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ARC, OBP, NAMC, PPECB 2016/17 Annual Report
Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development
11 October 2017
Chairperson: Ms M Semenya (ANC)
Meeting Summary
Entities reporting to the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) presented their annual reports to the Committee. The entities were the Agricultural Research Council (ARC), Onderstepoort Biologocal Products (OBP), the National Agricultural Marketing Council (NAMC) and the Perishable Products Export Control Board (PPECB).
Despite the ARC being one of government's premier state-owned enterprises (SOEs) for the research and scientific work it does in the agricultural sector, its presentation was dominated by two aspects - a qualified audit and its adverse financial situation (an R86m deficit in the 2016-17 financial year). Technically it was insolvent. Three government departments – the DAFF, the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform (DRDLR) and the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) – had contributed to its dire financial situation and qualified audit, because collectively they owed the ARC around R126m.
The key Committee discussion points were around ways to correct the ARC's negative financial situation, and plans to address the qualified audit outcome to ensure a clean audit in the next financial year. There was broad agreement there should be more frequent interaction with the Auditor General of South Africa (AGSA) on improvement issues, so that corrective actions were implemented early. Other questions raised focused on its vaccine programme and refurbishment of facilities.
OBP advised the Committee that the Minister had appointed a new board recently and a new Acting CEO had been installed. Key developments at OBP were an unqualified audit, an increased profit of R48m on the back of a strong growth in exports. OBP was the leader in the manufacture of livestock vaccine in SA, and a new distribution network was reaping benefits. It had received funding for facility upgrades but the implementation of the new Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) compliant facility had been delayed to 2020.
Discussion was focused mainly on the delay of the GMP compliant facility, and addressing some of the shortcomings in the audit findings related to financial misstatements. and how it was gong to be addressed. Members also sought clarification on the four to six year timeline for vaccine production, from it being discovered by ARC to reaching the customer. The Chairperson said that OBP was a candidate for a qualified audit and it had to convince the Committee that it would not regress.
The NAMC also reported it had a new board, and a new CEO would be appointed by the end of November. It had received its second consecutive clean audit, with no fruitless and wasteful expenditure. A key NAMC oversight role was to ensure that levy income --around R490m in 2016 --received from contributing agricultural sectors was spent appropriately in line with the governing rules and guidelines, especially on transformation activities. Another important initiative was to provide direct support, advice and development of small holder farmers to ensure they participated in the commercial sector.
Committee Members wanted more information on the Council's transformation activities within the agricultural sectors, and said a session on that would be held in November. It was also concerned that despite the good audit, NAMC had to work hard to ensure its performance remained on track. The Y-Agriculture Model aimed at youth was also discussed, but as it was in its infancy not enough information was available to assess its success. The aspect of the poultry industry opting not to become a levy-paying member because of disagreements among some its members was also raised.
The PPECB presentation highlighted the sustained export of fruit to SA's major markets in Europe, the UK, Asia and the Middle East. It also included a briefing on new markets in the East, such as Thailand and South Korea, where it hoped to grow its market share. It had been awarded a clean audit for five consecutive years by the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants.
The Committee's discussion points were mainly around exploring new markets, and the logistics around ensuring ships transporting SA produce were clean and approved. PPECB confirmed its participation in Operation Phakisa's efforts at unblocking port congestion
Meeting report
The Chairperson opened the meeting by welcoming all attendees and said that this meeting was a continuation of the session the Committee had the previous day with the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF).
Agricultural Research Council: Annual Report
Dr Shadrack Moephuli, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) informed the Committee that a new Board had recently been installed, and that some members were present. He introduced the new Chairperson, Professor Sibusiso Vil-Nkomo, and Dr Joyce Chitja, Mr Allan Bishop, Ms Joyce Mashiteng and Mr Andrew Makenete.
He highlighted some of the key ARC contributions to governments national priorities, such as job creation, food and nutrition security, improved food productivity and how this linked in with the ARC's strategic goals, as some programmes were involved in crop production, improvement and protection, animal health, production and improvement, small agricultural development and natural resource management.
There were six ARC strategic goals that contributed to the country's growth and development imperatives in line with the National Development Plan (NDP). These were:
- To generate knowledge and technologies that would enhance efficiencies in crop based agriculture. Some of the outcomes in this goal were new cultivars that would ensure higher profitability (e.g. breeding of blushed pears suitable for warmer climates), new drought tolerant and insect protected maize hybrids (e.g. these maize hybrids were found to be resistant to the invasion of fall army worm), and production guidelines for small grain production in both summer and winter rainfall areas in English, Afrikaans, Zulu, Xhosa and Sotho.
- To generate knowledge and technologies that would enhance efficiencies in livestock-based agriculture, for example, research and production of vaccines marketed by Onderstepoort Biological Products (OBP) against soft and hard ticks that transmit diseases. The vaccine against heartwater, which causes ahigh mortality rate in goats, sheep and cattle of up to 90%, would be marketed soon. Another important ARC programme was Kaonafatso ya Dikgomo (KyD), which was aimed at accelerating the participation of smallholder producers into the mainstream livestock industries.
- To generate knowledge and technologies for the conservation and utilisation of natural resources by enabling agriculture to be resilient to climate change. Some of those programmes were to enable the early maturing of some fruit varieties to escape heat and drought, and breeding for higher temperature optimisation. This had been particularly useful to some apple cultivars, where the milder winters impacted fruit production negatively.
- To generate knowledge, solutions and technologies for food safety, quality and improved efficiencies in the agricultural value chain. Some outcomes in this goal were the provision of scientific services to farmers and clients of the ARC, the development of processes to create products from indigenous crops, and programmes that reduced post-harvest losses.
- To translate research outputs in order to generate knowledge, facilitate decision-making that contributed to the transformation of the agricultural sector. Some examples showcasing the impact of ARC contributions to agriculture were the ARC cultivars used for 45% of nectarine exports, and 16 of the top 39 plum cultivars exported from SA are from ARC. In addition, there had been a substantial investment in smallholder agricultural development, with more that than 9 577 scientific services rendered to smallholder farmers, and 5 474 smallholder farmers trained. Infrastructure investment, like dip tanks and crush pens had been revitalised and had improved smallholder farmers' incomes.
- To apply resource management practices towards a high-performing organisation, mainly around more effective and efficient human resource and infrastructure management within the ARC. Some highlights were in capacity building --130 employees were on PhD programmes and 66 on Masters programmes. Important information communication technology (ICT) platforms in use to enhance the roll out of ARC programmes were Agromet - a tool used for long-term graphical comparative weather data used by the Institute for Soil Climate and Water, and GRIN, a facility used by the Small Grains Institute, holding information from genebanks which enabled an efficient global network of specific plant information that safeguards plant genetics and food security.
Mr Gabriel Malulekwe briefed the Committee on the ARC's financial information for the period 2016-17, which contained three key findings.
After receiving unqualified audits for nine years in a row, the ARC had regressed in 2016-17 to a qualified audit. The office of the Auditor General (AG) had raised some concerns in the 2015-16 financial statements, culminating in the current period's qualified audit. This was mainly due to the quality of financial statements submitted, irregular expenditure, misstatements of financial information and systems limitations.
Technically the ARC was insolvent in that for both 2016 and 2017 it had operated with a deficit. In 2016 the deficit was R68m, while in 2017 the deficit was R86m due to the lower grants it had received from Parliament. The chief financial officer (CFO) had indicated that if there was not sufficient cash injection into the ARC over the next two years, it would not meet its mandates, the bulk of which involved research services (about 84% of received income). In addition, the income grant from Parliament was not enough to cover staffing costs.
A disturbing contributing factor to ARC's qualified audit was the non-payment for agreed work by three government departments who collectively owed the ARC R126m. The DAFF owed R42m, the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform (DRDLR) owed R30m, and the Department of Environment (DEA) owed R54m. Negotiations were still ongoing to recoup the outstanding amounts.
ARC had agreed on remedial actions with the Auditor General of SA (AGSA) to improve its audit outcomes. This included a detailed plan to redress the negative aspects of the 2016-17 audit and to eliminate root causes by 31 December 2017.
Ms A Steyn (DA) said the ARC's report was not good reading material, but the Committee had been aware of this. There was great concern for the financial health of ARC, and she was worried about how it would impact things on the ground. She highlighted the following issues:
She wanted to know many farmers were on the fall army worm (FAW) and drought resistant maize programme, and how it had influenced this sector.
She congratulated the ARC on the development of the new 5 in 1 vaccine (one inoculation for five diseases instead of the usual 1:1 ratio)
What was the progress on the heartwater vaccine?
How close was the ARC to finding a remedy for the viral bunchy top disease that affected bananas?
A general concern was the capacity of the ARC, given its dire financial constraints, to help with diseases like avian flu, etc.
She expressed her disappointment with the ARC's financials, especially the impact of the unpaid DAFF and DRDLR invoices. She wanted to know how this was possible, and what was being done to get the money.
What other plans did the ARC have to manage its business with the lower grant income, rather than just asking Parliament for more money?
Mr P Maloyi (ANC) expressed concern over the absence of both the Minister and his deputy. The situation at ARC was quite depressing, and he felt it was critical that the Minister and his deputy were present to inform the Committee on what its plans were for the ARC - to keep it as a going concern or to discontinue. If it was the former, then ARC needed more resources. Hr also wanted to know how the exotic diseases facility was progressing. Regarding the audit outcomes, he asked what the difference was between these audit improvement plans versus the plans that had been implemented in the past, and whether they would work. Why had the audit been outsourced to a third party and not done in-house? Had it been made aware of the accounting and audit weaknesses? Why had the chief audit executive resigned?
