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What should you do if you find yourself in the same position as millions of Americans who want to buy a home, but for whatever reason cannot secure a home loan? Over the last six or seven years, the practice of leasing/renting a home with the option to buy has become increasingly popular. But pcause "rent-to-own" (or "lease-to-own" as it is also called) transactions are occurring more frequently does not mean they are ideal for everyone and all situations.
- Intro
- How Does Rent-to-Own Work?
- Rent-to-Own: Advantages and Disadvantages
- Who Should Consider a Rent-to-Own?
Is it a good idea?
When the U.S. housing market began to falter in 2007, economists optimistically predicted a recovery within a few years. We are now closing in fast on 2016, and many parts of the country are still experiencing stagnant or declining home values. While Forbes has reported that people like Warren Buffett predict the housing market could rise out of its slump by mid-2017, a recent FICO® survey ominously reports that housing probably won't rebound until 2020, and that's being optimistic!
Most of the last decade was considered a "seller's market", but with homes languishing on the market for months instead of just weeks or days, many eager sellers are finding that the buyers simply aren't there. Home sales are so sluggish, in part, because buyers are concerned with general issues of financial stability (i.e., "Will I have a job in a year?"), and because even the most responsible borrowers are having trouble securing Loans. When you add in the fact that many housing markets remain inflated, and that an increasingly large percentage of home sales involve complex transactions (foreclosures and short sales being the tip of the iceberg), it's no wonder that potential home buyers are content to sit this market out, at least a little longer.
However, purchasing a house is still one of the best investments one can make, and historically low Interest rates mean home ownership is more enticing than ever. But what do you do if you find yourself in the same position as millions of Americans who want to buy a home, but for whatever reason cannot secure a Home Loan? Over the last six or seven years, the concept of leasing/renting a home with the option to buy has become increasingly popular. But just because "rent-to-own" (or "lease-to-own" as it is also called) transactions are occurring more often does not mean they are ideal for everyone and all situations. One would be wise to pay attention the warnings offered by industry analysts and insiders at Realtor.com and Zillow.com, and get educated on all elements of this practice. Simply put, a lot can go wrong. In fact, if you look at all of the risks and rewards associated with the rent-to-own process, it's easy to see why many potential home buyers should avoid it.
How Does Rent-to-Own Work?
Before determining whether the rent-to-own option is right for you, understanding some important concepts unique to this process will prove invaluable.
Suppose you want to purchase a home. Let's say you have a stable job and have calculated how much home you can afford, but are having difficulty getting a Mortgage.
Banks may not want to extend financing to you because of a sub-optimal Credit Score, a previous bankruptcy, insufficient money for a down payment, etc., despite the fact that you could afford the monthly mortgage payments. You and/or your realtor find a home that seems perfect and ask the seller to consider allowing you to lease the home, with the goal of purchasing it by the end of a specified period of time. If the seller agrees, you'll be able to move in to your new home (as a renter) within a few weeks, and be well on your way to home ownership!
Seems like a great idea, but before you decide that a rent-to-own is right for you, here are some general concepts that are important to understand.
- Lease term – The renter agrees to reside in the seller's home, paying rent to the seller for a specified period of time, after which the renter may purchase the home. Usually, a lease term ranges from 1 to 3 years, depending on how much time the renter needs to secure financing, etc.
- Lease-purchase vs. Lease-option – Although these terms sound similar, failing to understand the difference between the two can mean trouble for both renters and sellers. A lease-purchase is the same as renting-to-own: the renter and seller enter into a legally-binding contract that says the renter agrees to purchase the home by the closing date (which may be set 1 to 3 years down the road). Thus, the home is "held" for the renter until a predetermined date. Comparatively, a lease-option provides the renter the option to purchase the home at lease end, but without the stipulation that the renter has to purchase. This also means that the seller is not obligated to "hold" the home for the renter, and may sell it to a third party at lease end.
- Option fee – All rent-to-own agreements require the renter to pay a non-refundable option fee to the seller. This fee, essentially a deposit, is usually set at 1% to 5% of the home value (the renter can expect to pay at least $5,000 for most homes), and is paid up-front. In the contract, the option fee is usually designated as a Credit towards the renter's down payment, but only if they purchase the home at lease end. In most cases, if the renter does not purchase the home (even if it is through no fault of their own), they do not get their option fee returned.
- Rent premium – In a rent-to-own contract, the renter agrees to a monthly payment that is affordable. The seller will likely try to ask the market rate (but may request a higher monthly payment depending on how much of their mortgage payment they wish to off-set with your rent). Once the base monthly rent is decided, the renter has to pay an additional rent premium. This rent premium, paid each month in addition to the base rent, goes towards the renter's down payment in the event that the renter purchases the home at lease end. However, if the renter fails to make a payment on time, many lease contracts stipulate that the rent premium for that month may be forfeited (in other words, the seller gets to pocket that money, even if you purchase the house at lease end). Additionally, if the renter does not purchase the home (for whatever reason), they do not get any part of their rent premium returned.
- Assignment clause – Prior to lease inception, a renter can ask for an assignment clause requesting more flexibility in the lease terms, particularly in the event that they do not end up purchasing the house from the seller. These are advantageous for renters because they often stipulate that all or a portion of the option fee and rent premium be returned to the renter if the purchase falls through. However, it is also difficult to get a seller to agree to such a clause.
- Purchase price – If the renter enters into a lease-purchase agreement, the renter and seller agree what the purchase price will be once the lease ends. Regardless of whether the home goes up or down in value, this purchase price remains the same. However, if the renter enters into a lease-option agreement (which, remember, is different from a lease-purchase agreement), it is possible for the renter and seller to set an initial purchase price that becomes adjustable and/or negotiable at the end of the lease term (e.g., the renter and seller may agree to split the difference in home value at lease end).
Rent-to-Own: Advantages and Disadvantages
It is important to understand the advantages and disadvantages to the a rent-to-own process.
Advantages Associated with Rent-to-Own
The concept of renting-to-own a home has become increasingly popular as potential home buyers find it more difficult to secure financing and/or provide sufficient down payments. A rent-to-own generally allows potential buyers to :
- begin the process of home ownership for the price of renting
- build equity (if they end up purchasing the home)
- lock in the purchase price on a home now, even if it appreciates by lease end
- get into a home that they cannot afford now, but may be able to at some point in the future
- experience the neighborhood and decide if they really want to live there
- understand the real condition of the home and make necessary repairs
- have time to fix Credit Score deficiencies in order to qualify for the best Loan rates possible
- save money for the down payment (in the form of the rent premium and option fee described above)
The rent-to-own option is also advantageous for sellers whose homes remain on the market for too long, and/or who cannot afford the cost of multiple mortgages. A rent-to-own generally allows potential sellers to:
- off-set their Mortgage costs by having a renter
- lock in the purchase price on a home now, even if it depreciates by lease end
- relinquish responsibility for home repairs and costs to the renter
- charge higher than market rent prices (because the renter is motivated by the possibility of owning the home in the future)
- keep the option fee and any/all rent payments (including the rent premium) if the renter defaults in any way and/or does not purchase the home
- secure an automatic buyer at lease end
Disadvantages Associated with Rent-to-Own
A rent-to-own home may be advantageous for both potential buyers and sellers, and is sometimes described as a win-win situation. However, in order for the process to truly be win-win, a certain set of circumstances must be in place. The following scenarios should inform your decision to lease or not to lease; because, to be honest, a lot can go wrong in the time between lease inception and termination.
- Just as the renter cannot get financing now, they could still fail to qualify for financing in the future. Financial markets could change, tightening lending standards more than they are currently. During the lease term, the renter could lose their job, experience a job transfer, go through a divorce, suffer a serious and costly illness, or some other significant change that makes it difficult to get a Home Loan.
- The renter could lose Interest in the home. Perhaps they realize the house is over-priced, the neighbors are annoying, or that significant repairs are needed to make the home livable.
- The renter could fail to save enough money for the needed down payment, thus failing to get financing.
- The home could depreciate in value by lease end, causing the renter to pay significantly more than the home is worth. This could cause the buyer to be underwater on the home from the start.
- The current seller could fail to keep up with the mortgage, causing the home to go into foreclosure.
All of these scenarios result in the renter failing to purchase the home. When the purchase falls through, the renter will probably lose all of their investment in the home, including the option fee (their deposit), the monthly rent premium (the amount paid over the base rent), and any money they may have spent on home repairs. When accumulated, these losses could easily soar into the tens of thousands of dollars.
Who Should Consider a Rent-to-Own?
Leasing-to-own a home is not appropriate for everyone. However, potential renters who meet certain criteria could be ideal candidates for this option.
Renters who cannot get financing now, but who are certain they will be able to secure a sufficient Loan within a year should consider renting-to-own. Renters who need to lease for 12 months or less are also ideal. Keeping a short lease term will lower some of the risk associated with rent-to-own transactions by limiting the number of rent premiums paid, while increasing the likelihood that the agreed-upon purchase price will be close to the actual value of the house at lease end. In correlation, because shorter lease terms mean having fewer rent premium payments, the renter needs to have a significant portion of the down payment already saved. Ideally, renters need to be significantly confident that their life circumstances will remain pretty stable, and that their financial situation will improve over the next 12 months or so. Finally, drawing up a lease-purchase or lease-option agreement is something the renter or seller should do with the help of an Expert; both should consult a reputable real estate agent and/or attorney who will draw up a contract that is fair to both parties and that will minimize loss should something go wrong.
Ultimately, a rent-to-own is not a good option for people who are eligible for conventional financing. There are no accurate statistics on what percentage of people who lease actually go on to purchase the home, with some claiming that it's as low as 10%, and others claiming 40-50% (at best, half of renters lose their investment). While these estimates are cause for concern, the very absence of quantifiable data here should make anyone skeptical that rent-to-own is the best path to home ownership.
Realistically, there are simply too many variables outside of both the renter's and seller's control to make leasing a wise decision for most people. Instead, many people are better off being conventional renters, saving for a down payment on their own, taking time to fix their Credit, and being honest with themselves about how much home they can truly afford.


