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"The Lord watches over the righteous and listens to their cries, but He opposes those who do evil, so that when they die, they are soon forgotten. The righteous call to the Lord, and he listens; he rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is near to those who are discouraged; he saves those who have lost all hope." Psalm 34:15-18
We have three months left in the States before we return to Kenya. We have many stories we have not yet told and we would like to share some of these stories in the following three months. Betty is one who had nearly lost hope.
I, Julia, am happy to get to share Betty Chepngeno's testimony with you. She is a dear friend and sister in Christ to me. Back in 2005 my mom met her mother, Anna, in the Bible study Mom had started. Betty, as the fifth child of seven, was living with her mom and three siblings in Silibwet, a town 15 minutes away from Tenwek, in a part of town known as "Satan's Den", because of the alcohol, prostitution, and fighting there. Betty had grown up in this rough area with her unsaved mom. Her mom had just come to know the Lord when Tabitha ministry started in 2005. After each week's Bible study, Anna would share the Bible lesson with Betty and her younger siblings. Betty was young enough when Anna came to Christ to still be moldable, and she loved learning verses with her mom. Since Anna was illiterate, Betty would read the Bible to the family.
The first Christmas we knew Anna, we invited her and her children and grandchildren over for a meal, the Christmas drama, Christmas crafts and games. We have continued this tradition every year.
Unfortunately, Anna became very sick with AIDS in 2008.. AIDS can sit quietly in the body for many years before showing up with symptoms, and this was her time. She began on a treatment plan but was never very regular. Sadly, Anna believed a local prophet who told her to just have faith, and quit taking her medications.
Anna, Betty's mom, died in August 2010. Betty ran away from home and away from the Lord when her mom was dying.. She had been top of her 8th grade class but left school when she left home. We were glad that even though she had run away, she still came to our house for the 2010 Christmas.
Betty's niece, her older sister's daughter, died from AIDS in February 2011. Betty and her siblings were at my house sitting around our table as they made arrangements for the funeral. When I came into the room from the back of our house where I had been studying for school, I was crushed, seeing the despair and pain on the faces of Betty and her siblings. That picture is etched into my memory.
I didn't see Betty for the next two years and the next time was another sad occasion. She came to see my mom after her aunt died in childbirth. This aunt, Joyce, had been a Christian and had been trying to help keep Anna's family together after Anna had died. Now she was gone, too. Joyce's newborn had been brought to the nursery where I volunteered, and I helped care for him for a few weeks until the family sorted out who would take him. That Christmas party at our house (2012) most of Anna's family came as well as close relatives. They were all grieving Joyce's death.
|Joyce's new born son
|Anna's children and her mom at our house for Christmas in 2012
A few days later, when Betty stopped by to get cooking supplies to make a Christmas meal, I gave her a bracelet explaining the Christmas story, and salvation. After our Christmas celebration, and this conversation, Betty decided to follow Christ seriously. For several months Peris and Mom met regularly with her to study the Bible and help her grow in Christ. She is now the strong one in the family and is trying to help her older and younger siblings.
On July 14, 2013, I bid Betty good bye as I was about to leave to go to the States for college. We had good closure and prayer. I also asked her for her prayer requests. Although she was 5-6 months pregnant, she did not tell us, because miscarriages and infant mortality are so high in Kenya.
|Saying good bye
She gave birth to a healthy son shortly before she turned 19 in November. Her son lived for several weeks but suddenly stopped breathing and died the first week of December.
Since I moved to the States, Betty and I have been mailing letters back and forth. Here is part of her letter to me after her son passed away.
"Unfortunately, I am sorry to inform you that I lost my son. I thought I had lost everything. I did not only see myself as a loser but also as nothing before the presence of God and even wondered if God existed. But I guess I was wrong in my judgment. After the incident, I found it was difficult for me to accept the situation that I was in. The pain was unbearable but little did I know; God is the one who gives us children and He only takes them away. I thought at length and decided to revisit the letter which you wrote for me in November. I managed to go through the verses which you had put down for me and I must admit that Psalms 34:15-18 became a blessing and a source of inspiration to me: "The Lord watches over the righteous and listens to their cries, but He opposes those who do evil, so that when they die, they are soon forgotten. The righteous call to the Lord, and he listens; he rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is near to those who are discouraged; he saves those who have lost all hope.""
- Please pray for strength and comfort for Betty as she continues with life and grieves the loss of her child.
- Please pray that God will guide and instruct her in the way she should walk. Pray that she will study God's Word and grow in Him.
- Please pray for her siblings Kenneth, Lillian, Karen, Collins, Amos and Chepkoech to become saved and follow Christ with their whole hearts.


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Saturday, June 15, 2013
Support Wolves with the Power of Your Pen
A great way to support wolves and their recovery is by writing a Letter to the Editor (LTE). A letter by WCC's Maggie Howell was published in today's Salt Lake Tribune re: USFWS's nationwide delsting plan. Read it here.
You too can join the conversation. If you're interested in learning how to write an effective LTE, please visit National Wolfwatcher Coalition's website page dedicated to this process.
Posted by nywolf at 9:50 AM
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I busied myself in the garden most of Saturday after spending an hour exploring the Elk Grove Community Garden. After making a few purchases at the annual plant sale there, it was interesting to see what was going on in the plots of other gardeners. Most beds were empty, a testament to a late start to the summer vegetable gardening season. Only a few plots were winding down on winter crops. I saw beautiful chards, lettuces and onions. There were a few growers with peas and fava beans in their plots as well. Many had strawberries awakening from their winter naps. At the sale I picked up three tomato varieties and two perennial plants.
There was a wide variety of tomatoes to choose from however I was disappointed there were no descriptions of the many types I'd never heard of. Just as well I guess, since I tend to choose tomato transplants based on their names anyway. Here are the tomatoes I chose and descriptions and photos I mined from the internet:
Beauty Queen described as a good producer of very striped red and yellow fruit that have clearly defined markings much like Green Zebra. Small to medium in size beefsteak-shaped fruit have excellent flavor. These have proven to be very popular at farmer's markets. Beauty Queen is a smaller version of Beauty King which arose in the fields of Brad Gates of Wild Boar Farms, Vacaville, CA.
|Beauty Queen (web image)
A search for a variety labeled Lemon Oxheart yielded results for Giant Lemon Oxheart described as a gigantic glowing, pale yellow beefsteak fruit with a very sweet, good taste. It resists cracking and produces well.
|Giant Lemon Oxheart (web image)
Williams Striped is a favorite at farmers' markets with large fruit weighing a pound or more. Fruits have beautiful red and yellow colors inside and out.
|Williams Striped (web image)
I was lucky to pick up a couple of perennial divides to place out front. Santa Barbara Daisy has delicate white flowers, conserves water and attracts beneficial insects.
|Santa Barbara Daisy (web image)
"Magic" Aster features purple daisy flowers during late summer and early fall. Relatively low maintenance it attracts butterflies and is a good cutting flower.
|"Magic" Aster
And I got them all for just fifteen dollars. All except Beauty Queen have been transplanted. I ran out of room in the raised beds for Beauty Queen but plan to add it where there are currently radishes and perhaps where the peas are when they peter out.
I also placed two bell peppers in large containers and tried my luck with another round of flower seeds here and there. So far a I've got seedlings of Morning Glory, Nasturtium, Zinnia, Sweet Alyssum, and sunflowers scattered throughout the garden.
|Nasturtium, sprouting outside a raised bed.


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Syringe Selection Tool
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Congregation Har Shalom Pay Portal
Friday, March 24, 2017
2nd Night Seder
Welcome to the Financial and Communications Portal for Har Shalom Center for Jewish Living in Fort Collins, Colorado. All online payments are processed securely through Paypal and you do not need a paypal account to participate. A
ll personal information is protected and will never be shared to a third party without your permission.
2nd Night Seder
Tuesday, April 11, 6:00pm
are excited to announce the return of the Soup & Seder at Congregation Har
The Seder will be led by our very
own Debbie Fidler and Peter Dratch.
Seder Prices:
$10 Adult, $5 Child
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Monday, January 10, 2011
Ode to January...when things curl up to rest
We will be going to the Boston area in a few days. Our oldest son and wife and two of our precious grandchildren live there. While there, we will attend the opening of the American Tapestry Biennial 8 in Lowell, MA. I am really looking forward to it! It will be wonderful to go to one of the receptions when I am just one of the artists, and not someone who has to worry about exhibit management details. My calendar tapestry, "January," shown above, is the piece that is in the exhibit. It was woven from the view from my sitting room window, last winter. The view is pretty much the same now, in fact.
The amaryllis that I have been enjoying for the past few months has spent it's bloom. The wilted blossoms are still so appealing to me, that they were the subject of my daily sketch this morning, one more time. I have cut it from the plant now, but will try to keep the plant going. I used to be able to do that; keep an amaryllis and have it bloom several years in a row. But it's been a long time since I've done that successfully, so I have in recent years pitched the plant once the bloom is spent, and have started a fresh bulb the next fall. This year, though, I am going to try again to keep this bulb going. I discovered a link at the Better Homes and Gardens site that tells how to do it differently, and hopefully more reliably successful, than I have done it in the past. I don't like to throw the spent bulbs away. It's not just that it feels wasteful, to such a frugal person as I am, but I always feel like I have killed a living thing, that just needed to rest for awhile before it created beauty once again, like we all sometimes need to do, especially in January.
I guess this post is not really much of an 'ode to January,' so I will leave you with a haiku:
The freezing winter
Leads us inside where we can
Curl up and keep warm.
Posted by K Spoering at 10:33 AM
1 comment:
- OzWeaver said...
Ah....thank you for this post. Beautiful images and the thoughts that go with them.
- January 31, 2011 at 3:22 AM
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There is a lot going on in my world right now, some I openly talk about here on the blog and other stuff in my private life. It's been a really trying time and I've been stressed out. Hopefully after last night, things will begin to mellow out.
Today is National Donut Day, I purposely avoided Dunkin' Donuts and opted to forgo my iced coffee, because I knew that with any beverage purchase, Dunkin' Donuts was giving out a free donut. I didn't want to give in to temptation, so I oped out. Not going to lie, it felt really good to be able to do that for myself. I didn't want to sabotage my day.
Also, today is Friday, my weigh in day, I stepped on the scale to see a 304. Which is a loss, and not only a loss of the gain I had last week, but still continuing down beyond that. Since starting tracking again with My Fitness Pal, I've lost 13 pounds. That is since May 1st. So in a little over a month I've lost 13 pounds. I am sure it's a lot of water weight, because that seems like a lot of weight to loose in one month.
Still a bit bittersweet for me, this is only like the fourth time I've lost the same weight, but I need to remain focus and celebrate the small victories for me, and hopefully, I will be able to end the madness that is the 300's for me.
I am now on day 22 of being sick, and I am waving the white flag, I will be starting the new antibotic tonight, I really didn't want to, but I am not getting any better and really I need to. By the time I finish the medicine, I will have been sick for over a month, which is just insane. HOPEFULLY I will begin to feel better....
I am looking forward to starting Steve's Marathon Week Challenge on Monday, I think it's going to be challenging to find time to get that amount of activity in, but that's why they call it a challenge. I think it will be a great accomplishment and a huge motivator for me. Have I mentioned that I love Steve! He's always there when I need a pep talk...or a swift kick in the pants (virtually, of course)


