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The Rendition by Albert Ashforth
There are times when I wonder whether there's something wrong with me. As it is, I seem to fit into the male gender or, at least, I've got all the right equipment for that role. Yet when I read books like this, I start to wonder. Perhaps my testosterone level has fallen too much. According to the medical texts I read about the ageing process, the level of testosterone declines steadily once the human male passes the age of twenty-five. In libido terms, it's surprising we're on the scrapheap of life so young. Apparently, we become aware of the decline as we have fewer erections and just feel so goddamned tired all the time. So by my age, the testosterone is fast approaching zero and, in sexual terms, I'm close to death. This makes it particularly depressing to read a first-person narrative featuring a man who's incapable of looking at a woman as an asexual colleague or friend. He's a throwback to the Stone Age and irredeemably sexist, constantly assessing the quality of the breasts that swing into his line of sight and unable to keep his eyes off legs, particularly when shorter skirts are being worn. Even if he's typical, and I'm by no means convinced he is, I find it faintly unsavoury to read about his male reaction to the women around him. He seems to me internally lascivious and, if the women are watching his eyes, overtly prurient.
In this reaction, I note a certain level of hypocrisy. I confess to watching the people around me. I suspect that's an embedded part of human nature stemming from the need to scan the immediate environment for possible threats and, when the opportunity presented itself to a younger me, to find a mate. Except, in my culture, men and women generally relate to each other without layers of sexual fantasies getting in the way. This man's obsessional interest in female body parts grows tiresome and slows down the development of the plot. Yes, we all know men like him are supposed to be supersoldiers, impervious to pain, yet blessed with the brains to infiltrate and sink an enemy battleship armed only with a screwdriver. But. . . I'm feeling exhausted by all this. I'll go lie down in a darkened room after taking a cold shower.
Ignoring the character of our hero, The Rendition by Albert Ashforth (Oceanview Publishing, 2012) is a wonderful thriller. We start off with a rendition attempt going terribly wrong. Embarrassingly, the intended target takes our heroic US covert operative prisoner. He's rescued but, after sustaining damage, wants out of future operations. Unfortunately, he's not allowed to retire and, eight months later, he's sent off to Germany to investigate a murder where an American is in the pokey accused of the crime. Not surprisingly, there are links back to the failed rendition and after the usual alarums and excursions, we get to a reasonably satisfactory outcome.
Allowing for the inevitable success of our hero, there's a pleasing attempt to deal with the shades of grey that now affect the operation of US agents in Europe. To understand the problem, we need only look back to the abduction of Osama Moustafa Hassan from Milan in February 2003 and his subsequent treatment in Egypt. The Italian police identified twenty-three CIA and US Air Force personnel as involved, and prosecutors sought their extradition from the US to face charges of kidnapping. Interestingly, the Italian Government refused to act on its own court's findings and never made the extradition request. This book is set in 2007 with the US now caught up in military action in Afghanistan, and deals with the events ultimately leading to the declaration of independence by Kosovo. Obviously, this was a time of considerable sensitivity if US agents were identified as acting on German soil. The local police are initially working on the basis that the US soldier they have in custody is guilty of the murder. The problem for our hero is to use his contacts to convince the investigating officers they have the wrong man.
I'm prepared to believe there would be a split of opinion about American involvement in local affairs. Older officers who had worked with US agents during the Cold War would retain respect, whereas younger officers might be more patriotic and resentful if the US tried to act unilaterally on their patch. However, this becomes somewhat redundant with the German Government very quick to recognise the new Kosovo. It could hardly publicly complain when our hero had been so actively working to a conclusion it approved. Although some passages in the concluding chapters are a little self-serving, Albert Ashforth successfully navigates the political complexities with some skill. I'm acknowledging the outcome as credible.
Putting this together, I'm prepared to accept my reaction to this hero may not be entirely fair. So I'm going to recommend The Rendition as one of the better thrillers dealing with the problems any government would have in maintaining its international reputation while fighting in Afghanistan and running covert operations on "friendly" soil.
A copy of this book was sent to me for review.


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Blockbuster Looks For Telecom Partnerships
Blockbuster is looking to form partnerships with top telecommunications companies as part of a move into video-on-demand, its CEO told a media conference this week.
According to Reuters Jim Keyes, speaking to a Citigroup media conference, said Blockbuster is actively looking at media partnerships that will make it easier for them to become a player in the on-demand field.
Rival Netflix has announced a series of content and hardware partnerships in recent months, most recently with Vizio this week.
Related Content

subset: commoncrawl


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What is yoga? Do you have to be a vegetarian with rock hard abs to do it? Here's our easy guide to what yoga is, what it isn't and who's doing it. Our easy guide covers yoga definitions modern and ...
Free shipping to the UK, from all our makers in the UK, Europe & even the US. We won't be beaten on price. If it's cheaper elsewhere tell us and we'll refund the difference!
Championing environmental safeguarding, workplace wellbeing, fair pay, diversity, repairing & recycling, transparency, giving back, & animal welfare.
How Lucy Edge's book Yoga School Dropout inspired the creation of this website and transformed her from a burnt out corporate to (occasionally) chilled out yogipreneur.


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Ladies Ilse Jacobsen Rubber Boots Deep Forest: EUR 39 / UK 6
Ilse Jacobsen Boots - Long Rubino
Here at The Scandinavian Shop we are proud to stock a selection of wonderful boots and wellies by distinctive Danish brand Ilse Jacobsen Hornbæk.Taking inspiration for their striking designs from a merging of current fashion trends with inspiration from the natural environment, Ilse Jacobsen has succeed in creating designs which are simple and functional yet fashionable and desirable.
Ilse Jacobsen has been established since 1993 and is still a privately owned company operating from its coastal headquarters just north of Copenhagen. It is from this remote Danish setting that much of the inspiration behind the Ilse Jacobsen brand is drawn.Each one of Ilse Jacobsen's boots is hand-made from natural rubber, maintaining the brand's passion for style and quality while staying close to its sympathy with natural beauty and the environment. Here at The Scandinavian Shop you will find a carefully selected range of Ilse Jacobsen footwear from their latest collection. This includes our favourite seasonal colours in both full height and 3/4 length styles.The sturdy grip soles are both lightweight and insulating and the cotton fleece lining adds further wamth, comfort and a touch of luxury.
Both functional and good looking, Ilse Jacobsen boots are ideal for the country and stylish enough for the city. Screaming Scandinavian design, it is easy to see how these boots have so quickly become a desirable international brand.among lovers of fashion, design and the environment alike. Please feel free to browse our selection of Ilse Jacobsen boots, we hope that you love them as much as we do at The Scandinavian Shop!