Mr P van Dalen (DA) wanted more clarity on a litigation case for which the ARC had earmarked R42m. He expressed concern on how it was possible for the entity to spend more money than it had received, and asked if this over-expenditure was funded with loans or interest. A further concern was that during these hard times, the ARC had to take "hard" decisions that were in the best interest of the company. For example, were any salary increases paid to workers, and if there were, what was the increase? He also wanted to know if there was any fraud related to the 2016-17 audit findings.
Mr W Maphanga (ANC) wanted to know what the irregular expenditure was and if this had been monitored within the ARC.
The Chairperson indicated that AGSA had said that ARC was in danger of owing its clean audit status in the previous financial year. This has now come true, so it seemed that accountability and management was a key contributing issue. Last year the Committee was advised of plans to address the concerns raised by AGSA, now there are more plans? - in this regard she posed a direct question to the Chairman of the Board and wanted to know why the Minister had appointed him to the board as the institution had deteriorated in his hands. She wanted to know if he thought the Minister had done the right thing by appointing him. She also wanted to know if the ICT problems had been resolved as indicated in the past.
ARC Response
Dr Moephuli said the report on the number of farmers receiving assistance with the drought resistant maize and FAW resistant hybrids would be made available to the Committee.
Regarding heartwater, the vaccine clinical trials had been completed. It now needed to be registered with the Medicines Control Board, and ARC had no control over the timelines there.
The bunchy top disease affected only certain strains of bananas -- only the cavendish variety was impacted, and plantains were not affected. This disease was prevalent in East Africa and some ARC researchers were working with their counterparts in Uganda to address the problem locally.
The CEO pointed out that ARC was responsible for all remedial actions and counter measures against the avian flu outbreak. Despite capacity constraints the issue was being aggressively pursued, including extended shift work in some instances. The remedial action included additional scientific support during the outbreak, managing the culling process (e.g. clean-up and what chemicals to use), advice to the DAFF on the next steps to manage the outbreak. These included better management of poultry facilities, such as sanitisation and no exposure of poultry stocks to wild birds.
The unrecovered monies from DAFF related to work done on biological control of alien and invasive plants. Invoices had not been honoured and the AG had raised doubts about the success of recovering these amounts from the DAFF. This was most unfortunate, as these were invoices had been approved by DAFF, and the ARC was working closely with the DAFF to recoup the outstanding amounts. Similarly, the outstanding amounts with the DRDLR and the DEA were for approved work that these government departments were tardy to honour.
The Board, ARC's audit committee and management were exploring various options to minimise costs. These included getting rid of unwanted assets, sharing equipment within different projects and deriving rental income from some ARC facilities.
Regarding the senior audit executive who had left, the CEO said he had resigned because he had received a job offer in the private sector at twice his current salary.
The ARC internal audit process was outsourced, as it was not a key skill requirement for the ARC. However, the entire process was overseen and managed by a senior manager to ensure there was alignment and that the audit outcomes were communicated timeously within the organisation so that corrective action could be taken where necessary.
Regarding the forensic investigation, the CEO said that the ARC did not tolerate fraud, and those who committed fraud were dismissed. There had been one case of fuel card abuse, and the person had been dismissed after investigation. In another case of an ARC staff member colluding with service providers, that had also led to dismissal, and the tender had subsequently been withdrawn
The exotic disease facility that monitored amongst foot and mouth disease and others, had to be shutdown in 2005 due to ageing contamination of the infrastructure. A conditional grant of R180m had been received for refurbishment to develop the new technology that would be used to combat exotic diseases, to build capacity within the ARC to run the new facility (with eight individuals trained), and to develop the process plant through a pilot phase to give an indication of upscaling the process from the laboratory to full production. A tender had subsequently been issued for the design and contraction of the new facility, but there was a R400m shortfall in funds. The ARC was still in the process of engaging the DAFF and National Treasury (NT) for additional funds.
Mr Gabriel Maluleke, CFO: ARC, said that the main difference between the current plan to address the AGSA audit outcomes in this report was that it contained substantially more detail and went into greater depths to address the shortcomings identified.
The CEO advised the Committee that the litigation was for a dispute with the City of Tshwane regarding incorrect electricity meter readings. A bill of R29m had been received, which was most unusual. As a contingency, the ARC had had to accrue it as such, as the matter had gone to court.
The average increase to all employees across the board was around 5%, which was implemented with the aid of Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) arbitration. Due to the perilous state of its financial position, no perforce bonuses were paid to those who qualified. This was despite signed agreements with staff members as part of their remuneration packages. Staff members had accepted this.
Ms Makgomo Umlaw, Group Executive for Human Resources and Legal Services: ARC, informed the Committee that one of the ARC senior executives had taken the entity to court for non-renewal of employment. The issue was continuing in the high court.
Professor Sibusiso Vil-Nkomo responded to the direct question of the Committee Chairperson on his appointment as Chairman of the Board amidst the poor performance of the ARC. He believed the Minister had applied his mind in appointing him. The Board was professionally run and well resourced. The current woes of the entity were due to severe budget cuts. This had been a turbulent year for the ARC, which was a strategic and major government asset, but without adequate funding it would not be able to deliver on its mandates. All parties -- the ARC, the DAFF and the DRDLR -- had to work together to find a resolution to the current problems.
The CEO resumed his response by indicating that the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system was vital to the entity, and that the service provider was currently trouble-shooting the system to ensure it functioned optimally. All staff had been retrained on the system.
The Committee Chairperson closed the discussion by indicating that the ARC had to use the limited resources it had more optimally. It had to manage its affairs properly, otherwise it would weaken its case when requesting additional funding from the NT. She said an improvement plan was urgently needed and requested the DAFF Director General (DG) to ensure this was in place. She also suggested more frequent interaction with the AGSA on improvement issues so that corrective actions were implemented early.
Onderstepoort Biological Products (OBP): Annual Report
Dr Bethuel Nthangeni, Acting CEO: OBP, advised the Committee that a new Board had recently been installed. Mr Ronald Ramabulana was the new Chairman of the Board, and attending the meeting with him were some other board members - Dr Pieter Vervoort, Dr Charlotte Nkuna and Ms Fulufhelo Mphuthi.
Dr Nthangeni said some of successes achieved by OBP in 2016-17 included an unqualified audit, South Africa's recognition as a leader in the manufacture of livestock vaccines, and the implementation of a new distribution network.
Some of the other notable highlights aligned to its strategies goals were:
Achievement of more than R24m above the targeted sales revenue of R145m;
Maintenance of International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) accreditation;
Sustained growth in export markets;
Increased support for smallholder and emerging farmers.
However, in some areas there were some shortfalls against set targets. There had been a delay in the implementation of the Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) compliant facility, some customer and stakeholder relations targets were not achieved, and there had been lower than expected vaccine sales to government departments in provinces.
Matsobane Gololo, CFO: OBP, briefed the Committee on the organisation's financial performance, and highlighted:
The unqualified audit report for 2016-17.
The sustained increase in revenue since 2014-15 (R87m) to 2016-17 (R174m), which had been driven mainly by growth in the international market, especially Europe.
Increased profits -- from a low of a R9m loss in 2014-15, to a R48m profit in 2016-17.
Total assets were now at R745m, against liabilities of R561m. The amount for the GMP upgrade had been ring fenced.
The Chairperson congratulated OBP on its unqualified audit, but said it should not rest on its laurels as the audit was not entirely clean.
Mr Maloyi (ANC) said that in 2013-14, about R490m had been transferred to OBP for the modernisation of its facilities. He wanted to know if the facilities had been modernised and if not, what other construction upgrades had taken place. Did OBP have any plans to ensure the decline in local sales was reversed and that the entity remained competitive? He wanted more information on the forex losses of around R10.3m, and the bad debts of R3m that were contained in the written annual report sent to Committee Members. As the AGSA had said there were some problems with internal controls in OBP, was the audit committee fully functional and overseeing all audit processes? If not, were there plans to correct this as it would not be good for OBP to regress?
Mr L Ntshayisa (AIC) wanted clarity on the roles of OBP and the ARC to ensure they were not duplicating activities. He also wanted to know if there were any disabled people employed by OBP.
Ms Steyn congratulated OGP on its unqualified audit and urged it not to regress. She asked for more clarity on what the risks were if OBP was not GMP compliant, as non-compliance would surely impact negatively on sales. She wanted to know what the plans to become GMP compliant were. Had the initial problems associated with the distribution channels been resolved? Were all vaccines in production, or were there some that could not be produced, and what were the time lines for vaccine production? How many of the targeted 260 batches of vaccines had been produced?
Mr Van Dalen wanted to know what OBP was doing to address some of the concerns raised by the AGSA audit, such as that the leadership did not provide effective oversight in the preparation of the audit statement, and there were also material misstatements. This had to be addressed by the CFO. He wanted to know if the CFO was qualified enough for the job.
The Chairperson said that the OBP was a candidate for a qualified audit, and it had to convince the Committee that it would not regress.
Mr Maphanga commented that there were not enough females in OBP, and that males were dominating.
OBP's Response
Dr Nthangeni referred to vaccine production, saying there was a four to six year timeline from it being discovered by ARC to reaching the customer. This was because it typically took two to three years to upscale production from laboratory trials to full scale production. Batched products must then be kept for up to two years to ensure they meet the one to two year product stability requirement. Once all these milestones were met, the product was submitted to the Registrar and the waiting period for registration could be up to two years.
The R490m from NT for the upgrading of facilities was on track. R130m had already been spent on some upgrades, and an amount of R360m had been ring fenced and earmarked for the new GMP facility. He asked Mr Ntomebla to provide more detail on the GMP project.
Mr Ntombela said that the layout for the new facility had been scrutinised by GMP experts. and the tender had been issued for the new equipment. Some parts of the old facility had to be demolished and this would affect current production, so careful planning was required to ensure that this minimised the impact on production levels. This would coincide with the annual shutdown of the facility from December to January. Current estimates were that OBP would be GMP compliant by the second quarter of2020.
