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+1 808 922 6611
2552 Kalakaua Avenue Honolulu 96815 USA
Location This hotel is located across the street from Waikiki Beach and is near the world-famous Diamond Head Crater. The hotel is ideally located within walking distance of world-class dining and shopping venues, such as the Royal Hawaiian shopping centre, the International Marketplace and the BeachWalk Entertainment Complex, as well as other local attractions, including Waikiki Aquarium and the Honolulu Zoo. Facilities This hotel was built in 1971. Travellers can feel at home in one of the 1310 rooms. In the air-conditioned establishment, guests are welcomed at the reception area with 24-hour reception and a 24-hour check-in/check-out service. Individual storeys are accessible via the lift or stairs. Amenities include a safe and a currency exchange service. Wireless internet access is available to travellers in the public areas. Among the culinary options available at the accommodation are a restaurant, a dining area, a breakfast room, a café and a bar. Various shops are available, including a supermarket. Additional facilities at the hotel include a newspaper stand. Guests arriving by car can leave their vehicles in the garage (for a fee) or in the car park (for a fee). Available services and facilities include room service, a laundry service and a hairdresser. Rooms Each of the rooms is appointed with air conditioning, central heating, a kitchen and a bathroom. The standard features of most rooms include a balcony. Many rooms feature a sea view, which further enhances the ambience. The carpeted rooms feature a double bed, a queen-size bed or a king-size bed. There is also a safe. Additional features include a fridge, a mini fridge and a tea/coffee station. An ironing set is also available for travellers' convenience. Little extras, including internet access, a telephone, a TV, a radio, an alarm clock and WiFi, contribute to a great stay. Rooms suitable for wheelchair access are bookable. The bathrooms are fitted with a shower, a bathtub and a hot tub. A hairdryer can also be found in each of the bathrooms. Bathrooms with wheelchair access can also be booked. The establishment offers family rooms and non-smoking rooms. Sports/Entertainment The accommodation features various options for cooling off on hot days, including a pool and an outdoor pool. Sun loungers on the sun terrace offer an inviting place to relax. The hot tub is the perfect place to relax. The poolside bar serves a selection of refreshing drinks. Those wishing to enjoy sports whilst on holiday can enjoy bocce on-site. Sport and leisure facilities at the hotel include a gym, billiards and darts. The establishment offers a range of services in the wellness area, such as a spa, a sauna, a steam bath and a beauty salon, and for an additional fee, massage treatments. An entertainment programme is offered for children. Meals Breakfast can be booked. Payment The following credit cards are accepted at the accommodation: American Express, VISA, Diners Club, JCB and MasterCard. Misc. There is a resort fee payable by the guest. There is a a fee for early departure. This is a smoke-free hotel.