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Degree: (from Wikipedia)
A degree is any of a wide range of status levels conferred by institutions of higher education, such as universities, normally as the result of successfully completing a program of study.
As with other professions, teaching in universities was only carried out by people who were properly qualified. In the same way that a carpenter would pass through the grades of apprentice and journeyman to attain the status of master carpenter when fully qualified by his guild, a teacher would become a master when he had been licensed by his profession, the teaching guild. These teaching guilds in various cities took on the identity "university" when granted a charter (by the Pope or the Holy Roman Emperor in Europe's case), and students were admitted to the university and passed through its grades in ways directly analogous to those of the trade guilds.
Though higher education institutions date back to ancient times, such as Taxila and Nalanda in ancient India, the first higher education institutions to issue academic degrees (at all levels including bachelor, master and doctorate) were the medieval Madrasahs founded in the 9th century. The University of Al Karaouine in Fez, Morocco is thus recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the oldest degree-granting university in the world with its founding in 859 by the princess Fatima al-Fihri.[2] Also in the 9th century, Bimaristan medical schools were formed in the medieval Islamic world, where medical degrees and diplomas were issued to students of Islamic medicine who were qualified to be a practicing Doctor of Medicine.
The origins of the doctorate in particular dates back to the ijazat attadris wa 'l-ifttd ("license to teach and issue legal opinions") in the medieval Islamic legal education system, which was equivalent to the Doctor of Laws qualification and was developed during the 9th century after the formation of the Madh'hab legal schools. To obtain a doctorate, a student "had to study in a guild school of law, usually four years for the basic undergraduate course" and at least ten years for a post-graduate course. The "doctorate was obtained after an oral examination to determine the originality of the candidate's theses", and to test the student's "ability to defend them against all objections, in disputations set up for the purpose" which were scholarly exercises practiced throughout the student's "career as a graduate student of law." After students completed their post-graduate education, they were awarded doctorates giving them the status of faqih (meaning "master of law"), mufti (meaning "professor of legal opinions") and mudarris (meaning "teacher"), which were later translated into Latin as magister, professor and doctor respectively.
In the medieval European universities, candidates who had completed three or four years of study in the prescribed texts of the trivium (grammar, rhetoric, and logic), and the quadrivium (mathematics, geometry, astronomy and music), together known as the Liberal Arts, and who had successfully passed examinations held by their masters, would be admitted to the degree of bachelor of arts, from the Latin baccalaureus, a term previously usually used of a squire (i.e., apprentice) to a knight. Further study, and in particular successful participation in and then moderating of disputations would earn one the Master of Arts degree, from the Latin magister, teacher, entitling one to teach these subjects. Masters of Arts were eligible to enter study under the "higher faculties" of Law, Medicine or Theology, and earn first a bachelor's and then master's or doctor's degrees in these subjects. Thus a degree was only a step on the way to becoming a fully qualified master � hence the English word "graduate", which is based on the Latin gradus ("step").
Today the terms "master", "doctor" (from the Latin - meaning literally: "teacher") and "professor" signify different levels of academic achievement, but in the Medieval university they were equivalent terms, the use of them in the degree name being a matter of custom at a university. (Most universities conferred the Master of Arts but, for instance, the highest degree was variously termed Master of Theology/ Divinity or Doctor of Theology/ Divinity depending on the place).
The earliest doctoral degrees (theology - Divinitatis Doctor (D.D.), philosophy - Doctor of philosophy (D.Phil., Ph.D.) and medicine - Medicin� Doctor (M.D., D.M.)) reflected the historical separation of all University study into these three fields. Over time the D.D. has gradually become less common and studies outside theology and medicine have become more common (such studies were then called "philosophy", but are now classified as sciences and humanities - however this usage survives in the degree of Doctor of Philosophy).
The University of Bologna in Italy, regarded as the oldest university in Europe, was the first institution to confer the degree of Doctor in Civil Law in the late 12th century; it also conferred similar degrees in other subjects, including medicine. The University of Paris used the term master for its graduates, a practice adopted by the English universities of Oxford and Cambridge, as well as the ancient Scottish universities of St Andrews, Glasgow, Aberdeen, and Edinburgh.
The naming of degrees eventually became linked with the subjects studied. Scholars in the faculties of arts or grammar became known as "masters", but those in theology, medicine, and law were known as "doctor". As study in the arts or in grammar was a necessary prerequisite to study in subjects such as theology, medicine and law, the degree of doctor assumed a higher status than the master's degree. This led to the modern hierarchy in which the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), which in its present form as a degree based on research and dissertation is a development from 18th and 19th Century German universities, is a more advanced degree than the Master of Arts (M.A.). The practice of using the term doctor for all advanced degrees developed within German universities and spread across the academic world.
The French terminology is tied closely to the original meanings of the terms. The baccalaur�at (cf. "bachelor") is conferred upon French students who have successfully completed their secondary education and admits the student to university. When students graduate from university, they are awarded licence, much as the medieval teaching guilds would have done, and they are qualified to teach in secondary schools or proceed to higher-level studies.
In the past, degrees have also been directly issued by authority of the monarch or by a bishop, rather than any educational institution. This practice has mostly died out. In Britain, Lambeth Degrees are still awarded by the Archbishop of Canterbury. Only the universities of Oxford and Cambridge still permit the D.Phil. (Oxford) or Ph.D. (Cambridge) to be conferred upon a student by an individual member of the faculty.
Examples of Degrees:
Some examples of specific degrees follow each general term. For more information, see the article about the general term.
* Associate's Degrees: AA (Associate in Arts), AS (Associate in Science), AAS (Associate in Applied Science), AGS (Associate in General Studies)
* Bachelor's Degrees: AB or BA, BFA, BSc or ScB or BS or SB, BBus, BSBA, BPE, B.Math, BSW, BVSc, B.Eng, BBA
* Licentiate Degrees: LDS, JCL, LP
* Specialist Degrees: Ed.S., SSP, SClP
* Logistician's Degree: CPL
* Engineer's Degrees: Ch.E., C.E., E.E., Env.E., I.E., Mech.E., Nucl.E., Sys.E.
* Professional Doctoral Degrees:DMD or DDM, DDS, BM BS, ND, D.C., OD, DVM, V.M.D, M.Div., M.D., D.O., Au.D., PharmD, J.D., D.C., P.Th.D., D.Th.P., EdD, D.P.M., DProf (UK)
* Research Doctoral Degrees: J.C.D., Drs, Ph.D., EngD, DTech, DBA, DPA, DHA, DPS, D.D., D.Min., D.Th. or Th.D., J.S.D. or S.J.D. or LL.D., DPM, DSc or ScD, DSocSci, M.D., DSW.
Abbreviations for degrees can place the level either before or after the faculty or discipline, depending on the institution. For example, DSc and ScD both stand for the (higher) doctorate in science. Various other abbreviations also vary between institutions, for instance BS and BSc both stand for 'Bachelor of Science'.
There are various conventions for indicating degrees and diplomas after one's name. In some cultures it is usual to give only the highest degree. In others, it is usual to give the full sequence, in some cases giving abbreviations also for the discipline, the institution, and (where it applies) the level of honours. In another variation, a 'rule of subsumption' often shortens the list and may obscure the chronology evident from a full listing. Thus 'MSc BA' means that the degrees conferred were - in chronological order - BSc, BA, MSc. The subsumption rule reflects the principle that a person of a given high status does not separately belong to the lower status.
For member institutions of the Association of Commonwealth Universities, there is a standard list of abbreviations, but in practice many variations are used. Most notable is the use of the Latin abbreviations 'Oxon.' and 'Cantab.' for the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, in spite of these having been superseded by (little used) English 'Oxf.' and 'Camb.' Other Latin abbreviations include St And. for the University of St Andrews, Exon. for the University of Exeter, Dunelm. for Durham University, Ebor. for the University of York and Cantuar. for the University of Kent (formerly the "University of Kent at Canterbury"). Confusion results from the widespread use of 'SA' for the University of South Australia (instead of S.Aust.) because 'SA' was officially assigned to the University of South Africa. For universities of different commonwealth countries sharing the same name, such as York University in Canada and the University of York in the UK, a convention has been adopted where a country abbreviation is included with the letters and university name. In this example, 'York (Can.)' and 'York (UK)' is commonly used to denote degrees conferred by their respective universities.
The doubling of letters in LL.B., LL.M., LL.D. is because these degrees are in laws, not law. The doubled letter indicates the Latin plural (genitive case) legum as opposed to the singular (genitive case) legis. Abbreviations for the degrees in surgery Ch. B. and Ch. M. are from Latin chiruguriae and often indicate a university system patterned after Scottish models. The combination of M.B. with Ch. B. arose from a need to graduate the students at the time of year allocated to graduation rituals, but the legal inability to confer the M.B. before they had been properly approved by professional regulatory bodies. Thus the Ch. B. was conferred first, and the M.B. was conferred later, after registration, and without ceremony. In recent times the two have come to be conferred together and are widely (mis)understood to constitute a single degree.
Some degrees are awarded jure dignitatis. That is, a person who has demonstrated the appropriate qualities to be given a particular office may be awarded the degree by virtue of the office held. It is another kind of earned�but not strictly academic�degree.
Degree Systems by Regions:
Undergraduate students in Brazilian universities normally graduate either with a Bacharel degree (equivalent to an American B.S. or B.A.) or with a professional degree (roughly modeled on the old German Diplom).
Bacharel degrees are awarded in most fields of study in the arts, humanities, social sciences, mathematics, or natural sciences and normally take four years to complete (a bachelor's degree in Law requires an extra fifth year to be obtained). Professional degrees are awarded in state-regulated professions such as architecture, engineering, psychology, pharmacy, dental medicine, veterinary medicine, or human medicine and are named after the profession itself, i.e. one graduates with a degree of Engenheiro (engineer), Arquiteto (architect), or M�dico (physician/surgeon) for example. Professional degrees are generally regarded as being of higher social standing than a Bacharel degree and are considered more academically demanding. A typical course of study leading to a first professional degree in Brazil normally takes five years of full-time study to complete, with the exception of the human medicine course which requires six years.
In addition to the standard Bacharel and professional degrees, Brazilian universities also offer the Licenciatura degree, available for students who want to qualify as school teachers. Licenciatura courses exist mostly in mathematics, humanities, and natural sciences. Although Licenciatura courses also last 4 years, they are nonetheless considered to be of lower standing than a Bacharelado course. A lower degree of Tecn�logo (Technologist) is also available in technology-related fields and can be normally obtained in three years only.
Admission as an undergraduate student in most top public or private universities in Brazil requires that the applicant pass a competitive entrance examination known as Vestibular. Contrary to what happens in the United States, candidates must declare their intended university major when they register for the Vestibular. Although it is theoretically possible to switch majors afterwards (in a process known within the universities as transfer�ncia interna), that is actually quite rare in Brazil. Undergraduate curricula tend to be more rigid than in the United States and there is little room to take classes outside one's major.
Individuals who hold either a Bacharel degree, a professional diploma or Licenciatura are eligible for admission into graduate courses leading to advanced master's or doctor's degrees. Criteria for admission into master's and doctor's programs vary in Brazil. Some universities require that candidates take entrance exams; others make admission decisions based solely on undergraduate transcripts, letters of recommendation, and possibly oral interviews. In most cases however, especially for the doctorate, the candidate is required to submit a research plan and one faculty member must agree to serve as his/her supervisor before the candidate can be admitted into the program; The exception are the Natural Sciences post-graduate programs, that accepts students with very broad and/or vague research prospects (sometimes the prospect is given in promptu during the interview), preferring to let the students define their study program and advisor in the course of the first year of studies.
Master's degrees normally take two years to obtain and are classified into academic master's degrees or professional master's degrees. Requirements for an academic master's degree normally include taking a minimum number of advanced graduate classes (typically between five and eight) and submitting a research thesis which is examined orally by a panel of at least two examiners (three is the preferred number), sometimes including one external member who must be from another university or research institute; The emphasis of the thesis must be in its clarity and ease of understanding by future students, not in its originality. Professional master's degrees on the other hand normally involve taking a larger number of classes, and, in the case of engineering programs in particular, often completing a project as an intern in an engineering company and submitting a final project report. The most relevant difference to the international scenario is that, due to restrictive production goals set by government agencies, in most universities a Master degree is not only considered inferior to a Doctor degree but a pre-requisite for the admission in a Doctorate program.
Master's titles in Brazil normally include an explicit reference to the field of study in which they were awarded, e.g. one graduates with a degree of Mestre em Engenharia (Master of Engineering), Mestre em Economia (Master of Economics), and so on. The generic title Mestre em Ci�ncias (Master of Sciences) is used sometimes though, especially in the natural sciences (physics, biology, chemistry, etc.). The word profissional is normally added to the title to distinguish it from an academic master's degree, e.g. Mestre Profissional em Engenharia Aeron�utica (Professional Master in Aeronautical Engineering).
Doctor's degrees on the other hand normally take four additional years of full-time study to complete and are of a higher standing than a master's degree; With very few exceptions (namely, people with outstanding accomplishments in research), a Master degree or equivalent is required for admission in a Doctorate Program. Requirements for obtaining a doctor's degree include taking additional advanced courses, passing an oral qualifying exam, and submitting a longer doctoral dissertation which must represent a significant original contribution to knowledge in the field to which the dissertation topic is related. That contrasts with master's theses, which, in addition to being usually shorter than doctoral dissertations, are not required to include creation of new knowledge or revision/reinterpretation of older views/theories. The doctoral dissertation is examined in a final oral exam before a panel of at least two members (in the state of S�o Paulo the preferred number is five, while the other regions prefer three members), usually including one or two external examiners from another university or research institute.
Conventions for naming doctoral degrees follow similar rules to those used for master's degree, i.e. an explicit reference to the field of study is normally included in the title itself, e.g. Doutor em Engenharia (Doctor of Engineering), Doutor em Direito (Doctor of Laws), Doutor em Economia (Doctor of Economics), etc., although a generic title like Doutor em Ci�ncias (Doctor of Sciences) may be occasionally used.
Finally, a small number of Brazilian universities, most notably the public universities in the state of S�o Paulo still award the title of Livre-Docente (free docent), which is of higher standing than a doctorate and is obtained, similar to the German Habilitation, by the submission of a second (original or cumulative) thesis and approval in a Livre-Doc�ncia examination that includes giving a public lecture before a panel of full professors.
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subset: commoncrawl


