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Game 4 - Mets
Marlins 5, Mets 4
Record: 2-2
You know what's annoying? The Florida Marlins. From their stupid crap stadium to their stupid crap teal uniforms to their stupid crap baseball in south Florida in the summertime. They bother me a lot. Two World Series trophies in their first 11 years? Some say "impressive," I say "annoying." Pay your dues. Wayne Huizenga and his stupid crap Blockbuster money buying guys in '97, then selling them off. His fault? No, he just figured out how to beat the system. Annoying? Yes. Same deal in 2003/05. Ridiculous. Firing Joe Girardi? Stupid. Billy the Marlin? Crap. Jeff Conine? Okay, I like him. So what? Still a stupid crap team. Am I happy they beat the Yankees in 2003? You bet your sweet Jack McKeon-loving ass. They're still bothersome. Pesky. Annoying. They hang around and do nothing except beat the Mets all the time, knocking the Mets out of the playoffs at will after losing to crap teams like the Nationals most of the year. Or this year, making noise early on when they aren't going to do squat except beat the Mets when the Mets need to win. Just bugs me. Their low payroll successes a few years ago? Admirable. Their stupid crap owner, who was involved in one of the s-h-a-d-i-e-s-t wranglings in professional sports? Loser. Threatening to move the team to Vegas (oh, yeah) until Miami-Dade caved, changing the name to Miami Marlins, all that stupid crap. Annoying. That '97 championship team had Luis Castillo, Gary Sheffield, Bobby Bonilla, Moises Alou, Cliff Floyd, Al Leiter, Livan Hernandez and other once or future Mets. And the Marlins seemed to get the best out of the same guys who could never win a title in Queens. Pisses me off. You gave us Mike Piazza? Well, I kind of love you for that. But not really. You were stupid to do it. Oh, and Hanley Ramirez showing every time out that he's so much better than Jose Reyes? Enough already. We get it. Just annoying at this point. So, Marlins pitchers have thrown four no-hitters in their 16+ years. The New York Mets, 47 years and counting: zero no-hitters. The first Marlins no-hitter? May 11 of their stupid crap 64-win inaugural year. Annoying. Who threw it? Yeah, Al Leiter. So irritating. Dan Uggla. Really good. Plays like a Tri-Lam in the All-Star Game when the NL needs him. Homers against the Mets again last night. Thanks, dude. Appreciate it. Your unsung youngsters play hungry and sharp against us. Ours play like scared weenie kids against you. Why? Because you're annoying. Stupid crap cheesy town with your crap 4,000 fans and your stupid pinstripes and did I mention the teal? Who's a Marlin fan? Please stand up. And be recognized as a stupid crap individual. Hey, Marlins, stop winning games like you did last night, last season, the one before that, and on and on. People might think you're good, and you're not. You're a stupid crap expansion (not the good kind) franchise, and you make me annoying when I have to spell it out. And when I do, I have to concede that there are quite a few elements I like about you, and dammit, you really do bug me. Knock it off. Stupid crap.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Fisherman's Blues
Posted by Whitney at 1:32 PM
Labels: Stupid Crap
2 comments:
- Nick said...
Stupid crap Marlins. Stupid, stupid crap Marlins. I got nothing else to add about the stupid, stupid, super stupid crap Marlins.
Oh, I hate the Mets. Muck the Fets I say. But at least they are older than me.
Come to think of it, you know, I hate the Rockies too.
- April 11, 2009 at 5:16 PM
- Chris Bennett said...
Hey, I am one of the 4,000 Marlins fans out there and I dig your post.
Your post embodies what the Marlins stand for. We are irritating, neglected, unconventional, and yet, successful.
Nice win tonight and we'll see you in Sept and early Oct.
- April 11, 2009 at 11:07 PM
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About Forest Lake Chrysler Dodge Jeep & Ram
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subset: commoncrawl


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HO HO HO !!! Mike and Megan are in a festive mood for this special Christmas themed episode of 100 THINGS IN A JAR! M&M kick off the episode discussing some non-holiday topics like bagel toasting fees, ancestry and fun facts concerning redheads but in no time at all they shift to all things Christmas !!! It's all about Christmas movies, Christmas songs, Christmas shows , Christmas cards. There's also talk of Christmas shopping – specifically Mike's mom and her method for finding the perfect gift (you want hats, gloves, scarves???) .The jar provides a brief detour from all the holiday talk and has Mike and Megan bravely looking towards the future. Speaking of the perfect gift idea, Mike and Megan close the show with a little present for the audience. Sorry, but there's no returns!!! There's all that and much more on this expanded special Christmas edition of 100 THINGS IN A JAR! And on that note, they'll be back in 2019!
EPISODE WINE – LaMarca Prosecco
EPISODE SONG – "FAIRYTALE OF NEW YORK" by The Pogues
E-mail us comments, show suggestions and whatever else you deem appropriate at firstname.lastname@example.com. PLEASE SUBSCRIBE, RATE AND REVIEW at ITUNES or wherever you enjoy our show. Thanks for listening.


