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Innovation, disruptive innovation and market volatility 14: 3D printing as a working example of disruptive innovation mainstreaming
This is my 14th posting to a series on the economics of innovation, and on how change and innovation can be defined and analyzed in economic and related risk management terms (see Macroeconomics and Business, posting 173 and loosely following for Parts 1-5 and Macroeconomics and Business 2, posting 203 and loosely following for Parts 6-13.)
I devoted Part 13 of this series to a discussion of standardization and customization, and what they functionally mean from a manufacturer's and from a consumer's perspective. Then at the end of that posting I acknowledged a major area of this discussion that I had not explicitly touched upon there, but that is coming to take a central role in the determination of what standardized and customized mean: 3D printing.
I have been following 3D printing for quite a while now, and have commented upon it at least occasionally in this blog. See for example my series Commoditizing the Standardized, Commoditizing the Individually Customized, and its:
• Part 5: post-assembly line production and the emergence of a new personalized production capability 1 and
• Part 13: the biological and medical 3-D printer and emergent custom manufacturing capabilities,
• Plus other related postings which can be found throughout the rest of that series at Business Strategy and Operations – 2 and Business Strategy and Operations – 3 as postings 364 and loosely following (for its Parts 1-15.)
When people first started using 3D printing technologies, just a few years before I began writing about this manufacturing phenomenon, the only materials available for use in it were certain plastics that had properties appropriate for the layered accretion assembly processes involved but that were not necessarily appropriate or effective for end-product functionality or use. Items produced were essentially all limited by manufacturing constraints for their user value and I add for their durability too as a result of that. And the detail resolution of 3D printing was limited too, as was capacity to make moving parts that would mesh together smoothly and with tight engineering tolerances. 3D printing was used primarily for producing early-stage prototypes and models, and yes – as a marketing gimmick. Then interest in this potential manufacturing option, and growing demand for it led to rapid innovative change.
3D printing began to come of age, and with:
• Capacity to manufacture products more rapidly and at lower per-item cost,
• Capacity to 3D print using a wider and wider range of materials,
• And capacity to manufacture more functionally capable finished products, and without requiring extensive post-printing processing steps.
My above cited customization oriented series came out almost exactly two years ago, with its essentially proof of principle examples of how this technology could be used, in addressing medical product and other manufacturing needs. Now in July, 2015 (with this posting actually written in late May of that year), high precision durable metal and plastic artificial replacement joints are being routinely manufactured and on a customized-fit assembly line-like basis, and with expectation that these replacement joints should routinely last for twenty and even thirty years of active use in the surgical patients who receive them.
As a perhaps best known example of that consider ConforMIS: a business that has essentially built itself around advanced 3D printing as a customized manufacturing process for artificial replacement knees, where their customization data obtained about the individual patients who are to receive their implants is derived from standard magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) image files.
What we see on the market now is still only a beginning, where 3D printing is just now becoming a standard, essentially assembly line-like option, blurring the line between standardized and customized products. And with this, I turn back to reconsider some of my earlier comments from Part 13 of this series on customization per se, and how:
• Consumers see customization at least as much as a function of novelty as of anything else, and with novelty usually the primary determinant there.
When 3D printing and similar customization processes and options become routine and when they become taken for granted and both by manufacturers and by their marketplaces and consumers, customization per se is going to lose much of its original, and even much of its still remaining meaning.
• Customized and individualized, to be more specific here, will no longer be seen as interchangeable terms, as individualized becomes a basic and even expected standardized option.
What factors drive the dynamics of this, and determine when it would make more sense for a manufacturer to pursue a more set model and build approach, or a more individualized model and build approach? I only start that discussion here by noting a few of the key due diligence factors that would enter into any such analysis. And I begin that with the absolute fundamentals, noting that ultimately it is the paying customer who determines what constitutes product value and where it is to be found. It is, after all, the customer and more generally the marketplaces that customers collectively form, that provide the revenue that make participating businesses succeed. So this is really a question of what paying customers and product end users see as offering value to them, and it is a question of where standardized or alternatively customized products might offer higher value to them. And with that in mind, I offer my starter list:
• Consumers expect and want businesses that they buy products from to offer a reliably consist product so they can know precisely what they are getting. (From a manufacturer's perspective this means consistency of production and of quality control.)
• At the same time, consumers want to receive quality for their money, and for both functionality and appearance, and at a good competitive price. (From a manufacturer's perspective this means producing competitive products and both for their costs to manufacture and their costs to consumers while still leaving them with a profit.)
• And consumers want both proven reliability, and for many types of goods and products they simultaneously want new and cutting edge too – which can become contradictory and at times even seemingly mutually exclusive requirements. (From a manufacturer's perspective this means businesses establishing themselves as reliable proven sources of products and even of new types of products that do not individually have their own performance track records yet – so their end user customers can feel confident in trying and using even their newest and most cutting edge offerings.)
And this brings me back to standardization and customization – and consumers and end-users want both options, with their preponderance of preference for one or the other depending on context and situation.
• Does a product in question have to connect into and work effectively in a larger context where standardization would be needed to make that possible?
• Or would this be a more stand-alone product where considerations such as interchangeability and connectivity do not hold relevance?
• How long would standardized and customized options of a product type be realistically expected to last, and how important would the consequences be of early product failure?
• Standardization and customization are not always all or none options. Which features of a more customized option would be standardized and which of them would best be customized and even highly individualized?
• I am asking open ended questions here, of a type that only becomes overtly significant in the specific product design and manufacturing, and marketplace and consumer context.
Let's consider my artificial replacement joint example from above, and ConforMIS and their custom-produced, individualized artificial knee devices. I write this at a time when that company has only been in business for a few years, and at a point in time when customized replacement joints that are individually manufactured for specific patients is still a relatively new and novel idea – and at a point in time when no one can know from actual in-patient experience how these devices will last under the stresses of normal day to day wear. When an artificial knee is put in place, the expectation for more off the shelf alternatives is that if they are selected with care and surgically implanted with skill, they should last for twenty and more years now. New here means less of a track record and correspondingly greater uncertainty – unless these devices have sufficient levels of already-established and validated features in materials and in basic design employed so as to form a basis of past performance reliability from that. What balancing value does the prospect of an individualized, custom-produced fit hold in this, that would give these replacement joints greater perceived value over their more established alternatives, and despite their newness from how they are made? How good a fit to the individual patient is already available anyway, with long-tested alternative products? These and similar questions collectively constitute a core due diligence exercise that both patients and their families, and surgeons and their practices need to consider when evaluating new products and types of product. And generalizing past this one area of examples – artificial replacement joints, these questions illustrate the types of questions that can become important here, and certainly when the outcomes of a product selection made can be very consequential – as is the case if a knee replacement fails.
• I write this as 3D printing and customized and even highly individualized products and manufacturing, are approaching a tipping point in becoming truly mainstreamed. The issues that I have been writing about here do not for the most part apply when a technology or approach to manufacturing is only being directed toward producing gimmick or fad items of no expected consequence or durability. But they do become important when and as such a technology comes to be used for more general and for more consequential manufacturing applications.
And as a final note in that regard, I point out that along with being used in manufacturing products such as specialty design candy – which several companies are now using 3D printing for,
• This technology is also being used to produce working prostheses such as artificial hands (such as the dextrus: see The Open Hand Project), and
• Complete working vehicles such as the Strati automobile, as manufactured by Local Motors,
• And custom shoes and a rapidly increasingly diverse more and more. 3D printing really has reached a mainstreaming tipping point.
I am going to continue this overall series discussion in a next installment where I will turn to a set of issues that I made note of addressing at the end of Part 13. In my next installment I am finally going to circle back to the beginning of this series and its Part 1: considering businesses and outside investors and their dynamics. And my goal there will be to reconsider this series' overall discussion, or at least key elements of it from the perspective of a wider stakeholder perspective than just that of the marketplace and consumers, and of manufacturers and their leadership. Meanwhile, you can find this and related postings at Macroeconomics and Business and its Page 2 continuation.


