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Mr. Graves will be visiting today! It's kind of the running joke to call him 'Mr. Graves' because the kids do. We will be making alfredo....his request...of course no complaints around here....the family loves it also! I'm sure there will be plenty talking, laughing and wine!
This will be the first time I've seen Graves since we were together in NY in December when Mel died. Hopefully we won't cry too much....
Zoe is still doing fantastic! She had clinic last week. She is at 67% BMI, blew a real 3 second pft for the first time ever! She blew a 97! The only comment was that she has difficulty expelling air. Which we already knew. She gets sob when she runs across the house. Her culture came back with OSSA again. This is 2 cultures in a row, but as long as she doesn't have any symptoms, we don't treat it.
Well, have to run...dogs have a very long overdue, much needed, grooming appt.
Hope ya'll are having a beautiful, relaxing fall!
Take care of you and yours,
Friday, October 22, 2010
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The Oil We Eat
The Feb. 2004 issue of Harper's Magazine had an interesting article by Richard Manning mainly on agribusiness and oil.
Online reprint
Some have criticized the book (written by Manning) the article came from for not offering up any real solutions to the problem. In his defense, I have not seen any real solutions either.

subset: commoncrawl


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Ever have those fly aways? Baby hair? Does your hair look like a poodle with the tiniest bit of humidity? This is the product for you!
My mam picked this up a few months ago and when I tried it out I literally fell in love with it! Nothing I have ever used before has done a job as good as this. My baby hairs are completely untamable.. unless I use this product. So I just had to go purchase one for myself!
It is a little on the pricey side- or so I think but its honestly so worth it and a little really does go a long way. At boots its £6.29 although I'm sure I paid about £8 for it. If you get it at boots though you can collect points, which I always think you may as well so then when you've got a reasonable amount you can purchase something you really want or want to try out!
This is designed to be used on dry hair and advised only 1 pump should do although I do half that in fear of my hair looking a bit greasy! Its totally up to you though and you can use it all over your hair not only at the roots.
Paige x


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Cyril Catouil (Thomas Doret) is an eleven-year-old boy who loves to ride bikes. His ne'er-do-well father has gone missing. A local hairdresser, Samantha (Hereafter's Cécile de France), takes him in on weekends, in order to give him structure and keep him out of trouble. She first meets him as he takes shelter from social workers in a medical office, telling him as he clings to her, "not so tight. You can hold onto me but not so tight." This becomes a metaphor for their often difficult relationship. Over the course of the film, she takes him to see his father, who no longer wants anything to do with the boy, and is often tested by Cyril's tempestuous nature and penchant for running away, only to return after enduring further humiliations on the playground. Partway through the film, seeking a paternal figure and rebelling against the otherwise convivial and patient Samantha, Cyril is taken under the wing of a local thug and is tempted by a life of petty crime.
Although most coming-of-age films revolve around sexual awakening, The Kid with a Bike focuses instead on early exposure to ethical and moral dilemmas that are often only faced in young adulthood. It's not often that you get to see youth this young grapple with career defining, life-altering decisions, but Cyril confronts them head-on. It's not uncommon for the Dardennes to examine this topic, given that their earlier works such as Rosetta, Le Fils and L'Enfant explore the difficulties of life in lower middle-class Belgium. The film has shades of Vittorio de Sica's classic The Bicycle Thief, down to its very title, as they explore how human nature is governed and tampered by survival instincts. Anyone having worked with disadvantaged or troubled youth will recognize and acknowledge Cyril's raw anger and sense of abandonment, manifesting itself in criminal tendencies. Social workers and caregivers will also understand Samantha's frustration in attempting to provide Cyril with a normal life, and his resistance to it. The Dardennes don't judge Cyril's actions, they only observe them, and allow the consequences to flow from them without heavy-handed melodramatics, allowing him to experience them and understand them himself.
The Kid with a Bike is one of the best-reviewed and most accomplished films of the year. It will play back-to-back screenings on Friday, October 14, as the closing entry of the Vancouver International Film Festival. The film is in French with English subtitles. For more information, click here.