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"It is this belief, this optimism that Senator Obama and I share and that has inspired so many millions of our supporters to make their voices heard. So today I am standing with Senator Obama to say: Yes, we can!" — Hillary Clinton
I'd be remiss not to note the formal passing of Hillary's candidacy this morning. I caught most of it live on CNN. Quite a good speech I thought — extremely well-crafted, eloquent and graciously delivered without equivocation or hedging. Of course, there will always be those who will churlishly bitch-slap it for one reason or another, as well as the partisan right-wing crackpots reading all sorts of nefarious things into it, but that's to be expected one supposes.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Hillary Clinton: "Yes, we can!"
Posted by Red Tory at 4:59 PM
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He wasn't on the field during the final play of the game (which saw Miami Dolphins running back Ronnie Brown scamper into the endzone for a touchdown), but superstar singer Marc Anthony certainly gave his team a boost last night at Miami's Landshark Stadium. The Dolphins beat the New York Jets 31-27 following a star-studded "orange carpet" that welcomed Anthony (who is part owner of the team) and his wife Jennifer Lopez (or was it Lola?). The event also welcomed Gloria Estefan (another minority owner), former Dolphins coach Don Shula and supermodel Naomi Campbell. Last night's game opened with Anthony's rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner," which no doubt inspired the Dolphins (who are hobbled by an injury to their quarterback Chad Pennington) to overcome one of the strongest defenses in football.
Anthony's ownership in the Dolphins is part of an initiative by the team to bring in celebrity investors. In addition to Anthony and Estefan, tennis stars Serena and Venus Williams both own a slice of the team. Jimmy Buffet also got himself a stake in the franchise — in fact, the stadium where the Dolphins play is named after Landshark, Buffet's brand of beer. Though they're not necessarily involved in day-to-day operations, Anthony and the other celebrity owners do get consulted and have the ear of the team's management. Anthony and Lopez aren't the first musicians to get into sports franchise ownership, either, as Jay-Z (New Jersey Nets), Usher (Cleveland Cavaliers), Nelly (Charlotte Bobcats) and Jon Bon Jovi (Philadelphia Soul) have all dabbled in that world.


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Get your free August 2012 Monthly Desktop Calendar Wallpaper. Simply click one of the above images to get the full size version and right click to save it to your picture directory (depending on your browser).
Once saved locally you can set it as your desktop background. For instructions on how change your desktop background on a Mac or a PC click here or here.


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Regular readers of this blog probably need more to do...er...know that here in the marbled halls of IM Central we are big fans of canis familiaris. Specifically, the companion of gods and goddesses, but in truth, we're equal opportunity ear scratchers. So you might imagine our reaction whilst perusing yet another "in depth" press release about presidential candidates, in this case Mitt (tell me what you want to hear) Romney, we ran across this:
Before beginning the drive, Mitt Romney put Seamus, the family's hulking Irish setter, in a dog carrier and attached it to the station wagon's roof rack. He'd built a windshield for the carrier, to make the ride more comfortable for the dog.
See, this is why we drink. People who are this clueless about living beings who are not them should not be allowed out without adult supervision. And by adult supervision we mean anyone capable of tying their own shoes.
Well, as you might imagine, Mitt's excellent adventure didn't turn out so well:
As the oldest son, Tagg Romney commandeered the way-back of the wagon, keeping his eyes fixed out the rear window, where he glimpsed the first sign of trouble. ''Dad!'' he yelled. ''Gross!'' A brown liquid was dripping down the back window, payback from an Irish setter who'd been riding on the roof in the wind for hours.First of all, who names their kid Tagg? What are the other kids' names? Dodgeball and Hopscotch? Whatever. OK, so here's the Romney clan, merrily motoring down the highway with a dog strapped to the roof of the car so traumatized he has lost control of his bowels. Now, you would think that diarrhea might be a clue for Mr. Mitt that he may have misread the situation vis-a-vis canine travel arrangements. Alas, no, but our humble scribe now steps in to provide the verbiage that explains this little foray into the Mittster's character:
As the rest of the boys joined in the howls of disgust, Romney coolly pulled off the highway and into a service station. There, he borrowed a hose, washed down Seamus and the car, then hopped back onto the highway. It was a tiny preview of a trait he would grow famous for in business: emotion-free crisis management.
"Emotion-free crisis management." In other words, the guy has all the compassion of a box of rocks. But that's not the scary part.
Starting with probably a criminal lack of common sense, Mitty concocted this plan to lash the family pet to the outside of the car, alone, where the noise of the wind, and traffic could proceed to practically scare him to death. Then, faced with he fact that his plan was not proceeding according to his original intent, what did he do? Hosed the dog off, threw him back in the crate and headed off down the highway with a song in his heart and buzzing in his head. In other words, when faced with the need to go to plan B, he chose to stay the course.
Sound familiar?


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I did not take any pictures that night. We were really doing well to do the daily stuff at home, get the kids to grandparents (with packed suitcases) an hour away from home, and make it to dinner and then the university by 7:00. The afternoon was a bit of a whirlwind. And I do not recall ever having a date night on Monday before. But it was a lovely night. So worth the effort!
Mr. Berry spoke of his passion for reading, writing, the outdoors, and sustainable farming. It was quite interesting to hear his simple, but articulate, opinions on the future of our country, big-scale farms, and even religion. I was struck by the way his no-frills life has touched so many.
"We learn from our gardens how to deal with the most urgent question of the time: How much is enough?"
~Wendell Berry
I want that type of success, too. One that gives more than takes. One that gets ahead in life not by stepping on others, but by being servant-leaders. One that values what God has created and is a good steward of those things. I pray that each of us here in our home will use the gifts and talents that God has given us to do, be, and say for the glory to God (and not ourselves).


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I have a feeling that this post will be a strange one even by my standards. The point of this blog is supposed to be documenting a journey that we as mothers take with our children to Christ. As a theologian I believe that if our beliefs do not manifest themselves in a practical way then they are pointless. For example, if your child is NOT the type to kneel in front of a crucifix every day and recite the rosary then maybe it would be better to find a different form of prayer. On the other hand, I have met mothers who make it a daily practice to do exactly that and they do it with a great deal of success.
Christmas is stereotypically stressful. There is a great deal of expectation. It almost doesn't matter what that expectation is. It could be to prepare a feast for a large family. It could be wrapping a zillion gifts. Whatever. So I got to wondering: what would a celebration look like where Jesus himself would feel welcome? This is his birthday party after all. What would He like me to give him for Christmas?
If you ladies have read any of my earlier posts (Legacy and New Life, Death, and Insanity), you know that things have been really crazy in my household. In short, an elder of our family who had a drinking problem recently died. She was mean and slanderous to the end but managed to charm people who did not know her very well. This woman had two sons. One son did everything for her (clean her yard and pool every week etc.). The other son is very good at making lots of money. The first son realized that she was turning him against his brother and vice versa. The other son was not wise enough to realize that she was also slandering him; he believed himself to be the better, more loved of the sons. Despairing of a normal relationship the first son finally severed ties with his brother and had very limited contact with his mother.
Now this mother is dead. Even though this woman was "such a nice lady" who "loved us and both her sons" nobody really wanted to be around her - especially at Christmas. This is the first Christmas in a long time that I have not been asked to take on the burden of her presence. I finally feel free. And the first son? Like he's been released from prison.
So what's the big deal? And how does this relate to Christmas?
Since her death I've felt called to pray for this woman. As a matter of fact, out of the blue a friend of mine told me that she had dreamed of this woman in purgatory. Her dream was almost identical in detail to a dream I had that exact night.
Praying for somebody who you believe to be in your debt is actually rather easy. She needs my mercy and forgiveness after all. (Again, read earlier posts.) I don't like this woman. I have every reason not to like her. I don't much like the second brother, either. But then he's also easy to pray for because he needs prayers so badly. Basically, I've been praying that peace enter the family. I've been trying really, really hard to be gracious and be an instrument of healing. I thought that getting these brothers in the same room without it resulting in extreme unpleasantness would be a miracle.
Then I felt a shift while I was praying. Instead of praying for this woman I felt that she was asking for me to pray with her. This makes me feel extremely uncomfortable because suddenly I feel we are on the same level and I'm really still very angry about the lies she's been telling for years. I also feel that she's asking me to pray that her sons will not only be in the same room but praying together on their knees before the Eucharist. The picture is quite clear in my mind. I guess my miracle is too small in scale.
Why do I believe these 'visions'?
The first reason is because God wants peace and unity for all of His children and especially peace within families. Peace is the point of Christianity.
The second reason is that it makes me very uncomfortable and somewhat angry. I much prefer the thought of praying for this woman. I like the idea of her "owing" me. Petty? You bet. Am I proud of it? No. But I feel forced to transcend my limitations. With the grace of God I can do this - even if I don't want to.
There is also a parable which relates to what I'm going through. It's the one about the master who forgives his servant his debts and the servant runs off and threatens another servant who owes money. (Okay, I should be citing this but my bible is in the room where the newborn is sleeping and I'm too tired to google it. If I'm not clear enough just ask and I'll humbly quote and cite the parable. If you have mercy on me though maybe you could just add it in a comment, please. I really need the sleep.) So here's the thing: Jesus has forgiven me my debts by dying on the cross. I owe everything to him. So how can I run back to this woman and say "you owe me"?
A "vision" (would "encounter" be a better word?) that is theologically grounded AND challenges me to transcend my own pride? I do not claim that it is the "truth" but it is compelling enough to take seriously.
Ok - I'm finally getting to how this relates to Christmas. For Christmas I want to tell Jesus that I've actually listened to what He has to say and I'm acting on it. I want him to have a party where people are having fun and celebrating and not fighting. I want him to know that I value him more than my inner dialogue.
It might not sound like much. It probably isn't very much. But I remember a quote from Mother Teresa which says that if you want peace in the world go home and love your family.
After the tragic deaths in Connecticut I really feel like hugging my children. I want them to be raised in a loving family. If that means that I swallow my pride and admit that Jesus died for this woman who constantly rejected his love - I will do it. If it means that God wants me to get down on my knees and pray with someone I really don't like for an event I don't think will ever happen, I will do it.
Because, Ladies, being a peacemaker takes practice. It is who and what we are called to be. And we need God's grace to do it. And our world, our children, need peacemakers so badly. We can no longer afford to wait for somebody else to do it for us. In the West we are told that faith should be in the home. They mean it as in insult. If they knew how powerful that statement is they wouldn't dare speak it.
Prayer of Saint Francis of Assisi
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury,pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
and where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console;
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen


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UK Deal To Prevent Rhino Extinction
Britain has secured international agreement to clamp down on the illegal trade of rhino horn, which has become so sought-after it is now worth more than diamonds, gold, heroin and cocaine.
The UK will lead a global steering group to dispel the myths that rhino horn can cure cancer or help with strokes, myths which are creating such a demand for it in Asia that it is now worth around $50,000 a kilo.
International Group To Save Rhinos From Extinction
Britain will head the group, but countries and conservation groups across the world will also work together by sharing intelligence, policing tactics and public awareness campaigns against the illegal trade.
The agreement was reached at the Convention for International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in Geneva.
265 Rhinos Killed So Far This Year
From The Guardian, reporting on rhino poaching in South Africa:
Some 265 rhinos have been poached so far this year, according to government figures, an average of more than one per day. This puts 2011 on course to surpass last year's record death toll of 333. In 2007, it was just 13.
Why? There is no mystery about it. Experts agree the carnage results from a false belief, widespread in the far east, that rhino horn can cure cancer and other life-threatening illnesses. There is now soaring demand from the newly moneyed consumers of China and Vietnam. Poaching gangs here are increasingly sophisticated, using helicopters, silent tranquillisers, body armour, night vision equipment and mercenaries experienced in rhino tracking.
Once a rhino's horn has been hacked off, they leave the animal to bleed to death. The horn is then smuggled out of the country by an international syndicate.
In South Africa, Army Troops Protect The Rhino
As Care2′s Andreas S wrote here, the fight against rhino poaching in South Africa has taken on military proportions with the government sending in army troops to help protect the embattled species.
And now the international community has taken up the cause of rhino preservation. As first reported in The Guardian, British Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said: "Criminals trading in rhino horn have lined their pockets while bringing this magnificent animal to the brink of extinction, but their days are now numbered."
"We will be leading global action to clamp down on this cruel and archaic trade, and to dispel the myths peddled to vulnerable people that drive demand for rhino products."
Related Stories
Rhino Horns Stolen From Museums, Sold On Black Market In Asia
Photo Credit: nicolaspied via Creative Commons


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Radhanath Swami's Facebook page
Radhanath Swami's MySpace page
Radhanath Swami's Twitter page
Radhanath Swami's YouTube page
There is something about this city, New York City, that attracts the most intense energies of the known universe. What's a poor aspiring monk like myself to do? Where does one find the privacy of contemplation, the peace of silence, the inner will to push on against the currents of a culture going in the wrongest of directions?
I don't blame her...I don't blame the City. Her history and her purpose allows anyone and everyone to take advantage of her, so as even those most determined to squeeze all the possible juice out of the rinds of maya camp down and have at it, the facility is also there for the sincere spiritualist to ride these currents in a very interesting, influential way.
The story of this city is as spiritual as anything else. It's "ground zero" (pardon the term) for us humble Hare Krsnas, the sidewalks of the Lower East Side sprinkled with the eternal dust of the lotus feet of Prabhupada.
Our meditation is this: the world watches and follows what happens in the cauldrons of Manhattan, so what better arena for the sankirtana march, and what better time, places, and circumstances to reach hearts of all shapes and sizes in ways dynamic, enlivening, and engaging.
As Radhanath Swami descended on our maturing Bhakti Center/NYC/NJ congregation for the first week of December 2009, the hopes and visions of our mission here once again take on a nature tangible and visible. For once, the energy of the city is ours to fully shape, and the sweet rush of the adventure becomes irresistible.
Speaking personally, Radhanath Swami's presence not only brings a clarity to our collective efforts here, but also to my own personal struggles as a renunciate in the least renounced of atmospheres. My internal dialogue increases in pitch (an experience I know that all of us experienced) as to where we are, what we are doing, and how we are doing it in service to Radhanath Swami as his direct disciples, his aspiring disciples, and well-wishers.
The veil of complacency lifts and lifts. I find that in Radhanath Swami's presence, even though I have never been able, fortunate, or qualified enough to have much of his direct association or even chastisement, that his glances, smiles, words, and embraces not only give me sustenance, but also poke holes ever so gently in my false ego.
After all, with such a personality, why don't want to give your best, and/or why can't you give your best? The mood and the realization of Radhanath Swami allows him to act as a transparent instrument to fulfill the desires of Srila Prabhupada, and the light and clarity which comes through shines upon the darkness and dust still present in our own hearts.
This struck me particularly on the birthday gathering of disciples and well-wishers for Radhanath Swami that we held in central New Jersey during his visit. In the exchanges of experiences, revelations, and lessons learned, I was struck by how much love Radhanath Swami's disciples have for him, and vice versa, and how for me, this love is something lacking practically and philosophically in my own heart, not only with Radhanath Swami, but everyone in my life.
I've always admired Radhanath Swami's ability (and in extension, many of his disciples) to make everyone he encounters the sole object of his attention and affection. Glorifying his various victories as our spiritual father, I realized here was a personality in which the various barriers of impersonalism do not exist.
The duties and sacrifices made by those who follow him, sacrifices we are trying to make manifest and progressive everyday here at the Bhakti Center, are simply compelled by our simple and sincere attempts to reflect back at Radhanath Swami the love and admiration he has for us, to reflect back at him the same mood of selfless service, of total surrender, that he offers to us as our loving guide and father.
How do we do this? To myself, I thought how can I get past my own personal malaise, my laziness, my fears, my insecurities, and my unsteadiness to ever be able to offer any kind of useful, sincere service?
Through his own personal examples and stories of the incredible but endearing sacrifices he made personally in his devotional adventures through the woods of New Vrindaban to the streets of Mumbai, Radhanath Swami provides a simple formula, a committment to sadhana, to the Holy Name, to real and enduring friendships between devotees, and towards the removal of any ulterior motives as the way to becoming a transparent instrument of the Lord's will.
In his various dialogues and darshans with my fellow monks here this week, one key moral of the story stood out: that in our outreach, in our communications with the young, sincere, and seeking, that we must not consider ourselves better than them.
He gives the example of the instruction Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur gave to his adventurous and courageous disciples who traveled to Europe in the 1930's in the initial attempt to spread Lord Caitanya's Word to the Western World.
Knowing they would be facing up to peoples less cultured in many vulgar and subtle ways, he implored them to offer all respects to them and expect none for themselves, to use this humility to allow Lord Caitanya's mercy to flow freely through them with out being blocked by the force-fields of false ego.
It can be easy, for the neophyte on the bhakti path, especially in this City, to get a quick and sharp sense of superiority over all those flying and banging together on the rivers of passion and ignorance that run through the numbered streets and avenues.
But, as Radhanath Swami sweetly instructed us again and again, without a genuine feeling of humility, without a genuine desire to serve and elevate our community without discrimination and without judgment of the places they are in their lives (places I know I've been dug deep in), we will have no potency to guide and love.
Our ability to act as an instrument of Prabhupada's will, of the mission of the acaryas, will be like a muddied river if we are bereft of this humility. If those we are hoping to guide by trust, friendship, and love to devotional service do not see and sense a transparent and elevated character in us, our success in our service will be long in coming, if at all.
So, by his own personal example, Radhanath Swami showed us what impact someone can have when their character is clear, when their consciousness is simply focused on being the servant of the servant, when divine love is the driving force.
Beyond the respectful and necessary veneration we hold for him, the most potent and pleasing relationship we can have with him, and with any of our devotional guides and friends, is to learn how to be a vessel of the Lord's love, which inspires and challenges us to extend ourselves into the realm of making the impossible happen, such as spreading such spiritual gifts in such an environment as New York City.
I'll end by co-opting a wonderful statement written by my friend Yasoda-Dulal Prabhu ( hope you don't mind my using this...it just sums it up all so well and poetic):


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Sunday, May 15, 2011
Josh's Cheesy Fries with Sausage
A shout out to our friend Josh for providing the genius behind this finger-lickin' savory dish. Somewhat reminiscent of the Canadian favorite they call poutine, Josh's creation hits the spot with its comforting combination of protein, potatoes, and gooey melted cheese.
Josh's Cheesy Fries with Sausage
thick-cut fries
1 sausage, or hot dog, sliced
1 slice provolone cheese
Place sausage and fries in a bowl and top with provolone cheese. Nuke in the microwave for about 1 minute or until cheese is melted. Sprinkle with pepper, if desired, and enjoy.