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This is the great moment, when you see, however distant, the goal of your wandering.
The thing wich has been living in
your imagination suddenly becomes a part of the tangible world.
-Freya Stark
In a few weeks time, thousands of people from all over the world will gather outside of Boston's city-skirts. Individuals committed to a cause, a question, a challenge, with hundreds of miles of distance carried in their limbs, will congregate, and celebrate, in this community. Lithe, strong bodies will arise before the sun to lace up shoes and participate in the consummation of months-yes, even years-of training for The Boston Marathon.
While it is no Delphi, to argue that this notable race isn't a sacred shrine would be to miss the enormous effort and journey it has taken everyone to get there. The rewards of participating in this race are immediate and life-altering, as are the hours of sacrifice it took to reach the point of being able to simply look at the starting line. And while the last 26.2 miles may seem to others the beginning and end of a great race, this really is the final stage of a pilgrimage that one was called to long ago. For one doesn't enter into the rigorous training and sacrificial lifestyle of marathon-preparation without carrying a deep and heavy question about something in their life. And the pilgrim-runner inevitably carries this question or concern with them every single training mile and all the way to the starting line. The race itself sets the stage for the soul-stirring vision and provides the sacred encounter, which can replenish the runner's life.
In what feels like another life-time ago, I had the great opportunity to participate in Boston's 100th marathon. It wasn't necessarily something that I set after, per se. As it often is with the great seasons of life, it calls to and names us, even before we are significantly aware. I had started running with a bit more focus while living abroad in Sweden. After a handful of minor successes at small neighborhood races, I was encouraged (by my mother) to consider training for the Stockholm Marathon. With youth and unfettered responsibilities on my side, I was able to train and prepare well for this race. I wanted to participate in something that would give me a real, temporal perspective of the Apostle Paul's words to the church in Corinth: Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever (I Corinthians 9:24-15). When an athlete decides to run a marathon, he or she commits to serious training. Why would it be any different with my spiritual life? I was reminded of the many stories in my faith tradition that involved transformational journeys, all of which included a road of some sorts and an encounter with the Almighty. I wanted this training to transform me. I wanted to be touched by God and be changed in return. I wanted the milage put in on the road to be full of meaning.
I crossed the Stockholm Marathon's finish line with a time that qualified me for Boston's heralded race. I shook my head in both confusion and surprise as my father this time, nodded his head emphatically: You've got to run Boston, I recall him saying, This is a chance of a lifetime! What I thought was the end of my running race, that which I imagined was the source of divine inspiration for me, turned out to be just the beginning of a greater pilgrimage towards knowing myself and subsequently, knowing God.
Drizzled, fog-filled back-country roads became my training ground. I found mountain's foothills and ran repeats up and down their curves to ready myself for notorious aspects of Boston's course. My dad would drive me 20 miles east into the North Cascade mountain range, drop me off, and meet me at home. I ran in the mornings. I ran in the afternoons. I read articles about running. I studied maps of Boston. And I dreamt of my finisher's jacket. My time, my energy, my life was focused and centered on preparing well for this event, and I believe I truly did what I could to make ready the road.
The morning of Boston's finest race had sparkled with diamond dew and turquoise skies. My strategies to gain ground had worked, my stamina was strong and I was on the clock to PR this race and qualify again for the following year. I was doing great by mile 20. The almost half mile ascent up the infamous Heartbreak Hill began. My feet kept a steady pace, my heart and spirit felt strong and determined: this is what I had trained for all those miles up and down Northwest woodland roads. I crested the mighty climb! The rest of the race was downhill; the finish line was almost palpable! Soon enough I would be drinking beers and eating an amazing pasta dinner somewhere in the city with my family-I could almost taste the joy of that delicious finish line!
But then, at the high descent point, blew a wind so strong, that even my down-hill pace was slowed and swayed by its force. And this easterly gust, being channeled by narrow streets, carried with it a chill for which I could never have prepared myself. My once wet head, a mixture of both hot sweat and hastily poured road-side water, was quickly drying and taking with it my body's crucial temperature and energy reserves. I didn't have additional layers and I was getting so cold. Soon enough, I recall not being able to feel my hands and feet; that sensation moved through my extremities as I began to navigate the tunnel my vision was presenting me. I was staggering. And suddenly, alongside me came an upholding embrace and a warm, gentle voice offered me their top long-sleeve layer and gloves. Somehow, while still running, I was helped into these items, and this loving arm stayed around my side until my vision began to steady and open up again. When I turned to thank this benevolent fellow runner, there was no one there. I mean, yes, there were thousands around me, running past me, not seeing me, but there was no one who had just just stopped and gambled away their race time on ministering to me.
Bewildered and blessed, I tried to keep running and just finish the race. My personal record was shot, as was my chance to run Boston again the following year, but I knew I still must cross the finish line. As I did, my state must've been like a siren, as medics immediately brought me to the first aid tent. I had hypothermia and had I not had these great layers and gloves, I could've been very badly off, I was told. My body lay wrapped in emergency blankets for what felt like hours processing this experience. My heart was warmed by the memory of whomever-or whatever-it was that covered and comforted me on the road. My spirit was stirred by that service; I knew that God had brought me through the race and I now began the work of pondering the wisdom of the finish line.
That ultimate sense of wonder within the experience is what drives so many people to engage in these rigorous trials. Father Stephen Canny, an Irish priest who leads a parish in Santa Rosa, California, believes strongly in the effectiveness of pilgrimage. He has climbed Croagh Patrick, a popular pilgrimage site and storied mountain in Ireland, three times himself and has seen it work wonders on the devoted. "You are more alive after you have overcome something difficult," he says. "You're changed by the mountain and the fact that you have confirmed your faith. It's a remarkably effective way to answer the question, What is my purpose?"
Tomorrow, Palm Sunday, marks the beginning of Holy Week for Christians around the world. In the accounts of the four Gospels, Jesus road into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey, whilst the gathered crowd waved the branches of palm branches and laid them on the ground before the mounted Christ. An incredible journey had brought Jesus to this point, this final stretch of dusty road. His riding into the sacred city proclaimed his purpose, and people blessed him with shouts of Hosannah. His entire life time–nay, all of time–had led him to this pivotal point in the Greatest Story ever told. He would climb the most important hill in humanity's history in the upcoming week. And it would be a heart breaking hill.
But because of this great ascent, and the cross at the crest, we have the potential of knowing our uniquely created purpose in ways that only can occur through a cosmic lens!
This week, as we move through the last leg of our Lenten journey, reflect on these questions as a means of bringing you to your place of pilgrimage, your Easter-place:
What sacrifices have you made to get this far?
What has the inward experience been for you while you have traveled the outward road?
What are your recollections of images of humbleness on your journey?
The call that has brought you thus far was the call to pay attention to the sacred source in your life. What is your response?

subset: commoncrawl


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Chesapeake Shipbuilding, Vane Brothers ink another tug deal
This new order will bring the total number of tugs to 20 that have been built by Chesapeake Shipbuilding for Vane Brothers since 2007. Design and construction on the new tugs will begin immediately in Chesapeake Shipbuilding's hull fabrication buildings.
Gulf Island to build tug for Seaway Development Corporation
The multi-purpose tug will be designed to provide icebreaking/ice-management services on the St. Lawrence Seaway, handle aids to navigation, and push SLSDC's two buoy and gate lifter barges. The tug will also be capable of secondary roles in ship assist, fire-fighting, and pollution response.
Wartsila set to expand underwater hull cleaning services with acquisition
Wärtsilä has agreed to acquire Trident B.V., a Netherland based company specializing in underwater ship maintenance, inspection, and repair services. The move would make Wärtsilä the first global operator in the underwater services market.
Ferry operator to put intelligent awareness system to the test
Momentum towards applications of autonomous and remotely operated vessels continues to build. Under a recent deal, Rolls-Royce and Japan's Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) will collaborate in the development of its intelligent awareness system on board 165 m passenger ferry Sunflower.


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The Wooddream villas are situated in the midst of the beautiful clean Finnish nature by the Saimaa Lake.
It is a place to discover nature, fishing, hiking, rowing and much more. Or you can just sit back and relax away from the hustle and bustle of every day life.
Our ideology is therefore to provide a high quality carefree and relaxing escape for busy people from all around the world. With its modern, simple high quality design that comes with all modern conveniences, Wooddream villas are your perfect choice for an unforgettable vacation, special day or business event.


