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Stay video in instagram is getting the emphasis it will have. Solutions like Fb in addition to Fb have earlier become aboard the team, leaving behind their distinct forms of the standard. Right now, we perceive Instagram carrying out exactly the same, with accounts. That may be most probably to consider social media marketing to a different cycle for organizations which are at present on Instagram. Facebook has Instagram because of this it is far from strange they went this program. When a person goes make it by way of on Instagram, you will certainly check out a sustain photograph show up in the Encounters club from the account. Supporters will unquestionably have the power to see this warn. As opposed to Facebook or MySpace and Facebook or MySpace, Instagram Stories fails to hang up on to the true-time video recording you practice. The flick vanishes after 24 Hr. it absolutely was to support individuals who are bothered because of their flicks becoming an part of web background, which could sooner or later resume haunt them.
You may probably adhere to these tips or make use of distributors from social network promoting companies. Fast breakdown of employing instagram tales force the in addition sign positioned with the very major of your display screen from the remaining benefit. Hit the spherical method to gain back a photo, or reduced right into it for 10 sacs to begin with taping video clip. Nowadays, you ought to take advantage of on the list of about three pen kinds to start which includes emesis in addition to taking with your photo/online video. Color filtration system is given. Select the checkmark sign once you have done. This could give your movement's photo for your personal feed. You can check into who swiping on the profile noticed the flick. Frequently creating Funny Instagram captions generates your money a great deal far more obvious together with could generate a lot more views for your personal community. Simply guarantee you are giving your company facts about numerous social network sites networking sites you are advertising and marketing on. You could employ an online advertising firm to take care of this for you personally should you need aid in this region.
Why Stories is a great incorporation is that it satisfies with all the fantastic of displaying awesome, curate facts from your own personal life of buy instagram confirmation. Using the perfect technique, it is possible to create clever techniques to make use of movement image and also pictures to improve your hallmark brand. Instagram will definitely be to obtain a long time. You have to prepare on your own to hang about as well as your accounts are available to get reputable with that in mind demonstrate gets the outright perfect. Stick to these Instagram techniques for an internet business to have inside the image sharing social network computer game. There is no worry that expressing along with Instagram of photos has in fact significantly supplied company to be successful. So that you can sustain updated with viral acquire instagram sights, it is crucial that you simply consider these mores to your benefit together with adhere to the transforming occasions. Definitely, you may undoubtedly find a good amount of outstanding possibilities for marketing and advertising on Instagram.


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I dreamt last night that Joanna Gaines joined me on a walk-through of the home that reoccurs in my dreams. Modern, sprawling, with multiple kitchens, this home is far from what I would pick in reality, but I've come to know it well over the years. But this time it was nice to have Joanna's eye on the space (it will be interesting to see if I actually make progress in my next dream). She threw out a few ideas, but mostly she kept saying..."you've got this." I kept assuring her that I wasn't an interior designer and designing a kitchen (let alone two) wasn't my thing, but she would keep saying, "you've got this." We had a good heart to heart and I even made her laugh, but upon waking the message was heard. Keep doing what you're doing.
So....here we are. Another project measured with before and afters. Another project to examine how my skills are growing and changing. Another project to share with you.
It's incredibly fun (and rewarding) for me to see the progress a room makes and see how families are enjoying their new spaces. I went to Minnesota earlier this month to catch up on a few projects and I was finally able to photograph this space. It's a good one.
Here is what things looked like when we began.
My client's biggest issue with the space was that things felt like they were floating. Disconnected. They had just moved the couch into the basement in anticipation of getting a new one. And even though a larger piece of furniture helps with grounding a space (it used to be on the wall across from the window), the bottom line was that this room needed a larger rug. A large, rich-in-color, grounding rug.
My inspiration was in the dining room.
That painting! It was done by a family friend and wow is it beautiful. I wanted to pull some of its colors into the living room and that blue was just the ticket for the rug.
Ahhhh. Now there is an inviting and calming room. Thanks rug.
People are often uncertain about rug size. Really it's about going as big as you can go. Your furniture can have the front two legs on the rug and the back two off the rug leaving a bit of breathing room around the perimeter. 1-2 feet. We could have gone a bit wider but then the length would have invaded the foyer area, so we made a call on an 8x10.
Another major element was a new wall color. The previous color was sponge painted, and well we all know what happened to the sponge paint trend. It died. So....fresh walls were a must.
Really from there it was mostly about furniture arrangement.
People also ask about furniture arrangement. It's a case by case situation, obviously, but in general people make the mistake of not creating conversation areas. Isn't that what rooms are for? For creating spaces where people can converse and enjoy each other's company. Or at least we hope that's what we all desire.
Instead I find rooms where the furniture is too far apart or not grouped well, leading to awkward conversation areas. Or lack of. In this case putting the couch in front of the window allowed for the WHOLE main floor to feel more connected. With the couch on the opposite wall, yes you had a bit more of a 'view' (mostly cars whizzing by) but this arrangement helped create a more natural conversation area with the two chairs and credenza filling the space on the opposite wall.
The credenza also helped break up that large wall so we didn't feel obligated to fill it with art. Two simple pieces did the trick. And that opened up the other wall for their gorgeous stained glass window! Which used to hang in their bay window. My client mentioned that it had had it's moment and she was willing to part with it to the basement, but on this wall it has new life!
Another thought on rug sizes. In the foyer, it is important (and kind) to put a rug down that gives enough room for your guest to actually enter the room. Ha! A little 2x4 isn't gonna cut it and your guests will feel like they are standing on a little wool island, unsure of their next move. Instead...a long runner or depending on the space, a 5x7 is nice. Something to give ample room for them to enter and feel welcomed INTO the space.
Okay, back to the photos. Really it was about curating what they already had...putting everything in its proper spot. A lamp here, a picture there.
And now that this room was feeling good, we had to address the dining room. You may remember....
Again my client felt like this room floated. The table seemed to be a point of contention. One would push it towards the wall to create a greater walking path and then two hours later the other would push it back centered under the light. So...to keep the marriage thriving I made a minor adjustment which my client later said was her favorite change in the whole project.
Can you see what happened here? I turned the table ninety degrees and voila! Problem solved. For their family of four it is perfect and when company comes, the table is easily rotated back for a grand feast. This room really is lovely.
We added curtains, a gorgeous chandelier, and my client reupholstered the chairs in a rich blue family-friendly fabric. With a few pieces of art, this room felt finished.
So there you have it folks. A few rug tips, a gorgeous makeover, and a little reminder from Joanna Gaines to just keep doing what you are doing. Thanks, Joanna!

subset: commoncrawl


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If you have a sense of humour and you spend a portion of your week online you've probably come across The Oatmeal. It's a spectacularly satirical, occasionally crass, always entertaining website featuring comics drawn by Matthew Inman. All I know about Inman is what I've read on The Oatmeal, from which I have taken the liberty to presume him smart, funny, devil-may-care and somewhat philanthropic. He also appears to be bullish when it comes to matters that are important to him, and it's this last bit that brings us to the point: the digital realm is a dangerous place in which to wage war.
And make no mistake, war is frequently waged
Inman's work is, unsurprisingly copyrighted, he even has a little note next to the copyright beseeching people, "Please don't steal".
Despite this, a website called FunnyJunk grabbed a bunch of them without permission and proceeded to make money from them. By all accounts, Inman tried to be tactful and diplomatic and asked them to remove his content. But to no avail.
It gets convoluted but it all came to a head when Inman published a blog post about the ongoing saga, FJ took offence, FJ fans took offence and FJ sued Inman for $20 000 – for damages, apparently.
It was a big mistake.
Take away the legalities of it all. Forget who has the moral high ground. Take justice right out of the equation. Let's look at why it was such a large error of judgement.
1) The Oatmeal has a cult following. FunnyJunk might have fans, but cult followers outweigh mere fans by a significant margin, especially when it comes to banding together and making a noise.
2) The Oatmeal's cult following is not small; Inman has dedicated and vociferous fans all over the world.
3) There was no way a man with Inman's [presumed] qualities would ever take something like that lying down. He was always going to respond in a very scathing and very public manner.
He published the papers he was served, complete with his own rebuttals and then stated his unequivocal intention to tap into his following and the net at large to raise $20 000, half of which he would donate to the National Wildlife Federation and half to the American Cancer Society. But first, he vowed to photograph the money and sent it to FJ's owner, Charles Carreon, along with a picture of Carreon's mother seducing a bear. The picture is there and it's not pretty.
As one would expect, Carreon took this badly. He emailed his site's members telling them that Inman was on a quest to shut them, blah blah, blah.
Inman kept up his crusade on The Oatmeal; not really doing himself any legal favours with comments that could be serious contenders for defamation. He was merciless; every response earning him more fans and raising more money, meanwhile every counter-response from Carreon took its toll on his and FunnyJunk's reputation.
The result
Well, the matter is still ongoing, but here's the current situation, as far as I can tell.
Inman raised over $220 000, which he is adamant will be divided between his charities. He has also taken a picture of money (his and not the money raised, due to legal issues related to the fact below).
Meanwhile, Carreon has also sued the website that hosted Inman's charity drive and is trying to stop the money from reaching its intended destinations. The legal complications abound. The red tape is amazing.
Now, I don't know what will happen. I don't know who will be vindicated. I do know that whatever happens, The Oatmeal will have won over the public. I am confident that FJ will lose members, customers and money. I am also confident that future generations will learn about FJ's folly in lessons on how not to go about settling legal disputes online.
The lessons from Carreon include:
- Wars should always be conducted in private because you never know what the fallout will be. You might think you're infallible, but you could be in for a nasty shock.
- Never take on someone who can draw your mother in compromising positions with a bear.
- Learn when to accept defeat gracefully.
The lessons from Inman include:
- Never back down when you feel you have been done in.
- Don't be afraid to go public with what you know.
- Use your following to your advantage – even a small following can make a difference if they really believe in you.
These days, reputations are won and lost online. Many more people may now know about FJ than they did before the saga, but they won't have positive connotations. And despite what you may have heard, there definitely is such a thing as bad publicity.
(Image by tedxprincetonlibrary, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0, via Flickr)


