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- Business & Society
The Economy Of Mexico: International Business and Trade
Historical Background and Demographics
Mexico has Many pre-Columbian civilizations including the Aztec and Mayan settlements. In 1521, Spain colonized the territory and still has strong influences over Mexican Culture. The Mexican Revolution took place in 1910 which caused the emergence of the country's current political system.
Area: 1,972,550km2 (14th largest in the world)
Population: 113,724,226 (11th largest in the world)
The population is based on 2011 estimates, and reflects a ten year increase of 23.5%. In 2011 birth rate was estimated to be 18.87 births/1000 population, death rate almost 4 times less at 4.9 deaths/1000 population. The highest income per capita was evaluated at $14,400 in 2011, growing on average 4% annually (except during the 2008-2009 fiscal year). This puts Mexico firmly in the upper-middle income bracket. Middle class began shrinking after the 90's as
income disparity continued to grow.
- Over 50% of the population live in poverty
(2011), a rate that has been growing since 2006
- 5.2% (2011 est.) unemployment rate (51 in the
- Underemployment as high as 25%
- Gross National Income (GNI) is second highest in Latin America at $1.8
billion in 2009.
- Country focuses on agriculture, manufacturing
and mining industry and in services.
Culture and Political Factors
- Language – Spanish is the official language, although over
100 Native Indian languages are spoken.
- Religion - 90% of Mexicans are Roman
- Traditions- Mexicans do not embrace the
"time is money" mentality
- Effort to minimize uncertainty in society
Society is collectivist (loyalty is key)
- Male dominated authoritarian society
- Federal Republic -representative, democratic and republican government
- Regional power - presence in G8+5 and G-20
- Founding member of United Nations, NAFTA in1990's : As part of economic liberalization process instilled deregulation of several ndustries.
A) Promotion of foreign investment,
B) Privatization of key sectors, and
C) Removal of import restriction
Comparative Advantages and Major Industries
Comparative Advantages Include:
Mineral Resources
Manufacturing is cheap in Mexico due to low wages and low labor costs, as well as lack of government regulation for labor conditions. Over the last decade Mexico has not only been manufacturing more electronics and automobile parts, but also overlooking design aspects as well.
Mexico is one of the leading producers of potatoes and sugar cane, both of which are exported far more vastly than they are consumed, especially potatoes. The corn and bean industries were also subsidized by the government in the 90's to give Mexico a production advantage.
Mexico is the sixth largest oil producer in the world. While funded by the private sector, this industry is heavily taxed and so is a major source of income for the government.
Major Industries:
- Tourism
- Food and Beverages
- Tobacco
- Chemicals
- Iron and Steel
- Petroleum
- Textiles
- Clothing
- Motor vehicles
Mexico Exports:
$336.3 billion (2011 est.)
$298.5 billion (2010 est.)
Canada Exports:
$447.8 billion (2011 est.)
$399.3 billion (2010 est.)
In terms of Tourism, Mexico is the 8th most visited country on the world, with over 20 million tourists every year .
In 2001, Mexico produced 1.85 million motor vehicles. Leading manufacturers include Ford, Chrysler, General Motors, and Volkswagen.
Total manufacturing output in Mexico increased on average by 2.3% per year during the early 1980s by up to 3.9% by the 90's.
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How to Choose a Family Dentist in Blackfoot
Choosing a good family dentist is not always easy. Your dental health is an important part of your overall health, and you need to see someone who is experienced, stays up-to-date on new techniques or procedures, and who is convenient for you to visit in Blackfoot. Cost and insurance coverage are also deciding factors. Take the time to do a little research, learn about the dentists in your area, and select someone who will meet your needs. The office of Dr. Dennis Hatch is happy to help answers questions you may have. Here are a few things to consider when selecting a family dentist in Blackfoot.
Consider Costs
The first place many people look when choosing a new dentist is a list of providers covered by their dental insurance. Make sure you understand your dental coverage, and verify with the dentist's office that they do accept your insurance plan.
Ask about accepted payments and if payment plans are available. Costs for certain procedures can vary greatly between different practices in the same community. You may want to get an estimate of out-of-pocket costs for common procedures like a filling or root canal.
Some dentists will offer a discount if payment is made at the time of service, so be sure to ask about any additional ways to lower your costs. If you do not have insurance, you may still qualify for a dental discount plan or a payment plan.
Location and Office Hours
It's important to choose a dentist whose office is close to your home or work and who is available at times that are convenient for you. It is not uncommon for dentists to have several offices to serve a wider area, so be sure to confirm their hours of operation before scheduling an appointment.
Be sure to inquire about emergency care and whether the dentist is available outside of regular office hours to treat emergencies. You'll also want to know if they offer most major dental procedures, or if you would be referred to another office for more serious procedures.
Experience and Qualifications
Dental offices should be forthcoming when answering questions pertaining to the dentist's training and experience. Find out where they obtained their education and how long they have been practicing. Also check to see if they belong to any trade associations, and if they receive continuing education.
Use your own judgment when evaluating the experience and education of a dentist for your family. Consider your own personal preferences and decide if you'd rather see someone with years of experience and who has an established practice in your community or someone who has less experience but more recent education.
You can also check with your state licensing board to verify that the dentist is licensed to practice in your state and whether any disciplinary actions have been made against them.
Ask Friends and Family for Referrals
Asking your friends, family or coworkers about their dentist can provide valuable insight that can help you make your decision. Ask them what they like about their dentist, how they started seeing him or her, and if they've ever had any problems with scheduling, visits or billing.
Of all the research you can do, getting an honest opinion from someone you trust is often the most insightful. Many times your friends or family will have had experiences with other dentists as well, so be sure to ask if you have someone in mind.
Making the Final Decision
As you can see, several factors should be considered when deciding which dentist you should see. Rank your priorities and try to focus on the items that are the most important to you personally. Find a dentist that you like and can trust, and that you can openly discuss any concerns you may have about your dental health.More

subset: commoncrawl


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Chocolate Bar Your Way Class
1/26/18Friday @ 7:00 PM
This is a great class for chocolate lovers of all ages! Learn the art of tempering chocolate with a hands-on demonstration. Choose from many decadent candy toppings to create three custom chocolate bars.
Class is approximately 1 hour long.
Please check in for class at our 1st floor retail counter.
Only paid participants may enter candy making room. Children under the age of 15 must be accompanied by a paid adult.
Class includes voucher for 1 scoop of ice cream.
*Ages 4 and up*
Class and Tour Policy: Please arrive 15 minutes before the class start time to check in at the first floor/retail counter. Our classes and tours promptly start at the time you've selected. Refunds for classes and tours are not available. You may reschedule your booking up to 72 hours before class start time for a different date/time by calling 1-855-SWT-PETE.
Repeats every week every Friday until Fri Jan 26 2018 .


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By Nan & Neil Adams
Heartland Prairie tours
The Nature Institute is offering tours at Heartland Prairie, near Alton (Google map) on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays in April, May and June (April 16 & 30, May 14 & 28, June 11 & 25).
The tours are from 5:30-6:30 pm and will focus on spring flowers and spring migrants. Bring a plant book and/or binoculars if possible. Wear comfortable shoes and bring water.
At 5:00 before the tours, there will be a short, hands-on class explaining how to start and maintain a prairie. The class will focus on identifying native plants and eliminating invasives. Bring questions, protective gloves and clippers if possible.
For more information, visit The Nature Institute website.
Prairie Fest
Saturday, May 4 from 10am-2pm. Family-friendly event with exhibits and demonstrations. Free and open to the public. Get more information.
Other Nature Institute events
Here are some other Nature Institute events that members might find interesting. These events are at TNI, 2213 South Levis Lane, Godfrey, Illinois 62035:
- Saturday, April 13, 10am-4pm – Earth Day celebration
- Saturday, April 27, 7am – noon – Bird banding demonstration
Find more events on The Nature Institute website: www.thenatureinstitute.org.
Hope to see you there,
Nan and Neil
Editor's note: Heartland Prairie is also the site of our October meeting.


