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Merry Christmas to all you figure collectors out there! Christmas seems like a particularly Nendoroid-ish holiday, so I decided to do a special photo shoot with mine.
Since I had some vacation days to burn, I decided to spend some time building a set for my Nendos (and figmas). After adding in some dollhouse furniture, the Nendoroid living room was ready to go!
But the main thing about Nendoroid photography is telling a story. That was the hard part – especially after I made it my goal to use every Nendoroid in my collection*. Of course this isn't a STORY story, just a collection of scenes I thought were Christmas-y.
The Minami sisters Kana, Haruka, and Chiaki
Grim Reaper Riela, Angel of Love Flonne, and Beauty Queen Etna
Moe-fied WWII heroines Akagi, I-401, and Lynette Bishop
School life superstars Teddie, Kyon, Kuroneko, Churuya-san, Yuki Nagato, and Mayoi Hachikuji
Miku quartet
Kill la Kill power trio Ryuko, Satsuki, and Mako
"Give me… the Zero…"
Have a toast with your friends!
*Didn't realize until too late that I missed ONE of my Nendoroids. DAMN IT.
Have a safe and happy holiday!


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One constant that all leaders face is resistance. You'll encounter various obstacles, and the ability to handle this adversity and successfully achieve your vision is what makes a great leader. But how do you create stepping stones out of stumbling blocks to your goals?
First, you need to redefine your view of leadership. In this Open Source Era, the world is constantly evolving and leaders need to transform how they lead or risk losing relevance. Great leaders also harness their Leadership Energy, an intrinsic inner strength that allows them to stay strong in the face of insurmountable odds. This is something that can't be taught or feigned, but self-discovered by clarifying your intrinsic values, identifying a clear life-purpose, and developing an open mind.
At LESA 2018, we've gathered forward-thinking minds from around the world for you to discover more about Open Source Leadership and Leadership Energy so that you can achieve your vision of a better future. Like Richard Quest, a prominent anchor who's conversed with world leaders, Dr. Amani Salim, Malaysia's first NASA scientist. Those who challenge conventional wisdom like Dr Samuel West, who created a museum of failure, Brett King, disruptor of the modern banking world.
Find out how to practice positive, autocratic leadership, to create breakthrough success, in today's high-speed environment from Rajeev Peshawaria, global thought leader on positive autocracy, Dr. Julia Kim, who upholds awareness-based practices in development and leadership and Stephen M.R. Covey, who advocates TRUST to make corporations profitable.
You can find out more about Leadership Energy, and, better yet, experience it in real life, at the Leadership Energy Summit Asia 2018.
Click here to register or to find out more.

subset: commoncrawl


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Earlier this month a 47yo smallholder named Jane V Edwards (née Caunce) of Riverbank, Bagillt, Flintshire was banned from keeping any animals except dogs and cats for two years after two sheep and a Shetland pony were found dead in a snowbound field off Picton Lane in Penyffordd, near Holywell.
After sharing our earlier post about this case to our Facebook page, we were inundated with messages from local animal lovers all too familiar with the cruelty of Jane Edwards and, allegedly, her wider family – husband John Edwards, daughter Emma Edwards and sons John Edwards jr and Aaron Caunce (the latter from a previous relationship) and various minors that we can't yet name due to their age.
We heard that animals from sheep, pigs and goats through to dogs, cats, horses and rabbits were living a hellish existence on the squalid smallholding run by the Edwards.
Locals supplied us with video and photographic evidence purporting to show conditions at the farm. One video showed a thin-looking goat quite clearly in pain with a badly injured rear leg, which our contact said had been untreated for some time.
We were sent dozens of photographs taken at Edwards' smallholding showing dead sheep decomposing in a muddy field, depressed-looking pigs living in filth and ravenous semi-feral cats and kittens desperately seeking shelter from the elements. A neighbour of the Edwards family told me she has been feeding the animals herself in a desperate bid to keep them alive until the RSPCA get their finger out and remove them from a clearly harmful situation.
One particularly horrifying photograph we were sent showed a dead fox entangled in a wire fence. A tragic accident, you'd have thought. But closer examination shows that the fox's rear legs have been tethered to the fence with string. In other words, he'd been deliberately tied up, unable to escape and would have died an agonising death. Again we understand this took place on the Edwards' land and, if the allegations are true, would make any right-thinking person extremely concerned about the type of people we are dealing with here.
All available evidence points to the Edwards' smallholding being a scene of chaos and horror, a veritable hellhole where multiple species of animals co-exist amidst ramshackle, make-shift buildings, squalor, death and decay. The people meant to be caring for these helpless creatures instead show utter contempt for their welfare.
But surely following the RSPCA's successful prosecution of Jane Edwards, many if not all of the animals (dogs and cats were excluded from the ban, remember) would be removed to safety? Apparently not. Shockingly, it is perfectly legal for Edwards to transfer 'ownership' of them to her husband, who, if accounts from several different sources are to be believed, is every bit as twisted as his wife.
And the apple doesn't fall far from the tree, as they say.
We saw footage of one son, John Edwards Jr – a big lad, obese actually – who was trying to mount a small unsaddled pony while being goaded by his mother and other family members, who seemed to find the pony's obvious terror hilarious.
One contact told us how they had witnessed another son, Aaron Caunce, rip the heads of live pet rabbits just for fun and that he went on to boast about it, leading him to being barred from his local pub.
Worse was to follow with the video footage below, taken last weekend at the Edward's smallholding, showing a weak, emaciated collie-type dog named Jessie pacing despondently back and forth in a state of obvious distress. The local who captured the footage contacted the RSPCA who failed to attend despite her pleas for assistance. In desperation the local uploaded the video to her Facebook profile and it soon went viral.
The local said she knocked on the Edwards' door and offered Jane Edwards £100 for Jessie but was knocked back. She added that a local animal activist then upped the offer to £200 for the dog but she too was told no.
Later that evening Jane Edwards was apparently seen carrying Jessie's lifeless body across the yard. When challenged, she said that the dog had died. She said that she hit her with a hammer and that she (Jessie) was bleeding from the eyes. This account is unconfirmed but, if true, then Jane Edwards needs to be arrested and charged without delay.
The local told me that one of Edwards' children – a 12yo girl – seemed unfazed that a family dog had met such a brutal end and simply said: "She was no good anyway".
Jessie's body has apparently been buried and the Edwards are point-blank refusing to say where.
The Facebook group Justice for Jessie has been set up to monitor developments and is campaigning hard for the Edwards family to be prosecuted for animal cruelty and disqualified for life from keeping animals. All of them.
We are happy to support this group's campaign to bring this bunch of mentally deficient hillbillies to justice and help prevent any more animals coming to harm at their hands.
York Press
Daily Post
Justice for Jessie FB group


