text:
Ever feel overwhelmed and paralyzed by the bad stuff and needs around the world that seem unending? Yeah, me too. I can't do All Of The Things so I think I can't do ANYthing.
But once in awhile God gives us an opportunity to see His kingdom being furthered here on earth – "His kingdom" just being a glimpse of what heaven may look like – a place where there is plenty and justice for everyone. And you were part of a story like that.
Remember that time I told you about why underwear is important in Uganda and this is how you responded?
Well, here's the rest of the story in Maggie's words:
Thanks to you (and Austin, our "panty and pad mule" or "Kotex kingpin"), we were able to send every single one of the girls at Pader Academy home with a pair of panties and several sanitary pads. They were thrilled.
(This picture brought tears to my eyes seeing the girls anxiously lined up waiting at the door.)
During the week, the tailoring teacher and I taught the vocational students how to sew their own reusable sanitary pads using materials that we found locally. We encouraged the girls to make pads for themselves, but also to make more to sell in their home villages over their term break.
You may remember that in the middle of the summer I held a mini advocacy workshop, where I taught the girls how to identify and articulate the problems they face and write letters advocating for change. They wrote to several companies, like Kotex and Hanes, that make sanitary products that the students believed they could benefit from. They wrote about their school and how the donation of these items would make a big difference in their everyday lives and their future studies. It worked.
Through this process, I was able to form a relationship with a Ugandan company called Afripads. In two weeks, when the girls return for the next school term, Afripads will be donating "hygiene kits" to each and every student at Pader Girls' Academy. These kits include several reusable pads, two pairs of underwear and a bar of soap.
I keep thinking how this is so much bigger than just menstrual hygiene. Go with me here. These girls have been robbed of a lot of their power and agency. They feel out of control of their circumstances. Without the proper resources, they can't even control their period each month. So they miss school, rely on men, fall prey to manipulation, become pregnant, and the cycle of helplessness gets perpetuated. How amazing that they can reclaim some of this power…by simply owning underwear and sanitary pads! It's a huge deal.
So to any of you who donated underwear or pads, or who have sent encouraging messages or prayers my way this summer, thank you! This is not an overstatement: You have changed the trajectory of these girls' lives.
We routinely pray, "Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done…" but it doesn't seem like a REAL thing we can be a part of. Know today that it is and with God's help you can and you have!


text:
LONDON, Sept 25 (Reuters) - After months of feverish speculation about the Formula One futures of Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher and Felipe Massa, matters could finally be coming to a head with less change than expected.
It may be that when the music stops, at least two - and maybe all three drivers - end up sitting in the same seats as before at McLaren, Mercedes and Ferrari.
Hamilton's future has been a topic of discussion since the start of the season but became a paddock obsession when former F1 team boss-turned-television pundit Eddie Jordan 'revealed' this month that Hamilton was close to a deal with Mercedes.
The thinking was that seven times champion Schumacher, now 43 and in the third year of an unspectacular comeback, would vacate his seat for the 27-year-old McLaren driver.
In the immediate aftermath of the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, which Hamilton won without smiling too much afterwards, that still looked a good bet but those reading the runes after Sunday's race in Singapore pointed at a more relaxed atmosphere at McLaren.
"I don't think Hamilton knows what he will do," Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone told the ESPN website.
"These last couple or three races he has been doing very well. Before that, why he was upset I don't know but he was definitely going to move no matter what. He had made up his mind that he was going.
"Whether he has changed now a little bit I don't know," added the 81-year-old.
British newspapers reported that McLaren had made an improved offer to the 2008 world champion to try and retain a driver they have backed since his early teens when he was competing in go-karts.
Former McLaren driver Martin Brundle, who commentates for Britain's Sky Sports television, and Jordan both said at the weekend they believed announcements were imminent.
"Been told HAM contract should be sorted in few days. If so, music stops + there will be a huge rush to sit down. It's all unusually good fun," Brundle told his Twitter followers at the weekend.
If Hamilton opts to stay with the team he knows best, rather than linking up again with former karting team mate Nico Rosberg at Mercedes, the focus will turn to Schumacher if the German has not pre-empted matters already.
The sport's most successful driver, with a record 91 wins but none for Mercedes, is out of contract at the end of the season and has said there will be no comment from him until October - which could mean next week.
Mercedes team principal Ross Brawn, an old ally from Ferrari days, has staunchly defended the German's form and continuing ability but Sunday's race triggered fresh concern about the quickness of his reactions when he slammed into the back of Frenchman Jean-Eric Vergne's Toro Rosso.
The incident earned Schumacher a 10-place penalty on the starting grid for next week's Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka. It also led to online jokes about pit boards replaced by opticians' eyesight tests.
Germany's best-selling Bild newspaper, always a staunch supporter in his glory years, suggested the national hero was over the hill with a headline 'Sorry, Schumi. Are you too old for Formula One?"
Whether Schumacher and Mercedes have come to the same conclusion remains to be seen. But the signs are that if Hamilton turns down the offer then Schumacher, assuming he wants to stay, could still be the default option.
"With Michael it works well so I'll be glad if he stays on next year. We also push the team together very well," Rosberg told Reuters last week.
Massa is also out of contract but the odds on him staying on at Ferrari for another year have moved in his favour after seeming remote.
The Brazilian has not appeared on the podium since 2010 and no Ferrari driver has ever suffered such a drought, 35 races without a top three finish.
Massa is a team player and does have his influential supporters, however - not least his championship-leading team mate Fernando Alonso who would be quite happy to continue with the Brazilian.
"He's had a difficult season and we need points for the constructors' championship," the Spaniard told reporters in Singapore. "But if I look around, I can't see possible replacements who are better than Felipe." (Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by John Mehaffey)

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Hotels & Resorts
Sports & Adventure
Bars & Restaurants
Events & Fun
Travel Photos
Write For Us
We Like
Contact us
Tag: moscow
Travel Features: Wedding School in Moscow
22 April 2014 | Views:
Hotels are often stages for interesting travel events, which go beyond boring symposiums, endless corporate ...
read more
Moscow Is the World's Most Congested City, Says TomTom
4 April 2013 | Views:
Moscow was the most congested  city in 2012 according to TomTom's recently released Annual Congestion ...
read more
Google Celebrates St. Basil's Cathedral in Moscow
12 July 2011 | Views:
You have seen it in movies, in cartoons and in travel photos and if you've ...
read more
Moscow's Radisson Royal Hotel Named Most Luxurious Hotel in Russia
16 November 2010 | Views:
The Radisson Royal Hotel in Moscow, the Russian capital's luxury landmark and former 'Hotel Ukraina' ...
read more
Follow us on Twitter
View currency information for expats and travellers at
©Copyright 2008-2018 Copyright by TravelTweaks.com and Alina Popescu. All rights reserved. Do not republish or rewrite without the author's express approval.
About Travel Tweaks
Write For Us
Travel Blogs We Like
Contact us
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.
Read more


text:
I love old crates. I'm always drawn to them in antique stores, whether I have a space for one in my home or not. It's particularly fun when the print on them feels near and dear to your heart. I was sold on my last two crate purchases when I read their print. We lived in Delaware for five years so you can imagine my excitement when I found this one!
|from Wilmington, Delaware
I have another crate that has my hometown on it. How can you not buy one that has such a personal connection to you?!
Here is a glimpse at how others have used their crates:
|source real simple
|via pinterest
|via pinterest
|via the swenglish home
My crates often migrate around my house, depending on the season and on my mood. But right now, this is how they are being used.
|this is my delaware crate
|this was a gift from a good friend
|this one has my hometown printed on it
|this is my $3 bargain (and I still have a second one in my garage!)


text:
Since 1967 professional photographers or simply photo enthusiasts have relied on Lowepro's products, designed and manufactured with the protection of your camera gear, digital devices and personal items in mind.
From Lowepro's Pro Trekker AW Series this Pro Trekker 300 AW, the ultimate, hydration-ready, expedition camera backpack. This great camera backpack helps Outdoor and adventure pro photographers providing a list of inventive and practical features.
The Pro Trekker 300 AW is a perfect choice for extreme sports shooters, outdoor photographers and serious enthusiasts who need a solution to protect their valuable equipment that travels well in any environment, in rugged terrain or by air.
The camera Backpack is made of lightweight and yet durable technical performance fabrics (AZ Dobby Nylon PU, Hypalon), to provide resilience during heavy travel and outdoor use. To offer extra strength Ballistic nylon and Hypalon are strategically placed at stress points, while Heavy-duty YKK splashguard zippers around the main compartment provide superior water resistance and help protect valuable contents.
The Pro Trekker 300 AW features a 10-point adjustment system, the Lowepro's top-of-the-line fully adjustable, premium 10-point harness system that allows you to adjust and customize for a comfortable fit at top of pack, shoulders, torso, sternum, waist and lumbar areas.
Specifically, the 10-point adjustment system consists of adjustment points at:
– load lifter straps at top of pack (1-2)
– shoulders (3-4)
– torso (5)
– sternum (6)
– waist (7-8)
– and lumbar (9-10).
The Lowepro's exclusive Pack Jack harness adjustment tool provides a fully customized and comfortable fit. In fact, the Pack Jack harness adjustment tool sits in the back of the pack and is designed to create a custom fit at the torso area . To use the Pack Jack, just slide the tool between the Velcro to release connection. Next, slide the torso plate up or down until the harness fits properly at the desired height between shoulders and hips. Remove the tool and press to reconnect the Velcro closure. Once fitted, the Pack Jack tool can be stored in the back for future use.
To protect you valuable equipment, Lowepro's patented All Weather AW Cover with cinch straps is built right into the bottom of the pack, so that you can protect your gear from the elements and tuck it away when not needed.
While your camera gear remain dry and protected, you can keep yourself hydrated with the hydration-ready side pocket that contains a removable, seam-sealed hydration pouch. The pouch holds up to 70 ounces (2 L) of liquid in a hydration reservoir (not included).
Internally the Pro Trekker 300 AW is made of Velex brushed Nylon, Polyurethane, HDPE Foam and offers multiple ways to organize and customize your photo gear, featuring the Lowepro's classic construction with adjustable padded dividers, four built-in memory card pockets and a removable accessory pouch. Externally three exterior tripod sleeves offer secure and protective storage for tripods, monopods, ski or trekking poles.
Pro Trekker 300 convertible waistpack/backpack lids serves in two ways. First it's a protective lid that covers the top of the backpack, providing an extra layer of protecting from the elements. Second, it's a lightweight, feature-packed waistpack with multiple pockets and a super-comfortable mesh lumbar pad that can be removed and used as a lens holder in situations where you leave the backpack behind, wear your camera, and hike out to capture the perfect shot.
The removable waistbelt on this Lowepro Backpack is designed for long-wearing comfort with it's thick, mesh padding and 4-point adjustment straps. After a long day of trekking with your gear, you can remove it to dry it out; or unbuckle and pack away to downsize your load.
The Pro Trekker AW also includes a checkpoint-friendly laptop sleeve located in the front pocket, ideal for photographers who require their laptops right at hand to download images and keep their workflow steady. The laptop sleeve adheres to most airline requirements, so there is no need to remove laptop from sleeve at the security checkpoint, and fits up to 15.4″ widescreen laptops.
The Pro Trekker 300 can hold a Pro DSLRs with lens attached (up to 300mm f/2.8); 4-5 additional lenses; flash; tripod or monopod; accessories and personal gear; up to a 15.4" widescreen laptop
Internal Dimensions:
11.4W X 6.5D X 14.6H in. (29 X 16.5 X 37 cm)
External Dimensions:
15.4W X 14.2D X 18.5H in. (39 X 36 X 47 cm)
Notebook Compartment Inner Dimensions:
10.2W X 1D X 15.2H in. (26 X 2.5 X 38.5 cm)
6.8lbs (3.1kg)
You can Purchase the Lowepro Pro Trekker 300 AW Camera Backpack at Amazon.
The LowePro Pro Trekker Series includes the Lowepro Pro Trekker 300 AW Camera Backpack, Lowepro Pro Trekker 400 AW Camera Backpack, and Lowepro Pro Trekker 600 AW Camera Backpack.
(as of 01/22/2018 13:00 UTC - Details)
Learn more...