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Web Link: Women Who Initiate Casual Sex Tend To Regret It Less, Says Study
PDF Link: Women Who Initiate Casual Sex Tend To Regret It Less, Says Study _ HuffPost Canada
Story originally posted on 03/13/2018
Story written per Canadian style book
Turns out, women who go after what they want tend to regret casual hookups less. At least, that's the case for some Norwegian and American students.
A new study conducted by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology and the University of Texas sought to discover why some women regret their most recent one-night stands more than men do, according to Indy100.
The study used 547 Norwegian and 216 American students under 30 years old who identified as heterosexual. Researchers found that when a participant experienced greater negative emotions, such as worry, experienced disgust, or felt pressured into sex, it was a predictor of casual sex regret. On the other hand, great sex, a sexually competent partner, and initiated contact (by the woman) were predictors for reduced casual sex regret.
"Women who initiate sex are likely to have at least two distinguishing qualities. First, they are likely to have a healthy sexual psychology, being maximally comfortable with their own sexuality. Second, women who initiate have maximum choice of precisely who they want to have sex with. Consequently, they have less reason to feel regret, since they've made their own choice," Prof. David M. Buss of the University of Texas told BBC News.
The study also noted the participants were aware of the type of partner they wanted to have sex with, as they found that men and women cited revulsion as the biggest turn-off after they had a one-night stand.
"Sexual disgust is an important adaptive emotion. It functions to help people avoid, now or in the future, potential sex partners who are either low in mate value or who carry some risk of sexually transmitted infections," Prof. Buss added.
A 2012 survey found that only 31 per cent of Canadian women routinely orgasmed, and 69 per cent of women said they were sexually satisfied compared to 84 per cent of Canadian men who said the same.
In 2007, sex therapist Joy Davidson noted that women are dissatisfied with their sex lives in part because they don't know what to ask for. "They are experiencing very little in the way of satisfaction because they don't even know what level to reach for," Davidson told NBC News.
When women's sexual responses or dysfunctions are studied and treated, the subjects, "Don't even know their own baseline functioning, even lubrication. They don't know. You have to be taught what to look for, and we don't teach this. We don't tell women about sex very much and [response] is all internal," Dr. Anita H. Clayton told NBC News.
Davidson also blamed the media for often presenting false expectations of sexual pleasure. "[Women] are afraid to speak up, and so we stay in patterns," Davidson said.
When it comes to casual sex, women don't often communicate with their partner, according to research presented at the International Academy of Sex Research's 2013 meeting, reports Time. According to the researchers, women don't feel like they can tell their casual partner what they want in bed, whereas men aren't as concerned about pleasing their mate.
This results in women who are less than satisfied with their sex lives. In a 2017 list titled "World's Most Sexually Charged Women," Canadian women were nowhere to be found, according to a study conducted by the dating website Victoria Milan, which analyzed their most active women profiles in 20 countries.
This despite the fact that Canada reportedly leads the way in sexuality research — a field which examines consent, female desire, sexual dysfunction, orgasm, and more, The Globe and Mail reports.


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|Fidelity Investments, United States
A bit surprise by this new visitor, I check why he landed on my blog. When I saw he was coming from Yahoo, I look what was his query.
Ha ah ! This guy was auditing the Web to find people talking badly about his company. But when I saw my blog was in 11th position for that expression I was really surprise ! I even not remember the post on the big success that company got with the Google stock. But why Yahoo give me the eleven rank for that expression where in that post I don't use the word "sucks" ? In the archive of the month, this bad word appear only once and 1,992 words after the sequence "Fidelity Investments" !
That not really a good proximity ratio on 1,430 results ? Yahoo should lower this ratio because it make this guy landed here for nothing !


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I have two custom modules with a 1-M relationship: Contract - ContractDetails
1 Contract has multiple Contract Details.
In Contract Details the Contract appears as a relate field but I want the contract_number not the contract_name to be displayed.
This works fine in the record view of contract details, and the list view but when I need to search by contract number in the Contract Details module the search field expects a name, not a number. But when I start to type the name the SQS starts listing numbers that match that name...
Any thoughts on how to fix that?
From Contract Details Vadefs:
$dictionary["wcont_ContractPDetails"]["fields"]["wcont_contractpdetails_wcont_contracts_name"] = array (
'name' => 'wcont_contractpdetails_wcont_contracts_name',
'type' => 'relate',
'source' => 'non-db',
'vname' => 'LBL_WCONT_CONTRACTPDETAILS_WCONT_CONTRACTS_FROM_WCONT_CONTRACTS_TITLE',
'save' => true,
'id_name' => 'wcont_wolfb293ntracts_ida',
'link' => 'wcont_contractpdetails_wcont_contracts',
'table' => 'wcont_contracts',
'module' => 'wcont_Contracts',
'rname' => 'contract_number',


text:
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The Gantenbein Law Firm is a Tax Law Firm located in Denver and servicing all of Colorado. Contact our Denver tax attorney today for immediate tax resolution for all your tax issues.
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For more information, contact our Denver tax attorney today: 303-618-2122.


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Chapter 150: Hold her in high esteem
She named several towns in southern France confidently, several of which did not exist in the map of Luo Yibei.
The large and small towns of Southern France were too numerous and finding a complete map of it was too difficult. However, she could actually speak out their names fluently and even mention specific conditions of each place clearly.
This display of knowledge not only amazed Luo Yibei but Luo Enqi as well.
Luo Enqi had his head lowered down to study the map, but then he slowly lifted his face up and for the first time, scrutinized the girl in the room seriously.
Fang Chixia's face looked extremely young, however, this kind of person, who impressed Luo Yibei and himself, could actually point out the contractual loopholes that he, Luo Yibei, and even Rongxi's Legal Department weren't able to see.
This side of her, truly made Luo Enqi hold her in high esteem.
"Newcomer?" Staring at Fang Chixia for a while, he asked.
"Yes!" Fang Chixia bowed her head lightly and politely replied.
"Are you working with Shi Jinyang?" Luo Enqi asked again.
"En." Fang Chixia knew nothing of his identity and wasn't sure how to address him so she could only answer truthfully.
Listening to the dialogue between the two on the sideline, Luo Yibei felt like the direction of their talk was heading the wrong way so he waved his hand at Fang Chixia, "Go out first!"
Fang Chixia herself perceived some signs so after gaining his permission, she paid tribute to the two, turned and withdrew from the conference room.
"What are you up to? Why did you let her out when I haven't finished talking to her yet?" Luo Enqi gave Luo Yibei the eye, somewhat displeased with his behavior.
Luo Yibei hooked his lips up and smiled calmly.
Ahem, did he think he couldn't understand the meaning behind his questions?
Wanted to transfer that girl under his command?
Luo Yibei thought, Fang Chixia and he haven't settled yet, so would he accept her to be transferred to the hands of others?
Moreover, if she really were to go to Luo Enqi's side, if the two of them had to do something together, finding a place would be of too much inconvenience.
"Grandpa, I am going to deal with these contracts." Luo Yibei did not pay attention to Luo Enqi's words, picked up the documents on the table, and strode out of the room.
After Fang Chixia went back, she handled the matters in her hand briefly and then received a call from Great Treasure.
Great Treasure is Fang Chixia's exclusive nickname for the other party, both of them have unique names for each other, but her girl friend's real name is Tong Yan.
Like An An, Tong Yan is also a roommate of Fang Chixia, but unlike her and An An, she doesn't often live in their dorm.
Tong Yan's family seemed very well-off. How rich they are? Fang Chixia had no idea but she often sees a private car that comes and goes to drop her off and pick her up. What's more, it had the look of a limited edition car.
Some time ago, Tong Yan's elder brother and sister brought her with them abroad for several days, so Fang Chixia's marriage, she wasn't informed any of it.
That late telephone call, An An must have mentioned the matter to her. She called to ask about her situation.
Fang Chixia owed her a detailed confession, so the two made an appointment that evening at seven o'clock. After getting off work, Fang Chixia headed directly to their meeting place.
She and Tong Yan haven't seen each other for a long time that she stayed out for several hours and didn't go home.
Luo Yibei sat on the sofa in the living room, following the hands of the clock. When 10 o'clock arrived and she still wasn't back, he hit the phone, "Where are you?"
"I'm dining with Great Treasure tonight. I might be back very late." She didn't take Luo Yibei's question seriously and just answered his call with a few words.


