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Gordon Hill has never forgotten the reception committee that greeted Manchester United as they arrived for the FA Cup semi-final in 1976. As Tommy Docherty's players made their way through the Hillsborough tunnel to the dressing room, several of the Derby County players were handing out tickets to friends and family. One of them, Leighton James, turned to Hill as he walked past.
"He said to me: 'it's really not worth you guys turning up today, you've got no chance,'" recalls Hill. "I remember Charlie George turning to him and saying 'you bloody Welsh idiot, don't give them any motivation.' But I could understand what Leighton was saying. We were such underdogs some people really thought we hadn't a prayer."
On Friday evening United will turn up at Pride Park for their fourth round FA Cup tie as Premier League aristocracy, expected to lord it over a Derby side currently fourth in the Championship. But in 1976 the roles were reversed. Derby were the then reigning First Division champions, their team stuffed with internationals like Francis Lee, Colin Todd, Roy McFarland, Bruce Rioch and Archie Gemmill. And United had just been promoted with a young, refreshed squad after a wretched period of decline following their European Cup win in 1968.
No-one epitomised the boundless, carefree attacking spirit of Tommy Docherty's new team more than Hill. Forever up on his toes, his thick plume of hair bouncing as he ran, Hill was an effervescent buzz of energy. Forming a free-flowing wing partnership with Steve Coppell, he jinked and fizzed on the left flank, always attacking, reluctant to track back. His high spirited unorthodoxy would have brought him quickly into conflict with a manager like Louis Van Gaal: this was not a player inclined to heed prescribed instruction.
"I went out and played," he says. "If anyone told me what to do, I wasn't listening."
He had been bought for just £70,000 from Millwall the previous summer, his happy go lucky demeanour earning an immediate reproach from the then club chairman Louis Edwards, who called him a flash cockney who needed to be taken down a peg or two. Far from being intimidated, Hill bounced on. Just as he did through the increasingly complicated practical jokes that the squad served up for him. Nothing worried Gordon Hill.
"Going from Millwall to United it was like someone telling you you'd made it," he recalls. "The moment I arrived at Old Trafford, I could feel the ghosts on my shoulder. I was given the number eleven shirt. Blimey George Best wore that shirt. Well, I couldn't replace George. But what I wanted was to leave my own mark, to be myself, show what I can do."
He had shown what he could do in the run to the semi final. In the fourth round he had scored a peach of a goal against Peterborough, volleying home a clearance from a corner which found him lurking at the edge of the area.
"I'd stay behind after training and just practice that," he says. "I'd get Mick Duxbury, who was in the juniors at the time, to cross for me to volley. I'd keep him there for hours."
Docherty's United may have played with a cavalier free spirit, but Hill insists it did not happen by chance. There was considerable work done behind the scenes.
"Doc was a great motivator. He was a likeable rogue, I loved him to death. He let me play. But to play like that, you had to practise."
In contrast to the planning that will have gone on ahead of tonight's game, however, Hill does not remember much in the way of tactical analysis before that semi final. There was no folder of instruction under the Doc's arm.
"I remember Tommy Cavanagh, Doc's assistant, came into the dressing room with the team sheet. Doc just screwed it up. 'Don't worry about them', he said, 'let them worry about us. You do what you always do'. These were the champions and there he was telling us not to worry about them. Well, it worked."
Hill in particular was magnificent that day. He scored both United goals in a 2-0 win. And both were screamers, hit from distance with perfect technique.
"I remember after I got the first - Gerry [Daly] played it to me, I put it in the top corner - we all said to each other: 'it's not finished yet, Derby can come back'. Then late in the second half, I got a second from a freekick. It was over then. Oh my God the feeling I got when I struck that. It was better than winning the lottery. It was all your dreams come true. It still makes the hairs stand up on the back of my neck just thinking about it, the noise from the crowd was incredible."
It was Hill's finest moment in a red shirt, sending the thousands of United fans ramming the Hillsborough terraces into a swirl of excitement. And the celebrations went on long into the night.
"I'll never forget it, the team bus was making its way out the car park afterwards and there were fans everywhere. I remember one of the directors had a BMW and he was trying to drive out with us. We could see through the windows of the bus, his car getting covered with fans. At one point there were half a dozen of them standing up on the roof, trying to look in through the coach windows."
For Hill, though, the semi final was the high point of his season.
"It was my final," he admits. "The Doc had said in the dressing room after we won not to be complacent. But we were in the final and it came back to bite us. We got done by Southampton and fair play to them."
Indeed for Hill there was never a moment quite to match that April afternoon in Sheffield. Although he won the Cup the following season, he was, much to his lasting chagrin, transferred by Docherty's successor Dave Sexton to Derby. There his career hit the buffers when he damaged his knee in the act of scoring a goal. He drifted out to play in Tampa, Florida, where he now lives, still coaching youngsters in the art of the volley.
"I'm 61 and I still play, still train, still try things," he says. "Some things don't change. I'm still superstitious. I always used put my boots on before my kit, put my shirt and shorts on at the last moment and run out on the pitch last. I stlll do it now, just as I did for United. Though I admit I walk out nowadays."
And he will be watching from afar as United take on Derby tonight.
"You know what I like about modern game?" he says. "Defenders can't kick you. Blimey, I'd have had a field day."
And how the current United team could use a Gordon Hill style field day.


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WASHINGTON BUREAU — Insurance experts are still trying to decide just how beneficial the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 will be for life insurers and their customers.
President Obama today brought the act to life by signing H.R. 4853, a bipartisan bill that passed in the Senate Wednesday and in the House Thursday.
The act provides for preserving extended unemployment insurance benefits for 13 more months and renewing many tax incentives created by the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 for 2 more years.
The act will set the personal estate tax exemption at $5 million for 2 years and the top estate tax rate at 35%, and it will reunify estate and gift taxes.
Observers say the act will let settlors, or families that owe estate taxes, buy insurance policies tax-free and, over time, use the policies to help estate beneficiaries escape having to pay estate taxes.
Some insurance policy experts have called the act a bonanza for estate planners and their clients. Other experts have been more skeptical and are suggesting that, in the long run, the contents of the box may prove to be less alluring than the shiny wrapping paper.
Sarah Spear, director of policy and public affairs at the Association of Advanced Life Underwriting (AALU), says passage of the act represents only a temporary victory.
"We are very pleased with the reunification of the estate and gift taxes ? an issue the AALU has championed the last 4 years," Spear says. "It simplifies estate planning and removes an artificial barrier to intergenerational transfers of business interests and other assets."
But the AALU would like to see permanent, sustainable estate tax reform in the range of the 2009 law, Spear says.

subset: commoncrawl


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Heat's Markieff Morris Breaks Silence After Missing 23 Games
Miami Heat forward Markieff Morris has been missing for nearly two months, an absence that's been impossible to ignore considering how many Heat players are out with injuries.
While head coach Erik Spoelstra confidently stated that the team has long moved on from the violent altercation between Morris and Denver Nuggets' Nikola Jokic, the veteran forward hasn't been seen or heard from since taking a blindside hit to the back on November 8. Until today.
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After yet another Heat player went down with an injury during, backup center Dewayne Dedmon left Thursday's game against the Detroit Pistons with a knee injury,Five Reasons Sports Network tweeted, "The Heat may need to start providing a little more public info about Markieff Morris."
That tweet caught Morris' attention, and he personally responded to the call for more information about his status: "No they don't! Coming soon!!"
It's wonderful to hear from Morris as it's been especially disconcerting that the organization has said nothing about his possible return. At first, he was ruled out due to whiplash and then remained out due to a neck injury.
With Jimmy Butler (bruised tailbone), Bam Adebayo (torn Ulnar Collateral Ligament in his right thumb), Caleb Martin (protocol), P.J. Tucker (left leg nerve inflammation), and Dedmon possibly missing a few games after taking a nasty fall (he will undergo an MRI on Friday) — Morris' impending return couldn't come at a better time.
Spoelstra Hasn't Discussed Morris' Status Since November 20
Spoelstra has kept silent when it came to providing any update on Morris' possible return. In fact, the last time Spoelstra spoke about Morris was on November 20.
"It is disappointing," Spoelstra said of the forward's extended absence due to Jokic's hit. "A very dangerous play and it's really unfortunate. That's the byproduct of those kind of dangerous actions. But he is feeling better and we'll just continue to take it one day at a time."
On the other side of things, Jokic, the NBA's reigning MVP, hit the town with his brothers, Strahinja and Nemanja Jokic, after beating the Heat for the second straight time. Adding insult to injury, the trio was spotted partying it up in Miami's nightlife.
Kyle Lowry & Udonis Haslem Are the Glue Keeping the Heat Roster Together
While it's incredibly impressive how the Heat's bench players have stepped up into starting roles, veteran point guard Kyle Lowry still in the mix, as well as team captain Udonis Haslem, they are the glue keeping the roster together.
"We got to figure it out," Lowry said, of the team's ever-growin injury list. "UD has done a great job, O is getting better and then we can go small with KZ. Hopefully P.J. is not out too long, but we'll see what happens with that. It's kind of one of those things where we will have to mix and match based on who we're playing against and what the situation is calling for. We may have to go small, we may have to play big. Who knows. We just got to be ready. It's a next man up type thing."
READ NEXT: Is Heat Star Jimmy Butler Being 'Held Hostage' By Medical Staff?