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Why Uzma Jalaluddin believes Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice never goes out of style
Uzma Jalaluddin is a teacher, parenting columnist and author based in Ontario. Set in a tight-knit Muslim community in Toronto, Jalaluddin's debut novel Ayesha at Last is a love story in the vein of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice.
Jalaluddin is obviously a big Pride and Prejudice fan and told The Next Chapter why she still reads the classic on a regular basis.
"The book I go back to very often is, not surprisingly, Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. When I was writing my debut novel, which is a revamped Pride and Prejudice, I went back to the source material many times. One of the things I've always loved about Jane Austen's work in particular is the way that — as a modern-day Canadian Muslim and South Asian woman — I could relate to something that was written by a white woman in Britain 200 years ago. She deals with universal themes of love and longing.
"The thing I enjoy most about her books is they talk about everyday life. This isn't some Shakespearean tragedy where you have a tragic hero and a tragic fall because of a tragic flaw. This is about regular people living their daily life. As a writer I've always been interested in the minutiae of what makes a person's life — and the decisions that they make that challenge them."
Uzma Jalaluddin's comments have been edited and condensed for clarity.


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Last June, The Global Language Monitor announced that the Top Trending Global English Word for 2017 was 'Truth'. Not 'meme', not 'god', not an animal nor the name of a celebrity, but 'Truth'. People just want the truth. In a world with so much falseness, could it be that being real is all you need to stand out?
Truth. Such a strong word, for words themselves are very powerful; mightier than the sword, has been said. Used with good intentions they can move us, unite us, incite love, support and confidence; used with the wrong intentions, they can manipulate us, lead to hatred, destruction, and war. But, sometimes, we are not aware of the consequences of our words. We throw them unwittingly without stopping for a second to think if they are hurting others, or even ourselves. And nowhere is this more obvious than in social media these days. The internet age has made us feel as if everything was ephemeral, short living. We post something today and a few minutes later is not in our timelines anymore, it is gone, forever. Or so we think. But, it is not. It is just hidden, waiting patiently somewhere in the depths of an internet server to come bite us back. When I was growing up I was always told: "The spoken word can't be taken back." Replace "spoken" with "posted" and it is our reality today.
Therefore, we must be very careful with what we say online, specially in our businesses accounts. Our brands can be easily tainted by the wrong use of words, and the trust from our clients, present or future, might not be that easy to gain back. Before we post anything we must always ask ourselves: Is this true? Do I have proof? Does this represent me or my brand? Does this hurt anyone, including myself? Is this disrespectful to others, even the ones who are not like me? Think about the words that you like being told to you. Think about how it feels when someone tells you that they love you, that they support you, that you mean the world to them. Think about how you like it when people are honest with you, when they tell you the truth. Other people, including your clients, would appreciate that feeling as well.
Use your communication channels (voice, social media, email, online, print) being true to yourself and your branding but with respect, empathy, tolerance and transparency. Your clients, and your peers as well, might have different opinions or backgrounds than yours and just because they do business with you that does not mean that they see life the same way that you do. If you show them respect and truth they will more than likely show you their trust.
All the love or all the hatred in the world can fit in one word. Use words wisely.
Photo credit: Tana Benavides
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V-Ray 3.10.01 is now available for download from our website. Before you get too excited, let me say that we will have a patch next week with some minor fixes, so it may be best to wait until then. Nevertheless, if you find any issues, please let us know.
We had a build yesterday that didn't work correctly; if you downloaded that, please get an updated installation from our website. We apologize for this inconvenience.
There is a short video demonstrating some of the new features here:
The full changelog from the previous release is as follows:
Build 3.10.01 (official) (November 2014)
New features:
(*) V-Ray: Further optimizations for render speed;
(*) Updated to OpenEXR 2.2.0 and added new DWA compression options to VRayOptionsRe;
(*) Support for point cloud rendering in 3ds Max 2015;
(*) Built-in DMC samples calculator for VRayLight, VRayMtl and brute force GI;
(*) .vrmesh viewer: Added a .vrmesh viewer tool for previewing .vrmesh and Alembic files in a standalone OpenGL application;
(*) Embree: Update to Embree 2.3;
(*) Embree: Proxies and instances can now be accelerated by Embree;
(*) Embree: Can now accelerate hair rendering for Ornatrix and HairFarm;
(*) V-Ray: Added "GI filter multiplier" option to the Global switches rollout to control texture filtering for GI rays for VRayHDRI;
(*) V-Ray: Secondary matte environment background slot to control the appearance of matte objects in reflections/refractions;
(*) V-Ray: When created, V-Ray will automatically load a preset named "default" if there is one (allows for customized default values);
(*) V-Ray RT: Support for Carbon Scatter;
(*) V-Ray RT: Support for the V-Ray VFB for ActiveShade session;
(*) V-Ray RT CPU: Support for the VRayClipper object;
(*) V-Ray RT CPU: Support for Ornatrix and HairFarm rendering;
(*) V-Ray RT GPU: Support for using the light cache for GPU rendering;
(*) V-Ray RT GPU: Support for coherent tracing (may improve rendering performance);
(*) V-Ray RT GPU CUDA: Support for the nVidia Maxwell GPU architecture;
(*) V-Ray RT GPU CUDA: Support for the VRayFastSSS2 material;
(*) V-Ray RT GPU CUDA: Initial support for hair rendering for Ornatrix and HairFarm;
(*) V-Ray RT GPU CUDA: On-the-fly recompilation of the GPU kernel to include only features used by the particular scene;
(*) VFB: Ability to dock/undock History window and Color Corrections window to the main VFB window;
(*) VFB: Added highlight burn color correction to the VFB;
(*) VFB: Added "background image" color correction to the VFB;
(*) VFB: Added white balance color correction;
(*) VFB: Added the ability to save multi-channel .vrimg and OpenEXR files from the VFB UI;
(*) VFB: Added the ability to load arbitrary file formats in the V-Ray VFB for post-processing;