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Art as grammar of the magickal imagination
"Art is another language which, if you undertake to learn it, will open up a new world that permeates, surrounds and elevates this dull metropolis." ~ Seshat
When first you enter the pagan or occult world, you will be faced with all sorts of good (and bad) advice. So let me just throw my glove into the ring with a suggestion of my own.
For those of you who are regularly readers (for which I thank you), you will know that I am a great proponent of using one's imagination (see HERE for my latest article on the subject). Aside from sitting by the fire day dreaming, some might wonder where on earth to start with honing their creative and imaginistic muscles. First and foremost I would recommend art … although that might feel to turgid and bound by rules of aesthetics and skill … so let's expand that word to "the arts and crafts" which could include everything expressive from music to painting to woodwork and textiles, such as sewing or even knitting. I know that last might baffle you – what benefit could something like knitting have to a magickal life?! But I would ask you to put aside such "art snobbery" and be open to the idea of creation.
Creating A Thing is a practice that involves making and holding a vision, imagination, commitment to follow through and skill to execute. No part of that sequence involves any judgement over "good" or "bad", "beautiful" or ugly", "useful" or "useless". This is not the realm for debating "What is art?" – this is the domain of learning to envision, create and manifest. Sounds a little like the basics of magick and spellwork, right?
And even though creating artistically can indeed give expression to the subconscious mind (I am a supporter of therapeutic art), this does not mean that I equate magick with the mere machinations of one's own unconscious, or even the collective unconscious. Magick is not mere psychology and the entities one encounters are not necessarily (although they can be) projections of your own mind. So let's just make that clear. I am proposing some form of artistic involvement as a means to develop the full spectrum of imagination: a process of shifting a thing from energy into matter. This does indeed include music, as I consider sound vibrations to be a material manifestation. So my remit for "arts and crafts" really does include all forms of creativity.
So, now I shall expand a little on my own artistic practices:
Some people, especially in occult practices, like to work fast and furiously on their art, allowing no room for internal censorship. One of my art practices begins like this, in that I put pen to paper, close my eyes, draw madly in swirls and lines for a few seconds and then stop. But that is the fastest I get in my art. In fact, my art – whether it is sketching, felt painting, or textile work – is characterised by an exceptionally slow pace. It can literally take me months to complete a piece. Surely, when working so slowly, I have to battle often with the censor and conscious mind forcing it into a particular conceptual mould? Yes and no. Certainly I occasionally have to battle with the censor, but the processes for my art are often described by others as tedious and boring; I frequently hear, "I would never have the patience to do that!" But for me, it requires no patience. Due to the minute focus that is required, I slip into a hypnagogic state where the boundaries between conscious censor and fluid unconscious are permeable and mobile. This allows my imagination free reign and expression, often with surprising results. I never know when I start a piece, how it is going to turn out. But where's that "vision" I spoke about as the starting point? For me, the vision is merely the unmistakeable physical pull and urge to create; it is a very corporeal as well as mental drive – for me personally, this is my vision and the manifestation is a process of welcoming the Other that nudged my psychic senses and bringing into a material form. The process will most likely be different for other people, but maybe some of you can identify with my own experience and methods.
And I must make an aside, regarding textile art (e.g. knitting, although in my case not knitting per se as I have injured hands and can no longer knit without pain). I embroider and create knot ropes; again, both techniques are laborious and easily induce a light trance state due to the focus and repetition. My knot ropes (for which I use spools, or French knitting dolls, but also the Anglo-Saxon lucet) may seem banal to onlookers, but to me they are invested with thought and emotion. By doing such repetitive work, importantly while focusing on a particular thing (a solution to a problem, a state you wish to come into being, magick you wish to actuate, or a person) you anchor that thing in muscle memory for a start, making the thing you create a part of your body (mundane example: the first time I watched The Shining I was knitting socks. The next day after watching the film, I picked up my socks and experienced such powerful flashbacks from the film that I could no longer continue knitting. It took a week for the muscle memory to abate enough for me to pick up again). But also, by taking the slow route, one comes to know the Thing one creates intimately well: that point where the shade of wool changes a fraction, that slip in the stitch that creates a loose mark, that struggle to tie in a bead or feather… So what's the point, you may ask? The point is to enhance concentration, memory, focus, experiencing creation with the body not just the mind, and of course exercising of the imagination. Never underestimate the simple rural crafts such as knotting, spinning, carding, weaving, crocheting, and yes, knitting. They hold an equal place in my heart alongside the more "mainstream" arts of painting and sketching.
The proof is in the pudding. Try it. Try everything. I have sung, played classical guitar, painted, sketched, used textiles and wool, knotted and finger painted! And in each I have been able to reach that hypnagogic state – not always, because it's not always appropriate – but at will, which is a sign that it has developed into a discipline. The neural pathways are laid, the psychic arteries are flowing, my imagination is working.
The wonderful thing about art is that it is a life-long companion. There is always room to improve your creative and imaginistic skills. Remember that cerebral judgement about "art" does not apply here. If you can think it, you can do it – and that is not a literal adjuration to do whatever you like. Not everything should be enacted literally, but that is the beauty of imagination and art, – there are no rules. I have seen art created by finger painting with menstrual blood, alongside the "Fine Art" painted canvases; I have seen thread embroidered into the very skin on the hand of an artist, alongside ecclesiastical gold embroidery. The end product is almost irrelevant; it is the inner journey that is important – the vision, the actuation, the material manifestation. But like all good magick, don't hang on the results. Once you've finished a piece, do not rest on your laurels, but immediately begin the next! Only so (I suggest) will you develop invaluable skills to your occult, pagan and magickal practices.
©StarofSeshat 2016
I am within me
So my lucet arrived… Isn't he beautiful?
He was hand-carved from cherry wood and feels amazing in my hand. It didn't take me long at all to get the hang of it (thanks to some YouTube videos). I dove straight in and worked a contrast thread (the gimp cord). Imagine now knotting in pearls and semi-precious bead stones, small feathers … Beautiful. And if you don't know what I'm talking about, please refer to THIS POST ABOUT KNOT MAGIC.
Even though there is room for much elaboration, my initial experiment with knot magic and the lucet was a much more basic and plain affair. I sat in candlelight with my lucet and two threads of the appropriate colour (in this instance black and red). I began to weave, focusing all my thoughts into each knot, binding my intent into the cord. Once done, I knotted off the cord, tied it into a circle (further binding it into itself) and placed it like a halter around the neck of one of my fetishes. I lit a candle and made offerings to the fetish for one night. The next night, I placed the "done spell" into my Atua. When I have sufficient cords in my Atua I will burn them, but for now they are fine there, "magickally fermenting" in a spirit atmosphere. Spell work has always felt like cooking for me … ingredients, stewing, fermenting, rising, baking off, cooking till its "done"… and often, disposing of the remains, preferably composting it to earth or burning off with fire.
On another note, my writing career is starting to take off, and consequently spending a few moments on this blog chatting with you, feels a little like sneaking out the back of the office for a quick smoke. I am ghostwriting and editing, along with some translation work again (although wildly different to what I used to translate); and I've started writing a book on fear. It's a theme that comes up recurrently in profane AND sacred life. I don't know anyone who hasn't experienced fear, except for the sociopath whose emotions are by nature limited to the shallows. And yes, I've met a few of them. Thank you, The Internet.
Although these days my life seems mostly free from dastardly types and this is a testament to how I have overcome my own fear in laying down the boundaries of my identity. I used to be swayed so easily like driftwood on the sea, but these days, although I am flexible, I am no longer merely a mirror to egos stronger than my own. It's okay to have preferences and limits. Being a mirror to others does not mean that I am more enlightened or less bound by my own ego-urges. Maybe quite the contrary, that I end up in a battle between my own ego and that of the other person.
So often I have sacrificed myself to another, especially in relationships. My needs took back place and I squeezed myself small into the mould they made for me. But eventually I would spring out of the mould, slightly deformed, but still different from what they wanted me to be, and then I would be rejected. It was a cycle I repeated way too often. These days, perhaps it's age, I am averse to moulds; I recognise big egos and I walk around them; I am less swayed by the externals. My relationship with spirits has helped; if I find myself dancing to another's tune, I get a nudge from Spirit because such inauthenticity detaches me from my ability to connect with Other. Being authentic is not a place of comfort and often it would be easier and feel more secure (although it is a false security) to hand over responsibility for the dance to someone else. It's a truth that only I can dance with my own feet … forget walking in my shoes, you can have my shoes … but no one walks this earth – skin on dirt – like I do (or like you do).
Empathy is a wonderful thing, but it can sometimes tilt one towards living too much inside other people's heads. I grew up with no separation between myself and others due to my psychism and my sensitive empathy. But at the age of 20 I attended a workshop in a small village in Germany. There I was introduced to the phrases: "Ich bin bei mir" and "Ich bin bei dir", which loosely translate as "I am within me" and "I am within you" (bei translates variously as with, in, at, by … but I choose in this instance the word "within"). At the workshop I was challenged in my thinking and actions again and again: Are you within yourself or within another? And I realised that I was predominantly within other people, thinking and feeling what they felt and adjusting my own behaviour accordingly. I was reactive to every person I met. I rarely acted from a spontaneous base of me-ness. Yes, you could look at the psychology and say it was a defence and way to keep myself safe, which is true. My upbringing was not a safe one and knowing what other people were thinking/feeling or going to do before they even knew it themselves kept me safe. But as an adult it was a disempowering habit that kept me in a regressed emotional and spiritual state.
I rapidly learned to recognise when I was "within another" and I tempered my responses, although it has taken years to form a solid identity of my own that is not defined by other people (remembering also that we are coloured by all experiences, including very much the people we allow into our lives). It is a life-long journey because each day we step into the river and it is never the same … neither are we.
So, dear folks, it's time to put out my metaphorical cigarette (as I don't smoke!) and step back into the office. Thanks for dwelling a while with me as I pondered a few things. Till next time!
©StarofSeshat 2016
Knot magic: get knotted!
Many moons ago I heard the old wives' tale that when a woman is in labour all the doors in the house should be kept open to facilitate any easy birth; a closed door equals a block or obstacle. I pondered on this and subsequent study has shown that creating or releasing a blockage sympathetically can have powerful repercussions psychically and magickally: when we feel defensive we cross our arms and/or our legs, which is implied to mean creating a psychological barrier, but which also creates a psychic/energetic block and protects us. Consider also the superstition of crossing one's fingers for luck; this is another way of creating protection by sealing ourselves off psychically. I have studied healing methods that require one to touch feet and hands together, expressly to create a self-contained energy circuit for the purposes of harnessing and directing healing energy.
So from all this, it was not much of a leap for me to dive into knot magic in my late teens. [As an aside, in Britain there is the tame yet still rude alternative to telling someone to "Fuck off!" which is to tell them to "Get knotted!"]
In fact, my first dalliance with knot magic began with a severe cold. I woke in the night virtually unable to breathe. I was suffering greatly and sleep eluded me because my sinuses were entirely blocked up. Instinctively I took a cord that I had lying on my altar and I began to knot. I knotted everything into the cord that I felt had contributed to my ill-health. Each knot represented a thing/person/event/feeling. It was important to vocalise each thing and … unlike much magick … I had to REMEMBER every thing that I knotted into the cord. Once the cord was a bundle of knots, I knotted it in on itself until it was like a fist in my hand (the fist is yet another expression of self-protection – a "hand knot"). Then I meditated upon pushing everything I felt and thought about each knot into the scrambled tangle in my hands. After a significant amount of "charging" came the reason for needing to remember each knot; I began to UNknot the cord, again vocalising that I was releasing/unknotting each thing/person/event/feeling. It did not matter if I got the order wrong, but I did have to remember each thing in order to release it. If I forgot something, then the blockage/knot would remain even if the cord was untangled. Once I had finished I lay the cord smoothly and in an open fashion, i.e. not a single overlap or crossing of the cord, on my altar. By the end of the unknotting I was already able to breathe freely and, by the morning, the virus which had plagued me for several days was completely gone.
This is how I came to begin using knot magic. It is great for releasing blockages and healing, but naturally, it can be good for cursing and binding and creating blockages – you just leave the cord tangled, bury it … hide it … whatever.
I am a textile crafter and much of my spellwork/magic involves making things (poppets, spirit receptacles, etc.). Now, some of the crafted stuff takes several hours to create (sewing, embroidering sigils, etc.); it would be more convenient to make up the things beforehand, and only consecrate and charge it in Circle. But, I do find that the distractions outside of Circle dilute the crafted item considerably. How much more can be imbued in a magickal item if you have the staying power to make it from start to finish IN Circle where your intent is focused solely and exclusively on what you wish to manifest!
I remember that my most potent servitor was created in just such a way. (I understand that not everyone creates servitors in a Circle, but I do and it works for me.) I gathered everything I needed, cast the Circle and sat for three and a half hours making "his" home. The result was a thing of power.
Recently I have been doing French Knitting (or spool knitting as I think the Americans call it). I have been using a 4-pin and an 8-pin spool. The project is just for fun and not interesting to you folks, I'm sure. While knitting I pondered the process which is essentially creating one tiny knot after another, all linked together to create a cord. I began to fantasize about spool knitting in Circle, adding feathers, teeth, bones, herbs, hair … Then, by chance I was researching something when I came across 2-pin French knitting, which is called "Lucet weaving". This is a technique dating back to Viking times and was used to make thin cords. The design of the Lucet (look HERE) just spoke to me … nay, shouted at me … the Devil horns screamed, "Use me!" and all my pondering and fantasising coalesced into a plan! So I have ordered myself a hand-carved, cherry wood Lucet. Sadly it must come all the way from Canada so I have to wait for it. But whoop! When it arrives I shall happily "get knotted"!
©StarofSeshat 2016


