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Last week North Carolina House Speaker Thom Tillis won the GOP primary for the U.S. Senate seat in his state. Some observers regarded it as "a win for the Republican establishment over the tea party," as a CNN report put it. That's an easy story line but it's wrong.
Mr. Tillis won by knitting together the diverse coalition that makes up the Republican Party. A poll run a week before the primary by American Crossroads (a super PAC I helped organize that supported Mr. Tillis) showed that he was viewed favorably by 58% of those who preferred a business-oriented candidate and unfavorably by only 13%, favorably by 52% of those who preferred a tea-party candidate and unfavorably by 19%, and favorably by 51% of those who preferred a religious conservative candidate and unfavorably by 9%.
He received 39% among all voters in this poll (of whom 28% were undecided) and took 46% a week later in the primary, beating the 40% threshold needed to avoid an expensive July runoff.
Mr. Tillis won because he united most economic conservatives with significant numbers of the social conservatives, strong defense advocates and tea partiers who make up his state's GOP coalition. This puts him in a strong position to win the general election.
Other recent Republican primary winners also united the party. On Tuesday, U.S. Rep. Shelley Moore Capito took 87.4% in the West Virginia GOP Senate primary. National groups that opposed her as insufficiently conservative failed to recruit a credible challenger because the personable Ms. Capito had good ties to the state's tea-party groups, a conservative record and well-honed campaign skills.
Similarly, former Bush administration official Ben Sasse won Tuesday's four-way Republican Senate primary in Nebraska with 49.4%. He split the tea-party vote with former State Treasurer Shane Osborn and united the rest of the elements of the GOP coalition, winning a rare primary endorsement from the powerful state Farm Bureau.
All this is good news for other Republican Senate hopefuls like Montana Rep. Steve Daines, former South Dakota Gov. Mike Rounds and Colorado Rep. Cory Gardner, whose appeal cuts across factional lines and unites the party. For example, in Colorado, tea-party favorite and front-runner Ken Buck stepped aside when Mr. Gardner entered the race, recognizing he was better able to enthuse all the party.
These developments are critical. While President Obama's job approval rating, the generic ballot and Republican intensity vis-à-vis the Democrats are all more favorable for the GOP than at this point in 2010, voters in general are less enthusiastic about turning out than they were four years ago.
An April 30 Gallup poll found 42% of Republicans and 32% of Democrats said they are more enthusiastic about voting compared with previous elections. In 2010, those numbers were 62% for Republicans and 44% for Democrats.
Democratic strategists may see in this a slender path to victory similar to Mr. Obama's 2012 strategy. Democrats prevailed then by turning off part of Mr. Romney's prospective coalition through attacks on his record at Bain, depicting him as a heartless plutocrat. This allowed Mr. Obama to win a second term with a smaller number of votes than he won four years prior.
Today Republicans are more enthusiastic than Democrats, their intensity is higher and the president's job-approval numbers are lousy—49% disapprove, according to the Gallup poll of May 11-13. But Democrats may try driving down turnout among independents and Republicans by attacking GOP candidates, while driving up turnout among Democrats by emphasizing issues such as raising the minimum wage and (falsely) accusing Republicans of waging a "war on women."
Democrats know their most fertile ground for driving down GOP turnout will be among Republicans still angry over bitterly fought, divisive primaries. Republicans stand a much better chance of neutralizing this approach if their standard bearers enter the general election with a united coalition rather than with major elements still disgruntled after a primary that pitted faction against faction.
The GOP's failures in recent Senate elections tended to come from nominees who couldn't assemble the GOP coalition and conducted subpar general election campaigns. This year's Senate Republican candidates appear to be uniting the party and running much better campaigns. All of which means Republicans stand a pretty good chance of winning the Senate if this continues.
A version of this article appeared May 15, 2014, in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline Senate Primaries Are Uniting Republicans and online at WSJ.com.


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A rare and transparent Apple Newton listed on Ebay appears to have sold for $1,350.
The item, which was available only under EBay's "Buy It Now" feature, was one of Apple's unsuccessful MessagePad personal digital assistant devices from the 1990s.
The listed item was a variant of the MessagePad 110, which came out in 1994. Rather than a dark body, the EBay-listed MessagePad 110 had see-through parts.
QUIZ: Test your Apple knowledge
The item's seller says he or she didn't know too much about the product on its page description but had received messages from "serious Apple collectors" that said the item was given out to developers by the Cupertino, Calif., company at a conference. The seller said that as few as 150 and as many as 1,200 of the transparent Newtons were handed out.

subset: commoncrawl


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A Jewish Israeli man has been shot dead by a security officer at Jerusalem's Western Wall after he shouted Allahu Akbar (God is the greatest) near the public toilet, according to reports.
The man, 45, was mistaken for a Palestinian terrorist by the guard, according to police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld.
"The fact he shouted Allahu Akbar, that seems to be why the security guard drew his weapon and fired a number of shots at him," he said.
The guard "fired a number of shots" according to reports. After the shooting, paramedics rushed to the scene but were unable to resuscitate the victim.
The man, who was seen pulling something from his pocket as he emerged from the public toilet, was known to the Wall's regular worshippers as a "weird guy".
"He always acts strange. Everyone knows him. He once said he had become a Muslim. I guess the security guard didn't know him," a witness told Ynetnews.
Western Wall Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch expressed deep sorrow over the incident.
The Western Wall is one of Judaism's holiest sites.


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Well first, I'm so happy to report that we finally got some snow!! And good snow.....but...it's also almost 4pm as I'm writing this and it's all pretty much melted! =) Oh well. It was fun, for a day!
I was so thankful for the day off from school/work to catch up on laundry and other projects! The marriage retreat was great and it was fun to be away for a while but, coming home was dreadful! The laundry fairy forgot to come while we were away! I know I called her. =)
Here we are....
It was a great time and it was good to meet some new friends too!


text:
The PCs are currently wandering the mean streets of Scandshar, attempting to learn about the fate of a missing abolitionist agent. Also, by the sound of his voice, the most powerful crime lord in the city might be an undisputed champion of freestyle.
Also, I stuffed a Marx Brothers reference in my game in the person of Lydia the Tattooed Lady. Naturally, you should probably hear the original song to add some culture to your bacterial culture:


