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Is there a way to share RAW (Canon) photos over a network and preview them on an android tablet (Kindle Fire)?
I want to be able to quickly preview new photos without having to convert them to JPEG and copy to the tablet.
One potential possibility I can think of is exposing the photos as an RSS feed and using an android app like Just Pictures to consume the feed, but I don't know of a way to create the feed in Adobe Bridge or Lightroom.


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On 30 Jul, John Foliot wrote: > Working Group must acknowledge this. But more importantly, snide and > silly comments (which can be construed as demeaning and offensive - > and please, I was *NOT* the only one offended) can not, and should not > be tolerated. While it might seem simple to paint the exchange as a Allow me to "AOL" this. I have personally been the named target of rather fascinating* discussions on the IRC server/channel in question, and quie frankly found myself being made fun of. These discussions, and these logs, will remain a permanent record on the 'net for years to come. With the way the discussions have been going on, that is not a happy thought. As someone who has worked with accessibility for many years, I am frankly shocked by the fact that in 2007 we - meaning several people who hold differing opinions than very vocal supports of HTML 5 - are being vilified for standing on the same barricades we have for the last ten years. Yes, vilified is a strong word. But that is certainly how it feel to me after mailing-list and IRC discussions. Finding things like these: "there's been a lengthy flameware on www-html involving Philip Taylor and Tina Holmboe, and many others but someone pointed them to the grown-up table" and "especially with the hypervocal dissenters that are sure to plague almost every conversation (even when they are the extreme minority)" or "seems that Tina needs more than one reality check." lead me to agree with Chaals. It /is/ too depressing to be involved in this stuff, and frankly ... I've spent the last ten years getting yelled at by people who didn't care about standards, and I am not about to spend time getting yelled at for having the very same optinons by people who /make/ standards. People who have input to make are dropping out from the HTML 5 process for many reasons. One of those reasons is the attitudes shown, not only toward accessibility advocates, but toward everyone who disagree. A little respect go a long way. -- - Tina Holmboe Developer's Archive Greytower Technologies http://www.dev-archive.net http://www.greytower.netReceived on Monday, 30 July 2007 21:04:25 UTC
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.3.1 : Wednesday, 7 January 2015 15:06:16 UTC

