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Long known in Japan for its brilliant Langrisser strategy-RPG games, Career Soft survived the death of Sega gaming consoles by beginning a new series called Growlanser on Sony platforms. Between the PlayStation and PlayStation 2, the development team's newest strategy RPG franchise has already seen 3 separate installments released in Japan. However, none of the above names will bear much recognition among the majority of US-based RPG fans. Other than the early 90's release of the first Langrisser game (titled Warsong in the States) on the Sega Genesis, no Career Soft titles have ever made it over to our shores. Fortunately, thanks to Redding, California-based publisher Working Designs, one of the most overlooked RPG series in Japan (or at least part of it; WD currently has no plans for the first game in the series) will finally arrive in the US at some yet-to-be-determined date.
As Growlanser II opens, the neighboring kingdoms of Rolandia, Burnstein, and Lanzak enjoy tense but peaceful relations a year after the conclusion of a bitter war. Protagonist Wein Cruz, a young scythe-wielding knight, has embarked on his first mission: patrolling the Burnstein border with his apprentice Hans Burt, his longtime friend Maximilian Schneider, and another greenhorn, a girl named Charlone Claudius. On this young group's watch, however, the appearance of a large force of soldiers threatens to reignite the brutal war between the edgy kingdoms. The odd thing here is that the soldiers bear markings unfamiliar to all three regions. So it's up to Wein and his allies to determine who the foreign army is and what its intentions are.
Langrisser veterans should find this plot premise to be immediately familiar, and most should be thrilled to learn that Growlanser II will feature a storyline that branches. Along with characters' performance in battle and information learned from conversations that take place, player decisions determine which plot paths are revealed. These plot paths are represented on the game's Continental Chart, a world map that shows which of its many locations are accessible to the player. And like nearly all of Career Soft's other games, it's safe to assume that a strong level of attention will be paid to the development of interpersonal relationships between characters; it appears that player decisions will also determine the outcome of Wein's love life.
Growlanser II will mimic it's predecessor, playing much like a traditional RPG outside of battles. Also, the first Growlanser's heavily strategic Real-Time Mission Clear system, where battle events affect the mission objective, returns in the sequel. However, Growlanser II's combat will supposedly contain more flexibility than the occassionally restrictive engine of its prequel. For example, instead of being discharged immediately after casting time expires, magic can now be stored: accumulating power as time passes. Stored magic can then be unleashed at any time and even laid down as traps for the enemy. New special attacks are also available to characters who do not wield magic.
Like in many present-day RPGs, characters can augment their weapons by attaching items (in Growlanser II, Spirit Stones) to them. The Spirit Stones in turn bestow attributes to the characters through this association. An interesting twist here is that characters' weapons actually evolve depending on what Spirit Stones are attached to them.
Graphically, Growlanser II retains the sprite-based 2D overhead look of the series' initial installment and of most of the Langrisser games. Screens from the import version and from the semi-playable demos at E3 indicate that the visuals improve on the detail of the attractive maps of the first Growlanser. In addition, Satoshi Urushihara, the brilliantly talented artist of the Langrisser games and Growlanser (and probably best known in the States for drawing the Legend of Lemnear and Plastic Little anime movies), returns to draw for the sequel. The character art for Growlanser II ranks as perhaps the finest that this previewer has ever seen in a US-released game.
All of the Japanese CD-based Langrisser and Growlanser games featured spectacular voice acting accompanying the majority of the dialogue in the game, and it's overwhelmingly likely that the plethora of spoken dialogue will continue when Working Designs, never a company to shy away from voice acting, localizes Growlanser II. However, the soundtrack likely won't fare quite as well. Growlanser II will be the first Career Soft-developed game in which the talented Noriyuki Iwadare doesn't compose at least part of the score, and the Japan-released soundtrack CD has proven to be quite pedestrian, at least after a few listens. Hopefully, the background music will work better accompanying the game than standing on its own.
With beautiful art, deep storyline, and detailed character development, Growlanser II promises to be one of the finer US RPGs available when it is released, as the dialogue-laden game seems to have found a suitable publisher in the dialogue-attentive Working Designs. It won't break any new ground technically, but it should provide an engrossing RPG experience for those willing to take a chance on a game that doesn't feature the flashiest graphics around.
In Japan, Growlanser II was sold in both a regular edition and a limited DX pack. In addition to the game, the DX pack included a postcard set featuring art from the game, a premium telephone card, an official art book, and a brown bandanna with Rolandia's emblem emblazoned on it. There is no word on whether Working Designs will include any of these items with the US version of the game, but judging from their track record, there's a good chance that some extra goodies will find their way into the US release. The North American release date has not yet been disclosed.
Sunday, July 15
Octopath Traveler • 10am PDT/1pm EDT
Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth • 3pm PDT/6pm EDT
Star Ocean: Second Evolution • 2:30pm PDT/5:30pm EDT
Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete • 5:30pm PDT/8:30pm EDT
Alundra • 12pm PDT/3pm EDT
Octopath Traveler • 5:30pm PDT/8:30pm EDT
Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep • 2:30pm PDT/5:30pm EDT
Octopath Traveler • 5:30pm PDT/8:30pm EDT
Final Fantasy IX • 3pm PDT/6pm EDT
The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel (Speedrun) • 6pm PDT/9pm EDT
Octopath Traveler • 5pm PDT/8pm EDT


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Northland (NZ) College principal John Tapene has offered the following words from a judge who regularly deals with youth. He said…
"Always we hear the cry from teenagers 'What can we do…where can we go?'
My answer is 'Go home, mow the lawn, wash the windows, learn to cook, build a raft, get a job, visit the sick, study your lessons, and after you have done that, read a book. Your town does not owe you recreational facilities, and your parents do not owe you fun.
The world does not owe you a living, you owe the world something. You owe it you time, energy and talent so that no-one will be at war, in poverty or sick and lonely again.
In other words grow up, stop being a cry baby, get out of your dream world and develop a back-bone, not a wish-bone. Start behaving like a responsible person. You are important and you are needed. It's too late to sit around and wait for somebody to do something some day. Some day is now and you are somebody.' "
My wish is that this message gets out to more youth than just those in the Far North. Thanks Rachel Goodchild for the link.
Follow @macgibbons

subset: commoncrawl


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Take Me to Your (Male) Leader5 Comments posted by Kristi on Wednesday, September 03, 2008 at 12:00 AM
The report asked respondents to measure eight leaderships traits, including intelligence, honesty, compassion, and creativity. Both the men and women surveyed consistently ranked women higher than men for many of these traits.
70% of those surveyed also said that both genders were equally capable of being political leaders.
However, here's where things take a turn south.
Only 6% of those surveyed said women make better leaders. 21% said men were the better leaders. Keep in mind that men and women held these views almost equally and only a few more men than women thought men made the better leaders.
Why are women doubting their own gender's ability to lead better than men?
Yes, women have made tremendous gains in both politics and business. This country almost witnessed the nomination of its first female presidential candidate. Women head several major companies, including Xerox and Kraft Foods. And yet sexism is endemic in our culture. Women are not given equal pay for equal work. The Fair Pay Act, which would guarantee it by law, is held up in Congress. They earn .77 cents for every dollar earned by men doing the exact same job, even though more women are enrolled in college than men, and receive better grades than men. And the Lilly Ledbetter case demonstrates how difficult it is for women who dare to challenge pay discrimination in the workplace.
Sadly, according the the Pew report, it's mainly the women of my mother's generation who see the need for more social change to ensure women are given equal rights. Apparently, women my age are more complacent, or don't see how sexism impacts their lives. Unfortunately, the results of this survey show the impact of these beliefs.
Until women are guaranteed equal pay for equal work, until this country stops dissecting the wardrobe choices, hairstyles, and family decisions of women vying for top political positions, and until women in high-ranking leadership roles are more than an anomaly, our sisters, aunts, daughters, and granddaughters will continue to believe that men make better leaders than they do.
As a woman and a feminist, these survey results were quite the wake-up call.
5 Responses to "Take Me to Your (Male) Leader"
I hadn't heard of that survey, and I'm glad I hadn't (been staying away from news as of late, except for the hurricane.)
When I worked in news, I was surrounded by men and women who hated Hillary. This was in 2004. I asked one woman why she hated her, and the woman stopped dead in her tracks. She didn't know. She didn't have a reason. Finally, she said that Hillary should have left Bill. I honestly believe had Hillary left Bill, this woman would have criticized her for that.
It's terrible that strong women in the workplace are seen as (not sure about your cussing policy here) female dogs, but men who are strong are just seen as strong.
There's such a double standard, and I think you're right, many of us women play into it as well.
Maybe that feminist should have been attacking this subject in the article that made me so mad!!
if we are trusted to raise our kids... why can't we run companies and countries... I said that when i was little and I still believe it... plus men are just as moody as women so I never wanna hear that we can't because when we pms we would blow up some country... I still think that Nam was one big old PMS mess that some guy started!


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I had never been part of an 'online community' before, but I was excited to find there was a board specific for people getting married in September 2008. Those girls became my lifeline for months and knew every detail about our wedding. They helped me with all of my projects and became a real solid support system.
I am so excited to say that there are a lot of us that are still members of the community and remain in contact each day. I have built some really strong friendships from the message board and it is a integral part of my day.
Some of the ladies I've met in real life and some I hope to one day. I know that no matter what is going on I can turn to them for support, sound advice and some good laughs.
What does all of this have to do with the subject of this post, getting mail? I came home to a package today from one of my "September '08 girls" as I call them. How sweet is my fabulous friend? I can't wait to meet her in real life.