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The British Army must be unique in the number of its Regimental Bands, almost every Regiment and Corps boasted one. This tradition stems from the days when Officers dipped into their pockets to provide the Instruments and the necessary instruction for the musicians. In this respect the Officers of the Armys Medical Services were no less forthcoming than their contemporaries.
The earliest record of music in the Corps is in the 1880s when Cpl. Lunney of the Medical Staff Corps was sent to Kneller Hall to be trained as a bugler.In 1892 Major Haynes, himself a cello player, started an orchestra at the Royal Victoria Hospital, Netley, and when the Depot moved to Aldershot came under the conductorship of Mr. Wylie of the Aldershot Theatre Royal.
But the event which marked the formation of the Band took place in February 1894 when a Bugle Sergeant who played the cello and seven Boys forming a string and wind instrument Band played in the Medical Staff Corps Officers Mess in Aldershot. The efforts of Surgeon Major Grier, who had a love for music and tremendous enthusiasm, helped considerably in the early training of these boys on musical instruments. In 1893 the Surgeon major had formed a Musical Society with a monthly subscription of two shillings and sixpence each from Officer members of the Corps. A loan from mess funds financed the purchase of instruments, others were collected from efforts which had been made earlier at Netley, and so the Band got under way. Surgeon Major Grier was also a persuasive administrator and in 1897 had succeeded in ensuring that the Band would survive by getting 600 Officers of or connected with the Corps to pay an annual subscription to Band funds of Five Shillings. These funds remained up to 1939 but grants obviously had to be made from Corps funds. It is recorded that in 1920 the Band was costing £400 per annum, the Bandmasters salary of £250 being included in that figure.
In 1894 the band practised in a disused Hut in Stanhope Lines in Aldershot under the tutelage of Bugle Major Johnson assisted by a kindly Bandmaster named Anderson of the Highland Light Infantry. Its young members were learning string and brass instruments and later Bugles.
In 1895 the General Officer Commanding at Aldershot,HRH The Duke of Connaught, gave permission for a Bugle Band to play on parade. Later that year drums were added and then sufficient volunteers were found from soldiers in the Depot to form a Military Band of reed and brass. In 1896 Mr. Bennett, a retired Bandmaster of the Royal Welsh Fusiliers, became the first Bandmaster of the Corps. In 1898 when the Royal Army Medical Corps was formed, official permission for the Band was given by HRH The Duke of Connaught, first Colonel-in Chief of the RAMC.
By 1902 the Band had progressed enough to take part in the Coronation Procession of King Edward VII. The First World War was as difficult for the Band as for all units of the Regular Army at that time, and in 1918 war and demobilisation had reduced the Band to four members. But those remaining realised that the show must go on and in 1920, by dedication and perseverance, had increased the numbers to thirty.
The years of peace to 1939 saw a steady maintenance of the strength and playing ability of the Band, which enabled it to take a prominent part in local military affairs, particularly the famous Aldershot Military Tattoo. Aldershot Command was a large Military complex with a host of Regiments and Corps, all of whom took pride in their Military Bands and set the highest standards amongst themselves. On 1st January 1939, the RAMC Band was taken over by the Army Council; and was officially recognised with a permitted establishment which included the appointment of a serving Bandmaster- Warrant Officer Harry Johnson. The drain on the Officers pockets was over after 45 years of unselfish subscription !!
Conscription and World War Two brought many fine musicians from classical, light and Dance orchestras of fame to the Band. Woolf Phillips, who was a member of Jack Hyltons Big Dance Orchestra of the Thirties, who joined the RAMC Band at the outbreak of the War in 1939 recalls that the field in which they excelled was the Concert Orchestra. They built up an excellent show which gave much joy to the troops in the United Kingdom, Middle East,Persia and Iraq Commands, and later in Holland, Belgium and Germany. At one time they recorded background music for the Famous Pathe News and several times played under the baton of the famous George Melachrino who was the Conductor of the Allied Expeditionary Forces British Band.
During this period two incidents are recalled by Prof. Ronald Girdwood Professor of Therapeutics and Clinical Pharmacology, Royal Infirmary Edinburgh, in an article he wrote in the British Medical Journal in December 1978 on "How the RAMC nearly lost its Band". In October 1943, he was among a group of RAMC Officers who alighted at Greenock to proceed to an unknown destination in the Middle or Far East. They found themselves on HMT G6, which was the Highland Princess. To their delight they were joined by a Stars in Battledress Company and the RAMC Dance Orchestra. They sailed westwards into the Atlantic, zig-zagging to avoid submarines. Boat Stations were allocated for alarm drills and assigned to him was a RAMC Sergeant, Oscar Grasso, who was a leader of a world famous Dance Orchestra. We entered the Straits of Gibraltar and off the coast of Oran on 26th November a few other ships joined the convoy. A few hours afterwards and while we were listening to a concert given by the RAMC Band, the alarm bells sounded and we dashed to our stations. We saw about thirty enemy aircraft approaching. The guns on ships with escorts opened up. Bombs exploded all around the convoy. We saw a Bomb drop on the "Rhona" filled with American Troops, and the ship exploded and was engulfed in flames. The Sergeant and I saw a bomb dropping on our ship and indeed coming straight to where we stood on the port side aft. It missed the ship by a few yards. There were no casualties and the bomb failed to explode but we were soaked as it hit the water. Casualties on the Rhona numbered 1,170 ; over half were killed.
The next attack was off Crete on 29th November. Again, a ships concert was in full swing with the RAMC Orchestra providing the music. Alarm bells sounded again and we went to our stations. We saw a bomb drop on the Orion; but it did not explode. The RAMC Orchestra reached Port Said safely. It was clearly good fortune that we did not sustain casualties comparable to the Rhona as many members of the band on return to civilian life became household names in the world of entertainment. Elisabeth Parry (The female singer with the band during WW2 and was on the Orion) Has written a great book,Thirty men and a girl. About the Band tour of the far east during WW2. see the link to her web page on the links section of this site.
At the end of the Second World War the band was in disarray and, except for four or five of their number, all its members were demobilised including the Bandmaster, Mr. Johnson. This was a bitter blow but fortunately for the Band help was on the way and in 1945 Bandmaster Lewis Brown from the East Yorkshire Regiment took over. His sterling efforts were reflected in the fact that the Band took part in the Victory Parade and in 1947 provided the music for a Guard of Honour for Field Marshal Montgomery in Aldershot, and in the same year played with distinction at the Corps Memorial Service in Westminster Abbey before the Colonel-in Chief, Her Majesty the Queen. In August 1947 the Bandmaster, in common with other Bandmasters of Staff Bands was granted a Commission as Director of Music.
In 1962 the first official Drum Major, Derek Waterhouse, was appointed to the Band. He was trained at the Royal Marines Barracks at Portsmouth and was the senior Drum Major in the Aldershot Army Display massed Bands from 1963-70, as indeed were Lt-Col. Lewis Brown and Major George Hurst Senior Directors of Music in their day. 1963 saw the band participate in the Edinburgh Tattoo.
The Regimental March was originally Her Bright Smile Haunts me Still reputed to be a tribute to Florence Nightingale, followed by Washington Post and Bonnie Nell. In 1948, to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of the Corps and as a tribute to HM the Queen ( later the Queen Mother),Heres a Health Unto His Majesty was very appropriately adopted.
With the Band now firmly established, minds return to the great perseverance and efforts of Surgeon Major Grier. I wonder if he knew the band would go on for Ninety Years, until in 1984, the Band was one of the first to go in the Defence cuts/restructuring of the Army. The musical tradition in the Forces at this date is down to 53% of its former strength. With nearly all of the Corps Staff Bands now gone, as we used to know them. We in the RAMC were lucky and managed to salvage a lot of musical ability with the formation of the Army Medical Services TA Band at the Duke of Yorks HG in Chelsea under the guidance of the Staff Bands last Band Sergeant Major Mick Feehily.The AMS TA Band moved to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in October 2002.
Mick Feehily has retired after 44 years service to the Corps. A great time was had by all who attended his formal leaving presentation/retirement party at the AMS Officers Mess Sandhurst on the 7th March 2009. Former members of the RAMC Staff Band surprised Mick by playing "Roast Beef" as he arrived! Festivities continued in the evening at the Sgts Mess Keogh Barracks. With members of the AMS TA Band entertaining with an Ompah style Band. The furthest travelled attendee was former Ramc Staff Band Cornet Player Mike Leyland who came over with his wife Olivia from Australia. Photos of this event can be seen on the links part of this web site.
List Of Bandmaster and Directors of Music.
RAMC Staff Band
Before RAMC :- 1892 Major Hayes
Mr. Wylie
Mr. Anderson
Mr. Bennett
RAMC :- 1898 Mr. Bennett
Mr. Robertson
Mr Bradley
Mr. Loftus
Mr. Carotti
WO1 (BM) H. Johnson
WO1 (BM) L.D. Brown MBE
1947 First DOM Capt. L.D. Brown MBE (finished as Lt. Col.).
1964 Major G.H.J. Hurst MBE
1977 Major P.W. Parkes
1979 Major D. Carson MBE till disbandment in 1984
Famous Name Musicians RAMC Band
War Time RAMC Dance Orchestra article by Woolf Phillips
Arthur Wilkinson: Pianist, Arranger for the ITMA Series
Woolf Philllips : Trombone, Had is own Orchestra Brother of Sid Phillips. See This Link for Further Info on Woolf Phillips.
Oscar Grasso : Violinist, Leader of the Victor Sylvester Orchestra.
Dick James : Singer with Geraldo, First agent of the Beatles.
Keith Whitmore Principal Horn London Philarmonic Orchestra.
Les Gilbert : Saxophone, Lead Saxophonist with Geraldo.
Jimmy Shepherd : Cornet Black Dyke Mills Band and James Shepherd Versatile
RAMC Musicians who became other Bands DOM and Bandmasters.
Lt.Col M. Lane Irish Guards Band. Lt.Col. K.Boulding Royal Signals Band.
Maj. Don Carson after disbandment moved to The Scots Guards Band as Director of Music
WO1 (BM) R.Falshaw Bandmaster Royal Scots Dragoon Guards.(Now Dom The Royal Yeomanry TA Band)
Post War Band Sergeant Majors
WO II Edwards E. 1947-52
WO II Meeres C. 1952-66
WO II Waterhouse D. 1966-71
WO II Howard G. 1971-73
WO II Taylor B. 1973-75
WO II Fielder M. 1975-77
WO II Tresidder B. 1977-79
WO II Feehily M. 1979- Disbandment in 1984
Post War Drum Majors
Drum Major D. Waterhouse 1963-71 ( held two posts from 1966)
Drum Major M. Fielder 1971-77 ( held two posts from 1975)
Drum Major A. Fox 1977-79
Drum Major D. Stevenson 1979- Disbandment in 1984
Overseas Tours
British Army of the Rhine:- 1954,56,60,62,64,66,68,70,72,74,76,77,78,80,81,83.
Middle East:- 1943
Hong Kong & Malaya :- 1965
Hong Kong :- 1983
The Band was resident Band at the Royal Tournament in 1965, 1971 and 1978. The Band marched in the Massed bands arena display in 1982.
Some Sporting Achievements RAMC Band Members
Director of Music Lt.Col. L.D. Brown was Chairman of the Army Hockey Umpires Association and Hampshire County Umpires Association.
Mick Feehily won the Grand Slam Army Badminton Championship in 1975 and represented the Army at Football, Badminton and Cricket.
Derek Waterhouse has earned Cup Winners medals for Corps Soccer, Hockey, Rugby,Cricket and Basketball . He was Soccer Coach to Aldershot Services and the Army Soccer Team for three years.
Acknowledgements to Lt-Col I.G. Thomas and Professor Ronald H. Girdwood
And past DOM's and Band Sergeant Majors RAMC Band for most of this Article..
Keith Leonard ex. RAMC Band 1967-84.
Held in
By kind permission of
Captain A E Jones, Master HMT G6
Lt-Col M.Robb, OC Troops
Central Pool of Artistes
assisted by the
DANCE ORCHESTRA of the
Royal Army Medical Corps
Produced by Capt.George Black
1. Opening Chorus Full Company
2. "A Spot of Bother" Alfie Dean & Roy Kemp
3. Al Weir- Variety's Craziest Comic Dancer
4. "Nelson and the Bear" Bert Denver, Alfie Dean and Slick Snelling
5. Creating an Impression David Delmonte
6. "An Egyptian Nightmare" Al Weir, Slick Snelling Roy Kemp
7. "A Wee Drop of Scotch" Bert Denver& Derek Ware.
8. "The Beefeaters" Alfie Dean, Roy Kemp, David Delmonte, Bert Firman
9. "Drinking memories" Bert Denver Alfie Dean
10. Bert Firman and his Violin (late casino Café and Café De Paris)
11. Roy Kemp Telling the tale
12. Derek Ware The Pocket Light Comedian
13. The Sentry Bert Denver, Alfie Dean, Bert Firman
Closing Remarks by Major General VHB Majendie CB DSO Capt. A.E. Jones FRGS Master
Lt-Col. Mathew Robb OC Troops


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Endeavour's six astronauts wrapped up their first day in space a bit later than planned, at approximately 8:21 a.m. Central time today, when they began an abbreviated sleep period. Crew members were trouble-shooting a minor problem with the Orbiter Communications Adapter (OCA) system, which is used to transmit software files between the Space Shuttle and the flight controllers on the ground. A wake-up call from Mission Control is planned for 3:36 p.m. Central time, for the crew to begin their first full day of on-orbit activities.
Following a smooth launch earlier today, Commander Bob Cabana, Pilot Rick Sturckow and Mission Specialists Nancy Currie, Jerry Ross, Jim Newman and Sergei Krikalev began preparing the orbiter for 12 days of operations to begin construction of the International Space Station. Endeavour is carrying the first American-built component of the station -- a connecting module named Unity -- in its cargo bay.
Just half an hour after lift-off, the shuttle's payload bay doors were opened. A few minutes later, the crew was given the go-ahead to begin orbit operations – preparing the vehicle for space flight activities. The Shuttle's KU-band antenna, which provides high data-rate and television transmissions, was successfully deployed. Crewmembers also activated the Hitchhiker payload, which includes the Mightysat and SAC-A satellites that will be deployed late in the mission.
The first of six engine firings to refining Endeavour's orbit and close the distance from the Zarya control module, launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Nov. 20, also was completed early this morning. Final rendezvous maneuvers to bring Zarya (the Russian word for "sunrise") in close proximity with Endeavour is planned to take place on Sunday afternoon. Endeavour currently trails Zarya by approximatley 1,300 miles and is closing on Zarya at a rate of 675 miles per orbit.
All systems aboard Zarya, which will provide the initial control and command capabilities for the space station, continue to function well with the minor exception of one of six battery charging systems. Endeavour is carrying replacement parts for the system in the event they are needed.
After they wake up to begin Flight Day 2, Endeavour's crew will conduct a check out of the shuttle's robot arm that will be used to remove the Unity module from the payload bay and connect one of Unity's Preassurized Mating Adapters (PMA) to the orbiter's docking mechanism. The robot arm will also be used to grapple Zarya and dock it to the PMA located at the other end of the Unity connection module.
Other Flight Day 2 activities will include a check-out of the spacesuits that will be used in three spacewalks planned for the mission, as well as checks of the SAFER unit. SAFER or Simplified Aid for EVA Resuce, is a mini-maneuvering unit that can provide self-rescue capability for a spacesuited crew member who inadvertently separates from a spacecraft during a spacewalk.
All systems aboard Endeavour continue to perform well with the Shuttle currently flying in a 200 by 118 mile orbit, circling the Earth every 90 minutes.
The next STS-88 status report will be issued at approximately 8 p.m.
- end -
text-only version of this release