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Monday, April 30, 2007
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Friday, April 27, 2007
Point proven
As if only to prove my point about how terrible they are at their jobs, the Orioles broadcast booth has been taking a shellacking regarding a comment they made about Schilling's bloody sock. Now, I don't know how I missed it the other night, but I did not hear the ridiculousness myself. Long story short, Gary Thorne (who you ask?..exactly), stated that Doug Mirabelli told him that Schilling's infamous bloody sock from the 2004 World Series was not really blood, but paint. He also quoted Mirabelli as saying that it was all done for PR purposes. Now, if you think back far enough to 2004, you might remember that the Red Sox were doing a pretty good job of getting press without Curt having to paint his sock before a game. Clearly we weren't getting enough attention for beating the Yankees in the greatest comeback of all time, in all of sports, in seven games of the ALCS. Curt Schilling is full of himself, that is no secret. But to be a nobody, from some nothing baseball market, and accuse him of lying and fraud, is a pretty frickin' absurd.
There are rumors floating around the area that the Orioles owner, Peter Angelos, is looking to sell the team. Since he took over in 1993 the team has done nothing but tank, and he is running the organization into the depths of Baltimore's inner harbor. It would be very exciting to see the O's have a competitive team again. These may be famous last words, but it would be nice to go to Camden Yards for more than just a chance to see the visiting team.
Thorne took his words back by saying that he misunderstood Doug Mirabelli. Maybe the Boston media is making a bigger deal of this then it needs to be. Maybe it was a mistake. Maybe he has no clue what the heck he is talking about. But maybe, just maybe, the O's should be looking for new broadcasters. This would not only be about a sock comment, but how the main voices in the booth have nothing to contribute to the game.
Thanks to SSB, and Numero Uno for the links!
Posted by Meaghan at 1:52 PM 0 comments
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
I heart the Rem Dog
I often hear people say that baseball is a boring sport. This is clearly something I do not understand, nor something I feel like delving too deeply into at this time of night. It is a game of strategy, there are dozens of things going on before each pitch, understanding all of those things brings a greater appreciation of the game, and greater enjoyment of the sport.
Baseball announcers play such a huge role in bringing that greater appreciation of the game to the average Joe (or Johnny Burger King if you will). I grew up watching Bob Montgomery and Sean McDonough on TV-38, and was totally spoiled. These two men are responsible for my early teenage love of the Boston Red Sox.
I have been sitting on my couch for the last few hours watching the Sox take down the Orioles, and I cannot believe how rookie ball, J-V, pathetic the Orioles coverage is. I feel like I was listening to some single A team announcers from Wichita, cover a game in the early 1980's. The sound is dull, the commentary is boring and flat, and it makes me want to throw something at the TV. The O's are broadcast on MASN, which also owns the Nationals coverage (another irritating subject I don't want to get into right now). So, one team owns almost all of the coverage for two major league baseball teams, and produces a show that could have been made in my high school TV production class. I am not the least bit kidding when I tell you that during the post game show one of the commentators lifted up a hand made chart, placed it over his microphone so the sound was muffled, and without explaining the chart stated, "This green area shows where things went wrong." ???? I feel that I have a pretty firm grasp of the game of baseball, and I have no idea what in tarnation that clown was talking about. At the end of the show, they put up a digital list of all the things the Orioles needed to do to improve this week. My first thought was get rid of Peter Angelos, but they had a few other things in mind. The first item was something about improving he bullpen, this was the only solid commentary. The second item was, again I am not joking "Sock it to the Sox." What?? Is this Major League Baseball, or my junior high school softball team? The last item, and my personal favorite, "Win this home stand." I am so frustrated. Where is the analysis? Where is the detailed explanation of what went right, or wrong? What are the young teenage girls in Baltimore learning about the game? Where is my Rem Dog?
Posted by Meaghan at 10:48 PM 3 comments
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Go swimmin' in the deep end I find out where your faith begins
I am linking to Mark's web site, because I think he is awesome, and I think all of you should buy his CD. He was a gentleman, and wasn't hawking his wares during our reception. He performs under the name Vandaveer, and his songs are available on iTunes, or the CD is for sale on his site. The second song he played is not on the album, but the first song he played is, "however many takes it takes."
It was so very hard to keep that secret, especially from Dave. On the way up to Boston we heard one of his songs on XM, and we were both giddy. As many of you witnessed on Saturday, he is an extremely talented musician, so hearing him on satellite radio was quite fun. After the song was over I asked Dave to remember to tell him, the next time that he sees him, that we heard him on XM. I have no idea how I didn't open my big fat trap at that point, but I am glad I didn't.
Posted by Meaghan at 11:20 PM 1 comments
Monday, April 23, 2007
One if by land, two if by sea, three if you run into Derek Jeter on your wedding night
So, I am married now. It feels a lot like not being married, but with more jewelry.
There is a list 8 miles long of all the amazing things that happened this past weekend. It is unclear how many of those things I will share here. I will say that every bride should feel the way I felt on Saturday. That may sound like a bunch of malarkey, but when they make movies about people getting married, and you sit there and watch them, and think to yourself, "That is too ridiculous, things this good don't happen in real life," I am here to tell you that it isn't crazy, our wedding was that awesome. I mean, all joking aside, we really did run into Derek Jeter last night. Who else would be in there wedding dress and run into Jeter? Seriously.
As a wedding present, my brother gave Dave and I his seats to the Red Sox game tonight. And just to show you one small example of how my entire weekend went, this wasn't just any Red Sox game. This was the first Red Sox/Yankees series of the year. It was the first time I saw Dice-K pitch. It was the first time in 17 years that the Red Sox have swept the Yankees at home. They beat them by hitting...
to back...
to back...
to back home runs.
This was only the fifth time that 4 home runs in a row have happened in baseball history. The last time was 1964. And we were there, in the mix of the Fenway frenzy, soaking up every single amazing second of it. And for me to say that this game tonight was only one small example of how my weekend went, should help you realize how awesome it truly was.
I am so, so very lucky. I have a lot of amazing people in my life, who took such good care of me this past week. Any words I could find for describing how awesome these people are would feel false. And posting them here would feel too insincere. I guess I just want to convey that I hope that every man, woman, and child, at some point in their existence on this earth, feels the way that I have felt this past weekend.
Life is good.
Posted by Meaghan at 1:13 AM 5 comments
Friday, April 13, 2007
Am I blue?
Photo Friday this week is "The Blues." The Washington Nationals may have had blue skies on opening day, but their season is already giving me the blues. Last night they logged in their second win. That's right, second win. Their first win was last week, when they barely inched it out in the ninth inning. This meant that last night was the first time all season that they had a man at the plate, and the lead. Yes, all season. Awesome.
The good news is that the Nats aren't my real team. They are the local team, and I dig them a lot, but they aren't the same as my boys. I don't have that violent emotional reaction that goes along with being a Sox fan. I also love the Nats because having them here means I no longer have to go to Baltimore for Opening Day, or any game for that matter. Dealing with Orioles fans during Sox games is annoying enough, thank goodness there are only a few of them.
I am hoping for an upturn for the Nats, I really am, but I think it is going to be a few years before Washington is able to field a decent team. And that makes me blue.
Posted by Meaghan at 10:41 AM 0 comments
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Frodo failed, I now have the ring
My Dad just called to check on me, because I hadn't updated here and he was dying to know the results of my ring dramarama. I have both rings, my engagement ring is just as perfect as the day it was given to me, all is well in the world.
My wedding ring is also very beautiful. I was joking today that when I tried them on together I felt like I was introducing a new child to an older child. They have to learn how to get along together, because they will be friends for life. Very much like how siblings need to learn to deal with each other. I also thought that adding a second ring after a year and a half would give the first one enough time on her own. You know, to be nurtured and what have you.
Posted by Meaghan at 5:06 PM 0 comments
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
What not to say to a woman 11 days before her wedding
So, as I sort of alluded to a few posts back, I have been having an ongoing problem with my jeweler. You don't want to hear all of the details, I don't feel like rehashing all of the details, so I will give the basics to get you caught up.
1. Order wedding ring
2. Ring comes in wrong
3. Jeweler promises to fix ring, and needs to hold my engagement ring for measuring purposes. No work is being done on my engagement ring.
4. Me, live several days without my favorite possession in the entire world.
5. Go pick up ring, completely wrong, again.
6. Stay very calm, jeweler agrees to order second ring, and promises, promises me it would be ready by today.
7. Me, live several more days without my favorite possession in the entire world.
This leads us to today. I was planning on heading out to get the wedding ring after work, but called them in the afternoon to confirm that it was ready. I had been dealing with one very nice woman, who was very helpful and apologetic, and knew my whole order history. I called, asked for the very nice, very helpful and apologetic woman, but she was with another customer. I ask the woman on the phone to see if my order was ready for pick up. I gave her my name, and Dave's name, so that she could find the ring. I was on hold for at least 5 minutes. The same woman came back on the phone and says that she cannot find the order for Yates. My name is not Yates. Dave's name is not Yates. I calmly (OK, questionable on the calmly) explain that my name is not Yates. Again, I gave her my name, and Dave's name, so that she can find the ring. Again, I am on hold for more than 5 minutes.
When she gets back on the phone she tells me that my ring will not be ready for a few days. After a very deep, and very calm breath on my part, I explain that 1. I cannot wait a few days for a ring that should have been ready weeks ago 2. I was promised it would be ready today 3. Someone should have called me if the ring wasn't ready today, I was about to drive out there. It is important to note that I know it is not lady-on-the-phone's fault. I tell her that I know it is not her fault. How could this be her fault? I know this, and I am still very, very nice to her. However, I am getting married in a week and a half, so the current direction of the wind is setting me into a tizzy, never mind something as important as the ring I will be wearing on my hand for all of my live long days. I have been fighting the fact that I have been running on 150% pure emotion for the past week or so, but it is unavoidable. I am now embracing it. I am acting like a crazy person, let's all just roll with it.
She could sense my desperation, hell wild gazelle in Africa could sense my desperation at this point. She started to review the work order. Now remember, the wedding band was the wrong size. They were shaving the wedding band to match my engagement ring. As she is reading the work order, she said to me "so it looks like they were shaving the diamond." I am 30 years old. I have lived a full life, experienced many things, on varying levels of joy and displeasure. But today was the first time that I could actually feel my brain pass along the message, first down my spine, then through my chest, then into my lungs, telling them to breath. And I am really thankful that my body is able to cruise into autopilot at moments like this. It took all of my self control to push through my emotion and gather more information. Half of me was saying, "No, she is just reading this wrong, why would anyone ever shave a diamond, this is absurd, bitch is crazy." The other half was saying, "Abort. Abandon ship, mission failure, ignite complete system shutdown." I can honestly tell you that I have no idea what I said to her, not one clue. But I said something. I can't even tell you what she said back to me, because all I was thinking is "WHY WOULD ANYONE SHAVE A DIAMOND!?!?!"
So something happened, I don't know what. She knew I wasn't happy. I do remember telling her several times that my engagement ring was not supposed to be touched. I remember that we both agreed that it would be best if I talked to the very nice, very helpful and apologetic woman. I remember that she told me that the very nice, very helpful and apologetic woman would call me as soon as she was done with the other customer. And then I remember waiting.
I am lucky that I work with some amazing people. My ladies (yes, you ladies) were the only thing that stopped me from throwing my body on the ground and pounding my fists into the earth. As I was facing the prospect of potentially having the most irreplaceable object in my life destroyed, they calmed me. This was no easy task. They even made me feel like I wasn't crazy. Also not an easy task.
To cut to the chase, I finally talked to the very nice, very helpful and apologetic woman. With the keen sense of a tiger, she could also feel my desperation. She assured me, numerous times, and in various ways, that no one touched my engagement ring. She apologized (hence her name) for the confusion. She said was looking at my ring and the jeweler hadn't touched it. The dizziness went way. Normal breathing resumed, well for the time being anyway.
I am going to get the rings tomorrow. I have no idea how this is going to turn out. No matter what the wedding band looks like, I will be taking my engagement ring home with me. I am still banking on the fact that the woman on the phone made a slip of the tongue, or that she had no idea what she was talking about, or that she has a mild form of Tourette's which caused her to say the most absurd thing that one human being has ever said to another.
Keep your fingers crossed.
Posted by Meaghan at 11:58 PM 0 comments
Sunday, April 08, 2007
May the peeps be with you
The Washington Post, one of the most respected newspapers in the country, recently held a Peeps Diorama Contest. The winners were announced today, and as I was reviewing the photos of the greatest peep dioramas in the land, one thought kept reoccurring to me. With all of these grown adults, holding down professional jobs, spending a ridiculous amount of time putting these things together, how did I not know about this before today?!?! Seriously, I cannot believe that I did not enter this contest. Just think of the possibilities!
You should really take the time to see the photographs of the winning dioramas. My favorite is #7, "I gave her my heart, she gave me a peep." I am still laughing about it. I would love to see more of these.
Posted by Meaghan at 10:40 PM 3 comments
Thursday, April 05, 2007
I run on Dunkin
I walked into work today to find this box on my desk, along with a decaf iced coffee. Hello? How awesome is that?! My friend Clarkson knows that I haven't been eating much, and wanted to make sure I put some sort of food product in my body. It isn't that I am dieting, when I get stressed I can't eat. My body rejects the thought of food the same way Santino was rejected by Michael Kors in the final round of Project Runway Season 2. Let's just say that this week has been a little stressful for me. I mean it isn't like I have to make any decisions this week, or that my jeweler is being a monkey, or that I have so much crap to get done that I can't see straight, or that like, um, I'm getting married soon. Or anything like that. Yeah, just a little stressful.
It's great that at times like these I can sink my teeth into a few of these bad boys. I can always manage to eat the Dunkin, especially when the King of the Donuts is present. Or, should I say, the official donut of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
Thanks Clarkson!
Posted by Meaghan at 12:32 PM 2 comments
Monday, April 02, 2007
Real Men Don't Leave Before the End of the Ninth
Seriously. You do not leave early on opening day. I don't care how bad your team is losing, and the Nats were losing bad, you don't leave early. Period.
It wasn't the greatest day for baseball. Schilling got shelled, and he is on my fantasy team. Grr. But just for the record, Pedro got killed on the opening day of 2004. I know this because I froze my behind off watching the Sox at Camden Yards under four layers of clothing, but I still didn't leave early. My point is that we all know what happened in 2004, and if you don't you should probably stop reading my blog.
However, it is Opening Day! How can you not be happy? I just realized that this is my fourth opening day in a row. My first was when I was in high school, and I went with my sister's friend Alyssa. (Hi Alyssa!) She got me out of school early and we high tailed it to Fenway, and no, I don't think my parents knew about this until about 5 seconds ago. (Hi Mom and Dad!) Since I am coming clean, that wasn't the first, or the last, day I skipped school for a baseball game. (Love ya Mom and Dad!)
I couldn't have asked for a better day today, despite the loss. There is a photographic evidence of all of our fun over on flickr.
Posted by Meaghan at 11:10 PM 2 comments
Sunday, April 01, 2007
This should be a national holiday
The baseball season starts in mere minutes, and it could not be coming at a better time for me this year. I need the distraction. N-E-E-D, need. The weatherman is telling me that tomorrow will be very sunny and in the high 70's. We will be celebrating with a large group of friends over burgers, dogs, sausages, and beer in the RFK parking, lot bright and early tomorrow morning. The spread we have planned is ridiculous. I will be lathering down in sunscreen, throwing the ball around, and not making a decision about anything. That is all before the game even starts, doesn't that sound amazing? I am wicked, wicked psyched. That is a double wicked people, I mean business. Think of me while you are at work tomorrow, will ya?
Posted by Meaghan at 7:46 PM 2 comments