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I keep noticing. I try not to. I try to ignore, but it's my job, so I just can't!
It's unbearable to see women with no sense of fashion. I'm NOT talking about wearing fancy jewelry or clothes. I'm NOT talking about following the trend. (well, some people just don't know how to coordinate what they wear together, but I digress…) I AM talking about the fashion of their own!
Do NOT wear things just because it's popular. Do NOT purchase a wooden bracelet only because Lindsay L. is wearing it. If you want to follow the trend, you will have to buy the whole set of everything; hair, make-up, shoes, jewelry, clothes, etc. Believe me, it's an endless work, and you'll end up nowhere.
One thing I like about LA is that lots of people wear what they want to wear. I'm pretty conservative in fashion, but I love to see people that show themselves. I would never wear sandals with a fur coat. I wouldn't wear a plastic necklace unless my niece made it for me. A pink wig wouldn't be on my head in public ever. BUT, (this is a big "but" here), if it shows YOU, then just go for it. Don't think about what others would say. Life is short. State yourself.
Also wear something that expresses you for the day. Do you feel blue today? Then wear something calm; black and white attire or earthy-toned ones. You want to be casual today? Wear blue jeans with a cotton shirt that has a funky print on. You want to show off today? Wear big jewelry, but not glittery ones. An event is upon you, and you have no idea what to wear? Just go black and white. You don't have to stick out unless you want to.
Fashion is how you show yourself to others. Don't be someone else. And, don't forget, it has to be for YOU too. You don't have to go and buy expensive jewelry. It's important to go out and shop for yourself sometimes (this is another issue), but you don't have to go over your budget to be fashionable. Just be you.
Okay, that's it. I thought I should just say it out loud here, so I can, breathe…again.


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So, in 2012, having painted the shed, and wired it up to give the roses more support, we dug out the grass weeds and muddle and planted it up with irises, which started life in our old garden in 2008
These were beautiful for a couple of years,
but gradually we got less and less flower and more and more weeds - the lack of flower I think because the soil was poor and tended to be very waterlogged in the winter - the weeds due to my not having the energy or is that diligence, to keep on top of things.
So this year, taking our cue from the two rather beautiful roses which thrive and were here when we arrived,
my Good Soul dug up the remaining irises, still quite a collection I might add, and will take them off and nurture them until we decide where to try next. They have been very forgiving so far, so I hope they do well once we move them to their new place - probably in the front garden where they will get lots of sunshine to bake their rhizomes.
I then spent about six days, on and off, taking it mindfully, pacing myself to avoid too many aches and pains, and dug through the whole bed. I pulled out all the weeds and as much suspicious root as I could, then turned in a generous quantity of composted manure and mulch and mix to feed the soil. The process reminds me in an odd way of making pastry or mixing up a cake - not that I do much baking, but it's a similar thing, just on a much larger and more exhausting scale and the heat comes from the sun rather than an oven!
Having done all that I have planted it up with three more roses; deep plum, stripy pink and dusky peach, in the hope that, like those already there, they too will thrive. I've tucked in some annuals; blue pansies and some pinks,
and rich rusty magenta petunias,
Also a few perennials; columbine, my very favourites, to join the self seeded one that was there already,
don't you just love their little curly topped seedheads?
really, you can't have too many
Also some speedwell, a couple of sedums from another much loved Aunt's garden and a some geraniums (not pelargonioums) which will bush up and give us more blue and pink. Oh, and added some edging to the bed - a slightly obtrusive plastic one that I hope will tone down a bit as the years go by. It should prevent the grass from taking over again.
Now to sit back and look forward to seeing what the summer will bring.
Qute a change from the picture up top eh? Look how those roses have grown.


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|Photo Courtesy of Modern Net
So we finally took the plunge and booked our flights to Hong Kong! I'm so excited to be spending this Christmas and New Years Eve in Hong Kong this year...not only that, it will be my first ever Christmas out there! The amount of times I've been, I have never spent Christmas there so I am super duper excited!
If you have never been before, Hong Kong is one of the most densely populated cities in the world, but also one of the most amazing cities I have been to (I know I am biased right there!). Shopping haven of the world and delightful food kingdom - I am actually most looking forward to all the delicious and yummy food out there and am all ready to over-indulge...it's Christmas after all ;)
Of course, I can't forget the shopping that will be unmissable (if a bad thing for my purse) I know I will spendng sooo much so am currently trying to hold back at the moment. HK is known for shopping and everything is so affordable, especially beauty items, so I always make sure that I stock up on everyday products and tools. Having never been for Christmas, I am excited to shop for Winter clothing there too (I will ban myself from buying stuf from stores such as Zara and H&M though...!)
So if you have been following me on Twitter/Instagram, you may have heard me going on about my love for Balenciaga, and of course counting down to pick up my B bag! After my friend picked it up for me from Vegas, I've been counting down the days to pick it up -finally I am able to get my hands on this smoochy baby!!! Obviously this is the main reason I am heading back to HK... ;) Can't wait...will defo share with you when I pick it up.
This year has flown by so fast, and before I know it, it will be time to fly....yet I have so much going on and to prep before I am even ready. All in all, this has been an amazing year so far and I know it will only get better for 2013. Apparently, dreams do come true...looking forward to the exciting times ahead <3
Thanks for reading lovelies & Happy Thanksgiving to all those in the US xoxo


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Wednesday, March 24, 2010
E-blast Question of the Week
Currently, TRICARE is not affected by the health care reform provision to cover dependent children in health plans up to age 26. By law, TRICARE covers eligible dependent children up to the age of 21, or up to age 23 if enrolled full time at an accredited institution of higher education and reliant on the sponsor for more than 50 percent of their financial support. Coverage ends on the child's 23rd birthday or at the end of that school year, whichever comes first.
TRICARE leadership is committed to providing the best possible health care plan and is evaluating how contracts might be changed to meet the spirit of the new law. ROA will share information once it is released, but DoD health affairs remind us that it takes time to develop regulatory and policy language and implementation guidance.
9 comments:
- Steve Carey said...
"DoD health affairs remind us that it takes time to develop regulatory and policy language and implementation guidance."
Please remind DoD Health Affairs that it took a week to get the hasty ammendment through which ripped tricare out of the "national" health plan. I believe this hasty knee-jerk reaction will not serve the military well. Rather you should have gone throught the bill and cherry picked the "good" aspects like the dependent care through age 26 and presented an ammendment that was not exclusionary but inclusionary.
I hope DoD Health Affairs works as quickly to include our dependents to age 26 and other aspects of the national plan that do not penalize the soldier and his/her family.
- March 24, 2010 at 2:36 PM
I agree with Mr. Carey/previous. ROA should move swiftly to add this provision for protection up to age 26 for dependent children.
- March 24, 2010 at 4:57 PM
- Gordon said...
I disagree with Steve any additional mandates increases the cost of the plan, even "good" mandates. Tricare already covers all pre existing conditions so a fix there is not needed. Extending coverage to all categories of reservist is the pressing need and is in concert with Reserve leadership plans. STAY AWAY FROM COORDINATION WITH OBAMACARE!!!!!
Gordon T. Austin CAPT DC USN
- March 24, 2010 at 10:41 PM
I agree with Gordon. Veterans benefits under Tricare should avoid being connected as much as possible (in reality or perception) with the new health care bill. Additionally, I disagree with covering dependent children to age 26 under their parents insurance. IMHO a 26 year old should be taking care of themselves unless physically or mentally unable to do so.
- March 25, 2010 at 8:01 AM
Subject: Our TRI-CARE FOR LIFE Problems!.
Hey Folks!... This is how the healthcare reform will change the Military benefit - Tricare. Representatives all year long. Now did you do it? This is true. It is on pages 77, 172, 218, and 434. You have to dig to see the charges.We (retirees) would lose the Medicare for life benefit and would have to pay. We would lose TRICARE as a total care package. We would not be allowed to keep TRICARE so when Obama stands and says if you like what you have you can keep it, he lies. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has already drafted proposed legislation that would basically reduce our TRICARE for Life benefits to a system whereby we pay deductibles and co-pays up to $6,301 the first year for you and your spouse, with future years being indexed to increase with inflation. What can we do? The article below, obtained from an Air Force Association and written by BG Bob Clements, best describes what we can do.
The one item of most interest to Retired Military is in Article 189. If approved by Congress the first assault wave would hit in 2011 and would hit hard. It would initiate cost sharing to require retirees to pay the first $525 of medical cost and 50% of the next $4,725 for a first year cost of $2,888 per person. It would be indexed to increase with inflation. A reason given for this action (for PR effect) is "overuse" by Retirees. For those of you who are covered by TFL you will want to pay attention (Below) to what BG Bob Clements has surfaced about the future of TFL. In any case, on page 189 of the Congressional Budget Office report, see the note below on how to get to that spot, there is a strong recommendation to eventually eliminate the program as it is too expensive. Just another move to slight those of us who dedicated much of our adult lives to the defense of our country. Strongly recommend that you contact your elected officials and register your strong opposition to the elimination of the TFL program. Heads-up from BG Bob Clements,USAF Ret (P38 Bob).
The following has been added to the Congressional Budget Office Web Site
*www.cbo.gov/ * *
* a. Budget, Options, Volume 1: Health Care *
http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/99xx/doc9925/12-18-HealthOptions.pdf For those who have never opened one of these web sites from OMB: *
* 1) double click on the above URL *
* 2) click on the binoculars *
* 3) do a search for TFL by typing in TFL in the search box and then click on search. Each TFL line is a link to the OMB sine containing the words TFL.
Now here it is folks and I will guarantee if you sit around on your behind and do nothing about it as they bring these options forward this coming year, you will lose one of the best healthcare benefits that the Medicare eligible retired military have.. Remember- TFL is an "Earned Benefit" that's been granted by a previous Congress. *
Is this true?
- March 25, 2010 at 2:09 PM
- ReserveOfficer said...
The above statement posted by annonymous with the subject line "Our TRI-CARE FOR LIFE Problems!" is a factually eroneous statement based on an incorrect viral email initiated elsewhere, which ROA has been trying to clean up for over 18 months. For correct information, visit http://www.roa.org/site/DocServer/090804_National_Health_Plan_Tricare.pdf?docID=20061.
- March 25, 2010 at 2:28 PM
- ReserveOfficer said...
HR 4923 proposes extending TRICARE to dependants up to age 26, so it's in the works.
- April 13, 2010 at 1:58 PM
- ReserveOfficer said...
The Reserve Officers Association has received a number of phone calls from its membership asking about when dependents up to age 26 will be included under TRICARE healthcare. ROA has already been briefed by the TRICARE Management Activity that DoD health affairs is preparing to extend this coverage. Nicknamed TRICARE 26, It will require the publication of a interim federal rule, which will have to be approved by the Office of Management and Budget before formal action can be taken. Rep. Martin Heinrich's bill, H.R. 4923 would provide the congressional authorization needed to support this action by the Pentagon.
Marshall Hanson
Director of Legislation and Naval Services
Reserve Officers Association
- April 13, 2010 at 3:58 PM
Gordon: Why should people take advice from a person who smacks children in the face and tells them to shut up while operating on them, with three Dental Assistants as witnesses... then tries to blame it on the media instead of being a responsible man?
- July 31, 2010 at 8:09 AM


