text:
- Replies
- Anonymous09:02
The real question is will the EU approve a new national airline for SloveniaReplyDeleteReplies
- Anonymous09:05
Countries have to submit by next April what they will do with the corona fund. The Slovenian government said they would submit their proposal by the end of the year. Then the EU has to approve it.Delete
- Anonymous09:12
If the government is confident they will get the green light for the airline, they can already begin preparations.Delete
- Anonymous09:04
Didn't someone write just the other day that the EU will never approve this??ReplyDelete
- Replies
- Anonymous09:26
If that money went to Adria, people would be whining about their money being spent on nieces and nephews.Delete
Now, nobody's complaining. Go figure.
- Anonymous09:33
Would it sit well with you if that money went to a new national carrier or Adria?Delete
- Anonymous09:37
I love your attitude. Hope it won't change if government sets up a new national carrier.
- Anonymous09:08
Well anything that helps. There are barely 2 flights per day from LJU. Today just JU from Belgrade and LH from Frankfurt.ReplyDeleteReplies
- Anonymous10:01
Poznan has about twice the population of Ljubljana, and they are left just with a single daily flight to WAW.Delete
Situation in aviation is bad all around Europe, not just in LJU.
- Anonymous10:37
And how many legacy carriers did POZ had in 2019? they are mostly LCC base for which we can see that they leave you immediately there is no profit for them. I believe that both POZ and LJU deserve much better connectivity.Delete
- Anonymous10:40
What difference does it make if it had legacy carriers or not?Delete
My point is, people here are crying like LJU is the most deserted airport in Europe, yet cities with twice the population have even less flights.
- Anonymous10:46
It's still a small town in a locked down country. That's the reality, if you don't sugar coat it.Delete
- Anonymous10:50
And I'm glad that there is not many people like you, so I hope you will survive when we spend 70 mio on Air Slovenia which will bring good connectivity back to LJU.Delete
- Replies
- Anonymous09:16
Who would think there aren't many flights, when people aren't even allowed to leave their municipality.Delete
- Anonymous09:27
And situation is the same in other countries as well and they perform much better than LJU. Only employees of Fraport does not see that and they have time to write nonsense here.Delete
- Anonymous09:41
Yes, all countries are affected but not all countries are equally affected. As we saw the other day we are most affected in Europe!Delete
- Anonymous09:53
What you mean with most affected? Highest percentage of positive cases? That does not mean that situation is better in other countries, they just have different protocol for testing.Delete
I can say that Covid doesn't know for borders so situation is the same everywhere.
- Anonymous09:54
I meant most affected in terms of passenger decline. I wasn't talking about the virus. I don't even think we are most affected in that respect. There are countries doing far worse.Delete
- Anonymous10:34
Oh I'm sorry, I agree, we are most affected in terms of passengers decline among EU. And I would say that this comparison is not ok for LJU because we already had low figures last year. So with normal last year figures and current situation decline would be even greater. Sad but true..Delete
- Anonymous09:25
So Fraport wants financial assistance around terminal, financial assistance in attracting airlines, is against national carrier... Anything else?ReplyDelete
- Anonymous09:46
Peanuts when you see what countries like Serbia and Croatia are giving their airlines.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous09:56
Honestly I think this was purely done so they could say they paid foreigners, it didn't lead to a major recovery, now it's time for a national airline.ReplyDelete
- Replies
"The measure is expected to benefit approximately twenty carriers."ReplyDelete
Have 20 airlines even flown to LJU?
- Anonymous10:12
A new national airline could do wonders. Really there is no other way. There was hope LCCs would rush in and replace Adria. It didn't happen. So the only solution is to create a new airline or keep dealing with low connectivity and an exodus of passengers using neighboring airports.ReplyDeleteReplies
- Anonymous10:43
Hundreds of thousands of passenger every year used to use neighbouring airports even when JP was alive. I don't see that changing.Delete
- Anonymous11:05
@anon 10:43Delete
yes but LJU also got hundreds of thousands from Croatia/Austria/Italy when JP was operating.
- Anonymous11:27
Ok, I'm exaggerating with numbers as same as @anon 10:43 do.Delete
But truth is that both numbers are quite the same (Slovenians travelling outside of SLO and foreigners travelling from LJU).
Before you could barely see a car with Slovenian plates on airport parking lot. Nowadays you can barely see any car near airport :)
- Anonymous00:11
I still do not understand why Air Serbia does not have at least 5 flights per day with ATRs? I mean, flying them is cheap, and NOW is the right moment to establish yourself as the ONLY real airline in LJU.Delete
- Anonymous00:17
There is simply no demand at the moment. No one is travelling. Why would they fly empty planes?Delete
- Anonymous08:33
@anon 00:17Delete
you should really open flightradar and see that there are still plenty of planes in the air.
If you have 0 flights at LJU that does not mean that everywhere are doing the same.
- Anonymous10:44
Proof that this is neededReplyDelete
- Anonymous12:20
Good decision. Now I expect them to approve funds for new national airline tooReplyDelete
- Anonymous12:23
More subventions.... How about stop bullshiting people with this covid, opening borders and start normal business. It is long proven that vast majority of risk group was about to die with or because covid within very near future anyway. If slovenia wants to do somethinf good the government should start protecting eldery homes and pay medical staff accordingly to effort.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous12:58
We don't need a national carrier. Instead, let's give money to a foreign one. Foreigners know best, just look at how well Fraport and Adria did/are doing.ReplyDeleteReplies
- Anonymous13:02
Yeah, Adria's performance was really fantastic before the sale. They made profit every year for the last 2 decades, owned all of their fleet, and then the government sold them for peanuts.Delete
- Anonymous13:51
And situation after JP demise was so good, we had so many options to travel, foreign airlines competed who will fly to LJU. Really amazing situation.Delete
- Anonymous00:22
@13.02 it was not fantastic but at least before the Germans came flights were operating normally and on time. After Germans came most routes were suspended and flights constantly cancelled.Delete
- Anonymous07:54
They tried to make some money on ACMI flying, as most of the schedule of the "hub" network was not profitable, and there was no government to put couple of millions every year to plug the hole in the cashflow.Delete
It didn't work in the end, but they didn't have a lot of options, other than to cut more than half of the network.
- Anonymous08:30
Hah trying to make money on ACMI, that's good one :) I didn't know that money laundering is called "making money" nowadays. Everyone knew from the start that such amount of ACMI will not go through and 4k was still pushing for it. You can't drive 20 busses at the same time if you have 5 drivers.Delete
About "non profitable" scheduled operations it is obvious that you can not make money on business which is the last one on list of priorities. And it should be the first one on that list, as JP was legacy carrier. Not that JP had daily schedule changes (time change, cancelations, triangle flights (LJU-MUC-ZRH-LJU))) because of charter/ACMI.
That practice was used even before 4k but after 4k took over it was only worse, much worse. So you can't expect something to work fine if you have to adjust all the time to other business.
- Anonymous08:42
The fact is that JP's business model prior to sale was unsustainable (i. e. losing money, year after year).Delete
They had two options, either grow the business until economies of scale catch up, or cut at least half of it and focus on couple of routes that make profit, and streamline the business this way.
Obviously growing didn't work, but I doubt reduction in fleet and personnel size would be very cheered as well.
- Anonymous09:38
True but that's because business model was totally wrong (as explained in previous mail, scheduled flights had lowest priority among other business) and uncompetitive managers were behind the wheel.Delete
So obviously it could work with different strategy and going into ACMI was even greater disaster than before.
- Anonymous14:07
Of all people here, complaining about bad conectivity. Can someone explain what would be different? Lets say Slovenia did have a national carrier. Who would fly on these flights?ReplyDelete
I'm trying to think of use cases and figure out, why would we need more connectivity now, etc.Replies
- Anonymous14:23
You really think that national airline will start flying this year? It will probably take more than half a year to establish it. And by then covid vaccine will be created and life will go back to normal. And then it will probably start flying in late 2021. We have seen how many airlines started flying when Adria went bust. 4 daily flights to LH hubs and thats it. And even with these the time of the flights werent the best. So with national airline it would be much better for tourists, business people.. Soo much better to have a national airline than not to have it.Delete
- Anonymous14:51
That's true, connectivity was really poor even before Covid. Without 4-5 aircrafts base in LJU it's not gonna work. If LH, LX, SN, AF, OS will do that then I'm against national carrier but we all know that this is not gonna happen.Delete
- Anonymous15:42
Why do you need 5 aircraft based in LJU for good connectivity?Delete
All you really need is LH Group to overnight 3 aircraft, so you have early morning conenctions to their hubs.
- Anonymous18:11
And you would fly where with those 3 aircrafts? FRA, ZRH, BRU? What about MUC, VIE, CPH or we are not good enough to have those flights?Delete
It took half a year to LH to deploy aircraft during the night in LJU and still their timetable is not on level what we had before. Not to mention that midle flight is missing but also their afternoon flight to FRA is way to early.
So if you think that we could get 2 additional aircraft in LJU to stay overnight then you should think again.
- Anonymous20:03
FRA, MUC, BRU.Delete
VIE is way too close by car, as even people from the NE of the country will never go to VIE by air, so the catchment area is very small. People close to Croatian border will naturally rather go to ZAG, especially once Croatia enters Schengen. Very few people would increase their travel time, just to fly from LJU.
ZRH as a hub isn't as good as FRA and MUC, and has nothing extra to offer really.
"It took half a year to LH to deploy aircraft during the night in LJU"
Of course it took them that long. They first had to fill the gaps in their existing network that were caused by Adria not being able to fly the wet-leased routes for LH and OS.
