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|Mod Options
|vBExperience 3.8 Details »
vBExperience 3.8 (aka xPerience)
Created by Marius Czyz aka Phalynx.
Triple Winner of the "Mod of the Month"-Award (March 2008, September 2009, July 2010) on vBulletin.org.
A version for vBulletin 4.0 has been released! Thread: http://www.vbulletin.org/forum/showthread.php?t=245023
vBExperience 3.8.6 is currently (August 2010) in development.
vBExperience is your feature packaged solution for motivation and satisfying your users. vBExperience is an advanced Level/Promotion and Activity System with Shop, Awards and Activities. It will calculate an activity and experience score for every user based on their activites on the forum. Now your users will see how their level is increasing by participating on your forum.
This mod was developed by me because I was never satisfied with the post count. Communities are not only defined by post count, they need much more parameters: Are the postings the user creates helpful? Are his threads frequently read? Does the user participate on the community by posting pictures, attachments, leaving visitor messages, tagging threads? All this can be answered with this mod.
Comments, suggestions, translations, bugs, etc... are very welcome! Support is only given to people who have clicked Mark as Installed.
This mod will work with vBulletin 3.7.x and 3.8.x. For vBulletin 3.6 you will need vBExperience 3.7
Demo 3.8.6:
Other Demo Site:
There are mainly four things visible for the users: The users score, his level, his next level up in %/points and his activity in %.
Calculation of the score
Taken into calculation are these things:
- Created threads
- Thread views of own threads
- Thread replies of own threads
- Thread votes of own threads
- Thread tags
- Replies to own threads
- Sticky threads
- Socialgroup Discussions (Discussions, Posts)
- Created posts
- Views on attachments
- Days since registration
- Average posts per Day (for users who are on forum for at least seven days)
- Referrals
- Received infractions
- Reputation / Use of reputation system
- Visitor messages on profiles
- Members of own social groups
- Albumpictures
- Friends
- Completing Profile
- Calendar entries
Additionally there is support for 3rd party addons (some are already installed):
- vB Tournaments and Ladders (via CDP Addon)
- Post Ranking System (via CDP Addon)
- Helpful Answers (via CDP Addon)
- AWCoding-Donation System LITE and PRO (via CDP Addon)
- Cyb Paypal Donate (included)
- DownloadsII (included)
- ibProArcade Highscorer Points (via CDP Addon)
- LDM Links and Downloads Manager (included)
- PhotoPlog 2.1 (via CDP Addon)
- PhotoPost vBGallery (via CDP Addon)
- PhotoPost Pro (via CDP Addon)
- Post Thank You / Use of Post Thank You (via CDP Addon)
- QuoteIt! 3.16 (via CDP Addon)
- SAPR: Advanced Post Rating system (via CDP Addon)
- thanks via vS-Hide Hack Resurrection (Expanded Edition) (included)
- v3arcade Highscorer Points (via CDP Addon)
- v3arcade Submissions Points (via CDP Addon)
- vBulletin Blog (included)
- Who Downloaded This Attachment? (included)
- Other Addons can be easily added via CDP - Custom Data Provider plugins.
Additionally you can install these modifications:
- Thread Necromancer: Gives (minus-) points when a user is posting in old threads.
- Scrupulous Poster: Gives points for editing posts. Award users that are editing own posts instead of doing double post.
- Deletion Addicted: Gives points when an user/nod soft-deletes post, thread, visitormessage, groupmessage or picturecomment.
- Arm of Law: Give points for moderators who are using the infraction system
- Discussion Ender: Give points for people who are the last on a discussion
- RadioActivity: Reduce points for every day the user is not online
Also, there are already addons available that are working as Custom Data Provider (CDP). A CDP can extend vBExperience by collecting data and adding it to the vBExperience datastore. All point providers can be used for Awards and Shop.
You have to install these hacks for your own, vBExperience doesn't install nor touches these.
There are three vBAdvanced 3.0 XML modules: Most Active Users, Most Experienced Users and Last 20 Activities. Import them via vBAdvanced AdminCP.
There are six default awards: Most Popular, Activity Award, Posting Award, Community Award, Frequent Poster, Blog Award, Calendar Award. The awards are shown in Rankings and Profile. You can set them also to display in postbit near the username. There is a scheduled job running once a day (02:30h) to calculate them.
Via AdminCP they are completely customizeable and can also be assigned manually.
Awards can be created for every data provider.
Showing User, Level, Awards, Activity Points (experience, thread, post, user, misc) - sortable.
Since 3.8.3, there is a also a ranking for Social Groups
A virtual Shop will motivate your users to earn more points. You can define categories and put virtual items with pictures in it. A currency can be defined seperatly for every item, e.g. 20 points from threads or 100 points from gallery. Users can purchase the items, they appear in their profile. The costs of the item are substracted from their xperience points. Additionally you can set quantity of the items.
The Shop will motivate your users to collect specific points to buy an item. Optionally you can show the last purchased items on postbit.
You can put virtual items in it, like WoW addons: Sell WoW Items in exchange of f.e. thread points. Great for RPG forums.
Non-Virtual Items like bold Usernames or Downloads for Points are already on my todo list.
Earn Points
There is an overview for the user on how points can be collected, with a list of users own points. All data is beeing pulled from the database (settings, phrases)
The statistics is showing a Top-X list of the leading users. Usefull for optimizing points of the point provider. Only enabled point providers with results will be displayed.
Promotion system
To motivate users to do more on your forum I created the promotion system. By reaching defined xperience points the user will be moved to another usergroup - where you can set graphics, shadows, highlighting, etc... What is interesting in combination with this: you can give the user more possibilities f.e. larger avatars or bigger PM box. A log of the promotions is available.
Calculation of the activity
The system calculates the activity by taking the average post count/visitormessages/group discussion/Blog entries of the ten most active user and comparing it to own post count. This can be set to count only the last X days, f.e. 21 days.
You can control how many points are given to every calculation. For example you can give many points for creating new threads but only a few for views of that thread. Setting a value to 0 will disable a setting.
Additionally, you can set ignore users (f.e. for bot users), forums (f.e. offtopic forums) and usergroup id's.
Performance, Big Boards
vBExperience has been tested on smaller and also on some bigger sites. I know from boards with around 120k users running this mod smoothly. More about this topic can be read in the file readme_optimization.txt
Frequently asked questions
Q: How do I change the name Experience to something new?
A: You can change the name via phrases. Just search and replace all phrases that contains vBExperience.
Q: When installing vBExperience, does everyone start from scratch, or will it automatically configure everyone's points based on actions before the install?
A: If you recount, vBExperience will calculate ALL existing data since the beginning of the board.
Known Issues:
- Awards: On "Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread" awards are only shown for the user who is viewing this.
- Awards: If activated in with rich username, they are attached to the username. If the username is linked, the awards are also linked. If a link is underlined, the awards are also underlined. This behaviour is hardcoded in vBulletin and cannot be fixed.
- Settings are showing only a blank page, read here: http://www.vbulletin.com/forum/proje...6979#note74140
- If you completely remove vBExperience, you need also to uninstall the product XML manually from the pluginssystem
Credits for icons
- FAMFAMFAM, http://www.famfamfam.com/lab/icons/silk/
- IconExperience
18.104.22.168 / 3.8.5 Beta 5, 10th July 2011
- Prio 1 security patch, please update just xperience.php!
3.8.5 Beta 4, 25th September 2009
- Promotions: Listing now also the last Usergroup. Please notice the new settings for nethermost/uppermost usergroups.
- Several minor cosmetic changes
- Clear Activities (except Shop)
- Fixed error with GetActivityAll() on profile
- Several Beta 3 fixes
3.8.5 Beta 3, 18th September 2009
- Fixed Promotions
- Fixed Notifications
- Added Activities to Promotions
- All Activities are not obeying limit
- AdminCP/Experience has a recount for Promotions and Achievements
- Fixed listing of Achievements with Firefox
- Several Beta 2 fixes
3.8.5 Beta 2, 02nd September 2009
- Just a short note: Condition in Achievements and Promotions are calculated in POINTS, not in counts of items.
If you choose 10 Day, you must enter the points needed for this.
For example: You have an achievement for 10 days. You have set 2 points for every day since registering. Calculation: 10*2 = 20
You will have to set 20 as the condition.
- New tabbed interface. If you want to change the style, edit the template xperience_navbar_css
- Promotions now showing usergroups and conditions for a promotion to the next group
- You can import old vBExperience Legacy promotions (that were created within level.xml)
- Achievements in Profile
- Achievements below Avatar
- Several Beta 1 fixes
3.8.5 Beta 1, 28th August 2009
- Achievements!
- Promotions!
- Notification on Awards, Promotions and Achievements
- GAP: Empty pointfields will not be displayed anymore
- Activity: Showing percent values with a decimal
- Activities now also for users
- Awards below Avatar
- Default Awards are now also creating new category
- Shop: Fixed issue in not returning cash on sells
- Reworked Edit Shop Items
For more see history.txt
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|Similar Mod
|Last Post
|Add-On Releases vBExperience
|vBulletin 3.7 Add-ons
|08 Jun 2013 09:53
|Add-On Releases vBExperience
|vBulletin 3.6 Add-ons
|09 Jan 2009 13:14
Sorry to bug you again, but could you possibly add for future hacks under postbit to view users points thanks, I think that would be nice. Also, is there such a template change to do this with 3.8?
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nice release i was waiting for it, maybe you could add itemtypes so users will be able to buy subscriptions with points
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Upgraded without any problem! Thank you!
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Nice work I have a suggestion which would make this even more awesome cold you add a ranking system similar to the one inn vbulletin? So if the user has so many points there this or that rank depending on which group they choose to be in?
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Does anyone know of any template edit so that it views the users points on the postbit???
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Phalynx, could you please address my issue. This must have been an oversite in the 3.7 support thread.
This bug only started appearing in 3.8 release.
The modification over-writes all other modifactions in the left-hand side. Also, it covers modifcations in Postbit_legacy as well.
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^^ I Noticed that as well.
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/me clicks install
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installed and nominated
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ready to go!