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Some of the old saws were there (Adverbs: bad! He said, she said: good!), and while I don't know everything about writing, I know enough to realize that no one should follow any of these rules zealously, because the result would be stiff and artificial. But I found myself feeling, oh, a little guilty of certain writing sins, and then came the anxiety, and then came Richard Ford's Rule #2: Don't have children. ...Read the whole thing. Like Rutkoski, I admit to being both perturbed at Ford's counsel and having tons of difficulty writing after the birth of my adorable, irascible, exhausting and utterly awesome son. "Draining" only begins to describe the process of trying to fill a brand-new person with everything he needs to face the world. And while Ford probably (and perhaps rightly) thought that few can manage both two goals, he seems to have forgotten an axiom that comes to most of us as soon as pick up the pen: Life never wants us to write. Whenever I clear a little space in my mental 40 acres, there are a hundred more productive things I could plant there than a new narrative, a thousand external pests that will eat it if I allow them and ten-thousand doubts crying that the entire effort is foolishness. It's never easy. To write we must write, no matter our circumstances.
Yes, of course, having a baby derails the writing process for some time. And I will be the first to say that I have essentially no social life, because there's just nothing left after being a mom, professor, and writer. I used to be big into rock climbing. No more. A lot falls by the wayside.
But I'd argue that having a child improved my skills as a writer, and I'd be surprised if I were the only one.
(Picture: CC 2009 by Calmtwood)


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Editor-in-Chief: Prof. Yuzhuang Sun
published quarterly ISSN 1708-5284 2015 journal prices/format options
WJOE is now indexed in Scopus
World Journal of Engineering is affiliated with Hebei University of Engineering, China; Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Alaska Fairbanks, USA; The Kharkov State Technical University of Construction and Architecture, Ukraine and Department of Aeronautical and Automotive Engineering, Loughborough University, UK. The emphasis of the journal is on Civil Engineering, Material and Mechanical Engineering, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Geotechnical and Mining Engineering, Nanoengineering and Nanoscience and so on. In that way, the journal bridges the gap between materials science and materials engineering, and between nanoengineering and nanoscience, and so on. A distinguished editorial board assists Professor Sun.
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Author responsibilities
Authors are obliged to participate in the review process, acknowledging/incorporating reviewer recommendations. Post-publication, should errors be exposed, authors will be obliged to provide retractions/corrections.
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The editor has complete responsibility for accepting/rejecting articles. He will not put himself in a potential conflict of interest as regards accepting/rejecting any particular paper. Papers will not be accepted if, were post-production errors to be found, he thinks it likely publication of correction or retraction would not be easily and willingly done. He will ensure reviewer anonymity is preserved.
World Journal of Engineering - its editor, editorial board and publisher adheres to the COPE - Committee on Publication Ethics Code of Conduct, see http://publicationethics.org/files/u2/New_Code.pdf
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Chief Editors:
YuZhuang Sun Hebei University of Engineering, China;
Chen Gang University of Alaska Fairbanks, USA;
Simon S. Wang Loughborough University, UK;
Associate Editors:
Abbaschian, R. University of Florida, USA;
An, Min University of Birmingham, UK;
Bao, Xujin Loughborough University, UK;
Bhattacharyya, Debes University of Auckland, New Zealand;
Bocharov, Yuri N. University of Moscow, Russia;
Carlson, Robert F University of Alaska Fairbanks, USA;
Chen, Rui Loughborough University, UK;
Chen, Xiaogang University of Manchester, UK;
Chen, Yu Huaqiao University, China;
Ding, Shuli Hebei University of Engineering, China;
Feo, Luciano University of Salerno, Italy;
Goncharenko, DSc. D. The Kharkov State Technical University of Construction and Architecture, Ukraine;
Ghouse, Mohammad Energy Research Institute, KACST, Saudi Arabia;
Hsia, Jimmy University of Illinois, USA;
Huang, He University of New Orleans, USA;
Hui, David University of New Orleans, USA;
Jingjing, Qiu Texas Tech University, USA;
Kong, Ing University of Nottingham at Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia;
Lau, Alan Kin-tak The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong;
Leo, Daniel Kwara State University, Nigeria;
Li, Guoqiang Southern University Baton Rouge, USA;
Liu, Jiangong Jizhong Energy Limited Company of Hebei, China;
Liu, Yu Green Energy and Green Manufacturing Technology R&D Center, Chengdu, China;
Militky, Jiri Technical University of Liberec, Czech Rep.;
Nadim, Farrokh International Centre for Geohazards, Norway;
Ngo, Tuan Duc University of Melbourne, Australia;
Niu, Hongya Hebei University of Engineering, China;
Orel, Zorica Crnjak National Institute of Chemistry, Ljubljana, Slovenia;
Orozco, Carlos E. University of North Carolina-Charlotte, USA;
Pang, Su-Seng Louisiana State University, USA;
Peng, Jinhui Kunming University of Science and Technology, China;
Phongsak, Phakamach North Eastern University, Thailand;
Rajonjic, Mileva Louisiana State University, USA;
Rousakis, Theodoros Democritus University of Thrace University, Greece;
Sanju, Gupta Western Kentucky University, USA;
Tsui, Gary C. P. Hong Kong Polytech University, China;
Ananthaswamy, V. The Madura College (Autonomous), India;
Puettmann, W. J. W. Goethe-Universitaet, Germany;
Sajeev, A. S. M. University of New England, Australia;
Sankar, Jag North Carolina A&T State University, USA;
Seo, Jae-Tae Hampton University, Virginia, USA;
Song, Jung Il Chongwon National University, Korea;
Strzhemechny, Yuri Texas Christian University, USA;
Wang, Guimei, Hebei University of Engineering, China;
Wang, Youjiang Georgia Institute of Technology, USA;
Wong, Pak-Kin University of Macau;
Yang, Xiaogang University of Wales, UK
click below to contact the editor, Prof. Dr. Y. Z. Sun, directly: email@example.com