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It is just before 5 pm on a hazy Tuesday at the Diridon transit station in downtown San Jose. The ACE commuter train hums and rumbles as it waits in its bay. Overhead, men and women are making their way, not yet hurried, through the old WPA-built deco station lobby and down the long ramps, each stopping to punch their transit pass into a machine.
Some are in business suits, others in bicycle gear, but most are dressed in that formal-casual look of people who work in the hundreds of glass towers and office parks of Silicon Valley. They have arrived by bus, the local light rail system, bikes, and some even in cars – and most are carrying shoulder bags or cases that betray laptops and iPads inside. A few are still on their smartphones, continuing their work day. They stream onto the train's five cars, selecting the one that suits them best: two for regular commuters, one with bicycle racks, and two at the front equipped with desk-like set-ups that offer lighting and wireless connections.
At almost 5pm on the dot, the doors on the cars close and the train makes its way out of the station. It heads north, skirting out through the older districts of the city, then turns west through the cities of the East Bay. Then, climbing into the brown hills, the train heads up through Niles Canyon, where Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton filmed in the original Hollywood.
The jaded commuters have seen all of this many times before, and before long they have pulled out their electronic tools and gone back to work. It is an hour to Tracy, and though these distracted riders don't look the part, they are in fact California's latest generation of pioneers – and in their commute may lie the future of Silicon Valley.
Over the last half-century, Silicon Valley has become legendary for its ability to overcome one technological obstacle after another, often against seemingly impossible odds. But now the Valley's very success has presented it with a geographical obstacle that won't be overcome so quickly.
Electrons can circle the world on the Internet in a fraction of a second, but commuters trying to get to their jobs at Internet companies in the Valley aren't so lucky. One reason is that the combination of high wealth and a limited number of available homes has skyrocketed local real estate prices to among the highest in the nation. The last under-one million dollar house in Palo Alto sold a decade ago. Now comparably inflated prices can be found across the Valley, and not just in the hills, but on the Valley floor from Redwood City to San Jose.
Just as important is the topography of the Valley and the surrounding San Francisco Bay Area, which essentially sit in a seam between the Coastal and Diablo ranges of mountains. Thirty years ago, when the Valley still contained the last orchards and farmland stretched to the south, this wasn't a big concern. But now the Valley is not only out of space, but so increasingly are its traditional safety valves in the South Valley and the East Bay.
So where does the Valley grow next? The answer isn't easy anymore. North? Unfortunately, the Peninsula gets narrower as one heads in that direction. And then there's the great roadblock of San Francisco itself: expensive, and already the home of more than a thousand new start-up tech companies over the last decade. And, beyond the bottleneck of the Golden Gate Bridge, lies even more expensive Marin County.
West? Once you drive curvy and scary Highway 9, the only real road over the Coastal Range, you discover that Santa Cruz and the Pacific side is even narrower than the Bay. South? Southwest takes you over a long passage in the mountains to Monterey and Salinas. Southeast? Over the dangerous Pacheco pass, past the endless San Luis reservoir and out into the hot and unappealing Central Valley. Either way, it is a two hour commute.
That leaves East. But the East Bay cities are already full of tech companies and increasingly expensive homes. Out of desperation to cut costs and find an affordable space, a growing number of companies have even begun to set up shop in crime-ridden Oakland. Meanwhile, Berkeley is crowded and expensive.
That leaves the eastern hills of the Diablo range, presided over by might Mt. Diablo itself. The first valley inland from the Bay, which contains Contra Costa County, has already had its Silicon Valley growth boom, fueled in large part by the dot.com bubble of the Nineties. To sit in gridlock on the 680 Freeway at 7 a.m. and see ahead of you four lanes of cars heading south to the horizon and the Valley is to quickly understand why tech workers are now looking even farther out.
The pathway out to that new territory is the 580 freeway, which branches off 680 near Livermore and heads up and over windswept, windmill-dotted (and rock music notorious) Altamont pass, or the ACE train as it emerges from Niles Canyon, crosses the Contra Costa corridor then climbs those same hills through Patterson pass. Both drop out of the burned-brown mountains into the town of Tracy.
This is San Joaquin County, long known as a major agricultural region in California's great Central Valley. Most Bay Area folks, if they've noticed the county at all, remember it only as part of the long stretch of farmland they had to drive across on their way to Tahoe and the Sierras. Most recently, the county's biggest city, Stockton gained national attention both for a rising crime rate and for political mismanagement – it became the largest city in the U.S. in recent memory to go bankrupt. So great was the fall-out – jokes, editorials and international reporting – from that event that the Mayor, in a sad attempt at levity, showed up for his most recent State of the City address wearing an old-fashioned suit of armor.
The reality is that, after the reporters and news crews moved on, Stockton has pulled off a remarkable turnaround, reducing its crime rate and asserting a new financial discipline – to the point, writes the regional newspaper, The Record, that it has become "the poster child" for other U.S. cities trying to turn around their fortunes. But it may be years before the scandal fades and anyone notices.
But Tracy, San Joaquin's closest city to Silicon Valley, is a different story. Most long-time Bay Area residents, when they think of Tracy remember a sleepy rural burg with a bar, a hotel and a couple burger joints they stopped at on the way home from the mountains – mostly because Highway 50, the road to South Shore Tahoe and the ski resorts, in those days went right through the center of town.
In fact, Tracy's redevelopment has been almost as sweeping as Stockton's, but without all of the financial drama. These days, there's a new city center far from the distant freeway, with a spanking new city hall, police station, library and park. The downtown is also undergoing a transformation, most notably an entire block that included an old movie palace has now been cleverly amalgamized into cultural complex that includes the area's largest stage, dance studios, art galleries and other arts amenities. Over by the train station another old retail block has been turned into a series of restaurants and boutiques that look like a tiny piece of Palo Alto or Los Gatos.
None of this has been spontaneous. For almost a decade now, Tracy has been looking west, over the mountains, to the excitement and wealth of Silicon Valley – and positioning itself to become the next city to join the Silicon Valley community. And if the city is patient -- "We have a thirty year plan," says city manager R. Leon Churchill Jr., "and we intend to execute it" – it is also, in the Valley spirit, anxious to get there.
"Silicon Valley is a rocket ship and we want to be aboard -- not just watching from the distance like a perpetual bystander," says Mike Ammann, president/CEO of the San Joaquin Partnership, a public-private regional development group.
"Look," Churchill continues, "we know that the Valley is coming. It's inevitable. There's no place left for it to go but through those hills," he points towards the 1,000 foot tall Altamont pass and the car-filled ribbon of 580. "Dublin and Livermore are getting built out. Now the first companies are coming over the hill and buying land here.
"So the real question is: does this process take twenty years? Or ten? Our goal is to make it the latter."
Already, a number of giant tracts of open farmland around Tracy are being snapped up by major corporations and developers. Amazon.com has announced plans to open a major fulfillment facility; Restoration Hardware is expanding its existing facility. One thousand seven hundred other acres are also being developed for commercial use – for an estimated 31 million square feet of commercial space employing 37,000 workers. A similar expansion is underway on Tracy's residential side. San Joaquin County chief deputy county administrator Harry S. Mavrogenes, estimates that 15,000 new homes are already in the works in and around Tracy – enough to nearly double the city's population to 150,000. "These homes range from townhouses to executive homes in elegant private communities. Best of all, in terms of marketing Tracy as a place to live, housing prices drop 30 percent the moment you cross Altamont pass." Indeed, it may be even a better deal than that, given that the average price of a Silicon Valley home jumped more than 20 percent in just the first three months of 2013.
Says Mavrogenes, "It's almost impossible for a young, professional family to buy a home in the Valley; but they can still do it here."
But landing satellite plants and divisions of companies like Amazon – which was sold on both the land prices and the proximity to the Bay Area – is only a first step. As communities from Portland to Albuquerque have learned to their dismay, those businesses tend to be at the mercy of their Valley headquarters – and the first to have lay-offs and shutdowns in hard times. The key is homegrown tech start-ups in the hope that one or more will be become an industry giant.
Unfortunately, that can't be done in a single step, or overnight. Typically, those satellite facilities have to become sufficiently implanted and numerous that they create a tech-oriented populace that proves attractive to the headquarters of mid-sized firms and the infrastructure that supports them. Then, with luck, this creates a local culture that proves attractive and supportive enough to draw entrepreneurial individuals and teams who settle in to start companies. And only then, once again with luck, perhaps one of those start-ups will become the next Facebook or Google.
That's a lot of steps, many of them with long odds. But remember, the Valley is coming to Tracy no matter what – so the real question is whether the leaders of Tracy can speed up that process. The cheap land and housing prices are a big start. So are the kudos the city is getting from developers for fast turnarounds on permits. But just as important are the new downtown, Tracy's plans to install even faster fiber optic Internet, and even that little slice of Palo Alto near the Tracy train station. The town leaders understand that – but they also realize it will take a lot more than that to make Tracy a real part of Silicon Valley, not just a vulnerable appendage.
That means creating a lifestyle in the city that appeals to both entrepreneurs and CEOs – in particular, a sophisticated cultural life (proximity to SF, Napa and the Gold Country helps), security (Tracy is the second safest city in the state) and, most of all, access to the highest levels of continuing education.
It is with the last that Tracy may face its biggest near-term challenge. While the elementary and secondary schools are good (though not Cupertino or Menlo Park) and there is an abundance of community colleges, four year colleges around Tracy are thin on the ground, with not much more than California Lutheran College nearby. That means a potentially dire shortage of graduate programs in engineering and management. Cal State Stanislaus is miles away, and the once-vaunted state college system is broke. And the best candidate, the top-notch University of the Pacific in Stockton is both in the wrong direction and turning inward – making it unlikely to open a satellite campus or eMBA program in Tracy. That suggests that Tracy will need a Bay Area university to decide to build a satellite campus in San Joaquin County – an event likely to happen after Tracy booms, not before. Needless to say, it has become a top priority for the city.
In the end, though, the biggest challenge facing Tracy is one of perception. In the mind of Silicon Valleyites, Tracy is still far off, somewhere over the mountains in central California -- not a neighbor a little more than 50 miles away. A lot of Valleyites are already commuting comparable distances.
That means that much of the fate of Tracy's dream to join Silicon Valley rests upon that ACE train running between Tracy and downtown San Jose. Thanks to that train, and the connections at Diridon station to the South Bay's light rail system (or Bay Area Rapid Transit to the entire East Bay and SF), a typical Tracy commuter can leave his or her affordable home each morning and reach almost any office in the Bay Area in less than ninety minutes – and do business all of the way. Then return each evening to a quiet, safe town made for families.
That is a message that Tracy still needs to make in Silicon Valley. Like any tech start-up, it has to figure out how to be heard above the noise and frenzy of Valley life. And, like a long list of cities, states and countries that over the years have come to the Valley to sell themselves as the next Silicon Valley, Tracy too has opened a development office, in Santa Clara, run by Harry Mavrogenes.
Mavrogenes, who used to be executive director of San Jose Redevelopment, has the right credentials for the job. He knows that the day is coming, preferably sooner than later when the Valley, once again in one of its cyclical booms, and once again bursting at the seams, will find itself looking for a way to grow. He also knows that if the perceived borders of the Valley can now encompass Santa Cruz, Hollister and even the Wine Country, then it can certainly include Tracy. He smiles, "When they're ready, I'll have a great story to tell them."
The shoppers, the bikers and the businesspeople climb off the clicking, hissing ACE train at the Tracy station. The sunset sky is purple, clearer but warmer than back in the overcast and fog of the Bay Area. The air is drier too, clean and surprisingly quiet. And you can smell the fields of sunburned wild grass.
The travelers make their way across the parking lot. Some head for their cars and home. Others jump on their bicycles and pedal off. But some linger, check their phones one last time and then cross the street to catch a latte and a sandwich. It's good to be home.


