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Classic Era Network w/ Kace: WWF Royal Rumble (1988)
The battle of wills continues between the World Wrestling Federation and the NWA's Jim Crockett Promotions. This time, instead of a rival pay-per-view, the WWF went to cable, specifically the USA Network to broadcast their first Royal Rumble event, going up against NWA Bunkhouse Stampede Finals.
Just like with the Survivor Series, I'm going to note where I can the Crockett Collective influence on this card.
Before I get to that, I just want to note that of all the overdubs occurring on the Network, the intro to this show is by far the worst as Rick Rude's theme is overdubbed horribly by the overdub of choice for whenever his music hits, all due to Vince McMahon hyping up the event. Vince teams up with his Superstars of Wrestling co-host Jesse Ventura, making this the first event on the PPV list not to have Gorilla Monsoon on commentary. This event takes place in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, making it the first major WWF event to take place in the Great White North since The Big Event in 1986. The next major WWF event, as well as first PPV event in Canada will be WrestleMania VI in 1990 in Toronto's Skydome.
The first match is a Mid-Atlantic special as Rude takes on Ricky Steamboat in a battle of former NWA World Tag Team Champions. Steamboat with both Jay Youngblood and Paul Jones and Rude with Manny Fernandez while managed by Paul Jones. So we have a couple of guys who have a degree of separation from one another due to Jones. As for the match, it's 16 and a half minutes of action that ends with Rude being disqualified, giving Steamboat the win.
The biggest highlight of the card is the best of 3 falls bout for the WWF Ladies' Tag Team Championship with the Glamour Girls, Judy Martin and Leilani Kai, managed by Jimmy Hart taking on the team that had eliminated them in their previous major encounter at WWF Survivor Series, the Jumping Bomb Angels, Noriyo Tateno and Itsuki Yamazaki. McMahon, having issues with pronouncing their names refers to them by their leotard color scheme. He could always ask the guy who hired them what their names… oh. Yeah.
I didn't really get into the women's side of things when it comes to the Crockett Collective influence as women wrestlers were still being made to exist primarily on a vagabond schedule, going here, there, and everywhere. For what it's worth, the GG's trained together at the start of their careers and Martin would win the NWA United States Women's Championship from Winona "Princess" Little Heart in 1980 in Atlanta. Kai competed just about everywhere prior to landing in the WWF, including Mid-Atlantic where she would occasionally compete against her future partner, Martin.
The GG's score the first fall, but the JBA's come back to win the next two to become the new Champions, ending what had been the longest reign in the short history of the Championship itself, a bastard child title split from the NWA in 1983. Kai's run of bad luck at major events continues with this loss. The GG's would regain the title later in the year before the Championship itself was retired in 1989. Still, for a brief moment, the WWF Ladies' Tag Team Championship got to matter.
The next match is the first ever Royal Rumble which is a 20 competitor event. The following year, the number of participants would be bumped up to 30 for its PPV debut.
Bret Hart and Tito Santana make history by being the first two entrants ever in this type of match. Santana would be the second person eliminated after going 10 minutes. The dubious honor of first ever to be eliminated belongs to Butch Reed who entered at #3. He is ousted by the man who gets credit for scoring the first ever elimination, Jake Roberts who drew #4. While Santana is part of this match, his Strike Force tag team partner, Rick Martel is absent. This bit of history will repeat itself later in the year at the second Survivor Series.
If you get a chance to watch this Rumble, pay close attention once Sam Houston enters at #8. He and Roberts are half-brothers which is never acknowledged by any WWF commentator or by the brothers themselves. They mostly steer clear of one another while both are in the ring and in those rare occasions Houston goes over to help Roberts, Roberts just walks away from him. It's rather awkward to watch.
The last entry at #20 is Junkyard Dog who promptly goes 2 and half minutes with no eliminations before being dumped out. This is the start of Last Entry Futility in the Rumble which will go on for the remainder of the Classic Era.
Jim Duggan last eliminates One Man Gang to become the first ever Royal Rumble winner. While winning the Rumble itself wouldn't automatically lead to a WWF Heavyweight title shot until 1993, Duggan would be rewarded for his efforts by being entered into the WWF Heavyweight Championship Tournament at WrestleMania IV. The reason for that tournament… another issue for another time.
RIght now, let's take a look at the entries in order and their Crockett Collective Influence, if any.
Bret Hart
Tito Santana (Florida, Georgia)
Butch Reed (Central States, Florida, Georgia, Mid-South)
Jim Neidhart (Georgia, Mid-South)
Quick note: Reed and Neidhart were North American Tag Team Champions together in Mid-South. When Reed enters, he's immediately an ally to his old partner Neidhart and Neidhart's current partner, Hart.
Jake Roberts (Mid-South, Mid-Atlantic, Georgia)
King Harley Race (You Name It, He Was There; NWA World Heavyweight Champion)
Jim Brunzell (Central States, Mid-Atlantic)
Sam Houston (Mid-Atlantic, Central States, UWF)
"Dangerous" Danny Davis
Boris Zhukov (Mid-Atlantic as Pvt. Nelson)
Don Muraco (Florida, Georgia)
Nikolai Volkoff (Mid-South)
Jim Duggan (Georgia, Mid-South)
Ron Bass (Florida, Mid-Atlantic)
Triple B (Florida, Central States, Georgia)
Dino Bravo (Mid-Atlantic)
Quick note: Earlier in the evening, Bravo had attempted a world bench press record, but too much assistance from his spotter, Jesse Ventura along with no one from Guinness to confirm either way, it was never acknowledged. Also, Bravo (real name: Adolfo Bresciano) is the second version of Dino Bravo, lifting the name from the original Dino Bravo, a guy named Pepe DiPasquali in 1970. Some wrestlers get nicknames handed down to them, Bravo took an entire identity.
Ultimate Warrior (Mid-South as Bladerunner Rock)
Quick note: 9 years before Rocky Maivia renames himself the Rock, this Rumble features a pair of Rocks, the current one at this time, Muraco and Warrior who was "Rock" in Mid-South.
One Man Gang (Mid-Atlantic, Mid-South/UWF; UWF World Heavyweight Champion)
Junkyard Dog (Mid-South; Mid-Atlantic)
This Royal Rumble sets the initial records including Iron Man, which is Bret Hart lasting 25 minutes, 42 seconds, Most Eliminations, set by One Man Gang who was the next-to-last entry and last to be eliminated. His number of eliminations, 6. Second most was a tie between the winner, Duggan who entered at #13 and Muraco, who was entry #11 and was 4th to last out.
The first to be eliminated by team effort was Tito Santana, the second entry who started the match with Hart, being eliminated by the Hart Foundation shortly after Roberts eliminated Reed.
After all that, we still have another match though a few fans look like they're satisfied enough with what they've seen and are already leaving. That match was another best of 3 tag match between the Islanders and the Young Stallions. While the Stallions and Killer Bees had outlasted Haku and Tama months earlier in their Survivor Series match, this time it would be the Islanders scoring two straight falls to send everyone home. Paul Roma suffered an injury during the first fall and the second fall, he and Jim Powers were basically fodder.
Other fun stuff.
Public contract signings for matches never go well, whether it's in an office with a camera rolling (Magnum TA and Nikita Koloff) or here with Hulk Hogan and Andre the Giant, signing their match with President Jack Tunney present for The Main Event on NBC the following month with the WWF Heavyweight Championship on the line. The fallout from that match would lead to the tournament that would include the first Royal Rumble winner, Jim Duggan for the Championship.
Duggan wouldn't get a chance to defend his Royal Rumble "title" as he spent the 1989 event in a best of 3 6-Man tag match.
Along with half-brother Jake Roberts, Sam Houston's sister, Rockin' Robin was also competing in the WWF at this time, eventually capturing the WWF Ladies' title and defending it at the following year's RR event.
Of the 20 participants in the Rumble, only 2 had no prior experience in what would become the Crockett Collective, Bret Hart and Danny Davis. Of those two, Davis was the only homegrown WWF product as Hart was a product of Calgary's Stampede Wrestling. As for Davis, being the only homegrown product in the match means a quick history lesson. While refereeing, Davis had also moonlighted as a masked wrestler named Mr. X with little success. Looking back, Davis had a better run of success without a mask on.
Jake Roberts' inability to score a single DDT in the Rumble begins here.
The Ultimate Warrior's run of bad luck at this event also starts as he's one the last to enter the Rumble, only to score no eliminations and be eliminated himself shortly thereafter. The following year he'll be attacked by Rick Rude during a posedown challenge. In 1990, he'll return to the Rumble match only to be eliminated in a team effort, one of which is Hulk Hogan, the winner of that particular Rumble and Warrior's later opponent at WrestleMania VI. In 1991 he'll be WWF Heavyweight Champion, only to lose the title to Sgt. Slaughter. In short, the Royal Rumble card was never kind to Warrior.
This Rumble features a pair of former World Heavyweight level Champions, Race (NWA) and Gang (UWF).
Next up, WWF WrestleMania IV, which looks to Make WrestleMania Great Again or some shit.
Tags: WWF


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In September 2007 Fridaysmove residential Brighton Conveyancing team took instruction on the purchase conveyancing for a 999 year leasehold property valued at around £171, 000. The dwelling is located on Paston Place, Kemp Town, Brighton, East Sussex, BN2.
Fridaysmove Legal property lawyer s discovered that the property was situated in a conservation area. Because of this the conveyancers needed take extra precautions in case any alteration have been made. Environmental searches also revealed that there may be a chance of shallow mining affecting the area.
Where a conveyancing lawyer identifies a property is within a conservation area this means that the local authority has the following extra controls over the property ( over and above planning permission and building regulations ) :
- demolition
- minor developments
- the protection of trees
The handling conveyancer discovered that there were Planning permissions affecting this residence. The Land Registry Office Copies supplied were out of date and accordingly fresh copies were requested from the vendors conveyancing solicitor. The Land Registry documentation revealed that the property was subject to restrictions/rights/covenants as set out in a conveyance dated 17/05/1872. It was important that we check with the vendors property lawyer that the aforementioned restrictions/covenants etc. had been fully complied with.
The estate agent's memorandum of sale detailing the vendors property lawyer was obtained shortly before receiving the contract papers. This document outlines the sale/purchase property, the price, the Purchaser and the Seller's details and details of their respective conveyancing teams. It is worth noting that a Sales Memorandum does nothing more than record the agreement reached between the parties subject to contract and forms no part of a contract for the sale of the said property between the parties.
Sayrha Elahi was the Fridaysmove Legal property lawyer in charge of conveyancing in Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, South East England.
The estate agent was the Haart branch covering Brighton and Hove.
The local authority area of the residence is http://www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/" target="_blank">Brighton And Hove Borough Council .
The seller's conveyancing solicitor Brighton and Hove was Howlett Clarke Solicitors – DX36656 Brighton 2. East Sussex, South East England, Brighton and Hove.
If you would like to know more about conveyancing or have any questions regarding conveyancing, then please feel free to contact Fridaysmove conveyancing lawyers. Fridaysmove have headquarters just a stone's throw from London's St Pancras International, Fridaysmove are the UK's leading conveyancing specialist serving the whole of England and Wales. Fridaysmove consistently out perform market conditions and with current market turbulence, you simply cannot afford to instruct reactive property lawyer s.
Well over 150 estate agent brands refer their clients to Fridaysmove as they know this is the best you can do towards giving your purchase or sale the optimum chance of a successful completion.