Mr Gololo briefed the Committee on the queries raised on bad debt and forex losses. The R3m bad debt was not actually bad debt. Most of it was owed by European Union (EU) customers, and R2m had been paid off, but this had been paid after the audit was completed. The R10m forex losses was due to US$ and Euro denominated currencies kept by OBP for trade with international partners. There would be losses or gains as the value of the Rand fluctuated.
He also explained the material misstatements related to disclosure of debt being lumped with accounts payable had been an accounting interpretation which had cost OBP a clean audit. Basically OBP had included R5m of debt as part of R20m accounts payable. The interpretation by AGSA was that the R20m had to be restated as R15m accounts payable, and R5m as debt outstanding.
Dr Nthangeni said that OBP employed three disabled people. On the issue of males dominating, he said that management was aware of this and that there were always adjustments to bring things on to an even keel by appointing more females when vacancies needed to be filled.
Dr Nthangeni explained the difference between the ARC and OBP. ARC provided the pipeline of new products, like candidate vaccines that may eventually end up as products. OBP's main focus was product development, taking concepts developed at ARC and using process improvements and cost efficiencies to produce fully fledged products.
Regarding the lower local sales, he said OBP was aware of this, and part of the problem was the move in the market from monovalent vaccines (one injection, one dose for one disease) to multivalent vaccines (one injection, many doses for various diseases). OBP was currently researching the latter to improve its customer offer.
Dr Jacob Modumo: Business Development Officer, expanded more on this by saying that although OBP experienced some challenges in the domestic market, it had grown the business to be in the top 10 for animal health products.
The Committee chairperson left the meeting, and Mr Maloyi took up the position as Acting Chairperson.
National Agricultural Marketing Council (NAMC): Annual Report
Prof Phineas Chauke, Board Chairperson: NAMC said a new Board had recently been appointed, and introduced two of his fellow board members, Prof Diale Rangaka and Mr Zandisile Wapi and some of the senior NAMC management present -- Mr Zama Xalisa, Acting CEO, and Ms Sarah Neftili, the CFO. He indicated that a permanent CEO would be appointed by the end of November 2017.
Mr Xalisa said that NAMC had received a clean audit for 2016-17, as had been the case the previous year, and that its activities were guided by the Marketing of Agricultural Products Act that had come into effect in 1996 and started the process of oversight over all the former control boards and trusts established under the previous government, such as the maize trust, wool trust, citrus industry trust, etc, with assets totalling over R1.7bn, to ensure alignment with government priorities like transformation.
NAMC had an oversight role on the levy income received from contributing agricultural sectors – which was about 63% of local agricultural production -- and had to ensure that the income was spent in the following manner:
- 70% on information, promotion, research and quality control;
- 20% on transformation;
- not more than 10% on administration costs.
- In 2016, the levy income was about R490m.
Some of the successful NAMC programmes that had benefited the agricultural industry were:
- Support for non-commercial maize farmers, which in 2017 accounted for about 12% of planted areas and 4% of the harvest.
- Custom feeding programmes. This was one of NAMC's development schemes and encouraged small scale farmers to use the feedlots and feeding programmes. This resulted in increased income generated from sales at animal auctions -- R23m in 2016 and R33m in 2017.
- Capacity-building programmes aimed at management, financial and agribusiness training for emerging entrepreneurs and woman in agriculture.
- Agricultural research outputs like the SA food cost review, and SA grains and oilseeds supply/demand estimates report.
- The successful launch of the Y-Agriculture Model aimed at youth.
Ms Neftili briefed the Committee on the some important aspects of NAMC's financial information.
There had been a clean audit on both the financials and annual report on predetermined objectives for both 2015-16 and 2016-17. There was no fruitless or wasteful expenditure, and a small deficit of R61 000 for 2016-17 year. An additional budget had been submitted after a review of operational activities. Detailed proposals had been forwarded to DAFF and NT for additional funding of R57.3m in 2018-19, R62m in 2019-20 and R67.6m in 2020-21.
Mr Maphanga congratulated NAMC on its clean audit, but wanted more clarity on what was being done to entice non-commercial farmers to become commercial, and what the impact of the Y-Agriculture Model had been.
Mr Ntshayisa wanted to know who got performance bonuses.
Ms Steyn asked if it was possible to get more information on transformation within the sectors for instance, maize vs. red meat, and those with levies and those without, such as trusts. Was this sort of information available to NAMC?
The Acting Chairperson said that on 18 November 2017, NAMC was scheduled to give a briefing on trusts and transformation to the Committee. He also asked why the poultry industry had opted out of statutory measures in respect of levy collection.
NAMC's Response
Mr Xalisa said that NAMC was working very hard with a variety of stakeholders to fast-track the movement of non-commercial farmers to commercial farming. This included working with provinces and municipalities to partner and match funds from the 20% levy for transformation spend.
The Y-Agriculture Model was still in its infancy, and it was too soon to see tangible results.
Bonuses had been paid across the board to all who qualified.
The reason why the poultry industry had opted out of the levy scheme was because there had not been full agreement amongst its members.
Perishable Products Export Control Board (PPECB): Annual Report
Mr Angelo Petersen, Board Chairperson: PPECB, introduced his fellow Board members, Dr Mono Mashaba and Ms Jill Atwood-Palm, and Mr Lucien Jansen: CEO, and Mr Johan Schwiebus:CFO. presented the PPECB Annual Report
Mr Jansen led the PPECB presentation, concentrating on its key strategic programmes - support services, operational services, food and safety services, plus transformation and development. He highlighted the following:
Major fruit export markets remain with the EU (36%), UK (15%), Middle East (15%) and Asia (18%).
SA remained the second largest citrus exporter, and the EU the biggest customer.
53% of grapes were exported to Europe.
The Far East was set to become an important market for avodacos.
There had been a reduction in grain and maize volumes due to drought, but 2017 volumes expected to be higher than 2016.
PPEECB had maintained its ISO 17025 accreditation.
Mr Schwiebus led the presentation on PPECB's financials, touching on the following important aspects:
- Total income for the year was R298m and expenses were contained at R297m.
- Net assets were R87m and liabilities R32m.
- 62% of goods and services were sourced from broad-based black economic empowered (BB-BEE) measured suppliers.
- 0.06% of expenses were categorised as fruitless and wasteful.
Mr Jansen concluded the presentation by saying that PPECB had been awarded a clean audit for five consecutive years by the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants
Mr Ntshayisa wanted to know if the vacancies in PPECB were deliberate or due to no qualified people being available.
Mr Maphanga asked if any new markets were being explored for fruit exports. He also wanted more clarity on vessel inspections and what happened to vessels that were penalised for not being clean during inspections.
The Chairperson congratulated the Board and the Executive team for the good work they were doing and the consistent clean audit. She wanted to know if the PPECB was participating in the Phakisa project to unblock port congestion.
PPECB Response
Mr Jansen said that they were looking at other markets, especially the east, such as the Phillipines.
Dr Mashaba said that other markets being looked at were China, South Korea for grapes, Japan (avocados), India, Thailand and Vietnam. They were working with the DAFF to explore these options.
Mr Jansen sid that once ships were inspected for transporting cargos and found to be dirty, they were given an opportunity to clean up, but all costs -- cleaning, inspection fees and demurrage -- were for their account, not the PPECB.
He said that they were participating in the Phakisa project to unblock ports.
Mr Mooketsa Ramasodi, Acting DG: DAFF, responding on all the presentations, said that the financial viability of ARC was vital and that they were engaging NT to get additional funding. He thanked the Committee for its guidance and co-operation and the role it played in ensuring the smooth running of DAFF and its entities.
The Chairperson concluded the meeting by appealing to entities to work together with the Committee and to interact with it on a quarterly basis, rather than annually, so that all issues could be discussed, including the good work being done, rather than just meet in circumstances like this to engage on problem areas.
She commented that "SA Airways must not come to this Committee," implying that the ARC must not go in the troubled airline's direction in terms of its funding requirements.
She concluded by quoting from a letter received from a citizen, who wanted to know what Parliament was doing to protect citizens from escalating food prices. Leading on from there, she wanted to know what the Committee, the DAFF and its entities could do to strengthen the capacity of the state to ensure food security for its citizens.
The meeting was adjourned.
Semenya, Ms MR
Maloyi, Mr P D N
Maphanga, Mr W B
Ntshayisa, Mr LM
Steyn, Ms A
Van Dalen, Mr P
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text:
We all know cake is delicious, and lollipops are delicious. So why not combine the two into one ultra-delicious package? Funfetti lollipops are cake-flavored lollys festooned with colorful sprinkles. They're sure to brighten your day! They're perfect for birthday parties, as edible favors, or just an anytime treat. See the Notes below the recipe for more flavoring suggestions!
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup light corn syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (use a clear variety for clearer lollipops)
- 1/2 teaspoon LorAnn cake batter flavoring (or other flavorings; see note below)
- 1/2 cup colored sprinkles (more or less as needed)
Steps to Make It
Gather the ingredients.
Prepare your hard candy lollipop molds by coating the cavities with a very light layer of nonstick cooking spray or vegetable oil, and wipe it out with a paper towel, leaving only a very thin layer of oil in the molds. (Note: This recipe makes about 2 inches sized large lollipops, so make sure you have enough molds before you begin, or make several half-batches.)
Insert lollipop sticks into the molds and set aside for now.
Combine the water, granulated sugar, and corn syrup in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat.
Stir until the sugar dissolves, then wash down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush to prevent sugar crystals from forming.
When the sugar syrup comes to a boil, insert a candy thermometer.
Continue to cook the sugar syrup, stirring occasionally, until the thermometer reads 290 F/143 C.
Remove the pan from the heat, and let the candy stop bubbling completely.
Once it is still, stir in the vanilla extract and cake batter extract.
Carefully spoon the hot sugar syrup into the prepared molds, making sure that the tops of the sticks are covered with syrup and are well-embedded in the candy.
Quickly, sprinkle colored jimmies over the tops of the lollipops. The lollipops will start to harden soon after they're poured, so it's important to work quickly during this step.
Let the lollipops sit and harden at room temperature until they are completely cool and firm.
Once cool, don't pull them out by the sticks. Instead, carefully flex the back of the molds to remove the lollipops without causing any breakage.
- Lollipops keep well when stored in a cool, dry environment.
- For best results, wrap them individually in cling wrap and store them in an airtight container at room temperature.
Recipe Variations
Note: Cake batter flavoring will be your best bet in recreating birthday cake-flavored lollipops, but if you can't find it, there are many other flavorings you can try! Butter flavoring is commonly found in the baking section, and combining butter flavoring with vanilla will get you very close to a cake flavor. You can also experiment with combining vanilla, almond, lemon, and/or "Princess" flavorings to get a nice cake batter flavor. A little goes a long way, so start with small amounts at first, and increase the amount in the next batch if necessary.
Recipe Tags:

subset: commoncrawl


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Novels of Henry Fielding, The
Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company Printed at the Shakespeare Head Press, 1926. Item #02186
Fielding of Dreams
From the Shakespeare Head Press
FIELDING, Henry. The Novels of Henry Fielding. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, Printed at the Shakespeare Head Press...by Basil Blackwell, [1926].
Large Paper Edition, limited to 520 sets. Ten large octavo volumes (9 x 6 in; 230 x 150 mm). Frontispieces.
Publishers three-quarter red morocco over pale red cloth boards. Gilt decorated compartments. A very fine set.
Contains: Joseph Andrews (2 vols); Jonathan Wild; Tom Jones; (4 vols) and Amelia (3 vols).
"The Elizabethan scholar A. H. Bullen established the Shakespeare Head Press in Stratford-up-Avon in 1904. His original aim was to produce a good edition of Shakespeare's works, and his ten volume Stratford Town Shakespeare was completed by 1907. After Bullen died in 1927, the press was acquired by a partnership including Basil Blackwell, the Oxford bookseller. Bernard Newdigate was appointed as typographer and under his direction the press worked within the Morris tradition: Ovid's Metamorphoses was the first book he produced as a limited edition" (Graphic Design and Visual Culture in Europe 1890-1945, University of Glasgow Special Collections).
Rogerson 86. Ranson, Selective Check Lists, p.13.
Price: $2,250.00


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Do you meditate? Wait! Come back! I'm not about to go all esoteric on you. Let me ask a different question: do you have a tendency to catastrophise? I do. Catastrophising, thinking that something terrible will happen, is perfectly understandable. It usually develops because something terrible has happened, or perhaps there's been a run of terribleness. The fight or flight response starts working overtime and the parasympathetic nervous system, the bit that calms us down, seems to go on holiday.
Here's an example. A friend and her little dog came to visit. We left the dog in the house while we went for a swim. Then we came back for a cuppa and a nice chat. Everyone, the dog included, had a lovely time. But when they left, I went into the kitchen and realised with horror that a blob of ant bait that had been on the benchtop was no longer there.
My first thought was: "I've killed the dog!" She's a little dog but she can jump very high. While we'd been swimming she'd patrolled the kitchen and sniffed out the honey smell of the ant bait. Then she'd jumped up, stuck out her tongue at just the right moment and slurped up the honeyed poison, ants 'n all.
I rang my friend. No answer. I sent a text. No answer. I waited for what seemed like ages, then I rang again. Still no answer. So here's what I thought: "The dog's had a seizure in the car on the way home and they've gone straight to the vet. That's why she's not answering the phone." Are you laughing? I hope so.
My friend rang about an hour later. "I was cooking dinner," she said. "I didn't hear the phone." She rang the vet and found out that the bait wasn't poisonous to dogs but might cause a bit of an upset tummy. Ms Dog, meanwhile, happily scoffed her dinner then ate my friend's daughter's dental guard for dessert.
I think it might be time to chill, don't you?!
I used to own a sweatshirt that said "overthink everything" and I wore it around the house all winter. I bought it because it made me laugh but also it was a reminder to stop overthinking. Meditation helped. It gave me a way to step back and consider what was happening, rather than reacting instantly. Unfortunately, after a while I forgot to keep doing it. I stopped meditating and the overthinking/catastrophising came back.
Everyone's an expert on meditation and mindfulness these days. It can be annoying, when you're really strung out and busy, to hear yet another person telling you to meditate or be mindful. "I haven't got time. I can't do it right. It's boring. I can't empty my mind." These are the things we all tell ourselves, even when we've meditated before and know that it works.
Since I started meditating again, I've been wondering: what is this thing called meditation? You don't have to sit cross-legged on a cushion to do it; you can be walking or lying down or staring out of the window. It's not really about emptying your mind either, although that's lovely when it happens.
Here's what I think it boils down to, the essence of meditation:
- Stillness
- Concentration
- Noticing
- Contentment
In the mornings, as I've been tying my shoelaces, getting ready to go out for a walk, it's dawned on me that I've been completely focused. I've noticed everything about the action of shoelace tying: the colour of my shoes, the texture of the laces, the feeling of tying them. I've been meditating while tying my shoelaces!
Of course, once you start telling yourself in your mind how great it is—Hey! Look! I'm meditating! Whoo-hoo!—then you've broken the spell. You're thinking again. But even those few minutes of seeing and not thinking are precious. They set you up for the whole day. You go into a meditative state at other times when you aren't even trying to meditate.
The parasympathetic nervous system comes back from its holiday, packs the fight or flight response into a suitcase and puts it on top of the wardrobe until it's needed. The big stuff seems less exhausting and the little stuff seems even more significant. Best of all, at any moment, out of the blue, you can find yourself wrapped in a warm blanket of contentment. Even when you're just tying your shoelaces.


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Berlin, February 2017 – Ralf Knorrenschild joined the management board of Selux AG in February 2017. The 52-year assumed responsibility of Sales, Marketing and Human Resources while Jürgen Hess (52), who joined the Selux AG board on 27th July 2015, continues to be responsible for technical and commercial matters.
Ralf Knorrenschild was born in Hamburg and can look back on 29 successful years in the lighting sector, starting with his time at Philips Light in 1988 where he quickly became responsible for sales, before changing to the Zumtobel Group in Austria in 2003. Here, as the Senior Vice-President of Global Key Accounts and Business Channel End Users, he was latterly responsible for global key customer business and public lighting.
"I look forward to the challenge of actively contributing to the development of the Selux brand as a premium manufacturer of sustainable lighting solutions for exterior and interior business, together with Jürgen Hess," explained Mr Knorrenschild. "The topic of IoT for example, the Internet of Things, will in future play a significant role in exterior lighting too. Working together with Jürgen Hess, I envisage huge potential for Selux AG here." Mr Hess, likewise looking forward to collaborating with his new fellow management board member, similarly sees Selux at the very forefront when it comes to technology, design and service in the lighting sector:" "We share many ideas for a Selux corporate vision, complement one another superbly and the chemistry between us is perfect."
In appointing Jürgen Hess and Ralf Knorrenschild to the management board, the Selux supervisory board has set the Selux Group up superbly for a successful path into the future.
The management team of the Berlin luminaire manufacturer Selux consists of Jürgen Hess (left) and Ralf Knorrenschild (right).
February 2017
About Selux
The Selux Group is a leading provider of sustainable lighting solutions for both interior and exterior applications. Acting sustainably enables Selux to maintain high standards when it comes to energy efficiency, ergonomics and product design. Founded in Berlin in 1948, Selux is today a global operation employing 565 staff at sites in Europe, North America and Australia. Examples of well-known that Selux has been involved in the past include the Park am Gleisdreieck in Berlin, the Porsche Museum in Stuttgart, the Vieux-Port in Marseille and the 9⁄11 Memorial in New York.
Manuela Schnabel, Head of Marketing / Communications
Selux AG, Motzener Strasse 34, 12277 Berlin, Germany
T +49 30 72001 – 246, firstname.lastname@example.com, www.selux.com