I agree about FRA and BRU but not MUC. MUC is just one hour more by car from LJU than VIE. It's about 3 hours to VIE, about 4 hours to MUC. In addition to that,, LH shifted almost all long haul to FRA, which was even before bigger and main hub. ZRH or CPH should be the third, or both, why notDelete
- Anonymous08:17
@anon 20:03Delete
if you want to drive for 3 hours for a meeting and then go back that's your choice but I certainly would not do that. Also VIE or MUC convenient for transfers than FRA. I'm not talking about long haul flights where FRA is dominating.
Not to mention that you would no include direct flights to ZRH, JP used to have 3 daily flights.
Actually I see that even 5 aircrafts base in LJU are not enough, we want what we had with old JP (before 4k took over and flew for foreign airlines).
- Anonymous08:45
Do you REALLY need to travel to MUC or VIE just for a meeting? 2020 and Zoom called.Delete
Sure, why stop at 5, let's make it 20. Get couple of widebodies as well for direct flights to JFK, LAX, SYD, HKG, NRT. Why would we be constrained by logic, when you can dream big?
- Anonymous09:36
We are not at school and some things can not be done through Zoom/Skype. And I agree that only sky should be a limit, so hopefully one day we will even see widebodies in LJU. So I hope that government will spend much more than 70 mio for Air Slovenia as we Slovenians deserve to have good connectivity in LJU. I hope you will survive that :)Delete
- Anonymous10:02
Business travel will take a long time to recover, if it will recover to 2019 ever again. A lot of businesses are transitioning to WFH for a significant part of their workforce, and not just schools, believe it or not.Delete
As a result, there will be less one-day meetings on the other side of Europe just for the sake it.
- Anonymous10:23
But still there will be many of us who want/need to travel and we will gladly use Air Slovenia flights. But I really don't mind if you use car and drive for few hours to VIE/MUC.Delete
- Anonymous18:10
And you would fly where with those 3 aircrafts? FRA, ZRH, BRU? What about MUC, VIE, CPH or we are not good enough to have those flights?ReplyDelete
It took half a year to LH to deploy aircraft during the night in LJU and still their timetable is not on level what we had before. Not to mention that midle flight is missing but also their afternoon flight to FRA is way to early.
So if you think that we could get 2 additional aircraft in LJU to stay overnight then you should think again.
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text:
Here's a name rocket craft great for your school's space week.
- construction paper including sheets of black paper
- scissors
- marker or crayons
- star stickers or paper stars
- glitter glue
- glue
- Beforehand cut a lot of squares and triangles from various colors of construction paper. Each child needs one triangle and one square for each letter in their name.
- Give each student sheet of black construction paper, a triangle and squares for their names.
- Students write each letter of their names on the squares.
- Glue the squares on the black paper to make the name rocket. Put the triangle on top.
- Glue stars in the sky.
- Add lines of glitter glue at the bottom of the rocket for flames. You could also use pipe cleaners.
- Put all the rockets on the bulletin board.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
So as this is posting, I'm having labor induced & today will hopefully be the babies' birthday. Jason took these photos of me Saturday afternoon.
How far along? 34w1d by my calculations, but the hospital considers the week switch on Sundays instead of Saturdays so they call me 34w this morning.
Maternity clothes? Yes, although all I've been wearing for past week is comfy maternity gowns. Since all are also nursing friendly, I think I'll be in those & chill maternity bottoms for a while. {Big thanks to Seraphine for sending me this pretty nursing/maternity gown this week! & yes, my boobs are getting pre-babies huge!}
Weight Gain? I was up 45 pounds as of Thursday two week ago's doctor's appointment. I'd guess I've gained some weight in the hospital & the belly does look bigger. I'm okay not knowing exact weight now though. 🙂
Stretch Marks? Yes, on both sides & I don't care.
Sleep? Ambien works. The nights I've gone without it in the hospital, I've tossed & turned vs sleeping through the night.
Movement? Saturday the babies were so active ~ Zach had hiccups doing the morning monitoring & Lucy was kicking away all morning then again through the night monitoring. So yes, lots of movement even though they're running out of room.
Genders? Baby A, Zach, is a boy & C, Lucy, is a girl.
What I Miss? Right now, my house, my cat, normal clothes. But I'll see all of that soon.
Food cravings? Not a ton. Luckily I have had a lot of choices here in the hospital. My SIL did venture out to Trader Joe's to get me Greek yogurt & hummus. So maybe that was this past week's craving. Also cupcakes.
The hospital ones aren't quite Gigi's but they've satisfied that craving {my friends B & K brought a Whole Foods cupcake when they came to visit Friday too}. Oh & the first food I order from the hospital menu post-babies is a big cold turkey sub!!
Food aversion? None really. I'm not always an Asian food fan, but as you can see from this photo, I've enjoyed General Tso's chicken three times this week. Maybe the spicy food old wives tale works?!
Labor signs? We learned Saturday night that Z is in -1 station super head down & that my cervix is thin/soft/effaced & between 2-3 cm dilated. It's on y'all!
Belly button in or out? I might have to take a photo of the 'after' belly button. It's so close to being out that I think I can say it's out.
What I'm Looking Forward to? Babies! Today or tomorrow!
Symptoms? This week has been fairly symptom free {besides the near constant leaking fluid when I move, of course}. No swelling. The hospital meds have kept me heartburn free. Just a few contractions that I actually noticed.
Weekly Wisdom? Enjoy time with family. Be grateful for all the help offered &/or given. Focus on babies & your health first. Stressing does nothing to help.
Milestones? Making it to 34 weeks! Baby Center says 34w old babies usually weigh 4.75 pounds {the weight of a cantaloupe}, close to 18 inches long, & are getting fat layers to make them rounder. We'll see what L & Z actually are really soon.


text:
Members, Staffers Lead Lobbying on Engines
The big-money lobbying battle over an engine — or two — for a new U.S. fighter jet has enlisted some of the biggest players on K Street. But with the issue poised for a pivotal vote in the House next week, the most influential advocates on either side collect their paychecks from Congress, not big defense contractors.
"The … contract for the Pratt & Whitney engine is 50 percent over the initial 2001 estimate," House Armed Services Committee staff member Doug Roach, an expert on the engine subject, wrote in a lengthy e-mail to numerous fellow Hill defense aides and some off-the-Hill contacts. "The Pratt engine will take private sector jobs to Turkey and Poland," he added in the Jan. 16 e-mail.
Roach was echoing the views of panel Chairman Buck McKeon (R-Calif.) and ranking member Adam Smith (D-Wash.), who both strongly support production of an alternate engine made by General Electric and Rolls-Royce for the new F-35 military aircraft, dubbed the Joint Strike Fighter. Rival contractor Pratt & Whitney is building the bulk of the plane's engines, and the Pentagon and President Barack Obama have said money for a second engine should be cut.
Rep. Tom Rooney is the leading advocate on Capitol Hill for cutting the GE engine, and he plans to step up his lobbying of his colleagues, many of them freshman lawmakers, over the next few days. The Florida Republican is trying to gin up support for an amendment that he will offer to a larger budget bill as early as Tuesday or Wednesday to strike $450 million in funding for the alternate engine.
But McKeon, Smith and Roach have the support of many Members of Congress, including Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio).
Rooney, who also sits on Armed Services, has lost this battle before and admits his amendment won't pass easily.
"For me, this isn't about GE vs. Pratt or the typical territorial battles," Rooney said Friday in an interview. "We have been sent to Washington to cut spending. Although it might be nice to have two engines or three or four, we can't afford it."
Rooney said he is keeping his message simple and fiscally based. Even though he has characterized the GE engine funding as an "earmark" in years past, he said he is shying away from that this go-around.
"To the new people that might not have time to get into the weeds as I have … this is a great opportunity to let the American people know it's not business and lobbying as usual in Washington," the Congressman added. "We've gotten ideas of who's sort of on the fence, and I'll go sit with them and talk with them. I'm giving [them] my cell phone to call over the weekend."
Staffers, lobbyists and Members who support the alternate engine argue that having a second one will help keep both contractors responsive and will ultimately save money. Each jet would only carry one engine, so the idea is that the two companies would compete for each order. A spokesman for Boehner explained that the Speaker, "along with the chairman of the Armed Services Committee and a strong, bipartisan majority in House," supports the program. He cited a Government Accountability Office report that says the alternative engine will save taxpayer money in the long term.
Josh Holly, spokesman for the House Armed Services Committee, said the panel "respects the view of all Members."
But he noted that, based on past votes, the committee has supported the two-engine option for the Joint Strike Fighter.
Most of the Members think "it lowers the cost of the overall program and will lead to increased power in the engines," Holly added.
Outside Influence
Despite the heavy hitters under the Dome who are pressing this issue, Pratt & Whitney and GE maintain impressive rosters of outside lobbyists and message makers.
And in recent weeks, three sources said, GE has tapped new help on the alternate engine fight, including former Rep. Richard Gephardt (D-Mo.), who runs Gephardt Government Relations, and former top House GOP leadership aide Susan Hirschmann, a principal at Williams & Jensen. Gephardt previously lobbied for GE on the merger of its then-division NBC and Comcast.
For its part, Pratt & Whitney has the quiet help of Ed Gillespie, the former protege to then-Rep. Dick Armey (R-Texas) and one-time counselor to President George W. Bush. Gillespie is not registered to lobby on behalf of Pratt & Whitney or its parent company, United Technologies, but three sources said he is doing nonlobbying communications work on the engine issue.
The firms registered to lobby for Pratt & Whitney or United Technologies include bipartisan shops Mehlman Vogel Castagnetti, Ogilvy Government Relations, the Podesta Group and Wexler & Walker Public Policy Associates. The company also has Park Strategies, the firm of former Sen. Alfonse D'Amato (R-N.Y.), on retainer.
The GE side, in addition to a large in-house roster of lobbyists, sends work to former Senators-turned-lobbyists John Breaux (D-La.) and Trent Lott (R-Miss.), who last year merged their firm into Patton Boggs. Clark & Weinstock, Michael N. Matton & Associates, Robison International and Tassey & Associates also report working for GE, as does Hogan Lovells' Candida Wolff, who was Bush's top Congressional liaison.