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|Tess in her Toy Theatre booth this past weekend...
The World Maker Faire here in New York City was just terrific and happily overwhelming. We had good crowds, and a lot of families lamented not getting the weekend pass to take advantage of all the teaching booths—this was all so new to locals. Maker Faires usually have pricey entrance fees (ours was $25 at the door and a weekend pass $35 with much lower rates for kids). But once you go in, there are many many booths where you can get free lessons and I made sure to show anyone who would stop long enough how I make my rod puppets. I did not go as a seller, but to simply show what I do and demonstrate what I make and how I do it. My booth was covered with balloons so I was a kid magnet. We had a little over 500 exhibitors from all over the Eastern seaboard, and many came pretty late in the game as I did because the word got around so slowly.
The important thing about Maker Faire is that it is the vision of a man named Dale Dougherty. He looks like a low key professor with a pleasant demeanor and amused smile. But he is a true believer, mover & shaker of DIY, i.e., it helps the Earth with recycling and repairing objects, and it helps the individual save money and maybe even build a business. In this economy, we can't have enough people who see the world this way. Maker Faire encourages Makers to talk to each other and be supportive. It is so refreshing to encounter business people who are opposite the corporate model of ruthless Capitalism. The Makers believe in what I think should be called Capitalism with a beating heart. Many of the makers I met referred other makers to booths for supplies or to share technical problems (I brought flyers for two of my suppliers, also). I had a tricky moment right up front when I discovered my gridwall required an Allen wrench which the seller did not inform me about. A local maker helper passing through brought me an Allen wrench in five minutes and helped to put it up.
Tess' Italian Toy Theatre
Tess' Medieval Toy Theatre - I LOVE the draw bridge stage!


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How to get great testimonials
Powerful testimonials really do persuade people to buy.
We all like to see proof of how good something is before we buy it.
We want to see if the people who bought it are like us (have the same problems, needs, desires or aspirations).
We like to see if we're in the same tribe, group, clan, family.
Why? Because that's how we know we can TRUST YOU.
If somebody who runs a business like mine got great value from using your product or service, I'm more likely to buy from you.
If I'm connected to that person in other ways, and I trust them, I'm MUCH more likely to buy from you.
(It's called social proof. Nielsen, the world's biggest market research company, says people trust social proof 84% more than advertising.)
How do you get really great testimonials?
This is a simple process that really works:
Approach every client for whom you know you've done a good job.[pullquote]Nielsen, the world's biggest market research company, says people trust social proof 84% more than advertising.[/pullquote]
Most people haven't a clue how to write a good testimonial and will put it off, so send them a copy of a really good one they can use as a template, or write it for them. It saves them a lot of time and you a lot of hassle.
(If you're cringing – get over yourself. All you're doing is allowing more people to benefit from what you have to offer).
The testimonial should say three crucial things:
- This is the problem we had,
- This is what you did to fix it,
- This is the measurable result.
Anything else, like how lovely, patient, kind and understanding you are, is nice, but icing.
Good testimonials aren't fluffy; they communicate very specifically the type of person the testimonial writer is and the type of problem they've been able to solve with your help, and how this benefited them. This helps readers put themselves in the storyteller's shoes.
Most importantly it should be attributed to the writer. If it's a business, their business name and website should be included (remember social proof). If its a personal service and people don't want to be identified, make sure you include the important factors that potential buyers will identify with, e.g., gender, age, location, etc. A photo is even better – and adds to to the trust factor. [pullquote]If you're not getting great testimonials, maybe you should be asking for feedback instead![/pullquote]
This doesn't follow the formula, but it's certainly original …
This is my only testimonial in Limerick form!
"There once was a lady called Ann
Who came up with a business plan
Her skills she transferred
To us entrepreneurs
And those that couldn't now can!"
Matt Widgery Founder at Framed Planet Music and Commercial Photographer at Matt Widgery Photography and Author at F Stop Lounge


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Wonky floorboards, low roof beams, and door hinges that squeaked just enough to make it charming rather than annoying. These were the first things I noticed when walking into the Luang Chumni Village Guesthouse in Ayutthaya.
It was the dark, teak wood of this impressive-looking traditional Thai-looking property that originally drew my attention, with its peaked roof and surrounding moat, it really did seem like the ideal place to stay whilst exploring the old capital of Thailand.
Knowing where to stay in Ayutthaya can be difficult simply because the historical park is so spread out, and whilst you may be close to one or two temples, many of the other temples you wish to visit may be a fair distance from wherever you are staying.
Why Did We Choose Luang Chumni Village Guesthouse?
The historical city of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya is about 80km north of Bangkok and covers a total area of close to 15km so whilst, should you wish, you could take a day trip from the modern capital we decided to spend a few days there exploring.
As a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is one of those places that we have always been intrigued by and wanted to see. How could you visit Thailand without delving into the former capital of Siam, a city that was, at one time, the largest in the world?
Having spent hours researching before our trip, I knew that we could either wander or hire bikes to get around the historical park so staying on the outskirts would not necessarily be an issue. However when I started to look for accommodation, whether a hotel, a bed and breakfast or a hostel they all seemed to either be miles away from the centre or very drab-looking.
I wanted to stay somewhere that screamed history; for me this was a total experience, not just a place to spend a few days. I didn't just want to learn about the history of the city I wanted to stay somewhere that represented that history – hence, why we stayed at the Luang Chumni Village Guesthouse.
Ok, so I could get a hotel that dated back to the majestic reign of this city but I wanted something that stood out, something different and we definitely had that with this particular guesthouse.
What We Loved About Luang Chumni Village Guesthouse
Luang Chumni Village is a family run business with just 6 guestrooms meaning that the service we received was extremely personal. From the warm welcome to the clean and tidy rooms we really felt that this was a great place to stay, especially for the price.
For 1200 Baht (around £27) a night we received a lovely little room, with a comfortable, very thick mattress on the floor, plenty of storage, a fridge with daily complimentary water and even a TV. We also had a large, extremely clean mosquito net which stretched snugly over the bed meaning we were not bitten alive in our sleep. This was vital, as the house itself is surrounded by its own moat and has become a breeding place for the little flying menaces.
However, do not let this put you off. The team have created an amazing space and other than at night time when the temperature begins to drop a bit, we had no issues with mozzies at all, we even spent one lazy afternoon relaxing on the open space next to our room, reading, listening to the abundance of birds that have taken up home in the surrounding trees and watching the resident moggies chase after the local wildlife within the extended gardens.
What I loved most about this little guesthouse however, was its quirkiness. None of the floors were even, the walls all sat at slightly different angles, and to get in and out of our room we had to climb through the tininess of doorways into a narrow hallway that had not one but two different rooms inside. It did mean that each time we clambered through the door we would accidentally knock into the room opposite but no-one seemed to mind. I think it simply added to the friendly atmosphere; making it feel more like staying with friends that in a nondescript hotel room.
The Bathroom May Be A Problem For Some!
There seemed, when we read the reviews, to be just one niggle with this particular Bed and Breakfast, and that was the bathrooms.
For us, to read that we all had our own separate bathroom facility albeit not attached to the room itself was not much of an issue. After all I have been known to wander a campsite in my PJs in search on the toilet block in the pitch black, so to know that I still have a personal bathroom space was quite reassuring although until we arrived we didn't quite understand how this would work out.
All the bedrooms are on the first floor of this traditional looking Thai home meaning that alongside each room they have added in a set of stairs which lead down to the private bathrooms below, all of which are fully equipped with a large shower, toilet, basin mirror and a full complement of bathroom goodies – including the always coveted hair conditioner.
I understand that it may be a nuisance for some, and yes I suppose at 3am to have to hop out of bed, remembering to put on something appropriate for wandering around outside, and head into the darkness may be a bit inconvenient but it's a unique property and still couldn't dampen my positivity for this charming and cheap guesthouse.
Location, Location, Location
Of course, it is not just about what the place looks like, the location also needs to be right and Luang Chumni Village Guesthouse couldn't be better positioned. We were just a five minute wander from Wat Maha That, the iconic and definitely one of the most photographed temples of Ayutthaya thanks to the now-famous Buddha head entwined into a tree.
It is also extremely close to Bang Lan Night Market where you can get a wide variety of different dishes, some more appealing than others. There are also numerous restaurants and cafes within walking distance although to get some of the more lively bars you will need to stroll the main street for about 15 minutes. If you do decide that you would like a more up-tempo evening we suggest heading off to Nareasuan Road where you will find numerous watering holes, including Tony's Place, a restaurant with an extensive menu featuring both Thai and Western-style dishes.
You can also wander close to the river where you will see shop after shop selling brightly coloured bags of what looks like candy floss, known as roti sai ma and if the various colours do not catch your attention the sweet smells will.
The Only Way to Travel Around Ayutthaya
We made the mistake on the first day of trying to see the historical park on foot. Hundreds of others had hired bikes and were flying around the temples, but we had decided that we wanted to amble around and take it all in at a slower pace.
However, Luang Chumni Village, like pretty much every other bed and breakfast and hotel in the area, did hire out bicycles and on day two, in order to see the sights further out we did in fact hop on a bike and tackle the extremely busy roads.
For me, the traffic was the biggest shock – I always imagined Ayutthaya to be a quiet location. I have seen hundreds of photos where people are cycling past lush green verges on their way to yet another temple and I just assumed that due to the fact that this is a UNESCO World Heritage Site that all the city's treasured temples would be cut off from traffic.
Would We Recommend Luang Chumni Village Guesthouse?
If you are after a cheap place to stay when visiting Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Luang Chumni Village is undoubtedly somewhere you should be considering. Not only is it great value for money, it is centrally located and most importantly full of character, something which I know we all crave sometimes.
This is not only one of the cheapest guesthouses in Ayutthaya it is also one of the most charismatic. So next time you consider visiting Ayutthaya, make sure you consider the Luang Chumni Village Guesthouse, I guarantee you will not be disappointed. We consider it to be one of the best places to stay in the city for the price paid.
Have you visited Ayutthaya? Would you recommend a trip to this historical city?