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A chaotic international society, torn by conflicting perceptions and interests, is assailed by rising terrorism, lawlessness and corruption, and eroded by economic failure, poverty and disease. In its midst the Bahá'í community is becoming increasingly visible, inspired by a divinely revealed vision, building on solid foundations, growing in strength through the processes that are now in place, and undaunted by seeming setbacks. An example of the capacity of the Bahá'í world to respond to unexpected conditions occurred a year ago, when multiple dangers required the cancellation of the International Bahá'í Convention; the election of the Universal House of Justice was duly held and the Plan went forward without a missed step. Concurrently, despite the disruption and chaos of life in Iraq, it was possible to contact the Bahá'ís in that land and reconstitute their Local Spiritual Assemblies. Now we announce with great joy the election, this Riḍván, of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Iraq, restored after more than thirty years of stifling oppression, to take its rightful place in the international Bahá'í community. What the Divine Plan requires at this stage is for us to continue confidently and dynamically in the present direction, undeterred by storms battering the world of humanity. Be sure that the Blessed Beauty will guide your steps and the Hosts of the Supreme Concourse will reinforce your every effort for the progress of His Faith.
Riḍván 161 2004
Know thou, moreover, that He it is Who hath, by His own behest, created all that is in the heavens and all that is on the earth. How can, then, the thing that hath been created at His bidding prevail against Him? High is God exalted above what ye imagine about Him, ye people of malice! If this Cause be of God, no man can prevail against it; and if it be not of God, the divines amongst you, and they that follow their corrupt desires and such as have rebelled against Him will surely suffice to overpower it.
—His Holiness Bahá'u'lláh
The Summons of the Lord of Hosts, pp: 220-221
Say: God hath made My hidden love the key to the Treasure; would that ye might perceive it! But for the key, the Treasure would to all eternity have remained concealed; would that ye might believe it! Say: This is the Source of Revelation, the Dawning-place of Splendour, Whose brightness hath illumined the horizons of the world. Would that ye might understand! This is, verily, that fixed Decree through which every irrevocable decree hath been established.
—His Holiness Bahá'u'lláh
The Kitáb-i-Aqdas, ¶ 15
By the word religion I do not mean the present dogmatic and theological superstitions which are in the hands of the people. By religion I mean the world of celestial attributes. After the moral aspect of humanity becomes readjusted, then the greatest unity will be realized; but without this moral readjustment it is impossible to establish harmony and concord, for it is a fact that war, conflict, friction and strife are but the visible results of deterioration of morality and corruption of character. But when the morality of humanity is beautified with praiseworthy virtues there will be an end to war.
Divine Philosophy, pp:176-177


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Happy Easter! I spent the Holy Week feeling a little down and depressed all thanks to the crazy Taipei weather (14 days of nonstop rain), but I realized it was also my own little way of accompanying Jesus to carry His cross. We were greeted with a lovely spring sunshine come Saturday morning, and the feeling of loneliness was replaced by an inner joy. Thank you, God for sending Your Son to save us from our sinfulness! I remain unfazed by life's trials because I believe You have control over them. Sister Mary Beth, a Sacred Heart nun from our church gave me this lip balm as an Easter gift... a beautiful reminder to be with God every single day. "The closer we come to God, the more fully we become ourselves."- Sister Ida Peterfy
I thank the Lord too for sending people who manifest His love and mercy- my friends and loved ones!!! I was not all alone in celebrating the joy of Easter. Kaymee's family came to visit me and I happily volunteered to be their tour guide. Kaymee is one of my best friends since college and I have known her family for over 10 years. She was not able to join because she just started with her new job in Melbourne. I cant believe her baby sister is turning 18 this year! I remember helping out during her 9th birthday party and setting up the parlor games! Gosh tanders na talaga. My goddaughters from Japan are also here in Taipei for a few weeks. Ninang was busy baby-sitting her babies but her heart is so full of love.
It was a busy week at work because we had a planning meeting for an annual chambers conference. We chose Marriott Taipei as the conference venue in November and during the ocular inspection, I requested the hotel's events officer to bring us to the pool area. Look at what greeted us!
After the planning meeting, we had our first quarter company lunch at the newly-opened Morton's Steakhouse located on the 45th floor of the new Breeze Xinyi. The view was spectacular. It would be nice to go on a date here especially at night! It was refreshing to have a yummy lunch with my colleagues and to not discuss anything work-related.
I cannot wait to be home this weekend. My brother's on his annual month-long vacation so I promised to spend time with them before flying to Hanoi for work next week. I'm really, really, exhausted. When I feel stressed, I let out a big sigh and thank the heavens for letting me have a job. Then I feel okay again.
Hope you're all having a good blessed first week of Easter!
Joy of Easter
Wednesday, March 30, 2016
Posted by Jacqueline Uy at 5:30 PM No comments
Life Lately
Sunday, March 13, 2016
Hi blog, sorry for abandoning you for quite some time. There were just so many things going on the last few weeks (mostly good!!!) that I did not have time to update you. I felt like I needed to go on a coffee date with myself to catch up with my own life, but that requires going out so I might as well write down my thoughts while lying in bed (sadly, it's still winter here- so cold and wet, it's getting depressing!)
I just got back from a work-related travel to Sri Lanka. We were there for 5 days, mainly to support the Sri Lanka Business Conclave organized by our partner chamber and member. The place is very interesting and has nice friendly people. They say it's a "cleaner India" though I cannot attest to that since I haven't been there. The country now takes pride of its promising economic growth and has been attracting investors all over the world. (Photos below: Galle Face, Red Mosque, Port of Colombo and Sri Lankan food called "hopper")
Apart from that, my previous weeks were spent slaving away (hehe sorry for the term!), balanced by random get togethers with scholar-friends who have just arrived for the new semester. I also met up with working friends for midweek dinners to have a break from our routines. I'm back to my regular yoga 'programming'... slowly re-introducing my body to hot yoga after not doing it for more than 3 weeks. On most days I do gentle therapeutic sessions to ease my back pain.
For other things, I bought a small balikbayan box to fill with stuff I'm not using anymore (and those things that don't spark joy hehe). This is me de-cluttering the #KonMari way, thanks to Diane for the inspiration! I KonMari-ed my closet during those wee hours that I'm so jet-lagged, and managed to set aside things I haven't really been using. My balikbayan box is ready for pick-up on Wednesday and my room has never been this tidy, and my drawers so organized! I hope they stay like this forever!
I ticked off several items from my to-do list over the weekend. Thank God for weekends!!! I went to Lucky Money Remittance Center to re-start paying my SSS contribution (which I should have done last year). I'm still contemplating on paying my Philhealth and PAG-IBIG fund because I dont see the point in paying them since we have National Health Insurance here (your thoughts?) Then I made several calls to China Airlines for my award ticket redemption, and to Cebu Pacific to refund my ticket after a change in flight schedule, and lastly to Metrobank for reversal of my annual credit card fee using my reward points. Sorry I feel like I need to write these down to have some sense of accomplishment after months of procrastinating. Hay everything is just so tedious when you're overseas.
Have a great week ahead! I have pending posts for my US trip and Taipei Life series, I hope I can start writing them! :)
Posted by Jacqueline Uy at 9:19 PM No comments
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Abu Dhabi is one of the most thriving business environments that promises an ideal spot to establish and flourish your business. The capital of the UAE, Abu Dhabi, is the wealthiest emirate of the country in terms of GDP and per capita income and contributes significantly to the economy of UAE. The emirate ranks high in terms of ease of doing business, as the rules and regulations of setting up business is flexible and easy in Abu Dhabi.
Doing Business In Abu Dhabi– Looking For Key Facts?
Starting a business in Abu Dhabi sounds like great idea, but it is not something quite easy in any part of the world. Doing a business in UAE really can take a lot of effort, time and money and investors have to be really sure about making the right decisions at the right time, to ensure that they are not losing any money while doing so.
Business Registration in Abu Dhabi – An Overview
Abu Dhabi holds all the key elements which are necessary for industrial growth. It includes exchange of precision, creativity and skills which are highly appreciated by the liberal entrepreneurial market. Read more


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There was a fatal car accident on the Tri-State Tollway (Interstate 294) on Tuesday afternoon in Des Plaines.
Weather appears to have played a role in the accident, which happened during a period of heavy snowfall.
The man killed was Jack Edwards, 66, of Zion, Illinois.
He apparently lost control of his car while traveling northbound on I-294. The car slid into a concrete wall, and then reentered traffic and was hit by a semi truck. The accident happened a few minutes before 4:00 p.m.
Edwards was taken to Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge, and was pronounced dead at 4:40 p.m.
Edwards was the only occupant in the vehicle at the time of the accident.
Additional details and possible updates can be seen in a variety of media sources including the March 6 Chicago Tribune article titled "Zion man dies in Tri-State Tollway crash" as well as the March 5 Daily Herald story titled "Man killed in I-294 crash."
Should you be involved in a vehicle accident, there are certain actions you should take in order to protect your rights. Elman Joseph Law Group, LLC has compiled a reference document titled "10 Steps You Should Follow After an Auto Accident."
Elman Joseph Law Group, LLC (ElmanLaw.com) concentrates in Personal Injury and Wrongful Death cases involving vehicle accidents (car, motorcycle, bike, bus, pedestrian, truck, etc.) This intense focus allows us to consistently achieve winning verdicts and settlements for our clients.
Should you be involved in a car accident, there are certain actions you should take in order to protect your rights. You should not assume – especially without proper legal representation – that you will receive appropriate compensation for your injuries, hardships and/or losses. To speak directly with a trial lawyer from Elman Joseph Law Group, LLC immediately, call (773) 392-8182 at any time. There is no fee for this consultation.


