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Photography Classes in Yale MI
Interested in learning about photography in Yale MI? No matter if you are a beginner, hobbyist, or professional, the best approach to improving your photography technique is through hands-on training with skilled instructors.
There are numerous accredited and recognized photography schools in Michigan. Photography classes cover techniques like lighting, exposure and composition, posing and unposing, portrait capture, and other photography fundamentals. Growing into an experienced photographer can lead to a lifelong hobby or successful professional career.
There are many Photography Classes in Yale MI:
- Photography 101 in Yale
- Digital Photography Classes in Yale
- Nature Photography Classes in Yale
- Editorial Photography Classes in Yale
- Studio Photography Classes in Yale
- Photojournalism Classes in Yale
Yale MI Photography Classes
Oakland University
2200 North Squirrel Road
Rochester Hills, Michigan 48309-4401
Phone: (248) 370-2100
28.20 miles away
Oakland Community College
2480 Opdyke Rd
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan 48304-2266
Phone: (248) 341-2000
32.35 miles away
Cranbrook Academy of Art
39221 Woodward Avenue
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan 48304
Phone: (248) 645-3300
32.85 miles away
College for Creative Studies
201 E Kirby
Detroit, Michigan 48202
Phone: (313) 664-7400
39.43 miles away
The Art Institute of Michigan
28125 Cabot Drive Suite 120
Novi, Michigan 48377-2985
Phone: (248) 675-3800
44.26 miles away
Henry Ford Community College
5101 Evergreen Rd
Dearborn, Michigan 48128-1495
Phone: (313) 845-9600
45.90 miles away
Mott Community College
1401 E Court St
Flint, Michigan 48503-2089
Phone: (810) 762-0200
48.07 miles away

subset: commoncrawl


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In today's changing world, library collection and preservation services need to be adaptable to the current user's needs. Consider the library with valuable space on campus or downtown: should they use that space for valuable books and materials? Or keep it more open with tech and Wi-Fi access?
An outdated customer experience and disengaged employees can quickly make a library seem irrelevant. When collection and service strategies lose focus, funding pressure arises…and libraries fall under attack. Some "hotspots" are easy to see: passive collection spaces quickly look like good candidates to be taken over by administrators to make room for faculty or IT.
But what if that space could be repurposed for project-based work areas? Maybe a new Makerspace or learning commons that includes adaptable, flexible display areas and collaborative seating. This insight lead Aaron Cohen Associates /Library Consultant to a new concept, a library space program that focuses on new strategies and configurations for conservation and access.
The ALCTS Preservation Showdown at the American Library Association (ALA), moderated by Annie Peterson (Preservation Librarian, Tulane University), illustrated the strategic challenges facing library collections and their caretakers. The program invited librarians from esteemed institutions, including Harvard and Johns Hopkins, to participate. Two teams went head-to-head in a debate format on the following topic:
"Funding to support access to rare book and manuscripts collections should be entirely dedicated to digitization, not to conservation treatment of original artifacts."
The reaction from the audience and the participants was fascinating. It illustrated that library bottlenecks arise when we do not balance preservation with digital access to collections. Debate participants' statements were indeed logical; however, the discussion also brought out emotional responses that showed the severe shortage of collection development solutions associated with library funding.
Our Library Architecture project work is also about access and conservation. Below is a visual of the conceptual process by Renzo Piano building workshop for the new National Library of Greece. The process engaged both the needs for conservation and access to historic and important literature.


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For a long time the 'migrant crisis' has been something that the British public have known about. We've seen images of children washed up on beaches who have drowned trying to cross the Mediterranean, we've watched as celebrities have endorsed the work of charities striving to find refuge for thousands of people fleeing war torn countries and more recently, we have seen what started off as a humanitarian crisis, become something ominous, something bad, something people are crediting for Britain reaching 'breaking point', and for our shock departure from the EU.
Somewhere along the line, these people have stopped being desperate human beings, and have instead become a threat, a menace, a symbol of all that is wrong with Europe and as a result, our attitude towards what is happening is at best apathy. The most notable example of this being in the infamous 'Jungle' in Calais, filled with desperate people risking everything to reach the UK. Yet despite the desperation of this situation, and the fact that it is geographically SO close, it is something that most of us here in the UK know startlingly little about. I'm ashamed to admit that despite it being nothing more than a swim away, I myself know next to nothing about it. I drove past it once, I read Katie Hopkins' account of her trip there and I am aware that it is set to be demolished any day now, but that's it.
And I realised that this was not good enough. So I have spoken to my incredibly inspiring friend Amelia Cooper, who, alongside her degree, has spent much of the last few months volunteering in Calais. I wanted to find out more about the Jungle, and about what we can do to help the thousands of people who are being ignored by a shocking number of the great British public.
I am aware that this content differs massively to what I normally publish, but this is something I feel very passionate about and I wanted to spread Meely's story with as many people as possible.
Meely in Calais, posing for one of the kids
What was it that first inspired you to go to Calais? How did you hear that it was even a option, that help was needed?
It wasn't so much a question of inspiration, but more of a reaction: the media has been filled with reports about the refugee crisis for months, and I would regularly talk about how inadequate the European response had been, how I couldn't believe how little was being done at the political level. While I was talking, though, it increasingly dawned on me that I wasn't so different from the politicians that I complained about: all talk and no action. I knew that the Jungle existed, but not huge amounts more than that, and so I decided to do a little more research (perhaps I picked there because of its proximity to the UK; perhaps because it seemed to receive such a small amount of attention? I couldn't really tell you why).
Photo by Michelle Wright
I was soon to discover the shocking fact that no major aid organisations (with the exception of MSF and Acted) were present on the ground: almost all of the aid was being managed and organised by people like you and me. Finding out how to volunteer was incredibly easy – I just searched 'how to help in Calais' on Google and found the wonderful partnership of Help Refugees and L'Auberge des Migrants. They have a warehouse in Calais and conduct some of the largest aid operations in the camp: the kitchen provides 4000 hot (and delicious) meals every day; clothes, sorted at the warehouse, are distributed in camp on a weekly basis; shelters are built and tents provided; wood chopped and given to people for cooking and warmth… the list goes on. Help is always needed, and (almost) any extra hand is useful – whether that is for an afternoon or a year.
Can you just tell us a little bit about what the 'Jungle' is actually like? Obviously we have only seen the doom and gloom that the media are telling us….
The Jungle is one of the most complex places I have ever been in my life, and thinking about it triggers more conflicting feelings in me than I would have thought possible. On some levels, it is easiest to differentiate between my thoughts on the structure and the essence of the place: both of these categories are of course more nuanced than this split suggests and merit further and deeper conversation to reflect that – but I'll go with it for now.
Structurally, the Jungle breaks my heart. It is located just off a motorway, which has a long and tall white fence, with barbed wire along the top, running alongside it. The fence is currently being replaced by a wall, at the cost of £1.9 million (which, with cruel irony, would pay for the legal fees to get 1000 children – almost all the kids in camp – safely to the UK). Between the fence/wall and the camp is a buffer zone, a sandy and barren space that further separates the camp from the road; at least one, usually more, French riot police vans are stationed there. It has become the scene of regular and indiscriminate tear gas and rubber bullet attacks, the former of which spreads rapidly through the camp, punishing everyone in its path.
Photo by Michelle Wright
The Jungle is essentially a slum: more than 10,000 people (including 1022 unaccompanied children) are crammed in wooden shelters, a few caravans and increasing numbers of tents, and are dependent on aid organisations for all of their basic necessities. It is particularly subject to the elements, due to its proximity to the sea – and being in northern France, that means harsh winds (ripped tents) and huge downpours (flooding, which means that sleeping bags, clothes and documents are regularly ruined).
Photo by Michelle Wright
I spent the summer taking testimonies from refugees who have suffered harassment and physical abuse at the hands of the French police. The Jungle is an embodiment of injustice and inequality, and I could talk about innumerable layers of shit that created it – but it is important to note that the essence of the Jungle is totally different from its outward appearance.
Describing the humanity, kindness and generosity that I've witnessed in the Jungle is incredibly difficult without a) sounding like a huge cliché or b) using every superlative I can think of, and I am very conscious of essentializing the people who live there. However, what I will say is that days spent working there have been so full of connection and friendship, even when there is no shared language. I've never been offered so much chai or food in my life; never had so many smiles or hellos with strangers. Among residents, family-style units have cropped up; communities cook together every evening; people who have set up small restaurants give free food to those who are hungry, or offer a place to stay for new arrivals.
Photo by Michelle Wright
Of course there are bad things, and bad people, in the Jungle: such things exist everywhere, and the Jungle is everywhere. It is everywhere, with a heap of desperation and deprivation on top: and that is without even beginning to think about the intense trauma and pain that so many (if not all) of the residents have experienced, whether that is in their country of origin, on the journey, or now in the Jungle. However, the media narrative of violent migrants is such an unbelievable distortion of my wonderful friends and the Jungle community at large. Remarkably, given all that the residents have experienced, it remains the most welcoming place I have ever been in my life.
We know now that the Jungle is set to be demolished, can you tell us what this will mean for the refugees who are calling that home?
Image from the March eviction – photo Ben Teuten
Honestly, it's difficult to say, as warnings about the demolition have not been accompanied by written explanations of the options that are available to the residents, most notably the unaccompanied children living in the camp.
The French state has said that it will provide beds for all of the residents in accommodation centres across France; however, people are often reluctant to go in to them as it is thought that this almost inevitably means being fingerprinted, thus losing the chance to claim asylum in the UK (due to Dublin III) and risking deportation if you have prints elsewhere in Europe. In July, there were only 159 free beds in accommodation centres – I'd be surprised if 10,000 have already been found. It has also been rumoured that those who do not claim asylum within an allotted time period will face deportation.
Of those who don't go in to accommodation centres, many are likely to scatter around Northern France, and either sleep on the streets or form smaller camps in order to continue trying to the to the UK. These camps will not have any of the infrastructural support (e.g. running water) that Acted has put in to the Jungle, and so the conditions will be even worse.
The children in camp are my primary concern at this point, as no child-specific protection measures have been put forward by the French or British governments. Following the eviction of the southern half of the Jungle in March, 129 children when missing or were unaccounted for. The population of children in the camp is now more than double what it was then, and so the risks of kids going missing, being trafficked or falling victim to exploitation is far higher.
How are you finding the time to juggle your degree and the work that you are doing with these charities and your trips to Calais?
Long university holidays/lack of sleep!
Meely with Sam and Katie, two other volunteers.
Do you find it hard coming home and getting on with your life as normal after you have been?
Being in Calais has totally shifted by concept of what 'normal' is. I heard another long-termer describe the difficulty of coming home as feeling like you've been set on fire, and then dropped in to a fishbowl: you can cry and shout, but nobody can really hear you. I am so angry and so sad, so much of the time, and the first challenge when getting back to the UK is not exploding at the absolute apathy or so many people around me. I would say it gets easier, but I'm not sure it really does – you just get better at compartmentalising your life. Thankfully, I have a great support network of friends from Calais who completely understand how it feels, and wonderful non-Calais people in my life who are happy to be there with an ear and a hug. Without them, there's no way I could hold it together.
I'm so shocked by the ambivalence that so many people here in the UK are showing towards this crisis. If you could say one thing, share one story, with one of these 'not our problem' types, what would it be?
The Jungle IS our problem, on legal, moral and simply human levels. The people who live there have fled war and the most unimaginable trauma, only to be left languishing at the border as a result of an illogical and demeaning European policy.
Two weeks ago, there was a pause in the community leaders' meeting in the Jungle as the men put forward the money they had collected from their fellow residents. It was to raise funds to repatriate the body of a young Afghan boy – just fourteen years old – who had died on the motorway. He had the legal right to go to the UK (as do approximately 400 unaccompanied children in camp), and his case to be reunified with this brother was supposedly active. He'd been waiting for months though, and so had started to try to get across by other means. Before anyone says he should have waited for longer, please think about what the ramifications of that would be: longer living in a tent, longer being subject to violence, (including indiscriminate tear gassing) and intimidation at the hands of the French police, longer being deprived of his most basic rights – when his brother was almost in touching distance. He attempted to jump on to jump on to a moving lorry in the early hours of the 16th September. He fell, was hit by a car, and lost his life. Neither driver stopped.
He was not the first child to die while attempting to cross the border, and unless we see dramatic changes in UK policy, he will not be the last.
This is the big one, WHAT CAN WE DO TO HELP FROM HERE?
You can do so much to help. You can write to your MP about the Jungle, asking them to expedite the Dubs amendment and Dublin III family reunification clause to provide safety for the children in camp ahead of the demolition (if you want me to send you a letter template, just leave your email address in the comments). You can donate to the wonderful operations on the ground, either with material donations (list of drop off points here) or financial donations. You can buy tents, backpacks and sleeping bags at discounted rates that will be delivered straight to our warehouse. You can volunteer your time either in Calais or at home (organising a fundraiser, for example, or getting involved with refugee charities working in your area).
I am begging you to do something. I don't care what your political affiliations are, I don't care what your motivations are, but people who are living in tents and shelters just across our border need us and you can help. You can top up a kid's phone, and it might end up saving the lives of fifteen people who are suffocating in a lorry. You can donate to the kitchens, and you'll be contributing towards emergency packs that people can take with them post-eviction. You can donate to the youth service, and you'll facilitate their work tracking the unaccompanied minors in camp. Everyone needs your help, and with the eviction looming, they need it more than ever.