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The final members of the 307th Engineer Battalion (Combat) (Airborne) have returned to Fort Bragg following their nine-month deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom XIII.
Just before boarding the plane that would bring him home, the battalion commander for the 307th Engineer Battalion, Lt. Col. Brett Sylvia delivered a speech at the transfer of authority ceremony at Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan where he handed the reins over to Lt. Col. David Acker and the 65th Engineer Battalion (Combat Effects). Sylvia addressed the magnitude of the progress that the Soldiers in the battalion had made over the course of the deployment. Charged with the mission of keeping the roads safe from improvised explosive devices, and conducting partnership operations training the Afghan engineers, the 307th Bn. had a monumental deployment.
They integrated new technology to increase their combat effectiveness and executed a complex and challenging mission.� The task force operated in three regional commands and spanned multiple battle spaces. They flew almost 1,000 hours of unmanned aerial vehicles, detonated, or removed almost 250 improvised explosive devices from the battlefield and cleared enough routes to circumnavigate the globe three times, averaging 50 patrols per week.
The battalion was also responsible for the theater bridge asset. Throughout the deployment, they emplaced eight bridges and repaired 80. Most notably, they trained and conducted combat operations with the Afghan engineers 1st and 2nd brigades of the 207th Corps through the most contested enemy strongholds in Regional Commands West and Southwest. This allowed them to certify the Afghan army for independent operations in preparation for U.S. and Coalition Forces withdrawal from Afghanistan. They had a lasting impact in their area of operations and the future of the country of Afghanistan through their training and devotion to the success of the Afghan engineers and safety of Afghan civilians.


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002 090 00
This pocket stove made of electrolytic galvanized steel is always there when you need it.
Due to its incredibly compact format, it simply fits into a bag and is the ideal solution for a quick cup of tea or snack in-between meals. It is suitable for cups, pots and pans. 2 cooking positions. Supplied with 20 solid fuel tablets, which can be stored in the stove.
002 090 00 at a glance:
The idea behind 002 090 00
Was it a spontaneous flash of genius? Or the result of years of meticulous work? Sadly, we don't really know. Because, regrettably, there are no documents explaining how Mr. Schumm, the inventor of Esbit solid fuel, came up with the idea in the 1930s of creating the pocket stove as we know it today. We are simply just fascinated by his idea of the sturdy fold-away stove; a little stove in a pocket format, combined with our Esbit solid fuel which, because of its compact size, can be cleverly stored inside the stove. Many thanks, Mr. Schumm.
002 090 00 Dimensions and weight:
002 090 00 Information for commerce:
Note for commercial customers: The above mentioned dimensions, weights and numbers are estimated figures.


text: Attempting to bridge the gap between the idea of evolution and the Bible's clear teaching about creation, some Christian leaders have tried many creative ways to reinterpret Scripture. Today a new focus questions whether Adam was a real, historical person. Did God create the first human being from nonliving matter and breathe life into him, or is another interpretation possible? Scripture doesn't leave room for doubt.


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Blue Edged Letterpress
Unique blue edge letterpress printed on an original Heidelberger Tiegel. The superior stock card and ostrich identity really make this card stand out!
For Vogel & Struass
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I created this page with the aim to help those who are interested in volunteering in Budapest through EVS with useful bits of information and advice, furthermore to make them sure that their choice will be worth their time and energy.
This page was primarily designed for prospective volunteers with Croatian background, since my main ambition is to make some steps on the way to bring the Croatian and Hungarian culture closer together by encouraging and motivating youngsters to come to the capital, meet Hungarian culture and "take home" what they liked. Despite this fact, anybody interested in volunteering in Budapest is welcomed.
I hope that on the site you will find all the information that you need to make your decision. Being an EVS volunteer in Zagreb, I tried to answer all of the questions bothered me before leaving. These were mostly put about the nature of my job, accomodation, travelling, food prices, langauge learning, possibilities of entertainment. I was also concerned about cultural issues, and I was also very greatful for any pieces of advice about how to make friendships and accomodate myself to the new environment. Besides, you can find a list of hosting institutions situated in Budapest and its surroundings, and a great deal of information about their activities and conditions provided for volunteers. All the information is at first hand, since I got into contact with all of the institutions listed above and I visited each of them personally.


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Thanks Jessica for the comment on my 'Trees of Thanks' design. Unfortunately, Minted has requested that designs should incorporate some personalized aspect (name, picture, or both).If a design is selected without a name, it will be required to add it. But with that said, I do think it would look better without the name :) Well good luck to you in your first challenge and welcome to Minted! -Ashley
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We uncover design genius through ongoing design competitions. At Minted, all that matters is good design. Designers submit, and the Minted community votes to tell us what to sell.


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It's been way too long since I've done a makeup post. I'll tell you why. Makeup posts are one of my favorites but they require a lot of time coming up with a look you may like and will be easy for you to recreate and getting the pictures just right can be a pain! I want everything to be perfect for you ladies. With that said I came up with this Pretty Purple look using products from a few different companies. I hope you like it. Product info is below :)
Eyebrows: Anastasia Dipbrow Pomade in Ebony
Eyeshadow: All from Younique's Mineral Pigments Line, Highlight: Sexy, Crease: Corrupted, Lid: Glamorous
Eyeline: Upper: Benefits They're Real Push Up Liner, Lower: Younique Moodstruck Precision pencil in Perfect
Lashes: 3D Fiber Lash Mascara from Younique
Lipstick: Heroine by MAC


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stitchfix review: box #3!
Here is how it all unfolded:
Here are the details:
Wood Closure Clutch $48-
Tiered Layer Tank by Hazel $80-
3/4 Sleeve Belted Dress by Dolce Vita $121-
Sheer Tie Neck Tank by Collective Concepts $65-
Lintley sleeveless faux wrap blouse $62-
You're probably wondering what I kept and what I sent back, right? Well, I kept 1/5 things. Right now I can't really justify spending more than $40 on a tank as it's something I can only wear for another 2 months here in Minnesota. I didn't really see myself wearing an orange dress, although it really was so lovely. The one thing that had my name written all over it was the clutch, I kept the clutch! How adorable is it? It's not very large inside however, that will limit me to what I'm really carrying with me. I need a limiter.. and the clutch is perfect! Oh and did I mention it's 100% vegan. (that scores points with me!)
What did you love in this box? Have you signed up for stitchfix? What would you have kept? I'm excited to see what next month will bring for me! :)
13 comments
Lovely items! Those tanks are super cute ♥ReplyDelete
I love the orange dress and that you paired it with boots!ReplyDeleteReplies
:) I think boots make the outfit more my style. Thanks for stopping by Johanna!Delete
- Anonymous7/11/12, 2:26 PM
Hi Rachel! Thanks for doing this post! What a great collection... the clutch and tie neck top are my favorites. Definitely tempted to try out Stitchfix!ReplyDeleteReplies
Oh my goodness, I'm in love with this company!Delete
I totally agree with you I would keep the clutch as well! I love the shape and the size is perfect.ReplyDelete
I'm lovin' the clutch! Thanks for stopping by Zhanna! :)Delete
Thanks for the intro to Stitchfix, what a great program! I wouldn't know what to choose, but I think the clutch was a great choice for sure :)ReplyDeleteReplies
You're welcome! :)Delete
I am following you from GFC hop! I look forward to reading and exploring more. Stop by and return the follow when you can ;)ReplyDelete
So glad to have you! I'll stop over for sure!Delete
I love all these pieces!! Thanks so much for sharing and I am a new follower from the GFC Hop over at The Life of the Not So Ordinary Wife!ReplyDelete
Hope you have a great weekend!
Hi Michelle, thank you for 'hopping' over here! :)Delete