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Posts Tagged 'yes on 8'
'Hollywood witch-hunt' claims film boss
Mormon head of LA Film Festival donated to campaign against same-sex unions
By Guy Adams in Los Angeles
In the latest episode of Hollywood's biggest witch-hunt since the era of McCarthyism, the director of the Los Angeles Film Festival has resigned over revelations that he helped to fund the campaign to outlaw gay marriage in California.
Richard Raddon was hounded from office after it emerged he had donated $1,500 (£980) to support Proposition 8, the electoral ballot measure which banned same-sex unions, when it was backed by 52.5 per cent of the state's voters on 4 November.
Mr Raddon is a devout member of the Mormon Church, which asked members to donate time and money to "Yes on 8", securing tens of millions of dollars that helped finance a series of hard-hitting, and in many cases misleading, TV attack ads.
After his financial support for Proposition 8 was made public, Film Independent, the organisation that oversees the festival, was swamped with phone calls and emails from activists threatening to boycott next May's week-long event. Although Film Independent's board of directors offered a unanimous vote of confidence, Mr Raddon announced late on Tuesday that he would quit after eight years in office. "I have always held the belief that all people, no matter race, religion or sexual orientation, are entitled to equal rights," read his somewhat mealy-mouthed resignation letter. "I consider myself a devout and faithful Mormon. I prefer to keep the details around my contribution through my church a private matter. But I am profoundly sorry for the negative attention that my actions have drawn to Film Independent and for the hurt and pain that is being experienced in the GLBT [gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender] community."
Mr Raddon's name was first discovered on lists of "Yes on 8" donors two weeks ago, by a blogger called David Poland. A similar protest recently led to the departure of Scott Eckern, the artistic director of California Musical Theatre in Sacramento, who was exposed for donating $1,000 to the campaign.
Many gay rights activists are now manning picket lines outside the offices and outlets of other businesses whose executives supported the measure.
The Sundance Film Festival, which takes place in January, is firmly in their firing line, since its venue is in Park City, Utah, the state which represents the spiritual home of the Mormon faith. Sundance also has a screening room run by the Cinemark chain, whose chief executive Alan Stock donated $9,999 to "yes on 8". Activists are planning to demonstrate outside Cinemark venues this weekend, to prevent it cashing-in on the film Milk, about the gay rights pioneer Harvey Milk.
Separately, the California Supreme Court has announced that it would hear a legal challenge to Proposition 8 brought by a selection of the 18,000 same-sex couples who had tied the knot in the five months since gay weddings were legalised.
Nearly 500 picket Illinois Theatre following CEO's 'Yes on 8' contribution
Evanston, IL — Opponents of California's Proposition 8 continued to pressure for marriage equality by targeting the business of one of its biggest benefactors, Century Theatre in Evanston. Nearly 500 people gathered Saturday in Evanston to picket Century Theatre and send a message to Cinemark's CEO.
Alan Stock, CEO of Plano, TX-based Cinemark, Inc., the owner of the Century Theater, donated $9999 to Proposition 8. Cinemark which operates Century, CinéArts and Tinseltown theaters is one of the largest theater chains in the country.
"It's no longer open season on LGBT people," said Bob Schwartz of the Gay Liberation Network. "People giving mega-bucks to promote discrimination against our community will now become objects of scorn themselves and they will feel it in the wallet or pocket book as we encourage other supporters of equal rights to cease patronizing your businesses."
After a peaceful protest in front of the theater, the diverse group marched to the Northwestern University campus where they blocked the same entrance to the University that students did in the 60's to protest the Vietnam War.
Gay-rights advocates continue to put the pressure on Cinemark. John Aravosis, editor of political blog Americablog, has called for the boycott of the gay-friendly Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah noting that Sundance uses Cinemark-owned Holiday Village Cinema as one of its biggest screening venues.
"Your Sundance registration money is quite literally helping to subsidize a donation to Yes on 8," said Aravosis.
A national organizer is also planning boycotts of the Cinemark-owned and operated theatres.
Our Biggest Mistake: Boycotting Sundance
After the Mormon Church, which is based in Salt Lake City, funneled $15 million into the "Yes on 8" Campaign, I was very much in favor of boycotting Utah. The Sundance Film Festival boycott? Not a chance! Yes, I realize that 2004's festival dumped $22 million into Utah's financial bucket. But boycotting Sundance was a poorly thought out, knee jerk reaction. A boycott of the indie film maker festival would be like shooting ourselves in the foot.
Sundance began in 1978 in Salt Lake City, fueled by the dream of actor/director Robert Redford. It was specifically designed to boost and showcase indie films. In 1981 the 10-day festival moved to Park City, Utah and launched the Sundance Institute with programs such as the Filmmakers/Directors Lab. By 1984 it had expanded into theatre with the Playwrights Lab.
From the origins of the festival, Sundance has embraced GLBT films. The lesbian romance classic, Desert Hearts, won honorable mention in 1985, Longtime Companion, won 1990's Audience Award, Go Fish was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize in 1994, Trick premiered at the festival in 1999 and in 2001 we saw a double winner (Audience Award and Directing) for John Cameron Mitchell's Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Many of the films showcased at Sundance won a place in After Elton's 50 Greatest Gay Films.
GLBT documentaries have also won many awards at the festival. In 1995 the unforgettable The Celluloid Closet was featured and in 2006 Small Town Gay Bar was a nominee. AIDS themed documentaries have also been featured, such as the gut-wrenching Absolutely Positive in 1991.
To continue highlighting and promoting GLBT films, Sundance partnered with GLAAD to create the Queer Lounge in 2004. For more details visit Queer Lounge.
It's certainly too late to ask Sundance to move out of Utah, the festivals just 8 weeks away. And it would be too costly for both the festival and the institute to move at all. So yes, boycott Utah, but not Sundance. Stock up on food and gas at the border and sleep in your car, but still head to the festival which has embraced the GLBT community for 25 years.


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The image of Maris Stella has figured into my writing recently, as an ambiguous figure of suspension between gravity and grace.
This poem by Wislawa Szymborska captures this tension beautifully.
A drop of water fell on my hand,
Blood-let from the Ganges and the Nile,
from the Ascension-day voyage off a seal's whiskers to heaven,
from water out of the shattered pitchers in the cities of Y's and Tyre.
On my index finger
the Caspian Sea is open
and the Pacific meekly joins the Rudawa,
that same stream that floated as a little cloud over Paris
in the year seven hundred and sixty-four
on the seventh of May at three in the morning.
There are not enough mouths to utter
all your fleeting names, O water.
I would have to name you in all tongues,
pronouncing all the vowels at once
while also keeping silent–for the sake of the lake
that waits to be named
and doesn't exist on this earth, just as the star
reflected in it is not in heaven.
Somebody drowned, someone dying was
crying out for you. It was long ago and it was yesterday.
You have saved houses from fire, you have carried off houses
as you did trees, forests as cities.
You've been in christening fonts and courtesan's baths.
In kisses and coffins.
Gnawing stone, nourishing rainbows,
in the sweat and the dew of the pyramids, the lilacs.
How light is all this in the raindrop.
How gently the world touches me.
Whatever, whenever, wherever has happened
Is written down on the waters of Babel.


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I missed yesterday. I was at the bottom of a pit of depression and self-loathing, so the photography had to wait. A serious pit of depression and self-loathing. I was on the teetering verge of cutting myself out of an effort to feel something. #mang
Okay. Well, welcome to Gratuitous Contrast Week, a week of contrast taken to gratuitous levels! My opener is the underground car park at Galway City's docks complex, behind the Harbour Hotel.


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Main Content
About the Talk
August 20, 2011 10:30 AM
201 State Street, Madison, WI201 State Street, Madison, WI
One of the most difficult parts of software development is starting projects off right (so that they actually ship). This talk will take developers through the process of war room storyboarding and getting a project off the ground, galvanizing teams to produce quickly and consistently without compromising quality. Stripping down features to find the core product, and managing expectations with product owners will be covered in detail. After this talk, developers will have the tools to implement this in their own processes, and add some fun into the mix along the way.
Links: Slides


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|Incredible Hulk Message Board >> View Post
Subj: Re: What Was The Problem With The Paul Jenkins Run, Or The Professor?
Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2017 at 09:59:58 pm EDT (Viewed 291 times)
Reply Subj: Re: What Was The Problem With The Paul Jenkins Run, Or The Professor?
Posted: Mon Jul 31, 2017 at 02:48:36 pm EDT (Viewed 321 times)
I completely agree with you that Jenkins Professor Personality and The Merged Hulk from PAD were not the same character at all. The Professor was left handed and The Merged Hulk was clearly right handed if readers looked carefully. The Merged Hulk was Banner. I had a hard time believing Banner was locked in a cave all that time. I considered the Professor Recton as nothing but an outright insult to readers as well as PAD's work. I totally understood why PAD was upset. I was upset also because I enjoyed most of the Merged Hulk run alot and wish PAD had not messed it up with The Savage Banner even though I did enjoy The Merged Hulk Banner being with Betty before PAD ruined it with that Ghosts of The Future story. I almost wish he would have never did away with The Merged Hulk and even if most people disagree I still think The Merged Hulk would sure be alot better then what we have now with a dead Banner and a phony Chulk. There were just too many different Hulks. I think an argument could have been made to say That Professor Character came out of the cave just like The Devil Hulk and those other Hulks did. The Professor and Doc Green were so similar they could have just been the same character pretty much even though Doc Green and Banner had the struggle that was missing with the Professor. Other problems with Jenkins run was he never followed up on most of the stuff he started. The Devil Hulk started out interesting but then Jenkins letting 18 months go by and then The Devil Hulk coming back much weaker and looking like Jar Jar Brinks pretty much ruined that story for me. Also the fact that issues were put out late so much also frustrated readers. I will say Ron Garney did great art and made the early part of that run good but after Garney left...... well no comment. I think PAD's Tempest Fugit story helped recton that poor run from Jenkins as well as Jones Run. That might be why we never saw the Devil Hulk again or The Professor except for that brief cameo in Waids run if that was even him. I think there was another brief cameo from Devil Hulk afterward but I can't remember where exactly. I know he was in a video game. The one good thing that came from Jenkins Run was The Order and it was so shocking and sad that Jones Run came afterward.
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|Alvaro's Comicboards powered by On Topic™ © 2003-2018 Powermad Software


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So, a brief recap: Catholics have their panties in a bunch again. Somebody made a sculpture of Jesus. Okay, that's not so bad. But the sculpture was made out of chocolate. Okay, that's…tasteless? But not that bad. So, what was so bad about the statue that it attracted the attention of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights? (As a side note, just remember that the League has very little to do with religious rights and just about nothing to do with civil rights.) Here's what was so bad: Chocolate Christ was missing the loin cloth. (BBC News: "Chocolate Jesus exhibit cancelled," March 21, 2007.)
Elsewhere on the crossroads between religious fanaticism, oversensitivity, and censorship, here's a nice little gem from the UK:
Schools are dropping the Holocaust from history lessons to avoid offending Muslim pupils, a Governmentbacked study has revealed.
It found some teachers are reluctant to cover the atrocity for fear of upsetting students whose beliefs include Holocaust denial.
There is also resistance to tackling the 11th century Crusades – where Christians fought Muslim armies for control of Jerusalem – because lessons often contradict what is taught in local mosques.
So, that makes sense. Take the one chance to instill something other than iman-endorsed lies into the minds of impressionable young children and just piss it away ("Teachers drop the Holocaust to avoid offending Muslims," by Laura Clark of the Daily Mail, 02-April-2007).


