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A "Car" Alarm for Your iPhone | Designer iPhone 4 Cases
iPhone 5 users can now add car alarm to the list of features available for download on the site, reports Venture Beat.
Halo, a new iPhone 5 security accessory, recently kicked off its crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo. The security gadget has a loud alarm, devised to prevent robberies of both the sly and not-so-crafty nature. The device also includes a few other nifty elements, including an extended battery life and a sound boost through its speakers.
While the gadget adds some bulk onto the otherwise thin design of the iPhone 5, the added thickness may be well worth the sacrifice of not having your phone stolen.
Tiny torque screws are used to clamp the Halo device to your iPhone 5, making it difficult for thieves to remove. The gadget also has a ring portion, a.k.a. the Halo Ring, to hold when using your phone. If a swift-moving criminal tries to grab your iPhone and run, the Ring snaps off and the ear-piercing alarms shrieks in full effect. The Ring also features a proximity sensor, which can be used to trigger the alarm if it becomes separated from your iPhone after certain distances.
After the alarm begins blaring, the Halo app also automatically kicks into video mode, to identify the thief and send text messages with GPS coordinates of your phone. That's not all─ there's also an emergency button that can be used to set off all security features if you find yourself caught in an unsafe situation. You can even use the Halo companion app to program unique gestures to disable the alarm quickly when it goes off unintentionally.
A slimmer model of Halo may be available in the future.
Keep Your Device Safe with Designer iPhone 4s Cases
At Urban Armor Gear, our designer iPhone 4 cases are specially crafted to keep your phone both safe and functional. Our cases are carefully crafted with high-quality polycarbonate hard plastic to keep your iPhone protected. We know that ease of use is also of the utmost importance, so we made sure our designer iPhone 4 cases keep your volume buttons and ringer on/off switch easily accessible. A clear screen protector also allows you to browse apps with ease.
We're a coastal California company who lives for adventure. Our six different designer iPhone 4s cases are made to keep your phone safe, so you can take your device with you on any excursion. So go ahead, see how far you can push the limits─ we'll make sure your iPhone stays protected. Shop our collection of designer iPhone 4s cases at urbanarmorgear.com.


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Date: 03/27/2002
Writer: D'Lyn Ford
LAS CRUCES - Vickie Lake, new Socorro County 4-H agent with New Mexico State University's Cooperative Extension Service, will focus on reaching at-risk youth and strengthening 4-H clubs.
Lake is one of six 4-H agents being hired in New Mexico on federally funded three-year appointments. She will spend about 75 percent of her time in outreach and 25 percent in supporting existing 4-H programs.
Lake had worked as a vocational instructor at Heizer Junior High in Hobbs since August 2000. Before that, she was an Extension program assistant in San Juan County for eight months.
"I know my teaching experience will be an advantage, and I appreciate the students for teaching me new skills," she said. "Heizer was a great place to experience diversity and learn many skills while working with youth at risk. Programs like 4-H and FFA offer a way of pulling kids out of negative influences."
Lake will focus on school enrichment programs to reach more young people and introduce teachers to 4-H curriculum with nonagricultural projects like building model rockets.
She earned a bachelor's degree in agricultural and extension education from NMSU in 1999. Lake served as an ambassador for the College of Agriculture and Home Economics and as a member of the Speakers Bureau, a group of students offering talks and motivational speeches. She was a Crimson Scholar, Dean's List honoree and member of several honorary fraternities. In addition, she was active in Collegiate FFA, Alpha Tau Alpha and the Agricultural and Extension Education Club.
Lake, a native of Waterflow in San Juan County, is the daughter of Robert and Linda Lake. She enjoys rodeo, outdoor activities, showing and raising horses and working with young people and livestock.
© 2013 New Mexico State University Board of Regents
NMSU - All About Discovery!

subset: commoncrawl


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Magicka: The Stars are Left is Summoned into Online Stores Today
Paradox Interactive and Arrowhead Studios have completed their unholy rituals of coding and debugging, and the terrifying new expansion to Magicka has been awakened and unleashed upon the masses.
Entitled Magicka: The Stars are Left, Paradox and Arrowhead have lovingly crafted a Lovecraftian horror-mystery campaign that will send players into the chilling depths of insanity. The expansion is available now on popular digital distribution platforms for $5.99, not including the cost of your mortal soul.
Magicka: The Stars Are Left release trailer can be viewed here:
Magicka: The Stars are Left comes hot on the heels of an overhauled game engine for the overall title. Thus ensuring that players descent into madness is the result of unholy terrors from beyond time and space, and not because you had to start the entire level over because you died. And lets face it, there will be lots of death, most of which will be caused by your own actions.
As with all add-on content for Magicka, the new expansion can be played by anybody who purchases it, or anybody playing with someone who has purchased it.
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The prostate gland is found only in males. It sits below the bladder and wraps around the urethra (the tube that carries urine out of the body). The prostate helps make semen.
A biopsy is a procedure used to remove a small piece of tissue or cells from the body so it can be examined under a microscope.
In a prostate biopsy, prostate gland tissue is taken out with a biopsy needle or during surgery. The tissue is checked to see if there are cancer or other abnormal cells in the prostate gland.
A prostate biopsy may be done in several different ways:
Ultrasound is usually used to look at the prostate gland and guide the biopsy needle.
A prostate biopsy is done after other tests show that there may be a problem with the prostate gland. It is the best method to diagnose prostate cancer.
There may be other reasons for your healthcare provider to recommend a prostate biopsy.
Some possible complications of a prostate biopsy may include:
You may have other risks, depending on your condition. Be sure to discuss any concerns with your healthcare provider before the procedure.
Some things you can expect before a prostate biopsy include:
A prostate biopsy is usually done on an outpatient basis. Procedures may vary depending on your condition and your healthcare provider's practices.
Generally, a prostate biopsy follows one of these processes:
Your recovery process will vary depending on the type of anesthesia that is used. If you were given general anesthesia, you will be taken to a recovery room for observation. Once your blood pressure, pulse, and breathing are stable and you are alert, you will be taken to your hospital room or discharged to your home.
If local anesthetic was used, you may go back to your normal activities and diet unless otherwise instructed. You may feel the urge to urinate or have a bowel movement after the biopsy. This feeling should pass after a few hours.
There may be blood in your urine or stool for a few days after the biopsy. This is common. Blood, either red or reddish brown, may also be in your ejaculate for a few weeks after the biopsy. This, too, is normal.
The biopsy site may be tender or sore for several days after the biopsy. Take a pain reliever for soreness as recommended by your healthcare provider. Aspirin or certain other pain medicines may increase the chance of bleeding, so be sure to take only recommended medicines.
Call your healthcare provider if you have any of these:
Your healthcare provider may give you other instruction, depending on your situation.
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CORPUS CHRISTI - Though the Port of Corpus Christi (PCC) has been striving to achieve diversification in the commodities shipped out of the port, it continues to remain, essentially, an energy port.
The deep-water port, the fifth largest in the United States, in tonnage terms, ironed out a strategic plan two years ago and, like most ports, has always tried to identify new business opportunities in its quest for diversification.
Despite its heavy dependence on energy shipments, PCC does not rely only on oil.
PCC is the largest wind energy import/export port in the United States. Natural gas is also a big import/export because it is so available in the region.
The port is allocating considerable capital resources for modernization and expansion of docks, rail and infrastructure.
See the previous story about the possibility of a cruise port in Corpus Christi.
Our twice-weekly e-newsletter provides a quick overview of Texas real estate markets. Because your time is valuable.


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So much for winning the U.S. Open again...
Last September, Andy Murray won his first Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open and followed it up by winning at Wimbledon this summer. But earlier today, Murray got absolutely shellacked by Stanislas Wawrinka in straight sets. He lost 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 in the quarterfinals of the Open and will not get to try and win his second Open in a row.
Things actually went so poorly for Murray that he cracked his racket on the Arthur Ashe Stadium court after the first set of the match. It just wasn't his day. Oh well. Maybe next year, man.
RELATED: Epic Fails: The 25 Worst Single-Game Performances in Sports History
[via ESPN Tennis]


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Farmville 2 Build Fall Fairgrounds (Coming 10/13/2015)
Farmville 2 new feature coming soon into the game called Fall Fairgrounds! The whole county is participating in Croptoberfest! Get in on the fun! Your farm is the best place for a Carnival..Host the county, and win a baby Goldbar Chinchilla! Are you ready for this?!Check below guide of Fall Fairgrounds.
*This Feature will be available into the game from Tuesday October 13, 2015*
Guide to the Fair District Autumn click here => http://goo.gl/zWGVe9
Guide 8 MISSIONS Quest click here => http://goo.gl/0GDcSf
Guide 16 Missions + bonus :
4 Missions Guide GUS + 1 bonus of the 1st week: from 13/10/2015 to 10/20/2015
4 Missions Guide PERCY + 1 bonus of the 2nd week : in process
4 Missions Guide MARIE+ 1 bonus of the 3rd week : in process
4 Missions Help BARBARA+ 1 bonus of the 4th week : in process
Guide Recipes click here => http://goo.gl/pM3FmL
First you need to place Fall Fairgrounds in your farm in order to build it.
Following Material will be required in order to build Fall Fairgrounds.
Halloween Bale
Strong Pillar
Number of parts required to build your Fall Fairgrounds is shown below!
It will be easy for you to complete the building if you have accumulated sufficient materials. Lastly, you will need to ask your friend for help purpose. A preview of Fall Fairgrounds:
Final Reward:
Baby Goldbar Chinchilla
Adult Goldbar Chinchilla
Prized Goldbar Chinchilla