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text:
Karen Lord's amazing new novel The Best of All Possible Worlds includes a lot of visits to wildly different cultures on an alien planet, where lots of offshoots of the endangered Sadiri race have extreme mental and telepathic powers. But what happens when some of those telepathic aliens decide to create their own fairie kingdom? A whole lot of social awkwardness and weirdness, that's what.
Check out an exclusive excerpt from Best of All Possible Worlds — which is io9's book club pick for March!
Her hair was a cloud of silver foam growing back from her temples in tiny soft curls, then expanding up and out in fierce glory. Few crowns of the traditional mold could encompass it, but none was necessary when diamonds of all colors, rose and white and gold, sparkled freely throughout her tresses, transforming the cloud to a starry nebula. Her eyebrows were golden and perfectly shaped, each one a gentle, delicate arc. Dark pupils stood out starkly in sea- gray irises; long, light brown eyelashes framed all with a sleepy sultriness. Her look was forgiving of the ordinariness of others and understanding of their natural desire to adore her. Slender limbs made her sprawl elegant; the very fineness of her bones drew the eye along her lines and subtle curves. Her skin defied common sense; it combined translucency with an amber tint, revealing an intricate tracery of blood vessels under the paler skin of her inner arm. She would have made an artist weep for shame that neither brush nor tint could do her justice.
A catalog of my own flaws began to scroll through my mind. The uneven texture of my hair, whose inability to decide whether to curl or ripple meant that a crew cut was the best out of a bunch of bad options. The mundane brown of that same hair. Flat, broad eyebrows strongly marking my face, eyes that needed the help of kohl to become remarkable. Thick bones and muscles that spoke of sturdiness rather than grace — ha, the irony! Cedarbrown skin that might have been just acceptable if it hadn't been for the faint dusting of freckles across my nose and cheeks.
Ah, there. I consoled myself. We had very much the same nose, a happy medium that was neither big nor small, broad nor pointed, just well proportioned and joined harmoniously to the forehead with a gentle dip. I held on to the image of my nose and tried to feel confident as I looked down it at her — insofar as it is possible to look down at someone seated on a throne elevated on a dais.
"The Tlaxce Visiting Mission of the Central Government of Cygnus Beta thanks Your Majesty for her kind invitation and wishes to avail itself of the opportunity to renew to the Seelie Court the assurances of its highest consideration."
The impressive part wasn't the high diplomatic language. It was the fact that I was able to resurrect enough of my Cymraeg to say this without pause or stammer.
The Faerie Queen inclined her head graciously. "Be welcome," she said.
It had been blissfully mundane for almost three weeks, exactly what I needed after the excitement of waterfall jumping. We had flown the shuttle south and made our way across open farmland, visiting settlements with scant humanity and an overabundance of ruminants. I might have glanced once or twice at the gray edge of wooded hills to the west. I might even have wondered a little, but when Qeturah told me that we had obtained clearance to go to Faerie, my immediate reaction had been that it was a Bad Idea with a capital B I, because I was damned if I was going to explain to the Sadiri how a community of their people had ditched their own culture wholesale to actualize an obscure Terran myth. But I was stuck with the job, so I went ahead and tried my best.
"Reports are sketchy. Faerie has been closed for more than a century, because visitors tended to treat it a bit like a theme park." Smart visitors, I thought cynically to myself. "But they say that for centuries the land was populated by two taSadiri clans who were constantly at war with each other. They had endured a particularly bad run of hostilities when a strange Cygnian turned up with an intriguing solution to their problem. Since the main cause of their war was the question of which clan's rituals and dialect should take precedence, the compromise was for both clans to learn an entirely new identity."
Tarik was utterly disbelieving. "This makes no sense. Do you mean to tell me that two taSadiri tribes abandoned millennia of tradition for a society drawn from folktales and fictional writings?"
"I'm afraid so," I said, trying not to smirk at his appalled expression.
As a belief, it was rather seductive, actually. Long- lived, superior, and mentally dominant over the weaker Terrans, the Elves were clearly an indication of some covert pre- embargo Sadiri visit to Terra. If you're out of your skull, that is.
"Who was the Cygnian who told them this?" asked Dllenahkh.
"Some crackpot academic descended from the Druids of Ynys Môn who made it his business to know all ancient and modern manifestations of Celtic culture. They say his forefathers founded New Camelot. I don't know. Frankly, I find it all a bit silly, but they've heard about us and they've invited us, and we can't very well say no."
Fortunately, I had set their expectations so low that when the shuttle set down on the bald brow of a tree- ringed hill, we were relieved to be greeted by ordinary Cygnians dressed in contemporary attire and with only slightly glossy hair, drawn up in a welcoming party around the Queen's throne. They did, however, hold firmly to their own language, and until Tarik could get a translation program up and running, that meant yours truly was the main conduit of communication on our end.
The Faerie Queen was eloquent but slightly insane, and this made translation difficult. After descending the dais to greet the Commissioner gravely, she turned her attention to the rest of the team as introductions were made. Initially, she nodded perfunctorily at each name, but then she began to walk among us, her slender height both imposing and fragile. Lian earned a lingering look, Nasiha another grave nod, but at Fergus she stopped and considered. With a sideways glance at Qeturah, she murmured, "Probably hers," and went to Joral. Taking the poor young man by the chin, she examined him and proclaimed, "Young," before moving on to Tarik. Nasiha, who was quicker on the uptake than the rest of us, seized her husband's hand and stared challengingly at the woman, who merely smiled and came to stand before Dllenahkh. Keeping her gaze on him, she beckoned me over.
"You represent the newly arrived Sadiri on Cygnus Beta?" she asked him.
I translated, and Dllenahkh nodded. "I do, Your Majesty."
She was perhaps three centimeters taller than he was, not counting the fifteen centimeters that was hair alone, but he was three times broader and just as self- possessed. She suddenly smiled brilliantly, as if deigning to recognize him as an equal.
"I will speak to you," she declared. "You," she addressed me, still without looking at me, "will translate. The rest of you are granted the freedom of the Seelie Court until our discussions are completed."
I repeated this in Standard for the benefit of the team, looking anxiously at Qeturah. She smiled reassuringly, but her eyes signaled caution as she said, "Tell her that in accordance with government practice we would be happy to set up shelter near the shuttle."
The Queen was appalled at the idea. "Nonsense!" she said, looking at Qeturah as if she were both mad and discourteous. "It is far too dangerous to stay on the ground at night. We have prepared lodgings for you."
Qeturah's gaze followed her pointing hand, looking up walkways into the heights of huge trees where wooden platforms spanned branches and surrounded trunks in a vast tree city. "Thank her kindly for us, First Officer Delarua," she said somewhat breathlessly.
Our platform — or t'bren as they called it — had no barrier rails, something that seemed to worry no one but us, but they did offer us rope netting to string over and around our bedding, perhaps as a deterrent to sleepwalking. I was careful with mine that first night, hooking it securely to a branch above and tucking it under the bedding. This made waking up suddenly at midnight even more exciting as I promptly got tangled up in the mesh.
"What is it? What's happened?" I whispered frantically as I unknotted myself.
Fergus's deep murmur was slow and calming. "Someone's trying to break into the shuttle. Lian and I are going to check it out."
I hesitated, then flung off the netting with one final effort and felt my way to the edge. A hand rested warningly on my back, another hand muffled my start at a scream, and a voice whispered in Cymraeg, "Stay."
It was likely someone we'd met during the day, but the night was dark and all faces dim. Probably the only person who'd stand out would be the Queen, with her bright hair.
"What is it?" I whispered. "Do you know?"
"Unseelie," came the whispered answer.
For a moment I was baffled, and then I grimaced. "Ah. The bad guys."
"Yes. They rule the land at night and go underground at dawn. They do not come up to our treetops, and we do not descend to their caves. Thus we preserve some measure of peace."
"I thought the whole point of becoming Elves was to stop the conflict."
The hand on my back shifted as if vibrating with laughter. "I will tell you about it tomorrow. It makes a good tale."
"Who are you? How will I know you in daylight?"
"I am the teller of tales and singer of songs. You will make a good song, I can feel it. Which one is yours?"
Disjointedness of thought and speech seemed to be an Elvish trait, but I understood when a shadowy hand waved to the rest of the group, who were awake and quietly talking into comms and to one another. "Tarik and Nasiha are husband and wife. The rest — we belong only to ourselves."
"Ah." There was a hint of laughter in that response, and I wondered too late how strong these Elves were in telepathy and empathy. I sat up and put some distance between myself and the strange Elf with his overly friendly hand.
"Here come your guards," said the storyteller- singer, and there indeed were Fergus and Lian returning.
"Perimeter alarms scared them off," said Fergus. "Someone tried a light mental tweak on us, but it didn't take."
I quickly explained the little I had just learned.
"That's not reassuring," said Qeturah, a frown in her voice. "Remember the legend of faerie glamour? Let's stay together as much as possible and be on the alert for influence."
With the immediate danger over, the Sadiri soon composed themselves to rest with their usual economy of fuss. Qeturah drew Lian aside for a quiet conference. There was little chance of my getting to sleep in a hurry, what with all the adrenaline of the past few minutes, so I shifted a little closer to Fergus. He was putting away some of his gear and politely ignoring me, as usual. I'd long ago figured out that for a man like Fergus, a man who shunned unnecessary talk, I was a walking nightmare.
"I'm a bit surprised," I began, adjusting my voice to copy his measured cadence, hoping not to startle or vex him. "Some of the taSadiri we've encountered . . . well, it's one thing not to have the mental disciplines, but they seem almost . . . uncivilized."
There was a silence as he paused for a moment in his work. "Are you joking?" he said at last, sounding wary.
I was baffled. "No. What did I say?"
"They've got all kinds of ways to reform criminals now, but what do you think the Sadiri used to do with their delinquents in the old days?"
I was struck mute. The concept of a lawbreaking Sadiri had not even crossed my mind. The perpetual stereotype of the judging, superior Sadiri was too strong, even in me.
