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Even people who aren't into the stock market know that first rule of investing is "buy low and sell high."
Unfortunately, another common piece of investing advice is "don't try to time the market."
Well if you don't try to time the market, how in the world are you supposed to buy low and sell high?
Luckily there's a tried and true way to help you with the 'buy low' part and you're probably already doing it. It's called Dollar Cost Averaging.
What is Dollar Cost Averaging?
"Dollar Cost Averaging" is a boring and complicated name for something that is really simple and exciting. (Well, at least I think it's exciting, but either way it's definitely simple.)
Consider this:
You have $500 to invest and you want to put it in a certain mutual fund. For simplicity's sake, let's say the mutual fund is selling for $100/share. If you dump your $500 investment in at one time, you get five shares.
Easy peasy.
But let's say that instead of dumping your whole $500 in at one time, you decide to spread it out over five months and invest $100/month. Now obviously, the cost of the mutual fund will fluctuate over those five months and your $100 investment will buy you more or less in the way of shares, depending on the price.
For the sake of this example, let's say your investments looked like this:
- The first month the mutual fund is selling for $100/share so your $100 investment buys you one share.
- The next month the price of the mutual fund rises to $115 and your $100 only buys you .87 of a share.
- The third month the price rises again to $125/share and your $100 now only buys you .80 of a share.
- Now assume that the next month the share price takes a tumble and your mutual fund is now selling at $90/share. Your $100 buys you 1.11 shares.
- And in the final month the price goes back up to where you started at $100/share and your $100 again buys you one share.
If you look at the bolded numbers above you will see that when you invest a single amount at certain intervals — in this case monthly — you automatically buy more shares when the price is low and fewer shares when the price is high.
That is what Dollar Cost Averaging is all about.
And the best part is that there's no timing of the market required on your part (which is a good thing because that's difficult/impossible for even the most educated among us.)
And that's what I find exciting: that something so simple can be so effective!
Why You Are Probably Already Dollar Cost Averaging
Earlier I mentioned that you are probably already taking advantage of Dollar Cost Averaging and may not even be aware of it. That's because for most of us, our income comes in monthly (or in other regular intervals) and so that is how we invest.
Consider that 401k contributions are usually tied to an employee's pay periods and so Dollar Cost Averaging happens naturally.
But what if your investing isn't tied to pay cycles?
In that case you need to understand dollar cost averaging and embrace what it can do for you.
- Got a tax refund you want to invest? Don't dump it in all at once, Dollar Cost Average it.
- Did Grandma and Grandpa give your new little addition a contribution for the college fund? Don't dump it in all at once, Dollar Cost Average it.
- Did you get a bonus at work that you want to invest? Don't dump it in all at once…I think you get the idea.
I missed a golden opportunity to dollar cost average when I did my first dividend investing a couple of months ago.
I was so excited about having made a decision about what to do with my old 401k money that I picked a day when the market was down and I dumped the $5000 all in at once.
I know, I know. I would have been so much better off to Dollar Cost Average the investment over a series of months.
Heck, the market was on such a plunge that day, that I would have been better off to dollar cost average it hour by hour even. (I kid.) (Kind of.)
So how about you? Have you had an opportunity to use Dollar Cost Averaging? Were you using it without realizing it? Wish I'd get back to blogging about coupons? Weigh in!
Note: I am not a financial professional. You should consult your own financial adviser for advice on your particular situation. But when you do, be sure to ask about Dollar Cost Averaging!
This post is part of Frugal Fridays at Life As Mom.


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Winter Hiking
Enjoy the tranquillity and beauty of winter hiking trails around Zermatt. Whether through fairy-tale forests or up to dreamy hamlets, Zermatt offers 50 kilometres of hiking trails for everyone. The majority of paths increases only slightly, with some paths make even large differences in altitude of 500 meters. With a little luck you will discover some chamois or ibex between the stations of Blauherd-Fluhalp-Gant, there they are often found. For all Nordic walking enthusiasts, the Gourmetweg and Winter Trail offers outstanding sceneries.


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We've said it once, and we'll say it again, when our clients put their trust in us, magic happens. This condo had a gorgeous view, but this successful couple had numerous businesses to keep running and no time to make the rest of the space as beautiful as their view. The bedroom is now a cozy, stylish retreat, complete with a custom bed, also designed by us. The perfect blend of feminine and masculine, coupled with gorgeous art the client had already invested in and a few more edgy pieces creates a spaces perfectly curated for these clients.
Click image for larger view // Photography by Valerie Wilcox
Want to see the before for the project click here! Click here to go to next project.
Ready to kick-off your project?


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Jargon Buster
- Colours
Jacket ('silks') worn by jockey to identify a horse. A horse runs in its owner's colours which are registered with Weatherbys. The colours to be worn by each jockey are shown on racecards.
- Colt
Ungelded (entire) male horse below five years of age.
- Combination bet (accumulator)
A bet involving more than one horse with the winnings from each selection going on to the next horse. All selections must be successful to get a return. Combination bets must be placed with the same bookmaker.
- Conditional jockey
A Jump jockey, under 26, who receives a weight allowance for inexperience until he has ridden a certain number of winners. A conditional jockey is licensed to a specific trainer. Some races are restricted to conditionals-only.
- Conditions race
A race in which horses are allotted extra weight according to factors including sex, age, whether they are a previous winner etc. This is a better-class race for horses just below Group or Listed level.
- Conformation
A horse's build and general physical structure; the way he is put together.
- Connections
People associated with a horse, such as the owner and trainer.
- Course specialist
A horse that is proven at a track in previous races.
- Covered up
When a jockey keeps a horse behind other runners to prevent it running too freely in the early stages of a race.
- Covering
The mating of horses.
- Cut in the ground
A description of the ground condition where the racing surface has been softened by rain.
- Cockle
The tic-tac bookmaking term for 10-1.
- Co-favourite
A horse that shares its position at the head of the betting market with at least two other horses.
- Carpet
The tic-tac bookmaking term for 3-1. Double carpet is 33-1.
- Chaser
A horse that takes part in steeplechase races.
- Checked
When a horse's run during a race is momentarily blocked by another horse or horses.
- Cheekpieces
Strips of sheepskin that are attached to the side of a horse's bridle. They partially obscure a horse's rear vision, with the aim of getting the horse to concentrate on racing. Horses wearing cheekpieces are denoted on a racecard by a small p next to the horse's weight.
- Chestnut
Horse colour varying from light, washy yellow to dark liver orange, and in between are red, gold and liver shades.
- Chute
Extension of racecourse, usually at the top of the home straight, to allow straight run from the start.
- Claimer (jockey)
An apprentice Flat jockey.
- Claiming race / Claimer
A race in which each horse's weight is determined by the price placed on them by connections. The lower the claiming price, the lower the weight. Horses can be 'claimed' (bought) by other owners/trainers for the specified price after the race.
- Classic
Group of historic major races for three-year-olds in the Flat season. In Britain the five Classics are (in running order) the 2,000 Guineas, the 1,000 Guineas, the Oaks, the Derby and the St Leger – most European countries have their own versions of these Classics. A Classic contender is a horse being aimed at one of these races or is regarded as having the potential to compete at that level.
- Clerk of the Course
Racecourse official responsible for the overall racecourse management, including the preparation of the racing surface.
- Clerk of the Scales
Racecourse official whose chief duty is to weigh the riders before and after a race to ensure proper weight is carried.


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Called Mt ZAAI, a style she created with her younger siblings, it is an expression of control, influence, color, married with innocence and simplicity. Zuriel, who made her first formal appearance at anything "Nollywood" at the awards night in the Intercontinental Hotel in Lagos last week, was the toast of cameras and many TV stations, who waited patiently to speak to this award winning documentary film maker.
Featured in Forbes magazine at age ten in 2013 - and still the youngest person in the world to be accorded that honor, she was listed in New Africa Magazine as one of Africa's 100 Most Influential people in 2013, and New York based Business Insider named her the most powerful 11 year old in the world in April 2014, because of her influence and ability to speak with a variety of business and political world leaders, especially Presidents, on issues that relate to children and education.


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Public advocate candidate Eric Ulrich held a meet & greet Saturday afternoon at Staten Island Republican headquarters, drawing a small audience for a petitioning pep talk. Two Staten Island Republican elected officials, Ulrich's fellow Council Member Steve Matteo and Assembly Member Mike Reilly, joined Ulrich for a public display of their support. Council Member Joe Borelli was expected to attend but cancelled due to a conflicting personal event. Staten Island Republican Party Chairman Brendan Lantry attended and hosted the speaking program. The party has endorsed Ulrich.