subset: commoncrawl


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Sundeep Kishan injured due to fight master's mistake
Sundeep Kishan has been shooting for his comedy 'Tenali Ramakrishna BA BL' in Kurnool. On Saturday evening, there happened a mishap while the shoot was going on.
The actor suffered an injury during the shoot. He was to be dragged out of a moving bus with the help of ropes. A mishap happened once Sundeep fell by the side. A minor bomb blast went haywire allegedly due to the mistake of the fight master overseeing the sequence.
Sundeep is currently undergoing treatment at a hospital in Kurnool.
Earlier this week, Naga Shaurya met with an accident on the sets of his upcoming movie. His leg has suffered an injury. And Varun Tej escaped a road accident while on his way for the shoot of 'Valmiki' in Kurnool. Quite a bad week!
షూటింగ్ లో సందీప్ కిషన్ కు గాయాలు— IndiaGlitz™ l Telugu (@igtelugu) June 15, 2019
కర్నూలు లో చిత్రీకరణ జరుపకుంటొన్న తెనాలి రామకృష్ణ చిత్రం
జి.నాగేశ్వర రెడ్డి దర్శకుడు.
పైట్ మాస్టర్ తప్పు వల్ల జరిగిన బాంబ్ బ్లాస్ట్ లొ గాయపడ్డ సందీప్ కిషన్.
కర్నూలు హాస్పిటల్ లో చికిత్స #SundeepKishan #TenaliRamakrishna pic.twitter.com/lsVFKcDGPP


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When can you call yourself a winning player? Being called a winning player by other people is a compliment for every player. Often, a player who plays regularly, is considered to be a good player – or simply called regular or reg.
However, not all the regulars are winning players. There are also weak regulars, called Fishregs. These players "grind" their regular sessions but have numerous leaks in their game, what makes them profitable opponents for real winners in the end. They believe that it's profitable to play poker and often neglect the work to improve their own game. This happens either unconsciously or because of an inflated ego. So the question arises what a genuine poker grinder really is?
The road to become a winning player and a good regular player is very hard.
It requires not only playing skills, but a lot more to be successful in the long term.
A real winning player
- Proves to be a winning player
- Looks at the game as a job
- Knows how much volume he can and has to play
- Understands and accepts the variance and the swings
- Regularly works on his game in order to further improve results
- Leaves his poker ego at home
- Tries constantly maximizing his profits with the best cashback/rakeback deals
Winning Player #1 – Can prove to be a Winning Player
A real poker grinder who made enough profit on a meaningful sample size can be considered a proven winning player. This is easy to understand but in practice often difficult to demonstrate. The question is: How can I prove that I am a winning player? In addition, how big is a meaningful sample size?
At what point am I a winning player?
This depends, of course, on your main game. An MTT or SNG Grinder measures his win rate in ROI (return on investment) whereas a cash game player tracks profit in BB/100 (big bet per 100 hands). As long as the ROI or BB/100 is positive – no matter how high the value is – you are a winning player. Of course, it is not enough to prove that you are a long-term winning player. The higher the value and the sample size, the more likely you are a winning player and the more reliable your win rate is.
For SNG players Holdem Manager, for example, has an all-in EV display. This indicator calculates your luck in all all-in situations, by comparing your pot equity with the result (for ICM). This produces the famous "Red-Line EV", indicating your adjusted win rate. It would be wrong to say that this red line indicates your correct win rate but it definitely helps you find your true ROI.
How big is a meaningful sample size?
A solid SNG player playing 10max with 5% ROI can occasionally have a breakeven period of 1000 and more SNG's. Similarly as a cash game player you can have swings of up to 50,000 and more hands. The chances are low but we can't ignore them. Poker is a gamble in the short term and a winning player accepts that and can handle it.
Winning Player #2 – Consider poker as your job
Poker is like a job. A winning player looks at his session as a job. He knows his ROI and focuses on taking as many correct decisions as possible. That is the only thing that a good player can do for the benefit of his win rate. He knows that if he always takes optimal decisions, he will also make money in the long term. Even if he loses albeit making correct decisions, he will take the same decision again next time as long as it maximizes his long-term win rate.
With this mindset the game is more or less a job. A job with unpredictable swings. But the only way to compensate variance is high volume. Thus, we need to play a lot +EV poker to make money in the long run.
What happens if a winning player has a losing streak?
Here the bankroll management and savings come into play. Every real good poker player who plays poker for a living, needs to have enough savings to compensate downswings for a certain time. The savings should cover at least 3-4 months of living expenses.
This has the following reasons:
Protection in the case of a downswing
Mindset -> helps in hard times to play your A-game
A healthy bankroll management is a must-have for everyone who tries to be a professional poker player. It limits the existing possibility of going broke to a minimum.
Many aspiring Grinders don't think about the following aspects:
Do I make enough profit to be able to keep my bankroll at the same level (after regular payment/cash-outs)?
What do I do if I lose half my BR? Is my mindset good enough?
Do I still play my A-game during a downswing?
Do I behave negative towards my environment (family, friends, etc.)?
A healthy financial backing helps you master these points easily. Moreover, it is a shame when a good player has to end his professional career just because of an early downswing. For a long career as a professional, it is important in the initial phase, to be fused with a good cushion. Many very good players just fail at this point because they completely ignore the bankroll management.
Winning Player #3 – Know how much volume you can play
The hourly rate also depends on how many tables a poker grinder plays. Good poker players calculate their hands/hour or SnG's/hour realistically and get a more or less accurate calculation of their hourly rate. It is very important for people to think realistically. Your goals should be achievable but not below your potential. Here are a few points that a poker grinder should consider:
Is it realistic to play so many Sit&Go tournaments or hands in an hour?
Can I really play my A-Game for x hours a day?
Do I earn enough money if I play x hours per day?
Are x hours per day still doable even if I sometimes have to cancel a session earlier to avoid tilt?
There is no right or wrong figure of how much a winning player needs to play. Win rates, multi-tabling skills, stamina and desire, etc. are different for each professional. There are players who make the most profit in a 4-tabling cash game session because they can concentrate better. Other players can grind easily 10+ tables without losing too much edge.
Furthermore, a player with an hourly wage of $120 will not grind as much as someone who earns $30/hour. It depends on your living standard and the expenses a poker player has to cover. Some professionals are not motivated to play more than 2h/day because they earn enough money in these 2h/day to pay for everything they need. In contrast, there are Third-World Country Pros who say, "I'm living the dream grinding 6h per day". For professionals from economically poorer countries it is much easier to be a pro at lower limits and to find motivation since their costs of living are substantially lower and thus their win rate or their limits played can be lower, too.
Winning Player #4 – Understand and accept the variance and swings
A winning player has to study poker psychology very intensively. He knows the poker reality and accepts it. Poker is a game of small edges and the variance is very high. The majority of players understands that now. The difficulty is to accept these swings, too. Many so-called regulars have problems dealing with so-called downswings.
Winning players always play their A-game and don't let themselves be influenced by their short term results. Sometimes they lose a very large pot but as long as they are sure that they have made the right decision (+EV), they will do the same next time. That is the mindset of a good winning player. Don't be result-oriented and, at best, not tilt-prone.
Winning Player #5 – Work regularly on your game
Good poker player ask themselves every hand, if he could do something better next time. Success only comes from a disciplined work ethic, ongoing analysis and the drive to development your own game.
Poker is a game where you never stop learning. A real winning player tries to expand his poker horizon as far as possible. He wants to be the best of the best. This requires hundreds of hours of manual analysis in addition to the normal sessions. As already mentioned before, it takes a lot of time to become a good winning player.
Winning Player #6 – Leave your poker ego at home
Your ego has no place in poker. A poker grinder with a big ego can reduce his edge to the point that he no longer plays profitable poker. A poker ego is like being on tilt. You do not play your best game if you haven't the ability to self-reflect and critically analyze your mistakes.
Winning Player #7 – Ongoing evaluation to maximize your profits with cashback/rakeback
A good player is not only concerned with his own game and his mindset but also intensively studies the offers and VIP systems of different poker rooms. An important part of the profit that pushes a poker player is known as rakeback or cashback. A winning player is always eager to get back as much of his paid rake/tournament fees as possible.
As an example, let us take a player at Titan Poker on the iPoker Network. He played 1500 $10 Sit&Go tournaments. He would pay $1 of tournament fees for every tournament here. That's a total of $1,500. Therefore, it makes a big difference if he gets back 50% rakeback/cash back or 80%. In this example, there is a difference of $450.
A winning player checks the VIP systems and promotions of various poker sites every month.
Info: YourPokerDream offers the highest rakeback/cashback in the world. With the great offers from our partner rooms and the additional advantages of YourPokerDream, our players can get a cashback of up to 100%.
Short summary:
Not every winning player meets all the criteria mentioned above. The more you follow the advice above, the more likely you'll become a winning player. It is not always easy to play your A-game – in fact, it requires a lot of work.
Briefly, a good player spends his hours not only at the tables but also working on his game and looking at poker as a job because it is his source of income.
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The clock was ticking for elementary and intermediate students who competed at the annual Duncanville ISD Math Mania Competition. Individual and team players had seconds to work out math problems before pressing the buzzer with the right answer.
Cheers were heard from the auditorium seats as winners were announced at the end of the competition. Below is a list of all the winners.
Individual competition:
3rd grade: Ethan Delgado –Alexander Elementary
4th grade: Donovan Shankle – Fairmeadows Elementary
5th grade: Jade Muniz – Hardin Intermediate
6th grade: Mark Rosario - Brandenburg Intermediate
Third grade
1st place - Alexander Elementary
2nd place - Hastings Elementary
3rd place - Acton Elementary
Fourth grade
1st place - Hastings Elementary
2nd place - Fairmeadows Elementary
3rd place - Acton Elementary
Fifth grade
1st place - Brandenburg Intermediate
2nd place - Daniel Intermediate
3rd place - Hardin Intermediate
Sixth grade
1st place - Hardin Intermediate
2nd place - Daniel Intermediate
3rd place - Brandenburg Intermediate


