabilities don't have the chance to participate in regular sports activities. By partnering with community and national organizations across the country, U.S. Paralympics is working hard to expand these opportunities. Starting with official Paralympic Sport Clubs, a network made of hundreds of community-based programs, our reach is growing and the goal is to have 250 clubs in American cities by 2012.
Cabela's offers a 5% military discount at retail stores every day. Cabela's offers many ways to save on your favorite outdoor gear! Find official Cabela's CLUB Offers, rebates, shipping offers and exclusive deals to get geared up for the upcoming season. Browse for promotions by brand or by category, and find coupons for hunting, fishing, camping and other outdoor equipment.
Bass Pro Shops
Offering Military Discount Days at our Outdoor World retail stores! Military Discount Days start the 15th of every month and last one week. This discount is available to active and retired military personnel. You must present a valid photo-military identification card to receive your 10% discount at checkout. As such, retired military personnel may also receive this discount.
5.11 Tactical
The authentic and first tactical brand, creates superior products that enhance the safety, accuracy, speed and performance of law enforcement, military and firefighting professionals. Built on a foundation of durability, quality and value, 5.11 Tactical leads the industry, that it created, in delivering functionally innovative gear, head to toe. The company was ranked #211 on the 2007 Inc. 500 — Inc. magazine's annual ranking, by revenue growth, of privately-held, independent, U.S.-based companies. Locate a local 5.11 Full Line Dealer or order our best-selling tactical clothing, uniforms, outerwear, footwear, eyewear, duty knives, tactical gear, holsters and more on this site.
S&W Nation's Finest
This offer is available to ALL active duty U.S. Military, Retired Military with retired Military Status, active National Guard Reservists and Disabled Veterans of all U.S. Military branches including U.S. Coast Guard. Customers wishing to take advantage of this offer are required to submit the following documentation: 1). the redemption coupon, 2). a copy of sales receipt and 3). a copy of a Leave and Earnings Statement (LES) AND Driver's License or 4) a copy of your Military Orders AND Driver's License.
NRA Disabled Shooting Services Program
Offering services that enable thousands of Americans with physical disabilities to enjoy a variety of shooting activities, including competitive events and hunting. Competitors with physical disabilities, who are unable to achieve the required shooting positions or use special adaptive equipment, are required to apply for a medical waiver. The medical waiver application is fairly simple and consists of two forms. The NRA Disabled Shooting Service Program also provides links to state websites for hunting and fishing for disabled veterans. Many individuals with disabilities are able to compete by using equipment that has been specially adapted to provide assistance. Adaptive equipment does not give the shooter an edge but merely provides assistance for individuals who are not capable of certain physical activities such as supporting the weight of a rifle or squeezing a trigger. The most common pieces of equipment are rifle stands and power triggers.
Warrior Open
The Warrior Open is a competitive 36-hole golf tournament, including an 18-hole Pro-Am. The event honors U.S. service members who serve and sacrifice to defend the United States of America and heralds the many effective organizations that give their time, talents and resources to support the men and women of our military and their families. The Warrior Open, part of the Bush Institute's Military Service Initiative (MSI), honors the service, sacrifice, and resilience of our post-9/11 veterans and military families. Through research, policy development, programs, and presidential recognition, MSI unites and empowers nonprofits, businesses, universities, philanthropic entities and others to effectively serve and support these veterans and their families in the transition areas of: employment, education, family services, health and wellness, housing and unique issues facing women.
Nike Military Discount
Nike deeply appreciates all military men and women for their service. Active, veteran, retired, and reservist US Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard personnel are eligible to receive a 10% Nike military discount on Nike.com and at Nike, Converse, and Hurley stores in the United States (excluding Nike Company/Employee Stores).
Adidas shoes are available to anyone with a military I.D. at a 10% discount. The discount only applies to official Adidas stores.
Foot Locker Inc
Everyday 20% off for military and veterans across all Foot Locker Inc stores including Foot Locker, Lady Foot Locker, CHAMPS, and Kids Foot Locker!
-Active duty personnel in any branch of the military, their spouse, and eligible dependents
-Retirees receiving Military benefits, including their eligible spouse and dependents
-Other individuals, eligible spouses, and dependants may qualify if they are currently receiving military benefits