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Last night I got a text from one of my best friends ever (one of the Cardinals) that said:
"Top 10 running songs. Ready. Set. Go."
As I was running around the Japanese steakhouse I work at, I thought to myself, "Challenge accepted."
Of course I needed time to think about it though, so here you are, Emma. My top 10 running songs, just in time for Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon 2012 (TOMORROW!!), some of which will no doubt simply be epic running songs because they refer to running in general. I'm a big fan of giggling to myself as I'm running and a song coincidentally shuffles on telling me to run. I'm also a huge dork (but you already knew that).
#10 "Seventy Times 7" by Brand New -- So violent. So angry. So fun to run to (and sing to ex boyfriends).
#9 "I Ran (So Far Away)" by A Flock of Seagulls (Fun fact: I thought the lyrics were "Aurora borealis burns in you." Apparently it's "comes in view".. who knew?)
#8 "Prayer of the Refugee" by Rise Against -- This one gets me so pumped. I'm like, "Bring it, hill. I ain't never scurred."
#7 "That's What You Get" by Paramore -- That little ginge gets me all fired up.
#6 "Dance Dance" by Fall Out Boy -- Seriously, what happened to them? I love me some FOB.
#5 "Carry On" by Fun. -- (Ok, it's a little slow for a running song, but I love it. And this lyric: "Oh, my head is on fire, but my legs are fine! After all, they are mine." Also, I pretty much just run to this entire album, always.)
#4 "The Future Freaks Me Out" by Motion City Soundtrack -- Just the truth right here. So catchy.
#3 "Dangerous" by the Ying Yang Twins -- I may or may not have this entire song memorized. Bet you didn't realize I had a straight up gangsta side.
#2 "Cute without the E (Cut from the team)" by Taking Back Sunday -- Old school TBS rocks my socks off. Middle school-style.
#1 "Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen. Obviously.
And just because I love Ke$ha..


text: Digital NEWS FEED: Facebook Targets Click-Baiting, Favors Link Format vs. Links in Captions, Status Updates Facebook's next steps to improve the content users see in their News Feeds include taking aim at click-baiting headlines in posts from pages and emphasizing links that are shared via the social network's link format over those shared in photo captions and status updates.By David Cohen|August 25, 2014 Share By David Cohen|August 25, 2014 Share Facebook's next steps to improve the content users see in their News Feeds include taking aim at click-baiting headlines in posts from pages and emphasizing links that are shared via the social network's link format over those shared in photo captions and status updates.The social network said the move against click-baiting headlines should only affect the pages of "a small set of publishers" that repeatedly deploy the tactic, and Research Scientist Khalid El-Arini and Product Specialist Joyce Tang explained the reasons behind the move in a Newsroom post:"Click-baiting" is when a publisher posts a link with a headline that encourages people to click to see more, without telling them much information about what they will see. Posts like these tend to get a lot of clicks, which means that these posts get shown to more people, and get shown higher up in News Feed. However, when we asked people in an initial survey what type of content they preferred to see in their News Feeds, 80 percent of the time, people preferred headlines that helped them decide if they wanted to read the full article before they had to click through.Over time, stories with "click-bait" headlines can drown out content from friends and pages that people really care about.El-Arini and Tang also described how Facebook determines which headlines are click-bait: One way is to look at how long people spend reading an article away from Facebook. If people click on an article and spend time reading it, it suggests that they clicked through to something valuable. If they click through to a link and then come straight back to Facebook, it suggests that they didn't find something that they wanted. With this update, we will start taking into account whether people tend to spend time away from Facebook after clicking a link, or whether they tend to come straight back to News Feed when we rank stories with links in them.Another factor we will use to try and show fewer of these types of stories is to look at the ratio of people clicking on the content compared to people discussing and sharing it with their friends. If a lot of people click on the link, but relatively few people click like or comment on the story when they return to Facebook, this also suggests that people didn't click through to something that was valuable to them.A small set of publishers who are frequently posting links with click-bait headlines that many people don't spend time reading after they click through may see their distribution decrease in the next few months. We're making these changes to ensure that click-bait content does not drown out the things that people really want to see on Facebook. They also explained the emphasis on links in the link format, compared with those in photo captions or status updates:We've found that people often prefer to click on links that are displayed in the link format (which appears when you paste a link while drafting a post), rather than links that are buried in photo captions. The link format shows some additional information associated with the link, such as the beginning of the article, which makes it easier for someone to decide if they want to click through. This format also makes it easier for someone to click through on mobile devices, which have smaller screens. With this update, we will prioritize showing links in the link format, and show fewer links shared in captions or status updates.The best way to share a link after these updates will be to use the link format. In our studies, these posts have received twice as many clicks compared to links embedded in photo captions. In general, we recommend that you use the story type that best fits the message that you want to tell — whether that's a status, photo, link or video.Readers: What do you think of the latest changes to Facebook's News Feed algorithm? Share http://adweek.it/2jHxCUp copy Adweek Adweek


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For basketball players, coaches and fans, March is the best time of the year.
From regular season championships being clinched to conference championships being won, there is really no better time for basketball fans.
It is truly March Madness.
For us coaches who have been fortunate enough to get our teams to the postseason, we know that it is a special time and depending upon how your team is built may have significant impact on your success in "one and done" elimination formats.
I was fortunate to take my program at Penn State Beaver to four straight USCAA National Championships where we competed against teams from all over the country, all of whom were scholarship programs while ours was not.
Our national tournament post season success was a process. We had mostly freshmen our first season and but went deeper every year and finally reached the national championship game and finished as National Runner's Up in the 2011-12 season.
One of the big reasons why we reached the championship game is that we started three seniors and a junior, and had two more seniors come off the bench. These players had been though a multitude of experiences and won 99 games in their four-year career. Needless to say we were talented.
However, in saying that, I believe that not only did individual and team improvement play a factor in our tournament success, but our success also was due to the approach of our coaching staff.
One of the challenges that playing three or four games in consecutive days, is that it really for force coaches to manage time well.
In different surroundings, one thing I strived to do was make my players feel comfortable. I wanted to get into a routine as much as possible. This can be a challenge, especially because when it comes to tournament time nothing is really the same. Everything is heightened.
Therefore, to do so, I leaned on my past experiences, the relationships I had with our captains and my coaching staff to get through the tournament grind.
Regarding past experiences, we would take them from the current team but also former teams and programs. We would always get a shootaround in, but depending on the opponent and time of the game, it could be more or less shooting intensive. There were times that we even just went to the mall to walk the team around. It kept the ladies interested (we had some shoppers) but also kept them from being too stagnant in their hotel rooms.
In addition, I wanted to be honest with them regarding film. It was not the long haul of the season and we had done enough film to gain their trust throughout the season so we could "keep it real" in film sessions. Thorough, concise and accurate scouts during tournament time was our aim.
As the Head Coach it was my job to try to stay a step ahead of how the group was doing.
To gauge this, I always stayed in close contact with my captains. They had a beat on the energy level, excitement level, tired level, attentiveness level, etc. of the group and the coaching staff always took their opinions into strong consideration. Coaches that do not do this and have to go to shootaround, watch exactly one hour of film, or eat at exactly the same time are making a huge mistake. LISTEN TO YOUR TEAM. They are communicating with you all the time. Be willing and able to adjust.
Of course, my group earned my trust and because they worked hard in practices and performed on game day, we would allow them certain exceptions when the time and place called for it. It was certainly a give and take.
Even more important were my assistants who played a crucial part in our success. From making food runs, to watching film, making copies, scouting opponents while we got the players back to rest (or vice versa), Coach Moore and Papa Coach (my dad!) were instrumental in our success.
Lastly, we found success and stuck to it. Some may call it superstition (yes, we would only buy red Gatorade for some of our players or certain energy drinks), but if it works and the players are comfortable then you have a winning combination.
There is no need to out-think yourself or reinvent the wheel. Find something that works for you while relying on past experiences, strong relationships with captains, and the help of your coaching staff.
And good luck keeping the "Madness" out when you are trying to prepare for March.
Follow Bert DeSalvo on Twitter @CoachDeSalvo