"They used to ship them off- planet, fast and far. A lot of their so- called science outposts and religious retreats were nothing more than places to dump undesirables, people who didn't quite fit in. Worked out for the best, ironically. Pity the demographics are so skewed."
I exhaled very slowly. "You're telling me that of the Sadiri who survived, there are diplomats and judges, pilots and scientists, nuns and monks . . . and jailbirds?"
"Yep. Almost makes you laugh, doesn't it?"
I felt a bit foolish. Fair enough; it was Cygnian culture and language that was my speciality, but I had begun to pride myself on becoming a bit of an expert in Sadiri matters over the past few months. "How do you know all this?" I asked resentfully.
"Used to work in Galactic Patrol," he replied. "Been far and wide myself, even as far as Ain. Lots of interesting tales about how Ain got founded, but I think it's obvious."
"You do?" I thought I knew what he was going to say. Political differences arise, conflict follows, and the more adventurous faction goes off to make a new world of their choosing — or the losing side gets kicked out. That was Punartam's story, and which version you got depended on whether the person doing the telling was from Punartam or Ntshune.
"Prison colony for the worst offenders. Probably people like your — " He stopped, stiffened.
"Like Ioan," I said, my stomach plummeting as if the tree had suddenly removed its support from under our feet.
"Something like that," he said, wary again. Maybe he feared I was going to get all confiding or burst into tears. "Go to sleep," he concluded abruptly. "I can't keep proper watch with people nattering in my ear all night."
I was now suspicious that the Queen's overwhelming presence was glamour- assisted. I tagged along behind her and Dllenahkh the following morning as they walked in the mellow light below the trees and he told her about Sadira, the Sadiri settlement in Tlaxce, and New Sadira. As I translated, I absently probed at my emotions but found nothing amiss.
After she dismissed us and swept off with her small entourage, I asked him directly. "How does the Queen strike you?"
"Cautious," he replied. "She has clearly heard reports, but she assumes nothing and waits for me to confirm. A very scientific approach."
"Well, yes, but is there anything more? How does she feel to you?"
He raised a faintly puzzled eyebrow. "Bored. Lonely."
"Do you find her beautiful?" I asked at last.
"Ah," he said in dawning comprehension. "You are worried about the possibility of glamour. No, she uses none."
"Well, if any of us could tell, it would be you," I grumbled. "Do me a favor. When you get a chance, ask her about the Unseelie Court."
We were invited to a formal dinner that night. I could not help smiling at the seating arrangements. Qeturah was given a couch on a smaller dais with Lian and Fergus nearby, and the Elves who attended her were mostly male and, well, damn good- looking. Nasiha had the smallest dais with Tarik at her side, Joral slightly below, and again some very good- looking attendants. I had no such luck. Perhaps this matriarchal society required that I have at least one pet male of my own to qualify for special treatment, or perhaps I was still too useful as a translator. I was stuck just a little back from Dllenahkh, who was seated at the Queen's right hand. On the bright side, it seemed that the most attractive attendants had been reserved for the Queen's dais, so during lulls in conversation I amused myself by ranking them. One of them, an eight point five on my scale, was quietly tuning a stringed instrument resembling a cithara. He caught my eye and smiled. My eyes widened, and I elbowed a startled Dllenahkh in the ribs.
"Quick! Ask her about the Unseelie Court!" I hissed.
He complied, with only a disapproving quirk of the corner of his mouth to chastise me for my behavior, and I dutifully translated. The Queen's eyes went from lazy to furious for a moment, then she instantly regained her calm.
"It is true," she said. "It appears that war, when deprived of one reason, simply seeks out another. We are still a people divided, having selected different aspects of legend to embody. And yet it is better than it once was."
"How so, Your Majesty?" asked Dllenahkh.
Clapping her hands, she caught the minstrel's attention. "Tell them a story of the Elder Days, the one about the woman with three sons."
The minstrel set down his instrument, stood, and addressed the court in a mellifluous tenor.
"A woman had three sons, and when they were grown, the first came to her and said, 'Mama, I love a girl and wish to marry her.' She replied, 'Son, this gladdens my heart, but of what lineage is she?' 'Alas, Mama,' he told her. 'She is half Terran.' His mother raised her hands and shook her head and said, 'A tragedy, but I will cope.'
"The second son came some time after to inform her of his desire to marry, and, worse yet, the bride he had selected was half Terran, half Ntshune, with no taSadiri in her at all. But again his mother raised her hands, shook her head, and said, 'A tragedy, but I will cope.'
"Finally, the third son came to her and said he was engaged. When she inquired about the girl's lineage, he answered smugly, 'She is all taSadiri, Mama.' 'Wonderful news,' his mother cried. 'Of what family?' 'She is of the Other clan,' he confessed. Whereupon his mother rose up with her blade and slew him without another word."
The bard waited for me to finish translating, then spoke low for my ears. "I hope you have rendered it well. It is one of my best tales, handed down from my grandmother."
"Tale or family history?" I murmured teasingly in reply. He merely smiled enigmatically.
"Conflicts are less intense, less bloody than before. Some blame the admixture of our blood; others credit our new traditions," the Queen said.
"And some say there is yet a third reason," murmured the bard as he returned to his instrument.
"Peace, child, all in good time. What my impertinent greatgrandson wishes me to tell you is that some of the women of the Seelie Court are long- lived, specifically the women of my house." The Queen looked around at her attendants. Suddenly, their devotion and her goddesslike air no longer seemed unwarranted.
"In many cultures it is considered discourteous to ask a woman her age," Dllenahkh said. "If I may beg your pardon in advance, would you satisfy my curiosity?"
I took care to translate the elegant framing of Dllenahkh's request. I believe I succeeded, for the Queen smiled at him and said graciously, "I am nearly three hundred and forty- seven Standard years."
"Cygnian law prohibits extending the life span by genetic means," Qeturah noted. "It is a risky proposition, with uneven results."
The Queen shrugged. "What was done was done so long ago. Were we perhaps seeking to restore the years that the mixing of our blood had taken from us? And yes, the results are uneven, as you can witness. But it has provided a core of stability in our society."
"You are a land of true matriarchs. Is that why there is no king in your court?" Dllenahkh inquired.
The Queen seemed delighted at this question. "There have been two in the past, but these days I follow the example of other women of my House and content myself with my attendants." There was a slight choking sound as Fergus inhaled his drink, no doubt finally realizing the significance of his placing at the Commissioner's feet. Qeturah smiled and patted his shoulder. "Hush, dear; no explanations. This is no time for me to lose face."
"What a life," Lian said to me afterward. "I've never seen a woman with a harem who so obviously deserved it. I hope she keeps a close eye on her family tree. It would be very awkward to seduce one's great- grandnephew."
"They're a small population," I agreed. "I wouldn't be surprised if there was a little mutual kidnapping going on with the other Elves."
"Yep. Anything for fresh blood," Lian said.
I frowned to myself, not quite knowing why.
The discussions continued. What made matters particularly difficult was the fact that the Queen became enthralled by the sound of the Sadiri language and pressed Dllenahkh to speak only in that tongue. Cymraeg is very poetic, even romantic, and Standard less so, though serviceable enough. Sadiri is absolutely perfect as a programming language, but when it comes to matters of the heart, it falls a little short. This became obvious when the tenor of the conversation began to change.
"Why don't you tell me I'm beautiful?" she said randomly one day.
"It would be appropriate if you were to comment on the aesthetics of my person," I communicated to Dllenahkh.
His eyebrows rose the merest fraction. "The fact that you are an extremely attractive woman is sufficiently obvious that it does not require my repeating it."
"Need I tell you what so many others have told you before?" I replied to her.
She laughed lightly. I bit my lip in frustration.
"Any progress with that translator?" I asked Tarik moodily as he worked on his handheld, comfortably seated on edge of the t'bren with his legs dangling over high green infinity.
He gave me a steady look. "It will not be ready before the end of our sojourn here."
"Blast," I muttered. "I'm so tired of this."
On the last day of our stay, the Queen seemed in a reflective mood. She took Dllenahkh and me up to the highest t'bren, whose view extended beyond the trees, across the valley, and to the gray- shadowed horizon with its high, distant mountains. A small group of attendants followed as usual, and her minstrel played his cithara in the background, singing in some variant of Cymraeg that was unfamiliar to me. The business of the Elven-Sadiri exchange had long been concluded, with the result that the only talk remaining between them was small talk. Dllenahkh noted in grave Sadiri fashion that the music was pleasingly harmonious.
"It is a love song," she said to him, but her eyes were on me, her smile mocking though not yet cruel. "Shall I translate it for you?"
She signaled to the minstrel with a languid movement of her hand, and he began again, singing softly to the complex melody while she translated in perfect Standard:
"The mind is a golden vein
seamed in crumbling rock (also known as rotting quartz)."
And why had it amused her to have me tagging along as an imperfect interpreter when she could easily have spoken for herself in Standard? I would never understand what passed for humor among the Elves.
"The golden mean becomes a kindness
as she learns to sip the echo of his smiles."
That was a nice little turn of phrase there. The echo of a smile — that reminded me of the subtlety of Sadiri facial expressions.
"That Sadira died,
that her heart was shorn of innocence by a conscienceless
. . . the hell? She couldn't possibly mean . . .
And yet my spine stiffened as the lilt of her voice and the sly slant of her looks suffused each word with a far too personal significance.
"that she tempts him to laughter
and other ruin,
that they ache,
that they find their way, slowly,
delicately, respectfully —
passion's slow but inexorable burn . . ."
I was too embarrassed to look at Dllenahkh and too curious not to, so I settled for a furtive glance that only told me that he appeared to be perfectly still and controlled.
"It's not the sun that blinds her,
nor the golden rays of impossibility
in an infinitely permutable and permissive landscape.
Light diffuses through suspended sand.
They dance, exquisitely slowly, an elegant
She concluded the verses with a gentle flourish of her wrist and fingers. "I have so much time and so many to choose from," she said to me with a beautifully condescending smile. "I can afford to be generous."
Then she gracefully inclined her head, gathered up her entourage with the casual command of a glance, and withdrew, leaving us alone on the lookout with the minstrel still quietly playing nearby.