subset: commoncrawl


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The Homelessness Resource Center (HRC), a Center for Mental Health Services Initiative, seeks to improve the daily lives of people affected by homelessness and who have mental health and substance use problems and trauma histories. The work of the HRC includes training and technical assistance, online learning opportunities, and publications. HRC also maintains an extensive knowledge database of studies, papers and reports related to homelessness that is available on their Web site.
Review Date: Wednesday, January 12, 2011
List reviewed web resources
The National Center for PTSD is a program of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The Center has 7 Divisions across the country and carries out a broad range of activities in research, education, and training on traumatic stress and PTSD. Advancing science and promoting understanding of traumatic stress, the NCPTSD works to understand, prevent, diagnose, and treat PTSD in veterans and others following exposure to traumatic stress. NCPTSD cooperates with other agencies and organizations concerned with the impact of traumatic events on mental health. A variety of information resources, for both the general public and health professionals, are produced and disseminated by the Center. See the NCPTSD website for further information.
Review Date: Monday, September 19, 2011
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), a component of the National Institutes of Health, seeks to reduce the burden of mental illness and behavioral disorders through research on the mind, brain, and behavior. NIMH provides a wide range of information based on that research. Publications are available through the NIMH Web site or by calling the NIMH information center for information and to order publications.
Review Date: Wednesday, July 01, 2015
As congressionally mandated: (1) Directs, plans, coordinates, and supports research activities and information dissemination on conditions unique to those living in rural areas, including research on the delivery of mental health services in such areas; and (2) coordinates related Departmental research activities and related activities of public and nonprofit entities.
Review Date: Thursday, August 04, 2011
Inquiries on mental health, drug abuse, or alcohol can be directed to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) , formerly the Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Administration (ADAMHA). Requests for publications should be directed to the information offices listed in the General Notes (GN) field of this database record.
Review Date: Monday, June 13, 2011
The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, formerly the American Academy of Child Psychiatry, was founded in 1953 to further the diagnosis, research, and treatment of mental illnesses affecting children, adolescents, and their families. It provides information for both the public and mental health professionals. The Academy also works with a network of mental health groups to improve mental health care and with government agencies to influence public policy. It also holds scholarly institutes on such subjects as epidemiology and psychiatry and the law.
Review Date: Thursday, December 29, 2011
The American Association for Geriatric Psychiatry (AAGP) is a national, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the mental health and well-being of older people and improving the care of those with late-life mental disorders. AAGP's mission is to enhance the knowledge base and standard of practice in geriatric psychiatry through education and research and to advocate for meeting the mental health needs of older Americans.
Review Date: Monday, December 05, 2011
The American Association of Suicidology (AAS), founded in 1968, promotes the study of suicide and suicide prevention services. AAS activities include an annual meeting, a clinical training institute, a conference for survivors of suicide, publications, awards for outstanding contributions to the suicide prevention field, certification of suicide prevention services and individual crisis workers suicide prevention week, workshops, and volunteer training programs. AAS seeks to increase public awareness of suicide as a public health problem and preventive resources.
Review Date: Wednesday, October 14, 2015
In 1952, four independent associations established the American Personnel and Guidance Association to provide a stronger voice for related counseling professions. In 1983, the association became the American Association for Counseling and Development, and in 1992, it became the American Counseling Association. Today, ACA includes 19 divisions, 56 branches, and 4 regions in the United States, Europe, Latin America, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the Philippines. Branches allow members to network with peers and advocate for professional and government relations issues at a local level. ACA's mission is to enhance the quality of life in society by promoting the development of professional counselors, advancing the counseling profession, and using the profession and practice of counseling to promote respect for human dignity and diversity.
Review Date: Friday, February 20, 2009
The American Group Psychotherapy Association (AGPA), founded in 1942, provides a forum for the exchange of ideas among professionals in group psychotherapy. It makes available published information on all aspects of group psychotherapy. AGPA attempts to maintain high standards of ethical and professional practice. It promotes research in group psychotherapy. Membership is restricted to qualified mental health professionals.
Review Date: Thursday, January 19, 2012
The American Psychiatric Association, founded in 1844, is the world's largest psychiatric organization. It is a medical specialty society representing more than 36,000 psychiatric physicians from the United States and around the world. Its member physicians work together to ensure humane care and effective treatment for all persons with mental disorders, including intellectual developmental disorders and substance use disorders. APA Members are primarily medical specialists who are psychiatrists or in the process of becoming psychiatrists.
Review Date: Thursday, July 09, 2015
The American Psychological Association (APA) is a scientific and professional organization that has more than 154,000 members, APA is the largest association of psychologists worldwide. The mission of the APA is to advance the creation, communication and application of psychological knowledge to benefit society and improve people's lives. The American Psychological Association aspires to excel as a valuable, effective and influential organization advancing psychology as a science.
Review Date: Thursday, December 15, 2011
AAPA was formed to advance the welfare of Asian Americans through the development of Asian American psychology. The Association shall assist and advance understanding of, encourage research and service to, educate and inform citizens on, and influence public policy relevant to or affecting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
Review Date: Tuesday, October 13, 2015
This association serves as the leader and international resource for addressing the psychological needs of African people in the Diaspora. ABPsi works in collaboration with other Afrocentric associations in Social Work, Law, Medicine, and related social service disciplines to formulate or influence the development of policy to ensure positive solutions to the challenges that impact people of African descent.
Review Date: Wednesday, January 07, 2009
The Brain and Behavior Research Foundation (formerly NARSAD, the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression) is private, not-for-profit public charity 501(c)(3) organized for the purpose of raising and distributing funds for scientific research into the causes, cures, treatments and prevention of severe psychiatric brain disorders, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and anxiety disorders like obsessive-compulsive and post-traumatic stress disorders. NARSAD seeks and receives contributions from individuals, families, foundations and corporations for the support of its research programs, its educational symposia and publications.
The Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation (CPR) is a research, training, and service organization dedicated to improving the lives of persons who have psychiatric disabilities by improving the effectiveness of people, programs, and service systems. The Center's mission is to increase knowledge in the field of psychiatric rehabilitation; to train treatment personnel; to develop effective rehabilitation programs; and to assist in organizing both personnel and programs into efficient and coordinated service delivery systems. The Center is affiliated with Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences and the Department of Rehabilitation Counseling at Boston University.
Co-Dependents Anonymous (CoDA®) was established in 1986 as a self-help recovery program for individuals coping with co-dependency. Co-dependency is a compulsive, self-destructive behavior, characterized by an inability to maintain functional relationships, and may include a history of addiction. CoDA® is a non-professional organization, and is not allied with any sect, denomination, politics, organization or institution. Its group activities are patterned after twelve-step recovery programs. Group meetings have been established in 49 states and 10 countries.
The Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance (DBSA) is a non-profit, patient-directed organization founded to provide personal support and direct services to patients with depression or manic depression and their families. DBSA offers a toll-free information and referral line, has more than 1,000 patient-run support groups throughout th U.S. and Canada, and reaches nearly five million people through educational materials and programs, exhibit materials, and media activities. An annual conference is held to provide for communication between local chapters, general members, and the DBSA.
Review Date: Monday, October 05, 2015
F.E.A.S.T. is an international organization of and for parents and caregivers to help loved ones recover from eating disorders by providing information and mutual support, promoting evidence-based treatment, and advocating for research and education to reduce the suffering associated with eating disorders. The organization runs a moderated peer-to-peer support forum called Around the Dinner Table for parents and caregivers struggling to care for eating disorder patients.
Review Date: Wednesday, March 20, 2013
Founded by a group of people with OCD in 1986, the International OCD Foundation (IOCDF) is an international not-for-profit organization made up of people with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and related disorders, as well as their families, friends, professionals and others. The mission and goals of the IOCDF are to:
- Educate the public and professionals about OCD in order to raise awareness and improve the quality of treatment provided;
- Support research into the cause of, and effective treatments for, OCD and related disorders;
- Improve access to resources for those with OCD and their families;
- Advocate and lobby for the OCD community.
The International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD) is an international, non-profit, professional association organized to develop and promote comprehensive, clinically effective and empirically based resources and responses to trauma and dissociation and to address its relevance to other theoretical constructs. ISSTD seeks to advance clinical, scientific, and societal understanding about the prevalence and consequences of chronic trauma and dissociation.
Review Date: Wednesday, September 07, 2011
Since 1882, KidsPeace has been dedicated to creating opportunities for kids in crisis to become kids who overcome. Among the many services KidsPeace offer are: short-term acute inpatient psychiatric care for kids with the greatest needs; a 24-hour crisis information and intervention hotline that can be accessed by kids, parents and professionals across the U.S.; free referral service for families and professionals in need of critical care providers in their communities; and free educational seminars to help psychiatrists, psychologists and other service providers to better identify and address critical issues affecting kids. Residential services for child and adolescent males and females for issues related to sexual victimization, sexual abuse, depression/ self injurious behaviors, academic difficulties. Fully accredited by The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, The Commission on International and Trans-Regional Accreditation.
Review Date: Tuesday, December 07, 2010
LearnPsychology.org strives to provide in-depth information, resources, and data for those interested in pursuing a degree in psychology. They use only reliable data and expert knowledge to offer accurate and up-to-date information about education and career options within the field of psychology, as well as additional resources, to help visitors make well-informed decisions regarding education and future professions.
Review Date: Friday, October 03, 2014
Mental Health America (formerly known as the National Mental Health Association) is the country's leading nonprofit dedicated to helping all people live mentally healthier lives. With our more than 320 affiliates nationwide, we represent a growing movement of Americans who promote mental wellness for the health and well-being of the nation – everyday and in times of crisis.
NAMI is the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the nation's largest grassroots organization dedicated to improving the lives of individuals and families affected by mental illness. NAMI has a national organization as well as state organizations and local affiliates in more than 1,100 communities across the country. Through the dedicated efforts of grassroots leaders, NAMI focuses on three corner stones of activity that offer hope, reform and health: support, education and advocacy.
Review Date: Monday, November 07, 2011
The mandate of the National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association is to advocate on behalf of AAPI mental health issues, to serve as a forum for effective collaboration and to network among stake holders of community based organizations, consumers, family members, service providers, program developers, researchers, evaluators and policy makers.
The National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare is the oldest and largest national community behavioral healthcare advocacy organization in the country. It was formed in 1970 and represents the interests of community behavioral healthcare organizations nationwide The National Council conducts federal advocacy activities, representing the industry on Capitol Hill and before Federal agencies, and offers a national consulting service program, publications, and annual training conference. Among other benefits, members receive an annual Mental Health Month Kit, Membership Directory, opportunities to participate in an Awards program, and access to members only section on the NCCBH web site.
Review Date: Thursday, December 11, 2008
The National Federation, a national family-run organization serves to: provide advocacy at the national level for the rights of children and youth with emotional, behavioral and mental health challenges and their families. The Federation provides leadership and technical assistance to a nation-wide network of family run organizations and collaborates with family run and other child serving organizations to transform mental health care in America.
Review Date: Tuesday, November 15, 2011
The NYU Child Study Center is dedicated to increasing the awareness of child mental health issues and improving the treatment of child psychiatric illnesses through scientific practice, research, and education. The center seeks to bridge the gap between science and practice by integrating the finest research with patient care. The center's website provides scientifically-based child mental health and parenting information for parents, pediatricians, educators, mental health professionals, and anyone who cares about kids. Drawing on the perspectives of the nation's experts and the resources of the Child Study Center, the site provides a continually expanding store of practical and accessible articles based on the latest research in child psychiatry, psychology, and development. The center's website is a reliable resource for both common challenges, such as toilet training, and more serious problems such as depression and developmental disorders.
The mission of the Foundation for Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors (BFRBs) is to end the suffering caused by hair pulling disorder, skin picking disorder, and related body-focused repetitive behaviors. Founded in 1991, TLC provides education, outreach, and support of research into the cause and treatment of BFRB disorders.
Review Date: Tuesday, March 28, 2017
Note: Documents in PDF format require the Adobe Acrobat Reader®. If you experience problems with PDF documents, please download the latest version of the Reader®.
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From Williams Sonoma
Standard in French bistros and cafés, classic Picardie glassware has been a Williams-Sonoma customer favorite since Chuck Williams first introduced it more than 40 years ago. The tumblers are made in France of durable tempered glass and are suitable for everything from hot coffee and café au lait to breakfast juices and iced drinks. Our custom-designed plastic lids, sized to fit the large glasses,... Read more


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WWE Wrestler Randy Orton Punched in the Groin by Fan [VIDEO]
While on a SmackDown World Tour Live, WWE superstar Randy Orton was punched in the groin by an over zealous fan who made his way into the ring in Cape Town, South Africa. How did Randy react? He eventually landed a kick on the fan!


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About Dogfish Head Craft Brewed Ales
Ever since the summer of 1995, we have been brewing, cooking, selling and talking everything beer. It's our pastime, our passion, our life. 21 years later, we're just as dedicated to bringing off-centered goodness to off-centered people through our beer, scratch-made spirits, great food, our very own Inn and our events around the country.


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London Escorts
Rendezvous VIP is the Finest London Escort Directory. Showcasing an ultimate collection of the most exquisite and beautiful girls London has to offer. Only the most trusted London escort agencies are permitted to advertise on this exclusive website, so you are guaranteed to get everything you wish for!
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By entering this website, you are confirming that: You are not entering this site in any official, or unofficial capacity; in order to download images, or gain information for use in any media, or to use against the owner's of the site. If you are under 18, or do not agree with the above disclaimer statements, please leave this site immediately.
|© 2009 www.rendezvousvip.com All rights reserved


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Publications Tagged: oil security
- Added March 01, 2005
- Saudi Arabia: Islamic Threat, Political Reform, and the Global War on Terror. Authored by Dr. Sherifa D. Zuhur.
- What should the United States do about Saudi Arabia? What is the best course for strategic cooperation with Saudi Arabia in light of Islamic extremism in the Kingdom, and calls for political and religious reform?