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Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Wishlist 8.19.10
10 comments:
- Melanie's Randomness said...
I never remember people's birthdays! This is a great idea! =) Since my phone has a calendar I've been putting people's bdays in there so I try to remember them. facebook helps too! =P
- October 19, 2010 at 2:54 PM
- Shorely Chic said...
sadly, facebook!
- October 19, 2010 at 3:37 PM
- TERI REES WANG said...
I have a big think "Birthday" astrology book, where I scribble in names on each dated page. But, do I remember to keep it out and open and check into to often?... Hardly.
This option looks delightful.
- October 19, 2010 at 3:39 PM
- Paige (Final Clothes-Out) said...
NEED. I used to have a wall calendar and I'd write them on there, but I got out of the habit a few years ago.
- October 19, 2010 at 4:35 PM
- Anna Katrina said...
i love them they are so girlie and elegant! i may have to add them to my wishlist
stop by sometime<3
- October 19, 2010 at 6:24 PM
- Sanity Fair said...
I hate to admit this, but: Facebook. I'm terrible at writing stuff down (or, transferring it to the next year) so FB is my back up system. Of course, if I went totally electronic instead of clinging to my paper and pens, I wouldn't have to worry about writing in new dates year after year. :)
P.S. I'm hosting a Marc Jacobs jewelry give away! I'd love for you to stop by!
- October 19, 2010 at 9:30 PM
- October 20, 2010 at 1:34 AM
- Jules said...
um, well, my mom usually calls me to remind me of important birthdays...and i'm 30 years old! she swears she'll stop & that it's time for me to figure out a way to remember on my own, but i get a reminder call every time. maybe it's time i grow up and get the birthday calendar - it sounds perfect! xo - julie
- October 20, 2010 at 2:05 AM
- ana b. said...
Agreed! Just this year I've forgotten three very important birthdays - my mum, my brother, and my best friend :(
- October 20, 2010 at 9:58 PM
- beauty comma said...
um, i don't... at least not the way i want to! i've got a birthday calendar but i forget to look at it. i also put reminders on the cell phone, but this isn't foolproof either since i buy a new phone every second year or so (or the phone breaks down, losing all the data i've stored on it).
hope this weekend's dog sitting goes well!
- October 24, 2010 at 3:47 AM


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|Blackberry Swirl Pound Cake
Food on Friday: Free For All came up with lots of different stuff! I have selected a few to inspire you today.
The pic at the top is from Marci of Stone Cottage Adventures – Blackberry Swirl Pound Cake
Marinated Green Pea Salad by Jean from Delightful Repast
Loco Moco by Jo and Sue
Gluten Free Double Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes by Natural and Free
Really Lemony Lemon Sponge Birthday Cake by Jenny Eatwell's Rhubarb & Ginger


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This is what I've decided to call our house (I also call Rob's car The Golden Pius, but thats for another time). Not that the place is a fortress. It isn't even very sustainable yet. Oh, but it will be.
Speaking of sustainable—or rather, not so much—we had the pool service guy come to check out the pool that came with the house. Let's go back a few months. I had this fantasy that we would be living like the rich and famous, lounging in our yard by the pool, all the while trying to rationalize a sustainable lifestyle with a water hogging, chemical guzzling money pit. Well, the pool guy helped with that one. The pool has so many issues that the cost of of getting it running would blow the budget for a pellet stove and a solar hot water system. The pool is now the future sight of the fortress greenhouse.
I thought the blog was long overdue for some photos. Here are a few shots from our early demolition:
Is this a beautiful kitchen or what???
Under the living room carpet: Oak!
Under the dining room carpet: Not oak!
There are also oak floors in the bedrooms and upper level hall. Big bonus. The kitchen, dining room and family rooms need new flooring. We're scheduled to move in next week. Who's idea was this?!


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Two things are ubiquitous in the west. Sand and wind. It has been a wild day. I headed to Morro, only to find the winds gusting up to 60 mph. I didn't think that was possible without a hurricane. In any event, I don't suspect I'll be finding any moths out tonight. Excuse my finger in front of the camera. I was hanging onto it for dear life.
Funny thing. The room I am in right now is pictured somewhere in the header of my blog. I'm in another $40 hotel room. The closed the campground at Montana de Oro due to winds and falling limbs. That's okay. I've realized it's not the cold that gets to me, it's the wind. It just wears me down. But no loss. I'm working on not having a mental breakdown anyway. This helps.
Thank god for Jake. That's all I have to say.
Politics Podcast: The Trump And Putin Show
7 hours ago


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noun. Asswipe plus jackwad minus jackass. That's math, people. Embrace the future of the American economy.
Related terms: wadwipe
Real citation: "Last edited by Jake Spike : 24-02-2008 at 14:36. Reason: Because I can, wipewad."
(Feb. 24, 2008, Aberdeen-Music.com, http://www.aberdeen-music.com/forums/fudgenet/47874-fma-08-best-extreme-act-2.html)
Made-up citation: "To some, Americans are infidel scum. I prefer to think of us as a nation of wipewad scum. But I'm an optimist…"


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Here's a spot for people who want to talk about the movie RED VELVET starring Henry Thomas and Kelli Garner.
Feel free to ask questions or make comments about the film. The filmmakers set out to make a horror film unlike anything in theaters right now.
Have you seen RED VELVET? Whaddyathink?! If not, you can order it at Amazon.com by clicking here: http://www.amazon.com/Red-Velvet-Amazon-com-Exclusive/dp/B002IKLVIU/
If you have not yet seen the trailer, you'll find it at http://www.redvelvetmovie.com . . . take a look and let us know your thoughts!
All the best,
Sean Fernald
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Red Velvet
Posted by oranj at 12:48 AM 4 comments:
Labels: horror fantasy thriller, movie blog, weird stuff
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)


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Here is the relevant excerpt from the letter sent to Issa and Grassley on behalf of the White House:
In light of the important Executive Branch confidentiality interests and institutional prerogatives implicated by your request, including those of NSS, and in the absence of any evidence that suggests that Mr. O'Reilly had any involvement in "Operation Fast and Furious" or was aware of the existence of any inappropriate investigative tactics, there is an insufficient basis to support the request to interview Mr. O'Reilly.Really? Before agreeing or disagreeing, check out this exchange between Oversight Committee member, Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-SC) and Newell from July 26, 2011 and then re-read that excerpt from the White House letter again.
For more on the White House's refusal to allow the Oversight Committee to interview O'Reilly, committee member Jason Chaffetz interviewed with Fox News Channel's Megyn Kelly. The long and short of this is the White House really has no right to invoke this privilege. There is no legal basis for it, which implicates the administration in the cover-up.
Via Daily Caller:
Utah Republican Rep. Jason Chaffetz told the Fox News Channel's Megyn Kelly on Friday that although a key White House witness in the ill-fated Operation Fast and Furious gun-walking program is willing to testify about what he knows, the Obama administration won't let him appear before Congress.Here is video of the exchange between Kelly and Chaffetz:
White House Counsel Kathryn Ruemmler sent a letter Thursday to Republican lawmakers Rep. Darrell Issa and Sen. Chuck Grassley, refusing their request to speak with Kevin O'Reilly, a former National Security staff member whose emails place him in the middle of the unfolding scandal. Issa and Grassley had written to Ruemmler on March 28, asking the White House to step aside and let O'Reilly talk to investigators.
Here is a copy of the letter from White House Counsel Kathryn Ruemmler to Issa and Grassley:
Apr-05-2012 WH Counsel reply on O'Reilly Interview


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Secrets to Blogging Your Way to a 6-Figure Income
Darren Rowse - is the ultimate blogging spokesperson. You cannot find someone that has dedicated more of the last 10 years to blogging than this man.
Darren wrote a couple of books - of which - this one is the Ultimate Blogging Book:
Secrets to Blogging Your Way to a 6-Figure Income
It gives you the know-how. It gives you the absolute truth - without hype. Darren is a born-again Christian - he's not going to lie to you to get you to buy his ideas.
Get the book here:


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This was an exciting week in our 1st grade classroom. As I mentioned earlier in the week, we have been learning about weather. The kids really seemed to enjoy all of the activities we did. They already knew a lot about weather and were eager to share their own weather facts and stories. I have to admit this is the first year I have ever heard the kids talk about a "tsunami". I guess they've been paying attention to world events.
On Tuesday we learned more about wind. Being from Kansas we already knew a LOT about wind. We read Gilberto and the Wind by Marie Hall and then wrote about {good} wind and {bad} wind.
On Wednesday we did a little experiment to see how rain is made. With the help of a hot plate we used our imagination and pretended it was the sun heating up. Then we put a pan full of water on it and pretended it was a lake. We watched closely as the water heated up and began to evaporate. Just like it does in a lake on a hot day.Then we filled a plate with ice and pretended it was a cold cloud. We put the cold plate on the pan filled with hot water. The cold plate caused the moisture in the warm air to condense and form water droplets. This is the same thing that happens in the atmosphere. Warm, moist air rises and meets colder air high in the clouds. Last we carefully lifted the cold plate of ice. The water vapor condensed on the bottom of the plate and formed precipitation. We made it rain in our classroom. We also learned a little more about clouds on Wednesday, too!! We read a few fun books about clouds and did some creative writing about what a cloud might look like.
We used our imagination and a few cotton balls to make a shape in the sky. Then we used the following writing prompt . . . to write about what we made.
{Once I looked up in the sky. I thought I saw a _______ but it was just a cloud.}
On Thursday we read Thunder Cake by Patricia Pallocco. Before we read the story we made some predictions about what we thought a Thunder Cake was. We found out that it was a cake that Patricia made with grandma when she was a little girl. Like many of us, she was afraid of thunderstorms. So, her grandma helper her overcome her fear by gathering all of the ingredients and making a cake before a thunderstorm hit.
After we read the story we also got to enjoy some Thunder Cake topped with strawberries thanks to this little cutie {and her mom}.
We couldn't even taste the secret ingredient . . . tomatoes!!!
We wrapped up our week of learning about weather with some rainbow themed activities. First we met a rainbow expert. His name is ROY G. BIV and he taught us about the colors of the rainbow.
Then we read some books about what makes a rainbow.
We also made a torn paper rainbow art project . . .
AND wrote about what each color of the rainbow reminded us of.
Our favorite part of the day was when we enjoyed some rainbow Jello cups thanks to these two little cuties and their moms. They had every color of the rainbow!!!
We also had fun at our weather themed centers this week reviewing many of the math and language art skills we have been covering in class.


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My first blog post on here will be an introduction about our day to day triumphs in our family. We don't have an ordinary family but I look at us as being extraordinary. The children are doing things by leaps and bounds. And we just sit back and take it all within stride.
Judge and I married in November of 1995. Mutually deciding that we wanted to wait to have children, I started on the depo shot. I took only 2 shots (6 months worth) and thought that I was not healthy. I started out being only 100lbs. Granted some more meat on my bones would not have hurt me but gaining 65lbs within the first 1 1/2 months was not the way to do this. I did not realize that this form of birth control would cause me to put on that much weight so fast!! With the rapid onset of extra padding I acquired came Type 2 diabetes. My mom has diabetes too, and my grandmother, and my dad, and my aunt and who knows who else?? They all are Type 2 too.
It took us another 3 years to get pregnant with our first son, Jacob. The pregnancy started out ok, then came the shots and all the doctor appointments. I remember going to 3-4 doctor offices within one appointment day. I was later put on bedrest due to pre-term labor and was soon taking nearly 1200 units of insulin a day due to the insulin resistancy I was experiencing. Jacob came into this wonderful world at 35 weeks in February of 1999. I remember just a few hours before he was born we were watching the news and it was the same day that President Clinton was acquitted. He was such a delightful baby, good natured and neat! He didn't like to be dirty at all!! :)
We thought we would wait until he was in Kindergarten before trying for another baby. 11 months after Jacob was born we welcomed in our home Emily Rose. During Emily's pregnancy we started using an insulin pump to help keep up with the growing insulin needs that occurred in Jacob's pregnancy. Emily was born nearly 8 weeks early. The pre-term labor came upon us around week 13. Her whole pregnancy was very hectic. We used an at home uterine monitor to help us know when we should "really" be heading down to the hospital. It was neat because as I was laying down with the belt monitors around my stomach for a bit I then transmitted the results to a company called Matria in Atlanta. Shortly after a nurse would call me and let me know what to do or not to do. They were also contracted to take care of my diabetes too. I started out pumping with a Minimed 507c. The insurance company rented it for me on a daily basis at $100/day. After about a month they decided to buy it for me but got the 508 model instead. Life was good...and it kept getting easier. Two babies!! Emily was born in January of 2000 (my Millenium baby!!). She was nearly 8 weeks early. I had the fantasy that everything would work out great! After all, girls potty train earlier than boys. So, when Jacob turns 2 and Emily is 1 we will potty train them at the same time! LOL I couldn't laugh any harder as I think about this now! The reality was that they potty trained at different times but they trained all in one day and on their own. Jacob was 3 years and 2 months old and Emily was 2 months before turning 3. These two did alot together and were each others best friends! They looked just like twins and were/are often mistaken and such. Later in the year 2000 we experienced a miscarriage of twins. We were about 9 weeks along. As this happened we were devastated but felt that some things are just meant to be. We were waiting in these curtained holding areas at the hospital awaiting surgery and could overhear other patients talking. One such patient was about 21 years old and was having a complete hysterectomy due to an abundance of cysts in her reproductive areas. We knew that we would still be able to have children some day and felt badly for this unmarried woman who would never experience such joy as childbirth. Kind of put things in perspective for us. Later the next year we were expecting again. Another boy that we named Jesse (pronounced "Jess"). Jesse was born in April of 2002, at 36 weeks, and came a few days before daddy's 40th birthday. We often joke that Jesse was his birthday present!!
And yes, soon after this Elizabeth Anne was born in December of 2003! Her pregnancy was pretty difficult. I went to L&D at the beginning of December and was told I would have to stay there until she was born. I went into labor several times over the next few weeks. I kept busy though with crocheting and scrapbooking. I have a page that I made for my hospital door that has a tag with a number on it. The number corresponded with the gestation week I made it to. The last tag that is on the page is 35. I was allowed to go home for Christmas but to be back on the 29th for my amniocentesis to see if she had lung maturity for an early induction. The morning of the 29th I went into labor again and instead of stopping it they let me go ahead and have her. Shortly after 7 in the evening in a room full of family and friends Elizabeth Anne was born weighing 8lbs! The biggest baby yet! Jacob and Emily were 7 1/2 lbs and Jesse was 7lbs 15oz. After Elizabeth Anne was born we were told not to have any more children...to count our many healthy blessings. As hard as that was, we agreed.
Now that we have all of the children's pregnancies covered we can move on to other events that occured which led up to where we are now. All the children were relatively healthy. Jacob and Emily had RAD or asthma. Emily outgrew this but Jacob's stayed.
When Elizabeth Anne was 8 weeks old she was hit hard by the rotovirus bug. She was weighing nearly 12lbs I believe. She went into the hospital with bad bouts of diarrhea and throwing up. She lost weight to below her birth weight in no time. We stayed in the hospital several days and then were released as she was doing much better!! A few days passed and we were readmitted again for the same issues.
Fast forward a few years and I was really sick. I wasn't taking care of my diabetes like I should have been. I felt busy and overwhelmed with 4 children and not able to find the time I needed to take care my health. I had some seizures and high blood sugar that was not budging. I was transferred to a specialized hospital and was told I had Todd's Paralysis and it would subside in a few days. In the mean time they said I did not have a stroke b/c my MRI came back clear. I was transferred back home again to a rehabilitation floor to help me regain motion on my right side. The only affected side. I could walk with help from someone who had a belt around my waist at first until I started to gain more strength. Right now I can't remember how long I was there but I think it was about 2 weeks. I went and saw a new neurologist who repeated the MRI, which came back clear. Without explanation as to what happened. This neurologist said the first one was probably done too soon and the second done after a stroke had cleared up. She said by definition I had a left CVA stroke. My primary care doctor said the same thing and that I had moved from being a Type 2 diabetic to a Type 1. My levels dropped for my c-peptide. Funny as they tend to change alot. I say I am a Type 1.5 though. And I think Vanderbilt has me down for this too. As I have the traits of Type 1 but I have the insulin resistance of a Type 2. Things did improve over time. I think it was 6-9 months before everything returned to normal for me. To this day though, my right side gets a little weak when my blood sugars go haywire.
When Elizabeth Anne was 2 1/2 , she woke up one morning and about 20 minutes later fell right back to sleep. Odd for her to do this. I let her sleep but she was hard to wake up. I got her up by getting her in the bath. I knew she must have been hungry so we gave her a biscuit to eat while she was in the bath and she just shook like a leaf! For whatever reason, I decided to check her blood sugar and it was pretty high. Waited a bit and it kept climbing higher. I called the pediatrician's office and soon we were on our way. While the doctor was on hold with Vanderbilt she said if she has ketones she is going. Well, she did. And again we were on our way. We had an endo team meet us in the ER. They had a room set up for her and she was to start on insulin right away. Then out of nowhere her blood sugar dropped to 50 and she was shaking again! They said that we would wait to start her on insulin for fears that she would drop too low. We took her home that night and kept an eye on her. She had 6 month appointments with the pedi endo at Vanderbilt. Seems that for a few weeks she would display symptoms and then they would go away. When she was 5, the diabetes popped its ugly head in again. She kept climbing higher and higher one night in the 400s. She started on insulin in the early morning of July 29th of 2009. Had an appointment that morning and the rest is history. She took 4 shots a day for a few months and then was on an insulin pump by October. Now at nearly 7 years old, she is still on the slender side but she is doing incredibly well!! No problems, we just take things as they come!! And over this past year, boy did they come! Jesse (who I always knew would have diabetes, call it intuition...I don't know!) was sick with the croup, pneumonia and strep within 2 weeks last spring. In May his blood sugar was doing the same thing, it kept climbing. He was diagnosed on May 7th of this year. On the 3rd day after diagnosis he was doing all of his shots on his own!! He was taking the 4 shots that Elizabeth did (3 Novolog and 1 Lantus). As of 2 weeks ago, he is now pumping his insulin!! Jesse has come along pretty fast and is doing his bolus of meal insulin on his own too! So proud of him.
So there you have it!! There are THREE of us with diabetes in our house!! How do we do it?? We just deal with it and move on. We don't let it hold us back at all. Jesse has taken up cycling in the past year and has taken this sport by storm. He has a professional children's bicycle. He rode in the 2010 Middle Tennessee ADA's Tour de Cure for 30 miles! 30 miles at the age of 8!! Then this past Labor Day he rode 60 miles!! This was his first metric century ride! He is training to ride 100 miles in next year's Tour de Cure....which, by the way, Jesse and Elizabeth Anne are the Youth Ambassadors for the ride. We are just getting are team up and going for the May 21st ride...if you would like join us and ride for a cure please do!! Tour de Cure 2011 Pedal Pumpers
Tomorrow is Jesse's first day going to school with his insulin pump on his side. He wears his infusion set in his belly, so does Elizabeth Anne. They are so slim that this placement seems to work well for them. We could use their backside but as experimented on Elizabeth Anne, they come out easily when ripping down your pants when you are in a hurry to go potty! To me it just isn't very sanitary. As they get older and get some more meat on their bones I am sure we will be able to rotate them even more.