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The first trailer for the CW's latest addition to their DC television universe, Black Lightning, has been released following months of speculation.
The series will follow Jefferson Pierce, the retired superhero known as Black Lightning who quit crime fighting for his family. Since then Jefferson has gone on to become a high school principal and fights to help his students in a different way.
When Jeffersons daughter Jennifer is recruited by a local gang, however, Black Lightning comes out of retirement to clean up the streets once again.
Black Lightning is scheduled to air as CW's midseason show this coming winter.
Go to Amy's Blog


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Dr. Collins has always fantasized about the female students in his college classes. He never expected one of his students, a sexy girl named Elizabeth, has fantasies of her own in which he plays a starring role. Now Elizabeth wants the real thing, and like the saying goes…some of those who teach, can also do.
Taught by Jenna Owens is every man's fantasy and a woman's secret desire. This short story fired up the e-reader as Dr. Collins' sexual desires permeated through the pages as he ogled the female students in his class. The fantasy soon becomes reality as one of his students yearns for the same thing and staying after school takes on a whole new meaning.
Ms. Owens portrayal left nothing to the imagination as she took the reader from zero to sixty in the first few pages of this short story, and she never looked back. If you were expecting hearts and flowers then this is not the tale for you. But, if you are looking for a quick encounter that is sexually motivated with no strings attached, then by all means read away.
The story moves quickly as both main characters know what they want and make no mistakes in asking. It is steamy and naughty; completely erotic and wonderfully kinky. Sometimes the ending is well worth the wait even if it is not totally what you expected. Read it in bed and let your imagination run wild.
Definitely S.E.X.
A 5 Handcuff Review


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CARDIFF CITY manager Lennie Lawrence last night warned his players not to take crisis-torn Reading lightly tonight.
The Bluebirds visit a Royals' side rocked by manager Alan Pardew's decision to resign last week after he was stopped from talking to West Ham over the prospect of replacing Glenn Roeder.
Reading chairman John Madejski, who blocked talks between Pardew and the Hammers, refused to accept Pardew's resignation.
Now the former Crystal Palace player is on "gardening leave" while senior responsibilities have been handed over to first-team coach Kevin Dillon.
And the Royals also tasted their first defeat of the season on Saturday, ironically at West Ham.
But Lawrence will tell his Bluebirds to forget about the Pardew crisis as they look to stretch their unbeaten run to five matches at the Madejski Stadium.
"I don't know what effect the managerial problem at Reading will have on their players. It's hard to say," said Lawrence.
"But we have got to go into this game as if everything is normal at Reading, as if Alan Pardew was still in charge. Otherwise we will be beaten.
"I know they have just lost at West Ham but a lot of teams in this division are going to lose there this season. You must not read anything into that result.
"This is their first home game without Alan Pardew as their manager this season and we have to be on the front foot. We've got to be up and at them.
"I think Reading will be up for this match and we will have to be at our best if we are to beat them."
City and Reading are both on 11 points and the Bluebirds will gladly accept a repeat of their last visit to the Madejski Stadium, in September 2001 when Leo Fortune-West scored twice in a Second Division fixture Cardiff won 2-1.
"Reading are a quality side. They have as much pace as we do, if not more," said the City chief.
"We know all about Scott Murray. Steven Sidwell is apparently attracting interest from Premier League clubs. Andrew Hughes is lively, James Harper is quality and Shaun Goater is a proven goalscorer."
Harper had a loan spell at Ninian Park during the 2000-01 season while the Reading defence is marshalled by veteran Wales defender Adie Williams.
Goater, who joined the Royals during the summer, scored 85 goals in 187 outings for his previous club Manchester City and was linked with Cardiff.
Lawrence has seen his charges win three and draw one of their last four league outings - and they head east along the M4 boosted by Saturday's 5-0 thrashing of Gillingham.
"We have done well so far this season," he said. "We have done better than expected.
"Several of our players, such as Chris Barker, are finding it easier in the First Division than they did in the Second.
"We don't have that unbelievable, ridiculous pressure that was on us in Division Two when we were expected to win every home game 4-0.
"We are being seen as the First Division's surprise package because we went up via the play-offs.
"I'll have a better idea of what we can do this season after this week's matches (at Reading and Sheffield United).
"We won at Nottingham Forest which is a hard place to go to. Now we have to travel to two more tough places this week.
"I see Reading and Sheffield United as top eight sides."


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Days after days I kept on thinking on how to get this book. If I buy a new one, it's not gonna worth it since I THINK I'm gonna use this only for neuroanatomy (which will end by this winter)
I tried to find the cheap ones in Amazon - failed
I tried to find second hand book - failed
I kept on searching the book in Boole library and Brookfield library - failed
Hari-hari risau memikirkan buku ini memandangkan rakan-rakan yang memilikinya akan menggunakan buku ini bila peperiksaan menjelang...
Until today :D
Found it at the library, finally!
Lega lega...
Then I found out, the Neuroanatomy & Embryology exam will be before winter hols, LEGA lagi!
But I have one lecture on cross infection on 15th of December which highly likely will be skipped lah of course!
Lega lega...
By the way..winter has started. Somehow I am thankful my room is the smallest AND also the warmest. I can sleep without wearing all those thick clothes. Only duvet and my fleece throw is enough for a good night sleep :)
Tapi kesejukan diluar yang sebenar tak tergambar aar..Once I opened my bedroom's door...brrrr...the cold breeze is freezing off my brain and my body...Nasib lah dari last year dah training duduk dengan ice
Hurm hurm...lousy updates. Better stop here.
Ta people!


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An architectural designer is an architect that is primarily involved in the design of buildings or urban landscapes, as opposed to the construction documents and management required to construct it. Architectural designers have good creative skills, imagination and artistic talent. Although most students of architecture are trained to be designers in school, not all become designers in practice. Non-registered designers are similar, but cannot legally refer to themselves as "architectural" designers in most parts of the world. Most are referred to asbuilding designers, especially when not employed by an architectural firm.
Source 2: businessdictionary.com
Concept that focuses on the components or elements of astructure or system and unifies them into a coherent and functional whole, according to a particular approach in achieving the objective(s) under the given constraints or limitations. See also behavioral design.
Source 3: Dictionary.com
The profession of designing buildings, open areas,communities, and other artificial constructions
and environments, usually with some regard to aesthetic effect. Architecture often includes design
or selection of furnishingsand decorations, supervision of construction work, and the examination,
restoration, or remodeling of existing buildings and similar structure.