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I'd never heard of Jacques Demers until I read an article about him the other day. You, however, may be quite familiar with him. Among other accomplishments, he was the head coach of the last Montreal Canadiens hockey team to win the Stanley Cup (in 1993). Many sports fans have long admired the guy -- and many Canadians even urged him to run for the nation's Parliament. Little did they know that he was carrying around a huge and humiliating secret: He couldn't read!
Demers, 61, spent many years explaining that he couldn't sign an autograph or read a document because he'd misplaced his glasses. His secret is out now, and he's relieved.
He recently co-wrote a book, Jacques Demers: En Toutes Lettres (the title of which is translated, loosely, as "All Spelled Out"), and he's been learning to read a little. The bottom line now is that he feels less insecure and is in a better position to lead a more enjoyable and rewarding life.
We at the Fool know that illiteracy can extend to financial matters, too. And we're here to help.
Pop quiz!
You may be financially illiterate if:
- You don't understand the difference between a traditional IRA and a Roth IRA.
- You have no idea what the average annual return is for the stock market over the past century.
- You don't know why dividend yields go up when stock prices go down.
- You think that a stock split is a wonderful, profitable thing.
- You think that you'll do well investing in most mutual funds.
- You assume that you'll live comfortably in retirement on Social Security and your 401(k) account.
- You think that a company with a high dividend yield is a no-brainer investment.
Can you relate to some of the above? If so, know that you're far from alone. Still, remember that this kind of ignorance isn't just a shame -- it's dangerous. It can leave you investing very inefficiently and earning much less money than you otherwise could have over long periods.
Why literacy matters
Take just that last bullet point above. Companies with dividend yields that are unusually high may indeed be good investments, but that's not necessarily the case. When stock prices fall, yields rise. So some high yields represent troubled companies, not healthy, generous ones. (And other high yields belong to REITs, or real estate investment trusts, which are different from common stock.)
Consider this. I recently ran a screen for stocks with high dividend yields. One sported a yield of 8.3%. Tantalizing, eh? But the company was General Motors
Consider also FriedmanBillingsRamsey
If you don't know what you're doing in the financial arena, you can lose a lot of money and make lots of boneheaded moves. (Of course, just for the record, we savvier types are not immune from occasionally making our own blunders and losing money.)
Get edumacated
Take some time to learn more about how to manage your money. It isn't as boring a topic as you might think, and the payoff will be well worth it. If you want to learn more, you can:
- Read books by your friends at the Fool or by Peter Lynch, among others.
- Take advantage of our How-to Guides, which carry money-back guarantees (and some of which are entirely free).
- Test-drive one or more of our investing newsletter services, which are educational and guide you to many effective investments. (You can try them out for free.) Our Income Investor newsletter, as an example, will point you to many promising companies with solid dividend yields. After more than two years, it's beating the S&P 500, and about 18 of its picks sport returns above 20%, with more than 10 of them topping 30%.
You don't have to be financially illiterate. We promise.
Selena Maranjian 's favorite discussion boards include Book Club , Eclectic Library, and Card & Board Games. She owns shares of no company mentioned in this article. For more about Selena, view her bio and her profile. You might also be interested in these books she has written or co-written: The Motley Fool Money Guide and The Motley Fool Investment Guide for Teens . The Motley Fool is Fools writing for Fools.


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Saturday, August 22, 2015
BW Sunday
Saturday Bert and I took an amazing hike in Icebox Canyon. I will post more later on this week. But for now...
17 comments:
Icebox canyon? that sounds like the perfect place in summer :o) I can't wait to hear more about your adventure :o)ReplyDelete
what a fun adventure,xx SpeedyReplyDelete
Hari OMReplyDelete
the Golden Boy shines forth!!! Blessed day to you Michelle.... YAM xx
God bless you and Bert and your services todayReplyDelete
we are guessing Bert found some water to play in :)ReplyDelete
Looks like a wonderful time!ReplyDelete
What a great photo!ReplyDelete
Abby Lab
Oh! Bert :-) Love it! Lots of Golden Love & Woofs from SugarReplyDelete
Sounds like a cool place! Love the shot! happy b&w Sunday!ReplyDelete
You are so lucky to have the Golden Boy join you on your hikes.ReplyDelete
Looks like fun!ReplyDelete
The Golden Boy Bert!!! I just KNOW you both had a ton of fun!ReplyDelete
Kisses to you!
Yours sincerely,
Margaret Thatcher
And he still sleeps......ReplyDelete
I look forward to hearing more about that. Nice photo!ReplyDelete
Did you find DELISH frozen treats in Icebox Canyon? What a cool place for a hike!ReplyDelete
This was lots of fun.... (for me to watch). He is such a Golden Sweetie. Wish I could let Jack of lease but he would be GONE.ReplyDelete
I consider you. This post is actually exalting. i prefer your post and everything you share with United States of America is current and extremely informative, i would like to bookmarker the page therefore I will come back here from you that you simply have done an incredible job.ReplyDelete
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Anyhow, just to reassure myself that I hadn't lost a few days somewhere along the way and had achieved something in this time I thought I'd show you what I've been up to...
I've also been honing my kiln enameling skills following the course I went on a couple of weeks ago - I'm really enjoying this and can happily lose myself in it for the day. I think I've just about got the kiln sussed for optimum temperature and it's great fun testing all the different colours. I only have opaques at the moment but I think I'll be ordering some transparent enamels soon...
I just love these, clear, bright pops of colour and simple shapes especially when teamed with single contrasting beads.
I'm hoping that by the end of this month I can get a small range of enameled items into my Etsy shop. I'd like these to be fun, affordable items so it will probably be simple earrings and pendants to begin with and see where it goes from there.
I doubt I'll be doing much enameling this week though - the first part of it will be dedicated to starting work on my Bead Soup creation(s). I have a number of ideas in my head which I'll hopefully be able to translate to reality, but I'm sure there will be some twists and turns along the way. After that, I need to make a concerted effort to increase my shop inventory - busy, busy, busy!
In the meantime I'll leave you with some of the recent additions to my Etsy shop - August was a quiet month to say the least so here's to a better month ahead!
Have a great week all.


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We have been having this national conversation about just what the definition of marriage should be. Sometimes that conversation gets quite heated. This conversation has been going on for years in homes, in classrooms around the water cooler and in the taverns. It has also been discussed judges' chambers, in State Legislatures, in the National Legislature and even in the White House.
There are many opinions. I have mine. Those who know me can guess where I am on thus issue. BUT that is not the topic I want to talk about this morning, so I'll leave that alone for now.
I want to ask a different question:
Simply put, Why do I need the permission of government to marry? Who decided that? If I want to join in matrimony with my significant other, why do I have to ask my government for permission?
If two consenting adults want to make a binding contract merging their lives and assets together, why do they need the State's sanction. A contract is a contract. Let's let it be that.
I say the answer to same sex marriage, opposite sex marriage should be an individual answer and an individual decision.
If I were in the state legislature I would propose a bill that simply states, "As of Jan 1 (pick a year), the state of (your state here) will no longer record or require the recording of marital records. Counties and municipalities will from that date no longer record such events."
That takes the argument out of the courts and the halls of government and puts it back in the homes, churches and bars where it belongs.