My ears were burning. It was impossible to pretend that I did not understand who the song was referring to, and what she had just hinted.
Dllenahkh cleared his throat. "I have recently received some new projections concerning the planned infrastructural improvements for the Tlaxce homesteadings. Would you care to go over them with me? I believe there are some points that may be of interest to you."
"Yes, let's. That sounds fascinating," I quickly agreed, and we made our way back to our t'bren with no further incident.

subset: commoncrawl


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Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Green Beans with Walnuts, Walnut Oil, and Grains of Paradise
So, what are grains of paradise anyway, you may be wondering. I turned to my deluxe edition of the Food Lover's Companion which I received as a review copy last year. In the spice glossary, grains of paradise are defined as "small, brown, round seeds indigenous to the west coast of Africa and used as a spice. Though hot and pungent, this spice has an exotic spicy quality that hints of ginger, cardamom, coriander, citrus, and nutmeg." Hesser uses it interchangeably with black pepper. In the top right photo below, black peppercorns are on the left and grains of paradise are on the right. The grains need to be ground just like black pepper, and I placed mine in a spare peppermill for easy use. Kurt and I tasted ground grains of paradise side by side with freshly ground black pepper. We found the two spices to be similar with grains of paradise seeming less hot and more herby with a slightly stronger, almost piney flavor that's also found in black pepper. I detected a faint suggestion of nutmeg in it as well.
I prepped the green bean dish just as it was described in Cooking for Mr. Latte. I used CSA green beans, rather than haricots verts, which were blanched, drained, and dried and then tossed with toasted walnuts, roasted potatoes, walnut oil, and ground grains of paradise. It was a delicious combination of flavors and textures set off by an interesting spice. The dish couldn't have been simpler once I knew exactly what the spice was and where to find it. Hope you're having a simple and splendid holiday week. Happy Thanksgiving!
Posted by lisa is cooking at Wednesday, November 24, 2010
24 comments:
This is beautiful. I'd love this as an accompaniment for roast chicken. Never heard of grains of paradise before, I'll have to look out for them.ReplyDelete
Wishing you and your family a wonderful thanksgiving. May you always have much to be thankful for daaaahling!
*kisses* HH
I've been intrigued by grains of paradise for the longest time, very curious to taste itReplyDelete
I will look for it once I'm back in LA next week
This recipe sounds like a keeper, I love walnut oil...
The beans look beautiful! I'll have to check out grains of paradise when I finally make it to Savory Spice. I'm a little scared to go- will prabably want one of everything. Have a great Turkey Day in CO and can't wait to see the delicious looking posts on the fabulous meal I'm sure you're cooking!ReplyDelete
I've never heard of those grains before... That is a great side dish!ReplyDelete
This dish looks so good.ReplyDelete
I've never heard about those grains!
LOVE this side dish! Perfect for the season. Must try those grains. Happy Thanksgiving!ReplyDelete
I have never heard of grains of paradise before! But the dish in itself, and the green beans, looks fantastic, I'd definitely be up for trying it out!ReplyDelete
I LOVE that book. I bought some Grains of Paradise after reading it and promptly forgot about them after realizing that they didn't taste all that different than pepper (to me). But this kind of dish is something I would happily eat for dinner any night of the week. I hope you have a very happy Thanksgiving Lisa!ReplyDelete
this dish is perfect for the holidays:) i cant wait to make some soon. thanks for sharing this.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousNovember 25, 2010 at 10:02 AM
Wow, it's fascinating to learn about grains of paradise! I would love to get my hands on that spice! Green beans sound so good flavored with it!ReplyDelete
I second that, fascinating to learn about grains of paradise & agree that Walnut oil when you can find it adds a lovely flavour.ReplyDelete
Looks delicious!!! Green beans are always on my shopping list everytime I shop, so it's good to learn new ways of cooking them.ReplyDelete
these grains of paradise sound like grains from paradise--i'm definitely on the lookout for some of my own! great dish, lisa. :)ReplyDelete
What an interesting dish! looks absolutely delicious. Gorgeous photos, as always!ReplyDelete
I do have walnut oil & I love it. I had never heard of grains of paradise before this dish. I will now be on the hunt to try them :)ReplyDelete
How funny! An old old friend sent me the announcement about his sister opening a spice shop in Austin, same one! (they are Lebanese 3rd generation); anyway, never heard of these grains until now, but hey, why not! the salad is awesome in its simplicity and wholesomeness. I agree with you, simple (and best quality) is best.ReplyDelete
I wonder if Penzeys carries grains of paradise? Certainly worth the effort to find to make this delicious looking dish. - SReplyDelete
I will have to try grains of paradise. They sound intriguing.ReplyDelete
Oooh, I love your story of hunting down grains of paradise, and now I'm so intrigued, I want to find it, too. Will have to figure out what it's called in French and see if I can find it at this spice shop that's supposed to have everything...it sounds wonderful!ReplyDelete
This dish is so beautiful, not to mention nutritious. I love walnut and I would love to get my hands on some walnut oil to try in future.ReplyDelete
I am a sucker for anything with walnut oil and am always up to try a new spice (much to the dismay of my spice drawer AND cabinet!!) We just had a Savory Spice open by us so I will heading there this week to search out this intriguing spice.ReplyDelete
Oh this looks so hearty and delicious. I love green beans in just about anything.ReplyDelete
I love roasted potatoes and green beans together! The walnut oil sounds so great in your version.ReplyDelete
I'm going to be looking for Grains of Paradise when I'm out and about. I'd love to try this recipe.ReplyDelete


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Slower Rider: DAF YA-4440 Expedition Truck
DAF'S expedition truck can take you anywhere -- if you aren't in a hurry
Related Video
At first glance, the pictures here might spark the question, "What the heck is a DAF?"
Owned by PACCAR in North America, DAF is in the same family as Kenworth and Peterbilt. The truckmaker dates back to 1928, when Hubert "Hub" van Doorne founded the company as Commanditaire Vennootschap Hub van Doorne's Machinefabriek in the Netherlands. Production started in a small workshop on the grounds of a brewery. Today, DAF manufactures trucks in the Netherlands, Belgium, and the United Kingdom for sale throughout Western and Eastern Europe, and exports them to Asia, Africa, and North America.
The YA-4440 you see here is one of 7000 vehicles delivered to the Royal Netherlands Army between 1977 and 1983. The all-steel tilt cab of the YA-4440 is reinforced for a ring-mounted light machine gun. Purchased used in 2005 in the Netherlands by a Dutch couple, its DAF "universal shelter" had been modified for family travel. The couple traveled around Scandinavia, the Middle East, South America, Mexico, and the United States, ending up at the 2009 Overland Expo in Arizona, an annual event that brings together like-minded self-reliant back-country travelers. They put it up for sale, and Steve and Sharon Russell of Sun River, Oregon, saw it as their dream overland travel camper, and purchased it on the spot.
Powered by a 6.2-liter six-cylinder turbocharged direct-injection diesel, it has an estimated 168 hp at 2400 rpm. That's not much for a truck that often tips the scale at around 24,500 pounds fully loaded. Compression ratio is 16:1. The engine will run on anything that's even close to diesel. The standard fuel tank holds 56 gallons, and there is a 110-gallon reserve tank behind the cab, next to the spare tire. Average highway fuel economy is about 11.5 mpg at its most comfortable cruising speed of 50 mph. Though it does have a maximum speed of 65 mph, it is seldom reached, which Steve and Sharon admit could annoy other drivers on long narrow backroads where there is no way to pass and no turnouts.
The driver must really work the five-speed gearbox and two-speed locking ZF transfer case to match the torque to the speed and load conditions. The DAF beam-type axles/differentials are both open. Brakes are air-powered, with a front-axle parking brake and air trailer brakes. As one might expect from such a vehicle, it operates on a 24-volt/positive-ground system that is splashproof and radio suppressed.
The truck's suspension is made up of leaf springs and Koni shocks, and we weren't surprised to find that it rides like a truck. It rolls on 1400/R20 Michelin XZL tires, so every rock in the road can be felt unless you air down. The air tank has a high-pressure hose for airing back up.
The camper box, or universal shelter as it is called, is a standard DAF option by Fokker. It was modified in the Netherlands and modernized a bit in Oregon. Basic necessities for an expedition camper include an 87-gallon water tank, propane hot-water heater, and propane three-burner stove fed by two 36-pound tanks. A Webasto diesel heater provides heat, and German Seitz dual-pane windows keep the warmth inside. Its refrigerator is a 12-volt compressor type. The large bed is located over a huge storage compartment. An enclosed bath includes a full shower and a Thetford cassette toilet (with removable waste tank on wheels), standard in all European RVs. You mostly don't find RV dump stations outside of the U.S. and Canada.
As with all expedition campers, something must be done to keep the box from twisting and tearing itself apart. The unique DAF system has large pivot points front and rear, and huge rubber suspension pads allow the bed and camper to actually lift off the frame in extreme twists.
Up in the cab -- way up -- the Recaro seats are fitted with Sparco safety harnesses. The dash is straightforward. Its warning lights for various systems and an air-pressure gauge are things you might see in a commercial or military truck. Clearly this is not your standard F-350.
A walkaround turns up some interesting features and accessories. Tie-downs for just about anything are standard, including a shipping container if the universal shelter is removed. A shovel and a branch trimmer are handy, and the vise is a tool that's never missed until you need it. The emergency tow bar bolted to the undercarriage fits the same size pintle hitch as the one on the rear. Lockable outside storage compartments are a necessity for tools and service parts. A full awning rolls out from the side, and there are light guards and a brush guard, of course. Four auxiliary lights are mounted over the cab just ahead of another storage compartment. Finally, a motorcycle fits snugly on the front bumper.
Steve and Sharon say they don't mind the lack of power, but don't like to inconvenience the people following them.