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OB Cuisine: Omoni Oboli Shares The Easiest & Quickest Way To Make Delicious Crepes
Today on OB Cuisine Nollywood actress and filmmaker Omoni Oboli is sharing an easy and quick way to make delicious crepes.
On her crepes recipe, she says: These yummy crepes fly off as you make them! They are my family's favorites. They simply can't get enough!
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups liquid milk (When using powdered milk like I did, mix 1/2 cup of powdered milk in 1 1/2 cups of water)
- 4 eggs 3 tablespoons melted butter
Watch the method of preparation below:


text: Can't get Drake's "God's Plan" out of your head? Think you've got the pipes to take on Rhianna or ya feel some old school Jay-Z comin' through? Spit it out at Hip-Hop Karaoke where SGtheDJ calls the role as the line for the stage fills with local MCs and wannabes, cued to drop rhymes from their headphone heroes. Contact firstname.lastname@example.com with song info to sign up in advance.


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29 March 2010
route 66
8 comments:
It's a new day....and I'm feeling so-so....♫♬♫♪♫♬ReplyDelete
Wonderful and I am happy for you and envious at the same time. You have worked hard to achieve the new weight and the new mind set. Keep it up. It looks good on you.ReplyDelete
So happy for you ...... sounds like life is good for you right now.......:-) HugsReplyDelete
Texas i've always wanted to visit :)ReplyDelete
SpunkySuzi - when you come to Texas,ReplyDelete
I will be your personal tour guide!
We'll have a blogger round*up -- Texas style!
Everyone's invited, eh?
- AnonymousMarch 30, 2010 at 9:31 PM
change looks good on you!ReplyDelete
There it is! Winslow, Arizona! This made my night! :o)ReplyDelete
This reminds me of the Eagles' song, "Take It Easy"ReplyDelete
Well, I'm a standin' on a corner in Winslow, Arizona,
and such a fine sight to see
It's a girl, my Lord, in a flatbed Ford,
slowin' down to take a look at me
Random, but that's what I thought when I saw the sign.
Soooooo glad the apartment is ready! A new day has dawned, Anne!


text:
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text:
Life is a journey influenced by the words we speak, read, think and hear. Where have a choice, maximizing our exposure to words that make us grow and beauty in all its forms makes the journey so much better. My blog is about those choices of words, sights and sounds.
Friday, December 14, 2012
American Revolution Reading Challenge 2013
The lovely ladies at the Diary of an Eccentric blog are hosting an American Revolution reading challenge for the calendar year of 2013. I'm in! A fun way to learn more about part of U.S. history. Check it out! I'm in for 11 or more books next year. I'll post reviews on each one here. I've posted a button on the right-hand side of this page. If you're interested in participating, click on it for details.
Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)


text:
It probably doesn't sound really exciting to sit down and write goals as a small business but they are so important and the return on your time investment can be invaluable! And the more you do it the easier it will become. Below are a few reasons and tips about helpful goal setting.
Goal setting helps us stay focused on what we would like to accomplish for our business. Most of the businesses I work with have a lot of ideas and desires about where they would like to accomplish in their business. Unfortunately they often are forgotten or fall by the way side during the business of actually running a business. Goal setting does not have to take long. You don't even have to achieve your goals! But writing them down and working toward them will help you stay on track even if you decide to change the goal, the movement forward is still happening and helpful. My high school teacher used to say a semi is easier to direct if its moving – I have no idea what the context was of that last bit – but I remembered it and it makes sense for our current topic!
Start small. Start with one goal. It can be simple. that will help get the ball rolling. I would suggest setting a very achievable goal that can be attained quickly. This will offer some great encouragement! Don't start with "I want to build the Taj Mahal" but you aren't a builder. Don't pick a goal that will set yourself up for failure! So start small and increase later. Get a few under your belt first, then work on bigger and better goals. Also – very important – give your self a pat on the back! I send a virtual one through the interwebs. 🙂
Once you have some more confidence, I suggest to my clients they do a few different levels of goal setting. I like daily goals. I'm usually doing this anyway because I love my planner and it saves my mind from running like crazy through all the things I have to do. The next level would be weekly. This is usually just one goal like – I will write a newsletter or blog post this week. You don't necessarily have to set a date during the week, but just have it on the docket. And then we have big picture goals – like 1 and 5 year goals. These are really helpful for a business. This keeps us aware of our path. Put this goal on paper and remind yourself often. You can also revisit these bigger goals along the way and add or subtract information as need or is relevant. No matter what, do what works best for you! Try it for a month and see if you notice a difference in your productivity!


text: Field TripsTake a class field trip to the Claremore Museum of History (MoH)! Our school group tours are awesome, and they are FREE of charge. Please schedule your school group tour at least three weeks in advance. Tours can be scheduled Monday through Friday from 8AM until 5PM.To schedule your visit, please complete and submit our visit form.For additional information, please email firstname.lastname@example.com touring the MoH, please review the following MoH Rules (guidelines and policies):MoH Rules (Guidelines and Policies)Chaperone PolicyOne adult chaperone per 10 students is required for all school group visits. Please assist with dividing students into groups if changes need to be made.We need your help in monitoring student behavior.Please remember to lead by example and be engaged on your tour.Please keep an eye on your students, not your cell-phone.Please allow students to answer questions.Please accompany and make arrangements for any student who requires personal or medical assistance, let us know how we can help.Museum MannersPlease help us preserve our collections at the Claremore Museum of History, by not touching any museum objects. Ask your students to keep their hands behind their backs, in their pockets, or at their sides. We ask that your students not chew gum, carry food or drinks while in the museum.Remind students to stay with the group while exploring the museum.Please remind students to raise their hand when they have a question or comment.Leave all backpacks, large purses, umbrellas, or other bulky items on the bus while touring the museum.Please turn off and refrain from using cell phones while in the museum.Tour PoliciesPlan to arrive at the museum at least 15 minutes before the scheduled start time of your tour. If you are running late for your tour, please call the museum at 918-923-6490 to let us know that you are running late and let us know when you will be arriving.Bus ParkingBus parking is next to the museum on Weenonah Ave. Bus drivers should drop off groups in-front of the main entrance on the West side of Weenonah Ave. Students and chaperones will go up the steps and enter through the main entrance. LunchGroups may bring sack lunches to eat outdoors in Lynn Riggs Park. There are picnic tables and trash receptacles available in the park. Lynn Riggs Park is located off of Will Rogers Blvd. and Weenonah Ave. If you plan to eat lunch in the park, please let us know in the Visit Form. Also, make sure to put trash in the receptacles and leave the park the way that you found it. In case of inclement weather, we will set up tables for your lunch break inside the museum. We do have a kitchen and you are welcome to store sack lunches there, instead of the bus.Tour TopicsTo help you get the most out of your visit, we tailor your school group tour based on your classroom needs and interests. The MoH is eager to provide relevant and engaging tours to our school group. We love for our school groups to customize their visit to have the best museum experience. Below are some of our exhibits and topics. Previous tours have focused on the rich history of Claremore, public art on Main Street, and inspiring Oklahomans. To discuss one of our tours, please email firstname.lastname@example.com Student Maximum (typically one class)All field trips support Oklahoma Academic Standards (K-12), and we encourage critical thinking, communication, creativity, and collaboration60 Minutes Andy Payne: The Bunion Derby Early Inhabitants: Cherokee and Osage Lynn Riggs: Beyond Realism Patti Page: The Singin' Rage Public Art in Claremore (Outdoor Walking Tour)Radium Town: Claremore, OKStuart Roosa: Apollo 14


text:
Automatic Generation of Application-Specific Architectures for Heterogeneous Multiprocessor System-on-Chip
Auteur(s) : D. Lyonnard, S. Yoo, A. Baghdadi, A. A. Jerraya
We present a design flow for the generation of application-specific multiprocessor architectures. In the flow, architectural parameters are first extracted from a high-level system specification. Parameters are used to instantiate architectural components, such as processors, memory modules and communication networks. The flow includes the automatic generation of communication coprocessor that adapts the processor to the communication network in an application-specific way. Experiments with two system examples show the effectiveness of the presented flow