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- Photography
- Computers
- Pro Video
- Lighting
- Pro Audio
- Mobile
- TVs & Entertainment
- Camcorders
- Surveillance
- Optics
- Audio-Visual
- Used
- Shop Categories
- Used Dept
You have until Feb 1, 2018 to return or exchange items bought after Nov 1, 2017. All other standard return policy conditions apply.
Sony has just announced the upgraded replacement for their Alpha SLT-A77 DSLR and is calling it the Sony a77II DSLR Camera. The new Sony camera is available as a body only and also as a kit with a 16-50mm f/2.8 DT lens. The a77II takes its place just behind the flagship a99 as a high-performance, fast-focusing A-mount APS-C DSLR and has improved upon the performance of its predecessor, thanks to the inclusion of the BIONZ X image processor and the new wide-coverage phase detection autofocus system with 79 AF points, including 15 cross-type points.
"The BIONZ X image processor, which enables faster overall performance and improved video capability, also enhances the reproduction of image details with sharp delineations and less noise."
Featuring a 24.3MP Exmor CMOS sensor, image quality and color reproduction on the a77II are impeccable even at high ISO sensitivities, which run from 100-25600 and are expandable to ISO 51200. The gapless sensor design and optimized on-chip lens positioning increase the light-collecting capability of the sensor, particularly at the edges and corners of the frame. The BIONZ X image processor, which enables faster overall performance and improved video capability, also enhances the reproduction of image details with sharp delineations and less noise. Integrated diffraction-reducing technology maximizes the optical performance of lenses, especially when shooting with small aperture settings. In addition to the above noted advancements, the a77II has built-in Wi-Fi connectivity with NFC for wireless image transfer and remote camera control via smart devices.
Utilizing Sony's innovative Translucent Mirror Technology and a new AF sensor with wide and dense point coverage, AF tracking performance is optimized, making the a77II an ideal camera for capturing fast-moving subjects. Improvements in the autofocus system also include the Expanded Flexible Spot that employs the 8 AF points around the select AF point to better maintain tracking focus and a more advanced Lock-on AF. The a77II realizes impressive focusing accuracy, even when a large-aperture lens is mounted, thanks to the f/2.8 AF point, placed horizontally in the center of the AF sensor. Low-light focus accuracy has been improved and other new autofocus features include Eye AF, AF Range Control, 5-Step Tracking Adjustment, and Balance Priority setting. Furthermore, the Translucent Mirror, teamed with the new BIONZ X processor, allows full-resolution continuous shooting at 12 fps and for up to 60 frames in Fine quality JPEG.
The a77II provides both an LCD monitor and the OLED Tru-Finder Electronic Viewfinder for live view image composition and playback. The 2,359k-dot Tru-Finder EVF offers wide-angle, high-contrast, and high-resolution viewing with 100% frame coverage and a 27mm eyepoint. Real-time effects of camera adjustments make shooting through the EVF a more intuitive experience; depth of field, exposure compensation and all 13 picture effects can be seen in the EVF before the image has been shot. The 3.0" 1,229k-dot 3-way tiltable LCD screen enables clear image view with a rotating, tilting capability for shooting from any angle, including up and down tilt when shooting vertically. White Magic technology improves viewing under direct sunlight.
SteadyShot INSIDE image stabilization is incorporated into the camera body so that every lens used with the a77II is provided with stabilization to reduce blur when shooting at longer shutter speeds. Also, a built-in pop-up flash with a guide number of 39' and wireless trigger capability is supported as is the Sony Multi-Interface Shoe for attaching an external flash or any number of accessories for shooting video.
The BIONZ X processor also serves to improve the video capability of the a77II. Full HD 1080 at 60p and 24p is supported and new features include 3-step AF Tracking on moving subjects, a zebra function for accurate exposure, and controllable metered audio levels for both the built-in and optional external microphones. Program, Shutter Priority, Aperture Priority and Manual exposure control are supported and recording in both the AVCHD and MP4 codecs are possible. You also have the option of capturing uncompressed HD video to an optional external recorder for super high bit-rate via the clean HDMI output.
Built-in Wi-Fi with NFC is new to the a77II, and enables immediate wireless transfer of images to your smartphone, tablet, or even Wi-Fi-enabled TV when the free PlayMemories Mobile App Version 3.0 is installed on the mobile device. NFC allows linking to an Android device with just a simple touch between camera and device and Smart Remote Control lets you use your smart device as a remote control for camera operation. Via Wi-Fi or the camera's HDMI output, still images can be transferred to 4K-compatible televisions for the utmost in high-resolution viewing.
Physically, the a77II has been made more durable and provided with enhanced weather-resistant features. A strong, yet lightweight magnesium-alloy body is complemented by double-layered dust and moisture seals around the main buttons, dials, ports, and doors. The shutter unit has been tested to endure up to 150,000 actuations. Further design refinements have made the grip more comfortable and provided the buttons with distinct shapes for tactile recognition. Eleven customizable buttons (10 on the camera body and one on select lenses) enable control over 53 assignable functions, which is a major increase over the three customizable buttons on the a77. Furthermore, the Memory Recall mode, which is located on the mode dial, can recall up to three sets of camera adjustments, and the User Interface includes the customizable Quick Navi Pro and Fn button for fast access to oft-used functions.
The Sony a77II DSLR camera is available as a body only but also with 16-50mm f/2.8 DT lens, which provides a versatile set of focal lengths equivalent to 24-75mm in the 35mm/full-frame format. A fast f/2.8 maximum aperture is effective in low light and offers shallow depth of field. Extra-low dispersion glass and aspherical lens elements minimize aberrations and lend themselves to sharp, high-contrast imaging. The SSM Super Sonic Wave Motor provides fast, smooth, and silent autofocus, which is the perfect complement for the new AF system on the a77II.
|Sony a77II DSLR
|Sony a77 DSLR
|Lens Mount
|Image Sensor
|Exmor APS-C HD CMOS Sensor (23.5 X 15.6mm)
|Exmor APS-C HD CMOS Sensor (23.5 X 15.6mm)
|Effective Pixels
|Total Pixels
|Maximum Resolution
|6000 x 4000
|6000 x 4000
|Image Processor
|Aspect Ratio
|3:2; 16:9
|3:2; 16:9
|Still Image File Format
|JPEG; RAW (Sony ARW 2.3 format)
|JPEG; RAW (Sony ARW 2.3 format); 3D MPO
|Storage Media
|SD, SDHC, SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo, PRO-HG Duo, XC-HG Duo
|SD, SDHC, SDXC, Memory Stick Pro Duo, PRO-HG Duo
|Card Slot
|1x Dual Compatability Slot
|1x Dual Compatability Slot
|Viewfinder Type
|2,359k-dot XGA OLED Tru-Finder Electronic Viewfinder
|2,359k-dot XGA OLED Tru-Finder Electronic Viewfinder
|Frame Coverage
|1.09x (35mm equivalent: 0.71x)
|1.09x (35mm equivalent: 0.71x)
|27mm from the eyepiece
|27mm from the eyepiece
|Diopter Adjustment
|-4.0 to +3.0m-1
|-4.0 to +3.0m-1
|Shutter Type
|Electronically-controlled, vertical-traverse, focal-plane type
|Electronically-controlled, vertical-traverse, focal-plane type
|Shutter Speed
|1/8000th to 30 sec./ Bulb
|1/8000th to 30 sec./ Bulb
|Flash Sync Speed
|1/250th sec
|1/250th sec
|Drive Modes
|Single, Continuous (Hi/Lo), Self Timer, Bracket
|Single, Continuous (Hi/Lo), Self Timer, Bracket
|Top Continuous Shooting Rate
|12 fps in Full Resolution
|12 fps in Full Resolution
|2 sec, 10 sec, Delay
|2 sec, 10 sec, Delay
|Exposure Metering System
|1200-zone Evaluative Metering
|1200-zone Evaluative Metering
|Metering Method
|Multi-segment, Center-weighted, Spot
|Multi-segment, Center-weighted, Spot
|Metering Range
|EV -2 to EV 17 (at ISO 100 equivalent with f/1.4 lens attached)
|EV -2 to EV 17 (at ISO 100 equivalent with f/1.4 lens attached)
|Exposure Modes
|iAuto, Superior Auto, Scene Selection, Sweep Panorama, Continuous Advance Priority AE, Movie, Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter-speed Priority, Manual, Memory Recall
|Auto, Scene Selection, Sweep Panorama, 3D Sweep Panorama, Continuous Advance Priority AE, Movie, Program, Aperture Priority, Shutter-speed Priority, Manual, Memory Recall
|Exposure Compensation
|+/-5.0 EV (1/3 EV or 1/2 EV steps)
|+/-5.0 EV (1/3 EV or 1/2 EV steps)
|Exposure Bracketing
|Bracket: Cont./Bracket: Single, With 1/3EV, 1/2EV, 2/3EV, 1.0EV, 2.0EV, 3.0EV increments, 3 /5frames
|Bracket: Cont./Bracket: Single, With 1/3EV, 1/2EV, 2/3EV, 1.0EV, 2.0EV, 3.0EV increments, 3 /5frames
|ISO Sensitivity
|100-25600 (1/3 EV Step); Expandable: 50-51200
|100-16000 (1/3 EV Step); Expandable: 50-25600
|Autofocus System
|TTL Phase-detection AF
|TTL Phase-detection AF
|Number of Focus Points
|79 points with 15 cross-type points and 1 center f/2.8 point
|19 points with 11 cross-type points
|Focus Modes
|Autofocus: Single-shot AF, Continuous AF, Automatic AF; Manual Focus
|Autofocus: Single-shot AF, Continuous AF, Automatic AF; Manual Focus
|Autofocus Sensitivity
|EV -2 to EV 18 (at ISO 100 equivalent)
|EV -1 to EV 18 (at ISO 100 equivalent)
|Built-In Flash
|Flash Control
|ADI, Pre-flash TTL, Manual
|ADI, Pre-flash TTL, Manual
|Flash Modes
|Off, Auto, Fill-flash, Slow Sync., Red-eye Reduction, Rear Sync, Wireless, Hi-Speed Sync
|Off, Auto, Fill-flash, Slow Sync., Red-eye Reduction, Rear Sync, Wireless
|Flash Compensation
|+/- 3.0 EV (1/3 and 1/2 EV steps)
|+/- 3.0 EV (1/3 and 1/2 EV steps)
|Flash Bracketing
|1/3, 1/2, 2/3, 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 EV steps, 3/5 frames selectable
|1/3, 1/2, 2/3, 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 EV steps, 3/5 frames selectable
|External Flash Interface
|Multi-Interface Shoe
|Sony Accessory Shoe
|White Balance Modes
|Auto / Daylight/ Shade/ Cloudy/ Incandescent/ Fluorescent(Warm White, Cool White, Day White, Daylight), Flash, Color Temp (2500 to 9900K), Color Filter (G7 to M7, A7 to B7), Custom (1,2,3), Custom Set
|Auto / Daylight/ Shade/ Cloudy/ Incandescent/ Fluorescent(Warm White, Cool White, Day White, Daylight), Flash, Color Temp (2500 to 9900K), Color Filter (G7 to M7), 15-Step, Custom, AWB Micro Adjustment
|White Balance Bracketing
|3 frames, H/L selectable
|3 frames, H/L selectable
|Movie Recording
|1920 x 1080; 60, 50, 25, 24 fps;
1440 x 1080; 30, 25 fps
1280 x 720; 30 fps; 640 x 480; 30, 25 fps
|1920 x 1080; 60, 50, 25, 24 fps;
1440 x 1080; 30, 25 fps
640 x 480; 30, 25 fps
|Movie Metering
|TTL exposure metering using main image sensor
|TTL exposure metering using main image sensor
|File Format
|AVCHD 2.0 (Progressive), MP4
|AVCHD 2.0 (Progressive), MP4
|Audio Recording
|Built-in Stereo Microphone; 3.5mm External Stereo Microphone jack
|Built-in Stereo Microphone; 3.5mm External Stereo Microphone jack
|Audio File Format
|AVCHD:Dolby Digital (AC-3) 2ch, Dolby Digital Stereo Creator; MP4:MPEG-4 AAC-LC 2ch
|AVCHD:Dolby Digital (AC-3) 2ch, Dolby Digital Stereo Creator; MP4:MPEG-4 AAC-LC 2ch
|External Microphone Input
|Yes, 3.5 mm stereo minijack
|Yes, 3.5 mm stereo minijack
|Headphone Jack
|Maximum Recording Time
|29 minutes
|29 minutes
|3.0" 1,228,800 dot TFT LCD
|3.0" 921,600 dot TFT LCD
|Monitor Viewing Angle
|Tilt Up 150°; Tilt Down 180°; 180° Clockwise Rotation; 90° Counterclockwise Rotation
|Tilt Up 150°; Tilt Down 180°; 180° Clockwise Rotation; 90° Counterclockwise Rotation
|HDMI Micro (Type D), Micro USB 2.0, Multi-Interface Shoe, PC Remote. Sync Terminal, DC IN Terminal
|HDMI Mini (Type C), Micro USB 2.0, Auto-lock Accessory Shoe, PC Remote. Sync Terminal, DC IN Terminal
|Yes, with NFC
|Power Source
|NP-FM500H Rechargeable Li-Ion Battery Pack and AC-PW10AM AC Adapter (optional)
|NP-FM500H Rechargeable Li-Ion Battery Pack and AC-PW10AM AC Adapter (optional)
|Battery Life
|410 Shots w/ Viewfinder; 480 Shots w/ LCD; 110-120 minutes for Video (CIPA)
|470 Shots w/ Viewfinder; 530 Shots w/ LCD; 185 minutes for Video (CIPA)
|Operating Environment
|5.6 x 4.1 x 3.2" / 143 x 104 x 81 mm
|5.6 x 4.1 x 3.2" / 143 x 104 x 81 mm
|1.4 lb / 647 g (body only)
|1.4 lb / 653 g (body only)
Im very interested in buying this camera Ive heard there is an adapter for canon lenses Do you stock it and what is its name? Thanks very much
This is a revised reply. My previous post included a link to an adapter which was not applicable for this combination. Unfortunately we do not currently carry or offer any adapter to allow one to mount a Canon EOS lens onto an Alpha-mount camera. I am sorry for any confusion my previous post may have caused.
The link is to the wrond adapter. The adapter the link is for is for Canon lenses to be used on an E-mount camera (A6000,A7,A7r), and is not for the A-mount system for Sony A99, A77, A77II, etc.
I have seen conflicting information about the A-77II regarding whether or not it has an integral autofocus motor which would make it fully compatible with older Minolta and Sony autofocus lenses which use the screw drive autofocus method instead of the newer hypersonic wave motors. Can you answer whether this camera body does or does not have the older autofocus motor?
Will the lenses for my Konica minolta 7D maxxum fit on the Sony Alpha 77 M2 DSLR without an adapter?
The A99 grip is not compatible with the A77 II. You would need the Sony Vertical Battery Grip for Alpha SLT-A77.
No over/under cranking. No headphone jack to monitor audio(unacceptable). No USB 3. No 2K. Certainly No 4k. Still the same video writing wait time between shots. And where are the new Alpha Lenses? Quit with all the different mounts and adapters. So frustrating.
Listen I love my a77. I picked it because of the video capabilities I considered better than the similar Cannon/Nikon. But when I see the new Panasonic 4K and Sony A7s it's just disappointing there are not more advancements for us video shooters. And this certainly makes me question if Sony is still serious about this line.
I use the (a77) all the time for plant and wilderness pictures. The GPS is vary important to me so that I can go back to the same place and see the way a plant or location has changed over time.
I don't think that I would use the Wi-Fi at all. If I am at my computer I would use the SD card slot. I don't think that I would use a TV to look at pictures or video. That's why I have a computer!
OK Sony!
NO GPS, NO Buy!
Will the vertical grip for the A77 fit the A77II?
Will the older Minolta auto focus lenses benefit from the additional focus points in the A77II?
Can the current flash for the A77 fit the A77II? If not, please list adapter needed.
Many thanks, Bill Aubuchon
1. Yes, the Sony Vertical Battery Grip for Alpha SLT-A77 Camera is compatible with both the Sony SLT-A77 and the SLT-A77 II DSLR cameras.
2. As the focus points are built into the camera, yes, you would still have the benefit of the extra focusing points in the SLT-A77 II.
3. If you own the Sony A77 and wish to use your current hot shoe flashes with the new A77 II, you would need the Sony Multi-Interface Shoe Adapter, B&H # SOADPMAA, for your needs. If the opposite is true (you own the A77 II and wish to use the new flashes with the Multi Interface shoe on the older A77, then you would need the Sony Auto-Lock Shoe Adapter, B&H # SOADPAMA, for your needs.
Thank you very much for the report. I would like to add some hints regarding tethering of A77II. The Playmemories Mobile app that can run on A77II has the nice feature of liveview. But unfortunatley nothing more than a simple shutter button. It is not posssible to install e.g. timelapse app (as known from A7x cameras). For everyone who is searching for stable remote control (including a wireless feature), I recommend te Android App RCCDroidPro from Google Play Store
with a lot of exciting features:
I have an a77ii, I don't want to tether to my android phone but instead to a laptop.
Can someone please help me to do this????? I have attached a screenshot of what i need it to do in the way of preferences. I need to be able to change the file name after each team that I shoot. The screen shot is from a program by Breeze Systems (UK). I need live view as well
Unfortunately your screen shot did not carry over onto this post. In order for us to regard the shot and research options to offer you, please send us an email directly to firstname.lastname@example.com and include the shot as a jpeg attatchment, and our agents there will reply back with any possible options and recommendations for you. Thank you in advance.
Can you please give the shutter life number. If its like 150,000 its a no go. Being a sports shooter the 12fps number would get you to 150,000 rather quickly.
I plan on keeping my A77. I plan on purchasing the new A77II when available. I have three questions.
1. I own a sony battery grip for my A77. Will it also work on the A77II.
2. I own several sony lenses and also some older Minolta glass. Will my old Minolta glass focus faster with the new A77II?
3. It appears that the new A77II has the same flash shoe configuragtion as the A99. So, I am assuming that my flash, a sony 43 will not work on the new A77II. I will need an adapter???
According to Sony's site, the a77 II will be compatible with the same grip as the first version of the camera: VG-C77AM. While the a77 II does have a redesigned autofocus system, until the camer is released and reveiws start being released, it would be impossible to say how much faster, if any, the autofocus would be with older Minolta lenses. The a77 II does have the newer multi-interface shoe, so you would need the Sony Multi-Interface Shoe Adapter to use your F43AM flash.
We have confirmed with Sony that the new a77II DSLR does not have integrated GPS. It does however include built-in Wi-Fi connectivity.
I think you'll have to recorrrect your specs. The a77ii does not have GPS. It was replaced by WiFI with NFC
Thank you gentleman, we are confirming with Sony regarding integrated GPS in the a77II and will clarify shortly.

