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This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #HungryForCrab #CollectiveBias
I know I always post outfits on Fridays, but I'm doing something different today on Sensible Stylista just because. Instead of my regular OOTD, I'll be telling you guys all about my latest food adventure at Red Lobster – yay for Crabfest. To give you guys some background, it was for my mom's b-day. Well, to be exact, her birthday was last Saturday, BUT I've been treating her all week because I love her and she's the greatest human ever.
I don't know what it is about Red Lobster, but I've always been a fan. I mean, can you blame me? The food's bomb, and the place holds sentimental value. I know it sounds weird, but hear me out! When I was younger, my mom would take me to RL after my piano performances so it became our tradition. I remember stuffing my face with cheddar biscuits and scarfing down mass amounts of shrimp. Fast forward 15 years andddddd absolutely nothing has changed, ha!
We walked into the Red Lobster in Hanover, MD for a late lunch on Monday. We were promptly seated and then greeted by our awesome waiter, Gabriel! Thanks to him, we had a really wonderful meal experience. He was super attentive and checked back often to make sure we were happy with our food. If you visit this joint, make sure you ask for him!
Now, onto our noms! To drink, I ordered a Rogue Wave. This magical concoction seriously made me feel like I was chilling on a tropical island for reals. Made with Sauza Gold tequila, blue curacao, house margarita mix, and ginger ale, this beverage does NOT disappoint. If you like Margaritas, you'll absolutely love this cocktail. Oh, and it comes in a collectible Deadliest Catch mason jar, which you can take home with you. Yasss for free swag!
We ordered our favorite appetizer, crab stuffed mushrooms, to start and ate it with our nom salads + heavenly cheddar biscuits. Yeah, we got a TON of food so we were actually half-full by the time our entrees came out!
My mom ordered chicken tacos and got a side of zucchini on the side. Her dish came with delish jalapeño ranch and fresh pico de gallo. I, on the other hand, got the Crab Lover's Dream in honor of Crabfest. I had a really hard time picking my entree because there were so many awesome dishes listed. It was def. a tough call between that and the Crab Cakes & Crab-Oscar Salmon! I'll have to go back and try the latter.
Anywho, my dish came with wild-caught snow crab legs, king crab legs, crab linguini alfredo, and steamed broccoli. As always, their food was solid. Everything was nomtastic, but my fave by far was the crab linguini. Their alfredo is always so ridiculously good – def. try it when you go!
The best part about Red Lobster, other than this cheesy goodness, is that they're all about seafood with standards. They select their food very carefully and make sure they catch everything in a safe, sustainable way including Maine lobster + snow crab. Their farm-raised seafood comes from certified farms, and they never, EVER offer endangered or overfished seafood on their menu. To read more about their practices, click here!
Alright folks – that's it for today. I hope I didn't make you TOO hungry! Make sure you hurry to your closest Red Lobster to enjoy Crabfest with your loved ones, and visit the crabfest website to learn more about how you can win dinner with Captain Sig of the Deadliest Catch, and a tour of the Northwestern.
For more on foodporn, click here!


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You Are Creative and Artistic
You are the type of person who has a very active imagination. You live in a bit of a dream world.
Whenever you are able to channel your creativity, you are very productive and successful.
You are a very visual person, and you appreciate beauty and design. You feel anxious in the wrong surroundings.
You love luxury, and at times you can be an extravagant spender. You have no problem spoiling yourself.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
What does your middle name say about you?
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Last Thursday, May 12, the LimeWire lawsuit ended after five years of litigation with a $105 million dollar settlement for the plaintiffs, the record companies. This case is simply another example of how record companies and courts are cracking down on illegally downloading copyrighted materials and may provide a much-need boost for the music industry.
File sharing, in particular sharing copyrighted music, boomed in the early 2000s with the development of peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing with Napster in 1999. Although Napster was shut down in mid July of 2000, many programs with similar file sharing capabilities popped up including Kazaa, Morpheus, and LimeWire. The music industry struggled with sales because illegal downloads of record companies' copyrighted material were flying around the internet and scarcely regulated. In June 2005, the Supreme Court issued an opinion in MGM v. Grokster which held Grokster could be sued for inducing copyright infringement because they distributed their device "with the object of promoting its use to infringe copyright." While seen by some as a major victory for record labels, others didn't think it would have a large effect on P2P file sharing but just the way companies promoted the use of their programs.
Following the victory of the Grokster case, Arista Records and thirteen other major recording companies sued LimeWire for copyright infringement in the August of 2006, almost six years after LimeWire started up in 2000. About one year ago in May 2010, the record labels had a huge victory from U.S. District Court Judge Kimba Wood who found that LimeWire and its founder Mark Gorton were liable for infringement and unfair competition. Following that decision, in October 2010 the Kimba Wood entered a permanent injunction, ordering the service to be shut down. Now the website simply displays a notice about the court order and demanding that "all persons using the LimeWire software . . . must cease and desist from doing so."
The case then proceeded to the damages part of the trial, with Arista and others plaintiffs asking for $1.4 billion. Although the case settled for $105 million, a mere fraction of the original amount, it is likely to act as a deterrent to current and future file sharing websites. The real blow to P2P file sharing programs is the court order that found the company and its founder liable for copyright infringement because it underlines the importance and effect the Grokster case will have as well as how judges are using the case. This settlement is most likely not enough to compensate the money the record labels lost, but it shows that they are serious about taking P2P file sharing companies to court, shutting the sites down with injunctions, and going after the money once infringement and liability is found. Whether the LimeWire case and settlement will results in more legal downloads or just sneakier ways to illegal download copyrighted material has yet to be determined.
–Megan LaDriere
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I wanted to write a quick post to make sure everyone is aware that Costco is definitely CLOSED this Sunday, April 8 2012, for Easter in the US, UK, Canada, and Australia (I'm not sure about Costco Mexico as I couldn't seem to find their holiday information on their website). So, if you need to get a few last things to make some nice Easter baskets, or a few dozen of eggs to dye, maybe some beautiful flowers, or just some more groceries to feed all your relatives and friends that will be coming to visit, you'd better get to Costco Friday or Saturday. Of course, if you go to Costco in Australia or the Costco Canada locations that are NOT in the Province of Quebec, British Columbia, Alberta, or Regina, then you will also find that Costco there is CLOSED this Friday (Good Friday), April 6, 2012, as well.
If you're thinking of getting a ham for Easter dinner, I highly recommend the Kirkland Signature spiral cut hams (granted that review is a couple of years old now, but I've had the KS ham more recently and it is still really delicious).
By the way, the current UK coupon book runs through April 7, this Saturday, so be sure to use any coupons you like by then.


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WASHINGTON, Jan. 13 (UPI) -- The median net worth of a member of Congress was $1,029,505 in 2013 -- 18 times the worth of an average American home.
Almost 51 percent of Congress is composed of millionaires while the average American household has seen their net worth decrease 36 percent from $87,992 in 2003 to $56,335 in 2013.
With the exclusion of 2008, the net worth of members has increased since 2006. This year's analysis sees an increase of 2.5 percent, which is greater than the rate of inflation.
Congress was worth $400 million more in 2013, totaling $4.3 billion, than in 2012, according to the Center for Responsive Politics' latest analysis of congressional wealth.
"Whether voters elect them because they are successful or because people of modest means do not run... is unclear," CRP's Executive Director Sheila Krumholz said. "But struggling Americans should not assume that their elected officials understand their circumstances."
Congress has seven members, three Republicans and four Democrats, who are worth at least $100,000,000. There are about two dozen members whose worth is in the negatives.
The wealthiest member is Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., with a net worth of $448.4 million. In second place is Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., with $254.1 million.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., was worth $87.9 million in 2012, but joined the hundred-millionaire club in 2013. She is now worth $100.8 million.
Contrarily, Rep. David Valadao, R-Calif., had a net worth of negative $11.5 million, making him the poorest member of Congress in 2013.
For median net worth, Republicans were slightly wealthier than Democrats -- $1.1 million to $946,500 respectively.


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I recently had a chance to sample a variety of world class single malt scotches, including a 30-year-old Macallan that sells for about $1200 for a 750ml bottle. (That's around $50 per oz./30ml.) T'was one of the smoothest single malts I've ever tasted. The Macallan 15 I sampled ($130 per bottle) was full of caramel and sherry with a bit of a bite to it. The Macallan 18 ($300 per bottle), aged in sherry casks, not fine oak like the others, removed the bite and added some smoke and cream. The Macallan 21 ($350 per bottle) did more of the same but maltier. The Macallan 30 was nothing but smooth. However, the $1200 for the Macallan 30 might be better spent on ten or twelve bottles of equally exceptional whiskies than on a single bottle I'd be afraid to spill every time I opened it. The difference between the 18 and 30 is negligible. Here's a review of the Macallan 10:
I'm a lover of the peaty single malt Scotch whiskies, namely the Islay single malts, but having the chance to sample the higher end non-Islay scotches almost converted me. Nearly all the whiskies 18 years and older were magnificent. No peat? No problem — because the depth and the complexity of the scotches did nothing but take me on a pleasure trip. I'm still not sold on Macallan, mainly because it doesn't get great until about 18 years at $300 a bottle. Whereas the Lagavulin 16 (my go-to single malt) hits the same mark — and even higher for lovers of the peat — for less $100.
ADDENDUM: Sadly, Lagavulin 16 ain't what it used to be.


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Come experience the ultimate party at DJ Spinall's album launch | #PartyOfYourDreams!
Nov 21, 2017 | Soundcity Admin
Come November 26th, the Smirnoff X1 tour takes over Lagos city with the DJ Spinall's album launch tagged #PartyOfYourDreams. Enjoy the X1 Intense Chocolate vodka as you turn up to electrifying performances from some of Nigeria's biggest superstars as well as, Top Boy DJ Spinall. This is the next stop on the Smirnoff X1 Tour with lots [...]Read more


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Shipman Auto Parts
Automotive Service & Repair
Monday - Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., Saturday 8 a.m. - Noon
Driving Directions:
13th Street S.E., 2 blocks north of Fairgrounds or 6 blocks south of Oak Street on 13th Street S.E. in Brainerd.
About Us
Sale of used and new auto parts.