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The Rise of Skywalker will open on December 20, 2019. How much did it cost to make? How much will it gross? Is the Star Wars phenomena a guarantee for success? How would you compare these movies? We've been gathering data…
Tag: 6.NS.2
Which is the best candy deal?
Students are asked to decide which would be the best deal and the worst deal on mixed bags of candy. They can also create their own mixed bags. This activity has unit pricing, philosophy of candy collecting, and Excel if you would like to use technology.
Cheesy Goldfish crackers
In this activity students do a little comparison shopping as they determine which size Goldfish product is the best deal. Students are introduced to the ratio table as a tool for determining equivalent ratios and comparing different rates. Students graph cost per ounce relationships and answer a…
Act One: The world record for the tallest structure made of Legos was set in Seoul, South Korea. Check out the pictures and video below: How much do you estimate that it costs for only the materials, to build this tower?


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pvp Custom Bodypaint Commissions - The Kraken's Maw PVP
SolemnGamer posted a topic in Market PlaceDear The Kraken's Maw pirates, I had some fun painting in-game recently and I thought I would check to see if there is any interest in custom body paint commissions. Based on the response I might start doing commissions for in-game items, currency, if allowed RMT. Send me a message if you want to work something out. Attached are 4 body paints I did on my own character. Thanks, SolemnGamer (Demona Zavala)


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South Africa: Homosexuals Discriminate Against Heterosexuals and Women because it's "Necessary" for Democracy July 19, 2006Posted by C.A.R.D in Card, Citizens Against Racism and Discrimination, Discrimination, Gay, gender discrimination, Gender Equality, Heterosexual, Homosexual, Lesbian, South Africa, Women.
– It's okay for guest houses catering to a homosexual clientele to discriminate against heterosexual couples, women, and lesbians, the Commission on Gender Equality ruled recently, saying it is a "necessity in our democratic society."
The Human Rights Commission received an official complaint against two Amsterdam guest houses over a year ago, stating that the resorts were billed as "men only." The Gay and Lesbian Alliance initiated the action after claiming to receive 107 complaints of discrimination from women, lesbians and heterosexual couples who had been turned away, Pretoria News reported yesterday.
The complaint was referred to the Commission on Gender Equality, which determined that the guest houses were operating within their rights when they specified "men only," saying they were "serving a legitimate interest in…that they seek to create a comfortable environment for gay men where they can express themselves freely."
"It is the commission's view that accommodation of this nature is necessary in our democratic society to protect or advance legitimate interests of the aforementioned groups."
The only objection raised by the commission was the use of the term "men only" in the resorts' advertising and website, which they said could be offensive.
"With regard to the manner in which it advertises its business and with specific reference to the words 'men only', the commission submits that the advert in its current format may not pass constitutional scrutiny."
"The advert as it stands is offensive and is likely to attract some criticism."
The Commission on Gender Equality aims to transform society, says South Africa's information website, by "exposing gender discrimination in laws, policies and practices; advocating changes in sexist attitudes and gender stereotypes; and instilling respect for women's rights as human rights."


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This is the Pinkerton Academy AFJROTC page. We are unit NH-20002. We are called that because we are the second AFJROTC unit to be added into the state of New Hampshire in the year 2000. The first one was at Salem High School. We have a great curriculum that includes flight sim club, drill team, model r/c club, color guard, and we compete in a dodgeball tournament in our school.
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.


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After more than seven decades in existence, the service organizations at the Logan LDS Institute are being disbanded.
The Institute Men's Association and Institute Women's Association will cease to exist at the end of this semester after a decision made by the board of education of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, according to Brad Howell, assistant administrator for Seminaries and Institutes of Religion. Howell said the move gives priesthood leaders within young single adult stakes the responsibility of organizing activities, rather than these two Institute student groups.