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PDF version: Perennial Problem of Section 8 of the Interest Act
Case considered: Equitable Trust Co. v. Lougheed Block Inc., 2011 ABQB 193
This is one of several recent cases concerning the Lougheed Building at 604 – 1st Street SW in Calgary. The issue in this particular case was whether section 8 of the Interest Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. I-15, rendered mortgage terms providing for interest rate increases and administrative fees on default and in the final month of the mortgage unenforceable. Section 8 prohibits penalties for non-performance on loans secured by mortgages and is a statutory version of a long-standing equitable rule. This decision is of interest because the Master in Chambers, Judith Hanebury, adopts a limiting approach to section 8 which was rejected by the British Columbia Court of Appeal and because the mortgaged building, the Lougheed Building, is of historic interest. (The Lougheed Building has been designated a Historic Resource at both the municipal and provincial levels and was recently restored. Its heritage value lies in its representation of Calgary's tremendous commercial growth prior to World War One; it is also an excellent example of the imposing Chicago Style of commercial architecture. For photos and details of the restoration, see the Canada's Historic Places web site).
The Lougheed Block Inc. borrowed $27,000,000 from Equitable Trust Co., secured by a mortgage on the Lougheed Building. This mortgage had an interest rate of prime plus 2.875 per cent and provided for a monthly $10,000 administration fee if the mortgage went into default. The mortgage matured June 30, 2008 and the Lougheed Block could not obtain funds from another lender to pay it out. It entered into a First Renewal Agreement with Equitable Trust for seven months which specified an interest rate of prime plus 3.125 per cent for the first six months, with the interest rate increasing to 25 per cent for the seventh month. It also included the same monthly $10,000 administration fee if the mortgage went into default. When that mortgage matured, the Lougheed Block still could not obtain funds to pay it out. It entered into a Second Renewal Agreement with Equitable Trust for twelve months. The interest rate was 25 per cent, but if the Lougheed Block made monthly payments at a floating interest rate of the greater of 7.5 per cent or prime plus 5.25 per cent and there was no default, Equitable Trust could forgive the additional interest. The Second Renewal Agreement also included the same monthly $10,000 administration fee if the mortgage went into default.
The mortgage went into default the month after the Second Renewal Agreement was entered into. An Order Nisi was granted and Equitable Trust received just over $29,000,000 for the heritage office building on a judicial sale. Equitable Trust sought interest at the 25 per cent rate, plus the administration fees of $10,000 per month for each month of default.
Section 8 of the Interest Act provides that:
8. (1) No fine, penalty or rate of interest shall be stipulated for, taken, reserved or exacted on any arrears of principal or interest secured by mortgage on real property or hypothec on immovables that has the effect of increasing the charge on the arrears beyond the rate of interest payable on principal money not in arrears.
(2) Nothing in this section has the effect of prohibiting a contract for the payment of interest on arrears of interest or principal at any rate not greater than the rate payable on principal money not in arrears.
A bit of historical background to this section is necessary because of a still-relevant formal distinction that existed in England in the 1800s. As the Master noted (at para. 20), the English courts of equity relieved against penalties for non-performance on mortgages but did not interfere where a higher rate was stipulated for in the first instance and then contractually waived for prompt payment. Although a penalty charged for default and a rebate given for prompt payment are both intended to encourage borrowers to pay on time and penalize them for their failure to do so, only the latter was allowed in law. See Arthur C. Meredith, "Nicety in the Law of Mortgage" (1916) 32 L. Q. Rev. 420 for a canvass of the old authorities. Lord Chancellor Northington, in the 1763 decision in Stanhope v. Manners, 2 Eden 197, E.R. xxviii at 873, stated the position amusingly:
It has been truly said that the authority of this Court has assumed in cases of mortgages the old physical maxim forma dat esse, and that if the interest once runs at the larger rate it shall not be abated unless you hit the bird in the eye and pay or tender within the precise time; that on the other hand if it first runs at the lower rate, it shall not be raised even on a gross default, though in fact the substantial reasonable agreement between both parties is, if you are punctual to the time agreed upon, you shall pay less than if you delay and put to me (sic) an inconvenience. I believe all authorities sensibly founded, but I never heard or could myself discover the sense of the distinction.
Section 8 of the Interest Act, promulgated in Canada in 1880, is believed to have been intended to do away with the distinction in form that Lord Chancellor Northington said lacked sense: see Mary Anne Waldron, 'The "Legitimate Commercial Purpose" Test Revisited: Case Comment on Reliant Capital Ltd. v. Silverdale Development Corporation' (2008) 41 U.B.C.L. Rev. 101 at para. 3. Section 8 asks courts to look at the substance and effect of the challenged mortgage provision, rather than at distinctions in form.
Ever since section 8 did away with the distinction between penalties charged for default and rebates given for prompt payment, lenders and their lawyers have looked for ways around section 8. The issue in this case was the typical one of whether or not those who drafted the mortgage in this case had managed to avoid section 8.
Breaking down the overall issue, Master Hanebury stated three sub-issues as follows (at para. 18):
1) Is the increase in the interest rate to 25% per annum found in the First Renewal Agreement and in the Second Renewal Agreement contrary to the Interest Act or should it be disallowed in equity?
2) What are the rates of interest payable under the mortgage?
3) Are the administration fees charged pursuant to the mortgage contrary to the Interest Act or should they be disallowed in equity?
Is the increase in the interest rate to 25 per cent per annum found in the First Renewal Agreement and in the Second Renewal Agreement contrary to the Interest Act? Recall that the First Renewal Agreement specified an interest rate of prime plus 3.125 per cent for the first six months of its seven month term, with the interest rate increasing to 25 per cent for the seventh month, whereas the Second Renewal Agreement specified an interest rate of 25 per cent, but provided that if the Lougheed Block made monthly payments with a floating interest rate of the greater of 7.5 per cent or prime plus 5.25 per cent and there was no default, the additional interest would be forgiven. Increasing the interest rate just prior to the end of the mortgage term and forgiving accrued interest are two of the many ways that lenders and their lawyers have tried to avoid section 8. And Canadian courts have reached different conclusions on the application of section 8 to these types of provisions. As Mary Anne Waldron — the leading scholar on the Interest Act — has concluded, when considering section 8 the courts have developed artificial means of fitting modern commercial needs to an archaic statute (Waldron, "The 'Legitimate Commercial Purpose' Test Revisited" at para. 27).
A new approach to the perennial problem of section 8 came to the fore in British Columbia 15 years ago: the "legitimate commercial purpose test." In TD Trust v. Guinness, [1995] B.C.J. No. 1854, another case in which the interest rate increased just before the mortgage came due, Justice Tysoe found that it was apparent on the face of the provision that it was an attempt to avoid section 8, with the lender offering no alternate explanation. When considering where to draw the line, Justice Tysoe stated (at para. 20) that it "should be drawn between interest provisions which are intended to extract a higher rate of interest in the event of default and interest provisions which have a legitimate commercial purpose." (emphasis added).
The British Columbia Court of Appeal considered the legitimate commercial purpose test in Langley Lo-Cost Builders Ltd. v. 474835 B.C. Ltd., [2000] 7 W.W.R. 46. The mortgage in that case was part of a transfer of land and no interest was payable during the currency of the mortgage because a substantial prepayment had been made. However, interest was intended to be paid after maturity and so the mortgage provided for interest commencing three days before maturity at prime plus three percent. The Court of Appeal reviewed the case law and summarized it as follows: prima facie, a rate of interest payable at default or increased on default offends section 8, but a court may analyse the transaction to determine whether there is a business reason for the rate increase. Section 8 did not apply on the facts before it, the court held, because the purpose of the section is to protect borrowers against penalties and oppression at the hands of a ruthless lender and there was no coercion or intimidation in the case before the court.
The British Columbia Court of Appeal considered the legitimate commercial purpose test again in Reliant Capital Ltd. v. Silverdale Development Corp., 2006 BCCA 226 – this time unfavourably. In Reliant Capital, the interest rate on a mortgage increased from 14% to 20% in the last month of a 13 month term, with interest-only payments made prior to the due date. The loan was made to fund a real estate development in an industrial park and the mortgage was to be repaid as the lands were subdivided, serviced and sold. While the British Columbia Supreme Court had held there was a violation of section 8 because there was no legitimate commercial purpose for the rate increase in the last month, the Court of Appeal came to a different result for different reasons. The Court of Appeal noted that if the effect of the clause is to charge a greater rate of interest on money in arrears than money not in arrears, there is a violation of section 8. In this case, however, the rate increase came into effect one month before maturity and did not have the effect of charging more on arrears. The Court of Appeal concluded that the increased rate of interest therefore became effective by the mere passage of time, not by any default. (This reasoning has been rightly criticised by Waldron in her comment on Reliant Capital, "The 'Legitimate Commercial Purpose' Test Revisited".)