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The story
This is the story of ILLUM, the Copenhagen-based department store that, since its foundation in 1891, has offered not only the finest in fashion and beauty but also the latest trends in interior design and decoration. This is a guide through its history, development and the exciting new changes.
ILLUM is founded by Anton Carl Illum, a businessman well known for his sharp eye for fashion and his ability to take action with innovative, outside-the-box thinking.
He predicts the consequences of industrialization, increased employment and the growing demand for luxury and high-quality products.
ILLUM grows steadily over the years and in 1899, Anton Illum purchases the property on the opposite side of the street. The first department store in Copenhagen now becomes a reality.
Anton Illum is in many ways groundbreaking. Famous for his modern leadership skills, offering staff benefits and having satisfied employees, every morning staff would gather for a meeting and singalong in the middle of ILLUM.
Anton Illum passes away, and his family takes ownership.
The 40's are affected by the German "peace occupation", which puts Danish society in an economically difficult position. Despite goods shortages and the economic situation, Svend Illum keeps the business going in the same spirit as his father and ILLUM continues to sustain positive growth.
1960's og 70's
In order to tempt customers back to the center of Copenhagen, ILLUM builds a car park in the mid 60's and begins a larger process of re-construction.
During the re-construction ILLUM also builds a new facade. The facade that today still stands, is clearly influenced by the so-called "casemate-architechture" with its concrete and raw expression.
Despite the face lift, in 1972, ILLUM is sold to the British department store group, House of Fraser, after 81 years of family ownership.
ILLUM is bought by Th. Wessel & Wett.
Merrill Lynch buys into ILLUM with Th. Wessel & Wett as co-owner.
Illum is bought by the Icelandic investors, I-Holding (later M-holding).
After a tumultuous period with many different owners, the store is purchased by the investment firm, Solstra Investments A/S.
In 2011, ILLUM celebrates its 120-year anniversary.
ILLUM is bought by the Italian department store La Rinascente bringing with it more than 150 years of experience operating department stores and like ILLUM, offers the best in fashion, accessories, beauty, interior and decor, design and gastronomic delicatessens.
La Rinascente's aim is to continue progressive growth by investing in infrastructure, people, brands and service.


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Publication Date: Jun 17, 2003
360 pp
List Price US $26.00
List Price US $26.00
The Brain and the Inner World is an eagerly-awaited account of a momentous revolution. Subjective mental states like consciousness, emotion, and dreaming were once confined to the realm of philosophy, psychoanalysis, and the human sciences. These topics now assume center stage in leading neuroscientific laboratories around the world. This shift has produced an explosion of new insights into the natural laws that govern our inner life.
By two pioneers in the field, The Brain and the Inner World guides us through the exciting new discoveries, showing how old psychodynamic concepts are being forged into a scientific framework for understanding subjective experience.
It is not that the mind is reduced to neurobiology. Rather, thanks to neurobiology, we are free to believe in the power of the mind. The neurosciences will soon be able to argue with Plato, Descartes, James, Freud, and Lacan about the mysterious connections between emotions, experience, will, reason, and creativity.
Excerpt from Brain and the Inner World
"Solms and his colleagues are making a brilliant, determined, scrupulous, and (one wants to say) tactful endeavor to approach, in a new way, the oldest question of all—the mysterious relation of body and mind."
—Oliver Sacks, from his Foreword
"This is erudite and fascinating. The authors show us that modern neuroscience allows us to find neurological correlates of some basic psychoanalytical concepts, but in doing so, and this is important, they do not fall into the reductionist explanations so dominant in neuroscience today. Their approach is refreshing and their arguments are well reasoned."
—Lesley Rogers, author of Sexing the Brain


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For those users who want to manually set their Notes 8.5.1 client to connect to Lotus Protector, you will need to specify the URL in a Notes ini setting for the Lotus Protector for Mail Security 2.5 server.
Note: This setting supports the use of an IP/HOSTNAME:PORT combination such as 18.104.22.168:4443 or protector.company.com:4443. The setting does not support the use of an http or https URL such as https://protector.company.com:4443.
Note: To locate the URL for the Protector server, see the Lotus Protector for Mail Security 2.5 documentation at https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/lotus/documentation/protector/mailsecurity.
Applies to:
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Saturday, May 09, 2015
N.T. Wright, Bigot Par Exellence
"So now you know — for Wright, Marcus Borg was a Christian passionately devoted to Jesus, despite his denial of the resurrection, and someone who believes in an historic Adam made from the dust of the ground is a literalistic and gnostic goon show. So note again that this is not a fundamentalist attempt to draw hard heresy lines — this is N.T. Wright doing it."
4 comments:
Planet of the ApesReplyDelete
Wright's patronizing rhetoric is a polemical tactic. An attempt to put Bible-believing Christians on the defense: "Surely you don't believe anything that preposterous, do you?"ReplyDelete
But, of course, a former bishop and theologian is in no position to assume that posture, for he can't dismiss the Bible outright and still maintain any semblance of Christian profession. He has to keep up appearances.
The condescension is more consistent for Richard Dawkins or Jerry Coyne, who feel no need to salvage a residual element of truth from Gen 1-3. They discount it en bloc.
Wright, by contrast, is laboring to have it both ways. Act intellectually superior to Bible-believing Christians by siding with the Darwinians on human evolution, but maintain that in some attenuated sense, Gen 1-3 should still inform our overall position–even though his reinterpretation is an artificial and anachronistic stopgap harmonization.
- Anonymous5/11/2015 6:18 PM
Along a similar vein is an article (as if it were the only one) by Enns I recently saw recommended by a friend whom I consider to be a brother in Christ:ReplyDelete
Think of Paul at the Areopagus:
Paul: This Jesus was raised to life by the one God of Israel.
Platonist: Whoa! We of the intelligentsia know that that's just Jewish nonsense. God is far too high to become human, to die, and come back to life! Preposterous! It's just not possible.
Paul: Yeah, but, that's what happened...
Gnostic: Hmmm...I like this Jesus-god thing...but I don't like this resurrection thing...how about he was just raised in spiritual enlightenment?
Paul: Heh...No...
Platonist: All this Jewish nonsense...
Paul: But...
Gnostic: Hey I like this Jesus I said, I just think he needs to be tweaked. People aren't stupid like they used to be when Daniel prophesied, we just know too much about the world to believe that stuff. Why can't we take what we like from both and leave off everything else?
Wolves in sheep's clothing are in positions to rend Christ's flock in ways apostates and anti-theists on the outside aren't. It's good to mark them out when their teeth show.ReplyDelete