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Following Mental Health Awareness Month in May, the Michigan Veterans Affair Agency (MVAA) is encouraging veterans to use a free online mental health screening tool.
The agency is offering the tool in collaboration with Screening for Mental Health, a nonprofit organization that provides various mental health and substance abuse resources. Veterans can use the tool to screen for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, alcohol abuse and other mental health concerns. The program urges former service members to get a "checkup from your neck up."
Veterans begin the screening by choosing a statement that most accurately describes their recent thinking and behavior. Next, they answer some questions about themselves and their feelings. The survey concludes with general explanations about moods and behaviors. Veterans are also given information about available mental health care support and where to find help nearby.
Many veterans who return home struggling with mental health issues such as PTSD or anxiety are often reluctant to seek treatment. According to MVAA Strategy Analyst Jeff Cassidy, perceived stigma is the biggest barrier for many veterans when it comes to getting help.
"Mental health is key to overall health, and MVAA wants to make sure all Michigan veterans have the tools they need to care for themselves both mentally and physically," said MVAA Director James Robert Redford. "With this online tool, veterans can complete a quick and easy mental health screening and get the help and information they need when necessary."
Veterans can access the website anonymously around the clock at http://screening.mentalhealthscreening.org/MVAA.


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I'm here because I'm a newbie with SMS technology and I've been told that these forums are the best to goto.
I'm using jSMSEngine's SendMessage.java, a sample program.
I believe I've installed the jar file correctly as I no longer have any errors when I compile this java file (SendMessage.java).
However, when I run said file I get the following:
SendMessage(): Sample Application
Using jSMSEngine API 1.2.6 (B1)
Mobile Device Information:
Manufacturer - Nokia
Model - 6020 (I also tried it with a 3220)
Serial Num - "won't post it but its correct"
Battery: 78%
Signal: 317%
Message Failed!
In the file its line:
if (srv.sendMessage(msg) == CService.ERR_OK) System.out.println("Message Sent!");
else System.out.println("Message Failed!");
I've been checking the other files but can't understand whats wrong with it (CService perhaps!?!)
The fact that no exception is shown tells me that its something very simple and could be fixed easily (line of code) or not at all (phone not compatible).
Any help would be brilliant!!
I've already compiled and ran the ReadMessages sample file and it works great!!
Thank You in advance.


text:
'You begin your arduous trek up into the Craggtop Mountains. Winter cloaks drawn close, you push on through the snowy climbs past dead trees and frozen pools.'
*DM rolls behind screen*
'After several hours of hard slog, you begin to see something in the distance. Pick their way over a craggy ridge to your east are several orc scouts mounted on worgs. As you watch, one of the beasts catches a whiff of something on the wind and turns to snarl in your direction. Let's roll initiative!'
This tends to be how I manage travel in my games. The adventurers say where they want to go. If they would know, I tell them how long it will take to get there and the kind of terrain they'll be facing. The party might gather some supplies, maybe even hire a guide if the location is particularly tricky. Then they set off.
Typically I try to describe the ecology of the area each day, I'll roll (or make up) weather and describe the sort of food they can find etc. I'll then roll for a random encounter. I've always been obsessed with random encounter (RE) tables, even since I saw the example in the Dungeon Master's Guide (pg.87). I made one for literally every single ecosystems in every campaign I was running.
Using them so often, I noticed a bit of a problem. They way they are outlined in the DMG makes sense, encounters are weighted by probability, but in reality it can become quite boring. If the players encounter orcs on worgs every day for the next ten-day then obviously they'll get sick of it. The first few times aren't so bad, maybe the orcs are already fighting something; local rangers, an ogre they've hunted down, an angered manticore etc. but inevitably I'll run out of ways to reskin.
Then came Out of the Abyss and yet again, my RE obsession flared. I truly think that OotA has nailed random encounters. Roll a d20 once when travelling, once when camping. It could be terrain, monsters or both. Instantly, encounters are more interesting, with ~20 terrain types and 20+ possible monsters duplicates are incredibly rare. So I began again, remaking and restyling all of my previous RE tables. I think it was successful.
This is where my problem arises though. I've made all these RE tables, but now only one group I DM is still in the 1st tier (levels 1-4). After this it seems to me that REs often slow the game down. Fighting a pack of dire wolves is dangerous and exciting at level 2, but at levle 5 it's pretty easy to cook them with a fireball…
So do we keep using REs, or maybe work on some 'prescripted' little side quests to fill travel? Should travel at higher levels be done as a montage, to help move the plot along? I'm interested to hear your thoughts!


text: DeFrank 1,276 Posted July 5, 2017 From November of 2015, "Reagan and Dulles Unveil New Logo and Passenger Pledge." "This brand is more than just the color scheme and a logo. At its core an organization needs to stand for something; at Reagan National and Dulles International we choose to stand for our passengers," said Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer Jerome L. Davis." I'm not able to find the old logos for either airport right now. In any case, I definitely noticed the change in the past year or two. It's a pretty notable move to use the same logo for both airports. Dulles, which is significantly farther away from downtown Washington, has actually begun to lose users since 2005. This seems like a move aimed at rebranding Dulles as more approachable and closer to the national capital. Dulles's entire scheme is very sleek and sterile. It very much feels like a "generic international airport" to me. I guess they'd rather it be seen as Washington D.C.'s international airport, rather than a general one located in Virginia. Can't find the old logos anywhere, but if I had to guess, Dulles's would be something silver and black or white. As a side note, Dulles has a gorgeous main building. 0 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


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With Tarter in the lead, the privately funded SETI Institute (Congress cut all NASA funding for SETI in 1993) conducted the most comprehensive search to date, called Project Phoenix, from 1995 to 2004. Phoenix targeted about 1,000 sun-like stars, spending a few minutes listening for radio signals from each. "There wasn't a transmitter pointed our way when we looked," says Tarter. "Does that mean there's no technological civilization? I don't know. That's a much harder conclusion to draw."
Phoenix took 10 years because the SETI-ologists had to borrow observing time, a week here and a month there, on other people's radio telescopes, including the 1,000-foot-diameter Arecibo dish in Puerto Rico and the 210-foot dish at Parkes, Australia. Tarter's new array of telescopes will do SETI operations all day, every day. It will also be used by scientists for conventional radio astronomy—Berkeley is partnered with the SETI Institute on the project—but this time, they're the ones who will be along for the ride.
Phoenix listened for signals over a range of three gigahertz—a wide swath of radio spectrum by SETI standards. The ATA will monitor 10 gigahertz continuously, targeting 1 million stars with enough sensitivity to detect an Arecibo-size transmitter broadcasting from 1,000 light-years away. That is, if the array grows from the current 42 to the planned 350 telescopes. Any radio telescope's sensitivity to faint signals depends on its total collecting area, whether it's a giant single dish like Arecibo or lots of little ones. The ATA philosophy is to build many small dishes as cheaply as possible, then rely on sophisticated software to process the signals.
Economy is a necessity for the project, which has only seven people working at the Hat Creek site. They buy off-the-shelf when they can, invent when they must. The small secondary reflector attached to the front of each dish, along with the telescope's electronics, is covered with a shroud that's fabric on top, aluminum below. The project's engineers had to test all kinds of fabrics before they found one that kept out water but let in radio waves.
Tarter opens the shroud from the aluminum bottom and we poke our heads up inside, where we're hit by a blast of hot air. Temperatures in the valley routinely top 100 in summer, and the sensitive electronics have to be kept cool (mini-refrigerators used in cell phone towers turned out to work nicely).
Inside the shroud is a spiky, silver-gold device that looks like an artificial Christmas tree. This is the telescope feed, which Tarter says reminds her of something from Flash Gordon. This particular design is another ATA innovation, and a crucial one. The feed is where radio energy collected by the dish is focused and converted to a signal containing the multi-frequency SETI data, which is then sent via fiber-optic cable to computers for processing.
The brains of the telescope array are inside the computer building. That's where digital signals from the individual telescopes are sorted and manipulated, turning this field of small dishes into a large and powerful phased array (see "How Things Work: Phased-Array Radar," June/July 2006). Because radio waves from a target star reach any two telescopes at slightly different times, the peaks and troughs of the waves are slightly out of synch, or phase. The SETI computers can artificially shift the phases to match up, effectively combining the waves and boosting the signal. Or, equally useful, a signal can be canceled out by phasing up the troughs in the waves. That enables the team to filter out, for example, an annoying, beeping satellite known to pass over Hat Creek every night, which otherwise might be mistaken for a broadcasting alien. For a computationally intensive program like SETI, that's huge.
The more antennas, and the more random their pattern (hence the deliberately scattered placement), the better the technique works. "It's a lot of vector algebra, that's all," says Tarter. Her bachelor's degree from Cornell was in engineering physics, and she's very much a hands-on experimentalist. I ask her if, despite the workload, she likes all the tinkering and testing. "Sure," she says. "The frustrating thing is, I want it now. There are observations I want to make."
In fact, now that the first section of the array is in place (the 42nd antenna was installed in February), the ATA will make its first observations this summer. The dishes will be pointed toward the center of the Milky Way galaxy, which is thick with stars. The bad news is that most of them are extremely far away—the most distant extraterrestrials would need a transmitter 20,000 times more powerful than Arecibo's to be heard. It's a long shot, but worth trying while the array is still under construction, partly because such a broad survey has never been done.
Meanwhile, the catalog of candidate stars (those most likely to be orbited by habitable planets) has grown to 250,000, and will eventually reach 1 million by the time the array is finished. As for when that might be, it depends on money.


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Besides anxiety and allergies, hypertension is one of the more common ailments I treat. Fascinating that it might, also, have an immune component.
Hypertension: an immune disorder?
T cell depletion can prevent hypertension in experimental animals. What is the nature of T cell activation in hypertension? In this issue of Immunity, Carnevale et al. (2014) implicate PlGF signaling in a reservoir of splenic T cells.