More importantly, the Court of Appeal went on (at para. 89), in obiter, to reject the legitimate commercial test discussed in Guinness and Langley Lo-Cost Builders Ltd., saying that test put an "unnecessary and unhelpful gloss" on section 8. The Court of Appeal stated that section 8 required a strict or narrow interpretation, with a court determining the intention of the parties from the language used in their agreement, viewed in the context of the objective circumstances, (i.e., the commercial context) in which that agreement was made. This approach was dictated by a purposive approach to the legislation, with an eye to the harm it was intended to remedy. The Court of Appeal stated (at para. 56) that the purpose of section 8 is "to protect property owners against abusive lending practices, while recognizing that generally speaking, parties are entitled to freedom of contract." As Waldron summarizes the Court of Appeal's rejection of the legitimate commercial purpose test (at para. 14): "It appeared to substitute a purposive analysis of section 8 as the sole guiding factor in the decision. Yet it left unclear the question of how a court would distinguish between an apparent violation of section 8 that will be held nonetheless legitimate and one that will not."
As Master Hanebury notes, however, the approach of the courts in Alberta has been different, even if the number of cases considering section 8 recently is few. The only recent Alberta Court of Appeal decision is Dillingham Construction Ltd. v. Patrician Land Corp., [1985] A.J. No. 652 (ABCA) – a case of limited usefulness. The mortgage in that case provided for interest at 14% after maturity and after default, but no interest was to be paid prior to those occurrences. The Court of Appeal decided that there must have been a cost for borrowing because this was a business transaction. Therefore, the rate of interest was not nil, but merely unspecified, and there was therefore insufficient evidence to indicate that the provision for interest on maturity actually had the effect of increasing the interest rate.
Master Hanebury primarily relies upon Paragon Capital Corporation Ltd. v. 395342 Alberta Ltd., 2004 ABQB 25. In that case the mortgage amending agreement provided for an interest rate of 2% per month that would be reduced to 1.167% per month if the loan was not in default. Justice Sirrs stated section 8 directed a court to look more to the substance of the transaction, than its form. By agreeing to collect a lesser rate if the loan was not in default, the lender changed what appeared to be a discount into what was, in substance, a penalty that fell within section 8. Justice Sirrs quoted (at para. 18) the legitimate commercial purpose test formulated by Justice Tysoe of the British Columbia Supreme Court in Guinness and hinted that, even if the interest provision before him had the effect of increasing interest on arrears, it might have been saved if it had a bona fide business purpose. He considered whether the loan agreement was a business arrangement to permit lower payments because of the limited cash flow available to the borrowers, but decided he could not draw that conclusion because the evidence did not support it. The legitimate commercial purpose test, if it was available, did not apply on the facts.
In summarizing the case law she had reviewed, Master Hanebury set out three principles (at para. 58):
The legislation speaks to a fine charge or penalty that has the effect of increasing interest on money in arrears over that not in arrears. The Court should examine the substance of the transaction, not just its form, to determine if s. 8 has been contravened. To make this determination, and taking a purposive view of the legislation, the Court, in my view, must:
(a) ignore clever drafting devices and consider whether the effect of the interest provision is to increase the interest on money in default over that paid on money not in default;
(b) if the provision has the effect of increasing the rate of interest on money in default, consider the substance of the transaction by examining the terms of the agreement and the circumstances of the loan objectively; and
(c) permit the interest provision to stand if the parties are knowledgeable, there is a bona fide business reason for the increase in the interest rate and it does not appear to be coercive, unfair, abusive or a penalty.
Applying s. 8 in this way retains the intent of the original legislation, while permitting lenders to deal with the present-day realities of their business. (emphasis in original)
Applying this approach to the First Renewal Agreement, Master Hanebury first found (at para. 59) that, on its face, the provision increasing the interest rate after the sixth month of the seven month term to 25% from prime plus 3.125% appeared to be an attempt to avoid section 8 because it came into effect shortly before the mortgage came due and increased the interest rate significantly. In the second step, she found (at para. 69) that there was nothing in the terms of the agreement or the surrounding circumstances that indicated any increased risk or other reason for the increase in interest rate for the last month of the term – the Lougheed Block's inability to pay out Equitable Trust affected the entire term of the loan, not just its final month. Finally, applying her third step, she found (at para. 71-72) that the Lougheed Block was vulnerable due to its inability to find alternate financing and therefore, with no apparent bona fide business reason to increase the interest rate substantially one month before the due date, the inevitable conclusion was that the lender included this increase in the interest rate as a penalty, violating section 8.
The Second Renewal Agreement stipulated an interest rate of 25 per cent, but provided that if the Lougheed Block made monthly payments with a floating interest rate of the greater of 7.5 per cent or prime plus 5.25 per cent and there was no default, Equitable Trust could forgive the additional interest. As Master Hanebury noted (at para. 79) this arrangement echoes the situation considered in Paragon Capital and is the situation that section 8 was apparently enacted to cure. Applying the same approach to the Second Renewal Agreement, she first noted that the effect of the provision was to increase the interest to be paid on money in arrears as compared to money not in arrears. Second, she found (at para. 81) that neither the documentation nor the circumstances of the loan disclosed any bona fide business purpose for the interest rate increase to 25% on default. Third, the Lougheed Block was even more vulnerable because it could not pay out Equitable Trust and had no options. She concluded (at para. 81): "The arrangement appears to be the very kind of coercive, unfair lending the case law has disallowed." This provision therefore also violated section 8 and this increase in the interest rate was also disallowed.
Master Hanebury spent little time on the more easily resolved second issue. Having disallowed the increased rates of interest, she held that the interest rate to be charged was the floating rate of prime plus 5.25% or 7.5%, whichever is higher, as set out in the Second Renewal Agreement.
As for the third issue — whether the administration fees of $10,000 per month for each month the mortgage was in default were contrary to section 8 — Master Hanebury turned to the Supreme Court of Canada decision in Les Immeubles Fournier Inc. v. Construction St-Hilaire Limitee, [1975] 2 S.C.R. 2. The Supreme Court held that a specific sum to be paid only upon default is a penalty that contravenes section 8. Given that the business purpose of an administrative fee of the amount stipulated for was not evident and that the fee appeared, on its face, to be punitive, Master Hanebury held (at para. 95) that it could not stand as it also violated section 8.
As I see it, there are four problems with the decision of the Master.
First, in adopting the legitimate commercial purpose test put forward by British Columbia Supreme Court Justice Tysoe in Guinness and disapproved of by the British Columbia Court of Appeal in Reliant Capital, Master Hanebury has gone further than previous Alberta decisions. Justice Sirrs in Paragon Capital did not expressly indicate either approval or disapproval of that test when he quoted (at para. 18) the relevant passage from Guinness. Neither did the three principles he formulated as the correct approach to section 8 following his review of the case law explicitly adopt the legitimate commercial purpose test. The closest he came was in his third principle where he stated (at para. 31): "Enterprise should be free to negotiate such terms of interest as the parties consider appropriate to their transaction unless the terms are clearly within the exception set out in s. 8 of the Act." This is a far more literal approach to section 8 than is Master Hanebury's. Not only does the Master appear to be breaking new ground, but her statement of the correct approach to section 8 is also open to the objection the British Columbia Court of Appeal took in Reliant Capital to Justice Tysoe's test in Guinness, namely, that the test put an unnecessary and unhelpful gloss on section 8.
Second, although expressly adopting the legitimate commercial purpose test from Guinness, it appears that Master Hanebury also adopted the purposive approach of Reliant Capital. The former appears in step two of her approach and the latter in step three. Certainly the British Columbia Court of Appeal thought the two approaches were incompatible.
Third, formulating the first (and third) issue as she did – Is the increase in the interest rate to 25% per annum found in the First Renewal Agreement and in the Second Renewal Agreement contrary to the Interest Act or should it be disallowed in equity? – could create confusion. The Master only considers whether section 8 is violated; she does not deal with whether the interest rate should be disallowed in equity. But surely section 8 takes the place of and changes the old equitable approach to penalties – the one described by Lord Chancellor Northington — and cannot be considered as an alternative to section 8.
Fourth, while the restrictions imposed by a literal application of section 8 may be undesirable in our modern marketplace, the 1880 law still stands and cannot be ignored or rewritten by the courts. Master Hanebury attempts to create limits on or exceptions to section 8, but such limits create their own problems. Section 8 is really quite simple. It asks only whether the arrangement does in fact have the effect of increasing the interest rate on the arrears of money beyond the rate payable on money not in arrears. Attempts to get around it have great difficulty in finding a principled basis for drawing distinctions between provisions which violate section 8 but can stand and provisions which violate section 8 and cannot stand. Even a purposive approach is not self-applying. The British Columbia courts have decided that coercive mortgage lending practices will not be allowed because section 8 is aimed at protecting borrowers from abusive lending practices, but what qualifies as a coercive and abusive mortgage lending practice? Nothing but Parliament's revision of the Interest Act itself will resolve this perennial problem.