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This is so interesting... You caught my attention and this video was very cool! I like it... So nice
Smooth filming and edits my man. Had a little trouble following along with the story though. Likely due to my short attention span but others might be the same. Maybe throw in a whole vid preview at beginning. Just my humble opinion. Regardless you keep doing you and keep those vids coming!
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@micahdjohns BOOST I don't mind studying, its primarily just how terrible that course was hahah
@natassia.baby thank you very much
@HEY FRESHMAN thanks for the feedback mate man, I think I might make a short intro clip thats just a quick explaination of who I am hahah because after 140 vlogs I forget to introduce myself and give a quick back story
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text:
February 7 2013
Prayers Proper Petition; Matthew 6:5-13
Greg Smith continues his series on prayer.
Greg Smith continues his series on prayer.
This entry was posted on Thursday, February 7th, 2013 at 11:57 am and is filed under Sermon, Church, Bro. Greg, Prayer. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response , or trackback from your own site.
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text:
Reese Witherspoon has delighted fans after she confirmed there will be a Legally Blonde 3 film.
The actress posted a video on social media of her floating in a pool wearing the Elle Woods, the main protagonists, pink bikini.
The caption read: "It's true...# LegallyBlonde3."
Witherspoon starred as Elle Woods in the 2001 comedy, in which the fashion merchandising student enrolls in Harvard Law School to try to win back her ex-boyfriend.
It was a box-office hit and received Golden Globe nominations in both the best actress and best musical or comedy categories.
The movie led to the 2003 sequel "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde."
It was even adopted to the stage, with a Westend show in London.
Fans were ecstatic about the news, posting a torrent of comments on social media.
"I'm in heaven!" one fan exclaimed.
"Yes!! Finally!!" another added.
"We are going to the theatre in PINK to see this premiere!!!" another fan wrote in a message.
Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine company will produce the film along with MGM and the original film's producers, Marc Platt and Platt Productions president Adam Siegel.


text:
STEVE Hamer pledges that Bristol Rovers' board will give Darrell Clarke "every possible backing" in the transfer market this summer.
The chairman also says that the mood of the directors matches that of the manager in terms of positivity and that the budget will be competitive at a time when clubs throughout the Football League tend to be spending more than ever.
But he also warns that it is getting more difficult by the season to take on the big boys in every division of the Football League, due to the parachute payments on offer to relegated clubs.
Hamer told me: "Darrell is already up for next season and has been making plans. We shall give him as much support financially as we possibly can.
"Having made the mistake of thinking we were providing a top six budget, only to find out that inflation had knocked us back somewhat, I can say only we will provide him with the best chance we can of bringing in the right players."
Clarke has often claimed his budget is among the lowest in League One, but that is not a statistic Hamer accepts.
"Darrell is an emotional person and at times can appear a bit outspoken and ungrateful after games," he said. "I have been involved in football long enough to understand that managers sometimes look for excuses in the immediate aftermath of poor results.
"To quote one example, Plymouth Argyle finished six places above us in seventh position in League One with a budget smaller than ours.
"In fact, along with Oldham and Rochdale, they probably had among the lowest budgets in the division. So it is not all about money.
"Bury had one of the higher budgets this season and finished bottom. They had one player on eight or nine grand a week.
"It's about what you can get out of the players you have and not just how much you spend."
With Sunderland among the teams coming down from the Championship, Hamer accepts that it is getting harder for clubs like Rovers to compete financially.
"They receive a £33 million parachute payment and will be entitled to operate a playing budget of 60 percent of their turnover," he said. "That will include the £33 million, plus their normal turnover, which even in League One, I would estimate at another £12 million, maybe a bit more.
"So you are talking about 60 percent of £45 million. Sunderland could have a wage bill of £25 million next season if they want.
"They should absolutely run away with League One, but of course you never know.
"Championship clubs face a similar problem to ourselves in that the parachute payments are now so large that the clubs coming down from the Premier League are likely to go back up again.
"That makes life very difficult for the likes of Bristol City or Ipswich Town, unless someone invests a huge amount of money in one block.
"Even the likes of Leeds United are finding it tough to break through the monopoly of the clubs who come down from the Premiership. The same is going to happen all through the leagues."
As an admittedly old school follower of football, Hamer regrets that it is becoming increasingly unrealistic for supporters of smaller clubs to dream of a place among the elite.
"Those with a good player find him leaving all too soon because agents are in his ear and it is a payday for them when he moves," he said. It is pretty demoralising because you never have the opportunity to build. All you can do is go shopping for replacements and try to find a bargain or two.
"The days of supporters identifying with a local lad who spends a career with their club are gone.
"It's very difficult for the majority of clubs in the lower divisions to compete and even to dream, which for those of us who have followed the game, or been involved in it for a long time, is hard to accept."
For all that, Hamer is optimistic than Rovers can progress further from two mid-table finishes in League One.
Clarke is not the sort of manager to start any season without targeting promotion and he will be looking for a more successful summer in the transfer market than proved the case a year ago when he admits mistakes were made.
When we expect managers to strengthen their squads during the close season, it is worth remembering how difficult it can be, especially in these days of inflated prices and wages.


text:
Y'all, my AC has been grinding away at around 81 all summer. Last month's power bill was $464. The landlord finally agreed to replace it while I was out of town, but it had not been done when I got home on Friday.
Any hoo, after much bitching, yesterday repairs commenced, and when the nice little Mexican man popped up through my bedroom floor I decided to refugee to the beach. If you don't gamble, the casino hotels are laughably cheap. I am so smart y'all!


text:
News and events archive
From the faculty
David Pavlik, CIO Kiwi.com – Learning of first principles mattersWe cordiallly invite all to the lecture of David Pavlik, Chief Information Officer Kiwi.com. David graduated at Faculty of Informatics, MU in 2001. He then worked in variety of roles, e.g. in Microsoft, Amazon, Netflix, SpaceX. He will talk about how to be successful in your career and how important is what he learned at Faculty of Informatics. Title: Learning of first principles matters Abstract: To be really successful in your career not only you need to understand the business context, but you need to understand the fundamentals of the domain you are working in. In this lecture, we are going to walk you through multiple examples of how college education was successfully applied in various disciplines at world's most successful companies. We will talk about the application of building your own grammar, discuss how deep knowledge of statistics can increase the revenue of your business or save lives, and why you should understand programming language principles. The objective of this lecture is to set the context for why it does matter to spend the next few years in college. Faculty of Informatics, Masaryk University, Botanicka 68a, Brno lecture hall D3, September 20th, 2018, 18:00 About the speaker: David graduated at Faculty of Informatics, MU in 2001. He then worked in variety of roles, ranging from Service Delivery Lead at Microsoft, Technical Program Manager at Amazon.com, Engineering Manager at Netflix or various software roles at SpaceX. Most recently he is back to Brno and enjoying working as Chief Information Officer with an amazing team of Kiwi.com. The lecture will be given in English.
Web address


text:
The great hagwon debate
There were the standard con arguments of cost, time and overall effectiveness, but these were easily outweighed with the students eagerly expressed pro arguments.
- We must prepare for the next grade, we can review and preview things we have not learned at school, hagwons make up for the things we miss at school. So basically public schools in Korea are failing at their purpose? Kids tend to treat school as play and hagwon as school...
- If we don't study at hagwon we will fall behind in our class and do bad on the exam, and then not get into a good high school or university and not get a good job. Elementary school decisions will forecast the rest of your life, no pressure though.
- If we don't go to hagwon where would we go after school, our parents are still working. Why did I not realize this job was a glorified babysitter?
Are Native English teachers worth it?
I was genuinely intrigued to see what the kids had to say on this one and was not so surprised when I had mulitple students begging to be on the 'con' side of the argument. After all my previous job was cut after years of the government talking about cut backs, but what was the students perceived value? Pro supporters were in favor of a natural pronunciation, learning of different cultures and overall interest in learning English, but again con dominated.
- Native teachers are expensive, costing the government much more than a Korean teacher who could fulfill the same job (50% of the English budget goes to Native teachers). I'm just happy to be getting a paycheck, oh and a free apartment.
- Often times they only teaching speaking and listening, classes that many students treat as play and either ignore or sleep through. True.
- Most aren't even properly qualified teachers. You shouldn't seen the shock on some faces when I confirmed that no, Korea does not require a teaching degree (or certification).
- These lessons could easily be replaced with skype, youtube, or other online formats.
Writing prompt: What is the best age and why
An overwhelmingly high number of students argued that five years old, was in fact the best age. This proves one of two things, either the kids have little imagination capability in guessing that maybe 20, 30 or 70 might be fun, or it's all downhill from here. The reasons to support their claim?
- We get to go to kindergarten and meet friends, but there's no homework and we also don't have to go to hagwon.
- We don't have to study yet. As you shouldn't at five years old.
- It's okay when we make a mistake. Which leads me to believe it's not okay soon after...
- We can take a nap
Soon after I followed this up with: What is the worst age and why
This time encouraging them to be creative and think outside the box I hoped for a few different responses, but alas creativity is not key with these kids. The resounding answer was eight or nine years old, and the reasons are not that hard to guess.
- We have to start first grade and have lots of homework. Despressing
- We must go to academy and study more. Also depressing.
- There is no time for play. Depressing.
While my intent with these two writing prompts was to encourage kids to think about their future, fun opportunities that lay ahead, what I got was a sad look at reality. It seems that for these kids, at least in their minds, life peaks at 5 with fun, games and new friends, but goes downhill not soon after. By eight years old you're enrolled into your first hagwon and from that point on it's just work, work work. From elementary school to middle, where you must study to prepare for high school, and then the ever important suneung test which will hopefully get you into a good university, so you can study to get a good job, at which you hope to work at until retirement, without getting laid off to make room for the new, younger, smarter fresher batch of
robots I mean graduates.
Incase you were wondering my rose colored, everything is great here - I love this country glasses have been removed, and I'm seeing a first hand account of the darker side of the coin. These are only a few examples of the eye openers I've come across, but I promise to share more soon, and not only from the classroom.