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I like to write about movies of all sorts: old and new, good and bad, mainstream and obscure, local and foreign. Warning: some articles in this blog may be offensive to fans of James Bond, Jean-Luc Godard, and Andrei Tarkovsky's Solaris.
Sunday, 28 August 2016
Why More Video Games need Proper Character Customization
One thing that really annoys me in modern games is the tendency of some franchises to promise "deep customization" and then not even allow the player to choose their character's sex. Medal of Honor: Warfighter and Battlefield: Hardline are both guilty of this type of practice. The former allows the player to choose a class an nationality for their character, but otherwise lacks any sort of customization options, which seems to me like false advertising. Battlefield: Hardline deals with the war on drugs, focuses on modern SWAT Teams (something which women are a part of), and yet they never seemed to consider the possibility that players may want to choose the sex of their character.
To provide a contrast, let's look at a comparatively more progressive game that actually recognizes the issues at hand. Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas 2 works to that very effect. In many respects, the game is structured in a manner reminiscent of many first-person shooters such as Call of Duty , only there is actually an effort at representation. Like Battlefield: Hardline, the story mode focuses on a SWAT Team. However, there is actually diversity in the cast, which not only includes a combination of both male and female characters (of different races) but also allows the player to customize its protagonist, Bishop. Bishop's sex is purely aesthetic, and has no effect on the overall narrative beyond a change in voice actors.
One way to look at this issue in more detail is to examine the output of different gaming companies. When one looks at a large enough selection of different games by the same company, patterns begin to emerge. Among these are patterns which often show that the issue extends towards an overall group of developers rather than any one specific gaming franchise. There are many gaming companies that are guilty of unfairly representing women or showing a strange aversion to female player characters.
Now this is not to say that all gaming companies are made up of misogynistic idiots who are too stubborn to recognize the potential of female characters. There are some progressive developers who have actually addressed this issue. BioWare and Bethesda are both gaming companies that have shown a positive effort to improve representations of women in gaming.Most, if not all, of Bioware's games allow the player to choose their character's sex (most famously in Mass Effect, though the same can also be said for Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and the Dragon Age series) as well as giving them a large party consisting of both male and female characters. Bethesda's games do not often place as much emphasis on building a party, but their open-world adventures such as Skyrim and Fallout both allow the player to customize their character and provide a wide range of both male and female NPCs with whom they can interact, many of whom are strong women.
Both companies have even gone further on occasion and allowed the player to not only choose their character's sex, but also their sexual orientation. Knights of the Old Republic included the option for a lesbian romance with Juhani in addition to the heterosexual options for Carth and Bastilla. Mass Effect 2 included a few bisexual options (whom the player could romance regardless of gender), while Mass Effect 3 included bisexual options as well as two potential love interests for a gay Shepard (one male, one female). While they're not essential to the gameplay, Skyrim and Fallout 4 both allow the player to engage in same-sex relationships (and even same-sex marriage, in the case of the former).
However, for every forward-thinking company like BioWare or Bethesda, there are others lagging behind. An infamous example of this would be Activision, the creators of the popular Call of Duty franchise who took almost a decade before they finally started placing female characters into their games. Naughty Dog of Uncharted and The Last of Us fame, has no trouble including strong female characters in supporting roles, but seems draws the line on making them playable. Rock Star games has an unfortunate tendency to fall into this as well. They have several major franchises, and not one of their many games has a female protagonist. In fact, many of them lack any notable female characters at all. There have been five Grand Theft Auto and not one female playable character.
This is obviously problematic. Grand Theft Auto went through four games before the developers finally decided to create sprites for female police officers (something that probably wouldn't have hurt if they'd just done that from the start) and still not one female protagonist among its five games. Now one could argue that it wasn't totally unjustified in L.A. Noire (which deals with the police force during the 1940's) or Red Dead: Redemption (which is set in the Wild West), though even then one could question a few choices. L.A. Noire probably could have given its female lead a much more prominent role than merely being a love interest for Cole. In Red Dead: Redemption, it could also have been interesting to see a female gunslinger take the spotlight, even if the rest of the cast was male-dominated.
This in turn brings up a variety of debates that have taken place on the internet recently, namely whether players should be allowed to choose. There have been some extremely flimsy arguments that developers have made for excluding women from their games. One of the reasons Call of Duty took so long to even add a choice to multiplayer was because the developers genuinely believed that women would have an unfair advantage because their smaller size would make them harder targets (seriously), and even that weak excuse doesn't explain why they are so averse to female characters in the campaign mode. Others seem to question whether it should affect the gameplay, and if not why it should even matter.
The answer is easy enough: the option should be there, and it should have little effect on the game. In Mass Effect, the player can choose Shepard's sex and other than a few differences in romantic options it has no bearing on the overall story. Shepard's abilities are based purely on their class and how the character is developed over the course of the game. The actual narrative is shaped by the choices made by the player, and none of them are influenced by Shepard's sex. Both male and female Shepard have to make the same tough calls that present consequences over the course of the series.
One can see the same thing in many other games where gender is purely aesthetic. Skyrim also allows the player to choose the sex of their protagonist (although artwork related to the game and fans in general seem to keep assuming the hero to be male). Aside from a few variations in dialogue, the game is more or less identical regardless of whether the player is male or female, even going as far as to offer the exact same selection of romantic opportunities. The main stories of Fallout 3 and Rainbow Six Vegas 2 both progress more ore less the same way regardless of what sex the player chooses, and the same sets of skills and opportunities are available for both.
So this has led to another common argument: that if gender doesn't affect the gameplay than why bother? Well, it really comes down to the simple fact that everyone has their own preferences, and that they should be allowed to make the character they feel best fits the game. Personally, I have always preferred to play as female characters, and I often find that the game's world feels far more authentic when I take that option. I have a friend who finds that he often prefers to play as non-human characters whenever the game permits it (such as in the Elder Scrolls series). In the case of Mass Effect, there are fans devoted to both male and female Shepard.
The fact is that more games should allow players the choice in who they want to be, rather than having it predetermined. This means that they should be able to create the type of person they feel best fits the game and run with it. This makes games like Medal of Honor: Warfighter and Battlefield: Hardline all the more infuriating for promising "deep customization" and then refusing to allow the player to actually make a character that suits them because the developers are too stupid to realize that women can serve in the military or police force now.
Yes, it's true that female characters shouldn't be too much different from the men. The script should have next to no differences and a female character should have access to the same skills as a man. The important thing is making sure players have the choice to make the character they want. Different people have different preferences. Every player of Skyrim has a unique character that fits them, the same way Mass Effect allows for different players to produce drastically different interpretations of Shepard. The fact is that we want to be able to have a choice. We want to create the characters we feel fit the game, not be faced by obviously biased restrictions.
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Map Legend:
The line colours are used to break up the tracks into 5 distinct sections - the colours otherwise do not demark anything (such as trail surfaces, difficulty, etc).
From north to south:
- Section 1: Penticton to Skaha Lake (orange)
- Section 2: Skaha Lake Okanagan Falls (magenta)
- Section 3: Okanagan Falls to northern end of Oliver via roadways (orange)
- Section 4: North end of Oliver to north end of Osoyoos (magenta)
- Section 5: North end of Osoyoos into downtown Osoyoos via roadways (orange)
GPS Downloads
- KML/KMZ files can be opened in Google Earth, and many smartphone apps.
- GPX files can be opened by most GPS software apps when KMZ cannot. Note, GPX files do not contain custom colours and icons that we use on our maps; all tracks and icons will appear the same colours and styles. We recommend using KMZ instead when possible.
- GPX-Garmin are GPX files that we have optimized for older Garmin units that only display tracks that contain 500 points or less (such as Garmin eTrex units).
Visit our GPS & Navigation page for instructions of how to use your smartphone as a GPS device (even when outside of data coverage) or how to import data to your Garmin unit.
|Penticton - Osoyoos Bicycle Journey.kmz
|Penticton - Osoyoos Bicycle Journey.gpx
About the Journey:
A 56.4 km one-way journey between Penticton and Osoyoos; definitely a challenging one-day round trip given the rough trail surface in some areas We recommend staying the night in Osoyoos. The portion from Penticton to Okanagan Falls and back is a lovely day trip (44 km return), and the section from Oliver to Osoyoos and back is also a great day trip (60 km return).
Journey Highlights:
- Urban trails in Penticton, especially scenic along Okanagan Lake shore
- Stunning scenery on the rail trail along Skaha Lake
- Cool, shady sections of trail near Oliver Station
Parking & Staging Areas
- Parking can be found in Penticton. Pay parking near Lake Okanagan can suit the bill - otherwise parking in the summer months can be tricky.
- Parking in Okanagan Falls can be found at Lions Park
- A large underused parking lot north of Oliver, marked on our maps, seems to be free of restrictions at this time
- Parking is available just north of Osoyoos near the southern trail terminus of the Hike & Bike Trail along the canal
- Parking is available in Osoyoos but may be challenging to find at times
Shopping & Provisions
Groceries are best found in Penticton, the largest service center of the area.
Public Washrooms
Public toilets can be found at the side of the trail at Oliver Station
A variety of accommodations can be found in the region, but camping can be expensive and books up early in the season. Inkaneek Provincial Park is shown on our maps. Bed & Breakfasts are available throughout the area.


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Harvard Law School, Wasserstein Hall
70+ Minutes
James Gleick is a native New Yorker and a graduate of Harvard and the author of a half-dozen books on science, technology, and culture. His latest bestseller, translated into 20 languages, is The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood, which the NY Times called "ambitious, illuminating, and sexily theoretical." Whatever they meant by that. They also said "Don't make the mistake of reading it quickly."
Source and Links to A/V Available At
NYTimes Review


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We are slowly adding some new items and also reducing prices on selected items. If you are planning ahead for the coming Holidays and looking for some hand knit gifts it might be a way to get them for less!
So there is an end-of-summer sale going on right now in our Socksandmittens shop. Please visit our SALE section to see the selection.