text:
Myanmar's government and its most enduring ethnic rebel group agreed Friday to firm up a cease-fire while negotiating a more a comprehensive peace plan.
The Karen National Union announced the agreement at a news conference in Yangon after negotiating with government representatives. Less formal talks were held Wednesday in Karen state in eastern Myanmar near the rebel group's strongholds on the Thai border.
The 13-point agreement sets up a code of conduct to monitor tries a cease-fire that was reached in January. There had been clashes between the two sides after the January agreement.
The military-backed but elected government of President Thein Sein is seeking cease-fires with ethnic rebel groups as part of political reforms started last year after decades of repression under military rule.
Through the reforms, which include the release of political prisoners and engagement with the pro-democracy movement of Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, it hopes to win an end to economic and political sanctions imposed by Western nations because of repression under the previous military regime.
The KNU has been fighting for greater autonomy from Myanmar's central government since the country obtained independence from Britain in 1948.
Both sides said further talks were planned.
"We will continue to hold talks until we achieve lasting peace because we don't want to continue fighting," said Naw May Oo, a member of the KNU delegation.
Railway Minister Aung Min, who has been conducting many of the negotiations with ethnic rebel groups, led the talks for the government side, while the KNU delegation was headed by its general secretary, Naw Zipporah Sein.
Asked if there is any likelihood of the peace talks being derailed, Aung Min said "There could be hiccups along the way, but with conviction by both parties, we will overcome any difficulties."
Friday's agreement, like the one in January, was preliminary and provisional, setting out intent to work toward a comprehensive peace. The January talks were conducted at the regional level, while Friday's were among national leaders.
However, they also appeared to be the most serious talks in decades between the sides, who have held negotiations before only to have them break down.
The points agreed upon Friday included to work step-by-step for a nationwide cease-fire and end to conflict in ethnic areas; to set up a code of conduct to maintain a cease-fire that guarantees the security of the people; and to draw up plans to resettle internally displaced people and ensure work and food security in their home areas.
The long-running fighting in Karen state, also called Kayin, has caused many people to seek refuge elsewhere in Myanmar or in Thailand.
Friday's agreement also covered demining and listing Karen political detainees to apply for amnesty. Thein Sein's government has released hundreds of political prisoners, but at least five dozen KNU members remain behind bars.
The government in the past year has reached cease-fires with ethnic groups representing the Mon, Shan, Chin, Wa and Kokang minorities.
Most of the groups, however, insist that a political settlement giving them more autonomy is necessary to ensure lasting peace. One group, the Kachin in northern Myanmar, is actively engaged in sporadic bitter fighting with the government.


text:
ROSE RETRO bib shorts
articolo n.: 2103921
Spedizione in USA
ROSE RETRO bib shorts S
descrizione del prodotto
– MountainBIKE 06/16: Very good –
– MountainBIKE 06/16: Price/Performance Tip –
Made in Europe! The RETRO bib shorts by ROSE offer unrestricted movement and breathability thanks to the Lycra POWER fabric.
• Lycra POWER made in Italy
• Printed, elastic leg grippers
• Mesh bib
• Flatlock seams
• LUCKY seat pad
Material: 80% polyamide, 20% elastane
Lycra POWER:
Elastic fabric that helps reduce muscle vibrations. This makes movements during sports activities more effective and thus increases performance. Breathable and fast-drying.
LUCKY seat pad:
Our seat pad for high comfort on medium distances.
• Elastic microfibre outer fabric for best moisture management
• High-quality foam padding
• Two different densities
• Seamless design
• Best shock absorption
• High comfort
• Maximum freedom of movement
• Approx. 10 mm thick foam
Material: 100% polyester
tutti i prodotti del marchio ROSE
Chi ha acquistato questo articolo ha mostrato interesse per
Domande e risposte


text:
To celebrate hitting 550 and now 600 likers on my Mikaela facebook page, I'm giving away 2 little (but gorgeous) prize packs!
There are various ways to enter, as outlined below, but just make sure you leave a comment for each one of your entries to increase your chances of winning.
Prize pack #1
Includes limited edition SUMMER COLLECTION Red Sakura Pattern Brooch and Red Yuzen Ring, total RRP $55
Prize pack #2
Includes Classic Birdy Design in Pine Brooch and NEW Cherry Blossom Stud Earrings, total RRP $30
Main entry: Join (or already be a member of) the Mikaela mailing list (sign up at www.mikaela.com.au, or over to the right on my blog here) and leave a comment here saying you are a mailing list member (Required – Without main entry, no additional entries will count).
1 additional entry: "Like" Mikaela Handmade on Facebook and leave a comment on this post with your name.
1 additional entry: Follow @mikaela_d on Twitter and leave a comment on this post with your Twitter name.
1 additional entry: Tweet this message:
Enter to win #handmade goodies from @mikaela_d >>> http://mikaeladanvers.com/?p=2972 #giveaway
and leave a comment on this post with a link* to the tweet. You may tweet as often as you like but only one entry will count.
1 additional entry: Write about Mikaela Handmade on your blog and link back. Leave a comment on this post with your name and a link to your blog post.
All entries must be posted as separate comments. Comments are moderated, so please be patient. Thanks!
This giveaway is open worldwide. It will run from Monday November 28, 2011 through to Monday December 5, 2011. There is a maximum of 6 possible entries per person. Two winners will be selected by a random number generator from all valid entries (those that follow the rules listed above). Winner must claim his/her prize within 48 hours of e-mail notification or a new winner will be chosen.
*How to link to your tweet: Make sure you're logged in to Twitter and on the "Home" page. Find the tweet you want to link to and find the part that shows you how long ago it was tweeted (i.e. "9 minutes ago"). Click that, and you'll be taken to a page with only your tweet on it. Copy the URL from the address bar and paste it into our comments section.


text:
SOAR Nation has been a business partner/client of QuartSoft Corp. since August 2010. In that period of time, QuartSoft Corp. has been instrumental in developing the technological backbone of the organization. As a result, SOAR Nation has recently entered negotiations with several investment groups regarding angel and venture capital investment.
Cloud application development
Our team of web and mobile experts helps develop, deploy and manage application in a cloud-based infrastructure for the best possible performance and scalability.
As a rule, the usage of a traditional infrastructure necessitates predicting the amount of computing resources your application will require over a period of several years. If you under-estimate your future needs, your applications will not have the horsepower to handle unexpected traffic, potentially resulting in customer dissatisfaction. If you over-estimate, you're wasting your money for redundant resources. A flexible cloud-based infrastructure can be a professional answer to lots of your online business problems.
Migration to Cloud and Integration of Cloud Applications
We offer our cloud migration service to help our clients leverage full benefits of cloud computing:
- configuration and integration of cloud backup services;
- configuration and integration of cloud storage services;
- setup of cloud sync services.
Configuring and Deploying Applications into Cloud Infrastructure
There are many different providers helping you get all the benefits of the cloud hosting environment. Each provider offers specific benefits. We have gained a lot of experience in deploying of applications into Amazon AWS, Rockspace, SoftLayer cloud infrastructure. Our experienced team can assist you with managing of Public and Private Cloud environments or even build a truly Hybrid infrastructure to meet your your business needs. We have great team of experts in cloud computing services and cloud migration services.
Scaling Your Cloud-Based Application
Our team has a rich experience in professionally scaling applications in the cloud. We configure and manage our clients' applications to reach different technological goals required by business growth and evolving needs including, but not limited to, configuration of load balancers, CloudWatch services, custom application scenarios based on the API-driven infrastructure.
Data Storage in the Cloud
We help companies properly protect their important files and data by means of cloud services and tools. Using some API tools our team can help you store your private data with automated backup services in multiple geographical regions and availability zones. We configure automatic synchronization of the data in your local environment with the data stored in the cloud in order to secure and back up all your application data.
Database Infrastructure in the Cloud
Our savvy team helps migrate your existing database into the cloud and thus improve and optimize application performance, analyze and speed up data access. We offer a professional set-up of automated backups, data replication for your apps, including fast and secure replication for distributed applications and systems. Our staff has acquired significant expertise and insight into mySQL, MSSQL and Oracle database administration as well as noSQL databases such as MongoDB, Cassanda DB and Amazon DynamoDB.
Migrating Existing Application to the Cloud
It doesn't matter how complex your company's infrastructure is. Our team will work closely with you to professionally help you migrate the existing environment to the Amazon Cloud. Our competent staff will conduct a detailed analysis and proper migration planning to carefully prepare the live platform for a successful and seamless migration.
Read Our Articles
First Steps to Cloud Development
The New Era of Cloud Development