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Future Sustain International have designed an application to promote Sereetsi globally
The Robete hit-maker Tomeletso Sereetsi, leader of the rising local folk jazz band, Sereetsi & The Natives last week partnered with Future Sustain International (FSI) in an agreement to mutually push each other's brands. FSI is a locally owned mobile and electronic devices business that houses Samsung stores across the country. According to Sereetsi, FSI designed a mobile application for him which is a resource that promotes heightened interaction with his audience.
"The application carries information on my tour dates, lyrics, videos and related content. It offers convenience for my audience and just the potential to sell my craft to markets without borders as it is found on a global platform, Google Play," he said.
He added that the mobile application supports his efforts to break into international markets as it can be downloaded from anywhere in the world. He also got an endorsement deal which will involve FSI products starting with a Samsung S7 which will help him deliver very well on communicating with publics across various media. "It's a new relationship that we are committed to nurturing so that it consistently stays responsive to our capacities to jointly harness opportunities within our trading environments," he said.
During the launch Sereetsi performed some of his unreleased materials, "I am constantly writing new music and add it regularly to keep my sets fresh. I however do not intend to release any new material anytime soon. Those who come to our shows can expect such pleasant surprises as new unreleased songs performed live," he added.
Keynote speaker at the launch, CEO of BOFINET, Mabua Mabua said, "This is an exciting time more so that we are looking to create more content from Botswana. We pay a lot to access content locally because we pay for infrastructure between Europe or USA to Botswana, that is why we pay more to access the internet. Therefore the more content that is created locally the better," he said, adding that as BOFINET they were very interested in participating in content development as it is also a job creation opportunity.
Meanwhile, Sereetsi, who is currently on tour is hoping to make the lineup of for the upcoming Standard Bank Joy Jazz in South Africa. "There is one coveted slot remaining and a shortlist of bands, a lot of them from SA have been selected, including ourselves. The band with the most votes will play the festival. We therefore appeal to Batswana to vote in large numbers to get us in by simply liking our video on the festival's Facebook page," he appealed.


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There is no press conference scheduled and no headlines are blaring, but in what was certainly one of the most unusual transactions in recent years, the Eagles announced on Sunday morning that offensive guard Max Jean-Gilles officially re-signed with the team and can now go about the business of football in 2010.
The Eagles were working feverishly on Saturday night to get to the 53-man roster limit, and to do so they asked Jean-Gilles if he would be OK with being officially cut at that point and then re-signing a contract on Sunday morning. Jean-Gilles, who was not subject to the NFL waiver-wire system, was fine with the procedure, and it went down. As it turned out, the Eagles carried only 52 players on the roster throughout the night on Saturday after trading lineman Stacy Andrews to Seattle. That transaction, though, happened after the 6 p.m. deadline, so the Eagles officially needed to do the Jean-Gilles move to get to 53. That 53 became 52 when Andrews was dealt.
Now the roster is back to 53 players and no more moves are scheduled for the next, oh, couple of hours or so. But stayed tuned. You never know what is going to happen next with a team that has done as many personnel moves as the Eagles have.
-- Posted by Dave Spadaro, September 5, 11:34 a.m.


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In traditional American Horror Story fashion, the scare-expert team over at FX put out a series of 15-second promotional clips to tease the upcoming sixth season.
As any true fan of the AHS franchise would expect, the shorts were varying ranges of disturbing, from eerie to grotesque.
They were also particularly vague, leaving little clues to what the season will actually be about.
The shorts include clips of a dark family with glowing eyes creeping through a field, a man's head getting stapled, a millipede crawling across a woman's head, a demonic baby and much more to give viewers the heebie jeebies.
The number six making its daunting appearance seems to be the only common theme throughout the videos, with six not only being the number of the season but also a possible satanic reference, a theme the series has not been shy about in past seasons.
American Horror Story season 6 premieres on FX Sept. 14 and includes the cast of favorites from previous seasons, including Evan Peters, Kathy Bates, Angela Bassett, Matt Bomer, Finn Wittrock, Denis O'Hare, Leslie Jordan and Cheyenne Jackson.
Fans have already begun to wildly skepticize about the theme of the series. With the recent announcement from AHS creators that all the seasons are intertwined, many fans are stirring rumors that the ghostly child from season 1 will be making a reappearance as the baby in one of the shorts.
Other possible themes being discussed are a creepy "children of the corn" vibe, a torturer in the middle of nowhere, zombies, a creepy doctor or a cult theme.
No matter what the terrifying outcome is, the season is sure to meet the hype that American Horror Story has steadily created and continue to scare the hell out of the horror-junkie viewers.


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Photo above is used with permission from Ashland Times-Gazette, Tom E. Puskar, Chief Photographer, 40 E. 2nd Street, Ashland, Ohio 44805.
Back Row: (left-rt) Coach Dan Krispinski, Coach Brett Bartlett, Head Coach Rob Lavengood, Jacob Oberholtzer, Blake Delaney, Capt. Ray Hupfer, Ryan Carper, Capt. Eric Dowiatt, Coach Jason Hess, Coach Rob Stoops. Front Row: Zack Haley, Daniel Rowsey, Capt. Scott Marquette, Grant Fairhurst, Logan Adams.
The inexperienced, but competitive Arrows lost 12 games by single digits, 3 games in overtime, and a third of the games were decided on the final possession. Eric Dowiatt, the only returning letterman, was the MVP with 225 points. First-team OCC Grant Fairhurst led the team in scoring with 240 points and 55-treys. The special award winners were: (Mr. Defense) Blake Delaney (169 pts & 143 rebounds), (Mr. Practice) Raymond Hupfer, (Mr. Consistency) Ryan Carper (135 pts), and (George Valentine Sportsmanship Award) Scott Marquette (164 pts). Fairhurst was Mr. Coach and Jacob Oberholtzer scored 150 pts.
Lettermen: Eric Dowiatt (2), Scott Marquette, Raymond Hupfer, Ryan Carper, Blake Deleney, Grant Fairhurst, and Jacob Oberholtzer


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PDP and its colour flags
By Dirisu Yakubu, ABUJA
To take her rightful place in the community of developed countries in the world, Nigeria must quickly restructure in line with increasing calls by her citizens across the world, governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, have said.
The governors stated this at a two-day event organized for National Working Committee, NWC members-elect in Abuja on Tuesday.
Speaking on behalf of his colleagues, Sokoto state governor and chairman, PDP Governors' Forum, Aminu Tambuwal said the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government has in the past six years, failed to take the country to the heights expected by Nigerians, adding that as a result, the PDP must strategize to take over in 2023.
He said: "Nigeria must embrace restructuring to survive. It must restructure its polity, economy, security and ways of doing things. It must embrace relative autonomy and decentralisation of power. This will unleash the energies of our people, especially, the young. It is time to allow Nigeria to blossom. It is doable with all hands on deck."
Continuing, Tambuwal noted that "a rickety vehicle cannot take Nigeria to its destination as the nation with possibilities for greatness and progress. PDP is now once again a well-oiled, serviced vehicle that will midwife the Nigeria of our dreams.
"It is indeed time to rescue and rebuild Nigeria. Nigeria is in urgent need of a surgical operation. Nigeria is in a permanent emergency.
"We all know what the problems are. They are man-made and are therefore resolvable. It requires a focused, determined, knowledgeable and patriotic organisation of like-minds to build the critical mass necessary for a great leap forward. Yes, it requires leadership, with vision and discipline.
"We suffer from a crisis of governance. The unity of Nigeria is facing unprecedented challenges. Life in Nigeria is increasingly becoming brutish and short as insecurity ravages the land.
"Poverty is the forte of the ordinary Nigerian. The health and education of our people have not improved. Our people are in want. The economy is in dire straits with the exchange rate now about N540 to a dollar from the N150 to a dollar when PDP left office. Prices of foodstuff and essential commodities are unsustainable, clearly beyond the reach of the average Nigerian."
Rating the Buhari government low, Tambuwal said the ruling party has clearly demonstrated gross incompetence in managing the fortune of the country, saying, "between 35 to 40 per cent of Nigerians are unemployed and women and youths bear the main brunt. Bandits, kidnappers, terrorists are having a field day, almost unchallenged. Our children are not safe even in their schools.
"Corruption still stalk the land. Nepotism, ethnic and religious bigotry reign supreme in today's All Progressives Congress, APC's Nigeria. Our infrastructure is still comatose.
"Trust and hope in Nigeria are at their lowest. Our lamentations can go on, ad infinitum. But the test of leadership is the ability to solve problems."
He called on PDP leaders to think outside the box, rather than resorting to criticisms only and rescue Nigeria for good.
"We cannot only criticize, but we must also provide workable solutions and clear policy alternatives. This will be presented to the Nigerian people. A sharp contrast must be drawn with the ruling incompetent and rudderless APC administration.
"Where APC thrives in excuses, PDP will take responsibility. Where APC thrives in propaganda and deceit, PDP will be transparent with Nigerians. Whereas APC Government thrives in insecurity, PDP will secure Nigeria. Whereas APC presides over Nigeria as the poverty capital of the world, PDP will make Nigeria prosperous.
"APC has wrecked our economy, but PDP will salvage it. Where APC focuses on selective anti-corruption fight, PDP will fight corruption with appropriate institutional reforms," he added.
He further emphasized the place of technology in national development, saying, "We must embrace innovation and technology as a way of life. Technology will solve the youth unemployment time bomb. Technology will improve our agriculture, health, industrialization, education and indeed, it has implications and impacts on all facets of our lives."
Earlier in his opening remark at the event, national chairman-elect of the party, Senator Iyorchia Ayu said Nigeria "is in very deep trouble," and as a result, the PDP has a duty to rescue and rebuild the country."
The former Senate President spoke of the significance of the retreat this way: "In this time of grave challenges for our country, this retreat is to recommit us to the sacrifices we need to make to rescue and rebuild the country. And talking about sacrifices, I acknowledge that, as PDP members, you have been making enormous sacrifices, especially those of you who have held firm to our principles in the last 6 years plus.
"But think about the bigger sacrifices made by our founders who, at great risk, challenged the military leadership and played a critical role in winning back civilian control over our government. Without their sacrifices we would not even have a platform and a voice today, not to talk of gathering here for this stock-taking.
"And talking about stock-taking, this retreat is an opportunity for us to also do that: take stock of where we are as a party, how we got there, what went well and what went wrong, and then collectively think of how we can do better for our party and, more importantly, for our country.
"You may agree with me that in the last two election cycles, we allowed ourselves to be defined by the APC with its massive propaganda machine. Are we going to allow that to happen again or would this retreat help to give us the tools and ideas to enable us define ourselves before an opponent does?
"In my view, we can no longer be a party that just reacts to what the APC government does. No, we can't be that anymore. We must be a party that thoughtfully articulates and designs a clear programme of where we want to take Nigeria as well as how we hold the rudderless APC government to account.
"We must be more than a party that just issues the occasional press statement condemning the APC government. We must demonstrate to Nigerians that years in opposition have not
dented our will and desire to win and to govern for the benefit of our country. Nigerians look up to us to reunite this country which has been badly divided over the past 6 years. Nigerians want to see that we are united and ready to govern.
"The damage done by the APC is pretty obvious – insecurity everywhere, including shared sovereignty with criminal and terrorist gangs, a collapsed economy with a comatose manufacturing sector, soaring prices, naira near worthless, interest rates very high, with the Central Bank of Nigeria picking and choosing winners and losers and virtually running a parallel government, (which even leaves the Vice President confused), collapsed infrastructure, terrorist sympathizers in government, and confusion everywhere, as Fela would say.
"We must offer a clear, workable alternative to rebuild our country. Just recently the United States Council on Foreign Relations published a study by two experts which said Nigeria is, already a failed state that has reached a point of no return and would collapse. That is where the APC government has brought us to.
"We need not waste our energy arguing whether the American researchers are right or not. Rather, we should focus our energies, imagination and creativity towards ensuring that their prognosis does not come to pass. We must work to reverse that march towards collapse."
A PDP government, he noted will "rebuild a Nigeria that secures its borders and protects its law-abiding citizens wherever in the country they may live, whatever their occupation and whatever their language, religion or ethnicity."
Also Read:
Avoiding another shutdown of varsities
A lot of work awaits a PDP government and in his words, "we have to rebuild a Nigeria with roads, bridges, and railways that crisscross and connect different parts of this country to facilitate and promote the movement of people and goods to grow our economy.
"We have to rebuild a Nigeria that pays decent wages to workers so that we actually have a real economy driven by higher productivity.
"We have to rebuild Nigeria to become a fertile ground for our young people and other entrepreneurs to unleash their creativity and innovativeness consumer spending.
"Let us rebuild Nigeria as a country that does not treat any of its peoples as second-class citizens.
"We have to rebuild our party so we can rebuild Nigeria. We have to enthrone internal democracy in our party and get accustomed to it. Let us collectively rebuild PDP as a peoples' democratic party, as our name says, a party that truly belongs to the grassroots."
"Let us put behind us the quarrels of yesteryears. Let us not fight yesterday's wars but instead recognize the APC as the real obstacle and danger to Nigeria's progress as a developed, united and forward-looking country.
"Let us, therefore, direct our energies towards defeating that party and implementing a programme of rebirth, growth and opportunity for our country," he added.
Giving an overview of the highs and lows of the PDP since its formation in 1998, former Minister of Information, Professor Jerry Gana, called on party leaders and stakeholders to stay focused and forge a common front in the task of wrestling power from the ruling APC in 2023.
The event was attended by former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, Governors Nyesom Wike, Aminu Tambuwal, Ifeanyi Okowa and Godwin Obaseki of Rivers, Sokoto, Delta and Edo states respectively
Also in attendance were former Cross River state governor, Liyel Imoke and Chairman, PDP Disciplinary Committee, Chief Tom Ikimi among others.