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Don't count the days, make the days count.
This was commissioned by my oldest friend, Mrs P. Mrs P's husband, Big D, is a policeman and works very hard. It's his birthday coming up soon and she wanted to create something special. With Big D working shifts, and young children, family time together is precious. Sometimes it's hard to remember that you need to make the most of there here and now.
I'm impatient, if I have something coming up that I'm looking forward to I start counting, usually in sleeps – a legacy of having children. This looking too far forward sometimes means that I don't concentrate on the here and now. This print has reminded me that I need to be present, in the now to make the most of life.
You'll see that this print has a policeman's helmet in the 'o'. We can change this to anything or just leave it as an 'o'.
The wiffle waffle;
* This print is supplied un-framed
* Framing is available (please see framing options)
* Gift wrapping available
* Exclusive to Boo & Boy
* Made in Yorkshire
* Mainland UK delivery cost
* Estimated delivery: 5-7 days
* International delivery available


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Deepavali, also known as the Festival of Lights, is celebrated every year on the Hindu month of Kartik which falls around October or November on the Gregorian calendar. It is celebrated by Indians of Hindu faith in Malaysia. The festival signifies, as do other festivals such as Thaipusam, the triumph of good over evil. Deepavali is a four day celebration, even though in Malaysia only one day is marked as a public holiday to celebrate this festival. Deepavali is sometimes misunderstood because the Hindu New Year is celebrated in a very similar fashion as the Chinese New Year or Hari Raya.
Significance of Deepavali
Deepavali festival originated from South. Many Malaysian Indians came from India some decades ago before it declared its independence. The first day of Deepavali commemorates the victory of Lord Krishna over the demon Naraka. On the second day of Deepavali, Goddess Lakshmi emerged from Kshira Sagara (Ocean of Milk). The third day of Deepavali marks the day of the victory of the god Vishnu over the daemon king Bali. The fourth day or the last day of the festival, is when the God of Death Yama had feasted with his sister Yami. It is believed that during the feast, Yami placed an auspicious mark on his forehead known as the tilak. In other cultures with more significant population of Indians who came mostly from North India, the festival lasts for five days and it is known as "Diwali". However, both festivals are very similar and important for Indians no matter if they come from southern or northern part of India. It's India's best-known festival.
The history of Deepavali
As you may know, all major festivals or events, especially religious ones, are surrounded by legends. There are legends about the origin of Deepavali festival as well. It basically marks the return of Rama after a long period of exile. In order to welcome his return, people light rows of oil lamps and exchanging greeting cards, clothing and other gifts. By the way, Deepavali means "row of lamps", so it makes sense. The festival also celebrates the downfall and death of the evil demon Narakasura by Lord Krishna's wife, Satyabhama. The last legend is closely associated with the harvest season in India. According to the legend, Lord Krishna enlightened farmers at a village and educated them about their duty as farmers to protect their cattle and farm instead of making preparations for an annual offering to Lord Indra. This angered Indra who flooded the entire village in his wrath. Lord Krishna then lifted Mount Govardhan and held it up to protect the farmers and cattle from the rain, defeating Indra. People believe that this incident gave rise to the "karma" concept of doing good and receiving good in return.
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Deepavali in Malaysia
The celebration of Deepavali in Malaysia would be incomplete without arrays of "kolam". "Kolam" is a decorative art with intricate designs drawn on the floor with a variety of materials such as turmeric powder, rice grains and rice flour in a fluorescent spectrum of vibrant colours. These "kolam" come in many sizes, many of which are in giant proportions in malls and public halls in the country. Traditionally, the "kolam" is smaller and drawn at the doorstep of an Indian home usually by a young lady. While the "kolam" is now a symbol of Deepavali, it is actually a daily practice at some homes in India who would draw the "kolam" at the front of their houses every morning.
Similar to other festivals in Malaysia, the preparations for Deepavali usually precede with spring cleaning the entire house from top to bottom. The festival of lights would be incomplete without the presence of light from the glow of traditional oil lamps or from colorful electric bulbs. These oil lamps usually dot the entire house filling up the ambience with a warm and soft glow. The significant spiritual meaning of the lights is for one to be aware of his or her "inner light". In Hindu philosophy, beyond the physical body and mind is something pure and eternal. Light is a powerful metaphor for knowledge and consciousness. Deepavali is the celebration of the inner light.
Temples are also decorated and spruced up in time for the festival. Flowers are placed in the abode of the temple. Fruit and coconut milk offerings by devotees increase as the day of the festival approaches. The temple is also subject to stringent spring cleaning in time for the festival to prepare for the arrival of Devi Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity. It is believed that Devi Lakshmi visits homes and temples on the day of Deepavali and brings good fortune with her, wherever she goes.
Hindu devotees also undergo a bout of spring-cleaning themselves. They cleanse their body and minds prior to the festival by fasting or undergoing a strict vegetarian diet and spend hours in prayer and meditation prior to the big day.
Visible places of worship in Malaysia
If you're in Malaysia during the festival you should definitely visit areas and provinces that have the largest communities of Indians. Kuala Lumpur, especially Brickfields and Little India are probably the most prominent place to witness preparations and the buzz of this tremendous festival. Street bazaars are set up with stalls selling vibrant saris and other traditional Indian attire. Delicacies such as biscuits, Indian pastries and sweets are sold too. Like every other festival in Malaysia, food holds a central and integral part and it's almost as important as the festivals itself. People celebrating the festival take the opportunity to buy new clothes and food to welcome their visitors on the big day.
All major Hindu temples, such as Sri Mahamariamman in Chinatown and Sri Kandaswamy Kovil in Brickfields, are full of various entertainments and activities. You must visit these places of worship to witness the hustle and bustle that go on in the vicinity of the temples as they get ready for Deepavali. As I've said before, the "kolam" cannot be missed; otherwise you won't get the whole idea of this festival. All major malls in Kuala Lumpur display the most vibrant and beautiful portraits willing to have the best "kolam" in the country.
Classical Indian dances such as Bharatnayatnam and Kathaknatyam accompany exhibitions in shopping malls and temples. Bharatnayatnam is a classical dance that originated from the Tamil Nadu state in South India and it basically dates back to 1000 B.C. Amazing, isn't it? It is now performed by females (most of the time) and accompanied by classical Carnatic music. The dance is considered to be a mystical representation of a "fire dance. So, the movements of a Bharatnayatnam dancer usually resemble the flame.
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On the eve of Deepavali, last minute preparations are usually made for the first day. On this day, past quarrels are forgotten and forgiveness is sought from the elderly to repent for any mistakes made by the younger ones. On the morning of the festival, many devotees get up before sunrise for a customary oil bath ritual. It is believed that the oil bath is equivalent to taking a bath in the majestic and spiritual Ganges River in India itself.
Before the bath begins, the elder people in the house apply gingelly oil, made from sesame seeds, to the heads of the younger members. Shiyakai powder, made from a native South Indian shrub is used as a shampoo to wash the oil off. Then everyone puts on their best clothes, usually new clothes bought before the festival and gathers to pray and have breakfast together. A traditional meal is served which normally comprises of idly (steamed rice flour and dhall cake), boondhi (a kind of sweet), sambal (lentil curry), mutton and other curry dishes. Other traditional sweets and snacks of Deepavali festival are omapodi (a crunchy and spicy snack in the shape of short strings), vadai (a donut-like pastry that is occasionally eaten with curry) and laddu (a traditional Indian sweet made from ground coconut and sweetened with sugar).
They also make sure that the oil lamps are set up properly and that the flame won't went out before the day ends. Furthermore, they put Mango leaves on doors to bring blessings into the home. In fact the entrance of every single home in town is often the centerpiece of Deepavali decorations to welcome Devi Lakshmi. Colourful decorations with traditional motifs of kolam design such as the lotus blossom, bells, flower garlands, colourful electric lamps and mirrors are used very often as well. And of course they don't forget their altars. They are decorated similarly using very colourful and vibrant decorations to usher in Devi Lakshmi.
New clothes are smeared with a little sandal paste and kept at the altar. The festival is akin to Chinese New Year and Hari Raya, where relatives and friends visit each other's houses and give packets of money to the younger ones. The packets of money derive from a traditional Chinese New Year custom. People believe it brings the person good fortune, wealth and prosperity. However, there's another very interesting tradition called the "open houses". Someone throws a huge party and opens his or her doors to all relatives and friends of all races and religion for a good time and a good meal. This practice is also upheld by politicians and other prominent figures in the country. They open their doors to the public during this time of the year, similar to Chinese New Year and Hari Raya.
Many women buy gold, silver or new utensils for the house on the first day of the festival. It's the most auspicious time to make such purchases. After sunset, it is customary to light up earthen oil lamps and place it all around the house. This is in alignment with the belief that one should proceed from darkness (spiritual ignorance) to lightness (spiritual knowledge). It is also believed that the oil lamps attract Devi Lakshmi who will bring wealth and prosperity when she visits the house.
Superstitions are part of the norm. Sweeping of the floor is not allowed (similar to Chinese New Year) as it is believed that this would sweep away all good luck from the floor out of the house.
On the third day of Deepavali, fireworks are set off to ward off evil. Although, fireworks are illegal in Malaysia, the practice is still rampant in the country and especially in large Indian neighbourhoods. Temples during the festival are usually very crowded because families and friends make their way there to pray and to give offerings. Prayers are conducted during all four days of the festival and for certain devout Hindus, they observe strict vegetarianism for the entire festival period.
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The fourth and last day of Deepavali is usually a day when brothers and sisters pay homage to each other. According to the legend, Lord Krishna visited his sister Subhadra after slaying the demon King Narkasura. The sister performs an 'aarti' of the brother praying sincerely for a long and prosperous life. On this day, sisters normally invite brothers into their homes.