text:
The United Nations Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, is actively engaged in diplomatic efforts to ensure a successful confirmation of arrangements for the convening of intra-Syrian negotiations in Geneva. We can confirm that letters have been sent today, and also that consultations are continuing.
It is expected that delegations would arrive in Geneva on or about 20 February to enable prior consultations with the Special Envoy and his team before the formal start of intra-Syrian negotiations planned for 23 February 2017.
Join us
Address: Palais des Nations, 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland. | P: +41 (0) 22 917 1234 | F: +41 (0) 22 917 0123 | E:firstname.lastname@example.com
Copyright | Terms and Conditions of Use | Privacy Notice


text:
Map showing Eden Garden Bed & Breakfast
Directions to Eden Garden Bed & Breakfast
From OR Tambo International Airport
Take Edenvale exit off Airport Highway, turn right over bridge through the centre of Edenvale until you come to McDonalds. Turn left, go down three streets and turn right into Sixth Avenue. The third house on the right number 94.


text:
Today, the most happening two problems that often freelancer or remote workers face are overcoming challenges and achieving the peak of your goals. But the way freelancer respond to these challenges lies in the habits cultivated to harness skills, creativity and ensure that any endeavor that is accepted should speak about your passion towards your profession. No matter the type of business you are involved as a freelancer; you need to cultivate few habits to become successful freelance professional.
If you know your passion and follow this call then it for sure that it would not let you down. In this industry successful people are more passionate about their work. If you love your skills and develop enough capability then your work will be 110% excellent. Do not be money driven but believe in delivering the best. Develop and apply a strategy to achieve ultimate goal of your life.
Passion is not sufficient enough till you find a way to fulfill your dreams. Most of the successful and effective freelancers keep them upgraded since they know that even more knowledgeable workers are always present in competition. Develop a habit to learn through your experiences and mistakes. Ignore those that did not work and learn new things and adopt those which help in solving issues.
Communicate and Interact
Never give up even though you work at small level. Do not limit yourself while working all alone. Do not forget that you can even work in team in cyber space. Make a habit daily spending couple of hours communicating and keep in touch with your team and clients. Try to interact and update your associates using social networking. Do not hesitate asking for help. Communicate and interact with team and update your clients about your achievements.
Take the initiative
Stop sitting before PC waiting for new assignments coming up to you. Initiate your search finding new freelance projects and remote work opportunity out there. Make your freelance profession as a pitch! Can you imagine that one has landed a job from twitter while tweeting on why twitter should hire him? Remember you and your skills is a product so take every initiative to sell yourself in the market.
Deliver Quality
Expert freelance writers know that for better outcome they should put more value to the work. Quality work is very essential for those who know quality work will always success. Stay away from bang-for the-buck deals and only concentrate on serving the best for excellent results. The money that you make is not more than satisfied buyer. A satisfied buyer does not only approach you again and again but also recommend you for quality work
Have the Courage to Say NO
Heavy workload is good provided it should not disturb your personal life. It is good to look for opportunities that boost your work portfolio. Plan to balance between the workload and the time that you require to complete it. Spend some time in planning your work schedule. However, the last thing that sometimes you may require is being burned out to your clients who irritate and distressed at your work.
Be Proactive
Being a member of your team, try to show the leadership in everything that you do. Be proactive and understand the requirement of your clients. This way you will manage your time efficiently coming in and you can easily find out the exact solution for the work. Stand out in the limelight with your excellent skills and definitely clients will notice your work.
Cultivate these habits and set your standards and simply go the extra miles as freelancers. If you are habitually being a very effective freelancer then drive for extra miles means you work on your own and help others.
This is a guest post. The author of this article writes about make money tips like affiliate marketing, freelancing etc. You can find his blog here. He is also successfully working on many freelancing sites from the last 2 years.


text:
The only actual restrictions placed on people by the church during Lent are fasting and abstinence. On Ash Wednesday and every Friday during Lent, Catholics from age 14-60(ish) are required to fast. Fasting, for the church, stipulates that only one full meal be taken during that 24 hour period.
Abstinence doesn't mean abstaining from sex, but rather abstaining from meat on Ash Wednesday and Fridays. The church generally allows the consumption of fish, but I personally take it one step further and I try not to consume the flesh of any once-living sentient creature. So I stay strictly vegetarian on Fridays.
The third thing is generally more Protestant in nature, but Catholics do it all the time, and that is making some sacrifice. The idea is that you give up something you really love. It's symbolic (in a small way) to Jesus' ultimate sacrifice for all of us, and largely about the temptation he faced during his 40 days in the desert. All the fasting and sacrificing is supposed to teach us something about temperance.
So what am I giving up for Lent? Cussing. Foul, profane language. Some of you might be laughing your asses off right now. People who know me IRL likely believe I'm doomed to fail. The way I see it is, so long as I don't give up and continue to try, I haven't failed. But, as they say, we learn more from our failures than we do our successes.
And why set myself up for failure? Why sacrifice something that I know I have only the slightest chance of actually accomplishing? Well, my opinion is that if you're sacrificing something you absolutely know you can do without for 40 days, then you're not really sacrificing a whole lot.
That sounds mighty judgmental, but that's only how I feel for myself. If you find meaning in making a small sacrifice then that's great. Whatever helps improve your own spirituality is great. But for me, the sacrifice must be great, and it must be difficult.
So on this Fat Tuesday, the day we are to gorge on what we will give up, I'm going to gorge on profanity. Here is a list of words that I will not allow myself to say. My faithful readers, please feel free to add to the list in the comment section. Make sure the words are those that are *actually* considered to be profane.
Anal (coupled with some other word. Anal sex is a technical term and thus safe to use)
Ass-anything really
Bastard (I will use the term "illigitimate child" if referring to a bastard child)
Box (used in the context of slang for "vagina")
Cock sucker
Cock monger
Cunt (yes, ladies, I'm sorry to admit that I've legit dropped the "C" word)
Damn (unless it's in the Bible or some other text)
Dick (unless your name is Richard)
Dildo (only in the sense of name-calling, ie. "you dildo." Naming the implement does not count.)
Dong (unless it's some Chinese name. Dong salad anyone?)
Dyke (unless it's a ditch)
Dumbass (dumb, idiot, moron, stupid, ignoramus are all acceptable substitutes.)
Faggot (and fag. Yes, I'm guilty of this one, too. But *never* towards an actual gay person. Sorry.)
Fairy (see "Faggot")
Hell (ie "what the Hell.")
Shit-ton (this includes the phrase "metric shit-ton.")
Slut ("promiscuous" is an acceptable alternative)
Whore (can be substituted with "prostitute.")
And of course, my personal favorite . . . FUCK. Also, no profane gestures. So here's the last of this you'll see for the next 40 days. Wish me luck!!!
|Hope you enjoy Lent as much as I will =(


text:
In current scenario social networking websites have emerged as a strong platform in uniting persons of different continents at one place and share their views on subject of common interest. An interesting feature of these websites is that as soon as any incident happens in one corner of world, its information is immediately transferred to rest of the world through these websites. Apart from this these social networking websites also plays an important role in developing a separate forum on different matters in current scenario. Besides this if you want to get others linked with your forum you can send invite to them and get them associated with you as followers of your forum.
Moving ahead in series of transiting information to rest of world, YouTube one of the leading social networking websites, started providing the facility of downloading the video that specific incident on Internet. This facilitated others to view the happening of that incident and then express and comment their views. With an objective of increasing number of followers on particular subject various websites have now started providing facility of buying followers and likes for your forum.
Inspired from these benefits of social networking websites YouPlus Like has emerged as an authentic place for buying followers and likes for your forum. The worth mentioning feature of YouPlus like is that unlike other websites it does not charge any type of amount from the buyers. You just have to get yourself registered with this website and which you will be able to enjoy Free Twitter Followers, Free Facebook likes, Fee YouTube views, Free Google+1's, Free Website Traffic, Free YouTube subscribers, Free Retweets, Free followers for Pinterest, Free followers for sound cloud, Free Delicious followers, Free Google+ circles and many more.
Another interesting feature of this platform is that it retains every information received from you confidential with it and do not discloses to others. Moreover it provides facility of earning 100 coin sign up bonus followed bonus of 150 coins on any kind of reference made by you. The major benefit of YouPlus like is that by purchasing Free Twitter Followers, you can increase number of followers favoring your comment. So now what you are waiting for, go and enjoy free bonus and increase number of your followers.


text:
Was Rihanna's Haircut Inspired By A Dog?
- By Bossip Staff
Rihanna gets plenty of props for her wild sense of style, but lately her wig has us more in the mind of a wild animal. Pop the top to get a look at the puppy that might have spawned her cut, the one it ended up looking like at the end of the day and a couple more flicks of her out to dinner in L.A.