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A lot of small business owners are finding themselves without the needed income to keep their business running due to the profound obstacles. This is where business financing solutions come in.
Small business owners never could have expected the overwhelming effects of the coronavirus. While it might appear devastating and the future of your small business is unknown, you should understand that there are a couple of loan programs and financial relief available to you.
Today, we are going to share with you how a small business loan Cincinnati can help your business navigate during this pandemic.
Pay Your Bills
A couple of businesses cannot afford bills, such as utilities, rent, and much more, just as a lot of them are collecting debt due to the pandemic. Unfortunately, this puts them at risk of completely losing their small business.
If this is your case, you can fortunately avoid it. All you have to do is to apply for extra financing. This can help you keep your business running during the crisis.
Purchase Inventory
A lack of inventory can be hard if your business can keep its operations, whether it be through delivery services or online services. Think about applying for a small business loan to guarantee that your business has adequate inventory to meet demands. With this, you can keep on serving your client base.
Pay Off Debt
Without a doubt, a lot of small business owners have accumulated a lot of debt since the beginning of the pandemic. It has been almost impossible to maintain their finances without their usual income stream. This leads to the further accumulation of debt.
Because of this, small businesses might benefit from extra financing so that they could protect the finances of their business and pay off their debt. This will help you move forward during this crisis. Fortunately, there is a lot of small business program that can help with this problem.
Pay Your Workers
Having extra financing can help you keep your employees on the payroll. This is particularly true if you are having a hard time paying them off due to lowered revenue or pandemic shutdowns. You can guarantee that your workers are taken care of during this uncertain time if you pursue financing for this reason. Aside from that, it will allow you to quickly return to normal operations after the conditions improve if you keep your employees on board.
Since they've got to withdraw and release funds for their customers, lending companies are always open. That is why they are accessible and convenient during this pandemic. Whenever you apply for a small business loan, there are only a couple of things you have to do. You can even do it online. However, before you submit your application online, you have to ensure that you read all the policies and terms. Aside from that, there are loan calculators online that can help you calculate the interests of your loan. Almost every lending company has this feature and it is accessible through their site.


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Sunday 2nd February 2020
Women's Volleyball Cup – First Round
ISE, University of Dundee, Old Hawkhill, Dundee, DD1 4HN
Entries are now open for the main domestic student volleyball event of the season, with the opportunity for Tier 1 and Tier 2 teams to lock horns to decide the top student volleyball team in Scotland.
The Semi-Finals and Final will be played alongside Scottish Volleyball's Grand Prix Finals the following week on 9th February at University of Dundee – this is the event to be in!
Venue: University of Dundee
Date: Sunday 2nd February 2020
Time: Registration opens at 0900
Results: Congratulations to the following teams for progressing to the semi-finals taking place on Sunday 9th February at University of Dundee:
University of Edinburgh 1
University of Aberdeen
University of St Andrews
University of Edinburgh 2
Full results can be found HERE
Contact: All enquiries regarding this event should be directed to SS Volleyball Chair, Paul McPate, on firstname.lastname@example.com
What Did You Think? We welcome all feedback about our events so please click HERE to tell us your thoughts!


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Niagara Falls Club
8800 McLeod Road, Niagara Falls, Ontario L2H 0Y8
EJ Freeland Community Centre
1555 Garrison Road, Fort Erie, Ontario L2A 1P8
A one hour in length group class involving an intense workout in the water. Class includes a variety of different exercises focused on cardio, stretching, endurance and strength. It can take place in both the shallow and deep end of the pool and is led by one instructor teaching from the deck with an additional lifeguard supervising.
Lane Swim
Drop in program where pool is open to individuals to swim lengths.
Open Swim
Drop in program where pool is open to all ages for leisure swimming. As per public admission standards children under the age of 10 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.


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A Gorgeous Rocking Chair With Exquisite Detailing Will Make Your Grandpa Rather Happy And Proud To Have It This Is A Perfect Piece Of Furniture As This Is One Relaxing Accessory That You Can Spend Hours On The Imaginary Wheels Give An Altogether Different Dimension And Charm To This Chair. Please Note: All Our Products Are Marketed Under The Brand "Shilpi" That Is Our Trademark Brand And We Are The Sole Manufacturers And Suppliers Of Our Products. With Over 25 Years Of Experience Of Wood Products; We Provide Quality Matching The High Quality Standards Set By Amazon. We Have Not Authorized Any Other Seller To Sell Our Brand. If You Feel We Are Pricier, Contact Us Through Amazon And We Would Try And Provide A Better Deal.
- Pure Sheesham Wood Rocking Chair in walnut color polish. Material: Sheesham wood. Maximum load of 100 kg.
- Product Dimensions: Length (24 inches), Width (39 inches), Height (45 inches)
- Leg rest and armrest for relaxed seating. Perfect body posture positioning with a gentle rocking motion.
- Color: Brown, Style: Antique, Care Instruction: Wipe & Dry Cloth Without Water. No Assembly Required: The product is delivered in a pre-assembled state
- Featuring strong and durable construction, this chair will be a stylish and timeless piece of furniture for your living area. This exclusive and modern chair will add style and function to any space in your home. Just sit on it & get relaxed
Brand: Shilpi
Color: Black
Package Dimensions: 45.0 x 24.0 x 24.0 inches


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Here's what Disney Princesses would look like with iconic haircuts
Have you ever wondered what Pocahontas would look like if she asked her hair dresser to give her a Kylie Jenner-inspired ombré look? Or if Princess Ariel would ever shave her head like Amber Rose? OK, well we were curious. REALLY curious. Because even though Disney princesses have the most enviable of hair (those full red locks that look flawless even under water! That thick black hair that doesn't get tangled even after taking a plunge into the river! In a canoe!), it's still fun to imagine what would happen if our fictional princesses were real live humans who wanted to switch things up with some celebrity-inspired hairstyles.
So, for this week's Disney Mashups, our one-of-a-kind illustrator Victoria Rosas gave Pocahontas, Ariel, Mulan, Rapunzel, and Tiana some iconic celeb hairdos! And guys —they ROCK them.
Pocahontas and a very turquoise ombré à la Kylie Jenner
Princess Ariel channeling Amber Rose's rockin' shaved head
Mulan inspired by a groovy '70s Farrah Fawcett 'do!
Rapunzel must have watched a few too many Friends episodes on Netflix, because she's got a very Rachel cut going on
Tiana does #GrannyHair and we love it!
All images by Victoria Rosas/HelloGiggles


