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Greg Della Franco
510 Forest Lane NE
Cleveland, TN 37312
Have known since 2002
Project Manager | Business Analyst | IT Consultant
Business Analysis | Project Management | Electronic Commerce
I/T and Business Consulting | Business Intelligence (BI) | Risk Analysis / MitigationBusiness Acumen
Retail Banking / Life / Health / Mortgage Insurance | Financial Services
ERP / Inventory Control | Leisure Travel Management | Electronic PaymentsSelected Achievements
·Managed the structured development of a strategic business intelligence software project, which reduced ETL job abends by 3,600, resulting in a ROI of $10,800 per month.
·Analyzed and managed the agile development of strategic e-commerce software projects, which helped facilitate residential mortgages from origination through closure.
·Utilized business, technical and project management expertise to restructure and administer a system design methodology, which resulted in summarized user errors being reduced by 50% and the schedule being reduced by 25%.
·Revitalized the selection and utilization of Enterprise Resource Planning tools.An increase in retained corporate earnings will exceed $100,000 per fiscal month.
·Successfully mobilized and focused resources working on a cross-functional project portfolio of up to 6 concurrent leisure travel management systems with an overall valuation exceeding $1 million.The forecasted average revenue generated by each system will exceed $250,000 per annum.
·Pioneered state-of-the-art fault tolerant facility monitoring system that was validated against strict UL guidelines and approved for commercial sales and distribution.
·Facilitated and contributed to the analysis, design, construction and implementation of an on-line, real-time facility management system for 5 consecutive releases at cost savings of $500,000.
510 Forest Lane NE
Cleveland, TN 37312
Have known since 2002
N78 W7064 Oak Street
Cedarburg, WI 53012-1124
Have known since 1999
1100 West Lake Park Drive
Milwaukee, WI 53224-3003
100 Corporate Office Drive
St. Louis, MO 63045
Have known since 2005
MGIC Plaza
P.O. Box 488
Milwaukee, WI 53201
Have known since 2007
7625 W Wind Lake Rd
Wind Lake, WI 53185-2253
Have known since 1990
I'm an experienced project manager passionate about using technology and working with teams to solve an organization's complex problems. Working in information technology across a wide range of industries - with extensive expeience in financial services, insurance, consulting, an integrating enterprise-wide data systems - has provided me with the needed methodologies and skills to benefit any organization.
Client - Metavante Corporation• Business Intelligence Development •
Assertively managed the full software development life cycle of Business Intelligence (BI) products and services. BI included retail banking data models, data warehouses / operational data stores, and customized data mining.• Selected Achievement •
Managed the structured development of a strategic business intelligence software project, which reduced ETL job abends by 3,600; resulting in a ROI of $10,800 per month.
• Stakeholders •
Metavante Product Managers and Business Intelligence Center (BIC)
• Project Methodology •
Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK)
• eCommerce Software Development •
Managed and analyzed the agile development of strategic e-commerce web site software projects, which helped facilitate a residential mortgage from origination through closure. Major responsibilities consisted of gathering business requirements, planning and managing software development, quality assurance and deployment.
• Selected Achievement •
Research, analyzed and selected the Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliant vendor for eMagic.com, LLC. Due diligence accountabilities consisted of gathering business, functional and compliance requirements, formulation of vendor selection criteria, and internal stakeholder communication, consensus and approval.
• Stakeholders •
MGIC / eMagic.com, LLC
• Project Methodology •
Agile Software Development
• Noteworthy •
MGIC exercised contractual option to hire.
Client – Mortgage Guaranty Insurance Corporation (MGIC)
• Finance I/T Merger •
Facilitated and assisted in the integration of two Mortgage Insurance Loss Reserves data warehouses. This mission critical project delivered the data mapping and ETL analysis to Finance.
• Stakeholders •
MGIC, Radian Corporation, and Deloitte Consulting
• Project Methodology •
Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK)
• Noteworthy •
Merger between MGIC and Radian Corporation was contractually cancelled. Transferred to eMagic.com, LLC
Client - CUNA Mutual Group
• Business Intelligence Development •
Managed the full project life cycle of a monthly finance data warehouse model and data mining project. Project responsibilities consisted of gathering Requirements Definition through Implementation. Planned project life cycle was 12 months, consisting of 3 conjoined phases. The project resource team consisted of 6 Finance associates, 4 IT associates and 6 Products ranging from 2 – 8 associates. Costs were tracked and approved, via the Resource Plan, Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) and resource actual.
• Select Achievement •
Credited with project timeline compression of at least 25%, while maintaining full project scope, data integrity and issue management.
• Stakeholders •
Finance and Sales & Marketing
• Project Methodology •
Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK)
Client - Save-A-Lot Foods, LTD
• Oracle Retail Development •
- Manage multiple fully integrated and cross-functional retail implementations at any given time. Retail implementations included, but not limited to, point-of-sale, inventory control and software upgrades.- Directed matrix organization workflow for up to 12 in-house/outsourced technical associates involved in the project lifecycle of Retek customized software.
• Stakeholders •
Super Value Foods
• Project Methodology •
Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK)
• Product & Services Implementation •
Responsible for the facilitation of the cross-functional implementation of financial institution risk products, business-to-business electronic commerce and corporate infrastructure projects.
• Stakeholders •
Retail Financial Institutions
• Project Methodology •
Project Management Book of Knowledge
• Also Known As •
eFunds Corporation
• System Development •
Responsible for the facilitation of the cross-functional implementation of leisure travel management front and back office systems, electronic commerce and corporate infrastructure projects.• Selected Achievement •
Credited with project duration time compression of 25%, while maintaining full project scope, product / service quality assurance and risk management.
• Stakeholders •
La Macchia Enterprises Company and Mark Travel Corporation
• Project Methodology •
Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK)
Client – Blue Cross / Blue Shield of Wisconsin
• Business Intelligence Development •
Oversaw the full software life cycle of up to 4 concurrent health insurance data warehouse and electronic business projects.
• Stakeholders •
BC/BS Actuarial and Sales & Marketing Departments
• Project Methodology •
Microsoft Solution Frameworks
• Utilized a 'code once / compile many' event-driven graphical user interface to design and develop sales illustration PC Applications for various medical insurance products.
• Directed a project team in the development and documentation of 56 software scripts to convert a variety of raw municipality property tax data into a proprietary client format.
• Managed, designed and constructed a software interface between 2 dissimilar computer languages to pass extremely large ad-hoc amounts of data back and forth for brake friction material analysis.
• Analysis and development of workflow data and data pathways for public utility construction.
• Implemented a telecommunications network to give life insurance agents the ability to communicate with the home office in a cost-effective manner.


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subset: commoncrawl


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My first thrift store haul blog post ever!!!
It's been a while since I've visited Goodwill and finally with a relaxing and free weekend without anything to do, I took the opportunity to visit the neighborhood Goodwill. I love that I can find awesome, unique, vintage pieces to add to my wardrobe along with brand new basics that no one wanted to buy in stores. Oh, and yarn. I can't forget that Goodwill is an excellent place to fuel my yarn addiction.
A Mini and A Maxi Skirt:
Two Brand New V-Neck Tees (From Target, I Think)
A Brand New Mohair Throw (Also From Target)
Looks like someone was trying to make a sweater and gave up. I'm actually pretty excited about this yarn because I've used a self-striping yarn before. I need to knit myself (and I am emphasizing myself) a hat and some fingerless mitts for marching band rehearsals.


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Home » funerals
Prayers and Readings for a Funeral
A loved one dies. You need to help plan or participate in the funeral or memorial service. This may help: Funeral Prayers Prayers, Poety, Familiar Quotations Readings From the Bible A Prayer for those facing death Complete Funeral Planner
Funeral Planner
Funeral Planner A friend or loved one dies. You find yourself in the position of needing to organize a fitting tribute, memorial service or funeral. Here is the practical information you'll need in moving ahead with your plans, including our list of recommended readings for the service.
The Absurd Cost of Death and Dying
We lost our beloved "mother," Lela Nelson Rhodes, following a long illness, several weeks ago. She was a very wise, loving and wonderful woman. She was also very frugal. When she died, peacefully at home, we called our local undertakers at, Frank E. Campbell, not far away in Manhattan. They quickly picked up Lela's body, took […]
Funeral Prayers
Prayers, Readings, Poetry, Familiar Quotations which you might find helpful in planning a funeral or memorial service.