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Comments /{{hitsCtrl.values.hits}} Views / Friday, 22 February 2013 00:25
By Cheranka Mendis
The Colombo landscape is changing visibly. The sprucing up of Colombo with an emphasis on serving the citizens with a cleaner and greener city and an accentuation on beautification and value addition is now on in full swing.
The commercial and financial hub of the country, Colombo is also the international gateway to Sri Lanka and houses most of the country's important institutions and service facilities. With most of Sri Lanka's foreign trade passing through the Colombo Port, the metro Colombo region will continue to generate much of the capital, human resources, technology, and services needed for the growth of the rest of the country. The need to tap the competitive advantage of Colombo and to accelerate growth is therefore a key necessity.
Focused on developing Colombo to become a competitive and dynamic city and to be listed among the most liveable cities in the world competing for the likes of Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize in the coming years, the Metro Colombo Urban Development Project has unwrapped many of Colombo's treasures and is on the lookout for more.
Project Director of the Metro Colombo Urban Development Project and Ministry of Defence and Urban Development Additional Secretary Engineer Rohan Seneviratne delivering a lecture on Colombo's urban regeneration noted that with the end of civil unrest in Sri Lanka, President Mahinda Rajapaksa identified the need for rapid urban regeneration as vital for the sustainability of the economy. Speaking at a discussion organised by the British Scholars Association, Seneviratne noted that an ambitious program was launched to realise the full potential of the region and to create a highly liveable city.
The urban development work is led by Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa under the purview of the President since 2010.
Why Colombo was not so beautiful before
Seneviratne noted that the first task undertaken by the Defence Secretary was to list out the obstacles that prevented Colombo from attaining its maximum capabilities. "Under the key issues some of our priority concerns were poor solid waste management, frequent flooding in the metro Colombo region, and the lack of mega urban regeneration projects happening in the city," he said.
The committee put together to identify such matters also identified the large number of pavement hawkers occupying road pavements, poor walkability on the roads, inadequate infrastructure, underserved settlements, and inadequate city spaces for public. Also noted were the insufficient institutional strengths of local authorities, less opportunity for city economy, and less environmental protection and improvement in the city.
"We wanted to carry out immediate programs for at least few of the obstacles, while planning medium and long term programs to address many of the other areas which cannot be addressed in a short time period," Seneviratne said. The limited availability of funds in the country also posed a question mark in carrying out a number of projects during the same time frame. "We therefore categorised the issues and while starting work on immediate concerns, made plans for medium and long term projects. This enabled us to save time and organise ourselves better."
Immediate programs launched
nIntroducing proper solid waste management system for the city of Colombo
A few years ago, solid waste was everywhere in the city and its outskirts. No proper collection mechanism was adapted and garbage management was very poor. Seneviratne acknowledged that while garbage collection was handled by the CMC, the task was not properly managed. "We gathered the stakeholders of the exercise and wanted to smoothen out the management system. It was not a problem of money but of management. Contractors were not doing their job."
Under this intervention, the Environmental Police was introduced to supervise the collection of garbage and maintaining the cleanliness of the city. This seems to have worked remarkably well and the city is now more or less spick-and-span. "Visitors now congratulate us on the cleanliness," Seneviratne said, "Some say we are even better than New York."
While this positive change is likely to continue, the issue now is handling the garbage and landfills, he said.
More evident in the areas of Nugegoda and Pettah, cleaning up the pavements for pedestrians and giving the pavement hawkers a new location to settle in has not only created a better environment to walk in, but has also managed to ease the traffic flow in the areas.
"While cleaning the pavements for the benefit of the public, we also wanted to give better lending spaces for pavement hawkers. We wanted to create better opportunities for them." Buildings for this purpose were constructed in Pettah, Hospital Square, and in Nugegoda.
Under the immediate interventions, work also began in reconstructing the damaged pavements with the assistance of the CMC and Road Development Authority (RDA). Seneviratne noted that a new mechanism has also been introduced to stop the digging up of roads in an ad hoc manner soon after reconstruction. If needed, the body/organisation must seek special approval from the UDA.
nRehabilitation of roads
The rehabilitation of roads also happened in parallel to walkability improvement. Roads that were in a poor state – especially Galle Road, from Bambalapitiya junction to Colpetty junction – have been rehabilitated under a 'modern road' concept. The Parliament Road followed suit with new landscapes being added to the improvements.
All this work and the work that continues at present (bus lanes being introduced, new street lamps installed, uni-flow traffic system, etc.) has brought local roads on par with modern roads of the region.
Colombo's poor drainage and flood issues are a common issue faced by all. As it was, the city was getting flooded even after medium rainfall. Even the Parliamentary complex fell victim to this issue.
Having analysed the issue after the 2010 floods, Seneviratne noted some of their key findings were high intensity of rainfall due to climate change (within half hour 70-80mm of rain), macro drainage system with insufficient storage, 30% of storage space lost during the last decade due to legal and illegal fillings in Colombo, conveyance capacity limited and solid waste everywhere, outflow capacity of the system not enough (hugely insufficient capacity in the Mutwal tunnel and north block where water passes through to the Kelani River), low capacity in the down-flow (South Block and St. Sebastian's Canal), localised issues, and climate change.
"We wanted to develop an integrated flood management solution. We brainstormed and got the engineers to work around the analysis."
The solutions were many. To improve upper catchments basin so the water does not come to canal system immediately and store water when it rains and release later, divert water to Kelani River before it comes to Parliament Lake from the Madiwela east and south diversion, store water by creating lakes, retention areas in the upper catchments and increase capacity of Parliament Lake, and the removal of bottlenecks in the downstream canals to maximise the conveyance and cleaning of the canals were among some of them. The Group also decided to go for micro tunnels, install pumping stations, improve the micro drainage system, and canal bank protection.
"As immediate solutions we created lakes in the upper catchments areas (new lakes created in the Parliament Lake area) using National Budget money, rehabilitated the main canal system wherever possible, and installed a proper cleaning mechanism for micro drainage system," Seneviratne said. "All this gave very good results."
"We identified that there are no urban spaces in the city for people to enjoy as it is a highly dense place," he said. While large areas for people to gather and enjoy is quite common in other countries, in Sri Lanka the places were few and far between. The Galle Face Green, Independence Square, Vihara Maha Devi Park, and the Parliament Grounds were some of the most popular spaces.
"We went on to demolish the walls and enhance the greenery. We wanted to get as much space for the public which is important for the mindset of the people." A large number of spaces have now been created and there are more to come in the pipeline. (See box 'Latest developments in the city' for more details.)
Colombo did not have proper mega scale urban regeneration programs for many years after the construction of the Twin Towers. Therefore the UDA is promoting mega scale development projects within the city in the land that is registered under UDA. (See box 'Latest developments in the city' for more details.)
Medium term programs
While these immediate programs were being implemented, the UDA under the Metro Colombo Urban Development Project started working on its medium and long term program plan. With the limited funding available within the Government, the State has encouraged PPPs and to receive assistance from lending agencies such as Asian Development Bank (ADB), World Bank (WB), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JAICA), etc.
Metro Colombo Urban Development Project
The first and key of such projects are the World Bank and Government funded 'Metro Colombo Urban Development Project.' The US$ 233 million project has received approval within a year since initial discussions from the World Bank. The usual period to receive approval is three years. This is known as one of the fastest urban regeneration projects in the world.
The project focuses on three key factors – flood and drainage management, urban development, infrastructure rehabilitation and capacity building for Metro Colombo local authorities, and implementation support. The costs estimated for the first two components are US$ 147.55 million and US$ 50.7 million respectively and is coming from the WB. The third, at an estimated US$ 10 million will be borne by the Government. The WB funding is on a concessionary loan to be paid back in 25 years.
"Land Reclamation conducted hydrological studies using latest software, latest models, and with the use of helicopters for the survey and has developed the first hydrological model for Colombo," Seneviratne said adding that this is said to be one of the best in the world. All work has been done by local architects and engineers, expediting the work for faster implementation.
Under this, the UDA looks at improving canal system, creating more space, widening the Nawalagama flow and installing a pumping station, installing a micro tunnel in Muthuwavala, building drainage capacities and culvert improvement, micro tunnels from Thunmulla to sea, Muthuvavela to sea, and Dematagoda to Kelani River among others.
The Beira Lake and catchments will be improved and linear parks will be set up in East Beira while a biodiversity wetland park in Beddagana will also be constructed under the project.
Infrastructure improvements
Infrastructure which also supports the local authorities of CMC, Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia, and Sri Jayawardenapura will be improved under the medium term World Bank-funded project. While the CMC remains to be the biggest beneficiary, the other two areas will also received adequate attention.
The project encompassing the Galle road stretch from Wellawatte to Bambalapitiya as well as Colpetty to Galle Face will be commenced no sooner the tender process is complete. R.A. De Mel Mawatha – Duplication Road will be completely developed with modern facilities. 10km of road in the city is to be developed along with 15 public complexes.
Seneviratne asserted that plans are underway to install two overhead pedestrian bridges in Colpetty and Bambalapitiya. "We are having a competition for designs for these bridges with the Institute of Architects," he said. Two recreational water parks will also come up in Crow Island and Marine Drive.
The Town Hall square will be developed. "Restorations are ongoing at the building site, which you can now see is not done by the CMC but by us. The plan is to develop it to a city hall complex which the public enjoys in other countries." The garden will be designed with water sprinkler systems, biking areas, landscaped parks, and illuminations with special lighting system. This is to be open to the public soon.
A project is also underway to reinstall the overhead cables underground. Done in collaboration with Ceylon Electricity Board, this has already been initiated in Vauxhall Street and Darley Road.
Seneviratne said: "The loan agreement was signed on 10 July 2012 and by October three contracts were already awarded. By now we have awarded nine contracts worth of 2000 million which is a record. We hope to complete the entire project in three years even though the given time frame is five."
He noted that the first seven toilet complexes can be opened in one and half months and that 80% of the work is now complete. 60% of the roads work is completed. 25km of roads in Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte can be done, while 30km in the Dehiwala-Mount Lavinia road network has been done.
Another look at the strategies
While things are changing the Metro Colombo Urban Development Project will also relook at the City Development Strategy and the Integrated Urban Master Plan which is currently outdated.
"We want to make an integrated one," he said. "We have called an expression of interest from international reputed companies. We received a large number of it and must shortlist to six bids now for Metro Colombo." The expectation is to go beyond Colombo to the outer circular boundaries of Ja-Ela up to Panadura and Kottawa covering 700 sqkm area.
Projects for the future
A number of projects are also in the pipeline, Seneviratne said.
Pix by Upul Abayasekara
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Monday, 9 December 2019
Sunil Gavaskar is one of India's greatest batsman. But he also has a very unique sense of humour. And he used that tongue-in-cheek humour to make a point at a press conference. This was a time when the Indian cricket team was touring abroad and the
Monday, 9 December 2019
Damage control exercise by Finance Ministry In a background of some contrasting signals from various parties regarding the generous tax cuts introduced by the Government, the Finance Ministry has attempted to do a damage control exercise by issuing a
Saturday, 7 December 2019
Every nation, every community and each individual is facing the social and political impact along with the impact of violence. Interpersonal violence results in medical, policing and judicial costs immediately after the violent incident occurs and it
Friday, 6 December 2019
Data protection is not a concept we, in Sri Lanka, are familiar with. Globally, the laws surrounding data protection have been around for about 20 years. And we are only just about getting started. The proposed 'Data Protection Act' (hereinafter


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Woolworths' NZ supermarket sales barely budge in 3rd qtr in face of 'subdued, competitive' market
Woolworths [ASX: WOW], Australia's biggest supermarket operator, said third quarter sales barely budged at its Countdown chain in New Zealand, in the face of a subdued, highly competitive market.
New Zealand supermarket sales edged up 0.1 percent to $1.4 billion in the 13 weeks ended April 6, the Sydney-based retailer said in a statement. The strength of the kiwi dollar meant sales rose 16 percent in Australian dollars.
The 167 Countdown supermarkets compete with larger rival Foodstuffs, made up of two regional cooperatives which have 139 New World stores, 50 PAK'nSave outlets, 283 Four Square outlets, liquor stores and wholesaling. Foodstuffs had annual sales of $8.6 billion in 2013, while Countdown's are running at an annualised $5.6 billion.
"Trading for the quarter was impacted by subdued grocery market conditions, a highly competitive marketplace and price deflation across a number of categories," said Dave Chambers, managing director of Woolworths' New Zealand supermarkets division.
Countdown is being investigated by the Commerce Commission following allegations from Labour MP Shane Jones that it engaged in anti-competitive behaviour over the treatment of local suppliers. Jones is leaving parliament after accepting a South Pacific economic advisory job for the government. Woolworths made no mention of the allegations in its quarterly results.
The parent company reported a 5.3 percent gain in third quarter sales to A$15.2 billion, led by a 4.4 percent gain to A$10.4 billion for Australian food and liquor.
Woolworths stock fell 2.6 percent to A$37.05 on the ASX and has gained 12 percent this year.