In all, GE reported spending a little more than $39 million on lobbying last year, while United Technologies reported $14.5 million for its 2010 federal lobbying.
Flying in the Lobbyists
GE has also brought in managers from more than a dozen of its aviation manufacturing plants around the country. They plan to be on the Hill all this week, GE Aviation spokesman Rick Kennedy said.
"They have converged on Washington," he said. "They have reached out and met every single new Member of Congress and Senator. Those guys are good at explaining how you save money by competing the engines. We say if we can't more than pay for ourselves, we'll go home."
Kennedy added that part of the reason the stakes are so high is because the new F-35 is slated to replace about 90 percent of the country's single-engine fighter planes.
"Emotions run high on this," said one lobbyist involved in the fight on Pratt's side. "It really gets people's blood boiling."
Rooney, a former prosecutor, said the alternate engine debate often triggers passion, but he pledged to stay calm.
"I'm not trying to be combative," he said. "Once you lose your cool, then you've lost your argument."


text:
Woah. Kind of a big week for the PlayStation Store. We're leading with the new Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception multiplayer beta, currently exclusive to PlayStation Plus members—and anyone lucky enough to get a code—but following up with so much more.
New games that PlayStation 3 owners can buy include Beyond Good & Evil HD, Gatling Gears and Puzzle Dimension. Demos for games like Duke Nukem Forever and Homefront (multiplayer, that is) also rear their heads, along with many, many more.
New content for Rock Band, lots of new deals for PlayStation Plus subscribers and plenty more await you in the list of new things added to the North American PlayStation Store.
Games & Demos for PlayStation 3
Beyond Good And Evil HD ($9.99)
Gatling Gears ($9.99)
Puzzle Dimension ($8.99)
Streets Of Rage 2 ($4.99)
MotorStorm Apocalypse Multiplayer Demo
PlayStation Move Ape Escape Demo
Beyond Good & Evil HD Demo
Duke Nukem Forever Demo
Dungeon Hunter: Alliance Demo
Gatling Gears Demo
Homefront Multiplayer Demo
NCAA Football 12 Demo
Games & Demos for PSP
PSP minis - Tetraminos ($3.99)
Add-ons & Expansions
ModNation Racers Backburn Mod and Kart Pack ($1.75)
ModNation Racers Backburn Mod ($0.99)
ModNation Racers Backburn Kart ($0.99)
ModNation Racers Water World Props Pack ($4.99)
Cars 2: Daredevil Lightning McQueen ($0.99)
Cars 2: Dragon Lightning McQueen ($0.99)
Cars 2: Mater The Greater ($0.99)
Cars 2: Tokyo Mater ($0.99)
Crysis 2 – Decimation Pack ($9.99)
DiRT 3: Mini Gymkhana Special Pack ($1.99)
DiRT 3: Monte Carlo Track Pack ($9.99)
Funky Lab Rat Even More New Challenges ($1.99)
MARVEL Pinball – Captain America ($2.99)
Operation Flashpoint: Red River – Valley Of Death Pack ($6.99)
Record of Agarest War Zero – Additional Costumes and Packs (Free – $11.99) (x13)
WWE All-Stars Million Dollar Pack ($1.99)
Yoostar 2: Various Scenes ($1.99) (x6)
Rock Band 3 tracks
- "Here Without You" by 3 Doors Down ($1.99)
- "When I'm Gone" by 3 Doors Down ($1.99)
- "When You're Young" by 3 Doors Down ($1.99)
- "Nothin' But A Good Time" by Poison ($1.99)
- "Talk Dirty To Me" by Poison ($1.99)
- "Unskinny Bop" by Poison ($1.99)
- 3 Doors Down Pack 01 ($5.49) –This pack includes "Here Without You", "When I'm Gone" and "When You're Young". By 3 Doors Down.
- Poison Pack 01 ($5.49) – This pack includes "Nothin' But A Good Time", "Talk Dirty To Me" and "Unskinny Bop". By Poison.
Rock Band Network tracks
- "A Grim Struggle" by Nightrage ($1.99)
- "Angela Surf City" by The Walkmen ($1.99)
- "The Curse" by Amberian Dawn ($1.99)
- "The Depths Of Memory" by Nightshade ($1.99)
- "Thou Shall Not Fear" by Lazarus A.D. ($0.99)
Game Videos
Pulse 6/28 Edition
Battlefield 3 Operation Métro Multiplayer Gameplay Trailer
Bioshock Infinite – E3 2011 Teaser Trailer
Bioshock Infinite – Sky-Lines Trailer
Crysis 2 – Retaliation Map Pack Trailer
Duke Nukem Forever – Launch Trailer
The Darkness 2 – E3 2011 Trailer
XCOM – E3 2011 Trailer
Themes, Wallpapers & Avatars
Destinations: Hot Air Balloon Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
Purple Haze Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
Blue Waves Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
Saturn's Rings Dynamic Theme ($2.99)
Fast Draw Showdown Wallpaper
MLB 11 The Show Avatars ($0.49) (x10)
Blue Toad Murder Files Avatars ($0.49) (x8)
DISSIDIA 012[duodecim] FINAL FANTASY Avatars ($0.49) (x7)
Super Street Fighter Avatars ($0.49) (x4)
L.A. Noire Avatars ($0.49) (x7)
Outland Avatar ($0.49)
Prinny 2: Etna Avatar ($0.49)
Sales, Price Drops & Bundles
MAG Interdiction Mission Pack – Price Drop (PS3) (now FREE, original price $4.99)
MAG Escalation Mission Pack – Price Drop (PS3) (now $4.99, original price $9.99)
PSP Game Dual Pack with Daxter and Secret Agent Clank ($14.99)
PSP Game Dual Pack with SOCOM: Fire Team Bravo and Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror ($14.99)
PSP Game Dual Pack with Killzone: Liberation and Syphon Filter: Logan's Shadow ($14.99)
Awesome Summer Minis Bundle ($4.99)
Cars 2: Tall Tales Character Bundle ($2.99)
PlayStation Plus
UNCHARTED 3 Drake's Deception Multiplayer Beta (Free and exclusive to Plus)
Streets of Rage 2 (Free with Plus – a $4.99 value)
Dead Space Ignition (PlayStation Plus price $2.50; a 50% discount)
Deathspank (PlayStation Plus price $7.50; a 50% discount)
Deathspank Thongs of Virtue (PlayStation Plus price $7.50; a 50% discount)
Funky Lab Rat (Full Game) (PlayStation Plus price $3.00; a 70% discount)
Mahjong Tales: Ancient Wisdom (PlayStation Plus price $3.99; 20% additional discount on two week sale price)
MicroBot (PlayStation Plus price $5.00; a 50% discount)
Shank (PlayStation Plus price $5.00; a 50% discount)
Spare Parts (PlayStation Plus price $5.00; a 50% discount)
Tetris (PlayStation Plus price $5.00; a 50% discount)
The Fancy Pants Adventures (PlayStation Plus price $5.00, a 50% discount)
Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition – 4 Avatar Bundle (Exclusive to Plus for $0.49)


text:
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text:
The young musicians of the Civic Orchestra, as enamored as they were of the prospect of being mentored by Yo-Yo Ma, didn't see it coming.
The world's most celebrated cellist, who's the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's creative consultant, was chatting with the Civic members on the Orchestra Hall stage in October about their May performance of Beethoven's Symphony No. 6, aka the Pastoral Symphony. He also was discussing something else, something deeper: His desire to impart to the musicians, most in their early 20s, "the skills you need to have a life in music."
After all, these are tense times for working — and hoping-to-work — classical musicians, what with so many orchestras cutting budgets and jobs disappearing during this never-ending economic slump. But being afraid isn't going to help, Ma said, and he would love for the musicians to learn the following during their two-year Civic tenures: "how to let go of fear."
Then he scared them.
Pondering their Beethoven's Sixth performance, the 57-year-old cellist suggested: "Maybe you could do it outdoors. And maybe you could do it without music. And maybe you might want to do it without a conductor."
There was tittering and mumbling around the stage — some implied combination of "Did he just suggest that?" and "Wait, it's Yo-Yo Ma, so let's not freak." Finally one female musician let out a single word:
Ma turned toward her.
"All of these together sound pretty crazy," she continued, meaning that delivering an excellent Beethoven's Sixth is challenging enough without doing it from memory, without a conductor and in the great outdoors.
"You haven't done any of the things you think are crazy to do," Ma replied.
"I think crazy's great," a guy chimed in, "but I want to do it well at the same time."
"I believe you not only can do it but can do a kick-ass version of it that's going to set everybody back on their ear," Ma responded.
Whether everyone on that stage believed Ma was beside the point. The Civic's mission for the next seven months had been laid out, and the musicians were duty bound to accept.
Seven months later, May 11, members of the Civic Orchestra will perform portions of Beethoven's Sixth at a couple of locations along North Michigan Avenue, beginning with a chamber ensemble tackling the first movement from memory without a conductor at the Apple Store at 3 p.m. before the full Civic ensemble moves to another unannounced (i.e. surprise) location. These performances are in conjunction with the Friends of the Chicago River's annual Chicago River Day, as well as the CSO's own Rivers Festival.
The Civic will play the entire Pastoral Symphony on May 13 at Orchestra Hall, with the orchestra again working without a conductor and playing from memory. The program, also part of the Rivers Festival, will feature Ma as soloist on Haydn's Cello Concerto in C major as well.
What happened between October and May was no mere memorization drill. Rather, it was an attempt at transformation. Could these musicians, with the guidance of Ma and Civic principal conductor Cliff Colnot, not only learn the notes but become the music — and could they make that music live inside anyone who receives it? Could the 90 or so Civic players somehow agree on how to interpret every moment of this symphony away from a conductor's baton? And would this collaborative experience empower them when seeking future jobs?