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"I have worked with Su-An on numerous video projects and always enjoyed her friendly and professional approach to the task at hand.
I was always impressed by her ability to look at the big picture of the project whilst simultaneously maintaining a remarkable attention to detail.
Su-An is a good and calm leader under pressure, an astute and capable director and a perceptive editor. She effortlessly switches between these roles guiding and shaping projects ensuring they exceed the client's expectations.
She is a pleasure to work with and I have no hesitations in recommending Su-An as a member to any team."
Denis Beaubois
Cinematographer and Editor
"Su-An was a delight to work with! She's super super talented but still so down to earth and willing to adapt to any challenge that is thrown her way.
I hired Su-An on a live graphic studio / social media project where there were very tight deadlines and high volumes of work to get through every day. Su-An never missed a beat - turning around motion graphics and design work to the highest standard every day. Thanks for all your work Su-An - you rock :)"
Penelope Hogan
Content Producer at The Story Lab, Dentsu Aegis Network
"Su-An is a hardworking and self-motivated team-player and I've been constantly impressed with her conscientious approach to her projects.
Her ideas are refreshing and handles feedback positively. Her dedication to her craft is commendable. It was a real pleasure working with Su-An and I miss her cheery disposition."
Elena Ho
Art Director at Blackmagic Design, Post-Production
"Su-An is the phenomenal genius behind the very pretty iOS app for The Cove that we developed for the movie producers. She joyfully (to my absolute surprise) hand-painted more than 100 frames from a video footage of dolphins swimming underwater for the app's animated splash screen - something I have yet to see in the thousands of apps published in the
App Store.
She is very dedicated, and her calm and measured manner is amazing to work with. She bounces ideas with you but is not married to her own, which tells a lot about her collaborative nature - a super plus point in the creative industry. I'd recommend Su-An anytime."
Zuzanita Zakaria
Director at Blackcube Media
"An animator with a strong graphic design aesthetic and a creative use of animation techniques. She would be an asset to any project that requires an artist with highly developed personal responsibility, initiative, and responsible problem-solving."
Marilyn Cherenko
Associate Professor at Emily Carr University of Art and Design
"I've had the pleasure of working with Su-An on numerous content creation projects in the past 2 years. I work as Director of Sound at doeanddoe of which she is Co-founder and Creative Lead.
As a leader, she shows tremendous leadership skills, mentoring ability and strong project management capabilities. She also shows great commitment in meeting tight deadlines and deliverables. All these qualities coupled with an immense talent in editing, animation and post-production, makes our projects succeed for our clients.
As a performing artist and musician, I have also worked with Su-An as a client. She displays excellent initiative and attention to detail. She shows she can be trusted on to work independently and as well as in a team.
Her drive for excellence in the final product, meticulous process and planning is to be highly admired and she would be asset to any organisation."
Claudine Michael
Director of Sound at doeanddoe Creative Studio
"Su-An is a breath of fresh air! Some people might shy away from collaborating via long distance, but with Su-An involved, you need not worry! Although I have never even met her in "real" life, we were able to work very closely throughout the creative process and had no problems managing feedback and final output hand offs despite the ocean that separated us! Su-An is an excellent communicator, very accountable, and produces fantastic creative pieces that go above and beyond your highest expectations. From our very first concept meetings all the way to the final pieces that she provided us with, we loved the journey of working with her."
Brittany Baxter
Co-Director of The Sticking Place Film
"Su-An was initially hired to work on our festival trailer, but her job scope expanded to spearhead the design department when I found that her talents lie in more areas than one. She is a hardworking, creative and talented multitasker who sees a project to fruition when given a responsiblity. Not only is she focused and detail-oriented, she is an excellent team player capable of producing superlative results under tight pressure and meeting urgent deadlines. The quality of the work produced is a direct reflection of her capability in meeting the high standards demanded of her. It is exemplary of her dedicated professionalism and creativity, combined with a willing attitude to learn. In view of her interests and career, I highly commend her as a perfect team player and a valuable asset to the film and motion graphics industry."
Louisa Cheong
Festival Director at Vancouver Singapore Film Festival
"Su-An is an extremely talented animator. She worked on my video project where she was asked to recreate rooms / spaces which we were not able to shoot in live action. She basically made the rooms more beautiful than they actually were. Su-An is an independent worker, needing very little guidance once the concept has been laid out to her. She is also very responsible and reliable... working through technical problems to make sure the files are delivered on time."
Angelina Cantada
Director at Curly Tail Pictures
"A brave experimental filmmaker with a unique creative vision, and the confidence to follow through on it."
Jay White
Associate Professor at Emily Carr University of Art and Design
"I am involved in a committee that leads researcher initiatives to promote work done at the University of British Columbia to the community. As part of a recent project, we required the use of an animation to use in conjunction with our presentations to the public, as well as to important funding organizations.
Even from the initial stages of the project, we were confident that we had made the right decision in choosing Doe and Doe to create our animation.
Su-An, along with everyone in the Doe and Doe team, were extremely professional and efficient in all their correspondence, despite the significant time difference that separated us. She was very receptive of our ideas and offered a lot of great advice in conceptualizing the piece.
We received the first few drafts of the piece very quickly and were extremely impressed. She managed to capture the essence of our institute from the smallest detail, to the flow of the whole piece. Su-An was very meticulous about making the many changes and additions to the piece that we required, and always delivered in a timely manner.
When we received the final version of the animation, we were all blown away by the amount of time and painstaking effort that Doe and Doe had put in to making the piece absolutely perfect. The quality of the animation and sound design was fantastic and is truly a testament to Su-An's experience and skill in her craft. We were particularly impressed by the segment that depicted 3D animation of blood cells in a vein, which was even medically accurate!
We wholeheartedly recommend Doe and Doe for understanding the needs of a large professional institution, such as UBC, and for being able to deliver with a level of excellence that significantly outweighed our expectations."
Tara Fernandez
Postdoctoral Fellow at University of British Columbia
"Su-An was a pleasure to work with at DOXA. She was full of innovative ideas during story development meetings, and brought the same creative innovation to her personal work. I was extremely impressed by Su-An's unique creative ability as an animator. I hope we have the chance to work together again!"
Josephine Anderson
Documentary Filmmaker at Rewild Films
"MONTECRISTO magazine hired Su-An for an illustration in our Autumn 2009 issue. Su-An was able to conceptualize a very challenging essay topic in a fun, creative and intelligent manner. Su-An worked well independently, but also took our suggestions and feedback to create the perfect end-result for our magazine. We have since received comments from readers expressing their enjoyment of Su-An's illustration. Well done."
Craig David Long
Editor at MONTECRISTO Magazine


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I hope you all are enjoying crafting your days away like me :)
I am quite active on my blog these days and I hope this continues and I don't disappear on breaks.
Today's post is about something that I really really enjoyed making. It's an altered box. The box came with a shawl that I brought and it was covered with nice subtle handmade paper which had the brand name printed on the front.
I stuck small pieces of mirror at the Centre to give a broken mirror cum mosaic kind of a look, added a punchnella at the back and some handmade roses too. The rest of the box was given a golden texture with a hint of green to it.
Oh!! I also made a mini card or tag to go with this box..Here's it
I'm putting up this box for these challenges -
LESSology challenge 18 -its a wrap!
Itsy Bitsy - Big B challenge (bow, beads and bling)
As usual I'm hungry for feedback..so do drop by..thank u :)
Have a good day!!


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Thinking through as to a direction for project surface tablet. One of the main 'success'areas with tablets has been the use of the tablets to take videos of students learning practical skills or learning dispositions through roleplay. Included is the aspect of peer learning and feedback. So students use the videos as a springboard for learning not only the skills or dispositions but important aspects of judgment required to maintain reflective practice.
This bookon peeragogy, via a 2013 posting on Arlington Education Foundation referring to a holistic approach to technology enhanced learning, provides some suggestions for ways forward with regards to enhancing learning through peer learning. Although set in formal school contexts, the ideas and discussions are transferable across to vocational education.
The online book is basically a collection of ideas / resources from various American teachers who seek to improve learning through implementation of peer learning and peer production. It's the peer production part which we really need to move along with.
So, instead of providing feedback etc. the next step is to perhaps have students develop a how to 'guide', using their original videos as source material. The ideas included in the book are ways to organise student groups, activities suitable, organising learning context, assessment suggestions etc. Technology tools suitable like forums, wikis, real-time meetings, MOOCs etc are discussed.
I will try out a few of the ideas with our project tablet teams, to extend on what we have begun and to continue to improve on our learning-centred approaches as supported by introducing 'situated technology enhanced learning STEL'.