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There has been nothing but drama in the first week of the 2015 Giro d'Italia: crashes, injuries, solo wins, massive breaks, mountain attacks and sprint finishes.
It's all a bit exhausting really, but thankfully Monday = rest day, allowing us to recharge our batteries and look back on some of the memorable performances of stages one to nine.
Rider of the week
Logic would dictate that the best rider is the one that's currently leading the race. And when Alberto Contador is the man in pink after the first week it wouldn't be outrageous to argue that he's been the best.
But the thing is, he's not looked all that great for large parts of the first nine stages. On the first day the Spaniard looked pretty ropey in the team time trial, struggling to hold his teammates' wheels as they forged towards a great time.
He has his colleagues to thank for only having a seven-second deficit after stage one, but he was the best placed General Classification contender.
Then he attacked up the climb to Abetone to take the pink jersey and he looked great. But then he fell off and dislocated his shoulder the very next day and was forced to just 'get through' the next few stages.
Instead, Fabio Aru gets my nod as the best performer over the first nine days. The Astana rider gave up just six seconds to Contador in the TTT and has managed to get three of them back between then and now.
Contador made the move on stage five but Aru was able to mark him and even pip him to the finish line. Then on stage eight the Italian showed his attacking intent by laying down several efforts on the final climb to try and distance the Spaniard.
As is usually the case, the incumbent of the leader's jersey will simply mark any attacks rather than setting the race alight himself, meaning we get to see Aru, one of the peloton's most exciting prospects, showing what he can do in the mountains.
Unsung hero award
Anyone who rides on their own for most of the day is a bit of a hero in my eyes, but a couple of riders took attacking cycling to a different level on stages eight and nine.
Carlos Betancur will likely be making the most of his rest day (hopefully not at the buffet table) after two days straight in the breakaway, but LottoNL-Jumbo's Steven Kruijswijk will arguably be nursing some of the sorest legs today.
Stage eight saw the Dutchman riding alone for a huge part of the race, breaking away after 20-odd kilometres and staying there until he was caught by Betancur and Kristoff Vandewalle.
But Kruijswijk didn't like those two stealing his limelight, so he attacked again on the climb to Campitello Matese and looked as if he could be strong enough to go on and take a famous win.
As it turned out, though, the thundering pace of eventual winner Beñat Intxausti and his chasing partner Sebastian Reichenbach got the better of him. He was then caught and spat out the back of the peloton, scrambling to the line two minutes down.
While probably harbouring thoughts of comfortably pootling along in the peloton in stage eight, Kruijswijk was then sent out in the break again, which this time made it to the end.
His second-place finish was pretty inspirational for a rank amateur like myself to see. No longer can I complain that my legs ache after a slow 40-miler. "Would Steve complain?" people would say. No. No he wouldn't.
Quote of the week
Talking of long, solo breakaways, Cannondale-Garmin's Tom-Jelte Slagter gunned it himself with 60km left of a brutal stage nine and summed it up pretty well afterwards.
"You just have to manage your ride on feeling," he said. "If you go too fast you f**k yourself, I was just trying to ride on the limit the entire time, that's it."
Photo of the week
Contador managed a smile on the podium after his crash on stage six, but his arms tell the whole story.
Such was his concern for his injured shoulder that Contador couldn't lift his left arm high enough to put the pink jersey on, requesting instead to just hold it in his other hand.
At that point many people were questionning whether the Spaniard would even make it to the start of stage seven, but he soldiered on, taking only ibuprofen for the pain.
Stats of the week
Classification leaders after stage nine
General classification: Alberto Contador (Spain) Tinkoff-Saxo
Points classification: Elia Viviani (Italy) Team Sky
Mountains classification: Simon Geschke (Germany) Giant-Alpecin
Young rider classification: Fabio Aru (Italy) Astana
Race stats
Stages completed: 9
Stages to go: 12
Distance ridden: 1484.6km
Distance to go: 2009.2km
Stage winners so far
Stage one: Orica-GreenEdge (Team time trial)
Stage two: Elia Viviani (Team Sky)
Stage three: Michael Matthews (Orica-GreenEdge)
Stage four: Davide Formolo (Cannondale-Garmin)
Stage five: Jan Polanc (Lampre-Merida)
Stage six: André Greipel (Lotto-Soudal)
Stage seven: Diege Ulissi (Lampre-Merida)
Stage eight: Beñat Intxausti (Movistar)
Stage nine: Paolo Tiralongo (Astana)
Stage wins by nation (not including TTT)
Italy: 4
Australia: 1
Germany: 1
Slovenia: 1
Spain: 1
Stage wins by team
Lampre-Merida: 2
Orica-GreenEdge: 2
Astana: 1
Cannondale-Garmin: 1
Lotto-Soudal: 1
Movistar: 1
Team Sky: 1


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Bags, Batch Software and Biotech
Find Out How Shire Biopharmaceuticals Accelarated Their Construction Plans for Their Newest Facility to Accomdate the Making of Six Needed Drugs
By Jim Montague, Executive Editor
Fast time to market doesn't usually mean saving lives by treating kids with rare genetic diseases—but sometimes it does. For instance, when another biopharma manufacturer's process broke down—threatening global supply of several vital lysosomal medicines—the U.S. Food and Drug Administration asked Shire Biopharmaceuticals and its Human Genetic Therapies (HGT) division if they could greatly accelerate the construction of a planned, single-use, biotech process and greenfield facility to make six of the drugs.
"We had to speed up our project schedule, shift basic process design, minimize costs, perform testing and complete certifications as soon as possible, and deliver a fully redundant system," says Lloyd Vallance, Shire HGT's senior process control engineer. "Above all, we had to help these patients. Our management even posted pictures of them around our facility as a reminder for everyone."
Vallance presented "Rapid Deployment of a Single-Use Biotech Facility" at Honeywell Users Group Americas Symposium 2011 on June 14 in Phoenix.
Thanks to its commitment, Shire HGT broke ground in spring 2008 and got its $210-million, three-story, 250,000-square-foot Atlas manufacturing plant up and running by June 2010—five months ahead of schedule. Located in Lexington, Mass., the plant is now the world's largest single-use bioreactor facility, and is operating in current good manufacturing practices (cGMP) operating mode.
In addition, Shire HGT's accelerated construction project and single-use bioreactor process uses Honeywell Process Solution's Experion Batch Manager system, C300 controllers, and some OneWirelesss networking. The bioreactors also use Profibus networking to control 170 peristaltic pumps and employ Foundation fieldbus networking to control temperature measurement and other devices.
"Experion Batch Manager enabled us to execute all procedure levels in the controller environment," says Vallance. "Its benefits for us included one platform and application for system training; recipe flexibility because we're not limited to a fixed number of levels; and appropriate levels of redundancy."
In addition, single-use means Shire HGT's bioreactors consist of two 200-liter and two 2000-liter plastic bags that serve as liners, which are filled and mixed while being supported in a steel box, and so require far less cleaning and testing time than conventional reactors. These bioreactors are fed by 3000-liter bags as part of a perfusion process that delivers nutrients and other raw materials. Vallance reported that, even though the single-use bags can cost up to $10,000, they allow Shire HGT's staff to changeover bioreactors in just six hours. Traditional vessels can take two weeks to be cleaned and recertified.
"To get this project done successfully we needed skillful project management, which focused on safety first, aggressive scope management, and used integrated, online scheduling and document tracking and approvals," explains Vallance. "Honeywell's global approach helped us coordinate tasks and perform integrated testing, qualification and commissioning, and also help our teams cooperate faster."
Vallance reported that Shire HGT's speedy bioreactor project also heavily used VMware's computer virtualization methods and technologies. "We employed a virtual system that mimicked our plant-floor system, and we ran on a single CPU to further reduce hardware and setup time," he said. "This was the first time anyone has used disposable bioreactor liners at this scale. However, the rapid prototyping we had to do was helped by our early process development and offline testing, which allowed us to find areas for process improvement, and our parallel design effort and integrated factory acceptance testing (FAT). We were even able to assemble much of the new bioreactor process and facility at a rented space while the new building was still under construction."