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Points to Note and FAQ's
Q: I have booked/paid for the event, is my booking confirmed?
Ans. No!, your booking can become invalid if you do not submit the "Most Important Details" required for emergency situations. For any Trek/Adventure event the organizers need to have your details atleast 24 hours prior to the event. We do not allow anyone to the campsite until we have complete and authentic details of the person. This info is crucial in case of emergency and is a mandatory KYC parameter. The link for the "personal details form" will be sent along with the ticket confirmation email. Submitting incomplete/incorrect/fake details in the form will make your booking invalid and no refund will be provided in such case.
Q. We are coming by our own vehicle for the event, where should we reach?
Ans. You need to reach "Baba Da Dhaba" at scheduled meeting time, the "Dhaba" is at 10 min driving distance from kasara station. This is where we will halt for lunch, from here you can follow our vehicles. After this point cellphone network coverage is bad and our team won't be contactable. You will be given exact coordinated after you finish booking formalities.
Q. How do we get in touch after reaching the meeting point?
Ans. We will be creating a WhatsApp group one day prior to the event for coordination where you will be provided all the necessary information regarding contact person, exact point to meet, etc..
Q. How many people will be at the coming for this trek?
Ans. Depends on the number of people booking the event. Generally, the batch size is approximately 25 participants. Actual count depends on bookings and cancellation done till the last min. Kalsubai is one of the most popular locations and thousands of other people will be there too.
Q. Is it safe for solo participants?
Ans. Yes, mostly 30% of participants come up solo and blend in.
Q. Is it safe for girls?
Ans. Mischief Treks has a track record of making our trekking and camping events extremely safe for girls. Normally 60 75 % of our participants are females.
Q.How long is the trek?
Ans. Normally it takes three hours to ascend and two hours to descend.
Q. Why is submitting emergency contact details and KYC information mandatory?
Ans. It's a standard protocol and also a guideline by Govt of India. We are accountable for every "Human-Body" present at our campsite or trek is our responsibility and in case of any unfortunate event, we will be asked by authorities to provide all relevant information about you. In order to comply with the authorities, we have to take authentic information from you. Fake/Incomplete information or non-submission of the details will make your ticket (paid amount) invalid and no refund will be provided in such case. You will not be allowed to participate in the event.


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(This, with a few edits, is a newspaper piece I wrote on the release of John and Yoko's Double Fantasy. It was published on Nov. 30, 1980, two weeks after the record's release and eight days before Lennon's murder. Despite all the hoopla, the much-anticipated album did not shoot straight to the top of the charts until after the tragedy (which gives the phrase "Number One with a Bullet" a chilling irony) and some critics were not kind. My editor at the time told me that following Lennon's death, some of the bad reviews were pulled before publication and rewritten .)
Whether he was reshaping the world as a Beatle, giving peace a chance, exposing his jagged psyche, traipsing left-ward with the likes of Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman, about-facing and shunning the mixed-up media or settling down to family life in any one of his home-sweet-homes, John Lennon and his art have been one.
Mercurial, eccentric, quick-witted and brilliantly talented, Lennon has always plunged heart-first into anything he's created. He's given pieces of himself on the printed page (his two books, In His Own Write and A Spaniard in the Works) and on celluloid (the avant-garde films he shot with Yoko Ono). Vinyl-ly, with his records, he's invariably left blood on the tracks (as Mr. Zimmerman would say) with his confessional offerings, beginning with such compositions as "Help" and "I'm a Loser."
Though the mythology of The Beatles has in some ways proven to be a weighty albatross for him and the rest of the Fab Foursome, it was in the context of the group that he first quaked the earth. Lennon was the controversial one, the dream-weaver and the wave-maker. The intellectually-inclined slice of The Beatles' audience gravitated, predictably, toward the brainy, zany Lennon.
No, he wasn't The Beatles. No one of them was. But as Pete Hamill wrote, "In some way, John had been the engine of the group, the artistic armature driving the machine beyond its own limits, restless, easily bored, in love with speed the way Picasso was in love with speed, and possessed of a hoodlum's fanatic heart."
The post-Beatles Lennon was once likened to Sisyphus; indeed, ever since Yoko Ono supplanted Paul McCartney as his partner-in-rhyme, Lennon has been a twentieth-century Sisyphus, pushing his rock (and roll) uphill, with snide snipers taking pot shots at him—and, especially, his paramour—at every opportunity.
In their early days together, this ripening pair weathered a lot of bruises and eventually parted ways and means, only to be reunited eighteen months later because, as Lennon put it, "the separation didn't work out."
And then in '75, with a pocketful of fresh songs and on the verge of booking studio time, the Lennons had a baby boy and John unplugged his guitar and stopped dead in his soundtracks.
"I became an artist because I cherished freedom—I couldn't fit into a classroom or office," he told Newsweek recently. "Freedom was the plus for all the minuses of being an oddball! But suddenly I was obliged to a record company, obliged to the media, obliged to the public. I wasn't free at all!"
So he clammed up, offed the record, and became a hearth-and-homebody focused on the raising of his son. The man who back in '72 wrote the pro-woman anthem "Woman is the Nigger of the World" (which, sadly, was squashed dead by misguided objections to the title—usually by white males, as Lennon pointed out) went one better and swapped roles with Yoko. She became the breadwinner, he the bread baker. The Lennons invested in dairy cows and real estate, and it was moos and moola for five years.
Now 40, he has rolled away the stone and reappeared with a hot new single, "Starting Over," and a grand-new album, Double Fantasy. Ah, but to set the record straight, this is not just a John Lennon album. It's the Second Coming of John and Yoko. And it's a superlative double-headed triumph.
Like it or not, it took guts on Lennon's part to divvy up the 14-numbered LP with his wife. After all, their last collaboration, in '72, was Sometime in New York City, generally considered to be the rough nadir of Lennon's recorded output (not counting the trio of avant-garde albums, Two Virgins, Life With the Lions and Wedding Album). Consequently, starting over together, for better or for worse, as the wedding vowels go, could be sales-suicide. For the record, while doing well, the album currently is not topping the charts.
"It's like a play," Lennon said of Double Fantasy. "We wrote the play and we're acting in it. It's John and Yoko—you could take it or leave it…otherwise, it's cows and cheese! Being with Yoko makes me whole. I don't want to sing if she's not there."
Therefore, she is there with seven originals. One of them, "Kiss Kiss Kiss," concludes with orgasmic panting, for which Yoko will, no doubt, get slam-banged once again. More exhibitionism, they will say. But no one crucified Donna Summer for doing it in "Love to Love You Baby." Different strokes? Quite possibly.
Yoko clearly doesn't have the pipes of a diva, but some credit is due. In 1970, Lennon told Rolling Stone, "She makes music like you've never heard on earth…It's fantastic. It's like 20 years ahead of its time." Or maybe 10. Listen to The B-52s. Yoko was on the New Wavelength before it had a name.
But before anyone screams, "Yoko oh no!" about her inclusion on the new album, be advised that the oral hijinks are minimal, and her seven contributions are her finest to date. They include the lovely, classical-tinged "Beautiful Boys," the edgy "I'm Moving On" and the ska-flavored "Every Man Has a Woman Who Loves Him."
John, on the other half, has never sounded more contented overall. As contented as those quarter-of-a-million-bucks-apiece Holstein cows the couple owns. In "Watching the Wheels," he speaks of his at-long-last peace:
I'm just sitting here watching the wheels go round and round
I really love to watch them roll
No longer riding on the merry-go-round
I just had to let it go
"I'm not interested in other people's work—only so much as it affects me," he said to Newsweek. "I have the great honor of never having been to Studio 54 and I've never been to any rock clubs. It's like asking Picasso, has he been to the museum lately?"
The theme of Double Fantasy, which is a Jack Douglas and Lennons co-production, is simply John loves Yoko loves John. Not forgetting son Sean for whom John's lovely lullaby "Beautiful Boy" was written. Lennon's dreamy "Woman" is as beautiful and sensitive as anything in his catalog:
Woman I know you understand
The little child inside the man
Please remember my life is in your hands
In his funky "Cleanup Time," a verse of which reminds one of his nursery rhyme-like "Cry Baby Cry" from The Beatles' White Album, Lennon sings of his and Yoko's juxtapositions:
The queen is in the counting house
Counting out the money
The king is in the kitchen
Making bread and honey
Yet, despite the album's apparent bliss-blitz, the pair's life together—"so precious together" (a little too precious for some people, it seems)—is not all Peaches and Herb. The underbellyaches of love are also exposed. Their fears, insecurities and tensions bubble to the surface in such cuts as Yoko's "I'm Moving On":
But now you're giving me your window smile
I'm moving on, moving on, it's getting phony
In John's "I'm Losing You," he sings:
I know I hurt you then
But hell that was way back when
Do you still have to carry that cross?
But the riled side of life is not dwelled upon, and Yoko concludes the album with an expression of hope in the gospel-tinged"Hard Times Are Over":
It's been very hard
But it's getting easier now
Hard times are over
Over for a while
It is a fitting and optimistic finale to John and Yoko's new peace of the rock.