text:
The InterContinental Amstel Amsterdam is one of the best hotels I have ever stayed in.
PRESENTATION: the hotel occupies a semi-iconic location in Amsterdam sitting directly on the Amstel and being near the "Skinny Bridge". The hotel is a fairly long walk from Centraal Station, but there is a metro station with direct connections (and then subsequently on to the airport).
CHECK IN: prompt and very polite and welcoming. We were told that we had an excellent room and we were offered a special treat because I was staying at the hotel for my birthday. Totally unexpected and very much appreciated.
CONCIERGE: Very polite and helpful. Provided a map and directions with no problems. Luggage storage was easy and bags collected with ease.
ROOM: Very well presented and we like really the fact that the decor and the paintings were evocative of Amsterdam and the Netherlands - it did not feel like we were staying at chain hotel. Excellent television, coffee machine and sound system. Bathroom was large with separate bath and shower cubicle. Plentiful and high quality toiletries provided.
BAR: We visited the "A Bar" and the staff were very informative about the cocktails on offer. A very enjoyable experience, which was made all the better by the bar staff.
BREAKFAST: good selection of buffet food with Moet champagne available. Food very high quality. Eggs to order - served quickly and with a smile. We had a table overlooking the Amstel and it really was a beautiful setting and very memorable.
POOL AREA: Very well maintained pool area (albeit a little too warm for my personal liking, although I'm sure it suited others). Pool very nice but too small for laps. Excellent facilities with sauna, steam room, plunge pool and a rain shower with different scents. Plenty of drinks, fruits and snacks at the poolside. Abundance of fresh towels of different sizes.
Overall an excellent hotel and I would highly recommend staying here as a treat (in particular, if you have the ability to book a promotional rate - if so, this hotel represents very good value for money too).
- Official Description (provided by the hotel):
- Since the day the doors opened in 1867, InterContinental Amstel Amsterdam has been revered the world over for its palatial grandeur and residential warmth. Located where the financial, cultural and shopping districts converge, the hotel is a short walk from the Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, Spiegelkwartier and the Royal Carré Theatre. The Anne Frank House and the 14th-century Begijnhof are easy to reach by public transport or taxi. ... more less
- Reservation Options:
- TripAdvisor is proud to partner with Expedia, Hotels.com, Priceline, Travelocity, Agoda, Cancelon, getaroom.com, HotelQuickly and TripOnline SA so you can book your InterContinental Amstel Amsterdam reservations with confidence. We help millions of travelers each month to find the perfect hotel for both vacation and business trips, always with the best discounts and special offers.
- Also Known As:
- Intercontinental Amstel Amsterdam Hotel Amsterdam
- Intercontinental Amsterdam


text: I got this link on one of my other groups. If you type in an author's name, it will pull up and surround said name with other author's names. The ones closest to "your" author are ones that are similar in style or subject matter. Kind of neat really. http://www.literature-map.com/


text:
3″I have my subpoena pen ready."
Source: The latest Trump story is so bad Republicans might actually do something about it
Let's Talk about Impeachment Already!
Finally, Congress is talking about beginning impeachment proceedings against Donald Trump. Some of the people talking about this include Republicans.
In some weird way, I almost feel sorry for the Republicans, but I soon realized that they are responsible for their own undoing. They should have brought this idiot under some type of control before talk about impeachment proceedings were necessary. When Donald Trump was a candidate, the GOP chose to look the other way when he was being a racist jackass and attacking everything (and everybody) insight. But, they refused to control this loudmouth until somebody started talking about impeachment. Now they are scrambling to distance themselves from "their" president like rats, leaving a sinking ship. They deserve everything they get. They did the same thing back during the Watergate scandal.
The Republicans deserve everything they get. They did the same thing back during the Watergate scandal. Back then, they chose to allow Richard Nixon to do whatever he wanted until the damage was done, and he was nearly impeached. I guess it's true that some people never learn. A Republican president came close to facing impeachment was before, and the Republican Party chose, to their regret, bury their heads in the sand like frightened ostriches.
By blindly following Donald Trump, no matter how toxic they may have secretly thought his rhetoric was, borders on the definition of insanity. They say that insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly, hoping for a different result. Is the Republican Party insane? One wonders!
History is repeating itself. Once again, a Republican president is facing impeachment, and the Republicans are dumb enough to believe that the American people will forget about it and re-elect some of these dumb asses next year, during the midterm elections. Good luck with that!
Sources: White House lawyers research impeachment – CNNPolitics …


text:
What an exciting mix of airport news this week: from legal marijuana, auctioned airports to a new pet terminal – here are this weeks airport related news headlines in the overview:
- Billion dollar Spanish airport sold for €10,000
- LAX becomes largest US airport to allow Uber
- JFK's new pet terminal
- Portland airport allows carrying marijuana
We wrote about this airport a few times: Spain's abandoned Ciudad Real airport (CQM). This week it sold at auction for €10,000. According to the BBC a group of international investors has won a bankruptcy auction for an abandoned airport in central Spain with a €10,000 offer – 100,000 times less than it cost to build. The investors were the only bidders for Ciudad Real airport, south of Madrid, completed during Spain's boom years. But it is not clear if the sale will go ahead as another buyer could still step forward outside of the auction process. We at LateDeparture will stay on it!
Uber can be controversial, but this week Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) become the largest U.S. airport to allow Uber & Lyft pickups. According to the LA Times Los Angeles officials voted Thursday to allow ride services such as Uber and Lyft to pick up passengers at LAX, the largest U.S. city to grant full airport access to the rapidly growing app-based companies. The move could significantly alter the way thousands of Southern Californians and tourists navigate the nation's third-busiest airport, long criticized for traffic congestion and lack of a direct connection to the region's rail system. If the companies can quickly comply with the airport's rules, Lyft and Uber services — some offering lower fares than taxis — could be available by September, officials said. In the same article business leaders and Uber and Lyft said Thursday's action is a win for travellers. Airport officials noted that about 8% of passengers arrive by taxi, while about 6% arrive by Uber-type services.
We stay in the U.S. for our next story but move from 2 feet to 4: The New York Post wrote this week that a new terminal dedicated to shipping animals will feature spa-like amenities including massage therapy. While their owners are battling delays and huddling at luggage carousels, pets will be living large at The Ark, a 178,000-square-foot shelter and quarantine for jet-setting animals. The airport? New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) of course!
And to finish the week off this one: There's one international airport that allows travellers legally to carry marijuana on board of some of its flights. What we've been smoking you're asking? No, we're dead serious. KPTV/Fox reported this week that travellers lining up at the security gates at Portland International Airport (PDX) will notice new signs about the airport's stance on recreational marijuana. Oregon law says you can travel with a legal amount of marijuana, you just can't take it out of the state. PDX is allowing travellers to board with the legal amount of marijuana on flights that take off and land within Oregon's borders.
That's all for this week – safe travels!
[Screenshot of Spain's ghost airport via FlashEarth]


text:
1986 · Washington DC
by Von Eckartsberg, Rolf
Washington DC: Center for Advanced Research in Phenomenology & University Press of America, 1986. Paperback. Very Good+. Paperback, 1986, octavo, 231pp., not illustrated. Book VG+ with rubbing and mild soil to wrap, hint of edgewear to corners, binding tight, text clean bright and unmarked. No DJ. (Inventory #: C000027575)