(*) VRayInstancer: Implement a new geometric plugin for instancing objects on a ParticleFlow and other particle systems;
(*) VRayHDRI: Added image preview in the file open dialog;
(*) VRayHDRI: Added controls to specify UDIM/UVTILE tiles for the preview in material editor;
(*) VRayScatterVolumeMtl: Greatly improved calculations; ability to use the light cache;
(*) VRayScannedMtl: Support rendering of scanned real-world BRDF materials;
(*) VRayProxy: Support for hair and particle instances;
(*) VRayProxy: Support for subdivision objects in Alembic files using OpenSubdiv;
(*) VRayLight: Disc light shape;
(*) VRayLight, VRayIES, VRaySun: Added parameters to control the diffuse and specular contributions separately;
(*) VRayLightSelect render element: Added "mode" parameter to allow extracting the full/raw/diffuse/specular contribution of specific lights;
(*) VRayMtl: Added GGX BRDF model;
(*) VRayMtl: Added clip opacity mode option for faster rendering of trees etc;
(*) VRayMultiSubTex: Extended with new randomized modes for choosing colors;
(*) VRayVelocity render element: Added include/exclude list;
(*) ply2vrmesh: Added export options to export specified frames to separate files;
(*) ply2vrmesh: Added Alembic frame offset output to the files;
(*) ply2vrmesh: Added option to merge two or more .vrmesh files into one;
(*) vrimg2exr: Added -multiPart option to vrimg2exr that produces an OpenEXR 2 file with each render element in its own "part";
Modified features:
(*) V-Ray: Added an option to open the V-Ray messages window on error or warning only;
(*) V-Ray: Added by Object IDs selection method for Render mask;
(*) V-Ray: Added MaxScript access to the Trace sets include/exclude flag;
(*) V-Ray: Added %numPasses and %numSubdivs stamp keywords;
(*) V-Ray: "Camera Motion Blur" is controlled independently on "Motion Blur" setting;
(*) V-Ray: Embree enabled by default;
(*) V-Ray: Improved render speed when not using any render elements;
(*) V-Ray: Light cache "Use for glossy rays" option is enabled by default;
(*) V-Ray: Optimized hair rendering in general;
(*) V-Ray: Reduced memory usage for hair and particles;
(*) V-Ray: Renamed the "Time independent" option to "Lock noise pattern" in the DMC sampler rollout;
(*) V-Ray: The default GI methods are set to Brute force/Light cache;
(*) V-Ray: The default image sampler set to Progressive;
(*) V-Ray: The image sampler parameters rollout is unfolded by default;
(*) V-Ray: VFB is cleared always when doing network rendering with render mask;
(*) V-Ray RT: Improved refresh speed;
(*) V-Ray RT: Removed the Show Mask option from the user interface, the mask is written in VRaySampleRate render element for the progressive sampler;
(*) VFB: Improved anaglyph stereoscopic preview to reduce retinal rivalry;
(*) VFB: Improved initialization speed of the History window when there are a lot of images in the history;
(*) VFB: The vfbControl MaxScript function returns values for the commands that have states;
(*) VFB: Made the History window compliant with the 3ds Max color theme;
(*) .vrscene exporter: Added combo box to select between Scene Animation/Frame range, the latter remembers the start/end values;
(*) VRay2SidedMtl: Added ability to filter the translucency effect through the diffuse color of the front-facing side;
(*) VRayClipper: More robust and faster algorithm is used;
(*) VRayDirt: Added "double sided" option;
(*) VRayDirt: The distribution parameter can now take negative values for more defined edges;
(*) VRayFastSSS2: Added opacity texture slot;
(*) VRayHairFarmMod and VRayOrnatrixMod: Faster rendering of hair;
(*) VRayHDRI: Added MaxScript access to "coords" parameters;
(*) VRayLight: Added the ability to display the light name in the viewport;
(*) VRayLight: Somewhat faster sampling of rectangle lights;
(*) VRayMtl: Multiple layers of glass rendered with noise;
(*) VRayOSLMtl/VRayOSLTex: Improved shader cache logic, now the compiled shaders reside entirely in a memory buffer;
(*) VRayOSLMtl/VRayOSLTex: Removed dependency of shader name on the shader file name;
(*) VRayProxy: Export texture coordinates for .vrmesh preview, if preview mesh is specified;
(*) VRayProxy: Same proxies are automatically instantiated;
(*) VRayProxy: Show proxy color set names in Vertex Color texture "Channel Name" list;
(*) VRayProxy: Show the extra color channels from Alembic files in the "Channel Name" drop-down of Vertex Color maps applied to the proxy object;
(*) VRayProxy: Support for Material ID channel when rendering with point clouds;
(*) VRayShadow: Made the U, V, W Area shadow sizes animatable in the VRayShadows params rollout;
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The Museion Foundation. Museum of modern and contemporary art in Bolzano,
is seeking, from June 2019, a
Museion is a renowned establishment operating on an international level and is ranked among the major contemporary art museums in Italy and the alpine region. The museum presents temporary contemporary art shows and exhibitions of its collection, which comprises over 4,000 works. An intense programme of events, collaborations and mediation is an integral part of the museum's activity.
As Director you will be responsible for the artistic content and economic management of the institution. You will be supported by the Director of Administration.
In particular, your role will entail:
- The on-going development of the museum's profile via innovative concepts
- The conception of an ambitious programme of exhibitions and events
- Conservation and further expansion of the collection
- Personnel management and development
- Fundraising, responsibility for the budget and budget planning
- The strategic development of mediation activities
- Representation of the institution and external communication
- Management of relations with public institutions, private partners and the Society for the Promotion of Museion
We are looking for an outstanding personality with specific competences in the field of contemporary art, a network of international contacts and adequate organisational skills for directing and innovatively developing the museum. He or she will need to take into account the particularities of the location, which is poised between three cultures and is an integral part of the intense, local cultural activity. The ideal candidate will have considerable experience of successfully developing and implementing fundraising strategies, including for sponsors and patrons. Objective-driven team-leading with an inclusive and communicative management style is indispensable. An adequate knowledge of Italian and German, the two official languages of the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, as well as English, is necessary.
Pursuant to art. 8 of the Articles of Association of the Museion Foundation, the maximum amount of time the position may be held is for eight years.
Applications should be sent exclusively to:
Business Pool GmbH, attn. Katharina Végh, email@example.com , Tel. +39 0471 30 18 96
The submission deadline has been moved to 10/08/2018. Applications will be treated with the utmost discretion.