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Monday, October 15, 2007
I learned it all in a book...
One of the things I love about reading is that I can go anywhere - or anytime. What a quick trip back in time, grab a book. Want to visit the romantic waterways of Venice? Grab a book. Other planets, the future, a wild nightclub? Yup -a book. I've 'visited' dozens of countries from the comfort of my reading chair and (I'm almost ashamed to admit this) learned more about history than I did in school, just by reading romances.
It all comes down to setting, doesn't it? Setting is such a powerful part of the story, sometimes a major player, sometimes a soft, watercolor background that barely registers on the reader's awareness. Some are edgy - in Double Dare I opened with a nightclub, flashing lights, a meat-market setting and it set the tone for the rest of the story. Others are subtle - in Does She Dare? the story is set in a quaint, cobblestone paved small town, and again, it sets a tone. You'd think they'd be vastly different stories, yet both are hot, sexy and have very strong heroines... but both settings reflect the heroine's self-image.
For me, setting is always tied to and reflects my characters. Other authors use setting differently. They might use it to challenge the characters, or even let it be a character itself. In my case, a winter setting limits outdoor lovescenes, for some people winter presents a life or death scenario for the hero and heroine to fight to survive. Don't' you love how setting and time carry and frame our stories?
Even better, for me, is when I read a book and learn something new. Whether its societal customs of a Regency or police procedures in a romantic suspense, for me a great read is one that delicately weaves in the factual information, lets me learn without realizing I'm learning (this is probably why I learned so much more by reading romances than in school LOL – there is a lot to be said for the ancient bards and teaching by means of storytelling!!).
What are some of the most fascinating things YOU've learned in reading? What setting or time do you find yourself coming back to over and over again? Is there a reason that time/setting fascinates you?
26 comments:
- Christine Wells said...
Hi Tawny, great post! Anyone else think of Manuel and the moose in Fawlty Towers when they saw that subject line, or is it just me?:)
Interesting that your 'Dare' books have the same vibe, yet your heroines are totally different, and that in turn is reflected in the different settings.
I don't consciously plan these things, but as it turned out, setting was very important in Scandal's Daughter. Both hero and heroine's homes were symbolic of their upbringings--one sunny and golden, one bleak and stormy.
- October 15, 2007 at 6:53 AM
- Helen said...
I love historicals and yes I too have learned more about history through reading romance novels than I ever learn't at school. I love the way an author creates the backdrop of the book with the estates and feel of those estates whether they are dark castles or big open mansions set in wonderful colourful gardens. I agree as well that I have pretty much traveled to a lot of countries through my reading and this gives me the yearning to see these places in real life.
I have learn't a lot about the proper behaviour expected of young Ladies during the regency and Victorian era as well as the living standards of the rich and poor and I think I have learn't a lot about the Kings and Queens of England and also about the wars between England and France.Great post Tawny.
Have Fun
- October 15, 2007 at 7:14 AM
- DownUnderGirl said...
Hi Tawny, good subject.
Setting is everything. I set most of my book in hospitals. And rightly or wrongly, hospitals stir emotions. But writing it from a doctor or a nurses persepctive gives the other side of the story that most people see. Life and death situations can bring out the best and worst in people, cuts to the very essence of life and that's when it gets truly fascinating.
Amy Andrews
- October 15, 2007 at 8:34 AM
- DownUnderGirl said...
Sorry meant to say - "don't see".
I'm very bad at proof reading.
Naughty Amy.
- October 15, 2007 at 8:36 AM
- Caren Crane said...
Tawny, I also learned far more about history in novels than in History classes. I think because a novel makes the historical bits so much more interesting. My husband is a real history buff, but there is one time period I know far more about than he does: Regency England. *g* And every bit of that is from romance novels!
- October 15, 2007 at 8:47 AM
- Anna Sugden said...
Great post, Tawny. Even though I travel a lot, setting can inspire me. I visited Zabar's deli in NYC after reading Judith Arnold's Love in Bloom's. And all those cowboy books make me want to visit places like Wyoming and Montana.
Christine - you did an awesome job with setting in SD. Fab descriptions made me feel the differences.
I've learned so much from books, about all sorts of things. From mushing with huskies and the Iditarod to how they made the classic scene in Singing in the Rain to opal mining in Cooper Pedy.
Novels can be a great source of information because the authors have to know their stuff and as Caren said, because they make the information fun.
One of the fun bits about researching my hockey books (not just meeting the players *grin*) was experiencing the sights and sounds behind the scenes and on the ice. It's hugely different from what you see as a fan.
- October 15, 2007 at 9:16 AM
- doglady said...
Its the odd little things I learn about the Regency period that make me keep coming back for more. Especially some of the more obscure medical treatments, the attitudes about mental illness. The details about furniture, what people ate, little inventions that made their lives easier. I also like when the homes reflect their owners. Oh and the gardens! The attention to detail and design in them.
- October 15, 2007 at 9:19 AM
- Dianna said...
Love the post Tawny and so very true. It is amazing what bits of information I have picked up over the years of reading. Did you know that Ocean Sunfish are microscopic when hatched but grow to the weight of 2,200 pounds? Where did I learn this? I haven't a clue but the information has been floating in my brain for years now. LOL
I am constantly drawn back to the Regency era, I am not sure why that particular era but that is where I find myself quite often. I love reading and finding out the little details of life in that time period. Medieval times seem to pull at me as well.
- October 15, 2007 at 9:34 AM
Tawny, I can't wait to read Does She Dare. When's the release date again? :-)
I became obsessed with the Ottoman Empire after reading all of Bertrice Small's naughty Skye O'Malley books and Love Wild and Fair (were they connected? I can't remember anymore). I went on to study that region and time period in college (majored in history), and even ended up taking a number of classes in Arab Women's Literature. All because of Bertrice! :-)
The great thing about learning history through a romance is that you learn more than the politics/history of war they usually teach in school. You read social history and the history of people. Much more interesting, if you ask me, and no less important, despite the weight it is given in school.
- October 15, 2007 at 9:46 AM
- Donna MacMeans said...
Hi Tawny, great subject! I originally was drawn to the Victorian time period by the gorgeous clothes. Which is interesting as my heroines spend more time out of their clothes than in them *g*. Of course, corsets are amazing. They shape every woman into more of an hourglass shape (of course with figures like mine we're talking major straining on the laces) and look so sexy, they are still in fashion - in limited venues.
I like the idea that cellphones, regular phones, cars, boom boxes, computers didn't exist in the Victorian times. As an author, I can work in a bit more suspense when the heroine can't reach into her recticule for a cellphone. Heaven help me, but I love the idea of having servants to do the cooking and cleaning as well. In some ways, the modern woman comes with disadvantages.
- October 15, 2007 at 9:51 AM
- Trish Milburn aka Tricia Mills said...
I think if done right, a setting can actually become almost a character in its own right. I love stories where you feel like the story almost couldn't take place anywhere else because it's so perfect for the characters and the plot.
I think we pick up bits of knowledge from fiction reading because it doesn't feel like learning if we're having a good time. I still remember learning a bit about Pancho Villa by reading a historical romance years ago.
- October 15, 2007 at 10:56 AM
- Cassondra said...
Great points Tawny.
The very mention of Venice has me asking all kinds of questions, like "how do they keep the water out of their houses...there must be an entire industry of canal wall inspectors or some such--you know, how you have to have your vehicle tested for emissions issues in some states? In Venice, do they have to have their house walls tested for leaks?
I've learned so much more about history from novels than I ever did in school (high school anyway--college was a bit better, though not much). I think it's because in the novel, it becomes important because our characters are important, and this stuff is affecting our character. The setting is a part of who the character is.
In school it was just rote memorization with no connection. That's the awesome power of the novel--of story actually--as a teaching tool. In a textbook there's nothing to relate that stuff to.
And I can't wait for "Does She Dare." LOVED Double Dare. It'll be so cool to see the strong heroines you write in a small town setting!
- October 15, 2007 at 3:02 PM
- Tawny said...
Christine, I love that the setting in Scandal's Daughter reflects the h/H upbringing as well. Like you, I didn't consciously plan it - to be honest, it was only in thinking about this blog that I realized how the setting had played into my books LOL.
Helen, I love setting too - like you, those bigger than life gorgeous settings in historical really do lend themselves to the lush feel of the stories.
- October 15, 2007 at 3:13 PM
- Tawny said...
Amy - your setting really does drive your stories, doesn't it?! and like you say, it gives the readers an intimate, inside look at something that for many is just a little scary *g*.
Caren - LOL that your Regency knowledge outdoes your hubbies *g* I love how romances make us so smart. Altho my father really wants to know where I learned "all that stuff" I put in my books. Um, I blamed hubby.
- October 15, 2007 at 3:16 PM
- Tawny said...
Ooooh the gardens! Doglady (love it!) I'm a garden freak, so reading about them really inspires me too. And like you say, all those little details that bring us into the story are almost like time travel.
Anna, methinks you like your research a GREAT deal! I love that you've gone to visit place you read.
- October 15, 2007 at 3:18 PM
- Tawny said...
Dianna LOLOL on the sunfish! that is so fun to know. I enjoy the medeivals too, and am thrilled to hear they are making a "comeback".
Kirsten, you and Cassandra are so sweet *g*. DOES SHE DARE? is a January release. I loved writing this story, especially since the heroine has quite a few of my own goal-setting obsessive issues *g*. The setting was such a flip from DOUBLE DARE, so it was interesting. My third book, RISQUE BUSINESS is set in academia - which was REALLY different for me LOL.
- October 15, 2007 at 3:23 PM
- Tawny said...
Donna - I love love love the clothes (and houses) of the Victorian era! It was so fun at my chapter meeting the other day, we were talking about reading the older books of our fave authors and the discussion wasn't so much about how the writing has evolved, but how our society has evolved. Trying to find a phone booth, for instance *g*. In a day of cell phones thats like total history!
Trish, I agree - setting can be a character. Its definitely that important.
Cassandra, YES- rote learning drives me batty. I can memorize with the best of them, but then I instantly hit the mental delete button LOL>
- October 15, 2007 at 3:44 PM
- Anna Campbell said...
Tawny, love your post. How interesting about the variation in the settings for your two books.
As any regular visitor to the Banditas knows, I'm a bit of a setting junkie. The setting is one of the very first things that comes to me in a book. If I know where the action is taking place, I can make the action take place if that makes sense.
With Claiming the Courtesan, I wanted to make the Scottish setting an integral part of the story. It's still one of my favorite compliments when someone says that I captured the Highlands for them (mind you, Pam, getting listed in someone's favorite books is up there too!). I love the way in something like the Brontes, the landscape reflects the emotional journey of the characters.
With Untouched, I wanted the lush, gentle landscape of Somerset to be an ironic commentary on my hero's bleak reality - he's been locked away for life as a madman. I also wanted that spring growth to offer him a subconscious promise that he'd been through winter and new hope was just around the corner in the unlikely person of my heroine Grace.
Tempt the Devil, the book I'm just putting the finishing touches to, is mainly set in London. I wanted the desperate journey my characters make to a real emotional life to be set against a largely artificial world full of glitter and decadence.
The next one is going to be Cornwall. Lots of stormy seas and cliffs and and blasting winds and bleak moorland. Yes, it's another melodrama!
Love being able to explore all these different settings and play with how they have an impact on my characters.
- October 15, 2007 at 4:06 PM
- Jill James said...
Tawny, I love learning from reading well-written romances. Again and again I return to Elizabethan times set stories. It was such an exciting time in the world. Elizabeth was the true underdog, never expected to ascent to the throne and she ruled it!!!!
- October 15, 2007 at 4:15 PM
- Susan Seyfarth said...
Hi, Tawny. Great subject, & once again, I'm probably going to be the lone voice on the other side of the issue. I always lean more toward those "water colors" settings you talked about -- dreamy, blurry, not quite there.
As a reader, I'm impatient & tend to skim over anything that doesn't immediately advance the story, which includes a lot of detail on landscapes, decorations, clothing, etc. Which is probably why I find myself backing up all the time, re-reading the paragraphs of description I just skimmed & thinking, "Wait, what?" :-)
But I'm always amazed & awed by writers with the mastery to make setting into a deeply realized character. I'm thinking particularly of the Narnia Chronicles, which had me thumping around in the back of closets looking for portals into magical worlds until I was WAY older than I'd like to admit. :-)
- October 15, 2007 at 4:28 PM
- Tawny said...
Anna - you are a master with setting. I'm awed at the detailing and depth you give in your books. How intriguing that setting comes to you first.
Jill - Isn't itersting the time periods we are drawn to? I wonder if reincarnation plays in LOL.
Susan I'm laughing so hard at the image of you knocking around the back of a closet :-) But thats exactly it- a setting that makes you go hmmm is one that is really well written.
- October 15, 2007 at 5:58 PM
- Anna Campbell said...
Hey, thanks, Tawny. That was lovely. When I say setting comes to me first, it's people in their setting, if you know what I mean. I don't set out to write a 'Scottish' book (hmm, is that like the Scottish play?). But I tend to think people ARE part of their setting. I don't think any of us operate in a vacuum. Mind you, if you saw my house today, you'd wish I occasionally operated WITH a vacuum. This deadline means housework has gone west!
- October 15, 2007 at 6:30 PM
- Beth said...
Great post, Tawny! I don't usually think about setting although I do prefer the dynamics of small towns. Probably because that's what I know *g*
- October 15, 2007 at 8:03 PM
- doglady said...
Tawny, I know what you mean about gardens. English gardens, especially. Formal or informal, wild by design or designed to be wild. I love a beautiful garden. I think it started when I lived in England. Two elderly sisters had the house next to us and their back garden was huge and GORGEOUS in full bloom. Anna is a master at creating a painting of the setting and then drawing the characters out of that painting. It just blows me away. I love the little details in good romance novels. The kinds of things that are put in there very like the things you would pass in walking down a hallway for the first time. They just catch your eye enough for you to remember them.
- October 15, 2007 at 10:33 PM
- Anna Campbell said...
Pam, what a lovely description of the things that you love in setting in a romance novel. Walking down a hallway is just how I feel. I don't like feeling I've had an encyclopedia dumped on my head (ouch!) but I love to pick up those stray bits of information that just make the whole experience rich and colorful for me.
- October 16, 2007 at 12:21 AM
- Tawny said...
Oooh, I do love gardens. My yard is very "cottage" - alot of roses, vines, colors and overgrown flowering bushes. I keep telling my husband I don't want to cut it back because it'd ruin that enchanted feel LOL. A few years back we saw the Butchart Gardens in Victoria BC - they were stunning! Definitely a romance setting. And great definition of Anna's writing *g* I totally agree.
Anna, you rock :-D I get what you mean about the setting for the characters, its the perfect backdrop to enhance their struggles.
Beth - you rock the small towns, girl!!!
- October 16, 2007 at 2:25 AM


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Champions of Erelia
Erelia – a land that, some say, has lost itself. Once, back when noble kings ruled from the high throne at Atahiel, this was a bright and prosperous place, but when King Luke, first of his name, died without an heir some six hundred years ago, that all changed. The barons and counts presiding over the lands of the Kingdom began to quarrel – and with no higher power, with no king to unite them, there could be no consensus where the interests of these men of power conflicted…
These were dark times – many of the heads of the noble houses became little better than glorified warlords, and though the political situation has become more stable with time, there is still no true unity in the land, and the ruling families of the many city-states maneuver and vie for dominance.
But even now, as deals are brokered between the ruling families, as lives and lands are bought and sold, there is a power gathering that threatens to shatter this tentative peace, and leave only chaos in its wake…
This is a dark time… A time for heroes… (play opening theme)
Nikki – Flaffem
Ven – Flick
Kit – Haradriel
Rose – Kiki
Ari – Rudra
Sami – Lindel
Matt – Rohn
Cyrus – GM