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Jim Kyte
Jim Kyte
Award Received
Governor General's Gold Medal
Convocation Ceremony
Jim Kyte knows how to reinvent himself.
At 18, he was chosen in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft to play for the Winnipeg Jets. On the ice he earned a reputation as one of the toughest defencemen in the league while playing for Winnipeg, Pittsburgh, Calgary, Ottawa and San Jose. He was the first legally deaf person to play for the NHL.
"I had a lot of people tell me I couldn't do things because of my hearing impairment," says Kyte, who will graduate from the Royal Roads University MBA program Oct. 23. "But I had a good role model in my house (in my father) and he said, 'You may have a handicap, but you don't have a disability.'"
When a car accident abruptly ended his hockey career in 1997, Kyte's focus shifted to recovery. He was diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome and refocused his energies once again. He worked as a columnist for the Ottawa Citizen for four years, writing a sports column called The Point Man.
Around the same time he spearheaded the creation of and then taught in the Sport Business Management graduate program at Algonquin College School of Business in Ottawa. He is now the academic chair of the School of Business there, a position that led him to seek out further education.
As he crosses the stage to receive his degree at fall convocation, he will also be honoured with the Governor General's Gold Medal, an honour given to the student in a university with the best thesis or major research project.
He focused his organizational management project on the span of control of an academic chair at an Ontario post-secondary institution. In other words, how many people one manager has reporting to them. What he found was that while the responsibility load had grown, resources did not always match that reality. Conducting research on his own position was an exercise in objective thinking, he says. After surveying three other institutions in his area, he provided recommendations to Algonquin College around pay for chairs and reporting structures and other changes to support long-term stability in departments.
"It's certainly not an exotic topic by any means, but it's an important topic," says Kyte, noting that the suggestions could improve efficiency and provide departments with structure to ensure consistency in management.
His project was one of the most academically strong MBA major projects manager Don Caplan has seen at Royal Roads. "Each successive time we looked at it we just thought this was way beyond and above what we expect at a master's level," Caplan says. "It was like a doctoral thesis."
When Caplan noted this to Kyte, his simple response was that was how he did things. His parents taught him if he was going to do something, he should do it right, Kyte notes. His classmates would no doubt agree that he asked a lot of questions, he says, noting he was at Royal Roads to get the most out of the experience.
It's a gusto he takes to all aspects of his life, from work, to family and community obligations. Prior to doing his MBA, Kyte was averaging 40 charity speaking engagements a year. He also spoke for corporate events as a member of the National Speakers Bureau. He shares his experiences in teamwork, motivation and leadership. There is an strong focus on the need to be able to adapt to change in his messages, a skill Kyte has honed throughout his life and career.
People need to make their own opportunities, he says, whether that be in the classroom, life or in work.
"God – whoever yours might be – put you on earth with a skill set. Not everyone has an equal skill set but it's up to you to do the best you can with what you are given," Kyte says. "Perseverance, effort, hard work and sweat will overcome any shortfall in skill."
The experience at Royal Roads not only granted him the tools to do his job better, but it provided insight into how effective online learning can be. The two years in program were an exercise in "ruthless triage," he says, noting it demanded a lot of attention and commitment. That meant prioritizing family, school and work and in this case modelling excellent study habits for his twin boys who just started university.
"Being a professional athlete has opened doors for me but it's up to me to kick the door open," Kyte says. "I am brain injured. I'm deaf. I have a few things to overcome, but I read the paper every morning and I kiss the ground because I feel lucky to have what I have."


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Dr. Dan Matthews, Ego & Spiritual Unity; Deva Premal, Miten, Meditation, Chant, Mantra & Santa Fe Concert; Interspiritual Teacher, Mystic Scholar Mirabai Starr & Gifts of the Goddesses, Elizabeth Rose on Mother's Day Healing, Alan Hutner with a Mother's Day Rudy Rap (Show #1733)May 15th, 2017 Posted in Health & Wellness Alternatives, Interview Gems, New Psychology & Spirituality, Personal Growth & Sacred Sexuality, Relationships & Family, Technology & The Arts, TRM Shows, UFOs, ETs, & Other Mystical Phenomena | Comments Off on Dr. Dan Matthews, Ego & Spiritual Unity; Deva Premal, Miten, Meditation, Chant, Mantra & Santa Fe Concert; Interspiritual Teacher, Mystic Scholar Mirabai Starr & Gifts of the Goddesses, Elizabeth Rose on Mother's Day Healing, Alan Hutner with a Mother's Day Rudy Rap (Show #1733)
The 05/14/17 TRM Show post is below these current Free TeleWeb Events. Scroll down to the next green box for today's TRM show description and audio.
Enjoy our TRM endorsed Free TeleWeb Events: As you may know, your Transitions Radio Magazine team often invites you to different free online events with a variety of experts and presenters in their field. Try: Andrew Harvey's presetion, How to Connect Directly With the Divine: Mystical Principles & Practices to Access the Love, Wisdom and Sacred Energies of the Universe. And, How to Heal & Awaken Through Writing with Mark Matousek.
From last week: "Receiving the Gifts of the Goddesses" with long time friend and periodic guest, Mirabai Starr:" Also enjoy "Accessing Nature's Healing Pharmacy" with Sara Crow. The 3 Keys to Shamanic Healing: Ancient Medicine Tools for Soul Healing, Energy Cleansing, Diagnosis & Protection and 3 Keys to Awaken Your Heart's Intelligence: How to Increase Happiness, Reduce Stress & Tune Into the Wisdom of Your Heart.
QUICK LINKS: In addition to the above current free event offerings, we have a valuable list of other transformational archived free events that you are welcome to explore and download. Just click on this hot link and enjoy! Join our TRM Emailing data base for previews of upcoming Transitions MultiMedia Activities. Enter your email in the white box in the upper right column of this page. Get sneak previews of TRM shows & your hosts activities on Facebook. While there, give us a like!
TRM 05/14/17– Show #1733
In Hour One, we have another segment with Dr. Dan Mathews who highlights his return to New Mexico to facilitate deeper healing, inviting you to prepare for the next Big Holy O Shift! Dr. Dan always speaks to the great changes in process including the three aspects of ego in Spiritual Unity.
Details Hour 1: Show Intro, Sponsors, Music Set #1, Sponsors, Dr. Dan Mathews Seg #2, Music Set #2, Sponsors, Music Set #3
In Hour Two, we feature more Deva Premal and Miten, previewing their upcoming
May 22 Santa Fe concert. They discuss the benefits of revitalized mantra and contemporary meditation music and the great power of what Deva Premal calls "ecstatic silence" a tool for holding a path to joy and peace in these turbulent times.
Details Hour 2: Sponsors, Featured Guest: Deva Premal and Miten Seg #3, Sponsors, Featured Guest: Deva Premal & Miten Seg #4, Sponsors, Singer Songwriter Music Set #4
In Hour Three, Mirabai Starr, prolific author, adjunct professor, interspiritual teacher and mystic scholar previews her upcoming course, Receiving the Gifts of the Goddesses. Elizabeth Rose joins us to share her Mother's Day insights with a special poetry reading "Blessing for One About to Be Born" by Jennifer Ferraro and Rudy Raps on Mothers and Love as well.
Details Hour 3: Sponsors, Featured Guest: Mirabai Starr Seg #2, Music Set #5, Sponsors, Elizabeth Rose, Music Set #6, Sponsors, Preview of Next Week's Show, Rudy's Rap, Music Set #7
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
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Podcast (podcast3): Play in new window | Download


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505 Victoria Hills Drive, Deland, FL 32724
- $405,000 (sold: 8/15/2019)
- 4 Beds
- 3 Full Baths
- 2,568 sq ft
- Year Built: 2013
- Residential
- Listing #V4904958
- Status: Sold
Builders former Model on a One of a Kind Homesite ~ $5000. FOR BUYERS CLOSING COST ~Jaw-Dropping views of the 9th fairway on Victoria Hills Golf Course ~ This home truly embodies the essence of a Country Club Lifestyle ~ LIGHT & BRIGHT w High-end finishes throughout ~ Tiled & Marble Flooring, Crown Moldings, Coffered Ceilings, Upgraded Lighting, Custom Window Treatments, Plantation Blinds, Ceiling Fans, Reverse Osmosis Water Sysem, Double Pane, Hurricane Windows ~ Designed with your friends and family in mind ~ The Indoor Living spaces flow elegantly through to the beautiful, Outdoor Screened Lanai ~ 4 SPLIT Bedrooms 3 Full Baths 3 Car Garage ~ This spacious home offers a living room overlooking the expansive views of the golf course ~ Separate dining room, Gourmet Chefs kitchen w 42' UPPERS, elegant finishes, breakfast bar, and nook all opening to family room ~ Grand master suite with sitting area, 2 walk-in closets, Ensuite bath with double vanities, separate shower enclosure, Soaker Tub ~ Alergy Free ~ THIS AMENITY RICH COMMUNITY PROVIDES H.D.CABLE TV, HI-SPEED INTERNET, 2 RESORT STYLE HEATED POOL'S, 2 FITNESS CENTERS, 4 LIGHTED TENNIS & PICKEL BALL COURTS, RECLAIMED WATER FOR LAWN! 18-HOLE CHAMPIONSHIP GOLF COURSE, SPORTS BAR, SHOPS, HAIR SALON, MEDICAL PARK, BANK, IN VICTORIA PARK! HISTORICAL DOWNTOWN DELAND AWAITS YOU! SOUTHERN CHARM, BLOCKS OF CULTURE, BOUTIQUES, and FINE DINING! HOME TO STETSON UNIVERSITY! MINUTES TO THE BEAUTIFUL BEACHES OF THE EAST COAST! PUBLIX, STARBUCKS, SHOPPING ARE MINUTES AWAY. 1 MILE TO I-4. CALL TODAY!
|$405,000 (sold: 8/15/2019)
|4 Beds
|3 Full Baths
|Year Built
|Property Type
|Listing #
|Listing Type
|For Sale
|Square Feet
|Lot Size
|0.38 acres
Courtesy of Sheree Frazier, NextHome All American