subset: commoncrawl


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Our focus is on you, the client, to insure you know and understand the details necessary to make a sound, confident financial decisions prior to purchasing real estate. We employ the best practices of home inspection and we are all licensed professional. Our report documents are clear, concise and combine an assessment and narrative on the conditions and deficiencies we reveal during our site inspection. Our clients benefit greatly from over 133 years of combined experience.
Home Inspection Assoc. Inc provides no other construction, building, renovation or repair services. This is necessary to preclude any conflict of interest and to provide an unbiased inspection focused entirely on the buyers concerns.
We service Eastern Massachusetts, including the Worcester area and Cape Cod, and southern New Hampshire. We are available 7 days a week for questions and to schedule appointments.
Buying a home is still the single largest investment most people will ever make. It is stressful and requires a great deal of important decisions. It's wise to hire a home inspector who has the knowledge and experience to inspect the condition of the home and will be around for many years to answer any of your questions. Having a detailed, easy to understand report and a reliable and trustworthy contact, even with new construction, will prepare you for any potential problems you encounter. Our job is to set your mind at ease and give you the facts to make good decisions.
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Our professional home inspections are very useful for Home Sellers as well. By obtaining a home inspection before you put your home on the market, you get a better understanding of the condition of the property, possibly improving its, "curb appeal" before presenting it to potential buyers. Even when you have lived in the home for many years, our clients often find the new information very helpful, and it makes the selling process move a lot smoother.
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This isnt the Sound of freaking Music were watching.......sdl
My opinion of what happened with Arie is that he dated a girl for 2 years faithfully, they broke up, he embraced being single for a little bit and the girls he met he was not in love with or serious about any of them so he just had fun. I think if Arie is really in love with a girl he will not play them. I feel like he really is falling in love with Emily and wouldn't be a player with her.
I'm sure there are several reasons why guys go on the show...all of them know there's the chance to find love but I'm sure there other reasons sometimes. Even Wes who came on Jillian's season...if he initially came one to promote himself if he really fell in love with her it wouldn't matter. Now if someone goes on the show and they already have a serious girlfriend and they know who the bachelorette is and have no attraction to her whatsoever then maybe that is wrong to do that. Or if the are on the show and they aren't falling for the person they shouldn't pretend to be. I don't think Arie is pretending to be falling for her...it's obvious he really is so whatever his other reasons for coming on the show don't matter now and he is there for the right reasons now.
I would be just fine with a guy being a little "feminine" (I don't really think that is the word we are looking for, but I can't think of the one I want to use.)
We see how being SOOOOOO manly worked for Ryan.
Feminine, feminine, feminine, what? I don't get what those of you using that term are meaning by it. Very confusing. What are these feminine behaviors people think he's exhibiting? I'm not seeing it at all. And I don't think you can be weak and still drive race cars, can you?
He seems like a normal average guy to me. Being obsessed with your muscles seems a bit odd to me, rather than normal, frankly. Plus I think Arie's natural physique tends more to long smooth muscles than round bulgy muscles -- everyone is built differently.
Arie just has a babyface is all. It will come to serve him (and his wife) well, as he ages. I think he's adorable =D
HE IS SENSUAL!! (Where is the drool smiley when I need it?)


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Forum of Private Businesses calls on firms to inspect terms of new BT contract
The Forum of Private Business (FPB) has told small businesses that they should scrutinise the terms of a new service contract with BT.
This Article Covers
The Forum of Private Business (FPB) has told small businesses that they should scrutinise the terms of a new service contract with BT.
From today (February 20), BT is upgrading single, standard phone lines to allow customers to redirect their incoming calls to another number, fixed or mobile - when their line is busy, when there is no answer, or when they are away from the office.
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Join us as we sit down with a number of senior IT managers from multi-national enterprises to discuss the latest trends in the world of software-defined networks.
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This call divert service normally costs £6 a quarter (exc VAT), but BT is providing this at no cost, except for the call charges, providing the customer accepts a new 12-month minimum contract, said BT.
"Business owners should be very careful and scrutinise their terms and conditions when they are signing up. It is imperative that they take action now to avoid being tied into this contract," said the FPB's Senior Member Services Representative, Philip Moody.
BT said that customers have been contacted by letter. Those who would prefer not to have their line upgraded were asked to contact us by February 19.
"We will be contacting all customers - those who have declined the upgrade and those who haven't - to confirm their choice and the terms and conditions. Customers can still ask for the call divert service to be removed at any time until May 19 and the 12-month minimum contract will not apply," BT said in a statement.
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Number 398, December 17, 2006
"The Great Moratorium"
Libertarian Party as Endorsing Party
Credit The Libertarian Enterprise
As a longtime Libertarian (see [my Wikipedia entry]), I have a number of comments related to the direction of the Libertarian Party:
Stephen Gordon, whom I know, respect, and like, has stated that LP candidates indicate they need more money, media exposure, and a larger base of volunteers. With all due respects to Stephen, there's nothing all that new about those, but given that Michael Badnarik of Texas had a pretty good cache of all three in his bid for state house, how did he lose so badly? My point is not that Mike is a bad candidate (far from it)its just that money, media exposure, and more volunteers aren't sufficient to win an election. What is needed is a "hot button" issue that a candidate can use to rise to powerone that his or her constituents actually care about. "Liberty" and "freedom" and "lower taxation" are clearly not winners with voter (sadly). In the absence of a hot button issue, helping to solve voter's everyday problems might give you a chance. These problems need to be clearly identified, specific, and acutenot chronic, long-term issues.
It is difficult for Libertarians to be diabolically cynical enough to resort to demogoguery, but it is quite fairand I would argue necessaryfor us to be opportunistic and seize hot-button issues, warp them to our purposes, and use them. Focusing on only one or two issues is probably the right strategy. When you win, work with others on an ecumenical basis to solve that issue, and you just might earn enough respect to get to play again. You might even impress voters that you can help solve their real problems. You will certainly gain media attention if you seize hot-button issues. Patrick Buchanan could wineasilya seat to Congress if he picked the right district. He can't win as President, and there is a lesson in that, too: hot button issues only go so far.
It is also clear that you must either have a high enough concentration of libertarians and sympathizers to win, or you must not run as a Libertarian Party candidate. The first has a solution in the Free State Project and in the Free Wyoming Project. The second is likely heresy in the LP, but is also quite true, historically speaking.
Given that, one answer to the second point is to use the LP as an endorsing body, sort of a political arm of the Cato Institute (but, hopefully, more pure) as a source of money, talent, resources, labor, and most importantly ideas for the two duopolist parties (some would say monopolist statist party). The two main parties are bankrupt of ideas, but can be used as springboards to office. The LP has no shortage of ideas, but is a cracked diving board to obtain office. The answer is pretty obvious, if we have the courage to simply acknowledge reality. We had a terrific Presidential candidate in Michael Badnarikhard working, dedicated, principled, erudite, witty, and photogenic. We got creamed. On the other hand, we have won local office when we have been able to focus on issues, solve them, and prove ourselves.
And by the way, ideology bores the American public. You can't win if you aren't the sort of person the average voters perceives as a leader, so be successful in your private lifethen translate that success to office.
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October 2nd, 2007, 09:37 PM
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I think the newbies would not realize the difference between solo and singles cruising. Sometimes I tell people about booking with a group if meeting other singles is there goal and they want to increase their odds, then if they traveled solo. I enjoy cruising with a group, but I have also been considering some solo or non singles group cruises. For me the reason I go is to travel and and experiance new places, and activitys in the ports.
I have a very outgoing side and a quiet keep to myself side. I actually spent the first 3 days of my recent singles cruise trying to escape from would be suiters I was not interested in at all. It was getting on my nerves that some men cannot read body language. While some would say it's a compliment I was not amused. And while I like the group activitys at times between the group activitys and those offered on the ship, it's simply too much to do and frankly exhausting. Therefore cruising with friends or going solo is looking better to me. Though I have made some life long friends as a result of singles cruising.I would welcome another board for solo cruisers, as well.
Please note RCL has some great rates for solo cruisers now.
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Listed by Patrick Hackley of Fountains Land Inc.
Call Four Seasons Sotheby's International Realty Real Estate for more information.
Lot Size: 2709 acres
Price/Acre: $849
Property Description
A large, central New Hampshire property offering long term timber appreciation, high mountain peaks and streams, and unique homestead possibilities.Three state forests encircle the parcel - Cockermouth to the east, Cardigan to the south, and Province Road to the west. The Sculptured Rocks Natural Area sits just southeast of the land. These significant public tracts, intermingled with equally large private holdings, offer an outstanding view from the lands upper road spur, a choice location for those seeking an inspiring mountain retreat. The forest management history has created exemplary young to middle-aged stands dominated by growing stock and small sawlog size classes. The forest is comprised of predominantly hardwood species and associated softwoods.The resource is well-matched to the buyer seeking timber asset appreciation in association with activities to enhance the lands recreational and homestead estate potential.
- Property Type: Land
- Zoning: mixed
- Acreage: 2709
- Lot description: River, Timber, Wooded
- Date Showings Begin:
- Delayed Showing: Unknown
- State: NH
- Street: Sculptured Rocks Road
- Building Number:
- Development/Subdivision: 0
- Zip Code: 03266
- County: NH-Grafton
- Town: Groton
- Area Description: Adjoins St/Nat'l Forest, Mountain, Rural
- Elementary School:
- Junior High:
- High School:
- Water: None
- Sewer: None
- Electric: At Street
- Services:
- Land Restrictions:
Water Body
- Water Body Type: Creek
- Taxes: $757
The New England Real Estate Network provides Multiple Listing Services (MLS) in the States of New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts and Maine.
Copyright© 2018 The New England Real Estate Network. All rights reserved. This information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. The data relating to real estate displayed on this Site comes in part from the IDX Program of NEREN. The information being provided is for consumers personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing. Data last updated on 03/19/2018.