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The Ultimate Beatles Christmas Collection
The Beatles
Special Features
Comes with a 40 page booklet and slipcase-style box.
Box front
Box back
Front Cover
Back Cover
Disc Variations:
"Silver" CDR
The Booklet:
The booklet included with this title features
the following information:
12 Tracks - Total Time: 60:01
(VT-173) 27 Tracks -
Total Time: 38:27
The Official Beatles
and Solo Christmas
Group and Solo Christmas Rarities
Box Back Text:
Compiled just in time for the 35th
anniversary of the first "Beatles Christmas Record" in 1963, this collection
features all seven of the original Beatles Fan Club Christmas messages from the finest
quality sources available. Also included are rare group and solo recordings in the spirit
of the season, along with extensive liner notes and visuals, making this the definitive
compilation of the Beatles Christmas recordings.
Liner Notes:
The Ultimate Beatles' Christmas
"Yes, everywhere it's Christmas... at the end of every year," and as everything
they attempted, the Beatles did it first, and they did it best...
The "it" this time around was a special Christmas record to be
distributed only to Beatles Fan Club members who had, in Paul's words on the '63 disc,
"paid the subscription." The initial idea came from their press officer at
the time, Tony Barrow. The Fabs' following had become so enormous by the end of 1963
that the close contact they'd once enjoyed with their fans was quickly becoming non-existent.
Thus, the concept of a seasonal message sent to those who had not only supported
them by sending in their shillings and pence, but had been the most faithful enthusiasts
1963: "The
Beatles Christmas Record"
So it was on Thursday, October 17, 1963 that the Beatles gathered around the mikes
in EMI Studio Number Two at Abbey Road between 2:30 and 5:30 p.m. and let their verbal
charms take over. This was an historic day in their recording history anyway, given
the fact that their first four-track recordings took place earlier in the session, and one
of the songs recorded was "I Want To Hold Your Hand," the song that would end up
breaking them in America. A giddy feeling was evident in their voices, and even
though much of the banter was scripted by Barrow, it was obvious listening to the final
product that the Beatles were the ones who made it such a great piece of humor.
While Ringo sounded particularly tentative (he'd only been a Beatle for a year and
two months), the others more than made up for it in sheer wacky energy. "The
Beatles Christmas Record" was edited and mixed by George Martin and Norman Smith the
same day it was recorded, and in November was pressed on "flexi-vinyl" by
Lyntone Records as LYN 492 for distribution to 30,000 ravenous fans on December 9, 1963.
The disc created a huge amount of excitement, as there were a relatively few
available compared to the swiftly-growing numbers of Beatles fans. As with all
future discs, there were no repressings made after the initial run, so the flexis were
obviously a prized item in one's collection. What this meant however, was that there
was no going back; since the demand was so high and the fan base grew to unheard of
proportions in 1964, a Christmas disc was not only demanded but expected for that
Christmas season. So, Tony Barrow went to typewriter again to put together
"Another Beatles Christmas Record".
1964: "Another
Beatles Christmas Record"
Though at three minutes and fifty-eight seconds it was the shortest of all seven
Christmas records, "Another..." was probably the funniest of the lot. John
in particular was "on", making light of the scripted action ("...you fans
have seen to that... page two..."), insulting fans without them knowing it, unless
they were German, by calling them "Beatle peedles" (slang for penis in stated
country), and in general showing why he got the "witty Beatle" tag. The
others were no slouches either, however, and highlighted the "sum is greater than the
parts" theory that usually comes up when speaking of the Fabs. "Another Beatles
Christmas Record" was recorded in five takes on Monday, October 26, 1964 in Studio
Two between 7:30 and 10 p.m. It was taped during sessions for "What You're
Doing", released on the Beatles For Sale LP in November, and as with the '63
recording, it was edited and mixed the same day. It was released as LYN 757 on
December 18, 1964 in a pressing of 65,000, more than double the previous year's total.
Interestingly, this recording wasn't released in the U.S. The members there
received a disc pressed on cardboard (the U.S. format for all the messages up to and
including 1967) that contained the 1963 message! U.S. fans would have to wait until
1970 to own this one...
"The Third Beatles Christmas Record"
It's obvious when listening to "The Third Beatles Christmas Record",
issued December 17, 1965 on LYN 948, that the boys were getting a little more cynical and
not so quite as fun-loving as in the previous years. Recorded toward the end of a
lengthy Rubber Soul session in Studio Two for George's tune "Think For
Yourself" on Monday, November 8 (only 25 days before the issue of the LP!). The
strain is showing as the clock was closing in on 3 a.m. This message didn't have a
prepared script, and in an attempt to get anything on tape that might be usable,
the tapes were left rolling during the vocal sessions earlier in the day to catch any
pearls the Fabs might have tumble from their lips. (Portions of these rough tapes
have been issued in varying lengths on earlier unofficial releases, with one of the
snatches of John, Paul and George singing "...and you're got time to rectify all the
things that you should..." from this session appearing as a sound effect in the Yellow
Submarine film.) This strategy didn't work, so they finally sat down and
recorded the most dispirited Christmas message of the seven, with references to "here
we are again, same old studio, same old mike" leading into a quickly aborted
rendition of the Four Tops' hit from earlier in the year, "It's The Same Old
Song" before the copyright issue becomes clear! Somehow, George and Norman
edited a listenable record out of the tapes the next day between 2:30 and 5:30 p.m., from
the three "takes" that were recorded. (Side note: there seems to be some
controversy as to whether or not this message was issued to the U.S. fan club; the April
1966 "Beatle Bulletin" stated that the materials for this disc were received too
late to manufacture and distribute the disc in time for Christmas '65, but other sources
state that some U.K. discs were imported and distributed.)
"Pantomime, Everywhere It's Christmas"
Perhaps as a result of hearing the final 1965 disc, the 1966 record was another
matter entirely. Dispensing with the usual "greetings and off-the-cuff
songs" format of the three previous messages, the Beatles assembled in the Dick James
Music first floor demo studio in New Oxford St. (where one year later the 20 year old
Elton John would start recording his first demos of early John / Taupin compositions) on
Friday, November 25 and performed a tightly scripted and well-thought out pantomime onto
tape throughout the evening. There were two individual pieces recorded, with Paul on
piano throughout this heavily "Goon Show"-inspired work that was produced by
George Martin and edited by (interestingly) Tony Barrow on December 2, with the tapes
being rushed to Lyntone for flexi-pressing and release to the Fan Club as LYN 1145 on
December 16, 1966. The contents of "Pantomime, Everywhere It's Christmas"
probably flew right over the heads of the majority of the teenagers who received it to
play on their Close and Play's around the Yule Log, but it's an extremely entertaining
piece of comedy, particularly on repeat listenings. (A couple of side notes: this
was the first two-sided Beatles Christmas record due to its length; except for the '67
disc, all future records would be split in two in a similar fashion. Also, listen
for the voice of Fab roadie Mal Evans reciting the title of the record toward the end, the
first of his three Christmas record appearances. Finally the artwork for the
accompanying sleeve featured the first direct input by one of the Beatles, in this case
Mr. McCartney, Esq.)
1967: "Christmas
Time (Is Here Again)"
One would expect after the year of unbelievable experimentation, both musically and
otherwise that took place in the Beatles' world in 1967, that the Christmas disc that year
would reflect the same bold direction. One would not be disappointed. The Fabs
moved into Studio Three at Abbey Road on Tuesday, November 28 at 6:00 p.m. to record the
biggest production of all seven discs, "Christmas Time (Is Here Again)". A
song was recorded by this title, credited to (and sung by)
Lennon-McCartney-Harrison-Starr, to use as glue for the various U.K. television and radio
spoofs that were featured, starring "the Original Beatles" taking the different
roles as quiz-show masters and prize-winners, audition announcers and many others. Plenty
of sound effects and production techniques were used, along with appearances by special
guests Victor Spinetti (as the tap dancer with Ringo, as well as playing a BBC guard
toward the beginning of the disc), "Something Else by Malcolm Lift-Evans", and
George Martin (as the stern headmaster at the end of the craziness, stating the point of
the exercise in plain and simple terms). The session ended at 2:45 a.m., with
editing and mixing done later on the 29th (2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. to be exact) by George
and Geoff Emerick, and the disc was distributed to the Fan Club (with a sleeve designed by
John and Julian Lennon, with help from Ringo) on December 15, as LYN 1360. Pointing
to the future, the sleeve notes this was "Another little bite of the Apple"...
The song "Christmas Time (Is Here Again)" itself lasted well
over six minutes in its original form and is featured on disc two from the full length
"EMI boardroom tape". The first time this tune almost saw release to the
general public was in 1984, when a minute-long extract (disc two, track 23) was grafted by
Geoff Emerick to the end of the alternate take of "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da" for issue
as the b-side of the aborted "Leave My Kitten Alone" single from the ill-fated Sessions
project. It was finally issued, again in a bastardized form, as a bonus track on the
1995 "Free As A Bird" single, with spoken seasonal greetings recorded in
November 1966 laid on top. This version closed disc one of this set.
"The Beatles Sixth Christmas Record"
As has been noted, the Christmas records often mirrored the Beatles' own
progression in the studio, and this was also reflected in the 1968 disc, imaginatively
titled "The Beatles Sixth Christmas Record". Much like The Beatles
("White Album") issued in November of '68, where collaboration on songs and
performances was becoming a thing of the past, this record also featured separately taped
contributions by the four individual Beatles done throughout the year, with John's bits
including a great deal of input from his newly-acquired girlfriend Yoko Ono. A
particularly un-Christmasy piece that the two recorded was John's poem "Jock and
Yono", a fairly bitter swipe at those who dared to criticize their new love.
Some parts were taped at the famous "Esher Sessions" at George's house in
May, 1968 where demos were first laid down at the "lush London homes" of John
(actually, the flat he was renting from Ringo) and Paul, with Ringo's recorded in the
"back of his diesel-powered moving van "Somewhere in Surrey".
George's main section of the disc consisted of an appearance with Mr. Tiptoe Thru
The Tulips himself, Tiny Tim, singing "Nowhere Man", which was taped at Brian
Epstein's business partner Nat Weiss' New York apartment in October, 1968. All in
all, it was a bit of a mess, somehow edited into a whole by Beatles' pal DJ Kenny Everett
(billed as "Kenny Foreverett...[who] deserves to be called producer though this is an
unpaid position"). His radio shows were masterpieces of editing, assembling
non-sequitur bits of tape together into fascinating collages of sound, and he did a good
job with a similar concept here. The finished product was issued to the Fan Club as
LYN 1743 / 4 on December 20, 1968.
"The Beatles Seventh Christmas Record"
And in the end, it came down to a bit of tape, location and date of recording
unknown, at the beginning of "The Beatles Seventh Christmas Record" (another
daring title): the formerly Fab Four at a 1969 recording session being cajoled by John
into speaking a half-hearted "Happy Christmas" for the fans into his private
tape recorder. Compare this to the collective joy of the earlier records, and one
can see why it all ended. This final original Fan Club disc was again "soldered
into a collective disc by the iron wrist of Maurice Cole", which happened to be the
real name of the previously mentioned Kenny Everett. John and Yoko dominated the
proceedings, with most of the eight-minute disc being used up by their occasionally witty
ramblings. Paul found the time to contribute a lovely minute and a half Christmas
original probably titled "This Is To Wish You" (in both acoustic and electric
versions), but George and Ringo had a whopping 22 seconds between the two of them to greet
the faithful! The Beatles were already unofficially through as a unit, but the
double sided flexi-disc went out to the unsuspecting fans on December 19, 1968, record
number LYN 1970 / 1.
On December 18, 1970, with the Beatles' breakup now being public
knowledge (and within a few days, a matter of legal record), the U.S. and U.K. Fan Club
members were offered the opportunity to purchase (for $2.50 in the U.S.) all seven
Christmas messages on one hard-vinyl LP. Interestingly, all the tracks were taken
from the original flexis for the LP master, and not the tapes used for the discs.
While the U.K. cover had a rather bland design, but a better title (From Then
To You, Apple LYN 2154), the U.S. Beatles Christmas Album (Apple SBC100) had
a great sleeve, showing the changes in the Beatles' appearances through the years.
Both covers are featured in the packaging to this set, so you can make up your own
mind which you prefer; we like choices. The LP was a welcome, if somewhat difficult
to obtain, way of getting the tracks in a heartier, more permanent format than the flexis.
Now you're enjoying an even *more* permanent version!
In addition to the tracks mentioned, we've also taken the liberty of
adding all of the commercially-released Beatles seasonal musical greetings to disc one to
help complete your Fab holiday collection: John and Yoko's "Happy Xmas (War Is
Over)", issued as Apple 1842 on December 1, 1971 (and a year later in the U.K. as
Apple R5970 on November 23, 1972); George's "Ding Dong, Ding Dong", which came
out a little late for the holidays as a 45, but the thought was there, on December 23,
1974 (Apple 1879), with U.K. release on December 6, 1974 as Apple R6002); and Macca's
"Wonderful Christmastime", recorded during the McCartney II sessions and
released as the first "Paul McCartney" single since 1971 on November 26, 1979,
backed with "Rudolf The Red-Nosed Reggae" (taped during 1975) as Columbia
1-11162 in the U.S. and Parlophone R6029 in the U.K. on November 16, 1979.
Christmas Rarities - Group And Solo
In addition to the bonus tracks mentioned above, we've also included some rare
group and solo seasonal musical greetings to help complete the picture. Following a
December, 1970 Christmas message recorded privately by John and Yoko at their Ascot home,
John's evergreen "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" is represented by a demo version
recorded at the Lennon's St. Regis Hotel suite in September of 1971, as well as a rough
mix done at the Record Plant East in late October, prior to the Harlem Children's Choir
voices being dubbed onto the track. Paul's less-than-evergreen, but still popular
"Wonderful Christmastime" was performed live during Wings' final tour in
December, 1979, including this recording made in Glasgow on the 17th. Finally,
George says his seasonal piece with the less specific "Ding Dong, Ding Dong".
Included here is a rough mix of the backing track recorded at his F.P.S.H.O.T.
studio in November, 1973 with Ringo on drums (so we'll count this as his solo
contribution!). This comes from the infamous "Geffen Tape", assembled by
George when shopping for a distributor for his fledgling Dark Horse label and entrusted to
David Geffen.
Finally, as with any Christmas gift, there has to be a surprise in the
stocking. Suffice it to say your extra goody consists of a selection of snippets
recorded by the four Beatles collectively and individually over the last 35 years that
we've assembled for you to savor.
We hope you've enjoyed this compilation of Christmas records as much as
we've enjoyed melting them.
And remember O-U-T spells "out".
Sir Gerald, the Wise One
October 1998
How did Vigotone achieve its high
level of quality?
Click here to find out!
What's the deal between Vigotone CDs and
CDRs? Click here for some info on this subject.
Fake Vigotones are flooding the market! Click
here for some info on this important subject!
you want to see scans of the discs themselves, or learn how to distinguish a real Vigotone
from a fake? Click here!
Click here to see some original Vigotone dealer brochures.
Write to me here:
vigotonefan (at) hotmail (dot) com