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VM145 The Master Hoof (Claw) Care Program: Summary Statistics From Three Years1 Jan K. Shearer, S. R. Van Amstel, A. Gonzalez-Sagues, and L. C. Shearer2 1. This document is VM145, one of a series of the College of Veterinary Medicine-Large Animal Clinical Sciences, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Original publication date August 7, 2002. Visit the EDIS Web Site at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu. 2. Jan K. Shearer, D.V.M., Professor, College of Veterinary Medicine Large Animal Climical Sciences, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, Gainesville, 32611. S. R. Van Amstel, Associate Professor, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Tennessee, Knoxville. A. Gonzalez-Sagues, ANKA Hoof Care, Pamplona, Spain Private Veterinarians and Hoof Trimmers. L. Shearer, Course Coordinator, University of Florida. The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function without regard to race, color, sex, age, handicap, or national origin. For information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension Service office. Florida Cooperative Extension Service/Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences/University of Florida/Christine Taylor Waddill, Dean. Lameness is recognized as one of the most costly clinical diseases of dairy cattle in North America. In large herds the sheer number of lame cows requires that dairies maintain good handling facilities and properly trained personnel for daily care of lameness conditions. In 1996, through a grant from the Florida dairy farmers, the Master Hoof Care Program was developed at the University of Florida. The objective of this program was (and is) to train dairy health care technicians and others in proper methods of foot care and claw trimming. The program is offered three times per year at the University of Florida and once annually at the University of Tennessee. In addition, since many employees on dairy farms throughout the United States are from Mexico or Central and South America, one of the three programs conducted in Florida is presented in Spanish with the assistance of Dr. Adrian Gonzalez from Spain. The course is divided into three parts. Part I of the course consists of one day of classroom instruction and three days of laboratory exercises at cooperating dairy farms. Course content is based on the Dutch trimming method described by Toussaint Raven. Part II of the course is conducted at the participants' homes or places of work where they may continue to practice and further develop their skills before returning to either the University of Florida or Tennessee to complete Part III, a written/oral and laboratory practical examination. As of the writing of this abstract, 194 persons have taken part I of the course. Of these, 19 identified themselves as owners of dairy farms, 102 as dairy health care technicians (dairy farm employees), 25 as professional hoof trimmers, 10 as veterinarians, and 9 as agri-business workers. The remaining persons serve in academia or other areas related to the dairy industry. Participants have come from 30 states (within the USA) and from 6 countries outside the USA. To date, 17 people have successfully completed Part III, and three of these currently serve as laboratory instructors in the course. Participating dairy operations that have established foot care and claw trimming programs as a result cite a reduction in the premature loss of cows to lameness as one of the most noticeable economic benefits observed. This has prompted some dairies to expand their programs beyond the care of lame cows to include maintenance trimming programs. Several participants have taken the course and subsequently started claw trimming businesses. Still others (dairy farmers, veterinarians, and persons in agri-business)
The Master Hoof (Claw) Care Program: Summary Statistics From Three Years 2 have taken the course with little intention to later treat or trim claws. Instead, they simply wanted to have a better understanding of foot problems and claw trimming procedures.


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PAUL NELSON FISHING: Time for a little night fishing
The October full moon was Thursday night, but anglers are able to have good success fishing walleyes at night several days before and after the full moon, so the opportunity should extend at least through this weekend.
Night fishing is not for everyone, but with the zebra mussels expanding to more lakes, the trend of fishing for walleyes at night is just going to get more prevalent in the future.
Trolling or casting floating minnow baits that dive just below the surface is the presentation most walleye anglers use at night.
Shallow rocks or the outside edge of cabbage weed beds are two of the most likely places to find walleyes feeding at night.
Anglers can troll the outside edges of the rocks or weeds until they find some feeding walleyes and then hold their boat just outside the productive areas and cast the floating minnow baits towards the structure.
The tops of the cabbage weeds break off late in the fall from the wave action in the lakes. The seeds are located in the tops of the plants, so this is the way cabbage weeds reseed the areas for next year.
Once the tops of the weeds break off, anglers can cast shallow diving lures over the weed beds without catching as many weeds.
Walleyes usually feed toward the bottom during the day. At night, walleyes use the moonlight as a backdrop to see the silhouettes of the baitfish above them, so walleyes usually feed toward the surface at night.
Lakes in the Bemidji area have finally dropped into the upper 50s after a week of rain and more seasonal temperatures for early October.
The thermocline in the deeper lakes has disappeared, so fish species like crappies and walleyes are free to begin moving into deeper water, as long as there is enough oxygen and forage located there.
Walleyes are able to choose where they want to be located based on the amount of sunlight and available forage and not based on the water temperatures to determine where the fish do and do not want to be.
Once the lakes begin cooling, they cool from the surface down, so at some point in the fall, the warmest part of the lakes is on the bottom.
Most anglers like to use jigs and minnows, with a ¼- to ⅜-ounce jig the most popular sizes. UV colors and glow paints are often helpful for fishing in deeper water, to help the fish see and target the baits.
Live bait rigs with larger minnows is also a very productive way to catch walleyes late in the season. This presentation allows anglers to fish more slowly and be able to pause their baits in areas where they are seeing fish on sonar, so the minnow can do some of the work.
Leeches are like gold in the fall for walleyes, but they can be very difficult to find, especially in larger sizes. Anglers can put more than one small leech on a hook to get more mass, to try and make it more appealing to the walleyes.
Night crawlers will also work in cold water, so it can pay dividends to try different types of live bait for walleyes. Some anglers like to pinch off the night crawlers if the walleyes are biting short.
Panfish can also be caught on leeches and nightcrawlers, with anglers cutting the leeches or night crawlers into smaller pieces and putting them on smaller winter jigs or smaller jigging spoons or other winter jigging lures.
Perch have been actively feeding in areas holding a mixture of minnows and crayfish. This can be either areas with broken rock or chara covered bottom, which both give the minnows and crayfish some cover to hide.
Small jigs, usually 1/16th or 1/8th ounce, tipped with a fathead minnow will catch perch in most situations. Anglers will also catch walleyes or northern pike as a bonus when fishing for perch.
Fishing for most species should just keep getting better as the lakes cool down.
Paul A. Nelson runs the "Bemidji Area Lakes Guide Service." He can be contacted at email@example.com.


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Recent Stories
Girl Scout Troop 7329 feeds heroes
Girl Scout Troop 7329 recently donated 105 boxes of cookies to the Kingman Fire Department for distribution among the firefighters.
Kingman Range Days introduces shooting sports
The Mohave Sportsman Club held a "Kingman Range Days" event at its Seven Mile Shooting Range in Golden Valley April 8.
Home & Garden Show flaunting Kingman's wonderful weather
Annual exposition for home improvement ideas reopens today at 10 a.m. along with carnival rides starting up at noon
The annual Home and Garden Business Expo is being held at the Mohave County Fairgrounds this weekend.
Easter fun at Centennial Park
Crowds of parents and children attended the city of Kingman Parks and Recreation Department's annual Easter Egg Hunt Saturday at Centennial Park.
Kingman Center for the Arts hosts grand opening
The Kingman Center for the Arts' Community Arts Center held its Grand Opening Saturday, complete with a ribbon-cutting ceremony with the Kingman Chamber of Commerce, art galleries featuring local and visiting artists, art demonstrations and live music.
Joshua trees: An iconic, though unusual, neighbor
One of the most iconic and unique symbols of the Mojave desert is the stately and unusual looking Joshua tree.
Deputy Kerry Schanaman's memorial attended by hundreds
Community says goodbye to a kind servant
The Mohave County Sheriff's Office held a public memorial at Kingman High School for Kerry Wayne Schanaman that was attended by a large crowd.
Women Making History
More than 200 Mohave County women have been honored in the 33 years Women Making History has taken place in Kingman.
The Advocates: CASA volunteers make a meaningful difference in the lives of children
There's a story about a child on a beach tossing stranded starfish back into the sea.
Visit from historic B-17 left an impression
Thanks to the Experimental Aircraft Association, a Boeing B-17 World War II Flying Fortress heavy bomber plane returned to the Kingman Airport for the first time in over 20 years this weekend.


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LEXINGTON, KY. — Louisiana State stopped All-America Kenny Walker, but it couldn't stop the Kentucky basketball mystique, which somehow carried the Wildcats to a dramatic 61-58 victory Friday night and into the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship game today against Alabama.
In the earlier contest, Alabama stopped Mississippi State's upset ride through the tournament with a convincing 77-65 victory.
LSU's John Williams, who finished with 28 points and 10 rebounds, dominated the second half as the Tigers roared to a 56-51 lead with 4:01 left.