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The obscene size and number of perks Jose Fernandez, superintendent of the Centinela Valley high school district, "earned" last year is the best argument yet for further transparency in school district pay.
Fernandez raked in an exorbitant $663,000 in compensation last year, more than the Los Angeles Unified School District superintendent John Deasy, even though Deasy's urban school district is nearly 10 times the size.
If you get this sinking feeling in your stomach that this is familiar and stinks like the Bell scandal where Robert Rizzo, the manager of the small city pulled in an $800,000 salary, you might be right.
Only so far it appears that it was all legal. And of course, with no clear accountability for the superintendent other than to a compliant school board, it's no wonder Fernandez was quietly able to amass a small fortune and buy a home in the tony neighborhood Ladera Heights to boot, thanks to a low-interest loan provided by the district.
Fernandez, a former Inglewood city councilman who came to the post in 2008 as an interim, sought to turn around the financially troubled school district, but he and his board didn't think that fiscal prudence applied to him.
In 2009 they awarded him a contract with a $198,000 base salary, but one loaded up like a hustler's Cadillac.
There was the 9 percent raise each year, a work year even shorter than the teachers had, and a provision that made it difficult to fire him. It all added up to a tidy sum.
Earlier this month, Chiang sent out a letters to 949 school districts,the 992 publicly-funded charter schools and 58 county office of educations asking each for the superintendent's salary and compensation packages to be posted online.
Maybe if this had happened earlier, Fernandez might not have felt so smug bulking up his bank account.


text: Amen Bill Louis Duet "Boo" VIN 5835 Baldwin, NY (Long Island) Sent from my iPad2 ------------------------------------ To address comments privately to the moderating team, please address: moderators@xxxxxxxxxxx For more info on the list, tech articles, cars for sale see www.dmcnews.com To search the archives or view files, log in at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dmcnewsYahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dmcnews/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dmcnews/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: dmcnews-digest@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx dmcnews-fullfeatured@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: dmcnews-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/


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Rams Shine at NYC Gotham Cup
- Triple jumpers star at Gotham Cup -
- Ellis and St. Simon qualify for nationals -
- Brown breaks school record -
NYC Gotham Cup - Friday, January 15th, 2010
New Balance Track and Field Center - Manhattan, N.Y.
Manhattan, N.Y. - At the 50 team NYC Gotham Cup, juniors Qasim Ellis (Farmingdale, N.Y./Farmingdale) and Jeffrey St. Simon (Farmingdale, N.Y./South Farmingdale) placed first and second respectively in the triple jump with NCAA Division III National Provisional Qualifying marks. Ellis, a team captain, jumped 14.25m (46' 9") to improve on his previous qualifying mark. Ellis currently ranks third on the National List and improved to #2 on the Farmingdale State College All-Time List. St. Simon jumped 14.16m (46' 5 1/2") ranking sixth on the National List and #5 on the FSC All-Time List.
Freshman Ed Brown (Bay Shore, N.Y./Bay Shore) threw the 35 lb. weight 16.39m (53' 9 1/4"), breaking Chris Okolies' school-record by over two feet. Brown's throw also qualified him for the ECAC Championship.
The men's team now has nine individuals in 10 events and one relay team qualified for the ECAC Championship meet.
The next meet is the Wesleyan Invitational at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn. on Saturday, January 23rd.
Additional ECAC qualifying performances:
Triple Jump - Kurt Johns-Harris, 13.76m (45' 1")
500m - Greg Denis, 1:07.78
James Owen, 1:07.91
Notable Performances:
35 lb. Weight Throw - John Roselle, 14.74m (48' 4 1/2") New
Personal Best - #3 on FSC All-Time List
1 Mile - Sean Tiernan, 4:32.68 New Personal Best
DMR - Sean Daly, Mike Blanda, Russell Darress, Sean Tiernan - 10:50.35 - #6 on FSC All-Time List


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Clinton's lead over GOP candidates shrinking
Potential Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's lead over a crowded prospective Republican field has narrowed and her support has slipped below 50 percent, according to a new McClatchy-Marist poll.
Clinton remains ahead of potential Republican rivals including Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey, former Gov. Jeb Bush of Florida and Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky. But recent gaffes by the former secretary of state have helped close the gap.
For example, Clinton leads Christie 47 percent to 41 percent with 12 percent of voters undecided. In April, she led 53-42 with 5 percent undecided, and in February she enjoyed a 58-37 lead against the governor with 6 percent undecided.
She's seen her cushion against Bush, brother of former President George W. Bush, erode to 48 percent to 41 percent with 10 percent undecided. That's down from 55-39 with 6 percent undecided in April.
And against Paul, her lead has shrunk to 48 percent to 42 percent with 10 percent undecided from 54-40 and 6 percent undecided in April.
Lee Miringoff, the director of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion in New York, which conducted the survey, attributed the slippage to Clinton's increased visibility in promoting her new book, "Hard Choices," and some recent gaffes.
Clinton caused a stir in June when she said that she and former President Bill Clinton left the White House in 2001 "dead broke" and in debt, a statement many potential voters found hard to accept given that both Clintons received millions of dollars in book deal advances and commanded six figures on the speech circuit.
She later said she regretted the comment, calling it "inartful" in an interview.
"Misstatements, starting with we left the White House broke, aren't headline grabbers, but they're noticeable," Miringoff, said. "With Hillary Clinton, there's no preseason. She needs a Super Bowl-like performance from start to finish."
Meanwhile, the potential Republican White House aspirants are struggling to get separation from each other in the early maneuvering for their party's nomination.
Bush and Christie are tied at 13 percent among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents in the Marist survey; Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas came in at 10 percent; Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida and Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, both at 9 percent; Paul and Gov. Rick Perry of Texas, 7 percent each; Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, 4 percent; former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, 3 percent; and Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, 2 percent.
"It's a jump ball," Miringoff said.
The field is so tight that "Undecided" leads among self-identified strong Republicans at 24 percent, with Bush in second at 19 percent. Every other Republican registers single digits.
Still, the poll's numbers show the possibilities and possible pitfalls for some of the Republican candidates. Christie shows as a contender, despite the controversy over whether his aides orchestrated major traffic jams on the New Jersey-New York George Washington Bridge last year as political payback against the Democratic mayor of Fort Lee, N.J., not endorsing Christie's re-election bid.
"He's still visible and he's creating distance between himself and the bridge closing," Miringoff said. "He does best among independent-leaning Republicans and not as well among the tea party."
At 15 percent, Cruz tops Republicans among tea party supporters, a subgroup in the survey, followed by Bush at 13 percent, Ryan and Rubio at 10 percent, and Christie and Paul at 7 percent. However, Christie has the edge among non-tea party supporters at 17 percent.
Cruz's and Paul's tea party numbers represent a dramatic reversal of fortunes from April, when Cruz's support from that voting bloc was 6 percent and Paul's stood at 20 percent.
Paul's support has taken a hit as he's sought to broaden his voter appeal. He's spoken at historically black colleges and universities; introduced a bill to restore federal voting rights to nonviolent felons, a disproportionally minority population; advocated reclassifying some federal drug felonies as misdemeanors; and has tried to reshape the image of him as a foreign policy isolationist.
"He's been getting a lot of attention for trying to moderate his views – and that may come at some cost," Miringoff said. "As a national candidate, you do that at some risk."


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Kelly Rowland Close to Signing 'X Factor' Deal
If Simon Cowell had his way, he'd be surrounded by females on his 'X Factor' panel. In addition to returning judge Demi Lovato, another big pop name is close to signing a deal to sit near the cantankerous Cowell: Kelly Rowland!
Entertainment Weekly reports that Rowland is closing in on a deal with the Fox juggernaut. The former Destiny's Child songstress served as a judge on the U.K. version of 'X Factor,' so she's got a good idea of what to expect from a stateside stint on the series.
Speaking of D.C., Cowell recently paid Rowland's self-proclaimed sister Beyonce the ultimate compliment:
As for who else would join Rowland, Lovato and Cowell on the panel? Hollywire reports that country singer Faith Hill and Latina pop star Paulina Rubio are said to be in the top ranks for talks, though somewhat inexplicably Hilary Duff and Jennifer Love Hewitt have also been mentioned to be in negotiations.


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Finance examples shown above are for illustrative purposes only. Fees, rates and monthly payments are eligible to change.
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*Fees are already accounted for within the payments displayed and are also included within the total amount payable.
Finance available subject to status. Indemnities may be required. Other finance offers may be available but cannot be used in conjunction with this offer. We work with a number of carefully selected credit providers who may be able to offer you finance for your purchase. We are only able to offer finance products from these providers. Postal Address: CarBay Limited, find contact details here.