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|now, Oblio and Arrow going. OBLIO: Arrow, do you think we will see monsters? But whatever happens, we must stick together. Because we are a team now. Guess the Task Genre: Games With a Point Content: Everyone gets in a big circle. Pick a volunteer to leave the room after you explain the game. Once that volunteer is out of hearing range, choose a simple task that the volunteer is to do when he or she enters the room (walk in and tie a certain kid's shoe that is untied, take off their own coat, say the pledge of allegiance, etc.) The volunteer must come in the room and try to start doing certain tasks (unaware of the task to be done). The kids in the room help direct this ignorant person by clapping when this person gets even close to doing the task. Louder and faster clapping means the person is getting "hotter" (closer to completing or discovering what the task is) and silence means "you're way off; keep trying stuff." Game's point: Either peer pressure or leadership and influence.
I'll be just as happy
POINTED MAN: A point in every direction is the same as no point at all
THE ROCK MAN: You see what's you want to see
|Watch other parts of movie
2 triangle toss player
3 leaves Pointed Village
5 dancing ladies
6 get answers


text:
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To conduct the audit in 1000 points of sale is possible, when secret shoppers from 4Service Group get down to work. We act quickly and professionally, providing you with priceless information in order to success in your business.


text:
2007 Paradisus Palma Real
Since 1967 we've been providing customers with the highest quality products for their health & homes.
Carico has also been rewarding our sales people with amazing trips for many years.
Together, we've traveled across the globe, to 5 star resorts in cities throughout the world. Experience the good life as you explore new places, make new friends and generate new excitement all while enjoying the fun of a Carico trip.
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And this year, the fun continues as we take you to an exciting, new destination that will stimulate your imagination and electrify your attitude.
An area of amazing beauty & breathtaking views. A retreat, where you can play all day & party into the night. Yes, Carico's trips turn your dreams into reality.
Come celebrate Carico's 40th anniversary with one of our biggest and best trips ever!
An area of amazing beauty & breathtaking views. A retreat, where you can play all day & party into the night . . .
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As an all-inclusive resort, we invite you to indulge in any and all of the tantalizing and magnificent creations prepared by our international chefs and enjoy unlimited premium brand drinks, or a selection from their extensive wine list.
The evening at Paradisus Palma Real takes on a life of its own with even more fun for our Carico group!
Enjoy live entertainment in the theater, where you can enjoy the most enchanting sights and sounds of the islands.
Test your luck at their state-of-the art casino featuring all your favorites…poker, black jack, slot machines, and more!
Or enjoy a cocktail at one of 8 distinct bars, while a Caribbean sunset bids farewell to a treasured day and welcomes the promise of an unforgettable evening.
And just when you thought it couldn't get any better… Our top VIP qualifiers will receive the resort's premier, Royal Service treatment!
The Palma Real's Royal Service offers the highest level of luxurious services in an exclusive and private environment.
Each Royal Service Suite features a breathtaking ocean view and access to many premier amenities… including: courteous butlers, private check-in and check-out, pillow menus, a private beach and pools with Balinese beds and an exclusive lounge with drinks and hor d'hourves.
Carico's Royal Service VIP's will also enjoy preferred reservations for restaurants, spa treatments and special activities, as well as tours.
The Paradisus Resort is the pinnacle of luxury, artfully blended within its exotic natural habitat.
And to complement these surroundings, exquisite all-inclusive service allows unlimited enjoyment of delectable cuisine, premium drinks, a variety of entertainment and extensive pampering services.
Luxurious and comfortable accommodations in a genuine paradise. Truly unique. Truly paradise.
Come celebrate Carico's 40 years of excellence, at the amazing Paradisus Palma Real Resort, in the beautiful Dominican Republic.
Join us for this tropical getaway… June 4 – 8, 2007
This truly is… a once in a lifetime opportunity!
We'll see you there!