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Hulderstigen Hiking Trail
Learn about the nature and cultural history of the Sjodal Valley
Essential info
- Destination: Vågå
- Season: May-October
- Difficulty: Easy
- Distance: 5 kilometers (loop)
- Elevation Gain: 70 meters
- Duration: 1.5-2.5 hours
About Hulderstigen
Explore the nature and cultural history of the Sjodal Valley, while hiking along this birch and pine forested trail in the middle of Stuttgonglia Nature Reserve. There are 15 boards along the route informing you about the Sjodal area. Follow the trail as it leads you through easy terrain, taking you through the forest, along wetlands, small creeks, and ponds. With a scenic picnic spot about halfway down the trail, this hike is perfect for a family outing.
You'll mostly walk along soft forest ground and wooden footbridges. After heavy periods of rain, water may overflow the bridges, so you might need to take off your boots to cross the creeks.
Getting there
From Oslo or Beitostølen, take NOR-WAY 161 Valdresekspressen. The nearest bus stop, Hindsæter, is located some 3,7 kilometers north of the trailhead. Alternatively, ask the driver to let you off by Hulderstigen.
Note: The route between Beitostølen and Leirvassbu (Lom) only operates in summer, between late June through August. Use Norway bus express' travel planner to organize your trip.
From Oslo, head north on Road E16 towards Bergen for 185 kilometers. When you reach Fagernes, follow the signs to Road 51, towards Vågå/Beitostølen.
Follow Road 51 for another 81 kilometers. Drive past Jotunheimen Caravan Camp and continue north for about 5 kilometers. The parking for Hulderstigen is easily visible on the right side of the road.
Note: Parts of Road 51 (between Garli and Maurvangen) is closed during winter and typically open from April to December.
From Vågå or Sjoa, the road intersects at Randsverk and follows Sjoa River. Drive about 4 kilometers past Hindsæter Hotel, and you'll see the parking lot on the left side of the road.
Trail description
From the parking lot, cross the bridge over Sjoa River. Follow the trail as it leads you in a loop around Nedre Birisjøtjønn Lake. You'll find a picnic spot by the lake with a nice view. On the way back, you'll walk past some 400-year-old pine trees, well worth a look.
- Shops and restaurants are available in Beitostølen (45,5 kilometers south) and Lom (64,5 kilometers northwest).
Where to stay
Just a 5-minute drive north is the historical hotel Hindsæter. They offer both hotel and cabin accommodation and serve local food.
Questions or comments? Let us know.
Nearby adventures
Last updated:


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From a collection of twenty-eight works by Arnaldo Pomodoro donated by the artist at the foundation's creation, the Collection now includes more than two hundred works including sculptures and drawings made from 1955 to today and selected by the sculptor to document the fundamental stages of his artistic research.
The Collection also includes about ninety works by other artists, donated by them or by private collectors who wanted to support the Foundation.
Currently the Collection does not have a permanent exhibition site: the Foundation activates loans for temporary exhibitions and long-term loans with public and private institutions and institutions.
To request a loan or to receive more information contact: [email protected]


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Chapter 26
Chapter 26 – Celestial Lion Martial Meeting
A thousand students had already gathered in the Sky Lion Hall.
This time, the new students also came.
When they saw Qin Yun, they were filled with jealousy.
On one hand, they had come to see how a fifth stage student would fight. On the other hand, they wanted to see how badly Qin Yun would lose!
Within the vast hall, there were nine large fighting stages. They were at least dozens of meters wide, and the largest in the middle was over a hundred meters wide.
After the time was up, Qin Yun began heading towards the meeting.
There were a total of 64 people participating in the Heavenly Lion Martial Meet, which were divided into eight groups. The final battle would be held on the grand competition stage in the middle of the hall.
Wei Xuankun was not far from Qin Yun. He did not even look at Qin Yun as he stood there proudly, as though he had complete confidence in Qin Yun's failure, he did not put him in his eyes at all.
After everyone had arrived, Principal Zhang began to explain the rules and then organize them into groups.
Qin Yun was divided into the eighth group and Wei Xuankun was in the first group.
There would be lots from each group, and four groups would be chosen to participate in the elimination round to determine the first place.
First in each group, then competing with the other groups.
"As long as Wei Xuankun is not with my team, I should be able to relax a lot!" Qin Yun looked at the crowd but he did not see Yang Shiyue. He did not know where she had gone to, which made him somewhat worried.
He actually saw Cui Hui walking in with a delicate face like Yan Yun.
"Stage Eight, Qin Yun, Fang Rugang, get ready!" A large man shouted.
Qin Yun was the first person to do so. This attracted the attention of many.
No one was optimistic about him. He was only at the early fourth level, but his opponent had already stepped into the fifth level. In terms of inner qi and martial skills, he was definitely superior to the fourth level.
Fang Rugang was a tall and thin youth dressed in luxurious blue silk clothing. His expression was filled with contempt and he did not place Qin Yun in his eyes at all.
"Level 8 martial stage, begin!"
Fang Rugang took light steps as he charged forward. His thigh bounced up as he swept it towards Qin Yun's head. It created a strong gust of wind that whistled loudly.
"It's a low grade spirit rank martial art, Steel Wind Leg!" Below the battling platform, someone shouted in shock: "Fast and crazy, this is a technique to deal with the enemy!"
Qin Yun's reaction was extremely fast as he suddenly turned malevolent. He punched out and with a tiger's roar, he charged forward, striking Fang Rugang's leg that was sweeping over.
He was using the Spirit Tiger Fist!
The fist and leg collided, and shockwaves gushed out!
Fang Rugang, who was standing with one leg, lost his balance after being hit by the heavy blow. His entire body fell to the ground!
"There's actually someone who's going to use his fist to fight with a kick, and he even won!"
"Performing the Steel Wind Kick, his thigh is filled with inner Qi. It is as hard as steel and can easily destroy trees. Normal people would not dare to face it head on, but Qin Yun dares. I wonder if his bones are shattered?"
Fang Rugang cried out in pain as he hugged his leg, unable to continue fighting.
When he saw Qin Yun's tightly clenched fists, he could not help but feel fear. He could only admit defeat.
"Fang Rugang, defeat!" Qin Yun wins! "
Qin Yun had actually won against a fifth level opponent!
Moreover, he only used one move, and it was the Spirit Tiger Fist!
The older students at the fifth level of the Martial Body were all dumbfounded and let out waves of surprised cries!
"Is this true? Qin Yun has really defeated Fang Rugang and only used one move! "
"It's true!" Could it be that Fang Rugang's cultivation had regressed? How can you be so easy to beat with just one move of the Spirit Tiger Fist from the street trash! "
"This is unbelievable, a level four Martial Body freshman actually defeated a level five Martial Body senior!" Fang Rugang lost too much face for us seniors! "
Everyone expressed their doubts and shock.
Under the disdainful gazes of the crowd, Fang Rugang walked down the stage in shame and indignation.
Cui Hui said with a look of displeasure, "Qin Yun's inner Qi is very wild. It's mainly because of the purple gold fire martial spirit. Other than not being able to leave the body, its strength is no different from the fifth level. No wonder Yang Shiyue allowed him to participate in the Heavenly Lion Martial Meet. He already possesses a certain level of strength!"
Yan Yun let out a charming snort, and said in a disdainful tone, "No matter what, he will still lose to Big Brother Kun in the end! "Brother Kun is at the 5th level of the Martial Body realm."
Because there were very few people with the purple gold fire martial spirit, no one knew how strong this martial spirit's inner Qi was. Now, everyone could see the advantage of a high grade martial spirit from Qin Yun's strength.
A higher grade martial spirit could crush a person to death!
Soon, the first round of the competition on platform eight was over. Next, the second round would begin!
Qin Yun was once again in his first match!
His opponent this time was a tall youth named Wang Chen. He knew that Qin Yun was not easy to deal with.
Qin Yun had watched the battle very carefully and thought to himself, "Wang Chen, his inner Qi is very strong. It's the Lightning Martial Spirit, but its speed is slightly slower!"
This time, Qin Yun was the first to attack. Stepping onto the Cloudsoaring Steps, he appeared right in front of Wang Chen!
Such speed had already surpassed many of the older students who were at the fifth level of the Martial Body realm! This made many students at the fifth level of the Martial Body Realm exclaim in their hearts.
Wang Chen sneered. He seemed to have expected this. His fist shimmered with lightning, as though it was waiting for Qin Yun to rush out in time.
Just as Qin Yun was about to collide with the incoming Lightning Fist, he suddenly turned his head to dodge. At the same time, he punched Wang Chen's chest!
A deep tiger roar suddenly came out!
Everyone could not help but be alarmed. Qin Yun was even competing in the Spirit Tiger Fist!
Wang Chen was very confident in his massive body. He hurriedly circulated the thunder inner Qi in his body and concentrated it on his upper body. He did not dodge and continued using Thunderbolt Fist to attack Qin Yun!
What he did not expect was that Qin Yun would suddenly squat down and dodge his Lightning Fist. His Lightning Fist missed!
Furthermore, Qin Yun's punches had undergone a strange transformation as they headed straight for Wang Chen's thigh!
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Wang Chen's thigh was struck so heavily that it felt scorching painful. The moment he moved, the excruciating pain would affect his entire body.
He had thought that Qin Yun would attack his upper body. Who knew that he would aim for his weak thighs from the very beginning!
Rushing Cloud Steps allowed Qin Yun's inner Qi to be stronger. In addition, the scorching heat from the fire's inner Qi permeated his flesh and bones. That was why Wang Chen felt such intense pain.
"I admit defeat!" If not for Qin Yun moving him, he would have suffered an even greater pain.
Qin Yun had won once again!
The main hall erupted into an uproar!
By defeating a fifth level martial body for the second time, Qin Yun could completely prove that he had the strength to rival a fifth level martial body!
Yan Yun saw Qin Yun stepping out of the limelight and clenched her jade teeth. "Brother Kun will definitely let him suffer a crushing defeat. Let's see how long he can be proud of himself!"
"If I win another match, I will be first in the group!" Qin Yun calmed himself down and walked down the dueling platform.
He was already very familiar with the use of martial arts, mainly because he had been sparring with Yang Shiyue for the past few days. During the battle, Yang Shiyue simulated all sorts of situations to train him, and accumulated a lot of battle experience.
On the other side, Wei Xuankun had also won a series of matches consecutively. Those who fought him all had some scruples and did not dare to offend him. They did not even seriously fight him.
The people who were in the same group as Wei Xuankun could only blame their bad luck.
Following that, Qin Yun won once again. He also won first place in the group.
Fourth level of the Martial Body realm, to be able to take first place in the group, this was unprecedented!
If Qin Yun could obtain first place, it would be even more shocking. It would be recorded in the annals of the history of the Hua Ling Wu Academy!
However, everyone felt that it was impossible for Qin Yun to obtain first place. That was because there was also Wei Xuankun, the son of Grandmaster Qing Wen. He was the most highly regarded first place!