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Wed, 30 December 2015
The season rolls on, the All-Star break inches closer and closer and the Warriors sit at an incredible 29-1. The team is hobbling lately, and we talk about the ramifications of such injuries as the team goes forward.
What did the Christmas win vs. Cavs mean for the squad? When we do we expect Harrison Barnes back? Is Steph Curry at risk of missing significant time?
Direct download: WW_122915Fin.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 10:43pm EST
Thu, 24 December 2015
The WarriorsWorld podcast is back and even though a couple of members are missing, the show is still jam packed.
We preview the highly anticipated Christmas matchup between the Cavaliers and Warriors and recap this past week's games with Bonta Hill of KNBR and Sam Esfandiari.
Have a Happy Holidays, Warriors fans!
Direct download: WW_122415.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:35pm EST
Wed, 16 December 2015
The Warriors' incredible winning streak is over as they took a loss at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks on Saturday night. The run was incredible, and we talk about our favorite moments from the streak along with looking ahead at possible decisions in the future (72-10?).
Direct download: WW_121615_Final.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:47pm EST
Thu, 10 December 2015
The podcasts are coming in hot and heavy as the unbelievable winning streak continues. The Warriors sit at 23-0 after their 131-123 win in Indiana, and we welcome in Adam Lauridsen (@GSWFastBreak) to break it down.
Finally, we welcome in the one and only @LILBTHEBASEDGOD to talk some basketball, the infamous curse and he blesses the world with another freestyle.
Direct download: WW_120915.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:56pm EST
Tue, 8 December 2015
Another episode, another week of wins.
In another undefeated episode of the podcast, we're joined by 95.7 The Game's Matt Steinmetz to talk everything Warriors, the national perception of the team and we compare some old Golden State teams to this one.
Direct download: WW_120715.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:31pm EST
Wed, 2 December 2015
Another episode and another week without having to discuss a loss. We can get used to this.
In our first segment we discuss the return of Brandon Rush, Luke Walton and all the happenings -- both before and after -- the win in Utah.
We then welcome in Sports Illustrated's Ben Golliver to talk the historical greatness of the Warriors, the disappointing Western Conference and how you beat Golden State in a series.
Direct download: WW_120115Final.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:26pm EST


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When owning a business whose critical operations depends on your IT department as along with technology, it could be a major problem if disaster strikes and you lose data or experience outages because of sudden situations. In cases like this, getting the professional expertise of your computer services skilled to help your business return to its feet is imperative. Our firm offers top notch innovative solutions to all technology especially computer problems and disaster recovery services. Professional Disaster Recovery Support are very important in instances when either mother nature's or man's activities wreak havoc and cause data loss and interruption of operations. Our qualified experts liase together with your IT team to build up a tragedy recovery system that only decreases the magnitude of data loss, but in addition recovers data and information. It will help employees reconnect on their data and minimize decrease of customers through downtime. In a nutshell, anytime disaster strikes, your small business is able to recover easily without experiencing major loss.


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AMD, Intel, Asus Bring the Energy Back to PCs at Computex 2019
The effects of demonetisation of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000 notes can be seen outside ATMs and in banks, but with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's latest announcement, they can be seen on app stores too. The official Narendra Modi app has become a major hit in India, becoming a trending topic both the Apple App Store and Google Play store in India after the Prime Minister asked the public to give their view on demonetisation via the app. Not only is it a trending topic on the two major app marketplaces, but the official Narendra Modi app is also among the most downloaded apps on the App Store and Google Play.
On the App Store, search terms related to the Narendra Modi app occupy all 10 spots of the Trending list. The scene is not too different on Google Play store either, with 11 out of the top 12 trending apps related to Prime Minister Modi; in fact, the only remaining app is also related to the new currency notes that became the new currency on November 8.
When it comes to downloads, the Narendra Modi app is the most-downloaded app on App Store among free apps. On the other hand, the Narendra Modi app ranks on No. 18 among the top downloaded free apps on Google Play marketplace.
The Prime Minister on Tuesday asked the public to share with him their "first-hand view" on the decision to scrap the old Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes via the official Narendra Modi app, though there has been criticism of the survey in some quarters. Among the questions asked on the PM Modi app are: "Do you have any suggestions/ideas or insights you would like to share with PM Narendra Modi?", "Do you think black money exists in India?", "Do you think the evil of corruption and black money need to be fought and eliminated?", "What do you think of government's move of banning old Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000 notes?"
Searches for the Narendra Modi app on Google Play may also be boosted by the demand for duplicates of the Modi Keynote app, which claimed to distinguish between authentic and fake Rs. 2000 notes before being pulled from the marketplace.
For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on Twitter, Facebook, and subscribe to our YouTube channel.


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Book List: McKean and Sinclair
February 14, 2016
McKean and Sinclair: Guest presenter Chiara Ambrosio talks to psycho-geographer and novelist Iain Sinclair and artist Dave McKean about their collaborations such as Slow Chocolate Autopsy and London Orbital, their inspirations and their working methods. The podcast also includes additional questions from Alex Fitch and others, plus readings by Sinclair and McKean of their short stories The Articulate Head and The Coast Road. Recorded at The Light and Shadow Salon, Horse Hospital, Bloomsbury in July 2014. (Partially broadcast as an episode of Panel Borders, 21/07/14 on Resonance FM) (more…)


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Is might not be Friday, but this day just got a whole lot freakier!
Disney alum Lindsay Lohan is ready to revamp her career in more ways than one, and she's actually asking her former employer to help her out. Disney has been the cause of so many classic movies, specifically ones that Lindsay had a lead role in. Now, she's looking to reprise these lead roles and bring her fans some of the magic that she brought to all of our living rooms years ago.
However, will Disney take her requests seriously? This motivated gal has been making headlines lately when it comes to Mean Girls, but now she's got her sights set on other things in addition to her plastics role.
Lindsay tweeted at Disney yesterday and said, "@Disney let's do Freaky Friday & Herbie sequels 😊RT if you want this😊."
YASSS! This would seriously be incredible. Not to mention, the tweet got almost 6,000 retweets which means the rest of the world agrees – there should be a Freaky Friday and Herbie sequel. This isn't the first time Lindsay has advocated for a second movie to an already iconic film. A few weeks ago, she said she wanted a Mean Girls sequel as well and she revealed she wouldn't stop until it went into production!
When asked if some of the bigwigs in the biz should make this happen, LiLo said, "Yes, they should. They're smart with timing. It will come when the time is right. It's a great movie. It's a cult film...I know Tina Fey and Lorne Michaels and all of Paramount [Pictures] are very busy. But I will keep forcing it and pushing it on them until we do it. I would love to have Jamie Lee Curtis and Jimmy Fallon in the movie."
This gal has her hopes set high and we can only have our fingers crossed that these ideas become reality.
Do you have any idea what a sequel to Freaky Friday would even be about? Would Anna have her own daughter and the switch would happen again? Would she have married Jake and lived happily ever after? There are so many questions, but there's no doubt that this movie would be totally epic. AND, we have a feeling that Jamie Lee Curtis would definitely be down to make a cameo which would make this whole thing even sweeter!
AND we can't forget about Herbie. What would be going on there? Where would the car be or what would the car be doing? So many scenarios and so many things are possible.
So, Disney, Lindsay, will we see a reboot?!
Source: J-14.com.
Author: Alex Riccardi.


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With the on-going revelations about the conduct of Sunbury police officers being featured almost on a daily basis in the pages of our local newspaper, we have to ask the question – what is the City's agenda?
With the on-going revelations about the conduct of Sunbury police officers being featured almost on a daily basis in the pages of our local newspaper, we have to ask the question – what is the City's agenda?
Once again our beloved Mayor has been caught fiddling while Sunbury burns. At a city meeting on Monday 8th December his proposals, to lay off two police officers from an already under-staffed department, were being discussed at the exact time an armed robbery was taking place not more than half a mile away, at the Turkey Hill gas station on Front Street.
Can anyone else see something very wrong here?
Two simple words calculated to strike fear and trepidation in the hearts of corrupt politicians throughout the fair city of Sunbury, as we continue to expose to the full glare of publicity the events surrounding City Hall. We are certainly not in the business of civic spin doctoring – the editor and his staff at the Daily Item are more than capable of pulling the wool over the eyes of the local populace without any assistance from us.
The new Persing Administration wasted no time in signaling its intent to emulate its predecessor, with scant regard for what could be considered to be the best interests of our community and, in doing so, displaying exactly the same penchant for incompetence, stupidity and corruption. It began on election night with Persing's notorious "taking out the garbage" victory speech during which, sounding more like North Korean leader Kim Jong-un than the Mayor of Sunbury, he crudely threatened the very foundations of local democracy by stating his intent to remove any and all opposition to his evil regime.
While the Persings were living high on the hog during their trip to Oklahoma City last week, others less fortunate were facing up to the prospect of a huge tax hike for the City. We hate to say it, but we told you so. Rather than a $400,000 budget reduction under Joe Bartello we face a $400,000 increase, following the same well trodden path that Persing has taken before – increasingly wasteful expenditure brought about by irresponsible policies pursued by a corrupt and incompetent administration.
Shamokin has already gone down this road and Sunbury is charging headlong in pursuit. When this latest increase proves not to be enough, stand by for an appeal to the county court for an increase in tax limits. Then, rather than going to 25 mil, we can see our tax rates going to 35 mil or even higher – a sure fire recipe for disaster, driving more good people out of Sunbury, leading to increased property blight and a rapidly decreasing tax base.
Unfortunately, this time there is nobody in City Hall who will stand up to such profligacy. With the departure of Councilmen Snyder and Bartello and their replacement by the incoming Henry and Reichner, the collective IQ of those running City Hall has probably halved, and Persing can look forward to little or no informed opposition to his misconceived plans for the next 4 years.
In response to the huge level of interest being shown in Joe Bartello's proposals to end unnecessary and wasteful spending, and to cut the City Budget, his campaign tonight released the following statement:
"My proposals to reduce the city budget are based on the removal of service duplication, the elimination of waste and a much more professional system of city-wide management.
"The availability of finance for city services is, to a large extent, dependent on the state of the local economy. I will make it a priority to actively pursue industries to bring more jobs to Sunbury and help our economy grow.
A vital piece of Sunbury's historical fabric and a huge potential tourist attraction has a massive question mark hanging over its future.
We all know that Vinny Clausi wants to close the prison and put the county into debt by building a new larger unit in his own backyard at Coal Township. What is not so widely known is that Vinny also wants to demolish the existing prison building and sell off the stone.