text:
A lot of people ask me about managing my sourcing activity online. It can be so easy to get distracted when you are working on the Internet, especially when Social Media is involved.
I find it helps to have a somewhat systematic approach to my day-to-day sourcing in order to keep it manageable and relevant.
I break it into three phases;
It is important to map out your talent landscape before you go out looking for anybody. You might want to map information about;
- Target companies
- Events
- News Sites
- Social Media
- Much more…
This is the fun part! Using the information that you gathered while mapping out where your talent might be found you can start some systematic searching. The people you identify through searching will then help you add to your mapping and give you more to explore later.
So that you don't have to constantly repeat the search phase, use monitoring tools to bring any new results directly to you. You could;
- sign up for email newsletters
- use Google Alerts to have new search results sent straight to your inbox or RSS reader
- subscribe to blogs
- use social search sites like Social Mention or IceRocket to get alerts just from Social Network sites
- follow people and companies on various social media sites.
If you too suffer from email overload, you might want to consider setting up an RSS reader. I use Google Reader. An RSS reader allows you to subscribe to feeds (news, blogs, google alerts) and have all that information brought into one place.
Then… Begin again.
Each phase above can inform the one before. As you search you will continually be presented with more information to add to your mapping. The information that you get through monitoring will also inform you mapping. Your monitoring may not continue to be relevant – you may need to go back and adjust saved searches and cancel subscriptions that do not yield helpful insights.
I talked in more detail about these three phases of Internet Sourcing in my Beyond The CV presentation at the Social Media In Recruitment conference on 7th April 2011.
How do you search systematically?


text:
Easy Sausage Pizza
Latest Review
Truly the best..Johnsonville Italian sausage is a staple in our home. Always fresh, delicious and spiced perfectly. I grew up in a very Italian home where we made our own sausage weekly. I remember well because I had to crank the manual meat grinder! Johnsonville's sausage is every bit as good, actually better then homemade, sorry mom! — Joey Naples
Review Writing Tips
Not all reviews are created equal. While you may have a strong opinion about our products and recipes, make sure your review comes out strong as well.
Here are some tips to help you write a good review.
Be correct. Make sure the review you're submitting is for the right product or recipe.
Be clear. Use specific words to describe your opinion. Move beyond using "good" or "bad" when reviewing a product or recipe-while they help share your opinion, they don't give specifics.
Be clean. Keep the tone respectful. Offensive, disrespectful language is never tolerated.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us. Your satisfaction encourages us to always strive for the best.


text:
Teacher of Geography, Perth and Kinross
Closing date:
Contract type: Part Time
Contract term: Fixed Term
Fixed Term until 31 March 2019
We have a vacancy for a Teacher of Geography at Perth Grammar School. The Department has been expanding in recent years with a variety of courses being offered from S1 through to Advanced Higher.
The successful candidate must demonstrate the ability to motivate and engage with young people and show that they fully understand the values and principles of a Curriculum for Excellence and the Senior Phase.
When completing your application for this post, please ensure that you provide contact details for two referees, including email addresses. One should be your current or most recent employer. If you are already employed as a teacher with Perth & Kinross Council, you are only required to provide 1 reference, which must be from your current Head Teacher.
Please APPLY ONLINE. Facilities are available at all public libraries in Perth and Kinross. If you have a disability and require reasonable adjustments, please call 01738 475555 to discuss.
The Individual
As part of our safer recruitment measures, Perth & Kinross Council carries out rigorous checks on the right to work in the UK, qualifications, employment history, including references, and fitness to undertake the post.
Some jobs may have been traditionally carried out predominately by one gender, but we would encourage you to apply if you meet the requirements, irrespective of your gender.
Find out more about working for Perth & Kinross Council and living in one of the most scenic areas of Scotland here.
Closing date: 17/02/2019
Reference: PKC05276
Perth Grammar School, Gowans Terrace, Perth, PH1 5AZ
Contact Perth Grammar School
Thanks for your interest in this role.
Simply fill in the form below to ask any questions, request a call, or schedule a school visit.
This field is required


text:
Special overnight, on-demand attention exclusive for our facial feminization patients
As part of our search for excellence in facial feminization treatment protocols and postoperative care, we are proud to include the support of a professional nursing assistant in our night services. This is an expert carer experienced in assisting transgender patients. He is available to you the first two nights of hospitalization, a critical time after FFS surgery when patients feel most vulnerable and are in need of a helping hand. Our facial feminization aftercare system is characterized by it´s focus on acute pain control and the minimization of stress, both important factors in healing and the patient´s overall well-being.
FACIALTEAM has taken a step further with aftercare to ensure a peaceful recuperation, so that you, the patient, may find peace of mind knowing you are being looked after overnight. We know that the FFS patient may wake up needing consolation in the middle of the night, in a hospital in a foreign country and after such major surgery, which inevitable may cause some nervousness. The FACIALTEAM night nurses, Fran and Bibi, are not only outstanding professionals, always discreet and respectful of the need for privacy, but also offer emotional support for those who just need to talk.
But who is Fran? A registered nurse for the facial feminization patient is someone with enough finesse to understand beyond words. One patient recalls that first night with Fran´s help: "I was quite nervous and scared, in the first hours post-surgery. I called several times in a row via the intercom and in less than a minute Fran appeared in the room. He even held my hand and helped me feel calm. I was just thirsty, but after seeing how quickly someone came to my side, I was relieved that I would be well cared regardless of whatever might happen.
Fran´s feedback regarding our patients is very important to FACIALTEAM, as it helps to keep improving the quality of our services. Each day and night we learned something very valuable, proving that even the smallest detail is vital for our patient's well-being.
FRAN, a FACIALTEAM nursing assistant caring for our patients in the critical first night after surgery


text:
We never get the chance to write anything. We get plenty written about us but nothing from the horse's mouth, so to speak. Look, life as a Basset is pretty tough you know. Take mornings for example. We are literally pushed off the sofa at the crack of dawn (usually about 7am). We have barely had about 10 hours sleep by then. Even if I don't really fancy it, I am told, yes told, that I must go out in the garden, "for a wee." Sometimes I don't want one. I am quite happy to stay in bed and when I am good and ready will paw the back door. I am not a puppy now you know. All our protestations simply fall on deaf ears. Out we go. Last month we had frost and it was dark. Anything could have been in that garden. Just last week we saw a grey squirrel. Those things can be deadly, I've heard about them. They have got teeth like sharpened dominoes. Monty has begun little protests when we are forced out on a morning. He actually has a pee on the steps before he gets to the garden. Sadly they appear to have cottoned onto this and have taken to giving his bum a gentle shove so that he is forced onto that cold garden surface.
I have tried a new tact. I have found a hiding place round the back of the greenhouse. I wait till we are called in and completely ignore them. Its really funny how humans voices seem to get more high pitched the more stressed they become. I usually give it a good five minutes so that they put out a search party assuming (wrongly) that I have escaped. I then trot into the kitchen like nothing has happened. "what, what? I didn't hear you shouting." Monty is even better at this than me because he is a bit smaller. Because I am nearly 27 feet long hiding behind a plant pot 6 inches wide doesn't really cut the mustard (we can but try).
The other garden pest at the moment is a ginger cat. Now shouldn't these things be afraid of us? He gets on the swing chair outside and lies in the sun. I thought that this was a bit undermining. If my neighbour (the Staffie), saw this she would clearly think that Monty and I were pretty useless on the dog chasing cat front. Just yesterday he was out there. Yes out there lying in the sun like a giant ginger fluffy ball of wool. The back door was open so I thought I'd seize the moment. I'd show him.
I fluffed myself to my full height (about 9and a half inches) and put my best, "I'm very vicious" face on. I literally ran out of the back door making a beeline straight for him. I think I may even have let out a little growl. I screeched to halt in front of him and he opened one eye about a millimetre.
"Waddya want?"
"I'm a dog, get off my chair and run off."
"Because that's what cats do."
"This one doesn't …....jog on."
"Look I don't want to get really nasty."
"Ooooo, waddya gonna do, get the other daft Basset out?"
Lucky for him I was at that point, called in for a biscuit. Why won't these felines take me seriously?
Whilst on the food front I have one or two issues there also. Aside from being man handled into the garden for a wee, we are also coerced into going for a morning walk. I say coerced because we only go on the promise of a biscuit on our return. The term 'biscuit' has a myriad of connotations. When they say 'biscuit,' I imagine a Boneo sort of size, You know a good three or four bites big and the sort of biscuit I can leave loads of crumbs behind on the carpet. They must have had an offer on down our local shops because the latest offerings are about the size of a grape and certainly not as tasty. Monty spits his out in total disgust (I eat it just to make sure there is no mess). These are the kind of issues that we have to live with you know.
We got a letter through this morning (or dad did), saying that we had to go the vets to 'get some worms.' (At least that's what I thought it said). It seems pretty funny to me because, a) I don't want any worms and b) why does a vet give you worms? Last time we were there the vet gave my dad some worms. Dad put the worms in a little bit of cheese and gave it to me. The cheese was lovely but the worms bit (which looked like a big white tablet) tasted horrible and I spat it out. So did Monty. We got more cheese then, but its' funny because they must make that cheese with tablets in it as the next bit had one in as well. Dad seemed a bit cross that we kept spitting that bit out. We thought it was hilarious. We like the vet. We also do exactly what he says because it is then really funny watching Dad's cross face as we invariably do very little of what he says. Dad also has to give him loads of money which is even funnier.
Life as a Basset really is pretty tough you know…….
PS. Got the chair at last.