text:
Tag Archives: Lifestyle
Cozy, Casual, Comfy, Everyday Wear
Fuzzy Popover Scarf $12 || Twist Square Sunglasses $14.70
"Cozy" is definitely one of my buzzwords. I like anything that promises to be just that, especially when it comes to my clothes. If it feels soft to the touch, looks like it will keep me warm, or is just generally snuggle-worthy, you can rest assured that I will buy it.
This past weekend, I did some shopping in-between running errands. I am heading to Florida next week to spend time with my family – I am not sure how long I am going to stay there for because that's how we're going to roll in 2016; whatever happens, happens – but I have a lot of work and a little bit of packing to get done before then.
My Saturday looked something like this: Target, grocery store, Target again (Got waylaid by all of the cute Valentine items on my first trip, and basically forgot everything! #always), post office, Vet (to pick up Sneaks' travel documents), LOFT, takeout, work, football (YES! PATS!), more work. Phew!
My visit to LOFT is actually what I wanted to share with you, as they are having a fantastic sale right now, with 40% off of most of their new arrivals, and an additional 60% off of sale items. The entire store essentially fits into my cozy criteria (See: scarf above.), and I particularly like their Lou & Grey line, which for reference can be purchased via LOFT, or via their own larger site, here. I am wearing this hoodie right now, and am pretty excited to eventually wear this dress; both items are super comfortable, under $30, and can be worn casual or fancied up.
I figured that some of you may be off from work today, snowed in, or planning on watching The Bachelor with a glass of wine tonight (Me on the last two counts! Guilty pleasures. : )) – all great excuses to do a bit of online shopping while you are at it! The rest of my picks are below!
PS – As someone who likes to check their horoscope everyday, I really dig this. : )
1. Chambray Palette Shirt || 2. Sweater Tunic || 3. Signaturesoft Maxi Dress || 4. Flecked Sweatshirt Dress || 5. Quilted Jacket || 6. Essential Leggings || 7. Loopy Sweater
Eat Pretty & the Beauty Benefits of Eating Seasonally
Remember when I said I was going to bring more book love back to the blog? Well, here it is! Before I get started, let me just say that this isn't a leisurely, zone-out, type of book. It might actually wake you up in more ways than one, in fact! And truth be told, most of what I read is like this, AKA educational, non-fiction, etc. I guess I am just not a good "zoner-outer"…I am working on it though!
BUT, I do think this little number is a great read for anyone interested in beauty, diet, health, the benefits of eating seasonally, or who just wants to learn some fun facts about the fruits and vegetables that we consume. I have been sifting through it for several weeks now, considering it a new, important resource in my kitchen. This also seemed like the perfect opportunity to write about it as {in my opinion} this is the best time of the year to "Eat Pretty". When I went grocery shopping yesterday, the store was loaded with apples, late-summer nectarines and plums, figs, grapes, greens, peppers, tomatoes, and every kind of squash imaginable {Personal fave ♥}. It was a virtual rainbow!
So I bet you're wondering about the book…From the inside cover: "Eat Pretty {by former Beauty Editor Jolene Hart} reveals how nutrition can be our most powerful tool in the quest for radiance at any age".
The pages are chock full of information on the science behind what we eat, with a focus on how those things impact our overall lifestyle too – from stress to hormones to sleep. There are tidbits about herbs & spices, teas, and recipes to coincide with the seasons {Blueberry Lentil Salad, Oatmeal-Raisin Cookie Truffles, and Lemony Beauty Smoothie – to name a few!}. I personally love the seasonal breakdowns because they include "Beauty Baskets" with detailed descriptions of the ingredients and why they are good for us. Did you know that arugula can help to remove dark circles, apples are good for our skin, chard makes our nails grow, and butternut squash is a healthy hair secret?
A little tidbit about that…The top things that you guys ask me about are 1. How I style and shoot my food posts {<— I am working on a series about this!}, and 2. My hair (!), which makes me super grateful and kind of makes me laugh because for a while, said hair was pretty bad! I have natural waves that are hard to tame and I spent a long time frying them with straightening treatments and irons, and covering them in harsh chemical dyes. Yuck. Over the last few years I've gotten my hair back to a healthful state by washing it a lot less {2-3 times per week max}, switching to a "green" salon, and changing my diet to be much cleaner than it was. I learned from this book that my love for squash in particular had something to do with getting it back in to shape, as well. Cool, right?
Obviously I am not a 100% clean eater all of the time, but I really love delving into this stuff, and essentially playing "science experiments" on myself every once in a while : ) I highly recommend this book if you are into that kind of thing too!
Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
3 Books That Have Influenced the Way I Look at Food
{ From the Film: Chocolat }
[Warning: Long post ahead! It's been a while since I have shared any of my favorite reads, so I thought it was time to change that. I included a backstory and lots of deets too, because I get really excited about this stuff. If you have any recommendations, or points to add, please feel free : )]
A few years ago, I became super interested in making myself healthier from the inside-out. It was a very busy period of my life as I spent my days working full-time in Sales – which was also incredibly stressful – going to grad school at night, traveling a lot, and trying to maintain the normal social-life of a twenty-something. While I was fit and healthy by conventional standards, I really didn't feel well. I was tired all of the time [which was somewhat understandable], but more so in the sense that I never had any energy, and even if I had had a solid sleep the night before, I was still running on empty. And while I have always loved food and cooking, I was single and making big batches of things to reheat throughout the week, consuming the same stuff constantly, eating out with clients or classmates – sometimes catching 'dinner' after class around midnight (EEEK!) – and green juice was certainly not on my radar!
My sister meanwhile, was having some health problems and drawing her own correlations between them and her diet, and opening up to new ways of living in general. I saw how even little changes were making a big impact in her day-to-day. I was also following Katie Lee on social media at the time, and in one of her posts she mentioned that she was doing a cleanse outlined by Kathy Freston. I was intrigued. I immediately bought The Quantam Wellness Cleanse, and so began my journey into a new way of looking at food – as a healer, medicine, fuel, and something to really truly be savored. I started reading everything I could about clean living, how the food industry works in our country (A lot of that was downright terrifying, even for someone who grew up in the restaurant business and had previously considered herself informed!), devoured writings by authors like Michael Pollan and John Robbins, and watched gazillions of documentaries (Food Matters, Forks Over Knives, Hungry for Change, Fat Sick & Nearly Dead, etc.) When I am into something, I am All. In. I revamped my lifestyle, inadvertently lost a lot of weight, and felt better than I ever had which was absolutely the biggest benefit of all.
As you can probably tell from this blog, I am not as stringent as I used to be because like all things in life, there are ebbs and flows, and I have found that certain principles work for where I am at right now, while others don't. I also know that there are some characteristically 'unhealthy' foods that I am never going to cut out completely since they are so deeply rooted to the traditions in my family – like this cake for example, or just make me happy (I think some of my most fun nights ever have been shared with friends over greasy slices of pizza and cold beers!), and that's cool. All good things, in moderation.
While there are so many interesting, insightful, eye-opening books that I can recommend when it comes to diet/food/lifestyle choices – including those by the authors listed above – the three that I am mentioning here are personal favorites for a few reasons. The first being that these are all relatively lighthearted reads that have an element of fun to them – even the cleanse, I swear – but are still extremely informative. I am a "Break it down for me!" kind of girl, so I really appreciate it when I can get the whats and whys of things in an easy to understand way.
The second – and most important [to me] reason that I love these books is that they all address the connection between mind and body, while emphasizing an overall balance, more about adding in the 'good stuff' (~ with several great recipes included in each!) and less about deprivation (The first quote above is actually from the Foreword of The Quantam Wellness Cleanse.) in the interest of creating a fuller, happier, healthier existence. As Guiliano says in her tome "The joy of living is in direct proportion to how much pleasure you know how to derive from every aspect of life." That's a philosophy I can get behind.
The Quantam Wellness Cleanse; Kathy Freston
In the interest of full disclosure, I have never actually done this cleanse in its entirety, however I have read this book 3x and referenced it dozens of times more. I know that sounds odd, but the main reason behind why I like it so much is that Freston has a really gentle and sweet way of taking you through 21 days [in which you are advised to eliminate caffeine, alcohol, gluten, animal products, and sugar] and each day addresses how you might be feeling and why, gives practical tips on things like how to fill your grocery cart with energizing foods, and how to eat clean while traveling. She recommends "leaning in" to the cleanse if you are having a hard time (i.e., If you are accustomed to having a cup of coffee every morning, start the cleanse drinking a regular cup, but replace half of it with decaf and gradually wean yourself off of it.), and spends a great deal of time talking about meditation and visualization, and how your diet can ultimately affect your mind. Lastly, there is some great baseline information in the book on how eliminating these things from time-to-time (or altogether, if you desire) can ultimately benefit us. I regularly go 2-3 days per week without any of the products mentioned and feel all the better for it.
Favorite Recipe: Ginger Greens with Shiitake Mushrooms
French Women for All Seasons; Mireille Guiliano
Her first book may have had a controversial title (French Women Don't Get Fat), but I think Guiliano made some excellent points there, and makes even more of them here. Plus, I love the idea of seasonal eating and the anticipation that comes when the calendar changes and new items hit the market – I just about jumped for joy when I saw sugar snap peas yesterday at my local grocery store! I also enjoy the style tips that Guiliano imparts in this book, and find the sample menus to be really helpful as well as the guide to wine [where she deems it 'food'!] in the back of the book – especially for a novice like myself.
Favorite Recipe: Spaghetti with Fiddlehead Ferns and Prosciutto
The Skinny Confidential; Lauryn Evarts
This book is very new, but I have long been a fan of Lauryn Evarts and The Skinny Confidential specifically for Evarts' no nonsense take on all things lifestyle-related – She is hilarious and real; two things I think every good blogger should be! Just like its namesake blog, the TSC book is enhanced by lots of pretty pictures, loaded with awesome tips on how to keep healthy, fit, and looking your best, and ultimately feels like you are reading something your BFF wrote. Evarts stresses the importance of "Everything in Moderation" – citing her addiction to Flamin' Hot Cheetos, which I can totally appreciate – and even includes recipes for cocktails!
Favorite Recipe: Cilantro Award-Winning Three Cheese Chile Rellenos with Fresh Papaya Salsa (I ate this 3x last week – It's delish!)


text:
Article Side
Online Article Directory!
Spending Summer Nights by Watching Outdoor Movies
There are countless ways to delight in your summer holiday without wasting time alone inside your residence. To spend your time the fun way during the summer, think of all the possible means on how you can make your time a memorable and fun one. Use the good weather of the summer—you may try playing sports and swimming in the pool, or you may go to events in your place. If you are not the active type and you just favor chilling out, you may consider watching impressive films outdoors.
Watching flicks outdoors is certainly a cool way to spend your summer nights. Bring your automobile to the park and delight in watching via the widescreen together with other townspeople. You might as well bring your buddies to make it more fun. Watching a film alone can be a little boring anyway. Decide on which park you would spend your outdoor movie night at. Get the movie schedule and pick a film that you prefer to watch.
It would be best if you bring chairs and a couple of blankets to share. Sitting on the hood of the automobile may be a little uncomfortable, so it's better if you have foldable chairs. The comforters will definitely serve as your protection from bugs. You might as well bring insect repellant to defend yourselves from bites.
Movie watching wouldn't be as fun without food. Do not forget the food and drinks that you and your buddies can delight in. However, it may take time to plan and prepare treats for the group. In that case, you can buy food from the authorized vendors around the venue while watching your preferred Denver outdoor movies. Sharing food while watching movies will make the night more memorable.
Don't forget to follow the guidelines that the park authority implements so that you and other movie watchers can have a peaceful movie night.
Perhaps you have considered bringing alcohol to the place, but it would be better if you don't since you might end up as an despicable movie watcher to others. Remember that you share the screen with hundreds of movie watchers, so you might as well be cooperative. Watching outdoor movies Denver folks enjoy would be a lot of fun?more enjoyable without the interruptions.
Be flexible with the time. In some cases, the film will not start on time. Once you have picked your schedule, it is better to anticipate for possible adjustments in the screening of Denver outdoor movies.
Walter Tully - About Author:
For more details, search Denver outdoor movies, and outdoor movies Denver in Google for related information.
Article Source:
Related Business Articles
Published by Julia Roger on December 13th 2011 | Business
Published by Addamsmith on April 24th 2012 | Business
Published by Mark Taylor on August 21st 2012 | Business
Published by Blossom Dana on December 24th 2011 | Business
Published by Tdakotaair on June 20th 2012 | Business
Published by Tracy Narvaez on August 25th 2012 | Business
Published by Bharatbook on August 25th 2012 | Business
Published by Gene Crayton on August 25th 2012 | Business
Published by Julia Roger on August 25th 2012 | Business
Published by Julia Roger on August 25th 2012 | Business
Published by Julia Roger on August 25th 2012 | Business


text: No ballet slippers, no socks, no shirt. Amy Winehouse was photographed crying and walking around the streets of North London unable to get grounded. Someone HELP HER!! Where is your mother?! Onlookers are claiming Amy left her friends house and walked around as if she was waiting for someone to come and get her. She came out of the house, walked down the drive and wandered around on the pavement for a bit. She looked upset and agitated but there was no obvious reason for her to have come outside. It was weird.