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How To Install A Glass Block Basement Window
Posted on: 30 November 2016
Glass block is a great window material choice, as it allows plenty of light into your basement, while preventing anyone from seeing in. It's also durable and easy to maintain. You can install this type of window yourself if you're a little handy using glass block panels. See below for instructions on how to install a glass block window for your basement.
Tools For The Job:
Glass block panel (in the size of your window) Hammer Pry bar Caulk and caulk gun Level Ladder Tape Measure Mortar Trowel Shims Protective eye wear and gloves Instructions:
[Read More]


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In early spring, the whole landscape seems cloaked with a fuzz of luminescent, lime-coloured leaves.
Oak trees, magnolias, murraya, buxus, tallowwood, maples, golden philadelphus and native daphne (Pittosporum undulatum) are just some examples of these. The freshness of this foliage seems to embody the very essence of spring. The colour blue with lime can be one of the most pleasing combinations in the garden, and in spring these trees and shrubs can be under-planted with bluebells, forget-me-nots, ajuga or cineraria to create a zesty picture. All shades of purple flowers also provide winning combinations with lime leaves.
Lime-coloured flowers can also be found in early spring amongst the euphorbia tribe. Shrubby Euphorbia characias subsp. wulfenii (ht 1m) with its startling clusters of acidic lime-green bracts is amongst the best of these plants, thriving in full sun and well-drained soil. With a background of limey spring leaves to echo its bracts, or partnered by the huge architectural blue-purple spikes of frost-tender Pride of Madeira (Echium candicans, ht 1-2 m), or a deep purple iris or lavender, it is a stunning sight. The annual coral spurge (Euphorbia corallioides, ht 60cm) also gives this wonderful colour: it is a rather naughty weed that tends to self-seed enthusiastically, but it is easy to remove the surplus seedlings. Another annual with lime-coloured flowers is the tobacco plant Nicotiana langsdorffii (ht 1m) which has a multitude of small bells, and self-seeds gently from year to year.
Other lime-leaved plants retain their colour all year: many are actually brash, sun-loving, golden-leaved plants, which transmute to a far more alluring shade of lime if grown in a semi-shady position, where they can brighten up a gloomy spot. It is worth experimenting with almost any gold-leaved plant to obtain this effect, but I have had success with Acorus gramineus 'Ogon' (ht 30cm) with the softest green and gold striped grassy leaves); ferny-leaved golden feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium 'Aureum, ht 60cm; golden moneywort (Lysimachia nummularia 'Aurea', ht 8cm); glossy-leaved, shrubby golden duranta (Duranta erecta 'Sheena's Gold' (ht 3m or as pruned); gold-leaved zonal geraniums such as 'Anne Tilling' (ht 30cm); golden heliotrope (Heliotropium arborescens 'Aurea' (ht 75cm); or succulent Sedum mexicanum (ht 10cm) which forms a crinkled carpet with its tiny leaves.
Annual delights
09 Aug 20
Spring annuals bring colour and interest.
Plant intelligence
02 Aug 20
Plants are smart!
Winter distractions
26 Jul 20
Finding ways to endure winter!
Unusual winter flowers
19 Jul 20
These blooms attract attention!
The sweet scents of winter
12 Jul 20
Fragrant winter-flowering plants can get us out into the garden in July!


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SETI, a multi-year indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity engineering-focused contracting vehicle, is slated to support the engineering requirements for the entire Department of Defense for many years to come. It focuses on fostering, developing, and encouraging innovation; reducing costs and timelines; and providing innovative solutions to deliver emerging capabilities and reliable and consistent services to our warfighters.
"SETI is built to take on emerging projects and to solve issues that we cannot yet see," said Christopher Riley, the SETI program manager. "This contract vehicle will meet complex IT engineering requirements now and into the future."
The half-day conference kicked off with an industry business card exchange — allowing the conference attendees to meet, greet, and lay the groundwork for establishing business and technical partnerships that may satisfy future SETI requirements.
Katrina Brisbon, the agency's vice procurement services executive, explained the importance of SETI to those in attendance, acknowledging the size of the audience.
"The volume of presence lets us know the volume of support we have," she said.
DISA's director of small business programs, Sharon Jones, also provided a presentation guiding participants through the process of small business subcontracting and small business participation plans.
Agency contracting representatives also established and reiterated guidelines and expectations for the source selection process as it moves forward.
The pre-proposal conference concluded by addressing specific questions submitted by industry in writing prior to and at the event.
All questions and responses are documented on the Federal Business Opportunities website, along with the full request for proposals.
Questions should be addressed to the SETI program via email: email@example.com.
CHIPS is an official U.S. Navy website sponsored by the Department of the Navy (DON)
Chief Information Officer, the Department of Defense Enterprise Software Initiative
(ESI) and the DON's ESI Software Product Manager Team at Space and Naval Warfare
Systems Center Pacific.
Online ISSN 2154-1779; Print ISSN 1047-9988
Hyperlink Disclaimer


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Funko POP! Krampus Vinyl Figure - #14
It's the most wonderful time of the year - until the half-goat, half-demon known as Krampus comes to your door!
Krampus will punish those who have lost the holiday spirit.
Add Krampus to your collection this fall - or you'll be sorry!
These 3 3/4" tall figures have a stylized urban design and will look great on the shelf or in your office.
Window box packaging.
Features include:
We purchase all Funko POP figures directly from Funko by the case. These all arrive to us in factory sealed cases of six pieces each.
All photos are provided to us by Funko with their solicitations.
Some photos may not represent the exact box the figures are coming in. Funko is selling us the figures, not the boxes so they do not always provide photos of the most current boxes.
If the photo provided by Funko in our listing is of a retired/vaulted version of the box, this is almost definitely not the box that the figure is coming to us in. We cannot guarantee the version of the box you will be receiving, only the version of the figure inside the box.
We do not have photos of individual boxes available.


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Japan: A premiere in the era of monetary and fiscal coordination – Goldman Sachs
FXStreet (Delhi) – Research Team at Goldman Sachs, suggests that one of the milestones in monetary policy has been the achievement of central bank independence in the 1990s, which has been widely recognized as a key factor in reining in inflation and stabilizing inflation expectations around the target adopted by major central banks (2%).
Key Quotes
"At the 2015 IMF Pollack conference that took place on November 10-11, a paper by Adair Turner entitled "The Case for Monetary Finance – An Essentially Political Issue" explored the topic of coordination between fiscal and monetary authority and the costs and benefits of 'debt monetization'. It is interesting to note that this type of coordination could take place in Japan more clearly than elsewhere in the next few months."
"Could it be the case that more open coordination between the fiscal and monetary authority and an open statement on debt monetization is needed to lift inflation and inflation expectations in Japan? Will investors price higher inflation into JGBs and yields rise despite the central bank purchasing a large share of sovereign debt? Can Japan become a 'test economy' and coordination between monetary and fiscal authority become more 'mainstream' economics?"
(Market News Provided by FXstreet)


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It's actually a good movie, funny lots of action I enjoyed it.
Month: May 2011
Google Apps for Business and Apple Macs
what ever google says It's pretty rubbish, Nothing but trouble. If your company using macs and thinking about google apps don't. If all your users are happy to use webmail then fine but if they are going to use Entourage,Continue reading… Google Apps for Business and Apple Macs


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Bernstein Liebhard LLP Actively Filing Nexium Kidney Lawsuits, Investigating Other Proton Pump Inhibitor Cases
Bernstein Liebhard LLP is now actively filing product liability cases involving the alleged link between proton pump inhibitors and serious kidney complications.
On August 26th, the Firm filed a Nexium lawsuit in the U.S. District, Eastern District of New York, on behalf of an Illinois man who allegedly developed chronic kidney disease to due his use of the popular heartburn drug. The complaint accuses AstraZeneca of failing to warn patients and doctors that Nexium could potentially harm the kidneys, despite having knowledge of numerous reports involving proton pump inhibitor patients who had developed chronic kidney disease and other serious renal problems. (Case No. No. 16-04801)
What Are Proton Pump Inhibitors
Proton pump inhibitors are indicated for the short-term treatment of GERD and other digestive ailments associated with the excess production of gastric acid. Nexium and its counterparts, including Prilosec and PrevAcid, are among the most popular prescription drugs currently on the market, and were used by more than 15 million Americans in 2013. However, it is believed that up to 70% of these prescriptions lacked an appropriate indication.
A number of over-the-counter proton pump inhibitors are also available, including Nexium 24HR, Prilosec OTC and PrevAcid 24HR.
Because these medications are so ubiquitous, many believe that proton pump inhibitors can be taken without risk. However, the long-term use of these drugs has been linked to a number of serious side effects, including certain types of bone fractures, B12 deficiency, and low magnesium levels.
Proton Pump Inhibitors and the Kidneys
Recently, several studies have suggested that drugs like Nexium might be associated with the development of chronic kidney disease, kidney failure and acute kidney injury. In 2014, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) ordered that the labeling for prescription proton pump inhibitors be updated to include mention of acute interstitial nephritis, a type of drug-induced kidney inflammation that can progress to chronic kidney disease and renal failure if not recognized and treated in a timely manner.
Last month, Bloomberg Law reported that several other complaints similar to the Nexium lawsuit filed by Bernstein Liebhard LLP were pending in New Jersey federal court. Dan Burke, a partner with the Firm, told Bloomberg Law that his office had received hundreds of inquiries, and that additional cases are currently under review.
Bernstein Liebhard LPP is offering free, no-obligation legal reviews to individuals who may have developed kidney problems related to the use of prescription or over-the-counter proton pump inhibitors. To obtain your case consultation, please call 877-779-1414.