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Whew! Am I glad end-of-year testing is over! Can I get an Amen? It just gets worse every year! I feel so sorry for my kids...and their teacher. My nerves are frazzled. We received sympathy treats and notes from other teachers not having their name attached to any test during the week that did make me feel a bit better, but not much. :/
(Sympathy Treat/Notes)
We reviewed our artifacts chart and our hand movements. (We make all the angles with our hands, beginning with the benchmark, 90 degrees/right angle.)
One thing I made sure students remembered was that the length of the lines does not matter. (We had already had a lesson where we broke toothpicks to various sizes and created angles.)
I began the lesson by using a chart to show
what a large angle made of two pattern
blocks might look like.
Next, I modeled pattern blocks on the white board with jumbo pattern block magnets. Students were allowed to find and point out the large angles made where the 2 pattern blocks joined.
Finally, the students received their own packet of pattern blocks and created their own large angles. They only had to find one angle.
My students seemed to enjoy the activity. The only problem we had was at the beginning of the project. Some students were not making angles where the 2 pattern blocks joined. They were simply looking at any angle on one pattern block. We got it taken care of though. :)
I hope everyone has a good week. It won't be long now. My county has 15 school days left! :)


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On June 12th 2011, at the Expo Hall, Eko Hotel & Suites, VI, Lagos, Wizkid alongside some of the best artists in Nigeria like Banky W, Skales, 2face, Wande Coal, D'Prince, Samklef, MI, Jesse Jags, Ice Prince, Lynxx, Olamide and Eldee come together to Launch his highly anticipated album. This epic event will be hosted by comedian extraordinarie Basket Mouth, guaranteeing you a night filled with fun.
Below is the official album cover and tracklisting from Wizkid's label EME (Empire Mates Entertainment)
WizKid "SuperStar" TrackList
1) Say My Name
2) No Lele
3) Scatter The Floor
4) Pakuromo
5) Slow Whine (Feat. Banky W.)
6) Love My Baby
7) Gidi Girl
8 ) Oluwa Lo Ni
9) Don't Dull
10) Tease Me/Bad Guyz
11) EME Boyz (Feat. Skales & Banky W)
12) What You Wanna Do
13) For Me (Feat. Wande Coal)
14) Holla at Your Boy
15) Wad Up (Feat. D'Prince)
16) Shout Out
17) Wiz Party (Freestyle Leak)


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The dungeon was very dark with no real lighting to speak of other than our guide's flashlight and some of the street lights filtering in through the windows. There were little vignettes set up to portray what it was like to be underground way back in the day.
I took several pictures with my iPhone and several with my little camera, and whatever lighting you see is due to the flash lighting up the very dark space.
The next day when I was looking through these photos, I saw this ghostly figure in the picture below:


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UNION CITY, N.J. – Three police officers in New Jersey have been injured in a hit-and-run while investigating an earlier crash.
Authorities say the officers were struck by at least one motorcycle Wednesday night in Union City. It happened while the officers were investigating a crash involving a teenage bicyclist who had been hit by a vehicle and killed.
The New Jersey State Policemen's Benevolent Association wrote on Twitter late Wednesday that the officers had been taken to area hospitals. Their conditions were not immediately available. The PBA asked people to "please pray for all the officers injured."


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IOC wraps up 4-day inspection of Tokyo's 2020 bid
IOC wraps up 4-day inspection of Tokyo's 2020 bid
Mar. 07, 2013
TOKYO (AP) — Tokyo's bid plans for the 2020 Olympics received high marks from the IOC evaluation commission which finished a four-day inspection on Thursday.
The bid organizers were "highly professional" and preparations were excellent, International Olympic Committee vice president Craig Reedie said.
"The bid committee has answered our questions sincerely and it was a very impressive effort," Reedie said.
The commission will next tour Madrid and Istanbul, the other two cities vying to host the games.
The host will be selected by secret ballot in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Sept. 7.
Reedie said the commission witnessed strong government support and growing enthusiasm for the bid.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe twice met with members of the commission to express his government's backing.
Also, it was announced that public support for the bid had risen to 70 percent, up from 47 percent in May. Bid organizers have attributed the increase to Japan's strong showing at the London Olympics, where the team won a record 38 medals.
Tokyo, the 1964 host, failed in a bid to host in 2016. Low public support was cited as one of the reasons Tokyo lost out last time, plus its chances were hurt by a demonstration against hosting the Olympics during the commission's visit, but there was no repeat this time.
On recent territorial disputes between Japan and some of its neighbors in the region, Reedie said that was a matter for the IOC members to consider. China and Japan are embroiled in a territorial spat over islands called Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese. Some have suggested the dispute could hurt Tokyo's chances of landing the games.
"We are aware of the media discussion of those issues," Reedie said. "We have discussed them among ourselves but it was not part of the commission's role. It will be up to each member of the IOC when they come to make up their mind in September."
During the visit, Tokyo organizers highlighted the city's safety and advanced infrastructure, while emphasizing that 28 of the 33 competition venues will be within 5 miles (8 kilometers) of the Olympic Village, which will be built on reclaimed land in Tokyo Bay.


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And now we've got tornadoes.
Seriously. Like trees down, sirens blasting, debris flying.
The kids are with Grammy and Grampy this afternoon so we can get everything decorated and cleaned up for her party at 5:30... and now I don't know if there's going to BE a party.
They're doing fine (even Katie with her obsession of the news coverage of the tornado) with Grammy and Grampy so that's a relief.
Katie prayed a very nice prayer, Grammy told me when I called. I don't know what she said exactly but I would bet it included asking God to keep her toys safe.
Okay... so it's a couple of hours later and the weather seems promising.
The house is fine and we're all safe, thank God for that.
Now to avoid going into labor, falling and breaking a bone, or any other hazardous event and we're home free!
Did I just jinx this thing?


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Dark Heresy: Innocence Proves Nothing
Thesse, Numan, Garath and Erioch have quelled a plot to taint the planet Xenron with Xenos Filth by Kyle Tarinus.
But their task is only half done.
With a union to a Rouge trader on the horizon, reports of a strange new Underhive gang unifying under one mysterious leader and dark truths reviled on the very foundations which the planet itself was created, it is a new task to find weather Xenron can truly be saved at all.
Or if it is even worth the trouble to do so?…


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Grgich Hills Estate Napa Valley 2011 Merlot, $36.54-$42.99, 93 points, poured purple/red trending ruby with a broad clear wine ring at the glass edge.
Great smells quickly evolved from warm brownie and white chocolate toward cedar, earth, and black currant.
Near full-bodied with fair acidity, building tannins, and an unusually meaty flavor profile with cola, fresh mushrooms, and red cherry notes impressed.
Finished long on cayenne pepper, mint, savory, and a well-balanced 13.5% alcohol.
Copyright 2010-2016 Dennis Tsiorbas. All rights reserved, Template provided by Blogger


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Reiterating questions raised earlier by him in the form of a press statement on alleged financial irregularities in the DMC, member of DMC Ward No.9 Hejoto slammed DMC member-in-charge planning and development Nungsang Jamir for "glorifying himself and the chairman" instead of answering his questions.
Hejeto reasserted that there was no money under the Millennium Market project head even though an amount of Rs.73 lakh was collected from each of the allottes @ Rs.50,000. Since money paid by allottees were refundable on surrender of allotment; Hejeto said if allottees had surrendered allotments, then where were the documents. On the construction of building at New Market, Hejeto alleged that an amount of Rs.2,78,02,000 was collected as advance from allottees but work has been suspended since February 2009 and wanted to know where has the money gone.
Further, he alleged that an amount of Rs.60 lakhs was collected as advance from allottees for Hongkong Market during last part of 2008 but work yet to start and therefore demanded to know where is the money. He also raised questions on alleged non deposit of Employees Provident Fund of DMC employees as well as the collection of money @ Rs.200 from each shop in Dimapur for installation of CCTV.
(Full text on page 4)
Ikato Y Kiho, first Naga to join National School of Drama in New Delhi
I must be the perfect role model: Ikato Y Kiho is the first person from Nagaland to study in the prestigious