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A message to Oregon taxpayers
No, he doesn't respect you this morning.
No, he doesn't respect you this morning.
Let me go on record now predicting no expansion, no jobs, and no big capital investment. Oh, and naturally, no consequences.
"State government for sale, discounts available, apply within".
Male whore!
Oh goody- this must mean that Nike will bring back all those overseas jobs and put Oregonians back to work!
I wonder if the legislators ever stopped to think how a public vote would go on this.
Can you imagine the rhetoric if it was suggested the public should vote on it?
It would be smart legislators lecturing the stupid public on how they were elected to make these decisions for us.
The idea that Nike would pack up and move their Nike World Headquarters out of state if this was not approved has to be one of most deceitful plays in Oregon history.
If Phil Knight is such a person that he would pull the plug on his lengthy Oregon investments and philanthropy over a relative minor tax beef then he is a horrible horrible person.
I don't believe he would or is.
I do believe he is savvy businessman and went for this because he was certain Kitzhaber and the legislators would sit up and roll over.
They have proven over and over again to be a group of mostly talentless, weak & ineffectual saps.
Reading their justification for this farce is as sickening as listening to the justification for the Tram of the Portland-Milwaukie magical mystery madness.
But when you have a group of Vera Katz/Sam Adams types running everything nothing is surprising.
I thought he would at least call . . . .
Wait, they cut the deal down from 40 years to 30 years? Way to make a stand you spineless a-holes.
Let me contrast this with how a humble citizen is treated by the Government of Oregon. Specifically with a little gem called the Tri-Met Self Employment Tax that taxes people within a district so we can have more trains, etc..
Let's say I wrote jokes that were sent out of state, examined, and then bought outside the state. There is a form called TSE-AP with "Sales Factor Only" on it and "Total within district" where you compute the percentage of sales here versus outside the district.
Stay with me. I assumed that sales within the district would mean....wait for it...the sales within the district. If nobody bought any of my jokes in the state of Oregon and the district was in Oregon that would be zero.....
But what it really means is if you wrote the joke in the district and sold it anywhere in the world, you were to be taxed here so that a train or light rail or bus could be funded, because OF COURSE, I need a bus or train to sit in my basement and write jokes.
Ironically, if I had taken a car out of the district, wrote the joke there, and then sold the jokes to the Mayor of Portland sitting in the heart of the district, that would still not be a sale within the district because...oh never mind....
F*ck NIKE, F*ck Tri-Met, and F*ck the Corporate Takeover of Government.
To paraphrase our distinguished host: Worst. Govenor. Ever.
Time to reserve a moving van if you haven't already. What a joke the legislature proved once again. Falling over themselves to vote for this giveaway. They certainly earned their John H. Mitchell Award for Public Integrity yesterday.
Bill, you can't just take your car out of the district without asking permission from the good congressman Earl, he saw your post and has it all covered. I'll just add a side note here, F*ck life long politicians.
It is just a dispiriting thing to see your elected officials publicly debased by the corporate overlords.
B - exactly. There is a provision in the bill that would allow OR to sue Nike for lost revenue if they do not deliver. Right, that's going to happen. lol To quote Walter "Just because we're bereaved doesn't mean we're saps!"
"You can almost say Nike and Oregon share DNA," she said.
Yes, our shame is well-earned. Didn't Halfway sell it's name to some e-tailer and become Half.com? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halfway,_Oregon
Same deal, just statewide.
What Bill said !
It is just a dispiriting thing to see your elected officials publicly debased by the corporate overlords.
Dispiriting it has been for a long time, with our city council too!
Looks like some people were thoroughly disgusted enough to say No to the system.
Take a look at the Under Votes!
Mayor's race: Write-in votes: 19,966 Under Votes: 38,051
Commissioner, Pos. 1 City of Portland Fritz/Nolan race:
Write-in Votes: 2,366 Under Votes: 67,988
70,354 people could not/would not vote for Amanda nor Nolan, wonder how Amanda feels about that for being "liked?" I don't think these people care about being liked as long as they get to stay in the special club is what matters to them. This was most likely "understood" by those in the legislature who wish to stay in.
Maybe this legislative vote will get even more people engaged and outraged enough to stop voting for those in the club.
Seems to me I've heard this before. A Republican legislator notes as a postscript in his commentary about the bill:
"It should also be noted what we are doing is unconstitutional on two points. The first point is no Legislative Assembly can commit a future Legislative Assembly to any action or inaction, and this measure clearly does that. The second point is the Constitution is very clear on taxes being equitable for all, and this measure does a specific carve out."
I've also said before that I do not blame Nike for not wanting to get caught on the hook of impending tax increases to fund Oregon's ridiculous PERS promises and deficits. I guess as an individual, my only choice will be to move.
Move where? Have you read the news the last five years? Every state has public retirement liability problems. Oregon's better compared to most states:
Not that PERS isn't a problem. It is, just not as bad as others.
Of course Blumenauer style, use existing money for his light rail, bike projects instead of road infrastructure and then create a "new" way of funding for the roads, that can open the door for all kinds of clamping down on people, more invasion into our every day movement. Once these "devices" are placed in our vehicles, what next?
Uh, all those who voted for Gov. Retread, raise their hands. . . . .what I thought.
Five (5) months and I'm outta' here. PDX will look good in my rear view mirror.
ws: point taken .... at least halfway. I do read the news. I have read "comparisons" in the last year or two that put Oregon's per capita burden in the top tenth. Gotta wonder what factors are compared, and how easily they are reduced to lies, damn lies and statistics. What is less debatable -- would you agree -- is the chunk the PERS liability is taking out of current agency budgets, and headed to taking more, significantly more.
Is there some other reason the Democratic legislature and Governor are going to soon move to raise taxes? If there is, I don't know what it is.
You know that separation of powers thing in our government? It oughta be amended to include what's become a defacto fourth leg -- corporations.
"Uh, all those who voted for Gov. Retread, raise their hands. . . . .what I thought."
How rude of you! Don't you know that Saps and Rubes don't like to be reminded of their votes? They'd rather just bitch and moan about the officials that they vote for, and then vote for them again, and bitch n moan some more.
Hey WS: We moved to Nevada in 2009 and in the next full tax year we saved over $12K in various taxes we paid to the public thieves in Oregon. Best of all, we live in a far nicer home than we ever had in Oregon, have lower utility and garbage costs and see no public "services" we are missing out on here - no matter what the jerks in Salem and Portland City Hall want you to believe.
Dave A. -
Not trying to be rude here, but you need o consider:
It sure is nice of all those folks from elsewhere to flock to Nevada, get fleeced in he casinos, and then go home.
Without the gambling revenue taxes, Nevada would be a sorry mess.
Sort of like Curry, Coos and Josephine Counties in Oregon, dying because of the cut off in federal timber support payments.
Enjoy the subsidy from outsiders while it lasts.
Jus' saying.
Yeah, agreed, Nonny. The Nevada experiment is not something any state should try and reproduce, even if you believe in super low taxes.
Even with gambling, that place is a mess.
You're going to have to run some numbers by me or a link to a website. I have never heard that PERS is one of the worst.
I think living in Oregon and seeing that PERS is causing 25% increases in employer contribution this last year -- or whatever it was -- makes it seem like we're one the worst. And I'm not a state debt apologist (and am particularly critical of public pensions, etc.).
Click on Oregon and other states.
Here's something interesting. California not looking so hot on the graph as debt/capital as a measurement of GSP:
IMHO, all that was accomplished in Salem Friday is that the Governor and Legislature guaranteed that Nike would continue to pay no Oregon state income taxes for he next 30 years, just like hey have been paying zero Oregon state income taxes for he las 10 or so years since he "single facor sales formula was adopted.
Think about it.
Were does Nike report its sales to, say Fred Meyer, as taking place?
At the Memphis, Tennessee Nike distribution center?
In Cinncinatti, Ohio where Kroger "lives"?
At the Freddie's warehouse complex in Milwaukie, OR?
Same questions with respect to where does Nike reports it's sales to Dave's Sporting Goods, or Footlocker, as taking place? Memphis? Pennsylvania for Dave's? New York for Footlocker?
I'm sure Nike's sales take place in whatever of those jurisdictions have the lowest tax rate.
And the elitist snob in me says that is Tennessee.
Outside of the relatively small volume at the Nike sore in PDX, Nike doesn't sell at retail in Oregon.
With the "single factor - sales" formula which Oregon requires of multi state / multinational corporate income tax filers, I'd bet that Nike's state corporate income tax paid in Oregon is very close to zero.
And think about where much of Nike's business deductions are situated. The salaries of those highly paid folks just outside Beaverton are all deductions from Nike's gross before arriving at taxable income.
Certainly Nike pays some property tax in Washington County, though Nike has minimized that, too. It certainly doesn't pay property tax to Beaverton, having also bought a "fix" from the Legislature for that.
Nike is real good at buying "fixes" from the Legislature. Reminds me why the Southern Pacific Railroad was incorporated in Kentucky (yep, Kentucky, not California nor Delaware) for so many years. SP of course bought legislatures everywhere in addition to Frankfort; Sacramento, Austin, Baton Rouge, just being samples of SP's portfolio.
By contrast, I suspect that Fred Meyer / Kroger pays whopping corporate income taxes to Oregon. Awful hard for Freddie's to argue it doesn't make "sales" in Oregon. I also suspect Freddie's total real estate tax bill in Oregon exceeds that of Nike.
It sure would be interesting for a bunch of good economists, accountants and auditors, as an academic exercise, to figure out just what is the dollar cost of public services Nike consumes in Oregon each year, and compare that to Nike's tax payments, both income and real estate.
Among the costs for public services Nike gets are the cost of the absurd traffic jams in its primarily car access headquarters which Nike imposes on the local jurisdictions; the pollution those cars cause, and the impact upon local school districts of he kids of Nike employees. No way the real estate taxes paid by those employees covers the school costs.
I have a gut feel that Nike receives more in public services in Oregon than it pays in taxes.
Figuring the real estate taxes paid is easy.
Figuring income tax paid is harder. Anybody wanna' hold their breath waiting for Uncle Phil to allow anybody outside DOR to look at the Oregon corporate tax return?
Between the various SEC filings; annual reports, and various prospectuses one might get an approximation, but I doubt it would be very accurate as to income taxes.
And chowder heads like Ginny Burdick, who lack two brain cells to rub together, natter on about that "...wonderful, wonderful..." company, Nike.
Yeah, right.
"Here's something interesting. California not looking so hot on the graph as debt/capital as a measurement of GSP:"
Heckuva website, ws. Thank you. If I counted correctly, only 12 states had a higher per capita debt burden than Oregon. So I could move to 37 other states and be some measure relieved?
I had actually heard or read somewhere in the last year or two that Oregon's per-capita was worse than California, but that appears far from the truth.
As far as "corporate tax," there is the argument that corporations don't really pay taxes; they are passed onto shareholders or customers, etc. Against Nike, one could argue that their lower tax burden constitutes taxes others in-state will pay. In Nike's defense, one could argue that the increased employment base could do more than make up that difference to the state.
only 12 states had a higher per capita debt burden than Oregon.
...No, Oregon's debt per capita is about middle of the pack as percentage of GSP. The graph shows state debt per capita. California actually isn't that bad per capita and GSP. Their total debt is astounding, but they're a big state and have lots of upside if the economy loosens up a bit.
I count 20 states worse than Oregon measuring private-sector debt per capita as percentage of GSP. You state that California is a big state and has "lots of upside if the economy loosens up a bit." I don't see that for Oregon; do you? This is my home state and the changes I've seen over time have not been upwards.
At any rate, that state budget and debt report's overarching conclusions add heavy weight to the huge jumps in our state agency funding going toward current and past public employee benefits that spell dire times and big tax battles ahead. Is that Kitzhaber's next move? (And btw, mtnlion, I'm sure we did not all vote for him.)
Thanks again for that website, ws. A goldmine there, excuse the irony.