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You are here
Solicitation Issued for Up to Four Million Barrels
WASHINGTON, DC - The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced that it has issued the second of several solicitations planned to purchase up to four million barrels of crude oil for the United States' crude oil reserve. The first solicitation, issued March 16, 2007, resulted in no awards because the Office of Fossil Energy determined that the bids were too high and not a reasonable value for taxpayers.
This series of solicitations for the purchase of crude oil are planned to replace the 11 million barrels of oil sold after Hurricane Katrina. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve will use the proceeds from the emergency sale for the direct purchases.
The solicitation requests offers for up to four million barrels in the following quantities: two million barrels of sweet crude to be delivered to the West Hackberry, Louisiana site, and/or two million barrels of sour crude to the delivered to the Bryan Mound, Texas site. Bids are due by May 1, 2007, and an announcement on contract awards will be made within one week. The delivery period for the crude oil is June 1-30, 2007.
Through the terms of contracts to be issued from the planned series of solicitations, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve seeks to achieve a moderate fill rate of approximately 100,000 barrels per day beginning in June. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve has a capacity of 727 million barrels and currently holds 689 million barrels in inventory.
Contract awards made as a result of this solicitation will be the first direct purchase of crude oil for the Reserve since 1994.
Media contact(s):
Aimee Whitelaw, (202) 586-4940


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Use Good Paint, Fort Collins House Painters
Comment are off
The paint you use on the exterior of your house makes a big difference in the look and longevity of your home. The sun will fade cheaper paint quickly which affects the appearance of your property. This is called oxidation. The little bit more money good paint will cost you, far out-weighs the benefits you'll receive in the long run. Hiring a professional painter who is highly skilled will get the job done right, the first time.


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Man plays an unexpected pop tune on the harp and it's fantastic
Shut Up and listen to this guy play the harp.
Shut Up and listen to this guy play the harp.
Walk The Moon gave away more than just its setlist and drum sticks after its concert. The band via StubHub gave funds to support music in schools.
Tour diaries: They are the satisfying sustenance required by every hardcore music fan to feed a band addiction. A glimpse into the backstage, on-tour-bus life of one's favorite band. Now, thanks to the marvels of modern technology, it's easier than e...


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On Game of Thrones, Emilia Clarke's character Daenerys Targaryen is tough as nails and always up for a battle. But perhaps Clarke's toughest personal battle was when she had brain aneurysms, which included multiple surgeries to save her life. Click the link below to read her personal account of her brain aneurysm experience, including surgery and aphasia:
Learn about brain injury treatment services at the Transitional Learning Center! Visit us at: http://tlcrehab.org/


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A Promotion
Posted on 17 Jun 2016 @ 6:22pm by Captain Harvey Geisler
Good morning, everyone. This announcement is a simple update on something that has changed for me in Bravo Fleet. Overnight, I have been announced and installed as Bravo Fleet's Community Relations Officer, which will place me on the BFA (Bravo Fleet Admiralty). I will still be acting as the XO for Task Force 9.
What does this mean for the Black Hawk? Absolutely nothing. This ship and its crew are still my first priority. In fact, I will be looking to take the Black Hawk to newer and greater heights as we look to overthrow the Consortium and go back to exploration.
Thank you all for a fine job. I can't wait to see what the future holds.
You can read the original announcement HERE.
Category: Out of Character


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As a child, I always loved animals. It's something that didn't change as I grew older.
So when the opportunity to take a break from journalism and volunteer at an animal sanctuary in Tasmania for three months arose, I jumped at it. I was certain it would be my dream job.
But the reality of the work was quite different to what I had imagined. Instead of spending time each day getting to understand the animals and learn about them, I spent eight-hour days running between duties in the icy, winter rain, doing manual, sometimes heartbreaking, work. Many of the animals, such as Tasmanian devils and quolls, had been hit by cars and needed rehabilitation. I fed them, cared for them, avoided getting bitten — especially at meal times — and cleaned up after them. And, when they didn't survive, we buried them and felt their loss.
Working at an animal sanctuary sounds dreamy but the behind-the-scenes work can often be difficult and heartbreaking (Credit: Alamy)
The work also extended beyond animal care; one of my tasks was to clean the public toilets. Was it my dream job? No. And, my experience was more common than you'd think. It turns out, we often fail to think about the tedious minutia that is likely to be involved in what we consider to be our ideal job and how it might fall short of our expectations. In fact, psychologists even have a name for it: "affective forecasting". What this means is we often have an unrealistic hopefulness that new situations will make us feel significantly different in a grass-is-always-greener mentality.
Affective forecasting, according to Lisa A Williams, a professor of psychology at University of New South Wales in Sydney, is "how people predict they will feel" in a particular circumstance. "A classic example is winning the lottery. People anticipate that winning the lottery will bring immense joy. But when researchers actually study the happiness levels of lottery winners they find that it lasts a fairly short amount of time," she says.
In my case, it meant that I was letting my emotions play out my future: thinking about spending time with fascinating animals and not the manual work. And, while we're often encouraged to get a job doing what we love, the downside is that maybe we just like the idea, not the reality.
Fooling ourselves
That was certainly the case for Sue Arnold, 46, who had long-held aspirations of becoming an archaeologist. Arnold, a secretary in finance in London, describes how she loved the classic films about Tutankhamen and the race to discover the tombs of the pharaohs in Ancient Egypt. With this in mind, she signed up for an archaeological dig to uncover Roman ruins in Dorset, in the UK.
It was one of the most boring weeks of my life
While she knew it was unlikely she was going to change history digging up treasures, she was still disappointed at the experience.
"It was one of the most boring weeks of my life. I was just dusting dirt off broken bits of brown tiles," she says.
Discovering artefacts is a memorable experience but do you have the patience for the meticulous work needed for archaeology? (Credit: Alamy)
Although she doesn't regret it, the experience made her realise she doesn't have the patience for the meticulous work needed for archaeology. While she still loves reading about history and plans to go to Egypt, she plans to do so only as a tourist.
Why do we fail to consider that dream jobs have downsides? Partly it's to do with the hidden graft needed to get most jobs done, according to Elliot Berkman, associate professor of psychology at the University of Oregon, in the US. And partly, it's to do with our expectations.
We aren't good at anticipating the hidden costs and extra work that often comes with a life goal
"People are generally not as happy as they expected they would be when they achieve their goals. Partly that's because we aren't good at anticipating the hidden costs and extra work that often comes with a life goal."
The opposite of this is also true. If you have been working at a job for 20 years, you may have forgotten just how difficult it was to get where you are today. Are you ready to put in that amount of work again to become good at something new?
While we're often encouraged to get a job doing what we love, the downside is that maybe we just like the idea, not the reality (Credit: Alien vs Predator/Photos 12/Alamy)
Even more importantly, what really makes us feel good or bad is a change from where we started, regardless of where that was in the first place, Berkman adds.
"You need continued change to keep yourself happy," he says.
So it's not surprising we may need a few attempts to find the right job, says Rachel Grieve, senior lecturer in psychology at the University of Tasmania. "Most of the time our decision making isn't rational....we instead rely on intuition or just do what 'feels right'," Grieve says. "This approach is fine [for] like what will I have for lunch today? But when the stakes are higher, like thinking about a career change, then obviously it is better to take a slower, more considered approach."
The social dimension
Job satisfaction is about social dynamics, not a job title, according to Professor Alexander Haslam, from the school of psychology, University of Queensland. "If you are a doctor, you might really like medicine, but if you end up in a 'toxic' work environment, you are unlikely to find your work very fulfilling," he explains
I'd made a mistake
This is a feeling that some people experience after studying and working hard to break into difficult professions like law. Their 'dream' job turns sour.
"It was such an old-fashioned top-down environment and so competitive," says Andrew Walker, who went straight into law after university in Sydney. "I [went from] years of thinking law was admirable, to thinking I'd made a mistake. I wanted to be with more dynamic people with less stress, even if it was to move to a job I never thought I'd enjoy [in administration]."
Writer Georgina Kenyon lives on the edge of a forest in Australia's Blue Mountains. At a nearby sanctuary, she photographs these baby Tasmanian devils (Credit: Georgina Kenyon)
Following your heart
As for me, I stuck with journalism. While I miss working with the animals at the Tasmania sanctuary, such as raucous lorikeets, the bettongs and the spirited carnivores, I've realised I didn't need a new career. Rather, I needed to live closer to nature with a like-minded community of people. Now I live on the edge of a vast UNESCO World Heritage-listed forest in Australia's Blue Mountains a couple of hours out of Sydney, a perfect place for bushwalking and seeing animals in the wild.
So when I saw an advertisement in a local newspaper recently of a smiling zookeeper, holding a bucket and broom, inviting a lucky reader to come and experience being a keeper for a day, I knew better. Dreams and jobs don't necessarily go together.
To comment on this story or anything else you have seen on BBC Capital, please head over to our Facebook page or message us on Twitter.