Category Archives: Nicole Malliotakis
2018 Year In Photos
New terms, lots of candidates, fiercely fought elections, victories and defeats both surprising and not. Lots happened in 2018 New York politics and we've distilled the year into our 2018 Year in Photos.
Our full 2018 Year in Photos gallery is available here.
Photo Gallery: Staten Island GOP Election Night
Staten Island Republicans celebration of several election victories was tempered by the loss of their congressional seat, as Rep. Dan Donovan was defeated by Max Rose. Donovan appeared onstage ahead of the other candidates, accompanied only by his family, to offer a concession to Rose.
Photo Gallery:
Our full photo gallery is available here.
Donovan Primary Night
Republican Congressman Dan Donovan defeated predecessor and challenger Michael Grimm in a bitter GOP primary, trumping Grimm's professed allegiance to Donald Trump and Trump-like personality with an endorsement from Trump. Donovan was first elected in a special election in 2015 prompted by Grimm's resignation after pleading guilty to federal tax fraud charges and being sentenced to federal prison. Grimm returned seeking his old seat this year, in a Trump era battle in which the candidates sought to most closely align themselves with the president.
Photo Gallery: Golden Dietl, Malliotakis Too
2017 mayoral election opponents Nicole Malliotakis and Bo Dietl joined forces to protest the release of the "Palm Sunday massacre" killer. Christopher Thomas was convicted on ten counts of manslaughter, but not murder, and sentenced to 50 years in prison. He was recently released, pursuant to state law, after serving 32 of those 50 years. Malliotakis, Dietl and NYS Senator Marty Golden appeared outside Governor Cuomo's Manhattan office in protest.
Continue reading Photo Gallery: Golden Dietl, Malliotakis Too
2017 Year In Photos
Mayoral candidates fighting and occasionally smiling, a governor working his fellow electeds and the cameras, a hometown president passing through. Those are among the images in our 2017 photo retrospective.
Shot entirely in the five boroughs, our photo retrospective reflects our 2017 focus on the mayoral election and particularly on challengers looking to defeat Mayor de Blasio. There's more, however, with a mix of light moments, conflict and loss.
Our photographic look back at 2017 is available here.
Note: Our more extensive photo retrospective on the 2017 mayoral race is available here.
2017 Mayoral Race Photo Retrospective
The 2017 mayoral election is over, but the photos live on.
Our photo retrospective covers the race from a 2016 endorsement of Bill de Blasio and a January 2017 appearance by Paul Massey through election night. I've chosen this selection from the more than 100 campaign events I attended.
Malliotakis On Election Night
The election is over but the campaign rolls on.
Nicole Malliotakis acknowledged defeat Tuesday night as vote totals rolled in confirming the expected, that Mayor Bill de Blasio had soundly defeated her, but her speech could not fairly be called a concession speech. Taking the stage with a smile to Tom Petty's I Won't Back Down Malliotakis repeated many of her campaign themes while never mentioning Mayor de Blasio.
Election Day Photos
Here's a brief photographic look at Bo Dietl, Bill de Blasio and Nicole Malliotakis on election day.
Pataki For Malliotakis
Former New York governor George Pataki today endorsed Republican/Conservative mayoral candidate Nicole Malliotakis in tomorrow's election. Speaking at a press conference in Middle Village Pataki praised Malliotakis and castigated incumbent Bill de Blasio. He also endorsed City Council candidate Bob Holden, who's running against incumbent Liz Crowley in the district that includes Middle Village.
Here's the full press conference:
Photo Gallery:
Our photo gallery is available here.
Fake News: Middle Village Edition
"That's fake news, pal … don't believe that nonsense." That was the retort of a Malliotakis supporter today when I asked former New York governor George Pataki why he supports replacing Mayor Bill de Blasio despite record decreases in crime and a resilient economy in the City during de Blasio's time in office. Pataki spoke at a Middle Village press conference, endorsing Republican/Conservative mayoral candidate Nicole Malliotakis and Republican City Council candidate Bob Holden.
Photo Gallery: Tuozzolo Dedication
The NYPD dedicated a plaque to the memory of Sergeant Paul Tuozzolo Saturday, drawing Sergeant Tuozzolo's wife Lisa, Mayor Bill de Blasio, Police Commissioner James O'Neill and several hundred other guests to the 43rd Precinct in Soundview. It was exactly one year since Tuozzolo was killed in the line of duty, as he and his colleagues sought to apprehend an armed man who had repeatedly violently attacked his wife.
For Sale?
Republican/Conservative mayoral candidate Nicole Malliotakis today hung "for sale" signs on the City Hall fence. Literally, as her main opponent might say.
Malliotakis held a press conference this morning just outside of City Hall and hung "for sale" signs on the fence mid-presser. Malliotakis sought to focus attention on recent testimony of de Blasio donor Jona Rechnitz in the federal corruption trial of Norman Seabrook, in which Rechnitz said he donated large amounts of money to Mayor de Blasio in exchange for special treatment.
Here is Malliotakis' full press conference:
Update – Photo Gallery:
Our photo gallery is available here.


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This is the second part of my reviews of the Discworld novels of Terry Pratchett. The first part can be found here. Please note that the length of the seperate reviews does give no clue as to the quality of the books (as judged by me), but that this is the job of the stars next to the titles (varying between one and five).
In part one of this work I took the opportunity to rant a bit about the abominable cover illustration of the Discworld books by Josh Kirby. This time I will pick a different target for my wrath, to wit, the German translations of the books, which are all done by the same hapless guy. As a rule I don't read translations unless I have to, but I had the chance to leaf through some of the Discworld translations at bookstores and it was not a pretty sight. I have written before on the deplorable results of German translations of humorous material (movies in that case). Pratchett's translator exhibits all the usual faults and bad habits: Changing the titles, for example, in a desperate bid to make it more funny. (He achieves just the converse.) But in addition to that he introduces a lot (and I mean a lot) of mistranslations which force me to conclude that this person simply does not understand a lot of the books. In some cases he even managed to translate a sentence to mean exactly the opposite from what it means in the original. If you have read a couple of Discworld novels you will know what I mean when I say that here is a true B.S. Johnson at work here. I always imagine the man as a drooling hunchback character who goes "hurrrrrrrhhhhhh" joyfully while he works.
To give you an example, the book Wyrd Sisters contains quite a bit of references to Mcbeth. Granted. But this translator obviously thought it didn't jump out at the reader enough, so he translated the title as McBest. Literally like that. A completely failed pointless English (!) pun as a German title, which makes the book look like a commercial for McDonald's. Never before in my life have I so strongly felt the need to use an expression that is currently all the rage with younger people. So wtf? WTF? W–T–F?
Now that I have gotten that out of my system let's begin!
Reaper Man
The main plot of this novel sounds weird enough. It seems there is a group of beings called the Auditors of Reality, who one day decide that Death (the guy with the scythe) has development too much of a personality and exile him. Which means he he is turned into a mortal being (though he retains some of his properties, like being made of nothing but bones, and nobody noticing this), and sent to a rural area of the Discworld.
Most of the book is about Death trying to adapt to the life of a peasant while working for a widow. This includes mastering the arts of drinking alcohol, white lies, old-fashioned inhibited morals, rustic self-deprecation and stinginess. I think it was meant to be a lesson about the human condition, and accordingly the whole book was written in a rather sentimental, even sad way. Deliberately so. I have to admit this put me off a bit, and I haven't reread the book for quite some time.
Despite the fact that it is one of the shortest Discworld novels, the plot described above was able to only fill half of the book, so a secondary plot was thrown in. It is the classical A-plot/B-plot structure that occurs so often in TV series like Star Trek TNG in similar situations. Usually one of the plots is serious while the other one is comic relief. It is just like that here.
The comic relief plot is about how, as Death is absent, nothing and nobody can really die on the Discworld any more. Therefore when the wizard Windle Poons (who appeared in Moving Pictures, old as stone, deaf and in a cast-iron wheelchair) dies, he is turned into a zombie. Together with a band of other undead misfits, they battle the strangest enemy the Discworld has ever seen. It is a predatory lifeform (we have to assume) which spawns as snow globes and later morph into shopping carts which try to cart people to their hive, which is a living shopping mall. They are stopped before we find out what would happen to people in there.
The strangest thing about this strange B-plot is that it appeared from absolutely nowhere and had nothing at all to do with the main plot. While the main plot sang the blues, this one was pure slapstick.
Witches Abroad ( = ?)