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HOOVER, Ala- The Huntsville Stars scored six runs in the first two
innings off of Birmingham Barons starting pitcher Simon Castro to roll
to a 6-1 victory at Reigons Field on Thursday night. Leading the way
for the Stars was first baseman Hunter Morris, who delivered
run-scoring doubles in both the first and second inning en route to a
4-for-4 night at the dish. The Huntsville-native finished off with
three runs batted in.
From that point on, it was the Stars pitching that finished things
off, with three pitchers holding the Barons to one run on just seven
hits. Relief pitcher Josh Stinson was credited with his second win of
the season with four innings of scoreless relief, striking out six
Barons in the process. With the win, Huntsville snaps a two-game
losing streak against Birmingham and a four-game losing streak
overall. The Stars will try to stay on the winning track on Saturday
as they will send Kyle Heckathorn to the mound to face off against
Barons RHP Cameron Bayne. First pitch is at 7:05 PM.
Courtesy: Alex Cohen, Stars Play-By-Play Announcer


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In December, over 1,000 flights at Gatwick Airport — Britain's second-busiest — were diverted or canceled and flight operations were disrupted for 36 hours due to reports that one or more drones were spotted in the airport's airspace.
No videos or photos have emerged. Police briefly detained two suspects, but released them after determining they weren't involved.
The only evidence: around 100 eyewitness accounts and a damaged drone found near the airport that may or may not have been involved. A reward has been offered for information, but so far little is known. Some people question whether there was ever an unauthorized drone. Police suspect that many of the later sightings were of a drone operated by the Sussex Police.
In January, flights at Heathrow Airport — Britain's busiest — were briefly disrupted after reports of a drone near the airport.
Once again, no videos or photos emerged, and neither the drone nor its operator have been found.
These aren't the first times drones have disrupted airport operations, and they won't be the last. But nobody seems to be quite sure how to solve the problem.
Drones are so small and can fly so close to the ground that it's not really possible to spot them with radar. In the US, the FAA has spent years testing various drone detection techniques, with some success, but has found it extremely challenging. They also recommend against the use of drone countermeasures like jammers because they could interfere with other equipment and could create even greater hazards if drones start falling out of the sky.
Instead, the FAA is working on legislation that would require drone manufacturers to make their drones remotely identifiable and trackable. But this is a complicated regulatory solution that could take years to come to fruition, and even then could potentially be bypassed with some hardware hacking or with entirely homemade drones.
The reality seems to be that nobody quite knows how to prevent drones (or even just reports of drones) from causing massive airport disruptions. We could be looking at a future where this sort of thing becomes commonplace and is just one more inconvenience air travelers will have to plan for.
What do you think? Do you have a clever idea for detecting or intercepting malicious drones? Or are we doomed?


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Almost done with the section on creation. Here is the next post in my theology in bullet points series. The previous one is here.
Genesis 1:27 reads, "So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them." Christians believe that humanity was created in the image of God. But what is the image of God?
Basically, to say we were created in the image of God indicates that God created us like him in one way or another. Some Christians think the image of God is something "in" us, like our reason or moral thinking. Others think it is something about us, like our place in relation to the rest of God's creation. Others think it is our ability to form relationships. No doubt these are all ways in which we are like God.
1. There seems to be some truth, therefore, in all these suggestions, and we might summarize four ways in which we were created in God's image. First, 1) we were created in the "governmental" image of God. God created humanity at the top of the food chain. This seems to be the original meaning of Genesis 1:27, for the previous verse reads, "Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground."
Genesis thus draws a direct connection between humanity being God's image and our function as the dominant species of the earth. Humanity was created to have "glory and honor" within the creation (e.g., Heb. 2:6-8). You can see the parallel between God and humanity here. God rules the heavens and earth. Humanity rules the life of the earth.
From a Christian standpoint, this is not license to destroy the earth but, especially in the modern day and age, a responsibility to steward the creation for God. We have "subdued" the earth more than at any other point in history (Gen. 1:28). Now, like the stewards to whom the king gave various amounts of money to keep for him (e.g., Matt. 24:14-30), we must take care of God's creation in a way that will return him a healthy, prosperous earth.
2. Two other key dimensions of the image of God in humanity are 2) natural image and 3) the moral image. John Wesley speaks of these two in his sermon, "The End of Christ's Coming," meaning the purpose of Christ's Coming. The natural image, for Wesley, consists of human a) understanding, b) will, and c) freedom. All of these were marred, according to Wesley, when Adam sinned.
Like God, humans have understanding of their world. Like God, humans make decisions with their will. Like God humans have the freedom to choose one thing over another. All of these were seriously impaired, Wesley taught, when Adam sinned.
However, even prior to the Fall, there were key differences between us and God. Adam may have reasoned more perfectly than us, but his knowledge was still finite. By contrast, God's intellect is infinite and his knowledge is infinite. In fact, he creates truth.
So we might say that part of the image of God in us is our ability to reason and make choices. [1]
3. The moral image of God in us, according to Wesley, was the "righteousness and true holiness" that Adam had originally. For Wesley, Calvin, and Augustine before them, humanity completely lost the moral image of God in the Fall. No one is able now, in his or her own power, truly to do good.
But originally, these all believed, Adam was free and able not to sin if he had so chosen (posse non peccare, "able not to sin"). Part of the original image of God, now completely lost, was the ability to act morally according to our own free will.
4. Modern theologians like Karl Barth an Emil Brunner have added a modern touch to the image of God by suggesting that it is in relationship with God and others that we show ourselves to be in the image of God. As the members of the Trinity have related to each other from all eternity past, so now we demonstrate the image of God as we exist in relationship with him and with each other.
5. Most of these conceptions of the image of God go well beyond the biblical use of the word. In the Old Testament, as we have already shown, humanity has a certain glory and honor, a prime of place, within the creation as a "reflection of God." You don't kill another human being the way you might kill a deer because it is like attacking God (cf. Gen. 9:6).
James 3:9 continues this line of thought in the New Testament. You shouldn't curse another human being because all human beings are made in God's likeness. All human beings deserve a certain dignity and respect because they are reminiscences of God on the earth. Christians don't treat other human beings as mere animals.
Christ, as the perfect human, is the image of God par excellence. He is the "image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation" (Col. 1:15). Those who have seen Jesus, have seen the Father (John 14:9).
God created human beings as his "image" on the earth. He crowned humanity with glory and honor in the creation. He created them to rule and steward the earth. He created them to explore and discover. He gave us minds to think and wills to choose. He created us for relationships with him and each other. He created us to be good, and wants to restore that broken image even today.
I am my brother's keeper. I must treat all other human beings with respect, for all human beings were created in the image of God.
Next Sunday: C6. God intended us to live forever.
[1] Most Christian pictures of human make-up from the past are "pre-modern." That is to say, they take humanity as it appears within the paradigms and worldview of the thinker and see that pattern as something that is really within a person. They take an understanding that is "phenomenological" (the world as it appears to us) and unreflectively assume it is "ontological" (part of a person's actual being).
So to say the human mind is composed of intellect, emotion, and will is a fine reflection of human mind as it appears to us, as it functions in the world. But we shouldn't confuse this breakdown with the actual composition of the human brain in some way. It is a great "heuristic" model for thinking about the way our minds work. It is functionally true. It works to describe the way we behave.
All biblical breakdowns of human personality are phenomenological. We should not take language of the soul, bipartite or tripartite, as literal language of our actual composition. These are rather pictures of human beings as we function in the world, framed within the paradigms and worldviews of the biblical authors. The next article discusses the soul.
Sunday, June 29, 2014
C5. Human beings were created in the image of God.
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Next week, May 9 and 10, the US-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue will take place in Washington DC. Since 2009, high-level representatives of the US China, with their delegations, meet each year at one then the other capital. Let's see if the administration will take on China's mercantilist policies in an effort to start bringing back factories and jobs -- and rebalancing the world's economy.
This is the third such meeting. Prior meetings have been useful with the countries signed various memorandums of understanding, but the big kahuna of actually doing something about the massive imbalances that continue to destabilize the world's economy has not yet been tackled.
The trade imbalances resulting from China's ongoing efforts to grab the world's manufacturing business continue. The world's economy has gotten through the worst of the financial crisis but as we go back to the same old ways of things that didn't work we only set the stage for worse.
China cheats. This advantages from this cheating bring them increasing wealth and power which are used to discourage a response to their cheating. And inside the affected countries there are internal groups benefiting from the imbalances, bringing them increasing wealth and influence to discourage their governments from confronting the situation. (You know who you are.) Low wages and short-term profit at the expense of a long-term sustainable economy might be good for some, it is terrible for most.
The public understands that our trade relationship with China is a problem. People want to buy things made here and want jobs making things here. We want our factories and jobs back. It's that simple and the public gets it. The coming election will hinge on jobs and jobs hinge on responding to China.
The world is still out of balance. Our economy is still out of balance. The problems are not going to get better by themselves. Simply putting off the things that have to get done allow the imbalances to worsen.
Stay tuned -- I'll be going into detail as this economic dialogue approaches and proceeds.