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Our clinicians currently are treating 43 children but we have another 65 on our waiting list!
Any additional financial support you can provide will be greatly appreciated and help us to improve and grow the Clinic.
Did you know? (July, 2008)posted May 3, 2015, 6:20 PM by San Jose Scottish Rite [ updated May 3, 2015, 7:11 PM ]


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We use cookies to ensure that you have the best experience on our website. If you continue browsing, we'll assume that you are happy to receive all our cookies. You can change your cookie settings at any time.
Find out more
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Yes you can! You can send a cheque payable to Oxfam to:
Freepost, Oxfam GB
If you received a mailing from us, you should have an enclosed Freepost envelope. Otherwise, you can send your donation form or cheque to the Freepost address above. Thank you.
Clothes and blankets are among the many items we can sell in our shops here to raise funds, but Oxfam does not send clothes and blankets overseas, however good their condition. This is because customs regulations, fumigation of second-hand items, transport and communications make the process of exporting second hand items very complicated, time-consuming and expensive.
It is much easier to buy these items (with the money our supporters donate) in the countries where they are needed. It reduces the cost to Oxfam, helps stimulate local markets and economies, and we can be sure that the goods that we source are appropriate - both for the local environment and the local culture.
There are many local initiatives in poor countries where women knit or make clothes, and Oxfam tries to support them by buying their products and distributing them through its programmes. This ensures women can learn new skills, earn an income and support their families, buy crops, send their children to school, and get the healthcare they need.
That's why making a cash donation is one of the most effective ways to support our emergency work.
When you donate to Oxfam, the money will be allocated to 'general funds' which allows us to focus on where the need is greatest and respond immediately to changing priorities and global situations. It is vital that we are able to spend money where it is most needed at any given time.
However, it is possible for you to specify if you would like your donation to be spent on a particular emergency appeal
You can also buy specific poverty-busting items and activities through the Oxfam Unwrapped virtual gift catalogue.
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Follow me and learn Windows Server 2012 – IP Address Management (IPAM)
Hi, its Bruce again, Day 19 - Wow so much to learn! Tonight I am learning IP Address Management (IPAM). IPAM is a new feature that allows us to manage DHCP and DNS servers centrally. Here are some facts I learned about IPAM
- IPAM provides centralized configuration and update of MS DHCP/DNS servers
- Automatic discovery of DC, DHCP and DNS servers, and dynamic IP addresses in use
- Organize, assign, monitor and manage static and dynamic IPv4/v6 addresses
- Track and audit changes and provide real-time view of status
- Monitor DNS zone health
- The ability to Manage DHCP scopes properties on multiple scopes at the same time
- Find and replace DHCP properties values on multiple scopes at the same time
- Integration with ADDS
- IPAM has PowerShell interfaces
- SCVMM Integration
Below are some links to help you learn about this great new feature!
What's new in IPAM
IPAM in Windows Server 2012 is a new built-in framework for discovering, monitoring, auditing, and managing the IP address space used on a corporate network. IPAM provides for administration and monitoring of servers running Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) and Domain Name Service (DNS). For more information, see IP Address Management (IPAM) Overview
IP Address Management (IPAM) Overview
Step-by-Step: Configure IPAM to Manage Your IP Address Space
Windows Server 2012 IP Address Management (Video)
Managing Your Network Infrastructure with IP Address Management (IPAM) (Hands on lab)


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Reading Methodists welcomed home the troops.
19 June 1919
Mr Phipps proposed, Miss Beecroft seconded, That the meeting to celebrate Peace, decided to be held by the June Quarterly Meeting, be held if possible in Wesley Church.
The following were elected to form a Committee to make arrangements for the Welcome Home Gathering of Demobilized men & others who have served in the Forces: Messrs Willis, Everitt, Goss, Turner, Hinton, & Ralph Clifford, with power to add.
Wesley Methodist Church, Reading: trustees' minutes (D/MS60/1A/1)


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- Advanced Pink Kwik wax polish is a premium quality wax polish, specially formulated for P.D.I.
- Produces a deep, even lustre, even on dark problem colours.
- Removes any traces of factory soft wax which might be left after the dewaxing operation.
- Developed for ease of use, quickly on - quickly off.
- Removes Petrol, Derv and exhaust stains from paintwork.
- Contains Silicone.
Advanced Pink Kwik Wax Polish (P.D.I)
- Brand: YTS
- Product Code: APKWP(P.D.I)
- Availability: 9 In Stock
- Ex Tax: £4.17


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For those of you that have been to Key West these pictures are nothing new, however be warned they could possibly bring back memories of good times, and inspiration only the sun, sand, and a good watering hole can provide. Not to mention the fresh seafood…and we are not talking frozen in a bag from China either. Look the law states "you can only eat fresh catch while in the Keys OR you will be fed to the chickens and roosters". You can trust me on this, I am NOT a lawyer.
For those of you who have not been WELL, it's time to plan a trip for some R&R even though most people have to rest when they return. The Conch Repulic is awaiting your arrival. DO keep in mind Key West is only a small part of the Florida Keys there are about 120mm in the Keys, and thats a lot of fun to be had.
Check these mmm's out;
www.southernmostpointusa.com (attractions tab)


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Force produced from milling roller connected by pull rod and high pressure spring can avoid damages caused by bulk materials to the equipment.
Resilient coupling between main engine and the separator can reduce vibration and noise and improve service life of the equipment. Because of connecting crushing, drying, grinding, classifying and transmission together with simple system and compact layout, it covers about 50% of the area of the ball mill system and can be outdoor arrangement, which can reduce the investment cost a lot.
Milling roller devices adopt superimposed multistage seal with excellent seal performance. Unique air circulation system with advanced dust remover carries the environmental protection concept through to the end.
Impeller devices with high density and high precision increase more than 50% of finished product yield under the same power. Efficient and energy-saving centrifugal induced draft fans improve the efficiency of induced draft fans greatly. Convenient impeller adjusting devices improve the precision of the finished product.


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Fiascobook, Redux
The ability to control how much information is available to the public has long been one of Facebook's core principles. It was this very feature, for example, that Facebook used to distinguish itself from other social networks back when it first launched.
Of course, the ensuing years proved that protecting the privacy of its users was not exactly Facebook's strong suit–especially when it came to digging up the advertising revenues necessary to justify its fantastical $15 billion valuation. There have been privacy issues with Facebook's news-feed service, with its controversial Beacon advertising system, and with its terms of service, which granted popular applications access to far more personal user data than is necessary.
And now there's another. A bug in permission restrictions in Facebook Groups allows members to upload content without first receiving permission from a Group admin. I know this firsthand, because over the past few days videos, photos and blog posts have been appearing on the All Things Digital Facebook Group, and neither Walt, Kara nor I–the only three people with admin privileges to the group–put them there (see screen below). Worse, while I was able to delete the photos and blog posts, I was unable to pull the videos off the page. There was no mechanism to remove them.
Worse still, the bug that makes this possible is not specific to the All Things Digital Facebook Group alone. It affects all Facebook Groups, site-wide.
We alerted Facebook to the issue and the company quickly identified the bug. Said spokesperson Brandee Barker: "Engineering has pushed out a fix that should go site wide shortly."
UPDATE: Facebook engineers fixed the permissions bug, and we were able to remove the rogue videos from our page.


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Monthly, Weekly, and Daily Print Views
The public calendar on your website can now be printed in monthly, weekly, and daily views.
Mini Rich Text Editor For Feed Posts and Calendar Events
The new mini rich text editor allows you to format text (bold, underline, italics) as well as insert hyperlinks. This new tool has been added for feed posts, calendar event descriptions, and image captions.
You can now add alternative text in addition to a caption for any image file you load to your website.
Release Notes
View our full release notes here.
If you have any questions visit Help.eChalk.com or feel free to contact us.


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White Sands Hotel & Spa - Due Completion October 2019
White Sands Hotel & Spa is the latest development from The Resort Group PLC, and is the first of six new developments on Boa Vista Island in Cape Verde. With the utmost emphasis on a deluxe guest experience, the complex has been thoughtfully split into adult only and family sections to ensure that a high quality of service can be appropriately tailored to guests' individual needs.
Managed by the world's largest resort hotelier, Meliá Hotels International, under their prestigious 5-star MELIÃ brand, the Resort will offer an impressive choice of fine dining restaurants as well as relaxed lobby bars, a sumptuous champagne bar and a vibrant sports bar, ensuring each scene is catered for.
The beach area hosts an array of chic beach bars, offering guests the ultimate beach club experience complete with secluded seating, Bali beds, luxury pool and swim up bar. In addition, the complex includes a YHI Spa® providing premium opulent luxury.
Investment Opportunities
This stunning 5-star development on beautiful Boa Vista in the Cape Verde Islands offers an unparalleled opportunity to purchase a first-class overseas property.
- There are 835 luxurious properties including duplex and penthouse hotel suites, and a range of stunning private villas.
- A choice of six restaurants, as well as a range of bars and the world-famous Gabi Club®.
- Luxurious YHI Spa® experience, as well as a fully equipped fitness centre and water sports centre.
- Six resort swimming pools, swim-up bars and poolside eateries.
- Children's facilities, including kids club, playground, baby pools and tennis and beach ball courts.
- An exclusive area of the Hotel providing additional luxury and personalised services.