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MOSCOW, Russia--Washington State University alum Bernard Lagat (left/photo by Paul Merca) kept himself out of trouble for most of the race, cruising to a third place finish in Tuesday morning's 5000 meter semifinals, in a time of 13:23.59, and an automatic berth in Friday's finals.
Lagat kept himself positioned near the front but to the outside, so that he wouldn't get pinned to the rail when it was time to move.
His positioning kept him out of trouble with less than two laps to go, when Phillip Kipyeko of Uganda got tangled up with the front pack. Both Lagat and USA teammate and fifth place finisher Ryan Hill (13:24.19) managed to avoid the mayhem and stay upright.
Ethiopia's Hagos Gebrhiwet won the semi race in 13:23.22.
"I tried to tell myself to get out of this mess. There was a lot of bumping with each other there, a lot of legs and feet flying around. One guy might be trying to push you from behind, and you're trying to hold up so you don't trip over the guy in front of you."
"I clipped the guy from Uganda, and I told him I was sorry afterwards."
"Over the last 600, I felt good".
The 2007 world champion at both 1500 and 5000 said that training for these world championships have been going good, except for a slight hiccup with his hip that forced him to drop out of the 5000 at the Diamond League in Monaco last month.
He said that the issue with the hip was the first serious bump in the road partly due to increasing the volume in his training when he got to his summer base in Tubigen, Germany, but has been working with a physical therapist to help correct the issue, adding that at his age, trying to train through an injury is not the smartest thing to do.
All three Americans moved on to Friday's final, as Portland's Galen Rupp finished fourth in the other semifinal in 13:23,91, just ahead of his Nike Oregon Project teammate and reigning Olympic champion Mo Farah of Great Britain.
Later this evening, finals will be held in the men's discus, women's pole vault, men's 800, women's steeplechase, and men's 400.
TRACK SHORTS: One athlete we missed in our world championships preview is recent Washington State grad Shawna Fermin, who will be on Trinidad & Tobago's 4 x 400 relay pool.
Fermin earned second-team All-America honors as an NCAA 400m semifinalist for WSU last June. A dual citizen, Fermin will run for Trinidad and Tobago in the women's 1600m relay prelim heats Friday the 16th at 11:30 a.m. Russian time (12:30 a.m. PT). The relay final is set for the next day at 7:30 p.m. Russian time (8:30 a.m. PT).


text:
Brands are now a dominant feature of contemporary living. Drawing on rich empirical material, this book builds up a critical theory, arguing that brands have become an important tool for transforming everyday life into economic value.
Corporate logos are inscribed in our everyday life as companies try to brand a particular lifestyle or value complex onto their products, working on the assumption that consumers desire products for their ability to give meaning to their lives. However, brands also have a key function within managerial strategy. Examining the history of audience and market research, marketing thought and advertising strategy, Arvidsson traces the historical development of branding. Through his evaluation of new media, contemporary management and overall media economics, he presents a systematic and comprehensive theory of brands.
Brands uses illustrative case studies throughout from market research, advertising, shop displays, mobile phones, the internet and virtual companies. This book will be essential reading for students and researchers in sociology of media, cultural studies, advertising and consumer studies, and marketing.


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Friday, August 28, 2009
Meet Bentley: our Holland Lop FOR ADOPTION
Bentley was dummped in an appartment building at 9 months old as estimated my the veterinarian at the time. He is now around 5 years old, and unfortunately has to be re-homed. The girl who originally saved him from the apartment building can no longer keep him. He is already castrated and very friendly. He now just wants to find a nice home to ride out the rest of his life peacefully in.
Posted by Eleven Eleven Animal Rescue at 6:38 AM
Labels: Bentley, For Adoption
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text:
John Henry Smith, who tells the story. Heir of his father, lives in Woodvale club house, devoted to golf, becomes interested in Wall Street, and falls in love with Grace Harding
Grace Harding, only daughter of Robert L. Harding, visitor in Woodvale
Robert L. Harding, millionaire railway magnate, who first despises golf and then becomes infatuated with it
Mrs. Harding, the matter-of-fact wife of the above
Jim Bishop, farmer near Woodvale, who knew Harding when the two were boys in Buckfield, Maine
William Wallace, Bishop's hired man, later golf professional in Woodvale, and later something else
Olive Lawrence, pupil to William Wallace
Percy LAHUME, in love with Miss Lawrence
James Carter, wealthy member of Woodvale, who knows how to keep a secret
Miss Dangerfield, who makes a collection of golf balls
Miss Ross, who is very pretty
Mr. and Mrs. Chilvers, and Mr. and Mrs. Marshall, estimable young people, who enter into this narrative
Boyd, Lawson, Duff, bell, Monahan,
etc., members in good standing in the
Woodvale Golf and Country Club
"... and I got it" Frontispiece
"How do I look?" Title Page
"... and threw it in the pond" 9
"Fore there! hay there!!" 15
"It makes an ideal hazard" 25
"... but there was blood in his eye" 37
"Fore" 49
"There is no law to compel a man to play golf" 57
"We rested on top of the hill" 73
"Did it hit you?" 87
"... and missed the ball by three inches" 95
"It is not necessary to caution me" 105
The dream 113
"At the gate waiting for us" 121
"We're not fighting, my dear!" 131
"It must be tough to have
to wear skirts all the time"
"What do you think of me?" 137
"Jack ... never stopped a second" 145
"Mr. Harding ... executed a clog dance" 153


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Monday, December 21, 2015
Christmas Time - Santa Claus 3D Pop Card - by Anne Tournadre
This beautiful and easy-to-build Santa Claus 3D Pop Card was created by French designer Anne Tournadre, from Passions de A.R.T website.
Este belo e fácil de montar Cartão em estilo Pop Up do Papai Noel foi criado pelo designer francês Anne Tournadre, do site Passions de A.R.T.
Link: Christmas.Time.Santa.Claus.3D.Pop.Card.by.Anne.Tournadre
More Christmas Paper Models related posts:
Christmas Time - Christmas Decoration With Paper Toys - Paper Toys De Natal
Christmas Time - Toy Soldier 3D Papercraft - by Spoonfull
3D Christmas Village Papercraft Projects - by Mommy Nean
Christmas Time - Holiday Wreath Papercraft - by Paper Models Inc
Postado por mauther papermau às 11:05 AM
Marcadores: card, Christmas, decorative, download, french, gift, paper model, papercraft, papermodel
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text:
Each time I house sit I make sure I clean up after myself and have all of my stuff gone by the time they get home so they can easily fall back into their routine. However, recently I had been staying at their house for a few days and had gone to work in the afternoon, leaving my stuff out in the room where I stay, probably with a few dirty dishes in the sink from breakfast and lunch, and fully planning on staying another night. Somehow we had gotten their return dates mixed up, and my friend and her family arrived home that evening - one evening earlier than I had in my calendar! It wasn't a big deal to them, but I was slightly embarrassed that my mess was still there.
I stopped by after work to pack everything up, and chatted with my friend while stacking my folded laundry into my suitcase. She made a comment on how organized my suitcase was, and I had to laugh! Just out of sight beneath the neatly folded clothes was an entire load of clean laundry laying in a jumbled mess.
And that got me thinking. How many of us seem to have a neatly organized facade while lurking beneath is a wadded up mess that we hide? How many times do we present our best selves while concealing our true situation, emotions, or needs? I think this was a good reminder for me to not take everyone at face value. There is more to a person's story than what they present to the world. It reminded me to pause before judging, give the benefit of the doubt, and be kind even when wronged, because I don't know everyone's story. I just hope the world does the same for me, because we're all just one crazy mess underneath.
|Not my friend's house.


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教育強國 芬蘭啟動新教改|教育|2016-05-24|天下雜誌第598期
教育強國 芬蘭啟動新教改|教育|2016-05-24|天下雜誌第598期
Pasi Sahlberg: "Finnish Lessons: What can the world learn from ...
Dec 16, 2011 - Uploaded by Vanderbilt University
Watch video of Pasi Sahlberg speaking Dec. 9 on "Finnish Lessons: What can the world learn from ...
Dec 16, 2011 - Uploaded by Vanderbilt UniversityWatch video of Pasi Sahlberg speaking Dec. 9 on "Finnish Lessons: What can the world learn from ...
Finnish Lessons: What the World Can Learn from Educational Change ...
May 2, 2013 - Uploaded by HarvardEducation
What can the world learn from educational change in Finland? Pasi Sahlberg, director general of the Centre ...
May 2, 2013 - Uploaded by HarvardEducationWhat can the world learn from educational change in Finland? Pasi Sahlberg, director general of the Centre ...
Finnish Lessons 2.0 available in January 2015
Ever wondered how Finland managed to build its highly regarded school system?
Get the insights and facts you'll need to contribute to building an effective, lower cost educational system at the local, national and global level.
Pasi Sahlberg recounts the history of Finnish educational reform as only a well-traveled insider can. He details how the Finnish strategy and tactics differ from those of the global educational reform movement and of the North American reforms in particular.
Finnish Lessons goes beyond the facts and figures of Finnish education.
Rather than proposing that other nations follow in Finland's path, Finnish Lessons documents how Finland achieved success without going through the arduous and controversial process of implementing competition, school choice, and test-based accountability.
Here parents, educators and policy architects can gain the insight and facts necessary to constructively participate in improving their schools — even in a tightening economy.
This book is also a message of hope and encouragement for other nations to find their own way to enact educational reform that works.
Winner of the 2013 Grawemeyer Award in education
– Here is how the Washington Post reported the Finnish Lessons triumph on 28/11/2012
Read the Foreword by Andy Hargreaves or take a look at the Table of Content
Finnish Lessons on kindle and as audio book in Amazon
Available also in Swedish, Croatian, Dutch, Chinese, Spanish and Greek.
Praise for Finnish Lessons:
"The story of Finland's extraordinary educational reforms is one that should inform policymakers and educators around the world. No one tells this story more clearly and engagingly than Pasi Sahlberg, who has lived and studied these reforms for decades. This book is a must read."
Linda Darling-Hammond, Charles E. Ducommun Professor of Education and Co-Director of the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education at Stanford University
"A terrific synthesis by a native Finn, a teacher, a researcher and a policy analyst all rolled up into one excellent writer. Pasi Sahlberg teaches us great deal about what we need to know before engaging in national educational reforms."
David Berliner, Regents' Professor in the College Of Education at Arizona State University
"This book is a wake-up call for the U.S. Finland went from mediocre academic results to one of the top performers in the world. And, they did it with unions, minimal testing, teacher unions, national collaboration, and elevating teaching to a high-status calling. This is the antidote to the NCLB paralysis."
Henry M. Levin, William Heard Kilpatrick Professor of Economics and Education, Teachers College, Columbia University and David Jacks Professor of Education and Economics, Emeritus, Stanford University
"Finland's remarkable educational story, so well told in this book by Pasi Sahlberg, is both informative and inspiring for others because it shows that with appropriate effort sustained over time, a country can make huge improvements for its young people, something that all countries aspire to do."
Ben Levin, Canada Research Chair, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, University of Toronto
"Pasi Sahlberg is the best education policy expert to share the Finnish experiences with the international community. I have known him for decades and this book confirms that he is not only a practitioner but also a visionary that we Finns need when searching for the solutions to our educational challenges."
Erkki Aho, Director General (1973 – 1991), Finnish National Board of Education
"It is essential also for us Finns to get a balanced analysis what really is behind the success of the Finnish educational system. Pasi Sahlberg as an insider knows what has happened and as a researcher has an objective perspective on cause and effect relationships."
Olli-Pekka Heinonen, State Secretary, Prime Minister's Office and former Minister of Education (1994-99)