Just as with Mort, I only read this book a single time and cannot really remember it too well, so once again I will not warrant a judgement about it. In fact, whereas I read Mort a long time ago, so it's not surprising that I have forgotten most of it, it cannot have been more than a single year since I had Witches Abroad in my hands, and yet it managed to vanish from my recollection to such an extent that not even plot summaries from the internet managed to refresh my memory enough to write this review. While that is no proof of anything, I still suspect that it bodes ill for the quality of the book.
All I want to say is that the book is, as the title suggests, a Lancre witches novel featuring the usual cast of Granny Weatherwax, Nanny Ogg and Magrat Garlick, and that its plot is a mix of several classical fairy tales with Pratchettian twists to them. As I only read this book after most of the following ones I can tell you that it is not essential for the witches' character development.
Small Gods
This novel is very much different from the other middle period Pratchetts. It is in fact a rather serious book. The little comedy it has is there just because it was expected of a Discworld novel, but it might just as well have been written straight. It tells the tale of Brutha, novice in the monastery-nation of Omnia who, despite appearances, is the last person left who really believes in the great god Om (who is actually what on the Discworld is termed a small god). As might be expected the book is filled with philosophical ideas and musings which (unlike some of the other books) never sounds like Pratchett himself preaching to the audience. It has some things to say which are deeply critical of religion but ends on a conciliatory note, which prompted readers to alternately describe it as a "whacking god good and proper" book or as a very Christian novel. I think it's just a Pratchett book and basically stands where he does.
It is exceptional in that it is set 100 years before the other Discworld books, making its content being sometimes mentioned as historic events in later novels. One thing that annoyed me about the book though was that in a bid to portrait Hellenistic culture as well-nigh perfect in contrast to the repressive monastery-like Omnia Pratchett had a slave of said Greece-like country lament that he only got three meals a day, only one free day per week and only two weeks' holidays per year. Talking about blunt instrument rhetorics, huh?
Despite the fact that this book's title would have been a perfect candidate for a literal translation, the translator chose to call it Einfach göttlich, which is Simply Divine. Sounds sleazy, but I will reserve my anger. There's worse to come on that score.
Below is my very own rendition of Brutha, made some years ago. In the drawing he looks older than he was in the novel, but it was the best I could do. I'm sorry.
Lords and Ladies
This is the third witches novel (or the fourth, if you count Equal Rites) and the first one that has a darker tone. This fits Granny Weatherwax very well, who is a dark, dangerous character (though not an evil one). She became (I think) one of Pratchett's top two characters in terms of development and frequency of usage, the other one being Sam Vimes. In fact they have some superficial similarities, but Granny is much darker, and that's despite the fact that Vimes is cynical and disillusioned. Granny Weatherwax is a person who is immensely powerful, and cannot bear not to be in control in any situation. But unbeknownst to the other characters she is constantly battling against her dark impulses, which she manages by exercising a good deal of righteousness, strong principles, and avoiding any trace of religious belief, because she expects it would turn her into a violent crusader, who would unleash wars sweeping across the lands. The other witches are interesting, but much lighter characters, who I personally usually enjoy more.
The book is about elves managing to enter the Discworld through some dimensional portal and let me tell you, in Pratchett's world elves are evil. It seems Pratchett wanted to take Tolkien's famous elves (not "elfs"!) and turn them into something else entirely. While I prefer Tolkien's elves, I can certainly attest that Pratchett was successful in this. His elves are evil, graceful, beautiful, histrionic sociopaths who magically enchant people and then kill them for the fun of it. Pratchett several times compared them to cats, and as he owns about 10 cats, I expect he knew what he was talking about.
It seems the German translator was seriously at his wit's end with this book's title, because he did not translate it at all, so it became Lords und Ladies.
Men at Arms
This is the second novel featuring the Ankh-Morpork city watch (formerly night watch), and it faithfully follows where Guards! Guards! lead. This includes new recrutes to the watch, some of which are interesting characters who recurred in later books. Another unique recurring character who originates here is Leonard of Quirm, who is like Leonardo da Vinci, only more so.
As this is a watch novel, it features a crime story, which gets lost a bit in the midst of decent comedy and character development though. In fact, I was never sure I quite knew what the plain of the villain was. In details, I mean. It involved a unique weapon invented by said Leonard of Quirm, which would be a very perfect McGuffin, except it is used a lot to kill people. Or rather, it uses people to kill people. It is a bit mystical.
So to sum things up, Men at Arms provides nothing substantially new since Guards! Guards!, but it has good characters, good comedy and is fun to read. Quite typical for Pratchett's middle period.
The German translation of the title was a gem of true bad taste and stupidity. Once again the translator thought a book title without a gag in it was just unthinkable, so he came up with Helle Barden. It is a play on the word "Hellebarden" (halberds), which at least has something to do with city guards. But by splitting the word it became what in English would be Bright Bards. Bards as in people who play lyres and sing. I think I am right in saying that usually puns are expected to make at least a bit of sense. Needless to say there are no bards at all in this movie.
Soul Music
Another typical example of middle period Pratchett. Basically insert "Rock'n'Roll" for "Hollywood" in Moving Pictures and you get this book. Lots of spoofs as well, as might be expected. Nice and easy read, but not very much more than that. Has a gratuitious subplot about Death vanishing (again) which makes the author introduce Death's granddaughter (by way of his adopted daughter Ysabel and former apprentice Mort, see above.), who will turn out eventually as a rather interesting recurring character (though certainly not one of the best).
I rate this book with three stars because like most middle period novels it's not bad, though nothing special either. These books are all more or less average.
The book's title did not make too much sense to me: It's about rock music and related things; in the book it is called Music With Rocks In. It's not about the kind of music we call "soul music". I have to assume it was meant as pun, meaning that the music in the book has a kind of soul in it (it does). But as bad as this pun was (for Pratchett's standards), the one the German translator used was worse. He titled the book Rollende Steine, which means Rolling Stones. Oh, the fun we had!
Interesting Times
This would be another classic three star middle period book, if it didn't have a couple of truly good ideas which make it stick out a bit. In fact there are some people out there who rate Interesting Times among the very best of all Discworld. I do not, but I still like it. It revisits Rincewind, Cohen the Barbarian (Ghengiz Cohen he is called from now on) and Twoflower, from the first two books who now turns out to live in a continent that resembles real-world China and is incredibly repressed. I smell a big fat continuity problem here, as a Twoflower from such a land could not possibly act like the Twoflower in the earlier novels, but be that as it may.
Anyway Cohen is out to conquer the entire continent with his "Silver Horde" of seven barbarian warriors each older than 75 years. Of course he succeeds. Rincewind spends the time running away from many things, which is what he always does. The book contains a rather generous helping of rather bad puns, but there's just no accounting for taste. You might like them more than I do.
This book is more or less one big spoof of The Phantom of the Opera, and of opera houses in general. Despite the fact that it is set in Ankh-Morpork it features the Lancre witches, and for Granny Weatherwax it is pretty light-hearted.
Unlike Wyrd Sisters which plays Mcbeth straight this one puts a lot of alternate Pratchettian twists to the story. I liked it, but then again I like the Phantom (the songs and the actors, at any rate), so it need not be too significant. The book has a lot of very good, witty dialogue and interesting, enjoyable characters.
Feet of Clay
This is the third Discworld novel revolving around the City Watch and its commander, Sam Vimes. It is also the third Watch novel where the villain's plan is to overthrow the city's ruler, Lord Vetinari and return the city to the rule of a king. Some king. The first time they used a dragon with the intention of having it be defeated by some random strapping boy who could wave and grin and otherwise be controlled by the villains who summoned the dragon. This stooge king was so unimportant he was not even given a name, never seen close up and soon burned to ash by the dragon.
The second time it happened (in Men at Arms) they planned to simply shoot Lord Vetinari and put some undisclosed scion of the royal line onto the throne. In fact, that particular aspect of the story quickly dropped from the table along with its carrier, young Edward d'Eath, and only was alluded to again at the very end. As it came out, the man destined to be king was probably Carrot Ironfoundersson, who declined to fill the role and kept his lineage secret.
The third time around the villains tried to do away with Vetinari by arsenic poisoning in order to replace him with Corporal Nobby Nobbs, the disgrace of the Watch, on whom they bestowed a fake lineage to present him as a duke. As with the other plans, it did not even come close to working. I don't know whether it was meant as a running gag about all villains having similar plans in the Watch novels, or whether it was just laziness on Pratchett's part. Anyway, the Nobbs thing was only a side dish. Basically the novel is a classical whodunnit, where the mystery is how Lord Vetinari was being poisoned (of course it was not anything as simple as food or drink). As is the custom in such situations the novel is also filled to the brink with red herrings.