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The house Fee-Rien is centrally situated, only 5 minutes from the cable cars and the grocery shops.
All our guests receive the citizen's passport. The citizen's passport grants numerous attractive discounts like unlimited use of 8 of the 9 lifts in summer. In addition, the use of buses in the Saas Valley is free all year round.
Bed-linen and towels are in the price included.
Not included in the rental price:
Holiday taxes Summer (01.06. -31.10.): CHF 7.-/adults, CHF 3.50/children (age 6 - 15.99) per day.
Holiday taxes Winter (01.11. -31.05.): CHF 4.50 for adults, CHF 2.25 for children (age 6 - 15.99) per day.
Check in: from 04.00 pm / Check out: to 9.00 am.
All guests receive detailled information about the arrival process.
The house Fee-Rien can be reached by walking the main road. Make a right turn by the shop "Haus der Geschenke". The house is behind the Hotel Carpe Diem.Facilities: dogs of all size welcome, pets welcome, Bathroom with toilet, quiet location, Dishwasher, children's bed, laundry facilities available, information on the region, free use of internet, young persons, non-smokers, cash payment, heating, children, Balcony/Patio, families, W-Lan, transfer, Bed linen, towels, kitchen cloths, lift / elevator, highchair, central location, dogs spend the night free of charge, business travelers, Alpin-Express - 1000m, hillside location, credit cards accepted, Ec-Cash / Maestro,
More details and booking >>


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Contributor: Mitesh
Picture this, you're at your favorite restaurant tucked cozily into a booth and enjoying your delicious meal. In the moments that you savor the last few bites you have left, you overhear a conversation happening in the booth next to you. Your eyes lock onto a cheerful 9-yr old who is having a meal with his mom. "Put your phone away while you eat!" you hear the mom say. Startled by this, the boy's expression goes from cheerful to shock. The young man then begs his case with, "I have one more level left to finish in my game! I'm almost done!"
In the final show of strength, the mother's eyes open wide and she quickly fires back, "put it away, or I will take it from you!" Having found defeat, the boy's expression goes from shock to resentment while he puts the phone away in his pocket.
The heartbroken young boy begrudgingly continues onwards with his meal, where every bite seems to be a painful punishment without his device. You're just about to turn your attention back to your meal, when you see the unthinkable unfold in front of your eyes. The mother pulls out her own smartphone and starts to dabble with her fingers intensely.
"How come YOU get to use your phone?" fires back the boy immediately with contempt. "I have an important email that needs my attention right now" says the mom. At this point, both you and the boy have the same expression and thought in your minds… "THAT'S NOT FAIR!"
Why being authentic matters
Scenarios like this happen all around us, and similarly, within the training world, your credibility can be shot in an instant when you knowingly or unknowingly break your own rules. When it comes to being an authentic trainer, the key idea is, "It's not what you say that matters, it's how you model the message."
In my 10+ years of speaking to audiences and training individuals, I've found that being authentic and garnering trust goes a long way in the training world. It's the basis for getting people to listen to you and more importantly, applying what they learn to create positive behavior change. My mantra has always been, "people will only listen to whom they trust." As without a level of trust, between a trainer and participant, no meaningful transformation can possibly happen.
Here is how I develop trust and bring my most authentic self forward:
Be aligned with your 'Why'
The one thing that I love most about my work is that aligns well with who I am as a person. My 'Why' is always front and center. Personal empowerment is a theme that runs constantly in my daily life and being a trainer provides me with opportunities to help others empower themselves.
I see many clients coming into workshops feeling like they need a big boost in their communication skills. From the get go, I model every single suggestion that I will offer in the class, and without even realizing it, the participants are picking up on my example. If I make a comment on how to gesture, even before I've verbally said it, I've practiced that concept over and over again from the morning. Magic is created at that point, because unlike that mom in the restaurant, there is no disconnect between what I say and how I model the message.
It's at this point where I absolutely love witnessing these individuals go through a subtle inner transformation. They begin to feel more empowered while freeing themselves of the limiting beliefs they walked in with.
Being aligned with my 'Why' also pushes me to dig deeper to understand the limiting fear or doubt that doesn't allow my clients to own their communications space. Most times I see folks struggling to stay confident while presenting. Underneath that lack of confidence, there's usually a limiting belief related to feeling that they are not good enough, experiencing fear of being judged by others or just trying to prove themselves for self-validation.
In those situations, I've worked with folks by taking on a coach role, and getting to the heart of the matter. It's a huge revelation and big part of the self-awareness process when participants acknowledge that one of the reasons why they've not felt confident in presentations is because of a faulty belief system they have for themselves.
Encourage authenticity in others
Every human being has a unique personality, which reflects in his or her communication space as well. As much as I like to equip my clients with the right tools and techniques to be an effective presenter, I tend to focus more on bringing out their natural style. I strongly believe that a person who is comfortable with their natural style carries a level of confidence that makes them shine even brighter when presenting.
Many workshop participants come in with the false notion of being a great presenter by imitating a presenter they know. Not only does this cause the person to try too hard, but it also raises suspicion in their audiences. If a person behaves one way in normal conversations, and then behaves another way while they are presenting, immediately that disconnect causes distrust in audiences.
I remember early on in my career, I admired a communications coach who orated really well. After watching him for some time, I decided to imitate him in my presentations. I particularly remember how he used to say the word 'amazing' with such passion and energy that it landed powerfully with audiences. I went around parroting the word 'amazing' in the same way that he did and thought that it would boost my effectiveness. The first time I saw a video recording of myself saying that word, I cringed with horror, as I realized that I was completely butchering my credibility. Who I was showing up as in my presentations, was not who I was in normal conversation.
When I have an opportunity to coach people, I quickly study their strong points and work throughout the session to accentuate them. I acknowledge that the majority of what they are doing in their presentations is aligned with how they show up in person. When a person recognizes that their work is not to change their personality, but rather, highlight their beautiful personalities, it creates an immediate shift and increases ones confidence level.
The rest of the work is looking at the destructive habits that are taking participants away from being their best selves. For example, bringing awareness to them about the use of gestures and filler words simply enhances their natural presence and helps them in coming across as polished and confident speakers.
Create a connection with the eyes
An underrated, but highly effective piece of being authentic as a trainer is making a deliberate connection with the eyes of your audience. There have been numerous studies on how human beings are able to decipher hundreds of different emotional states on a subconscious level just by looking at a person's face and eyes. For instance, states of amusement, grief, hollowness, frisky-ness, etc., can be processed just by a quick glance at a person's eyes. There's value in connecting with the eyes.
Personally, I've found that there is something about the human eye-to-eye connection that puts people at ease, both as a presenter and as an audience member. As a presenter, delivering a full thought to a person while connecting with the eyes is quite powerful. As an audience member, you feel valued and understood when a presenter has a mini 1-on-1 conversation with you.
I always ask participants in workshops, "How do you normally feel when having a 1-on-1 conversation with a colleague or friend?" Typically the response I get back is, "I feel good about it". I then encourage folks to not see a presentation as this mighty monologue where they are the ones talking, talking, and talking only. Rather, I ask them to see every presentation as an opportunity to have a mini 1-on-1 with each and every person in the room.
Not only does this put everyone at ease, but it also creates the space within the room to open up, engage, and really see the authenticity in your presence. You no longer are a presenter in their eyes, but instead you become a trusted advisor. I mentioned the mantra earlier, "people will only listen to whom they trust." Eye interaction is a necessity to create that authentic connection.
Be the example
In closing, it's not too complicated to understand that being authentic is one of the greatest assets you can have as an influencer. In a world where everyone is trying to be like everybody else, it's a breath of fresh air to come across those people that are who they are regardless of where they are.
Strive to be the example of what your truth, your message and inner voice are collectively saying. The more you stay aligned with who you really are, the more you'll feel liberated and confident to express yourself without fear.
November 2019