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Radio appearance
I was on the radio today! A friends mom is the host of the Doctor Radio show "Nurse Practitioner," which runs once a month on the station, which is at the NYU Medical Center. This month, her show was on cultural considerations in providing good health care, and after hearing about my summer work, she invited me to be a guest! The show runs for two hours, and I was on for the second half, along with the social worker she works with, and a phone-in guest from LA who is also a nurse. During the second hour, we talked primarily about Muslim families, but used that to branch out to talking about all sorts of people from various backgrounds.
I'm honored that she asked me to be a guest. I don't feel like I'm an expert about Muslim women, and I certainly know very little about healthcare and patient care. But I managed to draw conclusions from my research and talk about things like not stereotyping, understanding that women may not be comfortable with male doctors or nurses, and keeping in mind things like Ramadan and dietary restrictions. And I felt so official, with big headphones on and a giant mic in front of me, complete with a "cough" button to push to mute the mic.
It was a lot of fun, and I'm thankful to Nurse Chibbaro for having me on!


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Jason Bendickson
August 28, 2016 / Pulling Back the Covers / Sara Wolbrecht / Luke 15:11-24
Friends – I wonder what came up for you as we asked the question at the beginning of the service – the question of: when was a time when you were busted? Was it something from a few years back? More recent? Something funny or maybe something hard? Or maybe something hard that has become funny over time? Or maybe something hard that ended up leading into great blessing on the other side of the messiness. We all have these moments when we mess up – and sometimes we totally get busted for it. To get us where we're headed today, stay in touch with those 'busted' moments of your life. I know, as you hear me say this you must be so excited that I am scratching the surface of something like this. But here's the thing: the reality is yes, we all get busted.
And for us to continue our summer conversation around the FLOW of God, exploring the rhythms of God that we can place in our lives to step into what God is doing in us and the world. Our conversation must include how we live through the mistakes and missteps we make. And so we place ourselves in this conversation, and ask ourselves what does the Jesus story have to say about getting busted? Which is ultimately a question about what the heck do we do with shame?
To get us into this hard and important conversation, we're turning to one of the most well known 'busted' moments in the Bible. It's a parable. Jesus used parables, these stories that would paint word pictures with deep meaning to teach about God and life. This parable today is a story that Jesus told about a young man who claims his inheritance early and then blows it all on what the Bible calls "wild living." It is the story most often called The Prodigal Son – the son who leaves, but comes homes in the end, even though he's busted, even in the face of deep shame.
Here at Salt House we talked about this text back in March during the season of Lent – and we hear it again for the picture it paints – notice what the Father is like. Because (spoiler alert) Jesus is making a radical point about how the Father in the story is like God. And pay attention to how this Father responds to his son – for (spoiler alert again) we are invited to place ourselves in the story as the prodigal son.
Luke 15:11-24 (from The Kingdom New Testament, N.T. Wright)
11Jesus went on: "Once there was a man who had two sons. 12The younger son said to the father, 'Father, give me my share in the property.' So he divided up his livelihood between them. 13Not many days later, the younger son turned his share into cash, and set off for a country far away, where he spent his share in having a riotous good time.
14"When he had spent it all, a severe famine came on that country, and he found himself destitute. 15So he went and attached himself to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him into the fields to feed his pigs. 16He longed to satisfy his hunger with the pods that the pigs were eating, and nobody gave him anything.
17"He came to his senses. 'Just think!' he said to himself. 'There are all my father's hired hands with plenty to eat—and here am I, starving to death! 18I shall get up and go to my father, and I'll say to him, "Father; I have sinned against heaven and before you; 19I don't deserve to be called your son any longer. Make me like one of your hired hands."' 20And he got up and went to his father.
"While he was still a long way off, his father saw him and his heart was stirred with love and pity. He ran to him, hugged him tight, and kissed him. 21'Father,' the son began, 'I have sinned against heaven and before you; I don't deserve to be called your son any longer.' 22But the father said to his servants, 'Hurry! Bring the best clothes and put them on him! Put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet! 23And bring the calf that we've fattened up, kill it, and let's eat and have a party! 24This son of mine was dead, and is alive again! He was lost, and now he's found!' And they began to celebrate.
If you were here in March when we talked about this parable, you may remember that we renamed it – that it is not really a story about a prodigal son – but a story about the generosity and the lavish grace of a father, who, in a culture where noble people could never be hurried, let alone run anywhere, he hikes up his robes and hoofs it out as fast as he can – not to scold or reprimand his busted son, but to wrap him up in love and joy.
This is our God – captured in this moment Jesus speaks of, a moment that has been painted and sculpted throughout the centuries by artists who can't get enough of it because of it's shocking statement of grace and forgiveness – oh, that we would know that this lavish grace is the landscape we move around in every day. We swim in it all the time – this parable absolutely captures the FLOW of God as one where we mess up and the Running Father scoots his hinney out to meet us and welcome us home.
Now I could just mic drop, sit down – and leave it at that. God loves us, God's lavish grace is deeper than anything we can imagine. But let's be honest. The shame we carry sometimes doesn't just go away when we hear this parable. It's complicated. It's hard. Shame nags at us. And so to continue to explore this dynamic FLOW we live in, we're turning to a ten minute video – from a series called, Nooma, the Greek word for spirit or wind. A series written by Rob Bell, a pastor turned author and public speaker who has traveled with the likes of Oprah Winfrey. We watched another Nooma video at the beginning of June to kick off this series, called Rhythm. And now we turn to another – this one called Lump. Listen for what God has to say to us through this, and then after I'll have a few thoughts and lead us into a time of response.
Video: Lump, Nooma
To live in the FLOW of God means to intentionally be people who don't try to be shiny and perfect and pretend like we have it all together. We own our failures. We own our mistakes. We name that the life of Jesus is about being imperfect people, who will keep getting it wrong. And we name that today because too often the line that the Jesus-followers seem to walk is one where we are expected to walk through the doors of a church building and look and sound and be a certain way – and today we say – no way. That's not us. We're broken, work-in-progress people. Always.
This question we asked at the beginning of worship – when was a time when you got busted? Well for me – a lot of ideas went through my head. Particularly from growing up – I think in some ways it's easier to think about past times that I've had more time to work through, yes? A little safer. That, and I can chalk it all up to being a teenager! I grew up as a pretty good kid who followed the rules. And yet I also had this rebellious second-born streak in me. And so in junior high and high school I did a few things that were not aligned with the image I had of being a good kid. And when I did get busted – like for sneaking out of the house in the middle of the night to walk around with friends – it was hard to know how to integrate what had happened into my sense of identity. I still wanted to be a good kid!
That work of integration, of defining who we are, that work never ends. And the pull is always always always like we're still teenagers, to feel like what we do defines us – which is great when we're kicking butt and feeling popular and well liked and successful. But it gets messy and painful when we mess up. Especially when in messing up we also hurt someone else. Know what I mean?
Do you see how the Jesus-story is so revolutionary? The Jesus story, over and over again shouts back at those failures and our shame and says: yeah, you messed up, but there is the Running Father (right?), our God who runs to meet us in our walk of shame. And who even says to the older brother – who if we kept reading the story he pipes up with anger at how he had always stayed and worked hard and been the good son and never had a party like his messed-up brother. How unfair! And the Running Father says, "Oh, my child, I have always been with you, and all that I have is yours."
In so many ways, the Bible, the story of Jesus tries to beat this into us: that there is nothing we can ever do to make God love us less. Nothing we can ever do. Nothing. God will always run to us in our walk of shame. God will always be that tender parent who pulls back the covers to let the light in. Always. We are always with God – and all that God has is ours. Nothing cuts us off from that flow of grace, forgiveness, light, hope.
And so today, my friends, we name that we are Jesus people who own our failures, and the way we do that means letting God into our sweaty business, into the things that have caused us to run and hide – all the ways in which we, too, are that sweaty lump under the covers.
And we name that doing this goes against every instinct we have – it feels much easier to run upstairs and hide under the covers. To keep pretending that nothing is wrong. To keep from integrating what we've done into who we are. Which is why the church for centuries has been a place for confession. Confession. I grew up attending church which most Sundays included confession. Which on the one hand was an incredibly rich rhythm to have each week. But I also felt like I never knew what I was supposed to do in those times – how to do it "right." Maybe you had your own experiences of confession in church, or not, but today we're reclaiming confession. Because the church can be this beautiful, real place where we don't hide – and that's who we try to be here. And confession is the very practice of letting God pull back the covers. Confession is not a time to make a list of how we've been naughty or nice. Confession is a time to be fully honest about who we are. It is the pull back the covers moment, where we let God into our sweaty business. At it's best it becomes not a moment of deeper shame for us, but it is a moment of freedom. Of letting the pretenses and facades melt away, of actually feeling the things we've been feeling instead of stuffing it all and trying to be and act the way we think we're supposed to.
And yes, in confession we name that we messed up. We all try to hide it for different reasons, with different motivations – but we all do it out of fear and shame. And today, we name that we are people who believe in the power of Resurrection and new life at work in us and in the world. And it begins by letting God pull back the covers and take away the shame.
As the band comes back up, I invite you to stand with me, for a time of prayer and honesty, and yes, a time for freedom.
And I invite you to close your eyes. And to take a deep breath and pay attention to that flow of life, coming in, rolling out of your lungs. Roll back your shoulders, feel the floor under your feet. And at the same time imagine yourself tucked in under the covers. Hiding. Sweaty from the heat. Heavy with shame. Comforted by the darkness and anonymity and perceived safety of hiding. And in this place, we pray…
Creator God, our God of boundless grace and who is present with us now,
We pause now to bring to the surface those moments where we felt busted in such a way that we still find ourselves carrying the pain and shame of that experience. Whether those experiences are fresh, or whether we've carried them for some time. Whether a relatively small thing, or a big moment – we call to mind the experiences that we find ourselves carrying with us, replaying, resenting. We bring those times of shame, and failure to the surface now.
In naming these moments – which are moments that we don't want to think about – we let you God, tenderly pull back the covers and expose the Light of your Love and acceptance on that experience, and ultimately on all of who we are. We envision ourselves in that curled up place, no longer hiding, but instead exposed to the warmth of the Light. Oh, we could pull those covers back over us. Or we can choose to stay in this vulnerable place and finally be enfolded in your arms. Held close, where we hear that there is nothing we can do to make you love us less. There is nothing we can do to make you love us less. Nothing. Nothing.
God, we ask that every time we wake up in the morning, may we have yet another experience of the covers being pulled back, of letting the Light shine into us, of letting our feet hit the floor at the start of the day knowing that we are your imperfect, fully-loved-as-we-are people, and that you are making beautiful things out of us. And from that place of grace may you stir us to be your people of grace and acceptance and authenticity – who make beautiful things with you.
We remain in this place of gratitude, of vulnerability, as we continue to sing, to listen, to pray…