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"Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment"
by James Patterson
read by Evan Rachel Wood
published 2005 by Hatchette Audio
Approx 4 hours
The master of thriller fiction, James Patterson, has been know to dabble in young adult fiction. The "Maximum Ride" series is one of those dabblings. With books under his belt like, "Along Came a Spider," and "Kiss the Girls," Patterson has shown that he can write a good thriller, and he takes that writing style and adapts it for the younger audience. I'm not sure what age he's aiming for with this series, it seems pretty wide open from 12 - 18 easily. I know I enjoyed this first book in the series. There were some moments that didn't work for me but I'll explain those later. For the most part if the rest of this series is as fun and exciting as this first one, I could put up w/ what may be a minor fault.
First off the choice of Evan Rachel Wood as reader took me by surprise. But hey, she did it. I know it takes acting skills to pull off reading an audiobook, and she does have the skills, but what surprised me most was her vocal range. She was able to separate the characters very well with her voice, giving them each their own voice.
This book introduces the listener to six fugitive kids; Max, Fang, Iggy, Gasman, Nudge, and Angel, known collectively as the Flock. The kids were genetically mutated in utero in a laboratory called "the School", that rendered them 98% human and 2% avian. The Flock is being hunted down by human-lupine hybrids created by the School called "Erasers".
Max (she named herself Maximum Ride) is the one telling the story, and she tells how Jeb escaped the School, with the flock and hid out in the mountains and raises the children for two years. Jeb disappeared leaving the flock to fend for themselves. One day the Erasers find them and take Angel. The flock must fly to the school to rescue Angel. One thing about Angel, she has the ability to read minds and later we find she can also put thoughts into someone's head.
On the way to the School, Max sees a girl on the ground (bird vision?) being threatened by some thugs. She tells the flock to fly to a safe place. She flies down to rescue the girl. The flock may be young but they look older because they are bigger, and on top of that they have stronger than human strength. In the rescue Max is hurt in the struggle and finds herself at the home of the girl she helped. The girl's mother is a veterinarian and fixes her wounds. The vet takes max in for some x-rays and discovers a chip implanted in Max's arm, a sort of tracking chip that is so deeply embedded that it cannot be removed.
Max meets up with the flock and they go on to rescue Angel, but they manage to get captured by Erasers themselves and discover that Jeb is the one behind the capture. The book then moves on to escape and the flock seeking to discover the truth about their creation. Max is told she must "save the world," and begins being led by a voice in her head that disrupts electronics.
The story seems to be fast paced and the adventures take a short time to move on to the next part of the journey, which I see as being aimed at a younger audience. My problem is that when, at times, when a major fight/battle seems to be eminent, all fighting just stops and the enemies just leave, with no victor to be had. Maybe this, again, is for the younger audience, but it seems these moments could have been closed out better.
All in all though this is a fun adventure in genetic mutations and kids seeking their origins.


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Weekly Press Conference - Monmouth
September 20, 2010
By ODU Athletics
By ODU Athletics
Sept. 20, 2010
NORFOLK, Va. -- The Weekly Bobby Wilder Press Conference is now available on Monarch All-Access. Watch Coach Wilder talk about this week's upcoming match-up with the Monmouth Hawks and recap last week's exciting contest with nationally ranked William & Mary.
The Weekly Press Conference is available via the Monarch All-Access subscription and can be viewed by clicking here.


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We asked earlier, "How many shooters were involved in the Afghan killings?" Afghan lawmakers are asking the same question, and have settled on an answer — as many as twenty.
The Kabul-based Pajhwok Afghan News agency — Afghanistan's largest independent news service — is reporting on an Afghan parliamentary probe into the murder of 16 civilians by one or more U.S. soldiers over the weekend. According to the report (h/t Steve Hynd via Twitter; my emphasis and reparagraphing):
A parliamentary probe team on Thursday said up to 20 American troops were involved in Sunday's killing of 16 civilians in southern Kandahar province.A stunning development, if true. The U.S. military is holding to the "lone gunman" theory, and has flown the soldier who has reportedly confessed out of the country. Some of the lawmakers wanted the perpetrator(s) tried in Afghanistan.
The probing delegation includes lawmakers [eight MPs listed]. ... The team spent two days in the province, interviewing the bereaved families, tribal elders, survivors and collecting evidences at the site in Panjwai district. Hamizai Lali told Pajhwok Afghan News their investigation showed there were 15 to 20 American soldiers, who executed the brutal killings.
"We closely examined the site of the incident, talked to the families who lost their beloved ones, the injured people and tribal elders," he said. He added the attack lasted one hour involving two groups of American soldiers in the middle of the night on Sunday.
"The villages are one and a half kilometre from the American military base. We are convinced that one soldier cannot kill so many people in two villages within one hour at the same time, and the 16 civilians, most of them children and women, have been killed by the two groups."
There are several implications to this report. Just a few:
1. Will it get near-term media traction? Let's see if the British independent press picks it up, or some prime American source. These are critical hours for the story in the U.S.; the fruit is still unripe, still vulnerable to the frosty stare of the next missing news-blonde.
2. In the U.S. what will be the response? At some point there will be a trial. That in itself could rekindle awareness. After all, if one or more people had gone on a midnight killing spree of 16 women and children in Kansas, we'd be inundated with it, drowning in it.
3. In Afghanistan, this could change the political equation. Yes, we're talking about maybe exiting the war. But there's now more on the table for honor-focused tribal leaders than just our leaving. The report includes this:
The lawmaker said the Wolesi Jirga would not sit silent until the killers were prosecuted in Afghanistan. "If the international community does not play its role in punishing the perpetrators, the Wolesi Jirga would declare foreign troops as occupying forces, like the Russians," Lali warned.The Wolesi Jirga is the lower house of the Afghan parliament. Declaring U.S. troops an occupying force would have an effect. Lali, by the way, is Chairman of the Parliamentary National Security and Internal Affairs Commission. Not nobody.
As Rachel Maddow reported, our troops are already being "fragged" by their Afghan "partners." This could turn into a very different war than we asked for, and the Afghans seem determined to follow this through.
Stay tuned.
UPDATES: 1. More thoughts on this at the Agonist.
2. And here at emptywheel.net.
3. Informative additions by commenter hauksdottir here. This is a good comment thread. Thanks to all.
(To follow on Twitter or to send links: @Gaius_Publius)


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If you're still seething over how beautiful (and expensive..) some of Zoella's homeware stuff is, this latest offering from Aldi has come at just the right time.
Because while you might not have £329.99 to fork out on an official branded Kitchen Aid, Aldi's metallic version looks like it could've come straight out of Zoe Sugg and Alfiee Deyes' incredible new Brighton home.
BUY NOW Ambiano Classic Stand Mixer, £64.99, Aldi.
Part of a wider baking range, which is available in stores and online, the kitchen is over £260 cheaper than the original version, at just £64.99.
Available in four colours, including Champagne and Pearlescent Cream) and with six-speed rotary control, this stand mixer will make you want to whip up a batch of cupcakes (or at least try..) asap, especially when you consider how GREAT it'll look in your kitchen.
So what if you only use it once and then just stare at it longingly/use it as storage for the rest of time?
Also available in the Aldi baking range is a waffle maker (£19.99, Aldi), digital scales (£6.99, Aldi), mixing bowls (£9.99) and retro baking accessories (from £3.99).
Race you (and YouTubers all over the country) down the aisle.
- Aldi is selling a kitchen aid like Zoella's for £260 less
- Aldi is selling a Bake Off style Kitchen Aid for £260 less
- Aldi is selling a Bake Off style Kitchen Aid for £260 less – Cosmopolitan
- Aldi is launching a Bake Off inspired baking range, including a stand mixer that is SIX times cheaper than a Kitchen Aid
- Aldi launches £65 stand mixer ahead of Bake Off 2017


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Gambar Anatomi Tubuh Manusia Terbaru
Human analysis or anthropotomy is a appropriate acreage of abstraction in the analysis of beastly anatomy structure, while the networks advised in analysis and analysis of cells.
Human body, such as beastly body, consisting of systems, which abide of organs, which consists of a network, which consists of cells.
Sumber : http://911medical.blogspot.com/


text: Engadget: Lefty? We feel ya -- sometimes modern camcorders just aren't built for those with alternate dominant proclivities, but Samsung's HMX-Q10 most certainly is. Though, really, it'd be great for anyone who has felt the need to keep on filming while using their right hand to cling desperately onto a grabrail or the like. It offers a compact design with a prominent record button right on its fanny, about the only physical control you really need to worry about.