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Welcome to the Program - Steps to be an Entrepreneur !
This free course will teach you all the "required steps" to be an Entrepreneur, including concepts like "how to easily build a Financial Plan" and "how to use business tools to optimize your expenses".
Let's get Started!
It's a new world! A world of Entrepreneurs.
The start-up revolution has made things way easier, way more accessible for all of us. And this revolution has caught the eyes of Corporate, media, and, most importantly, VCs – getting them the much-deserved attention.
All this attention has helped create a positive buzz towards Entrepreneurship, with millions wanting to get into the entrepreneurial process and take the steps to entrepreneurship.
We live in times when college students are unafraid of leaving offers from established companies to start their own startups, and many others want to do the same.
"However, not many know – how or where to start a startup?"
All they have is a dream and know what the end destination looks like, but they lack the knowledge to reach the end destination.
Frankly speaking, you cannot even blame them for not knowing the process to be an entrepreneur as there is no book to guide them.
All we have are experiences from past entrepreneurs to help them guide through the entrepreneurial process.
So here we are – I am adding my experience of being an entrepreneur for a good 10+ years of my life to help you through the entrepreneurship journey.
I have brought all my experience of years into building this Entrepreneurship guide – 6 steps in the entrepreneurial process.
How does the Course work?
Well! The course works as a step by step process where you get one email every day with the link to the next step of becoming an entrepreneur.
The course is based on my entrepreneurial experience, where I have learned that to become an entrepreneur, you must identify the right Business for yourself by following the right steps.
Steps that involve extensive market research, creating a financial plan, and hiring the right team.
If I were to start my entrepreneurial journey today, I would follow an entrepreneurial process that breaks down the steps to become an entrepreneur into six distinct stages.
The 6 steps in the entrepreneurial process not only help you discover entrepreneurship, but they also help you prepare better for the future.
Now all the steps that I will be explaining are equally important.
I have tried to be as simple as possible throughout my explanation. And that brings us to the end of the Introduction.
So 'My Dear Friend' – Gear up for the first chapter of the program which will be in your Mailbox –
About the Instructor
Jasmeet Singh
Founder, Lessons At Startup
I started my first venture in the mid-20s in India and stuck to the venture for the next 12 years before exiting it and relocating to Australia (at present, i am taking a brief hiatus).
I have 12+ years of entrepreneurial experience ( you would have figured that out by now :)). My experience has involved helping small business and startups start and bootstrap to success.
Till date, i have I have worked in different capacity (consultant, partner) in businesses such as IT Services, E-commerce, Consulting, Digital Marketing, Job Portal, Restaurants (to name a few).
My Training Credentials : As a Trainer, i have trained close to 6000 students online and offline (the proof is on udemy :)) in Courses ranging from Entrepreneurship to Digital Marketing.
What do my students have to say about my training?
I am not going to go on a "self appreciation" spree. Instead, i will let the students speak for my work in the feedback section below:


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Think of a luxurious holiday amidst the majestic French Alps and often it is the snow-covered slopes and the many sights and sounds of winter that instantly come to mind. Yet, summer is a great time to visit this mesmerizing part of France, as you take a tranquil detour from the glitz and glamor of its dazzling capital. Set in the idyllic landscape of Val d'Isère and surrounded by Alpine grandiose, Marco Polo is inarguably one of the best luxury ski chalets that you will come across in all of Europe. Voted the best ski chalet in the country in 2013 and 2014, this opulent treat combines classic chalet architecture that western and central areas of Val d'Isère are renowned for with unmatched luxury and world-class cuisine.
A stay at this 1000-square-meter-chalet is all about relaxing in the lap of splendid French Alps, while you escape the constant rush of daily life. The chalet is as spacious as it is spectacular with its grand living room and master bedroom with six other bedrooms forming the core of the living areas. An imposing dining area sits next to the living space on the lower level with a fabulous fireplace at the heart of it all. Despite the grand and classic appeal of the chalet, there is absolutely no shortage of contemporary comfort inside with a plasma TV and projector screen in the lounge, Apple TV, iPod docking stations and super-fast Wifi ready to serve your entertainment needs.
RELATED: Snow-Clad Slopes and Alpine Magic: Modern and Cozy Chalet in France
From the cozy bedrooms and the large living room, one moves down to the magnificent indoor pool with jet streams and a projector screen. Next to it is the Jacuzzi, massage room and the sauna – each transporting you into a world without care! A gym that has two of each equipment so that you can work out in pairs and a game room with pool table and darts board keep the fun times rolling at this amazing chalet that can house up to 14 guests. A kids' room with bunk beds is where the little ones can have plenty of fun with a custom-tailored dining experience, sumptuous dining on the balcony as you take in the spellbinding view and endless opulence completing your stay at Marco Polo.
RELATED: Majestic Alpine Views and Lavish Luxury Await At Stunning Chalet Tsuga


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A unified army is a central pillar of the long-running peace process in the world's youngest nation.
Featured Content
The two leaders reach a deal to unify the army's command structure after weeks of escalating conflict between the sides.
President Salva Kiir and opposition leader Riek Machar sign an agreement to share power and form a unity government.
Rebel chief Riek Machar says he will form a government with President Salva Kiir after years of fighting.


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Add a new dynamic to your soft play area with a cost effective MaxiPar LED lighting element.
Brighten up a corner or create interest and fun with the MaxiPar LED light. This compact, slim profile par is designed for uplighting as well as stage style lighting, and will bring deep, rich colours to smaller events or venues. It features 12 x 3W tri-colour RGB LEDs which offer smooth colour mixing. Operational modes include DMX, auto, sound active and master/slave modes.
– 12 x 3W tri-colour LEDs (RGB)
– Beam angle: 25°
– 2,106 Lux @ 2m (full on)
– DMX channels: 3 or 6 selectable
– Auto, sound active and master/slave modes
– 0-100% dimming and variable strobe
– 4 push button menu with LED display
– Bracket allows for multiple rigging or floor standing applications
– Rubber feet allow the panel to sit flat on the floor for uplighting
– Side entry XLR and power connections
– IEC power input/output
– 3-Pin XLR input/output
– Fan cooled


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I'm Julien Templier
Product and Software Development
- E-mail [email protected]
- Location Boston, MA, USA
- January 2nd, 2020
Hello! I'm Julien Templier. Software engineer with an entrepreneurial spirit, with experience in Web & Windows programming. Has designed and coded products for the consumer market and can interact with users and customers to identify possible product improvements.
Specializes in software development in JavaScript/NodeJS and C#, software debugging, QA and reverse engineering using IDA and Hex-Rays.
Professional Skills
Product Development
Product R&D
Research new product ideas and develop new product concepts. Provide product and technical expertise to develop a successful business plan.
Email Deliverability
Authentication and Tracking
Expertise in email deliverability. Help set up your email workflow from scratch or review an existing email operation.
Engineering Management
Development process and remote teams
Review and improve your development process, get visibility into your team cycle time.
Extensive experience managing remote-only teams.
Rapid prototyping
Backend API, UI and UX design
API prototyping using headless CMS software, frontend development using NodeJS/Javascript.
Technical Support & Tooling
Development of custom workflows and tooling for IT & Operation teams.
Experience with Google Workspace (GSuite), Azure, AWS, Atlassian (JIRA, Confluence). Domain configuration (DNS, Email).
Web development
Backend and frontend
Development of custom web tools for your intranet
Work Experience
• Work with the Product team to determine the quarterly and long term goals and projects
• Review customer contracts, privacy policy & internal policies
• Participate in the product and technical specification process
Development & prototyping
• Prototype a caching CDN with AWS Cloudfront and Lambda@edge
• Write automated tests for our conversation tracking service using BrowserStack
• Write a manual test plan for our HTML rendering service
IT & Infrastructure
• Updated the internal command line tool to a new framework using Oclif & Typescript
• Breach response and analysis
• Help recruiting new managers and engineers
• Help define and manage the development process, with custom JIRA workflows
• Write product/technical specifications for new features
• Act as technical reference for the support team. Work closely with strategic customers
• Maintain and update the company billing workflow with new features (integration with invoicing service, credit card fee calculations)
• Prototype a new image renderer with HTML/CSS support using Chrome headless
IT & Infrastructure
• Setup a custom redirect or using nginx for integration into the company hosting infrastructure
• Respond to third party service breaches and handle security issue reports
IT & Infrastructure
• Responsible for deployment and monitoring of the company technical infrastructure
• Develop and customize Chef recipes for deployment of Scala and NodeJS applications using AWS Opsworks
• Move the company from Skype / Hipchat to Slack. Integrate with build, deployment and collaboration services
• Manage GSuite and other company services. Develop onboarding/departure IT checklists
• Manage and track SSL certificates for the company domains
• Build a billing & reporting service to track invoices & charges, as well as drive the company reporting Portal
• Write a command line tool to help the operations team use internal APIs
• Develop internal & customer facing tools for onboarding and operations (test email sending, email validation, CNAME domain setup, onboarding)
• Responsible for event collection and analytics infrastructure based on Splunk
• Helped build customer portal for revenue reports and internal monitoring tools
• Implemented internal tools for use by designers and developers
• Serve as interim tech lead
• Lead website team through several redesigns
• Maintained new Wordpress and legacy PHP websites
• Updated and implemented new in-house applications (Twitter, Facebook, Groupon, LinkedIn and more)
• Helped maintain Chrome, Firefox and Safari plugins
• Setup and maintained Teamcity build server, used for integration builds and deployment of all versions of our plugins and applications
• Helped move our infrastructure to Azure and AWS
• Managed JIRA projects and workflows for sales and product teams
• Implemented cross-platform game engines for several games through reverse engineering and studying of original engine code
• Implemented new engine and more than 50k lines of logic code for The Last Express game
• Added work in progress engines for Liath and the Arxel Tribe series of 2d adventure games and helped implementing several parts of the Sanitarium engine, including the dialog script engine, part of the sound and display logic and several hardcoded puzzles
• Maintained internal Visual Studio project creation tool (adding support for Visual Studio 2010 and Code::Blocks), as well as the NSIS Windows installer script
• Added support for Ubuntu Unity and Windows 7 taskbar integration
Independent Software Developer
Delivery Tracker
• Created a desktop widget allowing tracking of packages through several providers (including Amazon, UPS, USPS and FedEx), with Google maps integration
• Implemented auto-update functionality (similar to Sparkle for MacOSX), along with several COM libraries to provide low-level support for Windows 7 taskbar integration, signature verification, command line parsing, zip archives, file downloads and single instance handling,
• Implemented a logon screen resources replacement application, allowing customization of the background and UI elements, with an animated UI using WPF for preview and selection
• Added privilege separation by moving code requiring administrative rights to a separate executable from the UI
Research and prototypes
• Implemented a low-level Windows Communication Foundation API for access to the Highrise web application, working around bugs in the REST API by pre/post-processing the XML data
• Developed an HTML canvas library as an activeX control, with text and shadow support using Cairo and Glib/Pango (including a CSS color parser and a test suite derived from the Mozilla canvas test suite)
• Reverse-engineered DeskScapes API for creation of dynamic dreams (dynamically generated scene using Direct3D, written in C++) and ported several OpenGL screensavers from Xbox Media Center to the DeskScapes API
• Created a command line application for creation of dreams to replace the existing GUI application, along with a test application for easier debugging of dynamic dreams, including bypass of code signature verification
• Updated Flurry screensaver for Windows, adding an editor with presets, support for per-monitor flurries and an updated UI
• Implemented a small desktop application allowing loading of docklets as desktop widgets
• Designed a .NET support library for docklet development, allowing docklet written in any .Net language to be run by dock programs such as ObjectDock
Conception and Implementation of a J2EE application for the French tax office (DGI)
• Worked on one of the applications for the Copernic project (an overhaul of the entire IT infrastructure of the French tax administration), used by end-users to enter company-related information and applicable taxes, from UML modeling of the specifications to implementation.
• Created an UI prototype (using perl and HTML), the main screen template and several screens (using Struts actions, JSP & JavaScript)
• Prepared the weekly report, implement using Maven scripts and collaborated with QA and the validation team in preparation for test deployment
Development of a Dynamic Handwritten Signature authentication framework
• Implemented of a global verification method for handwritten signatures, based on neural networks and integrated results with a preexisting local method, allowing for a substantial performance gain.
• Ported existing reporting application to new versions of the Excel COM APIs
Semi-Synthetic character generation for on-line handwriting recognition
• Created an Eclipse plugin allowing visualization and modification of characters, with an Unipen file format parser and a custom plugin interface and loader for translating / rotating / shearing and applying a random vector transformation to individual characters
- E-mail [email protected]
- Location Boston, MA, USA