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Models For Canopy Badge
Canopy Badge by Indesit
£16.33 Discontinued
Email me when back in stock - we'll try to re-stock quickly!
The product Canopy Badge is suitable for the models listed below.
View full product details for Canopy Badge.
Search our range of models by entering your model number to perform a search.


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Why Handmade?
Taking the time to do things with presence and intention is becoming a lost art. SongCroft Naturals is helping to keep handmade art and herbalism alive.
Occassionally people ask me why we don't find a company to manufacture our formulas for us. They ask why we take the time to do it all by hand and comment on how it would be more profitable to have the products created overseas and dropped shipped to our customers.
While we understand that suggestions above are "business as normal", they do not reflect our business ethics or values. We standby our products being made here in the U.S., by hand, by us and shipped a shorter distance to the customers we appreciate and care about.
We take pride in being a "farm to face" business where we plant the seeds, grow ingredients, hand harvest them and make them in to the amazing products our customers love and rave about.
It's a matter of connection to life, the processes, ourselves and each of you. It's our practice of infusing our products with love and maintaining the American Dream on a family farm.
With that, we rely on you to help us spread the word and to tell people about SongCroft Naturals.
Thank you.


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Just don't miss Joel's latest article! As always, it's full of insights.
Filed under: Software Development | Comments Off on Joel Again
Just don't miss Joel's latest article! As always, it's full of insights.
Filed under: Software Development | Comments Off on Joel Again
Just before Christmas, I got my Qtek 9100, a Windows powered smartphone. A really nice gadget!
It runs on Windows Mobile 2005, so of course you need to be kind to it, and avoid doing stupid things. Before I realized that, I had to perform one "hard reset", erasing everything I had installed so far (except for what was on the storage card), but after that, everything has been working just fine.
At first, I had some problems with ActiveSync synchronizing tasks incorrectly, but I think that problem finally corrected itself (or it'll show up later, we'll see!).
So far, I've installed and run Skype, VNC, Pocket PuTTY and .NET Compact Framework 2.0, without any problems.
The most stupid thing I've done with it so far is to try to use it for my shopping list. It took me twice as long to get what I wanted, because the list went in alphabetical order instead of in the order of where things are placed in the supermarket. And holding the Qtek with one hand while trying to put apples in a plastic bag isn't exactly easy (the stylus and the apple in the same hand, of course). Not recommended!
[Update, 29th of December] Well, I've installed Skype, but it doesn't work very well. I think that the CPU frequency of the Qtek is too low, actually, just 200 MHz. We'll see if there'll be a Skype update optimized for the Qtek. Let's hope!
Filed under: Productivity, Technology | Comments Off on Qtek 9100
Chris Anderson has written a nice post: The Probabilistic Age. I'm afraid I wouldn't do it any good by trying to summarize it, so go ahead and read it! But generally, it talks about why we're having such a hard time accepting systems which are statistically correct on a large scale, but generally can't be trusted in every detail, even if those systems scale much better than the corresponding "controlled" systems. Compare for instance Wikipedia to Encyclopædia Britannica. Or democracy to totalitarianism. (By the way, I wonder how China makes its totalitarianism scale!)
Filed under: Philosophy, Technology | 4 Comments »
In a recent post, I wrote about the latest release of RSS Bandit, and a fix of its newspaper view. Then, I thought that it was "safe" to use it for reading all posts in all blogs under a category. But after some thinking, I've changed my mind. Let's look at the available options, after having selected the category and waited for the newspaper view to show up.
We'll analyze them in order. The problems come only when the feeds in the category are updated, so if you know exactly when each and every feed is updated, and it's OK for you to read while the feeds aren't updated, there's no problem for you. Congratulations!
Another essential piece of information in order to understand the problem is that the newspaper view doesn't change when new items arrive in the selected category.
Now, how can we resolve this? I've got only one good suggestion, actually, to make the newspaper view safe: When I press Ctrl-Q after having skimmed the newspaper view, I want only items that are in the view to be marked as read, and if new items have arrived during the time, they will still be marked as unread afterwards. In order to read them, I would need to refresh the newspaper view, or to click on them one at a time.
Better solutions, anyone?
Filed under: Blogging, Tools | Comments Off on RSS Bandit: Newspaper View is Unsafe
Finally my blog is being attacked by trackback spam, so I have to turn on comment and trackback moderation until there's a better spam filter in TypePad's system. I wonder why there isn't one; it should be quite easy to let for example SpamAssassin have a look at comments and trackbacks before letting them through.
But hey, this means either that the spammers are quite technically unsophisticated (of course they are unsophisticated in most other ways), or that my blog is getting more popular! 😉
Filed under: Blogging | Comments Off on Finally Trackback Spam
Michael Hyatt has written a thoughtful post on how and why the traditional paper book will eventually be replaced by a computer equivalent, even if that development doesn't seem to be close in time ("You just can't beat the battery life of the traditional book!", as Michael says). He even outlines what such a hardware device would need to be like in order to succeed. Nice reading; it really doesn't seem too long until such devices are possible! But I'm not convinced that "running an Apple operating system" will have to be a requirement! 😉
Filed under: Technology | Comments Off on The Death of Traditional Book Publishing
Since it's almost Christmas, don't forget to prove to your children that Santa really exists!
Filed under: Mathematics, Philosophy | Comments Off on Christmas


text: Had a great time! Jazzie was there when I arrived and what was supposed to be a 15 minute visit with Nick turned into 45 minutes...and I was super late for work (although I warned my manager I will be dropping by LV today and that I may be late, he was okay with that). - I tried on Passy PM and Segur PM and fell in LOVEEEE with the Segur!! I first tried it in red...I am so NOT a red person but it was so pretty!!!! I asked to see the black and the black is very nice too, isn't as gorgeous as the red but I think is more versatile. I may have to make that the first purse that I buy once I get back from Hong Kong. - Transparent inclusion GM available! I tried it on and it pretty much slipped off my wrist...it was SO heavy, so bulky but soooo pretty! LOVE IT! I'm sure a lot of you ladies will look gorgeous with one. - Ivory Epi apparently is bright white, not off-white! Since I didn't like the black Passy PM much in black (not as nice as I thought...looked better in pics) maybe I will get it in white. Apparently it's quite hard to manufacture the bags because the white dye doesn't dye the leather really well so they actually have to "tweeze" out individual hairs on the leather...more expensive and time consuming process may mean that white Epi may cost more...??? - Probably mentioned before, petit noe will also be made in Cannelle - The new MC bags are NOT attractive at all. Remember the "Monogram Premium" line shown in stefania's pics? With the huge Koala closure...? Well, the MC bags look like those (the shoulder bag at least) but 10 times worse. I'll be sticking with my Aurelia MM. I did spend a good 15 minutes going over the look book and nothing really did attract me. The new denim accessories are cute (the cles is nice...like a mono cles but in denim) but not for me. The dentelle cles is cute too but I don't think the lace can handle much. The diaper bags are SO cute but I don't have a baby...lol. The dune colour looks really nice and maybe...*maybe* consider the Speedy. Overall, great experience! You've seen tons of pics of Azur pochettes already so I'm not going to post any pics!


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We have some Twilicious news for you: Taylor Lautner could be catching a screening of Eclipse at your local movie theater this weekend.
Summit announced that members of the cast will be making surprise appearances at showings of the film across the country. The lucky cities getting a Forks visitor on Saturday, July 3 include Atlanta, Clifton, NJ, Dallas, Detroit, Kona, HI, Long Island, NY, New Orleans, NYC, Paramus, NJ, Phoenix and San Francisco. The star power will then bounce over to Jacksonville and Toronto for Independence Day.
Click here for specific locations. Summit has a map of places where vamps and wolves will be stopping by and other cities highlighted include Vancouver, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Orange County, Las Vegas, Nashville, Kansas City, Chicago, Minneapolis, Cleveland, and Washington, D.C. – although further information for these cities isn't available.
It will be a surprise who shows up where. Keep us posted if someone visits your neighborhood!


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This recipe is from Bon Appetit from around 1990 or earlier.
- Yield
- 8
- Unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/4 cups sifted bleached all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon instant coffee powder
- 1 teaspoon grated orange peel
- 2 eggs room temperature
- 1 cup banana puree (from about 3 large ripe bananas)
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- powdered sugar
- Position rack in center of oven and prheat to 325F. Butter 6-cup fluted tube pan; dust with cocoa powder. Stir next 5 ingredients into bowl. Using electric mixer, cream butter in another bowl. Add brown sugar and coffee powder and beat until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs 1 at a time then beat 2 minutes. Add orange peel. Mix in dry ingredients alternately with banana puree, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Fold in chocolate chips. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake until cake is firm to touch in center, about 70 minutes. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Invert onto rack and cool completely. Dust cake with powdered sugar just before serving.
Related Video
Nutritional Info
- Calories441
- Carbohydrates67 g(22%)
- Fat20 g(31%)
- Protein6 g(12%)
- Saturated Fat12 g(60%)
- Sodium226 mg(9%)
- Polyunsaturated Fat1 g
- Fiber5 g(18%)
- Monounsaturated Fat6 g
- Cholesterol70 mg(23%)


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On the heels of another New Year's Eve thriller, Team Canada and the U.S. will meet Tuesday night in the final of the World Junior Hockey Championship.
Team Canada are seeking a sixth straight gold at the under-20 tournament, but a speedy and determined U.S. squad is on a roll after upsetting Sweden Sunday night.
Globe hockey reporter Matt Sekeres, who has been covering all the action in Saskatchewan, will join globesports.com Tuesday at 1 p.m. ET for a live discussion on the tournament so far, and what to expect in the championship game.
If you would like to leave a question for Mr. Sekeres in advance, please use the Comments area on this page.
Based in Vancouver, Matt Sekeres covers the Canucks and B.C. Lions for the Globe.
Editor's Note: globeandmail.com editors will read and allow or reject each question/comment. Comments/questions may be edited for length or clarity. We will not publish questions/comments that include personal attacks on participants in these discussions, that make false or unsubstantiated allegations, that purport to quote people or reports where the purported quote or fact cannot be easily verified, or questions/comments that include vulgar language or libellous statements. Preference will be given to readers who submit questions/comments using their full name and home town, rather than a pseudonym.


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Product or Service
Jaw Crusher
Profile:Manufacturer - Producer|Ref:PSL196779YH | Country: China | Currency: | Export: No
Jaw Crusher
Jaw Crusher is mainly used for middle crushing and fine crushing the medium hard ores and rocks in metallurgy, mining, chemical, cement, construction, refractories , ceramics and other industrial sectors.
This series jaw crusher has the characteristics of large crushing ratio, even particle size, simple structure, reliable operation, easy maintenance, economic operating costs.
Motor drives belt and pulley, the eccentric shaft movable jaw up and down, when the movable jaw rises, the angle between movable jaw become large, thus pushing jaw plate close to the fixed jaw plate, while the material is to be crushed or split into pieces, achieve the purpose of crushing; when the movable jaw descends, the angle between elbow plate and movable jaw becomes small, under the action of bar and spring, movable jaw plate leaves the fixed jaw plate, then the crushed material discharge from the crushing chamber mouth. With the electric motor rotating continously, the movable jaw crushes and discharges the material periodically, to achieve continuous operation.
The jaw crusher is composed of frame, eccentric shaft, large pulley, flywheel, moving jaw, side guards, elbow board, elbow board backseat, adjust gap screw, return spring, fixed jaw plate and active jaw plates, of which elbow board plays a role as insurance.
Contact the company