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Good day! Welcome back to my parlor. Yes, the lockdown emergency from last week has passed. In its place, however, a new situation has arisen. Seems this location received the greatest concentration of psychic blasts during the storm last week. As a result, the Fortune Telling Commission has decided to conduct an audit here. No big deal, right? Well, not exactly. These FTC agents are a pain in the neck. Theyre supposed to be the best of the best, and Ill grant you they have incredible command of The Infinite. But, honestly, do they have to go around answering your questions before you ask them all the time? Yesterday, one of them came up to me with an excited look on his face and said, Yes, that would be wonderful! Ill take two. So then I spent the next twenty minutes trying to guess what I was going to say at some point in the future. And if you get it wrong, you have to go back and keep trying until you determine what you are destined to say but havent said yet. In this case, it turns out I offered the guy donuts, which, by the way, we didnt have on-hand so I had to drive fifteen minutes out of my way to buy some. Another woman says, Thank you. Its so nice of you to remember. After a little bit of research, I discover Im supposed to wish her a happy birthday two or three days later! Its just impossible to keep up with these people. Its like being forced to play Jeopardy! all day every day, only without the urbane, witty host. The weird thing is they get all flustered and cant respond if you ask them a question before they answer it. Sometimes, I almost think the only questions they can answer are ones from the future. I dont know where they find those people, but they sure make us normal seers feel inadequate. Anyway, while theyre conducting their investigations into the mystic structural anomalies associated with this building, well sit here and explore this weeks episode of Survivor. Much nicer to be indoors this week, isnt it? Especially with the wind howling out there and the freak swarm of locusts massing outside the main doors. Yeah, maybe there is something strange about this place. Ah, there we go. Look inside my cracked crystal ball. See the words of this weeks title taking shape? Sounds interesting! Its
Prowl Back To Sea Guard
Its a warm and sunny morning in the Islands of Fire. At Yasur Beach, the merry sounds of aimless industry fill the air. Twila is hard at work, but the purpose of her effort is unclear. Although the shelter is already as constructed as its going to be, she continues to hack away at bamboo with the tribal machete. While the other members of the tribe sit drowsily by the fire or try to wring a few more moments of rest from the morning back in the shelter, the urgent ping-clacking of the machete striking the bamboo wears away on their psyches like the tide attacking a sand castle. The only person who appears to be unaware or at least unaffected by the torturous noise is Eliza, who is loudly telling the story of the last time shed been in a situation in which another person was smashing away at bamboo with a machete really early in the morning, a story which takes place the previous day.
Finally, Ami, who has been hunched over with her head by her knees and her hands over her ears, stands up and claps her hands once. OK, Twila, stop. Stop. You, too, Eliza.
Eliza frowns. But Im just getting to the good part.
Ami shakes her head. Nope, youre done. Its time to do Twilas hair. We need to all have a tribal moment here and get her hair done up right. Its been a rough couple of days, and we need to reconnect as a group.
And touching Twilas hair will help us reconnect? Julie asks in disbelief.
I aint sure I want you all touchin my hair, anyways, Twila says. I got it just the way I like it right now.
Ami smiles reassuringly at her. Umm, no, you dont. See, what you are is three things: youre terrified, youre in denial, and youre conflicted. Part of you wants to see what we can do, but youre afraid of being made a fool of so you deny your interest to hide your fear and avoid the risk of rejection.
Twila says nothing, but a single tear snakes down her determinedly stoic face as she slowly sits down near the group.
Wow, says Eliza. They sure give you good training in those coffee houses.
Id like to help! Lisa says brightly.
Oo, back off, traitor! Eliza snaps. You sunk a knife in our back last night. Im not having anything to do with you. I just dont respect people that go all commando on their alliances. In fact, Im reminded of the time when this other person I know stabbed someone in the back. It was a long time back, like two days ago or something. This one other person was all talking about how she didnt know who she was going to vote for, and so this person I know -
Scout plugs her ears and yells at Eliza to be quiet. For heavens sake, girl, dont you realize we were all here for that story? Dont you think we recognize you as the other person?
Elizas voice trails off, and her jaw hangs open for a few moments. Oh, youre right, she says. That was me! She brings a hand up and cups her chin with it as she stares at the ground. Now what do I do? I dont respect myself!
Dont mind that, Ami says excitedly. Lets get to work on Twilas hair. Anyone bring a comb as a luxury item? The chirpy, busy sounds of the jungle are her only answer. OK, she says. Anyone know of any splintered sticks we could use?
Nope! Twila says, standing abruptly and retrieving her machete. No, maam. I will not have you fancypantses shovin sticks in my hair. See, I knew it was all just a big trick to get me to look stupid. Thats why I dont trust women. I bet youd have enjoyed seeing me prancing around with a set of elk antlers on my head, wouldnt you? All of you? Yeah, I see how ya are. She whacks the bamboo branch at double-speed with the machete.
Ami stares at her with wide, sad eyes. Well, I think youd have enjoyed it, honestly, she says, her voice heavy with regret, as if shed just been forced to report that the latte machine was broken.
Dont worry, a voice says from inches away. We wouldnt have had time, anyway.
Ami screams and plunges to the ground in fear and surprise, then peers up at the source of the unexpected commentary. Oh, geez, Leann. You scared me! Were you there that whole time?
Actually, no, Leann says, seeming to shimmer in and out of sight as the bright sunlight plays over her through the tree cover overhead. Id taken a walk to retrieve our Tree Mail. She hands a scroll to Scout. Were almost late for the Reward Challenge.
With a collective shriek of alarm at the thought of Jeffs reaction to their being late, the rest of the tribe thunders off into the trees en route to Challenge Beach.
Hey, Leann says. Wait. Its not there this time. Its just over here. She points a few feet down the beach. Jeff waves back. She shrugs and heads over to her tribes mat. Lopevi hasnt arrived yet, either. Leann and Jeff look at each other in embarrassed, awkward silence.
Beautiful weather today, Jeff says after a lengthy pause.
Oh, geez, yeah. Just gorgeous! The best, Leann says enthusiastically. Another painful silence ensues. The two make brief eye contact, then look away quickly. So, Jeff, why did you pick this location this time? Leann asks after a while.
Well, you know, thats an interesting question, Jeff says, nodding in excitement. Back in the Pearl Islands, we kept visiting new beaches every time we dragged the tribes out of camp for a Challenge. Havent done that so much this time. I guess we just got bored today. Wanted to mix it up. The cameras whirr loudly as the two stare quietly at each other again. Finally, Jeff claps his hands once and rubs them together. Ah, here they come! he exclaims. Excellent! He strains out a smile and glances at his wristwatch.
In a little while, both tribes are assembled on their mats, and Jeff breathes a visible sigh of relief. Hey! Scout says in surprise. Leanns here! Wow, we completely forgot about you just now. We regrouped in the trees and had a quick roll call, and you just slipped our minds. Were very lucky you knew where you were going. You shouldnt just wander off like that again, young lady. She holds up one hand and wiggles her index finger side to side.
OK, Jeff says. Lets focus, people. Its time to get this thing started. Now, as youre aware, were located in the beautiful Islands of FIRE!
Perhaps its the inflection of Jeffs voice as he shouts the final word or the wild gleam in his eye before he throws his head back. Maybe its the faint sound of a safety clicking off. Whatever the reason, Sarge, Brady, and Scout dive to the ground before Jeff finishes speaking. On impulse, most of the other Survivors follow suit just as the harsh chatter of machine gun fire erupts from the nearby forest. The remaining stragglers scream out and join the others on the ground with their arms covering their heads.
Just as quickly as it began, the sound of gunfire ends and is replaced by Jeffs raucous laughter. Oh, man! he says, mopping his face with his shirt sleeve. That was priceless! You can all stand up. I was just testing you. You really do have to stay on your toes here in the Islands of FIRE! Everyone dives again, but no shots are fired. Jeff whoops loudly. Excellent! You crazy fools are trainable. I would never have guessed. You really had nothing to worry about. They were all firing blanks. But its always best to be safe. He pauses and rubs his lips with two fingers on his left hand. Tell me something, Scout. Why did you dive so rapidly?
She smiles mysteriously. Ive done a lot of things in my life, Jeff, she says. I recognize that familiar sense of impending gunplay. What Im curious about is why Brady took a dive. She looks over at him and raises an eyebrow.
Sarge laughs. What, youve never seen a milkman before? he asks. Theyre all taught to save the merchandise when theyre delivering to the hood.
Elizas eyes widen, if thats possible. Hes a milkman?!
Thats right, Brady says smoothly. I deliver delicious milk and other wholesome dairy products to underprivileged inner city families in L.A.
Awwww! the women coo in unison.
Trumped me! Chad exclaims in despair.
Oh, please, people! Sarge exclaims. Hes so obviously not a milkman! Hes hiding something. Hes expertly trained. Hes lethal, for petes sake! This guy is the most dangerous thing on this entire island. With the exception of our host, of course. Jeff closes his eyes and nods once in appreciative acknowledgement.
Have you ever had a milk bottle shot out of your hand? Julie asks shyly. Whats that like?
All right, folks! Jeff says firmly. Thats enough chit-chat. Lets get on with it. Todays Challenge once again pays tribute to the mysterious culture of the Vanuatu. As you know, magic is a big part of their daily lives, and one thing they love to do is brew potions. In addition, a particular mystic icon of the Vanuatu people is an indigenous island life form that the women have already made the acquaintance of a couple days ago. Ladies, do you know what Im talking about?
Those little bugs that bite you all the time? Eliza asks, scratching her right arm.
Uh, no, Jeff says. Im speaking, of course, of the wild Vanuatu chicken, revered above all other island denizens as the bearer of dark magical powers. Consider the chicken you women discovered the other day. Twila had it cornered and was preparing to kill it, right?
You guys have seen chickens? Chris gasps, his jaw slack with hungry desire.
I dont know how that little feller got away, Twila says. I had him dead to rights.
You see? Jeff says. Mysterious. Todays Challenge is called A Chicken in Every Pot. Each tribe will receive a large black cauldron in which to prepare your potion. On my go, youll split up your tribe and find the necessary ingredients to create a traditional chicken-raising potion. Some of you will carry the heavy cauldron to the sea and fill it halfway with water, then bring it back and place it over the fire that others of you will have started. The remainder of your tribe will be gathering supplies. Youll start by putting together the jigsaw puzzle contained in the cloth sack inside your pot. Once solved, this puzzle will provide a list of ingredients, all of which are easy to find in the jungle itself. Once your potion is brewing, one tribe member will climb one of these knotted ropes and retrieve a rubber chicken from the branch its tied to. Throw the chicken in the pot. First tribe to have their rubber chicken come to life and fly away wins Reward. Want to know what youre playing for?
It has to fly away? Bubba asks in disbelief. Who cares what were playing for? Nobodys ever gonna win it.