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We love what we do! Take a look at some of our latest creations for our clients.
Got questions? We have answers!
Look below to find answers to some of the questions we get on a regular basis.
Q – I bought several yards of fabric that would look great in my dining room. What kind of window treatment can you make from it?
A - We could come to your home to evaluate the windows and available fabric or you could come to our office with the fabric and photos and measurements of your window(s) and we could work from there.
Q – We moved and my window treatments don't fit in the new house. I don't want to get all new bedding. What can I do?
A – We can come to your home to evaluate the situation. Then after determining how much fabric you have we can design new treatments for you.
Q – I want a window seat cushion made and I have the fabric. What next?
A – You would send us your measurements and foam if you have some. We would then fabricate the cushion using your fabric and foam. We have all the other necessary supplies needed for creating a cushion with cording and zippered opening.
Q – How can I save money on my custom window treatments?
A – To save money you can do some of the legwork yourself such as buying the fabric (possibly watching for a sale) and doing the installation.
Q – Help. I don't even know where to start.
A – When working with Creations by Celeste we have working relationships with several others. We can bring in a designer, organizer, architect or even a handyman.
Q – I don't know where to start for choosing colors.
A – To pick a color scheme, choose a rug, artwork or fabric to base your color choices on.
Q – My home has an open floor plan what should I do?
A – In a home with an open floor plan, choose colors that relate to each other in a pleasing way.
Q – I have no idea what color to paint my room. Can you help?
A – Celeste is a Certified Professional Color with No Regrets Consultant. We can help you confidently choose a color based on the science of color and the power of numbers.


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Max Verstappen is not a very good actor, despite knocking Mercedes off the podium and finishing third to the Ferrari duo at Sunday's Singapore Grand Prix, the Red Bull driver was all smiles but deep inside he was seething.
The twisty confines of the aero-friendly Marina Bay Street Circuit was supposed to suit the Adrian Newey-penned RB15, but simulator correlation problems negatively affected the blue cars' setups this weekend according to team consultant Helmut Marko.
While Verstappen did his best to appear content with the result in the post-race interviews and during the top three press conference, he could not resist a stab at his team when he declared: "Not good enough. We came here to win and clearly didn't.
"Yesterday I think was worse than today but I would say it's a little wake-up call. From Austria onwards, it's maybe our worst race in terms of performance, where we expected to be really good.
"I have a few ideas why it went wrong so we will analyse all of them and see if we can already be better in Sochi. The layout is not that amazing for us but you can clearly see if the car is working through corners or not. I think here, clearly, in too many corners the car was not working like I wanted it to. We'll go home and see what we can do better."
Ferrari stumped everyone by finding updates that could leverage their updates and subsequently powering to an unlikely one-two on what everyone predicted would be their bogey track which resulted in Sebastian Vettel leading home teammate Charles Leclerc on Sunday.
Asked if there was anything he could have done differently to at least beat one of the Ferrari duo if not both, he teased with a grin, "No. It's very simple. I could make it a huge story, but no."
After a below-par qualifying, Verstappen said of his race day package, "It was a bit better. I think in the race I could follow, a bit. I was not in a position to attack but at least I could follow the cars ahead of me around, they never really pulled away.
"Of course initially it was all about tyre management anyway, so I was driving really slowly. I think we pitted at the right time, undercut Lewis, that was very positive and from there onwards it was just about staying alert with the safety car re-starts as well.
"I think we managed everything quite well and I think for us after the difficulties we had in qualifying it was still good to be on the podium," added Verstappen who is tied on points with Leclerc for third place with six races remaining in the 2019 championship.
Big Question: When will Max run out of patience?


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Group B:
United States – Latvia 4: 2: After an early loss to Finland (1: 2), the United States saw their feet in the World Cup in Riga. In the battle with the hosts Latvia, the American selection won 4-2. After the Latvians were able to make up for the two-thirds deficit in the opening three minutes, both goals from Trevor Moore and Matthew Berniers went unanswered in the middle third within 107 seconds. With this victory, the Americans are now advancing to the quarterfinals. Latvia, on the other hand, need to improve if they want to qualify for the final.
SRF Sway, Sportlive, May 27, 2021, 3:00 p.m. Palm / Agent
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"Friend of animals everywhere. Web guru. Organizer. Food geek. Amateur tv fanatic. Coffee trailblazer. Alcohol junkie."