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Gulf News reports that Saudi Arabia just hosted its first women's marathon, presumably as part of its professed liberalization of women's rights. It wasn't a full marathon, but 3 km—about 1.9 miles. It did excite a lot of interest among the women, though, as 2,000 signed up within hours, and 1,500 actually ran. That was a much higher registration than organizers assumed, so they had to close off entries. This shows that women in Saudi Arabia really are interested in sports, even though they're often not allowed to participate in that sexist country.
But look how the women were forced to run! No wonder the winning time was 15 minutes (granted, a bit better than I could do in running shorts at my age). Click the screenshot to go to the article:
Yes, they are running in burqas or abayas, though, to facilitate breathing, I suppose the organizers let them dispense with veils.
Here's a video from Al Arabiya English:
You go, girls! This is an ineffably sad spectacle.
This photo of the winners epitomizes the inequity: look at the guy wearing a tee-shirt and shorts!
Is this progress? Well, of a sort. At least they can run, but if there were no dress code, do you seriously think the women would run in robes or sacks? Gulf News tries to make the best of this:
Women have made impressive strides in recent months in Saudi Arabia as the society is undergoing intensive changes that saw them organise tournaments and attend sporting events in major stadiums.
The kingdom has in recent months eased restrictions on women, including the lifting of a driving ban — set to go into effect in June.
In September, hundreds of women were allowed to enter a sports stadium in Riyadh, used mostly for football matches, for the first time to mark Saudi Arabia's national day.
If they really want to make progress, let them deep-six the sharia law that counts a woman's court testimony as half of a man's, gives her half the inheritance of her brothers, and requires her to be accompanied by a guardian (and clad in a sack) when she goes out. Compared to that, sports is a thin veneer to make the world believe the kingdom is committed to women's equality.
My friend Orli Peter, a psychologist, had the appropriate take, which is not to laugh but to mourn:


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Telling what it's like to work on recovering from the effects of alcoholism through Al-Anon
Friday, May 31, 2013
Pandora has a new box
She was much loved by them, perching in Pop's lap when he read the paper or watched television. Pandora was by Mom's side during her last days and stayed with her after she died.
Now she is here with us, in a strange house, having to adjust to two other cats who are amiable but not to her liking. I am sure that things will sort themselves out as they usually do with animals. There is much posturing and hissing from her. She runs for cover into her crate, but then will venture out to be petted and hugged. Animals learn to adapt, but I feel sad that she doesn't have the comfort and familiar smells of her human's house.
Tomorrow, we will collect the keys to the house and can begin to make the necessary fix-ups of waxing floors, painting the interior and cleaning carpets before listing the house. The caregivers are staying until the very last minute--the stroke of midnight. I say nothing because this is not my business.
This morning I worked out, went to a meeting, and then to lunch with my sponsor. He has had a challenging time lately, but is also learning to adapt to situations that are different. I only wish that we humans could make transitions as easily as our animals, not holding on to things, working thoughts and emotions over and over in our heads.
It is going to be a beautiful weekend here. The heat has moved in though which means humidity is not far behind. Next week I am leaving on the boat for a few days. This weekend I'll be doing some towing on the water, delivering gas to those who run out, bringing boats whose engines have quit back to marinas and landings, and pulling people off of shoals. Even though the days are long, it's never a dull moment when people and boats are involved. But I'm using my Captain's license which is good.
Happy Friday to all of you.
16 comments:
Animals are the most resilient creatures. They eventually find their place. It's never easy to sort through a home where loved ones once lived. Wishing you and yours peace in the process. (Hugs)IndigoReplyDelete
There is always a difficulty in change, isn't there? I hope that Pandora comes to find peace in her new home.ReplyDelete
Now you be safe out on the water.
- AnonymousMay 31, 2013 at 8:01 PM
Wow,Syd - - - you sound very happily busy! You have experienced so much that is sad for the past couple of months; I hope things will keep looking up for you.ReplyDelete
As for the kitty, since you and C still have access to the 'home place' perhaps you could claim a small throw pillow or something like that - that has the smell of her loved ones to give her, until she accustoms herself to the new smells.
Good luck with the new member of the family.
Hugs and love,
Anonymous #1
ugh on them still there..i am glad you are giving the cat a new home and the adjustments will be made...your love will fill the gap a bit...hope you have a good weekend brother...and the house fix ups go well for youReplyDelete
How odd that the caretakers will be there until the last possible moment ... I hope all goes well. Anon#1 had a good idea, I think, about a small fabric item which might bring comfort to Pandora. Good luck with the work; may it go swiftly and smoothly.ReplyDelete
Thanks for the interesting posts. I'm a reformed alcoholic who has been dry for 13 years. Just like to convey a message of hope to all sufferers that it's well worthwhile. Whereas my life revolved round the next drink, following quitting it's just got a whole lot better.ReplyDelete
I've just started my own site www.alcoholhelper.org so take a look if you're interested.
It is good your caregivers really did move out. I use to get mad at my grandmother because she would ask strangers to do things for her big things. It would seem she was taking advantage of the generosity of others.ReplyDelete
Her behavior embarassed the family but later I realized this was the way she survived as a young widow with 9 children. It had become part of her personality and it she never saw it as manipulation the way we did. It wasn't personal.
It sounds like your caregivers live a little like nomads and were probably happy you wife was so generous with the invitation to stay. I guess the benefit of this life is that they are available to be caregivers in short notice.
I don't think I could live like that getting use to a new place all the time. I would be more like Pandora hissing and spitting.
When our puppy came to live with us, our cat moved herself to the basement, only coming upstairs at night when the dog was asleep in my daughters room. That went on for about a year or so. Then one day, she just up and decided enough was enough I guess and abandoned her self imposed exile. They both tolerate one another now. I hope the caregivers surprise you and leave the house in excellent condition.ReplyDelete
Happy Friday to you, too, Syd.ReplyDelete
I'm sure we could learn a lot from the way animals adapt- I guess they do such a good job because they don't have much of a choice. If only we could surrender and accept that we don't have much of a choice in many situations we find ourselves in, too.
Awe poor kitty! She sounds like a sweety. This tugs at my heart a bit because animals always had a special place in my heart.ReplyDelete
Enjoy your boat sounds like an adventure!
Pandora opening the mythological box of troubles with hope at the bottom. Cats are far more pragmatic than dogs in my experience and I hope Pandora settles down in her new home.ReplyDelete
Aye, aye Captain Syd! I like reading about you on the water.
By the time you read this your caretaker problem should be over with. THAT was one pain in the ass you did not need or deserve not C and not you what classlessness those people have. Well you have your plans set for ship and shore so chart your course and go Syd. I always liked high rollers when i was at sea and if you're the same i wish you to have your fill of them if not may smooth seas be your immediate future for a bit.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousJune 2, 2013 at 5:30 PM
Syd, your posts bring me such peace. Seeing Pandora curled up... it's heart-warming. And thank you for the reminder that It's a struggle for all living creatures to adjust to a new environment.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousJune 5, 2013 at 8:14 AM
I hope the caretakers left. I truly can imagine that they needed that place to stay until the last moment, but then I have frequently in my life lived from hand to mouth. I don't think they are doing this TO you, they are just living and it is just affecting you.ReplyDelete
Pandora looks sad. But I don't think cats are as sentimental as we would like to believe they are.
Syd, after my mother died in 2010, we inherited her 11 year old calico cat. That poor kitty had a very strange life with my mother, and was very skittish when living with her. Wouldn't you know, she absolutely blossomed when she was living with us (and our 2 cats), and she became one of the lights of my life. Unfortunately, she had an enlarged heart, and passed away suddenly a year and a half after my mom died. Still, she brought so much joy to us (and I think we brought joy to her). Your new family member will adjust. You and C. are loving people, and Pandora will respond to that. It just takes a little time.ReplyDelete
Happy Friday to you too, Syd.ReplyDelete


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The End Times Are Near: Hot Wheels Movie Has A Director
It's constantly shocking that any sort of intellectual property that makes any sort of money is being turned into a movie these days. Where's the Shamwow or the Slap Chop movie? What's happening to the world? Why do studios constantly want to make movies out of crappy IPs? No one wants a Hungry Hungry Hippo film. Just stop trying to adapt things that don't have narratives?
Hot Wheels: The Motion Picture has just announced that it has found a director. Simon Crane, a prominent second unit director on such films as Quantum of Solace, Stardust, and World War Z, has officially signed on. The film will be written by Paul Attansio (Donnie Brasco, Sum Of All Fears).
One day all this 'adaptation fever' will die down and films will be written by screenwriters again. We'll be able to have new screen icons, not just recycled adaptation survivors. Someday, stories will be created for the screen instead of adapted upwards. Eventually people will get fed up with this nonsense, and I can't wait for that day. I'll be the first one to throw the match of the effigy of the movie version of the Jolly Green Giant.
Share and Enjoy
Tagged: hot wheels movie, hot wheels the motion picture, hot wheels the movie
Posted in: Film, Miscellaneous, Movie Rumors