These are lofty questions that were well beyond what the Civic Orchestra was prepared to process that October day.
"Your body posture should be the posture of the music," Ma told them from the stage.
Not everyone was fully upright.
Ma posed that question to the Civic musicians while leading an open rehearsal in a packed Senn High School auditorium in December. But before we get into how the cellist attempted such alchemy, let's pause to offer some notes about the Civic Orchestra.
Founded in 1919 by Chicago Symphony Orchestra music director Frederick Stock, the Civic is the CSO's pre-professional training ensemble, the only such outfit affiliated with a major American orchestra, according to the CSO. Musicians, who remain members for two years, tend to be in their early 20s.
Since Ma was named the CSO's Judson and Joyce Green Creative Consultant in December 2009, he has concentrated on the orchestra's fledgling Citizen Musician initiative and its mission of extending and expanding music's role in people's lives. He has spent much time working with kids whom he considers at the optimal stage to embrace music and its power.
Employing similar logic, he decided last year to direct energy toward the Civic musicians in their buffer period between finishing school and entering the professional world.
"I do feel that the Civic musicians are at the right age to engage in these kinds of things," Ma said during a dressing-room conversation after one Civic rehearsal. "This is a time to actually explore and broaden what the mainstream of society doesn't really have time to do."
What he is stressing to them is a departure from traditional musical training, which was effective when accomplished musicianship was seen as a guarantee of work. That no longer is the case, yet just because musicians' jobs have become more scarce doesn't mean their role in society has grown less important; in fact, Ma argued, the opposite may be true. The challenge, he said, is to identify society's needs, just as orchestras were created before anyone realized they were needed.
"There's room in our world for more imaginative thinking, or a need for it, or for more humanistic thinking," he said. "If there's more need for that, then young people cannot only look at the jobs that actually exist but also think about where the jobs don't yet exist and find (them), whether it's a storefront near a public school that actually can offer music and literacy, a place that can serve a community that needs it … a place where the inner life of a child or a family is addressed."
Tom Wolf, who consults with the CSO with his Boston-based company WolfBrown, considers it "groundbreaking" for someone of Ma's stature to be engaging this deeply, and in this specific way, with a young training orchestra.
"He in a very positive way is addressing a negative reality about the career track of classical musicians," said Wolf, noting as well that the cellist's musical approach "takes it beyond that old-fashioned master class and really works with the orchestra players to (reach) a very deep understanding of the music and how it connects to them viscerally and emotionally and culturally and socially."
The Beethoven's Sixth mission is no mere a jobs-training program, at any rate, as Ma and Colnot aim to get the musicians to alter their mindsets and skill sets through a project that emphasizes collaboration, consensus-building and creativity as they take collective control of a great symphony.
Said Colnot: "We're largely interested in encouraging the Civic musicians to develop and nurture skills that are transferable, that aren't just music skills but life skills."
So, for instance: communication. With no conductor onstage, the orchestra must figure out how to maintain a steady tempo and keep track of what each musician is doing in the way that a chamber ensemble would. When Ma performs he tends to spend less time glancing at his music than he does making eye contact with his fellow players. Now the Civic musicians would have to learn to communicate through their eyes and body language.
"Your spatial awareness is going to make you a better musician," Ma said at that October rehearsal, urging the musicians to sit closer together as they played.
On the Senn stage in December, he encouraged the musicians to play every note as if it represented a distinct part of nature, and he asked the audience whether they could hear the difference when the musicians played consciously thinking about nature. The second version, listeners agreed, sounded brighter, more expressive.
Ma's instructions grew more detailed when he met with the Civic's string-section leaders in a Symphony Center basement rehearsal room in January. True to his mantra of "total engagement," the cellist originally had announced that he would work with the Civic on trips to Chicago in December, March and May (and gave them an email address for keeping in touch in between), but he added visits in January and April to spend more time with the orchestra in person, all while Colnot rehearsed them in the meantime.
"Try and draw the vibrations from your feet, from the earth," he told the five string principals in a conversation that ranged from the technical points about bowing ("You lighten the bow, speed it up, put a spin on the sound") to distinctions between the personal and impersonal, the latter of which would include nature ("Don't make it personal. Rocks are older than we are.").
Ma is as amiable and supportive as you'd expect of someone who, upon receiving the Kennedy Center Honors in late 2011, prompted President Barack Obama to note enviously: "Everybody likes him." But he also drops the occasional f-bomb, for comic effect as often as not, and isn't afraid to apply pressure when he's not getting what he wants to hear.
At one point he told violist Jonas Benson to maintain eye contact with the violinists. Another time he urged cellist Joshua Zajac to offer more "emotional commitment." Benson and Zajac, two of the ensemble's more vocal members, took the instructions in stride, and none of the players was shy about engaging in give-and-take with their mentor. From all of them Ma wanted commitment of the breath, commitment of the eyes, the complete synchronicity of breathing and playing.
"You've got to feel like this is the last thing you'll ever do," Ma said. "It's that imperative. If you don't feel it, how will the audience?"
The stage lights went out during the full Civic's rehearsal in March at Orchestra Hall. Moments earlier Ma had disappeared backstage, and when he reappeared in the semi-darkness, one eyebrow was cocked. The musicians continued playing, as they were expected to do.
Another time during that rehearsal, Ma had the principal players and the musicians in the back rows swap seats. "How does it feel?" he asked.
Ma was constantly mixing things up, trying to free the musicians from their comfortable routines, urging them to own the music rather than simply to play the notes.
"How do you become unscared?" he asked at one point. "It's when you become completely a part of it."
He suggested the musicians think up characteristics for each movement and then play those characteristics: "open," "expressive," "tranquil" for the first movement; "powerful," "scary," "trepidatious" for the fourth.
"I think everyone is getting to a place where we're about just making music," principal second violinist Beth Larson said after the full March rehearsal, though she noted that memorizing the symphony remained "a very scary concept for everyone."
Still, she remained confident that everything would work out, in large part because of their famous mentor's faith in them. "Yo-Yo Ma looking you in the eyes and telling you, 'I believe in you; you can do it,' that's pretty awesome," Larson said.
Yet by mid-April, as nine Civic principals rehearsed in a circle, they were all too aware of how much work still was needed before they could deliver the Beethoven's Sixth of their dreams. So many issues remained unresolved involving tempo, flow, the relation of downbeats to upbeats and many other areas. Every moment in the symphony, after all, now represented an interpretive decision to be made by the collective.
"Something like a symphony you kind of are used to relying on a conductor to tell you, 'This is how we're going to phrase this, this is how this tempo is going to go,'" Larson said. "And when it's on us, it's really fun because you can make it what you want, but you also have to have 80 other people agree with you."
Ma tried to keep the section leaders focused on playing in the moment without losing sight of the big picture. "Bad musicians are showing you the architecture," he said. "The good musicians are letting you experience it."
He told them he wasn't hearing the rapture of a certain crescendo that should be "a moment of discovery, of wonder, of awe."
The musicians played it again.
"None of you are awe-struck," Ma said.
He experimented with having the musicians play while standing — and later discussed the whole performing-while-standing possibility with Riccardo Muti, the CSO music director.
"That sounded terrible," Zajac noted after a ragged standing run-through.
"OK," Ma said. "Try it again. Fix it."
Later Ma prompted them to sing their parts, the result sounding like a Farmers Insurance ad. "What I hear in your singing is you're probably not free enough to own the whole piece," Ma said.
When the rehearsal ended, the musicians and Ma shared a buffet lunch around a large round table and reflected on how far they'd traveled and still had to go.
"I thought I knew what I was doing when I started this, but now there's just so much more, there's so much further that we can go in every single aspect of this," said bassist Christopher "Kit" Polen. "It's awesome."
Zajac expressed surprise that the group actually was managing to shape the music to resemble nature in more than a theoretical way, a point that also impressed flutist Henry Williford. "It can't still be a river; it has to be a sound," Williford said. "It has to be something musical."
"I've been surprised by how committed Yo-Yo is to the project," Benson said, prompting applause around the table. "Obviously I knew you'd be into it and here for us, but you've been here the whole way and worked with us so much. I didn't expect that at the beginning."
"That is surprising," Zajac added.
"Really?" Ma said.
"You've been way more committed than I think anybody could have expected," Benson said.
"That's very nice," Ma said.
Larson said Ma "makes me at least remember that every note is important, every note has a meaning and has an image, and we're trying to communicate this whole bigger picture rather than just playing these notes that are written on the page by some old dead guy."
She added that although many musicians share her excitement over the concert and collaboration with Ma, other Civic members remained more apprehensive than inspired.
"It's surprising to me how hard it is to get a whole huge group of 20-something-year-olds to be gung-ho about a project like this," she said. "I think everyone is just afraid to fail, and that is understandable, and I don't want to fail either, but at the same time I guess I'm just so excited about it that I don't even care."
Asked whether they were fearful about the concert, the group around the table did a collective head shake but did admit to some anxiety over not fulfilling their ever-rising expectations.
"Of course, I'm insecure and don't want to bring in sections at the wrong place, but I think a big part of learning is overcoming all of those insecurities and going for it," violinist Emily Nash said.
What was everyone's biggest concern with less than a month to go?
"Train wreck," Nash said, prompting laughs all around.
"I'm just hoping that everybody can be brought to the same place," Ma said. "It's not about expectations. So forgive yourselves for anything that happens that's train-wrecky-like. Right? Because that always has the potential to happen, but when something like that happens, forgive yourselves, because you have something more important to do than acknowledge a train wreck and be concerned about it."
Civic Orchestra manager Yoo-Jin Hong told the musicians she thinks their season with Ma "has created a new culture within Civic" and that a new maturity in their playing was apparent even when they performed other works.
"The music that you're making as a group is different, so I think we can only go from up here," she said. "I don't see a way of failing, whatever happens at the performance."