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We got a big topic for you today soul sister.
We actually filmed this video before the Christmas holiday last year, but with the holidays and moving across the country we forgot to post it.
It is a topic near and dear to our hearts. We've wanted to talk about this for a long time but honestly, we were nervous.
We know exactly what it is like to just want clear glowing skin and just be healthy. Where you have so much freedom and less anxiety when it comes to food, your body and your skin. But you just can't seem to get to that place… yet.
Like us, you probably have all this fear around the foods you are eating or not eating, and if your skin is going to go crazy or breakout when you eat certain foods. That was us for years!
Lori's journey of healing her adult cystic acne was a long one as well as Michelle's journey to heal eczema. If you have been following us for the past 8 years we have been online, you know we were obsessed with being healthy.
How to stop fearing foods and get healthy glowing skin without obsessing. See how we overcame our food fears.
Please share this video with your friends that are struggling with their skin and health.
We hope the video has served you.
You can see the Instagram post here that gave us the push to do this video.
How to stop fearing food and get healthy skin without having it take over your life and ruin your self-esteem?
We know how hard it can be not to fear foods.
Realize it's a daily practice and a journey that will take some time. But we promise it is worth it!
You have to be willing to see and do things differently. Want more help where we dive deeper into healing, self-love and ending food fears? We share it all inside SOSL.
You have to take ownership that it might be YOU creating the extra anxiety and stress around the foods. We realized it was us that was creating a lot of the extra stress when it came to our skin because subconsciously we were telling ourselves this food or that food was making us breakout or hurting us in some way.
Tips on how to overcome food fears:
- Use food journal as a tool but be careful not to get too obsessive with it.
- Ask what is your intention with your food journal.
- Change your feelings, stories, and beliefs.
- Pay attention to where your thoughts are focusing on. Food hurting you or food helping you?
- Have a curiosity mindset when it comes to trying foods.
- Come from a loving place not fear when you are about to eat food. Take a deep breath and get in good energy before eating foods that you are questioning.
- Realize you are not broken.
- Check in with other parts of your life to see if you are neglecting or avoiding because everything in life is connected.
- Find ways to take the attention off your skin and food.
- Get your gut and hormones checked out.
We believe in you. We love you.
We know you can break the cycle of fearing foods so you can have more peace and freedom with your food choices while keeping a healthy body and glowing skin.
If we can do it, so can you.
Other videos to check out:
5 ways to stay positive when you're sick with health and skin issues
How to see your struggle as a blessing
How to enjoy the journey (as healing and getting in shape, etc take time)
Keep things simple to change your life
How loving yourself to heal your relationship with food
If you have anything you want to know from us or learn from us, just leave us a comment below or email us email@example.com
We are here to serve and help you, but we can only do that if we know your pain, struggles, frustrations, and what are your dreams and goals!
Lori and Michelle
If you're new to Purely Twins join our tribe and get updates:
Pinterest – purelytwins
Instagram – @purelytwins
Youtube – purelytwins
Facebook – purelytwins


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A Safari to the Mysterious Animal Kingdom
Ever heard of any in-out relationship between Eyes and Stomach?
A CROCODILE has a peculiar digestive system. The moment anything enters into its stomach, tears start dripping out from its eyes! What an unusual chemistry!
Because, I know and value the importance of cleanliness and sattwikta for leading a healthy life. You too should never compromise in this regard. Always remember a mathematical equation that 'Hygiene + Vegetarianism = Fit Body + Healthy Mind'.
How many brains do you possess?
How many brains do you possess?
Of course, we all know very well that we have one brain. But, how many brains does a SILKWORM possess? … 2,3,4,… No! Go on incrementing the counter till it becomes 11. Yes! 11 brains in total! Can you just imagine?
That's right! I can easily carry things huge in proportion compared to my own dimensions. Reason being that I possess a never-say-die spirit. What if I have thin, hair-like legs! But, my resolution is strong, enormous, and mountain-like.
Can you walk on a blade's edge?
Can you walk on a blade's edge?
Ouch!- This will be the instant exclamation, suffused with pain and drops of blood, if someone accidentally happens to run even his finger on the sharp edge of a blade. But does it apply to all or is there any exception? Yes! The great snail stands different! It can very easily and freely walk on the sharp edge of a razor!
Actually, there is a secret behind this peculiar characteristic of mine. When I walk, I release a viscous, gluey fluid called mucus; and, also, keep myself encased in a thick covering called mantle… Hey! I have heard that your path of bhakti is also like a sword's edge! So, take my smart advice- Generate the divine fluid of Devotion and cover yourself with a defensive shield of the Master's Commandments! Then for sure, you will enjoy a smooth, frictionless skating through the sharp edge, which is otherwise difficult and a challenging one!
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By á-44083
- 6 oz. ground pork
- 2 oz. small shrimp, minced
- 1 oz. crab meat, coarsely chopped
- Some shredded carrots
- 1 oz. mung bean noodles/cellophane noodles/glass noodles - soaked in hot water for 30 minutes or
- until they turn very soft
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 shallot, minced
- 3 big dashes ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- Salt to taste
- 1 small egg, lightly beaten (use only half)
- Vietnamese rice paper
Adapted from vietnamfood.org
Step 1
Chop the soaked mung bean noodles into shorter threads. In a bowl, mix the ingredients together to
form a sticky filling.
To roll the cha gio, place a piece of rice paper on a clean, wet kitchen towel. Dip your fingers in a bowl of warm water and run them all over the entire rice paper to soften it. Place 1 heaped tablespoon of filling
on the moist rice paper, fold the rice paper over the filling, tuck in the sides, then roll to form a cyclinder about 3 inches long.
Heat oil over medium heat in a wok or a large frying pan. When the oil is smoking, gently put in a few cha gio in the oil. Fry them slowly until they turn golden brown. Dish out and drain the excess oil by lining them over some paper towels.
Serve immediately with nuoc cham or roll it up with a fresh lettuce leaf and some aromatic herbs and then dip into the nuco cham.


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We hope to see many of you this week at the APA Convention in Washington, DC. The TOPSS-invited sessions are listed below; please note that the location of the Friday, August 4, TOPSS reception at the APA Convention has changed. The reception will be held this Friday from 5:00-6:30 PM at Fado Irish Pub at 808 7th Street N.W., Washington, DC, (202) 789-0066.
For more convention sessions for psychology teachers, see this recent Psychology Learning Curve post on convention highlights, this Division 2 chart of convention programming, or this listing of educational programming. For registration information and to see more on programming, visit the APA Convention website.
TOPSS-invited speakers:
Friday, Aug. 4
1-1:50 p.m. | Convention Center Room 143B
Randal M. Ernst Lecture: High School Psychology: A Discussion on the 2017 APA Summit
Chair: R. Scott Reed, Hamilton High School, Ariz.
Participants: Randal M. Ernst, EdD, Nebraska Wesleyan University; Amy Fineburg, PhD, Jefferson Public Schools, Ala.; other summit participants.
2-2:50 p.m. | Convention Center Room 144A
In the Light of a Star: An Introduction to the Life and Works of William Stern (1871-1938)
James T. Lamiell, PhD, Georgetown University
Chair: R. Scott Reed, Hamilton High School, Ariz.
3-3:50 p.m. | Convention Center Room 143B
The Lee Gurel Lecture: The Power of Persuasion
Robert Cialdini, PhD, Arizona State University
Chair: R. Scott Reed, Hamilton High School, Ariz.
5-6:30 p.m.
Please join us for a TOPSS Reception
Fado Irish Pub
808 7th Street N.W., Washington, DC
(202) 789-0066).


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Home ›
J. M. Dematteis
Pete's Basement Episode 40! - 10.28.08
Take a look back with Steve at the best - well, I wouldn't say BEST - more like, least appalling, moments of the last 40 episodes. And a suspicious looking chef makes a special delivery.
Pete's Basement Episode 15 - 04.22.08
The Basement Crew visits NY Comic Con, and came back with the HUGEST EPISODE EVER! Wall to wall costumed fans, artists, writers, publicists! Interviews with Kyle Baker, Tom Defalco, J. M. Dematteis and more! If you only watch one episode of Pete's Basement, WATCH THIS EPISODE! -- and then watch Part 2 next week.
Submitted by Roger on Tue, 04/22/2008 - 22:25


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Does any of you feel very anxious when driving? To the point you think your going to go crazy loose, control of the car, faint at the wheel, my heart starts racing I get palpitations then I panic even more. I drove 2 hours to the lake district and nearly freaked out a few times on the way there, I was so tense in my whole upper body. When this happens I feel tired/drained then panic because I'm tired/drained. I was at the lake district for 4 nights and felt anxious the whole time well apart from been back in the room. Why am I having more anxiety while driving. I took my son to a football tournament about 40 mins away from home and got 30 mins away panic came across me so fast i felt like the music was to loud I went hot my heart started racing. I tried to hide this from him but in the end it got that bad I had to open my window fully as I felt light headed foggy feeling like I was about to pass out my heart rate was 159, shaking my mouth was dry, I felt breathless, i was trying to breath deeply while driving him to football. He asked if I was ok I just said yeah mams just having a panic attack mate il be fine but really I thought my life was coming to an end. I drove a little faster to get him to football so i could get home as quickly as I could. It just got worse and worse to the point feel breathing made my heart rate go up. I didn't know what to do. I got home and after about 10 mins in bed it calmed eventually. I was sat worrying all day in case it came back and also mostly that my soon had seen it.
Does anyone get this?