text:
The Cosmopolitan monogrammed cosmetic travel bag is very trendy and fashionable, and the elegant monogrammed button makes this a very special gift. The cosmetic travel bag is made from easy-to-clean black polyester with elegant pink satin piping and a pink criss-cross embroidery pattern an embroidery-monogrammed, snap-on satin button. The matching handy strap and wrap-around black zipper extends almost all the way around the bags, making everything even easier to reach. To make it more personal, you can even monogram your initial or of your guests to whom it shall be gifted. Perfect for bridesmaid gifts or elegant bridal shower favors too.
Features and facts:
Processing TimesThis item is shipping out of our Georgia warehouse. Processing time generally takes 3 business days for non-personalized items or with personalized tag it will take 5 business days. For countries other than the United States and Canada, up to 6 additional business days are required to process your orders. Please visit our International Orders page for more information.
Transit TimesTransit times generally take 1-6 business days when shipping to the United States or Canada. To view the transit time map click here. We have 3 options for international orders, Priority mail (3-4 weeks transit time), Express Mail (1-2 weeks transit time), and DHL Global Express (4-5 business days). If you are unsure if your items will arrive by your event date or you have any questions regarding transit times, please feel free to contact us by phone, email or live chat.
Please include the your event date or the latest day you are able to receive your order by in the additional information box located on the billing information page.


text:
OUTRAGE – Capitol Police to Tea Party: Show Us Your Websites or Forget Your Rally
And they are taking weeks to approve the request.
The Tea Party Patriots were planning a rally in Washington DC on Wednesday June 19th.
But they ran into a wall.
The Capitol Police want to see their websites first.
Kevin Mooneyhan from the Tea Party Patriots described this latest Tea Party challenge:
Below is the timeline of events surrounding our June 19th rally at the Capitol. We haven't done anything to publicize this event yet because we wanted to make sure we had the permit in hand. You know, follow the rules, do the right thing, etc.
Event Date: June 19, 2013
Permit Submitted: 5/22/2013 via fax
Officer Brown contacted me on 5/23 to ask me 2 questions
If we would have a banner and if so what the dimensions would be and how we would hang it.
If we were going to have buses and to make sure that we coordinated with Union Station since the Capitol couldn't accommodate buses.
The impression that I got was that it would likely be approved in a few days. She told me, "Hopefully the next time you hear from me, it will be to let you know that the permit is approved."
The following Tuesday, 5/28/13 I reached out to Officer Brown for an update and she told me that it had been submitted upstairs for approval and that 3 sargeants still had to sign off on it. She didn't know when the final approval would be.
June 4, 2013: I contacted Officer Brown again to inquire about the status. She told me that it wasn't submitted to the higher ups until last Friday, May 31, 2013. This contradicted the earlier phone call. She said she would follow up on it and contact me later this afternoon. I didn't confront her about the conflict of information because at the time I didn't have the exact dates of when I communicated with her. But her comments made me suspicious, which is why I went back to look at the dates that I made contact.
June 4, 2013: I reached out to some contacts I have on in Congressional offices to see if there was anyway that they could help speed along the process. The response they received from Captiol Police was that they wouldn't speak to them because they weren't the party who submitted the application.
June, 4 2013: Jerry Bell contacted me to inquire about the permit.
Questions asked:
** Is the purpose of your event to promote government accountability?
My answer was yes. This was also indicated on the application
** Have you ever had an event on Capitol grounds before? If so, when was the last one?
My answer was yes and March of 2012.
** Have you ever had any opposition to your cause show up at these events in the past?
My answer – possibly. If there was any opposition it was a small amount. Nothing ever escalated beyond civil conversation.
** Do you know of any opposition that will be at your June 19th event?
My answer – not at this time because we haven't publicized the event yet because we wanted to make sure we secured the permit first.
** Have you invited any members of Congress to the June 19th event?
My answer – I have informed some Members of Congress, but official invites have not been extended because we are waiting for approval of the permit.
** Does your organization have any social media sites like Twitter or Instagram? I know that you have a Facebook page.
My response – yes we do, but I'm not sure why this is relevant to the application.
Then he thanked me for my answers. Then I asked when he thought it might be approved and I went into details about this permit, including the timeline of events, and he asked me to submit the timeline to him in writing.
June 4, 2013: Officer Brown called me back to follow up from this morning. She said the permit still hasn't been submitted, it still needs to be signed off on, but she sees no reason why it wouldn't be approved. She then said it would be okay to go ahead and send out invitations to the event.
A copy of this permit is attached. You can see in the "Timeliness of Application" section that it states, "Applications must be submitted at least one hundred twenty (120) hours, or five (5)
days, in advance of the activity to guarantee processing. Applications will be accepted up to one (1) year in advance. Additionally, demonstration applications must satisfy all requirements stated herein before processing can be completed; therefore it is imperative that the spokesperson responds promptly to all queries from the Special Events Coordinator." This seems to indicate that it shouldn't take more than 5 days to receive an approval or denial of the application. It has been nearly 2 weeks for this application and still no approval or denial.
More… Event Date: October 12, 2013
Permit Submitted: April 29, 2013
We also applied for another permit for 10/12/13 and haven't heard anything back about that permit. That permit was submitted by Darcy Parker of Tea Party Patriots on 4/29/2013. On 5/1/2013, she called to ensure they received the application. On 5/9/2013 she called and spoke to Officer Nichols who indicated the application was received, but there was no way to tell when we would hear back about it. That is the last communication we have had regarding that permit. This permit has been outstanding for over 5 weeks and we still haven't heard anything.
As a privately owned web site, we reserve the right to edit or remove comments that contain spam, advertising, vulgarity, threats of violence, racism, anti-Semitism, or personal/abusive attacks on other users. The same applies to trolling, the use of multiple aliases, or just generally being a jerk. Enforcement of this policy is at the sole discretion of the site administrators and repeat offenders may be blocked or permanently banned without warning. Guest posting is disabled for security reasons.


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I am planning on having lots of morning sleep-ins and hopefully when we are on holiday, nothing will wake me up at the crack of dawn. At home - well that is a different story. My animals wake me up and then they go back to sleep and I am wide awake - staring at a screen of sorts. These holidays I am planning on joining my dogs with their morning naps.
I always say that I can't wait to have a break from my animals, but truth be told, I stress about them when we are away. I worry that something will happen to them whilst we are away. I worry that Pluto and Garfield will die quietly in their sleep, because they are so old. Pluto sleeps so soundly these days, I often think he has died in his sleep. Yes, I do worry over nothing. My therapist told me that I worry more than the average person and she was quite shocked.
Thank you for reading my blog, I know I don't have many followers, but I do appreciate each and everyone who reads the mostly drivel I purge here. Wishing you and your loved ones a very Merry Christmas and awesome festive season whether you celebrate Christmas or not. Whether you are travelling or staying at home - be safe on the roads and in your homes/holiday destinations.
I hope to carry on with our online friendship in the New Year.


text:
Speaker Profile: Maja Hazell
Maja Hazell, Global Director of Diversity and Inclusion, Leadership and Career Coach, to speak at RISE Above Conference on Sunday, January 22, 2017.
Maja Hazell, Global Director of Diversity and Inclusion, Leadership and Career Coach, to speak at RISE Above Conference on Sunday, January 22, 2017.
Maja Hazell is currently the global Director of Diversity and Inclusion at an AmLaw 20 international firm with almost 2,000 lawyers in 26 countries in the Americas, EMEA and Asia. She is also an executive coach on leadership and career strategies.
Maja has led diversity and inclusion and career development initiatives for over twelve years following seven years in private practice. She has worked for three of Americas top-grossing Am Law 100 law firms: White & Case LLP and Fried Frank LLP, as their Director of Diversity and Inclusion, and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, as an associate. She also served as Pace University School of Law Assistant Dean for Career Development, overseeing all law student and alumni career guidance programs.
Maja is a member and past President of the Association of Law Firm Diversity Professionals, and a member of several legal and corporate professional organizations: the Association of the Bar of the City of New York; NALP, The Association for Legal Career Professionals; the Professional Development Consortium, and Society for Human Resources. She is a frequent speaker on organizational inclusion and talent management issues for these organizations and at several national law schools. Maja currently serves as a member of the Hunter College Pre-Law Advisory Board, the Leadership Institute Board of Advisors of the Council of Urban Professionals, and the New York City Bar Association (NYCBA) Committee to Enhance Diversity in the Profession. She has previously served on the NYCBA Committee on Recruitment and Retention of Lawyers, assisting in its administration of their long-standing Diversity Fellowship Program. Maja is also a certified graduate of Accomplishment Coaching, an International Coaching Federation-accredited training program for leadership coaching.
She received her BA from Yale University and JD from Georgetown University Law Center.
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text:
|Main Entry:
|Part of Speech:
|the inability to remember a word or put your finger on the right word
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:1-5, NIV)
Suppose for now the Word was not a word
but dialogue encased in modern swine,
all silent stares out windows like they've heard
the slowly speaking heartbeats that they shine
I've listened to the star who learned to row
straight through a churning maelstrom's hollowed eye
as would a flower wrapped up in a bow
awaiting death or morning's versed reply
Still seems the mother maiden we call Earth
serenely churning through poor Adam's spade
which in the eyes of those who've seen from birth
has burrowed through his home an early grave
Suppose for now those first words were the same;
why couldn't Lethologica remain?