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I am having more and more requests for alternatives to Botox and fillers, non evasive treatments are becoming back in trend which is great news to me . The fact that women and men in their late teens – early twenties think is normal to inject with Botox and have lip enhancements is shocking to me but sadly it is becoming more common.
I created the Masterlift which is a general term for a progressive skin treatment mainly for total skin rejuvenation but also targeting fine lines, wrinkles, pigmentation, acne, rosacea etc.
The treatment is great to have as a one off for a special event ( must be done 24hrs before event) but to get the optimum a course of six is recommended every two weeks, however, I have clients who come once a month and still have great results. The treatment is not the same at each visit, once I take an initial assessment and consult I will recommend a treatment program in clinic and at home, this is to continue the treatment that is done with me until the next visit.
The very first visit is to establish what are the underlying concerns and to address the internal as well as external. The treatment itself involves a prepping of the skin before a specific blend of intelligent skin ingredients are applied for meso therapy, as each visit commences the cocktail changes sometimes involving a skin infusion that generates a 30-day collagen production increase and is a wonderful ,potent blend of ingredients including niacinamide, l-mandalic acid, retinaldahyde, r-lipoic acid, Vitamin E1,3 Beta Glucan just to name a few, It is unique because it avoids damaging the epidermis by penetrating several high-dose active ingredients into the dermis through liposomal delivery. The skin infusion enhances results for acne, aging, rosacea and hyperpigmentation and I also customise by adding powder blends and actives for increased correction.
The fundamental part of any skin care treatment program is the home care and just, as in clinic, the treatment progresses so does the homeware. The effects are amazing as you can see from the before and afters but it is very much a less is more approach, a non aggressive rather than aggressive application. I do not believe you have to pull out the big guns to get a response. I use the analogy of disciplining a child : If you shout a scream at a child to do something they will under protest but the chances are they will rebel later down the line or become traumatised where as if you gently coarse and educate you get a strong foundation and solid character – very much like the skin!
Unfortunately many want instant results out a quick fix which can lead to some disasters and even worse permanent damage. Always seek professional advise when thinking about chemical peels and dermal needling.
One particular client who came to see me was a young woman called Victoria, she first called me, as she said she was too embarrassed to see anyone and hated looking at herself in the mirror.
This is her story in her words:
"I am a 46 yr old mother of two, I have suffered with eczema since I was six months old, my parents were told it was my childhood inoculations that had triggered it and over the years I have visited many skin specialists, most of them giving the same advice and treatment ( move to a warmer climate ) and ALL have prescribed different steroid creams the main one being hydrocortisone ointment 0.5 %.
As an adult, it had seemed the worse was over, only having the odd flare up now and again. At the age of 30 the week after my dad passed I was covered again (like when I was s child ) this lasted about six months and then thankfully calmed down again through topical steroids but the texture of my skin had always been dehydrated and prone to sensitivity.
A visit to a private doctor resulted in the same cream being prescribed and I was told to use it on my face as well as my body, when I showed some concern of its effects on my face, I was told that it is regularly used on premature baby's and won't do me any harm.
Over the years I have weened my skin off of hydrocortisone and have been using plain moisturising creams from Boots and Superdrug the likes of No 7, Nivea, Simple etc which seem to give minimal comfort but not long-term results, sometimes flaring in reactions again.
On New Year's Day this year the skin on my face became very red, tight, sore, swollen and painful. I had to go to hospital and was given a large dose of steroid tablets, twelve tablets in one hit then a course of eight a day for a week. They told me it was an allergic reaction, to what we don't know. The treatment worked but my face was left dry, red and damaged. This has happened twice more in the last three moths resulting in me going back to hospital only to be given more steroids, although the second doctor I saw told me it was not a reaction but Dermatitis. I was referred to a dermatologist in early part of March and he told me they can't tell me what it is but dermatitis and eczema are the same thing, leaving me totally confused and frustrated, this was meant to be a skin specialist after all! I was feeling not only in pain but very down and my confidence was at an all time low, I did not even like looking at myself in the mirror.
I called Marie and she immediately arranged for me to have a consultation with her. She asked me questions about my diet – what I ate, when I ate, even how I ate, lifestyle and the time line of emotional trauma's, she looked at my feet and asked further questions. Marie gave me mind techniques and coping strategies in how I deal with stress, little techniques that make so much sense but really take little effort, she requested me to bring in the skin products I had bought in Boots and we went though the ingredients together and looked them up so that she could show me that the skin care I was using was not helping but actually assisting the inflammation! ingredients like parabens, sls, artificial fragrances and colours that I would not even dream of looking at avoiding or knowing about.
Marie then advised me on a whole program including cutting out wheat, refined sugars and dairy and look at introducing an alkaline diet, which I started to do straight away, she recommend to only use Osmosis skincare and Collagen Shots all available in the shop www.mariereynoldslondon.com
I bought the Collagen Shots straight away and instantly felt and saw results, the pain decreased as well as the inflammation. I have had two treatments at Marie's Clinic and have been using the Collagen Shots daily, along with the skin care advised by Marie. My skin has improved dramatically and not only myself but others have noticed the difference in the texture and appearance of my skin which has given me such a confidence boost. Marie also advised me on homeopathic remedies to take, which is the next phase of my investment to my skin."
Dealing with the skin is only part of the skins PIN code it is so important to deal with the client as a whole which is why the Masterlift is a generic in title but specific to client. I don't like giving clients the option to skin treatments – unless it is a relaxing type this is because more often than not the wrong type of facial is chosen to their perception rather than what is actually required for the best out come.
At this moment in time I am only doing the Masterlift treatment at Fortnum and Masons until the clinic in North Norfolk opens. We are still constructing it at the moment and the clinic will be offering not only progressive skin treatments but all of my Noetic therapies including The Bowen Technique – watch this space or follow me on instagram @mariereynolds_london for updates!


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Institute Vision, Mission, Goals, Objectives
To augment and scale human expertise.
To advance cognitive systems research to reimagine work with cognitive assistants, thereby transforming professions and industries.
The Cognitive Systems Institute was established to improve industry, academic, government focus on the opportunities to augment and scale human expertise by advancing state-of-the-art, industrial-strength cognitive computing componentry and cognition as a service to research and develop cognitive assistants. A goal of this new IBM-sponsored virtual organization (the Cognitive Systems Institute) is to initiate new industry-university programs that stimulate progress on several objectives (see below). Through these objectives, the Cognitive Systems Institute desires to grow the ecosystem for next generation cognitive science, artificial intelligence, and related researchers, and to advance the understanding and development of 21st century cognitive systems for the benefit of business and society, growing both the wealth (Gross Domestic Product) and well-being (health and wisdom) of regions.
(1) To identify next-generation grand challenge problems in cognitive science and to provide access to cognition as a service platforms to build next-generation skills to solve those problems. Identifying and solving significant grand challenge research problems can simultaneously advance our understanding of cognitive systems and allow the development of cognitive assistants to boost the creativity and productivity of teams.
(2) To encourage more and better grant proposals to government and foundation funding agencies aimed at understanding and prototyping cognitive assistants for important tasks and occupations that benefit society.
(3) To improve the design loop on human-centered smart service systems by embedding industry researchers in residence at universities.
(4) To create and compile point-of-view (POV) documents on the potential impacts of cognitive systems on business and society to catalyze multidisciplinary collaborations that envision possible futures and re-image work to transform professions, industries, and regions.
(5) To connect the growing community of artificial intelligence, cognitive science, and other multidisciplinary researchers working to develop cognitive assistants for diverse professions. Professional cognitive assistants that exhibit the three L's – language, learning, and levels can augment and scale human expertise.
Those interested in participating can
Join the Cognitive Systems Institute LinkedIn group.
Review the Cognitive Systems Institute website.
Submit your ideas and recommendations by requesting updates or sending additions to pages on the website.
Record your thoughts and priorities by answering questions in this 10 minute survey.


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I'm asking this question in all seriousness because I sit here at 24 years old still single can a guy be cursed if he's not able to get a girlfriend
Most Helpful Girl
There is no such thing as being cursed. Your time will come. Just be yourself and you'll meet someone who will appreciate you. Trust me, I have been there :)00|00|0
Yeah so many people tell me this year after year but nothing ever changes
- Show AllShow Less
I don't know it's starting to make me a really bitter person
Like I wake up angry everyday now


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Withholding/reporting group-term life for an absent employee
Q: We withhold FICA taxes on employees' excess group-term life insurance benefits every month. An employee is on unpaid leave for the rest of the year, so there are no wages from which we can withhold. She currently owes $35 in taxes. Can we treat this as a de minimis benefit? If not, what do we report on her W-2?
A: It's not a de minimis benefit, because the benefit isn't administratively difficult to account for—you know the exact amount. The employee can write a check to the company for her share of FICA, which you process as a manual entry (i.e., $0 gross, $0 net and only tax withholding amounts). The payroll system should have accounted for the employer's portion of FICA, since that's a separate liability. Alternatively, you can just gross up the taxes.
When to pay when payday is a holiday
Q: We pay biweekly on Fridays. It just sank in that Jan. 1, 2016, is a holiday and also a payday. What can we do?
A: Most state wage payment laws require you to pay employees on the day before a holiday. So you should move the payday into 2015. As a result, you'll have 27 pay periods for 2015. Since you'll have an unexpected extra pay period this year, you'll have to decide whether to continue to make voluntary deductions from employees' pay.
Benchmark: Most employers suppress voluntary deductions from the 27th check.


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Click to Zoom in
14" Laptop Compatible - Black - View Complete Details
Product Number: SYNX3551157
This product is sold out and we do not know when we will be getting another shipment. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
Check similar items below to see if a replacement product is available.
Due to its limited shelf life or other concerns, we do not accept returns on this product unless it is damaged, defective or incorrect due to an error on our part.
Kensington Triple Trek Optimixed Backpack - The Kensington Triple Trek Ultrabook Backpack features fleece-lined compartments that keep an Ultrabook, tablet computer, Chromebook and even your smartphone safe from scratches. In between the device compartments is plenty of room for files. You'll also appreciate the big accessory pocket that holds your power cord and other necessities. And the padded back support system and wide, adjustable padded straps make sure you can take it all with you in comfort.
Help out our customers.
Be the first to write a review.
Have a question about this product? Please click the button below to get started. Once you have posted your question we will submit it to our community of customers and with our own staff who have recent experience with the same product for their open and honest feedback.Ask a Question


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Shane Co.
Round Diamond Bracelet in 14k Rose Gold (7.5")
Description & Specifications
This charming bracelet features 120 round diamonds, at approximately .56 carat total weight. These dazzling hand-matched gems are set in quality 14 karat rose gold and the length is seven and 1/2 inches.
Item Number: 41060145
Item Number: 41060145
- *Total Carat Weight5/8 ct. t.w.
- Stone TypeDiamond
- Metal Type14K Rose Gold
- Length7.5 inch
- *Metal FinishPolished
- *Setting TypePave
- Stone ShapeRound


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Globe Wireless
(0 Reviews)Be the first to review this item!
- Brands: Inmarsat
Globe Wireless Installation Engineers are highly trained technicians responsible for visiting ships to perform installations, repairs and warranties.
Contact Globe WirelessAddress: Room 1111 11/F, Tower 2, Silvercord, 30 Canton Rd., Tsimshat Hong Kong, China
Tel: +852 25 87 82 83
(0 Reviews)Be the first to review this item!