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An industry-wide predicament was outlined in last month's inaugural HIMSS Analytics Workforce Survey.
While the survey found that three out of four healthcare provider organizations plan to hire IT professionals in the next year, 31 percent said they had to put a project on hold because of staffing shortages, with an additional 19 percent expressing that they were weighing a similar stoppage. More so, 43 percent of providers and 56 percent of vendors cited a lack of qualified talent pool was their biggest challenge to staffing their environment.
In addition, 76 percent of healthcare providers currently outsource a service rather than hire directly. The HIMSS survey, which included the responses of 224 executives, isn't the first indication of this crisis. The 2012 CHIME CIO survey, from last September, found that 67 percent of healthcare CIOs were reporting IT staff shortages. Another survey, from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), had 62 percent of healthcare organizations expressing concern in a lack of qualified IT applications.
The surveys from HIMSS, CHIME, and PwC are revealing. The problems that healthcare organizations are facing with IT staffing shortages have gotten more pronounced since the enactment of Meaningful Use of electronic health records under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act.
According to Shane Pilcher, the vice president of Stolenberg Consulting, a Bethel Park, Penn.-based consulting firm, this has been developing for a while. Hospitals used to primarily train people from various departments—clinical and financial—to be health IT programmers, he says. Furthermore, there were high retention rates and very little attrition for those in place, except when people retired. These two factors created a limited pool of resources.
Shane Pilcher
When meaningful use kicked in, it evaporated that pool entirely, Pilcher says. "Providers grabbed up someone who fit their culture and now they are holding onto them, because meaningful use is a marathon. So it went from a shortage to a crisis," he adds.
In the HIMSS workforce survey, those who said they had to put a project on hold said that meaningful use and the conversion to ICD-10 took precedence over other initiatives such as system installations, EMR integrations, and system hardware upgrades, and enhancements. The respondents say any delay causes inefficiencies to continue and put organizations at risk of software and hardware components breaking down.
Staff burnout is another possible cause of an understaffed, overworked IT staff, the HIMSS report found. Pilcher says that today's experienced professionals have been staying in a long-term implementation situation, which tends to burn people out quickly. "What we're seeing is those who might not have wanted to retire, after a few years of high paced/high stress implementation and knowing we still have a few more years left, are changing their minds," he says.
If it's not retirement, then maybe it's a highly productive member of the team getting lured to a competing organization or an industry vendor. Right now, vendors are scooping up a good chunk of the talent, which is making it even harder for provider organizations. In the CHIME survey, 85 percent of CIO respondents were worried about staff retention.
How to Solve a Problem like Staffing Shortage
Pilcher says healthcare organizations have slim chances of finding an experienced health IT professional. Instead, he suggests that one somewhat obvious step they can take to solve this problem is finding venues, such as a university program, to partner with and provide strong candidates. They should use their senior leadership and develop an internal training program to help those new employees get up to speed and cut down on the learning curve.
Third-party consultants are another idea, and both the HIMSS and CHIME surveys indicate that many healthcare organizations are seriously considering going that route. Another possibility is to cross over clinicians and train them from an IT perspective. However, Pilcher says, the problem with that is other areas, such as nursing, are facing shortages as well.
"[The best strategy to deal with the shortage] has to be a combined approach. Certainly teaming with an organization in your area will not only help meet the requirements today, but your strategic needs down the road. Also, engaging consultants that are knowledgeable and can blaze the path for you," Pilcher says. "They have to invest in hiring and training someone through the process, it's a lot of upfront investment for the recurring investment coming in a couple of years."
To this point, Pilcher recommends long-term planning so if something comes up, an organization will know how many people are required. Assigning resources this way can reduce burnout, he says.
"They have to be more proactive than reactive. Using those mentoring relationships, whether it's external or internal, is a critical piece to making sure your staff can maintain things in the future," Pilcher says.
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Staffing shortages or Budget shortages
I work for a Healthcare IT Staffing firm (The Holland Square Group). The recent trends seem to indicate that healthcare facilities are moving away from consultants and seeking permanent employees as replacements for contractors in an effort to save funds. Many large healthcare systems are now focusing budget on ICD-10 upgrades which has created budget shortages in other areas of EMR implementation. More forward-thinking organizations are allowing consultants to work remotely (which saves hundreds of thousands of dollars in travel expenses and opens up more resources since working remotely is highly desirable to consultants), or hiring permanent employees without requiring relocation or training a new hire that has some but not all of the desired qualifications. Fortunately my company provides both consulting and permanent placement resources so the industry trends have not yet decreased our level of activity. A large pool of qualified candidates remain - the challenge is in finding the employer that is willing to show flexibility to bring the right people on board.
Health IT Hiring Crisis
I'm an IT and Finance professional, most recently an SVP in IT at a major money center bank. I've applied for a number of positions in healthcare IT project management and typically never hear anything back from either the recruiter or the ultimate healthcare organization.
With so many projects and initiatives on hold, and with employees feeling burnt out, why am I not seeing more qualified people getting hired? I attend a number of networking groups (e.g. Technical Executives Networking Group, Finance Executive Networking Group, etc.) and there are lots of qualified people trying to get onto hiring managers' radar.
Contact me if you'd like to reach us.


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When in actual fact he looks like this:
Thursday, June 8, 2017
A difficult lizard
When in actual fact he looks like this:
10 comments:
Two different lizards! Scanners and screens transform things.ReplyDeleteReplies
My scanner trying to get in on the 'altered' postcard idea.Delete
Thanks for featuring this bit of my art, Phillip!ReplyDeleteReplies
Thanks for sending it, and welcome to the blog. He is a fab lizard!Delete
I m also surprised to see how much scanners change the look of some images... On my side I habe turned off the "auto adjustment" feature on my scanner and this has improved a bit but still...ReplyDeleteReplies
This is the first time my new scanner has not scanned a color normally (except for fluorescent, which it never scans right). In the past I have tried placing such 'difficult' pieces in the opposite direction on the scanner, but that didn't work here. I have no idea where the auto adjustment setting is on my scanner..... maybe I should investigate.Delete
Here the scanner turns bright orange into pale red/pink, too. And neon (fluorescent) colours vanish, too.ReplyDelete
Anyhow, I love to see this lizard, both versions :-)Replies
I agree, he looks great from all angles and colors.Delete
there is a simple explanation to this. It is not the scanner, the Lizard is clearly a chameleon (:ReplyDeleteReplies
I would like to see him in a range of blue. Maybe if I wait to scan him in winter?Delete


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You´re going to love this story, taken from this GameFAQs thread. The logo is cropped from this large image (585 KB), showing a scan of an A4 sheet of paper, entitled ´E3 2005 presentation´. Below the logo, there are the following keypoints:
* ElectroPlankton/Nintendogs
* DS Wireless Gaming
* Game Boy Micro
* Revolution Revealed
* Mario´s Magic Mirror
The best is the story about how this guy apparently got hold of this paper:
I found this paper while cleaning one of NoA offices (I work for a janitorial services company in Redmond WA) I thought it was a simple discarded E3 presentation sheet. (Me being the huge N fan I am I kept it, but didn't think anything else of it.)
Wow, this guy must be the coolest janitor in gaming history since Roger Wilco! Anyway, so he apparently kept this sheet and decided to post it now, because he came across this GameSpot thread:
To all interested in info concerning the Nintendo Revolution:
I Work for Nintendo of America and have some information you all my find very interesting concerning the "Revolution" and E3. What was presented to the public during Nintendo's press conference was not what was originally intended to be shown. What you all saw was a rush job slapped together because of a panic due to a security breach. One week before the press conference the company had reason to believe that someone had stolen a copy of the "Revolution" presentation. (If it was by hacking r physically taken it I do not know.) Do to the risk that the video may have fallen into the hands of competitors Nintendo scraped all of their original plans for the conference. (And are reworking some of the aspects of the "Revolution" console and controllers just to be safe...thus the reason they are not done yet.) Originally, the presentation lineup included: the final version of the next gen console...complete with controllers, information and stats concerning the "Revolution" and a video clip of a new next generation Mario game. The next gen console's actual name is Nintendo Infinity. (Assuming they don't change that too.) You can in fact see part of the Infinity presentation in the notorious "Nintendo On" video clip. Both the scenes of the Mario 64 castles and of the next gen Mario game are from the original presentation. When questioned the maker of the "On" video he claimed to that he found the presentation on a P2P file sharing network, and he himself thought it to be fake, but decided to use part of it for his own project. The "Infinite Castles" scene as it was called was intended to represent the Nintendo Infinite's ability to play virtually every Nintendo game ever made in addition to all the new games that would be releced. The Mario scenes (and screen shots found on some websites) are from a game called "Mario's Magic Mirror". The game tells the story of how one day, Mario, Luigi, and Peach were walking in the castle. They turned a corner and suddenly found themselfs in an unfamiliar corridor. Upon inspection they found a mysterious magical mirror which Luigi is sucked into. Peach and Mario must rescue him by searching through the Mirror World with "Mirror Mario" and "Mirror Peach" to help and guide them. Mario has all his classic moves with the addition of the old ability to throw fireballs. Peach has similar moves as Mario but instead of throwing fireballs she has a makeup compact that she can use to shine light on enemies in the Mirror Wold. (The effect is much like if antimatter would come in contact with matter.) Also the four characters can even team up to do battle combos! In the game you can switch between the two worlds to change the mirror's position in Mario's world. This unlocks new areas and causes different effects...it can even change the size of Mario and Peaches' mirror counterparts! If you re-watch the press conference you will noticed that the presentation seems very awkward and thrown together. As I said, to protect their new investment the company had to scrap everything. This is also why Nintendo had to label their new system with the hideous last minute "Revolution" logo, and naturally why the final console and controller were not displayed. I hope this helpd shed some light on some things.
Mr. H
Now, this whole thing is a complete and utter fake, of course. Pablo never said that any part of the ON clip was taken from a P2P network. And who should have put the presentation there in the first place, if not the janitor? Nintendo´s dinner lady?