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Welcome to "The Gods Are Bored," Mother's Day edition 2011! Spare made breakfast, and she also made a beautiful video for me with pictures from throughout my whole life. It was hugely touching. As for Heir ... hmmm ... Heir ... still at college, not even a phone call. Maybe later.
Just now I was out tending Shrine of the Mists. Seemed like a nice way to honor my Mother.
Every time I visit Polish Mountain I bring back more stone for my Shrine. This batch of stone just added is extra special, since it first attended the Fairie Festival ... and I'm pretty sure it's Marcellus shale. So the Shrine is all dressed up and looking beautiful. It just needs the new Orangina bottle to be complete.
This is a picture of My Man Jeff. I only know him as My Man Jeff. Twice now he has come to the Fairie Festival and joined the Mountain Tribe. And two years in a row he has brought water for me in an Orangina bottle.
Last year at the festival, it was hot as all get out, and Jeff might have saved me from heat stroke with his gift. This year wasn't as hot, but I still was glad for the water.
Jeff does not have a Facebook. For all I know he's a faerie who materializes for the festival and then drifts away again beyond the veil. Except I have a feeling he's mortal, because this year he had a pleasant young female friend with him (not pictured).
I put Jeff's Orangina bottles on the Shrine because he is probably the very most random person I call "friend." We know nothing about each other except that we are in Mountain Tribe at the Spoutwood Fairie Festival.
Here's to My Man Jeff, magick in a small yearly dose. One day a year we are happy together. I pray that the other 364 he's just as serene.
So might it be.
Sunday, May 08, 2011
My Man Jeff
Posted by Anne Johnson at 2:36 PM
Labels: Spoutwood Farm Fairie Festival
4 comments:
- Debra She Who Seeks said...
Jeff is one dapper looking young dude. Glad his Orangina bottle will be part of the Shrine of the Mists!
Happy Mother's Day to you, Anne!
- May 08, 2011
- Alex Pendragon (NOT my real name) said...
Life is wonderful when we are blessed with amazingly random friends......as well as some not-so-random. Blessed Mother's Day to you, my friend.
- May 08, 2011
- YELLOWDOG GRANNY said...
I think Jeff is a nice man..happy mothers day.
- May 08, 2011
- Maebius said...
I am going to put in my nod to "Second" My Man Jeff as a proper Fae. I have seen him before as well, and have said little beyond "Hello", but just got this awesome friendly vibe from him as well. He is Good People, most assuredly.
- May 09, 2011
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Posts Tagged 'shih tzu dogwalking'
Puppy love
'Oh Christ, where's the little fucker gone now?' That howl is the sound of my usually non-sweary father taking a puppy for its second – and probably last – ever walk. It was good to hear my father revisit his National Service days. We'd started aglow with virtue and good cheer, helping out a local […]
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Tags: dogs, puppies, shih tzu dogwalking


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Every day the sun rises and then the night follows. The time keeps rolling by years. Half the life is lost in sleep. The remaining period of life also does not give peace of mind. Adolescence is lost playing around. Youth is spent in sensual enjoyments. At old age, diseases overcome a person. If the human birth is meant to get a robust body and plunge in physical pleasures, then there is no difference between humans and animals. There is a better destiny meant for human beings. To be a self realized soul is possible only for humans. The human body is meant to get out of the very bondage of the cycle of life and death. If life is spent causing rebirth then how could one reach self realization? For true wisdom, self realization must be the goal. Rest is all a waste of time. Time is precious. Utilizing this valuable time for acquiring spiritual wisdom and going in search of Truth is the essence of life.
Have Faith in My Sayings.


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The family of Lori Bowcock, the border officer who was shot at the Peace Arch crossing, sends their thanks to her colleagues, medical staff and public agencies for their support as she recovers with a "positive outlook and sense of humour."
The family issued a statement Thursday, two days after Bowcock was shot in the neck by a man who then turned the gun on himself.
Officials have identified the man as Andrew Crews, a tattoo artist from Seattle. Investigators are still looking for a motive to the shooting. Crews' family told media that he texted his mother on the morning of the shooting: "I love you so much. I'm sorry." They could not reach him after that.
"Lori acknowledges how difficult this time must be for the family and friends of Andrew Crews. Our thoughts and prayers are with them," said the Bowcock family on Thursday.
They said that Bowcock has always wanted to work in law enforcement and that her posting to the Peace Arch border crossing in July is considered part of her dream career. Bowcock has previously worked as a 911 operator in Ontario.
She's expected to make a full recovery.
The Peace Arch, officially known as the Douglas crossing, is the third-busiest point of entry between Canada and the U.S.
Bowcock Family Statement
Since Tuesday's events, we have experienced every possible emotion. Today, we are grateful that Lori is alive.
She is doing well and we are happy to report that her positive outlook and sense of humour are shining through. She remains in stable condition, and we are optimistic that she will make a full recovery. We would especially like to thank the first responders, including her co-workers, the emergency dispatchers, BC Ambulance Service, RCMP, and the Emergency and Trauma teams at the Royal Columbian Hospital.
She is getting the best care possible. Without exception, the medical staff at the Royal Columbian Hospital have been professional and caring.
Thank you to Luc Portelance, President of the CBSA, and the entire CBSA family here and across Canada. The strength, support, and kinship that we have been shown has provided us with solace during this time.
Lori has always wanted a career in law enforcement and public safety. After years of working as a 911 operator in London, Ontario, she decided to pursue a career as a Border Services Officer. She was thrilled to be assigned to the Port of Douglas in July 2012 with the feeling that she was pursuing her dream career. She has been welcomed by her colleagues and loves her job.
Even after she was wounded, Lori's first concern was for the safety of her fellow Officers and the public that she has dedicated her career to protect.
Lori acknowledges how difficult this time must be for the family and friends of Andrew Crews. Our thoughts and prayers are with them.
We would like to express our thanks to the Fire Fighters of New Westminster for providing our accommodations. We are grateful for the outpouring of cards, flowers, and letters of support from Lori's colleagues and other agencies including Surrey Mayor Diane Watts, the Laval Police, Lori's former colleagues at the Ontario Provincial Police, the United States Customs and Border Protection, Washington Governor Gregoire, the United States Consulate, and many others. Lori has read each of these messages of support and is deeply moved by the thoughtfulness and care expressed.


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~I received this for my honest review, all opinions are 100% my own.~
Ok there is not enough good things I can say about Greenwald's Products as you can see in my last review. The Greenwald's Carpet & Fabric Stain Remover Kit was what I received next for review. Greenwald's products are super simple to make and use. They come with a large spray bottle and a plastic package with 6 refill packs. They are water soluble.
These are so simple to mix. Fill up your bottle with warm water and add one water soluble refill pack. Wait for about a minute and then shake gently. That's it and your ready to go. We inherited some sofas and they were in pretty good shape as in no rips, but really needed some clearning So my husband decided to test out the Greenwald's Carpet & Fabric Stain Remover. All he did was spray with Greenwald's Carpet & Fabric Stain Remover and let it set for a about 5-10 minutes and then lightly scrubbed. Once it dried all stains were basically gone. This product is really awesome because there is no nasty chemical smell. It has a lightscent to it and won't bother those who are sensitive or have allergies
I could seriously go on and on about Greenwald's products and these are my new favorites. We will be buying refills as soon as we run out. It's also very inexpensive. You get 6 bottle for about the cost of 2-3 bottles at the store. If your interested in trying Greenwald's Carpet & Fabric Stain Remover Kit you can buy it on Amazon.