In a separate phone conversation, Colnot said: "There's more now of a sense of collegiality, camaraderie and listening to each other, and that affects their playing because they don't have the conductor to rely on. How it looks and how it sounds is different."
Ma, who has long professed that society remains overly fixated on measurable forms of success, expressed gratitude that everyone had played along.
"In the beginning I was scared to death talking to you guys in October and had no idea whether you guys were going to think: This guy's crazy," Ma told the musicians. "I had no idea whether this would fly. It was an idea. You guys had to own it and take it on; that would make this possible. So I was just kind of looking, watching to see how it became more rooted or seeded in your minds. It makes me very happy to see that."
email@example.com | Twtter @MarkCaro


text:
Monday, January 23, 2012
Magnetic Menu Plan Magnet Storage
9 comments:
You are so creatively organized it makes my head spin! LOVE your blog!ReplyDelete
HEY don't diss the Ray-Ban's. Aviators never go out of style. Just tell people your pilot friend said it was OK for you to wear them ;)ReplyDelete
You are so 'smarticle'!!ReplyDelete
You almost make me want to go back to "big" cooking.. I am on my way to being an empty nester... we just don't eat "meals" more than twice a week... but great ideas!ReplyDelete
- AnonymousJanuary 25, 2012 at 1:28 PM
I really just want you to make the entire thing for me, post it up on etsy.com and then I can just buy it all. I love it but no time to sit and make it. Sell them, and they will come :) Really, I want it...ReplyDelete
- AnonymousFebruary 10, 2012 at 7:10 AM
I just want to say - I think you are brilliant! Thanks for all these awesome ideas!!!ReplyDelete
So, then do you have the actual recipes in the binder, as well?ReplyDelete
And do you have the actual recipes in the binder, as well?ReplyDelete
- Onechunk99April 20, 2015 at 7:14 PM
You are amazing! I love all of your ideas! I am organized, but your ideas make this task fun!ReplyDelete


text:
095) Our America: Life And Death On The South Side Of Chicago
by by LeAlan Jones and Lloyd Newman with David Isay, finished October 22
- This is a remarkable book, eye-opening. And the story of Eric Morse almost slew me--he was the age of the Big O at the time he died and the gap between him and his brother is the same as between my two sons.
The authors, LeAlan and Lloyd were tapped to help make an NPR documentary about the projects of Chicago when they were 13, and they returned to their mikes again and again.
It's a look into the ghetto like I've never seen before. It's real and horrifying, but not depressing. The sense of human potential is large, which makes its squandering all the more tragic.
The book's a quick read and highly recommended. We can't keep forgetting the forgotten America.
three or four weeks
094) Will in the World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare
by Stephen Greenblatt, finished October 21
- I had this book with me a few weeks ago, and a fellow English teacher said, "Stephen Greenblatt? Greenblatt! You know about Greenblatt, don't you?" I said I didn't and we were interrupted. So I still don't know about Greenblatt. Can you tell me about Stephen Greenblatt?
This book was a Very Big Deal when it came out, as you may recall. I started reading it when it was about a year old and still all the rage among buyers of biographies and history tomes.
It's good. It gets into Shakespeare and recreates the likely details of his upbringing, professional years, retirement. It's somewhat speculative, but is well documented and endlessly fascinating. I learned much.
But I haven't had a lot of success bringing snippets from the book into the classroom. I'm thinking I'll try some of his Macbeth stuff this year, but we'll see.
some months over three years
093) Carrie
by Stephen King, finished October 14
- So I'm apparently on a sad high-school girl trip this month. Carrie is sadder than Melinda and sadder still than Bella. Carrie's about as sad as they get.
Carrie's been on my to-read list for a long time, and although it's not as good as, say, Lisey's Story, it's important to remember that this little book was Stephen King's first book and as a first novel it's quite good. It takes chances artistically and delivers on the goods. Not as shocking or awful as I had expected, but a fine introduction to the Kingdom.
A nice short little horror novel if you're looking to celebrate the season.
almost a week
092) Barnaby by Crockett Johnson, finished October 9
- I didn't know that the Harold's-Purple-Crayon
guy had written a thing called "Barnaby" before just a few months ago. My first encounter was delightful and made me want to read more. Finding a collection at a library sale a couple Saturdays ago was a major score.
"Barnaby" was a serialized strip, but reading them collected, it's hard to imagine how they were broken apart. Together they form such a marvelous whole heavy on charm and humor and a dash of pure funny.
Barnaby has a Fairy Godfather (Mr. O'Malley) whom his parents refuse to believe in. At this point, it's like Snuffleupagus, but later, I understand, Mr. O'Malley runs for Congress and pretty much everyone knows he exists except Barnaby's desperate-to-be-ignorant parents.
I emailed Fantagraphics, asking them to collect and put out a gorgeous edition of "Barnaby" (like they do for other things like the Peanuts books I've been reading) but no word yet on their likely compliance.
If they do, I'll pass the word along.
a week at most
091) Speak
by Laurie Halse Anderson, finished October 8
- I might as well just say it and get it over with: This book isn't all that great.
I know! Everyone told me it's da shiz too! What gives? How did everyone miss is lousiness?
I wish I could say that I just didn't like it because I've had insufficient unhappiness in my life, but really: what's to like?
Speak is about Melinda who has a Terrible Secret and how, over the course of a year, she begins to deal with IT. She's a well developed character flopped down in a caricaturish high school (depressing version) with caricaturish parents (lousy version). The only interesting character outside Melinda is her art teacher, but it takes awhile for him to get rounded himself.
The book is stuffed with clichés of setting and phrasing and a thousand other things.
The author's desire to keep the Terrible Secret secret goes on too long, and when it's finally given a Big Reveal, it's done in a clunky artless way. Really, the book would have been better without the flashback. Just keep your secret. We'll figure it out.
I started Twilight
two days ago (don't ask) and I've had a hard time keeping the two books straight. When a simple fact, like both sad girls have smart lab partners, can meld the books together (now, which one's the clumsy one again?), you know something's wrong.
The best part of the book was the climactic scene and I will grant that the main character's growth was made to seem organic as the book closed. But it still wasn't that great.
I don't mean to come down so hard on this book. It's just that it's been talked up by so many people, I was expecting something extraordinary. And this is just regularordinary.
I dunno. Where's Edgy? Maybe he can tell me where I went wrong.
about a month
090) Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, finished October 6
089) The Colorado Kid by Stephen King, finished October 3
088) Mr. White's Confession by Robert Clark, finished October 1
087) Concrete: Fragile Creature by Paul Chadwick, finished September 28
086) Lone Wolf and Cub Vol. 1: The Assassin's Road by Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima, finished September 27
085) A Lion and a Lamb> by Rand H. Packer, finished September 20
084) What Jesus Meant by Garry Wills, finished September 20
083) The Lost Ones by Steve Niles et al, finished September 18
082) Dorian by Nephi Anderson, finished September 17
081) If You Want to Scare Yourself by Angela Sommer-Bodenburg, translated by Rene Vera Cafiero, with illustrations by Helga Spiess; finished September 12
080) Madman Gargantua by Mike Allred with Laura Allred, finished September 9
079) Star Wars by George Lucas, finished September 9
078) Angel Falling Softly by Eugene Woodbury, finished September 1
077) The Night Listener by Armistead Maupin finished August 29
076) Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, finished August 25
075) Added Upon by Nephi Anderson, finished August 24
074) The Last Flower by James Thurber, finished August 19
073) Reinventing Comics: How Imagination and Technology Are Revolutionizing an Art Form by Scott McCloud, finished August 17
072) The Trial of Colonel Sweeto and Other Stories by Nicholas Gurewitch, finished August 12
071) The Dreamer by Will Eisner, finished August 12
070) The Blot by Tom Neely, finished August 6
069) Strange Stories for Strange Kids edited by Art Spiegelman and Francoise Mouly, finished August 6
068) Survival Rates by Mary Clyde, finished July 30
067) A Week in October by Elizabeth Subercaseaux, translated by Marina Harss, finished July 29
066) Lehi in the Desert & The World of the Jaredites by Hugh Nibley, Ph. D., finished July 29
065) A Son Is Forever by various, finished July 29
064) Good ol' Snoopy by Charles M. Schultz, finished July 13
063) Embroideries by Marjane Satrapi, finished July 13
062) A Doré Treasury edited by James Stevens, finished July 12?