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Hello again! I Hope you have had a great summer. I have been traveling, spending precious time with family and re-charging for the fall season ahead.
I would love to share a story from the field.
One of my private clients with Alzheimer's, whom I do one on one Stories Love Music sessions with, has been quite erratic in his responses to these sessions. Some days he is engaged and responsive and other days he is too restless to bother. Over the past few months, I had some realizations that helped this tremendously. This client had been the president of his own company and was used to feeling in charge, involved, heard and seen. Every morning he still dresses for work, even though he cannot go anymore. Like most people he was used to his rituals and feeling engaged in his routine and now it was changing and he was frustrated. I discovered however, that he still went to a local temple and knew Hebrew. I decided to bring in several Hebrew prayers and songs to sing with him. He loved them and sang with me with a gusto he had not before. In the following sessions, I told him I was there to practice these songs with him so we would be ready to sing when he went to temple. Our sessions became "practice sessions" and gave him a new purpose and meaning in our time together. Amazing! Little did my 12 year old self know, when I was studying Hebrew with my rabbi for my Bat Mitzvah, that I would be using my Hebrew years later to give a renewed sense of purpose to a man with Alzheimer's.
Now I should point out that many people I work with, love and connect with music and singing so much, they don't need this extra sense of purpose and structure to it, but some do! Remember this and when you use any kind of creative engagement with your client or loved one, know your audience! Find out what they did, what they love and find a way to make it as meaningful today as in their past.
Thanks for reading and as always, please leave a comment or question as you wish!
12/16/2017 02:40:03 am
There is no doubt that for the first time I have really enjoyed this summer at its peak. I am sure that you are probably the person which is having lot more to share about relative things.
2/19/2018 07:14:52 pm
People have different stories in their past. Approaching them properly and letting yourself to know their stories will help you to deeply understand the cause of their pain or happiness. In your case, you use the platform of music, this is a great medium to interact with someone that has a problem when it comes to behavior and attitude. Practicing this more often will surely broaden your understanding to different things and experiences in life. We should always be thankful for those people who we interact with, they will be part of our life that we should always be treasured.
Leave a Reply.
Ilyana Kadushin
Executive Director of Stories Love Music, Singer, Story Teller, Coach and Activist.
June 2020


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I was showing some basic sqlplus connection tips to a new DBA starter today and my normal warning about putting the password on the line when calling sqlplus didn't produce what I expected.
For ever and a day if you have entered a line within a server session such as when using putty or similar to this :-
sqlplus john/N0tverysafe
and then 'host' to the unix shell and run a ps -ef|grep sqlplus you will see the password and so will anybody else who looks
Oracle Database 11g Enterprise Edition Release 126.96.36.199.0 - 64bit Production With the Partitioning, Automatic Storage Management and OLAP options SQL> host $ps -ef|grep sqlplus oracle 21519 21165 0 Jun 27 ? 00:00:00 sqlplus -s /nolog oracle 19165 18798 0 Jun 25 ? 00:00:00 sqlplus -s /nolog oracle 8516 8514 0 18:33:42 pts/0 00:00:00 grep sqlplus oracle 24027 23642 0 Jul 2 ? 00:00:00 sqlplus -s /nolog oracle 8511 7910 0 18:33:28 pts/0 00:00:00 sqlplus john/N0tVERYsafe
create user john identified by "N0tVERYsafe" profile m_std_profile; grant create session to john;
[sysopr65@teora01x][TST11204]/home/sysopr65 $sqlplus john/N0tVERYsafe SQL*Plus: Release 184.108.40.206.0 Production on Wed Jul 6 19:03:53 2016 Copyright (c) 1982, 2013, Oracle. All rights reserved. Connected to: Oracle Database 11g Enterprise Edition Release 184.108.40.206.0 - 64bit Production With the Partitioning, Automatic Storage Management and OLAP options SQL> host [TST11204]/home/sysopr65 $ps -ef|grep john sysopr65 28309 28306 0 19:04 pts/0 00:00:00 grep john [TST11204]/home/sysopr65 $ps -ef|grep sqlplus sysopr65 28256 22815 0 19:03 pts/0 00:00:00 sqlplus [TST11204]/home/sysopr65 $exit
I will still try to instill good practise by ensuring people do not put username/password as a command string but the loophole does appear to be fixed now.
I must check whether SQL Loader has had the security modification as well, as the issue used to be seen when calling a controlfile embedded with a username and password. Although I must admit I tend to run controlfiles interactively from the unix account without a userid in and just use / as sysdba when asked for a password. That probably isn't best practise but do as I say not as I do.
I have just finished typing this up and I do feel that I have written something like this up before. It might be worth me checking my own blog history.


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- 1940s BEAUTIFUL Hostess Apron Pattern McCall 1231 Built Up Waist Very Glamorous, Includes Embroidery Transfer One Size Vintage Sewing Pattern FACTORY FOLDED
1940s BEAUTIFUL Hostess Apron Pattern McCall 1231 Built Up Waist Very Glamorous, Includes Embroidery Transfer One Size Vintage Sewing Pattern FACTORY FOLDED
Product Description
Authentic vintage sewing patterns: This is a fabulous original dress making pattern, not a copy. Because the patterns are vintage and preowned, we check each vintage sewing pattern for completeness, for the pattern pieces and the instruction sheet. In many cases the vintage patterns have never been used and are uncut and factory folded.
Pattern by : McCall
Pattern Number # 1231
Copyright : 1940s
The pattern is :Complete +transfer UNCUT FACTORY FOLDED
Size: One Size
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Ohio State Beats Illinois 4-1 for Fourth Consecutive Men's Big Ten Title
©Colette Lewis 2009--
Ann Arbor, MI--
The sixth straight meeting of Illinois and Ohio State for the Big Ten conference title ended as the past three had, with the Buckeyes holding the trophy.
I'll have a more formal recap for the Tennis Recruiting Network on Thursday, but I'll pass along a few observations from today's match, which dodged the bad weather that arrived less than an hour after it finished.
The doubles point didn't disappoint in what was expected to be a close contest, with Ohio State looking a bit shaky yesterday against Michigan, and Illinois playing exceptionally well against Indiana.
Ohio State was up big and early at No. 3, where Bryan Koniecko and Shuhei Uzawa had a 6-1 lead on Illinois's Roy Kalmanovich and Meedo El Tabakh. Illinois was up at No. 1 and No. 2, with Dennis Nevolo and Ruan Roelofse up a break over Justin Kronauge and Steven Moneke, and Marek Czerwinski and Marc Spicijaric up two breaks on Ohio State's Matt Allare and Chase Buchanan. There were twists and turns however, with Allare and Buchanan getting one break back to make it 7-6, and Nevolo losing his serve at 5-4, and Ohio State eventually taking a 6-5 lead. But at 6-6, Kronauge was broken and Czerwinski held at No. 2 to give Illinois the tie, moments after Koneicko and Uzawa had put Ohio State in the lead with an 8-4 win at No. 3. Now it was up to freshman Nevolo to serve out the match and give Illinois a lead going into singles. After a tense 30-30 start to the game, Roelofse took control of the final two points at the net, and Illinois had what would turn out to be its only lead of the day.
Ohio State Ty Tucker was effusive in his praise of Nevolo's doubles play after the match, calling him one of the best five doubles players in the country, while freely admitting that his team doesn't play great doubles. But the Illini couldn't sustain any of the momentum they had amassed when the singles began.
It certainly doesn't hurt the Buckeyes chances when one of the country's top recruits, Chase Buchanan, who joined the team last month, is filling their six slot. As he had done against Michigan on Saturday, Buchanan got an early point for the Buckeyes, , evening the match at 1-1 with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Brian Livingston. As the first set losses began to mount, Illinois must have recognized the feeling Indiana had on Saturday, when the Hoosiers were down early and often on nearly every court. Livingston and Abe Sousza at No. 5 had been outstanding for Illinois against Indiana, but not against Ohio State. Once all six first sets had been won by Buckeyes, it was then just a guessing game as to who would clinch and when. Kronauge gave Ohio State its second point by downing Kalmanovich 6-3, 6-2 at No. 2, and Koniecko put them on the brink with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Spicijaric at No. 1. When Souza was broken at 4-4 in the second set against Balazs Novak, the Buckeyes no longer on court and those who traveled with the team but didn't play, congregated courtside. It wasn't a long wait, with Novak holding at love to deliver the fourth point and the fourth conference title for the Buckeyes, who completed a perfect Big Ten season for the fourth year in a row.
As the staff distributed the hats and T-shirts proclaiming the Buckeyes Big Ten Champions, there was excitement and happiness, with the freshman and sophomores displaying the biggest smiles. For the seniors and Tucker, one of the emotions was certainly relief, but even with the NCAAs looming, Ohio State was going to take the time to enjoy it.
"Are you kidding me?" Tucker said, when I asked him if it gets old. "No, it's unbelievable. Sometimes the faces change, but they're all Buckeyes and they work hard, they fight hard."
For complete scores, see the Ohio State website.
Tucker still has a ways to go to approach the record that Claire Pollard is posting at Northwestern. Her women have now won 11 straight conference titles with a 4-0 victory over Michigan today in Wisconsin. For details, see the Northwestern website.
In the SEC, the Ole Miss men and Georgia women have earned conference titles. And in the Big 12, Baylor prevails in both men's and women's conference tournaments.


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Finished buffing
Three edge less eagles took everything off and then went over the whole car again with a double-soft just in case I missed anything. Roughly an hour to buff the vehicle (KIA Sorento, 7 seater, so a medium size)
I re-applied a coat to the hood as that`s where I started and based on how it felt I think I went too thin at first.
Honestly, it went on and off really nice with limited drama but lots of rag flipping and shaking.
After seeing how nice it went on, I`m tempted to use the cyclo with red or black pads for the second coat as it`s hard to get at the middle of the roof on this car and there`s a lot of roof there (end up moving my platform 4 times per side) The hood is also quite an expanse and the cyclo running slow is basically a one handed operation for spreading waxes
Anyway, we`ll see how well this stuff works as they`re starting to build a new subdivision in behind my place and right now it`s bulldozers and scrapers running around the field everyday tossing clouds of dust into the air.


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