Jeff smiles coldly. Want to know what youre playing for? he repeats, a hard edge in his voice. The Survivors hastily mumble their assent. Jeff walks over to a small table covered with a canvas tarpaulin. He pulls aside the tarp as he speaks. Set of wild chicken decoys, he says. And some slingshots. You can even have the tarp so you can set up a chicken blind and do some chicken hunting one of these mornings.
Wow, what a Reward, John says sarcastically.
Hey! Jeff snaps. These things really work. The Vanuatu swear by em. You want to eat chicken for dinner, dont you? The Survivors nod. One of these decoys is even an egg-laying chicken.
Oh, now THAT would be useful, Scout says eagerly. Show us!
All right, Jeff says. He selects a decoy with wild-looking black and white stripes and grips its head firmly. When he pulls down on the head, a plastic egg drops out of the rear of the decoy and rolls to a stop on the edge of the table.
Whats inside? Scout asks breathlessly.
Nothing, Jeff says, squashing the egg loudly under his fist. And you only have a few of these to play with so dont lose em. You reload them by raising the chickens back like so. He reveals a concealed lid in the chickens back and points inside. OK, he says. Enough intro. I think half our viewing audience has changed channels by now after all this monotonous blabbing. He raises one arm. Survivors ready? Go!
The Survivors shout in surprise and quickly huddle together in tribes to divvy up responsibilities. The men choose Sarge and Bubba to drag the heavy black cauldron to the waters edge. Before they go, they heave and grunt and push it on its side. A cloth sack inside slides out onto the beach. Brady and Chad grab the puzzle pieces inside and get to work. There are several matches, as well, which they hand off to John and Chris, who run off to get a fire going. Rory shoves his hands in his pockets and whistles as he watches a bird fly by.
The women are having more difficulty with their cauldron, but Eliza is able to climb up and over the side to retrieve the sack. She and Scout begin making the fire while Leann and Julie get to work on the puzzle. The remaining three women wrestle the giant black pot down to the ocean.
With water in it, of course, the pot is even heavier so Sarge and Bubba yell for Rory to help them. He is crouching near a flower and examining its petals when the call for help arrives. He stands dreamily and smiles at the two men by the water, waving at them in acknowledgement of their cries. Get down here NOW! Sarge roars, rippling Rorys clothing with the force of his command, even at a distance of fifty yards.
By now, the women have their fire going, and Eliza and Scout run down the beach to help the others bring the pot back. Its neck and neck! Jeff cries. We should have thrown a balance beam activity in there somehow, too. That would have made it even more exciting!
Both tribes get their pots bubbling just as the puzzle-solvers start hollering out ingredients to find. For several frenzied minutes, the Survivors swarm the beach and the forest, gathering such ordinary items as bamboo sticks and limes. Finally, its time to climb the knotted rope. The men tab Brady, of course, after his success with the greased pole. The women select Twila, who does an outstanding job, but its really no contest. Brady looks like hes riding an elevator, he ascends so quickly. He yanks the rubber chicken off the top of the branch and simply lets go, dropping gracefully to the beach. He tucks and rolls, then leaps to his feet and throws the rubber chicken in the roiling pot. Instantly, the chicken convulses and squawks, then propels itself out of the hot water, flapping frantically over the side of the pot and down to the ground. It looks at the Survivors curiously, and they stare in amazement at the confused and featherless rubber chicken. It blinks nervously a couple times, then flaps its rubber wings and flies off into the trees.
Jeff, his jaw totally slack, finally raises his arms and yells, Lopevi wins Reward! As he hands off the chicken decoys and slingshots, he says, I saw a lot of strange things in the Amazon with that Matt character, but this really takes the cake. Heres your tarp. Have fun.
The next day, the Survivors are in readiness all day for the Immunity Challenge, but no Tree Mail is ever delivered. Finally, at the end of the day, when both tribes have bedded down for the evening, they are visited by the rubber chicken. It carries a rolled-up scroll in its beak, inviting the tribes down to Challenge Beach for a nighttime Challenge. Yawning and grumbling, they don their Challenge outfits and stumble through the dark to the site of the next contest. Jeff is waiting for them amidst a throng of Vanuatu tribesmen.
When the tribes have settled on their mats, Jeff says, Welcome, everyone, to your next Immunity Challenge. I trust youre all sufficiently rested. He laughs at his own joke, but nobody joins him. Im sure you all remember my friends here. He makes a quick gesture with his hand, and the Vanuatu warriors advance rapidly on the Survivors, waving their spears and making a big racket like they did on the first day. This is the Vanuatu army, Jeff explains over the din. Otherwise known as the Land Guard. Now if youll follow me to the waters edge... He heads down to the ocean, and the Survivors squeeze through the rowdy members of the Land Guard to follow him. When they arrive at his side, a loud roar erupts from the water, and several Vanuatu canoes race to shore, their occupants yelling wildly and paddling with great enthusiasm. And this is the elite Vanuatu navy, Jeff continues. The Sea Guard. In todays Challenge, you will be pitted against these two formidable military forces. On my go, youll be given a ten-minute head start to run into the forest and hide. At the end of that time, the Land Guard will come in after you. You must evade their search and make your way back through the woods to the beach. Prowl back to Sea Guard. He pauses and grins into the camera. Once you arrive back at the beach, you must swim quietly past the Sea Guard and climb into one of the canoes moored behind them. The first tribe to successfully get just one member into the canoes behind Sea Guard wins Immunity and cant be voted off. The losing tribe will follow me directly to Tribal Council and vote off a member a day early. Understood?
The Survivors murmur excitedly to one another at the new and exciting twist to the game. Finally, Chad raises a hand. Say, are they allowed to attack us with those spears? The other Survivors nod nervously and watch Jeff intently.
He chuckles. Of course. How else do you think Chief More-More could have persuaded them to participate when its so far past their bedtime? But dont worry. Theyve been advised to just prick you with the tips. It wont really hurt that much. And Ive been assured they replaced the poison tips with plain razor-sharp ones. Youll be fine. OK. Survivors ready? Go!
For the second time in two days, the Survivors are caught flat-footed by the sudden start to the Challenge. With the clock ticking on their head start, they dont even pause to devise a master plan. They simply scream and dash into the trees. As soon as they leave, the members of the Land and Sea Guard grow quiet. The beach is totally silent, except for the washing of the waves on the shore and the occasional shriek of terror drifting out of the jungle.
Jeff monitors his watch closely, squeezing the side button to make the face glow in the dark. With one minute to go, he looks up and addresses the Vanuatu warriors. Be careful with them, he says quietly. But dont be afraid to give them a little taste of terror. He smiles evilly, the unnatural glow from his wristwatch casting eerie shadows on his face and elongating his dimples. He takes a quick glance down at the watch face and releases the light switch. Thats ten minutes, he says softly. Go.
The Land Guard pads off into the jungle, slipping like shadows into the dense tree cover. Almost immediately, loud yells and awkward thumping sounds begin echoing out of the jungle. Jeff puts a foot up on the bow of a beached Sea Guard canoe and folds his arms across his chest. What we havent considered, he says to nobody in particular, is what happens if nobody escapes the forest. He raises one hand to stroke his chin. If anyone gets really hurt doing this, that might affect us, too. Hadnt thought of that. Well, well just have to see.
At that moment, Bubba marches out of the forest, his hands raised and a Land Guard warrior behind him with his spear raised. His Bob Barker shirt is torn and discolored. Tell you what, he says as he takes his place on the Lopevi mat. Those spears hurt!
Rory suddenly walks out of the trees, unescorted. I found bananas! he calls to Bubba, holding a double-fistful of fruit in the air. Amazing, considering how dark it is. What are we doing here, anyway? Its late! He yawns and saunters down to the waters edge, where a member of Sea Guard leaps out of his boat and blocks his passage with a spear.
Rory! Youre out of the game. Come join Bubba on the mat.
Rory looks from the Sea Guard tribesman and back to Jeff, his eyebrows pinched together in a frown. Oh, wow, he says. I forget we were having an Immunity Challenge. How awkward! He joins Bubba on the mat. Im sorry, my friend, he says. But at least I found bananas.
Cant keep em, Jeff growls. Not part of the Challenge. He gruffly confiscates the contraband bananas. Next time, play the game, huh?
Rory nods absently while watching a firefly buzz by, flashing its light. He gently captures the insect in his hand and watches it in grinning fascination.
By now, Survivors are streaming out of the jungle with regularity, each under the close escort of a Land Guard member. After a while, only a handful of Survivors are still missing: Chad, Eliza, Brady, and Leann. Eliza is the first to appear, pouting unhappily as she trudges back to her mat. They tricked me! she complains. They were whispering to each other, and it reminded me of this time I was whispering so I started telling that story before I could even stop myself. They found me instantly. She rubs behind her shoulder and winces.
Brady and Chad are herded out next, both looking grumpy and spent. When they step on the mat, Jeff says, Wow, nobody made a play for the canoes? You all got caught by the Land Guard?
Not me, Rory says, still peering at the lightning bug in his hands.
Oh, Im not counting you, Jeff says. You didnt even know where you were. OK, so I guess thats it, huh? Both tribes failed? I guess we need to give Immunity to the tribe that lasted the longest, which is Lo -
Hey, wait! Julie says. What about that one girl? Whats her name? Leann?
Oh, yeah! Jeff says, nodding his head swiftly. Where is she, I wonder?
Ahoy! a voice calls from far out on the water. The group peers out into the pitch blackness of the Vanuatu night. Im in the boat. Do I win? Its Leann. As their eyes adjust to the dark, everyone can see her waving from within one of the designated canoes. The Sea Guard members scream as one and begin pointing and yelling at one another angrily. They are shamed by having anyone sneak past them, let alone a woman.
Wow! Jeff says in sincere amazement. Shes good!
Spooky, really, Ami says, nodding.
Yasur wins Immunity! Jeff says, raising his hands. As the women cheer and jump up and down, Jeff turns to the men. Come on, Lopevi. Were going straight to Tribal Council. One of you is going home tonight.
Much negotiation takes place in the darkness as the tribe picks their way to Tribal Council. In the end, the group decides that Bradys strength in Challenges outweighs his lack of alliances. They instead vote to send Rory packing. After the final vote is read, nobody moves. Uh, Rory, Jeff says. Its time for you to go.
Rory looks up placidly. He smiles at Jeff. Go where? Did I win?
Yyyeah, you won, Jeff says slowly. Bring me your torch, and Ill give you the customary torch-snuffing reserved for the winner of the entire game.
Woohoo! Rory says. See, it pays to wander off by yourself and find stuff for your tribemates. They always respect that. Nice guys DO finish first. He slips his torch into the holder as Jeff claps the snuffer over the flame.
Right down that walkway, Jeff says, pointing the way into the darkness. Thats where your prize is waiting.
I knew I could do it! Rory exclaims. Sorry, guys, he says as he waves at the rest of the tribe. But there can be only one.
As he disappears into the darkness, Sarge chuckles softly. May we all be so content if we dont win, he says. His world must be a very happy place.
And the visions are gone. I guess Id better go try to figure out what this auditor wants. I have a bad, bad feeling I offer him money in the next few hours.
Your comments are welcome. E-mail firstname.lastname@example.com.