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O Lord, forgive me for I have doubted your lovingkindness. (Lam. 3:22–33; Mark 5:21–43;)
In our first study, we'll touch painful things, lots of pain—and anger—along with frustrations, confusions, and despair. Because of our sinful genetic, we cannot blackball these things while heading toward The Promised Land. Isn't it true, if there is something that is not going right with our trust to God in Christ Jesus, we may lose hope and be very upset. Being afflicted at this way, some Christians rise questions like: Why the Lord doesn't answer my prayers?, How could He let this happen?, Why me?, Am I outside His love?, Does God really care of me?, Where was God at that time? The experts wrote books digging in search this query but I just the sermon preoccupied with some pliable stories.
This one dates back to the middle of the 19th century. It says that the Baptist layman from Low Hampton, New York, William Miller had won many followers proving that 2nd Coming of Christ would occur about year 1843. The Day of Christ seemed even more vividly in the light of the "signs of the times" such as a meteors shower in 1833, a storm in Madeira in 1842, earthquakes and a comet in 1843, the financial "Panic of 1837," increasing lawlessness, violence, etc. Accordingly, some people have closed their shops; left their crops unharvested, given away all their money believing that soon they would not need any possession. A man from Philadelphia put out a such sign, This shop is closed in honor of the King of Kings, who will appear about the 22nd of October. Get ready, friends, to crown Him Lord of all. As the day of great anticipation passed by but Christ has not arrived, the enthusiasts were greatly disappointed; if not say that the public made fun. Oh, how depressive, sorrowful they were.
Many frustrations and painful trials are still ahead of us if we'll walk after flesh despite the Spirit of truth. One such a model named Hiram Edson left a note flavored with a bitterly and sarcastic mood. "We wept, and wept, till the day dawn. . .. If this had proved a failure, what was the rest of my Christian experience worth? Has the Bible proved a failure? Is there no God – no heaven – no golden home city – no paradise? Is all this but a cunningly devised fable? Here we give other exclamations of grief mingled with discontent. It says that Elijah when in a panic he has run from the fury of the queen Jezebel and being completely drained of energy, exclaimed, "It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life, for I am no better than my fathers," (1Ki 19:4). Next example from the book of Job; thus the wife of Job after being extremely afflicted by the disaster ruined her household burst into tears. Job, she exclaimed, Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die, ( 2:9). But Job did not curse God; instead, he cursed the day he was born,(3:1).
The misfortunes and afflictions if they are not resolved through our praying and supplication may invoke the feeling that we have cut off from God's care, just like another man of faith from a movie "The Mute Prayer." If you can, imagine yourselves among the Christians who gather at the entrance of the church inside of the monastery wall. We are waiting for a hieromonk, let's call him Gregory who has a mind of Christ. We believe that his prayers and supplications along with an advice shall help us in our spiritual struggling. After awhile we see Gregory dressed in a black vest at the moment when he was proceeding through the door. Immediately we rush to him with our problems on our lips. "Pastor, can I talk to you, please." "I have trouble with my daughter, an alcoholic. She forces me out of my house," Other said, "My daughter is praying for the healing of her child but the boy is getting worse." And other said, "Pastor, I need your advice, My wife left me, …" All questions including ours were answered. Gregory has advised to pray daily; he mentioned an attendance at a church as very important as well doing charity work, the endurance of suffering, to be contented and thank God. However, after a certain time Gregory himself became a prey of a similar problem as he has noticed that regardless of his prayers and prayers of the church the lives of his parishioners were not changed for better but many who have been substantially guilty of their sin taken not it so much to heart. O Lord, why don't you hear us ? prayed the monk. Has your great mercy turned away from us? O Lord, hear us, sinners who has trusted in you, so that we may live in peace and repentance. O Lord, has our prayers grown so vain that you no longer hear us? O God, show us your great mercy for you love mankind. O Lord, … O God, forgive my boldness and teach me how to care for needs of your people. Have mercy on me, your wretched bondservant; O Lord, O Lord!
Gregory has kept praying …. day after day. Once when he fell asleep praying at night, an angel of the Lord appeared to him. Gregory, don't be afraid, your prayer was heard in the Heaven, and I was sent to open your mind why it is so. Then the angel had taken him up in the air where the monk heard the single sounds of a bell. What are the sounds, and what are they for? he asked the angel These sounds of the holy prayers, was an answer. Why are the sounds so weak and why they are so few for people are praying in the church now? I will show you and you will understand, reply the angel. After that the angel took Gregory down, exact to the midst of his fellow worshipers, but nobody could see him. Amazingly now Gregory could read the thoughts of the people in the church. Do you believe that our pastor also can read thoughts while preaching? Please don't sweat, our secrets will not exposed, at least for now. But the thoughts of the people from the movie were exposed.
So, as Gregory had read all kind of thoughts he became greatly embarrassed, except with one girl; she prayed from all her heart believing in God's mercy may shown to her dad. O Lord, please return my dad to me. O Lord, you are merciful. Please save, have mercy, and heal my dad. Dear and loving God, help him give up drinking. Help him, I beg you. Do you see, that girl, she is praying with faith and love, her grief mixes with hope? said the angel. When the priest had awaked from the dream he felt himself very shamefully; then he bowed his knees, and prayed, O Lord, forgive me a sinner! For I doubted Your great mercy I repent. O Lord, I repent, O Lord! I repent. O Lord. Have mercy on me, a sinner! O Lord!
Based on the Scripture such things as the angriness with God, complains and even doubts of his merciful and compassion heart we ascribe to rebellious against God that itself is a serious sin. In the ancient time, for example, there was a rule that a person who cursed God should die. In my pastoral practice, I've known a man who had cursed God because of hardship but later deeply repent and forgiven, I believe. Praise the Lord! From the Biblical account, when the risen Lord had appeared to Thomas, he fell to his knees that itself was a gesture of his repentance for the sin of his doubting. He couldn't say anything except of "My Lord and my God!" The Lord has reproached Thomas but indirectly saying, Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed, (Joh 20:29). So, any doubt regarding God is the sin and it is our responsibility to eliminate it through repentance. Praise the Lord! Let the prayer of the monk Gregory be ours as well if our hearts condemn us for doubting, frustration, anger, and so forth. O Lord, forgive me a sinner! For I doubted Your great mercy. I repent. O Lord, I repent. O Lord! I repent. O Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner! O Lord!
I am sure there are people who think alternatively to the sound doctrine of mankind suffering. Nevertheless, the fact is that many Christians do not run for perfection; we think that the Heavenly Father is happy with us just because we believe in his beloved Son. We close ears to hear the voice of the Spirit who teaches us from inside how to please our Father and how to live victoriously by his grace. We hope for money and other valuable assets serving them like a master sacrificing love and mercy in favor of short-term projects. Some of us may abide in euphoria being deceived by the false teaches on TV, the Internet, just as the evangelicals who had followed William Miller, – the false teacher. That is why many of us are weak and ill, and some have died, says the apostle (1Co 11:30).
Does the Heavenly Father delight in the death of a sinner, or in the suffering of a flesh? According to the book of Wisdom 1:13,14, it says that God made not death, neither He has pleasure in the destruction of the living beings. For He created all things that they might be: and He made the nations of the earth for health: and there is no poison of destruction in them, nor kingdom of hell upon the earth. But out of his fatherly love he has given his only Son, that whosoever believes in him should be saved, (3:16). The Father has put on His Son Jesus Christ the cross nobody can endure. Yet, Jesus has not complained, was anger with us, or he doubted the infinite lovingkindness of his Father. Regardless of these, he has taken our diseases upon his shoulders. The each single healing granted by Jesus cost him much so that we may love him above all. In our Gospel text (Mar 5:21-43), we read between the lines how much the woman adored Jesus when the chronic bleeding left her; by the same token, How much do you think the parents of the girl raised from the dead loved Jesus? Now ask yourselves, Would the recipients of God's love be angry with Jesus or doubt him under any circumstances after all?
Our OT reading from (Lam 3) opens a page of the great suffering of the righteous Jeremiah who has suffered for the transgression of God's people like a lawbreaker. The previous text of chapter 3 was only the transitory cry of despair, the cry of great discontent. But suddenly, in the twinge of an eye, the heart of the prophet was overflowed with God's love as the Spirit had reminded him all goodness and kindness he ever experienced in the past. Here we again read between the lines. O Lord, forgive me a sinner! For I doubted Your great mercy, I repent. And now, after being renewed in hope and love to his God, the prophet joyfully witnessed, The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. "The LORD is my portion," says my soul, "therefore I will hope in him." The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. (Lam 3:22-25).
We are not immunized against anxiety, fear, discontent or doubts, however we have powerful remedy against such infections. This sermon may help see the forest for the trees. Imagine, how happy would it be if we have the same unwavering faith and hope as the prophets and the apostles who gave us the examples how to endure sufferings and afflictions. And again, how happy would it be if we would never doubt God's lovingkindness toward us or being dissatisfied with what we have already had. The Scripture reminds us that God did not make death; neither does he delight when the living perish but stop to sin and repent.
O Lord, forgive me, whenever I have doubted your lovingkindness and give me a chance to love You above all things, now and for the ages to come.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with all the faithful.