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The Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots may not have one of the most storied rivalries in history — but they have a rivalry that is alive and thriving, nonetheless.
Both battle for the AFC East division title each year, but recently, it has been the Patriots who most often prevail. The Pats have won eight of the last 10 division titles and three of the last 10 Super Bowls. The Dolphins haven't won a Super Bowl since 1973 and haven't appeared in one since 1984, while the Pats were champs in 2001, 2003 and 2004 and appeared in 2007.
Now, it seems the Patriots have beat the Dolphins once again — this time in the draft.
The Dolphins attempted to move into the third round of the NFL draft on Friday to select Ryan Mallett, but were thwarted by the Patriots, according to The Miami Herald.
"We were willing to take him, we just couldn't get our hands on him," a source with knowledge of the front office's thinking told the Herald. "We tried, but we couldn't do it. He's going to be a good quarterback."
The 6-foot-6 former Arkansas quarterback — who played his freshman season at Tom Brady's alma mater, University of Michigan — ended up going to the Patriots as the 74th-overall pick where he'll learn from NFL MVP Brady and coach Bill Belichick.
Mallett fans may not get to see him playing that much, though, as Brady is a lock to remain the Patriots QB for some time, having recently signed a four-year extension that runs through 2014.
NFL Network analyst Kurt Warner texted Brady after the Pats drafted Mallett to get the superstar's reaction.
"He wanted me to know for sure that he was planning on playing 10 more years," Warner said Friday of Brady's reaction to Mallett being drafted by New England, according to NFL.com.
Had Miami succeeded in getting Mallett in the draft, Mallett may have played much sooner with Chad Henne's precarious status as Dolphins starter, but a source did tell the Herald that the Dolphins lacked a clear-enough vision about how Mallett would fit into their offense.
The Dolphins spent time before the draft looking for a successful NFL quarterback with the same "personality and approach" as Mallett, but they couldn't come up with a prototype.
Now, the Patriots have Mallett, and the Dolphins have no Mallett prototype. The Dolphins ultimately didn't even use any draft picks to find anyone to be competition for Henne — let alone replace him — leaving signing a free agent or making a trade as their only contingency plans.
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Travel agent, writer, musician, map lover, and cat momma, Kat Vallera has traveled the world multiple times, visiting over 50 countries and counting. Driven to write about her experiences since she first backpacked through Southeast Asia, Kat has graduated from her blog NomadiKat to writing for Gawker, Jezebel, and Travel Pulse. She spared some time for Tours4fun to sit down and chat with us about her tips and tricks for navigating the world before her next big trip to Australia.
How did you get started in the travel industry?
Kat: I went to Music School. Pretty much was going through the motions and doing what I thought I was supposed to do: go to college, but my passion wasn't there. I really wanted to travel, I wanted to see the world. After I graduated I took a job teaching music in Bangkok, but I ended up leaving the job because there was some abuse problems with the kids. I didn't want to be apart of that environment and I ended up leaving and backpacking.
When I came back everyone said, "We want to hear your story." So I started writing, and I didn't know I was a good writer until people asked me to do it. I just started jotting stuff down and people said, "This is really good!" but I was just describing the experience. Then I started writing, doing videos.
And I kept going, I kept blogging, kept working at it, and that's around the time I started getting picked up by Gawker and Jezebel. When I came back after my 2nd around the world trip, I came back to the U.S. and out of nowhere the owner of Foremost Travel sent me an email, "Hey, you want to come work for us?"
Yes, okay! You're gonna pay me to travel?
And that's how I became a travel agent.
What's your advice for people who wants to travel and work?
Kat: Get ready to eat ramen, because you don't get into travel if you want to be rich. It's definitely a career of passion. There have been many ups and downs. When I was working as an agent it was pretty steady and then out of nowhere I was laid off. You never know what's going to happen.
When you're working as an independent contractor, there's the busy season – January through March – and you have all this money coming in, so much business, and then you're sitting therein September thinking how to pay bills.
[My advice is] just keep trying…It's not going to be all good all the time, and that's just life in general. There's ups and downs and you can't give up. If you get bored then you are probably not doing what you should be doing.
Stick with what you love and just be prepared for the lows. That is the nature of travel in the first place: you plan a whole trip and then a flight get's canceled. You have to be able to roll with the punches.
Of all the places you've been to, where do you want to go back to?
Kat: Whenever people ask me what is my favorite country, I always say it's like picking your favorite child…but where would I go back to? I really love Georgia. I feel like it is one of the world's best kept secrets as far as travel, because it's totally off the map.
Like you go to Tbilisi…it's a really hip city. There's this whole street art scene going on…it's like the cross between Rome and Bangkok. There's all these cool bars where people are hanging out with hookahs on the tables, and you're not sure if you're in Europe or the Middle East. It's really great and the mountains are beautiful…there's so much more to see.
And no one ever thinks to go there! Hands down number one; that's probably one of the places [I'll go back to].
Where would you like to go next?
Kat: Well, I want to go to Iran, that's my number one. That's been in my bucket list for a while, because I want to go to Persepolis. That is my dream trip. I was looking at combining Iran and Iraq. Supposedly the north part [of Iraq] is relatively safe and peaceful.
I want to do Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji because that's the next on the list.
Any tips or advice you'd give to younger you for when you first started traveling?
Kat: Don't be afraid. I think fear is the number one thing holding everybody back.
Turn off the TV; I haven't had TV in 10 years. Be open to learning about things from a first hand perspective. It's good to see things on TV or books but things are totally different in real life.
Just keep going. Like Dory, just keep swimming.
What do you consider home?
Kat: Home is where my cats are.
Any bizarre stories are you willing to share?
Kat: I am a "Don't open Pandora's Box" bizzaro stories [person]. When you're around people who don't travel, and you're trying to have a conversation and say "One time when I was in Vietnam and blah blah blah happened" they just don't get it.
I remember one of the blogs I wrote about a weird Filipino gambling scam that I ran into in Saigon. I did a lot of backpacking and hitchhiking, and 99.9% of the time, people were always really great. Anytime people invited me to their home for lunch or dinner it was always a good experience.
But this one time – I read later it was this whole scam they were running targeting foreigners – they took me back to their house to have lunch and they wanted me to start gambling with them and I don't gamble, but they were trying to teach me this game. And it was so set up. At the end, I just blew up at them…I turned really Southside Chicago on them and got my butt out of there. I think I really scared them.
I went on Google and read that a lot of people got robbed by them, got drugged by them, a lot really messed up stuff by the very same people.
I think when you travel, when you do tours that's cool, but if you're going to be independent, you're going to have to have a really good head on your shoulders and be able to get yourself out of jams. Which I guess is part of the adventure.
There are a lot of tools and sites for travelers. Which do you find most useful?
Kat: As a travel agent, I have found Tripadvisor very useful, because there reviews are a little less trolly. People are always quick to complain and not to quick to leave nice reviews when they have good service. But I've found Tripadvisor to be helpful.
Rome2Rio. It's a great website for figuring out how to get from one place to another. It's like Google Maps but it takes into account public transit and compares the different options.
Google Maps, Google University…the Internet is huge! Everything you need is there; all the tools are there. You can teach yourself to write a dissertation, how to fix a car, you can teach yourself anything from the internet, Google, YouTube.
The Internet is my number one tool.
So you would suggest that travelers should take a smartphone or device with Internet access with them?
Kat: I've got to admit, traveling has gotten so much easier since I got my smartphone. You can pull up your map, call a Uber, find a train schedule.
I'm a huge advocate for people who don't know what they're doing to call a travel agent…If it's your first time traveling or you've never been to a destination, it never hurts to call a travel agent.
How many languages do you speak? How many did you speak when you started?
Kat: Fluently I speak English; communicating wise I can speak Spanish. I speak a little bit of Italian, I speak a little bit of Thai, I can count to a 1,000. I speak a little bit of Bahasa Indonesia.
There are about 20 or 30 languages I can say thank you. That's always the first think I learn, because you want to be able to express gratitude to people.
I look at myself when I first went to Thailand, I was just really naive, but I think I handled it.
There are a few main languages that you can get around with: English, French, Spanish, Mandarin, and Arabic. If you speak 1 or 2 of those five languages, you can go just about anywhere except small villages.
Alright, last question: you're stuck on a desert island…what are the three items you bring?
Kat: Deodorant is number one.
I think number two would have to be lady items, because I've been to parts of the world where they don't have them.
A desert island? Oh, I have to have a Costco, industrial size bottle of insect repellent. I hate mosquitoes.
That'd probably be it. Deodorant, lady items, and bottle of insect repellent. Mostly just to stay comfortable.
I guess I probably should have a machete.
Keep an eye out for new videos on Tours4fun brought to us by Kat Vallera and hear all about Kat's adventures by following her on Facebook, especially in the upcoming months when she'll be traveling to Australia, as well as her newest articles with Travel Pulse.
If you want to get the best advice from expert trekkers from all around the world or learn all the tips and tricks to planning your next vacation, please subscribe to our Tours4fun Newsletter below.


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Learning Curve highlights finding from analysis and evaluation that will help shape a strategic direction forward; always focused on improving education outcomes.
Statistical publications include CESE bulletins and statistical fact sheets
Reports includes CESE major reports, evaluations, literature reviews, technical reports and research papers.
Other publications include work that has not necessarily been prepared by CESE. Click here to find reports about Tell Them From Me and the Smarter Schools National Partnerships.


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Watch how to make this recipe.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Prepare an ice bath.
Cook the green beans until crisp-tender, about 3 minutes. Remove the green beans from the pot and plunge them into the ice bath to stop the cooking process. Drain and set aside.
Heat a 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the butter and oil. When the butter begins to foam, add the garlic and cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Stir in the anchovy paste, and then add the wine. Bring to a simmer, stirring, about 2 minutes. Add the green beans and toss to coat. Cook 2 minutes more, then add 1/2 teaspoon salt and remove from the heat. Serve immediately.
A viewer or guest of the show, who may not be a professional cook, provided this recipe. It has not been tested for home use.


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Under a bush hiding: pray for the homeless.
Around a quarter of those who are homeless had been in care at some point in their lives.
I pledge to pray for families; children in the care system and those involved in adoption.
When I first read on the "Thy Kingdom Come" website find some extreme places to pray and film yourselves doing it. I thought of all the beautiful places I could pray: high on a mountain, in a darkest cave, under water in the depth of the sea, riding my bike through the countryside.
When I read it again I realised that I can see God's beauty and creation in all of these places.
But to others these are not places of beauty but are the extremes of their lives.
The forgotten families and children of our society, often out of sight and unnoticed.
Dear loving compassionate God.
I pray today for those young people living on our streets.
The homeless, the runaways.
Those that sleep in the cold, the destitute, the unloved.
Bless those who work to provide them with shelter: food and friendship.
May we find ways to reach them, give light and hope to their dark lives.