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On Friday's Grimm, Nick and Hank investigate an arson based homicide, that not surprisingly turns out to be wesen related, and need help from someone from Nick's (and the show's) past. Meanwhile, Viktor and Adalind make some progress into tracking down Kelly Burkhardt and finding out who was involved in Diana's fake kidnapping. And while the episode itself was pretty good, the last 5 minutes are spectacular. Spoilers after the break.
The arson case starts with a couple of store clerks deciding to stay after closing and have some of the boss' liquor in his office. Too bad for them, that's the night a wesen has shown up to burn the place down. When one of the clerks breaks open a window, it causes a backdraft and they're burned, which gets homicide detectives Nick and Hank called in.
After the arson unit informs the the fire didn't behave like expected, and it turns out the business was declaring bankruptcy, Hank and Nick ask Wu to check on the owner's lawyer and if there was any similar cases. It turns out there were similar cases and an arson investigator was getting close to catching the guy. That is until Nick arrested him.
Turns out the arson investigator was bauerschwein Peter Orson, who had tried to take revenge on the blutbad that killed his brothers, who happened to be Angelina, Monroe's ex-girlfriend and while he didn't kill her he did manage to kill her brothers, including Hap, who remains the 2nd best blutbad to have been on the show. Nick and Hank go to prison to visit Orson and see if he'll help.
Nick reminds Orson of something he once said, "whatever else we are, we're both cops" and gets him temporarily released so he can help with the case. Which leads to a fun moment in Renard's office where he finds out that both Hank and Renard know what's going on.
Orson has notes in his old case files so he and Hank head down to check on those while Nick heads to the trailer, taking Sgt Wu with him. They learn the wesen is an excandesco, thought to be the inspiration for the phoenix, and that one of these wesen, working for Nero, was responsible for real historical event, the great fire of Rome in 64AD.
After they know what they're going to be dealing with, Orson figures out he probably has high amounts of phosphorus that allows him to ignite when he woges, and tells Nick he can come up with something to cover him in so he can't light up but he'll need special ingredients. Which means the spice shop, and Nick calls ahead and when Rosalee tells him Monroe is out on a watch repair job, he figures it should be safe to bring Orson.
Then Monroe comes back unexpectedly and a fight almost starts. Rosalee tells Monroe that the blutbad bauerschwein feud is no better than the "old traditon" of the wesenrein that almost killed him for marrying her, and eventually he comes around to seeing that she's right and helps out.
The phoenix wesen actually feels bad about the two killed in the fire, as the store was supposed to be empty. Turns out the lawyer and the store owner's son were in on it. The son was going to inherit the store, which was passed on to his dad from his dad, but didn't want it so he hired the phoenix wesen but hadn't counted on the two closing the store to stick around. The phoenix wesen starts killing anyone who can ID him, including the lawyer. Nick and Hank catch up to the son who confesses and they have Rosalee and Monroe meet them at the store with their anti-ignition solution, which they've loaded into super soakers.
Once he woges, they spray him with the stuff. And then it turns out if he can't ignite outward, he burns up inside and he explodes.
After explaining what happened to Sgt Wu, he takes his super cop game up a notch and suggests that maybe the guy had a homemade bomb strapped to himself and that's what should go in the official report.
Monroe tells Orson he doesn't forgive him for killing Hap (and neither do I, he was a fun goofy blutbad), and Orson doesn't forgive Angelina for killing his brothers, and then they shake on it, as a symbol of letting the feud go, just not the actual personal stuff.
Nick and Hank drop Orson back off in prison, feeling better for being able to get out and be a cop again for a little while and maybe have that help him in his next parole hearing.
And we get what is probably the 2nd best moment of the night. Nick's new addition to his deadly arsenal (Gifs from FYNB Tumblr).
And now the main event. Renard's agent reports that Kelly Burkhardt sold the car Juliette gave her soon after arriving in Seattle, so Sean will check on purchases within 3 days of that. And then his agent shows up at Viktor's hotel to tell him everything he told Renard, the traitor!
After he confirms to both Viktor and Adalind that the car Kelly left in was Juliette's, Adalind decides to pay her a visit, ending in a fight that surpasses the wesenrein showdown in Tribunal. Words can't do it justice, so here is a video.
And in case you can't view the video, here is most of the fight in Gif form (courtesy of Tumblr - mymarsrevolution).
I will be re-watching that fight all week! Juliette makes her first surprise attack really count. And then it turns out she doesn't need the advantage of surprise because from the look of it, she's more powerful than Adalind. And that look of fear on Adalind's face! And her cuts, compared to just a small bruise on Juliette's chin. Best hexenbiest fight ever!
And the look on Juliette's face after Adalind runs off. She's surveying the damage, mostly caused by her, and she looks impressed with herself. Love it.
And as seen in the video, and the gifs below (courtesy of Tumblr - wogedwesen), Juliette finally does a show & tell with Nick. I have to give credit to the show, it only took her 3 episodes since finding out she was a hexenbiest to tell Nick, and that included two other attempts to tell him before that.
Can't wait for next week's episode.
From the supersoakers to the hexenbiest throwdown this was both literally (the real kind) and figuratively the most explosive last 5 minutes of an episode. Loved it!
Sgt. Wu, in addition to being the most competent cop, and being a better study of the books in the trailer than Nick, is now getting to Renard's level of coming up with cover stories to explain wesen happenings with his homemade explosives idea. He's going to be running that precinct one day.
Nick took a picture of a page from one of his books to show Orson what an excandesco looks like so maybe that will give Wu the idea of scanning all the books. I'd say "give Nick the idea" but that's less believable than Wu thinking of it.
I wonder if Wu will end up bringing Renard to the trailer. Hank once asked Nick and the reply was "hell no" but as far as Wu can tell they're all friends and they're all cops so why not?
It was cool that Rosalee pointed out that the blutbad-bauerschwein feud is just as "traditional" and dumb as the wesenrein's pure blood beliefes and I'm glad Monroe saw that she was right.
I am loving that the couch in the living room is becoming Juliette's post-fight spot, I hope this becomes an actual tradition for her to sit there and maybe have a drink after any time she kills or fights someone off in their home.
Now that she's told Nick, I'm looking forward to her also telling Monroe, Rosalee, Hank, and if she comes back to town, Trubel, that should be a fun one to see.
Compared to other characters on other shows, telling Nick after 3 episodes is pretty good, and even above average. And the two attempts in previous episodes are extra credit.
What did you all think?
Update: Thanks for mainpaging, Cheryl!


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Coal power plants suspended, and American companies gloomy on China
Top business and technology news for January 18, 2017. Part of the daily SupChina news roundup "India scolds China."
China halts construction of 101 coal power plants / Caixin
The central government has suspended 101 coal power projects. The main factor behind the decision was the concern that weak demand for electricity this year could lead to a power glut. Some of these projects have already started construction. Other projects could also be scrapped to achieve goals to increase the proportion of power generated from renewable sources.
Businesses move China down priority list: AmCham survey / CNBC
The American Chamber of Commerce in China has released its annual survey of its members and reports that the country is becoming "less of an investment priority for companies." The members are gloomier about their prospects in China for a number of reasons, including unpredictable regulation, protectionism, higher labor costs, and a slowing economy. You can get the whole report by registering on AmCham's website here.
- Liaoning government admits false growth data from 2011-14 / Caixin
- China preparing to hit back if Donald Trump starts trade war, says U.S. business group / SCMP
- U.S.-trained official may shape China's response to Trump on trade / NYT (paywall)
- Trump aide Scaramucci sells investment business to Chinese consortium / NYT (paywall)


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The battle of the Common Sense versus Common Knowledge.
The cGMP trends published a report named "The Top Ten cGMP Cited Violations for The FY2018".
The report is very comprehensive and detailed. It identified five root causes per violation. Some examples are:
- Making manual changes in master batch records, but not been formally approved and communicated.
- Deviation in the operation's parameter such as temperature not investigated.
- Procedures not followed.
- Procedures not been updated.
- Investigations not been adequate.
- Investigations do not find root causes.
In safety, the story is not different. Let's analyze the stats from the Association of Worker Compensation of Canada and OSHA in the USA.
- The top ten incidents ranking has not changed in 13 years.
- The numbers of recordable incidents started increasing again.
- Workers, not following procedures.
Both areas have something in common, people and behaviours.
People and behaviours are forcing organizations to focus on creating more procedures, more interminable meetings and debates of who is right and who is not.
What is causing all these issues?
In my personal experience, when people get injured, I had heard he did not exercise common sense
In quality is not the case; however, many of the conversations occur around what a major or minor change is according to each person's interpretations and their points of view.
I call this the common syndrome.
This syndrome lays down on the peoples and behaviours, an internal bias, personal interpretations and so on.
Currently, there has been a battle between the two commons.
What are the two main fighters in this battle? Common sense versus common Knowledge
My question is, do we know what common sense is?
Common sense according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary "sound and prudent judgement based on the simple perception of the situation or facts."
Let's review the definition of common knowledge for the same source "something that many or most people know."
Although both definitions look the same, in reality, they are not,
Common sense works on people's perceptions of situations or facts that depends on personal and professional experiences.
For example, one time an operator tried to climb a fence guarding of a machine to adjust a piece as quickly as possible. Although this behaviour looks out of proportion, it is ubiquitous to see it in factories.
The operator decided to climb it because he can reach the piece to adjust faster, with less effort instead of going around, open the door, activate the interlock, place the lock and proceed.
In quality, we have some examples such as replacing a vessel with the same specifications. Some managers consider it a significant change; others view it as a minor change.
As you can see, these two examples are based on perception.
Establishing common knowledge helps organizations to reduce injuries and cGMPs violations because of creating an understanding that will help them to eliminate internal bias.
QA experts or specialist can elaborate a list of possible scenarios establishing what a major or a minor change is.
The same in safety, you can establish in your machine guarding policy that machine guarding fences are not intended for climbing and re-enforce the rule by posting it around the guard.
In conclusion, I am aware that are other causes contributing to having injuries and cGMP violation. However, establishing common ground and knowledge in these two critical areas will help managers to solve many discrepancies and save time on discussions that occur over and over again.