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Here we are, net worth update number three! Now that we've got two months of data to compare to I'm getting a little nervous. Before I started sharing our net worth the average change was in the three to four thousand dollar range. After showing you two months of seven thousand dollar net worth increases (give or take), I'm not sure how you will react if we come in below that. In a way, it's a good motivator, as it'll help keep us on the right track. If we start to backtrack, I'm counting on my readers to get me back in line!
Cash – +$0 – We mostly use our credit cards so that we can track our expenses (and it makes putting together our monthly financial reports much easier!) so this category is unchanged. I didn't physically count all the money in the house, so this is just an educated guess, but it's close enough.
Cash Savings – +$6,481 – If you read my October Income and Expense Report this shouldn't be much of a surprise. Our net income for October was $6,867 and we managed to save most of that, even after putting $866.67 in our Roth IRAs. The bonus definitely helped us out, but managing our expenses was also a big factor here.
Emergency Fund – +$13 – The interest rate on our account decreased from .8% to .75% so our increase in this account slowed down unfortunately. I don't expect the dollar amount in this account to change other than interest in the foreseeable future.
Taxable Investments – +$0 – I've really slacked on the LendingClub issue, so this number hasn't changed in a couple of months. I need to get with the program, as the amount of interest we are earning by keeping our money in regular savings accounts keeps diminishing!
Roth IRA – +$149 – October wasn't a great month for our Roth IRAs. We put in $866.67, yet this account only increased by $149… so we really lost just over $700 to the market. While it can be frustrating to see this, I'm actually pleased when my Roth IRA and 401(k) decrease in value. Why, you ask? Well, as my wife and I are still shoveling tons of money into our retirement accounts each month we are able to buy new shares at a discount. So when the value goes down, we are just able to buy more shares for the same amount of money. I believe that over a long enough timeframe the investing returns in the stock market will be excellent, which is why we are investing heavily for our retirement in the market. For younger workers like us, these temporary decreases in value can be great!
401(k) – +$1,925 – The first thing I have to say is this number looks a lot better than it really is. I mentioned last month that I was trying to get a statement for my wife's retirement account, and about $1,400 of this increase can be attributed to just adding that in. The statement was from 9/30, and I can only get them quarterly, so I will be using the same value for three months until I receive a new one and update the numbers. My wife has another retirement account that I still need to get a statement for, but that's another battle for another day at this point.
Auto Value – -$527 – Yikes, this is the biggest decrease I've seen in a LONG time. Even though I worked from home (and the local Starbucks') during October, I still didn't put an abnormal amount of miles on my car. The decrease seems to be pretty evenly split between both of our vehicles, so I guess it's just age catching up with them unfortunately. My wife has started grumbling (in the nicest possible way) about wanting a new car… I can almost hear this category crying already! J
Credit Card – +$659 – Two new iPhones, eating out a lot, having to pay for me to eat seven days a week instead of just four, etc – it all adds up. If you want the nitty-gritty details behind this, you can take a look at my October Income and Expense Report. I opened up a new credit card during October (which will of course be paid off every month) that gives me some great perks at a hotel chain I frequent. I do have a minimum spend to meet, so splitting expenses between this new card and the two existing cards we have means that just spot checking the balances can be deceiving as there's an extra card in the mix now!
October was another spectacular month for Mr and Mrs Aspiring Blogger. I didn't think it could be done, but we increased our net worth more than in September. My number one goal of financial independence becomes much more tangible after a month like this. I don't think the rest of the year will be as good since I don't know of any extra paychecks or bonuses coming in, and I definitely see additional expenses before the end of 2012.
While I'm still working from home I need to take advantage of the location independence I've been afforded and start working from different locations. I enjoy working from Starbucks and I haven't been going much for various reasons (mostly just excuses). There are also some interesting restaurants and other coffee shops that would be cool to try, along with just heading to the library to get work done. I think this would help, not only with giving my location independence goal a boost, but increasing my contentment. Changing my environment seems to put me in a more content mood, even if I am working on regular work – so I should definitely take advantage of it while I can.
I hope you had a great October. Was it better than you were expecting? Not as good? Let me know how your month turned out!


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|Home | Articles | News | Blog | About | Mailing List | Resources | Prominent Islamists | Middle East Forum | Keep Us Informed | Donate
Rep. Smith: 'Unconscionable' Record 499 Syrian Refugees Included No Christians
by Lauretta Brown
Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) said Thursday that it was "unconscionable" that of the record 499 Syrian refugees admitted to the United States in the first three weeks of May, not one was a Christian.
Knights of Columbus CEO Carl Anderson cited that number, reported by CNSNews.com on Monday, in his testimony on the urgent needs facing Christian refugees from Iraq and Syria.
Smith was speaking at a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee hearing on what steps should be taken following Secretary of State Kerry's March declaration that the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS/ISIL) was committing genocide in Iraq and Syria against Christians and other religious minorities.
Read the complete original version of this item...
Related Topics: Government, Interfaith, Multiculturalism, United Nations | Lauretta Brown receive the latest by email: subscribe to the free islamist watch mailing list
Note: The content of external articles does not necessarily reflect the views of Islamist Watch.
Creeping Dhimmitude


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rock the white! by danica-nicole featuring bow shoes
I'm not usually a fan of white clothing or accessories. I can just imagine how easily it will all get dirty. However, I think a white jean jacket might be nice to have and those bow shoes are stinking adorable! Want!
Do you guys rock the white??
Have a super fabulous weekend!
Don't forget to see how everyone else will be rocking the white on long distance loving!


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June Pick 3 Pinterest Recipes
The June Pick 3 Pinterest Linky is an opportunity to share some summertime fun! I'm going to share three easy recipes that I have tried, or want to try this summer!
Summer is a great time to try some new salads, and this one looks so interesting and delish! I already love to add shredded cabbage to salads, or to make a cabbage salad with lots of garlic, olive oil, and vinegar. I can't wait to try this one this summer. You can find the recipe on Simply Real Health.


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Posted by Bossip Staff
Vanessa Williams and Vanessa Williams hit up various events this weekend in Hollyweird.
We must ask, Who Looked More Bangin????
More images on the flipside…
The newlyweds spotted again this weekend:
Images via WENN
Vanessa Williams duh LMAO!!! Oh and first B!tches!
1st…Philly..Stand Up! and Vanessa Williams..purple dress…looks much better than the other Vaneesa.
The original Vanessa. The beauty pageant queen, She is still showing these young girls how it is really done. I'm 23 and I wish I was that gorgeous
I agree Bebu. Da green eyed gorgeous Vanessa did dat in pretty purple.
Make an Extra $600-$800 Online
Make sure to put correct address cause checks go out every month.
DAMNNNNNNNNNNNNNN Lela Rochon wow gurl! You still alive huh?
Lookin a bit crazy witht he wonky eye stare but still pretty!
Vanessa williams..MY march 18th comrade!! YES..she always is on point?
HEYYYYYYYYY LELA! I Love you, come back
Mariah, looks nice with her arm candy..LOVE U MC
2 of the same LOL. They both look real good but Ima have to go with Miss lightskinned for her smarts and her unbeatable sense of style.
They dont make lightskinned womans with dat kind of class no more. Too much trash in the lightskinned world. why is dat? She should hold a seminar or something to teach all the new lightskinned hoes to be class like her.
^News Flash both of them share the name Vanessa Williams!
I'ma have to give this one to dark-skinned Vanessa Williams. Light skinned Vanessa Williams usually looks fab, but she is looking a bit haggard in this pic.
Greeted class. I wish I would have been able to take dat in there. At least one of these young girls must have been eyeing one of class as their own.
Both look absolutely stunning to be 45years old!!!!
Is the chick with Eriq Lasalle "Veronica" from "The Parkers". She definitely looks like Veronica, Professor Oglvee's first girlfriend.
Is there even a question on this one?
first of all. props to the Peete family. wonderful to see. family. family. family. mariah looks happy, and dude look committed to making her happy. hope it lasts a lifetime, but ride it while it lasts. im sure she deserves it. as to him, work hard to take care of her and she will take care of you. dont pay any attention to the haters. nice to see a bunch of the mature couples. men not leaving their wives for youngsters at the drop of hat. grown women not trying to look like they are twelve in order to hold onto there men. there's something to say about maturing with grace and dignity. something to say about longevity in a relationship.
I'm a huge fan of the couple, but why does Nick always hold Mariah like she's frail and fragile? It makes the relationship look fake, just like most people think it is. Take more genuine pictures, stop showin' up for folks, and maybe we'll believe that you two are truly in love.
Neither one look like they're at their best! Miss green eyes Vanessa, looks washed up & wrinkley what happened to her? She use to be so beautiful her hair use to be so healthy I guess years of dyeing & frying has dried it out huh?
And to the nut who said Nessa "beauty queen" Williams should teach a course on class let u not forget about the PENTHOUSE spread which cost her the Miss America title?
Vanessa for sure
I cannot decide. All the women look wonderful! I love Lela Rochon!
Miss USA Vanessa Williams, Old School Van
They're both bangers and I support them–EQUALLY! Absolutely loved BrownVanessa in Soul Food the ShowTime Series! Intense Actress!
Love GreenEyedVanessa for her
persistence and belief in herself at a time when folks were trying to count her OUT of the entertainment industry…NOT! Love the Nessas!
I will have to go with the dark skinned Venessa. She has more pazazz and spunk to her in her pic the other one looks tired like she is ready to go home.
I will have to go with the dark skinned Venessa. She has more pazazz and spunk to her in her pic the other one looks tired like she is ready to go.
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We pride ourselves in the long-term partnerships we've built with global, premium brands. Our customer base represents the top-tier of their respective industries and we know that their expectations are high. But we deliver the results they're looking for by aiming even higher.
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"Our main objective was to reach as many visitors as possible on an international level. And so we chose Adcash because we knew they had the means to help us achieve those objectives."Audrey Beau
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"We have been working with Adcash since 2011, to promote such games as RiotZone, Allods Online and Gunblade Saga on German, French, Italian, Polish and Turkish markets. We highly appreciate Adcash as one of our most reliable, professional and personally dedicated partners."Stanislav Koval
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The Hoard: Episode 3
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
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This week Daryle has his first ever green beer for St. Patrick's Day, Xbox VR Plans, Facebook's possible VR future, VR for weight loss, the Matrix, hand tracking in VR, and we get a little bit serious (but not too serious) as we discuss some troubling news about cross the border. We also have exciting news for some locals!
We also show off a selection of new Rift and Gear VR games and scare the crap out of Mark, the do everything guy at the studio.
If you enjoy what you see don't forget to leave a like and to subscribe. Feel free to do the same even if you don't like it. We won't judge! You can also head over to our website at https://www.dadsanddragons.com for more in-depth looks at games, books, maybe some movies and particularly enjoyable tuna-fish sandwich. Whatever we like.
Website: www.DadsAnddDragons.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dadsanddragons/
Twitter: @Dad_Daryle and @DadsAndDragons