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I frequently get asked by my personal training clients and readers of this blog, what is the best all around blender to have in the kitchen? Most often they want to know whether to buy the Nutribullet-vs-Ninja blender. The battle for the top spot is tight, however they have a few noteworthy differences to pay attention to.
In today's post I'll be reviewing the two blenders side by side and provide my assessment of which one would be the better investment. While there are other blenders we could compare, we'll be focusing just on the Vitamix and the Ninja since these tend to be the most popular.
I've used both products so I'm quite familiar with each product and their differences. Ultimately this review will be an assessment based on personal experience and a recommendation from opinion only. Obviously you'd want to do your homework and compare reviews from trusted sources before making a purchase decision.
More after the jump…
While there are several different models of both Vitamix and Ninja blenders we'll be comparing the following:
Vitamix versus Ninja Kitchen System
Here are the specific models in which the comparison will be made since these are the two I have personal experience with.
Ninja Kitchen System 1100 – Model BL700RC
Vitamix CIA Professional Series – Model 1363
Why go with a Vitamix or Ninja blender in the first place?
Neither one of these products would fall into the "typical" blender category. The main difference is the size of the motor, power output, and functionality. Anyone who has ever tried to use a standard household blender for heavy duty blending can attest to the fact they won't work very well. I burned through enough motors to learn this the hard way.
If you just want a blender to make up a protein shake or smoothie, go with any cheap blender or pick up a Magic Bullet. However, if you want a versatile kitchen appliance that can perform a wide range of functions, you'll want to spend the extra money for one of these units. Plus they make for a pretty stylish addition to a well desiigned kitchen, just look at the showroom at https://floform.com/locations/spokane/ the renovations that they pull of are miraculous and just look at how the blender fits right into the decor.
Don't even attempt to make ice cream, nut butters, dough, pulverize grains and seeds, etc, with a cheaper blender. Trust me you'll just end up frustrated. As always you've got to have the right tool for the job.
Ninja Kitchen System 1100 – Model BL700RC
This is the unit you see on TV all the time with the infomercials. Here are the product details and what's included:
- 72 oz pitcher and 40 oz dough bowl (BPA free) with 4 blade attachment
- 1100 watts of power (8 amps)
- Dishwasher safe
- 3 speeds plus pulse function
- Attachments: dough hook, cookie dough paddle, blade assemblies
- 1 year limited warranty
Vitamix CIA Professional Series – Model 1363
The Vitamix product line has been around for quite a while and it's the blender of choice endorsed by the Culinary Institute of America. Here are the product details and what's included:
- 2 + peak hp motor with laser-cut stainless steel blades
- 1380 watts of power (11.5 amps)
- Variable speed control
- 64 oz container – BPA free
- Recipe books
- Tamper
- Extra long 6 ft power cord
- 7 year full warranty
The main differences, observations, and comparisons…
Vitamix variable speed
This is one area where the Vitamix is heads and tails above the Ninja Kitchen System. The Vitamix has a switch for two functions (high and variable speeds). Personally, I've rarely used the high speed function preferring to use the variable speed function. You'd be surprised just how much more functional the variable speed makes when blending different foods. The Ninja Kitchen system has three speeds: one for crushing ice, one for making dough, and one for blending.
The Vitamix uses a 4 prong blade while the Ninja uses a 6 prong blade on the main attachment. The upside with the Ninja system is the blade attachments are placed on a center post which can be removed easily for cleaning. The Vitamix blades are part of the container housing and you don't remove. You've got to be careful cleaning the Vitamix container as the blades are very sharp, I recommend using a brush and not hand washing down around the blades.
On the plus side for the Vitamix is the fact that their four blade system handles everything with relative ease. I've found myself sometimes having to stop the Ninja to scrape the sides of the container before continuing to blend. Haven't had to do this with the Vitamix yet.
The only other knock on the Ninja in this area is the fact that it doesn't always seem to blend evenly throughout and sometimes there will be larger chunks of fruit left at the top when doing a large blend.
This is another area where the Vitamix has a leg up on the Ninja. The housing section where the pitcher blade assembly meets the motor or base is plastic on the Ninja, while it's steel on the Vitamix. While I haven't had the Ninja break yet, my money is on the Vitamix out-living the Ninja in the long run.
The Vitamix blender is by far more versatile in terms of what it does well compared to the Ninja. While the Ninja does an acceptable job with food processing it doesn't perform well in my opinion with making smoothies (leaves chunks). Don't get me wrong it can blend and chop ice, but I don't think it's on the same level as the Vitamix at all.
The Vitamix can be used for making HOT soups, yes believe it or not it's that powerful. You won't be able to do that with the Ninja. The Vitamix will also pulverize flax seeds and other grains with ease.
The Vitamix comes with a 7 year warranty, the Ninja has a 1 year limited warranty. Not much else to say here.
Made in the USA, Made in China
For some people this won't be a major factor in the purchase, but it was for me. Vitamix is a family owned and operated company that has been making blenders in Cleveland, Ohio since 1921.
The Ninja is made somewhere in China.
Can you tell the difference in product quality, you betcha.
This is one area that understandably makes a lot of individuals consider the Ninja and other competitive blenders over the Vitamix. The Vitamix sells for around $450 while the Ninja will be approximately $150.
But once again cost is a relative factor depending on how much you plan on using the device, what you intend to do with it, and how long you expect to use it before it dies.
While the Ninja and other blenders may be cheaper, you get what you pay for. When you look at it from a long-term investment standpoint, the Vitamix is a much better investment.
Still I understand that $450 is a big investment. Believe me I thought long and hard about it before buying mine. But once I got it home and started using it, there's never been a moment of buyer's remorse.
I use my Vitamix EVERY DAY and it's the center focus of my kitchen counter. When you really start evaluating a purchase I think you have to look at it in terms of an investment in health for you and your family. Compare the investment against the cost of processed foods, take-out, and other fast-food that you know deep down in your heart isn't healthy.
Trust me in the long run it'll pay for itself in many ways several times over.
And the winner is….
Obviously if you've read this far you know my recommendation is for the Vitamix CIA Professional Series blender. I really can't say enough good things about it, and while it does require a larger investment, I think you'll be glad you spent the extra money.
Save up for and get the best blender money can buy in my opinion. It's a super powerful, reliable, well built, made in America product that's worth every penny.
Here's a link to learn more or to purchase from Amazon.com
Vitamix CIA Professional Series – Model 1363 Blender
If you've used either one of these blenders and would like to chime in feel free to do so in the comments section. Your feedback and dialogue is welcome as this is an open-forum blog.
Once again don't just take my word for it, check out the reviews and see for yourself. While I think a lot of the determination will depend on what you're using it for, the following says a lot:
Amazon Customer Reviews (as of date of this post 3-1-13)
Ninja Kitchen System 1100
5 star reviews: 57
1 star reviews: 26
Vitamix CIA Professional Series – Model 1363
5 star reviews: 179
1 star reviews: 11
Shane Doll is a certified Charleston personal trainer, fat loss expert, speaker, and founder of Shaping Concepts. With a staff of over 10 certified fitness professionals, Shaping Concepts provides personal fitness training in Charleston with a specialty on weight loss and body transformation. Sign up today for a no obligations consultation.


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For earnest students of the Master Key System, I have created an e-mail course, accompanied by a video for each of the 24 chapterrs. You are welcome to purchase it for only €59.00., but I suggest you first have a look at 4 FREE videos, incl. MKS content and my commentary in order to get an idea.
Wishing you great success, many new insights and an enlightening time with the Master Key System. Should you have any questions or are getting stuck somewhere, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Peace and Blessings,


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|"Ok Noah! Let's a-GO!"
Dee tells me wearing his hat AND ear warmer like this makes him look "super cool"...
Who am I to stand in the way of "coolness"?
Yesterday morning Dee and I had a little disagreement about having seconds at breakfast. He felt he should have second helpings. I'm all for putting second helpings in hungry boys' tummies. Just not when we are already late for school. I lectured him that if he wanted time to eat second helpings he should have been up earlier and fully dressed for school sooner. I expected it to go in one ear and out the other.
This morning at 5:41 am, I was woken from a dead sleep by someone--someone wearing tennis shoes--running across the house. As my brain struggled to sift through the haze of sleep I tried to decide if I should load the gun under my bed and go investigate or just roll over and go back to sleep. I opted for investigating, minus the loaded gun.
There was Dee. Wide awake. Fully dressed. Wandering around the house. And asking for breakfast.
"Dee, why are you up so early?"
"I'm just so hungry Mama. I wanted to make sure I had lots of time to fill my tummy."
Break my heart, why don't ya?
I almost wanted to make him a big, hearty pancake and egg breakfast right then and there...
It's 5:41 am. Here's a box of gluten free cereal. Here's a carton of soy milk. Knock yourself out, kid. I'm going back to bed.
After breakfast he had a "little" time on his hands...
There's just something about a boy and his big box of little cars that makes me smile.
I sure love this happy, sweet, obedient, hungry, wonderful kid!


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You may have noticed I took a bit of a blogging break over Easter. I'm sure many of you understand how the computer can be a major distraction!! So I thought some time apart during Holy Week would be a good thing. And now I'm back and ready to get going!
I have a large Tot School post coming up for the weekend. It's, like, 3 weeks of tot school, so I want to make sure I get that posted! I also will have some alphabet fun, Easter pictures, and a craft project or two ready to go soon as well.
Did you know that April is Children and Nature awareness month? Neither did I! But 5 Orange Potatoes did, and has put out a challenge for us all! The challenge is to get outside EVERY DAY for the rest of April and document it with a photo. Rain or shine, or in the case of us here in Colorado . . . snow! I'll be participating in this challenge with E. She has recently developed a paralyzing fear of . . . ants . . . and so she doesn't like to go outside right now. Maybe this challenge will help cure her. One can only hope . . . Silly Girl! Or, I may end up with a bunch of pictures with a crying girl begging to go back inside. Ha! I'll be sharing all my week's photos together over the weekend.
I hope you will all join the challenge, too!