They try to pull over whenever possible. They had their DAF up to Canada's Northwest Territories, following the Dempster Highway as far as Inuvik, about 60 miles from the Arctic Ocean and 120 miles north of the Arctic Circle. They've also done some exploring in Oregon's back country. Steve loves that the tilt cab puts him right on top of the front wheels, so he knows exactly what he's driving into. The DAF's low gearing and high clearance have proven very capable off-road. Unfortunately, the couple missed out on DAF's ring-mounted light machine gun. It didn't come as standard equipment on all YA-4440s.
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Bypass Not To Blame For Heart Patients' Mental Decline - 05/19/2008
Bypass Not To Blame For Heart Patients' Mental Decline
Finding removes stigma from viable treatment, Hopkins researchers say
Release Date: May 19, 2008
Heart patients often experience lasting problems with memory, language, and other cognitive skills after bypass surgery. However, these problems aren't caused by the surgery itself or the pump used to replace heart function during surgery, a new study by Johns Hopkins researchers suggests. The findings may lead to better approaches to prevent cognitive decline regardless of which treatment heart disease patients receive.
The study, published in the May Annals of Neurology, compared cognitive function of patients who received cardiac bypass surgery with that of patients who received other treatments for coronary artery disease, including pharmaceuticals and stents. After testing all the study subjects periodically in a variety of cognitive areas for six years after their treatments, the researchers found that both groups experienced an almost identical decline in cognitive function. The results suggest that the disease itself, and not any particular treatment, is the cause for cognitive decline.
Previous studies have linked bypass surgery to patients' mental decline, with many doctors blaming the bypass pump that keeps blood flowing through the body during surgery. This research led many doctors to avoid recommending surgery to their patients. However, Guy McKhann M.D., professor of neurology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, explains that previous studies hadn't compared patients who had bypass surgery to those who had other treatments instead. As such, it's been unknown whether mental decline is a consequence of surgery using the bypass pump, heart troubles, part of the normal aging process, or another cause altogether.
To gather evidence, McKhann and other Hopkins researchers recruited 152 heart disease patients who were scheduled to undergo bypass surgery and 92 patients whose doctors planned to treat their heart disease in other ways, including stents and medications. The patients, mostly men, had an average age of about 64.
Before their treatments, the researchers gave each of the patients a battery of 15 different mental tests meant to examine cognitive functions including memory, motor speed, attention, and the ability to plan ahead. Then, at three months, one year, three years, and six years after treatment, the researchers gave the volunteers the same tests to see whether their cognitive function had changed.
When they compared the two groups' results, the researchers found similar results. Both groups started out with comparable cognitive abilities, which improved slightly for about a year after treatment. However, over the next five years, most of the patients experienced a similar decline of cognitive function in almost every area tested, regardless of whether they had surgery or another treatment.
These results suggest that neither bypass surgery nor the pump itself causes cognitive decline, says McKhann. He says that the finding may help the stigma that prevents some doctors from recommending bypass surgery.
"We don't think fear of mental changes should be a factor in deciding what kinds of treatments you have for your heart," he adds.
Since both groups of patients scored lower than healthy patients on similar cognitive tests in other studies, McKhann notes that he and other researchers believe that coronary artery disease is the culprit. However, he says, he and his colleagues don't believe that cognitive decline is an inevitable consequence of heart disease.
"If we take a very aggressive approach to treating risk factors for heart disease, including keeping a handle on diabetes, blood pressure, and weight, patients may be able to avoid these cognitive problems," McKhann says.
Other Hopkins researchers who participated in the study include Ola Selnes, Ph.D., Maura Grega, R.N., M.S.N., Maryanne Bailey, Luu Pham, M.S., Scott Zeger, Ph.D., and William Baumgartner, M.D.
The study was supported by grants from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the Charles A. Dana Foundation, and the Johns Hopkins Medical Institution GCRC.
For more information, go to:
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Please visit our Open House at 10 1060 Tillicum RD in VICTORIA.
Open House on Sunday, January 17, 2016 12:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Attention first time buyers! Parkview at the Gorge, 10 modern townhouses designed by Zebra Design in a park like setting. This 3 level corner unit offers 3 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms and views of the hilltops. Enjoy spacious open concept kitchen, 9ft ceilings, natural light and in-floor gas radiant heat. The top floor has two bedrooms each with full ensuite and a generous size laundry area. Your low maintenance yard is south facing and fully fenced. Keep your monthly costs low with these energy efficient homes! Only 10 min commute to downtown, these family friendly units provide all the benefits of a suburb lifestyle with direct urban access and amenities. O/H Sat/Sun 12-4pm. Price plus GST.


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2013 Ride to Work Day
The American Motorcyclist Association is encouraging all motorcyclists to demonstrate the practical benefits of commuting on a motorcycle on Monday, June 17, in celebration of Motorcycle and Scooter Ride to Work Day.
Rob Dingman (AMA President & CEO) says: "Motorcyclists know that motorcycles are fun to ride as well as an economical way to transport yourself from one point to another, and Ride to Work Day is a great way for us to demonstrate that to other road users en masse.
"AMA members ride responsibly and, with the summer riding season upon us, it's a good time to exercise safe riding practices and to urge that other motorists be aware of motorcyclists on our roads and highways."
Started in 1992, Ride to Work Day is now an international event, with participation in cities around the world and recognition by the federal government and local governments in the United States. For millions of workers, motorcycles and scooters are an economical, efficient and socially responsible form of mobility that save energy, protect the environment and provide a broad range of other public benefits.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Transportation Department, more than 80 million cars and light trucks are used for daily commuting on American roads, and about 200,000 motorcycles and scooters are a regular part of this mix.
On Ride to Work Day, the practical side of riding becomes more visible as a large number of America's motorcycles are ridden to work. An estimated 1 million riders will become two- and three-wheeled commuters to help demonstrate that riding is a pragmatic and beneficial form of personal transportation.
Andy Goldfine, a key organizer of the annual Ride to Work Day, said: "Motorcycles and scooters consume less resources per mile than automobiles, and take up less space in parking areas and on roads. Riders seek employer and community support for this efficient form of transportation, and more government and public awareness about riding's many benefits."
For more information about Motorcycle and Scooter Ride to Work Day, visit ridetowork.org.


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|New American Bible
2002 11 11
IntraText - Text
Chapter 15
Some time after these events, this word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision: "Fear not, Abram! I am your shield; I will make your reward very great."
But Abram said, "O Lord GOD, what good will your gifts be, if I keep on being childless and have as my heir the steward of my house, Eliezer?"
Abram continued, "See, you have given me no offspring, and so one of my servants will be my heir."
Then the word of the LORD came to him: "No, that one shall not be your heir; your own issue shall be your heir."
He took him outside and said: "Look up at the sky and count the stars, if you can. Just so," he added, "shall your descendants be."
1 Abram put his faith in the LORD, who credited it to him as an act of righteousness.
He then said to him, "I am the LORD who brought you from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as a possession."
"O Lord GOD," he asked, "How am I to know that I shall possess it?"
2 He answered him, "Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old she-goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtle-dove, and a young pigeon."
He brought him all these, split them in two, and placed each half opposite the other; but the birds he did not cut up.
Birds of prey swooped down on the carcasses, but Abram stayed with them.
As the sun was about to set, a trance fell upon Abram, and a deep, terrifying darkness enveloped him.
Then the LORD said to Abram: "Know for certain that your descendants shall be aliens in a land not their own, where they shall be enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years.
But I will bring judgment on the nation they must serve, and in the end they will depart with great wealth.
You, however, shall join your forefathers in peace; you shall be buried at a contented old age.
3 In the fourth time-span the others shall come back here; the wickedness of the Amorites will not have reached its full measure until then."
4 When the sun had set and it was dark, there appeared a smoking brazier and a flaming torch, which passed between those pieces.
5 It was on that occasion that the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying: "To your descendants I give this land, from the Wadi of Egypt to the Great River (the Euphrates),
the land of the Kenites, the Kenizzites, the Kadmonites,
the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim,
the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites."


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Got Water?
With demands on our lakes increasing, now is the time to take care of future water needs in Texas.
By Larry D. Hodge
Texans love their lakes, whether they are fishing for the lunker of a lifetime, speeding across the surface propelled by the wind or a herd of gas-fed horses or simply luxuriating in the view of the setting sun from a lakeside campsite, restaurant or home.
"At the lake" is where many Texans live on weekends. We boat, swim, camp, paddle, fish, sail, party, bond, laze. We make memories that will last a lifetime. Lakes surprise us with 10-pound bass like the one I caught on Cooper Lake in March, or the serenity of a morning kayak paddle on Caddo Lake like the one my wife and I enjoyed last year.
Few living Texans can remember the time when the state was not blessed with a multitude of sparkling lakes. Yet it was not always so, and not so long ago.
Responding to the drought of record that bled Texas dry in the 1950s, Texas built reservoirs — to date 196 of them with a surface area of 5,000 acres or more, 175 of which are used for water supply. In ensuing years we have built a great urban civilization that depends on lakes.
Yet perhaps because they are so central to the fun parts of our lives, we sometimes take the serious side of lakes for granted. Lakes are water. Water is life.
"Reservoirs are our water supply," says David Wheelock, manager of water supply and conservation for the Lower Colorado River Authority. "We have no near-term concerns about the reservoirs and their ability to meet our current needs. However, as competing demands for water increase, we have to more carefully manage all our water resources."
Texas reservoirs and all other sources of water — groundwater, reuse of water, conservation, desalination — already fall short of providing all our water needs during droughts. Right now, if a drought equal to that of the 1950s were to occur, demand for water would far outstrip the supply. And that supply is decreasing.
According to Water for Texas: Summary of the 2011 Regional Water Plans, the basis for the 2012 state water plan developed and revised every five years by regional water planning groups and the Texas Water Development Board, existing water supplies are projected to decrease about 10 percent between 2010 and 2060. During the same time period, demand is expected to increase by 22 percent, primarily because of an expected population increase to 46 million people.
Failure to plan for and meet the demand for water would have dire consequences. By 2060, "If no water management strategies could be implemented to meet these needs, Texas businesses and workers could lose $115.7 billion in income, 1.1 million jobs would not be created, and 1.4 million in population growth would not be achieved," says the 2012 state water plan, now in draft form. "Forgone state and local business taxes associated with lost commerce could amount to $9.8 billion in 2060."