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Apple Pear Pork Tenderloin
I wish I could lay claim to this recipe, I can't. It came from the Costco cookbook "A Decade of Cooking the Costco Way". But, this is such a delicious recipe, I felt I had to put it out for my readers to enjoy. I make this recipe often for my husband and I. We even made it while we visited my family and they all loved it too. So, I hope you love this recipe as much as we do. Oh, and because it serves so many, I usually half the recipe since there are just two of us (that eat solids like this).
2 pork tenderloins
Salt and pepper
3 Tbs olive oil
3 shallots, sliced
3 garlic cloves, sliced
½ c dry white wine (or vegetable broth)
1 ½ c apple cider
3 Braeburn or Granny Smith apples, cored and cut into ⅛" slices (with skin)
2 Bosc pears, cored and cut into ⅛" slices (with skin)
3 Tbs butter
- Preheat oven to 450°
- Season pork with salt and pepper to taste. Heat oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add pork and sear on all sides. Add shallots and garlic; saute until tender, about 1-2 minutes. Add wine or broth and stir until deglazed. After the browned bits have surfaced, add cider, apples and pears; stir.
- Transfer all ingredients to a baking dish. Cover and bake for about 45-60 minutes, or until the internal temperature is 165-170°.
- Remove the pork from the pan and keep warm. Remove the apple and pear pieces from the pan with a slotted spoon and place in a bowl.
- Pour the sauce from the baking dish back into the frying pan, bring to a boil over medium-high to high heat, and cook until reduced by half. Whisk in butter. Add the apple and pear pieces, stirring gently.
- Place the pork on a serving dish and slice on the bias. Top with the apple-pear sauce. Makes 6-8 servings.
Recipe From: A Decade of Cooking the Costco Way pg. 163


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Diego Ramirez is an artist who works primarily with video. His practice is driven by an interest in identity and cult media. Ramirez's work has been exhibited in galleries, museums and video festivals in Australia and abroad. We are excited to have Diego's video Radish featured in our Interface – Night Projections, which is on until the 13th of September from 7PM to 3AM. We spoke with Diego to find out more about his art.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do?
I am a nerd with a perverse core, I sublimate my psychopathic impulses with art making, primarily in the form of video, drawing and animation. I don't drink, don't smoke, don't do drugs and I don't engage in irony.
Describe your art.
Polysexual, seductive and devious. Performance is a central strategy in my work. I am interested in pop culture and the manner in which it propagates normative values. In turn I'm attracted to fandom as a receptacle in which these ideals are simultaneously warped and complied.
How did you come to it?
I've always been on it, I remember coming home from school and putting my mum's clothes on or playing I was a mushroom lying still in the backyard. I went through a long phase of drawing orifices and car accidents in primary school. I realized I wanted to work with the moving image after watching Un Chien Andalou, eventually I found about video art and I was hooked.
Tell us a about your past projects and what has been your most treasured creation?
My past projects dealt predominantly with gender, mainly because I made them during a time when I was sorting out my own sexuality. My most cherished works would be the first monologue from my video Polly, Jennifer and Melissa and my most recent project RADISH, recently exhibited with all of its components at Seventh Gallery.
Where did you grow up and has it influenced what you create?
I grew up in Mexico and I was a total weirdo, this sense of otherness had a deep influence in my work that continually manifests itself in the form of "strangeness". I'm not patriotic or someone who feels a strong sense of group identity but whenever I see a hip vice zombie walking around with their generic skull tattoos on Fitzroy eating their vegetarian burritos all I can think of is "I hope you choke on it".
Where do you feel most creative?
What will you be working on next?
I'm producing a series of 2 channel interview-based portraits on cosplayers blending live action footage and animation. The work is part of my Honours exegesis and my central enquiry is the manner in which they alleviate difference by performing amplified hegemonic roles.
What can visitors to expect to see when they visit the Colour Box Studio Night projections?
Me walking around dressed as a radish in the CBD, it was a very cold day and I was trembling but it's hardly noticeable. The rest of the artists involved in the screening are fantastic, so they should reserve a proper amount of time to watch all of the works in their totality.
Where can we see more of your work?
I have a video in the upcoming Channels Video Art Festival screening as part of the Video Visions session, and an animation in The Melbourne Underground Film Festival. My work is available in my website www.diego-ramirez.net


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As a parent sending your child/ children to a boarding school is heart rending decision for you to make. After all, who else can understand and care for them like you do? And what about the insecurity they may feel leaving their home and all that is familiar them?
Your worries are natural, but once you visit our school and experience the unique environment that is protective and attentive like home and, at the same time, gives them space to grow, you'll know you've made the right choice.
The Hostels
We have one hostel building for girls and another one for boys. Each hostel is supervised by a matron (for the girls' hostel) and a warden (for the boys' hostel).
The matron and the warden are assisted by a team of staff who look after the wellbeing along with the day to day, health, and safety needs of the children and also look after the upkeep of the hostel.


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Telemedicine encompasses a wide variety of services such as teleconsultation, telemonitoring and telesurgery. Telemedicine can also include remote consultation/e-visits or video conferences between health professionals and can be delivered through various forms of IT systems including mobile phone apps. It is this complexity in delivery that causes headaches for the legal landscape due to the interplay between the regulation of healthcare services, medical devices, intellectual property and data protection when offering telemedicine services.
Definition and Scope of Telemedicine
The nature and scope of telemedicine can be somewhat difficult to define. At present, most European Union Member States have not adopted legal instruments specifically regulating telemedicine, including Ireland. Therefore, there is no legal definition of telemedicine in Ireland. The European Commission defines telemedicine as "the provision of healthcare services, through the use of ICT, in situations where the health professional and the patient (or two health professionals) are not in the same location. It involves secure transmission of medical data and information, through text, sound, images or other forms needed for the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up of patients".1 The Irish Health Service Executive and the Department of Health have published similar definitions.2 It is worth noting that phrases such as "telemedicine" "eHealth", "telehealth", "telecare", and "connected health" are all used interchangeably in this context. This has only added to the uncertainty surrounding the scope and nature of telemedicine services.


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Thermal Seal Films
Alpha Laboratories is a privately owned business specialising in laboratory supplies and diagnostic products.
Our strength is built on more than 35 years, dedicated to personalised customer service and support, plus a passion for finding new ways to help science improve people's lives.
Through our worldwide connections with leading manufacturers, established and emerging suppliers, we source the best products to help solve the problems you face in your laboratory every day.