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How to include a request form in a Task
I am trying to figure out how to include a request form in a task that I would be assigning. Or is there a way to assign a request form ?
2 comments
Spot On! 👍 Innovative Approach 💡 Stellar Advice 💪
Hi @Erica, welcome to the Community 🙂
You can make the FOrm external and then add a link to it in the task:
And you can also assign a Request Form - that might be an easier solution. Please check out this Help Center article on creating and assigning Request Forms.
I hope this helps and please let me know if you have any questions 🙌
Spot On! 👍 Innovative Approach 💡 Stellar Advice 💪
Hey Erica,
not knowing what's behind that ask and I might be way off mark here, but what we've experienced is: Whenever someone was asking for a task requiring another request form, we took the entire process apart and build it back up linking everything together.
For example designing a flyer goes through three steps at my place:
1. Copy writing + approvals
2. Visual design + approvals
And our third step until recently was the order request, which was handled separately from the other tasks with its own request form. What we did now is integrate it as necessary part of the template keeping it in a waiting position via task dependencies and workflow statuses until everything is in place. That way our operations already know that something is in the planning stages but won't need to act until everything is done.
Dunno if that even remotely applies to you, but yeah. Whenever we ran into that issue we were probably still thinking in silos and needed to break that up.
Please sign in to leave a comment.


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YFC Blog
Construction on the long-awaited terminal project has continued with additional COVID-19 precautions in place to ensure health and safety. Last week, the new check-in hall and a portion of the departures lounge opened, and in this video Johanne Gallant, President and CEO of the Fredericton International Airport Authority, brings you a peek at the…Read More
We're expanding your world.
To local New Brunswickers, YFC is simply "the airport". A single entity. A place on the map. But the organization and operation of YFC is slightly more complex.
Think of YFC as the physical infrastructure of the airport. This infrastructure is managed, operated, and developed by the not-for-profit corporation of the Fredericton International Airport Authority Inc. (FIAA). Most commercial and public services and products at the airport are delivered by independent businesses operating from within the YFC structure. The airport is, therefore, the sum of many parts, including hundreds of committed people.


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Help Vote for The Best of 2015
These are books that got 5 or more stars in 2015
Cherish and Blessed by Tere Michaels
Kick the Darkness by Keira Andrews
Forging the Future by Mary Calmes
All that heaven will allow by DW Marchwell
Sleeping til sunrise by Mary Calmes
How to walk like a man by Eli Easton
Midwinter's night's dream by Eli Easton
Home and away by Samantha Wayland
King's Command Eastern Embrace by Stormy Glenn
Letting go – Nobody's hero by j leigh bailey
Bully and exit by Brigham Vaughn
Winter Wonderland by Heidi Cullinan
Signs of Life by Melanie Hansen
Rock solid construction by riley hart
Don't stop believing by Gwen Hayes
Moment of Silence by Karen Stivali
You are the reason by Renae Kaye
Valor on the move by Keira Andrews
Checking it Twice by Samantha Wayland
Carry the Ocean by Heidi Cullinan
Fish stick Fridays by Rhys Ford
Frat House Troopers Audio by Xavier Mayne
Down and Dirty Audio by Rhys Ford
The last thing he needs audio by JH Knight
How to howl at the moon audio by Eli Easton
All kinds of Tied Down audio by Mary Calmes
Rack and Ruin audio by Charlie Cochet
Blinding Light Audio by Renae Kaye
Then the Stars Fall audio by Brandon Witt
Nothing Special audio by Jay Northcote
Forging the Future audio by Mary Calmes
Bitter Taffy audio by Amy Lane
The Mating of Michael audio by Eli Easton
Fit to be Tied audio by Mary Calmes
Easy evenings and audio by Mary Calmes
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Last guy breathing audio by Skylar cates
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Knight of ocean avenue and audio by tara lain
Crossroads audio by riley hart
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Interview of Imogen Merrony by Clair Wainwright
Name: Imogen Merrony
Nickname: Imo
Age: 23
Zodiac: Aquarius
Occupation: Fashion designer
Hey Imogen! How do you spend your spare time?
Pretty much cooking and drinking with my friends, although working three jobs and starting a label I don't have much spare time right now.
You've recently just launched your own fashion label–that must be pretty exciting, huh?
I launched I.M.O just three weeks ago now, it's super exciting; it's really a dream come true but also really bewildering. I have no idea what I'm doing so every day is a new challenge at the moment.
What do you love about creating stuff?
To be honest the best part is just when people try my stuff on and say how good they feel! It's also pretty cool being able to make yourself a new wardrobe every season.
How did you get to where you are now?
Finished high school, moved to London, came back to Sydney, started studying law (dropped out), moved back to London, and then woke up one morning and I was like hey I want to study fashion design so I enrolled at The Fashion Design Studio in Sydney! Finished my degree there, got a few internships under my belt and then I.M.O came about!
What were your intentions in creating I.M.O?
You know how you have those few pieces in your wardrobe you wear every day, rain, hail, or shine? I wanted to create a whole collection based on those pieces, that everyone could afford. I have taste and my friends have taste and we all want to buy clothes at a price point that we're comfortable with.
Essentially I.M.O is a label that delivers a collection of wardrobe essentials,born because I wanted to create everyday clothes for everyday girls. By creating pieces rather than collections, I.M.O aims to provide those easy to wear everyday items I felt were missing from our wardrobes and put them into yours. Easy peasy.
Where did the brand name derive from?
My nickname, Imo.
Who, what, or where do you draw inspiration from?
My friends, people around me, and vintage clothing. This collection's inspiration is an accumulation of all my friends and what we want to wear: relaxed, comfortable, and sometimes sexy.
Have you always dreamed of your own label, or was this more of a spontaneous creation?
So so spontaneous! I was looking at entry level jobs with very little pay and a massive commute and I thought, "Fuck it! I may as well give it a go." That was in April.
Are you working on anything that we can expect to see in the near future?
I've got some really exciting collaborations coming up soon, which I'm not going to give too much away on. Aside from that we're putting new things up on the site every month so there's always exciting things around the corner!
Quick fire round of Q's
Muse: My mother.
Motivation: Happiness (and some money).
Staple item: Black leather jacket.
Plain or pattern? Plain.
Favourite fashion decade: The '90s.
One thing you can't live without? Blueberries.
What's the best bargain you've ever got? The most amazing embroidered leather jacket for $20 in India; I literally smile every time I look at it.
What is the most precious thing in your wardrobe? A pink Gucci Bomber.
How long does it take you to decide what to wear? About 30 seconds now that I have I.M.O!
What's the biggest shopping mistake you've ever made? Always getting a bit too excited and buying the most out-there things whilst overseas then coming home and having nowhere to wear them…[share]


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EZTV provides Sales and Service for Dish Network, DirecTV, Direcway, HughesNet, WildBlue, VSAT, Computer Networking and Structured Home Wiring for Western Washington
Mobile Music
DISH Network satellite TV delivers hundreds of channels directly into your home: a wide selection of movies, news, sports and International entertainment to satisfy any household and meet any budget. All our entertainment comes to you in 100% digital clarity. This means that the picture you see is digitally encoded and arrives on your screen in exactly the manner the programmer intended. Basic cable service uses less advanced analog technology prone to distort the picture with shadowing, fuzziness and static. Many cable companies don't tell you that even when you upgrade to digital cable, often only a portion of the channels offered are digital: the rest remain analog.
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Product names, logos, brands and other trademarks referred to within DBSinstall.com are the property of their respective trademark holders. These trademark holders are not affiliated with DBSinstall.com or our website. They do not sponsor or endorse our materials.
Washington State, WA Satellite Retailers - Installer Directory for Dish Network, DirecTV, Wildblue, Hughesnet, VSAT, Structured Wiring, Computer Networking, RV Satellite, Home Theater and HD TV antennas.


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Time Flies Vintage Digital Mini Book/ Junk Journal Kit
Free Shipping!
This TIME FLIES VINTAGE Mini Book/ Journal Digital Kit comes complete with the following products:
15 Double Page Panels for 30 Pages
3 Bonus Background Papers
Sheets of Embellishments Including:
3 Belly Bands
8 File Tabs
2 Envelopes with Single Panel Cards
2 Coin Envelopes
4 Corner Pockets
11 Tags ( Various Sizes )
6 Waterfall Pages ( Front and Back Both )
11 Vintage Collage Clock Faces
1 Bookmark with Pocket Holder
Raw Graphics with Kind Permission of The Graphics Fairy, Skimersan, and Susan Darter. This is a Seneca Pond Crafts exclusive design, and no commercial licensing is required, except you may not resell or share the Digital File, Templates, or Directions - Enjoy!


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When it comes to skin health, your best friend is the dermatologist. But there is confusion over the roles of an aesthetic doctor and a dermatologist – the former is a general practitioner practicing aesthetic medicine and the latter is a skin, hair and nail doctor. (If you do a quick check on the Dermatological Society of Singapore's website, there are only 116 certified dermatologists in Singapore.)
Skin conditions like eczema, cystic acne, and psoriasis require medical expertise to restore skin back to its healthy state, hence an aesthetic doctor might not be as qualified to diagnose and prescribe efficacious remedies to resolve your skin issues. The onslaught of marketing claims and muddling of terms in the skincare industry ("skin specialist recommended" or "doctor-approved") leads many individuals to buy products, only to find out that their skin problems are not treated or, even worse, exacerbated.
Say hello to Dr. TWL, a new Singaporean cosmeceutical brand, owned by pharmaceutical engineer Justin Teo and formulated by dermatologist Dr. Teo Wan Lin, that is birthed from the ethos of product efficacy, tolerability, and suitability for all skin types.
Initially a complement to the advanced dermatology treatments Dr. Teo offered in her clinic, the line was the duo's knee-jerk response to cut through industry clutter. Now, the dermatologist-formulated products are available after the duo saw patients who were still suffering from skin conditions after being prescribed products recommended by aesthetic doctors.
Dr.TWL products are formulated without any harsh chemicals. Take for instance the Miel Honey Cleanser, absent of any chemical surfactants like sodium laureth sulfate – yet it is able to lather and foam gently due to the inclusion of medical-grade honey, a wonderful humectant and anti-bacterial ingredient that gives skin a thorough cleanse without parching the skin.
After the cleanse, we recommend quenching the skin with the Radiance Fluide Hydrating Emulsion containing a reparative blend of amino acids, oligopeptides, and niacinamide to soothe and calm any skin flare-ups after shaving and face washing, followed by applying a generous dollop of sunscreen. Dr. Teo recommends a minimum of SPF 50 with UVA protection for a tropical climate like Singapore to prevent UV aging and the formation of free radicals. For those wanting to take their routine to the next level, Dr.TWL offers a hyaluronic acid serum for those that need intense hydration and a vitamin C serum for brightening dull patches on the skin.
@drtwlderma is holding an Instagram competition for the new face of the brand. Follow them on their social media to join the search.
Available online and at TWL Specialist Skin & Laser Centre.