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I was born in a typical Indian middle class family nothing fancy about it. Brought up with decent schooling I was never a bright student, in fact I was more interested in sports. Right after schooling was done, Being from a family full of Engineers i was expected to become one and I did (Eventually). My dad being a Civil Engineer was is a tech freak, so I from the early days i was always fascinated by new gadgets , I always felt it made our lives much easier. By the second year of my IT Engineering i came to know it was nothing what I expected it to be. I often wondered how come by just knowing how to code can one certify one as an Engineer. I badly wanted to pursue sports as my career but by that time it was purely not possible so I had to continue with it.
In your own words what is Eidolon Design Studio?
Eidolon Design Studio is a mad and crazy design studio like no other in our country. We carry out campaigns for brands with completely absurd (at times) ideas and design approach. You can describe as a rebellious design studio who are here to change the design scene of the country and elevate it to another level. Its about sending the message of the brand "Loud" , "Raw" , and "Fearlessly". Our designs portray our image more than anything else.
How did you come up with the idea of Eidolon Design Studio?
It was in the pen ultimate semester of our engineering when my friend and now co – founder Vishakha Rajput suggested that we should start up something that would make things look good and cool, we were pissed of by the pathetic design scene specially in the non-metros of India. The name "Eidolon" is her brain child which means Ideal in ancient greek as the idea was to make things ideal.
Could you walk us through the process of starting up Eidolon Design Studio?
When we stared up we wanted to as many things as possible with our limited start up investment. we started out with the only service of website design and development. Our first Investment was a Domain name and hosting of our own website. So when we started up it was just the two of us and a website. Our first project was website for an event management company. We both never stopped learning and by the next 2 years i had been a great designer ( that's what people told me), while Vishakha had pursued various social media and digital marketing courses. It was early last year when we started up as a full fledged branding agency with services ranging from Creative branding to Advertisement designs and 360 campaigns including photography and collateral designs and execution. Our social media marketing, Digital marketing and identity designs remains our primary services and what we are known for. also these are the major part of our revenues.
Did you encounter any particular difficulties during startup?
We did not encounter any specific difficulties, just the days when we were to constantly learn Design / Branding in simultaneously with our studies and also the already started website development work. But in the end its all worth it, all those long nights pay off eventually.
What kind of feedback did you get for Eidolon Design Studio so far?
To be very true it was not always positive, we never wanted that too. Amidst 10 clients who love our work and designs there is always a one with whom it doesn't work out. we are learning from our mistakes and we try not to close the deal with someone who is not someone which can match the frequencies with our branding approach for their brand. We are happy to have a positive response for some of the MNC's and big brands we have worked for and we are proud of it.
What is your strategy against your competition?
In today's time there are a few industries where the competition is not fierce. we are lucky enough that not many design and branding agencies are budding up in our demography. But on the other hand in our Industry where the "big three" with hundreds of Cannes have the most big brands of the country under their belt. So breaking even with local players and getting start up clients works fine but getting an MNC or Big famous brand to put faith in us for their promotions is always hard.
Have you developed any industry insights that you could share?
Advertising Industry is always portrayed as a flashy, fun, creative place to work. It is, but there is also the other side of it which consists of insane working hours, creative block issues, hard to handle clients and what not. Its sort of food industry, like people are going to stop to eat, brand will always need creative agencies for their storytelling reaching out to their desired audience. Time is changing fast and with the ever increasing digital marketing budgets of the brands, the whole industry is moving digital.
What is the future of the industry and how do you plan to stay relevant in this industry?
The Future of the industry surely seems going digital but there is no denying that it cannot work without traditional marketing channels. For me I think Chief Creative Officers or Creative directors will be in league of the CEO's. Moreover mobile marketing is the way to go with more and more people assessing their smartphones for most of their needs.
What do you think about being an entrepreneur in Asia?
Being a Entrepreneur in Asia comparatively harder in my opinion completely based on the deep roots of tradition culture and practices carried out in most countries of Asia. Especially in India a salaried job is considered as a more safer option compared to entrepreneurship.
What is your opinion on Asian entrepreneurship vs Western entrepreneurship?
The market and audience which we get in Asian markets are far more in volume compared to the western markets for most of the products. On the other hand nothing can beat the great startup ecosystem and collaborative atmosphere of the western countries, Its much more easier to grow there.
What is your definition of success?
Success is a very relative thing for me. Based on situations the meaning of success changes for me. For me someone who can conquer themselves is successful, it cannot be measured with numbers.
Why did you decide to become an entrepreneur?
The answer is simple, because i always wanted to. I never wanted a 9-5 job where there is nothing new to learn each morning. Though it was not easy for me being an Engineer coming into creative field and finding success, I never gave up and that is the key.
In your opinion, what are the keys to entrepreneurial success?
Entrepreneurship is not just setting up a venture or doing what you love. Its always the numbers and revenues that you thrive for. I have seen many people start their venture and then drop it due to low revenue numbers or some other reasons, Its not that you will succeed each and every time, its just about not giving up and doing what you love.
Any parting words of wisdom for entrepreneurs out there from your personal experience?
Its not a easy path to reach even somewhere around the top of your vertical, but its always about trying to reach there. There may be 100 ways for that and there are chances you will fail each of the 100 times, But also remember you need to succeed only once.


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Gatsby Shaving Gel Review: Is it the 'cool type' for you?
This shaving gel provides a cooling sensation and moisturizing ingredients to help soothe post-shave irritation.
Gatsby is a Japanese-based brand that makes hair gels, shave gels, and other men's grooming products. When I heard about this brand in the past, I always wondered it if was indeed an ode to F. Scott Fitzgerald's famous novel, The Great Gatsby. It turns out that it really is: read the company's about page to read the full story, but basically, Gatsby's founder was inspired by the lifestyle of the novel's title character.


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If you haven't heard about the mycelium revolution in plant-based food, it won't be long until that's all you hear. With this powerful ingredient set to shake up the plant-based market, we're investigating why it's being dubbed a supernatural resource for innovation, and who's using it.
Digging into the subsoil
While most people think of mushrooms in relation to fungi, mushrooms are merely the fruiting bodies produced by some fungi. They're the tip of the iceberg, so to speak. Mycelium is the remarkable vegetative network of root-like structures that fungi form underground. They have dynamic and almost supernatural capabilities.
In the words of Merlin Sheldrake, a biologist specialising in fungal networks, and author of Entangled Life, "Mycelium describes the most common of fungal habits, better thought of not as a thing, but as a process – an exploratory, irregular tendency."
These root-like structures appear as webbed, branching strands of cells called hyphae. Mycelium is used to communicate, reproduce, and function as an immune system. Incredibly, the immune response not only supports the health and vitality of the fungal organism, but also the health of the surrounding ecosystem (1).
Mycelial networks are extremely fine and strong. As they branch out, they consume organic matter and toxins, breaking them down into nourishment for other living organisms to thrive. This symbiotic relationship between the mycelium and the roots of other plants is known as mycorrhiza. It's altruistic and efficient.
"Over 90% of plants depend on mycorrhizal fungi…which can link trees in shared networks sometimes referred to as the 'Wood Wide Web'."(2)
Fungi and their mycelium networks are among the most widely distributed organisms on Earth (3), it is the fungus mushrooms are made of, but it's capable of, and is already doing, so much more.
The future is fungi
The fast-growing structure and dynamic roles that mycelium carries out have been harnessed for humanity in a number of industries. From innovation in medicine and food to clothing and construction, mycelium makes it possible.
In the plant-based food space, there are a number of players who have successfully used technology to direct the growth of mycelia branches, and create something new.
When you search for mycelium technology, Ecovative will be one of the first businesses to cross your path. Pioneers in this space, Ecovative's MycoComposite™ and AirMycelium™ technology is licensed by brands making foam, food, leather, beauty and packaging (4). In their own words: "Ecovative has unlocked the power of mycelium to grow better, more sustainable materials."
Israeli start-up, Mush Foods, has a unique method of combining fermentation with an AI algorithm to determine the exact growth media and conditions required for a specific volume of mycelium. This property process will drastically reduce the footprint of producing meat alternatives.
Mush Foods seeks to supply its ingredients to brands producing plant-based or hybrid meat products. CEO and founder Shalom Daniel says Mush Foods ingredients will help producers "improve the taste, texture, and nutritional value of plant-based or hybrid products." (5)
And then there's Novozymes – a large technology provider based in Denmark, who is currently focused on enzyme and microbial tech solutions. Last year, having invested $320 million into an advanced protein facility in Nebraska, Novozymes issued a creative collaboration call (6) to the mycoprotein industry. Inviting start-ups, researchers, corporations and NGOs to apply, Novozymes' vision is to co-develop new ways to utilise mycelium, as the protein of the future.
Louise Byrick, executive vice president at Novozymes, said "Transforming our global food systems at scale will require radical new ways of working, bringing together the most cutting-edge scientific and business expertise from across industries and sectors." (7)
Heading back to our roots
The magic of mycelium in plant-based food innovation is that its fibrous branches, paired with mushroom's tantalising umami flavour, could be a revolution in the taste and texture of meat alternatives. Today, we are seeing mushroom mycelium used as the protein in some very in-demand areas: whole-cuts and vegan bacon.
Partnering with industry experts, Ecovative formed a food-focused business, Atlast Food Co, in 2020, which rebranded as Myforest Foods this year (8). Myforest Foods utilises mycelium to produce whole cut, meat-free products. The first retail product, MyBacon®, mimics the familiar meaty texture, umami intensity, and pan-crisping ability, without the animal. Not only is MyBacon® incredibly tasty, but it also contains all nine essential amino acids for a complete source of protein (9). Plus, it contains just six ingredients. Yep – mycelium, coconut oil, cane sugar, sea salt, natural flavourings and beetroot juice. (10) Beat that, bacon.
Lisa Feria, CEO of Stray Dog Capital (the brand behind Miyoko's Creamery and Beyond Meat) notes that a focus on whole cut analogues is the next frontier in alternative proteins: "Mycelium, Atlast's unique ingredient, is nutritious, versatile, and scalable — consumers should get ready to see a lot more mycelium in their stores and on their plates." (11)
After a huge round of funding, Colorado-based food tech, Meati, is also harnessing mycelium to produce whole-cut meats. Their production borrows artisanal fermentation techniques from cheese, bread and beer, making mycelium in a matter of hours (12).
With the protein-rich and filamentous structure of mycelium, Meati's mission of creating vegan alternatives with the appearance, texture and bite of whole cuts of meat can be realised. As they say, however, the proof is in the pudding. Well, after a successful secret restaurant launch in the US, where Meati's 'steak' was trialled in a bánh mì sandwich (13), without customers noticing, we think vegan whole cuts are here to stay.
Meati has recently announced a working collaboration with renowned chef David Chang, who has a history of supporting the new and the unexpected in cooking (14). Chang explores ingenuity in the food industry set to fix our food system in his upcoming series The Next Thing You Eat.
Libre Foods
Barcelona biotech, Libre Foods, seeks to liberate the food system for a more sustainable planet, starting with their vegan bacon. After a successful round of seed funding from the likes of Veg Capital and ProVeg International (15), they are close to market entry.
Despite the vegan bacon boom and success of mycelium overseas, the EU approval for commercial mycelium production is still in progress. Classed by the European Food Safety Authority as a 'novel product' (16) the current iterations of Libre meats are fungi-based but mycelium-absent.
This isn't stopping the optimistic outlook from Founder and CEO Alan Iván Ramos, who believes that approval for the innovative process is around the corner: "We're a rapidly increasing global population and will need tangible, innovative solutions to feed ourselves in the not-so-far future. Fungi can help do that." (17)
Mycelium's potential for innovation in the plant-based food arena is exciting. Brands across the globe are exploring how these incredible structures might be the best ingredient in the issues of climate change, intensively farmed meat, and the ethics of eating animal products.
Since the pandemic, there's been a rise in consumers growing their own mushrooms at home (18), with time-lapse videos of pink oyster, shiitake, and even lion's mane mushrooms sprouting on social media. Does this indicate a growing desire from consumers to understand and better utilise fungi? We think it does, which will make marketing the notion of mycelium-based meat much easier. We can't wait to get started. Can you?
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While you're here, why not have a read of our The Future is Plant report. Download it for free and get your teeth into the endless opportunities within this fascinating market.
- https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/the-mycelium-revolution-is-upon-us/
- Merlin Sheldrake, Entangled Life: How fungi make our worlds, change our minds, and shape our futures. Penguin Random House, 2020. P4-7.
- https://hostdefense.com/blogs/host-defense-blog/mycelium-explained#mushroom-life-cycle
- https://vegconomist.com/company-news/ecovative-leading-fungi-food-and-biomaterial-revolution-with-mycelium-technologies/
- https://www.foodnavigator.com/Article/2021/11/12/Mush-Foods-develops-mycelium-based-ingredient-for-hybrid-meat-products
- https://helloscience.io/open-challenge/myco-protein-innovation-call/
- https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/novozymes-mycoprotein-innovation-call/
- https://vegconomist.com/company-news/atlast-changes-myforest-foods/
- https://ecovative.com/food
- https://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Article/2021/04/15/Meat-from-mycelium-Fungi-fueled-startups-Meati-Foods-and-Atlast-Food-Co-raise-cash-to-make-Holy-Grail-of-alt-meat-whole-cuts
- https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/mycelium-bacon-maker-atlast-secures-usd40m-to-ramp-up-whole-cut-plant-based-meat-production/
- https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/meati-foods-primes-for-mycelium-jerky-whole-cut-meat-launch-this-summer-3/
- https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/mushroom-steak-meati-foods-raises-us28m-series-a-round-for-its-fungi-based-whole-cut-meats/
- https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/meati-mycelium-whole-cut-launch/
- https://vegnews.com/2020/6/whole-cuts-of-vegan-steak-secretly-launch-at-colorado-restaurant
- https://vegconomist.com/investments-finance/investments-acquisitions/libre-foods-raises-e2-2m-at-forefront-of-europes-mycelium-meat-revolution/
- https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/libre-animal-free-bacon/
- https://www.librefoods.co/
- https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/mar/17/mushrooms-as-houseplant