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Competency disclaimer: I have no background in game development, but I do have a background in film production. I write articles like this with some trepidation, as the world does not need another player of games telling makers of games how to do their job. However, in so far as the perspective of a former film practitioner is useful, I would love to see any conversation this may provoke in the comments.
While I have no authority to appeal to on this subject, it seems evident that games have been heavily influenced by cinema, particularly James Cameron/George Lucas style blockbusters (and many indies carry direct references to art/independent films that have influenced them). This is an intuitive step because movies convey meaning through a combination of images and sounds, and blockbusters in particular create a level of excitement and spectacle that are the standard for modern entertainment products. Furthermore, tapping into the conventions of cinema gives game developers access to a fairly sophisticated grammar that has taken us from understanding a message in 30 seconds to a mere 5 seconds or less in advertising. While borrowing from film seems like an obvious step, it may not be the most appropriate. What follows is an account of some ways I think cinematic techniques may be inappropriate for games, and some examples of alternatives that have been effective in games I've enjoyed.
How does a movie work?
Film theory is a big subject, and the knowledge applied on the film set may never find itself in a book, but there are some basics that find consensus among the practitioners who have written down their thoughts. One useful, idea that emerged was the theory of montage.
Just as Fascists saw the utility of the new technology of radio for propaganda purposes, the Soviet Union saw the propaganda benefits of film and dedicated considerable study to it. The theory of montage is best illustrated by an experiment done by a filmmaker named Pudovkin. Pudovkin filmed an actor with a neutral expression looking off camera and then edited this against three separate shots: a girl playing, a casket, and some bread. When viewers saw each clip they would credit the actor with a portrayal of a father's love for his daughter, or terrible grief at his mother's death, or unimaginable hunger. The performance gained meaning through the shot that followed it. The filmmaker Eisenstein developed the theory of montage further, but for our purposes it is sufficient to say that montage is the juxtaposition of two separate shots to create a separate meaning (if you took an undergraduate philosophy class, you might see a parallel to a common formulation of Hegelian Dialectic: Thesis + Antithesis = Synthesis).
Montage is a useful framework for thinking about how meaning is created in film, but if we'd prefer to divest ourselves of any intellectual commitment with regards to meaning, we can at least use it to illustrate how editing is important and unique to film. I do not say essential as there are famous exceptions such as Rope and Russian Ark that attempt to be 'one shot' films, but, of the films that influence games, a large portion of the experience and meaning come from the juxtaposition of specific shots to provoke a particular response. Editing seems to be the one truly unique feature of cinema that sets it apart from theatre or radio. Consider how constant edits to the ticking clocks of the bottles (being opened or ready to fall) create tension in this clip from Notorious:
We can narrow our focus to the components of montage and consider the shots themselves. Even in a film like Rope, the choice of what to show the audience makes all the difference. This includes technical considerations such as the length of lens, depth of field, and exposure, but more importantly it involves the decision of what to include or exclude in the context of what the audience has seen already. This is cinematographer Bill Fraker discussing a famous shot from Rosemary's Baby:
Divorced from the context of the film (or even away from the big screen), this shot is not likely to have the same effect as it did on the original audience, but it should serve to illustrate the point. Any camera is perfectly capable of conveying information, but when wielded by someone who understands the audience's perspective the result is a special experience and one that is unique to motion pictures.
Shots and edits in games
Having considered the essential tools of shots and edits in film, we can consider how these might apply to games. At worst, they don't fit at all, and at best they work in a very narrow sense for a type of game that has gone out of fashion. Cinematics are present in games, and shots and edits are used quite effectively to bring about certain emotional responses or to convey information, it is very difficult to say that this is the game so much as it is the game part being put on hold to provide context for the next interactive part. Shots and edits are out of place in games, and this makes it difficult to claim that cinema is a good reference point for games.
This is an example of a movie that almost certainly would have been better as a game:
Aside from Cloverfield and The Blair Witch Project, which both presented the first person perspective as found footage to justify edits, there aren't a lot of well known first person movies, and it's easy to see why. This perspective gives up the most powerful tools for creating meaning in the filmmaker's toolbox and really only gains a gimmick in return. Yet anyone who has played Amnesia knows that one of the biggest annoyances present in The Lady in the Lake is one of the most discussed experiences of the game. While moviegoers' patience wore thin watching Philip Marlowe open yet another door, Amnesia's players lost their mind fumbling with the game's doors while monsters chased them.
Games do not directly lend themselves to edits beyond loading screens, which are motivated for technical reasons rather than narrative. This is not a failing of games, as it would be very unusual to be playing a game and suddenly have the perspective change. One case where this worked well was the prologue for Battlefield 1, where dying would move you to another soldier on the battlefield, but even this excellent choice could not be sustained for the rest of the game. Most, if not all, of the interesting choices with regards to shots are also absent from games since the player is in control of the camera. It is not possible to have a Rosemary's Baby moment in most games because the player controls the framing.
There are exceptions, and it would be much more difficult to make this case in the past as Resident Evil, among others, used fixed camera angles that allowed for pre-rendered backgrounds (Resident Evil also readily reveals its inspiration from Stanley Kubrick and Lucio Fulci). The introduction of Chris Walker in Outlast also relies on a forced perspective and, while it is technically a non-interactive moment of the game, is fairly seamless in its use. Of course, Resident Evil has long since moved from pre-rendered backgrounds, and it may be better to say that if cinema is to be a reference point it is most effective in the horror genre, rather than for games in general.
This is not to argue that cinema is useless for gaming, or that it should not be used as a reference point at all, but rather point out the limitations of this reference. With fewer technological constraints it becomes easier to recreate our favourite movie moments in an interactive format. Yet, as in the case of Resident Evil, the more effective use of cinematic techniques were driven by technological constraints. The Mass Effect series has generated more alien worlds and species than all the Star Wars films, but it is still not clear how this moment from The Empire Strikes back could be realized in a game by anything but a cutscene:
Alternatives to movies
A movie without shots and edits seems a lot closer to a theatrical production or a radio play. As it happens, radio drama contains more parallels to how stories and experiences occur in games than movies. Like film, technology is essential to radio drama, not just for its broadcast, but for its creation (The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, in addition to being hilarious, was the first radio drama to use stereo and it made a huge difference for that particular story). Critically, radio is confronted with the fact that it only has sound to convey its ideas. The absence of a visual component means there is always a space for the audience to create part of the story in their head. The difference may be best illustrated with old story in advertising of a radio and TV advertiser arguing over the merits of their respective media. The radio advertiser wins the argument by proposing a commercial of a 700-foot mountain of whipped cream rolling into a Lake Michigan that has been drained and filled with hot chocolate, after which the Royal Canadian Air Force then flies overhead with a 10 ton maraschino cherry which is dropped on top of the mountain to the applause of 25,000 onlookers.
When I reflect on the stories and moments in gaming that have engaged me the most and seem to be unique to gaming they tend to be cases with enough suggestion to get my imagination going, but not enough to think for me. Sunless Sea is well known for its writing, but I am particularly fond of the decision to give enough time to reflect on and digest what happened between ports (even if this lull was a complaint among some players). While it isn't out yet, In Other Waters restricts your perspective to an AI assisting the xenobiologist, and has a companion book to provide another glimpse of the world. The demo was visually attractive in its own right, but it also gave me enough to imagine what my in game companion was describing. Cultist Simulator goes even further than the previous two by keeping time running and trimming down the text. While the game is entirely card and token based, there has not only been enough to keep me talking about what's going on in the world during a stream, but also to make fairly clear mappings to my own life. Finally, Paradox Grand Strategy games like Crusader Kings II are, in essence, maps, stats, and text boxes, and yet the most rewarding way to play is to role-play your ruler and go along for the ride as the events and text provide more momentum for your imagination.
While one might argue that pausing to read text is a poor man's cinematic, the fact remains that in all of these games the player is given the interesting choices to make, and there is enough information given to keep the imagination going during the real time components. These games play to gaming's strengths by remaining interactive, while still being able to tell a story (unlike Space Invaders or Offworld Trading Company which are pure interactivity).
What can movies teach?
Movies can be very helpful in specific technical areas. Obviously if a game contains cinematics, the team would be wise to learn the techniques. Movies by good cinematographers will teach valuable lessons in colour and lighting, though these cinematographers are often inspired by great painters (especially the Dutch masters). There is also no accounting for the sources of inspiration, and so at an individual level movies may provide the creative spark that eventually becomes a very good game.
However, cinema's use as a reference is likely due more to its dominant position rather than its suitability for gaming. Montage allows an audience's imagination to be engaged as in the case of radio above, but this technique is not available to gaming due to its interactivity. It is more appropriate to seek out other examples of how authors have engaged our imaginations in real time if we are looking for applications to gaming. Seeking inspiration from examples like radio drama allow us to make games that rise above 'movies but with the essential features removed.'
Note on affiliate links: I have an affiliate status with GOG.com for which I am given a portion of sales for traffic I drive to the site. The inclusion of a given title is for illustrative purposes first, but when it is available on GOG I will provide such a link. Naturally I encourage you to do your own price comparison or buy on your preferred platform. I include, on occasion, affiliate links from other broadcasters to support people who helped me in a given post or the cast in general. In this case, and Humble Links support the streamer JessyQuil. I have also received press keys for Offworld Trading Company and Crusader Kings II DLC.


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If you remember back on July 8th, the last game before the All-Star break, Braves slick fielding SS Andrelton Simmons broke a bone in his throwing hand sliding into second base. Well, he is now rehabbing for the Braves Double A team and is expected to get called back up on Monday.
In his last games he has hit 4 for 13 with 2 HR 4Runs and a SB. During his play before the injury, Simmons surpassed all expectations offensively. They Braves knew he could filed but his bat completely surprised them. He hit .296 with 11 XBH that included 3 HR. He had a .788 OBP and went 8 for 16 in late inning close games. His .788 OPS ranks him 2nd for all SS with over 115 ABs this season.
So if you have recently lost out on picking up Machado or Profar or had a MI go down (Altuve) you should consider adding Simmons. His defense also helps improve and already good Atlanta rotation with his defense so consider all SP for the Braves to have increased in value downs the stretch. With the Braves playing the Mets and Marlins numerous times these last 3 weeks look for Atlanta to win many more than they lose.