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Tomorrow is JulieFest, Joplin's first women's music and arts festival!
Located on the 500 block of Joplin Ave., JulieFest will begin at 2 p.m. and run until 9 p.m on Saturday, October 26th. At 10 p.m., the JulieFest After Party will start at Blackthorn Pizza & Pub, 510 S. Joplin Ave.
JulieFest is free, open to the public, and open to all ages. The JulieFest After Party is for ages 21+ and will have a $5 cover at the door.
Here's what you can expect from the day:
Killer Live Music
All day long, the festival will have live music from talented female musicians and female-fronted bands. Here's the lineup:
2:00 – Out of Context (Pittsburg) Out of Context
3:00 – Tiger Millionaire (Joplin) Tiger Millionaire
4:00 – Chloe Jacobson (Kansas City) Chloe Jacobson
5:00 – Hot Missoury (Springfield) Hot Missoury
6:00 – The Cavves (Wichita) The Cavves
7:00 – Karen Meat (Des Moines) Karen Meat
Here's the After Party Lineup:
10:00 – Lousy Sue (Indianapolis) Lousy Sue
11:00 – The God Damn General Public (Wichita) The God Damn General Public
12:00 – Concubine (Wichita) Concubine
Talented Vendors
There will be nearly 30 vendors present at JulieFest! The vast majority of them are female artists representing a wide range of styles. You'll also find small business owners, not-for-profits, vintage clothing, baked goods, and face painting!
Here's a sneak peak at what you'll find!
First and Cedar
Queen City Rock Camp
Maple & Orange
Waxing Moon Collective
JOMO Pride
Ela Hosp
Lots of Room for Activities!
In addition to the music and booths, there will be tons of other fun things to do at JulieFest! We'll have an interactive mural, a super cute photo booth, sidewalk chalk, and a skatepark provided by Kerosene Skate Shop!
Halloween Costume Contest
Who doesn't love Halloween?! Just think of JulieFest as a great big Halloween party and get yourself in the spooky spirit! We encourage everyone to come out in their costumes and enter the Costume Contest at the end of the night!
Contest details:
9:00 p.m. – Inside Blackthorn Pizza & Pub
All ages (please note – entrants under 21 must leave by 10 p.m.)
1st prize – $50
2nd prize – Free Julie merch
Sadly, women are still very much underrepresented in the music industry. According to a report by the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, women make up 21.7 percent of artists, 12.3 percent of songwriters and 2.1 percent of producers.
Show your support for equality in the arts and have a ton of fun this Saturday at JulieFest! We hope to see you there!


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7×10″ Santa letter to child. Unisex letter from Santa.
Personalized with your text right from your browser, add to cart, download and print.
Print your letter on regular white paper, the vintage background you see in listing is included in the design.
Letter will fit inside a 5.25×7.25″ envelope which is not included.
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You will receive the printable file in your email.
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For personal use only.


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The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind: Young Readers EditionConsumer Rating
- Number of Pages: 32
- Languages:
- English (Unknown)
- English (Original Language)
- English (Published)
When fourteen-year-old William Kamkwamba's Malawi village was hit by a drought, everyone's crops began to fail. Without adequate money for food, let alone school, William spent his days in the library. Lyrically told and gloriously illustrated, this story will inspire many as it shows how - even in the worst of times - a great concept along utilizing a lot of difficult function can still rock the world. Persevering against the odds, William built a functioning windmill out of junkyard scraps, and thus became the local hero who harnessed the wind. and figured out the way to bring electricity to his village.
Copyright © 2020 - Electronics and Electricty Books for Kids


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Read all about our #BaxterCoffeeAngels campaign here
The Baxter Theatre Centre has made the decision to cancel all performances at the theatre, with immediate effect, until the end of April 2020.
More than 200 renowned artists and arts leaders from South Africa and around the world will gather at Cape Town's Baxter Theatre Centre on 8 and 9 February to attend the prestigious Rolex Arts Weekend.
Turn a 40-year legacy into an 80-year commitment
Reviewed by Theresa Smith, for WeekendSpecial.co.za
Telephone: 021 685 7880
International: +27 21 685 7880
09:00-13:00 and 14:00-17:00
Send us an online enquiry.
Baxter Theatre Centre
Main Road
Cape Town
Baxter Theatre Centre
P O Box 297
7701 South Africa
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Cozy Black and White cotton short pants with clips on the knee height are applicable with all BEGABUNGO knee pads applications providing huge support during crawling and walking.
The patch between the legs provides a lot of space for the diaper and maneuverability. The elastic band on the back enables easy dressing. Extremely durable and breathable cotton material. Machine wash 30 degrees.
Gender neutral! Tested and proved on happy kids!


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Perhaps it's a generational thing, but even before the ripe old age of ten, I was listening to Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, Dinah Washington, the Benny Goodman Trio, Les Paul and Mary Ford, the Dave Brubeck Quartet and singing along to standards like Autumn Leaves, Skylark, Stardust and all the great songs coming outta Tin Pan Alley.
It might have been to the fact that my old man was a pianist and singer who hosted his own radio program called The Melody Maker and being surrounded by music.
Or it might have had to do with music being one of the few childhood hobbies around at that time, and way before being inundated by so many distractions and so much clutter that have intruded so badly into personal priorities and personal time management so that we get our priorities short-circuited and go running after paper planes.
Remember the sheer joy of buying a record or even a CD purely because of the BACKING musicians?
These were studio musicians like Hal Blaine, Larry Knetchel and Joe Osborne of the Wrecking Crew, Glen Campbell and Leon Russell and all part of creating Phil Spector's enormous 4-track Wall Of Sound, those great unsung- and unpaid heroes behind every great Motown record, and later, buying records because they featured session drummers like Steve Gadd, the tragic Jim Gordon who co-wrote Layla with Clapton before bludgeoning his mother to death as his inner demons were never properly understand at that time and is still in prison, the "Beatles drummer" Jim Keltner and guitarists who seemed to play for everyone- Jesse Ed David, Waddy Wachtell, Danny Kortchmar, Eliot Randall etc.
This was home schooling that has served many of us well- the type of home schooling we created for ourselves because of this incredible passion and inspiration and support system music gave us to decide which ways we wanted our lives to unfold, how music helped us to see both sides then and now and why we wanted to be with those whom we could share ideas and where no one stood on ceremony.
It was intuitively knowing when in a band that one could segue so easily from A Hard Days Night to I Should Have Known or how You Really Got Me would meet Louie Louie at the traffic lights with a Wild Thing waiting in the alley with Sally to join the party.
Music wasn't sheet music or any exacting science, but something happening internally in your goo goo gum drop and a roller coaster Motown ride you never wanted to leave in case you couldn't get back on.
And then Dylan came along, the great Rock writers of Creem, Crawdaddy and Rolling Stone happened, Lennon stopped being a Fab, the Walrus was Paul, the Doors blew open and Riders From The Storm rode in while Cream played and Peter Green told us about being A Man Of The World until Jimi met Bob amongst Crosstown Traffic while Paul still stayed true to being Mother Nature's Son.
After that, there was a beautiful lull where the troubadours kissed the sky and gave us shelter from the storm- James Taylor, Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Cat Stevens…
Today, there are some truly clever mashups through which many who should but don't or cannot are understanding that to move forward, there is a need to know what came before before one simply has the same old song on repeat. On repeat. On repeat.
As for many of those faceless souls working on these mashups and having to be creative yet careful about not tripping over all the red tape of copyright laws, mechanical rights issues and still creating because it's what makes them do what they do, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU.
Instead of trying to sue their asses, music companies should be BEGGING these versions of Producers and A&R and back-catalog men to take and make their catalogs relevant again while providing them with all the tools to make this happen.
Musicians who haven't had that home schooling on the evolution and development of music should be thanking them for knowing their shit so damn well they can bridge musical generations through their work.
The days of wild creative abandon and experimentation of the Beatles, Santana, Hendrix, Doors, Led Zeppelin will never ever come around again, but, thankfully, through these mashups, and through those who either were there or wish they were there, all is not lost and that inquisitiveness and passion to discover and re-discover some of the greatest music created continued.
Long may it run and run and run.
© Fast Track 2014
All Rights Reserved
No part of this website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied, modified or adapted, without the prior written consent of the author, unless otherwise indicated for stand-alone materials.


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Srinagar: Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL) Tuesday called for a complete shutdown on Wednesday against the custodial death of 28-year-old school teacher Rizwan Asad Pandith of Awantipora.
JRL as per a statement issued to KNS strongly condemned the 'custodial killing of 28-year-old school teacher Rizwan Asad Pandith of Awantipora who was picked up by the SOG and NIA a few days ago and has been killed in custody at SOG camp Cargo today'.
Paying tributes to Rizwan and expressing deep grief and sorrow at his 'killing', JRL expressed sympathy with his bereaved family.
Terming this killing as 'gruesome', JRL said that "this custodial killing is not only one of its kind but prior to this, hundreds and thousands of young and old Kashmiris have been killed in this manner."
"This killing has actually increased the vulnerability of Kashmiri inmates languishing in different jails of India and jails of Jammu Kashmir, and jeopardized their lives," they said.
Announcing a comprehensive protest program against this 'state terrorism', JRL said "people will observe a complete and comprehensive protest strike on Wednesday, March 20th, 2019 (tomorrow), against the gruesome custodial killing of Rizwan Asad, policies of intimidation and harassment by police, SOG and other Indian investigative agencies, arbitrary arrests, slapping of draconian PSA, summoning political activists to SOG camps and thus creating atmosphere of fear in Jammu Kashmir."
On Thursday, JRL appealed all segments of society including traders, lawyers, bar association, civil society, and others from different walks of life to peacefully protest against the custodial killing and assaults on Kashmiris.
On Friday, March 22nd, 2019, after Friday (Juma) prayers, people at all Masajid, Khanqahs and Imam Baras will raise their voices peacefully against this custodial death by NIA and SOG and continuing policy of 'oppression' unleashed by India.
JRL said that those who raise their voice against the killing of youth, their arrests and slapping with PSA are branded as "anti-national "and threatened with dire consequences and intimidation. "While crackdown and arrest spree against political and religious activists and youth continues unabated on the other hand SOG has been calling political activists and youth to SOG cargo camp to intimidate them and create an atmosphere of fear among people in general," they said.
JRL said through their investigative agencies NIA and ED, the authorities have let loose a reign of terror to instill fear among people and harass them. "People of Kashmir have borne tremendous hardships and suffering for the last three decades especially, all because they are asking for an end to the conflict through peaceful resolution of the Kashmir dispute as per the people's wishes but instead people are being crushed," JRL said.