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HE IS the son of a serial rugby league offender, but teenager William Hopoate might just be Manly's saviour.
Two generations ... former NRL star John Hopoate with son William. Picture: Brett Costello Source: The Daily Telegraph
Hopoate, 17, is looming as a fullback replacement for Brett Stewart, the former Test player who was yesterday ruled out for five months with yet another knee injury.
Stewart will have surgery next week on his torn medial meniscus and damaged fibrocartilage.
He will not return until at least round 20 - the second successive year the star fullback has missed virtually the entire season.
While it is terrible news for Stewart, it could be the chance young Hopoate has been waiting for.
The Daily Telegraph understands that while the teenager will be overlooked for this Sunday's match against the Eels at Parramatta Stadium, he will be considered in coming weeks.
Proud father John, the former Manly and Test winger, said he was sure his son would handle the step up to first grade.
"I think he [William] can handle it," Hopoate Sr said.
"When he was playing SG Ball people were saying he was too young for the under-20s but he stepped up and did well.
"Now he's being talked about for first grade and people might think he's not ready but maybe he should get a go."
With winger David Williams also out for eight weeks (collarbone) and George Rose missing this weekend through suspension, TAB Sportsbet has pushed Manly from $13 out to $23 to win the premiership.
Stewart, who suffered the injury tackling Wests Tigers winger Lote Tuqiri on Monday night, will have surgery next week, his recovery to take three months, his rehabilitation to take a further two months.
He sustained the identical injury last year but to a different knee.
Manly coach Des Hasler must now find a new fullback - with young Hopoate in the frame.
Hasler said he has three options this season at fullback.
"Hopoate is waiting in the wings," Hasler said. "We have to look at the options. Michael Robertson did a great job last year as did Ben Farrar.
"Michael and Ben have the edge over Will in experience but that's not to say he won't get a shot through the year.
"He will be ready to take up the challenge."
Manly co-skipper Jamie Lyon added: "He [Hopoate] is a great prospect, he has a big future and is a great kid.
"If he gets a shot this weekend, it will be a good thing."
Manly players were in shock yesterday when told of Stewart's injury.
"Brett is a massive loss - you can't deny that," said hooker Matt Ballin. "It would be silly to try and cover that up.
"But we have to go on without him and do the best we can. It doesn't get much tougher than Parramatta at Parramatta Stadium."
Hoppa says Will "can handle it"
Discussion in 'Sea Eagles' started by ManlyBacker, Mar 18, 2010.
Discussion in 'Sea Eagles' started by ManlyBacker, Mar 18, 2010.
XenPorta 2 PRO © Jason Axelrod from 8WAYRUN


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Ok so had my first kiss today with my bf of 6 months, I wasn't nervous but I did have my eyes open for a bit, not throughout the whole kiss though. Overall it was a good kiss but I'm getting paranoid that my bf didn't enjoy it because he said that he opened his eyes to check if I had mine open... we tried it a couple of times and afterwards he said he enjoyed it and asked me if it really was my first kiss as he thought it was actually quite good but I think I should have just kept my eyes closed the whole time it would have been better. He's kissed other girls before maybe that's why im getting paranoid, I wanted to be his best kiss :(
Most Helpful Guy
Its always weird to open my eyes and see the girl im kissing staring at me, just learn to keep them closed00|00|0
My eyes were closed when he opened his to check lol and I wasn't staring at him when I did have them open
Then you did fine no need to be anxious about it, my first girlfriend learn to shut her eyes after i told her it was uncomfortable with her watching although i suspect she still looked sometimes


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Nuzzling Muzzles is the place where I write and exchange news about the large and powerful beasts we call horses.
Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Pondering Time Management
Now that Scrappy has figured out that I've been hand-feeding Stewie, he too has stopped eating out of bowls and insists that I hand-feed him. So, I'm hand-feeding two dogs three times a day, which can easily take up two hours total. Throw in a sick or injured horse or dog, and my day gets eaten up pretty fast.
Bombay has had a swollen sheath over the past few days. I set up an appointment with the vet tomorrow, and have been hosing it down, which he hates. He kicks violently out to the side, which is why I would never clean his sheath without him being sedated. Fortunately, the swelling is finally going down, but I think I still want the vet to come out to do a more thorough sheath cleaning and verify that there is no infection.
I sometimes get a little bit of free time, but if I get a phone call from someone who just wants to talk, or if I have to run an errand in town, then there definitely is no time left to do what I want. The three main activities I like to do when I have down time are work on writing a novel, work on fabric arts projects, and ride horses. They are all time consuming and require concentration. I definitely cannot write if anyone else is in the house talking to me, so I have to write on the week days when family members are at work.
People in public places have been trying my patience lately, because they act like they have all the time in the world, and they don't think twice about sucking up my time with their personal agendas. Some days I want to scream, "Come on! I only get about half an hour of free time a day. Stop burning it up."
But much of the problem is me. I am incapable of getting back on track once I am distracted or interrupted. For instance, I ran out onto the bridle trails just to see what kind of condition they were in after two days of rain, because I intended to ride a horse. I got distracted by some hoof prints in the mud and decided to follow them, because I was curious about where they came from. During that sleuthing process, I kept stumbling upon garbage -- mostly beer and soda containers and Mylar balloons, so I picked up the trash until my arms were full and carried it all home to dump in my trash can.
By then I had walked a mile and was too tired to ride a horse. When my energy returned, it started raining again. I keep telling myself that I have to stay focused, because there's no guarantee that I will be able to ride a horse tomorrow or even in an hour from now. I have to do the things that I enjoy while I can. So, I wake up the next morning with the intention to ride a horse as soon as the horses are done eating, but I get tired of waiting for them to finish, so I get started on some chores. Next thing I know, the day is over and I still haven't ridden a horse. What is wrong with me?
I do a lot of blogging, but I usually do it while I'm eating, so I can't be sewing or riding a horse at that time anyway. I suppose I could work on my novel then instead of blogging, but writing a novel burns way more brain cells than writing a blog post, so I'm not good at multi-tasking when I work on my novel.
I wish I could make sense of it all. Hopefully, the cobwebs will clear away and it will come to me how I can better manage my time. Last fall through spring was so disappointing for me because it felt like I hardly got out to ride the horses compared to the year before. Every time we had nice weather, the power company took over the bridle trails. Two years ago I was riding every other day. I'm not getting any younger and I need to ride while I can.
Every night I go to bed literally dreaming of riding horses, and every morning I wake up with the intention to ride, yet it just doesn't happen. Another day goes by and I'm like, "What just happened? I'm missing time. Did I get abducted by aliens or something?"
I'm also supposed to be working out on the gym equipment for at least an hour a day, and so far I've been lucky to get ten minutes every other day to do that. Maybe my goals are unrealistic, and I should just accept that there is only enough time in the day to feed and clean up after animals.
4 comments:
- achieve1dream said...
I feel your pain!! My circumstances aren't exactly the same, but I'm feeling the same way. Depressed and frustrated that I never have the time or energy to ride my horse. We put so much work and money into them it really sucks when we can't enjoy them.
I've been looking into time management too because I never have time for anything I enjoy. One thing I'm going to start doing is clean for ten minutes (at least) when I get home from work. After a ten hour day of loading feed and taking care of a three year old that's the last thing I want to do, but I'm so sick of spending my entire days off cleaning!! So far it's working out well (only been a few days haha). We will see how much time it frees up this weekend. The other problem is I spend the weekends working on projects like building our barn and I'm too tired to ride.... ugh! This weekend it is supposed to rain every day I have off so there goes riding this weekend after all of my hard work after work lol. Hopefully it will pay off in the long run.
I wish I had helpful suggestions for the focus thing, but I can't think of anything. The only thing I have figured out is that multitasking is BAD!!! It makes everything take longer and you don't get nearly as much done (it's also helpful to take a ten minute break between tasks to reset your brain, but who has time for that???). So what I've been doing is writing lists of the things I need to do and then picking one. I don't do anything else while doing that one thing until it's done. Working from home and having to answer the phone would probably make that a little more difficult, but I truly believe that multitasking is just not a good thing. It stresses me out and I never accomplish anything. I love lists though (especially getting to check it off when I'm done lol) so that helps keep me motivated and on track. It doesn't work for everyone unfortunately. For some people lists just feel like more work. I'm lucky that it motivates me and gives me a sense of accomplishment.
I also can't multitask while writing and I definitely can't write with someone talking. I like complete silence or relaxing music and that's it.
For the dogs is there a reason Stewie and Scrappy have to eat three times a day? I know Midge does, but maybe feeding the boys less often will help with the not eating thing. I could be wrong (too tired to verify it), but I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that fasting is good for dogs. Their systems are different from our. I don't remember the reason why, but I remember reading something about it. The only reason I feed Jackal twice a day is because he has reflux, but if your dogs aren't eating they may genuinely not be hungry! Jackal will self regulate himself. He skips meals all the time if he's constipated or hasn't had enough exercise and he's a voracious eater. It used to worry me, but now I just know he doesn't need it so he doesn't eat it (having one dog is nice because I can just leave his uneaten food in the bowl... he waits until we get home from work to eat... I think he's too lonely during the day... :(...).
I'm drawing a blank and can't remember what else I was going to say, but this comment is long enough so that's okay lol. Good luck!!!
- October 21, 2015 at 6:33 PM
- achieve1dream said...
Oh one other thing I was going to say is feeding less often might help with less frequent trips outside and less accidents in the house too. When they eat one big meal they are stimulated to empty their bowels completely and then they are usually good for the rest of the day. It's kind of abnormal for a dog to need to poop more than once or twice a day. Obviously that doesn't help with peeing.... but who knows, it might save you some time!!
- October 21, 2015 at 6:36 PM
- Nuzzling Muzzles said...
achieve1dream - You are right in that Midge needs the three meals a day because of her diabetes. I offer the other two dogs a little bit at the same time to avoid having them descend on Midge's food. They usually decline. If they aren't interested right away, I put their bowls up on the counter for the next offering. I hand feed them if they've go a whole day without eating. At least that's what I'm doing now. It seems I have to keep changing my routine as they come up with new ways to drive me crazy.
We figured out that the poop problem was caused by this Hill's W/D prescription dog food that some vet prescribed for Scrappy's bladder stones. It's super high in fiber. We had this huge bag of it, and all the dogs hated the stuff. It was so expensive that we didn't want to just throw it in the trash, so we forced all of them to eat it before it went bad, and that caused all the dogs to have to constantly poop. Thank God we finally finished off the stuff today, so the future looks brighter.
- October 21, 2015 at 9:55 PM
- achieve1dream said...
Yay!! I'm glad you finished the bag!!! I hope you can find a good alternative. They definitely have some deal going on with science diet like you mentioned in your other post. The word thing is if you look at the ingredients it's not even very good dog food... Yet it's the number one vet recommended brand. I've heard people so those special ones like k/d and c/d make a world of difference for their dogs but it just seems like there has to be something better.. I've never compared there ingredients to see what it is that is supposed to make them so special. I might do that sometime this weekend while it's raining just to learn something about it lol.
P.S. if there are a bunch of typos is because I'm barely awake and on my tablet... It's likes to autocorrect using the wrong word and I don't feel like proofreading lol! These early mornings are getting old then I don't sleep very well.
- October 22, 2015 at 5:01 AM