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As they prepare to deploy to Iraq next year, soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division are training not only in the latest military tactics, but also in the culture and traditions of the Middle East.
"There's a huge focus now on the importance of understanding the Iraqi culture," Brig. Gen. Jim Huggins told members of the Downtown Rotary Club on Monday at the Hilton Savannah DeSoto.
Huggins, 3rd ID assistant division commander, said the Army's newest weapon is a software program called Tactical Iraqi that teaches the language and culture in the form of a video game.
"It's very effective because it appeals to our younger troops," he said.
Huggins said some 6,000 soldiers assigned to the 1st Combat Brigade are expected to deploy in mid-January, marking the third combat tour for the Fort Stewart-based 3rd ID since the division led the invasion into Iraq in March 2003.
The 1st Brigade will be joined by the 3rd Brigade Combat Team at Fort Benning, with both groups attached to a Marine division in Iraq.
The 3rd ID's 2nd Combat Brigade is expected to deploy in late summer, Huggins said, where they will be joined by a new Stryker Brigade and two airborne units.
It's all part of the army's evolving modular combat team design.
"We're no longer pure armor or pure infantry," he said. "Instead it's a combination of units, each bringing its own special talents to the mix."


text:
have seen the adverts and some of the hype so the boys were pleased when one of
these arrived to review in the post.
The little critter certainly looks cute and friendly enough, hubbie had
some initial teething problems putting the app on his phone but eventually got
it all sorted (this might be down to the fact he has an old phone which is
rather short of memory!).
are 12 cubed pets available from Flair and each has its own
individual personality, so it is well worth collecting more of them. As figures they look quite sweet and my boys
seemed to enjoy playing the app, looking after their pet and playing the mini
games. We were sent the bat Radar, but there
is a good selection of different animals, depending what one your child likes
You can fuss your pet and see little love hearts leaving him so you know he's happy and content or even tickle him with a feather. You have little bars showing you what your pet needs. If your child is badgering you for a pet then you can compromise and offer them a Cupet to begin with, see how they get on feeding and looking after it, before committing to a real pet.
The Cupet has a battery bar and he gets tired if it goes down from being active training or bouncing balls. It is good in a way because it encourages your child to have a break from the screen whilst your Cupet recharges their energy levels again sleeping.
only thing I was a little concerned about was how much youngest was enjoying
the shop and customising his pet! I
think when he runs out of virtual coins he will want the bank of mummy to pay
out real ones so he can have more accessories… that I am not so keen on. Although you can get 1000 free coins liking the Cupets facebook page so it might be worth doing that. But for £6.99 if you can stop them pestering you for more coins Cupets are good value. I know for a fact the boys will want to try out all the characters at some point and see each of their unique abilities.


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A 'World' of difference
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Only one player in Seahawks history has led the NFL in sacks.
Jacob Green? No, although he did collect a franchise-record 116 sacks during his 12 seasons with the Seahawks. Patrick Kerney? No, but he did have an NFC-leading 14½ in 2007. Michael McCrary? Not him either, but you're getting warmer. McCrary led the AFC with 13½ sacks in 1996.
That same season, Michael Sinclair had 13 sacks, and two years later he registered a league-leading and career-high 16½. Read
|Blue and Green Dream Team
The Seahawks' 35th Anniversary team, as selected by the readers of Seahawks.com: Read
So it's not surprising that Sinclair is the defensive end opposite Green on the Seahawks' 35th Anniversary team that was selected by readers of Seahawks.com.
"Wow. I mean, wow. Wow. Really, wow," Sinclair, now in his fourth year as the defensive line coach for the two-time defending CFL Champion Montreal Alouettes, said when informed of his unique niche in franchise history.
"That's a testament to hard work, dedication and being a team player."
What's surprising – and always was – is the way Sinclair became the "overnight sensation" who produced 41.5 sacks in a three-season stretch (1996-98). He arrived in 1991 as a sixth-round draft choice out of Eastern New Mexico – a Division II talent with a lot of potential but in need of some polish when it came to rushing the passer at the professional level; not to mention the hi-top fade he was sporting that would have made Kid 'N Play's Christopher "Kid" Reid envious.
No problem. After his rookie season, when he spent 12 weeks on the practice squad, the Seahawks loaned Sinclair to the World League. His brave new world took Sinclair all the way to Sacramento, but he finished second in the fledgling spring league with 10 sacks and the Surge won the championship.
The transformation in the kid from Beaumont, Texas, after that season of success was as startling as it was sudden.
"Mike went down there and became the guy that you had to stop," said Eugene Robinson, the free safety on the 35th Anniversary team and a Pro Bowl selection in 1992 and '93. "He already had a nice body – very good size, good reach. He had what it took to be potent on the edge.
"When he went to World League and came back, I was like, 'Wow. Sinclair is a beast.' And the real key is that he was confident. Sinclair was confident, man. That's what I remember most – his confidence soared. He started playing at a high level, and then it's contagious because you want more."
Sinclair laughed before, during and after recounting his peculiar path that paved the way for potential to become production.
"I remember getting the call from the organization," he said. "They said, 'OK, we'll give you $65,000 to go play in the World League. So you can develop your skills and come back and compete, because we see you as a starter.' They didn't even have to pay me the $65,000. I told them I'd think about it. But I was already gung-ho just to have the opportunity to play."
And play he did; earning all-league honors to go with his double-digit sacks and the team title.
"That was a blessing," Sinclair said. "I came back with reassured confidence. I had confidence before I left, but it was reassuring that, 'You know what, I can compete and stay hungry and learn.' "
Sinclair's roommate with the Surge? Mike Jones, the linebacker who made the game-saving tackle in the St. Louis Rams' Super Bowl victory over the Tennessee Titans a few years later. Sinclair and Jones remain close friends.
"Going to the World League was a huge step for me, on multiple levels," Sinclair said. "I not only got a chance to play, I played with some great guys."
Sinclair credits former Seahawks line coach Tommy Brasher for helping him discover his inner beast and keeping him hungry. Sinclair was selected to three consecutive Pro Bowls during his three-season sack surge, and in 1998 he was voted the Steve Largent Award as the player who best exemplifies the spirit, dedication and integrity of the Seahawks.
"Tommy's big deal was, 'OK, where do we go from here?' " Sinclair said. "He told me, 'Now that you've had a successful World League experience, where do we go from here? How do we build on that?' So that was vital, having a strategy to be competitive."
And a goal. "I even told Tommy way back then, 'One of the things I'd like to do is lead the league in sacks,' " Sinclair recalled. "It didn't happen that first year back. But once I got going, I learned and knew exactly how to be a pro."
It's the same drive and passion for the game that led Sinclair to coaching – after he took a 2½-year hiatus, as he called it, to "drop the kids off and pick them up." Those kids are now 20 (Michael, Jr.), 17 (Michaela), 15 (Johnny) and 10 (Mary).
Sinclair spent two seasons coaching the D-line at West Texas A&M (2005-06) before adding another World Bowl title as line coach for the Hamburg Sea Devils in 2007. That led him to Montreal in 2008, when he continued using his own story to motivate the players he was coaching.
"I tell my guys all the time, 'Just because you're in the pros doesn't mean you know how to be a pro,' " Sinclair said. "It takes more than talent. Your talent is what gets you there. But then everything else allows you to stay there – perseverance, passion. Those are the things that come from the heart.
"I played with a lot of passion, and I still had it in me even though I couldn't do it physically anymore. So now I coach with a lot of passion. To me, this is an opportunity to give back to a game that gave me so much."
Sinclair also learned another valuable lesson along his at-times meandering way.
"Expect nothing, but be grateful for everything," he said.
Like his spot on the read-selected 35th Anniversary team.
"The last time I wore a Seahawks uniform was like 10 years ago and there have been a lot of good players on that team since then," Sinclair said. "But I remember a reporter asking me one time, 'How do you want to be remembered?' I told him, 'The fans will determine that.' "
And they have. Read
Latest News
© Seattle Seahawks 2017. All rights reserved. ® SEAHAWKS, SEAHAWKS LOGO, SPIRIT OF 12, WE ARE 12, BRING ON THE 12, LEGION OF BOOM, 12 and 12S are trademarks of the Seattle Seahawks. ® The term 12th MAN is a trademark of Texas A & M University and its use is pursuant to a license agreement with the university.