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Well, it seems the break between post 2 and post 3 was longer than expected. I didn't do any blogging at the beach this year, but sure played a lot of volleyball. Keep an eye on my youtube page for that video. Ok, let's get back to 1/18 Dukes of Hazzard cars.
The American Muscle Authentics General Lee was released in 2007 and was a very big deal for Ertl and collectors. Ertl advertised the car heavily online and many retailers posted pre-sales and advertisements for it. It was worth the fanfare as it is on a different level of detail from all the previous General Lee 1/18s. The box has the same brown box theme and features a gold embossed Authentics logo. The box window has an Authentics sticker that proclaims the car has over 200 parts. So many pieces are new to the release. The wheels are much closer to the actual American Racing Vector wheels, the new roll bar is more authentic, the trunk finally opens and includes a spare tire, the General even comes with its signature tear drop base antenna, and the graphics are bolder and closer to the show. Nearly everything about this car is better than the older releases. Nearly everything, but not everything. The car has the Charger logo on the side of the car behind the window. Some Chargers had that, but never any Generals. A tiny detail that got under my skin was the headlight covers were up showing the lights while the car was in the box. Perhaps that was included to show off the working headlight doors, but the General Lee was rarely ever depicted with the light doors up so I didn't like that detail. You can easily close the doors if you open the box. The antenna, even though it's the first time a 1/18 Gen'ral was included with one, is criminally small. But all in all, it's a great representation of the General Lee in highly detailed fashion... they just got a few details wrong.
The American Muscle Authentics General Lee has a new description on the box, exclusive to the Authentics line. It reads: "The Dukes of Hazzard followed the exploits of cousins Bo and Luke Duke (just a couple of good ol' boys) and their kin as they tried to have fun and stay one step ahead of the corrupt local sheriff. The details on this Authentics General Lee will make you feel like you're on the dusty back roads of Hazzard County yourself!" I like it. It's a bilingual box.
The RC2 logo is back on this one.
The back also features a description of all the details that were added to the car including authentically welded closed doors, trunk mounted CB antenna, authentic General Lee graphics, roll cage, working suspension and drivetrain, wires, plugs and hoses, and the detailed 440 engine. This car is almost the best representation of the General Lee in 1/18. It was the best when it was released, but got dethroned a few years later. More on that in the next post.
Supercar Collectibles returned to the Dukes fold in 2007 with two exclusive versions of the Authentics General Lee. The first was the 1 of 150 black General Lees. Taking the same mold and parts of the Authentic General Lee and painting it black, this exclusive car is often referred to as the Happy Birthday General Lee, much like the first black 1/18 Gen'ral. It features the Vector wheels and roll bar that the black Charger from the Happy Birthday episode didn't yet feature. The front and back license plates read 1 of 150 as a way of showing it off exclusivity. There is a Supercar Collectibles sticker on the box window.
It features the same box as the previous Authentics General Lee. It was released in 2007.
The second Supercar Collectibles Authentics exclusive General Lee is different from the others. It is similar to the 252 car the Supercar released a couple years earlier in that it's a black Charger with the General Lee's uniform. It's not dirty like the 252 car though. The odd thing about this release is that it's in a standard American Muscle Authentics Dodge Charger box. It's labeled as a Dodge Charger and not the General Lee. As a matter of fact, the General Lee nor the Dukes of Hazzard are mentioned anywhere on the box. Not even a mention of Warner Bros. which doesn't seem all the legal. Strange.
The back of the box features images of a standard Dodge Charger highly detailed 1/18. It lists all the details that were added to the line.
The bottom also doesn't have any WB legal information. This is the box a regular Dodge Charger came in. It also came out in 2007 and is quite hard to track down these days. These three American Muscle Authentics were the last General Lee 1/18s to bear any name like Ertl, American Muscle, or RC2. They were also the last Dukes 1/18s to be produced for a while. The streak of a new Dukes 1/18 for each year of the new century would end with 2007 being the last year and 2008 through 2010 were dark years for Dukes 1/18s, but certainly not for other Dukes products. Models, t-shirts, and 1/64s were released in those few years, but no 1/18s.
Then a new name got into the Dukes of Hazzard 1/18 mix. Johnny Lightning! Johnny Lightning is a familiar brand to us in Hazzard County.
We all remember the massive line of Dukes of Hazzard 1/64s that JL unleashed from 2006 through 2010. While Ertl was bringing us Hazzard County in 1/18 scale, Johnny Lightning gave us nearly every car to be shown on screen. It's a super collection and includes cars such as Hughie Hogg's VW, Lucifer, the #44 Buick National, Grey Ghost, and Black Tillie. It was only a matter of time until JL tackled 1/18 Dukes.
Going forward, there is no more Ertl in the Dukes game. They are still around, and a leader in farm equipment replicas, but they haven't produced any Dukes in a long time. The two big names in this and the next blog post are Tomy and Round 2. RC2 which was the corporation formed when Ertl and Racing Champions joined forces was purchased by Tomy, a Japanese company that has ties back to the original Transformers toys, in 2011. Johnny Lightning was already a part of RC2 at the time. Round 2, the parent company of Auto World that had ties to Ertl and American Muscle would later revive JL, but first compete with them in Hazzard County. All of the remaining cars on this post and the next one will be from either JL or AW, and most came out after I started this blog, so they have probably been covered in detail here on ol' DukesCollector. That doesn't mean I didn't take fresh pictures of them and I will still go into detail about each one. Now that the history lesson is over, let's get back to it.
The first Dukes of Hazzard 1/18 to bear the JL logo looks basically the same as the last Dukes 1/18 to bear the Joyride logo. Really there is no difference. It is the standard body, the same one that has been released since 2000. It is not the highly detailed version. Besides the different logos, they are the same car and the same box. There is one difference. The JL doesn't have the license plates. No CHN 320 on the back, and no flag on the front. But that's it.
The description is the same. It's the "mostly in cars" description that doesn't mention the Gen'ral. The pictures are also the same.
The Dodge logo has been updated and the bottom of the box now features JL's website.
I wonder why so many different cars had or didn't have the plates. Confusing.
Wanna talk confusing? This is where it get's very confusing. In 2011, we saw the release of the 1/18 General in a box that only had different logos from the Joyride box. In 2012, JL released another version of General Lee, this time the box was identical to the last release, except for one tiny detail.
The logo for the parent company Tomy was added to the box. In blue letters in a white box. Between Dukes of Hazzard 1/18 collectors (me and Dave DeWitt) this car is called the "white Tomy JL General Lee."
It has the same box and the same pictures we've seen before. The car is the same and does not include license plate stickers.
Once Johnny Lightning came into the fray, they didn't just bring the General Lee with them. They also went back to the Ertl archives and re-released the 1974 Dodge Monaco. This time labeled as "Rosco's Police Car" the Hazzard County cruiser was again the wrong year. JL did make a huge improvement on this car by giving us the correct looking lightbar. This car came out in 2012. I posted an in depth review of this car when I first received it in October of 2012.
The box features pictures of the actual product and has the same "mostly in cars" description. It also features the white Tomy logo.
The light bar is a huge improvement over the Joyride version from 2007. The Johnny Lightning Rosco's Police Car came out in 2012.
Johnny Lightning is known for their chase variants known as White Lightnings. They are versions of cars with a special trait, usually white tires that are generally 2% of the manufacturing run. They are randomly placed in shipping cartons. There is a White Lightning variant for each Dukes JL 1/64 car and once JL entered the Dukes 1/18 arena, I knew there would be more chase cars to hunt down. Oddly enough, to my knowledge, there is no WL version of the no Tomy 2011 JL 1/18 General Lee. The first Dukes 1/18 to get the WL treatment was Rosco's Police Car.
Released at the same time as the standard car, and in the same box, the White Lightning version features white rubber tires. I never opened mine, but I suspect some part of the engine is also white.
In 2012, JL didn't just stop at the Hazzard Police Station, they also brought us a version of Buzz's Double Zero Ford Mustang. I called it the "Fall Season of new Dukes diecasts" when I first got this car because so many Dukes 1/18s were hitting the market. You can read my original review here. I took issue with the naming of this car because we all know it was only seen in the first reunion movie and Cooter certainly never drove it. It's officially known as "Cooter's Ford Mustang" but should be called "Buzz's Ford Mustang" or just "The Double Zero Mustang." In my review I noted that JL had made the mistake of naming it Cooter's Mustang in a 1/64 set that itself was a re-release of a RC2 set from 2006 that first made the mistake. JL just used the information they had on file. I guess we can't blame them for not firing up the reunion movie DVDs before bringing a new product to market. This car also has the white Tomy logo.
The back of the box features a picture of the diecast car and has the "mostly in cars" description. I guess they kept using that one because it doesn't mention a particular car.
Similar to the American Muscle Double Zero that came out in 2001, the 2012 JL Double Zero had the 00 on the license plate. But no Hazzard County like the previous one.
Like Rosco's Police Car, the Mustang had a White Lightning chase version. The white tires really stand out against the blue car.
You might have missed the white tires on the white Rosco car, but there is no missing them on the blue Mustang.
The final car that is labeled as being released in 2012 (it actually came out in January 2013) is the first Johnny Lightning Dukes 1/18 that is not a re-release. It's the #99 Cooter's Chevy Camaro. Also in a white Tomy box, this car was seen in the season 1 episode "Luke's Love Story." Cooter planned on entering this car in the big race against the General Lee, Enos's race car, and Amy Creevy's Lucifer. I really thought Johnny Lightning would release a 1/18 version of the other two cars from that race in 1/18 as they were both in their 1/64 line, but all Dukes products were suspended in 2015. Maybe those cars were in the works, or maybe we'll see them down the road one day.
Again, the box doesn't describe the car, but anyone out there that might want to know the history of this car hopefully googled it and wound up here on DukesCollector. I reviewed this car upon its release in 2013.
The final car of part 3 of this blog post is the White Lightning version of Cooter's Camaro. Much like the Mustang, you can't miss the bold white tires.
We're almost home on this massive series of posts. In the final chapter, we'll look at a few more Johnny Lightnings and then finish off with Auto World's foray into 1/18 Hazzard County. Like ol' Waylon says, ain't this fun?


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Summer has arrived in a big way & we're bringing the sexiest styles straight to your TV. So if you're in the UK look out for our chic new ad, and if you havent watched it – see it above!
'Red Lipstick' Music by new UK Girl group ALFEE co written with Cas songs, Production by Skripture. Twitter: Alfee_Official ; Facebook: Alfee Girl Band Fan Page ; Intagram: alfee_official.


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Postal Uniforms and Scrubs/Culinary are special order items only, no items are maintained in stock at our store
Since 1995, Alternative has grown into a leading lifestyle apparel brand that delivers the best quality and value in fashion basics. Hand-crafted with their signature vintage softness, each piece embodies their commitment to comfort, craftsmanship, community and authenticity.
From the feel of Alternative's fabrics and flawless fit to their one-of-a-kind washes and detailed designs, their clothes aren't just about looking good but feeling good. By creating comfort—inside and out—they seek to inspire alternative ways of thinking and empower positive change in their community.