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Re: See runtime type or useful description of Any value?QuinceyMorris Sep 29, 2016 12:30 PM (in response to rnikander)
Many types conform to CustomStringConvertible or CustomDebugStringConvertible, which means they have a "description" or "debugDescription" property, and you can use this easily in the debugger by using the "po" command instead of "p". (I think "po" is a synonym for "expr", but with a couple of explicit options.)
The @ sign just reflects the fact that the string is a NSString object. In Obj-C, a string literal without @ is a C-string.
Regarding the type, you could try (IIRC) "p type(ofValue: $R13)" to get the actual type. I may have the syntax wrong, since this type(of) thing is something that's a very recent change.
I strongly urge you to submit bug reports about this, for two reasons:
1. The debugger team is extremely responsive to feedback. I suspect they wish they more bug reports than they get, since developers often just throw up their hands when they hit a problem using the debugger.
2. The debugger currently has a tendency to show implementation-level details that I'm sure are wonderful for the Swift compiler writers, but don't help actual developers too much. Your case is a perfect example of this. You need the remind the team that developer-level usability matters, too.
Re: See runtime type or useful description of Any value?eskimo Sep 30, 2016 2:16 AM (in response to rnikander)
What QuinceyMorris said but also…
What does
These three payload words are an artefact of how protocol objects — and that includes the empty protocol, which is called
Any— work in Swift. This was discussed in glorious detail in WWDC 2016 Session 416 Understanding Swift Performance. Highly recommended!
Share and Enjoy
Quinn "The Eskimo!"
Apple Developer Relations, Developer Technical Support, Core OS/Hardware
let myEmail = "eskimo" + "1" + "@apple.com"


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It's been a stellar few months for gay and gay-friendly musicians. Last spring, Adam Lambert became the first openly gay artist to debut at number one on the Billboard album chart, and this very week, Macklemore and Ryan Lewis debut on the Hot 100 with "Same Love," their rap ode to same-sex marriage.
And on Sunday night, Frank Ocean could become the first openly queer person to win Record of the Year or Album of the Year and the first openly queer solo artist to win Best New Artist.
Those are three of the Grammy's Big Four Awards, and a win for Ocean, who has publicly acknowledged that he fell in love with a man and who has same-sex love songs on his album Channel Orange, would be a great step forward. It would cement the fact that being openly gay is not a barrier to mainstream success in the music industry.
It's true, of course, that Ocean hasn't had a blockbuster hit like "Call Me Maybe," but for an artist who makes adventurous and thoughtful R&B, he's been a sensation. Channel Orange has sold almost 500,000 copies, which is great in the current market, and his song "Thinkin' Bout You" is close to selling a million. Clearly, his sexuality has not banished him to a ghetto of "niche music" and the remarkable quality of his work has allowed him to shine.
Now… are there people who like Ocean's music because he's queer? Probably. I mean… my favorite song on the album is "Forrest Gump," which is about a gay love affair, and even though I enjoy most of the other tracks, that one sticks out. And are there people, along with Chris Brown, who refuse to listen for the same reason? Most likely. But by and large it seems like people are embracing Frank Ocean as an artist and not just as a "gay artist," if that makes sense. (The next breakthrough will come when we don't need to be surprised or delighted by this kind of acceptance, but we're not quite there yet.)
Now, let's get back to the Grammys: Gay artists have been getting nominated for decades, and plenty of them have won awards. For instance, Stephen Sondheim won Song of the Year—the other Big Grammy—way back in the 70s for writing "Send in the Clowns."
And in 1984, Culture Club won Best New Artist. In the band's acceptance speech, openly gay, fabulously androgynous frontman Boy George even said, "Thank you America! You've got taste, style, and you know a good drag queen when you see one!" (This entire clip of their victory is amazing, by the way. Why is Joan Rivers there? Why is Rodney Dangerfield sexually harassing Cyndi Lauper?)
Still, no solo queer artist has ever won Best New Artist, and it's been almost thirty years since Boy George picked up the prize. So it would be nice for Ocean to win. That might also help excuse the year that Indigo Girls, those lesbian super-musicians, lost Best New Artist to Milli Vanilli.
Meanwhile, George Michael won Album of the Year in 1989, but he was closeted at the time, and as far as I know, no gay person (closeted or not) has ever won Record of the Year. If Ocean wins either, then he'll be out from the get-go. It would be nice to see one of the industry's biggest awards go to someone who has never had to hide.
Mark Blankenship really, really enjoyed that clip of Culture Club's victory. He tweets as @IAmBlankenship


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By Teachers, For Teachers
How many times have you said, "Take out your notebooks, it's time to take notes!" and all you hear is a collective "ugh" from your students?
You are not alone - many classrooms across the globe are hearing the same collective "ugh" from their classrooms. Note-taking can be a drag, but rest assured, we all know that it is one of the best ways to ensure good grades. But how do we get our students to warm up to the idea that it helps us understand what we read?
Easy: Provide them with note-taking techniques and give them the choice of how they record their information.
If traditional note-taking has not been successful in your classroom, then try a few of these techniques with your students and help them find which method suites their learning style the best.
The Mapping Method
Concept maps, mind maps, webs, whatever you chose to call it, this method of note-taking is the best for students who are visual learners. Students write one word or idea in the middle of the paper and draws lines to connect other words or ideas that relate to one another. For example, a student would write the topic "qualities of a friend" in the center of the paper. Then branch out from that topic and write a few qualities; in my class, pretty, nice, funny, trusting, common interests, etc.
The T-Chart
The T-Chart is used to examine or make a comparison to a person, an event, object, or a situation. If students were taking notes on Rosa Parks they could compare what life was like in 1956 to life now. This graphic organizer will help students easily examine two facets of a topic in an efficient way.
Venn Diagram
The Venn diagram is another graphic organizer. This technique has two interlocking circles which help students visually make comparisons to a person, object, event or topic. This way of note-taking shows students three things: Information about one specific topic on the left, and on the right, as well as what each topic has in common in the center interlocking circle. Students who use this note-taking technique have the opportunity to see what two topics have in common, versus using the T-chart, which only compares two.
The Frayer Model
The Frayer Model is a note-taking technique that uses a graphic organizer to build vocabulary. This four-square model prompts students to define a term, describe its characteristics, provide examples, and non-examples. For example, the topic is "mammals." The definition is a warm-blooded vertebrate animal. The characteristics would be, covered by hair and gives birth to young. Examples would be man and monkey, non- examples would be snake and duck.
Boxes and Bullets
Boxes and bullets is a note-taking technique that many children are very familiar with. This where students write down the main topic or idea in the box, and then provide a variety of supporting details under each bullet. For example, students would write the main idea in the box, then under each bullet would write a supporting detail.
The Outlining Method
This method is pretty much like the traditional method. It requires students to be sharp and very organized. For the outlining method to be effective students must use dashes or indents when writing important key facts they want to remember. There is no need for numbers or letters, all students have to do is skip lines and indent when taking notes.
- Mammals
- - warm blooded animal
- two kinds
- man
- monkey
The Charting Method
The charting method for note-taking is when you format your paper by drawing columns and labeling headings. As students read or listen they record the information into the appropriate category (heading). This method is great for students when they have to study for a test. All of the information is presented and organized for them. Here is an example of what the charting method looks like.
Person Event Significance
Rosa Parks Montgomery bus boycott Arrested for not leaving bus
Do you have any note-taking techniques you would like to share? Please share with us in the comment section below!
Janelle Cox is an education writer who draws on her 15 years of professional experience in the education system. Janelle holds a master's of science in education from the State University of New York College at Buffalo. She is also the Elementary Education Expert for About.com, where she provides educational information and lesson plans for teachers around the globe.


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Cooperalls are back!
They were a crime against hockey fashion and a legitimate safety hazard.
But thanks to a growing fascination with all things retro, Cooperalls are making a comeback. At least for one night.
The WHL's Kamloops Blazers will turn back the clock by wearing full-length CCM Propac pants, which mimic the old-school Cooperall breezers, during their home game on Mar. 4 against the Kelowna Rockets.
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The Blazers were one of several teams that adopted the edgy equipment back in the day. The pants offered excellent protection with form-fitting hip-to-ankle padding and most found them comfortable to wear. But their slick nylon shells were like grease when a player hit the ice, resulting in several high-speed collisions with the boards.
The Philadelphia Flyers (1981-83) and Hartford Whalers (1982-83) were the only two NHL clubs to wear the gear before the league, citing player safety, banned their use in 1983.
If you want to see them in action, you're in luck. The game will be broadcast on Sportsnet's CHL Friday Night Hockey, as well as on the NHL Network in the United States.


text:
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Add or Update Staff/Admin Accounts
From Support Wiki
1. Click Setup in the left-hand navigation bar.
2. Click Association Employees/Reps in the Association Options area.
3. Click Add a New Rep.
4. Complete the Personal Information and Contact Information sections.
- Note: The Email Address recorded here should be the same email address that is used when accessing your own email program. If correctly specified, then using the options in software to "Email from Outlook" will not give an error. See Email Sending Options for more information.
- Note: The First Name and Last Name fields (with a space between the 2 fields) will be what displays in the "From" line in the recipient's email inbox.
5. Click Save & Exit.
6. To create a login account for this staff user, click their name in the List of Representatives, expand the Permissions for... section and click Create Login Account.
7. Complete the Login Account and Database Permissions sections and click Save.
Note for Users of SmartCMS: A staff user's permission for SmartCMS are also configured in this section.
Note: To edit a staff user's email notifications, expand the Additional Settings For... section and select the desired options.