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We find deals from the very best ecommerce sites in South Africe, then list them together in one place, saving you time AND money.
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Valentine's Day Exclusive: Spoil that Someone Special with Sparkling Wine, a Gourmet Picnic, Romantic Music & More at Stellenrust Wine Estate!
Garden Route: 1, 2 or 3-Night Stay for Two Including Breakfast at Dolphin Dunes Guest House
Beer Making Experience for One or Two at BeerGuevara
Western Cape: 1 or 2-Night Anytime Stay for up to Four at Akkerboom Country Cottages
2 or 4 x Tickets to the Rockwood Theatre – Durban
Choice of Food & Wine Pairing Including Tour and Bottle of Wine or Family Pairing Including Kids Pairing at Van Loveren Family Vineyards
Flying Experience for One Including a Meal and Drink Each for Two at African Skyline
Western Cape: 1 or 2-Night Anytime Stay for up to Four at Killarney Trout Cottages
1 Hour boat cruise on the Vaal River from R199 for two people with Aqua Lounge Cruises
Accounting and Bookkeeping Essential Skills Course for R99 for One with Vizual Coaching Academy
1-Hour Sea Cruise for up to Six with Hakuna Matata Charters
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Introductory Flying Lesson from R1899 with Lanseria Flight Centre
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Shark Cage Diving Experience from R1249 at Sharklady Adventures
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Tickets to The Origins Centre from R79 (Up to 61% Off)
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Shooting Experience with 25 Rounds of Ammunition from R250 for One at 4 Guns Shooting Range & Club
Interior Design Diploma with e-Careers for R399
Tandem Paragliding Flight Experience with Tom's Instructional Tandems
Horse Riding Experience for up to Four Including a Summer Braai at Horse Riding Adventure
Cape Town: 2-Night Anytime Stay for Two or Four at The Residences Crystal Towers
Freefall Experience at Orlando Towers for up to Four with Scad Freefall SA
Diploma in Advertising at R199 with E-Careers
Tokens for 3 x Tobogganing Rides at Cool Runnings
1-Hour Archery Session with Introduction for Two at Bowtime Archery
Counselling Children and Adolescents Diploma at e-Careers for R399
Three Kizomba Dance Lessons from R109 for One at HNS Salsa
Learn to Speak French with e-Careers


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Illinois sues Sangamon County over records
County hasn't released documents on injury at detention center
Sangamon County authorities are refusing to release records to the state Department of Children and Family Services, which is investigating a serious injury suffered by a DCFS ward at the county's juvenile detention center last fall.
DCFS sued the county last month, asking a judge to order the county to comply with a subpoena issued in December. In the subpoena, the state demands documentation regarding suicide checks for the boy on Oct. 8, when he suffered a serious injury while on suicide watch at the detention center, according to the lawsuit filed March 12.
Mike Torchia, director of the county's court services department that oversees the detention center, said that confidentiality statutes prevent him from discussing the case in any detail.
"I really can't comment on it," Torchia says. "We're in the process of working with the attorney general's office to resolve the issue. … I don't know what the outcome will be."
Torchia said that he relied on instructions from Sangamon County associate judge Steve Nardulli, who oversees juvenile cases, in declining to release records in response to the DCFS subpoena.
Nardulli said it's a matter of getting a judge's permission to release records. In this case, Nardulli said, the boy who was injured was under the jurisdiction of a Macon County court, and so the state should seek an order from the Macon County judge to get the requested records.
The lawsuit contains no details on the injury or how it might have occurred, nor does the lawsuit state anything about the injured boy except that he was a DCFS ward when the injury occurred and that DCFS is investigating the incident that resulted in injury. DCFS spokesman Kendall Marlowe confirmed that the investigation remains active, but he would not say anything else about the case.
DCFS delivered the subpoena on Dec. 22. The county had until Dec. 31 to respond but still has not given the state the requested records.
"To date, despite numerous attempts to resolve this matter without judicial intervention, respondent has not complied with the subpoena," assistant attorney general Erik P. Lewis wrote in the lawsuit. "Respondent has no legal authority for refusing to comply with the subpoena."
According to the lawsuit, someone called a DCFS hotline on the day the boy was injured.
"Upon information and belief, the minor child in question was under suicide watch at the time of his injury," Lewis wrote in the lawsuit.
Steven Beckett, a University of Illinois law professor, said that public agencies don't typically refuse to release records to authorities charged with investigating incidents that result in injuries to children.
"I think this is very unusual," Beckett said. "It seems to me like this would be like a parent contacting the juvenile detention center and saying 'I'd like to see all the records of who was watching my son during the time he was injured.' "
A parent should have the right to see such records, Beckett said. But Nardulli said it isn't that simple. Like DCFS, he said, a parent would need orders from a judge because juveniles held in detention are considered public wards.
"Just about any information that any person wants is going to have to be approved by a court," Nardulli said. "If a parent wanted to see them (records), they would have to go through this process."
Contact Bruce Rushton at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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I have made another fabric covered clock, for my living room, which I also LOVE! These add so much color and warmth to a room! You can also check out the original tutorial here at Make it and Love it.
I have another unique clock project that I will be posting about soon! I am loving it :) I love clocks so much, that I might dedicate a whole wall in my house to them! Can you imagine the noise?!


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As the titles says already, I started a new big project. It was very tempting to start or the Holland Landscape Mandala - which is fully kitted up - or preparing to start the Cuban Mansion Mandala. But I decided to own up to my promise and to stitch "Coming to Life". Michael likes this one heaps and so I will stitch it for him. Doing it on 18 ct Aida - which feels a bit weird. I prefer to stitch on linen or evenweave.
First time ever I used a pen for gridding. Most often I skip the gridding because it's not only heaps of work but also because I have troubles to remove the thread OR it annoys me doing that while stitching. But I saw some while ago a nifty way of gridding and got myself a water erasable fabric maker with a fine tip. And it works great. The slightest bit of water removes the color...and it doesn't come back. I tried it for 2 weeks - and even touching the lines with a damp cloth does the trick. Personally I wouldn't use this if I would stitch with any hand dyed fiber or on not color fast fabric...but for stitching on white with DMC it's ideal. When I stitch these "paintings" I don't stay in a 10x10 square (although I concentrate on one for finishing) but move out of it to finish off the thread in the needle - as far as possible. Gridding helps a lot here. And best thing is, it took me only couple of minutes to grid it. Just a ruler and off you go. I love it.
The only thing that bothers me a bit is that I can't figure out who the artist is. I bought that chart on Ebay 18 months ago. It was a case of browsing, and accidentally coming across it, and falling in love. Auction was almost running out - so I bought it immediately. The chart itself is not of the quality I would have liked and it comes with surprisingly little information. I even needed to grid the chart itself - the original is just a huge bunch of numbers without any gridding lines. Very hard to work from.


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Choose your room
This hotel was established by Dr. Joaquín Farnos Gauchia. The heart of the complex is the thermal centre; its charm and conveniences offer everything possible for a relaxing holiday. The quality of the water, the micro-climate, the countless leisure activities, the gastronomy and the personal and professional service impress guests in every way. There is also a garden area and a Mediterranean forest. The hotel comprises 74 rooms and has a seating area, a TV lounge, a bar, a café, a restaurant and a car park. Olmost of the corporal, facial processing and other services as UVA Rays, maquillage or depilation.
All rooms come with an en suite bathroom with hairdryer. As well as a ceiling fan, all rooms have satellite TV, background music, a minibar, a terrace and a room safe. The heating and air conditioning are centrally regulated.
There is a thermal pool with indoor and outdoors pools, one of them containing saltwater, and a counter current unit, water massage, hydromassage showers, throat and Vichy showers as well as a steam room. In addition, there are massage cabins, a beauty salon and an electrotherapy centre. For an added fee guests are offered a sauna and a Jacuzzi. Guests are also able to train in the gym. Hotel guests are also offered a thermal bath at 36°C with warm saltwater as well as a vaporium, a Turkish bath, a Finnish sauna and a spa.
Useful information:Other names for Thalasso Hotel Termas Marinas El Palasiet:
Termas Marinas El Palasiet Benicassim
El Palasiet