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Generally, Blu-ray Player like a Samsung Blu-ray Player will play MKV files. Unfortunately, we found many guy are facing issues while playing MKV on Samsung Blu-ray player:
"My Samsung Blu-ray player sometimes won't play MKV/MP4 files from a USB, and skips it to play the next item. I'm getting fed up with not knowing why, so could someone please let me know what's wrong?"
"Hi I have a mkv file that plays fine on my PC on VLC but when I hook up my external hard drive to my bluray player via USB to play on my TV it says 'no movie content detected'.Other mkv files play fine on my tv this way. I don't have HDMI out on my PC so doing this through my bluray player is the only way to get the best HD picture and sound.Is there anything I can do to the file, to change it so it will play?"
When you try to add video files like MKV to a Blu-ray Player for playback on big screen, you may encounter above issues and others. So what's the matter? Don't worry! This page will show the reason and an easy way to get MKV files to play on Samsung Blu-ray Player without problems.
Samsung Blu-ray player Supported Formats
Convert MKV to Samsung Blu-ray player Supported formats
Here Pavtube Video Converter Ultimate gives you an easy way to solve MKV failed to open in Samsung Blu-ray player issue by converting MKV files to Samsung Blu-ray player more supporting format no matter what models your Samsung Blu-ray player are.
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|Hot search
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How to Get unsupported MKV files into Samsung Blu-ray player for perfect playback
Step 1. Add MKV files
Run the MKV Video Converter and drag & drop your MKV files to the program, or click "Add Video" button to locate the MKVfiles you want to add. (Note: batch conversion is supported, so you can load more than one file to save time.)
Step 2. Set Blu-ray player output format
Click "Format "drop-down button to select "AVI" or "MP4" from "Common Video" or "HD Video" category under "Format".
Tip: Click "Settings" button on the interface, and a window will pop up which allows you to set the bitrate of the video and audio, adjust the codec and change the channel of the audio, etc.
Step 3. Converting MKV to Blu-ray Player
After everything is OK, back to the main interface and click the big "Convert" button to start encoding MKV to Blu-ray Player compatible AVI/MP4videos.
When the conversion done, click the "Open" button on the main interface to pop out the folder with converted files and then transfer the generated files to your USB drive, plug the USB drive into your Blu-ray Player's USB port. Now it's freely for you to play MKV files on Blu-ray Player. Enjoy.
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MINNEAPOLIS (AdAge.com) -- The National Football League sacked scripted series Sunday night, as football games and post-games dominated demographically in the ad-centric adult 18-49 target.
NBC was first for the night, with an overall 4.8/13 rating and share, as the "Sunday Night Football Game" scored a 5.6/14. Yet that delivery should spike once the Nielsen live-plus-same-day data is released tomorrow, particularly as the game went into overtime.
But based on preliminary data, 23% fewer viewers tuned in compared to the fast-affiliate ratings for last week's Dallas Cowboys vs. New York Giants game. Last night still had the Giants, but the opponent must not have been deemed as worthy -- even though the Carolina Panthers have a better record.
Pre-game "Football Night in America" also fell 24%, but that was most likely because it ran into football afternoon in America or, more specifically, an NFL overrun of Fox's afternoon game (5.5/16) and post-game "The O.T." (3.2/9). But Fox fumbled this lead-in by running reruns of its animated comedies, all of which were well off their original episode averages, resulting in Fox finishing second with a 3.0/8 for the night. "The Simpsons" (2.8/8) slipped a third while lead-out "King of the Hill" (2.1/5) was down 38%. And "Family Guy" (2.5/6) and "American Dad" (2.0/5) were down 44% and 37%, respectively, as a lot of American dads (and surely many moms, too) may have switched to the football game.
They certainly didn't switch to CBS and ABC, as each ran repeats of scripted series or reality shows, with one exception. CBS was third with an overall 2.0/5, as "60 Minutes" (2.2/6, down 35%), a "Cold Case" repeat (2.2/5, off 21%) and an original "The Unit" (24% under normal levels to a 1.9/5) all underperformed.
More troubling for CBS was the 1.7/5 for the return of Regis Philbin in "Million Dollar Password," as it lost nearly a quarter of its "60 Minutes" lead-in. Maybe it's the tough times, as viewers might believe that only people with any real chance of making a million dollars are the NFL players on Fox and NBC.
Viewers certainly won't get rich by working construction, given the housing market, which is about as flat as the ratings for repeats of ABC's home construction show, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" (2.0/5 and 2.1/5, which is only about 57% of its normal numbers).
"Extreme Makeover's" lead-in, "America's Funniest Home Videos" (2.1/6), fared better and was closer to regular levels, but lead-out "Desperate Housewives" performed poorly, as it was a repeat and moved to 10 p.m. It posted an anemic 1.6/4, as ABC finished fourth for the night with an overall 1.9/5.
It's nights like these that the CW could create an opportunity, but it, too, ran repeats. But the network didn't show second showings of its new shows but of CBS-canceled "Jericho" (0.3/1) and the 1986 film "Three Amigos," which delivered a 0.4/1, the same rating and share as the network's fifth place overall nightly average.
But soon enough, every network will have opportunities -- and challenges -- as next week is the last week of the regular season. So the scrambling won't be by beleaguered league quarterbacks, but by the very same networks that have relied on ratings from NFL programming since September.
Monday: TCM concurrently reflects this week's Hanukah holiday and this year's passing of Paul Newman by running "Exodus," in which Newman starred as a Jewish activist fighting for a modern Israeli state.
Tuesday: CBS's "10th Annual Home for the Holidays," hosted by Faith Hill, focuses on foster families.
WHAT TO WATCH FOR: Will the season finale for "Prison Break" break out of the pack, particularly since most other shows are reruns?
~ ~ ~
NOTE: All ratings based on adults 18-49. A share is a percentage of adults 18-49 who have their TV sets on at a given time. A rating is a percentage of all adults 18-49, whether or not their sets are turned on. For example, a 1.0 rating is 1% of the total U.S. adults 18-49 population with TVs. Ratings quoted in this column are based on live-plus-same-day unless otherwise noted. (Many ad deals have been negotiated on the basis of commercial-minute, live-plus-three-days viewing.)
John Rash is senior VP-director of media analysis for Campbell Mithun, Minneapolis. For more, see rashreport.com.


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Monday, April 23, 2007
Grief and Anger
Seung-Hui Cho was mentally ill. Were there other factors that led him to shoot 32 people? Probably. But none of those factors made Cho psychotic. His mental illness made him psychotic. Psychosis is not a product of society. It's not an "excuse." It's a product of brain chemistry, a biological disorder.
But people want someone to blame. And they adore pointing fingers. So the eagerness to politicize this tragedy, and ignore the bare fact of its cause, is not surprising. But it is reprehensible. If we truly want to prevent this from happening again, we must focus on the issue at hand—mental illness—and how best to get treatment and help to those who need it.
My heart goes out to the families of the murdered, and to Cho's family, who lost their boy before he ever picked up a gun.
3 comments:
Thank you for seeing through all the media fog. If others would see as clearly as you do the articles in all the news magazines would be a lot shorter.
And congratulations on the first anniversary of your blogging! You, Chris, are a hip, savvy individual.
- Mary Witzl said...
There is something about a national tragedy that seems to make people want to get up on their hind legs and seize the spotlight. It is not one of my favorite things about the human race.
You are right, of course: the boy was ill, and his illness led him to do what he did. I would say that poor gun control and his ability to quickly accumulate an arsenal made his crime much easier, but the focus should be on better mental health care.
- nancorbett said...
...hijacks this tragedy and twists it to suit his or her own ends
Yes. I was thinking the same thing. When tragedies happen, we long to pull together, but the vultures always seem to thwart the grief process.
I saw your comment on Miss Snark's site today and followed your link. It's nice to know of someone who made it out of the slush pile. I have written a YA novel which has graced several slush piles at this point. I'm working on my second novel while sending out the first.
Thanks for your comments.