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The effort has paid dividends, with a Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday showing Obama holding double-digit leads with women in swing states like Ohio and Pennsylvania.
But Republicans were quick to mock the website, tying the fictionalized "Julia" figure to reports Wednesday that President Obama wrote of multiple ex-girlfriends as a single composite figure in his memoir. Although Obama admits to doing so in the forward of the book, a Vanity Fair article publishing excerpts from his college-aged love letters prompted Republicans to jab the president of his admitted "compression" of girlfriends.
According to the social networking tracker Topsy, there were thousands of mentions of the "Julia" figure over just two hours Thursday morning. A sampling of some of the conservative criticism:
#Julia is the Sandra Fluke of composite hypothetical non existent women— Jonah Goldberg (@JonahNRO) May 3, 2012
So #julia needed an SBA loan to start a web business? I started three w/o a penny of taxpayer money. #mylife @barackobama— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) May 3, 2012
So #julia needs Obama to grow her business? I need Obama to get out of my face & pocketbook. #mylife— Michelle Malkin (@michellemalkin) May 3, 2012
After growing up under Barack ObamaBarack Hussein ObamaFalwell Jr.: Sessions and Rosenstein 'deceived' Trump into appointing them and should 'rot' in jail The Trump economy is destroying the Obama coalition Charlottesville and the failure of moral leadership MORE, #Julia has to master the art of Chinese Cooking.— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) May 3, 2012
Silly #Julia , you can't accomplish anything without the male-dominated government!— Dana Loesch (@DLoesch) May 3, 2012
Rep. Tim GriffinJohn (Tim) Timothy GriffinFlynn discloses lobbying that may have helped Turkey Tea Party class reassesses record Huckabee's daughter to run '16 campaign MORE (R-Ark.) used the trending topic to lambast a government program that provides subsidized cell phone service to poor Americans.
Q4 @BarackObama @WhiteHouse: Would #Julia also get a free cell phone under #UncleSamsUnlimitedPlan? VIDEO: facebook.com/RepTimGriffin/… #ar2 #tcot— Rep. Tim Griffin (@RepTimGriffin) May 3, 2012
Meanwhile, the Republican National Committee took to a different social media - Tumblr - to mock the different stages of "Julia's" life, pointing out unfavorable statistics about the economy during the Obama administration.
In the RNC's version, "Julia" is struggling to find a job or "has to pay double for gas from what she paid 4 years ago."
--This post was updated at 12:50 p.m.


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After my last post… I felt kind of intimidated. Wasn't sure what I could write that could compete and then I thought about that thought. Realized that I don't need to compete with myself. I just need to break down the imaginary wall and type.
Yesterday was the very first time that I ever got naked in front of a non-doctor type-person or lover. Yep, I got a spray tan. On the advice of my seventeen-year-old daughter, I opted for no tan lines.
Many experiences contributed to my aforementioned devil-may-care attitude…
- sharing a bedroom/bathroom with my younger sister growing up
- living in a suite-style dorm {4 girls, 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom} in college
- pregnancy
- childbirth
- tanning nude in the evil tanning beds
- 40th birthday approaching quickly
Not gonna lie – having a tan definitely helps with my body confidence. Of course, losing the twenty pounds doesn't hurt.
Even with all of that bravado, I still refuse to wear a bikini on a public beach.


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Sutton Creek Dunes is a 4.1 mile moderately trafficked loop trail located near Florence, Oregon that features a lake and is good for all skill levels. The trail offers a number of activity options and is accessible year-round. Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash.
dogs on leash
kid friendly
nature trips
trail running
wild flowers
Many loop options with a total of about 5 miles of trails available. This will follow a figure-8 route. This is a fun figure eight loop that starts at a nice vista over the dunes and Sutton creek, then follows the creek to return via some huge dunes. It's a nice short walk through the woods on the Oregon Coast.
As beautiful as dunes can be, however 3 stars because: 1) some benches are too tall: probably, the soil settled with time; 2) the dunes block the view of the ocean; 3) "Warning! Mountain lion is active in this area" as posted in the kiosk by the bridge leading from the loop north-east to Alder dunes. "Is active", not merely "sighted."
Beautiful trees on the short loop from the end of the road. Several benches to rest on, but at this time of year too damp. Many roots require close attention when walking.
Beautiful hike!
Camped in the nearby developed campsite. Hiked out to the beach twice. Was incredibly peaceful. Encountered almost no people. Watched an amazing sunset in a hidden beach. Nothing like this in the city!
Nice Hike with some good views.
Easy to find. Great 5 mile round trip hike. Diverse trails with interesting scenery along the way. Luckily, my Trail book told us where the trails were once we emerged in the campground.


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Trinity Mirror is trying to grab a bigger slice of the recruitment advertising market by launching www.scotcareers.co.uk.
The UK's biggest newspaper publisher has launched the website as a joint venture between its 40 Scottish newspaper titles, which include the Sunday Mail and Daily Record.
As well as jobs, it will feature employment and recruitment stories from across Scotland.