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"We cast a shadow on something wherever we stand. Choose a place...and stand in it for all you are worth, facing the sunshine." ~E.M.
Forester, A Room with a View Yesterday I read a post on Theatre Folk that talks about how the physical place where a writer is located effects the quality of the writing. So often, we think writing is some elusive, muse-like magic that just shows up when it's good and ready. I'm still waiting for my muse to walk through the door, so I figured that while I'm waiting I should follow the advice of E.M. Forester and hang out in the sunshine.
Right now as I'm writing this post, sunshine is streaming through my living room window, dappling the keyboard. My apartment faces into the courtyard (which sounds lavish, but I can assure you it's not) so I can see the goings on of all my neighbors if they're at their windows. This also means I avoid a great majority of the street noise, though because I'm on a higher floor, I also get the sunlight. It's a win-win for me and my writing. There are some trees and butterflies outside right now. The blue sky is swirled with clouds and the breeze in gently blowing. It's a peaceful kind of place.
By my desk I keep three things taped to the wall. One is a card with the quote from Thomas Jefferson, "The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do." The art of brevity and good editing. The second is a card that has my 2009 to-do list. I wrote it up in December of 2008 and so far, I'm doing pretty well. I'm actually on track to complete all 10 by the end of the year. They are things I am really interested in, and just needed to dedicate the time to them. For example, I wanted to cook more, get a new apartment, and expand the reach of my writing. Done, done, and done. The third thing is a card with a simple quote by John F. Kennedy: "Peace is a daily, a weekly, a monthly process."
I used to think that peace was a destination. An achievement. Since I was a teenager, I made one simple wish on birthdays, when I'd see the first star at night, whenever I'd blow an eyelash from my fingertip. I just wanted to feel at peace. Sounds like such an easy thing to have. Just stop worrying and feeling anxious and scared and stressed, right? Right. And all of that was very hard for me. Much harder than I wanted it to be so in addition to feeling all of these things I also felt frustrated. Where was that damn peace of mind hiding?
Now I know that peace wasn't hiding at all. In order to access it, I had to go out into the world and live. Peace doesn't have a permanent place at all. It's an active, living, breathing way of life that moves with us, within us. It's accessible at any and every moment. And just because we feel it at this moment, doesn't mean it will be readily apparent the next. It is a state of mind that we must continually commit to, and share with others. And eventually, it just becomes a part of us. We will, with time, patience, and practice, be a living vessel for peace, and I hope my writing takes on that form as well. Though to tell you the truth, sunshine on my keyboard certainly helps.
The photo above is the view from my desk in my living room, where I do most of my writing. If you look closely you can see my reflection in the bottom left corner, snapping the photo.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
My Year of Hopefulness - Writing Peace
2 comments:
- Josh said...
I was looking through some of my old journals last night and I found an interesting sentence about peace of mind:
"Peace of mind is staying out of conversations you're not ready for. It's okay to be quiet."
There wasn't much context, so I'm not sure what was happening.
I wish my writing room looked as nice as yours:)
- August 23, 2009 at 10:56 PM
- Christa said...
Hi Josh! I love that quote. Do you mind if I post it up on the site with credit to you? I am a collector of great quotes and this one fits the bill for sure!
- August 24, 2009 at 8:12 AM
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Syrian security forces backed by tanks and snipers launched a ferocious assault Sunday on defiant cities and towns, killing at least 70 people and possibly many more as the regime raced to crush dissent ahead of Ramadan. Corpses littered the streets after a surge in violence that drew widespread international condemnation.
Estimates of the death toll, which were impossible to verify, ranged from around 75 people to nearly 140 on a day when the attacks began before dawn and witnesses said they were too frightened to collect corpses from the streets.
The worst carnage was in Hama, the scene of a 1982 massacre by President Bashar Assad's late father and predecessor and a city with a history of defiance against 40 years of Assad family rule. Hospitals there were overwhelmed with bloodied casualties, suggesting the death toll could rise sharply, witnesses said.
President Barack Obama called the reports "horrifying" and said Assad is "completely incapable and unwilling" to respond to the legitimate grievances of the Syrian people.
Ramadan, which begins Monday, will present a critical test for the government, which has unleashed deadly firepower since March but still has not been able to put down the revolt. Daily demonstrations are expected to surge during the holy month, when crowds gather in mosques each evening after the dawn-to-dusk fast.Though the violence has so far failed to blunt the protests, the Syrian government appears to be hoping it can frighten people from taking to the streets during Ramadan. The protesters are promising to persevere.
Having sealed off the main roads into Hama almost a month ago, army troops in tanks pushed into the city from four sides before daybreak. Residents shouted "God is great!" and threw firebombs, stones and sticks at the tanks, residents said.
By mid-morning, the city looked like a war zone, residents said. The crackle of gunfire and thud of tank shells echoed across the city, and clouds of black smoke drifted over rooftops."It looks like Beirut," said Hama resident Saleh Abu Yaman, likening his hometown to the Lebanese capital that still bears the scars of nearly two decades of civil war.
Syria has banned most foreign media and restricted coverage, making it difficult to confirm events on the ground. But interviews with witnesses, protesters and activists painted a grim picture Sunday of indiscriminate shelling and sniper fire as residents fought back by erecting barricades and throwing firebombs at their assailants.
It appeared the regime was making an example of Hama, a religiously conservative city about 130 miles (210 kilometers) north of the capital, Damascus. The city has largely has fallen out of government control since June as residents turned on the regime and blockaded the streets against encroaching tanks.The United States and France enraged the government earlier this month when their ambassadors traveled to Hama in a trip designed to demonstrate solidarity with demonstrators.
But Sunday's deadly siege only ignited more calls for defiance among protesters.
The Local Coordination Committees, which helps organize anti-government protests, urged people to take to the streets and start a general strike to protest the killings.
"If you don't unchain yourselves now and save your country now, you will be ruled like slaves for years and decades to come," the group said.
An escalation in violence during Ramadan, a time of heightened religious fervor for devout Muslims, would bring a new dimension to the unrest in Syria, which has reached a stalemate in recent weeks. Assad's elite forces have waged nearly nonstop crackdowns around the country, but new protest hotbeds have emerged — taxing the already exhausted and overextended military.There have been credible reports of army defections, although it is difficult to gauge how widespread they are. Assad, and his father who ruled before him, stacked key military posts with members of their minority Alawite sect, melding the fate of the army and the regime.
The army has a clear interest in protecting the regime because they fear revenge attacks and persecution should the country's Sunni majority gain the upper hand.
The searing August heat will only compound the already combustible scenario.
In London, British Foreign Secretary William Hague said the attacks were "all the more shocking" on the eve of Ramadan and appeared to be part of a coordinated effort to deter Syrians from protesting during the holy month."President Bashar (Assad) is mistaken if he believes that oppression and military force will end the crisis in his country. He should stop this assault on his own people now," Hague said.
Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini appealed to the Syrian government "to immediately cease the violence against civilians," calling it "a horrible act of violent repression against protesters who have been demonstrating for days in a peaceful manner."
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for an end to the violence and reminded Syrian authorities that "they are accountable under international human rights law for all acts of violence perpetrated by them against the civilian population."But months of withering criticism and sanctions by the international community has not softened the regime's crackdown. Assad has brushed off the criticism as foreign interference.
More than 1,600 civilians have been killed in the crackdown on the largely peaceful protests against Assad's regime since the uprising began. Most were killed in shootings by security forces at anti-government rallies.The government has sought to discredit those behind the protests by saying they are terrorists and foreign-backed extremists, not true reform-seekers. State-run news agency SANA blamed the unrest Sunday on gunmen and extremists, and said two policemen, an officer and two soldiers were killed.
Sunday's death toll was expected to rise as hospitals received the dead. The Local Coordination Committees identified 49 civilians who were killed in Hama and said they had compiled the victims' names. The figure was confirmed by the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which cited hospital officials in Hama.Read more...


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Today the lovely old Lighthouse opens officially at Roissy. I have turned it into an art gallery for you to enjoy, with the wonderful artwork of the renowned french photographer Francois Benveniste. His work is well known for its sensual images and the special light effects.
The art is exibited on first and second floor of the lighthouse, and also outside in the gardens on both sides of the gallery. There is also a classroom built in the garden, where workshops will be held. Join group Body, Mind & Spirit to get notified.
Don't forget to take the ladder all up to the top of the lighthouse. You will enjoy a wonderful view over the whole sim of Roissy and also over the sea. You may want to set your sun to sunset for an awesome sea view.
The music played on the gallery parcel is from the talented Joaquin Gustav. To buy Joaquin's cd, contact him in world of Second Life.
To buy the work of Francois for your first life, go to Francois' website.
To buy his work for your second life, go to the lighthouse at Roissy or to his main gallery at Body, Mind & Spirit. Some of his collections are also availabe in the Story of O gallery at Roissy (first and second floor) and at the Adult Art Gallery at Adult Hub (tp sign at landing point to second floor).
Enjoy your art!
Zena Zemlja,
Owner Art Galleries Body, Mind & Spirit,
Founder Legal Quality Art Galleries in SL.


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In this game you are trapped in broken time and space. Only by collecting all the broken pieces can you find its exit and get out. Along with you are many lives also besieged in the same distorted universe, but you are the one to save them. They trust you, knowing that no matter how hard each step forward is you can always make it and only you can. The debris are scattered in various sub-universe. Collect all of them in one and you can liberate all your people. Though looks simple, each advancing step will grow in difficulty. Hurry up, man! You have got so many innocent lives counting on you. Join the game to make yourself a super hero!
Add Bitcode support.


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loaded with assigment.i mean overload kind of way.but still i dont feel like finishing them. i dont know why but lately im turning into someone yang sangat kuat tido. always feel sleepy. lose focus and all. arghhhh. i have like tons of assignments and presentations need to be done and i havent start any of them.
going back to ipoh tomorrow, since i have this monthly appointment with my dentist. oh yes and it was painful every time. i miss my home act. it just been a week but miss my family already. here, i dont have anything to do!but sleeping of course!
but still i have to finish at least one assignment this week. or ill be super busy next week since i have DSD test which i know nothin about. ;((
so till then. im under alot of stress right now. fullstop!


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Remembering Lauren
Posted on
Here at Rokit we're all saddened by the news that screen legend and fashion supremo Lauren Bacall has passed away at the age of 89. As the epitome of the classic starlet, she began her career as a fashion model, before making her screen debut at the tender age of 19. Proving she was no young Hollywood car crash, her career spanned the decades, and Ms Bacall remained one stylish lady until the end. Before there was Brangelina, Bacall and her husband Humphrey Bogart were one seriously hot Hollywood couple in the 40s, making several onscreen appearances together. Despite the somewhat controversial age-gap (of 23 years) and the small issue of his already being married when they met, their own marriage lasted until his death in 1957 (who doesn't love a good romance?!).
Take a cue from the lady herself and channel your inner screen goddess; bias cut dresses in liquid silk, lace or taffeta makes for luxurious, high-octane glamour. Our classic vintage collection includes authentic pieces from the 40s and early 50s; all you need are the set curls, red lippy and that Bacall-inspired smoulder to make quite the debut.
So here's to you Ms. Lauren B; we salute your epic career and glamorous self. Seen one of her flicks? Name your favourite here or on our Facebook page!


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Nagaland chief minister Neiphiu Rio today called upon Dimapur citizens to set a goal for success and participate in promoting 'commercial hub' of the state.
Speaking as chief guest at the inaugural programme of Naga Council Dimapur (NCD) initiated cultural festival, marking NCD's 60th anniversary, at Urban Haat Dimapur, Rio paid tribute to members of Naga Council who established the organization 60 years ago.
He stated that Dimapur represented a "miniature India" and Nagaland in particular with all Naga tribes and people from different communities settled in the city. Rio asserted that festival was befitting to organization as it has survived 60 years in harmony.
Stating that people needed to come together and contribute in building the city, the chief minister urged citizens to ensure civic sense first and check whether the city was safe with proper infrastructure for development.
Underlining union government's 'Look East Policy', the state chief minister said there was serious competition taking place in various cities and called upon people of Dimapur to showcase the image of the city.
Further, urging people not to give place to mediocrity, Mr,Rio said government would extend necessary support in building the city.
Also, he appealed to the people to cooperate and pursue the goal in making the city a major "commercial hub" to contend for "Look East Policy."
Meghalaya deputy chief minister B.M. Lanong was special guest at the occasion.
The programme was chaired NCD president Savi Liegise. Earlier, he delivered welcome address.
Highlights of the inaugural programme included release of Naga Council jacket/blazer & souvenir by chief guest, and felicitation of past presidents and general secretaries of the council.
Traditional horn blow by Ditsolo Kupa, music by Nagaland Chamber Choir and Omekali Chishi, were some of the other highlights.
Ikato Y Kiho, first Naga to join National School of Drama in New Delhi
I must be the perfect role model: Ikato Y Kiho is the first person from Nagaland to study in the prestigious