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We're experiencing problems with our firstname.lastname@example.com email account – we've heard from some Awards attendees who have called in to RSVP that they had sent an email – but we never received it! If you have emailed your RSVP and haven't let a board member know or have already called in, please call Amelia with TreanorHL at 785-350-6502 and she will make sure we have you on the list!
KPA Awards 2019 – Save the Date!
2019 Awards Nominations Open
Friends of Historic Preservation in Kansas:
You are invited to nominate an historic preservation project or advocacy effort for a 2019 Award for Excellence.
The Awards for Excellence bestow Merit, Honor, and the coveted Medallion awards on outstanding preservation projects each year. Nominated projects must meet the intent of the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation and the criteria for listing properties on the Register of Historic Kansas Places, as well as having construction work substantially completed during 2018.
The Preservation Advocacy awards honor outstanding individuals or groups for their initiative and commitment to the advancement of historic preservation in Kansas through events, actions, or efforts that have taken place recently or may have taken place over months, years, and lifetimes.
Follow the links below to download the 2019 invitation for entries as well as the nomination forms for each category.
Invitation for 2019 Nominations
KPA Awards 2018 – Save the Date!
Save the date! The annual KPA Awards for Excellence will be held Friday, May 18th, 2018, in Topeka, from 5:30 to 7:00pm, with a reception following. Stay tuned for the details!
Kansas Historic Preservation Conference 2018 – Save the Date!
Save the date for this year's Kansas Historic Preservation Conference, hosted by our Kansas State Historic Preservation Office, in Lawrence on September 20-22!
KSHS Website: https://www.kshs.org/p/2018-preservation-workshops/14644
Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/151914718806991/
Calendar Event: https://www.kshs.org/…/lawrence-kansas-historic-prese…/20060
See you there!


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The Pacific Community's 70th Conference in New Caledonia. Photo/ John Pulu.
Pacific leaders meeting in New Caledonia this week, have been asked to address the issue of failing to pay their dues to the Pacific Community (SPC).
SPC Director General, Dr. Colin Tukuitonga, says this has resulted in a NZD$5.93 million shortfall.
Over the last 70 years, SPC has survived on the contributions of international donor partners to provide scientific and technical support to 26 member countries in the region.
Dr. Tukuitonga hopes Pacific leaders will consider the importance of meeting their financial obligations.
"If it was just a simple management issue, I'd force it and penalise non-payers," he says. "But it's political so they need to decide among themselves how we're going to deal with it.
"It makes life difficult for us, delivering the services, if we aren't being paid."
Dr. Tukuitonga says, other than finance, they'll also be discussing other major issues such as climate change, child obesity and sustainable development.
The SPC Conference held in Noumea, will come to a close today.
Pacific leaders at SPC's 70th conference in Noumea. Photo/ John Pulu.


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Nigerian professional footballer, Victor Moses has signed a partnership with award winning online trading platform, Binomo. The currency and commodities trading platform's efforts at penetrating the Asian and African market has now seen the brand sign up one of Africa's leading athletes as its brand ambassador in a bid to fast track its growth in the local market.
The partnership which was revealed earlier in the year ahead of the 2018 Forex Expo, has already begun to rip dividends as more Nigerians are starting to adopt the platform and its service offerings.
Speaking to the media in the aftermath of the announcement, a representative of Binomo expressed excitement at having Victor Moses on board.
"We understand that Victor Moses has a huge following in Nigeria courtesy of his various achievements in the field of soccer. This includes his impressive accomplishments with both club and country. He was one of the key players who made it possible for Nigeria to become the first African nation to book a ticket to the mundial in Russia. From this, you can see that our partnership is a union of two top players in separate fields."
He also remarked on the unique qualities of the platform, and its plans for the Nigerian market.
"We strongly believe in our service offerings and the potential to empower young Nigerians who desire financial freedom. However, we realised that to achieve this we needed to understand the Nigerian
market and carefully communicate our value proposition. Hence, the Victor Moses partnership."
The Binomo platform offers some impressive features which include a wide range of financial assets, analytical services for client trading, customer support for both the experienced and the novice trader, as well as helpful tutorials to aid first-time users.
The Binomo brand also takes great pride in being one of the leading platforms in the currency trading niche and this is highlighted by its impressive track record.
This includes a long list of Awards such as Best Broker for Beginners (2015 Forex Expo Awards), Broker of the Year (2016 IAIR Awards) and 'Category A' rating by Financial Commission, an independent self-regulatory and external dispute resolution (EDR) body, dedicated specifically to Forex.
Binomo was established in 2014 and operates in various markets including Europe, Asia and Africa.


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An adventurous little girl who, even at six years old, is not afraid to speak her mind, just like her mother. Molly has a thing for her favorite ice cream brand "Frosty Pep"; sometimes she pretends that she is "Danger Woman" (the action/adventure heroine of a popular kids radio program) while seeking adventure along with Kit and Baloo. She also carries a doll named Lucy and often outwits adversaries much older than her.
Her middle name, Elizabeth, is revealed in "Mommy for a Day" and Molly is the only character in the show to have any middle name revealed.
No mention was ever made of Molly's father as series' creator Jymn Magon reportedly said that Rebecca is a widow, although at a 1998 U.S. fan convention Q&A online chat, he did state in roundabout tones that she's actually divorced as originally written in the first TaleSpin press release. Rebecca also nicknames her "Pumpkin" and "Honey."
Physical appearance
For the most part, Molly looks just like her mother, the only difference being her golden yellow fur, and lack of lighter fur around the eyes. She wears a pink polo shirt, lavender overalls, frilly white panties, and blue hair bows around her ears during the day; a red cape and a tin strainer on her head as "Danger Woman" and pink footie pajamas at bedtime.
DuckTales (2017 series)
A Grown-Up Molly will appear in Season 3 of DuckTales (2017 Series)
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With the college football season now underway, we're starting to get bowl predictions. Kyle Bonagura and Mitch Sherman of ESPN dropped theirs today here: http://www.espn.com/college-football/st ... rojections. The Pac 12 ones are listed below.
Las Vegas Bowl, Dec. 15: (B) UCLA vs. San Diego State, (S) Colorado vs. Fresno State
Cheez-It Bowl, Dec. 26: (B) California vs. Iowa State, (S) Washington State vs. TCU
Alamo Bowl, Dec. 28: (B) Stanford vs. Oklahoma State, (S) Arizona vs. West Virginia
San Francisco Bowl, Dec. 31: (B) Oregon vs. Minnesota, (S) California vs. Iowa
Holiday Bowl, Dec. 31: (B) Arizona vs. Iowa, (S) Oregon vs. Northwestern
Sun Bowl, Dec. 31: (B) Utah vs. Florida State, (S) Utah vs. Louisville
Fiesta Bowl, Jan 1: (S) Stanford vs. Boise State
Rose Bowl, Jan 1: (B) USC vs. Ohio State, (S) USC vs. Michigan
CFP Semi-final Cotton Bowl, Dec. 29: (B) Washington vs. Clemson
CFP Semi-final Orange Bowl, Dec. 29: (S) Washington vs. Clemson
CBS's Jerry Palm has put his out, as well. https://www.cbssports.com/collegefootba ... redictions
Las Vegas Bowl, Dec. 15: Colorado vs. Fresno State
Cheez-It Bowl, Dec. 26: California vs. Iowa State
Alamo Bowl, Dec. 28: USC vs. West Virginia
Sun Bowl, Dec. 31: Oregon vs. North Carolina
San Francisco Bowl, Dec. 31: Utah vs. Northwestern
Holiday Bowl, Dec. 31: Arizona vs. Iowa
Fiesta Bowl, Jan 1: Stanford vs. Boise State
Rose Bowl, Jan 1: Washington vs. Wisconsin


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Tried-and-true fair goers generally have their favorite day they like to visit the LA County Fair. Oh, we're not just talking day of the week; we're saying that regulars know the fair so well that they have a favorite time during the event's month-long run that they like to visit.
Some people like to wait for the end of September, when things have cooled a bit; but many others have to be out during the first week, to try the new foods and ride their favorite loop-di-loops. A first week visit also helps in the bragging department, if you want to tell your pals you've already been and what you did.
We're now in week one of the largest county fair in the country, and here's what's oinking:
Karmin and Cobra Starship are the Grandstand Concerts for Monday, Sept. 3, the only Monday that the fair is open. Other concerts through Sunday, Sept. 9 include B-52s, Styx, and Ramon Ayala and Bravos del Norte.
Monster Truck Madness? It revs its really big engines and rolls its cabin-sized wheels on Thursday, Sept. 6.
And there's an all-day Greek Festival at the fair on Sunday, Sept. 9.
As for the ongoing events? The days and times will vary, but here's one catching our eye: The Axe Woman Loggers of Maine will break out the saws and their impressive, log-based talents on Saturday, Sept. 8.
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The Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) have taken up some measures like the boarding and disembarking of passengers at 121 designated spots, enforcing a 'no-helmet, no-fuel' policy for bikers, and restricting the plying of 'leguna' (human hauler) to instil discipline in the capital's traffic management. "No buses will be allowed to take passengers and offload them other than at the designated 121 bus stops. Besides, no human-hauler, locally called leguna, will be allowed to ply on the streets of the capital," DMP commissioner Asaduzzaman Mia told reporters at a press conference at the DMP Media Centre at Mintoo Road yesterday while announcing the DMP's month-long special traffic management initiative from today (Wednesday).
He also requested filling station owners not to sell fuel to motorcyclists without safety helmets. Pillion riders, too, must wear helmets. The also said buses would have to keep their doors shut until reaching the next stop.
"Route permits of the vehicles would be cancelled in case of any traffic rule violation and the appointment of drivers on a contractual basis," Asaduzzaman Mia said.
"Serious traffic problems are created on the city streets due to the plying of vehicles like leguna. These are also the main cause of road accidents," he also said.
He said a large number of legunas have been carrying people illegally on Dhaka streets without any route permit. Such vehicles could only ply the roads outside the city, he added.
The DMP chief said the 'no-helmet, no-fuel' strategy was first adopted in Rangpur to discipline motorcyclists. Only one pillion rider would be allowed on motorcycles from now on, he added.
Motorcyclists were found to be the biggest law-breakers during the Traffic Week in August. Apart from traffic cops, Rover Scouts, girl
guides and other volunteer organisations will participate in the month-long traffic awareness campaign starting today.
Referring to traffic mismanagement on city roads and highways, Asaduzzaman Mia said: "It will take time to bring complete discipline in traffic management as the current situation has not been created in a day. Rather it is the culmination of many years of mismanagement."
The DMP chief requested city dwellers to use zebra crossings, footbridges and underpasses while crossing roads.
More than half of the 56,349 cases of traffic rule violation filed during that time were against riders of two wheelers. Failure to stop at traffic signals, produce valid documents and driving licences, not wearing helmets, and travelling against the traffic were the top offences committed by motorcyclists.
Editor : M. Shamsur Rahman
Published by the Editor on behalf of Independent Publications Limited at Media Printers, 446/H, Tejgaon I/A, Dhaka-1215.
Editorial, News & Commercial Offices : Beximco Media Complex, 149-150 Tejgaon I/A, Dhaka-1208, Bangladesh. GPO Box No. 934, Dhaka-1000.
Editor : M. Shamsur Rahman
Published by the Editor on behalf of Independent Publications Limited at Media Printers, 446/H, Tejgaon I/A, Dhaka-1215.
Editorial, News & Commercial Offices : Beximco Media Complex, 149-150 Tejgaon I/A, Dhaka-1208, Bangladesh. GPO Box No. 934, Dhaka-1000.