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The forgotten four: kidnapped in 2006 but families still wait
Posted by defensebaseactcomp on May 17, 2010
No one knows whether they are dead or alive. The families of four South African men kidnapped in Baghdad in 2006 are desperate for news of their loved ones — but fear that their plight has been forgotten, at home and in Iraq.
Unlike the case of the recently freed British hostage Peter Moore and his four guards — three died and one is missing — no one has claimed responsibility for the South African hostage taking.
No video has emerged and no ransom or political demands have been made. Instead, the families of Andre Durant, Johann Enslin, Callie Scheepers and Hardus Greef, all security guards, have endured 3½ years of unanswered questions and silence.
Lourika Durant, whose husband, the father of her three children, is among the captives, refuses to give up. "I really hope that people read about this and maybe there will be somebody who can help give us a contact or let us know that they are alive," said Mrs Durant, 38, who works as a nurse in Pretoria.
Pierre Durant, her brother-in-law, believes that he is the only person still actively looking for the men, who were seized at a rogue police checkpoint in the north east of the Iraqi capital on December 10, 2006. He has travelled to Iraq eight times to hunt for clues and to attempt to put pressure on the authorities to investigate the case. At one point in the past year he managed to speak to his brother on a mobile phone, raising hopes of a resolution, but the trail has since run cold.
Mr Durant, 42, and other close relatives of the four hostages contacted by The Times, appealed to the kidnappers to show mercy. "We as a family are not looking for justice or retribution," Mr Durant said. "If these guys are alive then we want to negotiate for their release. If they've been killed then I just want their bodies back so we can try to get on with our lives."
Thousands of people, mainly Iraqis, were kidnapped and held for ransom or political gain in the lawlessness that consumed the country after the 2003 invasion. Among them were more than 200 foreign hostages. Some, such as Mr Moore, were freed and others killed, while the rest are listed as missing.
The four South Africans, who worked for Safenet Security Services, a South African private security company, were in a convoy close to Sadr City, a notorious Shia slum, when they were taken by gunmen in police uniforms.
Five Iraqi men travelling with them were also seized, but released a few days later.
Mr Durant, who has collected more than 500 pages of evidence in the search for his brother, believes that the League of the Righteous — the same Iranian-backed Shia terrorist group that kidnapped Mr Moore and his guards in May 2007 — is behind the abduction. He also suspects that the four are being held in a secret Iraqi jail, a theory reached after the covert conversation with his brother.
"He kept on saying that 'they are keeping us in atrocious conditions'," Mr Durant said, recalling the phone call, which was made from a restaurant in south Baghdad. "He described to me how they are being treated in the jail — he used the word jail. He said that they are given food every three days and tortured."
The hostage, 39, told his brother that he was with two of his colleagues but did not know the whereabouts of the fourth man.
Mr Durant, a former prosecutor who paid $5,000 (£3,300) to a middleman to make the call, said that he had no doubt the person he spoke to was his brother.
"I spoke to my brother in Afrikaans. I asked him three questions that only he could answer. He was very downhearted. His mental condition was not good. But he got upbeat again because I had spoken to him. I said we are looking for him."
The South African Government — which has no embassy in Iraq — along with the Iraqi Government and the American Embassy in Baghdad, insist that they are trying to find the four men — but, so far, without any tangible result.
The families feel abandoned. The last time that the wives of the hostages had an official meeting with their Government was two years ago. Chris Enslin, the brother of Johann, 48, said: "There is no help from anyone. It is frustrating because there are no answers after all this time. I am sitting here looking at my parents growing old and that is killing me — the fact that I am basically helpless."
Safenet, which no longer operates under that name in Iraq, said that it was in regular contact with a hostage negotiator who continues to investigate the matter. The company's efforts, however, have been criticised by the families. "They're not giving us any support. The only person looking for these four men is me," Mr Durant said.
His work appears to be the one element keeping hope alive for the nine children, four wives, ageing parents and other anxious relatives of the hostages. Mona Scheepers, 73, the mother of Mr Scheepers, 49, said she believed that her son was still alive. In a message to the kidnappers she said: "Soften your hearts and please send them back to us, in the name of God." Original here
Wives of Baghdad Four Appeal for Help
Still no Progress Locating Kidnapped South African Contractors


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|image: thekitchn
cocktails are served…
sparkling white peach sangria
in planning my nieces wedding shower I have been experimenting with different cocktails to serve a crowd. i came across this recipe from thekitchn.com and think we hit on a crowd pleaser.
serves 4 to 6
2 to 3 white peaches, sliced (2 if they are large, 3 if they are small)
3/4 cup peach brandy
1 bottle moscato, such as 7 daughters moscato, chilled
1 liter white peach seltzer water, such as seagram's sparkling white peach seltzer, chilled
in a pitcher place 3/4 of the sliced peaches (saving some for garnish) and brandy and lightly muddle.
add the moscato and seltzer water.
stir with wooden spoon to mix. pour into ice filled glasses and top with a couple of fresh peach slices.


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Photo copyright RM Auctions-Sotheby
Click on the image to return to the list
Listed at the Automobiles of London auction on Wednesday, 27 October 2010 by RM Auctions-Sotheby
Red body over a Tan interior
Chassis #4892
Engine #30640
Estimate GBP 800,000-1,100,000 (US$ 1,262,600-1,736,100)
SOLD for GBP 728,000 (US$ 1,148,999)
One of a limited few Miuras constructed to SVJ specification between 1971-75, recent restoration took two years at a cost of $225,000, and the restoration is accompanied by a detailed photographic record.
Read more about the Miura SVJ in our article ...
Other listings for chassis 4892
Sold for US$ 1,897,500 at the Arizona auction in 2015 by RM Auctions-Sotheby.
Note : All information and images found on this site are copyright protected by their respective owners and are used for review purpose only, nothing found on this site may be reproduced in any form without prior consent from the actual owner. Please feel free to take a look at the copyright information and the legal disclaimer for more details on these issues.
Added on Jan 22. 2017


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Logan capped his illustrious career with 18 points, finishing No. 5 in program history for scoring. (PHOTO BY Mike Tureski/SportsPix)
Skyhawks postseason hopes dashed despite Senior Night victory
EASTON, Mass. (February 21, 2017) – Despite a 94-81 victory over Saint Michael's College in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball action on Paula Sullivan Court at Merkert Gymnasium, Stonehill College had its postseason hopes dashed as the regular season came to a close tonight.
Stonehill (15-12, 10-11 NE10) was eliminated from postseason contention as rival Bentley University (14-12, 11-10 NE10) hung on for an 86-84 victory over Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts. The Skyhawks needed a win and Bentley loss to grab the No. 5 seed in the Northeast Division for the NE10 Tournament which gets underway Friday. Saint Michael's sees its season come to a close with a 5-21 record overall, including 4-17 in the NE10.
Freshman Daniel Largey (Oceanport, New Jersey/Peddie School) led five players in double-figures with 21 points on 6-of-9 shooting, including 3-for-6 from three-point distance, while converting 6-of-7 free-throws with five rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots. Junior KJ Lee (Huntington Station, New York/Long Island Lutheran) posted his second double-double of the season with ten points and a career-high matching 12 rebounds, five assists and a blocked shot, while classmate Isaiah Bess (LaGrange, Maine/Hampden Academy) contributed 13 points, aided by a 7-for-8 effort at the free-throw line, with two boards and two steals. Junior Joel Berroa (Lawrence, Massachusetts/Bridgton Academy) made all five of his shots from the field, including a pair of three-pointers, for 12 points and three rebounds.
Seniors Ryan Logan (Fredericktown, Ohio/Fredericktown) and Jim Walsh (Manasquan, New Jersey/Manasquan) were both honored for their careers as Stonehill's two seniors. Logan finished a remarkable Stonehill career with 18 points on 7-of-14 shooting, four rebounds and five assists. He started all 115 games of his collegiate career, finishing ranked fifth in program history with 1,757 points, to go with 822 rebounds, 359 assists, 103 steals and 47 steals.
Largey scored a game-high 21 points for the Skyhawks tonight. (PHOTO BY Mike Tureski/SportsPix)
Senior Matt Bonds (Accokeek, Maryland/North Point) posted a double-double for Saint Michael's with 16 points and 13 rebounds with two assists, two blocked shots and a steal. Classmate David Sullivan (Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey/Saint Augustine Prep) scored a team-high 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting with six rebounds, while sophomore Levi Holmes III (East Brunswick, New Jersey/Rutgers Prep) added 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting, including 2-for-4 from beyond the arc. Freshman Thomas Jackson III (Middletown, Connecticut/Holderness School) chipped in nine points, connecting on all three three-pointers, with five boards and three assists.
Stonehill scored 11 straight points to turn a 19-19 deadlock into an 11 point lead (30-19) after two free-throws from sophomore Michael Boen (Mansfield, Massachusetts/Mansfield) with 6:15 remaining in the first half. Saint Michael's closed back within three (38-25) on a three-pointer by Jackson, but junior Ryan Roach (Weymouth, Massachusetts/Cardinal Spellman) sent the Skyhawks into the locker room with a five point lead (40-35) with a last-second jumper.
Stonehill's lead swayed between seven and 12 points throughout the second half, with Saint Michael's still within six (84-78) after a Bonds layup with 2:40 still to play. The Skyhawks closed the game out from there, scoring six straight to push the lead back to 12 (90-78) with a Berroa jumper with 1:33 remaining. Sullivan stopped the run with a layup with 1:08 left, but Berroa added a layup and Largey made two free-throws to stretch the lead to a game-high matching 14 (94-80) with 36-seconds to go to seal the win.
For the latest on Stonehill Athletics, follow the Skyhawks via social media on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Fans can also download the Stonehill Skyhawks "Front Row" mobile app, powered by PrestoSports, on iTunes and the Android Market.