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Applying lipstick can really complete your look. It's one easy thing to touch up throughout the day that refreshes your makeup, and can gives you a boost of confidence. It's happiness in a tube! I've always had a love of lipsticks, and now I'm lucky to try so many wonderful beauty brands. From classic reds and pretty pinks to liquid lipsticks and coloured balms. I've rounded up my favourites lip products I'm loving this season.
Soft pinks and peachy tones are my favourite shades, with a pop of bright red on occasion.
Charlotte Tilbury – Miranda May A bright cherry red in the chicest rose gold tube.
Stila – Bisou Perfect classic red
Smashbox – Nude Beach Pretty peachy nude shade
Dior Addict – Urban The hydra-gel centre in this lipstick provides lots of shine and moisture
Nars – Breaking Free Peach perfect for Spring
Mary Kay – Bashful You Their gel formula gives a velvety finish to your lips
Lipstick Queen – Queen Made in Canada, by Poppy King in so many beautiful shades
Lip Liners
The perfect lipstick application begins with a lipliner.
Charlotte Tilbury – Pillow Talk
Stila – Zinfandel
Cargo – Canaria
My love for lipgloss runs deep! A dab of gloss is the finishing touch to your lipstick .Many brands are coming out with a liquid lipstick, a combo of gloss and lipstick. Ideal for touchups throughout the day.
Smashbox – Always on Liquid Lipstick
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Nars – Unlaced
Nars – Orgasm
Chubby Sticks
Remember Chubby Sticks from a few years ago? They're back! Clinique just released a super cute collaboration with Crayola for their Chubby sticks lip crayons. This limited-edition collection of colour balms contain shea butters that makes your lips feel super soft and smooth.
Shop my favourite lipsticks


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Introduction to Network Management Services
Our BCX Network Management Services include the planning, build and operation of your communication network, whether this might be a Wide Area Network (WAN), Local Area Network (LAN), or Voice. We realise that maintaining productivity levels, connectivity, and access to company applications and information, as well as communication between colleagues, is crucial to the smooth running of your business. So, our expertise is geared to identify network performance issues and intervene in the event of failure. We perform capacity planning, and conduct proactive network monitoring and management, no matter how large or complex your LAN or WAN might be.
What is Network Management Services
Partnering with BCX on a Network Management Service offering will help you reduce the complexity that comes with managing a network. It helps you focus on your core business, knowing that dedicated specialists are at all times ensuring your business is leveraging best practices in network management.
Our BCX end-to-end service extends from network design, deployment, and transition, through to the supply of Client Premises Equipment (CPE), including installation and support, to proactive network and service management. This helps you reduce capital expenditure and maximise an Opex model.
How Will Network Management Services Benefit My Business?
Specialised Expertise
- Benefit from skills that offer consistent technical excellence and best practice insight
- Overcome constraints and leverage a design excellence that utilises Virtual Private Network (VPN) topology and Demilitarized Zones (DMZ)
- Leverage a holistic service with features such as Spectrum Element Manager to manage faults, eHealth for consistent performance management, and Network Flow Analyser (NFA) for application management
- Take advantage of our experience and track record to enjoy true process maturity
- Eliminate the complexity of managing your networks with real-time visibility
- Maintain productivity and output with proactive alerts and notifications
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- Gain peace of mind that there is redundancy built into core and distribution routers, and you also benefit from multiple routes
- Tailor Quality of Service (QoS), Classes of Service (CoS), network access, and Service Level Agreements (SLA)
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- Opt for Client Premises Equipment (CPE) supply
- Benefit from the scalability offered in terms of bandwidth, network topology and Last Mile Access
More About Network Management Services
BCX Network Management Services offer you the flexibility to choose between bronze, silver, gold or platinum tier Service Level Agreements, so you can enhance service levels if required. The scope of our service extends from management and incident resolution, through to optional audits and reporting. It includes:
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Letting Go of Low-Value (but necessary) Tasks, and Focusing on Your Purpose
If you're a regular Admin Slayer reader or client, you know we just can't shut up about delegating. We even wrote a book about it. But we're not alone in slamming the idea home - every business coach, business magazine, and management consultant we've run into says the same thing: delegation is a key to scaling your business.
You want to do it. You know it's the right thing. Even though it's a little frightening - seriously can you really afford this? You decide to hire an administrator. And for some reason, it just doesn't work. The administrator doesn't know what to do. You can't seem to communicate with them. You don't have any idea what to send them. You're just too busy to delegate, or, honestly, you could do it better, so you may as well do it yourself.
One of the biggest challenges that we've come across in serving our business owners is getting them to actually use us. Many sign up, get matched with an expert team, and for some reason, the start button just never gets smacked. Or maybe it's pawed at a little, but the magic that turns delegation into a money-making machine, just doesn't get flicked on.
Maybe our wands aren't working.
Wait, no, we're professional administrators, not witches.
We know that when a business owner uses our team effectively, we make them money. And we're not just saying that (see what Christine Pilkington says).
So what's not working for those business owners who can't seem to leave the start line?
We know one issue here could be the difficulty in making that switch from "maker" to "manager". Many people open businesses because they love what they do. They don't want to hand it off. Others really love running businesses, just in general. They don't want to hand that off.
Some people would love to hand off just about everything, but time is so incredibly tight, and it seems faster to complete that thing by yourself than explain it to someone. "It'll just take 5 minutes," you tell yourself. Then all those 5 minutes build on top of each other and you realize… you've 5 minuted so many things that you didn't end up doing the main thing you meant to do. And then the phone rings again or an email comes in and...it'll just take 5 minutes…
Still others simply don't know what can be delegated. Where do you even start? How are you supposed to know what is to go where and by whom and when? Especially if this is your first rodeo, or you've always run a business without help, or on teams that just weren't good at helping; knowing what to delegate, and how, can be really tough.
Here's how to become an expert delegator:
- Create a new routine. Especially in the beginning, we encourage entrepreneurs to have regular, scheduled check-in calls with their slayer. Talk about what happened last week - just talking about it can help you remember some of the outcomes, and some of the great follow up tasks that need to get done (and can be delegated). Talk about what's coming up this week, and how you plan on getting things done. Your team can help you hand off the stuff that doesn't require your unique skill set to make sure that you remain successful.
- Decide whether you want to be a maker or a manager. Entrepreneurs can be one or the other - but rarely both. These two types have different kinds of schedules. Get clear on which one you are, and then work with your team to develop the kind of schedule that allows you to either make or manage at your best.
- Create a Business Task List. What are all the things (what - not how or by whom) that need to get done in order for your business to run? Which of these are things you do well? Which of them are things you're good at but you're frankly not interested in? Which do you dread?
- Create a Friction List. What's just not working? If there really were witches and wizards, what would it look like after they waved their magic wand at your business?
- Take all of these answers, and share them with your team. Don't have a team? Book some time with a management consultant, a business coach (who specializes in process), or drop us a note. Get ideas from someone who isn't you, someone completely outside of your box, who can bring fresh perspectives and new ideas.
Once the answers are in place, commit to creating a passive and proactive system, one that runs when you aren't there, and provides answers without your direct input. That doesn't mean you won't know - we believe that most business owners want to be able to see what's happening on some kind of a dashboard - it just means that you can be freed up to concentrate more on the work that makes you happy, wealthy, and successful.
Hot tip!
For those of you who really want to say "yes" to everything: Empower your team to act as your gatekeeper.
Our CEO has handed the responsibility of managing her time (ALL of her time) to her slayer, Lindsay. They are in frequent communication throughout the week, and Julia knows that when Lindsay says there is no time available - or that there is, but it's going to be about six months from now - that she really doesn't have time. If Lindsay says "no", it's because she knows that 1. it's lower on the list of important things Julia has outlined than other items competing for that time, 2. there genuinely isn't time in Julia's calendar, and 3. it's going to eat up the limited pool of energy that Julia has. The responsibility (and some of the pain!) is lifted by having our CEO's gatekeeper say "no" to things she wants to do but is too human to include in her already heavily scheduled calendar. The result is she can focus on doing the work that grows Admin Slayer and our sister company, Spring Plans.