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FREE Arm & Hammer Truly Radiant Toothpaste Sample
There's a lot of talk about teeth whitening these days, but a radiant smile is so much more than that. This revolutionary new toothpaste does much more than just whiten, it goes beyond the surface to strengthen, clean and repair tooth enamel for a radiant smile in just 5 days!
Get a FREE Arm & Hammer Truly Radiant Toothpaste Sample! This offer is available again! If you requested the Arm & Hammer sample before, you may need to use a different email address to be able to request this offer.
Just follow this link to get the freebie:


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Right. Here it is, courtesty of Nancy Friedman's Fritinancy. My favorite (nicked impolitely from her blog–but she took the piccy, not me!) is this one:
Yup. Sody Pop.
Such is the aim of this campaign that they apparently actually call it station domination. Be afraid, I say, be very afraid.
Such is also the sway that the mere image and thought of Pepsi has over people that the properly executed sways hearts and minds in ... unpredictable ways.
A FreeRepublic message thread I accidentally (trust me ... the existence of FreeRepublic strongly suggests that hell is full and the dead walk the earth) hit on my travels to find the above was apparently written by someone who didn't get the memo that the development of the new-look Pepsi logo had nothing to do with the devlopment of the Obama logo.
I mean, they're both in circles, right? What are the odds?
If you want to peer into the abyss, go here. You have been warned.
Technorati Tags: Pepsi logo, new pepsi logo, cultural perceptions of logos, vox pop


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Saturday, August 20, 2011
Night photography
6 comments:
Oh I love this - I love seeing people`s streets and enjoyed the night tour of where you live. My favorite is `up the street`. I think it has to do with the effect caused by the moonlight and the car`s approaching headlights.ReplyDelete
I love the next to last shot with the dim lighting. Very interesting.ReplyDelete
these are great night shots Leanne. I especially like the second one - that home looks so inviting. I want to live there! I'm usually disappointed in my own shots when darkness sets in, but yours are fab. happy weekend to you.ReplyDelete
I love the house with the porchlight on! It's so warm and welcoming to me. I'm so happy to have you linking in with Exploring with a Camera, great examples!ReplyDelete
Lovely shots. I also love the house with the porchlight on and the colours in the sky in up the street. Beautiful.ReplyDelete
Nicely captured! Night photography can become addicting. :)ReplyDelete


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Bron, lovely to have you here. First of all, can we go back to basics? Can you please tell us something about your journey as a writer?
Thanks for inviting me, Anna. It's a pleasure and a privilege. How did I get here? Courtesy of a mid-life crisis of sorts. I was approaching a landmark birthday, and the "I'm going to write a book someday" started to niggle away at me. I thought if I didn't start soon, I might never finish that one book. As with most things I do, I procrastinated for months. I read how-tos, joined Romance Writers of Australia, read and read and read. Luckily I didn't have internet to glom or I might never have started. But I did and I fell in love from day one. Writing romance, where had you been all my life? Five years later I received the call from Leslie Wainger at Silhouette books. I'd never actually submitted anything to Silhouette Desire but fell into the right place courtesy of a contest final.
Your new book VOWS & A VENGEFUL GROOM sounds great, really passionate and dramatic. Can you tell us a little bit about it?
This is the part where I whimper because I'm so BAD at blurbing my own book. You'd best cut me off if I can't condense it into "a little bit". VOWS -- my working title was "Perrini's Boardroom Bride" -- is a reunion romance about workplace colleagues, and secret lovers, who married too quickly and for the wrong reasons. Ten years later Ric Perrini and Kimberley Blackstone are reunited after a tragic plane crash sends shock waves through the diamond company where they met. Kim had sworn never to return while her father was alive. Now he's dead and Perrini wants her back, at Blackstone's and in his bed. But can she trust his motives? Does he want her, the woman, or does he want the power she wields as the Blackstone heiress? So, there's passion, drama, intense emotion, a struggle for power in the boardroom, a family feud, and rumours of a scandalous affair that's about to rip this family even further apart.
You've worked on a couple of continuity series for Harlequin where a number of authors come together to write linked books. Can you tell us some of the rewards and challenges of working this way? Can you give us some insight into how you go about creating a continuity series?
This is the fourth continuity series I've worked on and the most challenging by far. The first three were editor-led -- the editors came up with the series concepts and storylines and invited the authors to participate. The editors wrote the series bible.
This series, DIAMONDS DOWN UNDER, is author-led. We came up with the concept, the characters, the storylines, and put together a proposal which Melissa Jeglinski, the Desire senior editor, loved. We wrote the (lengthy) bible, which is the source document to ensure we get all the details right from book to book. It contains character sketches, family tree, backstory, settings, locations, company structure, contents of a will, plane crash logistics, timelines, and detailed synopses of the six stories. In other words, this was a lot of work which makes the reward of finishing a series we're proud of all the more sweet.
The series sounds fantastic! Can you give us some insight into how you put a book together? Are you a pantser or a plotter? How does your working day pan out?
I am most definitely a plotter. Before I start writing, I've already written a detailed synopsis which I expand into an outline. I spend A LOT of time pre-writing and jotting down scene ideas and snippets of dialogue. When I write it's pretty much a final draft. I'm not saying I write one-time perfect; I edit as I go. I guess my outline with all those snippets and scene ideas incorporated is something of a first draft.
As for my working day: I'm a slow starter. I do email and home stuff first thing while I'm still waking up. I try to start writing mid-morning but often it's more like midday. I work through to dinner. If I have to, I'll do some more at night but usually 6-8 hours is enough to finish my brain off for the day. A glass of wine at dinner completes the job.
You write the most marvelous sensual tension. Honestly, it's edge of the seat (and steaming up windows) stuff. A lot of people who visit the Banditas are writers. Can you give us any hints as to how you build the heat between your couple?
Gosh, thank you. That's just the loveliest compliment coming from you! So, this is the part I don't plan, but I guess it's a direct result of my own love of the intense, delicious, seething underbelly of sex ten. My best tutors, I think, were historical romance authors who aren't afraid of lush, evocative, sensual language.
It has to be there from first meeting, in the eye contact, the impact of first touch, the snap of dialogue, but in a covert and intriguing way. It's not all T&A. From there it needs to build scene by scene, a function of the pull of primal attraction versus the push of whatever conflict prevents them acting on it. I think the secret is in the build. If you go all-out from the start, where is there to go? Something you do so well, Ms. Campbell.
Why, thank you, Ms. Jameson! Something that's struck me is that Australians seem to do really well internationally in the romance industry. Why do you think this is?
Interesting question. Hmm. think many of us start out independently (not as part of a chapter or critique group) and so we develop a strong voice -- or don't lose our strong voice -- by being told "you can't do this" or "you can't write like that". We're probably a bit fearless in the storylines we tackle, for the same reason. Also, I'm told we do the alpha male particularly well; I'm not sure why that is, but I do know that it stands us in good stead with editors everywhere.
What are you working on now?
A new series for 2009 which starts with an unintentional sister swap, a case of mistaken identity with two brothers, and miscellaneous twists involving identity, which (needless to say) is the overall theme. A large part is set in England and so I get to include a society wedding, a country house party, polo, Bond Street shopping, a weekend in Paris, and all manner of things that I find quintessentially British. Including a titled hero with a delicious James-Bond voice. It's definitely not as intense as my last two books. I'm able to have some fun with these characters and situations. I'm having a ball.
Bron, sounds like the usual delicious romance you dish up to your ever-hungry readers! Particularly love the idea of the James Bond voice. Sort of you had me at hello!
Bron has really reached into her treasure chest and put together a fabulous Aussie prize pack. One lucky commenter will win not only VOWS & A VENGEFUL GROOM, but also THE PRINCE'S OUTBACK BRIDE by Marion Lennox, CONTRACTED: WIFE FOR HIS BED by Carol Marinelli and PINK TIM TAMS!!! Seriously, this is booty worth celebrating. Get commenting, people! Good luck!


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Started the work of painting up my pre-heresy army for next years Standish Standoff. After reading the first few Horus Heresy books I really wanted to put together a pre-heresy army. Spcifically the loyalist from the Traitor legions that get wiped out on Istavaan III. I've gotten the whole force, and then some all assembled at this point. I'm planning a mixed chapter force consisting primarily of Luna Wolves, with Emperor's Children and World Eaters as well. Here we have the primed world eater. I kept each chapter to a specific chest and helm set. World Eaters will have the riveted skull chest.
My Emperor's children are the farthest along. I've actually busted out my spray gun for the frst time to get anice dark purple coat on them for the armor base. The Children consist of Saul Tarvest, Lucious (same as from the Choas Marine codex). I really liked the way Saul came out. I'll be painting the Dead marine he's on as a mix of Choas/pre-heresy emperor's children as at this point in the story the armor was in transition to the to bright purple of the chaos codex.
Last image is my luna wolves. Went digging for some alternate helms with head crest to mark out rank. I was going for the look of the armor from the Second Heresy book. I'll be using the space wolf codex for the list. Want to feild more than 2 HQ's and the build a hero rules of a Wolf Lord are just to good for the feel of these larger than life men. Loken Will lead the Luna Wolves in this fight. Well that's all at this point. More as this progresses. As always click the image for a larger version.