Reservoir management strategies would have the greatest economic impact on urban areas, except those in the Texas Panhandle, which depend primarily on groundwater from the Ogallala Aquifer. Without additional water, in 2060 the area that includes the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex could lose $49 billion in income, $3 billion in state and local taxes, a half-million jobs and three-quarters of a million people and suffer a school enrollment drop of 271,000.
Those figures are just for the year 2060 and assume a drought of record. Impacts in previous years would also be severe; estimates are in the 2012 plan.
There is no intention among those responsible for planning for Texas water needs and supplying water to allow a statewide version of the disaster that struck the Great Plains late in the 19th century when drought stymied efforts to settle and farm the region, leaving behind what one writer called "a mass of human wreckage in the shape of broken fortunes, deserted farms and ruined homes." Yet this will happen again unless we act, and act now.
Regional water planning groups have been busy seeking to identify their water needs each decade through 2060, ways to meet those needs and the price tag for doing so. The 2007 state water plan estimated the cost at $31 billion; the 2012 version hikes that to $53 billion. Of that $53 billion, half needs to come from local sources and half from the state, and nearly $32 billion of the total needs to be spent in the next 10 years. TPWD serves as a nonvoting member on each of the 16 groups, providing input on impacts to fish and wildlife resources.
Regional water plans identify a wide range of strategies to meet the demand for water, including 26 new reservoirs (up from 16 in the 2007 plan) to supplement those already existing. Some are "traditional" reservoirs, those that impound a flowing stream. Others are off-channel reservoirs that can be used to hold and store water pumped from a stream in times of high flow, then used when needed.
Groundwater has special appeal to reservoir operators, because it can be used in conjunction with surface water. The groundwater can be left in the ground until needed to supplement reservoirs in time of drought. "If managed conjunctively with surface water, groundwater can lessen the impact of a drought," says John Hofmann, central and lower basin manager for the Brazos River Authority. "There are concerns about the long-term impact on groundwater supply, and conjunctive use is a really long-term approach, but it may be 10 to 15 years before we need to access that source."
Another option is to increase the conservation capacity of existing reservoirs. Many reservoirs, especially those built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, were built primarily for flood control, and much of their capacity is unused most of the time. The Corps of Engineers and the Brazos River Authority are studying reservoirs in the Brazos River basin to determine if some flood control capacity can be reallocated to conservation, in effect making the lake bigger. While it sounds simple, raising the conservation pool level could mean having to build new boat ramps, raise bridges, move utility lines and possibly modify dams or spillways.
"The costs will be large for the amount of water generated, but there may be no other options in some cases," says Brad Brunett, water services manager for the Brazos River Authority. "We will look at all the factors and decide on a case-by-case basis if reallocation will be worth the cost."
Existing reservoirs will continue to be the source of the majority of water, but only if they are maintained. "The long-term issue in reservoir management is sedimentation," says LCRA's Wheelock. Sediment washed into reservoirs will eventually harm them.
"We estimated in the 2007 state water plan that Texas' major reservoirs could be losing up to 90,000 acre-feet of storage per year due to sedimentation," says Carolyn Brittin, deputy administrator for water resources planning and information for the Texas Water Development Board. "Existing water supplies in the state are projected to decrease about 10 percent by 2060, primarily due to accumulation of sediment in reservoirs, the depletion of the Ogallala Aquifer and decreased groundwater availability."
Brunett says that sedimentation happens in all reservoirs. "Possum Kingdom Reservoir, [BRA's] oldest, has collected roughly 184,000 acre-feet of sediment — 25 million dump-truck loads — in the last 65 years," he says. "That is larger than Lake Granbury in its entirety. Dredging on that magnitude is not feasible. Another 50 years in the future, the economics of water will be different, and who can say if dredging will be feasible or not. Ultimately, we will have three choices: dredging, building new reservoirs or developing other sources of water."
River authorities are helping to fund sediment-reducing land use practices on private lands within watersheds feeding reservoirs. LCRA's Creekside Conservation Program resulted from a study on how to reduce sedimentation from the Sandy Creek watershed in Gillespie and Llano counties.
"Plan A was to install check dams and let the sediment drop out, then mine it and get rid of it," says Rusty Ray, supervisor of land conservation services for LCRA. "The cost was sky-high. Plan B was working with private landowners to stabilize their soils so it doesn't wash into the reservoirs. We now do as many as 25 projects a year in 10 counties."
Our aquifers are still the largest freshwater reservoirs we have, but the science is still developing to measure just how changes in land management practices might affect infiltration of water into the soil and subsequent seepage into aquifers for eventual discharge through springs into streams. Texas Tech University's Ken Rainwater and his colleagues have been working on a project that may someday be able to help answer that question. Rainwater's team uses instruments to record changes in water stored in and evaporated from playa lakes and temperature probes at different depths in the soil to measure infiltration rates around playa lakes. They are also working with the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board's water supply enhancement program to study how local applications of brush control can increase stream flow and groundwater storage.
"What we are hoping to establish with this research is a way to gauge the impact of changes in land-use practices on groundwater infiltration and aquifer recharge," he says. "There is more than one direction water can go — infiltration, evaporation, transpiration, runoff — and we hope someday to be able to give land managers guidance as to what portions of a watershed might be best suited for brush control or other management practices. The only way to really see changes in the flow is to measure them, but observing the impact may take years. If we remove brush, some of the rainfall may run off, but some may raise the water table. It took years for the water table and stream flows to go down; it will likely take years for them to recover."
The quality of water entering reservoirs is also important and serves as the focus of work by Larry Hauck of Tarleton State University. As water flows across the land or through aquifers, it picks up minerals, nutrients, bacteria and chemicals and carries them with it. Like Rainwater, Hauck is interested in being able to measure what's happening as a way of evaluating the effectiveness of management practices.
"I think we can do a better job of measuring what is going on in watersheds," he says. "As our nation undertakes restoration of impaired water bodies and protection of threatened water bodies, watershed management will be a crucial part of the process."
In recognition of the importance of managing watersheds, TPWD has set up the Watershed Policy and Management Program within its Inland Fisheries Division. The program's goals have a direct impact on reservoirs, says Gary Garrett, the senior scientist and program director.
"Land management practices reduce erosion and sedimentation, help percolation to feed higher-quality water into streams and reservoirs and keep riparian areas healthy," he says. "It's easy to think about reservoirs as not being connected to anything else, but they are. The water quality and quantity of reservoirs as well as sediments are all directly affected by their watersheds."
Constructed wetlands along the Trinity River — the George W. Shannon Wetlands Water Reuse Project on TPWD's Richland Creek Wildlife Management Area near Corsicana and the East Fork Raw Water Supply Project at the John Bunker Sands Wetland Center near Crandall — are emerging as national models for reusing water and dealing with sedimentation and pollution. Water pumped from the Trinity River — which consists largely of return flows from wastewater treatment plants in the Metroplex — circulates through wetlands, which let sediment settle out while aquatic plants gobble up phosphorus and nitrogen, and bacteria on the plants remove harmful chemicals. The polished water is then piped to water supply reservoirs, where it begins the cycle anew.
"Wetlands are very energy-efficient, because they primarily use the sun's energy to clean the water," says Ellen McDonald, a water resources engineer with Alan Plummer Associates, the company that designed the wetlands. "Constructed wetlands are also valuable because of their educational value, creation of additional wildlife habitat and public acceptance of the reused product — people see them more positively than they do a wastewater treatment plant." Another benefit of water reuse projects is that the footprint on the landscape is minuscule compared to that required for new reservoirs.
Supply is one variable in the water equation; conservation is another. All regional water plans depend on conservation to some degree, because saved water is cheap water. In 2009, LCRA estimated that conservation programs cost about $400 an acre-foot for water yielded, while new reservoirs and pipelines cost about $2,000 an acre-foot. The amount of water that regional water plans estimate could be saved through agricultural and municipal conservation is more than the supply that would be generated by construction of the 26 new reservoirs proposed in the 2012 state water plan. Regional water plans are increasingly relying on conservation as a strategy for meeting future water needs, and voluntary conservation in urban areas could play a major role in avoiding the need for expensive new reservoirs.
Another challenge facing reservoir operators across the state is the desire of lakeside property owners and recreational users to have lakes maintained at stable levels rather than using the water for the purposes intended when the lakes were constructed.
"More and more people are opposing the use of reservoirs for water supply needs and wanting to keep lakes full for recreation and property interests," says BRA's Brunett. "Ultimately, we can't have both during dry times, and people are going to have to understand that. Otherwise, we are facing much greater shortages of water than we realize."
"We all benefit from decisions that were made 50 to 60 years ago about water," says Ruben Solis, director of the water development board's surface water resources division. "Now we need to make similar decisions for the benefit of future populations. It won't be cheap, but it's necessary. It's part of recognizing what your vision for the future is and that there is a cost for that. What do we want to pass on to future generations? That's what water planning is all about."
"We have to be visionaries," adds LCRA's Wheelock. In the final analysis, that is the challenge facing those charged with supplying Texans with water: envisioning ways to work within legal, environmental, climatic, political and social restraints to keep the water coming.
It will keep coming — but only if we make it so, and water will come only in quantities that nature, politics and economics allow.
Making the best use of that water is up to each of us.
For Further Reading
Anyone who drinks water will want to read The Big Thirst: The Secret Life and Turbulent Future of Water by Charles Fishman, which takes a global look at water and water issues. There is a tremendous amount of information available via the Internet about Texas reservoirs and water issues. The links below were used as sources for this article and are a start:
Texas Water Development Board: www.twdb.state.tx.us


text:
|Do you Like Trolls?
Well if you do - we have
the perfect site for you.
Check these out!