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Sunday, December 30, 2012
Feeling better
1. Homemade muesli and blueberries for breakfast
2. Roast veges with lemon juice, paprika and a sprinkling of herbs
3. Baby food! Yeah literally just mashed potato and carrot with a tiny bit of butter and nutmeg.
4. Dahl. Well kind of, I made it up. It has red lentils, quinoa, green beans, spices (cumin, whole coriander seeds, turmeric) and a bit of acidophilus yoghurt on the side. And none of the usual chilli that I sprinkle over everything.
And I drank endless glasses of water.
I'm going to take it easy today as well but am going to a friends place this evening to celebrate new year and begged him to make his famous cheesy lasagne for dinner! I'm not sure that I'll last until midnight tonight but I'm glad to be doing something. Everybody else is off partying and Nic has gone to work at a music festival for the week so I was worried it was going to be a bit of a lonely one.
So anyway HAPPY HAPPY NEW YEAR, tomorrow will be the beginning of 2013 and with it comes a whole new adventure!
Posted by Malayka at 2:06 PM
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Durable, portable, easy to use and learn on. Excellent customer service.Cons
Not for more experienced surfers. Don't leave out in the sun!Verdict
Perfect for beginners and kids; nicely designed product.
Never caught a wave? Never thought you would or could, how about trying a Greco Soft?
But most of us mortals know that this does not come easy (and very probably involves a lot of muscle-wrenching paddling, inelegant tumbles and scrape and mouthfuls of seawater at the very least).
But there is hope for all of us!
Greco Surf is known worldwide for its innovative touch on soft surfboards, working with new shapes and technology to produce the best boards for beginners and advanced surfers alike.
The company's new 8 foot foam softtop surfboard, known as the 2.0, has the highest density foam out there of any 'foamie' so it stays firm for more performance while still keeping its soft touch for safety and durability.
For just $249.99 you can buy this year's new soft surfboard model. 'Nobody in the industry is putting technology like this on the market,' say the manufacturers, and the customers tend to agree.
'Hands down, the best board,' said one, adding, 'I bought my first Greco 2.0 over a year ago so I've had a couple seasons to really test it out... I had never touched a surfboard in my life before I got the 2.0 and got up on my first try. My wife was the same way.'
Sounds good... and most people agree that this is, 'the best foamie "funboard" on the market.'
The board weighs around 10 lbs which is light for an 8 foot board: so easier carrying from the car to the beach and for paddling out past the surf break.
'We ordered a few of these for our surf camp,' said one company. ' Its been a couple months now and we love them. All of us instructors love them. There is a turned down rail towards the tail with a two plus one [fin] simulation set up so it turns and grabs really well. It has a lot of float as there is a nice amount of foam on the rocker.''It is a great board for beginners to learn to surf as well as intermediate surfers,' said another buyer. 'It can turn great and I learned to surf the wave face riding the 8 foot Greco. I love it's durability and portability.'
But what really makes Greco stand out is its customer service.
'I cannot say enough great things about the customer service from Greco Surfboards. Todd is an amazing leader and has built an amazing company,' said one buyer whose leash broke and who received a replacement almost instantly, plus good advice on greasing swivels and a complimentary traction pad.
'Thanks Todd for the great service including the positive comments which made me really excited about learning to surf at my "advanced age" of 50!,' adds another.The response from the company is quick and personal - something very few people expect so they are always surprised when they get it. 'About 15 minutes later I had a response from Todd Greco,' said one customer with an enquiry. 'He advised me what to do and helped me from his end so that I could have the blue surf board I really wanted. We talked back and forth several times via email that day, and I was a happy girl.'
'I can attest to fantastic customer service as well as a wonderful product. The rails are beveled not rounded like the cheap costco board which make it a more realistic transition to an epoxy/fiberglass board. Plus you can call up personally anytime Todd will answer any questions.
With that kind of service, you can buy online with confidence.
A couple of cautions arose during my research. The fins are described as 'somewhat flimsy' - but 'all softboards have them'. Plus be warned that you can't leave this board out in the sun for any length of time without risking blistering. The company does warn about this but a couple of people were still not happy.
You still need to wax the board for a decent grip, advises one buyer, who agrees that the boards are 'great for children.'
'Overall great board, great price and great customer service,' says a customer. Who can say fairer than that?
Catch a wave this summer!
Here's the best place to shop for Greco 8 Foot Foam Soft Top Soft Surfboard (8 foot)
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Hello darlings ,
Today's article is a post of my nail of the day.
I really love this combination , it looks absolutely cute with the glitters.
So achieve this nail look I used two nai lpolishes.
Essence : Nr.04 - Space queen
Catrice - Nr.060 - Mona Lisa is staring back
I bought these nail polish three days ago and I fell in love with them.
I was inspired by two pictures :
This is my nail look
My nails are a little crappy cause 2 nails broke ,
so I have to regrow them and take of them again.
The inspiration picture is a little more pink and i'll use a more pinky nail polish next time.
Because this one is more nude.
I first applied a layer of the Catrice nail polish.
And waited till it dried.
Then I applied 2 coats of the pink glitter nail polish.
After that I applied a topcoat and done !
Well this was my nail of the day.
I hope you liked it.
And give it a try , cause it looks really cute.
With lots of love ,
Rianne x


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Lorell Stacking Letter Trays
Acrylic - Clear, Green
Stacking letter trays offer a durable, lightweight design with polished edges. Smooth, curved edges feature a hint of green to emulate the look of real glass. Nonskid feet protect desktop surfaces and keep your important papers on your desktop. Capacity is 2-1/2". Letter trays are made of durable acrylic and do not require stacking supports for stacking.
List $50.16 - 2/EA
General InformationManufacturer: Lorell
Manufacturer Part Number: 80655
Brand Name: Lorell
Packaged Quantity: 2 / Each
Product Type: Desk Tray
Physical CharacteristicsColor:
- Clear
- Green
Material: Acrylic
Product InformationPlacement: Desktop
- Letter
- Paper
- Durable
- Lightweight
- Non-skid
- Stackable
MiscellaneousRecycled: No
Recycled Content: 0%
Post-consumer-waste%: 0%
Assembly Required: No
Country of Origin: China


text: I have always been passionate about wildlife, science, and conservation. Therefore the multidisciplinary and integrative Coastal Resource Management program is perfect for my long term goals and interests. Prior to beginning my doctorate, I worked as a zookeeper, backpacked around Europe, earned my master's degree in biology with a focus on behavioral ecology (also from ECU), and I worked on several research projects on a variety of wildlife including bats, birds, and amphibians. When I'm not working, you can find me running, birding, playing with my dog, reading, or relaxing and having fun with friends and family.


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Obama had taken office at a true populist moment that demanded more than this. People were gagging over their looted 401(k)s and underwater homes, the AIG bonuses, and the bailouts. Howard Dean rage has never been Obama's stylehope-and-change was an elegant oratorical substituteand had he given full voice to the public mood, he would have been pilloried as an angry black man. But Obama didn't have to play Huey Long. He could have pursued a sober but determined execution of justice and an explicit, major jobs initiativeof which there have been exactly none, the too-small stimulus included, to the present day.
By failing to address that populist anger, Obama gave his enemies the opening to co-opt it and turn it against him. Which the tea party did, dishonestly but brilliantly, misrepresenting Obama's health-care-reform crusade as yet another attempt by the elites to screw the taxpayer. (The Democrats haplessly reinforced the charge with marathon behind-the-scenes negotiations with insurance and pharmaceutical-industry operatives.) Once the health-care law was signed, the president still slighted the unemployment crisis. A once-hoped-for WPA-style public-works program, unloved by Geithner, had been downsized in the original stimulus, and now a tardy, halfhearted stab at a $50 billion transportation-infrastructure jobs bill produced a dandy Obama speech but nothing else.
Obama soon retreated into the tea-party mantra of fiscal austerity. Short-term spending cuts when spending is needed to create jobs make no sense economically. But they also make no sense politically. The deficit has never been a top voter priority, no matter how loudly the right claims it is. At Obama's inaugural, Gallup found that 11 percent of voters ranked unemployment as their top priority while only 2 percent did the deficit. Unemployment has remained a stable public priority over the deficit ever since, usually by at least a 2-to-1 ratio. In a CBS poll immediately after the Democrats' shellacking of last Novembera debacle supposedly precipitated by the tea party's debt jihadthe question What should Congress concentrate on in January? yielded 56 percent for economy/jobs and 4 percent for deficit reduction.
Geithner has pushed deficit reduction as a priority since before the inauguration, the Washington Post recently reported in an article greeted as a smoking gun by liberal bloggers. But Obama is the chief executive. It's his fault, no one else's, that he seems diffident about the unemployed. Each time there's a jolt in the jobless numbers, he and his surrogates compound that profile by farcically reshuffling the same clichés, from stuck in a ditch to headwinds (first used by Geithner in March 2009retire it already!) to bumps in the road. It's true the administration has caught few breaks and the headwinds have been strong, but voters have long since tuned out this monotonous apologia. The White House's repeated argument that the stimulus saved as many as 3 million jobs, accurate though it may be, is another nonstarter when 14 million Americans are looking for work.
In early June, the unemployment rate7.8 percent when Obama took office and as high as 10.1 percent during his tenureticked upward to 9.1 percent. That cued a ubiquitous press refrain that no president since FDR has been reelected with an unemployment rate higher than 7.2 percent (as it stood when Reagan overcame a recession to win in 1984). Later that month, a plurality in a Bloomberg survey said the economy was worse now than when Obama took office.
The ultimate indignity, though, was a Washington Post / ABC News poll showing Obama in a dead heat with Mitt Romney. Mitt Romney! If any belief unites our polarized nation, it's the conviction that Romney is the most transparent phony in either party, no matter how much he's now deaccessioning hair products. It's also been a Beltway truism that a Mormon can't win the Republican nomination, let alone a Massachusetts governor who devised the prototype for ObamaCare. But that political calculus changed overnight. That this poseur could so quickly gain traction, even if evanescently, should alarm Obama.
It was on Monday, June 13, that the new state of play crystallized. That morning, Immelt unveiled his vacuous op-ed and rendezvoused with Obama in Durham, North Carolina, for a double-feature dog-and-pony show: a meeting of the otherwise invisible White House jobs council (only its second to date) and yet another small-bore presidential photo op promoting yet another green-tech employer illustrating the latest dim-wattage administration slogan, Winning the Future. Unfortunately for the White House, the Times front page delivered another message above the fold that morning: OBAMA SEEKS TO WIN BACK WALL ST. CASH. Among the objects of Obama's affection interviewed was an unnamed Democratic financier who found it ironic that the same president who once criticized bankers as fat cats' would now invite them to dine at Daniel, where the six-course tasting menu runs to $195 a person.