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This is a very quick and easy recipe for a whole chicken. I came up with this using ingredients I had on hand, hope you enjoy it.
1 whole chicken (about 4-5 pounds)
1 tsp granulated garlic
1 Tablespoon Kirkland Organic No Salt Seasoning
1 tsp sea salt
1 Tablespoon Chipotle Powder
3 oranges sliced
Baby carrots
Combine spices and salt in small bowl and set aside. Rinse and pat dry your chicken, then place it in your crock pot and rub mixture all over the chicken and be sure to sprinkle some in the cavity too! Surround it with the oranges, squeezing a couple slices over the whole chicken and shoving some in the cavity. Grab a couple handfuls of baby carrots and throw those in the pot too. Cook on low for about 5 hours (depending on your crock pot. Delicious and easy!
Pin It


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Head lice are a common problem, which your children can bring home from their school or a sleepover. Fortunately, there are some steps you can take to prevent it from happening:
Image: flickr.com/photos/jryde
1. Keep your ears open
If you find out about a bout of lice at kindergarten, school, or sports club of your children, you should take measures immediately. Experts at Best Salon NYC recommend using a preventive shampoo designed for kids; its nature-inspired formula works effectively and gently. It's also essential to have quick check-ups, especially if your child is scratching his/her head.
2. Wash everything regularly
It sounds pretty obvious, but it's essential to wash items contacting with our hair regularly. Make sure you cleanse your blankets, bed linens, towels, hats, and scarves regularly. It's also important to keep your hair tools clean (brushes, combs, and hair accessories). You can even soak them in rubbing alcohol from time to time just to be on the safe side.
3. Explain the rules of sharing
We teach our children that sharing is good while in fact, it's good only to some extent. According to experts at Best Salon NYC, items like combs, brushes, hair accessories, pillows, hats, and scarves should never be shared. Since these things have a direct contact with our head, they can transfer nasty bugs to your children.
4. Encourage proper storage
It's essential to be extremely careful in public places; for this reason, you should teach your kids to store their stuff properly. Encourage them to use lockers at school or changing room where their hats and scarves will be stored separately. Sometimes headgear can be hidden in the sleeve of their jacket or coat.
Keep these simple rules in mind to protect your children!


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MD Computer Services Tax Repealed; GA Tax Plans Die
April 8, 2008
In the last moments of Maryland's legislative session, the problematic computer services tax was repealed. It had been scheduled to take effect on July 1. In its place, however, the Legislature is "temporarily" imposing a new top individual income tax rate of 6.25 percent on the 6,000 Marylanders who had incomes over $1 million, for 2008 to 2010. See here for more on the computer services tax.
The Baltimore Sun notes that the computer services industry had been singled out for the tax because it had no lobbyists in Annapolis. They do now.
The Georgia tax reform plans, which we discussed here, all died on the Legislature's adjournment on April 4. The various plans included property tax eliminations, elimination of the car tax, and income tax reductions.
(Hat tip: COST Legislative Alert)
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Today I took all day to work on a card for Color My Heart Color Dare #201. Some days, artwork ideas will come to in a snap, but then there are days, like today, that I would play around with pieces over and over trying to make a card that started out one way but ended up completely different from what I pictured in my mind. This month the paper of the month is the Magical Workshop Your Way. So here is my project - a standard size card with a top fold:
Here is a close up of the dimension--the red oval has dimensional tape, the whole flower bunch has dimensional tape and so does a few flowers and part of the banner ribbon.
And this last one is just a picture that shows the front of the card better.
Other: Spellbinder Oval Dies
Featured Stamp set: C1647 A Bunch of Love which has it's own set of thin cuts too (as indicated by the blue outlines):
Second featured set (retiring end of July) (Happy Birthday greeting) D1560 Holiday Tags:
Hope this will inspire you to join a challenge this week!


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Been a bit lax in posts lately, partly because I had little to write about but mainly because I've been a bit lazy blog wise, deferring and deferring doing some posts.
I've also been wondering if I'm turning into a grumpy old man. I've bought a lot of books lately and have been disappointed and pissed off with most of them.
I've bought a fair amount of nonfiction recently, which is quite rare as I generally think twice and then think for a third time before buying nonfiction books, in the main because they are more expensive than fiction, and I feel have a reduced re read factor (fiction authors must be bitches; having a higher cover price the nonfiction crew would be getting higher royalties). And I've found Penguin books in particular to be horrendously expensive. Doubly so in that they also produce a lot of public domain material where no royalties are paid and yet those books are still expensive.
I picked up How To Destroy The Universe and dipped in and out of it and it is pure mince. For a start the author (Paul Parsons) accepts Man Made Global Warming – particularly ironic as another chapter is How To Predict the Weather where he concludes we can't because the system is so complex; but one tiny trace gas from us can overrule this complex system and cause global warming – the chapters bear little resemblance to the chapter headings and are short, both in length and content.
I was very intrigued by Empire State by Adam Christopher, and picked it up a few times in some shops before buying it from WH Smith. Unfortunately I couldn't get past Chapter Two as in the first chapter the point of view kept appearing to flip back and forward between Rex and Jerome which made it feel confusing. Chapter Three also started on Rex and I'm thinking 'where's this Red Bradley that's talked about on the blurb on the back?' Does this author know nothing? Chapter three and the main character hasn't been introduced yet? How did he get this published?
Year's Best SF 16 was snaffled from Waterstone's and I was looking forward to some good short stories. It was priced at £6.99 and was an American import. Unfortunately I was disappointed as it seems the art of short story writing has been lost. Meandering pish is the phrase that springs to mind most. Very few stories hooked me from the beginning, developed the story or idea and finished with a punch. David Langford's story started off well and developed quite nicely but there was no payoff, and the ending was a bit of a let down (Sorry Dave). Terry Bisson's story felt like it finished halfway through. Alastair Reynold's story didn't develop and I dropped it several pages in from boredom. There were a few I couldn't get into right from the off. This is the best SF there is? The book is barely a year old and has a wide variety of authors, but as I said, the art of the short story seems to have been lost.
I also saw the remake of Conan The Barbarian (there are too many elements from the Arnie film for it not to be a remake) and was as disappointed as I thought I would be. Visually it was quite good, but as everyone says looks aren't everything. The script was bad, the acting was bad and the fight scenes were too long. In the end it was the little things such as pronunciation that got to me. Hyrkania was repeatedly referred to as high re kania by the 'pureblood.' Archeron was pronounced asheron. I don't know about anyone else but when I read Howard and that work came up it was pronounced in my head arkeron, as in arachnid. And I swear that after the slaves were freed the theme tune to the Old Grey Whistle Test was played. Conan was unrecognisable as a character from the Howard stories and the locations bore no resemblance to the world Howard created. Particularly irritating was the 'I love you son' bit from Hellboy and similar mushy stuff of the same ilk. Yeah, that's how barbarians behave in the face of death, get all soppy.
There have been some good things. I bought City of Ruin by Mark Charan Newton and it was a joy to read. I don't normally go in much for fantasy fiction or variants thereof (Bob Howard pretty much predates the genre and so doesn't count) but the writing style and world building made it as enjoyable a read as I've had in a while. Plus I've got a couple of old Neal Asher books which have elbowed their way up my reading list, including Africa Zero, which a few weeks ago was impossible to find on the internet. A revised biography of R E Howard was ordered as soon as I knew it had been announced and with any luck will be with me by the end of the month.


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Kentucky Campus Compact Kentucky Campus Compact
Here's a sample of our volunteer opportunities:VIEW AS
Mission Statement
To promote the civic purpose of higher education. KyCC members are committed to integrating service learning as a valued component of effective teaching and learning, meeting institutional civic responsibilities to help address the needs of the Commonwealth, and fostering the development of relevant collaborative partnerships between and among campuses.
The Kentucky Campus Compact (KyCC) is a statewide coalition of Kentucky college and university presidents and their institutions, both public and private. KyCC was created in 2005 and opened its doors for operation in January, 2006. It is housed on the campus of Northern Kentucky University within the Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement. NKU is the fiscal agent for KyCC and provides payroll, accounting, human resource and IT services.


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View Classes
Nikolay is originally from cold and snowy Russia. However, he lived in U.S. for many years now. Currently he is a postdoctoral scholar in atmospheric sciences at Pennsylvania State University. He started his meditation practice in 2013 in Zen Buddhist tradition. As Zen Buddhist tradition requires sitting still in yoga postures for a long time, Nikolay decided to attend yoga classes at Lila yoga to improve his ability to sit longer. Upon arriving at Lila he found much more than vigorous physical practice. Lila yoga combines spiritual and physical aspects together, creating a unique environment allowing a practitioner to deepen their understanding of who they are. Intrigued by this practice, Nikolay completed his 200-hour yoga teacher training at Lila. He prefers to teach gentle yoga and in his classes combines aspects of mindfulness and awareness through the gentle exploration of various yoga postures combining them with the elements of free-flowing improvisational dance.


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Sugar River Trail For ATV Riding
The 15th most popular all terrain vehicle trail in New Hampshire.
Wednesday 6 July 2016 04:02 GMT
Between Claremont and Newport, the Sugar River Trail is an 8 mile multi-purpose trail open to mountain bikers and ATV riders. The trail is on an old railroad grade and has a packed dirt surface.
Eastern Terminus parking is located next to the Newport Recreation Department. From the center of Newport, head 0.25 miles north on SR10 and turn left onto Belknap Avenue. Parking is located 0.1 miles from this turn.
Western Terminus parking is located east of Claremont on SR11/103.
Note: The State Of New Hampshire requires a NH state registration tag on every ATV. An out-of-state registration tag is not valid in NH. They will issue a fine if you try riding without a NH tag.
Overall, Sugar River Trail is the 15th most popular ATV riding trail of all 19 ATV trails in New Hampshire.