text:
Posted: Apr 18, 2019
GAME ONE: Wheaton 8 - Coast Guard 5
RECORDS: Wheaton (20-13, 6-9 NEWMAC) - Coast Guard (18-15, 6-7 NEWMAC)
LOCATION: Norton, Mass. (Clark Softball Field)
- The Wheaton College softball team earned an 8-5 New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) win over the Coast Guard Academy in the opening game of the series.
- Sophomore Hannah Arkin ended the game 4-for-4, while Jade Assad finished 3-for-4.
- Senior Shelbi Wilson picked up her 10th win of the season after completing five innings. Wilson helped the Lyons pick up the win offensively as well, finishing 1-for-3 from the plate with her lone hit being a three-run home run.
- The Bears struck first, plating three runs in the top of the third with a three-run home run from Audrey Bartz.
- Wheaton responded in the home half of the inning with Wilson's home run. Emily Schlapak followed with a home run of her own, putting Wheaton on top 4-3.
- Assad extended the Lyons lead in the fourth with a two-RBI double down the left field line that sent Arkin and Katelyn Barton home. Schlapak ended the scoring with her second home run of the day, this time picking up Assad on the play.
- The Bears earned two runs back in the fifth, but that would be as close as they would get with Sarah Pritchard coming in to relieve Wilson, giving up just three hits the rest of the way.
- Hits: Wheaton 14 / CGA 10
- Errors: Wheaton 3 / CGA 0
- RBIs: Wheaton 8 / CGA 5
- Left on Base: Wheaton 5 / CGA 5
- Walks: Wheaton 1 / CGA 1
- Strikeouts: Wheaton 1 / CGA 6
GAME TWO: Wheaton 14 - Coast Guard 6 (5 innings)
RECORDS: Wheaton (21-13, 7-9 NEWMAC) - Coast Guard (18-16, 6-8 NEWMAC)
LOCATION: Norton, Mass. (Clark Softball Field)
- The Lyons picked up where they left off in game two, taking down the Bears 14-6 after five innings.
- Pritchard picked up her 10th win of the season, pitching the complete game, giving up six runs on 11 hits.
- Arkin, Assad, and Lindsay Whittles ended the second game 2-for-3 from the plate, while Julia McLintock finished the contest 2-for-2.
- Like in game one, the Bears struck first, this time with an RBI single to center, which was followed by an RBI double to left from Simco.
- Wheaton earned one run back in the home half of the inning with a solo home run from Assad.
- The Bears added two more runs in the second inning with another RBI double and single.
- Wheaton tied the game at 4-4 in the bottom of the second with a bases-loaded double up the middle from Barton that drove in McLintock, Pritchard, and Schlapak. Assad made it a 6-4 contest with double up the middle two batters later, driving in Arkin and Barton.
- The bottom of the third saw Wheaton push seven runs across on five hits and two Bear errors. The scoring started when Arkin reached on a two-out bases-loaded error that gave two Lyons time to come home. Wilson picked up two RBI later in the inning before Schlapak hit her third home run of the game.
- Trailing 13-4, the Bears earned two runs back in the fourth, but Wilson increased Wheaton's lead back to eight with help from another Bear error that allowed Barton to score.
- Hits: Wheaton 11 / CGA 11
- Errors: Wheaton 3 / CGA 3
- RBIs: Wheaton 14 / CGA 6
- Left on Base: Wheaton 6 / CGA 4
- Walks: Wheaton 5 / CGA 0
- Strikeouts: Wheaton 4 / CGA 1
UP NEXT: The Lyons return to action on Saturday, April 20 for a NEWMAC doubleheader at Emerson College (11 a.m. / 1 p.m.) VIDEO / LIVESTATS


text:
Vastavam web: France will commit 700 million euros to the International Solar Alliance (ISA), President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday at the founding conference of the organisation, reiterating the European country's commitment to the alliance and clean energy.ISA is an inter-governmental organisation that aims to mobilise $1 trillion in funds for future solar generation, storage and technology across the world. It has 60 signatories, with 30 of those countries having ratified the agreement.
Other than leaders from member countries, the event was attended by leaders from major development banks such as the Asian Development Bank and African Development Bank who are expected to sign solar energy-related agreements. The organisation's main goal is to lower the cost of finance and spur investments across the supply chain, including in manufacturing, project development and storage, Upendra Tripathy, director general of ISA, told Reuters ahead of the conference on Friday.


text:
Man busted for wake-and-bake but not fender-bender
summit daily news
A Dillon Valley man was cited for possession of marijuana after a neighbor incorrectly pointed him out as a suspect in damaging a car in the parking lot.
A Summit County Sheriff's deputy knocking on the man's door to inquire about the minor damage to the neighbor's rear bumper stated that he smelled the distinct odor of cannabis sativa.
"It's a little early to be smoking weed this morning," the deputy said, and the man responded: "Yeah, it is."
Looking into the apartment, the deputy saw a glass jar containing suspected marijuana on the coffee table, and the man cooperated by turning it over and then surrendering a multi-colored glass pipe.
The deputy and the man then went down to the parking lot, where the cop determined that the man's car " parked next to the damaged vehicle " had not been involved in the fender-bender.
But it was little solace for the suspect, who was ticketed for possession of less than an ounce of pot.
A young man and young woman caught by a condo manager soaking after hours in a hot tub admitted to jumping the fence to gain access.
The couple had turned off the exterior lights for their late-night dip when they were discovered, and they could not tell the property manager which unit they occupied.
A security video camera captured the man climbing over the fence, a sheriff's deputy reported, and both were charged with trespassing.
A suspected drunk driver instead turned out to be a woman taking driving lessons from her friend on a treacherous mountain road " and not quite getting the hang of it.
A witness called authorities one recent morning to stop a vehicle swerving into the oncoming lane and back onto the shoulder of Swan Mountain Road and accelerating and decelerating erratically.
A sheriff's deputy discovered that the driver, a 20-year-old woman, was being given a lesson by the car owner.
The woman was issued a citation for driving without a license, and the vehicle owner took over driving duties.
A bar patron who got into a fight with the house disc jockey over the music being played was physically escorted out of the establishment " but only after he and the bouncer overturned a table and injured another customer.
The suspect admitted calling the DJ an impolite name and said he was defiant when a bouncer asked him to leave the Keystone establishment one night recently.
As the man was being physically escorted out, a woman who was sitting with her back to the fracas found herself suddenly knocked to the ground. She struck her face on the table, causing a small bruise below her eye.
The suspect was issued a summons for disorderly conduct and told that he could not return to the bar that night.
A Texan who blocked the Peaks Trail with his pickup truck " and flipped off a couple of skiers who complained " found himself in the proud possession of a couple of citations as well as a towing fee.
A sheriff's deputy was asked to intervene after a Breckenridge employee could not get a snow groomer onto the trail because the truck was parked at the trail, in front of a sign that reads: "Please do not block trail snow-cat access."
A couple of cross-country skiers had warned the truck owner, but he allegedly gave them the finger and walked off.
Presumably the Dallas man then had to continue on foot after his truck was towed and he was issued tickets for parking in violation of a sign and parking on a county road.
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text: Physicians are called often to relieve people of the suffering from their disease and also to heal them. The inability of conventional medicine to adequately "heal" a number of health disorders such as chronic pain, inflammatory diseases and autoimmune diseases may have contributed, in no small measure, to the rise of non-conventional/complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). This goal of physicians can only be possible, if they initially define what a patient is. The conventional approach has been to approach disease from a physical/materialistic concept. Under this approach, all disease is a physical one. Even psychosomatic medicine basis the origin of disease in the brain. CAM – especially methods such as Acupuncture, Ayurveda, and Healing touch, amongst others, use a holistic approach, which often bases the origin of disease in the human psyche. Without the proper knowledge of what constitutes the human being proper patient care cannot be achieved. CAM therapies approach the patient from a holistic standpoint and seek to create a balance between man and his environment. The impact of the psyche/soul on the state of health of the human body and in inherited disease is being shown by epigenetics, which is demonstrating that stressors may lead to modifications in genetic function and these modifications may be modified. Evidence is mounting in conventional medicine for the value of this holistic approach, thus opening the path for a spiritualized approach to medicine. This spiritualized approach may give a broader definition for the concept of "holistic medicine", thus, for the approach that physicians need to take to disease in the future. This might include looking at therapy not as the eradication of disease, but as the introduction of health. Through these solutions, physicians of the future may not only practice a holistic approach to medicine, but also contribute to lasting health of individuals and society. However, in order for this to happen, the physician must first recognize this scope, thus must first find the true meaning of his calling.


text:
A block of rooms is reserved at the Nicolaus Hotel in the Poggiofranco neighborhood of Bari. You can book your room by either calling the hotel directly or through their website. Ask for the special group rate.
While staying at the Nicolaus is the best option for convenience to conference events, there are a number of other accommodations in close proximity.