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~We had such a spectacular day at the Elm Bank Antique Auto show. So many wonderful things to do and see here on the Charles River. The show was held at the Massachusetts Horticultural Society on 36 acres of land, which borders the Charles. It is filled with gardens, informal and formal, a great playground for the kids and plenty of benches for the rest of us. Beautiful paths to walk and explore. Hundreds and hundreds of gorgeous cars, trucks…The day was filled with wonderful sights, cars, people and nature alike. Lots of great food, drink and music…Such a great time with family and friends! Pencil it in on your "white space" for next year…you'll find Bill and I under the big shaded willow… stop in for a cold drink and a pic or two~I hope you enjoy the pics as much as I enjoyed taking them~Much <3<3<3~
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mamamiaguru on ~Pondered~ Beth Caldarella Kell… on ~Thursday, May 24th, 2012


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Let them have Polish!
Let them have Polish! - 1411
A Crown of Thistles
Oldies, but Goodies... And much overdue Updates
Swatch Spam! Because..... Spam! Edition
My Picks from the KBShimmer Spring 2015 Collection
Milani Bedazzled Fall 2014 Collection Swatches and Mini Review
Swatch Spam! Growing out my Nubs Edition
Dove Oxygen Moisture - Dove 2018-06-07 07:28
Dove Oxygen Moisture: Dove oxygen moisture nourishes your hair without weighing it down. Now wear smoother, bouncier hair every day.
Mic - Dove 2018-06-06 21:16
Mic: Kids who are bullied say their appearance is the number one reason why they're teased. But the answer isn't necessarily to get the kids to stop talking — just the opposite. Made by Mic and Dove.
NIVEA Photo 2018-06-06 12:59
With great coolness comes great responsibility. How would you #PlayItCool when it's match time with the guys and a work call comes in?
CONGRATULATIONS TO NIVEA MOTHER'S DAY CONTEST WINNER, MADAM FRANSISCA ATAA KONADU: NIVEA celebrates the winner of our Mother's Day contest, Madam Francisca Ataa Konadu, who is a midwife in Offinso!! She was nominated by Nharnah Yhaw Hanson, who saw her adopt and care for orphaned kids at her Yeno Yemo care center. Congrats to this unsung hero!! #AlwaysThereForYou
FREE YOUR SKIN: هل ترين أي بقايا بعد إزالة المكياج عن الشاشة؟ ماء ميسلر من نيڤيا لا يترك أي بقايا! #حرري_بشرتك، ودعيها تتنفس! https://goo.gl/gd4wUU Could you see any residue after wiping make-up off? Nope, because MicellAIR by NIVEA leaves 0% residue! #FREEYOURSKIN, let it breathe! #MicellAIR Here's how: https://goo.gl/vt78Sj
Dove - Dove 2018-06-01 21:09
The amazing GabiFresh and Shaianne took over the Dove Instagram stories (and Brooklyn!) with the Dove Self-Esteem Project. Scroll to check out their day of mentoring, confidence, and #RealBeauty, then click to see the full pinned story! #HourWithHer
解救毛孔看這裡!限時五折好便宜 - Dove 2018-06-01 03:01
解救毛孔看這裡!限時五折好便宜: 【上萬毛孔遭受殘妝無情打壓!】 毛孔求救無門快窒息 女人啊請手下留情! 卸下殘妝留些喘息空間讓他好好深 呼 吸 解救毛孔就靠 👉 https://goo.gl/WH1qp5 ▍前情提要:還不知道毛孔怎麼被殘妝打壓嗎? 立即看👉https://goo.gl/uq4FLF #多芬卸妝溫和深層潔淨 #殘妝母湯喔 #血汗打壓萬萬不可 #自己毛孔就要自己救
Body Mousse Launch.mp4 - NIVEA 2018-05-31 08:09
Body Mousse Launch.mp4: A fresh new way to keep your skin Summer ready all day long. Our new Body Moisturising Mousse promises a deeply nourishing feeling in an instant, giving you more time to enjoy those long evenings.


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The honey is off and processed, it was a good crop and I left plenty for the bees. Some hives still have 4 medium supers which will get moved around to hives that need a bit of extra stores.
This summer has been exceptional for both rain and moderate temperatures. Mite treatment is stared so that the bees are healthy going into Fall. I use a thyme oil based product for the summer treatment because it has a higher temperature usage range. It has worked well for several years.
I captured a swarm from a person's front lawn several days ago. It was a small one and I have not looked into it to see if there is a queen. I'll probably combine it into a hive that need a boost as there is not enough time to get it winter ready.


text: I am privileged to co-chair the annual Hotel & Lodging Legal Summit at Georgetown University Law Center. For this year's conference, our seventh, we are trying something new. A common theme that will run through most of this year's sessions is risk allocation. Primarily, we will discuss allocation of risk among the three principal communities in the hotel and lodging industry: owners, brands and operators. One panel will add lenders to the mix, exploring how risks are allocated in three-party agreements that include lenders. Another will explore allocation of risk to insurance companies. As always, the conference will feature a panel of industry general counsel representing hotel owners, brands and operators. This year's keynote speaker will be Sheila C. Johnson, the Founder and CEO of Salamander Hotels & Resorts. Check out our brochure for more information on this year's conference. Click here register for the conference.


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We just had our early Christmas Party at Dads World Buffet in Ermita, Manila Last Saturday!
Since we can't celebrate Christmas together at home, my housemates and I decided to have an early Christmas celebration. We initially planned to celebrate it for dinner at Vikings or Buffet 101, however both are already fully booked and so we ended up having a reservation at Dads World Buffet in Ermita, Manila.
Continue reading Early Christmas Celebration With Housemates @ Dads World Buffet


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The Directors
Susan Michelson, Producer, Founder, The Dick Wagner "Remember the Child" Memorial Fund. Michelson and Dick Wagner met in 1977, when they were introduced by Alice Cooper at Davlin Studios in North Hollywood CA. In 2004, Dick asked Susan to be his business partner and manager. "Dick was truly the 'magic man.' I was continuously inspired by his creative genius and his gentle spirit." A Voice major at Boston University, Michelson studied counterpoint and composition by day and rock n roll by night. She's had the honor of working with Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Hoyt Axton, Mary Wells, Bobby Taylor, and more. Entrepreneurial by nature, Michelson and husband Alex Cyrell founded companies Omnimount® and Future Primitive Designs in their Hollywood garage, ultimately distributing the products worldwide in more than 50 countries. Since 2005, Susan has been a judge for Fox TV's Arizona Idol, the advance team that pre-selects American Idol contestants. In 2012, Susan edited Dick Wagner's multiple award winning memoir, "Not Only Women Bleed." An avid linguaphile, Susan is fluent in English, Spanish, French, and some Italian.
Howard Hertz Howard Hertz, Chairman/Executive Director, Dick Wagner "Remember the Child" Memorial Committee. Hertz Schram, PC, specializes in Entertainment law. Among his most well-known clients have been George Clinton, Sippie Wallace, The Romantics, Eminem, Marilyn Manson, Pantera, Marcus Belgrave, The GO, Mike Posner, Elmore Leonard, Rodriguez, Ghostly International, Paxahau, Warner Tamerlane and Atlantic Records. Hertz is a member of the Board of Directors and President of the Detroit Music Awards Foundation, MusiCares' Program and Services Committee, (charitable arm of the Recording Academy), a former member of the Board of Governors of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences (Grammy Awards) Chicago Chapter (2004-2012), a Michigan State Bar Foundation Fellow, and a member of the International Association of Entertainment Lawyers. Mr. Hertz is recognized by "Best Lawyers in America" and was featured in "Super Lawyers." Mr. Hertz is an adjunct professor at the University of Michigan Law School and Wayne State University Law School teaching a course in entertainment law.
Marshall Block, President, Real II Reel Productions, Co-Founder, Dick Wagner "Remember the Child" Memorial Committee,, was Executive Producer of Dick Wagner's classic "Rock History" album, a solo album featuring Dick playing and singing his favorite hits. Marshall has produced music for the Academy Award winning film, "The Fighter" and "The Love Guru." Other credits include three "Best of the Year" albums for The Chenille Sisters' " In the Christmas Spirit" (AFIM award), Kenya Darling " Zero to 10" with Mark Farner (New Music Weekly), and "Hired Gun, The Last Shot Project." In the 60s and 70s, Marshall was the lead guitar player for his band "Rumor" and performed at the legendary Grande Ballroom in Detroit. Marshall has toured with the 1960s group "The Shades of Blue" as guitar player and backing vocalist. Marshall was a former clinical biochemist before becoming a full time music producer.
Victoria Woody, Director of Development, The Dick Wagner "Remember the Child" Memorial Fund, A Red Balloon Day., We honor the incomparable Victoria Woody for her extraordinary competence, her selfless generosity, and her ability to graciously lead and inspire. Victoria has conquered every type of challenge, She's been our Director of Sponsors and Donors, Director of Volunteers, and Director of VIP Hospitality. Victoria collects musical instruments for our donation programs; she films and interviews participants for our hospital music therapy programs and music therapy videos; and she blasts the social media with compelling photos and stories of our Dick Wagner Fund charitable operations. Victoria's creative ideas spring into reality, and she juggles a million priorities with tact and warmth. If that's not enough, Victoria is also a mother of seven, grandmother of five, and great-grandma of one.
Jennifer Kincer, Kincer Vocal Coaching & Artist Development, Sponsors & Donors, The Dick Wagner "Remember the Child" Memorial Fund, is our VIP champion in bringing in sponsors and donations to support the fund. Joining us in late 2015, Jennifer leaped into action, gathering dozens of unique and priceless silent auction items. Jennifer introduced us to the CEO of our new Title Sponsor, Mark McManus, New Horizons Computer Learning Centers. Jennifer inspires us with her competence, enthusiasm, drive, and warmth.A SAG (Screen Actors Guild) member, Jennifer has been a voice teacher and actress for 20 years. She's been on faculty in the Music, Theater & Dance Department at Oakland University for the past 12 years and holds a Bachelor & Master of Music degrees from OU.
Executive CommitteeCEO/Founder: Susan Michelson, Dick Wagner "Remember the Child" Memorial Fund
Chairman/Executive Director: Howard Hertz, Hertz Schram PC
Co-Director: Marshall Block, Real ii Reel Productions, LLC
Title Sponsor: Mark McManus, CEO, New Horizons Computer Learning Centers
Paul Averill, Chief Executive Officer, Wired4health, Inc.
Joe Bellanca, Hertz Schram PC
Tony Bizon, Music for a Cause
Richard Blondy, Direct from Detroit Photography
Lynn Clark-Geiner, Launch Showcase
Tony D'Annunzio, Producer/Director, Loud Productions, LLC
Jim Feahr, Cherry Festival, Line Producer
Jon Gillies, Iron Street Studio
Gary Graff, Music Journalist, Author
Darren McDunnough, McDunnough Inc.
Kim Naccasshian, Homestead Appraisal Services
Brian Pastoria, Harmonie Park Entertainment/Unite Detroit
Doug Podell, WCSX Radio
Karl Rausch, Senior Editor, Ringside Entertainment
Don Richard, Dream Domain
Kathy Vargo, On the Rocks, Detroit
Tony Villarreal, Thunder Audio
Mike Velasco, Mike Velasco Real Estate
David Winans II, The Winans Family
Victoria Woody, Red Balloon Day Ministries