text:
October 31, 2009
Posted by Mom at 10:56 AM 0 comments
Happy Halloween
Quickie Link: Halloween History
Really - I didn't read the entire article. It's the photo that got me. This photo is awesome cool.
Posted by Mom at 1:28 AM 0 comments
October 27, 2009
Quickie Link: Amazing Pics
These are just awesome. Go check 'em out.
Posted by Mom at 9:23 PM 0 comments
October 26, 2009
Bumper Stickers Are Fun
Quickie Link: Internet Bumper Stickers
I need to be able to find these so I can use them at random moments when the mood strikes or the sticker fits...
Posted by Mom at 1:14 AM 0 comments
October 24, 2009
Laugh Out Loud
Quickie Link: Funny ads compilation
Be sure you can laugh before you play the video. You probably shouldn't watch this at work ...
Posted by Mom at 7:32 AM 1 comments
October 17, 2009
My Life in a Nutshell
Quickie Link: Ode to Facebook
This is great. The singers are very talented, too...
Posted by Mom at 4:09 PM 0 comments
Quickie Link: Hand Painting
These are really cool.
Posted by Mom at 7:52 AM 0 comments
October 16, 2009
Oh My Goodness...
Quickie Link: What year is this?
This was a bit of a shock... Some people are just so dang stupid.
Posted by Mom at 9:11 AM 0 comments
October 14, 2009
Free Stuff...
Time is ticking away.
The counter has begun.
The contest will begin shortly.
Do you want to win free stuff?
Are you ready?
Well, well, well - do I have the spot for you.
Visit The Art and Science of Parenting on Friday evening. I will be posting details regarding my next give away contest right here.
**If you want to be a sponsor, just send me an email at email@example.com or leave me a comment below.**
Posted by Mom at 2:51 PM 0 comments
Be Insulting
Quickie Link: When Insults Had Class
Have a good laugh and save a few of these to use when the moment may require...
Posted by Mom at 8:47 AM 0 comments
October 13, 2009
Cool Stuff
Quickie Link: Definite Coolness
Check out what Beluga's can do...
Posted by Mom at 5:21 PM 0 comments
October 9, 2009
Smuggling Made Easy
Quickie Link: Mexican Border
This is a great story that will definitely get a good laugh.
Posted by Mom at 1:18 AM 0 comments
October 7, 2009
Holy Cat Man!!!
Quickie Link: The Cat as Holy Man
This is a great parable and way of thinking. I just love it.
Posted by Mom at 10:34 AM 0 comments
October 2, 2009
How Romantic
Quickie Link: How to Keep Your Romance Alive
This is a pretty good list of things to do to keep your relationship healthy.
Posted by Mom at 6:31 PM 0 comments


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Ukip's free post address has already been targeted by people sending overly-heavy items at the party's expense but it seems one package was the final straw.
A delivery of faeces has prompted the closure of the service.
What kind of person sends faeces or blood to a political party? Are people OK?
Confirmed, no more #UKIPfreepost pic.twitter.com/CUzOBrIzmC— UKIP Bexley (@UKIPBexley) May 3, 2014
Freepost lets someone send a letter or parcel without a stamp as the cost is borne by the recipient.
Many people have been sending bricks, bottles of water and other heavy items all at Ukip's expense.
Like this...
Hi @ukip, heard about your brick appeal. This is my contribution to the good fight. Coming via #ukipfreepost pic.twitter.com/rS1lkMoKVu— Chris Lawson (@chrisjohnlawson) April 30, 2014
Nigel Farage said on Sunday his party will adopt a different approach to tackling claims it is racist with a new election campaign strategy featuring black and ethnic minority candidates this week.
The Ukip leader insisted his party would get on the front foot as it fights against claims of racism, as a poll showed some 35% of people felt while the party is not racist, it "does seem to attract some candidates or supporters with racist, extreme or odd views".
More than a quarter of those polled by YouGov said Ukip was a party with "racist views" and "many racist members".


text:
... I've suddenly got this funny feeling that MOVIE-Cobra Commander will look like this Hasbro San Diego Comic-Con Exclusive figure [via] ... and man, I sure hope I'm utterly wrong tho! As "funny" as a battle-helmet may look on a live-person (IMHO), a rag draped over with holes cut-out would similarly be both ridiculous and perhaps even offensive - but of coz this is pure speculation on my part, yeh? Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays the exhalted G.I.Joe nemesis (he looks sorta like a young Heath Ledger, dunt he?) and along with Destro, whose "final"-look may remain a mystery ... until an image-leak comes along, that is! LOL
"Not much is known of Cobra Commander's past, but in his early career he was a used car salesman. While struggling to keep his business afloat, he learned that a car crash had taken the life of his older brother, Dan, who had been driving drunk. Embittered by this tragedy, Cobra Commander became obsessed with vindicating his brother's death. He took specific interest in the surviving son of the family killed in the accident with Dan. That man was the soldier now known as Snake-Eye."
[Marvel Comics-origin]
"After the Marvel series ended, Cobra forces fell to a unified assault organized by the G.I. Joe leader, General Hawk. Cobra Commander managed to escape, becoming an international fugitive as the remnants of his organization retreated into hiding. He spent the next seven years sheltered in non-extradition countries, rebuilding his organization from the shadows." [Devil's Due-origins]


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Follow 'MoreLiver' on Twitter
ECB: first (hawkish) move since 2011 – Pictet
Draghi Is Right to Hold Out for Wage Growth – BB
Hung parliament adds government risk premium to GBP – Danske Bank
Hung parliament raises Brexit risks – ABN AMRO
May Fights to Remain U.K. Premier After Election Debacle – BB
Theresa May's Biggest Mistake – BB
EU Turns Schadenfreude Up to Maximum After May Election Disaster – BB
FOMC preview: A June hike very likely – balance sheet run-off imminent? – Nordea
Comey Leaves Trump Under a Crippling 'Cloud' of Investigations – BB
Morning Report APAC – TF
Sterling slumped as much as 1.9% as early results pointed to a poor showing for Theresa May's Conservative Party.
FirstFT Daily Briefing – FT
UK hung parliament, Qatar and Trump, 'self-talk'
WSJ City – WSJ
What a Hung Parliament Means; EU Signals No Government, No Talks; Analysts Eye Tough Time Ahead for the Pound
Danske Daily – Danske Bank
Eye-Opener – Nordea
UK election leads to hung parliament, May set to lose her majority * Comey calls Donald Trump dishonest, but doesn't deliver a smoking gun * Slightly dovish market interpretation of the ECB meeting
Morning Markets – TF
Britons have done it again and this time from the left. The Tories failure to seize a majority reflects UK voters' alienation from the political centre. The Brexit negotiations are now in a cloud of doubt as the shape and form of the country's next government is unknown; the pound once again is in free-fall.
From the Floor – TF
In a stunning backfiring of prime minister Theresa May's strategy, the British Conservative Party failed to win a majority in Thursday's election, leaving the UK with a hung parliament and a weak hand to negotiate Brexit. The pound fell sharply on the Tories' election humiliation, and GBP could be in for further losses as the election outcome creates huge uncertainty.
Daily Market Comment – Marc Chandler
Sterling Shocked, Dollar Broadly Firmer
Brussels Playbook – Politico
May-hem as UK election backfires on May, ends in hung parliament — What it means for Brexit
Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day – BB
Mayhem in UK * Comey bombshell * Markets ignore May * Brazil
10 things you need to know before the opening bell – BI
US Open – ZH
S&P Futures At Record High After "Shocking" UK Election Result
Frontrunning – ZH
FX Update – TF
Sterling weakened sharply the instant the exit poll was released last night and looks soft this morning as the result merely extends the painful uncertainty of how the Brexit negotiations will shape up. Elsewhere USD ticks up after Comey testimony and dovish Draghi keeps EURUSD subdued.
Aamukatsaus – Nordea
Taas yllätys Briteissä: Konservatiivit menettivät enemmistönsä * Punta laskussa * EKP muutti ohjeistustaan


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Breakers baseball still No. 5
The Laguna Beach baseball team continued its hold on the CIF Southern Section Division 4 rankings, coming in at No. 5 for a second straight week. Bishop Amat also held down the top spot for the second week in a row. The rest of the top 10 is Palm Desert, Oaks Christian, Torrance, Laguna Beach, Chino, Indio, Colony, La Quinta/La Quinta, Troy and San Dimas. Colony and San Dimas are new to the poll, replacing La Quinta/La Quinta and Nogales.
In boys' tennis, Laguna again is ranked third in a Division 4 poll. Viewpoint is ranked first and is followed by Paramount, Laguna, Santa Ynez, Dunn, La Quinta/Westminster, Segerstom, Linfield Christian, Buckley and Santa Clara.