text:
CEO of Qatar Airways joins Her Majesty The Queen and other VIPS at official opening of London Heathrow's new Terminal 2
Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, joined Her Majesty The Queen, and His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh, at the official opening of the new Terminal 2: The Queen's Building at London's Heathrow Airport – nearly 60 years after the original Terminal 2 opened.
Mr. Al Baker, who sits as a non-Executive Director on the board of Heathrow Airport Limited, was present with other airline CEOs and executives at the historic official opening. The Queen inaugurated London Airport's first passenger terminal, the Central Terminal Area, in December 1955 but has now renamed Terminal 2 as the Queen's Terminal.
The former Terminal 2 was built to handle an annual 1.2 million passengers at its peak; the new building has been built to handle 20 million. It has 24 departure gates, 24 fully-serviced aircraft stands and cost £2.5bn to create.
The first carriers to use the terminal are United Airlines, ANA, Air Canada and Air China. They will be followed by another 22 airlines including Singapore Airlines, Lufthansa, Virgin Atlantic Little Red and Aer Lingus by October this year. When fully occupied, Terminal 2 will have 332 flights per day to 54 destinations around the world.
Mr. Al Baker, CEO of Qatar Airways, commented, "It is exciting to see the further expansion of Heathrow with this state-of-the-art terminal opened by Her Majesty The Queen and I am delighted that so many airlines and passengers will benefit from the airport's increased efficiency. Qatar Airways regards Heathrow as one of its most important hubs as London remains such a key gateway to Europe and beyond."
John Holland-Kaye, Heathrow Development Director and Chief Executive Designate, said, "Terminal 2 is the culmination of an £11bn investment programme that has transformed Heathrow for passengers. Opening a new terminal is one of the most complex challenges that any airport can undertake. Our real measure of success is whether Terminal 2 comes to be rated by passengers as one of the world's best airport terminals for years to come."
Qatar Airways, which uses London Heathrow's Terminal 4, has increased its presence in the UK market markedly in recent weeks, with the launch of its first all-business class service, flying daily between Doha and London Heathrow, as well as the inaugural Doha to Edinburgh service utilizing a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, one of the world's newest aircraft. Edinburgh is the third UK destination for Qatar Airways, after London and Manchester.
Qatar Airways operates six daily flights between Doha and London Heathrow; 10 flights per week between Doha and Manchester and five flights per week between Doha and Edinburgh. Qatar Airways has seen rapid growth in just 17 years of operations, currently flying a modern fleet of 134 aircraft to 143 key business and leisure destinations across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific and the Americas. Over the next few months, the network will grow further with Haneda, Japan (June 18, 2014) and Dallas/Fort Worth, USA (July 1, 2014).
For further information contact:
Paul Charles / Katie Francis / Emily Cramer
Perowne Charles Communications
Tel: ?+442077928884
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Qatar Airways Group
Corporate Communications Department
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Qalaa Holdings and CPC Holding Saudi Arabia conclude signing of sale and purchase agreement for 100% of Sphinx Glass
- Paul Rogers
by Bain & Company
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by DarkMatterHussein Al Sayed
by FXTM
- Scott Rea
by DarkMatter


text:
A Leyland woman who was killed after she was hit by a car that mounted a pavement has been named by police.
Julie Dean, 53, was knocked down as she stepped from a charity shop in the town on Monday afternoon.
Emergency services including firefighters, police, paramedics and the air ambulance raced to the scene on Sumner Street, but Ms Dean was pronounced dead.
The incident took place at about 1pm, when a gold Nissan Qashqai mounted the pavement and collided with her as she stepped from the St Catherine's shop doorway.
The driver of the vehicle, a 79-year-old woman, was unharmed.
The road remained closed for several hours on Monday afternoon and police launched an investigation into the circumstances.
PC James Power from the road policing unit said: "An investigation is underway but I would appeal to anybody that witnessed this collision or with any information that could assist with our investigation to contact police on 101."
Click here to read eyewitness accounts of the incident.


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When in Paris.... Take a walk. Centre du Pompidou


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In a recent thread on this forum you indicated that factory was setting "3" out of "1-9".
Out of curiosity, how tough is "9" ?
Greg Erway - Tapper Query !!
In a recent thread on this forum you indicated that factory was setting "3" out of "1-9".
Out of curiosity, how tough is "9" ?
I guess I'll try to use some terms from other games like Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man to describe this. In the game of Tapper there is a period of time you can play before you reach "Red Point" or "Cruise Elroy" at which point the game speeds up. It's much like "Hurry Up" in Mappy minus the visual clue that it is starting. The bar patrons appear more rapidly and worst of all start to move down the bar faster. Once you reach this point you are pretty much sunk. Early after this point it is possible to recover by quickly "guessing" where new patrons will appear and throwing a glass to them before they are even on the screen. But basically your really lucky to make it after this point.
I have no idea what the length of time this is at each difficulty level. I suppose a stop watch could be used to try to determine the time lenghts. But there is no firm indicatioin when it is starting. It just gets a bit faster and faster until a few seconds later you realize things have really sped up. However I have a built in instinct as to when I am approaching this point. Most of the time I finish the boards long before this point. I have to really mess up in order to get here. You might not realize I've messed up while watching me but I certainly do. You may have heard me say "Oh Shoot" many times on that tape. That is usually an indication I've screwed up and I know "Red Point" is coming up real soon and I better boogy if I want to finish. I frequently have told people watching my game that I was real lucky to finish the previous level and they seem to have no clue as to how it was any different than any other level. When playing under difficulty 9 I find this timer is much shorter. However it is still longer than my normal board finishing times. So in a way the higher difficulty doesn't seem to have any effect on my play. It only comes into effect when I ***** up and in those cases allows a bit less time to "Try" to recover. I wouldn't be suprised if there were some other minor things that could be different but nothing I have noted as being a problem in my game play. Changes such as difficulty level and extra man levels certainly would bring down my scores. Could I stil marathon? I think so. Not sure. But I do think 5-man rules are the way to go. There are enough other games that use these rules that I think it makes sense. Plus there is a high likelyhood that games out there in arcades (the few left) are probably on the "factory" settings and therefore already setup for the current 5-man rules. All you need to do is video tape the game (and of course provide proof of the difficulty setting). It allows an arcade to keep the settings the same all the time whether a new player is playing or an expert player. It also keeps a sense of how to compare those scores. I think Walter made the correct decision on this one for sure.
If it interests you I would be willing to play and tape a game on difficulty 9 at a future tournament. I think I've only tried to play at Level 9 once or twice. That was back in 2001 before my first Funspot appearance. I was trying to prepare for any possible rule difference I might encounter when I arrived. I'm not sure how many others have every even tried level 9. I'm guessing that Jack Gale and Mike Ward probably didn't own their own machines so they probably never had the opportunity to try it. If anyone else out there has tried it and have different thoughts on the subject, I would love to hear them.
Do you remember if I ever died by being thrown down the bar in that 16 hour game? I assume I lost a few guys like this during my bathroom run. And maybe one or two near the tape swap areas since I started playing the levels a few seconds after the level actually started. But I wonder if I ever died as a result of "Red Point" in that game during normal play? Probably. But I can't remember many.
Gregory S. Erway
#1 Tapper TGTS 3,162,125 05Jun05 (Guiness 2007 score)
#1 Rootbeer Tapper TGMS 1,959,200 28Jul86
#1 Wild Western 826,900 07Jun04
#1 Pepper II 917,540 11Mar07 (over 1mil now...on tape)
D2K progress: 199,700 L5 100m (board 36)
Greg, is it based on absolute time or the #times they "respawn" back at the bar after you have sent them away?
I'm thinking it's based on #respawns....so at difficulty 9 you hit the speedup mode in a lesser #respawns than you do at difficulty 3.
It might be cool to test that to see which it is.
You likely could tell from the first few stages...where you can really delay initial serving for 5+ seconds and see if that delays the "zoom" point or if the zoom point occurs at the same time mark.
Sorry for jumping in , but I can't see how to get to set Tapper to level 9 on MAME ?
It seems only factory defaults are possible ?
Cheers ,
1st: The Tapper setup screens are not in the MAME dip switches. You need to get into the inner screens like you do on Robotron with the F2 (or something like that).
Actually the number of respawns is what usually helps me tell where I am in the timing. However I believe the actual speed up is triggered by a timeout of a timer. I base this on my play on the level 9 difficulty. There is a chance to finish levels very early into them. But unless you throw perfectly and anticipate the 1st opportunity to finish the level happens somewhat later. On level 3 you have a chance to finish if you ***** up finishing off at that point. On level 9 the timer times out very shortly after that first clearing opportunity. So in a sense your right about the respawn rate. But the spawn of new patrons is also pretty much on a timer to. That doesn't seem to change. Just the point where it speeds up.
Gregory S. Erway
#1 Tapper TGTS 3,162,125 05Jun05 (Guiness 2007 score)
#1 Rootbeer Tapper TGMS 1,959,200 28Jul86
#1 Wild Western 826,900 07Jun04
#1 Pepper II 917,540 11Mar07 (over 1mil now...on tape)
D2K progress: 199,700 L5 100m (board 36)
yep, for Tapper you have to enter service mode for the game. Sorry I didn't mention that above.
Once it in it tells you how to scroll through selections etc.
Once you set it up then press F2 again to exit the setup.
For play you plan on recording the input for and submitting, make sure you aren't using NVRAM...which means every game you play at the start of your recording you will have to enter service mode to set a different than default difficulty...then press F2 when done...let the game "reboot"...and pop your credit and play.
When someone else later plays back the inp....it will show all you did.
This can actually be a good thing for games where you need something other than default settings...cuz the ref that reviews the inp actually sees the settings in the game. I would almost recommend going into service mode just to display the settings within your inp to set the record straight what settings you used for the convenience of the referee.
Of course not all games have such a convenient service mode as Tapper...but many do.
If you were using NVRAM those settings would be saved in a file for tapper(tapper.nv for the tapper rom set).
You don't want to use nvram though cuz if you do then your inp recording might be dependent on it. TG wants inp files that aren't dependent on previous firmware/nvram settings of a game.
ACAM Tournament 2013 at Funspot had Tapper in the 30th Anniversary Tournament played on difficulty 9 with 1 start life and not getting additional lives until multiples of 99,000 points. This is the absolute most difficult the game can be setup.
It took me two full days and into a third to work out my timing and get over 60k...and then I hit the groove. I played to a score of over 1.2 million and then killed off 7 men to end the game as I felt I was sufficiently ahead and was not gaining much in competition points on that game and needed to spend time on Elevator Action and the cockpit Star Wars (the other two games in the challenge). Luckily I was correct and ended up winning the challenge but it was hard fought to the end between Donald Hayes and myself.
But I was able to prove in public that Tapper can be marathoned on its most difficult settings like I have said in the past and experienced back in 2001. It was much more difficult than I remembered but once I hit that timing it wasn't so bad. The first thirty minutes of the game had me seriously rocking, physically, the machine as I moved my body into it to nail the exact timing needed. After that timing became second nature I was able to relax and maintain it. Most lives lost were earlier in the game more than later (lost 5 men).
Gregory S. Erway
#1 Tapper TGTS 3,162,125 05Jun05 (Guiness 2007 score)
#1 Rootbeer Tapper TGMS 1,959,200 28Jul86
#1 Wild Western 826,900 07Jun04
#1 Pepper II 917,540 11Mar07 (over 1mil now...on tape)
D2K progress: 199,700 L5 100m (board 36)


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Alison Bechdel has followed up her bestselling debut, Fun Home, with a new graphic novel memoir, Are You My Mother?: A Comic Drama. Bechdel explores the psychology behind mother-daughter relationships while recounting her own strained relationship with an emotionally distant mother.
Anyone who likes intensely personal graphic novels will enjoy Alison Bechdel.