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Of Smooth Oil, Sly Snakes and Salvation, Seeding and Stealing [opinion]
Not having anything to push the week creates a dog-eat-dog situation. This is the reason why some have resorted to commercialising God while oiling their pockets with fortunes.
THE hissing sounds in this headline are devilish and smooth like oil. Things are happening in Harare, and whether you, ZBC or H-Metro see them or not, you can't say they are just kombi tales or urban legends.
One thing that is literally stalking, pouncing and eating people is poverty and hard times. Indeed, hard times never kill, but they don't thrill either. Poverty and hard times remind me of a line in one of Thomas Mapfumo's songs in which he says, "Nhamo usanditevere!"
Besides the multitudes of vendors lining the streets of Harare – selling anything and everything -most of us have become so desperate or hyper-enterprising to the extent of selling things that don't belong to us, including borrowed cars, and salvation packaged as holy oil and other paraphernalia.
Churches have gone commercial, political and extortionist at the expense of saving souls. There are more smooth sermons on seeding, being blessed and made rich than on the need for salvation and eternal life. Some of the so-called prophets in our midst are flying and perhaps frying because of their forked tongues that promise abundance and prosperity.
Elsewhere, Vapositori are challenging Prophet Magaya to a spiritual contest, accusing him of not being a Man of God. They are claiming that Magaya uses extras that include snakes in his trade to draw large crowds to his congregation. Vapositori are hitting back at Magaya who claims that all white-garment churches popularly known as Vapositori are agents of evil marine spirits from the dark kingdom.
On the other hand, strippers are no longer just feeding the imagination, but are baring everything and even having sex on stage as part of their performances. Elsewhere, prostitutes are reported to be selling semen harvested from clients. They are giving clients discounts knowing that they will later fetch good money from the semen.
Zimbabweans are hunting the American dollar by any means necessary. At one time, I was in Norton waiting to buy fish when one woman whose big, fleshy and oiled breasts were tumbling out of her dress loudly said to another, "Asikana ini ndakauya kuHarare kuzotsvaga mari. Zvekuti yauya sei handina basa nazvo, chero ndawana mari chete."
Selling flesh and fish is an interesting interpretation of Zim-Asset and indigenisation.
In the 2008 era, we had become a nation of hunters and gatherers. There were serious shortages and people left their homes very early to join queues for fuel, maize-meal, bread and other basics. I remember back then, a friend who had been to South Africa brought me two precious loaves of bread. As I left the office at the end of the day to go to my car, I was nearly mobbed by people who wanted to know where I had bought the bread.
When I explained that I had got it from a friend who had just gotten back from South Africa, there were long faces of dejection before people dispersed. However, one woman in her forties followed me pleading that I sell her one of the two loaves I had.
"Mukuwasha, vana vangu vakapedzisira kudya chingwa kare kare. Inzwaiwo tsitsi munditengeserewo chingwa chimwe chete zvacho." I tried to explain how we had also not eaten bread for a long time, but I could not shake her off. Eventually I gave her the loaf of bread for free.
Gone are the 2008 days of hunting, queuing and hoarding. The shops are full of basic foodstuffs and luxuries. Yet, what has become elusive and hard to get is the American dollar. While some are being innovative with the church, the flesh and its by-products, there are some who are also dealing with the problem of poverty through redistribution of local resources.
In the high-density suburb of Highfield, my sister's neighbour woke up around 4am after hearing some strange noises. He went outside to investigate, and nearly had a heart attack when he heard the voice from his mango tree saying, "Baba vaBarbara musatye, ndini hangu. Kumba kwaita nzara, saka ndangoti ndingotsvagawo tumango twushoma. Zvinhu zvacho hazvina kumbomira mushe baba. Mamuka sei?"
This man had decided to harvest his neighbour's mangoes without permission.
It is funny how the neighbour who was up the tree actually ended his statement by politely asking Baba vaBarbara whether he had slept well. How does one answer such a greeting from someone who is stealing your mangoes at 4am? Cross examiners would have asked this man who was stealing mangoes to explain why if he was only collecting a few mangoes to eat, he actually had a big sack for his loot and a bicycle.
Depending on the size and abundance of the mangoes, a sack has the potential to fit a quarter of mangoes in a tree at a particular time. Why did he bring a bicycle when he was only going to get mangoes from the house next door? Was the bicycle part of risk management to guarantee a quick escape in the event that someone shouted, "mbavha"?
This mango thief could have been killed if he had not quickly identified himself. His death would have been tragic. The media would probably miss the real story behind the story – that of hard times and poverty, and instead go on to report that a neighbour got killed after he was mistaken for a thief.
After the voice from the tree had identified itself and explained its business, the owner of the mango tree did not take any action. He just walked back into the house, leaving his neighbour up the mango tree.
Recently, I was reading a poem by a Kenyan writer when I failed to understand a line that had some Swahili words. The Swahili words were, "Sukuma wiki" and they were totally new to me, unlike the usual mzee, matata, safari, matatu, shauri yako and others. So, I decided to ask some Kenyan friends the meaning of sukuma wiki, and I loved the story behind "sukuma wiki".
They told me that "sukuma wiki" is the Kenyan word for muriwo wemavheji that is your rape, tsunga, kovho, cabbage, etc. They said it is actually pronounced as "skumawiki".
The word is said to come from the literal meaning: sukuma, which means to push, and wiki, which means a week. The story being that, one can eat muriwo wemavheji all week because it is cheap enough to buy and push you through the week as opposed to meat, which is hard to afford or considered a luxury.
Yet in Harare, there are people who are not even affording the bunch of tsunga, kovho or rape vegetables, but will seed and buy holy oil. So, there is really nothing to push the week with except hoping for a miracle. I think a cheap packet of maputi for lunch and the nutritious City of Harare water can better push your week!
Not having anything to push the week creates a dog-eat-dog situation. This is the reason why some have resorted to commercialising God while oiling their pockets with fortunes. Jesus was poor, and although he probably saw an opportunity in making a killing by selling the two fish and five loaves that he had multiplied to feed the 5 000 people, he instead used the event to give glory to his father and did not take aantage of their lack.
A couple of years ago, I saw a remarkable cartoon in a Western magazine that really disturbed me. It was during that famine in Ethiopia, which shocked the world. The cartoon depicted a very thin and malnourished African child sitting on a mat made in the image of Africa eating the dove of peace! The cartoonist had made his point, but I was deeply disturbed by the implication that Africa's problems are a result of "eating" peace efforts or opportunities to bring peace.
The ordinary people, a mother and her sick and dying children do not know who Boko Haram or ISIS and why they are killing people? There is big politics in most conflict situations and the ordinary people do not understand the politics. They are just pawns to be sacrificed. Whether your interpretation of Zim-Asset and indigenisation is starting a church that has nothing to do with Jesus Christ and eternal life, do not be your own people's Boko Haram. And to you fellow Zimbabweans, do not let gullibility be your ISIS.
Source : The Herald