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Trump's Personal Pastor Paula White Prays At Rally For Destruction Of "Every Demonic Network" Opposed To President
President Donald Trump's personal spiritual adviser Paula White kicked off his 2020 re-election campaign rally in Orlando, Florida, Tuesday evening by praying for "every demonic network" aligned against Trump to be destroyed.
White, a renown televangelist, included Bible verses in her prayer and said she believed Trump was "anointed" by God to become the United States' ultimate savior against evil.
"Right now, let every demonic network who has aligned itself against the purpose, against the calling of President Trump, let it be broken, let it be torn down in the name of Jesus!" White prayed at the rally.
Evangelical Christians, who comprise one of Trump's most ardent groups of supporters, fervently believe in the division of the world between light and darkness and good and evil. Liberty University President Jerry Falwell Jr. is one of Trump's most prominent evangelical supporters.
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? WATCH: Pastor Paula White Delivers Opening Prayer at President Trump's… https://t.co/ObDCeXPBMh via @YouTube
— Amy Methvin (@MethvinAmy) June 19, 2019
"I declare that no weapon formed against him, his family, his calling, his purpose, his counsel will be able to be formed," White added before chants of "U.S.A! U.S.A." rang out at Amway Arena.
White reportedly boasts more than three million followers on Facebook. According to HuffPost, several African-American congregation leaders in Florida have rebuked and distanced themselves from White ever since she began growing close to Trump.
Franklin Graham, the son of late evangelist Billy Graham, also commented last month on the media's treatment of Trump by saying, "in the history of our country, no president has been attacked as he has."
Many liberal figures have called out what they view as hypocrisy from evangelicals for supporting Trump, because of his long history of breaking religious values like faithfulness to one's spouse.
Jesus would not approve of this message. "Pastor Paula White began Trump's Orlando rally with a prayer and claimed that demonic network is working against Donald Trump." https://t.co/mr8DrvZJkc
— Barbara Malmet (@B52Malmet) June 19, 2019
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text: Christopher Miller is Acting Secretary of Defense. He is the leader and chief executive officer of the Department of Defense, with command and authority over the U.S. military that is second only to the president. We pray that God will guide him as he helps lead our nation's armed forces.


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One-O-One / Free Soaring Ceramic Tumbler
One-O-One / Free Soaring Ceramic Tumbler
Named after one of the most iconic and tallest skyscrapers in the world located in Taipei, Taiwan. Our One-O-One reinterprets the stunning checkered façade of the building.
Through embossed textures, this series artfully integrates the stateliness of traditional Taiwanese ceramic craftsmanship with the dynamic boldness of European fashion. Balancing minimal with modern and classic with contemporary accents in six trendy colors. The One-O-One collection embodies our innate desire to explore new frontiers. The elegant raised ceramic starburst texture offers a sure non-slip grip for your hand. If a thousand-mile journey begins with a single step, it traverses so many different terrains you are certain to appreciate the functional merits of these stylish mugs no matter where your travels lead.
Eco-friendly throughout, the mugs' walnut wood-effect lids are hermetically sealed, with an ABS outer cap, a new-generation co-polyester Tritan™ inner cap and silicone cover to preserve liquid temperature and prevent leakage.
Tourmaline Anion - Patented Far infrared and negative ion Technology. The tourmaline lining of the tumbler heightens the flavor and freshness of any beverage. The tourmaline's charged negative ions add a pure taste, while neutralizing harsh chlorine and other impurities.
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Date of Graduation
Document Type
Degree Type
Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources
Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering
Committee Chair
Arun A Ross
Computer networks are connected with other networks using one or more dedicated circuits. These dedicated circuits have a finite amount of available bandwidth to transport the data. There is a need to predict the future utilization of these circuits so that additional capacity can be added before the circuit becomes saturated. Once the circuit becomes saturated, network packets will be discarded resulting in a poor end-user experience. It typically takes several weeks or, in some cases, several months for an order of additional capacity to be installed. A network planner should, therefore, know in advance when additional capacity will be required. The goal of this thesis is to develop a system that can predict the traffic utilization of a circuit six months into the future. If this goal can be accomplished, then network planners will have the ability to optimize the provisioning cycle of network capacity. The thesis describes a method to build a model for estimating network traffic data in the future based on current network characteristics. It also proposes a technique for anomaly detection that can be used to determine if the model has to be updated as traffic characteristics may change over time. The performance of the model has been evaluated on six different real-world datasets. Experimental results indicate the strengths and limitations of the proposed model.
Recommended Citation
Masney, Brian E., "Long-term bandwidth estimation" (2006). Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports. 4247.


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No one is going to disagree with me saying that this lovely teen cam boy has got a rare talent. He is wanking off and he ends up shooting a self facial and now his face is even prettier.
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Music is kind of like trash and treasure — it's all in the appreciation.
Last week, the National Security Archive filed a series of petitions (pdf) under the Freedom of Information Act seeking all kinds of data "concerning the use of loud music during detention and/or as a technique to interrogate detainees at U.S.-operated prison facilities used in its War on Terror at Guantanamo, Iraq and Afghanistan during 2002-the present."
The NSA's action was on behalf of a long list of rock-and-rollers, some head-bangers in there, too, from AC/DC to Tupac Shakur with the likes of Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, even Neil Diamond and Nine Inch Nails thrown in between — just about all musical tastes represented.
Torture tunes also included a Meow mix cat food jingle, the Barney theme song and some Sesame Street melodies.
Also unfurled Oct. 22 was the musician coalition from which the FOIA requests were based, the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo, with music as torture underscored:
From the BBC:
In a statement, REM said: "We have spent the past 30 years supporting causes related to peace and justice. To now learn that some of our friends' music may have been used as part of the torture tactics without their consent or knowledge, is horrific.
It's anti-American, period."
Of course, the CIA responded: Spokesman George Little said music was used only for security, rather than "punitive purposes…" and insisted any music was played "at levels far below a live rock band."
Dude, AC/DC can't be played anywhere near "far below" the screaming of a wounded hyena.
Other NSA tidbits, previously revealed (all pdf), which led to last week's filing included:
In 2002, a female interrogator rubbed perfume on a detainee's arm — "At the time of the event the detainee responded by attempting to bite the interrogator and lost his balance, fell out of his chair, and chipped his tooth. He received immediate and appropriate medical attention and did not suffer permanent injury."
And: Interrogators stated that cultural music would be played as an incentive. Futility technique included the playing of Metallica, Britney Spears and Rap music.
Listening to any of those three could, in some musical circles, be considered a heinous form of torture in itself.
Also in 2002: Mohammed al-Khatani: "He had also been deprived of adequate sleep for weeks on end, stripped naked, subjected to loud music, and made to wear a leash and perform dog tricks."
And, Mohammad al-Sliha, at Guantanamo, who was "exposed to variable light patterns and rock music, to the tune of Drowning Pool's 'Let the Bodies Hit the Floor.'"
In 2001/2003, the testimony of Asif Iqbal on his capture and interrogation at Gitmo:Â "After three days I was taken to 'the Brown building.' I was long shackled and sat in a chair. I was left in a room and strobe lighting was put on and very loud music. It was a dance version of Eminem played repeatedly again and again. I was left in the room with the strobe lighting and loud music for about an hour before I was taken back to my cell. Nobody questioned me."
And there's way more.
All of this shit is like reading something out of the Spanish Inquisition or some horrible fiction from some faraway horrible place.
And remember, these sonofabitch US interrogators were acting in all US peoples name, they were representing us, displaying to the whole world, the horror of a lying hypocrisy.
America is a major party to the UN's Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, an international law signed by Ron Reagan in April 1988.
In December 2008, Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails eloquently retorted:
"It's difficult for me to imagine anything more profoundly insulting, demeaning and enraging than discovering music you've put your heart and soul into creating has been used for purposes of torture.
If there are any legal options that can be realistically taken they will be aggressively pursued, with any potential monetary gains donated to human rights charities.
Thank GOD this country has appeared to side with reason and we can put the Bush administration's reign of power, greed, lawlessness and madness behind us."
Or so we hope.