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Darlyshia A. Menzie
About Fervent Servant.
Live with Intention. Serve with Passion.
Fervent Servant started in 2016 as a result of a nudge from God to take encouraging others more seriously. Since my college days, I'd been using my Facebook platform to share 'spiritually practical encouragement.' Spiritually practical encouragement is encouragement about real-life situations - big and small - with a biblical perspective. One day, post-college, I was led to share more with others about my journey with overcoming my self-esteem and identity issues. So, I wrote my first book. Ever since then, I have been using Fervent Servant as a platform to help others live in PURPOSE, on PURPOSE, with PURPOSE.
MISSION: To encourage, equip, and empower individuals to live an authentically fervent life.
Fervent Servant's PURPOSE is to help others:
Discover Self
Define Self
Develop Self
Deliver Self
Each Service of Fervent Servant (Darlyshia Menzie) works to support one of these purposes.
Speaking | Accountability Coaching | Book Coaching
About The Founder.
Speaker. Coach. Author.
Darlyshia A. Menzie is a 3x published author who has placed over 25 speaking engagements. With a professional background as Regional Training Coordinator, Life Transformation Coach and studies in Public Relations, she is also trusted by local and regional organizations such as Girl Scouts of Eastern Missouri and Junior Achievement of Greater St. Louis. Menzie is most recognized as the Founder and Visionary of Fervent Servant LLC, a faith-based business that offers Accountability Coaching and Book Coaching services.
As Menzie strives to reach the masses, her mission is to "encourage, equip, and empower individuals to live life in purpose (your life's calling), on purpose (your intention), with purpose (your passion)." By way of her business and ministry, Menzie is leading individuals to live an authentically fervent life.
She believes that it is important to be our best so that we can give our best, which is why she serves her clients through the lens of SELF—self-reflection, self-awareness and self-love. Darlyshia covers the total person—spirit, soul, and body. She iterates action plans in order to cultivate a change in the guests of the room. Her sessions not only help people gain clarity about the vision that they have for their lives, but also establish a plan to carry it out.
With Menzie as an energy-filled speaker and small-group facilitator, she exudes the ability to cultivate a room of change-makers. She is unafraid to confront the truths that stunt growth and satisfaction in life. She challenges people to see beyond their current situation--believing that we should consider the past, enjoy in the present, and prepare for the future.
If you are seeking an energy-filled, thought provoking speaker for your next conference, seminar, workshop or meeting, book Darlyshia A. Menzie today!
Fervent Focus
Focusing On What Matters Most


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THEATER REVIEW: "Little Shop of Horrors" @ the Colonial Theatre [Berkshire on Stage]
Review by Larry Murray
Like a Christmas tree draped with tons of tinsel, a whole new Audrey II made her appearance in the Berkshire Theatre Group's re-imagining of the classic skid row musical, Little Shop of Horrors. And as funny as it was to behold Taurean Everett as the infamous hungry green plant from outer space, she was but one of the many pleasures that this brilliant musical has in store at the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield. This is, after all, the deviously delicious Broadway and Hollywood sci-fi smash musical which has been devouring the hearts of theater-goers for more than 30 years.
I have seen perhaps a half dozen productions of Little Shop in theaters big and small, but none has come close to the perfection of the cast that director Ethan Heard assembled into a true ensemble that meshed together perfectly. At the top of his form is Stephen DeRosa as Mushnik the florist, one of the finest character actors around, and whose physical comedy work is matched with his sublime ability to play dead serious as well.
Stanley Bahorek, no stranger to the Berkshires either, slipped easily into the role of the nebbishy Seymour, and with both great acting chops and a strong baritone voice that sold every song and bit of business he had with all the other characters on stage. And his plaintive exchanges with the carnivorous plant had the audience howling. Of course, he is in love with Audrey, after whom he named the plant, and Lindsay Nicole Chambers captured her sweet spot, which is somewhere between caricature and pathos as her clueless character demands.
Click to read the rest at Berkshire on Stage.


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Let's start off with the good news in regards on top overall Cubs draft pick Kyle Schwarber:
So...Daytona? MT @kschwarb12 Thank you @KCCougars players, coaches & fans for being great to me in my stay here at Kane County! #cougs
— WorldSeriesDreaming (@WSDreaming_Cubs) July 15, 2014
He seems a cool guy and this is wonderful news for him and us, since all he's done since signing with the Cubs is kill baseballs. And of course you probably heard about the cycles that fellow draft pick Mark Zagunis and top prospect Albert Almora hit for Boise and Daytona, respectively (don't worry, it's all over Twitter, you can't miss it). Meanwhile, prospects at all levels, and not just Javier Baez and Kris Bryant, are sending baseballs into low Earth orbit. It's a really fun time to be a Cubs fan if you're following the process as closely as we are, while the Cubs front office led by team president Theo Epstein, general manager Jed Hoyer, and scouting director Jason McLeod work their magic to ensure that the Cubs will have waves of talent funneling into Wrigley Field for years to come. The MLB Cubs still suck, but they're watchable as All-Stars Starlin Castro and Anthony Rizzo have bounced back and there's a light at the end of the tunnel that we no longer have to squint to see.
But you know, the Cubs have been going full #TeamTank for three years running now, and as you probably saw from Dabynsky's blog linked in the last paragraph, they're not going to tank much more. Because of the way the CBA is set up, this will have ramifications for the Cubs' talent acquisition process. Here's Dabynsky again tweeting his live thought process:
Common #Cubs complaint about "the Plan" has been that the Cubs had the most losses in two seasons and a number of people want to be less bad
— dabynsky (@dabynsky) July 15, 2014
The Mets have taken that approach. They have been bad but not terrible. And they spent on a free agent with qualifying offer this offseason. — dabynsky (@dabynsky) July 15, 2014
End result is that neither team is near playoffs this year, and the Mets have had 6.5 million less to spend on the draft. That's a big deal. — dabynsky (@dabynsky) July 15, 2014
That's Kris Bryant signing bonus right there. There are tangible benefits to being terrible instead of bad.
— dabynsky (@dabynsky) July 15, 2014
Obviously we had to expand that past the 560 characters Dabynsky was allowed through four separate tweets. The current system does not help teams that are wishy-washy. You either have to go all in, or you have to go full tank to ensure as much money as possible to spend on amateur talent in both the draft and in international free agency. That's just the way it is.
HOWEVER, the Cubs are transitioning out of the full-on talent acquisition phase and look to be getting ready to open their window of contention. They will at some point have to cough up draft picks to sign big-name free agents, and they will also have a better record (we hope), which means far less money to spend on amateur talent via all avenues. This poses a problem as the CBA has pretty much taken away most of the overslot gymnastics that teams were able to do in previous years to snag best-of-the-best type talent in later rounds. The best players are almost always going early now, and there's not enough money left over to entice strong college commits to sign after the tenth round. Again, just the way it is. The Cubs were pretty shrewd this year in implementing their version of the 2012 Astros plan, and maybe they have ways to make sure that they can still identify value at every slot. But after 2015's draft, in which the Cubs (currently with the fifth-worst record in MLB) will likely have their last protected first round pick for a long time, Theo and friends will have far less pool money to spend due to an expected better overall record. That means barring some insane luck, talents like Kris Bryant, Albert Almora, basically those "obvious" studs who "can't miss" (yeah, they can bust, but they have a better chance to not suck) will be fewer and farther between.
I think it's important to consider how Team Theo plans to ensure that waves of impact talent will still come up through the system given these limitations, and given that the current CBA expires after 2016 and at some point MLB may force an international draft. If they know the trends that may arise from the next CBA (kind of like insider trading, I guess), then there might be better preparation, but for now let's assuming everything stays status quo. The Cubs get their impact player in 2015 but will likely have less of an impact in 2016 (or not at all if they lose their first-rounder due to a free agent signing). What next?
Well, the restrictions from their last international spending spree will have been lifted, and if the talent is worthy to splurge on, the Cubs may decide to try it again, very similar to what the Yankees did this season when they said "to hell with it" and shot the moon. The talent from the previous spending spree will have been in the system for three years and we'll get an idea of their progress in the 2016 season. The wave of talent from the 2016 spending spree (should they go that route) would similarly bear fruit in 2019 in an ideal world. There's also the posting system, in which the Cubs can attempt to outbid the field for a talent from the Japanese or Korean systems. A pitcher like Kenta Maeda may get posted and offer an immediate impact along with whatever other pitchers the Cubs can sign on the free agent market. And we haven't even talked about trades yet, which this front office has been pretty good at so far.
As the Cubs improve year-to-year, it will get more difficult to add impact talent at the bottom and watch it trickle to the top, but I wouldn't put it past this front office to innovate strategies for roster construction that I didn't even think of. Even if some avenues of talent acquisition are cut off, you never count out the Cubs front office; they have a tendency to surprise. The hope is that with additional revenues from the Wrigley renovations/expansions, they will be able to withstand any major penalties and taxes and still be able to attract the best talent, whether it be through the draft, international signings, trade, or free agency. It will be fun to watch this front office work their magic when consistent winning starts to sap some of their advantages.
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Filed under: Chicago Cubs
Tags: CBA, Chicago Cubs, Draft, Franchise Building, Jason McLeod, Jed Hoyer, minors, Rebuild, Roster Construction, Talent Acquisition, Theo Epstein