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Hours: Sun.-Sat. 11 a.m.-11 p.m.
Prices: Appetizers, $7-10; entrees, $12-23
Fare: Californian
Atmosphere: Also Californian
Liquor: Full bar, many wines
It seemed obvious to us that a restaurant called Sonoma Grille must feature California food and wine. What was less obvious was exactly what we should expect from this new dining spot between the Cultural District and the Convention Center. Would it be Sideways pretentious or Marin mellow? Invoke the splashy culture of the coast or the cosmopolitan vibe of the city? Or was it simply about Pittsburghers just trying to keep up?
Turns out, Sonoma Grille fulfills none of the above stereotypes. The first-floor tenant of Downtown's new Marriott hotel, the restaurant occupies an airy, high-ceilinged space in a restored Beaux Arts building. Its décor struck us as unnecessarily literal in its attempt to transport us to sunny California -- a wine-estate courtyard recreated indoors, complete with faux windows and awnings -- but the warm colors and lighting manage to deflect the depressive effects of a typically gray Pittsburgh evening outside.
What really feels fresh is the menu. Sonoma proprietor Yves Carreau takes a thematic approach, grouping foods and selected wines (mostly Californian, of course) under descriptive summaries comprised of oenophilic terms like "jammy" and "muscular." The descriptions apply to both the dishes and the wines, encouraging an entirely new approach to food selection, and providing a thoughtful assist to those who might feel intimidated by pairing wines with their meals. What's more, portions -- and prices -- here are intentionally reduced in order to encourage diners to sample around the menu. That said, this is not a "small plates"' approach to dinner, and we found the amount of food served in each dish more than adequate.
For our appetizer, we couldn't resist the tapas platter, an array of tiny plates dramatically arrayed on a curved oak-barrel stave. Lobster "corndogs" were tender, fluffy and light as clouds. Tiny fish tacos, consisting of nuggets of lightly breaded and fried white fish on tortilla triangles with salsa, little leaves of lettuce, and chunks of avocado, were exactly as good as the sum of all their parts, which is to say, very good. Duck confit tortellini with braised napa and red cabbage, applewood smoked bacon, and pinot noir and duck jus struck Jason as bland, but Angelique found them hearty and rich even without the sauce. The subtle flavor of lamb carpaccio was overwhelmed by the spiciness of its accompaniment of eggplant, tahini and red pepper oil, while ahi tuna tartare was served with a clashing combination of seaweed and capers.
After identifying her appetite as "spicy, muscular and bold," Angelique selected garam masala scented lamb loin from the so-named section of the menu. Pliant medallions of lamb were crusted with sub-continental spices and cooked to the perfect point of brownness on the outside, pinkness in the center. Cumin-infused lamb jus and red pepper cardamom coulis complemented the hearty, earthy flavor of the meat. A basmati and black bean pilaf was on the dry side, but cucumber and jicama raita served as a cool counterpoint to the spices' equatorial heat.
Outside of the regular menu categories, there's a mix-n-match, create-your-own section for mixed grill. Selecting from 10 meats, seven sauces and three sides, Jason chose bacon-wrapped veal tournedos with a tamarind-ginger sauce and herb-grilled Amish chicken with a green spicy herb sauce. The accompanying fettuccine with tomato and basil was unremarkable, but the meats and sauces were excellent. Sweet tamarind kept the savory bacon from overwhelming the mild, tender veal, while the chicken was just as good in its cooking herbs as it was dipped in the slightly spicy sauce.
Though we had neglected to save room for dessert, we never let that stop us from ordering it. Flourless chocolate torte was not too sweet with a dry crumb; scoops of rich vanilla ice cream provided all the moisture this excellent confection required.
Overall, our dining experience at Sonoma Grille was practically flawless, smoothing out any imperfections in our actual meals. The restaurant's offerings are varied without being overwhelming, service is outstanding, and the menu innovations are useful as well as clever. Spring may be a season when the West cannot compare with the East, but there's never a bad time to visit Sonoma.
Jason: 3.5 stars
Angelique: 3.5 stars


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It took us two days to drive to Victoria, and we lengthened the travel time a bit by taking hwy 101 for half of it so as to view the amazing redwood trees along the coast. On Jenny's camera there are pictures of us driving through a huge tree - which is what you do when you take hwy 101 through the redwoods.
We spent a nice quiet week in the woods of Victoria, getting Hopey settled in and sleeping a lot. Finally on Friday the time came to start the 16 hour trip to Paris. I'd like to say that I love flying Air Canada. It's been a while, and living in the States means often flying Delta, US Airways, Southwest, or United. Air Canada's planes are so nice and clean and big. Unlike every flight I've taken in the last year, this flight had NO issues with people's carry on baggage fitting into the upper storage areas. Also, the seats are a little wider and I couldn't measure but I think I had more leg room too. Airline promo done, let's arrive in Paris!
Our rental is in an old industrial building with a huge door that opens into an open-air courtyard, and then 4 flights of stairs up is our 'apartment'. It's quite small, but it's quiet and we're in such a great location for the next 3 weeks. Apparently it's going to rain off and on all week, but today was a hot and sunny 28 degrees, so after a nap Jenny and I went out to explore the neighbourhood. Here's what I've observed from our initial, jet-lagged wanderings:
- Getting keys made is something done at the cobbler's, not at hardware stores (we visited 2)
- At 5 or 6 pm, there is nothing slightly resembling dinner available in the local cafés and the restaurants are not open yet. We will need to adjust to this.
- There's some great fashion here and then, in contrast, some people who seem to actively hate fashion :)
- I love having opportunities to speak French! Most importantly, everyone is speaking French back to me which is a pleasant surprise.
- Everything here is REALLY EXPENSIVE! It makes me kind of nervous. Will need to get out of this neighbourhood and see what it's like in less touristy areas. We plan to get Velib bikes to explore the city tomorrow if it's not raining.
- I bought a SIM card at the airport for 19 euros and it gives you 5 euros credit which I've already gone through by using data, however there's nothing in their rate sheet about data costs. SO there's some lack of communication here.
- Also this:
That, my dear readers, is the DISCO TOILET in the Creperie where we ended up eating dinner. The tiny toilet booth is a totally different experience than the rest of the restaurant. So you're eating your crepes and it's all normal (top 40 UK dance hits quietly playing in the background) but if you get up to go to the washroom, watch out! The music is loud, the little green lights are dancing, and then...you just can't help yourself...you're dancing in a toilet :)
This bridge is covered in locks put up by people, looks like mostly to commemorate their love with someone else, and I'm excited to put one up there for Jenny and I at some point during our visit. It's so beautiful here. The stone streets, the tiny cars, even this very touristy area has a nice mix of locals going about their business and visitors walking about. There's a lot of people riding bikes around and it looks pretty safe to do that here. I don't have a helmet with me because our rentals in Prague will include them. I'm trying to decided if I should pick up one of these helmets while I'm here or wait until I'm back in SF.
There's a huge thunderstorm rolling in as I write this and I wish I had the right kind of camera to capture the lightning. Time to try and get to sleep at a 'normal' hour so that I can get the most out of Paris, Day 2.


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The new app backup offering from ClockworkMod is one of the most impressive apps we've seen recently. It makes saving your app data a breeze, and it doesn't even require root. The initial release was good, but Koush has pushed an update that adds a few features and cleans up some errant bugs.
Here's the full list of changes:
- Notification progress bars
- External SD Card support
- Fix battery drain bug in carbon server
- Android sync works over wifi now, and allows APK sync
- Temple Run (and others) Fix: Restores now support external files directory
- Scheduled backups now notifies about any lock screen issues and no longer unnecessarily start the Carbon server
- Create a .nomedia file per backup
- Backup and restore confirm is now more reliable
- Fixed issues on Asus tablets
- Detect desktop backup password errors
Of particular interest here is the fix for battery drain while running the Carbon server.Read More


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Why Is my rhododendron not blooming?
Rhododendrons are a varied group of plants. Whether large or small, evergreen or deciduous, native or imported, rhododendrons are popular shrubs throughout their growing range. Rhododendrons grow best in dappled sunlight in rich soil with excellent drainage and a pH of 4.5 to 5.5.
A loose, organic mulch will protect their fragile surface roots. Rhododendrons are reliable bloomers, so if yours aren't blooming, rule out these cultural problems.
Immature plants
Small rhododendrons may not bloom for several years simply because they're too young. One reason rhododendrons are expensive plants is that most nurseries don't sell these shrubs until they're mature enough to bloom.
Too much shade
Rhododendrons are understory woodland plants, but they don't bloom well in heavy shade. Their natural habitat is under deciduous trees, so they get filtered sunlight all day in summer and more sunshine from late autumn until early spring. They'll flower best if you replicate that environment. Morning sun and afternoon shade will also suit them. Rhododendrons that get insufficient light become spindly and don't bloom well.
Not deadheading
After rhododendron petals fall, snap off the spent blossoms. This neatens up the plant's appearance, and directs the shrub's energy into making more flower buds for next year's display.
Incorrect pruning
If pruning is needed on your rhododendron, do so immediately after flowering so the plant has time to put out new growth and make flower buds before midsummer. However, diseased or broken branches should be removed whenever found, regardless of season.
Winter injury
Flower buds are damaged by excessive cold, but you can lessen winter injury. Plant rhododendrons where they're sheltered from harsh winter winds. To ensure the shrubs are sufficiently hydrated before winter, give them a thorough watering in late November if autumn rainfall was light. Buds that have broken dormancy are particularly vulnerable to cold damage, so if a late freeze is forecast for your area, cover the shrubs with a tarpaulin or sheet before sunset to protect the buds. Most importantly, always verify the variety you buy is hardy in your area.
Incorrect fertilisation
Use fertiliser specially formulated for acid-loving plants like azaleas and rhododendrons, which will have an NPK rating around 6-10-4. The fertiliser helps to keep the soil pH low. Also check that lawn fertiliser is not leaching into your rhododendron area, as grass food is high in nitrogen and encourages leaf growth at the expense of flowers. Rhododendrons are not heavy feeders, so fertilise them lightly in May or June, never later. The tender growth fostered by late feedings doesn't have enough time to harden off and is easily damaged by winter cold.
Sometimes it's normal
Some rhododendrons naturally flower in two-year cycles, with heavy bloom one year and light bloom the next. Just continue to care for your shrub as always and know that the display will be beautiful again next year.
- University of Missouri Extension: Growing azaleas and rhododendrons
- Ohio State University Extension: Maintaining healthy rhododendrons ...
- Ohio State University Fact Sheet: Growing rhododendrons and azaleas in Ohio
- Cornell Cooperative Extension: Rhododendron and azalea problems
- Utah State University; The rhodies less travelled


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Hi folks, my 996 is due a belt service.
Can anyone recommend somewhere around the Aberdeen area?
I have used a few different places over the years but they seem to keep closing down.
Im not really bothered about dealer stamps or anything, I just want to know whoever is doing the work knows his or her way around a Ducati engine.
Any recommendations welcolme