text:
Christian Themes
(Literary Essentials: Christian Fiction and Nonfiction)
A recurring theme in the work is God. From the initial chapters that recount Jung's childhood as a pastor's son, to the final chapters on life after death, Jung is preoccupied with God and God-images. Jung's view was that God is wholly intrapsychic, a projection of one's inner experience. Further, God is not entirely good or kind. Jung accepted diverse and idiosyncratic manifestations of the divine, even when these manifestations fell outside of Christian orthodoxy. Jung embraced all of creation as a potential source of illumination. Jung called on humanity to be open to God in unexpected ways. These views placed Jung outside the umbrella of traditional religion, although he called himself a Christian.
Another recurring theme is the self or psyche. The self—the inner realm of reality that balances the outer reality of material objects—comprises balancing and compensatory opposites. Part of the psyche is accessible and includes senses, intellect, emotions, and desires. Another part is inaccessible and includes elements that are forgotten or denied. Jung observed that the self spontaneously produces images with a religious content. He concluded, therefore, that the psyche is by nature religious. In addition, he believed that numerous neuroses spring from a disregard for the fundamental religiousness of the psyche, especially during the second half of life.
Another theme is myth and symbols. Jung observed that the basic motifs in myths, fantasies, dreams, and symbols are the same across vastly different cultures. Therefore, he concluded that they are universal manifestations of humanity's collective unconscious, the vast, hidden psychic resource shared by all humans. For example, some images form bridges between opposites, synthesizing two opposing attitudes or conditions in the psyche by means of third forces. Jung termed these transcendent functions because the image or symbol goes beyond, as well as mediates, the two opposites and allows a new attitude or relationship between them.


text:
How to Upgrade Ubuntu 9.10 to Ubuntu 10.04 Beta 1
by Haris on March 22, 2010
in Linux, Tips and Tricks
Ubuntu 10.04 Beta 1 was released yesterday which brings some new and exciting features that Ubuntu users are going to love for sure.
New features include the latest GNOME desktop environment, new drivers and improved support for nVidia cards, built-in Twitter/Facebook integration, new themes and notifications etc.
Nvidia Graphics Drivers 190.42 for Ubuntu
The Nvidia Linux team released the Nvidia driver 190.42 RC a week ago, which were very stable and have now been officially released on Nvidia's website.
The NVIDIA 190.42 driver is the first official release in the 190.xx Linux driver series. It has been in beta for months with many updates and releases.
Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Released
Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala has just released today and is now available for download, though it doesn't yet show on the website.
I have already written about when the order page was updated and you could pre-order Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala CDs.
Order Free Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala CD
The most-awaited Ubuntu 9.10 (Karmic Koala) will releasing in another two weeks and there is so much in store for us in this latest release. I've used a couple of alpha releases and I must say Karmic Koala will be a promising version.
Even though Ubuntu 9.10 will be released on 29th October 2009, you can now pre-order your free Ubuntu 9.10 (Karmic Koala) CDs.
Ubuntu 9.10 Alpha 6 with Software Store
Ubuntu 9.10 beta, Karmic Koala, is scheduled to release on October 1, but almost two weeks before Canonical has released a new alpha version which brings in faster speed and Software Store to Ubuntu.
The startup time has also been improved along with better cloud integration. And the the old uSplash boot animation has been replaced by xSplash – can be seen in the video after the jump.
Ubuntu 9.10 will be called Karmic Koala
Mark Shuttleworth, the founder of the largest open-source operating system, Linux, announced a couple of days ago about Ubuntu 9.10 (named as Karmic Koala) and the number of changes Ubuntu 9.10 will bring with it.
Some features that are expected in Karmic Koala are the cloud capabilities to Ubuntu's server edition, along with startup performance boost on the desktop and work on the netbook version of Ubuntu.


text:
At 8:10 on the morning of August 17th we were honored to add Charles to our family.
If you are reading this, please take it as an invitation to remind me what he hell goes on in the first 6 months of a baby's life because I have completely forgotten. I know they don't like pizza yet. I'm pretty sure that there is a thing called "Tummy Time" that will eventually be happening. Do I need another college fund or can they just split the one?
I am, of course, mostly being facetious. Mostly. I am actually rather amazed at the comfort and ease with which both my wife and I are able to navigate the early days of our new son's life. Granted, we have family in town helping us and it is still quite early days. The time has not yet come where I'll be embracing the change of doing what I do with Jack while having an infant strapped to my chest. This means that, on some level, what Jack and I are used to doing together may have to adapt, if not completely change. That is okay.
I think that's sort of where I'm landing in all of this. It's okay. Long time readers will know that our last go around on the pregnancy front beat us up a bit. We were swimming in the expectation of a gorgeous baby girl and were instead introduced to a grief we had not known before. There was a…well, I almost said "sigh of relief" but I feel that would downplay it to a point I'm not comfortable with. But, what word? What word? Shift. That seems to work. There was a shift in the fundamental nature of what I know and love when I heard the sound of Charles crying on that Wednesday morning. A shift that was accompanied by the certainty that I'd known before that everything was going to be alright. I had known it early in my sobriety when I first realized change was possibly. I had known it when we were told that Gwen was dead and I was confronted clearly with change that I did not condone. I knew it again as I was blessed with another son. Everything was going to be alright. "It's okay", the universe seemed to whisper to me.
We are in a bit of a transition period right now. There are the attempts to maintain some level of normality in Jack's schedule and failures to do so and over compensation in the form of ice cream. I'm not perfect. Never have been. Never will be. Charlie, as he is 6 days old as I'm writing this, actually happens to be QUITE perfect. He has managed to fulfill all the hopes and dreams that parents who have done this before could realistically expect from a 6 day old. For me, I'd say he's done more than that. The birth of and early days of Charlie's life, thus far, have been the first time I've done this. I was here for Jack, but it was only blood and body. Allison sometimes has to remind me that I still managed to be a good father to my son, even at that point in my addiction. There's a process that some addicts go through, one that (if maintained) promises a level of freedom from the obsession that once controlled my life. It was only after engaging this process that I've been able to experience life the way it should be experienced. I get to now experience the life of my son through new eyes. I get to see Jack experience the life of Charles through these new eyes. All of it is so damn good that sometimes it feels like my heart is going to burst. It hasn't yet. As of now, I am as I usually am: I'm okay.
Thanks for listening to me rant. Be well.


text:
Putnam's atwitter over campaign to boost brand
Spreading word via social media
Credit: Unknown
Hub-based Putnam Investments, building on some strong recent months, will try to boost its brand with a campaign dubbed "New Ways of Thinking" rolling out today as it prepares to launch six new mutual funds and additional investment options this spring.
"It's much bigger than an ad campaign," Putnam President and CEO Robert L. Reynolds told the Herald. "There will be a lot of social media. We'll be generating white papers. We'll have new products that focus on managing risk as well as assets and also finding new drivers for returns. We'll be providing content for advisers and investors and helping them have success in today's volatile, global market."
Morningstar analyst Rob Wherry said Putnam's campaign "makes sense," but he called six new mutual funds "a lot." He added that the firm will face stiff competition from heavyweights such as JP Morgan that are also focusing on risk management investment products.
"In the early 2000s, Putnam went through a pretty difficult period of time and then they brought in Bob Reynolds in mid-2008," Wherry said. "What they've been trying to do in the Reynolds era is improve the quality of the equity research they're doing and roll out new products to attract assets and hire talent. On those three fronts, they've done pretty well."
Unlike Fidelity, where Reynolds worked previously and helped build that firm's 401(k) business, Putnam isn't going to offer exchange-traded funds in the near future.
"Ninety percent of ETFs are just repackaged index funds," Reynolds said. "We're active managers. We believe in active management. There's nothing on the drawing board in that area."
Wherry said Reynolds succeeded in luring some talented pros from Fidelity early on, but that Putnam has lost some key managers in the past few years.
"Putnam has had pockets of success, but overall the last four years, the inconsistency has been disconcerting," Wherry said. "I think they have the right people in place, but maybe market forces and a couple of bad stock picks have really hurt."
Not surprisingly, Reynolds has a different assessment: "Putnam has rolled out more than 20 new products in the last four years and they have net in-flows of $6 billion. We're staying ahead of the curve."