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Last week, you heard about our 2014 Students for Life National Conference Defender of Life Award Recipients, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar. Today, we are honored to announce our 2014 West Coast Conference Defender of Life Award Recipients: Walter and Lori Hoye!
Recognizing that "the impact of abortion in the African American community is the Darfur of America," the Hoyes have courageously put themselves on the front lines of the abortion battle as a witness on the sidewalks of abortion facilities in California. Their ministry has literally saved hundreds of lives.
Testifying to the power of their witness, their hometown of Oakland even passed an ordinance in 2009 barring pro-lifers from coming within 8 feet of anyone entering an abortion facility – an ordinance that directly targeted the Hoye's pro-life outreach.
Because of the Hoye's firm pro-life conviction, the Hoyes made a courageous decision. Walter violated the ordinance putting the lives of those women and their preborn children before his own. He was arrested and sentenced to spend 30 days in jail, 2 years of probation, and faced several fines.
It is for their exceptional work and dedication to laying down their lives for the preborn that Studens for Life of America is proud to honor Walter and Lori Hoye as our first-ever 2014 West Coast Defender of Life Award Recipients at SFLA's 2014 West Coast Conference on January 26th.
Sunday, January 26, 2014 will mark our first ever West Coast Conference. The conference will be hosted in San Francisco, CA at Saint Mary's Cathedral. For the past 26 years, the SFLA National Conference has been a prominent event during the annual National Pro-Life March in Washington, D.C. and has sold out with 2,000 in attendance the past 3 years, making the event the largest pro-life conference in the nation. With students coming in from all across the West Coast to attend the Walk for Life there was clearly a need to bring the same great program to these students. This will be the first year for the West Coast Conference where students will have the opportunity to be trained and equipped by the top pro-life leaders in their fields — with presentations in apologetics, bioethics, and activism — these students then will go back home where they are the defenders of life on their campus and in their communities.
This year, 40 Days for Life will host an Adult Leadership Summit during the West Coast Conference. Adults have always been welcome to attend the conference and have attended in the past, but, this year, there will be specific training geared to pro-life adults.
For conference information and to register go to /2014westcoast/ and for any questions about the conference email Tina Whittington at [email protected].
For media inquiries or interviews contact Kristan Hawkins at [email protected].