This book introduces a new Discworld species that came to stay, the Golems. They form a second story arc that runs parallel to the attempted murder mystery and only tangentially touches it, though the two plots seem considerably less out of joint than in Reaper Man. I think the series of watch novels would have run out of steam after this had Pratchett not tried something new with the next one, Jingo.
The title is of course a famous quotation from the Bible's book of Daniel. Once again it would have been perfect for a more-or-less literal translation into German, but once again it was not to be. Believe it or not, it became Hohle Köpfe (Hollow Heads). Well, at least one hollow head was involved in the process, it seems.
I do not quite know how to place this book. Basically it is a Discworld Christmas story. As usual Pratchett tries to subvert as much as he can, by having Santa (called the Hogfather on the Discworld) disappear and Death himself filling in for him, because Christmas (Hogswatchnight) needs to happen. It has a lot of jokes, some of which work and some which don't. It features Death's granddaughter once again, as well as the wizards and even the Watch. Pratchett does his best to not portray the Hogfather like Santa Claus, the Coca Cola version of Saint Nicholas, bishop of Myra, but as a warped remnant of a dark, pagan midwinter ritual figure involving human sacrifice. It makes a rather forced impression; the beard did not quite fit, so to speak. All in all this makes the book a somewhat heterogenous mixture of truly funny, Christmas-like cutesy and just weird moments.
This book was made into a movie that isn't bad, except for the fact I found it strange that Death does not move his mouth when he speaks.
In this novel featuring the city watch and Sam Vimes once again, Pratchett tried to take on some of the more current social problems, namely racism, jingoism, warmongering and migration. It deals with a small island called Leshp that one day rises from the sea (there's some moments of allusion to Lovecraft's sunken, rising island-city of R'lyeh, where dead Cthulhu lies dreaming, but in fact the island is perfectly normal, even useless), and is claimed by both Ankh-Morpork and the empire of Klatch, which in the course of the book leads to war.
Klatch is clearly modeled after the middle east, in particular the Ottoman empire, being an assembly of more or less rebellious provinces which are mainly Arabic and North African in style. There's also a great desert with denizens called the D'regs (like the Tuareg, only they attack everything in sight as a lifestyle). Interestingly however, there is nothing resembling Islam. It seems Pratchett, like so many other writers, was scared to touch that particular issue. (It was written before the caricatures controversy of Jyllands-Posten, but well after Salman Rushdie.) Or there might be a more complicated reason. Let me try to carve it out:
Political corectness is among other things the notion that one ethnic group is not allowed to blame another in any way, even if there is friction; or to put it bluntly, the problem is always us, never them. This is of course in a way racism as well and certainly just as wrong as putting all the blame on "them". The truth as always lies somewhere between the two extremes, and this is obviously the way a shrewd author would like to portray things. It is dangerous, though. As we all know the prevalence of strict political correctness in public discourse puts powerful pressure on any author who is not just out there to cause a stir. You must mention the errors of the "other side" with care and on your own peril. So prudent writers often take care to be slightly biased in favor of the "enemy".
Pratchett tried to manoeuvre his way through this dilemma by delicate assignment of roles to the characters. It was clear to every reader that Sam Vimes was Pratchett's mouthpiece, so for the sake of his own reputation Vimes had to display a hefty dose of the good old PC. He was assisted in that by the generous display of stereotypical jingoistic resentiments by Ankh-Morpork secondary characters (Sergeant Colon, Lord Rust et al.). In order to balance things out, Pratchett introduced Vimes' Klatchian counterpart, 71-hour Achmed, who has an unbiased point of view (as he told Vimes):
'After the attempt on the Prince's life I suspected everyone. But you only suspected your own people. You couldn't bring yourself to think the Klatchians might have done it. Because that'd line you up with the likes of Sergeant Colon and all the rest of the Klatchian-fags-are-made-of-camel-dung brigade.'
True words, but you wouldn't want your hero to utter them, because it would make him less of an hero. So Vimes forces himself to be naïve, and Achmed is wise. He would have stolen the reader's sympathy away from Vimes, so he had to get negative traits to counter that: Achmed is hard and cruel and administers quick justice with his curved sword.
So far, so good. But what's missing is the other side of the coin which has Sergeant Colon's image on it. We certainly do have our jingoistic right-wing troublemakers and hate-mongers, but let's not forget there are people in the immigrant communities who make bad things worse, by sometimes validating the slurs brought up against them. Homegrown terrorism, hate preaching, criminal clans, forced marriages of teenage girls, they do exist.
They do not exist in Jingo, though. Pratchett's immigrants are honest, hard-working people, and the only one that is not is a 14-year-old hotheaded boy, who somewhat calms down at the end of the book. Of course, most immigrants are hard-working honest people, but to be fair, most of "us" are not of the Klatchian-fags-are-made-of-camel-dung brigade either. So if our dark side is portrayed it would be only fair to show the bad side of the other faction as well. A bit of it, at least.
But Pratchett likes to show off his shrewdness and he therefore has to ultimately present a solution. And if he did show the problem in all its unholy complexity, he could not, because no-one alive has solved it yet. Pratchett straightened the thing out for himself by omission and thus made it solvable. And therefore he could have nothing akin to Islam in the book. Because if he had, it would have irrepressably raised all the issues about which he preferred to keep silent. He would have had to wrestle with the question to what proportions the problems between natives and immigrants were due to religion, patriarchal culture, bad habits, fear or cultural backlash. It would have been to much for an author who aimed to emerge from the book with a superior smile and without much controversy.
While I don't like Jingo too much for the reasons stated, I unreservedly admit that it is very well-written and therefore does not deserve less that three stars.
One final note. You may have noticed that I had some rather harsh words about the books in this article, and was a bit close-fisted with the stars as well. That is because Pratchett's middle period books are, as far as I am concerned, not the best he has written. If you want to learn about the books I really recommend, go on to read part three.


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Wash. Blow. Go.
That's the idea behind Blo Blow Dry Bar, opening at Franklin Lakes Towne Square this month.
The store is owned by local mom Kari Valcich, who spent nearly two decades commuting to New York City.
Having worked as an entertainment marketer for a major international media conglomerate, the North Jersey mom knows the importance of looking and feeling your best, she said.
"As a nationally-recognized shopping mecca and a suburb of Manhattan, in addition to having its fair share of visitors, Bergen County is home to many working professionals, busy moms, and even some entertainment industry stars who will truly benefit from Blo's convenient on-the-go concept and luxe services," she said.
Valcich earned her bachelor's degree from Montclair State University. She has two children, Savanna (2) and Mila (1) with a third on the way this fall.
She has plans to expand the Blo franchise across Bergen County later this year.
Blo Franklin Lakes is open seven days a week.
Blo Blow Dry Bar , 807 Franklin Ave., Franklin Lakes, 201.891.2378
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Sunday, November 28, 2010
Fresh Idea
share: facebook | twitter | pinterest
Labels: Christmas, collage, DIY, gift wrapping, holidays
3 comments:
- fatim said...
Happy Monday Ms. Vanessa! Well I love the idea of using fresh flower as decoration of the gift...Christmas is around the corner and I can't wait to see new design or flowers decor from you soon! ^_^
- November 28, 2010 at 6:55 PM
I think fresh flowers with gift wrapping is a fantastic idea. I will be doing this for all my presents this year. Maybe not the ones I am posting through the mail. Thank-you.
- November 28, 2010 at 8:44 PM
- Vanessa said...
Haha. Right, not the best idea if you're mailing presents.
- November 28, 2010 at 9:14 PM
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Click here for news archive.
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July 18, 2001
There's a new kind of file sharing system out there called Flipr.
Download the software and get Sonic Youth and other Smells Like Records donated MP3s.
Sonic Youth, initially comprising of guitarist / vocalists Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo, guitarist / bassist / vocalist Kim Gordon and drummer Richard Edson, were formed in New York City in 1981. A product of the No-Wave music scene of the late 1970s, the group had their roots in abrasive, experimental music, with Moore and Ranaldo having previously worked with the experimental composer Glenn Branca. The band were joined in 1985 by drummer Steve Shelley, and have now recorded 14 albums together, as well as many side and solo projects. Their work has been consistently challenging and innovative, and they are widely regarded as one of the most intriguing and influential bands of their time.
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Those who braved the cold temperatures on Sunday afternoon to attend the performance of excerpts from the Nutcracker were treated to an heartwarming show by an all-Dawson cast. It could not have been sweeter.