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Jakarta's overpriced hotel bars can get boring after a while – as well as doing tremendous damage to your wallet! – but there are cheaper alternatives. Sure the girls are fewer in number (and less sexily dressed for the most part) but if all you are looking for is a place to hang out and get pissed then you may want to check out Melly's Garden Bar and Resto which is located in the IBEC Building on Jalan KH Wahid Hasyim No. 84-88.
The bar's vibe is very similar to the cheap touristy bars that you can find in places like Kuta Bali, and even for that matter Jalan Jaksa - just a short walk away.
What you can get here is beer, more beer and even more beer, as well as cocktails and even some basic grub. Interestingly for such a down to earth joint, Melly's has a couple of signature drinks that are well worth trying.
The first is called "kebunku", which translates into English as "my garden". Order this and you are presented with a steel bucket filled with ice cubes and 7 shots in it! Wonderful!
The other signature drink comes served in five glass tubes and is for some reason or another called "balonku" - or in English "my balloons".
Drinking sensibly here is not really an option so be careful if you try to walk back to your hotel nearby as you could easily disappear into one of the open drains!
Melly's Garden Bar and Resto
IBEC Building (Ex Parkit Club)
JL. KH Wahid Hasyim 84,
Telp: (021) 9127 5753


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Breaking Down Big Papers
An Overview:
One common theme promoted by composition scholars is the importance of revision in the communication process. In his book Engaging Ideas John Bean describes an ideal process where a college student becomes aware of a problem or question, engages in a patient period of exploration and reflection, writes a rough first draft---perhaps with the aid of an informal idea map or outline, and then commits to a long process of reformulation and revision---often partaking in multiple drafts, an examination one's audience and purpose, multiple visits to the library, formal outlines, and an engagement of outside readers. Only then should a student worry about sentence-level edits and proofreading (30-31). Unfortunately, this type of engagement can be rare among undergraduates, especially for those courses that don't have a series of process-based deadlines to ensure students aren't simply pulling all-nighters to complete that 15-page term paper. Last second efforts might allow for a quick proofreading job but are unlikely to engage in the type of research and revision processes that would allow students to present their best work. Such rush jobs can result in sloppy finished products that present a dull chronological summary, an under-explained "data dump", or an unfocused general description of basic facts (23).
The following worksheet provides a step-by-step checklist that will help undergraduate students break down research papers in manageable chunks throughout the semester. It is designed in the hope that they will be able engage in a process full of exploration, revision, and good research and communication techniques, ultimately producing a focused, informative, and interesting read for their audience. It envisions a final product that is thesis-governed and part of an on-going academic conversation, but also the result of an organic process that allows for exploration, experimentation, questioning, and critical thinking along the way.
The Step-by-Step Process:
Give Yourself Target Due Dates and Check Off Each Task As Completed.
1) Think About a Few Ideas for the Paper. Jot down a few problems or questions that you would find interesting enough to research for two or three months. Look over your syllabus and see if there are any future readings and/or activities in the course that spark your interest.
Target Date: ______ Completed _______
2) Do a Few Free Writes to share with fellow students, the professor, or just to look over on your own to help you organize your thoughts.
Think about…..
* What problems have come to my attention through this course?
* Is there a hypothesis I want to test or an assumption I want to challenge?
* What research methods would I use? * Is the paper topic important and relevant to the course?
* Why do I find the topic interesting?
Target Date: ______ Completed ________
3) Visit Your Professors within the first month of classes. Such an initial meeting is a perfect opportunity to discuss research ideas and the writing process. You might compile a rough idea map following your discussion.
Target Date _______ Completed _____
4) Meet with Campus Research Staff. The library staff is ready to help you use dozens of databases that can guide your search for popular and scholarly sources and can direct you towards other gems like archive collections or datasets related to your research interests. They can also give you guidance on the types of sources you'll need, how to use those sources, and how to independently take additional steps with your research.
Target Date _______ Completed _____
5) Complete Primary Research. This will take some time. Make sure to use a wide variety of scholarly and other reliable sources. Be sure to take good notes while reading through sources---this will be important when it is time to make citations. Use the works cited page of your best sources to branch out to new materials. Don't forget to engage with course texts and think about how your project will build off of the on-going scholarly conversation on your topic. Be cognizant of other scholars' assumptions, research methods, and argumentation techniques.
Target Date _______ Completed _____
6) Create a Working Thesis and some sort of basic outline: Once you've completed your primary research you'll probably have some idea about what you want to achieve with this paper and the argument that you are going to make. It makes sense at this point to get a working thesis down on paper, along with an initial outline or more formal idea map that explains how you will lay out your claims and evidence. It's OK if your working thesis or outline change later due to further research or revision; at this moment, these tools will provide much-needed structure as you compose your first draft.
Target Date _______ Completed _____
Note: How Do I Know If My Thesis Is Good? St. Lawrence's Professor of Economics addressed this question recently in a column in the Washington Post:
"Whether your paper involves outside research or not, you need to have a thesis statement. Once you have an idea of what you want to say, and have some grasp of what others have said, you need to make your ideas more concrete by coming up with a thesis sentence(s). A thesis indicates the main argument of your paper. The point of any class paper is to persuade your reader that you have something to say that he or she should care about. A good thesis should be debatable, specific, and concise."
7) Write the First Draft. Follow your informal outline or idea map, have your research notes accessible, and cite your sources as you go. Don't worry if your first draft is a bit of a mess. As John Bean points out, the French word for first draft is brouillon, an apt description of what should be healthy, creative disorder at this point (19).
Target Date _______ Completed _____
8) Revision: The revision process is very different than proofreading (that will come later). Revision means thinking deeply about a paper's objectives and overall aims and wrestling with 'big picture' or 'global-level' questions regarding your project.
You might ask yourself:
Are there parts of my paper that I need to reconceive?
Are there especially promising sections that beg for more development? Are there other portions that should be scaled back?
Is the text appropriate for my intended audience?
Am I using good evidence to back up my points? Do my claims fit with my thesis?
Can I see myself in dialogue with other scholars in this field?
Do I need to tweak or change my thesis?
Have I avoided fallacies? Am I making a reasoned argument?
Important Notes: During the revision process you will end up writing at least one additional draft and perhaps more. Leave yourself plenty of time to reflect on your ideas and your communication plan during this time. This period is also an idea time to engage in peer review or use the Word Studio.
Target Date _______ Completed _____
9) Do Any Additional Research that proceeds from your revision process.
Target Date _______ Completed _____
10) More Revising: Professional writers often revise their work a half-dozen times or more. A second, shorter period of revision would be very helpful in making sure your adjustments worked.
Target Date _______ Completed _____
11) Ensure That Your Citations and Bibliography Are Complete: You always need to give credit to other people's work, and citations demonstrate the credibility of your final product and provide a road map for your audience. If you have questions about this process, you can ask your professor, the library staff, or the Word Studio.
Target Date _______ Completed _____
12) Proofreading: Many typographical and grammatical errors will be addressed during the revision process, so you should leave formal proofreading to the end. I recommend reading your entire paper out loud (or use a computer program that can do this for you) to ensure that no errors have snuck through. You can also consult the Word Studio about any nagging grammatical or structural questions. Be aware the spellcheck won't catch everything (e.g., misplaced homonyms)
Target Date _______ Completed _____
13) Submit the Assignment.
Due Date _____ Completed: ______
Next Steps: If you're looking to see a graphic representation of this division of labor throughout a hypothetical semester, please take a look at the Academic Support attachment titled, "Gantt for Big Papers". Gantt Charts can be extremely useful in helping one organize his or her time. They're easy to create on Microsoft Excel and anyone is welcome to drop by Whitman Annex 16 to receive help in setting one up or in using this worksheet as a whole.
Works Cited:
Bean, John. Engaging Ideas. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1996.
Horwitz, Steven. "A Guide to Writing an Academic Paper". washingtonpost.com. The Answer Sheet Blog by Valerie Strauss. 20 Jan. 2012. Web.
Written by Matt McCluskey, Coordinator of Academic Support


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NEW YORK -- Pope Benedict XVI has announced he will name New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan to the College of Cardinals, giving one of America's most powerful Catholics an even bigger position on the world stage.
Dolan, 61, leads New York's 2.6-million member Catholic church, which includes Manhattan, the Bronx, Staten Island and many of the city's suburban counties. He is also the president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Now, in an elaborate Vatican ceremony that will take place on Feb. 18, he will join 21 priests from around the globe as a new member of a powerful group of cardinals that are some of the pope's closest advisers and will choose the new pope when Benedict dies. With the new appointments, there will be 125 Cardinals eligible to vote for a new pope. Cardinals who are over 80 years old are not allowed to vote.
The announcement, made mid-day Friday in Vatican City, is the latest in the rapid ascension of Dolan up the church's ranks. Ordained as a parish priest in St. Louis in 1976, Dolan held several academic positions at Catholic universities before becoming the Auxliary Bishop of St. Louis in 2001. A little over a year later, he was appointed the Archbishop of Milwaukee. In 2009, he became the Archbishop of New York and he was voted to lead the bishops' conference in 2010.
"Yes, I am honored, humbled, and grateful...but, let's be frank: this is not about Timothy Dolan; this is an honor from the Holy Father to the Archdiocese of New York, and to all our cherished friends and neighbors who call this great community home," Dolan said in a statement.
"It's as if Pope Benedict is putting the red hat on top of the Empire State Building, or the Statue of Liberty, or on home plate at Yankee Stadium; or on the spires of Saint Patrick's Cathedral or any of our other parish churches."
Dolan, with his playful personality and staunch defense of church positions on issues such as abortion, same-sex marriage and advocacy for the poor and immigrants, has recently become the face of the American church in the media with television specials in the last year on 60 Minutes and the Today Show.
A member of the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization, a group the Vatican recently announced to promote church membership and teachings, Dolan will join bishops from Florence, Toronto, and Berlin among the new Cardinals. The pope also named another American, Archbishop Edwin O'Brien, Grand Master of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre and the former archbishop of Baltimore, among those who will become Cardinals.
Dolan's appointment will give New York two living Cardinals. The other is Cardinal Edward Egan, the former Archbishop of New York, who turns 80 on April 2. By appointing Dolan a cardinal before his predecessor turned 80, Benedict broke with tradition. Church observers say the move indicates how much the pope favors New York's Catholic leader.