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If I had to come up with a title for my book on parenting, I think "Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don't"
would be perfect.
OK, maybe that's a bit cantankerous. And I'm not writing a parenting book, so no more speculation.
I do wonder whether journalist Frank Bruni will be next in line with a book's worth of how-to parenting advice. His
in last week's New York Times Sunday Review was chock full of observations on just where parents these days are going wrong, and – of course – how they can get it right.
According to Bruni, modern parents fret too much. We micromanage at the wrong time and then give our kids too much control. We let toddlers make decisions when they should instead fear us. And a kid who is 17-years-and-364-days old shouldn't expect decision-making autonomy until he turns 18.
Bruni goes on to suggest that parents shouldn't worry so much about getting diagnoses for kids having setbacks, and that Ritalin prescriptions aren't consequential to outcomes when a child is destined from birth to be who he's going to be.
Oh, and kids back in the day didn't have cellphones, and they all turned out OK. The end.
Bruni doesn't have kids of his own, but he proposes that his "distance" offers his observations a level of objectivity.
I agree that non-parents can have great insights. I know plenty of childless adults whose opinions and advice I weight according to their special knowledge or experience: teachers, coaches and pediatricians come to mind.
Where we part ways is over the laundry list of modern parenting foibles. It is –
"Not nice" because no matter how many times we casually witness interactions between a parent and child, giving advice that levels personal judgment only ever comes across as insulting. Even when worded as rhetorical questions.
"I wonder why everybody has to be a winner?" Bruni muses before reminding us that life is filled with the grim reality of winning and losing, and kids need adequate preparation.
He then hints at a culprit: "Do today's parents provide it?"
Maybe Bruni is hanging out with the wrong crowd. At a regional Math 24 championship, he'd see plenty of young people living the credo that hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard. At local sports competition, he'd see today's parents shepherding kids through lessons on winning and losing with grace in spite of disappointment.
So who exactly are the parents Bruni is addressing in his article? Perhaps some mythical mom who reads the advice of a stranger, suddenly realizes everything she thought she was doing right is now wrong, and thinks, "Eureka! I'm going to change starting now!"
Or, maybe parents don't have to change everything after all.
Bruni consoles parents, "Cut yourselves some slack. Take a deep breath."
Finally something else we agree on. I'm all for cutting myself slack. And I'm a longtime fan of breathing.
My return consolation to Mr. Bruni would be this:
Try not to not worry so much about the long-term effects of parenting trends or this newfangled fad of parents fretting over their children. Because none of this is actually new.
Child-rearing wisdom is found in the Bible. "Keep babies quiet and do not stimulate them," comes from a Chinese text written in the 1st century B.C. In John S.C. Abbott's 1885 book "A Mother at Home," the author writes, "How many parents have passed days of sorrow and nights of sleeplessness in consequence of the misconduct of their offspring?"
In 1928, American psychologist John B. Watson said, "No one today knows enough to raise a child."
Well, Mr. Rogers was born in 1928 and he turned out OK.
Maybe I will write that parenting book after all. My book will have only one page.
On that page will be a coupon for a pizza and a beer. The end.


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In this trailer, we celebrate over a decade of the Lord's faithfulness in and through DOXA.
In this video, we sing our cover of "Jesus Is" from our Centered album. Worship the risen Savior with us!
In this seminar, DOXA leaders Aaron and Tiffany Johnson discuss pastoral, contextual, and musical aspects of worship ministry.
In this short clip, DOXA ministry leader Aaron Johnson discusses the value of congregational singing.
In this short clip, DOXA vocal leader Tiffany Johnson discusses how "Be Exalted" can function as a corporate call to worship.
In this short documentary, Pastor Eric Mason explains what doxa means and why we chose that name. He also articulates our reasoning for recording our Centered album and the philosophy behind DOXA's music.
In this short video, we'll take you through some of the moments from the live recording of our Centered album.
In this short video, Sunday morning attendees at Epiphany Fellowship react to a sermon Dr. Eric Mason preached from Psalm 34 encouraging expressive, responsive worship.


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Nancy Norwood
To Dino, Pam, Michael, Micaele & everyone involved in G&P Builders,
Thank you for building us such a beautiful home, your kindness, care and generosity to us was extraordinary and really words do not adequately express our thanks. Thank you, Dino, for finishing the house quickly considering our circumstance.
My thanks and best wishes to all of you.
Nancy Norwood


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A reader asked about how to be married on 4 Ways to Create Love and Peace in an Unhappy Marriage. Here's her question, and my thoughts on the first year of marriage…
"My husband and I have been married for just over a year," says Michelle. "I recently told him I feel emotionally empty and more like we are good friends than husband and wife. He said he feels the same way. He got very angry and hasn't talked to me much in a couple days. We haven't been intimate in a couple weeks. I don't know how to fix this and make him talk to me again."
I'm currently reading Marriage Rules: A Manual for the Married and the Coupled Up. It has tons of practical tips and wisdom for married couples; if you haven't read a book about being married, then you need to start now! Married couples have a wealth of knowledge and experience that you can learn and grow from. Why make your own mistakes when you can learn from the mistakes of others?
Below is the rest of her comment, plus a few thoughts on the first years of marriage…
"He won't tell me he loves me," she says. "Recently he made a new female friend at work. It makes me very uncomfortable. He assures me that they are just friends, but I have a hard time believing him. He works night shift and hasn't been coming home on his lunches like he used to. He says he just sleeps in his car or takes a drive, but I'm not sure if I believe it. I miss him and I want everything to be good again. I just don't know if he is trying to distance himself from me."
Yes, the First Years of Marriage Are the Hardest
The first three years of my marriage were definitely the hardest, for several reasons: I was insecure, I didn't know what it meant to be married, and the excitement of the wedding and honeymoon were over. I knew intellectually that marriage is hard work, but wasn't prepared for what that actually means in practice.
So, it may be normal and even healthy for you and your husband to be struggling in your first year of marriage. It's a period of the honeymoon ending, and you and him settling into the drudgery of married life. It's also about negotiating household chores, your sexual life, leisure activities, family, work, friends, and your finances.
It's important to remember that the wife often sets the emotional tone of the marriage, who increases emotional intimacy. I can't remember where I read this, but I am 100% sure it's true. "If mama ain't happy, ain't nobody happy" is another way to say it. Your husband may have felt scared and hurt by your comment, and is reacting by withdrawing and protecting himself. If I were you, I'd apologize for unintentionally hurting him, and ask him if we could talk about it. I'd explain that our marriage is so new, I don't know what to expect.
You have A LOT of power in your marriage, and you need to be careful about what you do and say to your husband (I learned this the hard way). Men have fragile egos, and are surprisingly easily hurt. Don't blame or judge yourself for expressing your feelings – there's nothing wrong with that! But, remember that honesty often comes with a price tag.
Why is the first year more difficult?
The first year of marriage is hard because you're learning that you won't feel passionately and hopelessly in love with your husband every day. It's not possible to be consumed with feelings of chemistry and love for him – if you did, you wouldn't get anything done. My husband and I have been married for 7 years, and I feel all sorts of things about him. Sometimes he's an irritating roommate, other times he makes my insides melt simply by touching my arm or kissing my neck. Sometimes I wish I could be alone, and other times wish he was right beside me.
I wonder if the "emotional emptiness" you felt was just a normal part of being married? You're settling into the most important relationship of your life, and it's definitely not a walk in the park! I love being married and wouldn't want to be single again, but my marriage has shown me how selfish, self-centered, and narcissistic I can be. Our closest relationships often show us our weaknesses, as well as our strengths.
Another reason the first year of marriage is the hardest is because you're learning what you should and shouldn't share with your husband. He doesn't need to know what you're feeling every moment you're feeling it, especially if it directly involves him. There are lots of feelings I have about some things my husband says and does that I'd never tell him, because there's not point. I don't want him to feel self-conscious, and his actions and words are part of who he is. I've learned from experience that some things are better left unsaid – as you're learning!
For more thoughts on being married – especially if your marriage is only a year or two old – read How the Power of Love Can Save Your Marriage.
I welcome your thoughts on the first year of marriage below, but I can't offer advice. You may find it helpful to share your experience, and show other readers they're not alone.


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Do more with less. Optimize throughput and adjust Work In Progress to what you really can tackle.
Oversee your resources centrally and make sure to have the bandwidth to add team members to new projects.
Manage the bookings of all resources, including meeting rooms, servers and additional equipment.
Brad Kort
Torsteln Kongshem
Stefan Broda
José Vázquez Sánchez
Felipe Reis
Break down your Jira issues into your teamwork activity. See what's assigned to each resource, and how it contributes to the overall workload of your team members, week by week.
Proactive team management: Adjust your own capacity thresholds and color code them to see in seconds who is over capacity and when.
Your pool of talent might be focusing on work assigned by others. Drill down on users across Jira projects and groups.
Server licenses are hosted on your servers. Licenses are perpetual and the initial purchase includes 12 months of maintenance (support and version updates included). We offer a no questions asked 30-day money back guarantee. Discounts for Academic Institutions Purchase and renewal is 50% off if you have an academic license. Free for Open Source and Non-Profits Server apps are free for community and open-source licenses.


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As my longer term readers may know, I work at a primary school. I won't state which one because I like to keep my personal, private, Goth life separate from my work life. I really enjoy my job, it's probably the most rewarding jobs I've done. I also cannot be too specific due to the school's social media policy.
|Low sun on an evening commute in springtime.


text: The hype machine is now in full effect as Kris Bryant himself announced on twitter that he is headed to Iowa. The kid has been crushing it at Double-A, just won the HR derby at the all-star game, and has basically embarrassed every pitcher he has faced. Time for the next challenge, interested to see how he adjusts to Triple-A pitching.


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From hall construction to special constructions - you are in good hands with us.
Our scope of service:
Planning, advisory service, production and installation of constructive steel and metal construction as well as system halls, also turnkey.
See for yourself!
The material of steel provides stability for any construction economically. There is no geometry that cannot be realized with steel. Furthermore, steel is re-usable for many generations.


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Front Cover
Announcing the "Mystery
Photo" contest
In the
footsteps of Ignatius
This summer, six members
of the Holy Cross faculty made a pilgrimage
to Spain and Rome. Following in the footsteps
of Ignatius, these pilgrims returned to Mount
St. James with a new understanding of Jesuit
history, identity and mission.
more >
Scene at Campaign Events
Take a look at photos from
a variety of campaign-related events (.pdf)
more >