Thanks to Rebecca Reynolds for taking this on so our Dawson dancers did not miss their annual chance to perform in the Nutcracker. And thanks to the wonderful parents who took on stage management, decorating, costumes and props at the last minute and made the show possible and to the Dawson Daycare for their table of delicious treats.


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The three-day celebration of advertising industry came to an end unfortunately. However, before last guest left the hospitable premises of the largest exhibition center in Poland they had exciting time. It was on the last day of the event in the Polish capital when we learnt the winners of the prestigious contests – "Gifts of the Year" and "Catalogue of the Year".
While the visitors conducted last business talks, buttoned up the conditions of cooperation, exhibitors eagerly awaited when the clock strikes 12. At noon in Hall E the traditional "Business Breakfast" began. It was an opportunity to announce the results of the competition for the best gift and catalogue of the year. First, the list of winners was read out in front of the "Solid Work in Business" program partners. The program for many years has been promoting values such as honesty and trust in relations between various actors of advertising industry in a broad sense. Finally, the first places in the "Gifts of the Year" contest were taken by:
Top Design – Żarówka do napojów – PPHU Ceramika Tułowice
Top Fun – Leżaking – Leżak eventowy – Kusha Artur Tarwacki
Top Idea – Brelok 5 w 1 – Badge4U
Medals made of the most precious metal were handed to the representatives of the companies:
EDC Expert Direct Communication Sp. z o.o.
Integart Sp. z o.o.
in the "Catalogue of the Year" contest. For a full list of winners of these prestigious awards please click: Gifts of the Year, Catalog of the Year. We would like to express our appreciation to all participants of the contests. Furthermore, all the exhibitors and visitors who have decided to take part actively in the 13th edition of the Trade Fair for Advertising and Printing RemaDays Warsaw deserve to be recognized. We believe that the days spent in the Polish capital will contribute to establishing fruitful business contacts, and thus to the development of the represented by you companies. Thank you for being with us. See you next year.


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Historical Jack-in-the-Green – December
Each month I publish a newspaper article that featured the traditional Jack-in-the-Green along with a picture or photograph from the archive. Each of these articles is a fascinating window into a bygone era. For more information about the Jack in the Green both current and historical visit our main website at: www.thecompanyofthegreenman.co.uk
May 1st 1839: THE ENGLISH CARNIVAL
The 1st of May is unquestionably a species of carnival in this country ; it comprises among Charles Lamb's friends the chummies or sweeps, "fiddling, masking, dancing, and other things that may be had for asking" – that is, a few pence ; and, thanks be to this cold northern clime of ours, nothing more. Pity it is that they should be to the busy – those intent on worldly gain – a nuisance. They are so in the strait-built streets of the city, where the commerce of the world is transacted. But who of kindly heart, on the 1st day of May, cares for the growls of the obstructed merchant, or the curses of the hemmed importer? Look at the children how they flock together – how they run after "Jack-in-the-green," and his masked, and piping, and fiddling, and drum-beating suite. Wednesday was a lovely May-day, and the streets of the metropolis profited by it. Jack-in-the-green had been seldom seen clad in greener or gayer colours, and rarely has he been followed by a more numerous or laughing cortège. Every lane and alley – hotbeds of population – poured out its juvenile and imitating admirers after him.
The Charter, 5 May 1839, page 230.
The picture featured this month is entitled "May Day or Jack in the Green" The artist and date are unknown
5 responses
Interesting depiction. I have not seen the character with the bow and arrow (Eros?) included in the characters before. Although you say author and title unknown, can you say where it is from – is it the original illustration for the Charter article?
Dec 26, 2014 at 7:52 am
Yes, I would agree that it is probably much later. The artist has assembled all the standard characters although that Robin Hood/Eros character is a mystery. I notice that the artist's initials are CJG, similar to the picture by Charles Green you featured, but it is rather a different style. There seems to be some type appearing behind the drawing so I guess it was most likely a newspaper or magazine illustration.
You have just set me off looking through all my cuttings and pictures!
Dec 27, 2014 at 7:47 pm
Something else has occurred to me. If you look at the cover of the Roy Judge book with the illustration of Upper Lisson Street, 1840, your picture could almost be a reworking of this with everything reversed. The attitude of the clown is particularly similar in each.
Dec 27, 2014 at 8:14 pm


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Fighting Fit, Venezuela's Chavez Roars Back
Now, to Venezuela where firebrand leftist president Hugo Chavez had a tough year last year. In June, doctors found a cancerous tumor in his abdomen. Chavez sought treatment in Cuba and dramatically scaled back his public appearances. Some predicted the end was near.
But, this year, Chavez has regained his bluster just in time for his reelection campaign. NPR's Juan Forero reports from Caracas, Venezuela.
JUAN FORERO, BYLINE: Just days ago, there he was, president, commander-in-chief and emcee at a long military parade. He looked robust once more, his black hair back to normal from the chemotherapy. At least from afar, President Hugo Chavez appeared to, once again, be in fine form as he sang to supporters lined for the parade.
PRESIDENT HUGO CHAVEZ: (Singing in Foreign Language).
FORERO: He then explained how the song's about his idol, independent hero, Simon Bolivar, and how he rode his horse home to rebuild his country.
CHAVEZ: (Foreign Language Spoken).
FORERO: Chavez's implication being that now the same can be said about him. Outside his inner circle, of course, no one really knows for sure just how healthy he is. He's only said that doctors removed a baseball-sized tumor and that, after four chemotherapy sessions, he's better than ever.
What is clear is that, suddenly this year, Chavez seems to be everywhere, says Carlos Romero, a political scientist here.
CARLOS ROMERO: He has been spending many hours in the Congress, in the National Assembly. He is spending many hours in front of journalists in the presidential palace. He has been traveling abroad. He has been traveling inside the country. He has been in some rallies in Venezuela.
FORERO: Romero says the strategy has had an impact.
ROMERO: People thought that Chavez will be out. We already have six, seven months and Chavez is not only recuperating his health, but also he's recuperating his leadership.
FORERO: Indeed, supporters like 62 year old Hilda Rivera have been watching him on television and she says he's back for sure.
HILDA RIVERA: (Through Translator) My president is fine, she says, explaining that she prayed and prayed for him to recover. That kind of loyalty, which has helped Chavez stay in power since 1999, has given him a spike in various polls, ahead of October's presidential election.
FORERO: At one festive event to mark the 20th anniversary of his first attempt to gain power, a failed coup, Chavez characterized himself as a humble servant.
CHAVEZ: (Foreign Language Spoken).
FORERO: A revolution can't depend on just one man, Chavez says. A revolution is far too big for that. And he revved up his followers just days ahead of the opposition's first ever primary to choose a candidate to run against Chavez.
CHAVEZ: (Foreign Language Spoken).
FORERO: Telling them that the old political guard would never return no matter what kind of campaign is mounted against him. Juan Forero, NPR News, Caracas.
Copyright © 2012 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
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Princess Cruises Shares Dates For Six Ships Adding MedallionNet™ the Best Wi-Fi at Sea in 2019
SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (March 4, 2019) – Princess Cruises, the world's largest international premium cruise line, announced that MedallionNet, the best WiFi at sea, will soon be enjoyed by guests sailing on more than half of its fleet.
To meet surging demand from guests, Princess will continue its swift expansion of MedallionNet to add the service on additional ships by the end of 2019. MedallionNet, offering fast, affordable, reliable and unlimited internet service, expands to Coral Princess (April 5) and Island Princess (May 15) in time for the Alaska season, Crown Princess (June 30) and Emerald Princess (August 3) for sailings during Europe this summer and on Golden Princess (December 20) and Sky Princess (October 12) this fall. MedallionNet is currently available on Caribbean Princess, Regal Princess, Royal Princess and Ruby Princess.
"Guests and crew absolutely love MedallionNet. We're expanding it across the fleet as quickly as we can so that in the very near future anyone who sails with us will experience the best WiFi at sea," said Jan Swartz, president of Princess Cruises. "While many sail with us to disconnect from their digital life, we realize that offering land-like connectivity from anywhere on the ship is something guests value so that they have the option to stream movies, music, sports or video chat and share their amazing vacation experience as much or as little as they'd like."
Princess MedallionClass Vacations Launch Dates for Royal, Crown and Sky Princess
The cruise line also announced the formal launch dates for the Princess MedallionClass experience on its next three ships. The hassle-free and personalized voyages enabled by the OceanMedallionTM will launch on Royal Princess on April 13, followed by Crown Princess on July 24 and will be featured on Sky Princess beginning October 12, when the newest ship in the Princess fleet departs the shipyard as the first to be built from the ground up with the Ocean® Guest Experience Platform.