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As we were walking around we came across people literally dancing in the street.
It was Seattle Parks "Dancing Til Dusk"
We stopped to dance to the world's longest rendition of "on the street where you live."
We are terrible dancers but it was fun to relive the horror of dancing at our wedding and people watch. You have never danced with a more diverse crowd than this. We were at Westlake Park where homeless youth, drug dealers, bus commuters and tourists all collide. Throw in some more mature adults who were with the band and it was a party.
I think DSF should plan to swing into one of these with her sweetie. They can dazzle the crowd dancing as a threesome.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone


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Sunday, December 04, 2011
A ranchwife's Christmas decor....
16 comments:
Oh I do have tumbleweeds. I think yours looks really pretty.ReplyDelete
I churned so much butter with those Daisy Butter churns. My Mom sold milk, butter and cream to customers. Gosh, I hate to think how much I used that. I need to ask my sister if she has my Mom's somewhere.
I have a barbwire wreath too. I need to put some red Christmas berries on it too. I have sunflowers on mine I really like the red berries.
I can't wait to see the rest of your decorating.
You asked if Silkie's are good layers?
They bantam's are my only hens who are laying right now. The only problem is that the eggs are tiny, I use two to make one of regular hen eggs. The go broody alot though and they do love being Mommas. They are the best sitters I have ever had. I don't have any roosters now though.
I hope you have a good week.
Pretty stuff, Jody!ReplyDelete
I love the cowboy Christmas tree!
Did it snow?
I love your tumbleweed! I haven't started decorating, but believe you me, I have some plans for some sticks.ReplyDelete
Thanks for the chicken info.
Pom Pom,
Yes, it did snow. Last night a little and today a little. Not much to measure but it's SO COLD! Brrrr.
I hope you show us your sticks and stuff!
I love Christmas decorating with what's 'local'. You are clever my friend. I love the boot and tumbleweed tree.ReplyDelete
I love it!ReplyDelete
G'day. Your Cowboy Christmas tree is just beautiful.As are all the other lovely Christmas decorations that you have shared with us. Take care. Liz...ReplyDelete
The decorations at your house are lovely! And especially love that tumbleweed tree. Genius!!ReplyDelete
- Anonymous12/04/2011 11:27 PM
Love it Jody! Unique, recycled and very beautiful! :) xxReplyDelete
Your tumbleweed tree is wonderful. It reminds me of my pioneer heritage. It speaks of a simpler life.ReplyDelete
Such fun to hear these stories behind your decorations. Lovely!ReplyDelete
I haven't put up a tree in years but think I could do with a tumbleweed tree; it's really pretty.ReplyDelete
Merry Christmas to you and yours!
- Anonymous12/05/2011 5:43 PM
Love your decorations!! Thanks for sharing!ReplyDelete
Your decorations are PERFECT! simple, understated, just the kind I love. If you do move your tumbleweed tree, don't you dare take it out of the boot or off of the chair. It's wonderful.ReplyDelete
Blessings, Debbie
Oh I love your decorations Jody!! They're just perfect -- as are you ;).ReplyDelete
So pretty!ReplyDelete
I love reading your comments. Thanks for stopping in. Sorry, but due to spam, only registered users can comment.


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Citracado Dental Group - Escondido
|Credit Mine
Western Redbud
(Cercus occidentalis)
|Photo Mine
Autumn Sage
(Salvia greggii)
500 West El Norte Parkway, Escondido, California
|Photo Mine
This is the area on Iris Lane where the building towards the back parking area is where Citracado Dental Group's clientele actually arrive to enter the building. I love this Spanish Mission Style with the Southern California Native plants. Not big on real Missions, but love the romantic architectural style just the same.
|Photo Mine
This front view on El Norte Parkway incorporates Bunch Grasses, Manzanita, California Holly (Toyon), Cleveland Sage, and low growing and spreading Ceanothus. I think when it comes to bunch grasses, you can use any type of Southwestern variety. This place has also always had native annual plants blooming every Spring.
|Photo Mine
Here view westward on El Norte at the end of the property we have a bit of a Riparian Theme going on within the Native Plant scheme with California Sycamore and White Alder in the background. One note each on both of these trees. First, I've never really found many truly ideal locations for White Alder in interior valley landscapes. Don't get me wrong, I do like White Alder, but older trees have greater water requirements than when they are young. In Southern California Riparian habitats, White Alder ONLY truly does well where permanent water is flowing above ground. I have never seen them doing well or being present for that matter in a dry wash, riverbed or alluvial fan where water was 10 foot or deeper under the ground. No problem for Cottonwoods, some Willows, Ash, Box Elder and Sycamore trees which will penetrate into the subsoil and tap into the moisture layers. White Alders are better with permanent water and really large shallow roots which will bind many boulders together to hold together river or stream banks better than most other riparian trees. It should be noted that even heat is not an issue as long as generous water requirements are met. I remember in the early 1980s when Tahquitz Creek which flowed off Mount Jacinto and in through downtown Palm Springs when ice cold water flowed all year long, temperatures were often 110 Fahrenheit. There was never any leaf burn whatsoever. California Sycamores are another one of those interesting tough survival trees, especially considering they are for the most part a riparian species plant. Very very wetter than normal season period of two or three years are first important for their young early growth. After that normal or even drier than normal rainfall years seem no problem if roots have done there deep penetration job. More on this in two other posts, one dealing strictly with Sycamores and another dealing with Bajadas or Alluvial Fans and the periodic wetter season periods that use to be more common, but contain important landscape lessons for plant establishment in Urban Landscapes.


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Yesterday, my mail consisted of two bills, a DVD from Netflix, a flyer from a local Congresswoman, and a small padded envelope. Inside the envelope was a T-shirt and messenger bag emblazoned with a caricature of Roger Ebert, perks for contributing to the Indiegogo campaign for the documentary about Ebert, Life Itself. The timing was accidental but uncanny; today is the one-year anniversary of Ebert's death. The great film critic passed away on April 4, 2013 after a long battle with cancer. He was 70 years old.
Ebert's death prompted an outpouring of grief and remembrances from filmmakers, fans, and other film critics (like me) who'd been inspired and in many cases (like mine) directly encouraged by Ebert. It also sparked a wave of pieces about the shabby state of film criticism; in the International Business Times, Christopher Zara called April 4 "the day film criticism died" and "the end of a profession." Ebert, Zara said, was "the last of a now-extinct breed: a professional movie reviewer whose opinion actually mattered."
One year later on the anniversary of Ebert's death, that conversation is beginning again. On Wednesday, Entertainment Weekly fired Owen Gleiberman, its film critic for more than two decades and a founding member of the magazine's staff. Days earlier, EW had announced a plan to turn a portion of its site into an online publishing "platform" like the Huffington Post, where unpaid writers can contribute as part of something called "The Community." Rather than receiving money for their efforts, bloggers will, according to Digiday, "be compensated in the form of prestige, access to the brand's editors and a huge potential readership." Do well enough for free at EW, the thinking goes, and someone (who is most likely not Entertainment Weekly) will notice you and pay you to write for them. But the Community guidelines specifically forbid "no self promotion" in anything they publish—because God forbid someone who provides a website with valuable content for free actually try to promote themselves or their hard work.
There is an old expression that seems appropriate here: "you get what you pay for." Make no mistake: Unpaid writers don't gain prestige from big publications. Big publications lose prestige when they resort to using unpaid writers—particularly when they do it at the same time they're laying off their best and most insightful critics. The questionable business decisions of a single company will not make or break the world of film criticism, but these are certainly distressing signs of the times, when chasing traffic has become the most important (if not the only) determining factor for many web magazines' content. Yesterday at RogerEbert.com, editor Matt Zoller Seitz reacted to the news of Gleiberman's dismissal by writing an essay about the state of online journalism, where "an eerie mix of bean counting, soul-rot, and page-click pseudo-science gone mad" has warped many outlets' priorities.
I don't have any easy solutions for these problems. I do know that when faced with these questions in the last year, I've thought a lot about Roger Ebert. On my way out of a great movie, I would find myself wondering what Ebert would have made of it. I wouldn't presume to know what Ebert's opinion would have been about any of 2013's big movies, but I would have loved to have read his reviews of 12 Years A Slave, Gravity, Her, and The Wolf Of Wall Street. Though Ebert notoriously hated making lists, studying his year-end top 10 was one of my favorite December traditions. Last year simply didn't feel the same without it. We are a poorer film culture now than we were one year ago today.
One of Ebert's most famous movie mantras was "It's not what a film is about, it's how it is about it." What's become clear to me on April 4, 2014, in light of all that's gone on in the last year both good and bad, is that this is not only true of films; it's true of film criticism as well. We're nearing a day and age when anyone with a computer can write 300 words about Captain America: The Winter Soldier, post them on a site like The Community, and call themselves a film critic for Entertainment Weekly. That's the what. But now, more than ever, the how is the important part. It's how that person writes about Captain America—and Under The Skin, and The Unknown Known, and Nymphomaniac, and classic films—that matters.
Roger Ebert didn't become the most successful film critic of his era because he had a television show or a desk at a major newspaper. He succeeded because of his talent as a writer, his knowledge of the film medium, and his tireless work ethic. He didn't become beloved because of his wealth and fame. He was beloved because rather than selfishly coveting his lucrative position, he encouraged and nurtured young writers. I'm wearing a shirt with Ebert's face on it not because of what he did, but because of how he did it. That's something worth remembering, today and every day.