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I've been on a demonstration against the stinking cuts, and there outside Camden town hall in the cold, I saw a row of old persons in wheelchairs, aka Easy Targets, begging this mad borough not to cut funding of nearly all voluntary sector help for the elderly. This includes closure of Age Concern's fabulous Great Croft day centre, which I helped to make a video about for this newspaper, because it is a shining example of what such a centre should be: happy visitors, excellent staff and, best of all, they cook their own tasty meals and even grow their own vegetables.
But who gives a stuff? Not our council, like councils all over the UK, because it's only old people, isn't it? A useless drain on resources, who can't kick up much of a stink about cuts, especially if they're hidden away, stuck at home, no longer able to be visited or get out to day centres or lunch clubs or anywhere else.
This is throwing me into a bit of a panic, now that I am old, with my birthdays whizzing past faster and faster, and I can't help but feel that the elderly are being picked on. Never mind the vicious cuts in services, but in the operations that we tend to need at this age. Cataracts and hip and knee replacements are now called "elective" – something "of little or no clinical value", which you just have if you fancy it, like tattoo removal.
Lucky me, I've had my cataracts done in the nick of time, but I see a hellish future for many of us: stuck indoors alone, tottering around, going blind, tormented by joint pain, increasingly crippled, possibly freezing and starving as the bills rise and rise – because arthritic, blind and immobilised people need more heat – and ending up bed blocking, costing a fortune to repair, or, if the coalition is lucky, dying – the cheaper option.
We're a rather large persecuted minority, kept down by a ghastly crew of millionaires and associated creeps, whose grannies will never have to sit freezing outside a town hall begging for a few groats to keep vital services going.


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Antonio Cassano might make his comeback after heart surgery in Milan-Fiorentina today. "With this enthusiasm I could fly on to the field."
The striker has been out of action since suffering a mini-stroke on October 29 and underwent surgery to correct a congenital heart defect a few days later.
He was given the all-clear by a panel of medics this week and is in the Rossoneri squad for this afternoon's match with Fiorentina.
"I missed the everyday training sessions with my teammates, pre-match get-togethers, tension of game situations, but at the same time I was happy to stay home with my wife and son," Cassano told Mediaset.
"If (Coach Massimiliano) Allegri tells me to come off the bench, then with this enthusiasm I could fly on to the field."
See the latest Serie A predictions and betting tips with Eurotips.co.uk [12]


text: Module Name: pkgsrc Committed By: rillig Date: Wed Nov 23 22:12:03 UTC 2005 Modified Files: pkgsrc/pkgtools/pkglint: Makefile pkgsrc/pkgtools/pkglint/files: pkglint.pl Log Message: Updated pkglint to 4.45.2. - Removed log_subinfo(). - Added log_debug(). - Multiple -v command line options increase the verbosity. - Added the regex_shellword constant that will allow better parsing of shell commands. Currently it is only producing debugging information. - Long [info] messages have been changed to [debug] messages. To generate a diff of this commit: cvs rdiff -r1.306 -r1.307 pkgsrc/pkgtools/pkglint/Makefile cvs rdiff -r1.378 -r1.379 pkgsrc/pkgtools/pkglint/files/pkglint.pl Please note that diffs are not public domain; they are subject to the copyright notices on the relevant files.


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The game's combat is plenty fun, but DmC drops the ball when it comes to boss fights.
Mundus isn't the final boss in DmC Devil May Cry, and thank goodness for that. It's like déjà vu all over again. Mundus fights just like the succubus from eight or nine missions back. Even the dual-platform set-up is nearly identical.
The problem with most of the bosses in the Devil May Cry reboot is they're all for show---they're big, towering monstrosities but they're all bile and no bight.
The bosses also tend to capitalize on the gross-out factor. The idea appears to be: make the boss fights big and cinematic and gross and use that to mask how easy and boring they are.
Speaking of cinematic, how many cut-scenes ought we tolerate in a single boss fight?
I say just one one: right at the beginning. DmC has the annoying habit of inserting cut-scenes everywhere, and boss fights are no exception.
In fact, I think some of the normal enemies provide much more entertaining challenges. The assassins with their ability to teleport and parry are among the best enemies in the game. Better still, they teach you what to expect from the final boss---and the only decent boss in the game---Vergil.
Vergil is actually a pretty interesting character.
He plays a nice foil to Dante. In the beginning he comes across as the more "together" of the two brothers. Dante is a childish womanizer, a self-obsessed jerk with a devil-may-care attitude about anything and everything. Vergil studied computer programming and spent his days plotting and scheming the downfall of the demons.
The roles twist as the game reaches its climax. Dante has grown up somewhat, has shown that he's willing to risk himself to save Kat, and that he has little interest in Vergil's Machiavellian utilitarianism.
Still, I wish we'd had more of this story of brothers and betrayal; I wish Vergil's role and character had been more fleshed out, and that the final confrontation weren't so abrupt. Vergil's declaration of "it's our time to rule" felt jarring, even with his earlier display of callousness.
I went ahead and got the costume pack for the game. I prefer Dante with his old mop. Call me sentimental.
Or maybe the new hair-do just accentuates all of new Dante's worst features. Or makes me feel like telling him to get off my damn lawn.
Whatever the case, the rebooted Dante was a lot more tolerable in the last third of the game than in the first two thirds---the only exception being his banter with Vergil, which makes them both look bad pretty much without fail.
There's actually a pretty egregious flaw with the costume pack DLC, however: while most cut-scenes show Dante with his new costume, hair, etc. every now and then the vanilla Dante is back. It's like a slap in the face, a jarring twist of my suspension of disbelief which I've worked so tirelessly to preserve.
Final question: Wither the angels?
Other than the above-pictured angelic angels, and some not-pictured NSFW Victoria Secret-style angels, the game is basically all about demons and a pair of demon-angel hybrids.
To be fair, I'm probably just picking on DmC at this point. And it's not just about angels.
I was thinking, back when Diablo III was released, how games about demons and angels tend to skirt the rather related issue of god and the devil.
We have all the trappings of religion with none of the meat. The easy demon-killing stuff is present in spades, but the uncomfortable religious questions are simply erased from the pallet.
In Diablo III there are essentially no religious themes at all save for the pride of the angels and a big, lavishly animated fight between Diablo and the angel king dude. Diablo is just any other big boss. The angels are just pretty cut-scenes.
But wasn't it pride that led to the fall of Lucifer in the first place?
Isn't there a huge amount of thematic marrow for us to suck out and spit into these games? Aren't there better stories to be told that make us uncomfortable not because of gross-out factors or generic evil things with horns, but because they talk about the darker side of our own humanity?
Now, you might argue that the story in DmC is about the darker side of our humanity. But it isn't really. The wickedness of the world is mostly explained away as the side-effects of a demon conquest.
The fight between Mundus and Dante sits cozily outside of any of the greater context of the war between Heaven and Hell. The game is, quite literally, stuck in Limbo. And Dante is similarly positioned not as someone too good, too on "the side of angels" but as a rebel, a jerk, an anti-hero. Maybe I'm just too post-post-modern for anti-heroes these days.
Now, perhaps that's the point. Perhaps we've simply set the stage here. But I get the feeling that tackling any sort of actual religious theme is simply too taboo, too risky, for game developers. You see some of it in the foreign indie title Inquisitor, but that game is hardly mainstream and, to be honest, far too tedious and oddly translated even for me.
So we have th only real thematic bogey man in DmC take the shape of capitalism, which is fine but for its heavy-handedness; and in Diablo III...well, I'm not sure there was any deeper theme at play in that game at all.
Read Part One of my review here.
Read Part Two of my review here.
Follow me on Twitter or Facebook. Read my Forbes blog here.


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I'll admit it…I'm more than just a little addicted to pinterest! I love that I find real ideas there that I can actually re-create myself. I especially love when I find something fun like this to surprise my kids with. I found this particular idea linked to The World According to Eggface and decided to adapt the recipe so it would be gluten-free and in a fun shape. I had inherited the mini bundt cake pan a long time ago and it had never been used before. It's time has finally come.
First I mixed up some batter using Pamela's Ultimate Baking and Pancake Mix. We're experimenting with gluten-free and I thought pancakes might win over the family. After I poured the mix into the muffin cups, I added frozen berries to some and sprinkled cinnamon sugar on the others. Here's a picture of it about to go in the oven:
I baked according to package directions and they came out perfectly. The kids could not wait to try them. Girlie ate at least 6 right away. The berries were bursting and so flavorful and the cinnamon sugar ones were sweet with just a hint of spice. Little Dude was not quite as impressed, but he's funny about textures and these were a little different than a muffin or pancake. I thought they were really good and an excellent convenience recipe for the school week. You can make a couple of batches on the weekend (in whatever shapes or designs you want) and freeze them for later. Simply microwave defrost for breakfast or place a frozen one into a lunchbox to thaw and be ready to eat at noon. Here's the final product:
What foods do you like to make ahead? I'd like to get better at doing some of the work on Sunday and having things done in time for the weekend.


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note LanX First you have to understand that you're slicing a list not an array.
 Then a range from <c>$index .. -1</c> must be empty because the upper bound must be bigger than the lower one (the range operator has no idea that you mean the biggest index, it's just the number "minus 1")
 When using arrays you can write something like <c>@array[$index..$#array]</c> but as already stated you're not slicing an array and there is nothing like a counter for "last list entry". (your <c>$#</c> is another beast)
 In short, you can't slice a list till the end w/o much obfuscatory magic, so better do it the "normal" way with arrays:
 <c> my @array = split /\n/, $object->get_array; my @slice = @array[$index .. $#array]; </c>
 HTH! =)

Cheers Rolf

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