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Ah, the friendly French.Posted by Kari at 16:33
Pilots are notorious for being cheap. The old joke - How do you get copper wire? Answer: Two captains fighting over a penny. It holds some truth. However, in my case I like to think that I am merely frugal. Frugal out of necessity. Four kids can be hard on the wallet.
Heading out to a Paris restaurant, even an inexpensive one, can cost you 20 to 30 Euro. If you eat that way twice a day on a 6 day trip you have spent almost $600. At any rate the captain and I decided, in the interest of time and money, to purchase our dinner at the grocery store.
I picked up some chicken curry (turned out pretty bland), a baget, and an inexpensive Bordeaux. The store was packed with people and I waited patiently in line to check out. The woman in front of me was having some sort of issue. Not speaking the language I couldn't quite make out what it was, but she could not have taken longer if she decided to write a check and then forgot how to spell her name.
The man behind me became frustrated with the delay and, leaving his things on the belt, stomped toward the exit. In a scolding tone the cashier said something to him in French. The man spoke back to her, rather sharply I thought, and pushed in between the slow lady and myself. He set his brief case next to the register, unzipped it and indicated that he wanted the cashier to search it, a profession of innocence. The cashier waved him off and he stalked toward the exit. He then paced up and down in front of the registers for several minutes (the slow lady was still trying to figure out how to pay) and then he got back in line behind me. The cashier looked at me, rolled her eyes and smirked. I couldn't help but laugh.
"Bonsoir" I said to the cashier.
"Bonsoir - gibbity gibity giberish *unintelligible* sjeezkabom." is what I heard in reply.
"Je ne parle pas Francais." I said with a smile.
"You speak English?" the impatient man piped up. He was a black man. A little older than me, about 5 foot 7, with short hair, a broad face, flat nose, wide set eyes, and very dark skin. He was dressed in all grey and black wearing short black overcoat with a turned up collar. He had a white scarf wrapped around his neck and he carried himself with an air of pompous confidence.
"Yes. I speak English" I replied.
"She asked if you need a bag." He told me.
"Oh..Um, yes please." I said. "Merci." I said to him with what I am sure was a perfect French accent.
"You're welcome." He said with a smile. He had a large gap in between his front teeth. It occurred to me that he could probably spit really far with that big ol gap in his teeth. I never could spit through my teeth...
I stepped out away from the registers and waited for my captain, who was several people back in line. I paced back and forth a bit, eyed the scruffy homeless looking guy standing by the grocery carts for a moment and wondered how long it would be before he hit me up for change (the homeless tactics are pretty much the same the world over and I obviously look either gullible or generous and they thus pay me much attention). I had just decided that I would give him my last 2.40 Euro if he asked when I turned and saw that "impatient black French guy" was standing uncomfortably close to me with a big smile on his mug. I may have jumped a little.
He was standing much closer that most American will stand to you. The French are not as particular about personal hygiene and I don't like to stand that close. But, being charitable a cautious, I just raised my eyebrows a bit and waited to see what he wanted.
"Where are you from?" He asked.
"Um, Florida." I said. He looked confused. "The U.S." I elaborated.
"Ah! America." He said with delight.
"Yes, America. Florida."
"Yes,um, Sarasota." I said. He looked confused again. "Tampa? You know Miami?" I continued.
"Miami!" he said, delighted again.
"Yes, near Miami." I said, wondering where this was going.
"Why are you in Paris?"
"Work." I said.
"Where do you work?"
"I work for an airline." I said. His smile seemed to get much larger.
"Can I be your friend?" He asked with his big, effeminate, gap toothed smile.
"Um...sure...um... I'm married." I blurted with the utmost charm and grace.
"No, no, just friend." he said with sort of a bemused and bashful look. He kept smiling at me and pursed his lips. "Are you waiting for someone?" he asked.
"Ummm, yes. I am."
"I'm waiting for someone too." He tells me. I just stuck my bottom lip out slightly and nodded. (Jutting out the lower jaw and nodding thoughtfully is my go to expression when out of my comfort zone.)"I have fresh fish in here so I should go to put it away." He says.
"Okay." I reply.
"Can I give you my number?" He asks
"My phone doesn't work over here." I told him.
"My cell phone?" he continued.
"I am leaving tomorrow." I said. I think he finally got the hint.
"Okay, I must go. See You!" he chirped. And he swooshed off, in that way that the terribly effeminate have of swishing.
The captain walks up. Stops a few feet away, cocks his head to the side a bit, furrows his brow and says "What are doing?" with that tone of voice that says I know what was going on and I am now going to tease you about it. "Who was that?" he asked with a smirk.
"I just got hit on by an effeminate black Frenchman." I sighed. The captain was quite amused.


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Community members should take notice that the Spencer County Board of Education has voted to change its 2012 regular meeting dates.
Board meetings are now held on the fourth Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m., with the next regularly scheduled meeting planned for Feb. 27 at the Spencer County Middle School media center.
The board previously met on the fourth Thursday of each month.
The board's 2012 regular meeting schedule is listed below:
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Why you'll never find a hedge fund called Bob
I'm reading a book about finance at the moment and in it I came across a hedge fund called:
The High-Grade Structured Credit Strategies Enhanced Leverage Fund
Quite a mouthful, eh? And quite odd, you'd think, for the fast, efficient world of high finance. Isn't it the case that the figures we're talking about here are so large that anything you can do to make your organisation more efficient will shave basis points off your margins and save you billions?
Just imagine how much those extra bits and bytes and pixels and things must be adding to their corp comms budget. Not to mention all that expensive executive talent being expended on longer-than-necessary conversations, like:
Good morning, you're through to the High-Grade Structured Credit Strategies Enhanced Leverage Fund, how can I help you today? Hello? Are you there?
Or how about:
Hi there, this is Bill over at the High-Grade Structured Credit Strategies Enhanced Leverage Fund. We're running low on paperclips over here – wondering if you can fix me up with a new batch? Yes, the large ones. We don't do company memos shorter than 110 pages over here at the High-Grade Structured Credit Strategies Enhanced Leverage Fund.
And this:
Hello, tweeps! Just getting started on this Twitter thingy. DM me if you fancy investing in the High-Grade Structured Credit Strategies Enha
Even abbreviated (H-GSCSELF, one assumes) the name reads like a randomly generated, hard-to-hack password.
So why, if you were going to launch a hedge fund, would you not call it something simple and human and, well, short?
I don't know, like Roger, perhaps?
Or Bob?
Hmm. Let's take a closer look at the name, shall we.
High-Grade This high-grade stuff they invest in sounds good, doesn't it? Strong. Pure. Uncut. A little bit glamorous and daring. I'm picturing the financial equivalent of the qualiddy produc' that Proposition Joe can get his hands on in The Wire.
Structured Credit Well, really, you wouldn't want your credit unstructured, would you? No, no, no. "The High-Grade Amorphous Credit Strategies Enhanced Leverage Fund" just doesn't have the right ring to it.
Strategies We wouldn't want you to think we'd give your hard-earned dosh to the first Bernie Madoff that came along. Nope, we've got a strategy for doing that – in fact, we've got several strategies. All our preferred pyramid-scheme-touting suppliers of financial snake oil are fully vetted by our Compliance team, you know. Due diligence an' all.
Enhanced Leverage Not improved, you realise. That would imply that Version 1.0, in which we offered unenhanced leverage, wasn't fit for purpose. Our previous offering was a bespoke best-practice, integrated financial solution. But if you like your investments fortified with extra financial vitamins, you won't be disappointed when you choose Enhanced Leverage.
So at this point, you're probably thinking that you'd quite like to invest in the High-Grade Structured Credit Strategies Enhanced Leverage Fund.
Sod it, let's just call it Bob before I lose any more of you.
Well, dear reader, I hate to disappoint you. But Bob is no more. Nope. He's disappeared. Kaput. Gone the way of Monty Python parrots.
So who was Bob? And why is he no longer among us?
Well, Bob was a hedge fund with close links to Bear Stearns. The hedge fund, in fact, that collapsed last year, pulling down – in its high-grade, structured, strategically enhanced and leveraged wake – its hapless banking benefactor. And if it weren't for you and me, the equally hapless tax payer, it would have taken the entire financial system with it too.
So what had the people who worked at Bob been dabbling in that brought it to this dismal fate?
Well, it seems that poor old Bob was merely a conduit for investing in long, complex, opaque chains of investments that bore little connection to the real world and that nobody really understood.
Investments with names made up of equally long, complex, opaque chains of words that bore little connection to the real world and that nobody really understood. Names like:
Structured investment vehicles (SIVs)
Asset-backed commercial paper (ABCP)
Collateralised debt obligations (CDOs)
Asset-backed securities (ABSs)
Collateralised debt obligations of asset-backed securities (CDOs of ABSs)
They're what Warren Buffet calls financial WMDs.
So you see, Bob – simple, uncomplicated, down-to-earth Bob, with his easy-going manner and his feet firmly on the ground – was never a role model for the High-Grade Structured Credit Strategies Enhanced Leverage Fund.
No, a name like "Bob" just wouldn't have done at all.