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Chris and Karen Bucklen of GandGRockers have created a custom wooden rocking horse based on the USS Enterprise from Star Trek: The Original Series. It is available to purchase from their Etsy store.
The Starship Enterprise Rocker is a unique custom handmade wooden children's Rocking Toy made by G and G Rockers in San Diego California. Every toy is made to order. Please see our other Rocker listings here on Etsy to see the Love, craftsmanship and attention to detail that goes into each of our creations. Ages Infant to 4-5 years old.
photos via GandGRockers
via Nerd Approved
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Oh, high school... Every teen looks forward to graduation, but the grownups often end up with empty nest syndrome. But with Chris Colfer, Lea Michelle, and Corey Monteith departing Glee at the end of season three, will gleeks survive without their BFFs? Series creator Ryan Murphy has also said that other characters will also be departing the show then, but hasn't revealed who.
Murphy tells THR: "You can keep them on the show for six years and people will criticize you for not being realistic, or you can be really true to life and say when they started the show they were very clearly sophomores and they should graduate at the end of their senior year."
Murphy added that planning for the future beyond high school will be a heavy theme during Season 3, noting that "more characters are leaving than are staying" when graduation time comes at the season's end.
"We've never done anything by the book," he said, adding that who's graduating and who's staying will be revealed in the Sept. 20 season premiere. "We made that decision and I involved Chris and Lea and they thought that was a good idea. They both trust the writing and trust me and felt that it would be great to have an open and closed experience for them to go out while they were on top."
The article later says that Monteith hasn't been notified yet that his character's run is being terminated. Murphy simply told the site, "He knows he was a sophomore when the show started."


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Thursday, March 24, 2011
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Santa has just left the house. Or so it would seem. On a plate on the floor under the tree there are a few crumbs from a mince pie, the stump of a carrot and an empty glass. Evelyn's presents lie under the bejewelled plastic fern that holds so much magic, hope and promise to children and children at heart. Evelyn and I went carol singing tonight, I sang, she danced
I received a series of cryptic text messages from my estranged wife Laura on Wednesday, so I called and she told me that she had given up the legal battle to leave the UK with our daughter. A fax arrived at my solicitor's office as it was closing for the night. My solicitors, solicitor's clerks, barristers, attorneys at law and Queen's Counsel, for there are many and on both sides of the Atlantic, were all left dumbfounded, as was I. At Laura's request, I went over and we had a chat with Evelyn and tried to explain what was going to happen, I'm not sure what she understood. Laura had told her what was occurring previously, but when I was there, she was capering about the apartment on all fours, yelping and pretending to be a puppy. Laura was tearful and without the malice and bile I have become used to over the last eighteen months. Laura had already left for the airport when I picked up Evelyn the following morning from Laura's mother, who has been here since August and I became a single parent.
Evelyn was ordered to be returned to the UK in July at the orders of the Canadian courts and Laura came with her, the final hearing for leave to remove was to be in January. My legal counsel were passionate about our case for refusal and felt that we were in with a fighting chance of success despite the UK's traditionally outrageous bias towards maternal preferences over domicile.
There are a few legal loose ends to be tied up over agreed contact and holidays, but these are just routine. We will all then have to settle in to the new phases in our lives.
When I was in Canada in May 2009 on vacation with my wife and daughter and staying at the in-laws, plans were already underway to present me with the surprise divorce petition which has now been struck out. A few weeks later I discovered by e-mail that I was separated and five days later, discovered that the woman I loved had asked through the courts for a divorce, full custody of our daughter, approximately two thirds of my net income and a freeze on the bank account which had my the final deposit for an apartment I had bought off plan, effectively meaning that I would lose it. As if that wasn't enough I was told that Laura would rather see me in court than allow me the unaccompanied access to my child that I had had since her birth. I tried at the time to get them to see what they were doing, to try to do this the decent way, to allow some dignity and respect. They wanted my daughter, my money and my assets. I say they, as I don't believe that Laura was the sole architect of this, responsibility must also be borne by her mother, who seeks and sought to control everything, and her lawyer who seemed to have obtained her qualifications from watching daytime TV. It was the wrong thing to do, it would have been a wrong thing to do if I had not prevailed in the courts. Somehow they don't seem to understand that the responsibility for what has passed is their own. Laura could have done this so differently, I did the only thing I could.
I often wondered how Laura thought she was going to explain what she had done to Evelyn when she is old enough to ask questions.
And now we are here and my daughter is living with me permanently. I have missed out on a year of watching her grow up, with what contact I had spoilt by my estranged wife's mother, lost perhaps £150,000 in cash and assets and who knows how many years of my life. Laura has no doubt suffered too. My daughter has been denied the loving home with a mummy and daddy that she deserved and lost a year's worth of real contact with her father. I must do my best to be the best father I can be and make up for the distance of my daughter's mother. I must ensure that the contact she has with her mother and her mother's family is better than I was given and see what I can do to heal the wounds that have lain open too long. I want Evelyn to grow up happy and I'll do whatever it takes.
Thus ends one chapter in all of our lives and hopefully the next will bring peace, civility and respect to everyone. I hope Laura and her family find serenity and I'll do what I can to help them share in the joy of Evelyn's life.
Merry Christmas one and all!
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Around the corner I have a friend,
......................What are you feeling right now?
Saturday, January 30, 2010
The French just know bread and no other nation has ever really come close in this regard. Had Napoleon opened a chain of brasseries he would have had no need of military campaigns, world domination would have been a surety, we would all have been spared the high street blight which is Greggs and Emma Hamilton would have lived happily ever after. And how is it that the French have patisserie Paul and the British have Greggs? I ask you, we won the War of the Third Coalition! After Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo all of the patisserie Pauls in Paris should have been moved to London and all of the Greggs should have been moved to Paris, that would have taught them a lesson!
I love patisserie Paul, I love the understated shop frontages which would not be offensive anywhere, the wonderful cakes and tarts, the quiche, the baguettes, the staff, it is one of the few chains that there are just not enough of. Why isn't there one on Bishopsgate?
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Our home life had actually been very good over the last year. I shall probably never know what dark mental dances she had in April and May as she schemed the assassination of our marriage. It's sad. I loved her with all my heart and truly wanted her eyes to be the last I saw before I closed mine for the final time.
In the book of my own life I turned the page honestly believing we would both live happily ever and found the rest of the leaves torn away by the person to whom I had entrusted it.
In the last two days, I have spoken to two old friends. One has been dieing for years but is too stubborn to give in. To hear his voice, is to hear the fragility of his heart and I fear that every beat will be its last. The other has always seemed as strong as an ox, but has been given two years to live by his doctors.
"No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bells tolls; it tolls for thee."
John Donne - Devotions upon Emergent Occasions, no. 17 (Meditation) 1624
Monday, April 13, 2009
About three weeks ago I flew out to be with Laura and the baby who are spending some time in Toronto. They're staying there for a bit and I'm here in London alone. I'm looking forward to the return of those few distilled moments of perfect content and stillness that are bestowed upon me when my little baby falls asleep in my arms after her last bottle of milk of the night. I really miss them both, so I thought I'd tell my daughter a little Easter story, and here it is:
Sorry I can't be with you for a little while, but your daddy has to be in England right now.
When I flew out to Toronto, I departed from Heathrow Terminal 5. Despite the terrible press surrounding the opening debacle it feels very much like a proper airport in the same way that Terminal 4 feels very much like an abbatoir.
I lunched at Wagamama there and, as usual, had the Chicken Kare Lomen, which is a spicy curry soup and their superb White Chocolate Ginger Cheesecake. The curry soup was only 50% successful, it tasted wonderful but unfortunately, I was unable to squeeze out a fart in the multifaith prayer room. That small opportunity to show my contempt for all religions thwarted, I went to board the plane. I like to think that it was perhaps because of my innate purity and godliness that on handing my passport over to the flight attendant, I was upgraded to business class.
Monday, February 16, 2009
New stuff: I have finally relented and got an IPhone and I have to say it is possibly the best invention since the mobile phone, MP3 player, Play Station Portable, Internet radio, pocket TV, PDA or maybe all of these things put together. It still doesn't stop me from loathing Apple's personal computers, but if they stick to this portable media stuff they will rule the world. I am worried about it's fragility in a way that I haven't really been about any previous mobile phone. It somehow just seems more personal. The bazillion applications that are on it keep me constantly occupied with news, podcasts, strategy games, books, music. With one of these devices the western world need never trouble itself with time for introspective thought or mental tranquility.
In recent years, well the last two in the UK anyway, I have oft lamented the absence of real seasons. But this year it will be different instead of the grey and rainy season and the very grey and very rainy season, we will have had the "February was 'king freezing!" season. On Tuesday February 3rd I was actually told to work from home. How morose I was, as I beavered away testing the Internet, discussed some reconciliation application bugs with my baby daughter and worked out that if only I didn't have to pay tax for all the people that get to do this every day and all the people in government that might as well do this every day what a happy and less overdrawn chap I would be. This is the first time that weather has ever prevented me from getting to work.
This was the sort of event that I craved every winter as a child when I saw the first white puffs falling in the morning, my nose pressed against the window pane, rubbing away the condensation to see the snowflakes melting against the glass and laying a thin white velvet sheet over the garden. Please don't stop, just another few inches, two feet of snow and they will surely close the school. But it never happened, well not until now. But now I have a taste for it. Once a year, just for a day or so, I could live with a repeat experience.
On to a less pleasant matter. The British Government recently banned Dutch MP Geert Wilders, the maker of the film Fitna, from entering the UK as it was felt that his presence would cause outrage among Muslims living here.
Having watched the film, I think it is sensationalist, but nowhere near as sensationalist as say..... blowing up London buses or flying planes into the World Trade Center. I think perhaps the Muslims that are offended by this film should ask themselves what they really find offensive about it and direct their angst against the fundamentalists that support just the sort of actions which Geert Wilders highlights in his film.
One of my dearest and closest friends, Anas, is a Muslim. One of the things that makes him such a great guy is that his warmth, humanity, decency and honesty come before his religion or any other beliefs. If only everyone was like that.
Friday, November 07, 2008
A big week.
It was my lovely baby daughter's first birthday on Monday, a year ago she was handed to me by a nurse 00:33 after a really difficult birth. Eyes closed and crying. I can't remember which one of us that was, could have been all three of us I suppose. A year later she is an inquisitive child full of laughter and with a marvellous generosity of spirit. As she was born in England at 00:33 and we are in Canada where 00:33 GMT is 19:33 EST, and is the product of not only my demonstrably superior sperm, but also my beautiful Canadian wife's DNA and gestative care, she got two birthday parties. One on Sunday with her cousins where her emergence into the cold dry post-natal world was toasted at 7:30pm and another the following day.
She took her first few unaided steps today. So not only has she had a lot of loot from friends and relatives as birthday presents, she has also learned to walk. A big week indeed.
In other less important news, the United States of America have, for the first time in 8 years, elected a president who is not an asshole. Barack Obama, has, throughout his election campaign, acted as a statesman, a gentleman and an inspirational man of great vision. I truly hope he lives up to the great expectations that the whole world has for him. Lewis Hamilton has also won the F1 drivers championship, so perhaps the white liberal middle class pricks at the BBC can stop blaming absolutely everything bad that happens in the world on white on black racism. The BBC do not recognise races other than white and black, where white just includes Caucasians and Sir Trevor MacDonald, while black includes North Africans, sub-Saharan Africans (all tribes), Asians (oriental and from the Indian subcontinent), native Americans, Eskimos, non-Jewish Semites, indigenous Australasians, people from every island in the Pacific, Atlantic, Southern, Arctic and Indian Oceans and visitors from other galaxies.