text:
Looking for help? Click here.
The Different Categories of Resources
Here is a list of the different types of resources available to breastfeeding families in New Mexico. Use our resource directory to find out what is available in your area.
NMBFT Local Chapter: Local Chapters of the New Mexico Breastfeeding Task Force meet monthly and are open to anyone interested in supporting breastfeeding families.
Lactation Consultants: An International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) is a health care professional who specializes in the clinical management of breastfeeding. An IBCLC is certified by the International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners®, Inc. under the direction of the US National Commission for Certifying Agencies. An IBCLC works in a wide variety of health care settings, including hospitals, pediatric offices, public health clinics, and private practice. Please contact listed IBCLCs to learn more about the specific services they offer, plus fee and nsurance arrangements.
Breastfeeding Educators and Doulas:
- Breastfeeding Educators work with families from preconception through the stage of weaning offering education, encouragement, counseling, an experienced point of view, and fostering confidence, and a commitment to breastfeeding.
- Doulas are trained and experienced professionals who provide continuous physical, emotional and informational support to the mother before, during and just after birth; or who provides emotional and practical support during the postpartum period, this often includes breastfeeding support and resources. Contact doulas in your area to to learn more about the specific services they offer.
WIC Clinics: The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children - better known as the WIC Program - serves to safeguard the health of low-income pregnant, postpartum, and breastfeeding women, infants, and children up to age 5 who are at nutritional risk by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, information on healthy eating including breastfeeding promotion and support, and referrals to health care.
- Many WIC clinics offer peer counselor support. Peer counselors are are past or current WIC mothers who have successfully breastfed their own babies, and want to help other families benefit from breastfeeding. They help by establishing a connection with the family outside the usual WIC clinic hours, to provide on-going encouragement and help mothers manage common problems as they arise.
Milk Depot: A depot is a health care facility that keeps a freezer for collecting milk from screened breastmilk donors, where blood is drawn and where collection containers are kept. The milk is either picked up and transported by Milk Bank staff or volunteers, or shipped to the Milk Bank. The majority of the milk dispensed by the Mothers' Milk Bank goes to babies with a medical need for it. In addition, if milk is available, some prescriptions for milk are filled if a baby is newborn and healthy.
Compounding Pharmacies: Compounding pharmacies provide services and supplies to breastfeeding families including but not limited to: nipple creams and ointments, breastpumps and supplies, and breastfeeding prescriptions.
Breastpump Rental/Breastpump Purchasing: Community resources that provide families with the options to either rent or purchase a breastpump. Remember that under the Affordable Care Act breastpumps are covered for breastfeeding families. Contact your insurance company for more information. See our resource: The Affordable Care Act: Breastfeeding
Support and Supplies – New Benefits for Breastfeeding Families for more information.
Telephone Warmlines: Telephone consultation, in English and Spanish, is available from a professional lactation consultant who will answer questions regarding milk supply, sore nipples, breast infections, fussy babies, working and breastfeeding, obstacles that prevent successful nursing and other concerns you may have.
Support Groups: A group for anyone breastfeeding or interested in breastfeeding who needs support or help, or just someone to chat with. Breastfeeding support groups may or may not be connected with La Leche League. Contact individual groups to find out where/when they meet.
Home Visitation Programs: Home Visitors provide families with culturally appropriate peer-based support. Services are tailored to individual families and take place in the convenience of the family home. Home visitors provide families with information about prenatal health, newborn care and child development, safety, and when appropriate, information on additional community resources and services.
Hospitals: A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment with specialized staff and equipment.
- Baby Friendly Hospitals: The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) is a global program that was launched by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in 1991 to encourage and recognize hospitals and birthing centers that offer an optimal level of care for infant feeding and mother/baby bonding. It recognizes and awards birthing facilities who successfully implement the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding (i) and the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes (ii). Baby Friendly hospitals provide mothers with the information, confidence, and skills necessary to successfully initiate and continue breastfeeding their babies.
Health Centers: Public Health Centers often serve clients who are uninsured, underinsured, low-income or those living in areas where little access to primary health care is available. Each location has its own hours of operation, and a unique set of services. Please note that some locations require an appointment and do not accept walk-ins.
Other Breastfeeding Resources: This area includes community resources that support breastfeeding families indirectly through other services provided.


text:
It has been a few years since the mighty Kratos debuted in the game God of War on Playstation 2. We weren't sure whether we would like his anti-hero demeanor with his tortured origin. Three games later and a few other origin stories, gamers (mostly Playstation of course) were enthralled with the Ghost of Sparta. With the surge of movies/TV shows related to the Greek mythology genre and the likes, like 300, Immortals, Clash of the Titans, Spartacus, gamers were hoping the gates would open for Kratos for an ultimate God of War film. A couple of years passed since the success of God of War 3 and rumors of a script came to pass. Then another flicker of hope came when God of War Ascension released last year but only whispers of planning and development came about.
I for one am hoping for Sony Santa Monica and Sony Pictures to consider this epic story to be on screen soon. So here's my render on some of the first supporting cast for a God of War film series, Featured by my very own fan art.
as Kratos's wife Lysandra. She has the screen presence, star power and can bring a certain fan base to the film. (Lord of the Rings ) of course.
as Kratos' s daughter Calliope. She plays Arya Stark in the Epic Cable TV Show Game of Thrones. She might be a tad old now for the part but she may still be able to pull another the Game of Thrones fan based to the film.
as the wife of Zeus, Queen of Olympus – Hera. Contrary to the games depiction of Hera, I went for the sexy, conniving image of Ms. Jones. She captured that essence in her last film Broken City with .
I will have a few more later, so stay tuned. Film poster teaser and other cast concept etc. Follow me if you'd like and any feedback would be greatly appreciated.


text:
Sephora Smacked With Customer Privacy Suit
The suit, filed Tuesday in the California Superior Court, claims that by collecting this personal identification information, Sephora is putting consumers at risk and jeopardizing their financial security and credit rating by exposing them to possible identify theft and fraud.
The complaint points to the California...
To view the full article, register now.
Try Law360 FREE for seven days
Already a subscriber? Click here to login


text:
Just look at that smile! He's a happy boy in his new Reef Walker shorts from New Horizons Designs. And who could blame him? These knit shorts are super comfortable and perfect for an active kid like him 😀
I got to be a tester for these super cool shorts and I gotta say, this was one of the easiest things I've ever had the pleasure of testing. To be honest, it almost felt like cheating. The Reef Walkers are a quick and easy sew, which is great if you like instant gratification (like me) 😉
The details:
- The Reef Walkers are great for both boys and girls.
- They come in 2 different lengths: longer length for boys (seen here), or a shorter mid-thigh length for girls.
- A unique kangaroo pocket across the front.
- Elastic waistband with optional drawstring- Liam decided he didn't want one. Bummer, because the drawstring looks awesome on these shorts 😉
- Available sizes range from 6-12mo all the way up to size 16!
The release of this pattern happens to be perfect timing. The June challenge over at Project Run and Play is "Clothing for Playing Games." The goal is to sew clothing that's meant to be played in. I'd say these Reef Walker shorts definitely fit the bill. I paired them with the Elevation Hoodie (also from New Horizons) though I shortened the sleeves for warmer weather. It's the perfect combo for a fun Summer day of play!
Btw: I gave Liam full reign over the fabric selection for this outfit. I think he did a pretty good job! He chose the buffalo check knit fabric (part of the club line from Raspberry Creek Fabrics) as well as the solid black. The motorcycle knit is from Girl Charlee.
One of Liam's favorite things right now is riding his bike. He's ready to head out in his new outfit for his evening ride 😀
So if you're looking for a super comfortable pair of shorts the kiddos can play hard in, head on over to New Horizons and get your Reef Walker shorts pattern. Today is the last day to get it at the intro price of $7. So don't wait. Go get it now!


text:
Robert Penn Warren
1964 · New York
by BOHNER, Charles H.
New York: Twayne, 1964. Very Good/Very Good. Very good or better in very good dustwrapper. Minor fading on text and dustwrapper edges/ dustwrapper slightly faded. Please Note: This book has been transferred to Between the Covers from another database and might not be described to our usual standards. Please inquire for more detailed condition information. (Inventory #: 165745)


text:
When the North Carolina Senate late last month rolled out a new step salary schedule for teachers, it was reported in the state media as offering a big raise to educators while taking away job protections. But the new plan isn't exactly what it seems. It "incentivizes" teachers at specific experience levels to leave the classroom and find another profession. Educator James Hogan explains what lawmakers did in the following post. The final version may look different when the House and Senate compromise, but this is a look at senators are thinking. Hogan taught high school English for years and runs Teach Kids Productions, which makes mostly short films for schools on literary subjects that are intended to spark discussion in classrooms.
By James Hogan
The North Carolina Senate clearly wanted to make some noise when it announced a $468 million budget allocation to develop a new, 21-step salary schedule that bumps starting teacher pay to $33,000, and raises average salaries 11.2 percent. The average teacher would see a salary increase of $5,809, which is the largest single-year teacher pay hike in state history.
The new salary schedule has a couple of curiosities, however. First, it keeps teacher pay flat through the first four years of a teacher's career to the tune of $33,000 per year, a clear distinction from Governor Pat McCrory's pay proposal. Then, the Senate scale increases teacher pay $1,000 for every year of service through a teacher's twentieth year–still not bad. Keep your job another year, earn a grand.
But then, oddly, teacher pay flattens again–teachers earn the same $50,000 wage from years 20-29. That's a decade of service without a pay raise. In year 30, teachers earn just $42 more. Then, wages rise again, topping out at $56,129 at 36 years of service.
That means 16 years of teaching service–almost half the pay chart–is rewarded with only a cumulative 12 percent salary increase. The same working span, when measured from a teacher's fourth through twentieth year of service, sees a cumulative salary increase of 47 percent.
So the plan clearly benefits teachers in the middle of the pack. And it provides a clear disincentive for teachers who seek to retire from teaching by denying them a raise for a decade. Why would the Senate structure salaries like that?
This is where the decision to give up career status becomes very important. Make no mistake–the Senate pay scale rewards young teachers and pushes older teachers out in the last third of their career.
And why would the state government be interested in teachers leaving the classroom in their last ten years of teaching? The answer, I'm afraid, rests in some of what Senator David Curtis said in his now-infamous response to Charlotte teacher Sarah Wiles [who wrote a letter to legislators complaining about teachers' pay in the state]:
"You expect a defined contribution retirement plan that will guarantee you about $35,000 per year for life after working 30 years even if you live to be 104 years old. Your employer will need to put about $16,000 per year into your retirement plan each year combined with your $2,000 contribution for the next 30 years to achieve this benefit."
What he's saying is the state retirement pension program is the last golden egg for teachers. Here's why. Say you're a teacher who began your career the year after college at age 22. You taught for thirty-three years in North Carolina and retired at age 55. Based on today's standards, you're set to earn about $28,000 per year in retirement income every year until you die.
If you live another 33 years and die at age 88, that means you stand to collect $924,000 in retirement income. And the reason Senator Curtis was so ardent in pointing out the pension system to Ms. Wiles is that pensions cost the state a lot of money, and my guess is the fiscal conservatives in Raleigh are interesting in doing whatever they can to change that.
So if you're a teacher and you're contemplating if it's better to take a pay raise or keep your career status, ask yourself this: do you plan to retire as an educator? The new, proposed senate pay scale is built to soothe middle-career teachers. It is designed to work them through twenty years of service and then quietly encourage them to leave teaching by keeping their salaries flat. And if they don't leave on their own, they have a handy, built-in mechanism to get rid of them–the complete absence of career status. They don't have to fire the teacher who's a couple of years away from retirement. They can simply opt to not re-hire her.
If you're 10 or 15 or 20 years into your teaching career, it's time to pull out the income and retirement calculator. Can you afford to suffer for a little while longer at a flat salary if it means your retirement income is safe and sound?
And if you're 5 or 10 years into your career, does it make sense for you to take the money now and save on your own for retirement?
Now, this post conveniently ignores the other implications this budget re-allocation brings about: thousands of teacher assistant jobs lost, defunding school nurses, bus mechanics, and administrative jobs, taking away dollars for textbooks, and outside of education, restructuring Medicaid in North Carolina to discontinue critical healthcare services to senior citizens.
Yes, that's right: the Senate is also making teachers look like greedy villains in the process. You're literally taking money from grandma's healthcare plan to pay for your raise.
That said, it's time for teachers to be okay with being a little bit greedy. You've been beaten up for a long time, dear teacher. It's morally and ethically more than okay for you to take the pay hike, even if it eventually puts your career status in jeopardy. And it's okay for you to opt out and set your sights on your pension.
But these pay raises are designed to get the Moral Monday monkey off the state legislature's back. When thousands of teachers flooded Raleigh in protest last year, your elected officials noticed. And they're getting creative in their response.
Don't be fooled.