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Once your companion has logged into the Reservation Service, you can add them to your profile. When you see the question "Is your traveling companion already registered in the Reservation Portal with a currently valid pass?" click on the "Yes" option then search for their email address and order number.
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If your order has the status Submitted or Waiting for Shipping, this means our team is already working on your reservation. You'll receive an email to let you know once your order has been processed. If your order contains e-tickets, they will be sent to you in a separate email.Read more
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Your Eurail Pass gives you access to trains run by the participating railway companies. For most high-speed and all night trains, the railway companies charge optional or compulsory reservation fees. This guarantees you a seat on popular or faster routes, which may become crowded during busy periods.
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If there's no way to get your tickets delivered anywhere in time, we advise you to not finalize payment. You should make new reservations directly at a train station in Europe. It's not possible to reserve tickets with us and pick them up at a train station.
- Which trains can't be reserved with the Eurail reservation service?
The Eurail reservation service can make reservations for 95% of trains in Eurail countries. Below you'll find the trains that can't be reserved through our service.
Domestic trains in Portugal and Ireland.
International trains in Ireland, Bulgaria, Greece, Montenegro, Serbia, and Turkey.


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Brexiteers plan Stamford 'walkabout'
Pro-Brexit campaigners plan a 'walkabout' in Stamford next Friday to show "we mean Leave."
Organiser, Marietta King of Ukip said: "Believe in Britain, Let's go WTO!"
The former UKIP candidate for Grantham and Stamford says though organised by Ukippers, the event is for everyone who supports Brexit, regardless of their party political affiliation.
With Brexit in the news and with continuing controversy concerning Stamford MP Nick Boles and his outspoken behaviour over Brexit, Mrs King expects to receive a lot of support.
She said: "We will get a lot of good responses. It will cheer you up."
The walkabout will leave Wetherspoons at 7 Sheep Market at 10.15am, before heading to the market and returning back to Wetherspoons 1.5-2 hours later for a drink.
A similar walkabout is planned for Grantham tomorrow. It will leave the Tollemache Inn on St Peter's Hill at 10.15am before heading off to the market for 1.5 to 2 hours before returning to the Wetherspoons for a drink.
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I've never made it up to the annual Chantilly Farm Bluegrass & BBQ Festival in Floyd, Virginia, in part because it is over Memorial Day Weekend, when I can usually be found at another southwest Virginia music festival, Rooster Walk, which is just down the winding road at Pop's Farm in Axton,Virginia.
Chantilly's lineup for its eighth annual event set for May 25-27, 2018, however, may be the just the charm needed to get me up there this year.
This is the home festival of Mountain Home recording artist bluegrass star Junior Sisk & his Ramblers Choice. The festival will feature Balsam Range, Seldom Scene, Larry Cordle & Lonesome Standard Time, Love Canon, Lonesome River Band, Volume Five, Darrell Webb Band, Breaking Grass, Kenny and Amanda Smith, The Po' Ramblin' Boys, Mickey Galyean & Cullen's Bridge, A Deeper Shade of Blue, The Wildmans, Shadow Grass, Mike Mitchell Trio, Floyd Music School Students, Williamson Branch, Blue Rock'n Grass, Wound Tight, Mason Creek, Tony & Heather Mabe, The Compton's & Friends, Indian Run Stringband, Steve Marshall & High Road, Back Porch Cloggers and more!
Additional activities throughout the weekend include RV and tent camping, beer and wine garden, arts and crafts vendors, children's activities, opportunities for jamming, hiking and biking trails, corn-hole tournament, midnight campfire jams, kite flying and more, according to the website.
Passes are $90 for the weekend and $100 at the gate.
To learn more or buy tickets visit the website or


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Today was an interesting day.
I woke up with a headache (probably from my $4.50 beer from last night) and went to boot camp. The sweat helped and it was gone by the time I left.
I came home and walked Lou, took a shower, talked to my new/old beau and then took a nap before my one interview of the day.
This is what healing looks like, people. Naps in the middle of the day.
I woke up and had my call.
Did some other assorted work.
Got a letter from my ex, with new information on feelings related to the breakup, got instantly upset and furious, talked to a friend, smoked some weed and then felt better.
(Breakups suck. I don't recommend them.)
Then I went swimming in the ocean. And I said my gratitude list while I was out there in the fresh, salt Atlantic ocean water. I talked to G-d. (It came to me today, that I have not yet surrendered to my situation. I still want to fight. I still want to win. I still want to push the boulder up the hill, instead of just leaving it there and walking in a new direction). So there's that.
Then I worked on some content for one of my clients. Had dinner with my parents and went to the grocery store.
I literally walked into Hannaford's with no bra, no makeup, no jewelry and no underwear under my flowy pants. I did not give a fuck. I did my business and then started driving home.
I got behind this guy who was just sitting there when the light turned green. There was a family waiting to cross but that wasn't the issue apparently. I honked. He flipped me off. Not once. Not twice. But three times. And it wasn't a relaxed bird, it was a fierce FUCK YOU bird, going in different directions EACH TIME. I just laughed and was like, OKAY GUY. FINE.
Now I'm home, drinking Polar seltzer and feeding microwaved cut-up hot dogs to my dog, who is recovering nicely from surgery, I might add.
Can't wait to see what is in store for tomorrow!
[Image taken from soulpancake, as found on the Internet]


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Why is Sylas' ultimate cooldown set to only 15 seconds at rank 3?
Seems a bit low and unfair if he gets to hijack multiple ultimates in one team fight as it was displayed in the TSM vs C9 match. So other champions get one ultimate but he gets to use multiple ones in late game team fights? I honestly want to understand how this is considered balanced.
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What To Expect When Selling Your House As Is
There are many reasons people find themselves in a predicament where they need to sell a house as is. Maybe they've inherited an ugly house and don't want to make the repairs, maybe they're facing foreclosure and need to sell their house fast, maybe they've moved and are unable to arrange for contractors. Or perhaps, they simply don't have the time or money to fix the house they want to sell.
Selling a house as is doesn't need to be a challenge as long as you follow these 6 Guidelines:
1)If you don't want to sell to an investor, understand what minimum repairs will be necessary. Most mortgage lenders will not lend on a house that has structural, health, or safety issues. No matter how enthusiastic a buyer may be to buy your house, they will be unable due to lender requirements. That means if you have foundation issues, mold problems, or a leaky roof, you must have them fixed or you're limited to only cash home buyers. With that in mind, be aware that people who pay cash for houses are going to expect a bargain price.
2) Full disclosure is necessary. Selling a house as is doesn't mean "what you see is what you get", but complete disclosure is still required by law. If you are aware of any problems that a buyer will need to resolve, you must let them know or face potential legal problems in the future.
3) Know the other homes for sale in your neighborhood. Take note of the conditions and amenities. Updated kitchens and baths sell a house fast compared to other features. If your house hasn't been updated since the 90's, be prepared to receive low offers. You can also search online for your local central appraisal district to find your county's appraised value but take note that counties often base your value on the sales of the other homes in your area. You may opt to hire a professional appraiser. Tell him you will be selling your house as is so he can set the price appropriately.
4) Know how to respond to low offers. Because as is houses attract real estate investors, buyers with a small budget, cash buyers, and house "flippers", you will most likely get low offers. Don't take it personally. Many of these individuals expect you to make a counter offer. Sometimes, you just won't get the offer you were expecting or need. In those situations, you may consider selling your house in a creative way. Perhaps, you could allow your buyer to take over your payments or offer seller financing. Maybe, you could sell your house by taking a partial payment upfront and the remainder in a couple of months or you could get your buyer to cover all of the closing costs to compensate for the reduced sales price.
5) Clean up your house as much as possible. Just because you're selling your house as is, doesn't mean that cleanliness won't matter. Pet smells greatly effect the offers you'll receive along with excessive clutter and an over grown lawn. Often times, cash buyers and real estate investors will see a mess and assume that they will need to clean it up once they've bought the house. In addition, they might assume that the kitty litter smell is coming from the floors and not the littler box which would require them to replace the flooring. Since home buyers will need to pay to have those issues resolved, they will make offers based on those costs.
6) If you want to get as much cash as possible, avoid hiring an agent for as long as possible. When you hire a real estate agent, you're losing 6% off the top of your sale of your home when you close. You'll also lose the ability to deal with your buyers directly which prevents you to negotiate in creative ways.
Obviously, if you've gone months without any offers, it might be time to hire an agent.
Selling a house as is doesn't have to be difficult or stressful as long as you know what to expect and what's expected of you. If you have the time or money you can use towards minimum repairs, do so. Happy House Selling!
Do You Need To Sell Your House As Is? Complete The Form Below to Get Started!
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Work and learn with us
Teach with us
Express interest in a teaching position
There are three types of teaching positions with Toowoomba Catholic Schools - contract, continuing and relief.
To express your interest in one or more of these types of teaching positions, please submit completed copies of the following forms.
Forms you need to submit
The Guidelines for Teacher Application will aid you in the completion of these forms.
Our Teaching positions in rural and remote locations brochure describes the incentives and identifies the schools that are considered rural and remote in the Diocese of Toowoomba.
For those looking for relief teaching positions, if you meet all requirements, your name will be added to our Relief Teacher List. This list is accessed by our Principals when they need relief teachers. Only teachers on this list are able to do relief work in our schools.
Please note: Prior to submitting your application, please ensure all documents are included.
Applying for advertised teaching positions in specific schools
These positions are advertised on Seek and on our Jobs Available page.
Applying for graduate teaching positions
For more information about graduate teaching positions, visit our Graduate Teachers page.