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On Thursday the 12th, the world finally learned what Ken Levine and his infamous team of creative geniuses have been working on for the last three years: another BioShock game. It's called BioShock Infinite, and it looks to be taking a bit of a different direction than the last two installments; rather than returning players to the watery confines of Rapture, BioShock Infinite will be taking players to Columbia, an all-new city in the sky. If you haven't seen the game's debut trailer yet, check out the post below this one, or just head to YouTube.
No gameplay, but there are plenty of details about the game's new setting to be gleaned. A lengthy gameplay demo was shown at the game's reveal in New York's Plaza Hotel, and there are multiple impressions across the interwebs written by journalists who were lucky enough to be there. I'd recommend heading to either Kotaku or IGN for said impressions if you so desire. There are no gameplay videos for the general public as of right now, but Levine promises that they are coming.
So. Now that you're up to speed, it's time to discuss a few things. What is this new BioShock? Why is this new BioShock? Is this the direction that we, as devoted fans, want to see the franchise go? What's going to happen to Rapture? Should we even care?
What's Changed
BioShock Infinite isn't set in Rapture. BioShock Infinite is set in the floating city of Columbia, 46 years before the events of the first BioShock even took place. You're not a silent, unknown protagonist in Infinite, you're a former Pinkerton agent named Booker DeWitt, and you're here to rescue a girl named Elizabeth. Elizabeth has been locked away like Rapunzel for fifteen years now – and the kicker is that neither of you know why. Whatever it is, I'm sure the revelation will be shocking.
1912 is a period that Levine calls an era of "American Exceptionalism." Unlike Rapture, Columbia hasn't seceded ties to its nation; as you surely noticed in the trailer, American flags fly abundantly, and even make up a part of the game's logo. And indeed, around the turn of the century, America was enjoying a period of extreme optimism – technologies such as radio, automobiles, and air travel were upon us for the first time, and a sense of American pride ran strong. It's clear that BioShock Infinite plans to take the general feel and mindset of this time period and run with it. The people of Columbia seem to hold an extreme, almost fanatical sense of patriotic pride. Billboards boldly stating "Burden Not Columbia With Your Chaff" seem to indicate an exclusive, elitist culture and mindset that's been established amongst the people of the floating city. Levine claims that the "4th of July" served as the inspiration for the environments pictured in the game, and it shows – everything I've seen for Infinite invokes the feel of a bright, summery American holiday.
Like BioShock 1 before it, BioShock Infinite seems to be taking a specific time period and enshrining it; exaggerating it, even. But aside from that, the settings and atmospheres of the two games couldn't be more of a polar opposite. Or… could they?
What's Stayed
Levine has stated several times that his team approached the development of BioShock Infinite with the idea that "there are no sacred cows." What that means, basically, is that they weren't too worried about staying true to the formula of the original BioShock. Any ideas or conventions re-implemented in BioShock Infinite had to earn their way there. So, based on what we've seen so far, what made the cut?
-Big Daddies
The most iconic thing that has returned to BioShock Infinite is the lumbering Big Daddies. Unfortunately, as members of the general public, we haven't been given the opportunity to see them in full – the debut trailer only shows limited, shadowy views of the beast. However, based on what we've been able to see, and what publications such as Kotaku have said, the Big Daddies seem to feature a more mechanized, steampunk feel. They're a human head set atop a huge mechanized body, with a pulsing human heart clearly visible in the middle of their torso. Clearly some sort of bizarre man-machine cross, which makes them essentially the same (in concept) as those seen in Rapture. Given how beloved the Big Daddies are, this is hardly surprising. If there's a sacred cow in the BioShock franchise, it's them.
Another convention being re-used for Infinite are plasmid powers. Impressions across the web describe protagonist DeWitt using electricity, telekinesis, and a new power that allows him to control a flock of bloodthirsty crows. Apparently, instead of shooting up as you did in the original BioShock, Infinite merely requires you to take a swig of potion. Much cleaner process. Will these powers be referred to as Plasmids? Will the potions be known as ADAM? They didn't say, but regardless of names, it's clear what they're meant to emulate. I gotta say, though, given the state of biological science during that period of time, I'm forced to wonder how they'll explain the conception of such a thing.
-The Combat
Again, we haven't been privileged enough to actually see any gameplay yet, and that includes combat. But Levine has stated that he considers the varied, player-defined combat of BioShock one of the series staples, and BioShock Infinite aims to maintain and enhance this mechanic. In BioShock – and, to be fair, particularly in BioShock 2 – the sheer variety in which you could approach combat situations was fantastic. You could opt for down-and-dirty gun combat if you desired, with a variety of different firearms. An arsenal of specialized plasmid powers were at your disposal. Bots and turrets could be hacked to fight on your side. The environment itself could be utilized; for example, a blast of electricity to a puddle of water would fry anyone standing in it. Combine all of these elements and possibilities together, and you had one of the most unique, robust first-person combat systems in existence. And with BioShock Infinite, Levine claims that you'll have even more options in terms of customization and evolution.
-The Human Element
This one's a bit more vague than the previous three, but it's perhaps the most important. The ideologies behind Rapture and Columbia are nearly antithetical to eachother – Rapture was built on a culture of individuality devoid of restraint, while Columbia clearly displays prideful, collectivist systems. However, while the two cities may not have similar political climates, they have in common the fact that they've both become dystopian in nature, crumbling under the weight of their own radicalism. "This is not a floating World's Fair," Levine said. "Columbia is a Death Star." Rapture discovered a powerful genetic modifier called ADAM, and the city slowly crumbled under the financial, political, and (of course) biological weight of such a discovery. Columbia becomes involved in a horrific (but yet unspecified) international event, and then takes to the clouds – running off to evolve into the violently patriotic elitist nation that DeWitt has the displeasure of visiting.
With BioShock Infinite, the franchise continues its tradition showing the chilling consequences of humanity's own hubris gone horribly awry. And again, it's up to you, the player, the unravel the story behind the dystopia that lies before you. Perhaps BioShock Infinite will bring back some of the mystery and intrigue that was missing from 2K Marin's BioShock 2?
Which brings us to our next topic of discussion:
What's Next?
With BioShock Infinite, Ken Levine is aiming to show the world that the BioShock experience is bigger than the confines of Rapture. A bold statement, for sure; it can't be denied that the defining factor of the original BioShock experience was, in fact, the city of Rapture. The city was steeped in character, atmosphere, mystery, backstory, and all manners of narrative and visual appeal. It was, essentially, the star of the show.
But, one must also recall BioShock 2. I enjoyed BioShock 2 quite a bit; however, the entire experience suffered from a case of "been there, done that." Rapture just wasn't as engaging a second time around, because I already knew the story behind it. There was no sense of mystery, no dark secrets to unravel. To be frank, I'm unsure if the setting could even hold up for a third outing. With BioShock Infinite, Ken Levine has stated that he wants to bring back the sense of intrigue and discovery that made BioShock such a memorable experience. And indeed, the floating city of Columbia already has me intrigued as a setting – I'll be most interested in seeing just what makes the city tick, as it were, and what sort of colored past has paved the way for its violent transformation.
And maybe that's the BioShock experience at its core. Think about it. A shocking example of human civilization gone awry, a thrilling, unique world, and the ability for you, the player to discover and unravel it. If this is the direction that the franchise is going to take, it could have many incarnations. What about a BioShock set in current times, or the near future? Take the political and social climates of, say, modern-day America and extrapolate it to the extreme? Hell, what about a BioShock set in the Wild West? Or in the Middle Ages? Fun to think about, isn't it?
At this point, a lot of people are still wondering if BioShock Infinite will have any narrative ties – i.e, share the same timeline – with BioShock 1 and 2. Levine refuses to give a straight answer on the subject, and I'm inclined to believe that his team isn't going to be terribly concerned with maintaining any sort of narrative connections between the games, or any sort of "timeline" as it were. After all, it's entirely needless – I'm perfectly fine with letting the two games exist within their own spheres, much as entries in the Final Fantasy series do. As long as the Big Daddies stick around. Y'know, kinda like how the Behemoths do.
I haven't seen enough of BioShock Infinite to form a strong opinion on the game itself, but I certainly concur with Levine's direction for the franchise. To be perfectly frank, had we been informed of this project two years ago, I would have been outraged – I once firmly believed that Rapture and BioShock couldn't exist without eachother. But after seeing the city wear thin in BioShock 2, and after seeing what bold new direction Levine's team has taken with Infinite, my mind has been changed.


text: More-Safe Enterprises was born with the aim to design, produce and sell material lifting equipment, we are a professional manufacturer of electric chain hoist, chain block, lever block&other lifting equipments! Through more than 16 years' dedication, we've been the leading manufacturer of lifting industry in China! Our company has achieved ISO9001 & CE certifications. Our products have been successfully exported to Europe, America, the Middle East, Africa & Southeast Asia with"LIFTKING"brand. LIFTKING is famous and popular brand all over the... [Details]


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Jade Garden Restaurant
Food and Beverage / Restaurants
location on Google Maps.
in new tab.
on social media.
Since February 25, 1985, Jade Garden Restaurant has been serving Ankeny and its surrounding areas with authentic Hunan, Mandarin and Szechuan cuisine at modest prices. As the first Chinese restaurant in Ankeny, it grows with the community, and has become a tradition to the city and the people who live there. Our goal is to delight the customers by providing high quality tasty food and excellent services.
Business Hours
Monday 11:00 AM - 8:30 PM
Tuesday 11:00 AM - 8:30 PM
Wednesday 11:00 AM - 8:30 PM
Thursday 11:00 AM - 8:30 PM
Friday 11:00 AM - 9:30 PM
Saturday 11:00 AM - 9:30 PM
Sunday 11:00 AM - 8:30 PM


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Glock® 43 9mm Semi-auto Pistol with Crimson Trace® Laserguard® LG-443 Laser and Nemesis Holster
The single-stack Glock 43 has a well-earned reputation as the smallest pistol you can actually shoot comfortably and confidently…and should you ever find yourself staring down an assailant, that's important. Despite its small size, it's still a Glock through and through, with the classic Safe Action trigger, slide lock, mag release and takedown all where they should be. The trigger is just as crisp and reliable as every other Glock, and the textured surface gives you plenty to grab onto—whether your hands are big or small.
For a limited time, we're offering the Glock 43 with a Crimson Trace Laserguard Laser Sight and DeSantis Nemesis Holster, an awesome value that's ready for everyday carry right out of the box. The Laserguard Sight features Interactive ActivationTM, which allows you to activate it by simply gripping the pistol in a normal firing grip. The LG-443 is also fully adjustable for windage and elevation. The DeSantis Nemesis Holster features a slick inner material for low-friction draw.
Order today!


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AETERNAM Preparing To Record New Album
Quebec, Canada-based metallers AETERNAM will enter Badass Studios with engineer Jean-François "Jef" Fortin this spring to begin recording their new album, "Moongod", for a late 2012 release via Galy Records.
Commented the band, "The album will contain nine songs plus a short and wicked intro. As far as it goes, there's still a lot of blast beats and brutal stuff, but the music is way more epic and melodic, really more groovy and let's say… dangerous? Lyrics deal a lot with religions (again), but the focus is more on pre-Islamic rites and actual stuff that is going on right now in the Middle East. Nevertheless, there's still some new ideas and conceptsL we do even have a song that talks about Mayan culture! Crazy stuff!"
"Moongod" track listing:
01. Moongod
02. Invading Jerusalem
03. Cosmogony
04. Iram Of The Pillars
05. Rise Of Arabia
06. Xibalba
07. Descent Of Gods
08. Idol Of The Sun
09. Hubal, Profaner Of Light
Video footage of AETERNAM performing the new song "Descent Of Gods" live for the first time in January 2011 at Impérial in Quebec City can be seen below.
In other news, AETERNAM has announced the departure of bassist Jean-François Boudreault.


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Active Listening
Far too often the cause of accidents can be traced back to poor communication and particularly to shortcomings concerning active listening skills. How well you listen to your colleagues has a major impact on your job effectiveness. Active listening is a skill that is trained as part of the Green-Jakobsen leadership training concept, but it can also be delivered as a session during officer seminars. The course provides effective tools and knowledge of basic elements of verbal and non-verbal communication techniques.


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About Us
Boundless Fun
We've got huge inflatable playgrounds, endless games and even a blow-up birthday throne!
100% Private
It's just you and your invited guests in our enormous bouncy house arenas and party rooms!
Completely Customized
You can tailor every detail of the party experience to make it as special as the birthday kid!
Pump It Up of Poway - Best Place for Birthday Parties
SEE WHAT FAMILY MAGAZINE VOTERS SAID ABOUT PUMP IT UP OF POWAY! Best place in San Diego to host a child's birthday party, as voted on by parents around San Diego County.
Pump It Up of Poway
Pump It Up of Poway, serving Poway and the surrounding San Diego community, opened April 2004 and has been supporting the community ever since. The Poway location has two large Arenas in which every party and event rotates through. It is the only Pump It Up facility in San Diego that utilizes the rotational model. As such, our guests can experience time with all the inflatables. Our Party Rooms are also very spacious allowing us to serve larger parties and events (i.e. field trips, camps, scout and sporting events, fund raisers, etc.).
In addition to private birthday parties and events, we also open our facility to the public with numerous Open Jump times throughout the week -- all Open Jumps are posted on our Event Calander. Best of all, parents always play for FREE at Pump It Up of Poway.
Our track record for providing exemplary customer service, as indicated by our customer feedback, is second to none.
Our History
Pump It Up is the pioneer in birthday party entertainment. Founded in Pleasanton, California in 2000, it was an immediate success, allowing parents to host children's parties in a private, safe, and clean environment. Today, Pump It Up is Kids' Favorite Place with centers across the country. It has set the industry standard for indoor inflatable safety, while providing your community with a fun and healthy family activity.