061) Slaughterhouse-Five or The Children's Crusade: A Duty-Dance with Death by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.; finished July 8
060) The Enoch Letters by Neal A. Maxwell, finished July
059) Sock Monkey: The Inches Incident by Tony Millionaire, finished July 3
058) The Number 73304-23-4153-6-96-8 by Thomas Ott, finished July 2
057) Chicken with Plums by Marjane Satrapi, finished July 1
056) 300 by Frank Miller and Lynn Varley, finished June 16
055) Fox Bunny Funny by Andy Hartzell, finished June 16
054) Where Did I Leave My Glasses?: The What, When, and Why of Normal Memory Loss by Martha Weinman Lear, finished June 15
053) The Mystery Guest by Grégoire Bouillier, trans. Lorin Stein, finished June 14
052) The Legend of Spud Murphy by Eoin Colfer, finished June 10
051) Good Bones and Simple Murders by Margaret Atwood, finished June 10
050) Created in Darkness by Troubled Americans: The Best of McSweeney's, Humor Category edited by D. Eggers, K. Shay, L. Epstein, J. Warner and S. Kleid, finished June 9
049) Bikeman by Thomas F. Flynn, finished June 5
048) Fool Moon by Jim Butcher, finished June 5
047) The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick, finished June 2
046) Sixty Poems by Charles Simic, finished May 30
045) Replay by Ken Grimwood, finished May 28
044) The Age of the Conglomerates: A Novel of the Future by Thomas Nevins, finished May 27
043) W;t by Margaret Edson, finished April 19
042) Halo and Sprocket Volume 1: Welcome to Humanity by Kerry Cullen, finished May 17
041) Storm Front by Jim Butcher, finished May 16>
040) 20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill, finished May 9
039) I Am the President of Ice Cream by Geoff Sebesta, finished May 4
038) On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan, finished May 3
037) The Meaning of Everything: The Story of the Oxford English Dictionary by Simon Winchester, finished May Day
036) The Drifting Classroom Vol. 1 by Kazuo Umezu, finished April 30
035) The Complete Peanuts 1965 - 1966 by Charles M. Schulz, finished April 29
034) Nextwave: Agents Of H.A.T.E Volume 1: This Is What They Want by Warren Ellis et Stuart Immonen et al, finished April 29
033) Batman: Hush, Vol. 2 by Jeph Loeb et al, finished April 29
032) Batman: Hush, Vol. 1 by Jeph Loeb et al, finished April 28
031) Chéri by Colette, finished April 17
030) Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett, finished April 13
029) Animal Farm by George Orwell, finished April 8
028) Macbeth by William Shakespeare, finished April 7
027) On the Road to Heaven by Coke Newell, finished April 4
026) The Great American Citizenship Quiz: Can You Pass Your Own Country's Citizenship Test? by Solomon M. Skolnick, finished March 23
025) Long After Dark by Todd Robert Petersen, finished March 23
024) The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch, finished March 21
023) Robot Dreams by Sara Varon, finished March 10
022) The Complete Peanuts 1963-1964 by Charles M. Schulz, finished March 9
021) Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters, finished March 7
020) Unorthodox Practices by Marissa Piesman, finished March 5
019) Happy Hour at Casa Dracula by Marta Acosta, finished March 4
018) A War of Gifts: An Ender Story by Orson Scott Card, finished Leap Day
017) Watership Down by Richard Adams, finished February 26
016) Old Boy Volume One by Garon Tsuchiya and Nobuaki Minegishi, finished February 25
015) Case Histories by Kate Atkinson, finished February 18
014) Ultimate Spider-Man: Ultimate Collection, Vol. 1 by Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley, finished February 15
013) Trusting Jesus by Jeffrey R. Holland, finished February 11
012) Fables: 1001 Nights of Snowfall by Bill Willingham et al., finished February 11
011) Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife by Mary Roach, finished February 4
010) The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold, finished February 3
009) American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang, finished LDotFMotNY
008) Zombification: Stories from National Public Radio by Andrei Codrescu, finished January 22
007) Marriage Lines: Notes of a Student Husband by Ogden Nash, finished January 22
006) Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen, finished January 20
005) The Salmon of Doubt: Hitchhiking the Galaxy One Last Time by Douglas Adams, finished January 14
004) Lord of the Flies by William Golding, finished January 10
003) Rising Sun by Michael Crichton, finished January 7
002) The Marketing of Sister B by Linda Hoffman Kimball, finished January 2
001) Animal Farm by George Orwell, finished January 1
The First Five ( 001 / 005 )
The Second Five ( 005 / 010 )
The Third Five ( 011 / 015 )
The Fourth Five ( 016 / 020 )
The Fifth Five ( 021 / 025 )
The Sixth Five ( 026 / 030 )
The Seventh Five ( 031 / 035 )
The Eighth Five ( 036 / 040 )
The Ninth Five ( 041 / 045 )
The Tenth Five ( 046 / 050)
The Eleventh Five ( 051 / 055)
The Twelfth Five ( 056 / 060)
The Thirteenth Five ( 061 / 065)
The Fourteenth Five ( 066 / 070)
The Fifteenth Five ( 071 / 075)
The Sixteenth Five ( 076 / 080)


text:
I am studying OOP in C++ and, even though I am aware of the definitions of these 3 concepts, I cannot really realize when or how to use it.
Let's use this class for the example:
class Person{
string name;
int age;
Person(string p1, int p2){this->name=p1; this->age=p2;}
void set_name (string parameter){this->name=parameter;}
void set_age (int parameter){this->age=parameter;}
string get_name (){return this->name;}
int get_age (){return this->age;}
HOW does the restriction of the class to have only one object work?
CAN you design a class that would have ONLY 2 instances? Or maybe 3?
WHEN is using a singleton recommended/necessary? Is it good practice?
As far as i know, if there's only one pure virtual function, the class becomes abstract. So, adding
virtual void print ()=0;
would do it, right?
WHY would you need a class whose object is not required?
If an interface is an abstract class in which all the methods are pure virtual functions, then
WHAT is the main difference between the 2 of them?
Thanks in advance!


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By Lindsey Bright
Staff Writer
In May, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) awarded 113 Health Care Innovation Grants, one of which was awarded to the Pagosa Springs Medical Center in the amount of $1.7 million.
The Innovation grant is to be awarded and implemented over a span of three years, starting July 1 of this year.
It was at the end of last week that the operational plan for the Innovation Grant was approved.
The main goal for the project is to reduce cardiovascular (CV) risk and improve cardiovascular patient outcomes, while creating healthier community and reducing healthcare costs in southwest Colorado by 2012.
Medical center CEO Brad Cochennet explained to SUN staff the four subgoals of healthcare that the grant will help PSMC address: 1) Expanding a cardiovascular early detection and wellness program; 2) implementing a telemedicine acute stroke care program; 3) implementing remote cardiologist consultation using telemedicine and remote diagnostics; and 4) upgrading and retraining of Emergency Medical Services Division (EMS) to manage urgent care transports and in-home, follow-up patient care.
First, the wellness program, which is already in place at the PSMC. Cochennet said that according to his current numbers, the wellness program serves 12 percent of the community. The grant would like to see this number grow in the next three years to 15 percent. This program works as an early detection and screening program as well as helping in follow-up care and helping the patient reach various goals toward health. One addition that is needed, Cochennet said, is a way to store data which would help the clinic in following up with patients.
Second, neurology. It was in the beginning of this year that the Pagosa hospital welcomed Rosie, their telemedicine machine, onto the staff. Cochennet said that since Rosie came to PSMC, around 10 patients have been saved a medical flight to Swedish hospital in Denver, which involves an approximate $30,000 price tag.
"We'll be adding an accute care follow-up program element to help patients get well," Cochennet said. This, he hopes, would help sustain health instead of being reactive to a potential stroke.
The third subgoal is closely knit with the second, adding a cardiovascular capability to telemedicine. This would allow the potential heart attack patient to be evaluated in Pagosa via telemedical devices. Through this evaluation, a care plan will be determined whether it be the administration of a medicine, a stint put in place or open heart surgery.
After this, follow-up will also be added.
"A lot of people don't follow up because they have to drive to Durango," Cochennet said.
The fourth subgoal brings all three steps, particularly the last two, together. The fourth step is the EMS component. The EMS will acquire critical care level designation. The current paramedics, Cochennet said, will become outreach and community critical care paramedics. The community part of this means that it will be the paramedics who will go to the homes of patients for follow-up sessions. So, the district could not only offer rehab and follow-up for strokes and heart attacks at Pagosa Springs Medical Center, but also make use of the portable telemedicine equipment installed in the clinical care designated ambulances. Through these means, Cochennet said, it will be easier for patients to maintain compliance with their aftercare plan.
As of now, Cochennet said neither Medicare, Medicaid, CHP+ nor any other insurance he knows of covers this type of healthcare. Cochennet continued to explain that with health care reform and the passing of the Affordable Care Act how reimbursement is done is changing. "They will be paying for health instead of paying for sickness," Cochennet said. However, how this will look, or if it will even be done, is still unknown.
"We're inventing a program for a different reimbursement model," Cochennet said.
As a result of the grant, PSMC brought on Julie Bridges as the Innovation Grant coordinator. Prior to joining PSMC, Bridges worked as a resident nurse and case manager in the Emergency Department at North Suburban Medical Center in Thorton, Colo. Bridges will be in charge of keeping the grant moving, making sure the measurements and timelines are met. As Cochennet explained it, Bridges' job will be to keep an eye on what is happening in the hospital and with the grant and determine that affects the overall goals and objectives.
Bridges said she will be evaluating what equipment needs to be purchased or leased, what alliances and contractual agreements with physicians and/or hospitals are needed, what type of portable EKG as well as transportable telemedicine machine is required, and then see how information for follow-ups can be gleaned and stored in the wellness program.
This grant will also fund five positions, so Cochennet said staff will be evaluating which positions will be created.
Cochennet also said that, since much of the innovative healthcare in this grant is interconnected medicine, such as telemedicine relying on doctors in other locations, Health Information Exchange (HIE) is a concern. However, the grant does not fund HIE.
"We are looking at the grant and HIE together," Cochennet said, and explained that finding an efficient, affordable HIE system is a global challenge.
Cochennet also clarified that the healthcare innovations in the grant are not reliant on HIE. He explained it with this analogy: "It's like having funding for cars and trucks but not having roads built … You can get there, but it's nicer when there is a freeway."


text:
Brady Lake Insurance Defense Lawyers
Adam E. Carr
(330) 655-1662
Cleveland State UniversityRice UniversityOhio and 6th CircuitU.S. News & World Report, Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers...National Society of Professional Insurance Investigators, Claims & Litigation Management Alliance...A Brief History of Ohio Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Laws - OACTA Quarterly Review, Fall 2022 and Baldwin's Ohio Practice Series: Tort Law
Alberto Nestico
(330) 869-9007
Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law CenterOhioOhio Super Lawyers, Ohio Super Lawyers, Ohio Super Lawyers and Ohio Super LawyersOhio State Bar, Akron Bar Association...
Eric Grinnell
(330) 655-1662
Cleveland State UniversityCollege of WoosterOhioBest LawyersOhio Bar Association, Claims Litigation Management...