Click the troll
|Exploring the Unknown
Mary Sutherland
|Member Shite Archived Shows
Listen to all our Shows by Mary Sutherland
|Join us on Facebook and Check
out the many strange photos we
have captured on our sacred site
tours or use the albums as a
virtual tour of Brad and Mary's
places and people of interest -
Click this Link
|Mary Sutherland is an author and researcher focusing her work
on consciousness studies, ancient history and unusual
phenomena. She is a "hands on" researcher and the creator of
one of the largest website on the internet with hundreds of
pages providing information on the paranormal, UFOs, ancient
races and their cultures, sacred sites and power points of the
world, underground tunnels and cave systems, dimensional
worlds , metaphysics, etc. The governor of Kentucky
commissioned her as a 'Kentucky Colonel" for her work on the
ancient sites of Kentucky. For the last 5 years, she has been
exploring, mapping and documenting the ancient underwater
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Burlington, WI. Truth is her passion. She believes it is through
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entanglements in life. When we become free, we will create our
own 'personal story' of the 'hero's journey' suggested by Joseph
Brad and Mary Sutherland
248 Carver Street
Winslow, Illinois 61089
815 367 1006


text:
Herok can make tables to your requirements.
Herok, have been satisfying customers for nearly 50 years. We understand the importance of excellent service, durability and reliability for your educational and library furniture needs.
All of our library furniture and library storage solutions are constructed for superior quality right here in the UK – that's why we can confidently offer our 5 Year Manufacturer's Guarantee. Read more here…
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text:
The following is a Desert Tactical Arms (DTA) Press Release:
Company Contact Info:
Desert Tactical Arms (DTA)
P.O. Box 65816
Salt Lake City, UT 84165
Phone: 801-975-7272
Fax: 801-908-6425
Email: Military Sales: [email protected] (Dave Liwanag)
Email Law Enforcement Sales: [email protected] (Mike Davis)
Email Dealer Support: [email protected] (Ben Romney)
Email Training – [email protected]
Email Warranty – [email protected]
Email Marketing – [email protected]
Website: http://www.deserttacticalarms.com
Related Articles:
DTA DTSS (Desert Tactical Sound Suppressor) 7.62mm NATO/.338 Lapua Magnum Titanium Rifle Suppressor (Tactical Rifle Silencer/Sound Suppressor) Series: .50 BMG Muzzle Can on the Way?
Desert Tactical Arms DTA HTI (Hard Target Interdiction) Sniper Rifle Chassis/DTA HTI Conversion Kit Modular Bullpup, Bolt-Action .50 BMG/.416 Barrett/.408 Cheytac/.375 Cheytac Anti-Materiel/Sniper Rifle System Goes Into Production for Civilian Tactical Shooters and Military Special Operations Forces (SOF) Tasked with Long-Range Interdiction Operations/Missions (Video!)
Desert Tactical Arms (DTA) Stealth Recon Scout (SRS) Covert Compact Bullpup 7.62x51mm NATO (7.62mm NATO)/.308 Win. Sniper Rifle for Military Special Operations (SPECOPS): First Test!
Desert Tactical Arms Stealth Recon Scout Modular/Multi-Caliber Bullpup Anti-Materiel/Sniper Rifle for Military Special Operations Forces (SOF) and Civilian Tactical Shooters


text:
You've probably heard that laughter is the best medicine, but have you ever wondered if laughter can cure an illness? That question may have elicited a chuckle from your doctor once, but today, your physician may advise you to up your daily dose of laughter to improve your health. Psychologists studying the science of happiness believe that practicing certain positive behaviors like laughter can bring the pleasure, engagement and meaning that comprise happiness [source: Jameson].
How does laughter improve one's health? Laughter sets off a chain reaction throughout the body that promotes physical and psychological health. Regular and frequent guffawing can both prevent illness and help you get well. Laughter lowers your body's hormone and cortisol levels. (Cortisol is a stress-induced chemical that can lead to heart disease, high blood pressure and excess belly fat.) Laughter also strengthens your immune system because it increases the production of antibodies in your saliva and in your bloodstream to stave off bacteria, viruses and parasites.
Laughter also helps with skin conditions. People suffering from eczema noted improvement in their complexions after consistently watching funny movies. When allergy patients laugh regularly, it reportedly shrinks their welts [source: Kimata].
When you laugh, it affects your body the same way that a brisk walk would by working various muscles throughout your body. Laughing increases your aerobic (heart and lung) capacity by expanding your oxygen consumption and increasing your heart rate and blood pressure. After you're done hooting and howling, you get an added bonus -- relaxation. As laughter brings you release and relief, it also reduces stress by lowering your body's cortisol levels, as we learned earlier. In addition, a good measure of laughter combats depression as well as anxiety [source: Oz]. In the next section, we'll learn how people use laughter therapy to help control their health and manage illness.


text:
2023-2024 Undergraduate Catalog | 20243
University Studies
No programs.
University Studies consists of various courses whose subject content is too interdisciplinary to be considered part of any one discipline. These courses not only serve to complement other course offerings, but also may play an important part in various majors and minors.


text:
This article is more than 1 year old
Ofcom taps sailors for new fees
Ship to shore, I can't afford you any more
Ofcom has published proposals for charging those at sea for radio communications, but would like everyone to note that it's not planning to screw the lifeboats this time.
The regulator has been bitten before, when it casually suggested that lifeboats might like to pay market rates for radio spectrum. This time not only are lifeboats and mountain rescue specifically excluded, but they could also be in line to get some new spectrum for free while everyone else is going to have to stump up AIP* rates for radio comms.
Maritime radio is complicated by international agreements for uses of specific frequencies, which prevents Ofcom selling off the spectrum. But narrow bands keep the cost quite low, though Ofcom would also like to start charging different amounts depending on the location - an area-defined licence for a city (50km square, covered by any number of transmitters) will cost £990, while the same coverage in the Highlands will only set you back £12 a year.
For the RNLI (lifeboats) and their ilk Ofcom reckons a couple of channels might be allocated through the Maritime Coastguard Agency, which already pays AIP for spectrum used by mountain rescue organisations, who would then take over management of the spectrum.
The proposals are at pains to point out that even if the RNLI didn't want spectrum handled by the MCA (the charity is notoriously independent) then under the proposals it could pay for a nationwide channel of its own for only £8250 a year.
The detailed proposals (pdf) are open for comments until the 13th of November, but those of us not operating boats will be pleased to hear that the lifeboat that pulls you out of the water after an ill-advised swim will still be able to phone home. ®
* Administered Incentive Pricing : Ofcom thinks of a number, you pay it every year.


text:
Came across these amazing pinups in Star Wars #43 and 44. Enjoy!
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
1981 - Star Wars pinups
Posted by Jason Shayer at 9:10 AM
4 comments:
Those are awesome! I have been on a bit of a Byrne kick recently and picked up #43 because it was listed on some Byrne checklist. I did not relaize itwas just a pin up....still worth the 50 cents I paid!ReplyDelete
Um... AWESOME? The big three of Marvel Comics of the 80s (Byrne, Miller, Simonson), plus an artist you know I love, the incomparable Michael Golden.ReplyDelete
Amazing find. Now I have to go on eBay and find them all.ReplyDelete
Glad you guys liked them!ReplyDelete
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Architects: Architects 49
- Area: 17653 m²
- Year: 2009
Text description provided by the architects. Royal Archives, Office of His Majesty's Principal Private Secretary is the central archive for important historical evidence related to the Thai Royal Monarchy including manuscripts, photographs and other historical records. Previously these invaluable materials were stored separately in various sites.
Therefore, the brief of this project was called for a permanent central royal archive building as a place for storing, researching and conserving any information related to the royal family – Chakri Dynasty. The main areas are listed below:
Printed documents / objects Archives – approximately 13,179 square meters. ( this area is mainly used for storing documents except for Her Majesty Royal Highness the Queen's section where a specially controlled environment room is needed for silk collections and other artifacts.
Archives area for any documents dated from King Rama IV until present. Temperature, humidity and lighting control are strictly monitored in this area.
Permanent exhibition space – a display area of the King Rama VI's achievements and biography.
Temporary exhibition space
Conference room – 100 seats
Public library
Car park – 80 cars
Conceptual design
Zoning strategy
Modern Thai architectural language
Energy conservation methodology
1.0 Zoning strategy – The project can be categorized into main three zones:
1.1 Public zone – the areas where public users have full access i.e. exhibition rooms , the library (designated area) and 100-seat conference room. They are located in the front part of the building for easily accessible purpose.
1.2 Private zone – staff office area.
1.3 Secured zone – archives materials storage rooms where only authorized staff can have access.
Three building forms are, therefore, a direct translation of this zoning strategy analysis. They are connected by a central courtyard which is sometimes used for holding official functions by Office of His Majesty's Principal Private Secretary as well.
2. Modern Thai architecture – Due to the narrow drive way to the main building entrance, the front of the building is designed to reach forward to receive the visitors. The canopy at the drop-off area is made of red wood, a warm gesture to welcome guests. Other metaphoric approach to communicating the essence of traditional Thai architecture can be found elsewhere such as teak textured wall at the main entrance. The large red entry doors, derived from entries commonly found in traditional Thai palace, are designed to reflect the importance of archives materials created during Chakri Dynasty.
3. Energy conservation – the project site is a rectangular shape with east-west orientation. The building functions do not require much natural daylight therefore the buildings are designed to be stacked masses to create shadows casting over one another, reducing heated surface area. The 8-storey archives building is built with mostly solid walls and situated at the back blocking direct sunlight from the west, sheltering the library building in the south-east. All archives storage rooms have interior wall insulation to prevent any heat gain. On the eastern façade of the library, vertical precast concrete panels are designed to protect the interior space from direct sunlight.
Text provided by Architects 49


text:
Get Your Politics Out of My Face, Tumblr
Ugh, Tumblr. The exasperating microblogging site's execs were content to rent luxury cars, ignore emails, party in the Hamptons and take expensive pictures of their Vespas amid mass unemployment, economic collapse, banker bailouts, epic government privacy violations, fraudulent home foreclosures, and the beating of Occupy protesters across the country. But now that a copyright bill has put the startup's bubble jackpot on the line, it's all up in everyone's "Dashboards" with its political conscientiousness. Shut up, already.