Considered a breakthrough in the vacation industry and recently honored with a CES® 2019 Innovation Award, the OceanMedallion is complimentary for all guests and features leading-edge technology that delivers personalized service through enhanced guest-crew interactions, eliminates friction points and enables interactive entertainment.
In addition to MedallionNet, Princess MedallionClass Vacations also offer guests a portfolio of experiences specifically designed to save precious time and enhance their cruise vacation, including:
From curbside to poolside in a breeze: Guests who arrive at the terminal with travel documents (i.e. passports) uploaded to their profile have an expedited check-in process that starts their vacation sooner with ease. Personalization starts pre-cruise by guests becoming OceanReady™ before arriving at the port.
On-demand beverage order and delivery: Using smart devices, guests have the ability to order drinks using OceanNowTM and have them delivered directly to them throughout the ship, including their stateroom.
OceanCompass™: Available on guests' smart devices and portals throughout the ships, OceanCompass leverages the OceanMedallion to easily locate and chat with friends and family on board using ShipMates, as well as enable point-to-point wayfinding throughout the ship. OceanCompass guides guests throughout their journey, providing directional information so they can seamlessly navigate to their next point of interest.
Other innovative features of the Princess MedallionClass experience include:
Keyless Stateroom Entry: Access to staterooms is a seamless experience where each guest is securely validated as the door automatically unlocks. Personalized greetings including loyalty level recognition welcome the guest on their door portal.
JourneyViewTM: Available now on ship portals and coming soon to smart devices, this interactive timeline lets guests scroll through all of the events available on board during their voyage. Functionality will also soon give guests the ability to bookmark and add activities that appeal most to them to their own personalized itinerary.
MedallionPay™: An easy to use payment feature, enabling crew members to focus on meaningful guest interactions.
· OceanCasino™: On smart devices and select portals, guests can wager real money on games , including slots, poker, bingo, roulette, keno and lottery from anywhere on board.
PlayOceanTM: On portals located shipwide and using smart devices, PlayOcean offers guests a new level of fun with interactive games, a digital scavenger hunt, customizable avatars, and more. PlayOcean also transforms guests' mobile devices into game controllers for interactive gaming on the massive Movies Under the Stars screen.
OceanViewTM: Guests can stream more than 100 hours of award-winning Ocean Original travel shows to their smart device anywhere on the ship at no cost – content which airs nationally on weekends on ABC and NBC. OceanView is also available on stateroom TVs as well as on Roku, Amazon Prime and Apple TV.
Now is the perfect time to book a Princess MedallionClass vacation to the Caribbean, Alaska or Europe. For more information visit Princess.com, call 1-800-PRINCESS (774-6247) or contact your professional travel advisor.
# # #
About Princess Cruises
One of the best-known names in cruising, Princess Cruises is the fastest growing international premium cruise line and tour company operating a fleet of 17 modern cruise ships, carrying two million guests each year to 380 destinations around the globe, including the Caribbean, Alaska, Panama Canal, Mexican Riviera, Europe, South America, Australia/New Zealand, the South Pacific, Hawaii, Asia, Canada/New England, Antarctica and World Cruises. A team of professional destination experts have curated 170 itineraries, ranging in length from three to 111 days and Princess Cruises is continuously recognized as "Best Cruise Line for Itineraries."
In 2017 Princess Cruises, with parent company Carnival Corporation, introduced MedallionClass Vacations enabled by the OceanMedallion, the vacation industry's most advanced wearable device, provided free to each guest sailing on a MedallionClass ship. The award-winning innovation offers the fastest way to a hassle-free, personalized vacation giving guests more time to do the things they love most. MedallionClass Vacations will be activated on five ships by the end of 2019. An activation plan will continue across the global fleet in 2020 and beyond.
Princess Cruises continues its multi-year, "Come Back New Promise" – a $450 million-dollar product innovation and cruise ship renovation campaign that will continue to enhance the line's onboard guest experience. These enhancements result in more moments of awe, lifetime memories and meaningful stories for guests to share from their cruise vacation. The product innovations include partnerships with award-winning Chef Curtis Stone; engaging entertainment inspired shows with Broadway-legend Stephen Schwartz; immersive activities for the whole family from Discovery and Animal Planet that include exclusive shore excursions to onboard activities; the ultimate sleep at sea with the award-winning Princess Luxury Bed and more.
Three new Royal-class ships are currently on order with the next new ship under construction, Sky Princess, scheduled for delivery in October 2019, followed by Enchanted Princess in June 2020. Princess previously announced that two new (LNG) ships which will be the largest ships in the Princess fleet, accommodating approximately 4,300 guests are planned for delivery in 2023 and 2025. Princess now has five ships arriving over the next six years between 2019 and 2025. The company is part of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE:CUK).
Additional media information is available at princess.com/news.
Media Relations contacts:
Negin Kamali, 661-753-1539, email@example.com
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Most of the tourists who reach Aruba, do not have the opportunity to visit the island on the annual carnival's days and experience the beauty of its events. For those, Aruba holds every Thursday evening, all year long, an amazing carnival event that demonstrates the carnival's atmosphere.
The festival is held in San Nicolas, 33 km south east to Oranjestad the capital of Aruba. San Nicolas is also named Aruba's "Sunrise City".
Festival Highlights
This is an event for the whole family where guests can enjoy sitting at tables to watch the events and parades while tasting the local cuisine.
More information, how to get, etc, is present in the festival's link website below, under "Event Related Information" section.


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In addition to the ARMS offering I have 20+ years of insurance experience, especially in the protection and reinsurance sectors. This page focuses mainly on risk, but I can also offer pricing, data-driven underwriting development and product/proposition development expertise. Or just throw a really tough problem at me!
Subject to client needs, risk management services are framed with three objectives in mind:
- Focusing on value: To target risk management value from the outset, ideally based on agreed risk-adjusted value metrics and/or softer measures.
- Closing the gap: To close unnecessary gaps between the risk management function and other business functions, for mutual benefit.
- Easing the slog: To make risk management work easier and faster, increasing the value per unit of work.
ORSA: Own Risk and Solvency Assessmentfor insurers and reinsurers
The Own Risk and Solvency Assessment : Insurers will need an ORSA process and report as part of Solvency II. But it seems that, as of mid-year 2015, the focus for many insurers is still on Pillar 1. Pillar 3, with its mandatory reporting, is bound to get emphasis. But this is what the PRA and EIOPA think of Pillar 2:
In many respects, the ORSA can be considered the cornerstone of Solvency II. Solvency II: a turning point – insurance industry briefing by Prudential Regulatory Authority
The ORSA ... changing the viewing angle from bottom up to top down ... and gives the supervisor insight into the level of quality of the management or supervisory body's risk understanding ORSA: the heart of Solvency II – EIOPA
Pillar 2 and the ORSA is (part of) the risk management an insurer should be doing even if it were not regulated. It offers a dual opportunity:
- To enhave your own risk management, asking real world questions that are a step towards value-based risk management.
- To demonstrate to the regulator the quality of your risk management when it is not informed by detailed guidance.
I can help you to:
- Refine and document your risk management framework.
- Structure the ORSA process and report, so that it reflects sound advice and makes sense for everyone.
- Work through appropriate scenarios, so that they don't become a (suspiciously) good news story.
- Link scenarios and potential failure to management contingency plans and actions.
- Write, or support the writing of, your ORSA report, so that it becomes owned by your Board.
LTVS: Longer Term Viability Statement for UK companies
Many non-financial and financial firms will have to produce one for year ends starting after 1 Oct 2014. Why not make the most of it?
I can help you to:
- More than comply with FRC requirements, without risk management becoming a millstone.
- Work out what long term viability means for you: solvency, liquidity or more?
- Build or support the building of appropriate models for stress and scenario testing.
- Calibrate the above, working with your experts.
- Refine and document your risk management framework.
- Work towards a risk (and return) appetite that is both robust and practical.
- Structure the Longer Term Viability Statement, so that it:
- makes sense and is helpful for stakeholders
- fits with the rest of the disclosures in the Strategic Report
- Link the LTVS to your ORSA, if you are an insurer.
ORVA: Own Risk and Value Assessment for the commercially ambitious
The ORSA for insurers and the LTVS for some companies are steps towards robust risk management. But their primary focus is solvency and liquidity
The Own Risk and Value Assessment steps up from ORSA and LTVS to focus on optimising risk-adjusted value.
There are three major business applications of risk management: loss reduction, uncertainty management and performance optimisation. The combination of all three is enterprise risk management.James Lam – the world's first Chief Risk Officer
- Loss reduction. The ORSA and LTVS makes an excellent contribution to (a). The stress and scenario testing provide a check on the adequacy of the current capital to support the firm's intended strategy. It's a short stretch to management actions and risk appetite – good, but focused on extreme downside.