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Fallen Star Stories
childrens books and other ephemera
For Younger Readers - A Really Good Book!
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What ARE You Reading???
Irish Books, Authors & Publishers
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Jeff Kinney Coming To Dublin
For all you Wimpy Kid fans out there (and who isn't these days).... Jeff Kinney will be coming to Dublin to celebrate the publication of the latest exciting adventure... Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever!!! Jeff will be appearing at the Liberty Hall Theatre, Eden Quay on the 28th November at 7pm. And he'll also have two very special guest appearances by actors the Wimpy Kid movie actors: Zachary Gordon (Greg) and Robert Capron (Rowley). This is a ticketed event, so you'll need to get in there and get your tickets NOW. To book your tickets, please contact the box office on 0818205205 or website:www.ctb.ie . Cost per ticket:€5.00.... what a bargain!!!!
Incidentally, the new book, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Cabin Fever is due to be released on 16 November. Much excitement!
Posted by
Mary Esther Judy
Wimpy Kid
1 comment:
Fionn Murphy
January 6, 2012 at 10:16 AM
i was there and it was brilliant
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London Semester
In London, politics as usual has disappeared. You witness the changes from a seat in Parliament when the prime minister is challenged by the opposition. Gone too are the stuffy British arts. When you talk with painters, catch a band in a pub, or question writers, composers, actors, and directors in your classroom, you detect a new artistic generation emerging. The spit-and-polish at Buckingham Palace still dazzles, but a few blocks away a market's aromas and accented opinions expose the new British identity being fashioned by immigrants with little concern for royal traditions. Nothing in London is usual anymore. The modern mixes with the medieval as the global grapples with the provincial.
Program Calendar
The London Semester is offered every fall semester. It starts in late August with an orientation program in London. There is a week long mid-term break, and the program ends in early December.
Fall 2017 Resident Director
Professor Lee Arnold, Associate Professor of Art
Academic Program
The London Semester allows students to explore political and social change in Great Britain. Participants enroll in a total of sixteen credits, including a required colloquium, taught by the program's resident director, a Drew faculty member. The other classes are taught by a continuing staff of distinguished British faculty. Courses focus on the interplay of British history and politics, and literary and theatrical portrayals of social and political themes. Field trips to political meetings, party conferences, theaters, and museums, along with guest speakers from British political, literary and theatrical life are a regular feature of the academic program.
Did you know that with an additional course taken on campus,
London Semester participants can complete a European Studies minor?
Interested students should visit the European Studies web page for details.
Course Descriptions
Required Courses
ARTH380/ENGL 380/PSCI 380/THEA 380/HIST 380 London Semester Interdisciplinary Colloquium (4 credits)
The Colloquium, taught by the program director, offers both a collective interdisciplinary exploration of a London topic and an opportunity for each student to complete an individual research project. The project asks students to make use of the resources of London to explore a topic they have chosen in consultation with the program director and perhaps also a campus adviser. Students develop their topics through interviews, site visits, participant/observation, and the use of London libraries.
Elective Courses
ARTH 383 Art and Architecture in London (4 credits)
This course will present a broad chronological survey of the art and architectural histories provided by London museums, galleries, and monuments. By studying works of art on site in such museums as the British Museum, the National Gallery of Art, Tate Britain, and Tate Modern and experiencing architectural landmarks such as Westminster Cathedral and the Tower of London, students will become familiar with both the general history of art and architecture and the specific significance of these histories in London.
PSCI 381/HIST 381 Contemporary British Politics (4 credits)
A discussion and analysis of current issues in British politics, with emphasis on the impact these issues have on the functioning and development of the British political system. Such topics as the roles of Parliament, cabinet government, the Prime Minister, political parties and interest groups are explored within the context of the modern, developed political system. Outside speakers and field trips are an integral part of this course.
THEA 383/ENGL 383 British Political Drama (4 credits)
Under the premise that all theatre has a political dimension and works its influence on audiences both overtly and subversively, this course is designed to take advantage of the huge variety of productions available in London venues (not necessarily conventional theatre spaces), with a focus on the political questions they raise for twenty-first century audiences. Because the 1960s saw big changes on the theatrical scene in Britain it is taken as a starting point, and we see what we can of the playwrights who helped form our present day theatre through the twentieth century. Because it does not operate in a vacuum, appropriate plays may be chosen from other periods and cultures that address crucial global, social and political issues.
ENGL 384 Studies in British Literature: London Literature (4 credits)
For this course, we shall become London flaneurs, walking the street and interpreting the signs of the city as if it were text. We shall read a range of 19th and 20th century writing, including classics such as Dickens' Our Mutual Friend, and lesser known works. Through Amy Levy (Reuben Sachs), Virginia Woolf (Mrs. Dalloway) and Jean Rhys (Good Morning, Midnight) we can explore the changing role of women in the metropolis. In Alexander Baron's The Lowlife we can glimpse the East End's historic importance as a home to refugees and see how it turned into Bangla Town in Monica Ali's Brick Lane. In Conrad we find London as the center of Empire and in the work of Sam Selvon and Monica Ali we have examples of how the Empire has written back. By paying close attention to both text and context, we shall achieve a lively appreciation of the works in and of themselves and as part of the cultural life of London.
To particiapte in the London Semester, you must:
1. be a junior or senior;
2. have a minimum GPA of 3.0;
3. be in good disciplinary standing.
Applications are due by March 10.
Tuition for the London Semester is the same as on-campus Drew tuition. In addition, there is a program fee which covers the cost of a furnished flat in central London; a Travelcard for local transportation for the entire semester; cultural programs and field trips; and access to local health services. International transportation, meals, books and incidental expenses are not included.
Financial Aid
All of your Drew University financial assistance, whether merit or need-based, may be applied to all Drew-sponsored semester programs.