It's not that Tumblr is wrong. The bill it is now vocally opposing, the Stop Online Piracy Act, is presently before Congress and sounds like a terrible sop to the entertainment industry. In the name of preventing copyright violations, it would create a national blacklist of websites, which all internet service providers would have to block. You could be put on the list without a trial or even a hearing. ISPs would become liable for even briefly and unknowingly hosting pirated content.
And it's not that Tumblr hasn't been a force for good; its technology has helped foment illuminating discussions of various societal ills and political wrongdoings.
No, what's grating is how far Tumblr went about fighting this particular menace: In a move unprecedented in its four year history, the blog network covered users' "Dashboards," where they read friends' Tumblrs, with censorship blocks, such that no one could read anything without clicking. The idea was to illustrate SOPA's potential to undermine free expression on blog networks like Tumblr. Dashboard users were funneled to a Tumblr political advocacy page where you could enter personal information and get a phone call providing you with talking points and routing you to your Congressman. It apparently worked: "Holy crap - you guys are averaging 3.6 calls per second," wispy Tumblr child king David Karp Tumbld.
Grabbing people by the collar and trying to make them care about politics can be a noble pursuit. But it is, as a rule, very much not Tumblr, Inc.'s pursuit. The well funded company, recently valued at more than $800 million, can barely bring itself to halfheartedly police the spam, porn and - oh, right! - pirated content clogging its servers. It's never been much for politics. Though based in New York and serving a disproportionately young and (we'd venture) politically aware userbase, the company has remained on the sidelines as the Occupy Wall Street movement unfolded. It wasn't even worth mentioning on the staff blog. If you wanted to hand the movie studios a villain, someone who personified the most obnoxious, unconvincing, and blatantly self serving opposition to SOPA, whose greedy reasons for opposing the bill might overshadow all the legitimate reasons, you'd hand them a company like Tumblr and a CEO like Karp.
Welcome to contemporary American politics, Tumblr. It's nice that you find it corrupt and insane and revoltingly distorted, but where the fuck have you been?


text:
Chocolate Fudge Birthday Cake With Chocolate Butter Cream Icing12:52 PM
Chocolate fudge Cake with chocolate butter cream icing.
For the recipe please mail to firstname.lastname@example.com. Thanks
Milk: 1tbsp
Once your cakes have cooled down slice each in two. If the middle of the cake has risen too much, chop of the top and level it.
Take one bottom layer and place it on a cake board. I generally place 4 thin strips of aluminum foil along the bottom edges of the cake. The foil catches all the fallen decorations and once am done I generally remove these strips to have my cake on a clean surface.
Take some icing on this layer (approx.1/2 cup) and spread it using a offset spatula. Make sure to level it properly. Place top layer on it and spread icing on this. Repeat with the other top layer and finally place one bottom layer upside down.
Now carefully cover all the sides and top with the icing.
Finally decorate with the silver beads.
60 comments
Beautifully decorated and with perfection !!ReplyDelete
will try this soon.
wow Sayantani, that is mind-blowing. I don't need anything more, this decoration is just perfect for me. Love the layers of it :)ReplyDelete
Kya baat hae! the cake looks intricate, delicate and beautiful! Like a mehndi design - Love it dear!ReplyDelete
Beautifully decorated delicious cake. You are a borne cake decorator.ReplyDelete
Gorgeous cake looks sinfully delicious.ReplyDelete
That's a stunnner!! Such professional n neat work dearie, impressed!!ReplyDelete
this is soo beautiful and tempting...want to have it right now!ReplyDelete
wow....this is truly fantastic! am at a loss of words..truly:-) I can never get myself to bake a cake...and to decorate it is a different story...!Great work Sayantani...!ReplyDelete
Fudge cake looks simply delicious and I am already drooling over here. What a grand way to Celebrate your Mom's birthday!ReplyDelete
Hamaree Rasoi
OMG, that cake looks awesome...And that icing is so pretty...I have never tried icing a cake...absoultely gorgeous looking cake !!ReplyDelete
Bow! Bow! You are always so good with crafts Sayantani! I have never tried decorating cakes it is just so intimidating!ReplyDelete
Looks so delicious ...n perfect....great yumReplyDelete
Wow cake looks gorgeous and great decoration...ReplyDelete
Heaven!!! I'm craving for choco fudge nowReplyDelete
wow...what a perfect and neat cake dear...beautiful design...yummy.ReplyDelete
Sayantani dear you are simple great.churning out one mouth watering stuff one after another:)that cake looks abosolutely mouth watering , delicious, tempting, sinfull ...I am running out of words now :)Next time I make one I am adapting this recipies.The best thing about all your recipie is they are always made of ingredients easily found in the pantry , and the ultimate product(as all your pictures suggest) turns out to be 5 * resturant worthy:)ReplyDelete
I wish I had the courage to do layer cakes. Fantabulous. I'm going to order one too.ReplyDelete
Lovely cake Sayantani !!ReplyDelete
I like doing thin coating of icing and this mehendi cone style designs as this makes the frosting very light. Those silver beads look great :)
Beautifully decorated cake, loved it.ReplyDelete
Beautiful cake.Loved the intricate designs.ReplyDelete
What a beautiful cake sayantani. Just iper fectto celebrate your mother's birthday :)ReplyDelete
Making a cake is now easy task for many.But decorating a cake is a hard task and I think can only be done if u have love for ur work. This is mind blowing and exquisitically decoratedReplyDelete
Amazing delicious cake....Well decorated cake........ReplyDelete
I echo Sharmistha ... ki korcho bolo toh?! Ektar por ekta oshadharon shob jinish post korcho! Ebaar kintu Kolkata chere ekhane eshe thako ... ami o ektu tomar haater ranna payi. Ki shundor hoyeche dekhte cake ta! Beautiful! :-)ReplyDelete
This looks like a piece of art dear.......V V professional. I would like to put it in my display cabinet. Keep it up Girl.ReplyDelete
Wow seriously cant take my eyes from ur clicks, beautiful frosting..Welldone..ReplyDelete
professionally made cake. droolingReplyDelete
Wow cake looks gorgeous and great decoration...ReplyDelete
Looks irresistible..gorgeous cake dear..beautifulReplyDelete
Wow! this is for teh want of a better word. It looks absolutely delicious. Amazing. I will not be able to make anything like this but I am bookmarking this recipe for the icing and cake.ReplyDelete
Do check out my event and send me your entries.
simply wow...will try this recipe ..ReplyDelete
This cake looks absolutely gorgeous...Love the decoration...ReplyDelete
Gorgeous cake! Well done!ReplyDelete
Wow, brilliant looking cake. Superb job girlie!!! Can I have a slice?ReplyDelete
you self taught yourself to decorate cake that way!! u rock my friend. I like decorated cake and wish someday i can do that too but somehow i don't enjoy frosting in a cake.. i like it just plan :)ReplyDelete
That is a stunning cake Sayantini, very nice! Re the Red chili sauce. Hv fixed the problem, and you can see it here -ReplyDelete
Gorgeous...love the decoration....layers...perfect...ReplyDelete
Wow, darun dekhte hoyeche, khete to aboshyo i yummy. Ami ekdom bhalo bake korte pari na. Tomar design/decoration osadharon hoyeche. Tumi Kolkatay baked goods er dokan khule felo, next year gelei order debo :)ReplyDelete
That's so sweet of u to make cakes for your friends too....believe me....your cakes look so beautiful than any professional's.ReplyDelete
hi sayantani,ReplyDelete
happy birthday to meee
beautiful and delicious looking birthday cake here, very suitable for birthdays..thanks for the idea ya
Wow I liked the last picture very much .Beautifully decorated with what ingredients available in India.ReplyDelete
Cake looks so tempting .
Wow that is so impressive! Love the the decoration ..done so professionally! Great job there!! Wish I could dig into that cake right now!ReplyDelete
Wow! The cake looks simply delicious!ReplyDelete
Very beautifully decorated too:)
Artistic and wonderful looking cake.ReplyDelete
that looks gorgeous..intricate workReplyDelete
Wow....so beautiful and perfect...ReplyDelete
I have shared few awards...pls come and collect it from my space..:)
What a lovely frosting, Sayantini...the cake must have been a winner!ReplyDelete
minddddddd blowingggg....very well decorated .....fabulousReplyDelete
simply mind blowing !! first time here, and loved your post and happy to follow you !ReplyDelete
Join me in a 100-day Global Food Festival here
love ur creativity dear...absolutely divine cake..:)ReplyDelete
Tasty Appetite
Wow what a beauty. The swirls have come out so well!ReplyDelete
Thank You for dropping by my blog
Looks awesome! Quick question: where did you get an offset spatula from in Calcutta? I have been looking for it, but nobody seems to have it! Any help would be hugely aprpeciated!ReplyDelete
@Masvi, check out this post. all informations related to baking supplies in Kolkata has been updated there.ReplyDelete
Awesome cake! The decoration is more detailed than i have seen on my nephew's birthday cake ordered from a nearby bakery. And you have a very steady hand. Simply fantastic.ReplyDelete
Amazing decorated! This cake is perfect! You have talent!ReplyDelete
wow!!stunning cake!!beautiful & design is matching with the colour of chocolate.And it looks tasty & spongy too.ReplyDelete
Thanks a lot for linking with my event Decorating Challenge-Buttercream Icing
& waiting your participation whereever possible as this event is planning to continue each month...
I'm sure that you've noticed that beautifully decorated cakes serve as the centerpiece for almost every major event in our lives chocolate cake recipesReplyDelete
Very much professional..have Book marked your page..Thanxs 4 the recipe!ReplyDelete
Cake decoration involves a lot of patience which I lack miserably. But hats off to you, your cakes give me inspiration each time to try my hand in decorating.ReplyDelete
Am inspired to the core, but I know I don't have the patience, not even a least bit. You ar creative and it can be seen in your decoration of the cake!! Kudos to you, and I even loooovvvveeeddd your birthday cake. It is something my daughter would love since she loves animals!!ReplyDelete