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Rural emergency response offers some unique challenges. Response times are greater, your patients tend to be sicker before EMS arrives and your transport time to a definitive care facility is longer. You are more likely to handle the most critical patients for longer periods of time by yourself. In comparison, a similar sick patient in Raleigh would likely receive help in 10 minutes or less and EMS providers have the ability to rapidly transport the patient. In those rural areas, more often than not, you will not have help. In the beginning, it may be just you. And it could be just you for an extended period of time. How do you prepare for that?
Unfortunately, this added pressure also makes it much more likely that mistakes will happen. A piece of the process is more likely to be missed, a forgotten Epi here, missed shock there or worse a missed esophageal intubation all because you are under more stress. And, you alone are responsible for handling the patient, managing the family and onlookers and, after a time, updating fellow providers coming in to assist. In any large metropolitan district, you would have someone there to help and you would have more opportunities to practice what to do simply because of increased call volumes.
In rural districts, call volumes are less, but when calls do come in they are more likely to be helping the sickest of the sick. EMS providers have training to handle acute illnesses, but exposure to a critical mass of certain scenarios is necessary to hone your skills for high risk, low yield situations. The saying practice makes perfect — or almost perfect — is true. Repetition is a key to solid performance under pressure.
In the past, preparation for response to scenarios would include classroom-based presentations and discussions where EMS providers walk and talk through the process, often using themselves as mock patients. Teachers would ask questions and students would respond, sharing what they would do in that type of situation. The problem is that in the moment, during a scene response in the real world, if something doesn't go according to the textbook, providers may not be mentally or physically prepared for what can happen.
Education, practice, and reeducation are critical for emergency responders to become more comfortable and more adept at caring for the sick and critically ill. We all know that technology is changing the way pre-hospital care is delivered, and technology is changing how we learn and teach to include more scenario-based education.
These scenario-based programs often involve the use of computer games or human patient simulators, where you have the opportunity to practice a response or a skill repeatedly in a safe, realistic environment, making your response second nature when you are on the side of the road responding alone to that early morning car crash, delivering a baby in a rural community or managing a cardiac arrest. Advances in simulation education provide this real world experience. Simulation enables you to do and to react in addition to talking through what can happen. Research has proven that training through simulation really does work.
Now, you are likely thinking — training using human patient simulators is a spectacular idea, but in our district we have limited funds and little to no access to training resources, even though my district is more likely to encounter high-risk low-yield situations where EMS providers will frequently have to manage the scene on their own for extended periods of time.
There is good news. There are numerous simulation-based classes and programs developed specifically for rural providers and hospitals. While these widely available classes and training programs are specific to trauma care, more and more medical programs are being released regularly. It is important you ask your training officer for information on simulation based in your area.
Below is a list of trauma classes that include simulation technology.
Rural Trauma Team Development Course (RTTDC) developed by an ad hoc group within the American College of Surgeons to help rural hospitals develop their own trauma teams. RTTDC isn't only for hospital providers, but for all those involved in the trauma process to include fire and EMS responders. While RTTDC is still new, impacting the processes from all levels helps create a unified trauma process. This one-day course has not only provided education but opened the doors of communication between pre-hospital and hospital personnel. http://facs.org/trauma/rttdc/
Prehospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) developed by The American College of Surgeons to provide both basic and advanced trauma care to fire and EMS professionals utilizing the principles created in Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS). This two-day simulation based course teaches participants basic and advanced trauma care. Providers are exposed to those high-risk low-yield situations that not only test cognitive knowledge but practical application as well. http://www.naemt.org/education/PHTLS/phtls_a.aspx
International Trauma Life Support (ITLS) developed in the early 1980s as basic trauma life support, ITLS has since grown to become an international standard in trauma care. Now endorsed by the American College of Emergency Physicians, this two-day simulation based course teaches out of hospital providers basic and advanced trauma care. ITLS affords students both classroom and practical skills assessment all while relating them to their own experiences. http://itrauma.org/
Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) developed by the American College of Surgeons for primary care providers working in a hospital environment ATLS provides participants with the fundamental knowledge of caring for a trauma patient in a systematic and organized fashion all while being able to effectively communicate with the trauma team. This two-day simulation based course provides a classroom understanding of trauma care and then reinforces that within a simulation scenario. While the target is hospital personnel, fire and EMS personnel are allowed to audit the course. http://facs.org/trauma/atls/index.html
Trauma Nursing Core Courses (TNCC) developed by the Emergency Nurses Association for emergency nurses working in a hospital environment. This 2-day course provide nurses with not only knowledge of trauma care, but the roles each provider plays in the trauma process and means of effective communication. http://ena.org/coursesandeducation/CATNII-ENPC-TNCC/tncc/Pages/Default.aspx
Vertical Evacuation Simulation Training (VEST) developed by WakeMed Health & Hospitals in 2008 after analyzing and testing data obtained from hurricane stricken areas of the United States, VEST provides both hospital and prehospital providers critical information on how to package and transport a critical patient with limited to no resources when a disaster strikes. This one-day classroom and practical simulation based course discusses not only immediate needs but long-term care and impact on patients and providers. http://wakemed.org/simulation
Participation in these programs helps build communication between fire, rescue, police, EMS professionals, first responders, community, bystanders/civilians, and community emergency response teams (CERT), and can help build a group of civilians that can be called upon to help mitigate the incident in the event of a disaster. When a building blows up, whether in an urban or rural area, it is very beneficial to have civilians equipped with basic training to be able to help in emergency situations. It is also critical for emergency response professionals and hospital personnel to be prepared, so they do not run into an unstable building or pile of debris wearing inappropriate clothing like what happened after the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995. The result was two nurses lost their life primarily because of improper training.
Especially in rural settings, simulation training is important so firefighters, nurses, other medical professionals, police, sheriffs, highway patrol and EMS professionals can benefit from real-life simulated cross-training. Simulation training can help build the lines of communication between agencies that have mutual aid agreements between department and across city limits and county lines. These personal relationships can be built while reacting to and participating in response exercises. The interaction helps individuals, agencies and departments become comfortable with each other, understand individual's roles, establish guidelines, policies and procedures and strengthen mutual aid agreements.
These training activities can also help identify individual or system process issues, thus identifying needs for additional training programs. Building these relationships also increases your chances of being able to attract training programs to your area and increases your ability to apply for and be awarded grants that fund training exercises.
Repetition is the key to learning, and through the use of medical simulation training and education, health care providers have the opportunity to practice skills in a controlled, yet realistic environment, gain clinical competence and confidence through targeted training exercises, improve and enhance communication between all levels of care providers, gain experience with uncommon clinical conditions and infrequently performed procedures, and review specific cases and scenarios to identify areas of opportunity.
Obstetric emergencies tend to be the most complicated calls for any EMS provider. In my 16 years, I have assisted in only two deliveries, and I have always practiced in major municipal cities. Across the country, EMS providers are encountering more births that are going bad. They are seeing more shoulder dystocias due to environmental factors, increased maternal weight and advanced maternal age. Wouldn't it be wonderful to practice how to handle a shoulder distortion before you receive that call? And, wouldn't it be nice to have practiced how to respond alone to that potentially fatal car crash at the corner of Smith Road and Country Road. Training using medical simulation can afford all of these opportunities.
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Using a Mobility Devices on sbX
Passengers in wheelchairs/mobility devices should board at the middle door at curbside stations and the forward door at center-line stations. Each vehicle offers two positions for mobility devices including one rear-facing, self-securement position.
sbX ADA Station Features
sbX stations have a host of ADA-friendly features designed to make sbX accessible, safe, and comfortable for riders with disabilities:
- Wheelchair-accessible station ramps and waiting areas.
- Level boarding at platform stations eliminates the need for hydraulic lifts or ramps for boarding or exiting, making it easier by foot or wheelchair; a bridge plate can be deployed to cover the gap for wheelchairs.
- Communications system at crosswalks, with an audible sound that helps alert people at crosswalks.
- Planter boxes and textured floor strips along walkways and station platforms help people with visual impairments navigate on and around the platforms.
- Braille & audio options at TVMs; CS and Emergency phones are accessible to mobility devices.
Using a Mobility Device on Omnitrans
All Omnitrans buses are equipped with lifts or ramps to board wheelchairs and other mobility devices. They may be used by persons with disabilities who cannot use the steps to board the bus, including: riders using wheelchairs, scooters, orthopedic strollers or similar mobility devices; also, riders using walkers, canes, crutches, or portable oxygen units may use them. Omnitrans buses may also "kneel" on request for easier boarding by orthopedically challenged riders; some stop locations may not suitable for the bus to kneel. Omnitrans drivers are not allowed to provide physical assistance on and off the lift/ramp or inside the bus. When using a wheelchair or scooter, once onboard move to the special seating area and set your brake.
In according with the Code of Federal Regulation 49, Subpart G, 37.165 (c) 1.3, your coach operator will secure your mobility device with clamps or straps that are stored on all buses. Coach Operators will decline to provide service to a rider who refuses to allow his or her mobility device to be secured. Pay your fare and tell the driver your destination so the bus can be positioned correctly at your stop. Signal the driver about a block before your stop to remind the driver you want to exit the bus. The driver will allow other riders to board and exit before releasing mobility device restraints. The driver will advise you when to proceed.
The lift/ramp is not for use by riders with shopping carts, wagons or regular baby strollers. It is also not to be used by Personal Care Attendants and companions of persons qualified to use them.
Lift/Ramp Capacity
Omnitrans will make every attempt to accommodate the rider's mobility device. The mobility device must safely fit onto the lift/ramp and a lift must be able to safely raise the mobility device and its occupant. Service can be refused if the mobility device and its occupant cannot safely utilize the lift/ramp to board the vehicle.
Preparing to Board with the Lift/Ramp
Wait at the bus stop and indicate to the driver that you need to use the lift/ramp. Position yourself to be in the clear as it deploys.
Boarding/Exiting on a Lift
Wait for the driver to tell you to move on to the platform. When on the lift, set the brake on your wheelchair or mobility device; if you are standing, hold onto the handrails for support. When exiting, wait until the lift has reached the ground and the safety barrier has dropped before moving off the platform.
Additional information
For additional information, contact Omnitrans Customer Service at 1-(800)-9-OMNIBUS (1-800-966-6428). View the ADA Paratransit Riders Guide.


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The sound of coffee pouring is magical, much more so than any other beverage. It signifies waking up, the beginning of a day, and allows the drinker to inadvertently consider possibilities. It is a mix of a babbling creek and alertness, swirled up in the glass pot and delivered into your waiting hands.
Coffee is perfectly paired with writing of any kind. I am beginning my writing today with my thoughts, so that I can get them all out and focus on my task at hand. I have a paper for literary questions about the implications of the 'sexual contract' which leads me to believe that my teacher MIGHT be a slight feminist. It is difficult for me to write a paper formed around an argument that I do not really consider valid, but it has more and more become my forte.
I think I have decided to major in English, for my undergraduate at least because I love to write and read so why deny myself that? I will build on my English degree with something of more applicability in grad school. Anyways, it is supposed to snow today but it looks like a beautiful day so I want to begin and end this assignment as quickly as possible. I cannot write the paper this early, I know myself too well and it will be mediocre at the best.
I employ a strategy of controlled procrastination. Now I realize that appears to be a massive oxymoron BUT I have a theory and it has served me well this far. I have to basically immerse myself in my subject, read it, take notes, think about it, talk about it, be its therapist and its best friend THEN I have to wait until I get struck with the inspiration to begin writing..which normally happens the night before the paper is due as luck would have it.
Wish me luck.


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|Chair, Photo Adventure Advisory Group
✉ John M. Davis, Jr., HonPSA, MPSA·
PSA Photo Adventures are safe, enjoyable, educational photo outings with their PSA friends in a workshop and/or photo shoot environment. Photo Adventures take place in the United States and are open to all PSA members. Groups always include a designated PSA representative who serves as the liaison to the tour leaders. Photo Adventures are available on a first come, first served basis, to a limited number of participants. Waiting lists will be maintained for each trip after spots are filled. Payment is due upon registration.
Following is a summary of upcoming photo adventure trips which are approved by the Photo Adventures and PSA Executive Committees. Click on the appropriate link below for information about a trip you are interested in. There is a link to after-trip galleries for each adventure.
Links to important forms and other information are on the left side of this page. These may be required for your Photo Adventure.
Images from past events, below:


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GuardianUTM O/S
GuardianUTM O/S is the world's leading airspace management and integration platform for drones.
GuardianUTM is a powerful, fully featured resource capable of mapping hazards and flight plans for low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicles.
Drone Safety Map
Our online Drone Safety Map spans over 40 countries, providing accurate, real-time updates to aeronautical and ground hazards.