- Uncertainty and decision making: But ORSA / LTVS don't focus on more general uncertainty. They are a hurdle your strategy and capital must pass, but won't help you set a strategy which actively reflects uncertainty. ORVA can help with this and also reflects day-to-day uncertainty, not just survival.
- Performance optimisation: ORVA has a strong focus on models and optimisation – a value focus which stretches for the upside. In gambling terms it's about money management and bet sizing, not just about avoiding going bust. OVRA delivers the full vision and competitive advantage.


text:
The Daily Mash has started flogging T-shirts which your humble Devil must confess to being quite tempted by.
I particularly like the Ratcatcher (this story) and Carparking (this story) ones...
Making everyone happy is impossible. Pissing them off is a piece of cake. I like cake.
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Daily Mash-ups
By Devil's Kitchen at April 02, 2008
Labels: blogging, general hilarity, good deeds, humour
3 comments:
Dailymash logo spoils them tbh.
Still, the hopper one is sick.
- 4/02/2008 03:47:00 pm
Some anti-sleazy politician t-shirts would probably sell quite well.
- 4/03/2008 08:24:00 am
- vicola said...
Having had a nosy round the site I am quite taken with the 'Bono is a twat' t-shirt. I may treat my brother to one for his birthday.
- 4/03/2008 08:30:00 am
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Moonbat still loony
It's always delightful to dip into George Moonbat's nutty articles ... We cannot rely on market forces and corporate goodwill to de...
Short answer: no. Slightly longer answer: Vote Leave did play fast and loose with the actual definitions—hey! it's marketing. And in...
With the CRU emails having been examined, it seems that some people—mainly techies—are really starting to dig into the data files. These fil...
Whilst all of politics seems to be devoted to Brexit at the moment, your humble Devil has stated repeatedly (both before and after the vote)...


text:
Introduction The Best Email Marketing Software
Email marketing is indeed crucial For any small company to get right. The Best Email Marketing Software
And for good reason. Implemented Correctly, it will certainly become the most important tool in your business for generating relationships and making sales.
In accordance with Capterra, the Average yield on $1 spent on email marketing is $44.25!
This is why you should take your Time and invest in a fantastic email marketing program for your business.
If you are a blogger, then the Consensus autoresponder of choice used to be Aweber or MailChimp. Subscribe to some email list, and there was a good chance they were using one of those two.
For Quite a While, the standard Characteristic set of Aweber worked perfectly fine. All entrepreneurs needed it to do was reliably send emails out and integrate with their favourite tools such as LeadPages and Click Funnels.
Nowadays though, email marketing automation has Become increasingly more important.
For example, Infusionsoft utilized To function as go-to service for unsigned bloggers and companies wanting more innovative email automation abilities.
The Issue with Infusionsoft Though is that it is a hugely complicated system to learn. Couple that with a hefty price tag and a first setup cost put it out of reach for most bloggers.
But things are changing for the Better and ConvertKit has emerged as one of the very popular email services that can provide marketing automations without the huge price.
ConvertKit Disadvantages
– Can not create super innovative marketing automations.
– Limited customization of kinds.
– Hard to use email templates.
– Split testing restricted to subject lines only.
– Doesn't work well for live events or webinars.
– No free trial.
ConvertKit Benefits
– Slick, intuitive interface.
– Works great with incorporating content updates to your website.
– Tag-based (versus listing based like MailChimp)
– Really fine visual automation editor.
– They do not charge you for duplicate subscribers.
– Can add conditional content with tags in emails.
– Easily automobile darkening broadcasts into un-opens.
– Automatic double opt-in for lead magnets.
– 365 days per year, 24 hours a day service via live chat and email.
– A good number of integrations.
– Really wonderful reporting.
– Constantly being updated with new capabilities.
Click here to begin your free trial of ConvertKit.
Description of ConvertKit
ConvertKit is an email Service provider that's specifically marketed towards bloggers, podcasters, and other companies that are building audiences.
It was started by Nathan Barry who had been a fan of, being a regular reader of his blog.
For a short moment, it had been Rebranded to Seva, until they reverted back to ConvertKit.
What is interesting about ConvertKit is how transparent Nathan is about the entire process of taking ConvertKit from scratch to making $30k a month in 2015. Now in 2018, they have 19,500 active clients and doing over $1 million a month.
We are essentially getting a front Row seat on his journey to building a successful SaaS merchandise. It is pretty cool since we get to read about both the highs and the lows.
Even in the Event That You don't end up using ConvertKit, his blog articles are always fascinating and I suggest giving Nathan a follow.The Best Email Marketing Software
What is not So great about ConvertKit
Poor Part #1: Limited set of triggers/actions for innovative automations
Here are the triggers available on ConvertKit.
Compare that with ActiveCampaign.
This means you can not really construct The same sort of complex automations you can in ActiveCampaign or Drip.
Additionally you won't get advanced Attributes in ConvertKit like page monitoring and lead scoring.
And I miss having listing Administration Actions like unsubscribing people so that you may do routine list hygiene.
Poor Part #2: Restricted A/B Testing
A/B testing is also a really important Attribute to have for any email services. Doing this regularly will help you better your conversion and open prices.
ConvertKit Permits You to split Test your subject lines such as this:
Which is useful, for certain.
But there is no way to split test For things such as delivery period, email body material, or automations.
Poor Part #3: Not a ton of customization options for forms and templates
I do like the forms that ConvertKit provides. They are nice and clean.
However, the kind editor is quite Limited. Besides color, there's not much you can change. For example, there's no way to alter the font for any one of the text.
Unless you're willing to add in Your own CSS.
This is not a big deal for me personally, as I use Thrive Leads for my forms. But for people who do not use a third party instrument, the lack of customization could be a problem.
Bad Part #4: No email templates
I do not personally send out email Newsletter type mails, so this isn't that big a deal to me.
However, I know some companies do want This, which is why MailChimp is still common.
ConvertKit has a few email Templates, but the process of using them is quite tedious. You'll need to muck about with HTML and CSS which not everybody wants to do.
So you'll want to look elsewhere If this is what you want.
Some of The Best Features
Cool Characteristic #1: Seamless Visual Automation Editor
I Love the ConvertKit's Visual automation editor. It's a joy to use, especially when you compare it to a number of the other automation editors out there.
That's because ConvertKit makes Editing every step on your automation workflow seamless.
Let us say one of those steps in Your automation is sending an email. With other services, editing the email will take you out of this automation editor and into a separate email editor webpage. This can cause you to lose context of what you were doing.
With ConvertKit, everything is Done inside the automation editor . So clicking on an email step will allow you to edit it inline. And it is also possible to edit your forms in precisely the exact same way.
It is a Fantastic experience and it Puts other automation editors to pity.
Cool Feature #2: Simple Segmentation within emails
Another Helpful feature is ConvertKit's ability to segment individual emails with conditional tags.
So let us say you wanted to make One email to a list, however, add a bonus coupon to your VIP clients. You can do this in ConvertKit such as this:
Pretty cool, right?
The syntax might look somewhat Strange to non-techies and you also might have difficulty remembering exactly what to type when you proceed to use it.
To assist with this, you can click On the Personalize menu in the editor toolbar and then click the Subscriber's labels menu item. ConvertKit will then add the right code snippet template straight into your email.
All you need to do is alter to Your tag, and upgrade the content for the two branches.
Cool Feature #3: Automobile resend broadcasts to un-opens
Each time you send out a Broadcast email, a certain percentage of people will not open it. Hubspot claims marketing and advertising emails just receive 25% email open rates.
Perhaps you did not write a great Headline, or else they had been too busy in the time to have a look.
ConvertKit has a neat feature Where you can resend your air to the men and women who did not open it the first time.
This can be found in stats page, Where you'll see a button called Resend to Unopens.
Pressing It's Going to allow you to Re-send your email again, where you're able to make modifications to your Subject Line should you desire.
I like this because you can Maximize the eyeballs you receive for every broadcast you ship out.
Cool Characteristic #4: Lead Magnet Double Opt-in
There are disagreements everywhere About if you should use double opt-in vs single opt-in.
The main Reason you need Double opt-in is the fact that it is going to enhance your email listing quality. Nevertheless, the principal argument against is that the extra measure will hurt your conversions.
All this is true.
But if you are using lead Magnets, subsequently ConvertKit can manage dual opt-in for you like this.