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There was a deadly fire in Southwest Philly over the Fourth of July holiday weekend that killed four kids. That's a terrible tragedy.
However the fallout since the fire while not as tragic as the loss of four young lives is at the least misguided, potentially hazardous to the health of a city's neighborhood and for sure out of line and irresponsible.
Surely none of us who has never lost a child to such a tragedy can feel what the parents of these children are feeling. There is absolutely nothing worse than the death of an innocent victim let alone in such a horrific event as a fire.
But since the fire mobs of angry residents of the 6500 block of Gesner Street have taken to protests at the fire stations that house the very men and women whose sole mission is to put out fires and save lives. Their rage lies in the notion that the fire department botched the response to the fire.
It has gotten so bad that there have been arrests, protests and meetings of city administrators and neighborhood representatives. According to a story on Philly.com, Philadelphia City Councilman Kenyatta Johnson hosted a meeting at Philadelphia City Hall to try and minimize the tensions. Leading the charge is the father of two of the victims.
Patrick Sanyeah, father of the two, has been highly critical of the fire department and its response to the blaze, which engulfed eight rowhouses. The fire killed two of Sanyeah's sons, 4-year-old Patrick Sanyeah and 1½-month-old Taj Jacque; and 4-year-old twins Maria and Marialla Bowah.
According to Philly.com, Sanyeah said, 'Don't sit here and say you did something. You did nothing.'
The Philly.com story pointed out that the fire and the fire department's response, has become a point of contention. Many of those who have protested say it took 'an inordinately long time for crews to respond to a fire around the corner from a fire station at 65th and Woodland Avenue.' On Tuesday, the city released tapes of 911 calls related to the fire, as well as a timeline that showed firefighters responding within minutes, despite the first call being designated a lower-priority 'rubbish fire.'
While no one is perfect and that includes the fire and police departments, to make the actions of the firefighters irresponsible, calling them murderers and killers does nothing to heal the wounds for a neighborhood that has suffered such a tragic loss of life.
We have had our own share of deadly fires here in Chester County. Our public servants – police and fire personnel – put their lives on the line for us each and every minute of every day. While it's always easy to be Monday morning quarterbacks, these people are trained to keep our streets safe and to put out fires as quickly as they can – within reason.
If in fact the Philly firefighters responded within five minutes or so, what else can be expected? They followed procedures and did their best to put out a fire that eventually killed four young children. To even suggest the notion that they did any less is outrageous.


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OSI for CCNA Layer 3: Network
The CCNA exam covers data packets; the network layer routes data packets across networks that link the sending and the receiving host. In a nutshell, the network layer does the following:
Chooses the best route to send packets between hosts.
Assigns logical addresses to all devices in the network to be able to identify each source host and each destination host, as well as each network through which packets need to be routed.
Logical addresses are assigned at the network protocol level. Physical addresses are assigned on a physical device, such as a network card.
Receives each data segment from the transport layer on the sending host and wraps it up in a data packet along with routing data. The packet is sent down to the data link layer to send it over the network physical medium.
On the receiving host, the network layer unwraps the packet received to extract the data segment and sends it up to the transport layer.
Several protocols operate at the network layer, such as IP, IPX, AppleTalk, and SNA, but the CCNA test is only concerned with IP.