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Your seating plan has been poured over in detail, so keep your guests in line with stylish, individual place cards.
Place cards, or (more traditionally) escort cards, are the way you let your guests know where to sit. Whether placed outside the entrance to the reception room, for your guests to collect and find their table, or in place at your guest's specific seat, they help everyone know where to sit – and make sure that seating plan you painstakingly put together is adhered to!
How you choose to guide them to their seats is entirely up to you, and a chance to really bring your theme to every aspect of your wedding day. Here's just a selection of our favourite ideas (of course, we'd love you to share yours!):
Traditional Place Cards
Keep it traditional with timeless place cards. Simple yet elegant, they are a classic way to show your guests to their seats. They also allow you to follow on your theme and colour scheme, complementing your menu cards, invitations and other stationery. You know where to look to find the very best stationers: The Wedding Affair's Approved Supplier List has the finest in the industry.
Edible Treats
Combine your favours and your escort cards in an edible delight with your guests' names on! We love the idea of cake pop, with the name attached to the lolly-stalk using a beautiful tag and ribbon. Perfect for guests of all ages, and blending place card and favour in one is ideal for brides on a budget.
Find Your Face!
Make your escort cards part of your entertainment with fun photos. Choose a photo of each guest, and mark their table number on the reverse. All they need to do is find their face to find their seat! Get your guests laughing with funny face photos or old baby shots, which are also a great way to break the ice if they find themselves seated next to someone they haven't met before.
Like the idea but looking for a more serious take? For a glamorous event, choose photos of your guests looking their very best!
Unique to Your Theme
Bring your theme into every aspect of your wedding day with truly personalised place cards. Autumnal wedding? Why not choose oak leaf-shaped place cards, inscribed with a name? Beach wedding? Tie a label with a name onto individual seashells or starfish. Festival, outdoor wedding? Attached your guests' names to beer bottles! The opportunities are endless, so make them personal to you.
How did you choose to seat your guests? We'd love to see your ideas: share them with us over on firstname.lastname@example.com and who knows, you may spot yourself featured on the blog!


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Bailar Cantando: Fiesta Mestiza en el Perú - Savall
Alia Vox AVSA 9927
Stereo/Multichannel Hybrid
Classical - Vocal
Hesperion XXI
La cappella reial de Catalunya
Tembembe Ensemble Continuo
Jordi Savall (direction)
The twenty pieces comprising the musical collection in the Codex Trujillo del Perú are an exceptional case in the history of the indigenous music of the New World. This collection of tonadas, cachuas, tonadillas, bayles, cachuytas and lanchas offers a glimpse of the repertory native to the traditions of the country, as indicated by the text of one of the cachuas sung "al uso de nuestra tierra" ("according to the customs of our land") and in particular the songs and dances favoured by the popular classes who lived in the "Viceroyalty of Peru" at the end of the 18th century.
Review by John Broggio - October 21, 2018
A thoroughly wonderful (unofficial) follow-up to the equally delightful El Nuevo Mundo - Savall.
These performances, captured from what were clearly entrancing concerts, present the 1780 Codex Trujillo del Perú, and what life-enhancing music it is! One or two works are also heard on Les Routes de l'Esclavage 1444-1888 - Savall but these are fresh performances with different instrumentation. What is perhaps most extraordinary about the performances is how well those musicians familiar to legions of the Baroque (and before) inhabit this folk-inspired music so idiomatically; the refinement of some of the singing & playing occasionally betray their sophisticated training but this never jars because they capture the mood so convincingly.
The extra energy that live performances often give off fortunately survives the transposition to a disc and, perhaps most importantly, repeated listening. There is wonderful theatricality in the sonic presentation too with the procession onto the stage at the beginning vividly recreated. Although not quite going into full Los Incas territory, this instrumentation is evoked throughout this disc. It seems invidious to single out any one of the performers but Jordi Savall must take credit for (once again) integrating such disparate musical heritages, coalescing the sound worlds into a convincing and hypnotic whole and putting his time and energy behind this repertoire.
The recording is of the same exalted standard as the music making and as we have come to expect, several high quality, lengthy essays accompany the disc.
This listener found it difficult to sit still, so hypnotic are the rhythms and it is easily one of my discs of the year - enjoy (with El Nuevo Mundo)!
Copyright © 2018 John Broggio and HRAudio.net
Sonics (Multichannel):
Click here to report errors or omissions in the music details.


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New Year's Day --with its resolutions, new beginnings, and fresh start attitude-- is a perfect time of year to reflect on continuous improvement and making ourselves better as not only individuals, but as companies set up to serve the public and our customers. It is also a good time to review ways to improve our bottom line, our operational efficiencies, our general attitude, and our business practices. This sometimes requires revisiting mistakes from our past, things we did wrong, and looking at how we've improved them. Deficiencies from our past surveys are certainly a worthwhile thing to look at it in an effort to improve.
HQAA Blog
Topics: Renewing Accreditation, Quality Standards, HQAA Accreditation, HME Accreditation Requirements, Process Improvement, Avoiding Deficiencies
Many in the home medical equipment industry equate policy manuals to their accreditation inspections. And of course, these bulky tomes are certainly a large part of the accreditation and survey experience for every DME. Policy manuals serve as the road map for how work gets done within an organization, a set of rules for the organization, and the document that defines the structure, function, and philosophy of the organization. Let's look at what a policy manual should contain and how it impacts not only accreditation, but also the overall day-to-day operation of an organization.
Topics: Employee Training, HIPAA, Security, Personnel Files, Quality Improvement, Billing, Renewing Accreditation, Quality Standards, HQAA Accreditation, HME Accreditation Requirements, Patient File Requirements, Compliance, Patient Privacy, Clinical Practice Guidelines, Materials Management, Avoiding Deficiencies, CMS, Complaint Process, Quality Care, Showroom, Retail, Delivery, Clinical Respiratory Services, Oxygen, Warehouse, Safety Officer, Competence, Customer Service, Disaster Preparedness, Emergencies, Business Practices, Marketing
Companies going through an accreditation process usually experience at least some degree of anxiety. The importance of achieving and maintaining accreditation is often "life and death" to an organization—lose it and you may not be able to continue billing or receive referrals from a payer or a referral source. If it's the first time you're going through the process, you can also add the fear of the unknown to that equation. Add these factors together and you have a combination that can cause a lot of stress!
Topics: Renewing Accreditation, Quality Standards, HQAA Accreditation, HME Accreditation Requirements, Compliance, Avoiding Deficiencies
This year, many companies will be renewing their accreditation for the first time. If you're renewing your accreditation, the last thing you want to hear come out of a surveyor's mouth is the word "deficiencies."
After reviewing the renewal survey information, we have found that there are a few deficiencies that seem to be cited regularly. Below we show you some of the top accreditation deficiencies and how to avoid them.
Topics: Renewing Accreditation, HME Accreditation Requirements, Compliance