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E-Commerce Gateways
More and more consumers and businesses are purchasing products and services online. It's quick, convenient, and secure. If you're unable to process online transactions, you are missing out on an opportunity to grow your customer base and your revenue.
TransMerit offers a variety of eCommerce solutions through that allow you to process customers' payments directly through your website. We can help you set up an online shopping cart and online gateway solution for credit, debit, and ACH acceptance. You'll generate more sales while offering customers the convenience of making payments online.
With our eCommerce solutions, you won't need an IT department to accept payments through your website. We make it as easy as a few clicks of the mouse. And since our eCommerce products are compatible with over 90 shopping carts, we can provide you with the interface that best fits your needs.
- Grow online sales across multiple channels worldwide with the widest variety of payment options available.
- Discover the solutions that fit your needs and easily expand your global reach with a seamless and familiar online shopping experience.
- Learn more about visitors of your online store with insights that help add value to your business.
- Ensure faster, uninterrupted online payment service thanks to top processing speeds and an intelligent infrastructure.
- Increase efficiency with our fully equipped online payment processing services


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There are items in your cart not related to this team store. You can check out with the existing items in your cart or empty your cart to continue shopping this page.Empty Cart Checkout Existing Products
Get up and get out. These men's trail running shoes are precise. They are aggressive. They are ready to conquer the woods. Underfoot, HydroHesion advanced rubber compound helps you find grip in adventurous water environments, while spike-like lugs help you feel fast. The forefoot Rock Stop plate helps add additional protection on the trail.


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Michael Jordan's Top All-Star Game Moments
It's Michael Jordan's 50th birthday, and coincidentally it's the NBA All-Star Game today. It's so hard to full encapsulate just how good Michael Jordan was as a player, but a decent gauge is the fact that he played 15 seasons in the NBA, and was an All-Star in 14 of them. The one season he wasn't a top choice for the fans? The season he played only 17 games after leaving baseball and unretiring from basketball.
It's remarkable that from the moment he entered the NBA as a skinny 21-year-old, to the time he retired at a still-effective 40, Jordan was recognized by the fans as the top player in the NBA. Some athletes get appreciated more when they're gone, some are adored while they play - Jordan is both.
So let's run through some of Jordan's top All-Star Game moments: the time he got to shine against the best of the best.
Michael Jordan All Star Top Moments Birthday
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Supercheap seven-inch tablets would work for adults too
If you're looking for cheap Android-tablet for your kids it doesn't look like kids tablet, you may be interested in the new Canvas Minimo and Maximo tablets from Pardo Group. Both of these tablets run the Android-operating system and feature seven-inch screens. These tablets are specifically for children, but they do offer very cheap prices making them appealing to parents.
The Maximo will sell for $125 and uses a Allwinner A10 Cortex A8 processor at 1.2 GHz. The operating system is Android 4.0 and features 4 GB of internal storage with 512 MB of RAM. It also has a 0.3-megapixel front camera and a two-megapixel rear camera.
The Minimo tablet will sell for $100 and has the same seven-inch screen. It uses a slower Allwinner A10 Cortex A8 1 GHz processor and has only a front camera. It runs Android 4.0, has 4 GB of storage, and 512 MB of RAM. Both these tablets have integrated Wi-Fi and support 3G dongles with an adapter.


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Some new research has shown that internet users give Google the thumbs up over Bing, regardless of the actual search results returned.
Survey Monkey asked 641 people to choose which page of search results they preferred - some received a set of search results labelled Google and some received a set labelled Bing.
The Google branded page was chosen by the majority of respondents - but here's the thing! Some of the Google pages included Bing's search results, and some of the Bing pages included only Google's search results.
Search wars
Despite this, people who received the swapped results pages still favoured "Google"'s results over "Bing"'s.
So people didn't really care what the search engines brought back, they were more impressed by the engines themselves.
The research only took in the opinions of 641 people so it's not exactly something we're going to submit to the Encycopaedia Britannica, but it does go to show that Microsoft's search engine still has a long way to go before it usurps Google's position as top search dog.
From Search Engine Land


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That's because dosomething.org and the Grammy Foundation are teaming up to reward young people like you who are making a difference through music. Visit
dosomething.org/keychange for more info — but hurry, your deadline to enter is December 15, so it's quickly approaching.
Twenty winners will receive a $500 community action grant and five grand-prize winners will win $3,000 and a trip to the Grammy Awards!
So, what are you doing with music to make a difference? Do you have a good idea on how you can get involved in your community? Sound off below!


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KARACHI: Anti-terrorism court (ATC) today warned Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leader Dr Farooq Sattar of media blackout and reissued non-bailable arrest warrant against chief Altaf Hussain and others in provocative speech case.
The court heard case pertaining to facilitation in hate speech delivered by MQM leader in 2015.
MQM s Waseem Akhtar, Khawaja Izharul Hassan and Rauf Siddique appeared before the court in the case however, Dr Farooq Sattar and other accused maintained absence.
The court resented the irresponsibility of the accused and warned of ordering their media blackout.
The judge stated that a letter could be written to Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) highlighting that a fugitive could not address the people through media.
The court ordered the absentees to voluntarily make appear in next hearing.
Investigative officer was also ordered to arrest all the accused and produce them by May 7.
The court reprimanded the investigative officers and issued show-cause notices for not filing challans of eight cases.
Interim bails of Waseem Akhtar, Khawaja Izahrul Hassan, Rauf Siddique and Qamar Mansoor were extended until May 07.
Non-bailable arrest warrants of Dr Sattar, Rashid Godil, Haider Abbas Rizvi, Nasreen Jaleel and others were issued.
Some 22 cases are registered against MQM chief and other members in different police stations for delivering a controversial speech, allegedly provoking the people to act against army and other state institutions in 2015.


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These traditional seat pads have a pretty floral tapestry style pattern throughout and will provide that extra layer of comfort to your kitchen, dining room or garden chairs. Available in Burgundy or Natural, these square seat pads get slightly narrower towards the back and measure approximately: 38cm x 38cm (15" x 15") at the widest point with a depth of 5cm (2"). Each seat cushion is generously filled with polyester foam and there are two ties at the back to securely attach the pad to your chair and prevent any slipping. The zipped covers can be removed and it is recommended that they are machine washed on a cool 30c wash. They should not be tumble dried, however they can be ironed on a warm heat setting. Photographs are for illustrative purposes only and all measurements are approximate. Colour: Size: Material: Care Instructions:
Classic Home Store Floral Tapestry Style Square Seat Pad Zipped Kitchen Garden Chair Cushion 15" 38cm Burgundy - B01FKBHQIM


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When one faces deadlines, whether they are for examinations, debt payments, or departing trains or planes, it is easy to become distressed and miss even basic tasks.
Anyone under stressful conditions becomes nervous, anxious, and stressed, failing then, to complete tasks efficiently and successfully.
Essay writing is often one of the deadline tasks over which students stress. Missing a deadline, moreover, creates feelings of guilt, fright, and fear over one's grade. Last-minute work on essays results in poor writing, so, to avoid the last minute rush, it is wise to seek the help of professionals.
Want an expert to write a paper for you?
Want an expert to write a paper for you?
Professional writers are available to help those who need writing help. Students can pay to have professionals write their essays, and writers can easily found. Writers may be freelancers, either full or part-time, or they may work for any number of writing services. When you pay to write essay, you will always get a quality article, because the writer is getting paid will always to do justice to his task. The complete information on the essay should be provided to the writer by the student/ individual, so that the writer can perform the task successfully. The more accurate the details, the better the essay will be. It is always good to keep track of the writing; once the essay is completed, the student/individual may wish revision, which the writer can do promptly. It saves the student/individual from last minute anxiety.
for more than
30 pages
for more than
50 pages
for more than
100 pages
Lot of professionals and students pay to have essays written, so that they can use their time for the some other vital purpose. Day by day, human society is getting busier, and they have to depend on others for academic and professional needs.
The writing business is expanding like never before; when the demand grows, so does the supply. When you pay to have an essay written, look for trusted and quality professionals. Getting in to the wrong hands will leave one frustrated and make him skeptical about hired writers. The market is a mix of good and bad, and one should know how to discriminate. When you find a trusted writer, stick with him/her to perform all of your writing tasks.