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Here you can see logo from Logo Challenge HD level 350 Windows Phone, Android, iOS game for most best representation of level and the answer are shown. Below you will see answers to game Logo Challenge HD level 350. Share the answer with friends and add our site to favorites in your browser! If the answer doesn't approach you can use the filter on letters on the page Logo Challenge HD answers
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When people talk about "natural storytellers," they are probably paying an unintended compliment to the unnatural. They mean that such writers are unnaturally gifted in artifice; that, better than the rest of us, they can draw us in, sound a voice, shape a plot, siphon the fizz of suspense. Yet the compliment is not merely inverted, since even freakish mastery of such tricks does not account for those impalpable gifts—the tremor of presence on the page, the overflow of vitality—which rival the abundance, even gratuitousness, of nature itself.
The English writer David Mitchell belongs to this returning army of nature. Lavishly talented as both a storyteller and a prose stylist, he is notable for his skill and his fertility. Without annoying zaniness or exaggeration, he is nevertheless an artist of surplus: he seems to have more stories than he quite knows what to do with, and he ranges across a remarkable variety of genres—conventional historical fiction, dystopian sci-fi, literary farce. "Cloud Atlas" (2004), his best-known novel, features six interlocked and rotating novellas, each completely different from its neighbor: the journal of an American notary, travelling by boat from Australia to America in the eighteen-fifties; the letters of a young bisexual English composer, sent in the nineteen-thirties to a college friend; a slice of nineteen-seventies paranoid political thriller, in which a young California journalist takes on a sinister energy corporation.
There are plenty of more or less postmodern novels in which multiple narrators jostle for attention; Mitchell's first novel, "Ghostwritten" (1999), had nine of them—all stuffed into the very big gauntlet the serious young writer was throwing to the ground. One of those narrators, a London-based drummer, plays in a band called the Music of Chance ("I named it after a novel by that New York bloke"). Thus the first novelist clips bright coupons from his chosen traditions. A quieter self-consciousness was at work in "Cloud Atlas," his third novel. Each of the six novellas in that book bleeds into its successor; each is obviously a text. So the bisexual English composer Robert Frobisher, who is working as secretary to a Delius-like composer, comes upon a journal in the old man's Belgian château—"the edited journal of a voyage from Sydney to California by a notary of San Francisco named Adam Ewing." He writes to his college friend Rufus Sixsmith, "Mention is made of the gold rush, so I suppose we are in 1849 to 1850. . . . Something shifty about the journal's authenticity—seems too structured for a genuine diary, and its language doesn't ring quite true." Frobisher is referring to the novella that opens "Cloud Atlas," entitled "The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing," and that we have just read. Likewise, Luisa Rey, the nineteen-seventies California journalist who takes on the evil energy corporation, in the book's third novella, finds the letters that Robert Frobisher sent to Rufus Sixsmith back in 1931.
The eighteen-fifties hand off to the nineteen-thirties, which hand off to the nineteen-seventies. The fictional world is both very large and very small. Themes and repeated motifs connect the suite of stories: falling, drowning, poison, captivity, escape. The Delius-like composer is famous for two works of the nineteen-twenties, his "Matryoshka Doll Variations" and his "Untergehen Violinkonzert"; "Cloud Atlas" has been described as a "series of nested dolls," and the German word Untergeher means one who is drowning or sinking. (It is also the title of a Thomas Bernhard novel about Glenn Gould and piano playing.) Robert Frobisher is working on a difficult piece of his own called—yes—"Cloud Atlas Sextet." In the nineteen-seventies, Luisa Rey hears this piece in a record store, and finds the music "pristine, river-like, spectral, hypnotic . . . intimately familiar."
The jacket copy of "Cloud Atlas" mentions Nabokov and Umberto Eco, and calls Mitchell a "postmodern visionary." This is true enough, but one is struck by the gestural nature of Mitchell's postmodernism. You could remove all the literary self-consciousness without smothering the novel's ontology, or coarsening its intricacy. It is not exactly that Mitchell's heart isn't in his authorial games; to put it positively, the persuasive vitality of his stories is strong enough to frighten off their own alienation. The novellas have a life of their own, and will not be easily burgled—which is to say that they function like all successful fictions. The revelation that, say, Adam Ewing's journal might have been fabricated by his son, or that Luisa Rey's journalistic crusade in California might just be a thriller written by someone with the nom de plume of Hilary V. Hush, actually strengthens the autonomous reality of these fictions. This is the opposite of the weak postmodernism of a writer like Paul Auster, whose moments of metafictional self-consciousness—"Look, it's all made up!"—are weightless, because the fictions themselves have failed to achieve substance: a diet going on a diet. In this respect, Mitchell is more like Nabokov (or José Saramago, or the Roth of "The Counterlife") than like the feebler novelistic creator Umberto Eco. Of course, the paradox whereby the exposure of fiction's fictionality only buttresses its reality is at least as old as the second part of "Don Quixote," and reminds us of the ancestral postmodernism of the novel form.
Mitchell is ancestral in another respect, too. He may be self-conscious, but he is not knowing, in the familiar, fatal, contemporary way; his naturalness as a storyteller has to do not only with his vitality but also with a kind of warmth, a charming earnestness. This is why he can so speedily get a fiction up and running, involve the reader in an invented world. One would be hard pressed to separate the quality of his sentences from the quality of the human presence. Here are two examples of his novelistic vivacity, one from "Cloud Atlas" and one from his new novel, "The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet" (Random House; $26). In the first, Adam Ewing, the nineteenth-century voyager, is describing, in his journal, the antipodean heat on board the Prophetess:
By day, my coffin is hot as an oven & my sweat dampens these pages. The tropic sun fattens & fills the noon sky. The men work seminaked with sun-blacked torsos & straw hats. The planking oozes scorching tar that sticks to one's soles. Rain squalls blow up from nowhere & vanish with the same rapidity & the deck hisses itself dry in a minute. Portuguese man-o'-wars pulsate in the quicksilver sea, flying fish bewitch the beholder & ocher shadows of hammerheads circle the Prophetess. Earlier, I stepped on a squid that had propelled itself over the bulwarks! (Its eyes & beak reminded me of my father-in-law.) The water we took on at Chatham Isle is now brackish & without a dash of brandy in it, my stomach rebels. When not playing chess in Henry's cabin or the mess room, I rest in my coffin until Homer lulls me into dreams a-billow with sails of Athenians. The details are vivid (the deck hissing itself dry in a minute) and vividly human (the squid's face resembling his father-in-law's). In the following passage from Mitchell's latest work, a historical novel set largely in Japan at the turn of the nineteenth century, a junior clerk for the Dutch East Indies Company, named Ouwehand, is ebulliently describing, to a Japanese interpreter, how the company's cook, Arie Grote, got married to a woman he did not love—each suitor conned the other, by pretending to wealth. I choose it just because it is so incidental; nothing turns on it, and this large novel has scores of such flourishes:
"On Mr Grote's last trip home," obliges Ouwehand, "he wooed a promising young heiress at her town house in Roomolenstraat who told him how her heirless, ailing papa yearned to see his dairy farm in the hands of a gentleman son-in-law, yet everywhere, she lamented, were thieving rascals posing as eligible bachelors. Mr Grote agreed that the Sea of Courtship seethes with sharks and spoke of the prejudice endured by the young colonial parvenu, as if the annual fortunes yielded by his plantations in Sumatra were less worthy than old monies. The turtledoves were wedded within a week. The day after their nuptials, the taverner presented the bill and each says to the other, 'Settle the account, my heart's music.' But to their genuine horror, neither could, for bride and groom alike had spent their last beans on wooing the other! Mr Grote's Sumatran plantations evaporated; the Roomolenstraat house reverted to a co-conspirator's stage prop; the ailing father-in-law turned out to be a beer porter in rude health, not heirless but hairless."
Mitchell's previous novel, "Black Swan Green" (2006), was packed full of this kind of liveliness. It eschewed postmodern complexity in favor of telling a straightforwardly funny, captivating, autobiographical story about being a thirteen-year-old boy with literary ambitions and the comic misfortune to be stuck in benighted, rural Worcestershire in the early nineteen-eighties (the county and time in which Mitchell came of age: he was born in 1969). Having grown up in provincial England only a few years before Mitchell, I read "Black Swan Green" in flashes of heat and cold, laughing one moment (it is a very funny book) and cringing the next (it is excruciatingly honest about adolescence). The early eighties are loosed in a sickening flow, and bobbing in the blood-dimmed tide of memory are first cigarettes, first kisses, winkle-picker shoes, the Datsun Cherry (a kind of car, alas), the film "Chariots of Fire," the maddening parental habit of referring to the local cinema as "the local fleapit" (a subtle form of discouragement, as in " 'Chariots of Fire' is showing at the local fleapit"), the Falklands War, Mrs. Thatcher, and such bands as the Human League, Roxy Music, and Men at Work ("That fab song with the dusty flute in it by Men at Work was on").
It's easy, you might say, to throw this superb awfulness onto the page and let it fragrantly off-gas. But many like-minded novels have fallen into cheap joking, and clever, collusive ironies. Mitchell's narrator, Jason Taylor, is clever, but he is also wide-eyed, observant, even innocent. He condescends to nothing, so nothing is beneath his notice—whether the "dusty" flute of the Men at Work song or a slightly older male cousin who is wearing "one of those woven wristbands you wear to prove you're not a virgin," or his own revoltingly "nuggety hanky," or a girl's breasts, each "armed with a gribbly nipple," or an old lady's "rivery eyeballs." Mitchell can compact a lot of feeling into a throwaway line. Jason, who stammers, and is fiercely ashamed of his affliction, describes his father's stake in the matter thus: "If I stammer with Dad, he gets that face he had when he got his Black & Decker Workmate home and found it was minus a crucial packet of screws." Nothing more on that subject needs to be said, does it?
Mitchell is obsessed with eternal recurrence, and reprises earlier allusions and motifs in each book. The reader is not surprised to find that Robert Frobisher's "Cloud Atlas Sextet" makes an appearance in "Black Swan Green." Perhaps "Black Swan Green" also foreshadows Mitchell's latest novel, and its historical Japanese setting. Rural Worcestershire seems very English, except when it sounds Japanese: "The wind riffled the ten thousand pages of the oak tree." And Jason Taylor's appalling father gives a dinnertime lecture that shades in the background of "The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet": "Dad talked about how spices used to be like gold or oil nowadays. Clippers and schooners brought them back from Jakarta, Peking, and Japan. Dad said how in those days Holland was as powerful as the USSR is today. Holland!"