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ATLANTA — Compared to the last five miserable weeks, Tampa Bay rookie running back Doug Martin sensed something different this time.
Martin got all the proof he needed when the Buccaneers, though out of the playoffs for the fifth straight year, needed just 2 minutes to respond to a fourth-quarter touchdown by Atlanta.
"I could see it in everybody's eyes out there," Martin said. "They weren't going to let that happen. Everybody just started to show up."
Martin rushed for 142 yards, Josh Freeman and Mike Williams connected on a short touchdown pass and Tampa Bay snapped a five-game losing streak to end the season with a 22-17 victory Sunday.
Despite falling short of their postseason goals again, the Bucs at least were able to leave the Georgia Dome feeling some self- respect.
That was hardly the case last season, when they suffered a 10th straight loss in a Falcons rout and learned the next day that Raheem Morris had been fired as head coach.
Atlanta, just like this year, was on its way to the playoffs.
"We were on a losing streak last year, obviously, and it did not feel good walking out of this locker room, regardless of the situation," safety Ronde Barber said. "I think everybody doesn't feel great about the season, of course, but we'll definitely be proud of the way we played this last game."
Tampa Bay (7-9) relieved some frustration against an NFC South rival that had ended its four-game winning on Nov. 25.
The Bucs had not won since, but on Sunday they answered appropriately each time the Falcons (13-3) threatened to take the lead.
Martin's 40-yard touchdown late in the third quarter was significant because Atlanta had cut the lead to six after Asante Samuel picked off Freeman and Michael Turner scored on a 17-yard run.
"Erik Lorig, our fullback, did a good job of staying on his guy, and also Donald Penn, our left tackle, stayed on his guy," Martin said. "I just pressed it and bounced it out and then broke two tackles, and it was off to the races."
The score was important, too, because it helped restore Freeman's confidence. The fourth-year quarterback had thrown four interceptions in each of the last two weeks as New Orleans and St. Louis outscored the Bucs by a combined 69-13.
That wasn't the case this time.
"Any time you have a turnover, you have to respond," Freeman said. "It's happened a number of times this year. A lot of times we responded. Sometimes we didn't respond, but especially when you're on the road and the team is as good as the Falcons are or really any team, it's crucial to respond."
Tampa Bay's defense began the game ranked first against the run and last against the pass, but the Bucs were stout in both facets.
They played lots of zone coverage and let their linemen and occasional blitz packages keep pressure on Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan.
The Falcons' 275 total offensive yards were their second-fewest this season as defensive ends Daniel Te'o-Nesheim and Michael Bennett combined with defensive tackle Gerald McCoy and linebacker Lavonte David with two sacks for minus-25 yards and six quarterback hits.
Middle linebacker Mason Foster finished with 12 tackles, 11 of them solo stops, and safety Mark Barron made arguably the Bucs' defensive play of the game when he knocked down a fourth-down pass to tight end Tony Gonzalez with 2:02 remaining.
"The few pressures we did bring really were run stoppers," Barber said. "We did a good job of first and second down to what we thought were manageable third downs to get off the field. It's been a problem for us all year, but it's how you win football games in this league."
Offensively, Freeman surpassed 4,000 yards passing for the first time in his career. Martin, who began the game ranked third in NFL yards from scrimmage, averaged 5.1 yards on 28 attempts, and Williams beat Samuel in the back of the end zone for an 8-yard score that gave Tampa Bay a seven-point lead midway through the second quarter.
Dekoda Watson sparked the special teams by blocking a second-quarter punt that led to the second of Connor Barth's three field goals.
The Bucs played their best against Atlanta's starters for four quarters. Despite having the NFC's No. 1 seed and homefield advantage in the playoffs clinched last week, Falcons coach Mike Smith kept his first-string players on the field for the entire game.
"This team, I think, never really takes it for granted that they get to do this (for a living)," first-year Tampa Bay coach Greg Schiano said. "It's a good thing to be able to use all of your cumulative experiences and make up who you are and what you do."
Freeman said he would take some satisfaction in the victory even though it came too late to save the season.
"If you end the year without winning the Super Bowl, your season can't be considered a success," Freeman said. "But certainly I'm optimistic. We've got a lot of pieces and a number of guys we'll get back on the team this offseason. Looking forward, I'm really excited."
Bucs finish season on a high note
ATLANTA — Compared to the last five miserable weeks, Tampa Bay rookie running back Doug Martin sensed something different this time.


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Galle is an amazing place with such immense history. There's a beach, a fort, a fishing industry and loads of jewellery stores.
My sister was getting married in a resort at Thalpe nearby so my family and I met up a few days before and used Thalpe as a base to do a number of the things that the area had to offer. First up was a day in Galle.
We started with a short three wheeler (tuk tuk) ride into Galle with the plan to spend a few hours in Galle Fort, a four hundred year old fort built by the Portugese in the 1600s. There's a beautiful old church there and shops for tourists inside. A great way to escape the heat is to zoom inside one of these shops when not admiring the beautiful old buildings.
The day we went was a tiny bit windy too so it was lovely walking along the walls of the fort in the coastal breeze. It was absolutely amazing.
There were also a number of furry friends that shared the vista with us. The stray cats inside Galle Fort seem to appreciate a cat lover when they see one but aware of the diseases that cats outside of New Zealand can carry I refused to touch them but they were so cute!!!
I did thoroughly enjoy the jewellery stores though. Things were so pretty and my parents ended up buying me my birthday present in Galle Fort as my birthday was that week.
After Galle Fort our tuk tuk driver decided to take us to a big jewellery store on a hill. My parents told me in no uncertain terms that under no circumstances was I to buy there. We did not ask to be taken there and would not have chosen to go there ordinarily. (The tuk tuk driver had been following us around the fort and had seemingly decided that it might be beneficial for him to take us to a jewellery store. We proved him wrong.)
On the way down the hill we asked to be taken to a spice shop. Cinnamon! So much cinnamon. It was awesome. We're still using that cinnamon nearly 3 years later and my parents negotiated a really good price for it. Galle was good like that.
At the end of the day we returned back to our hotel in Thalpe for afternoon tea, a nap and then dinner. It was lovely and relaxing. The next morning we were getting up for a big day of safari-ing.


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Thursday, October 9, 2008
Transportation Secretary Short List
- Ma Peters
- Bill Graves, president of the American Trucking Associations
- Pete K. Rahn, Missouri Department of Transportation director
- Governor Edward G. Rendell (D-PA), chair of National Govenors Association
- Jane F. Garvey, executive vice president, APCO Worldwide
- Steve Heminger, executive director of the San Francisco Bay area's Metropolitan Transportation Commission
Ma Peters. We know all about her. Someone from the American Trucking Association? Serious? Or hows about Pete Rahn, the president of the Highway Lobby! This is stark. YGBFKM!
On the Blue team, it looks much better. Governor Rendell is big on transit in Philadelphia and understands transportation is multi-modal. I'm not so sure how good Jane Garvey would be as she was a former FAA administrator and Deputy Administrator at the Federal Highway Administration (booo!!).
I'm not so sure what I think of Steve Heminger either. His MTC has already been reprimanded by Jerry Brown for keeping roads we know the region doesn't need (Read Eric's post) and he got into trouble by taking a paragraph out of the recent National Transportation Commission Study Report about electric transit that Conservative Paul Weyrich had inserted. He's recently been a HOT lane enthusiast as well.
On the other hand, he understands multi-modal transportation systems, though the Bay Area's hodge podge of 26 agencies makes it a little hard to coordinate. They also have very aggressive performance measures for TOD that only spend money on new projects if the area is willing to accept a certain amount of density. I will say he and Gov. Rendell would be light years better than any of these other highway clowns. The McCain picks are telling, and if you were thinking he would address global warming and go against the auto-oil industrial complex, you might have just gotten smacked in the face.
9 comments:
- Morgan Wick said...
Here's CQ Politics' descriptions of the shortlisters.
- October 9, 2008 at 9:01 PM
- ambrown said...
- October 9, 2008 at 11:25 PM
- Justin said...
You forgot the "T" in YGTBFKM.
- October 10, 2008 at 6:06 AM
- Pantograph Trolleypole said...
Haha thanks Justin. I think Gotta works as well. :)
- October 10, 2008 at 9:08 AM
At least McCain doesnt have Wendell Cox or Randall O'Toole on the list, though someone from the highway or trucking lobby would be almost as bad. McCain's ideas are even older than his old age.
I second the choice of Earl Blumenauer for Obama, although I also would like him to keep doing what he is doing in Portland.
- October 10, 2008 at 10:46 AM
- Cap'n Transit said...
Ed Rendell, the one who cut trolley service from three lines in 1992 while he was mayor of Philadelphia and promised to restore it, but never got around to it - and gave the restoration tepid support at best when he was governor? (Service was restored to Route 15 in 2005, but has not yet been restore to routes 23 or 56.)
I don't know, Obama's picks all sound kinda lame to me. I'm sure they'd be better than any of McCain's, but not much of an improvement over, say, Rodney Slater.
- October 10, 2008 at 5:28 PM
- Pantograph Trolleypole said...
Thanks Cap'n. I was wondering why something wasn't quite right about the Governor. It seems a bit like my feelings about Heminger. Not quite as good as you want them to be.
- October 10, 2008 at 5:35 PM
- Dave said...
why not bill richardson?
- October 12, 2008 at 1:47 PM
- Pantograph Trolleypole said...
I like that Bill is on the light rail wagon but I wonder how much he really understands about transportation issues. I haven't seen anything to show he gets it other than just saying we need rail. But others might have seen other information to the contrary.
- October 12, 2008 at 3:09 PM


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November is the month we will be focusing on Christmas Ideas here at Prayer of Hannah (along with other things, of course). I love Christmas (doesn't everyone), and confess that I actually listened to Christmas music earlier this week. I have promised my husband I won't continually listen to Christmas music from now until January... :-)
One of my dearest friends got married at the beginning of October, and for her wedding shower I made a set of Christmas ornaments. Each ornament is specific to Kim and Eric, but the ideas can be adapted for any tree any where :-) Few of my ideas are original--you can see my inspiration and other beautiful ornament ideas (and tutorials) on my Pinterest page: Pinterest--For My Tree. I hope you enjoy these ideas, and we'd love to hear about your favorite ornament, or see a DIY Christmas ornament!
|This little box has a slip of paper that said "This keepsake box is for a small memento from your mystery honeymoon". Eric did not tell Kim where they were going on their honeymoon, so this ornament was a way to remember it
|I cut her lingerie shower invitation into strips and put them in this clear ornament along with ribbon. Some glitter and ribbon on the cap added the perfect touch!
|C is their initial, and purple was one of the colors of their wedding, so this simple felt ornament was perfect (and EASY!)
|I turned their wedding invitation into a pinwheel :-)
|The groom is the worship pastor at my church, so I used Mod Podge to add sheet music to this wooden cross
|He's a UGA fan, so one side of this ornament is for him...
|And the other side is for her, a FL Gators fan (it's a house divided, for sure :-)
|Materials needed: paper, glue, glitter, ribbon for this easy ornament!