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The Film was About Sexual Abuse, and It Described Me …
I recently received a heartfelt letter from a woman who felt I had written her story and put it into a song; I was very touched by her warm thanks for the understanding she said she felt while listening to it.
The song is called "Mama Cried." It is about a runaway who left home at 16 because her mother's boyfriend was abusing her. The girl in my song finds herself living on the streets, totally alone, except for the piranhas.
Here are some of the lyrics:
Mama cried, when I said I had to leave, poor deluded Mama she just can't believe,
someone lied, and I know it wasn't me.
Something isn't right here beneath this family tree.
City lights, keep all the ghosts at bay.
No one asks me questions, no one turns me away.
I spend my nights, with friends that I have made.
They give me protection and a place to stay.
I guess it's not so different from my home now.
At least, I make a dollar for my time.
When I have a quarter, I call Mama.
Just to say I love her, and that just like her, I live a lie.
The Mother did not believe her daughter when she revealed she was being abused; she chose to believe her boyfriend the accused. In my opinion, the betrayal of the Mother was nearly worse than the abuse itself. Maybe it is worse in fact, but really that is a topic for another post.
There is nothing nice about childhood abuse, but I do believe, in the grand scheme of things, it is a survivable life event. If there is the right amount of support and love in a child's life, they can get through anything.
I am telling you this because I know from experience, from the age of five until I was twelve, I was regularly abused by a person who was connected closely to our family. I know intimately the feeling of being preyed upon, manipulated and told mistruths for years on end by someone you trust.
Child predators are sneaky bastards. They groom children by using intoxicating motivators. I thought I was keeping my family together by not telling because that's what I was told. It's a hefty burden for a little kid to bear, and I actually carried it all throughout my childhood. I was even a well-adjusted child, oddly enough. Blessed with wonderful parents, I had no doubts, no fears that I wasn't loved, so for me, the whole abuse aspect just seemed like a facet of my life.
I stopped the abuse the second I realized I had the power to say no, the very second.
Not to sound cliché, but I recall the moment as if it were yesterday.
In school, one day my grade seven teacher announced a big film they were going to show. It was a brand new topic, very controversial in fact, and she told us that all sorts of parents had tried to stop it from being shown. They had complained that the material was too much for kids to understand, they were afraid to scare the children. Finally, though, luckily, after a lot of arguing, the film received approval to be shown in schools, and our class was among the first to see it.
We were excited. We didn't care what the topic was, we just loved missing classes and adored the whole film watching experience in general. (I can even now imagine hearing the clickety sound of the old style film projector's spinning and whirring beside us as we watched.) So, I was in no way prepared for my life to change so drastically after watching this movie. From the moment it started, it had my attention, because the film was about sexual abuse, and it described me.
I sat in silence watching the film, and I recall at one point feeling as if I was outside of myself, watching me come to the realization that the things my abuser told me were not true. I was in a daze for the last periods of the day, and I recall going straight to the library on Granville street after school, where I walked in right past the teen fiction section and up to the counter to ask the librarian if she had any books on sexual abuse. She took me to a pitifully small section of books (by today's standards), I grabbed them all and went to a table to sit and skim through everything I could find that might be relevant to me.
Now that I knew this was me, I wanted to know, what was going to happen? The film had said there were sometimes drastic effects on people who had been abused, and I didn't like the sound of that, so I focused on finding out more.
Each book that covered the topic said there were generally two different reactions to this sort of abuse; the individual will act out and become promiscuous; often running away and winding up on the streets selling their bodies and their souls and basically continuing the abuse cycle … or they would become overly cautious, and in that, they were at risk of becoming stuck somewhere, when it comes to various aspects of relationships, later in life.
I took this information and made a decision on that day. I didn't know anything about relationships yet, but I knew what I didn't want, and I knew that I would do everything in my power to avoid becoming the promiscuous type. So I made myself aware and watched for red flags all the way throughout my youth. I wouldn't say I was perfect, but it is very safe to say I regularly opted out of events, moments, and situations where things could get scary or uncomfortable for me. I usually preferred to observe the party rather than participate. (Maybe that is why I like to be onstage even today.)
I pretty much followed that path until I was married, and it largely kept me out of trouble. In hindsight, in fact, it probably protected me. As a young and impressionable teenager, I may have otherwise been far too easily led (had I carried no fears or visions of the future). All the reading (and I did a lot after that first day) gave me a glimpse of tomorrow.
So, the point of all this is that armed with the information I sought out as a result of seeing the film, I found the strength to tell my abuser NO, and the abuse stopped.
However, I still did not tell anyone in my family. I still believed that if my abuser's partner knew, she would be devastated and crushed, and I loved her so much I couldn't bear to hurt her that way. (My 'reading' at that point did not afford me the insight or the bravery to understand that it wasn't my fault, that particular realization didn't occur until much later in my life.) So, I carried on in silence. The abuser was still in our family and present at family events. No one was the wiser because I was very stoic. I don't recall caring very much, at least I was free from the abuse.
There is a long story of spent tears and healing that follows from this point in the story, but that is not the purpose of this essay. The point is to illustrate how powerful and important information can be to a person, especially a child.
If those busybody parents had been successful in keeping the film out of my school, I might never have understood what was happening to me. Who knows how long the abuse would have gone on? Who knows how much more twisted my life would have become? Despite the efforts of the needlessly fearful parents, the school did an excellent job of educating me on my rights as a human. They gave me the power to stand up for myself.
I will never understand those parents. The ones who keep their children in a bubble, protecting them from everything and anything. What are kids supposed to do when they get out on their own? How do they cope if their hand is held through every experience and someone edits every bit of information that comes their way? How will they deal when it all comes at them the moment they get out there on their own and start trying to test their wings?
If you are a parent of young children, don't deny them the tools they will need to protect themselves. Instead, arm them with truthful information. Give them the power to say no to adults, because trust me, even if you are a fabulous parent, you may never know what is going on behind your back. You may never know what lies are told to keep your child in a situation where they are quietly complying with the directions of someone in a trusted position. If they think they are protecting you or a loved one, they will never reveal the truth. They don't know any better, so you have to tell them. The world has bad people. They have to know about them.
That's what I came here to say today, so, do with that suggestion whatever you will.
I will close with a mini version of how my story resolved. In my early 20s, the abuser left my relative, and with the fear of becoming the one to break up the family no longer present, I finally told the story.
Unlike the young lady in my song (Mama Cried), I was one of the lucky abuse survivors because my family believed me and supported me. I was encouraged to go to the police. Statements were made by me, confessions given by him … and then, he killed himself, and left a note, blaming me.
That sent me spiraling into a dark period of guilt and sadness. I recall so clearly walking down the train tracks by myself, day after day, just crying huge, pitiful, sobbing tears and completely not understanding the world.
One day, though, and I don't even know why, but one day I suddenly stopped, and decided I was tired of crying about it.
I decided on that day, at that very moment, that I was no longer going to let him have any power over me. I made the choice to not allow this life event to define me. I decided that from that moment forward, I was going to take responsibility for my actions and not blame them on my past. That meant that any mistakes I made, were going to be MY mistakes, and I was sincerely prepared to take responsibility for them.
That also gave me the realization that anything good I did, was going to be my own doing too, and I was going to be able to take credit for that. I reminded myself of what my Dad always taught me, that I have the choice to spread good energy, and I also have the choice to either absorb or deflect the bad.
Perhaps that is why I am so positive today. It is my choice to be that way. Anyone who knows me knows I rarely get mad. I am more likely to get sad at myself than be angry at someone else. Sometimes that point is confused or mistaken, particularly when I lose my ability to communicate effectively, but I have no choice but to be OK with that and realize that for all I have managed to figure out, I will still struggle with personal insecurities and get in the way of myself, and I should give myself a break.
And while I am still very likely to keep certain things private and close to my heart, because I either feel stupid, or the experience was too raw, I know I will continue to share most of my experiences, thoughts and processes as I scratch my way through life, and maybe even just maybe, as a result, someone, somewhere in cyberworld, will recognize something of themselves in my stories of being human, and maybe they will be moved to look for their own understanding and answers. That would be quite worth it I think.
Hearts to you all. xo
Photo Credit: kyz via Compfight cc
Rachael Chatoor
Rachael has had the eye-opening privilege of living on four different continents over the years. Currently, she resides with her teenage son and daughter in her native city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada where she is a full-time singer/performer/musician as well as artistic painter. She believes in the power of community and the importance of providing a strong, connected, family village for children (whether the parents marriage is intact or not, it should remain both civil, cooperative and caring). She laughs wholeheartedly, feels deeply, resonates fully and when she chooses to love, loves completely. She is a grateful student of life and considers herself an expert mistake-maker (though her years of experience and overcoming in this area have made her practically adept at squashing most of her fears and turning them into lemonade).


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Forged/Advanced Tools
EarPencilMan last edited by
Currently, getting tool forging and making tools has no purpose. Unless a player lost one of their tools, all of the tools are naturally obtained via survival research. Instead, the anvil should make "reinforced tools," which would have buffs, such as being able to carry more of a resource (ex. 20 logs, or you could stack 20 stone on a reinforced shovel), and/or having a reduced base calorie usage (base of 15 instead of 20).
EarPencilMan last edited by EarPencilMan
Since the axe now is only 10 calories at base usage, an ability to carry multiple stacks would be a great buff for a reinforced axe.
toxxikz last edited by
I like the idea as well, I mean we can build a laser but not a chainsaw.
Maybe add chainsaw which increases the yield from logs or costs less calories. or a drill that increases yield from stone and ore. A seeder that lets you plant seeds in 2x2 then 4x4 as you spend points in efficiencies on it. A harvester that does the same but obviously harvesting not seeding. Just some ideas...


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About Us
Get in touch
We would love to hear from you and welcome any comments and suggestions.
Please email us at: email@example.com
In regards to orders please email us at: firstname.lastname@example.com
The Forages team is contactable Mon – Fri 9.30am – 5pm UK time, drop us an email of fill out the form below and we will aim to respond within 48 hours.
For all customer service enquiries please contact us via the contact form below stating your order number (if you have one).


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Mat Bottoms began his duties as superintendent of the Carteret County Public School System July 1, 2017. Mr. Bottoms had been serving as the school system's assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction since May 2010. He also was overseeing the maintenance department.
Prior to that Mr. Bottoms served as principal of Croatan High School since the school opened in 1998 until 2010. He worked as an assistant principal at West Carteret High School from 1995-1998 and was the school's band director from 1980-1995.
Mr. Bottoms is a native of Wilson, North Carolina. His wife is Gail Bottoms, who taught mathematics in the Carteret County Public School System for 30 years. Their two children Tyler and Hayden attended the Carteret County Public School System. Tyler and his wife Paige live in Greenville and Hayden and her husband Marcus live in Iowa.
Mr. Bottoms can be reached by calling 252-728-4583, ext. 1113 or by emailing firstname.lastname@example.com.