text:
I'm a little early with this post but who else is excited for tonight's announcement of The World's Best Restaurants for 2012?
Tonight the long awaited news will be announced about whether Noma retains their Number #1 spot! I've just travelled to Copenhagen and had the amazing opportunity to dine there so look forward to some pics and posts coming up soon ;)


text:
last updated July 2020
Listed below are the current estimated wait times for each handgun series (if not in stock). Wait times are estimated from the date your order was placed with deposit. We do our best to predict accurate lead times, but they are subject to change. Please check this page as often as you like to keep updated on current wait times.
Don't want to wait? Browse our In-Stock guns to see what is available for immediate delivery.
Fueled series - within 30 days.
EVO series - EVO-E9-LW within 180 days, all other models within 90 days.
FX series - within 90 days.
Carry series - within 90 days.
Elite series - within 90 days.
Tactical series - within 90 days.
Exhibition series - within 9 months.
California series - within 90 days.
Legacy series - within 90 days.
Jeff Cooper Commemorative - within 90 days.
Custom build (configured from build page) - within 90 days.
Service work - within 30 days
Letter of Authenticity - within 2 days.


text:
The Dignity Of The Court
The Bailie was sitting in
judgement for the first time and anxious to show that he took his new duties
with becoming gravity. When the proceedings commenced it was found that one
of the witnesses was inclined to treat the Court with a certain levity.
After some consultation, the
Bailie was ultimately advised to warn the offender that he would commit him
for contempt of Court if he did not conduct himself in a proper manner.
"The Coort - wha's the Coort"
asked the witness.
"I am the the Court" replied
the Bailie with dignity.
"Troth, and ye're naethin o
the kind" came the reply " ye're auld Dod Scott the plumber."
Click here to
listen to this joke
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text:
Merchiston Campus
The course is designed to be individually responsive to each student's interests and experience. Most modules are heavily mentor-based, which means that you always have advice, expertise, and guidance on hand as you explore your artistic potential.
The course is structured over 5 trimesters and, along with many opportunities to direct various projects and to assistant direct public shows, you will study:
Dramatic Story and Structure; Script Analysis; Design and Metaphor; Applied Directing; Professional Preparation; and Festival Production.
Entry requirements are an Honours Degree at a 2:2 or above, ideally with a background in Drama or Humanities.
Postgraduate Master's
Full time
2 years
Film, Journalism and Media


text:
Today was all about faxing paper back and forth with my dad. It was quite a hassle trying to get a lease for the apartment. I am actually excited to start new year in a new place. So far I have not packed anything but as it seems our current landlord doesn't have any renter for this apartment. That means we got enough time to move out and enjoy the new years eve.
Wish everyone a Happy New Year.


text:
|Helpline Phone
|Online Contact Points
|Opening Hours
|Catchment Area
|Bray Women's Refuge
|Provides secure crisis accommadation for women and their children who are escaping form physical, sexual, mental and financial abuse in their homes. Providing support and relevant information for women regardless of whether they are resident in the refuge or not. Assisting women to understand their legal rights and entitlements. Increasing general public awareness on the issues relating to domestic violence. Lobbying the state regarding relevant legislation to make Ireland a safer place for all who experience violence and abuse.
|(01) 286 6163
|(01) 2866163
|All 32 Counties
|St Fergal's Resource Centre Ltd
|Provides information, support, transport & crèche facilities & a referral service to relevant agencies.
|(01) 2760376


text:
By Lou Gehrig Burnett.
Local politicos consider it big plus for the campaign of District Court Judge Scott Crichton, who is running for a seat on the Louisiana Supreme Court. He has announced that Carolyn Prator, wife of Caddo Parish Sheriff Steve Prator, will be co-manager of his judicial campaign along with Crichton's wife, Susie. Crichton is challenging incumbent Associate Justice Jeff Victory, who has held the District 2 seat on the seven-member Louisiana Supreme Court since 1995. Both are Republicans.
For Crichton, who has been a District Court judge for more than 20 years, it's an all-or-nothing scenario. That's because it's a rarity when the election for District Court judge and Louisiana Supreme Court judge occur at the same time. In 2014, that's the case. So Crichton has to give up his District Court seat to run for Justice on the state's highest court. His decision was prompted by state law, which says one cannot run for judge if he or she is 70 years of age or older. Crichton will be just past 60 when the election rolls around in 2014. Since the term on the Louisiana Supreme Court is for 10 years, he would not be able to run in 2024.
Basically, it's now or never for him to seek a seek on the Louisiana Supreme Court. Justice Victory has worn the judicial robe for 32 years. In 1981, he was elected to the First Judicial District Court, and in 1990 was elected to the Second Circuit Court of Appeal for a term beginning January 1, 1991. He served there until he was elected as an Associate Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court for a term beginning on January 1, 1995. Victory will be 68 at the time of the 2014 election, so he is eligible for one more 10-year term.
Louisiana Supreme Court District 2 consists of 11 parishes – Caddo, Bossier, Webster, DeSoto, Red River, Sabine, Natchitoches, Vernon, Beauregard, Allen, and Evangeline.
Crichton's campaign headquarters is located at 725 Southfield Road. The phone number is 318-841-8000.
Qualifying for the election is August 20-22, 2014. The primary election is November 4, and the runoff, if needed, is December 6.


text:
Credited for the first design of the stiletto heel in 1954, French designer Roger Vivier dedicated his life to creating chic, contemporary footwear. The brand's current creative director Bruno Frisoni is just as passionate about this mission, embracing the digital landscape of 2017 to shift the classic Vivier customer into the brand's modern retail space. Bazaar catches up with the man credited for the label's revival to talk about his surprising design methods and Middle Eastern influences...
Bruno's love letter to Roger Vivier's new regional stockist, Ounass.com
Harper's Bazaar Arabia: You're at the helm of a historic brand, how does the history of the label impact your designs now?
BF: "The heritage from Monsieur Roger Vivier is truly exceptional and the signature of the brand, the metal or strass buckle, is reinvented each season. For A/W17, the shape of the buckle has evolved, it's sharp, modern and placed on the shoe, leaves you feeling like a Belle de Jour of our time."
HBA: Internationally, the fashion landscape is becoming more of a digital playing field. How has this shift impacted your creative process at all?
BF: "While platforms like social media have become central for today's communication, my activity on Instagram is based on sharing my travels and life moments rather than finding creative inspiration. When I work on the shoes and bags of the collection, what is important for me is to get the idea of the woman who is the inspiration of my creations, it can be references and pictures of iconic actresses, like Penelope Tree photographed by Cecil Beaton for the current Fall-Winter 2017-18, or how to reinvent the Vivier woman, whose personality will always be the fire beneath the ice. That being said, we have embraced the digital landscape very much so, one of our highlights this year was working with French artist Jean Paul Goude who created a video installation for us during Paris Fashion Week."
HBA: What would you say is the hardest part of your creative process?
BF: "I would not say it's the hardest part but to make women dream about Roger Vivier shoes and bags every season is definitely a challenge, it is though, my pleasure to make that dream come true."
HBA: What locations were you inspired by this season?
BF: "I love travelling and would like to travel more if I had more time. I frequently visit Tanger in Morocco, the light, the atmosphere and the people are always inspiring. As I was visiting a museum in Europe this year, I discovered beautiful 19th century Ottoman fabrics, so I've designed for a pattern of embroidery for boots and handbags called OttoWoman for this current collection."
Roger Vivier A/W17
HBA: You visited Dubai last year, what is your perception of Roger Vivier's Middle Eastern customer?
BF: "At first sight, Dubai can be so extravagant but when you know better the city and the people who make it, it has such character. Women in this region are renowned for their sophistication."
HBA: Who is the modern Roger Vivier woman?
BF: "The Vivier woman has always been modern, she's the quintessence of the Parisian elegance, timeless glamour, and effortless chic, she's Ines de la Fressange!"
HBA: Would you ever expand into other accessories realms like homewear?
BF: "That would be tempting but no, Roger Vivier' mission is to dress women with beautiful shoes and bags."
HBA: What can we expect next from Roger Vivier and yourself?
BF: "For the moment I'm focusing on creating our S/S18 collection but, I have some new projects up my sleeve I can't wait to share with the world, stay tuned!"
Shop the collection online now at Ounass.com


text:
Rush Athletic FC Funday 2012- Now on June Bank Holiday Weekend
Funday Not Going Ahead on May 19th because two of our teams are involved in Cup Finals in the NDSL headquarters on Oscar Traynor Road.
Our Funday will now take place on Saturday June 2nd. Please get your Sponsor Cards in.
We will have Football Matches, DJ, Bouncy Castle, Food, Egg and Spoon Racing, Three Legged Racing etc.