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The Idea- Inspired from the famous Bani Thani paintings of Kishangarh (Rajasthan), this Key Chain lives to the nickname given to these paintings- "India's Mona Lisa".
Product Details- The Key chain is made of metal with steel coating on it and sublimation printing just looks awesome on steel surface
My Insignia is an online store for the individuals & organisations who are proud of their identity and love to carry it with them. Our high quality customized products represent pride, unity, love & fun


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*********** LOTS to show so grab coffee, soda or tea*********
Seems like a "party weekend" on the net at the moment with all the celebrations and sales going on.. Did you all have a good Thanksgiving? Eat a bit for me? Gosh, Bunny always sends me photo's of all the great pies she makes during Thanksgiving weekend and makes my mouth water.. so hoping you all had at least a bite for me too- hee hee.
Of course ScrapMatters has their BLACK FRIDAY starting NOW~! woot.
And WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE, I can show off a NEW kit today... a Fun, quirky, sweet original kit that I had great fun creating with Loucee of Loucee Creations:
It's 30% OFF right now- spend a little more and you can grab it @ 45% off as shown above! (all discounts will show in your cart once you hit the above amounts)
Christmas Wishes by KimB and Loucee Creations
28 Papers
60 Unique Elements
2 Alpha sets + 24 Word Arts and strips.
And of course our CT Teams have ROCKED this kit! Gosh most did two as they loved playing with it... Thanks sooo much girls!
And of course Loucee created a fantastic HYBRID gift box just for us too:
You can pick this up on Loucee's Blog: ( check up later if it's not posted yet as I'm early for once- BWHAHAHA:
*********** Coordinating FREEBIE at bottom of post********
Remember my WHOLE STORE is 60% off right NOW @ SugarHillco and it's a great time to build up your designing stash for next year.
My sister GSCreations has been seriously busy too and has some AMAZING new goodies in store:
And OMG............. these I LOVE LOVE LOVE and had giggles every time Gaye sent through a sketch of a new one.
And today I have a coordinating FREEBIE for Christmas Wishes . Print and cut them out or use them in your Layouts or cards ;-)
You can pick them UP HERE: https://dl.dropbox.com/u/63412554/kb-LC-JournalFreebie.zip
Have a fantastic "Black Friday"... hugs and loves