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Become a Partner
The Silect Software Partner Program is a network of technology and solutions partners who complement Silect's products and services, giving organizations an even greater advantage. Our program is designed to provide our partners with long-term revenue-building opportunities and maximize the benefits for our customers through the synergy between partner location and experience and Silect's product solutions. Silect Software is currently looking for resellers and system integrators to distribute and deploy our solutions worldwide. Contact us today at firstname.lastname@example.com to discuss how we can start working together to satisfy the needs of System Center customers.
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Here's what some male caregivers have already said:
"I have worked in hospice for over ten years, and I have seen the number of male caregivers increase. Jim and Rhonda have provided a valuable, informative and needed guide for all of those men out there struggling to understand themselves as they give care. When I took the assessment, it captured my own caregiving style perfectly. WOW and thanks."
- Vince Marolla, MDiv., hospice chaplain and trainer
* * *
"I wish I'd had this caregiving Guide when I was caring for my wife. It would have eliminated the necessity of trial-and-error learning and significantly lightened our burden."
- Dan Daily, male caregiver
* * *
"Who Says Men Don't Care will be a real life-line. I experienced the concept of a 'tipping point' and that gave me such clear guidance to realize the blessing of home hospice for the final times with my late wife. With this Guide, I would have recognized it sooner."
- Steve Coleman, male caregiver
* * *
I have just finished reading James Gambone and Rhonda Travland's guide for male caregivers. As a person who has served in a numerous caregiving roles over the past thirty years, I found the guide both helpful and thought provoking. Its CARES Assessment provides ways to think through strengths and weaknesses and points the way forward. There are helpful distinctions between grief and depression. Readers are invited to think through specific issues relating to their generational group and assess when a "tipping point" has been reached. The guide is concise and easy to read. It also provides a wealth of additional resources in the appendix including websites, newsletters and books.
- Bruce Pederson
Minneapolis, Minnesota
* * *
Have you read Who Says Men Don't Care?
Please tell us what you think about our Guide.


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I had an amazing time at this year's Stampin' Up! Convention and am preparing already for even more excitement to be had at the Melbourne Convention Centre --where we'll have the experience of a lifetime between 22nd & 24th May, 2014. GUESTS Are welcome... So start saving to come with me.. It will be a BLAST!!!
It's hard to explain the excitement. My Stampin' Up! BFF Louise Sharp likens it to a kid in a candy shop - and I agree!
Among many other amazing demonstrators, this year I got to meet the very talented Narelle Farrugia – I really love her stamping style and it was such a delight to finally meet her. Most demonstrators participate in something called 'Swaps.' These are a card front and I made 100 of the same design to received 100 beautiful different swaps back from very talented stampers.
Here is my 'Swap' card:
Stamp Set: Feels Good
Accessories: Versa mark, Dimensionals, Snail Tape, Crystal effects, Baker's Twine,
Real Red stitched Gross Gain Ribbon, Button Sizzlit, White embossing powder, Heat Gun, White water colour pencil, Glue Dots, Clouds embossing folder, Rhinestone basic jewels.
Designer Series Paper: Story Time
Colour Combination: Whisper White; Basic Black; Real Red
Ps: The Beautiful Cloud embossing folder: isn't hanging around, so get your order in NOW!
Happy Stampin'
Narelle x
Happy Stampin'
Narelle x


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Are we happy?
Well Wisconsinites, we got the rain and now we are watching and listening to the grass grow. We are never content, but today is a perfect day to do some gardening and other outside projects. Enjoy it now before we start complaining about the heat.
This week I celebrate 37 years of marriage. I feel God has given me a new beginning as my husband went through some major health issues over the last few years. I have a friend that suddenly lost her husband to a massive heart attack. Totally unexpected. They would have had a 25th year anniversary this week also. Some times life really hands you lemons. I am sitting on my porch watching a survivor of a quadruple bypass doing anything he wants. He has not let his health slow him down, but the complete opposite.
Make lemonade today. A good day for it. Thank God each and every day. Just realized the world did not end yet. Hurrah.
2 replies
Congratulations on the marriage. Mines comming up in August also, 37 years.
Yes rain we got, and more on the way with thunderstorms and tornado warnings.
I at least got some of my planting done on our some what warm days.
Now after Tuesday they are saying down into the 50's for highs again. Boy, How I wish for warmer weather, note I said warmer not HOT. I hate HOT weather with a passion along with the ice cold winter months of 42 below zero.
Am I happy, you bet I am , how could I not be… I live in wisconsin, were we have the best cheese, beer, cranberries, cherries, etc… I may complain, but I love it here!
Next Discussion: Going to see cardiologist for first time »


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Wyoming Department of Education Taking Comment on Special Education Funds
The Wyoming Department of Education (WDE) is accepting public comments on an application for Part B Federal Special Education Funds. Department of Education spokesman Tom Lacock says in the application for the funds, the state has to provide assurances that it has in effect policies and procedures to meet all eligibility requirements of Part B of the Act as found in PL 108-446, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and applicable regulations.
The state must also submit a spreadsheet that includes a description of how amounts retained for state administration and state-level activities will be used to meet the requirements of Part B. Specifically how those amounts will be allocated among the state-level activities.
The Department will be accepting public comment from March 31, 2014 through May 5, 2014. The state will review and consider all public comments and make any necessary modifications to the application or policies and procedures, as appropriate.


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It's been quite the banner day for dads on Twitter
First Justin Bieber's dad made the entire internet uncomfortable with this already infamous inquiry, and now Kanye West has taken to Twitter to express his outrage at the use of in-app purchases in kids games
Fuck any game company that puts in-app purchases on kids games!!!
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) October 10, 2015
That makes no sense!!! We give the iPad to our child and every 5 minutes there's a new purchase!!!
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) October 10, 2015 Read more…
More about Twitter, Apps, Kanye West, Social Media, and Rant


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OrthoServiceLine.com, a contemporary online resource to the orthopedic community, today announced the publication of a free e-Book: "A Buyer's Guide to Orthopedic Patient-Reported Outcome Collection Tools."
Representatives of all major joint replacement surgeon organizations (AAHKS, AAOS, The Hip Society, The Knee Society) met in August 2015 at a Patient Reported Outcomes Summit to obtain a consensus regarding the patient-reported outcomes and risk variables suitable for total hip and knee arthroplasty performance measures. Leaders of the ortho community continue to promote the benefits of collecting PROs, from improved patient decision-making to benchmarking surgeon performance.
OrthoServiceLine.com's Joint Replacement Benchmark Report in May 2015 found that only 49% of orthopedic programs were collecting patient-reported functional outcomes pre-surgery, and even less were collecting the data post-surgery. Many hospitals are currently seeking a PRO solution to meet recommendations by the professional societies and requirements set by Medicare in the new Comprehensive Care for Joint Replacement (CJR) bundled payment model.
The e-book walks prospective buyers through the decision process, including recommendations from functional outcome industry experts Kevin J. Bozic, MD, MBA; Nina Whalen, RN, APN-C; and Patricia D. Franklin, MD, MBA, MPH.
Highlights of the e-book include:
- The importance of collecting functional outcomes
- How to decide what to measure and when
- Determining your data needs
- Differences in reporting capabilities
- The most important factors in choosing the right solution for you
"Medicare and other payers are clearly moving toward requiring patient-reported outcome data for value-based reimbursement," said Maeghan Nicholson, Editor of OrthoServiceLine.com. "Orthopedic program leaders are used to measuring their performance in terms of volume, clinical quality, financials and other metrics. Now it's time for them to track what really matters – what was the patient outcome?"
Interested parties can get their copy at www.orthoserviceline.com/PRO.
About OrthoServiceLine.com
OrthoServiceLine.com is a professional online magazine designed to give orthopaedic leaders actionable insights and ideas to grow and improve their programs. It features experts, articles and webinars focused on the transformation to value-based care. OrthoServiceLine.com is sponsored by Wellbe Inc., the leading solution provider for Connected Care. High-performing hospitals use Wellbe to help patients successfully navigate their medical treatments and surgeries.


text: BOSTON POLICE SEEK PUBLIC ASSISTANCE TO LOCATE MISSING CHILDThe Boston Police Department is seeking the public's assistance in locating a child who has been missing since yesterday, Monday, November 10, 2008. The child in this case is missing from Norfolk Street on Area B-3 in Dorchester. Name: Shadon Tucker Sex: Male Age: 12 Race: Black Height: 4'11" Build: Medium Hair: Black Eyes: Brown Clothing: Red Sox Hat, Green Jacket, Black Zip-Up Hoodie, White Short Sleeve Polo Shirt, Black Pants, White/Black Fubu Sneakers, Blue/Light Blue Backpack Incident Description: On Monday, November 10, 2008, school officials called the parents of Shadon Tucker to notify them that their son had not reported to school. Shadon's parents say they last saw their son when he left for school at around 6:50am. If anyone has information regarding this person, his whereabouts, or where he was last seen, please contact the Boston Police Department by calling 9-1-1 or directly contacting Area B-3 detectives (617) 343-4712.