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[Book #70, left in Amsterdam by Book Fairy Annemique.]
From Annemique, July 7, 2010:
"The day before you sent your 'reminder' I had already determined that today was going to be the day I would leave behind 'Ordinary Sparkling Moments'.
Considering that the part of Amsterdam where I live is packed with tourists, day and night, I decided to find a quiet place for your wonderful book.
I took my bicycle and rode to Huis te Vraag, an old graveyard which is not in use anymore. It is an oasis of peace and tranquility where people go to stroll, sit, ponder and reminisce."Thank you Annemique!


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Swallow me Whole is scary. But in a completely different manner from Coraline (see below). And it deals with a whole other set of problems than gothic Coraline does. Swallow me Whole has characters, Ruth and Perrym who are some years older than Coraline. They are in highschool and they are stepsiblings.
And something is wrong with both of them. They are sick. Perhaps suffering from schizophrenia. One of the key words for this novel is actually "Schizophrenia", but this is never mentioned in the story itself. Actually, a lot of things is left unmentioned, even though we are also dealing with parents who are ordinary and doesn't seem at all to be having hidden agendas or strange behaviour. Another key word is "Family Drama", and since the parents seem fine and not prone to any form of drama, this key word must relate to the terrible drama of having two kids who are both very, very sick.
As parents you may not think much about it at first, but my gosh, Ruth and Perry are weird. Ruth collects insects and Perry has a pencil which can transform itself into a magician. Now, I know there is nothing especially weird by collecting stuff - I collect books, and I am not schitzophrene. And the reader doesn't REALLY know how much of this goes on inside the heads of Ruth and Perry and how much is actually true. Of course the pencil-magician must be inside Perry's head, but about the insects...I don't know. Maybe most of the jars in which Ruth keeps those insects are mostly in her head? One thing is for certain though: the stepsiblings talk to each other about the insects and the magician (long time since I met such a nasty character as this magician), and they never doubt each other's stories.
As time goes by, psychiatrists and medication come into the kid's lives, and the reader tries and tries to get into this strange, horrible and sick life those young people live. The parents worry. But maybe not enough?
Almost everything that can go wrong, goes wrong for Ruth and Perry, and this is a scary, scary story in all it's simple style. It is not funny or comic in any way. The drawings are strong in their black and while smudgy style. Sometimes the text is so small that it is alsmost impossible to read. This is not a mistake, but surely made like this on purpose from the writer's side. The ending is not left open, although it does leave room for a bit of guessing. It is not a happy ending no matter what. This was tough reading.
Crime, Mystery, Contemporary Fiction, Chick Lit, Fantasy, Young Adult and more. Blog about books and other book- and reading related things.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Coraline by Neil Gaiman (graphic novel)
Do you still remember the land between being a child and a young adult? The year or so just before puberty? Yes, this one is for kids, Neil Gaiman's Coraline. And yes, you all read it, I know. But darn this was a scary read for this adult reader, and I felt like I was back in that land again, mentioned above. Originally this is a novel, I am aware of that, but I read the graphic edition of it, adapted and illustrated by P. Craig Russel. Oh my...it was scary! I have to say that again.
Coraline and her slightly distanced mom and dad have just moved into an old house, which they share with other tenants. Coraline is bored, and her parents doesn't really help, only by suggesting boring things to do. They are not unloving, her parents, but seem more occupied with their own stuff. Just like I myself felt at that age (and maybe did at least until a year ago where my father died). So when Coraline discovers a door leading nowhere, her curiosity is immediately on high alert. Finally something is happening.
Even though she is told not to bother with the door, she still goes on and opens it one evening. And she is suprised. Behind the door is a parallel apartment just like her own. With a set of parallel parents. Even the other people living in her "real" house are there in their parallel "edition". At first it seems like a more ideal place to be. But only at first. Because something is off in a very bad way, and Coraline is quick to discover that when her first surprise has settled.
This graphic novel was full of gothic mysticism, and even though I was not breathless over the drawings, I was chilled, literally chilled, reading this story. So in one way or the other the drawing did have an effect on me. Those drawings - and the magnificent story of course - must have an even greater effect on a kid. Or maybe not...?
Perhaps Coraline's story is way more chilling for adults than for children? I don't know. I haven't read the "real" book, so I have no idea how close the graphic novel is to the original, but is you like a gothic story as much as the next person, I definitely recommend this one.
What is the most pathetic...? And a review of The Clearing by Tim Gautreaux
Did you miss me? Probably not. Did I miss you? Yeah, a little bit. I did, it is true. But I really did not miss blogging and I couldn't seem to get anything read.
I don't know what is the most pathetic: a blog slowly dying with no new posts at all, a lot of unfinished challenges and an empty feeling to it all OR a reader not able to read at all. I have felt somewhat pathetic concerning my blogging and reading the past months - when I have had the time to think about it, that is. Because the reason I haven't really been around has nothing to do with juicy personal problems or just boring personal problems. On the contrary. I have simply just been utterly and completely mega-swamped at work.
Add to that my almost non-existant reading, and I could find no reason to blog at all, but I wish I had had the time to keep myself updated on what has been going on around the book blogger world. Have to make up for that now.
All that said, I also have managed to read some books. So let me begin 2011 (although we are almost 2 months into this new year) with a short review of one of the last reads of last year, The Clearing by Tim Gautreaux. I remeber this book as a fine read, but not so fine that I am going to rush out finding the other books this author has written.
The Clearing takes place in the years after World War I in a small sawmill town in the middle of nowhere deep in the swamps of Louisiana.
Byron, returning from Europe and the war as a broken man, is heir to a sawmill-empire, but decides to become a policeman in this small sawmill town instead of manager. Gambling, violence, drinking and genreal apathy is daily business out here in the swamps, and Byron has his plate full. He is far away from his younger brother and his father and their expectations, but trying to deal with rough sawmill workers and the Sicilian mafia (controlling bars, gambling and prostitutes) is also taking it's toll. But he does his job and he tries to forget what he did and what he saw in Europe during the war.
Hisu younger brother Randolp finds him, and he arrives to the sawmill town himself, setting up office as sawmill manager. Now begins a journey where the two brothers must begin to get to know each other again, not without certain trouble and hurting. It is especially the raw violence which Randolph sees unfolding weekend after weekend in the bar is a source of worry and fighting, because the brothers does not see eye to eye in how to handle it. Meanwhile the Sicilian mafia is getting closer, and the brothers are forced to make decisions which has dire consequences.
This might sound like The Clearing is a romantic tale about two brothers finding each other after hard times, but if you think that, then it is my fault for not being able to describe this book good enough. It is a deeply serious novel, and there is nothing romantic about it at all (not that there is anything wrong with romantic novels). It is beautifully and tightly written in a brilliant language, the tone is serious all the way through and there is not really anything to laugh about. This is about how life unfolded itself in it's most raw way about 100 years ago.
Thus I can easily recommend this book, but it was too serious and too "deep" for me at the time I read it. This is of course not the book's fault, especially since I often enjoy books with heavier themes. But it didn't really work out for me at the time I read it.
PS. I got an iPad for Christmas, and have downloaded several readers to it. I have also tried my first e-book and it worked like a charm. It was a Danish crime novel, so I will not be reviewing it here, but just wanted to say that I am now officially on the e-book band wagon ;o)
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Tony Kishman, an entertainer with an uncanny visual and vocal resemblance to Sir Paul, is featured on "The Music of Paul McCartney" on May 21 at the Holland Center. Watch this video for a preview...and join us for this symphonic salute!
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Um, sir... you sound/look a lot like....
Posted by Omaha Symphony at 2:29 PM
1 comment:
- David Benson said...
I can't wait. It doesn't get any better than Paul McCartney.
- May 19, 2011 at 12:03 AM
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Eyes on Croatia Blogger Template
Free Eyes on Croatia Blogger Template is a pretty blogger template adapted from WordPress Theme to Blogger Template with nice header and art design background. It's a 2 column blogger template with left sidebar, creative design template, and more. This template designed for personal or travel blog specially in Croatia
"I guess you must feel fatigued with eyes, as there is so much to see in Croatia. Sightseeing ranks among the biggest attractions for this Adriatic country. Stop at Dubrovnik to see the magnificent ocean, at Pula for the ancient Roman amphitheater, and in Split to explore the Diocletian's Palace. Do not hesitate, just set out for unforgettable city sightseeing tours."
Similar Templates : Sleep In Croatia Blogger Template & Better in Croatia Blogger Template
Designer & Author : Bettyduncan - http://www.croatia-travelblog-themes.net/