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A useful site giving more information about the types of Apprenticeship training available
The City & Guilds website provides useful information on the qualifications available.
The Skills Funding Agency is the organisation that funds Apprenticeship training in England
The Institute of the Motor Industry
The Institute of the Motor Industry are the leading awarding body for qualifications in the automotive sector
If you have already completed our application form and need to log in to your online test, use this link
Find out what it's like to be an apprentice – the opportunities, benefits and just how far an apprenticeship can take you in the future.
A parent's guide to apprenticeships
Information for parents about the benefits of apprenticeships and the opportunities they provide.
Higher and degree apprenticeships
Provides information for young people on the opportunities, progression and benefits of doing a higher or degree apprenticeship.
Employer guide to apprenticeships
Information for employers showing the benefits of apprenticeships to their business.
Mentor guide to apprenticeships
Information for mentors showing the benefits of mentoring apprentices


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News officially broke early this morning that Zuffa has sold the UFC to WME-IMG and MSD, for the largest sale in the history of sports with a sale price of $4 Billion.
Amongst the madness the Zuffa executive team has taken the time to send the following e-mail, courtesy of MMA Fighting, to it's athletes regarding the UFC sale.
Some key points in the email include the UFC's new owners, the Fertittas retaining a minority ownership interest, UFC President Dana White remaining on staff in the same capacity, and much more:
Dear Athletes,
We are writing to personally advise you of a change to UFC. Renowned entertainment, sports and fashion giant WWE | IMG has entered into agreement to acquire UFC. Silver Lake Partners, KKR, MSD Capital, L.P. and MSD Partners, L.P. will join WME | IMG as new strategic investors. The transaction is subject to customary conditions.
From the moment Zuffa, LLC purchased UFC over 15 years ago, you, the athletes, have always been the central focus of the promotion. That will not change. WME | IMG, who has been involved with UFC for many years, is focused on the continued global expansion of mixed martial arts and committed to further promotion you on the global stage.
Upon closing the deal, Lorenzo Fertitta will be stepping down as Chairman and CEO of the organization, however Lorenzo and Frank will retain a minority ownership interest in the business. UFC President Dana White will continue in his role and will also retain a minority ownership interest.
The organization's leadership, a team of great executives hand-picked to help lead the business, will remain in place to carry on their work and continue to lead the team of dedicated employees who promote your careers as mixed martial arts athletes.
You remain a very important part of the highly driven, dedicated and motivated organization that will continue to deliver world-class experiences and opportunities for you as athletes and for the greatest fans in the world.
Thank you,
The Zuffa executive team
What are your thoughts on the UFC's new owners, do you expect immediate change?


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UPDATE: Activision has updated the Black Ops Pass FAQ to now confirm that the Black Ops Pass will in fact be available as a standalone item for those buying just the standard edition of the game. It will be available as a standalone 'at a later date.'
Q: Can I buy Black Ops Pass as a standalone product?
A: Black Ops Pass will be available as a standalone offering at a later date.
No updates in regards to buying the content separately has been announced as of now.
Original Story:
As more information comes out regarding the Black Ops Pass for Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, the more confusing it becomes…and quite frankly, the worse it sounds.
A new FAQ from Activision Support talking about the Black Ops Pass for Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 was posted with some details.
First off, the new FAQ says content that is part of the Black Ops Pass cannot be purchased separately. It must be purchased as a "bundle."
From Activision Support:
Q: Will I be able to buy parts of Black Ops Pass content individually, like DLC Map Packs from previous Call of Duty games?
A: No. The contents included in Black Ops Pass may only be purchased as a bundle.
That's a huge change, since many folks currently opt to not get the Season Pass and buy certain DLC Packs only. For Black Ops 4, it appears you need the Black Ops Pass to get the content it will include post launch.
Activision has stated that the Black Ops Pass for Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 will include:
- Classified – a new Zombies map, available at launch
- 12 Multiplayer Maps to be released during the post launch content season
- 4 Zombies Maps to be released during the post launch content season
- 4 Exclusive Blackout characters
If you already pre-ordered a digital standard edition of the game, there is options available on the PS Store, Xbox Store, and Battle net to upgrade to a higher edition by paying the difference in price. What if you bought the standard disc version of the game? No option exists to get the Black Ops Pass as of now, according to Activision Support.
From Activision Support:
Q: I've already pre-ordered the physical base version of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4. How can I upgrade to get the Black Ops Pass content?
A: If you pre-ordered the physical base version of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, return to your retailer to upgrade your pre-order to an edition that includes Black Ops Pass.
While the entire industry is moving forward, like Activision's main competitor Battlefield, which is giving away free maps, no loot boxes, no premium pass, Call of Duty seems to be living in the past.
SOURCE: Activision Support


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Porvorim police have apprehended a minor, while they are on the lookout for one more accused in the alleged gangrape and murder of a 28-year-old woman at Paitona, Salvador do Mundo. Both the accused are labourers, the police said, adding that, one of the accused brought the victim lady at the spot after telling her that he was taking her to meet her friend and later committed the crime.
The woman's body was found in a partially decomposed state on Monday evening in the vicinity of Kadamba depot, Paitona. Following the postmortem examination and based on a complainant lodged by the deceased's friend (a mason), the police have registered the offence of gangrape and murder.
The mason had identified the woman's body, the police said, adding that, both are from Odisha. A panel of doctors at the GMC hospital conducted the postmortem examination. The provisional cause of death was asphyxia as a result of smothering by blunt surface or object and injuries, the police said, referring to the postmortem report.
According to information, multiple police teams were formed under the supervision of SP Utkrisht Prasoon and DySP Edwin Colaco.
During the course of investigation, the police learnt
about the alleged involvement of two persons in the crime. One of the accused
involved in the crime is a minor (aged 16), a labourer and he has been
apprehended, informed the police. The second accused has been identified and he
is absconding, the police said, adding that, efforts are on to trace
PI Neenad Deulkar is further investigating the case.


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The Hopewell culture that was centered in Ohio had an interaction sphere that showed a network of cultural exchange and interaction throughout the country.
Between A.D. 1 and 400, Ohio was the center of the ancient American Indian Hopewell culture. One of its hallmarks was a network of cultural exchange and interaction that spanned eastern North America and reached as far west as the Rocky Mountains.
This Hopewell interaction sphere includes all the ways that Hopewell spiritual leaders acquired a variety of special raw materials, such as copper, mica and marine shells, from the ends of their world.Get the news delivered to your inbox: Sign up for our morning, afternoon and evening newsletters
Alice Wright, an archaeologist at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, offers in her new book, "Garden Creek: the Archaeology of Interaction in Middle Woodland Appalachia," a look at this interaction sphere from the perspective of one of those ends-of-the-world.
The Garden Creek site is in western North Carolina, near the source of the mica used to fashion some of the most iconic Hopewell artifacts. Remote sensing at the site revealed surviving traces of two roughly rectangular earthen enclosures, each about 60 feet across, that share an architectural grammar with Ohio Hopewell earthworks.
Wright excavated portions of the area and recovered many small pieces of mica. She concluded that this represented ritualized craft production whereby North Carolina Hopewell artisans produced regalia for local use as well as for distribution to the Ohio ceremonial centers.
Wright argues that the Hopewell interaction sphere is actually an "episode of premodern globalization." She defines "globalization" here not as truly global, but as encompassing "the maximum 'known world' of those who lived in a certain time and place."
Wright offers two scenarios for how members of the Garden Creek community might have become participants in Hopewell ceremonialism. Perhaps they heard about what was happening in the Ohio Valley and traveled to the far-away earthwork centers as pilgrims and returned home to establish a sort of local franchise, which then supplied the Ohio Hopewell with mica. Alternatively, perhaps Ohio Hopewell people came to North Carolina in search of unusual raw materials.
Wright believes the evidence points to a "dynamic history of cross-cultural interaction between the residents of Garden Creek and their contemporaries in the Hopewell core."
Conceiving of the nearly continent-wide network of influence of the Ohio Valley's Hopewell culture as an episode of premodern globalization puts the Hopewell achievement in a broader context and offers insights into how that network might have been created and sustained for four centuries.
Bradley Lepper is curator of archaeology at the Ohio History Connection.