After the user clicks the download Button to get their lead magnetthey are automatically opted in. So you get the best of both worlds! The Best Email Marketing Software
Click here to start your free trial of ConvertKit.
Details of ConvertKit
ConvertKit Includes 5 major building blocks. Let us take a glance at each.
Types are the way you get readers Into your account. ConvertKit permits you to produce both forms and landing pages.
Forms can be embedded on any webpage Of your website, or via a standard modal popup. Landing pages are its very own dedicated page hosted on ConvertKit's servers or your site via a WordPress plugin.
There are 3 main styles to select From for routine forms. Full, Minimal, and Clean.
As Stated above, the kind Editor doesn't provide you lots of customization options, even though the built-in fashions have a nice clean look to them.
Landing pages also only have 3 Styles to select from and the same limited customization options.
To tie everything together, let us Talk about ConvertKit's automations.
In ConvertKit, subscribers can Enter an automation in 4 different ways.
Throughout a form, becoming labeled, Having a customized field upgraded, or by a buy.
From there, you can add an Event, Action or Condition.
Actions would be the easiest to understand. The most common actions are adding a contributor to one of your email sequences, remove or add a label, setting a custom field, or introducing a delay.
Conditions let you branch your Automation based on a label or custom area.
So you could use branching to Have your VIP customers return one path and your non-VIPs go right down a separate path like this:
Finally, you have Events, which pull your contributor Forward to the next step in the automation when an event occurs.
Let us say one of your readers Is on day two of the 5 part email sequence, which is hoping to make them purchase your product.
You can add an event to your Automation utilizing the Insert tag event. If on day two, the subscriber purchases your product (and you tag them as a client ), it will pull them from their current email sequence they had been in.
That is handy because you won't Invite them together with the previous 3 mails in your order (by asking them to purchase ) because they are presently a customer of yours.
ConvertKit's automation editor is Extremely fast and easy to use. As stated above, I love the ability to edit emails and forms right within the editor itself.
It makes for a much better Expertise when creating new automations.
Sending one-off emails in ConvertKit is simple.
Since there are no lists in ConvertKit, if you send a broadcast email you'll want to use their filter mechanism to target that which you'll be sending your broadcast to.
You'll most often use the Subscribed to filter where you Can segment your broadcast to specific forms, sequences, tags or merchandise.
The email editor is only your Standard HTML email editor, using a couple additional options. Click on the A/B button near the topic line and you're able to initiate a split test between a couple different headlines.
The customization button may be Used to enter in merge tags to your email or to use the in-email label segmentation I talked about above.{ The Best Email Marketing Software
Sequences are where you can Create autoresponders, a string of emails that get delivered to your subscribers at a predefined calendar of your choice.
On the left, you'll see all the Emails in your show along with when they'll be sent out. You can drag mails around on the left to rapidly alter the order they're sent.
To the right, you'll see exactly the same Email editor as you get for Broadcasts. So the same characteristics apply, except you can not split test subject lines here.
Contrary to MailChimp or Aweber, ConvertKit is label rather than record based. This usually means you have one database of subscribers on your ConvertKit account.
To set subscribers together, You can use tags or create sections. With segments, you can do things such as developing a set of connections which subscribed before a certain date.
Or group subscribers by place Or any custom field you make.
ConvertKit also lets you drill Down to any specific subscriber you've got. You're able to see things like what sequences they are around, what emails you have sent , and if you are performing e-commerce, what goods they've purchased from you.
What Else Is there to understand?
How is Their service?
ConvertKit's service is good from My expertise. While there's no telephone service like Aweber has, they offer email and live chat 365 days per year, 24 hours a day.
Email response time ranges from 2-3 hours in my experience. But live chat is usually pretty responsive.
Can they Have a busy community?
They have a Facebook group Called The ConvertKit Family. It now has 6k members and averages approximately 6 posts each day.
It's a good place to get your Questions answered by additional ConvertKit users.
What Integrations do they offer?
ConvertKit has a ton of third-party integrations. I currently count 86 in the time of this review, including with tools such as LeadPages, ClickFunnels, SamCart, and Shopify.
You can find the full listing Of all ConvertKit integrations here.
How Good is ConvertKit for lead magnets?
ConvertKit is awesome for direct magnets. Not only can it host your guide magnets to you, the automatic double opt-in is a great feature.
How Great is ConvertKit for eCommerce?
ConvertKit is getting quite a little better when it comes to eCommerce. They just launched a new feature that's going to allow you to monitor every purchase made by a subscriber.
Why is this cool is that you just Can then begin automations according to a buy.
It is only working with Shopify and Teachable in The moment, but this has a lot of potential once they get things working with all e-commerce integrations.
Can it Handle live events or webinars?
To handle live events and Webinars, you have to be able to send mails out at a particular time and date. It is normal for webinars to send out multiple emails at particular times before it starts, for example 24 hours 8 hours 10 minutes before, etc..
ConvertKit can manage live events And webinars through broadcasts just. That isn't very suitable because then you have to schedule all your emails manually.
It'd be preferable if ConvertKit gave you a way to send mails at a particular time and date. But that's currently not possible through sequences or automations.
Can they Have an affiliate program?
Yes, ConvertKit Provides the Standard 30% recurring commissions as part of its affiliate program. The affiliate program is hosted on Ambassador.
Alexis is their affiliate Manager, and she does a wonderful job of keeping you updated about the various promotions they are running.
Who's Switching over to ConvertKit?
ConvertKit has been growing by Leaps and bounds, and I am reading about people switching to ConvertKit daily.
Here are a Couple of examples of Bloggers who have switched over to ConvertKit from their old email service:
– Why I Switched To ConvertKit: The Unofficial Definitive Review
– Why I Switched From Aweber Into ConvertKit
– 10 Reasons Why I Switched From Aweber to ConvertKit
ConvertKit Vs MailChimp
MailChimp has a couple of Things going for this versus ConvertKit. It's cheaper, and it's better email templates.
But for everything else, ConvertKit definitely wins out. Especially when you compare MailChimp's crappy automation editor versus the amazing ConvertKit one.
Plus ConvertKit has tags which Gives you better flexibility for segmenting your subscribers. MailChimp is extremely much lacking there.
ConvertKit Vs Aweber
The only reason I'd Recommend Aweber versus ConvertKit is in case you are purely doing affiliate marketing/CPA offers. Then, it might be harder to get approval on ConvertKit, and Aweber are your very best bet.
Aweber can be slightly cheaper Than ConvertKit.
Otherwise, ConvertKit is better Compared to Aweber at pretty much everything else, such as automations.
ConvertKit Vs ActiveCampaign
This is a much harder comparison. ActiveCampaign is a great email marketing program, with a lot of features for power users. You can do more with its own automations, and it's better divide testing capacities.
Price wise, it's cheaper than ConvertKit at reduced subscriber levels, but it gets more expensive as you add an increasing number of contacts.
But ConvertKit is easier to use, With a nicer and tabbed interface.
That one you should pick depends On your business needs. Would you like something which just works for everyday email marketing tasks, without a whole lot of effort? Then ConvertKit could make a fantastic choice.
But if you want more sophisticated or Complex automations, subsequently ActiveCampaign is the top way to go.
ConvertKit's uses exactly the Exact Same tiered Pricing model as many other email services do. Hence the purchase price goes up the more readers you have.
In comparison to its rivals, ConvertKit's pricing comes out at the middle of the pack at lower subscriber levels.
However, as you get past 10,000 Subscribers and past, ConvertKit actually does not jump up as much in cost as some of the remainder.
Prices below are if you cover Monthly, but if you pre-pay yearly, you get 2 months of service free.
ConvertKit does not normally Provide a free trial. But sometimes for promotions that are different, you will notice them promoting a 30-day trial.
I have never seen some ConvertKit Discounts either. They do offer a wonderful 30-day money back guarantee, however. The Best Email Marketing Software
When I originally wrote this ConvertKit inspection, it was an up and coming email marketing support.
But three Decades later, ConvertKit Has firmly established itself as one of the major players in the email marketing space.
Marketing automation is your Potential for email. It can allow you to target your clients better, resulting in higher conversion and earnings.
What ConvertKit does is create Advertising automations truly accessible to even non-techie people. Additionally, it provides you with a headache-free user experience.
While it may not be the Strongest email marketing software out there, it does not aim to be. You need to know it's an email service that's targeted towards bloggers and other content creators.
Just Be Sure You understand its Limits, and choose whether you're okay with it.
If You're, then I highly Urge you give ConvertKit a try.
Click here to begin your Convertkit Free Trial. The Best Email Marketing Software
Click here to start your free trial of ConvertKit.