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Madrid, Spain (SportsNetwork.com) - Two-time champion Serena Williams and reigning titlist Maria Sharapova were a pair of quarterfinal winners Thursday at the Madrid Open tennis event.
The world No. 1 Williams whipped 10th-seeded local favorite Carla Suarez Navarro 6-1, 6-3 on the red clay at the Magic Box.
The 33-year-old Williams, who captured back-to-back Madrid titles in 2012 and 2013, still has yet to lose this year, going 24-0, and has won her last 27 matches overall dating back to November.
This is the second-longest winning streak of her career. She won 34 in a row two years ago.
"I definitely didn't have an easy draw, and coming through so far has been really good," said Williams.
"Just because I'm doing good doesn't mean my preparation was better. I didn't have the greatest preparation that I would've liked to. I would've liked to spend so many more hours on the court just sliding and stuff.
"But I'm telling you, Fed Cup really helped me out. It helped propel me to the extra preparation that I needed."
Williams is playing in only her third WTA tournament since clinching her sixth Australian Open title and 19th Grand Slam singles championship back in January.
Her semifinal opponent on Friday will be fourth-seeded Wimbledon champ and 2011 Madrid titlist Petra Kvitova, who handled Romanian Irina-Camelia Begu 7-5, 6-3.
Williams is a perfect 5-0 lifetime versus Kvitova. The two women were scheduled to meet in a quarterfinal here a year ago, but Williams pulled out of the match due to a thigh injury.
Meanwhile, the third-seeded Sharapova, who's chasing an 11th career title on clay, held off fifth-seeded fellow former world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 on Day 6 Madrid.
Sharapova is now 6-4 lifetime against Wozniacki, who had won their previous two meetings.
The French Open champion Sharapova topped Romanian Simona Halep in last year's final in the Spanish capital and was the 2013 runner-up here to Williams.
Wozniacki was a Madrid runner-up in 2009.
Sharapova's semifinal opponent will be unseeded fellow Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova, who outlasted 13th-seeded Czech Lucie Safarova 5-7, 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-3) in a torturous 3-hour, 5-minute affair.


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1st Interdisciplinary Project Presentations
An interdisciplinary approach strives to broaden perspectives, to find new insights and to solve problems of a certain subject through the collaboration between different disciplines. It's based upon the theory of synergy; the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. In this project students with different disciplines are thrown together to approach the studied subject. Communication is key here. Just like in business life, knowledge should be transferred in a way that everyone understands; this involves simplifying terms and explaining theories.
Many SHA students have been working hard on the Interdisciplinary Honours Project in the past couple of months. On the 10th of January, students that participated finally got to present their research at the Interdisciplinary Honours symposium in the V.J. Koningsberger building. There was a great diversity of studied subjects. It started off with an interesting, yet ironically difficult presentation about Complexity and after that the presentations began. Every group had a scientific poster with the main findings and interesting information about their subject. The subjects ranged from aging of humans to the epidemics of recent ebola disease to even the farthest exoplanets in our galaxy. Everyone could walk around and ask the students about their subject if they were interested and if they had any questions. A successful evening with an interdisciplinary approach!
If you are interested in doing this interdisciplinary project, a new one will start this 27th of February. A perfect opportunity for you to broaden your knowledge about a subject you have always been interested in and a great way to meet new people from other disciplines! An email has been sent with a sign-up sheet if you are interested.


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WALKDEN cricketer Joe Davies is dreaming of becoming the next Alec Stewart after being called up by his country at the age of 13.
Alec's batting and wicket keeping skills took him to the top of English cricket.
Joe has the same strengths and he would love nothing more than to follow Stewart into England's hall of fame after being selected in the North of England under 13s squad for the first time.
He has already played for Roe Green's first, second and third senior sides having turned his back on football to pursue his love of cricket.
The Walkden High School pupil was previously involved with the academy set-ups at Premiership giants Manchester City and Bolton.
But there was only ever going to be one winner when his commitments to the two sports crossed over.
Dad Bill Davies said: "Cricket has been Joe's first love since he first started playing the game at the age of eight.
"He is a wicketkeeper and a batsman and he really looks up to the likes of Alec Stewart and Australia's Adam Gilchrist."
Joe has been an ever present on the county scene for the past three years.
He also has vast experience at inter-league and Salford schools level.
Bill said: "Joe is delighted to have been called up to the North of England team.
"To get to that level you have got to have something about you as a player.
"You have also got to have put a lot of hard work in and Joe has certainly done that."


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#19 The MediansNovember 4, 2016
Gheralf says:
We wanted to make an entry about our part of the city, but... well, many of the things we cover in these comics somehow already relate to this place, so it was hard to pick what to show you.
We hope that you enjoy the drawing of our neighbour.
Vayandil says:
For once I did not have to use my imagination while drawing the last two pictures. I just went out the door and sketched what I witnessed. An accurate depiction of a normal day in the Outer City.