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I went to an exhibition at the V&A Museum a while ago called 'Shadow Catchers : camera-less photography'. Photography - camera-less? Really? Up until this point I'd always believed a camera was pretty much key to the practise of photography, but goodness me was I wrong! Camera-shamera eh? Without using a camera it is possible to create images on photographic paper by casting shadows & manipulating light, or by chemically treating the surface of the paper...such incredible effects - not created from a 'negative' but encountered as fragments, traces, signs, memories or dreams, they leave room for the imagination, transforming the world of objects into a world of visions. The most common camera-less photography techniques are the photogram, the luminogram and the chemigram.
Ooh la la that was a bit of a divergence from what I was originally going to chat about...but my memory of that V&A exhibition sprung to mind & I remembered how exciting camera-less photography & light manipulation are. Far too much fun. But right now I'm chatting about natural light...the wonderful sun & it's rays. That big chappy in the sky who pop in & out of our lives - lighting my beautiful friend Natalie while we cruised around town taking snaps.
I absolutely love photographing passionate people - musicians, artists, dancers...& my chum Natalie is definitely a pretty passionate person. Everything from her deep connection with fish-fingers & ketchup on toast, to organising an elaborate ball in a castle, she has passion. A particular life passion of hers is with dancing. A bit of contemporary here & there, she's always been ballet dancer & this is how I photographed her in the studio at college in Newcastle - Pointe shoes & perfect poses.
After the success & fun we had on our first shoot together, Natalie & I decided to give it another go - this time taking her out of studio light into natural light. Natural light in London - ballet snaps in an urban environment. Pointe shoes & pavements.
As I explained in my last post, I absolutely love capturing movement in my work. For these shots in the park & made Natalie jump up about a hundred times for me to get the shot I wanted...lucky her. (Bear in mind the January temperatures & her skimpy attire. There was definitely still snow on the ground)
The light changes as my model hangs in the air...
We wandered through Hyde park to the round pond. So many duckies hanging around & a perfect sunset - it was magical...
...Magical UNTIL I fell in the pond. Yes, I did. Not quite sure how it happened, but somehow just being myself & being near a pond, the inevitable had to happen. Not exactly ideal.


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Radio Shack Corp. (NYSE: RSH) is surging on ârumorsâ today that we are skeptical of endorsing⦠Either way the stock saw 11.2 million shares trade as of 3:00 PM EST with the stock up around 5% and close to $21.00.
More important is the stock options trading, and it is also more impressive:
- March-2010 $20 and $22.50 Calls have seen over 23,000 options contracts trade between the two; while the open interest was only about 17,000 contracts.
- April-2010 $20 and $22.50 contracts combined have seen over 13,000 contracts versus barely 6,200 contracts in the open interest.
If you add up these call options you get some 36,000 contracts, which is 3.6 million shares worth of options on a fully leveraged basis that would be added to the volume. The put option volume is paltry.
Caveat emptor! Still, impressive volume.


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Mr. Chao Philex, Chairperson of the North America Chinese Writers Association, donated a full set of Wenhui magazines (《文薈》) to the NMTL on August 21, and Yu Susan, Director of Taipei Cultural Center, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York, on behalf of the NMTL, received the donation. Senior writers Wang Tingchun, Chao Susie, Chao Shumin, Shi Shuqing, Chou Edmund, and Wang Della, the wife of the late Hsia Chihtsing have arrived Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York and made their emotional speeches. On the occasion, a coterie of literary friends has attended the warm ceremony.
Wenhui magazine was an official periodical of the North American Chinese Writers Association. The Association, founded in 1990, has 26 chapters and about 2,000 members in the area of the United States and Canada. The members include literary precursors, such as Qi Jun, Hsia Chihtsing, Wang Tingchun, Zheng Chouyu, Chao Susie, and Chao Shumin, among others. Wenhui, a bimonthly literary magazine, which Ms. Shi Yunian, Secretary-General of the North American Chinese Writers Association, founded single-handedly in 2003, was one of high-level publications in pure literature. Many well-known writers, including Hsia Chihtsing, Wang Tingchun, Ma Jacob, Liu Yong, Chao Susie, Chao Shumin, Tsung Su, Zhang Chunying, Chou Fennah, as well as members of Chinese Writers Association of New York, literary friends in the communities, and so on, had left their thought-provoking works in this bimonthly magazine.
Changing from black-and-white printing to color printing, Wenhui bimonthly witnessed the writing changes of the North American Chinese writers along the changes of times. The publication of Wenhui lasted for six years and had 33 issues, from 2003 to September 2009. It is worth mentioning that Chairperson Chao Philex also donated, in the donation ceremony, his correspondence with Mr. Hsia Chihtsing and Ms. Qi Jun discussing about Wenhui, which is a precious historical material of overseas Chinese literature.
Over the years, Ms. Shi Yunian, the founder of Wenhui, had dedicated herself to the promotion of Chinese literature in overseas Chinese community, while carrying out the Association's affairs. She founded literary workshops "Wenhui Classes" in 2006 and offered the classes of fiction, prose, poetry, calligraphy, painting, and so on, having boosted the Chinese community's literary atmosphere. After Ms. Shi passed away in September 2014, the North American Chinese Writers Association donated a complete collection of Wenhui bimonthly to the NMTL for a permanent collection, to commemorate and cherish her contributions to the promotion of overseas Chinese literature. Chen Yiyuan, Director of the NMTL, on behalf of the NMTL, has expressed his heartfelt gratitude for Director Yu Susan's facilitation and Chairperson Chao Philex's act of great generosity.
Figure 1 Donation ceremony. (Left to right) Philex Chao, Chairperson of North America Chinese Writers Association; Wang Ting-Chun, writer; Susan Yu, Director of Taipei Cultural Center, New York
Date: 2015-08-21Venue: Taipei Cultural Center, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York


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Leprechauns love to have gold coins in their pots of gold, and preschoolers love to count, so, why not make a St. Patrick's Day Counting Book?
Vocabulary- leprechaun, pot of gold, gold coins
Counting to 5 with 1:1 correspondence
Number recognition
We talked about each item, giving the students repeated practice with naming the vocabulary. They could hear the words over and over again and have a chance to say them.
Throughout the activity, the students needed to request items before they got them ("I want a book;" "I want a leprechaun"). The first thing we did was to decorate the cover with the leprechaun, pot and some gold coins. They could follow our pattern or put them anywhere they wanted.
Next, we went through the book, page by page to add the gold coins.
As the students requested their gold coins, they had more and more practice with counting.
This activity is a nice example of how pre-academic concepts, such as math, can be incorporated into speech and language therapy! The students practiced counting as they practiced requesting and vocabulary!


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Now that the former 'frontrunner' for Los Angeles District Attorney had his sorry ass handed to him on a plate by voters, Carmen 'the Clown' Trutanich has announced his intent to try to hold on to the $234k a year job that he didn't want yesterday.
The LA Times reported that Trutanich 'told reporters from LA Weekly and other media outlets that he blamed his loss on media "onslaught." On Wednesday, however, he took a more conciliatory approach, saying he was "humbled" by his third-place finish and bore responsibility for his campaign's problems.'
Trutanich doesn't get it. He is finished in LA politics. The same group of people who expressed their utter disgust for his thuggish boorish bullying and lying are not going to forget why they voted 'A.B.C.' on Tuesday. We might have short memories in Los Angeles, but not that short.
But as arrogant and egocentric as Trutanich is, he must also know that when 77% of voters believe him to be unfit for public service, the chances of turning that negative to a positive are next to nothing. The likely reason for his announcement could have more to do with the need to try make himself look like less of a laughing stock in the last year that he has as City Attorney. It will not work.
If Trutanich ever steps foot in a courtroom or the Council Chamber again, he does so as deeply damaged goods. A man with no credibility and no viability. A man whose word has no value and whose reputation is in tatters. A man that will have to look down at the ground as he walks, in order to avoid making eye contact with 77% of the people around him who will be sneering, sniggering and rejoicing in the fact that they brought him to his knees on Tuesday night.
LA's Best After School Program is still waiting for the $100,000 personal check that you promised them Trutanich. Losing the DA race in an even more humiliating a way than we could have hoped for does not eradicate that debt. Pay up, shut up and get the hell out of City Hall and don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Trutanich to seek second term as City Attorney
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Keep lavender on your short list for pretty flowering shrubs that are drought tolerant and can take southwestern summer heat. The roses have done a good job with little water, but they are due for a good soak.
The privet should probably not be on your planting list at all. Yes, they form nice thick hedges you can shear and bees love them, but they have become an invasive species in the west. After a little Googling I have decided to swear off privet. The USDA lists privet as invasive in Florida.
The Institute of Pacific Islands Forestry has several Ligustrum species listed as a threat on their Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk (PIER) site. Glossy, Japanese and other privets are listed as invasive in Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii and the Western US Coast.
Perhaps a better alternative to privet shrubs for privacy would be a more drought tolerant, non-invasive and native Western Sumac. For evergreen versions that have similar leaves and growth habits try Lemonade Sumac (Rhus integrifolia), Laurel Sumac (Rhus laurina) or Sugarbush (Rhus ovata).
Thanks for dropping by and happy gardening!
Labels: FloralFriday, Friday Florals, lavender, roses, what's blooming now


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Bible: Matthew 3:7-9
3:7 But when he saw many Pharisees 1 and Sadducees 2 coming to his baptism, he said to them, "You offspring of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 3:8 Therefore produce fruit 3 that proves your 4 repentance, 3:9 and don't think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' For I tell you that God can raise up children for Abraham from these stones!
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Visible Ink
February 27, 2014
The minutes are ticking down and she speeds up. Faster. Harder. She's not sure why. Her intensity does nothing to pass the time more quickly. She could go twice as fast and only end up feeling more tired. In fact, she could slow down completely and would still have to endure for just as long. It's in this moment that she realizes the same could be said about life. But faster in life tends to be more exciting than the treadmill so she carries on for practice.
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viernes, 24 de agosto de 2012
4 comentarios:
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