Christopher Carl Esker
(330) 434-3000
University of Akron School of LawOhio, 6th Circuit and U.S. Supreme CourtOhio State Bar
William G. Chris
(330) 434-3000
The University of Toledo College of LawOhioOhio State Bar and National Society of Professional Insurance Investigators
John Joseph Reagan
(330) 869-9007
OhioOhio State Bar
David Scott Barbee
(330) 482-3825
The Ohio State University Michael E. Moritz College of LawThe King's CollegeOhio and 6th CircuitMahoning County Bar Association and Volunteer Legal Services ProgramColumbiana County Bar Association and CASA of Mahoning County
Mr. Jesse Michael Schmidt
(216) 621-9870
Cleveland State UniversityOhio University and Cleveland State UniversityOhio and U.S., Northern District of OhioWest Shore Bar Association and Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association
Hugh David Berkson
(216) 781-5515
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(216) 566-8200
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(216) 875-2072
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(614) 398-2886
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(614) 547-2529
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(513) 844-2000
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Justin M. McMullen
(513) 579-0080
University of Dayton School of LawXavier University6th Circuit, Ohio and IndianaOhio State Bar Association
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(513) 381-9215
Salmon P. Chase College of Law, Northern Kentucky UniversityClemson UniversityKentucky and OhioKentucky Bar AssociationWhen You Think You're Going to Get Fired . . . and Resources for Families Affected by Drug Addiction
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Ohio State University - ColumbusOakland UniversityOhio, Indiana and OhioOhio State Bar
The LII Lawyer Directory contains lawyers who have claimed their profiles and are actively seeking clients. Find more Brady Lake Insurance Defense Lawyers in the Justia Legal Services and Lawyers Directory which includes profiles of more than one million lawyers licensed to practice in the United States, in addition to profiles of legal aid, pro bono and legal service organizations.
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General Contractor Winchester MA
General Contractor Winchester MA – Design Build Contractor
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Did God Really Demand the Death of His Son as a Sacrifice for Sin?
As you are perhaps aware, today is Good Friday, and as I said yesterday, I'm more interested in looking to Easter Sunday than in thinking too deeply about the crucifixion this year. But I thought this would be a good time to share my take on the why's of the cross. Why did Jesus die? Why did that result in the forgiveness of sins? etc. . .
One of the more poignant arguments against Christianity is that the Christian God demanded that his son be offered up as a human blood sacrifice in order for justice to be satisfied and forgiveness offered. In this view the Christian God is an angry, blood thirsty tyrant who must be sated before he becomes a loving father. Christians will of course argue that people who view the crucifixion this way are missing the point, don't understand God's righteous anger, are minimizing the need for justice, etc. However, I think that the real truth is that many Christians misunderstand the reasons for the crucifixion and our critics are simply making some pretty obvious observations about our own teachings regarding the propitiation of sins and the death of Jesus. I know that I'm treading on some pretty hallowed theological ground here, but if you'll stick with me, I think you may find that my upside down world understanding of this issue is a better fit with reality than what many of us have been taught.
Let's start our discussion with the issue of blood sacrifice itself. The first thing to be noted is that blood sacrifice is not something which originated with the Hebrew God. It had been practiced for millennia prior and has occurred all over the world. It is a human invention. In his excellent book Ideas That Changed the World, Felipe Fernandez-Armesto offers the anthropological explanation for the pervasiveness of the practice of blood or animal sacrifice:
Gifts are a common way of establishing reciprocity and cementing relationships between individuals and human groups; by extension, a gift should also work to bind gods and spirits to the human givers, connecting deities to the profane world and alerting them to its needs and concerns. . . During the last 10 millennia . . . sacrifice has acquired a great many meanings: as penance for sin; as thanksgiving; as homage to divinity; as a contribution to the well-being of the Universe; or as a sacrilized gift, considered as an act of worship or of imitation of God.
One of the things which we need to understand about God as revealed in scriptures is that over and over again, God does not wait for us to become acceptable or advanced enough to establish a relationship with him. Instead, he reaches out to meet us where we are and bit by bit draws us forward towards him and away from our previous ideas and ways of doing things. The rituals of animal sacrifices did not reflect a need or demand of God. Instead, by instituting rituals of animal sacrifice God is co-opting a human institution and way of doing things and directing it back to himself with the ultimate result that the human institution drops away while the devotion to God remains.
If we look in scripture the first offering made to God is made by Cain and Abel, which did not turn out so well. But it was not an offering in response to a demand of God. We don't know what prompted them to make their offerings to begin with; perhaps they were imitating the actions of others around them. The second instance of animal sacrifice which appears in scripture is when God makes his covenant with Abram. Again it is not a sacrifice made in response to a demand on God's part. The purpose of this sacrifice isn't Abram seeking to appease or please God, but God's way of demonstrating his commitment to Abram and the promises made to him. The specific actions of the ritual – cutting the animals in half and passing between them – are noted in other contemporary accounts as a form of sealing an agreement between two parties. The implication was that if either party broke the covenant, they would be cut in half like the sacrificed animals had been. So, we see clearly here God using a ritual of mankind's own making that Abram would understand and be comfortable with. The first example we have of God demanding a ritual sacrifice is when God tells Abram, now Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac. At this time, God then provides a substitution for the sacrifice and the boy's life is spared. In fact, the first actual instructions from God regarding ritual animal sacrifice don't come until the law is given through Moses hundreds of years later. By that time, the Hebrews had been living among the Egyptians for many, many generations and would have been heavily influenced by Egyptian religious practices which included animal sacrifices.
I've gone through all of this out simply to establish that animal or blood sacrifice did not originate with demands from God at all. Instead, they are almost certainly an example of God meeting people where they were and using what they were already familiar with to turn them towards himself. God didn't need animals sacrificed to him. But people needed assurances that they were acceptable, forgiven and in right relationship with their God. God uses the already familiar rituals of animal sacrifices to meet the needs of the people, not to meet his own blood thirsty demands.
So we get to the time of Jesus. One of the pressing issues of the religious community during Jesus day was the keeping of the law. The Hebrews were, of course, living under Roman occupation and the keeping of the law had in many ways become a nationalistic rather than a spiritual pursuit. This is part of what accounts for the zealousness of parts of the religious establishment; breaking the Hebrew law was not simply a demonstration of a lack of faith – it was akin to treason. Keeping the peculiar laws of the Hebrew bible was what ensured that the Hebrews would remain a separate nation that could take its rightful place when the Messiah arrived and lead them to victory over their oppressors. In this environment, the law and the sacrifices no longer served to turn the people's hearts and devotions towards God, but often served largely secular, political purposes. Once again, God reached out to meet humanity where it was in a way it could understand in order to turn us back to himself again. Enter the Word made flesh – Jesus.
Since the topic at hand is whether God demanded the sacrifice of his son to provide for the forgiveness of our sins, I'm going to skip straight to the death of Jesus here. The first thing we must understand about the death of Jesus is who it originated with. The reality is that throughout Jesus' ministry there were people who wanted him dead. There are quite a few places in the gospels where Jesus slipped out of town in order to escape those who would kill him. Once again, the fact remains that it was human desire which sought the death of Jesus and not the demands of God. In fact, there was nothing about the execution of Jesus which conformed to the rules of God. Regular rules for trial were ignored. Jesus wasn't subjected to the scriptural means of death for one who blasphemed – that being stoning. Even the usual proscription against killing during the Passover feast was ignored. And it wasn't the fury of God which propelled events forward; it was the fury of men which did that. This was an event of human motivations and means from start to finish.
The claim that the crucifixion of Jesus was a sacrifice demanded by God, ignores the bald, ugly reality of what actually happened. The religious leaders, caring nothing for what God cares for – our hearts and need for redemption – had turned Jesus over to the powers of this world. The people in demanding his execution and the release of Barabbas committed an act of gross betrayal against Jesus who had never harmed anyone and healed many. It was the worst of human nature on display. The soldiers mocked Jesus, mocked his royalty, mocked the miraculous power he had demonstrated purely in service to needy humanity. The means of his death was a rather extreme example of man's capacity for cruelty towards fellow man. It was carried out by those just doing their jobs – the banality of evil at work 2000 years before we had a term for it. While Jesus suffered on the cross, we see further examples of the difference between God's ways and mankind's ways. Before he is even dead, the soldiers amuse themselves with a bit of vice, gambling for his clothes. When he asks for some small comfort – a drink – he is met with yet another example of how people will treat those suffering and offered a dose of vinegar which will not alleviate his suffering but simply makes it worse. All in all, rather than an example of a sacrifice demanded by God, the death of Jesus is a fantastic display of the worst behaviors and traits that humans can muster up. There was nothing about it that reflected God's desire or demands. This was the work of human beings through and through.
And yet . . . God takes this ugly, evil display of cruelty, vice, power, betrayal, self-interest and arrogance and does what he is wont to do with the things we humans come up with. He uses it to turn us towards himself. It's as if he says, "are you done now? Are you satisfied? Have you vented your fury and poured out your sinfulness on me to your satisfaction? Fine. Then it is done. You poured out your sin on me and my son. And now, I have redeemed even the worst that you can do. He is risen. He is Lord of Lords and King of Kings now. You sin has no power. It has no power to defeat me and it has no power to separate us any longer. Turn away from it and seek after me."
This claim that God reacts to this lurid display of human cruelty and sin by declaring it as the means by which we are reconciled to him may seem to be a stretch, but tomorrow I'll use the story of the prodigal son to explain why this reaction is exactly the way that God behaves with us. I would do it today, but this post is already way too long. But I do have it written already, so if you aren't already subscribed, you should go do that and it will be delivered into your inbox tomorrow. I know you'll be waiting with baited breath for its arrival!