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Ellissa Collier's passion is to create spaces where children and adults from all walks of life can uncover stories of joy, resilience, inspiration, and strength through the power of self-expression. And she hopes to bring that same passion to her new role as Community Arts Curator at the Hatfield House in Fairmount Park!
Ellissa is a community arts advocate, public speaker, facilitator and educator who works with diverse communities throughout the East Coast. She develops art programming, writes curricula, teaches classes and trains professionals in using the arts as a catalyst for healing and personal transformation.
We are thrilled to have her join the team at Fairmount Park Conservancy in a consulting role as Community Arts Curator of the Hatfield House. We had the opportunity to get to know Ellissa better by chatting with her about her ties to Fairmount Park and what she hopes is in the future of the Hatfield House. Get to know her below in our Q&A with Ellissa.
What compelled you to join the Conservancy's team as Curator of the Hatfield House?
The work Hatfield House has done with long term residents over the past few years is inspiring to me. When it comes to community engagement opportunities sometimes residents are shut out of the process or sought out only after decisions have already been made. That's not the case with Hatfield. Hatfield shows us what it looks like when parks and people come together in authentic ways to build healthy, creative, intergenerational spaces.
What are you most looking forward to in your new role at the Hatfield House?
I'm excited for Hatfield House to be the neighborhood showcase it deserves to be. I've heard that our neighbors didn't always feel welcome here in the past. This is an opportunity to right that wrong. Our parks really belong to our residents and I think we're seeing just how important this kind of public access is for everyone especially in times of uncertainty and fear. From what I've learned Hatfield House has been an antithesis to that- its a place of hope, healing and celebration and I'm excited to build on those themes. If we can bring more joy, more justice and more appreciation to people's lives then we're doing something right.
What do you want people to know about the Hatfield House?
I want people to know that we're committed to making Hatfield House a multifunctional space that honors the voices, creativity and heritage of our community members. Even though our parks are taking extra precautions right now and we're practicing social distancing, lots of work is happening behind the scenes. We're taking this time to plan, to continue updating the physical space with repairs and improvements and to meet safely with community members.
What's your personal connection to Fairmount Park? The Strawberry Mansion community?
I've been a member of Fairmount Park Conservancy for years. Like many people, I see the park as an extension of my backyard and a source of comfort and community. I love exploring nature and walking the Trolley Trail. And I always look forward to events like the Boxers' Trail run, performances at the newly built Discovery Center and the West Park Arts Fest. In my other role as an educator focused on community well being, I know the health benefits of being in nature are well documented. When you see the parks through a public health lens, you begin to understand just how important these spaces can be for improving our physical and emotional health.
Strawberry Mansion is a neighborhood I've gotten to know through past work with Mural Arts Philadelphia. There are a significant number of public artworks in the neighborhood and those murals are part of the neighborhood's story. Who a neighborhood chooses to honor can tell you so much about their values and strengths. With Strawberry Mansion there seems to be an emphasis on education, activism, family and celebrating artistic talent.
What do you envision for the future of the Hatfield House in five years?
I want the work we're doing over the next few months to inform what happens in the future. We're taking steps to really document this process not just for future programming at Hatfield House but for other historic houses as well. In 5 years I see us as a model for what's possible when it comes to re-activating public spaces and restoring a sense of community. This building has been underutilized for too long and we've got to make up for that. I see a future of free, intergenerational, culturally relevant programming for years to come
Q&A has been edited and condensed for clarity.


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29 Apr Contra Costa County Expands Coronavirus Testing
Expanded Testing Key to Return to Normal
By Denis Perez-Bravo
Latasha, whose last name and age are not being given to protect her privacy, has recently called off from her job at a nursing home because of headaches.
The Richmond resident is one of many in Contra Costa County with headaches, dry cough, sore throat or other symptoms that have submerged their minds into deep worry that they may have contracted the novel coronavirus.
"I have a lot of fear. I just hope I'm having bad headaches because of the anxiety I have," Latasha said.
As part of a county effort to curb the spread of the virus among health care providers, her workplace made an appointment for her at one of the Contra Costa Health Services testing sites. The nearest to her is in the neighboring city of San Pablo at the West County Health Center on San Pablo Avenue.
She was tested Monday.
That same day, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added headaches to the list of coronavirus symptoms. Other symptoms added are chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, sore throat and new loss of taste or smell.
Symptoms may appear two to four days after exposure to the virus. People with these symptoms or combinations of the symptoms above may have the coronavirus, according to the CDC.
"I needed to get tested, so I can know," Latasha said.
Her routine has been a safe one, she said, going to work and directly back to her house.
Nevertheless, she worries. And she is happy that the county is providing drive-thru testing.
"It subsides my anxiety," she said.
Because she is a health professional, Latasha qualifies to get her test results in 24 hours. Any other resident would have to wait three to five days, Contra Costa Health Services public information officer Will Harper said.
Both drive-thru and walk-up testing is available free of charge for county residents, though people are advised not to come without an appointment.
All testing sites in the county are open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The coronavirus testing at the West County Medical Center consists of a doctor wearing a gown, mask, face shield and gloves providing written information about the test to the patient. Then, the doctor will check the patient's temperature through one of the ears and then stick a 5-inch swab up the patient's nostril. The swab is then placed into a small tube. The tube, which preserves the sample, will then be placed into a biohazard bag. Dozens of bags are then put into a chilled cooler and a courier will pick the cooler up and transport it to medical labs, where the samples will be tested.
Apart from West County Medical Center, other sites that opened up to the public last week were the Contra Costa Public Health Clinic Services in Concord, Martinez Health Center and Pittsburg Health Center. On Monday, the Antioch Health Center also started providing the same services.
Another test site will be added in San Ramon in the coming week, Contra Costa County Deputy Health Officer Rohan Radhakrishna said.
"Testing is an essential part of our strategy to better understand the pandemic in our county and know when and how to safely and slowly reopen society, but it is only a piece of the puzzle," Radhakrishna said.
As of at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, the county has tested 12,406 people. Since opening testing to all county residents on April 22 up to April 27, the county has tested 2,263 people.There are 842 cases in Contra Costa County overall, including 103 cases in Richmond and 49 in San Pablo. The county has seen 25 deaths related to the coronavirus, and 27 residents are currently hospitalized. These numbers and more are available at CCHealth.org.
"Our first priority is symptomatic individuals in high-risk settings," Radhakrishna said.
These high-risk people are residents who live in congregate care facilities, homeless people, health care workers, first responders, dialysis and chemotherapy patients and hospitalized people.
The second priority is "symptomatic everybody." And the third priority is asymptomatic people in high risk settings, Radhakrishna said. An asymptomatic person shows no signs of being sick, though they may still be infected and contagious.
The shelter-in-place order has been extended through May. And to be able to reopen the county and the state, there has to be an army of testers, disease detectives, enough protective equipment and both data and a workforce to monitor and prevent a surge of positive cases in our healthcare system, he said.
The first step to getting to that place is to be able to test everyone. But there are impediments to doing that.
"There are barriers that vary daily like supply of swabs, transport vials and laboratory staff to run the test. Right now we are testing 200 to 400 people per day in the county and want to increase that to 1,500 per day," Radhakrishna said.
County health officials say that residents who believe they may need to be tested for the coronavirus should call 1-844-421-0804 for a phone call screening and appointment date.


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What does Grover Cleveland have in common with a hot dog? Ask the Quinnipiac Film Society.
QFS hosted its 48 Hour Film Festival over the past two weeks, an event that entailed a kick-off meeting, filmmaking and a final screening last Wednesday night. Members of the club teamed up and were given 48 hours to produce a short film incorporating a hot dog, a character named Grover Cleveland and the line, "I've made a huge mistake."
The festival included three teams: one freshman team and two upperclassman teams. One of the upperclassmen teams won with a film titled "Mr. President."
Senior Christina Warchol was the editor of "Mr. President."
"Each group picks out of a hat and gets a genre," Warchol said. "We got thriller."
The film was set at a dinner hosted by President Grover Cleveland. It not only integrated the line, prop and character well, but also included a plot twist ending that stunned the audience. A loyal friend later assassinates him, but the film at first leads the audience to suspect a guest who was thrown out of the party.
Jackie Dolisi, junior and assistant director, spoke about the fast pace of the film's production.
"Right after we got our genre, [we went] to Christina's job in the new school of communications," Dolisi said, since Warchol was unable to make that meeting. "[We] sat down at a table and spat ideas off of each other."
Senior Nicole Rivard was the director of photography.
"We nominated the positions to each other and basically walked up to Christina and told her she was going to be director," she said.
One of the first steps after genre selection was writing the script.
"Sean Kelly wrote it that night [and] did an amazing job," Rivard said.
After the script was written, they could begin filming the next day. Dolisi said they filmed from about 10:30 a.m. until 7:30 p.m.
Warchol and Dolisi joked about how they only used Rivard for her lenses but went on to praise her filming skills.
"Nicole is an amazing director and photographer," Warchol said. "She got on the floor for some scenes. She was so dedicated."
Rivard explained how the film was a learning experience.
"We all learned a lot of different filming positions," she said. "This was my first time being assistant director, which was interesting."
The team said filmmakers must be able to work around unexpected problems. One challenge they faced, besides the time restriction, was with an actor's availability.
"Our main actor, [who played] Grover Cleveland, got a message from his dad in the middle of the day saying that he got tickets for the Mets game that night, so he had to leave," Rivard said. "So, we had to film super quickly because he needed to be out by 5 p.m."
Despite those issues, the team completed the film and wowed the audience and judges. The film ends with a powerful shot of the door closing on the assassin and Cleveland's wife.
The team members could not say enough positive things about the experience. Dolisi and Rivard both praised the director and editor for editing the piece until the moment it was due.
"We didn't want to kill each other at the end of the day which was a plus," Dolisi said. "It was fun and a great bonding experience."