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Thursday, July 20, 2006
Gestural Communication
"Today I had an interesting experience which told me something about how the mind works. I came across a gang of ten-year olds and asked them if they knew of a way to get across a nearby freeway. All the boys said they didn't know, which is a big improvement over just saying no. Then a girl told me what to do. I am never surprised by the superior intelligence of females. The interesting thing was that as she was giving me directions she was also gesticulating by moving her hand in a counterclockwise rising spiral. She never mentioned anything remotely like a spiral during her directions. When I got to the bridge she told me how to find, I saw that it was reached by walking up a rising counterclockwise spiral ramp. It is clear to me that she knew about this ramp, maybe even visualized it, and that's why she gesticulated the way she did."
All of this reminded me of two articles I've read about gesture.
Click here for one I've used as assigned reading in my nonverbal behavior seminar and here for media coverage of the other which is sure to make it into class discussion in my primate behavior class.
Indeed, gesture does tell us something about how the mind works.
Not only does it pave the way for youngsters to learn language more quickly [see research abstract here], but it also helps us process information more efficiently. In psycho(research)babble this is called "lightening cognitive load." As soon as I discovered Susan Goldin-Meadow's research I was hooked. She totally changed my perspective on gesture. Previously I had only seen gesture as communicative in function, but they are far more than that. Perhaps the youngster Maurice observed gesturing a spiral was able to recall those directions better because she gestured. That's what Goldin-Meadow's research would suggest.
Very recently I read the following article, procured electronically through interlibrary loan the day after I requested it (isn't technology amazing?!):
Latéralité et communication gestuelle intentionnelle chez le babouin.
I didn't read it in French, I just like the title and spelling of "baboon" in French ;-) It looks comically elegant. I could read it in French if I wanted to, but thankfully for my optimal comprehension, it was published in English in Behavioural Brain Research:
Baboons communicate with their right hand.
Evidently a couple of French psychologists observed captive baboons making hand slaps on the ground to intimidate other baboons (and humans). This is not a revelation. Baboonologists have known this for as long as they've been watching baboons. What is news is that finally a bunch of people sat down and logged serious observational hours tallying up the proportion of right vs. left handed hand slaps. Of course, you might be wondering why does it matter? Why would anyone record in meticulous detail the hand actions of a bunch of monkeys?
Well, Meguerditchian and Vauclair's research is the first to show that a non-ape has a hand preference for communicative purposes, and as it turns out, most of them are not south paws. What's more, psychologists have known that speech/language capabilities are "lateralized" in the left side of the brain ever since a fellow Frenchy Paul Broca found that out about 150 years ago, and they've known for about 1o years that vocalizations in monkeys are similarly lateralized thanks to one of my favorite primate-psychologists, Marc Hauser, BUT ... they did not know until now that nonverbal communicative hand gestures are also likely left hemisphere lateralized in NON-APES.
You see, chimps tend to gesture with their right hand, which suggests that gestural communication and corresponding supportive brain structures were lateralized about 5-6 million years ago in our common ancestor. Now that we can see that baboons also make asymmetrical communicative gestures, we can guesstimate that primate brains became lateralized and prepared for language specialization much earlier than previously thought.
All of this comes down to trying to pinpoint the evolutionary origins of language, the most useful of human 'tools.'
What I really appreciated about this article in addition to all of the above, is that the authors (probably because of reviewer criticism or to head it off at the pass) proposed and then refuted a potential problem with drawing conclusions from a small sample size.
Think about this...
If you observed a baboon slapping the ground with its right hand 12 times, how could you be sure that she really is a right-handed baboon? What if in the other 273 times she slapped the ground Miss Baboon did so with her LEFT hand and you only happened to see that 12 times she did it with her right hand? What if during the week you observed her she primarily slapped the ground with her right hand but during the next week when you were crunching the numbers on your new data she slapped the ground 10/12 times with her LEFT hand?
To get around such sources of error, M & V looked at their data to see whether baboons who had fewer recorded hand slaps were more likely to be labeled as rightys. They weren't.
I always like to see this sort of problem discussed because it gives me a reason to get students to think critically about scientific research, statistics, and sampling.
The other thing I really appreciated about this article is that they observed baboons making the intimidating hand-slap gesture to other baboons as well as humans. It didn't make a difference who the intended receiver of this communicative signal was. Baboons did not didn't discriminate. That's not really surprising, but what made me laugh was that in order to get the baboons to slap the ground to a human receiver, all that person had to do was shake her head at the target baboon.
I suppose if a baboon slapped the ground at me I might send a rude hand gesture back... from a safe distance. Have you seen their canines?!
They eat meat.
4 comments:
- Nutbuk Ug Bulpin said...
- This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
- Nutbuk Ug Bulpin said...
This one made me smile...and i'd pass this infos to my Mom [in the Philippines] who is having troubles communicating with her monkey. Haven't seen the monkey yet cos she was adopted early this year when our neighbor decided to kill her if nobody wanted her. Anyway, Mom said her monkey is very naughty. Only grandma could tame her!We wonder why...by the way, it's my first time to know that not all monkeys are vegetarians. Thanks!
- Alasdair said...
Very cool, and very informative. I hadn't thought of the hand gestures serving as a device for aiding thought, but I do use them myself for just such a purpose, usually at work.
I know I hang thoughts on invisible pegs when I am weaving to keep track of where I'm at, in addition to the usual mumbo jumbo of making up silly little songs to keep complex patterns straight.
I'm just glad nobody sees/hears the majority of these things. They've got to look strange from an outsider's perspective. Kind of like storing the power cord to my boom box in the battery compartment...
- Holly said...
Thanks for your comment Nutbuk :-)
Baboons also eat garbage. For them, "couch baboons" (so-called because they're lazy about traveling to get food), a poor quality diet has the same gross effects it has on us humans: obesity, diabetes, heart disease, etc.
Check out the full story here:
A good lesson for couch potatos around the world!


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"What happens in Vegas"... Will likely end up on this site. Sorry, Las Vegas Chamber.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
What Next for Nevada's Gaming Industry?
I'm about to step out the door to see a movie. But before I do, I want to share with you something I just read in today's Sun about the casinos. They asked three retired casino executives about what went wrong in recent years, and what may be done now to get back on track. I don't know if I completely agree with what they say, but it's certainly interesting to see how we got where we are now.
Labels: casinos, Economy, gambling, gaming, Las Vegas Strip, Nevada Economy, Station Casinos Bankruptcy
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The New American Plate
Greek-Style Scallops
Olive oil, garlic, feta and pine nuts are staples in this classic Mediterranean-inspired dish. Their bold flavors complement the scallops, proving that you don't need to drown such seafood in cream and butter to make it delicious. This is an excellent base for any meal with 14 grams of protein and a modest 200 calories. Try serving alongside brown rice and steamed veggies for a medley of flavor fit for any occasion.
Makes 4 servings.
Per serving: 196 calories, 10 g total fat (2 g saturated fat), 13 g carbohydrates, 14 g protein,
2 g dietary fiber, 475 mg sodium.
- 4 tsp. olive oil, divided
- 1 lb. sea scallops
- 1 cup chopped onion
- 1 cup sliced mushrooms
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced
- 2 large tomatoes, seeded and chopped
- 2 tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley, loosely packed
- 1 tsp. chopped fresh or 1/4 tsp. dried oregano
- Salt and freshy ground black pepper
- 1⁄3 cup crumbled reduced-fat feta cheese
- 2 Tbsp. pine nuts, toasted*
- In large nonstick skillet, heat 2 teaspoons of oil over medium-high heat. Add scallops and cook, stirring often, for 5–6 minutes, until opaque and tender. Transfer scallops and liquid from skillet to a bowl; set aside. Cool skillet then rinse under hot water and dry.
- In same skillet, heat remaining oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and sauté, stirring often, for 2 minutes. Add mushrooms and sauté, stirring often, for 3–5 minutes, until onion is soft. Add garlic and sauté, stirring for 1 minute.
- Add tomatoes, lemon juice, parsley and oregano, then salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Stir in scallops with their liquid and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Top with feta cheese and pine nuts. Serve immediately.
*Note: To toast nuts, place in a small, dry skillet over medium heat. Stir frequently until lightly browned, about 2–3 minutes. Transfer to a small dish and cool.
Reprinted from The New American Plate Cookbook by the American Institute for Cancer Research.
Source: AICR Health-e-Recipes ; December 7, 2010 | Issue 326


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January 30 Flu UpdateBird flu is spreading in West Bengal.
India is raising the compensation for culled birds.
Human bird flu is ruled out in an Indian school. (The high profile of bird flu will bring forward people who are afraid they have bird flu, but don'thuman cases).
As in this case....
Dead birds are also reported in India.
ProMed has the WHO update on the latest from Indonesia.
CIDRAP updates on new outbreaks in Tibet and Saudi Arabia.
Hong Kong has closed some aviaries due to bird flu.
Bahrain is now monitoring poultry and egg imports.
CIDRAP runs one of its best practice articles, this time from Kentucky.
Nigeria says communication is the key to bird flu.
Perth County, Ontario, is exercising its pandemic plan.
Oakland article on Kaiser testing vaccine.


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Despite the expression on my face, I am very pleased with it. I haven't worn it yet - it is way to cold here (-20F with the wind chill) for this style hat even if it is wool!
The pattern is from the Summer '06 issue of Interweave Knits. I used the yarn called for in the pattern - Valley Yarns Berkshire. See the post below for links and further details!
So, hooray! I have my first FO for 2008 and it is still January!


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Tour shows off El Dorado's farm bounty, need for tourists
By Diana Lambert
Published: Sunday, Oct. 26, 2008 | Page 3B
El Dorado County farmers can't survive without tourist dollars.
That was the message delivered by speaker after speaker Friday to a bus carrying more than 50 government officials.
The tour of the county included a ride down tree-lined country roads, lunch served on a hill over crimson vineyards, an olive oil sampling, a visit to historic sites in downtown Placerville and a hayride and apple doughnuts at an Apple Hill ranch.
But it was serious business.
The tour was part of the Sacramento Area Council of Governments' Rural-Urban Connections Strategy.
The program's goal is finding ways to support and sustain the economy, environment and quality of life in rural areas.
"It brings us together to get a comprehensive look at the entire region," said Lincoln City Councilman Tom Cosgrove, chairman of SACOG, which provides transportation planning and funding in Sacramento region.
The rural-urban project includes tours of agricultural land and open space in the six-county region. The group toured Sutter and Yuba counties in April, Yolo County in September and plans to tour Placer and Sacramento counties.
Each county has different assets and challenges.
In El Dorado County, about "75 percent of farm products produced are sold directly to the consumer," said David Bolster, a farmer and member of the county chamber of commerce's Agriculture Council.
The county crop report showed its gross crop value to be $53.2 million in 2007. Timber brought in $18.6 million and livestock $8.7 million.
The rest comes from farms that average 27 acres.
"In order to be economically viable, we have to sell at the highest amount of dollars. … So, we press apples into cider and grapes into wine," said Valerie Zentner, executive director of the El Dorado County Farm Bureau.
High Hill Ranch in Placerville exemplifies the strategy. There are apples, apple cider, caramel apples, apple pies and other apple commodities for sale, but also stall after stall of outside vendors, hawking products from jewelry to sushi rollers.
A stop at David Girard Vineyards offered another glimpse into the county's agritourism business. David Girard said he expects to produce about 4,000 cases of wine this year but also hopes to profit from marketing the winery as a wedding site and corporate meeting venue.
"Ninety percent of our members must work full time or be retired to support the insanity that is farming," said Maryann Argyres, president of the Apple Hill Growers Association, which represents more than 50 fruit ranches.
The SACOG board members seemed to understand the message.
"They have to be able to make a profit, or otherwise you get mass housing and development," said Kevin Hanley, a SACOG member and Auburn councilman.