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- In: Features
The Holidays are upon us and that means that we're buying all kinds of stuff for the people we care about and even those we don't care about but still feel obligated to get a gift for. Instead of going out and getting something lame like a Christmas tea cozy or a Mitt Romney commemorative plate set, why not get the gift that keeps on giving? I'm talking about comic books of course. Encourage reading and in the case of horror books, possibly scare the crap out of someone. You've seen the UK guide and the US guide, but I've put together a comic fan's guide to the holiday gift giving season. Check out this list of sweet swag for some gift ideas for the horror comic fan in your life or maybe just treat yourself to something special.
For the Walking Dead Fan...
Damn, it's a good time to be a fan of The Walking Dead. Whether you're into the comic, the TV show, or the video game, there's something for you here. The safe bet for someone that liked the AMC show but hasn't read the book from Image Comics is to pick up The Walking Dead Compendium. There are currently two volumes out now. Each tome holds 48 issues of the comic and can be used as a weapon if you're attacked by a horde of zombies. This is a great way to get someone almost entirely caught up with the comic as they just passed 100 issues.
Let's say you want to mix it up a little bit. You don't want to give your buddy a whole lot of reading to do. GameStop has an exclusive Collector's Edition of The Walking Dead from TellTale Games. This includes all six episodes of the hit game where you make life and death decisions as escaped convict Lee Everett. In addition to the game, you also get the first Walking Dead Compendium! Not a bad deal for a new fan.
These gifts are well and good for someone that's not yet a full on Walking Dead expert, but what do you get for the fan that's read all the comics and played the video game already? Titan Magazines has you covered with The Walking Dead: The Official Magazine. A subscription to this is perfect for the hardcore zombie fan. The second issue will hit stands this month. Titan has a special deal going on right now where you save $10 on a subscription and get a free Walking Dead t-shirt.
If You Really Like This Person...
Sometimes a single comic just isn't enough to show someone how awesome they are. You need something really cool and publishers have come out with some pretty great stuff for you folks with the deeper pockets.
IDW Publishing has developed an entirely new imprint called IDW Limited. This is focused on incredibly small runs of popular titles with very special editions. They've recently announced limited releases for Monocyte and Alan Robert's Crawl to Me. The books look absolutely beautiful and come signed by the creators.
|Click images to enlarge
If that's a little too pricey, you can check out the special edition of Locke & Key, also from IDW. They've created a die-cut key cover for the first story entitled "Welcome to Lovecraft" by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez. In addition to the complete arc, you get Hill's complete scripts and an art gallery.
Hellboy in Hell just started and fans that want to catch up on the adventures of the former B.P.R.D. agent would be happy to receive the Library Editions of the comics. Held in oversized hardcover format, these massive collections from Dark Horse Comics collect the content previously published as two trade paperbacks. The first volume contains both Seed of Destruction and Wake the Devil. There are five altogether now and each one of them is just as gorgeous as the last. This is the kind of thing that you want to show off on a bookshelf.
You also can't go wrong with the classics. There are some comics that are continually best sellers even if they were first published years ago. One such book is Sandman by Neil Gaiman. Vertigo recently released a complete series set that includes all ten volumes of the main series housed in a beautiful slipcase. Sandman is easily one of the best comic books of all time and one that is easy for any new reader to get into.
If you've got someone on your list that likes things that are a little more extreme, Avatar Press has you covered. They recently collected the first volume of their new weekly webcomic Crossed: Wish You Were Here in a great hardcover. You can sample the book at CrossedComic.com, but suffice it to say, it's not for the faint of heart. The third page pictures a man infected by the Crossed virus viciously screwing a dolphin's blowhole as the animal screeches away. Take that, Aquaman. You can get the regular version of the hardcover, but if you want something really special, you can pick up copy signed by writer Simon Spurrier and artist Jacen Burrows. Act fast though as these are limited to just 1,000 copies.
For Someone Who Wants to Try Something New...
This year was great for new comic releases. I cover a chunk of them in my Top 10 List of 2012, such as Hoax Hunters, Fatale, and The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. They're all good for someone that is into comics but tired of the same old superhero nonsense. There are a few others that are definitely worth investigating.
Dark Horse Comics teamed up with Tom Morello from Rage Against the Machine to create Orchid. It's a post-apocalyptic story centering on the title character who is a young prostitute in the dregs of society. Through a series of events, she breaks free from her bonds and leads a revolution against the oppressive emperor. The comic features some gorgeous art by Scott Hepburn. There are two trade paperbacks out now, collecting the first eight issues. The final chapter of the comic comes out next month.
Indie comics have blown up this year as well. It's worth exploring some of the titles that are vying for space on the shelf alongside the dozen or so X-Men comics. Studio 407 hit the ground running this year with a heavy production schedule. They've released several original graphic novels and a chunk of them fall in the horror category such as The Night Projectionist, Hybrid, Smuggling Spirits, and Night and Fog. Of the bunch, Night and Fog stands out with a story that harkens back to old-school Creepy comics. It deals with a freak accident at a bioengineering facility that ends up transforming the residents of a small village into horrific monsters. Only a few people escaped, and now they have to stop these beasts, which is no easy task. Getting a book like this is great as you're supporting indie comics and exposing someone to a book they might have missed.
Speaking of old-school comics, Dark Horse recently collected the four issue mini-series Ragemoor, which is a great looking homage to the horror comics of yesteryear. Written by Jan Strnad and illustrated by Richard Corben, Ragemoor's focus is on a castle of the same name. This isn't some drafty place in the middle of nowhere. It's a living building and it doesn't take kindly to being pillaged for treasure. It reacts angrily and reveals dark creatures living within its depths. It's an unsettling read at times with some great art by Corben.
For the Kids...
Sometimes you want to scare the crap out of your kids, but I don't think it's a good idea to give them comics like Ragemoor or Crossed. Somehow I think child services may want a word with you. That isn't to say that there aren't some spooky books that would be fit for children.
Bruce Brown wrote a pair of graphic novels for Arcana Studio that are a perfect gift for kids that are into horror. Plus they deal with one of the most iconic writers in the genre. Howard Lovecraft and the Frozen Kingdom and the follow-up The Undersea Kingdom create a Calvin and Hobbes feel to the author. Here he's a child who is whisked away to a foreign land and befriends a huge beast affectionately called Thu Thu. Yes, it's a friendlier version of Cthulu and he forms a strong bond with young Howard. The book is fun and lighthearted while still including some great scares. It's not the kind of thing that's going to give your kid nightmares though.
Sticking with Cthulu for a moment, Archaia Entertainment has recently released a children's book entitled Where's My Shoggoth?. It centers on a young boy that lost his pet shoggoth. He sets out to find his pet and encounters all sorts of creatures and demigods, but can't seem to find it. Archaia knows a thing or two about publishing great kids books. They've done a great job with titles like Cow Boy and Rust. This is a little different but it's still a great presentation.
If you've got a kid that loves zombies, first off, you've got a cool kid. Reward that with a comic book! The Littlest Zombie from Antarctic Press tells the tale of a young member of the undead that just wants a friend...and a meal. With luck, he can find both at the same time. Brought to you by storyteller Fred Perry.
For the New Comic Fan...
Let's say you really want to get someone into comics. They're hesitant and they don't know much about the medium. Why not give them something that's based on a movie, book, or TV show that they already love? There have been plenty of great stories that have been adapted or expanded upon in comics and most of them are perfect gateway drugs to the world of funny books.
If you know someone that likes Buffy the Vampire Slayer, you probably live on planet Earth. Seriously, is it possible to not know at least one person that's a fan of the show? Dark Horse Comics continued the story in comic book form. It's official canon and executive produced by Joss Whedon. Similar to the Hellboy releases mentioned earlier, the entirety of Season 8 has been released in deluxe hardcover Library Editions. Each one includes at least ten issues and absolutely gorgeous covers by Jo Chen. There will be four in total with the last one coming out in early next year. These will get you almost caught up for Season 9, which is currently being published.
I've never gotten tired of asking "Who Ya Gonna Call?" when a co-worker has a problem. That's probably why I don't get invited to many parties. Fortunately, I have Ghostbusters comics aplenty from IDW Publishing. There are a number to choose from now, so any fan of Egon, Ray, Peter, and Winston can pick the era they most want to explore. For someone that likes cartoon there's the first volume of The Real Ghostbuster Omnibus. This collects the first 14 issues of the comic originally released by NOW. If you're looking for something a little more modern, there's the regular Ghostbusters Omnibus which includes two mini-series and several one-shots brought to you by IDW. These are all new adventures of the team and are a little more mature than the Real Ghostbusters.
Finally, if you want to get into the continuing adventures of the team, there's the current ongoing Ghostbusters comic. Erik Burnham has been crafting a great story that's been expanding on the original films. He gets the characters so well that you can see Bill Murray or Day Aykroyd saying his dialogue. Dan Schoening's artwork is cartoony so it keeps the book lighthearted and fun, but he can bring in some pretty spooky ghosts for the crew to take on.
The Strain Trilogy of novels by Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan have wrapped up, but the story is not finished yet. Dark Horse has been adapting the books into comics with the help of author David Lapham, aiming to have 12 issues per novel. The first trade paperback is available now and collects the first six issues. This is a perfect gift for fans of the series as it provides an illustrated version of the story with some great artwork by Mike Huddleston. Damn, are those vampires creepy.
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text: Gambia captain Omar Colley decides to move to Belgian club Genk rather than to Spain or Germany in order to get more playing time. The 23-year-old has signed from Swedish side Djurgarden on a three-year deal for around US$2,25 million. Colley also had offers from Spain's Espanyol and Germany's Hertha Berlin. "I joined Genk where there will be less stress because the manager has assured me I will have more playing time," he said. "It feels great to sign for Genk because it is a great club and a good step for my career." . The former Real de Banjul player made 44 matches for Djurgarden scoring five goals for them after joining from Finnish side Kups in August 2014.


text: I will be out of the office starting 05/27/2004 and will not return until 06/01/2004. Please contact Kimberly Brantley (Kimberly Brantley/Raleigh/IBM at IBMUS) for search and IA and Jack Pizzolato (AC 919-254-7116) for all other matters. Kimberly is in the test lab this week so please send her a note. Thanks.


text:
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