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It seems rather appropriate that I write this today because I have been rather off colour and without inspiration for quite some time and the 1st of September is a good day to start pushing myself back up the hill; and what better way to start than by accepting my nomination for a 'blog hop'. Thank you to my lovely daughter over at anenthusiast.com for nominating me to take part. If you are as unfamiliar with the process as I was until a few days ago, then let me broaden your knowledge as well!
A blog hop is designed to introduce you to some lovely new bloggers that you may not have met on the blogosphere before. You get nominated, accept (PLEASE!!!), mention who nominated you (with a link to their blog), answer the four set questions and then nominate a few blogs you love and follow (with a link to their blog). Hopefully they accept your nomination and the following Monday they start the process all over again. Sounds easy enough, so let's see how I get on…..
Question 1 – Why do I write?
I started writing many years ago during a very traumatic event which resulted in a huge build up of stress and tension. For whatever reason I picked up a little notebook and pen and started madly writing down all the thoughts that were crowding in on me. It proved rather cathartic and ever since then I have made little notes in journals about everything from angry tirades, happy events I need to capture, all the way through to pattern instructions and soap recipes. I believe this helps me because I have a rather hyperactive brain and sometimes I have to empty just a bit of it onto paper or it might explode – not a good thought because that amount of information would probably take out a city block!!
I found out about blogging from my daughter (an enthusiast) and in September 2008 I decided to start my first blog. It had nothing to do with sewing or crafts, but rather was a way for me to record all the adventures I was hoping to have as a new wheelchair user – you can find Bundu Bashing & Other Wheelchair Adventures at mnel.wordpress.com.
Next came my general blog/journal 'Life's an Apple'; this was the blog where I could ramble, empty my brain a little and keep family and friends updated on our eventful lives; but mostly it was for me to journal and be able to print for family to see the madness they are descended from.
Then last, but certainly not least, came this crafty blog 'Swiss Army Wife' – and no, hubby is NOT in the Swiss army! I got the nickname from him years ago when he told someone that I could do anything – a bit like a swiss army knife, but rather a swiss army wife; it was accurate, I loved it and it stuck. This blog was a way to keep track of my projects and look back at a record of all the fun things I get involved in. My blogs were never meant to be about gathering followers, more a journal for myself, but once that first little star popped up telling me I had a new follower, I was hooked! How was it possible that anyone besides me would find anything I had to write about interesting? The fact they did has been such a pleasure and so rewarding, especially when what I have had to say helped others – from wheelchair to sewing advice. Thank you one and all
Question 2 – What am I working on?
I have been rather slack recently. To be fair my health is a little challenging but I am really working hard on getting myself motivated and back up and running. I have a number of UFOs (if you are new to sewing or crafting, this is an Un Finished Object) which I am planning on getting off the landing strip, onto the table and with their new owners before the end of the year.
1) My beautiful granddaughters quilt and wall hanging….
This has been folded in a cupboard far too long and just needs to be FMQd (Free Motion Quilted).
2) Hubby's trousers and tailored shirts. He has had two new shirts this year, but next is a pair of tailored trousers – the first I will ever have made him.
3) A lovely dress I am hoping to make for my daughter to wear at a friend's wedding (a rather belated birthday present!).
4) A cycle cap in tweed that I have been promising my son-in-law since his last birthday!
5) Bunting for our churches Macmillan Coffee Morning I am helping with on 26th September. Nothing says tea party quite like a bit of bunting – right?
6) A batch of beer for Christmas. I want it to have enough time to age, so this is one challenge I really need to get done soon! I haven't been completely idle because I have just made a batch of port from some red wine I made last year. This will hopefully be ready for Christmas as well.
7) A bee suit for myself for spring next year. Both my boys have one and I am hoping to be well enough to tackle some more serious garden time this coming spring! So far I have only been able to observe our bees from the patio and being the hands-on, get-stuck-in kinda girl, you cannot even begin to imagine how frustrating this is!
8) Some small guest soaps for visitors to our Macmillan Coffee Morning – donations will go to this amazing cause. We have only been making soap and lotions for a short time, but I absolutely love the whole sciency/crafty process – who wouldn't when you can turn ingredients from your pantry into something you can spread on your skin instead of on toast!
9) My espaliered orchard. I need to try and find a decent day before autumn so that I can prune and tie up some of the branches on my fruit trees. Espaliered trees take effort, but they are perfect for wheelchair users because you can get up close to them and pick your own fruit – AND they look incredible and architectural in summer and winter.
I could go on, but you would definitely get bored and I would get too depressed knowing how much I have to catch up on!
Question 3 – How does it differ from others of its genre?
My wheelchair blog is pretty unique (or it was when I started). Not many wheelchair users were going bundu bashing and even fewer writing about it. My lifesanapple blog is very unique simply because that is where we include stories of our home restoration project. As for the crafty blog – it probably isn't that unique in concept, but in content I am sure it is unique because of the vast array of crafts I get involved in.
Question 4 – How does my writing process work?
One of two ways. If I am excited about something and need to let it out – then I simply open WordPress and ribbit on. If I am planning a post that is to be scheduled then I most often open a word document and write and check it in there before pasting it to my blog. I have had a couple of disasters where I have lost my work and had to start all over again; you never seem to be able to write it as well the second time round! In either case, I add photos – the most challenging part for me because the pictures could be on a multitude of different devices – one day I will figure out a better method. Finally I spellcheck and re-read my post to hopefully pick up any mistakes (somehow one always eludes me), before publishing or scheduling it for a future date.
And now for my nominations – my apologies for springing this onto you all but I had no idea how to contact you beforehand to ask if you would be happy to take part; and in case one can't do it I have nominated three blogs instead of two.
I would love to introduce you all to:
Emma at http://clippedcurves.wordpress.com. She sews some beautiful stuff and her smile tells you how much she loves her creations.
Michelle (with two LLs, unlike me :-)) at http://sewnhenge.com. Her sewing is beautiful and the pictures of the children in their outfits are SO adorable too.
Avis at http://ohsewtempting.wordpress.com. This is one productive quilter – something I really envy and hope one day to achieve! (PS – Avis contacted me and thanked me for the nomination but circumstances mean she cannot take part, but why not visit her blog anyway and see her work).
If the nominations are accepted you will be able to learn a little more about each of them on Monday 15th September 2014.
Goodbye, thank you for listening and happy blog hopping!


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It's Prom time…!
$75 for a 45 minute facial and full body spray tan!
$125 for prom make up trail, 30 minute facial, & make up for the day of prom.
" Glow at your event with peaches and cream complexion and beautiful bronz Glow"
call today for an appointment
ask for Michelle Kelly


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Terms & Conditions: Get $50 when you get your first Zola gift
To qualify for a $50 reward from Zola, the couple receiving this offer must start their Zola registry and receive at least $50 in qualifying Zola product gift(s) by one week after their wedding date. Valid only to couples receiving this offer on July 23, 2019 from Zola. Qualifying couples will be emailed a unique promo code worth $50 in Zola store credit on or about 4 weeks after wedding date. Promo code can only be used at checkout on a single transaction. Qualifying Zola product includes merchandise sold directly by Zola. Cash funds, honeymoon funds, experiences, or gifts imported Read More


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African Moviemaker Explores `Genesis' / First sub-Saharan film at Jewish Film Festival
The question seemed embarrassing. Cheick Oumar Sissoko, one of Africa's greatest filmmakers, was asked how many times his 1998 movie "Genesis" has screened in his homeland of Mali.
After a pause, Sissoko answered, "This question troubles me greatly. The state of film going there has extremely deteriorated."
There are few bona fide theaters in Mali, a landlocked West African country with a rich history and an impoverished economy. "Genesis" has shown only twice there -- at the French cultural center in the capital of Bamako, and outdoors in a rural village. In contrast, the acclaimed movie is screening four times at the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival, beginning on Monday, when Sissoko will take questions at the Castro Theatre.
Sissoko's life -- despite his country's fortunes -- is enviable. At age 54, he is still passionate about making documentaries and feature films, and is still very much in demand. Speaking from Paris, where -- he is editing a movie about street beggars that stars Danny Glover, Sissoko said his motivation remains unchanged from his youth.
"I've always felt political urgency in approaching a film subject," he says.
Sissoko's best-known work in the West is "Guimba," a colorful, comical story of a man who rules tyrannically over a Saharan kingdom. A griot (singing storyteller) narrates the king's ups and downs in the 1995 movie, which played at the New York Film Festival and then theatrically around the United States, including San Francisco.
"His films challenge viewers," says Cornelius Moore, co-director of California Newsreel, which specializes in distributing African movies. "His films are stories within stories."
With the conflicts in Bosnia, Rwanda, Angola and Liberia on his mind, Sissoko made "Genesis" as an allegory for modern war. Set in Mali 300 years after the biblical flood, the movie interprets the 23rd through 37th chapters of the Bible to portray the horrors of fratricide and the hope that can result if people are committed to peace.
Sissoko is the first director from sub-Saharan Africa to be invited to the San Francisco Jewish Film Festival. "Genesis" is making its San Francisco premiere.
"In a way, you can't have a more Jewish subject than the book of Genesis," says Sam Ball, the festival's associate director. "That's where everything begins."
Sissoko, who is Muslim, consulted religious leaders representing Judaism, Christianity and Islam before making "Genesis." (Mali itself has a small Jewish community, Sissoko says.) At screenings in France and Israel, Jewish audience members praised the film, which stars singer Salif Keita as the plotting, vengeful Esau; stage actor Sotigui Kouyate as the patriarch Jacob; and Balla Moussa Keita as Hamor, whose faith is severely tested by his clan's brutal slaughter.
Forgiveness and dialogue are at the root of "Genesis," despite the spears, bloodshed and betrayal that occupy much of the film's first half.
"A critic for a French Jewish pa per told me, 'Jewish people are going to think you made this film for Arabs, and Arab people are going to think you made this film for Jews,' " Sissoko says. "That was a compliment. . . . This film shows that cousins can focus on what ties them rather than what divides them."
Few filmmakers have Sissoko's activist pedigree. As a student in Paris during the 1970s, Sissoko demonstrated against apartheid, French anti-Semitism, the war in Vietnam, dictatorships in South America and other causes. In 1990, with friends, he founded a Malian organization that opposed the country's then-dictatorship. Sissoko's organization owns six radio stations in Mali that broadcast programming about health care, women's issues, science and other topics.
Though he loves filmmaking, Sissoko says he is tempted to relinquish his profession for a full-time role as an activist in Mali. "I've been thinking more and more of furthering my political activities and letting go of cinema," Sissoko says.
Still, Sissoko will probably continue to combine his two passions. The movie with Glover, "Battu," is his first with a well-known American actor and may lead to wider international recognition.
In Mali, Sissoko is making sure his next films -- and those of others -- will be seen by more people.
"I decided to take the problem into my own hands," he says. "I am building a cinema in the capital of Bamako."
JEWISH FILM FESTIVALGENESIS: Cheick Oumar Sissoko's film screens at 8:45 p.m. Monday at the Castro Theatre, at 8:45 p.m. August 1 at the Park Theatre in Menlo Park, at 8:30 p.m. August 2 at the UC Theatre in Berkeley and 8:45 p.m. August 7 at the Rafael Film Center in San Rafael. Each screening also features the short films "King of the Jews" and "Alpha Blondy's Jerusalem." After Monday's Castro Theatre showing, Sissoko will answer questions and participate in a panel discussion on interpreting biblical work. For more information, see www.sfjff.org .


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Hey y'all .. welcome to the Tacky Farmer Girl's Blog & Online store!
This will be the spot to come back and check out for .. OUR LATEST NEWS!
3/2019: Meet Popcorn .. one of TFG's Mascots! Popcorn LOVES to help me create and well just keeps me company mostly!