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Home Improvement Referrals
First Impression IronworksVisit Website
Phone Number 623-433-9976
Booth Number 253, 935Scroll down or click to view our current coupon Contact This Company
About Us
First Impression Security Doors, Inc. is a family owned and operated, industry leading ornamental iron manufacturer headquartered in Gilbert, Arizona servicing the entire United States and Canada.
First Impression started out in 1995 with only a couple of employees building a handful of security screen doors in a garage. Today we offer 12 product lines, have grown to 150 employees and over 50,000 sq/ft of operation and showroom space across 8 buildings, but have never lost sight of the core values that led to the success and continued growth of our company… provide the highest quality ornamental iron products on the market, award winning customer satisfaction and service, quickest delivery of our custom products to the consumer, and overall best value for the price. "If you treat people right and build the best product on the market, price won't be their only consideration when making their buying decision" explains Clint Cornelius, Vice President.
When Tim and Bamie Cornelius along with their son, Clint purchased First Impression in 2002 from a previous family, they had no idea what the next decade had in store other than to leverage Tim's 25 years of experience as an Accountant, Bamie's design creativity, and Clint's engineering savvy and operational expertise from his military experience.
Make a memorable "First Impression" with our unlimited ornamental iron designs. A family owned business since 1995, we custom fabricate all products at our facilities in Phoenix, Arizona. Our high quality, fast delivery, and loyalty to our customers is evident in our A+ Rating by the Better Business Bureau, spotless Registrar of Contractors history, and 40% of new monthly business from previous customers and referrals.
Since the Cornelius family took the helm, the business has grown ten fold not just in sales but local job creation, yet has never lost the attention to people and detail that only a family business offers. "Customer satisfaction is our #1 priority at First Impression, this is our primary concern evidenced by being an A+ Rated Accredited Member of the Better Business Bureau since 2002, receiving the Angie's List Super Service Award for the past 6 years, and rated the #4 Manufacturing Business in Arizona by "Ranking Arizona" for 2012. Our dedicated employees take great pride in being an industry leader and upholding our company values of providing the highest quality products, award winning service, quickest delivery, and overall best value." shares Tim Cornelius, President.
- Security Screen Doors
- Gates
- Railings
- Solar Screens
- Panels
- Fireplace Screens
- Iron Entry Doors
- Enclosures
- Spiral Staircases
- Security Window Guards
- Iron Artwork
- Much More


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Alexander new CEO at Allegiance Hospital
Plainview's Allegiance Hospital has a new captain at the helm as the geriatric psychiatric medical facility recently announced Angie Alexander as its new CEO for the area.
"Allegiance Hospital is pleased to announce Angie Alexander as our new chief executive officer," said Debbie Smith, regional director of community education for Allegiance.
"She is very talented . . . and Angie will help us continue our mission of making Allegiance the hospital of choice in geriatric psych and patient care."
Working with the Louisiana-based Allegiance Health Management system since 2005, Alexander will now be in charge of the Plainview and New Deal locations, which offer both inpatient and outpatient medical care for geriatric psychiatric patients.
Allegiance, also called Plainview's Allegiance, is located on the top floor of Covenant Hospital Plainview and offers care for younger patients if they qualify.
"I'm very excited, and I'm really going to enjoy the challenge," Alexander said. "I want to make Allegiance successful, and this is a bigger opportunity with a bigger impact,"
With a master's degree and a Bachelor of Science in science from Louisiana Tech University, Alexander is a licensed counselor and a board-approved licensed professional counselor supervisor. Alexander is also a member of the American Counseling Association and the Louisiana Counseling Association.
Alexander said a mission was placed on her heart to work with the elderly, and in 2005 she entered the geriatric psychiatric field with Allegiance.
"I just really wanted to work with the elderly. I feel they are too often forgotten," Alexander said.
Alexander worked a year as a clinical therapist at Allegiance Hospital before making the jump to program director.
On the administrative side, Alexander became the regional director of start up programs in 2007, and in 2008 she was made director of quality assurance and compliance, a title she held until moving to Plainview.
In 2011, Alexander was approved as a licensed professional counselor supervisor.
Originally from Arkansas, Alexander said she is enjoying her new job and is growing accustomed to West Texas living.
"Everybody has been so welcoming and sweet, very helpful," Alexander said.
Plainview's Allegiance facility has a staff of 30, which includes psychiatrists, therapists, mental health technicians and nurses.
To comment:


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Waiting for the boyfriend to pick me up before going to the post office to pay the unreasonably expensive tax for the shoes that I ordered from Irregular Choice. So I thought, why don't use the spare time to post these photos on my blog that have been postponed for quite some time now. Beside, I started the day in a very bad condition. I lost all the photos in my Photobooth's folder on my Macbook before got a chance to back it up. Don't have any idea how to recover it. Ah, well..
♫ ♪ M83 - "Midnight City" ♫ ♪


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It Takes Two: Most Stylish Celebrity Couples
We don't know what notion we've taken. It's not like it's Valentine's Day or anything, but we suddenly felt a little nostalgic for that time that Jake Gyllenhaal and Taylor Swift strolled through Central Park sipping lattes and Taylor wore a duffle coat and Jake looked so happy. Oh Taylor, look what you made us do? This led us down the rabbit hole. Johnny and Kate? Or Johnny and Winona?


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Cash Flow Difficulties with an Online Retail Company
The Problem Presented
We were approached by a company's accountant who explained their client was experiencing severe cash flow difficulties with their online retail company. Unforeseen rapid growth led to problems within the company's infrastructure specifically with their stock management. The cash flow pressure they were experiencing was coming from HMRC and some of their trade creditors.
Our Approach
An initial meeting was arranged immediately with the company directors in order for us to establish an accurate understanding of the nature of their business and the problems that the company faced. We were able to establish that the company had a core business that retained potential to be profitable in the future but their cash flow problems were a barrier they needed to overcome first. Multiple processes were discussed for this company but it was decided that a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) process would be the best route to take for them and their situation.
How we Helped
Once the CVA was agreed upon we followed the meeting by preparing cash flow forecasts for the company to support the offer of a CVA being put forward to creditors. We also performed a review of the company's expenditures to see where restructuring could help the company and unfortunately redundancies had to be made and any excess stock was returned to suppliers to reduce the overall liability of the company directors. Finally we convened a creditors meeting which was held 6 weeks after the initial consultation where the creditors approved the CVA proposals.
The Company Now
As a result of the CVA being agreed, the company has been able to continue to trade under the control of the existing directors while continuing to pay monthly contributions into the CVA. The company is in its 3rd year of the CVA and their situation looks promising that they will complete it within the 5 year period.


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Help us get to over 4,000 biographies in 2018.
If you know of a past magician not listed in MagicPedia, start a New Biography for them or Email us your suggestion.
Houdini's unique escapes
Houdini escaped from many unique challenges. Some of these he did only once and often they were tied in with some promotional item.
Many of these escape were promoted as one-of-a-kind challenges which seemed unique, but Houdini realized that most were just different themes of the same escape. Escaping from a sea monster or giant football was more or less the same as escaping from a sack.
- Standard U.S. Postal Service mailbag
- Sea Monster
- Lit cannon
- Giant football manufactured by the A. J. Reach Company at the Philadelphia theater, which was laced with brass chains.
- Wheel that was rotating
- Milk churn
- Diving Suit with leaded boots,in thirty fathoms of water without getting wet.
- Iron boiler
- Convict ship "Success" in New York City on June 4, 1913 - Houdini was locked in a cell, below deck. It took "more than an hour" for him to escape,jump into the Hudson River and swim to shore. [1]
- Wooden box built by J. B. Woolsey and Company near Scranton Pennsylvania. [2] - The box was constructed on stage in full view, and sealed tight with seven pounds of nails and tied with rope three quarters of an inch thick and wrapped the rope around the box several times. Houdini escaped from the box in six minutes. Houdini's only provision in the construction of the box was that it would not be made airtight.
- Beer cask supplied by Scranton Brewery in 1915. Houdini's only stipulation was that the workers devise a way of sealing the cover quickly so Houdini wouldn't be deprived of air for more than a couple of minutes.
- Four Vises supplied by the Pittsburgh Auto Vise and tool Company.[3]
- World's Largest Envelope provided by a Chicago envelope company that was 150 inches high and 54 inches wide.
- Chained to automobile wheels by the Weed Tire Chain Grip Company at the Keith's theater in New York on April 10, 1908.
- Navy Deep See Diving Suit at the Norfolk Navy Yard (1912)[4]
Sometimes he refused a challenge if it didn't fit into his normal method for escaping:
- A giant light-bulb that was blown around him, without breaking the glass
- Two bathtubs that were spiked together
- Drawn-and-quartered: handcuffed to four horses that would race off in opposite directions.
- A house of bricks built around him.
Although he might not have accepted some of these challenges, he did develop some methods to escape from them and also created some of his own escapes based on them. [5]
- ↑ http://houdinihimself.com/?p=1847
- ↑ http://houdini.org/challeng.html
- ↑ Houdini! by Kenneth Silverman (1996)
- ↑ http://books.google.com/books?id=9B7ZAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA100&lpg=PA100&%20Z-jbU_noGYygyATfhoKYCg&ved=0CB0Q6AEwAA#v=onepage
- ↑ The secret life of Houdini: the making of America's first superhero by William Kalush, Larry Sloman (2006)


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Twitter to create a new way of music search
Usually how you search for your style of music? to various music portals apparently does not match your style of music, it makes you miss so much good music. Twitter tries to create a new way of music search, facing the United States, and Canada and the United Kingdom, and Ireland, and Australia and New Zealand user #music music service launched.cheap oakleys
According to tweets stateful tracking data and information of the most popular songs and musicians, to provide users with more mainstream musical atmosphere.cheap oakley sunglasses
. The music service now provides four labels: popular (popular), the new (emerging), recommended (suggested) and play (#nowplaying), persons of concern to the user if you are an artist or music songs directly by playing tag with interest to listen to.oakley outlet