Next: The Sacrifice of Jesus and the Story of the Prodigal Son


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The Draft Lite comes equipped with alloy cranks, a high flange fix/free flip-flop hub, and high-profile, double wall rims. The removable SE cable clips allow for a smooth & clean frame if you choose to remove the brakes and ride it as a fixed gear. Single speed or fixed, the Draft Lite has got you covered.
Sizes: 43cm (650c), 49cm, 52cm, 55cm, 58cm
Color(s): Green Metal, Yellow, Black Sparkle, Chrome (Chrome $359)
Frame: Urban Single Speed Design, Butted Top Tube and Down Tube, Water Bottle & Fender Mounts, Wide Tire Clearance
Fork: SE straight Leg Hi-Ten w/ Fender Mounts & Wide Tire Clearance
Crankset: SE Alloy, Euro Cartridge BB, 42T
Pedals: SE Resin Platform
Chain: KMC Z410A
Wheelset: SE High-flange Alloy Fixed/Free 36H Hubs w/ Extra High-profile Double-wall Rims, 16T Freewheel & 16T Fixed Cog
Tires: Vera City Wide 700 x 28c (43cm Bike: Kenda Kriterium 650 x 28c)
Brakes: Promax Alloy RC-453 Caliper w/ Quick-Release F & R
Brake Levers: Tektro 289A 2-Finger Alloy F & R
Headset: Tange 1-1/8" Threadless
Handlebar: SE 23" x 1.5" Riser Bar
Stem: SE Alloy, 25.4mm Clamp
Grips: SE Urban Mushroom Grip w/ SE Rubber End Plugs
Seat: SE Classic w/ Bottle Opener
Seat Post: SE Micro Adjust Alloy, 27.2mm
Extras: Removable SE Brake Cable Clips
Weight, lbs/kg: 27lbs / 12.24kgs (55cm)
Size Selection:
Bike size selection is a combination of measurement, rider preference, and rider style. The guide above is intended as a starting point, but it is recommended that you try out a few frame sizes in your range and pay attention to the frame size as well as the top tube length. Top tube length is a key measurement to find the right size frame since geometry can differ from one model to another.
This product was added to our catalog on November 4, 2015


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Although it's not expected to bring any helicopters at launch -- DTG's working on all the base stuff for now --, DTG's new title was just announced and we should expect to be able to put our hands on it this month!
Here's the full press-release:
Flight Sim World: Bringing the Skies to Life!
Chatham, Kent – 3rd May 2017 Dovetail Games, the multi award-winning simulation developer and publisher today announced that its much anticipated flight simulator, Flight Sim World™, will be released into Steam's Early Access program in the coming weeks.
Based on benchmark flight simulation technology, Flight Sim World will provide players with an unprecedented level of realism and detail. Its officially licensed GA aircraft will be the most authentic and detailed in-sim representations on the market, faithfully replicating their real world counterparts, with every gauge and switch fully operational.
Not only do these aircraft look like the real thing, but they also interact with the environment in an accurate way. A combination of atmospheric effects and advanced behind-the-scenes mechanics, result in a remarkably unique home simulation experience. Watch the raindrops race across your windscreen in stormy weather, while the physics engine challenges you with true-to-life aircraft behavior, including edge-of-envelope spins and stalls.
Whether you want to plan a peaceful flight somewhere sunny or test your skills with tricky situations fraught with bad weather and engine failures, the comprehensive Flight Planner gives you full control over weather, location and time of day, also allowing you to add random events that will make your time in the air even more challenging. For those who want to focus more on content creation, also included with Flight Sim World is the Pro Mission Editor, which is a professional tool which allows players to create more complex missions.
"The time has come for a new flight simulator which really focuses on the physical quality of the aircraft and a flight model which brings them to life", said Executive Producer Stephen Hood. "After doing some intensive work on the game engine – such as providing a much-needed 64 bit element – we now have a flight simulation platform which will allow us and our partners to focus on creating new and exciting ways for simmers to benefit from these advances. New features and expansions to Flight Sim World will be rolled out as part of the Early Access program and beyond, reinforcing our absolute commitment to the hobby.
In addition to providing core updates and expansions, Flight Sim World will build on Dovetail Games' extensive partnership publishing program, allowing high quality add-on developers and publishers to make available excellent additional content such as aircraft, airports, missions, and scenery.
"We have already built relationships with some of the best and brightest flight simulation developers in the industry", added Simon Sauntson, Head of Third Party at Dovetail Games. "Flight Sim World will expand on those partnerships as we continue to secure premium content for our players. In addition to growing existing partnerships, we are reaching out to the wider development community to foster new relationships and bring top quality content to FSW"
Available May 2017 on Steam Early Access
To follow the latest news and developments, please visit www.flightsimworld.com or follow us on facebook.com/flightsimworld
About Dovetail Games
Dovetail Games was launched in 2013. Previously trading as RailSimulator.com Ltd, the business launched in 2009 initially producing and marketing PC game Train Simulator. Today, Dovetail Games is responsible for developing train, flight and fishing simulation games for PC and leading consoles.
Do your stuff, DTG. Then give us some good helicopters!


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The ugly truth about health and fitness
Feeling guilty about "sneaking" some "forbidden" foods…
Exercising as a way to "make up for" all those calories you ate (or as punishment)…
Binge eating because "I've already messed up so much today, what's a little more?"…
This is what happens when you look at food not as food but as either a friend or a foe.
Too often, food becomes the villain in a bad B-movie. It tempts you. It controls you. It even laughs at you.
So you run to the nearest stationary bike, begging it to save you from the evil food villain. And you pedal like mad… or you do extra step classes all week… or you starve yourself for a day…
And next week the vicious cycle starts all over again. And you go to bed miserable, thinking, "I really messed up on my diet today. I'll try again tomorrow."
The problem is, "there's always something…"
Because then you have this conversation in your head:
"No… I can't try tomorrow because of that big lunch event at the office. I won't eat any breakfast or dinner to make up for all the food I know I'll eat at the party, and I'll get back on the bandwagon again the day after.
"But wait, the day after is Friday and we're going out with the Smiths to dinner. I'll have to get back on the bandwagon on Saturday.
"Oh, wait. Even if I eat well on Saturday, there's a soccer family potluck on Sunday afternoon. I promised to bring dessert and everyone is expecting me to bring the pistachio cake recipe they all love. And I hate to make it and not eat some of it… I'll just have to get back on the bandwagon on Monday…"
See? There's always something. And the way you get down on yourself because of it is "the ugly truth" about health and fitness.
So what can you do? How can you achieve your goal of shedding some pounds and feeling fit, without all the guilt, excuses, sneaking food behind people's backs, and resulting poor self-esteem?
Now this isn't a quick fix, but it IS the answer: It all depends on changing your perspective, your mindset.
Start by not telling yourself that some food is "good" and some is "bad". That leads to guilt when you choose to eat the "bad" food.
Food is just food. Period. Its purpose is to nourish you… body, mind, and soul. Don't let it nourish just your body and steal your soul.
The key is to recognize that you have choices, every day, about which foods to eat and how much, and which foods to avoid.
If you approach food with the desire to nourish yourself as best you can – body, mind, and soul – the choice becomes clear. You know which foods nourish your body. They are the single-ingredient foods. Like "raspberries", "carrots", "kale", "eggs", "onions", etc.
Eat mostly plants, and you will nourish your body. You'll also nourish your mind and soul, because you can feel great knowing you are taking care of yourself.
And once in a while, you get to choose a food that may not be as healthy for your body; indulging occasionally keeps you from feeling deprived. Enjoy those moments! Don't feel guilty about them.
Let's face it, losing weight and getting fit is hardly about the physical stuff at all. It's not really about how many times you lift weights or how much tofu you eat.
It's about what's going on in your head. What you think and believe about what you're eating and the exercise you're doing.
Think the thought, "I love giving my body nourishing foods because it makes me feel great" over and over, and eventually it becomes a belief.
Then that belief leads to an action, where you make a choice that is good for you.
I know this isn't easy, and maybe you need some help sorting out how to make this type of mindset a reality in your daily life. We'd love to help you!
Give us a call or shoot us an email. click on "Locations" on our website for number and email address.
To Your Health,
The AFC Team!
Enough with the guilt and punishment. Let's make eating food fun again!


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This powerful icon of the Crucifixion from the first half of the 18th century is on the iconostasis at Iveron Monastery, Mount Athos. Carefully balanced, but dynamic in assymetry, the curves and lines of the Virgin, St. John, the Lord, and even the rocks and footstool give this composition strength to say in form that this event is still living and meaningful. In Orthodox iconography there is a certain animate dynamism which symbolically represents the fact that at the end of time and the fullness of revelation of truth, all events from Christ's life are eternal and meaningful, and all sentient beings who have chosen Heaven will continuously grow there forever. This is never static, but always dynamic.
The Virgin Mary falls backward overcome by grief as she beholds her innocent Divine Son cruelly tortured and killed before her eyes. His Blood comes forth from His Side and flows down to cover Adam's skull which Golgotha was named for, beginning the process of Adam's rising again to Paradise in the Resurrection of the dead. The walls of Jerusalem are seen in the background. Who will weep for her now that they have rejected Christ?


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Welcome to our Skywatch campaign
If you're taking part in the SPA Winter Skywatch, here's the place to share your observing experiences and chat with others about them.
Moderators: joe, Brian, Guy Fennimore
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- Site Admin
- Posts: 923
- Joined: Sat Jul 24, 2004 6:06 pm
- Location: Walmer, Kent
- Contact:
Welcome to our Skywatch campaign
Hi to everyone taking part in the SPA's first ever Skywatch campaign. Winter Skywatch 2021 is our bid to get people looking up in lockdown. We may not be able to go anywhere, but we can tour the night sky. Our free downloadable Winter Skywatch guide will help. This section of the SPA Forum is for anyone taking part to tell us about their observing experiences, to ask questions, or just to chat about the campaign. Good luck!
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1 post • Page 1 of 1