Jacob de Zoet is a pious, pedantic, upright young clerk for the Dutch East Indies Company, newly arrived on the man-made island of Dejima, in the bay of Nagasaki. It is 1799. The Japanese, enforcing their policy of isolation, confined the Dutch to their post at Dejima, a kind of floating village connected by a bridge to the mainland, and strictly monitored them. The Dutch were effectively prohibited from entering the landmass of Japan, except for the purpose of making an annual visitation to the shogun, in Edo; religious services were banned, and books of Christian devotion were seized upon arrival. Jacob is quickly involved in two difficult narratives: as an employee of the utmost probity, he is tasked with auditing the company, and purging its corruption (various employees have been fiddling the books and stealing goods); unfortunately, the man who has bestowed that task, Unico Vorstenbosch, the chief of the Dejima trading station, is himself on the take. When Jacob confronts Vorstenbosch about his dishonesty, he is suddenly isolated, without allies.
The second struggle also isolates Jacob: he falls in love with Orito Aibagawa, an unusual Japanese woman who works as a midwife, and who has been taking medical instruction from a Dutch physician and intellectual, Dr. Marinus, long resident on Dejima. It is almost impossible for Jacob to advance his love; he is not even sure that Orito returns it, and, even if she did, how could a red-haired Dutchman and a wellborn Japanese woman form any serious bond? But, before anything might occur, Orito disappears. Her father has died, leaving large debts, and it seems that Orito's family, in order to settle those debts, has "sold" the daughter into a kind of slavery: against her will, she is taken to a remote rural nunnery, run by a powerful and malevolent warlord, the Abbot Enomoto. Just as Jacob fought to unravel the corruptions of his company, so he now strives to unravel the corrupt potency of the Abbot Enomoto and his cultlike temple. As an English reviewer has remarked, the Abbot's temple, where the enslaved nuns are drugged and impregnated by willing monks, is reminiscent of the world of Japanese anime. (It also recalls one of the novellas in "Cloud Atlas," set in a futuristic Korea, where cloning, and a cloned servant class, has become an essential part of the economy; it is one of the best sections in "Cloud Atlas," and was perhaps an influence on Kazuo Ishiguro's recent novel "Never Let Me Go.")
The floating island and the remote nunnery function like Balzacian boarding houses, offering the novelist closed alternative worlds, tight with life. One is impressed, once again, by the evidence of Mitchell's immense natural gifts: a vast range of characters, each touched with difference; fabulously fluent and intelligent dialogue; scenes that are dramatically shaped but lack obtrusive manipulation; above all, an apparently effortless inhabiting of the Japanese context. (Mitchell is married to a Japanese woman, and lived for eight years in that country.) Tensions between the Japanese and the Dutch, and, later, between the Japanese and the English, allow Mitchell to return to a favored theme: the history, and eternal present, of personal and political rapacity. In "Cloud Atlas," Adam Ewing, en route from Australia to San Francisco, is surrounded by men who are convinced that nineteenth-century Anglo-Saxons have been chosen by God to be agents of brutal, civilizing subjugation in the darker areas of the globe. "The weak are meat the strong do eat," one of these men says. The six novellas in that book adumbrate the theme. Likewise, in "Black Swan Green" Jason Taylor, like Luisa Rey and Jacob de Zoet, is a goody set down among baddies (bullies at school, bullies at home).
By any standards, "The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet" is a formidable marvel, and it would be perverse to hold Mitchell's natural facility against him. Yet the book is still a conventional historical novel, and drags with it some of the fake heirlooms of the genre. There are vivid set scenes, as the form demands: an excruciating and perilous childbirth opens the novel; Dr. Marinus extracts a man's kidney stone through the anus, while students look on; there is a public execution; and, later on, there is a gouty Admiral Penhaligon, aboard the H.M.S. Phoebus, commanding his men to fire on Nagasaki—by which point we have reached the fictional world of Patrick O'Brian. There is a perceptible staginess to many of the perfectly turned scenes, reminiscent at times of such movies as "The Bridge on the River Kwai," "A Man for All Seasons," and even "Zulu" or "The Man Who Would Be King." The Japanese, in this book, speak a cinematic pidgin English that unfortunately sounds as "Chinese" as it does "Japanese": "Miss Aibagawa work hard as midwife, both for rich customers and poor persons who cannot pay. Recently, she deliver Magistrate Shiroyama's son. Birth was hard, and other doctor renounce, but she persevere and succeed." Depending on their social station, the Dutch speak a bit like Sir Thomas More in "A Man for All Seasons," or like a Cockney out of Dickens. "In a cellar no bigger'n this room was twenty-four lads, my age or older," Grote the chef says, merrily anecdotalizing. "Some'd been there weeks; some was half skel'tons, coughin' up blood. . . . This great scabby grunt strolls over sayin', 'Better give me your half-guilder now for safe-keepin'.' Says I, 'What half-guilder?' an' he says I can give it him volunt'ry or else he'll tenderize me an' have it anyways."
This kind of thing—a Dutchman from 1800 speaking English like Bill Sikes—goes with the fictional territory, I suppose, and Mitchell, to be fair, is alert to the misprision of translation and cultural transmission: the book has many scenes in which fumbling Dutchmen and Japanese clink the cracked cups of their different languages together, while meaning leaks away. Yet it is because Mitchell's dialogue is so brilliant and vital that the captious critic wants something . . . more. A lesser writer like Patrick O'Brian fills out the genre so completely that staginess suffices, but Mitchell "o'erflows the measure," spills himself beyond boundaries.
An example both of Mitchell's vitality and of the somewhat artificial nature of the mechanics can be taken from early in the novel, when Jacob de Zoet first meets the fierce Dr. Marinus, in his book-lined study. Jacob, proper and hesitant, has come to ask the doctor to draw some of his blood. The encounter is familiar to us from a thousand movies: the irascible genius who barely acknowledges the stumbling neophyte, and then annihilates him in a spew of erudition:
"I just arrived a quarter hour ago, from the Shenandoah. My name's—"
"Did I ask for your name? No: I asked for your fons et origo."
"Domburg, sir: a coastal-town on Walcheren Island, in Zeeland."
"Walcheren, is it? I visited Middelburg once."
"In point of fact, Doctor, I was educated in Middelburg."
Marinus barks a laugh. "Nobody is 'educated' in that nest of slavers."
"Perhaps I may raise your estimate of Zeelanders in the months ahead. I am to live in Tall House, so we are nearly neighbors."
"So propinquity propagates neighborliness, does it?" . . .
"Mr. Vorstenbosch suggested you might drain some blood . . ."
"Medieval quackery! Phlebotomy—and the Humoral Theory on which it rests—was exploded by Hunter twenty years ago."
And so on. The character of Dr. Marinus is up and running. Mitchell always delivers this swift magic. But the fact that he can do a scene of this conventionality much better than most hired scriptwriters should not quite let him off the hook.
Despite the novel's liveliness and deep immersion in the foreignness of its world, there is something a bit mystifying about its distance from contemporary life, something a little contrived in its brilliant autonomy. The publisher promises "a bold and epic novel of a rarely visited point in history," and this is not wrong, except that choosing rarely visited points in history for novelization seems to lack inner necessity. Mitchell's new novel has already been likened to Tolstoy, but Tolstoy wrote "War and Peace" because he felt compelled to examine and dramatize a great national crisis, and it is that compulsion that makes "War and Peace" a novel of the eighteen-sixties, and not merely "a novel of 1812." Likewise, the complications of politics and trade in the Far East were a living presence for Joseph Conrad; he was never really writing historical fiction, even when he reached back into the nineteenth century, because his authorial presence was so strangely contemporary. But Mitchell's abilities are mimetic, and tend toward authorial disappearance; and to "visit" that world, however superbly, a hundred years after Conrad is indisputably to be writing historical fiction. If Conrad's great master, Henry James, was right when he said that the novel should press down on "the present palpable intimate" (he used the triad to distinguish the role of the living novel from that of the historical novel), then Mitchell's new book is only palpable—a strange swerve from a writer whose previous book, "Black Swan Green," was a flying "present-palpable-intimate" troika.
The serious literary novel is at an interesting moment of transition. Scraps between "traditionalists" and "avant-gardists" get all the attention (such as it is), but a career like David Mitchell's, varied and freewheeling, daring but also drizzled with prizes, is much more reflective of our current eclecticism. If postmodernism came after modernism, what comes after postmodernism? For that is where we are. "Post-postmodernism" tends toward an infinite stutter. "After postmodernism" suggests a severance that has not occurred. We might settle for "late postmodernism," a term that suggests the peculiar statelessness of contemporary fiction, which finds itself wandering—not unhappily—between tradition and novelty, realism and anti-realism, the mass audience and the élitist critic. Thus David Mitchell can follow a "postmodern" novel with a "traditional" comic bildungsroman, and then follow that with a conventional historical novel. It is hard to know whether this statelessness is difficult freedom or easy imprisonment, but the more ambitious contemporary fiction will often blend a bewildering variety of elements and historical techniques—there may be, for instance, formal conservatism but radical content; a nominally "postmodern" novel might proceed indistinguishably from an "old-fashioned" realist version, the only sign of its apparent radicalism a spirit of levity or pastiche, or an intermittent self-consciousness. A nominally "realist" novel might be so fragmented and starkly edited that its minimalism seems experimental, and deliberately artificial.
Meanwhile, the historical novel, typically the province of genre gardeners and conservative populists, has become an unlikely laboratory for serious writers, some of them distinctly untraditional in emphasis and concern. (I am thinking not just of Mitchell but of Thomas Pynchon, Susan Sontag, Steven Millhauser, A. S. Byatt, Peter Carey.) What such novelists are looking for in those oldfangled laboratories is sometimes mysterious to me; and how these daring writers differ from a very gifted but frankly traditional and more commercial historical novelist like Hilary Mantel is an anxiously unanswered question.
The revival of storytelling, after the great revolution of Latin-American magical realism, is surely what binds together this eclecticism. And in two respects "The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet" is indeed a representative late-postmodern document. First, in place of the grave silence that was the great theme of early postmodernism (or late modernism, if you prefer), language announcing a postwar exhaustion, its own impossibility, as in the work of Beckett or Blanchot, there is a confident profusion of narratives, an often comic abundance of story-making. Never, when reading Mitchell, does the reader worry that language may not be adequate to the task, and this seems to me both a fabulous fortune and a metaphysical deficiency. Second, although "The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet" is in many ways a realist novel (it is set in the recognizable world, it is full of real and familiar human beings, there is no formal experimentation at all), its very historical distance—its self-enclosed quality—represents an assertion of pure fictionality. Thus, despite the frigates and the kidney stones, despite Chef Grote and Admiral Penhaligon, the novel has a whiff of the formalist; although the book contains no literary games, it is itself a kind of long game.
This is to argue not that David Mitchell should be more like Tolstoy or Conrad or Beckett but, curiously, that he might be more Mitchellian—that the reader wants a kind of moral or metaphysical pressure that is absent, and that has ceded all the ground to pure storytelling. Had Mitchell chosen to set his new novel in fifteenth-century Spain or eighth-century Britain, he doubtless could have done so with equal facility and success. But the result would be, essentially, fantasy—and his new novel, though closer to the present day, is a kind of fantasy, too. Or, rather, it is a brilliant fairy tale; and even nightingales, as a Russian proverb has it, can't live off fairy tales. ♦