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You are currently browsing the archive for the Latin category.
Movete like you feel it!
Groove juice
Cuttin' a rug
Sheer delight
Conga lioness
Soft and lovely
Turban legends?
Bolling kingpin
Just say yes!
Gilberto Sextet "Yes, I Will" Tico Records (1969) A nice latin, boogaloo, gospel-tinged anthem of optimism and empowerment (think Lee Dorsey's "Yes, We Can" ). Reminds me a bit of Jimmy Cliff in some way too.


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Bummer, Nik – but get it sent out to the next on your list at once!Love & hugsAxxx
This time to a piece by Bruce Holland Rogers on Expressionism, Surrealism, Magical Realism, and Fantasy for Flash Fiction Online, which I thought interesting.
Bummer, Nik – but get it sent out to the next on your list at once!Love & hugsAxxx
That's what I like to see – an axe-wielding approach to the new year – a submission and a rejection and it's only day three! Just started JaNoWriMo (possibly as a way of avoiding said approach) but look forward to reading interview and good luck with submission 🙂 Diane
Thanks Anne. I will. I just don't think my style's for them. Which happens.Thanks Diane – the axe is out! Best of luck with Janowrimo! You're braver than me! Nik
Sorry to hear about the rejection, Nik, but very best of luck with that shiny new submission!Thanks for yesterday's link – it was very interesting. Yet another great blog that I shall add to my list and attempt to keep up with!Happy New Year!Emma x
Happy new year, Emma! And thank you. And you're welcome!Nik X
Happy New Year Nik – I thought I was doing well – was 'thinking about' sending out my first sub of the year yesterday :)Next on the list – go for it!Sarah
Happy new year, Sarah! And good luck!Nik
What a pain… maybe you need to buy yourself a new fountain pen to cheer yourself up!:)
Ha! As tempting as that is, I feel it may be a little too far on the extravagant side. I might wait till I've sold something first! ;)Nik


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Hi guys!
Today I have for you another low impact workout to target and fix glute medius & piriformis weakness. We will be using a resistance loop band to add resistance, and engage the muscles better. A resistance band around your thighs will have your legs push against it, which helps maintain a proper form during each exercise. For example, you're less likely to have you knees cave in when you have a band around your thighs as you squat down.
If you don't have a resistance band, you can totally do this low impact workout with just your body weight. Make sure you stay focused on keeping your glutes and abs tight to ensure you are targeting the right muscles.
If you're interested in getting a loop band, there are the ones I recommend (amazon affiliate link). They usually come in 3-5 resistance levels, and you want to use the one that provide enough resistance without over-loading your legs.
Fix glute medius & piriformis weakness – a 5 minute resistance band workout
- Side squats – Left/Right: 8 – 10 reps
- Start Plank – Out and in: Amrap*
- Bridge: 8 – 10 reps
- leg raise rotations – Left/Right: 8-10 reps
*As many reps as possible, without sacrificing proper form.
That's it for today 🙂 I hope you give this short workout a go. I have a long week of packing (as I need to finish moving before the end of this month), so I'm definitely going to be sticking to shorter workouts, and lots of recovery time in the evenings. I will be back on the blog next week with another 5 minutes low impact workout. If you like this style of video posts, let me know in the comment below!
For more workouts like these, and a program tailored for back pain, and piriformis syndrome, check out the back pain bootcamp!
Hey! My name is Sofia and I'm here to help you eliminate lower back pain and piriformis syndrome without spending years in pain stuck in temporary fixes. Click here to learn more about me and how I can help you…


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Strategic Management: "Why good leaders make bad decisions"
This content was COPIED from BrainMass.com - View the original, and get the already-completed solution here!
Written case analysis:
Questions must be answered:
- How decisions add or destroy value in organizations?
-Provide at least 2 examples of "Bad Decisions" in a business context and explain why they occurred
-Do you agree with the author that "Group Decision Making" is always better than individual decision making? Provide arguments and facts (You may use references)
-Any new thoughts/opinions about the case?
The evaluation will focus on three dimensions:
a) the definition and application of relevant concepts
b) the strength and coherence of the logic within the argument
c) insights the concepts offer into the problems facing the managers of particular emphasis is the interpretation of the facts using the concepts
d) we are less interested in opinion , background and historical description
Why Good Leaders Make Bad Decisions
By Andrew Campbell, Jo Whitehead, and Sydney Finkelstein
Solution Preview
Running Head: DECISION MAKING
Decision Making
Decisions describe the process by which a course of action is selected as the way to deal with a specific problem. People at all levels in an organization are constantly making decisions and solving problems. For managers, the decision making and problem solving tasks are particularly important aspects of their jobs as with their single decisions that may confront a transformation and on the other hand if wrong decision is made the organizational value may get destroyed.
Whether the problem confronted by organizations is large and small does not matter as it is usually the manager who has to confront it and decide what action to take. Managers make decisions dealing with both problems and opportunities (Luthans, 1998). For example making decisions about how to cut costs by five percent reflects a problem whereas the managers also has to make decisions when there is an opportunity that can be exploited. If the firm has surplus funds, the manager has to decide whether the extra funds should be used to increase shareholder dividends, reinvested in current operations, or to expand into new markets.
In all these decisions it particularly depends upon the decisions undertaken by managers and executives if they took an appropriate decision it will directly or indirectly add value to the company and if decision undertaken is not correct may direct towards loss and destroy of the company image (Luthans, 1998). In present we can see a number of companies that had taken some right and some wrong decisions due to which some of them had attained prominent position whereas some of them had lose their position.
This addition of value and occurrence of loss on the basis of decisions we can confront that decision making is of significant importance for mangers' which are as follows:
? Managers who make use of rational, intelligent and systematic approach are more likely to come up with high quality solutions to the problems they face than the ones who do not use this approach.
? Rational decision makers have a clear understanding of alternative courses of action to accomplish a goal under a particular set of circumstances.
? Rational decision making is based on the information available with the decision makers and their ability to evaluate alternatives (Harris & Hartman, 2001).
? Decision making aims at deciding the best solution by selecting the alternative that most effectively facilitates goal achievement.
With this significance of decision making we can confer that the success and failure of an organization particularly depends upon the decisions of its owners and managers. This concept of "how decisions add or destroy value in organizations" can be understood prominently by analyzing the examples of some companies that made bad decisions in their business context and generated losses.
Examples of Bad Decisions
Bad decisions undertaken in businesses are numerous, that cannot be counted is someone tries to count. All the business that had encountered failure is just because of their bad decisions they had made in regard to their business operations. Decision making is an important and a difficult task for an individual. It is because; an effective decision making can transform a poor decision because of the change in the events. The decisions are based on predictions, but one cannot be sure about the effectiveness and the desired outcome from the decisions.
Decision making is a yardstick that renders organizations with a path to lead ...
Solution Summary
The solution examines strategic management. Why good leaders make bad decisions are determined.