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Saturday, September 13, 2014
The new edition of This Zine Will Change Your Life is live. All Clickbait. Full of Santos. And celebrating the Rabbit Punch!
The new edition of This Zine Will Change Your Life is live, and we are thrilled to have new poem, Clickbait, by old friend Greg Santos, and (almost) as always, photo action from Adam Lawrence, music curation from Jason Behrends and mayoral and gubernatorial race prose love from Pete Anderson. We hope you enjoy this edition and we appreciate all shout-outs and links. Finally, please note, we are hoping more of you will submit comix, and music, novel excerpts, and art, and video, yes, video, and combinations there of. And most finally, da Bears,ughhh.
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She-Styles always try to bring the best and trendy collection for their fans and visitors. Today we have also brought the stunning Embroidered Dupatta Designs 2013. Dupatta is a necessary part dress of a Muslim women. Dupattas are available in wide range of style and fabric. Cotton, chiffon, lawn, Georgette, net, silk and arkandi dupatta are very common in any age of women. In old era girls prefer ed simple dupatta or embroidered dupatta. but as the lots of changes are made in fashion and clothing dupatta are also available in many kind of style, designs, pattern and embroidery. Dupatta is a Stylish Piece of Clothing and when we add some more things such as, embroidery, motifs and add multi color it gives dupatta a graceful look as well as stylish. Today She-styles has brought the traditional and mesmerizing Phulkari & Aari Embroidered Dupattas. This traditional piece of clothing is perfectly designed with the demands of today's fashion and trend and can complement your outfit. These Dupatta are made with royal fabrics like Georgette, cotton and chiffon. This Embroidered Dupatta Collection


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All this time, I have been going onto the lovely Pinterest! I don't know where I'd be without this tool!! I find many quotes, healthy tips, and exercises all at the click of a mouse! It's easy and convenient:) I wanted to share some of the quotes that I look at every now and then to keep me going and keep thinking of the end result:
Do any of you turn to Pinterest for an extra push for your weight loss?
Since I lost over 10 lbs, I made up an incentive that the hubby gets to take me out on a date of my choice. So, sometime soon this month, we are going to Galena. You can get a glimpse of what Galena is all about in my post that I posted earlier, here.
Oh and I wanted to get your opinion on something! Whenever I loose weight, I like to start other things over fresh and welcome change. I was thinking about getting my hair colored and cut. The cut will stay the same, but I found this hair color on Pinterest and thought this would be something really different than what I normally do! I want to know what you ladies think of it:) Do you like the color or not? Comments are welcome and will help me with making my decision!
|Loving the cut and the angle in the back!
|Loving the color of this one!
Any suggestions????
Thanks for stopping by:):):)


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Before I do that I want to share my story of 9/11.
I was 17, in a small town High School in the middle of nowhere, my drive home included corn fields on either side of a main road, as well as occasionally sharing it with a tractor or an Amish buggy. New York City was a far away dream for many of us in this little conservative town. Like all of you around my age I am sure the day started as normal, talking with your friends before class, figuring out your day plans, making sure you have enough change for a candy bar to go with your lunch. It was just going to be a normal day.
But then it stopped being normal.
The first thing I noticed was an aide turning on one of the news channels before the start of class, which was unusual to say the least. The picture showed a large building with smoke pouring forth. We all started talking amongst ourselves, wondering what in the world was going on. For the first 10 minutes of class we watched as the news reporters began to piece together what happened.
And then our teacher shut off the TV.
He then attempted to continue with the lesson despite our protests with no success. It was another aide who then whispered something to him, which caused him to stop the lesson for the day and turn on CNN. I immediately saw why, A second plane crashed into the other tower. We also learned that the Pentagon had been hit as well, it was then that it really sank it, we had just been attacked.
There was a collective outrage, as well as a sadness, and a time where we all stood together to honor the fallen of a then seemingly random, senseless terror attack. It wasn't till a few months later, when Al-Qaeda, and more prominently Osama Bin Laden took full credit for it.
Then came the calls for war.
War with Afghanistan. I remember hearing many of friends, join the chorus of calling for war with the Taliban for harboring Bin Laden.We all wanted to get the ones responsible,we all wanted to see the dead avenged. A couple of my friends even joined the military, though none that I know of ended up in Afghanistan. My uncle however, did serve there, he regularly sent us pictures, one of which was him disarming old Soviet mines.
Unlike many, I have not personally served, nor have I had any personal losses from the war.
Because of that, I count myself extremely lucky.
Many were not so lucky.
Not even one year after the invasion of Afghanistan, and the overthrow of the Taliban, we hadn't yet found Bin Laden, and President Bush seemingly no longer cared. In a famous 2002 interview Bush told reporters regarding Osama Bin Laden "I truly am not that concerned about him. I am deeply concerned about Iraq." "I really just don't spend that much time on him, to be honest with you,"
Instead of focusing on Bin Laden, we headed into another war, this time with Iraq. A war that had nothing to do with 9/11, or terror, or Bin Laden. In fact he seemed to forget about Bin Laden, and Al-Qaeda while going after Iraq. Our forces even had him at Tora Bora, and we let him go.
It wasn't until President Obama had come into office that we really started to go back to finishing what we started in Afghanistan, going after Bin Laden. While Romney, in 2007 sounded a lot like Bush by declaring that "It's not worth moving heaven and earth spending billions of dollars just trying to catch one person."
President Obama disagreed
So with Bin Laden gone, the war in Iraq over, and the war in Afghanistan winding down, what have we learned?
We've learned that both sides have politicized 9/11.
Some of you may even accuse me of politicizing 9/11 by writing this.
|Source: http://costofwar.com/about/counters/
We've also learned that this war has taken a huge toll on troops, that more of our soldiers die from suicide than in combat. And that our combat veterans have been hit hardest by the recession. We've learned that our VA system is behind as it pertains to taking care of our Veterans, but is slowly improving.
Not all the lessons we've learned are bad. We've learned that so many Americans gave up their plans and their lives to fight for the country they love. We've learned that for every soldier that comes home, there is a support network of good people and organizations waiting to help them.
We've also learned that support for the lives of our fighting men and women transcends politics. Many of us, including me want to end the wars to protect our soldiers, and we don't care whether or not they're Democrat or Republican, we just want them to come home.
We've learned a lot in 11 years, not all of it good, not all of it bad, but we still have to learn to deal with the new reality of a post 9/11 world, and do our best to not make the same mistakes of the past. We need to learn how to work together in this world with other people, other countries, and not go to war so easily. We need to learn how stop getting into conflicts that we don't know how to get out of. We need to learn how to respect other cultures, and religions, and to stop being suspicious of others because of the color of their skin, or what they wear. We need to learn how to trust again, not just others but ourselves, other Americans. We need to learn to stop the us vs them mentality that has dominated not only our politics, but our lives for the past 11 years.
We need to learn how to be us again.


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Two interesting articles today. In both instances, consumers are choosing a value-add over lower costs. Interesting thoughts, contradictory to what we would expect in a recession period, but great for brands to truly think about. How and where can they add the most value?
- The most popular idea on My Starbucks Idea — by a 9,000-vote margin, with about 60,000 votes — is for Starbucks to promote "conversation" at its coffeehouses.
- Marking a turnaround after a decade of decline, consumers now more often cite product performance as a reason to buy a given brand of gasoline, according to NPD Group analyst David Portalatin. Given record prices, it's "a little surprising," Portalatin says.


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Hailee Steinfeld's Mint Green Mani At Teen Choice Awards
For this Mani Monday, we bring you Hailee's take on mint green nails! The young actress decided to rock this color for the 2014 Teen Choice Awards, and we love that she added a black design on the tips, giving the girly color a bit of an edge! It's different and definitely stands out! Find out how to recreate this hot mani down below!
Hailee Steinfeld, 17, is definitely a teen that makes fab beauty and fashion choices! She rocked the red carpet on August 10 at the Teen Choice Awards with her gorgeous makeup and eye-catching dress! Her pink and black patterned dress was such a fashion statement in itself, but what really made the overall look pop was her bright, edgy mint green mani! Talk about having fun with some color — we are LOVING Hailee's bravery to have fun with her style!
Hailee Steinfeld At TCA — Edgy, Mint Green Mani At 2014 Teen Choice Awards
Hailee stopped by the nail salon esNAIL in Los Angeles to get a wicked mani for the red carpet event! They uploaded a picture on Instagram debuting her nails, where she looked super happy with her end result! They definitely did an amazing job!
She looked super glam for the TCA — intense eyeliner giving her a dramatic flare. We loved her smooth skin & a flush of bright pink on her cheeks! Her thick, voluminous lashes and pink lips were the perfect finishing touches on such a bombshell beauty look! She also kept her hair down, in lightly tousled waves.
Have Fun With Your Mani — How To
Sometimes all you need is a little pop to make your nails go from regular to chic! If you want to recreate this look, we recommend using NARS Nail Polish in Mint Green as your base color! This nail polish is great because it is super glossy and long lasting!
After you have your base color, find a design that works for you! If this look is too risky for you, then trying doing a design on only your ring finger as an accent nail!
So, HollywoodLifers, what do you think of Hailee's mint green mani? We'd love to know!
— Michelle Rodriguez


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It's been another huge success at the Vail America Days 4th of July festivities and and I am so thankful to have been able to return to my hometown to celebrate. Years of celebrating the 4th of July on the beaches of California, on the Mississippi in Wisconsin and this year I realized that you just can't top the 4th of July in the Rockies. The small town feel, the beautiful setting, the local shops and charming atmosphere have fused the 4th of July and Vail together in my mind. After being away for the last few years, I was ecstatic to witness the unbelievable Salute to the USA in Avon, Colorado's biggest fireworks show.
The Ford Amphitheater is hosting Vail's annual 4th of July celebration, "A Salute to Freedom", with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Tickets go on sale Thursday at 8am and cost $15 for wonderful pavilion seats. General admission lawn seats are free. The concert begins at 2pm on July 4th.
Edwards Office
970.926.6777 | 888.278.9601 | 280 Main Street Suite #C102 Edwards Colorado 81632
Vail Office
970.790.6777 | 855.790.6777 | 183 Gore Creek Trail Vail Colorado 81658