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This London Fashion Week, Cosmo's been backstage at all the influential shows to report on the big beauty trends for the season ahead.
One of our fave looks was the rock n roll makeup at the Holly Fulton autumn/winter 2011 show which was super sexy yet simple to do.
To prove just how easy it is, Cosmo's Online Beauty Editor Bridget March teamed up with MAC, who created the makeup at the show, for this makeover tutorial.
Whether you just fancy trying the bright lip, the smoky eye, or both - it's hot makeup inspiration perfect for both spring/summer and autumn/winter. Get involved!


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I am sharing a router with 3 housemates, i bought that router, and its my parents' house so at the beginning i told them we can only download bt after 12am. Lately one of the housemates keeps downloading during daytime and make everyone's connection slow. normally i will log in to the router and see the pc ip under ip filter section to see who is on at that time and i can remind him. But i can see others' ip(i asked them their ip) but not the guy that i suspect. however, the light on router connected to his line is on and blinking all the time but he denied that he is on.
so i want to ask is there anyway that he can hide himself from others on network? i need proof to ask him not to do that again. but i cant check his room. pls help
Unplug the cat5 cable on the blinking connection. When he complains that he has no internet, you'll know who it is.
BTW, it sounds like a lousy service in the first place. One person downloading shouldn't cause such a decrease in speed.
How do you know when a politician is lying? His mouth is moving.
if the router is doing dhcp you should see by name and ip who is connected to your router. You would just need to know their computer [host] names.
Newer routers allow you to control the bandwidth by port. Might consider getting a new router.


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Venice Italy Engagement Photos
Venice Italy Engagement Photos. Venice is heralded as one of the most romantic cities on Earth, and Alessia and Nicola's engagement session in this Italian treasure beautifully captures its magic. From the city's famous canals and gondolas, to its hidden corners tucked away from the crowded streets, every stop in this city by the water is special.
The couple start their session in casual styles perfect for roaming the city. Alessia chooses a black blazer, white blouse, jeans and flats. Nicola dons a stylish brown leather jacket, white shirt, blue scarf, and jeans.
They make their way through the ins and outs of Venice in a fun and carefree fashion. The photographer manages to capture the most colorful and interesting corners of this city on water, including its famous red and white striped mooring poles and a quaint bridge covered in bright pink flowers.
Then, Alessia changes into a short blush dress, letting her long brunette tresses flow freely past her shoulders. She stands in front of an old wooden door before being joined by her fiancé.
Alessia and Nicola continue their trek around Venice, finding timeworn buildings and fun cat masks reminiscent of the city's famous Carnival of Venice.
Gentle sunlight sprinkles their hair and shoulders as they playfully enjoy the jaunt between the Piazza San Marco and a rest on a small stone bench.
The couple make their way over to the water, where they admire the sunset as the slow ebb and flow of the waves makes the gondolas dance.
This sweet engagement session is simple but utterly romantic thanks to the subjects and their iconic location of choice. Alessia and Nicola have style and a penchant for exploration. It's no surprise that their engagement session would incorporate both in such a romantic and genuine way.
Photographer: Jay Studio // Location: Venice
Venice Italy Engagement Photos


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New Bond Car Would Get Crushed By Tesla Model S P90DL
As I just wrote, the terminology I will now use for the Ludicrous Tesla Model S is Tesla Model S P90DL (or if I get lazy, Tesla P90DL… or if I get really lazy, P90DL… or if I get super lazy, L). Moving on… Tesla Motors Club forum member "robertvg" noticed today in a just-released 007 Spectre trailer that the next James Bond car will go from 0 to 60 mph in a whopping… 3.2 seconds.
Of course, the folks over in the Tesla Motors Club forum lamented that Bond wouldn't be driving the P90DL. Aside from getting to 60 mph in a much quicker 2.8 seconds, there's a lot of fun you could have with a quiet, electrified car.
By the way, Bond's car in 007 Spectre is the Aston Martin DB10. Cool car, but as inadequate as all of these Ferraris, Lamborghinis, McLarens, and Porsches compared to the P90DL. If you haven't already clicked the YouTube link above, here's the trailer (I'm eager to see the film):


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Recent Comments
- James: Of course...
- Teanna fan: You and Teanna Trump look great together Mr Bartholet. Will you be doi...
- doCe3vIicMnt: 680978 37254Hello! I just now would select to supply a enormous thumbs...
I have two questions, when is James going to have Sophia Fiore on his radio show and second, when is James going to perform in a sex scene with Sophia? I thought James was not used properly as a performer in 2013, he should be getting more roles when they are looking for guys over 40 for scenes. I read some of the messages on this board and there was even talk about James and the legend Amber Lynn doing a sex scene last year, nothing happened WTF?
We'll have her on soon, she was at our birthday party for Misty Friday nite. I'd love to do a scene with her, I'll see if we can make this happen soon. That girl is very pretty and a tall drink of water. I've got a scene with Tia Cyrus out now
Great News! I will have to track down that Tia Cyrus scene. Sophia comes from a mainstream acting background, that would be great if she could star with James in a Porn Parody. James, how about a parody of Girlfight? Sophia could play the boxer and you the trainer. Of course after the big fight you have a love scene
Love James and I love to watch his work. My husband and I like to see his many pictures he posts here, what a wild life,and so many beautiful women and exciting people. We are looking forward to his next films.
Mr. Bartholet you live a great life I am very envious of you. Much success on your career. I am a fan. Would like to get an autographed picture.
Thank you, sure, please send any requests for an autographed picture or DVD to; firstname.lastname@example.com


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In March of 2015, more than 40 grade 3-9 participants – from UTS and other GTA schools – participated in the UTS March Break Music Camp in its second fantastic year. Instrumental workshops, orchestra rehearsals, sessions on Taiko and Brazilian drumming, ukulele and guitar-playing, singing and song-writing, jam clubs – as well as athletic activities and camp-style crafts – were thoroughly enjoyed by all. At the end of a wonderfully musical week, all participants of the camp performed a showcase concert to an appreciative and supportive crowd of staff, parents and family. We are definitely looking forward to our third year running this unique program in March 2016!
Contact Name:
Makeda Daley, Director of Outreach Programs
Phone Number:
click to view number
visit camp website


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Symptoms Treatments
There are different kinds of Diabetes. Diabetes insipisud causes the patient to have increased urine output and therefore have intense thirst. The cause of this is the control of Antidiuretic hormone (ADH) in the blood. What ADH does is it influences the amount of fluid that the kidneys need to reabsorb and the amount that passes through and is excreted as urine. Diabetes insipidus occurs when the amount of ADH produced is below normal or the kidneys don't respond to ADH. The patient's blood will have high concentration.
Although the cause of Diabetes Insipidus is unknown some believe it may be hereditary. But central DI can be caused by:-head injury-brain surgery-cancers that have spread to the pituitary gland-sarcoidosis-excessive use of alcohol
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As this is my second H&M blog, I am sure you are starting to understand how much I love H&M. When I first heard that H&M was bringing out this makeup line last year I was a bit skeptical as makeup in some high street fashion stores can be very hit or miss on their quality (except Topshop – their makeup is amazing!) I have tried a number of H&M makeup products and have been presently surprised. To date, (as far as I am aware) the Northern Ireland stores do not stock the makeup range which is a bit annoying as colours can appear different online.
My favourite purchase to date is the star of this blog…their cream lipstick. The colour I have is cream chestnut 003. It is the perfect shade for an everyday look, not being a fashion statement but instead blending into my look to make my lips look naturally beautiful and give an air of sophistication. These lipsticks are so comfortable on and not drying at all, in fact I would actually say they are moisturising. H&M's cream lipsticks are only £7.99 and on their website at the moment there are some beautiful colours for spring/summer. In the next couple of weeks I plan to purchase some so keep an eye on my instagram for swatches!