text:
The African Development Bank faces a number of particular
challenges in its funding programme.
With an annual financing requirement which rarely surpasses $1bn,
its opportunities to market its credit to institutional investors
with benchmark issues are limited.
At the same time it is trying to adopt a more cost-oriented,
opportunistic approach to the capital markets.
Is it succeeding in attempting to find the right balance in its
funding operations?
Despite raising over $3bn in the international capital markets
in the last four years, the African Development Bank (AfDB) remains
one of the least understood supranational borrowers.
Few investors are familiar with the bank's operations, even fewer are regular buyers of its paper. Remembering past allegations of mismanagement and rating agency Standard & Poor's decision to downgrade the bank in 1995, many institutions continue to regard AfDB bonds as a riskier investment than other supranationals, even though Moody's awards AfDB a triple A rating.
The AfDB's image among investment banks is not good either. Ever since an embarrassing debacle in the late 1980s, when the bank lost money on some mispriced options, investment bankers have tended to dismiss the AfDB as "unsophisticated" or "a bit behind the learning curve". This is despite the bank having a 45 strong treasury department.
Ask a bond trader in London or New York to quote a price on AfDB debt, and the reply will often be "African who?". One AfDB official complains that such image problems have led many investment banks to ignore the bank when touting new capital-raising ideas.
Such views are beginning to look outdated. Over the past 12 months, a quiet revolution has been underway at the bank's headquarters in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.
Lending to deeply indebted countries has been cut back, with loan approvals down from $1.35bn in 1992 to an estimated $665m in 1997. The bank now lends directly to only 13 of its 53 members.
As a result, the bank's finances are in a much healthier position. Net income has risen from $80.6m in 1993 to an estimated $163.6bn in 1997. At the same time, reserves have risen from $685.3bn in 1993 to over $1.06bn in 1997.
The approach of its treasury has changed as well. The lending product range has expanded with the introduction in October of three new single currency loan products. A new asset and liability management committee has been set up and is currently testing an in-house value at risk system based on JP Morgan's RiskMetrics.
Since January, assets and liabilities have been measured against the same six-month Libor-based benchmark. To streamline the treasury function, a special operations team has also been established to improve internal controls and risk analysis.
The AfDB has begun to take a much more flexible approach to capital raising. Since the end of 1996, it has abandoned its reliance on large, fixed rate plain vanilla deals in favour of more opportunistic, structured and arbitrage-driven transactions.
"We have been much more inclined to consider cost effectiveness as our main objective. And to do that we have had to increase our involvement in opportunistic and more structured deals," explains Thierry de Longuemar, a former bond trader at the private banking arm of Crédit Agricole who became AfDB's director of treasury operations in July 1996.
As part of the change, de Longuemar has established floating rate Libor-based funding cost targets.
This shift can be seen in the bank's debt issuance so far this year. In February, it launched its first emerging market currency issue - a R100m two year deal via Hambros.
The following month, it issued a Ffr500m 10 year deal linked to the Tec-10 floating rate benchmark index. Then in April came two deals aimed at Japanese investors. The first was a ¥15bn 10 year dual currency transaction paying interest in Australian dollars (its first ever using this structure).
The second comprised a ¥10bn capped FRN five year, nine month deal via Norinchukin International, which offered investors six month Libor plus 40bp, with a maximum coupon that rose from 1.5% to 2.4% over the life of the bond. In July, the AfDB was back in the market again with a ¥10bn reverse dual currency deal via Yamaichi.
The AfDB's need to balance opportunistic financing, and to maintain a presence with institutional investors, was evident in two financings it launched in early October.
First came a return to the Euro rand market, in a R100m seven year deal again led by Hambros. It was an important deal for the AfDB - South Africa is its 53rd and latest member and the proceeds of the transaction were swapped into floating rate rand, rather into floating dollars, as the previous rand deal had been.
AfDB officials expect the bank to increase its lending to southern African countries in the coming years, and its ability to access the rand market in this way is likely to form an important part of its treasury operations as a result.
One week later the bank also launched a $300m five year benchmark issue, which followed an extensive series of meetings with institutional investors in Europe.
It was priced at 23bp over Treasuries, reflecting the improved perception of the AfDB's credit among investors. Its 6.75% of October 2004 bonds had traded in from 40bp over to 25bp over in the previous 18 months.
Thanks to the success of this year's deals - which achieved a cost of funds of Libor minus 20bp - de Longuemar plans to expand the bank's range of issuance in the coming years.
He says: "We would like to do more emerging market currency deals. We are looking at the Egyptian pound, Moroccan dirham, Tunisian dinar and CFA franc markets."
Of these, a CFA franc deal seems the most likely, with de Longuemar reporting local investor interest in a five year transaction.
More structured issuance is also possible, which would likely be issued off the bank's $1bn Euro-MTN programme.
"We will continue to examine new funding opportunities as part of our programme to reduce borrowing costs," he says. "We have the staff in place to evaluate new structures quickly."
The only proviso seems to be that the structure must not involve the AfDB being a net seller of any options. De Longuemar says: "We are not allowed any foreign exchange exposure or any negative gamma."
If structured deals offer the best opportunities for sub-Libor funding, de Longuemar is also acutely aware that such deals do little to improve the bank's image among international investors - hence the decision to launch the benchmark dollar issue.
"The bank needs to be better known around the world," de Longuemar says. "The new environment in Africa has helped a lot of people to get to know the bank. But there is a difference between knowing it and understanding it. I am not convinced structured deals help you to improve this situation."
He continues: "It is a question of balancing short term and long term goals. A Eurodollar deal helped our long term relationships with investors."
The roadshow also allowed the bank to highlight its improving creditworthiness. De Longuemar says he hopes the AfDB will benefit in pricing on several fronts: the rarity value of its product (for example, it has a DM200m maturing in January that will be repaid through existing liquidity); the way in which the AfDB can provide investors exposure to the improving economic situation in many African economies; and the bank's strict credit policy, which has resulted in a reduction in loans to member countries.
De Longuemar hopes that these positive factors will increase the possibility of Standard & Poor's upgrading the supranational from AA+ to AAA.
According to de Longuemar, the AfDB's rate of issuance is likely to slow in the coming months. After the October deals, it had raised almost $1bn of its $1.2bn borrowing requirement for 1997. Next year is likely to be quiet compared with 1997, with a funding requirement estimated at $700m.
In the longer term, the picture is one of steadily increasing issuance. The AfDB has stated that it wishes to increase its lending to the private sector in Africa. At present, this sector only accounts for 1% of the bank's total lending.
However, there are plans to raise this to between 10% and 20%. Such a move would inevitably lead to higher borrowing requirements in future years. "We could be borrowing more in three to four years time," says de Longuemar. EW


text:
Companies waste an estimated $6.6 billion on unused software in the U.S. every year. With more options than ever, finding the right software for your dealership can be a challenge. How can you cut through the clutter and make sure your software dollars are well-spent? Download your free step-by-step guide to successfully navigating the software jungle. DOWNLOAD GUIDE
Normally I dislike Vegas. Specifically, I dislike coming to Automotive Conferences here. You see, I come to Conferences to learn, network and garner the newest and best new ideas from both Vendors and my peers. Unfortunately, most of the time what happens is there are so many distractions that people scatter and the chance for meaningful dialogue and idea exchanges are lost. So it was refreshing today as there was a palpable sense of anticipation and excitement in the air as people began to arrive, my Foursquare alerts began to sound like one of the slot machines and the Twitter stream #DSES hash tag came alive.
I began the day with Registration at 10 and quickly moved into the Private Meetings. Dennis Galbraith and Paul Potratz shared great presentations with a Group of Dealers from Canada and then I went across the hall and spoke with Cliff Banks, Charlie Vogelheim and the people from ryantech about the overall state and direction of new technologies and Automotive. If you get the opportunity to mingle with people of that caliber and just listen to the level of insight they can bring through casual conversation, seize it!
Then the fun really began: Founder Jared Hamilton took the stage and in his normal passionate, exuberant fashion shared his passion and vision behind DrivingSales and the Executive Summit. He was followed by Dennis Galbraith with a presentation on Big Data that was astounding. I think my favorite (repeatable) quote was "People learned to shop online on Amazon yet we expect them to start their process differently in searching for a car"…THEY DON'T.
Luke Wroblewski absolutely enthralled and enlightened with his amazing presentation on Mobile and Consumer Behavior. With the data to back it up he showed that mobile will be the strongest of ANY platform within 2-3 years and technologies out now that have mind-numbing application to the way we could interact, Market to, and understand our Customers. He struck a chord when he said "the best way to get people to hear what you're saying is to listen better".
Search, Social, Reputation and Location all merge effortlessly on Mobile and if it's not already part of your strategy you should move NOW. Early adopters will reap exponential returns down the road. Even more intriguing was his theory that by engaging other New Tech proponents, you can gain influence and acceptance by other Innovators and embracers of change. That could reap rewards far beyond the immediate return.
I'm looking forward to tomorrow's lineup of Speakers, Contest Presentations and enlightenment.
If you didn't make it or want to watch again to see if there were any F-bombs dropped this year, I'd bet DrivingSalesTV would have what you need.
If you're here, tweet me up @bryancarguy so we can meet IRL.
Happy LEARNING
Bryan Armstrong