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Archive for April 2011
July 15th, baby
So. Freaking. Excited. #cannotwait. #iloveharrypotter.
Insidious (2010)
Scary movies are the best in the theater. Always.
Insidious is about a family who moves into a creepy house, hears creepy noises, and then their son winds up in an unexpected three-month coma. Evil, possessing demon spirits get involved, turns out the kid is at the brink of being possessed and drawn into a land called The Further (terrrrrible title, I know). Apparently he's been making it a hobby to escape from the real world lately, he can fly and stuff. Too bad those hell-creatures caught up with him.
Mom does a lot of crying, Dad does a lot of disbelieving. But then Daddy gets to revisit his childhood psyche after a crazy lady talks to them, jumps onboard and decides to help bring their kid back into the real world, alive and stuff.
I'll be the first to admit, I'm not a horror movie kinda person. Granted, this is much, MUCH tamer than anything else James Wan ever created but I just don't do the jumpy stuff. Probably because my first reaction is to laugh rather than scream, I've just never been that girl. I concede, however, that I can declare this a pretty good movie. I mean, I still had problems with it, but considering how low my expectations were walking into it, it ended up being more than just a haunted house movie. It helped that I was endlessly entertained by the screaming DUDES in the building.
Here's what's up. We've got two main characters, parents to our demon-boy Dalton (Ty Simpkins) – Renai and Josh Lambert (Rose Byrne and Patrick Wilson). They've got two other kids besides Dalton. At the beginning, Renai may be scared out of her pants at the freakish noises and ghost-like shapes that taunt and follow her, but she's still in charge of what goes on. She's telling her husband what to do, reprimanding him for his lack of existence. Josh is just that – nonexistent. My friend and I BOTH thought that he had to be having an affair when he was staying late for no reason in his classroom. When really it was nothing more than a dumb plot device to keep her alone in the house more often.
Then in the second half of the movie, things COMPLETELY turn around. Josh finally figures out that Renai and the crazy lady (named Elise – played by Lin Shaye) might actually be right about their son's ability to teleport, and he finally realizes that he's the one that's got to save him. So he becomes all macho, overcomes his childhood nightmares and becomes likable. Renai, on the other hand, becomes passive, afraid, and submissive. I HATE that kind of woman. I hate it when a woman cannot think for herself and does nothing but wait around for her man to help her out of the sticky situation. It was a bizarre flip-flop.
On the bright side, while the first half was laughable, the second half was borderline terrifying and definitely unsettling. I'm a rough judge because I just don't get scared very easily – but by the end, though I had yet to jump, scream, spit out my drink, or pee my pants, I was a little perturbed. The cinematographers and cameramen do everything right. Seeing things as the characters see them, while typical of a scary movie, was perfectly synched in Insidious. And the loud noises are that much more shocking in surround sound.
True, there are holes and improbabilities. First of all, where in HELL did the other children disappear to? "Their Grandma's" is the script's answer, but then Grandma (Barbara Hershey) shows up at their house… without kids? And no explanation to where they've gone? What an awful mother. That baby was darn cute, too. I also loved the part where, when the mother was attacked by a man in her room, she and hubby sit there sobbing on the floor rather than go check on their SCREAMING CHILD.
Second, can a six year old kid REALLY outrun a demon running on all fours? I think not…
Another, perhaps personal, thing that's bothersome is how this film tries to be scary and creepy from the get-go. I mean, really? Are we going to jump out of our pants during the scrolling credits? I'm afraid of surprise, I'm afraid of things that could actually happen. Setting the creepy tone that early does nothing but separate the bridge between movie and real-life fear.
The highlight was definitely centered around the Ghostbusters (Leigh Whannell and Angus Sampson) that accompany Elise on their first visit with the Lamberts. Good comic relief. A bigger flashlight is all you need…
The more I think about it, the more I realize that I probably sound pretty naïve with this review. You're right, I am not a frequenter of the horror genre so I really don't know what I'm saying. Maybe this was the worst scary movie ever written (and, bee tee dubs, the script was pretty bad. Whoever came up with "the further" in the first place should be fired). But based on whatever I do know, I thought this movie was decent. It's the old-fashioned tension that gets me. Worth a watch, if scary movies are your thing then definitely so. And let's not pay too close of attention to the pictures that are taken of me anymore, huh? 6/10
Source Code (2011)
This didn't blow me out of the water like Inception did, but it was pretty close.
What would you do if you had only 8 minutes left to live? What would you do if you had 8 minutes left to live… ten times? Source Code is the government's latest invention for intervention. Military pilot Colter Stevens (Jake Gyllenhaal) wakes up one day on a train, in a body that is not his own and sitting across from an attractive woman who apparently knows him. The last thing he remembers is flying over Afghanistan. 8 minutes later, the train blows up.
He doesn't die, though. He winds up in a small isolation chamber – being awoken by a woman's voice. Colleen Goodwin (Vera Farmiga), after issuing some basic memory tests, explains that he is part of a government operation and that his experience on the train is nothing but a simulation called source code. Earlier that day, a bomb exploded on the train, and Colter's mission is to locate the bomb and the bomber to prevent a subsequent terrorist attack later that afternoon that would wipe out the entire population of Chicago. Every time he lands in the same place with 8 minutes to find out more information about the attack, as well as more information about himself.
Phew! That was an intense summary. Don't worry about it. I applaud Duncan Jones for repeating an 8 minute situation ten timesish and have it STILL be original and legit. We can't always have Bill Murray to entertain us every single repeated Groundhog Day. I was never once bored. It's fast-paced, exciting, but insightful and deep, too. I loved the trippiness of it, the question of how much saving he can actually do without being limited to changing the future only.
It also manages to throw in some great character development without being overbearingly mushy or distracting from the excitement. Colter Stevens can't remember what happened to him, he doesn't know how he wound up in the Source Code, he hasn't even made amends with his father since before he went to war. Apparently he's on a mission, but he doesn't know at all what's up. On another note, I never thought I could hear the phrase "everything's going to be okay" as many times as Colter said it without tasting the oozing cheese. But it works as an emotional backbone to the thrill.
Even with movies like Inception out and popular, this is still a great, original story and gives thrillers a good name again. It's also a great mysery, though I'll admit I wasn't too surprised with every twist and turn, save the ending of course. But that doesn't mean it's worthless – in fact if I can compare it to Unknown, which I recently saw as well, it doesn't make the same mistake of trying to confuse the audience TOO much for the sake of being confusing. In that regard, the suspenseful plot and theme are perfect. Then again, I could watch these cerebral fantasies all day. I love Minority Report, Inception and The Matrix. I love this. I knew that I was onboard the second Jake Gyllenhaal looked at himself in the mirror and saw another guy looking back at him, then confusedly looking through his wallet to find an alternate identity in a History teacher named Sean. [And yes, for the record, Inception is definitely my go-to comparison these days. Man do I love that movie. I promise to review it soon. Anyway.]
I warn you, there are questions. Who's Sean? Who's Christina for that matter? (the attractive girl sitting across from him – played by Michelle Monaghan). What's he doing, when is this happening, what is going on… Just don't worry about the science. Suspend your disbelief. Love the ride. I adored the almost end – Colter pays off a comedian to lighten up everyone's faces right before they die for the last time. Perfect touch.
Jake Gyllenhaal is really good as our leading man (oh the charmer he is), as well as the supporting cast. I particularly enjoyed Vera Farmiga's performance, though Michelle Monaghan, and Jeffrey Wright are also good. But I'm applauding Duncan Jones more than anyone. I'll get around to seeing Moon one of these days, I'm definitely a fan. The editing is also excellent.
It's like a video game on steroids. This intellectual thriller is worth full price, folks. 8/10
The Accidental Tourist (1988)
I really wanted to like this movie. It's got two of my favorite things in it: dogs and travel. It also has a man who hardly cares for either. I gave an involuntary shiver at him searching for American cuisine in foreign countries – I mean eating Burger King in PARIS? Sinful. That hurt me just a little bit.
Anyway, William Hurt stars as Macon Leary (what kind of a name is that anyway?) and he dispassionately writes travel guides for people who hate traveling. A travesty, yet I guess someone's gotta do it, so it should probably be Macon Leary. We meet him at the beginning of the movie in an ICU gazing over his son's dead body. He and his wife Sarah (Kathleen Turner) take it hard, but they're having difficulty coming together over it. So she leaves him. And leaves the dog. Macon falls down some stairs, screwing his mobility and goes to stay with his weird siblings. They play funny games. His editor, Julian (Bill Pullman) comes to see him sometimes. He likes his sister.
Then he meets Muriel Pritchett (Geena Davis). She's kind of awesome, but also kind of eccentric and definitely quirky. She's talkative and forward, and knows a lot about dogs. He hires her to help him train his own dog. Then they fall in love, or whatever. Then everything comes to a big wha-bam in Paris, of course. The end.
Before you write me off completely, I emphasize that my low opinion has NOTHING to do with it being slow. On the contrary, I love slow, quiet films (84 Charing Cross Road for example). What I didn't like had nothing to do with the story. It's like I could see, even almost taste, the beauty and potential of an emotional connection but I was just never truly moved. The letdown was even more potent with that in mind.
I've always loved William Hurt, but the man disappointed me with this one. It didn't feel like a story of a hurt man who needs a little attention and lovin' to make his way to recovery. No, he was static, he was expressionless. How could the fiery Muriel even dream of falling in love with him? His personal journey seemed superficial at best. He doesn't even like his own dog…
Geena Davis, on the other hand, was great. She manages to play the wacky woman with just enough umph yet still grounded in reality to make her likable and not overbearing. She's a realistic mother, looking after her son with great care and love. She's also realistic in her relationship with Macon.
I'll admit, the writing is excellent. Kasdan and Frank Galati know how to run things, and on paper it portrays the beauty that could not be captured on screen. Something is missing. I found myself searching for emotion, something that only Davis gave to me. Okay scratch that, the other actors were also pretty solid (though I don't care for Kathleen Turner too much), but I did love Macon's crazy family surroundings and the family dynamic. As well as Bill Pullman.
The Accidental Tourist was a disappointment. I wouldn't go so far as to give up on it forever, but it'd take a lot of will power to get myself to sit through Macon's monotonous personality for an additional hour and a half. 4/10
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)
Wow, those folks have routier parties than I do. And I'm the one that's in college…
Who is afraid of Virginia Woolf? Virginia Woolf… Virginia Woolf… Okay, who IS Virginia Woolf? She's not really a part of the actual movie. She was a writer – that much I know from working in a bookstore. Upon learning a little more about her, she was known for her stream of consciousness style and psychological themes. To say "who's afraid of Virginia Woolf" as though she was Disney's big, bad wolf, is to suggest that you might be afraid of those things that you can't accept.
Kind of wish I'd understood that before I watched the movie.
Martha and George (Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton), a couple with some serious tongue issues, have returned late from a dinner party at Martha's father's home – the president of some local New England college. George is a history professor. He speaks very well. Martha drinks a lot. She also thinks it's cool to invite a young couple over for drinks at two am without informing the husband.
The good-looking Nick and his mousey wife Honey (George Segal and Sandy Dennis), a recently hired biology professor and a naïve blonde, aren't sure how to react to the volatile atmosphere that is their host's home. The rest of the film details the events of the evening. On the menu: Martha lewdly flirting with Nick, George testing Nick's verbal skills, the whole party tip-toeing around conversing about Martha and George's oddly absent son – whose birthday is the following day, Honey getting sick and super drunk, playing fun games such as Humiliate the Host followed by Get the Guests, and basically everybody getting more drunk and crying and shouting and stuff.
My honest reaction upon the revealing ending was, "huh, it'd probably be good to watch that again with a better vision of what went on there. … Actually, I think I'd rather never watch it again." Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf is certainly an incredible tale. But it's a downer. Not that I'm judging anyone who does drink, I must admit I have never been more grateful that I don't. I can't say that I comprehend exactly the what's up of, you know, intoxication, but I'll admit that this situation is NOT my idea of fun. This is what AA is for guys. The entire film is mesmerizing, but not necessarily enjoyable.
The best thing here is the performances. Our four leads (so, the whole cast?) were all nominated for Oscars with the two ladies taking the cake. All four were deserving of the acclaim – Richard Burton was definitely my favorite performance, but I can't argue with Paul Scofield winning that one for A Man for All Seasons. The writing is, of course, impeccable but Burton's delivery is witty and even entertaining. Like any person with a gifted tongue would be able to, he hides his own torment and anguish through his insulting monologues.
Elizabeth Taylor can act, guys. She put on around 30 pounds for the role, and abandoned her famous beauty for this role of a slob. Her foul mouth and obnoxious mannerisms are fascinating. She embodies the monstrous character in such a way that gives her life – you can see the potential that Martha had to be tender and kind. George Segal and Sandy Dennis are also incredible, their ups and downs and insecurities are perfectly emulated.
Through those performances, we get to study the relationships between each couple and as an entire group. Why Martha and George were married in the first place, who knows. It's nothing but put-downs, insults, humiliation, cussing, and zero mutual respect. Casting Burton and Taylor was genius – you've always got that notion in the back of your mind about their real-life relationship=fascination to a whole 'nother level. Nick and Honey, seemingly in love at first aren't quite so peachy-keen with each other it turns out. He married her because he thought she was pregnant, and for her money. I guess that's cool, she's pretty high-strung I'm not sure who would marry her out of love. No offense.
Mike Nichols directs this very well – his first film crazy enough. Again, the casting choices were awesome. The story, based off the Tony-award winning play, is well played out and greatly paced.
I must admit, there are very few things wrong with this movie, as you may have gathered with all this good stuff i'm talking about. But it's so dark and awful, it's hard to enjoy so much hate and without any real resolution to happiness. It's certainly worth watching for the feat that it is, but it, by no means, will ever be a favorite of mine. "Who's afraid of Virginia Woolf?" "I am." 6/10
quote-of-the-week #10
I pride myself in being a great listener, but whenever I meet somebody new I find I'm doing all the talking.
Maybe you're not really such a great listener.
Maybe you're not such a great listener.
No, that's not it, I'm a great listener.
~Carter Webb & Sarah Hardwicke, In the Land of Women (2007)
Romeo + Juliet (1996)
Next time someone hates on gangs dancing in West Side Story, I'll be asking whether they've seen gangs fighting while speaking in Shakespearean dialect…
Yep. I'm a hater. But big disclaimer: I've always detested those idiot star cross'd lovers. I've read the play, seen it three times, only once have I even remotely enjoyed it – and that was because they were kind of making fun of all those things I hate. We'll disregard for the moment that my ninth grade boyfriend played Romeo so it drove me nuts that he was kissing another girl and that every other girl in the junior high was head over heels for him…. totally unrelated.
Needless to say, I didn't start off on good footing with this. And I must admit that I have never detested this more. It isn't that I'm not used to the extravagant style of Baz Luhrmann – I'm a Moulin Rouge! fan. It's… that it doesn't WORK the same way that it does in Moulin Rouge! In fact, it fails. It's a disastrous combination of Hollywood action and Shakespearean themes and dialect. "Swords" are guns manufactured by 'Sword?' Funny. But dumb more than clever.
It's set in Verona Beach – but what they mean is stereotypical surfer California. Pretty sure everyone knows what's up with this story, but here's a brief rundown of the mess. The Montagues and the Capulets are in a turf-battle/family feud dating back to who knows when. Romeo (Leonardo DiCapprio), a Montague, is depressed and in love with Rosaline. Then he lays eyes on Juliet (Claire Danes), a Capulet and falls in {deeper?} love. Ah, the beauty of the forbidden. Then they frolic in a swimming pool, declare their undying love, Romeo's good buddy Mercutio (Harold Perrineau – LOST!) gets murdered, Romeo kills the dude responsible, Juliet fakes her death to try and still rock it with Romeo in the end, Romeo believes she's dead and kills himself, so then she kills herself too and they live happily ever after…. while dead?
On the subject of the plot – what was with that swimming pool crap anyway? Dra-freaking-matic (don't judge on the word).
It's SO overly-colorful, it's obnoxious. I again compare to Moulin Rouge. It isn't artistic and beautiful. It's distracting and insulting – like a crappy Tim Burton ripoff. They're wearing Hawaiian shirts for heaven's sake – it's a punk version of a SHAKESPEARE PLAY. Seriously? Luhrmann even has the nerve to show Mercutio as a drag queen at one point. WTF. The overtly provocative and modern-day clothing displayed at the masquerade is terribly out of place and, again, obnoxious. The music is also unrelated and inconsistent.
I'm not against modern-day adaptations of Shakespeare plays. I think that 10 Things I Hate About You is very clever and entertaining. Even She's the Man is kind of funny. West Side Story is my personal favorite, and that's dealing with this very story. I think the main thing that fails here is the awful mismatch of sounding like Shakespeare and looking like The Beach Boys. Had there been modern-day dialogue to match 20th century feel, it wouldn't have sucked half as much. FIrst of all, Leo and C-Danes have no idea how to speak Shakespeare effectively, they're in way over their heads. Pete Postlethwaite (the priest) and Miriam Margolyes (the nurse) seemed to be the only two who were even half-realistic. But really, "art thou mad," doesn't work in Cali last time I checked.
The acting actually isn't that bad, with the exception of Claire Danes. I'm a huge Little Women fan, and I love her as the meek and quiet Beth March. Not as the fiery Juliet. I felt no connection to her, nor in their relationship really. Leo's my man, but even he isn't at his top game – though he's still probably my favorite part. Pete Postlethwaite and Miriam Margolyes are definitely the most capable of the bunch, and quite enjoyable to watch. [Side note, I saw Miriam Margolyes on stage in 2006 as Madam Morrible in Wicked. Cool.] Everyone else is just background noise. Paul Rudd (who I love in Friends and Clueless) doesn't add much, neither does John Leguizamo, Paul Sorvino, nor Harold Perrineau (I actually didn't like him much at all).
Overall, Romeo + Juliet is a dreadful adaptation to a Shakespearean classic. I may not even like the original material, but Shakespeare at least knew what he was doing and I respect the man for everything he was capable of. And this is where crap like Twilight comes from… 2/10