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The Great Date Ghoster
Why would someone say they had a great time, then ghost you? Brande gives her thoughts on the subject.
Q. Why would someone tell me they had a good time on a date when they really didn't? This happens to me constantly — we'll have a good time, they say they'll call me, and then they never do.
Emily, 37, Los Angeles
A. It sounds like you're experiencing nothing more than run-of-the-mill dating. And — this may surprise you — you seem to be doing better than most. Two-three dates per week is pretty impressive – some people can't even get out of the messaging phase of using apps. As with anything in life, some of your dates have been "blah" and others pretty bomb.
That being said, I can understand your frustration at having a seemingly good time and believing the other person feels the same too, only to never hear from them again. Unfortunately, that's pretty much expected when dating. It sucks, yes, but it is what it is.
I'm not a fan of thinking about competition when it comes to dating, but if the people you're going out with are dating as much as you, it's possible they've simply met someone they clicked with more than you. Maybe they really did want to see you again, but then came across someone whom they had more in common with.It's also possible "I'd really like to see you again" was just a nicety said at the end of the date because the guy felt it was the "right" thing to do.
I don't gather that you're doing anything wrong. In fact, if you believe in the philosophy that dating is a numbers game, you're doing it absolutely right by going on multiple dates each week. You say you're not getting responses from men with whom you had a good time and thought the feeling was mutual. With this in mind, I would spend some time figuring out whether those dates really went as well as you thought, or you were seeing things from the view of how you wanted them to turn out. For example, the majority of men and women do not actually say they had a good time — they show you by touching you, or trying to extend the date.*
All in all, don't be discouraged by these experiences. Stay positive and persistent. Your next second date might be right around the corner.
*May 2017 Survey of Hinge Members
Brande Victorian is the creator of Be-Enough.com where she chronicles tales of love in the time of weight loss along with other musings of her health and wellness journey. She also serves as Managing Editor of MadameNoire.com. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram. Send questions to Brande at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Website: http://people.sutd.edu.sg/~quin
Website: http://people.sutd.edu.sg/~quin
Research Interests:
Social Sciences
Social Sciences
Discipline: Psychology
Pillar / Cluster: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
Dr Yow Wei Quin obtained her PhD (Psychology), MA (Psychology) and MSc (Statistics) from Stanford University, USA. She also received her MBA (Strategic Development) from Nanyang Technological University and BSocSc. (Honors in Psychology) from National University of Singapore. She has published in several peer-refereed international journals and book chapters and presented papers in various international conferences on the impact of bilingualism on socio-cognitive development and academic motivation in education.
Key Publications
- Yow, W.Q., Tan, S.H., & Flynn, S. (in press). Code-switching and its impact on linguistic competency in bilingual preschoolers. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition.
- Yow, W. Q., Li, X., Lam, S., Gliga, T., Chong, Y. S., Kwek, K. and Broekman, B. F.P. (2017), A bilingual advantage in 54-month-olds' use of referential cues in fast mapping. Dev Sci, 20: n/a, e12482. doi:10.1111/desc.12482
- Yow, W.Q., Li, X., Lam, S., Gliga, T., Tan, K.H., Shek, L., Yap, F., Chong, Y.S., & Broekman, B.F.P. (in press). Effects of bilingualism on children's use of social cues in word learning. Proceedings of the 40th Annual Boston University Conference on Language Development.
- Yow, W.Q., & Markman, E.M. (2016). Children increase their sensitivity to a speaker's nonlinguistic cues following a communicative breakdown. Child Development. DOI: 10.1111/cdev.12479
- Yow, W. Q., Patrycia, F., & Flynn, S. (2016). Code-switching in Childhood. In S. Montarnari & E. Nicoladis (eds). Lifespan Perspectives on Bilingualism.
- Yow, W. Q. (2015). Monolingual and bilingual preschoolers' use of gestures to interpret ambiguous pronouns. Journal of Child Language, 42, 1394-1407. doi:10.1017/S0305000914000737.
- Hung, W., Patrycia, F., & Yow, W.Q. (2015). Bilingual children weigh speaker's referential cues and word-learning heuristics differently in different language contexts when interpreting a speaker's referential intent. Frontiers in Psychology, 6:796. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00796.
- Yow, W.Q., & Markman, E.M. (2015). A bilingual advantage in how children integrate multiple cues to understand a speaker's referential intent. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 18(03), 391-399.
- Yow, W.Q., & Li, X. (2015). Balanced bilingualism and early age of second language acquisition as the underlying mechanisms of a bilingual executive control advantage: Why variations in bilingual experiences matter. Frontiers in Psychology, 6:164. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00164.
- Chong, K. H., Yow, W. Q., Loo, D., & Patrycia, F. (2015). Senior activity center or coffeeshop? Perception of matured estate and socio-psychological wellbeing of the elderly. Journal of Housing For The Elderly, 29 (3), 259-297.
- Yow, W. Q, & Patrycia, F. (2015). Challenging the "linguistic incompetency hypothesis" – Code-switching positively impacts on lexical development in bilingual preschoolers. Supplement Proceedings of the 39th Annual Boston University Conference on Language Development.
- Yow, W. Q., Li, X., Hung, W., Goldring, M., Cheng, L., Gu, Y. (2014). Predicting Social Networks and Psychological Outcomes from Mobile Phone Sensing. Proceedings of IEEE ICC 2014.
- Yow, W. Q. (2013). Monolingual and bilingual children's use of gestures and grammatical agreement in pronoun interpretation. In S. Baiz, N. Goldman, & R. Hawkes (Eds.), Proceedings of the 37th Annual Boston University Conference on Language Development (Vol. 2, pp. 482-494).
- Yow, W.Q. (2012). Experience of communication breakdown increases preschoolers' sensitivity to communicative cues. International Journal of Psychology, 47 (Special issue), 272-272.
- Yow, W.Q., & Markman, E.M. (2011). Young bilingual children's heightened sensitivity to referential cues. Journal of Cognition and Development, 12 (1), 12-31
- Yow, W.Q., & Markman, E.M. (2011). Bilingualism and children's use of paralinguistic cues to interpret emotion in speech. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition, 14(4), 562-569.
- Yow, W.Q. & Markman, E. M. (2010). Bilingual children's integration of multiple cues to understand a speaker's referential intent. In K. Franich, K.M. Iserman, & L.L. Keil (Eds.), Proceedings of the 34th Annual Boston University Conference on Language Development (Vol. 2, pp. 480-490)
- Yow, W.Q. & Markman, E. M. (2009). Understanding a speaker's communicative intent: Bilingual children's heightened sensitivity to referential gestures. In J. Chandlee, M. Franchini, S. Lord & G. Rheiner (Eds.), Proceedings of the 33rd Annual Boston University Conference on Language Development (Vol. 2, pp. 646-657)
- Lepper, M.R., Master, A., & Yow, W.Q. (2008). Intrinsic motivation in education. In M.L. Maehr, S. Karabinick, & T. Urdan (Eds.), Advances in Motivation and Achievement (Vol 15, pp. 521-555). Bingley, UK: Emerald
- PhD Psychology (Developmental), Stanford University, 2010
- MA Psychology, Stanford University, 2007
- MSc Statistics, Stanford University, 2007
- MBA Strategic Development, Nanyang Technological University, 2002
- BSocSc Honors in Psychology, National University of Singapore, 1996
- BA (Merit) Psychology & Economics, National University of Singapore, 1995
- SUTD-MIT International Design Centre Research Grant, Improve Cognition in the Elderly by Design, 2017-2020, PI, S$138,000
- Ministry of Health-National Innovative Challenge on Active and Confident Ageing Cognition Grant: A novel touch-based bilingual intervention to stave off cognitive decline in the elderly: The Dual-language Intervention in Semantic memory - Computerized (DISC), 2017-2020, PI, S$773,558.40
- Academic Research Fund (AcRF) Tier 1, Language, Cognitive Load, Stress Appraisal and Engineering Design Applications, 2016-2018, PI, S$174,742
- Defence Innovative Research Program, Improved Cognitive Performance by Design, 2015-2019, Task-PI, S$1,137,480
- SUTD-MIT International Design Centre Research Grant, Incentive Mechanisms for Patient Routing to Control Crowding in Emergency Departments, 2015-2018, co-PI, S$549,960
- SUTD-MIT International Design Centre Research Grant, Pervasive sensing-based social network study, 2012-2015, PI, S$794,700
- SUTD-MIT International Design Centre Research Grant, Cognitive and social development in monolinguals and bilinguals, 2012-2015, PI, S$49,800
- SUTD-ZJU Research Collaboration Grant, Cognitive Effects and Executive Control in Monolingual and Bilingual Adults and the Elderly, 2012-2013, PI, S$50,000
- SUTD Start-up Grant, Cognitive and social development in monolinguals and bilinguals, 2011-2015, PI, S$25,200
- SUTD-MIT International Design Centre Equipment Grant, Optical Motion Tracking and Capture System, 2013-2014, Co-PI, $400,000.
- SUTD-ZJU Joint Collaboration Grant, Living in an aging world: In search of new elderly housing and neighbourhood design typology, 2012-2013, co-PI, $50,000
- SUTD-MIT International Design Centre Research Grant, Audio aid design for the disabled people, 2012-2015, co-PI, $418,900
- SUTD Outstanding Education Award - Excellence in University Service, 2016
- SPSP Teacher/Scholar Award 2016
- Tan Kah Kee Postgraduate Scholarship Award 2009/2010
- Stanford Humanities & Sciences Graduate Research Opportunity Award 2009/2010
- Society of Research in Child Development Travel Award 2009
- Paula Menyuk Award 2008
- Stanford Humanities & Sciences Fellowship 2005-2010
- Stanford RA/TA Award 2005-2010
Research assistants, research fellows, postdocs, and research collaborators are welcome!


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Current Confirmation Candidates (2019-2020 Group):
Confirmation Conversations Sign Up Link
Confirmation Guidebook 2019-2020
Confirmation Teens are required to attend at least one retreat.
(St. Michael offers two main retreats.)
Confirmation Prep Information Night will take place on Tuesday, October 22nd @ 7p.
(Confirmation teens will be involved with Life Teen from the start of kick-off.)
Welcome to Confirmation Preparation for 2020!
We are so glad that you've made the decision
to be a part of our preparation process during this year!
All teens (no younger than 10th grade) wishing to receive the sacrament as a spring 2020 candidate must be registered no later than July 19th, 2019. (Remember, you must also be registered concurrently in Life Teen Youth Ministry for the year.) Confirmation preparation consists of five specially designated Confirmation Life Nights held throughout the year. (About once per month) These are listed on the general Life Teen Calendar for 2019-2020 (link above). Confirmation preparation also includes a retreat component, as well as a few conversations with our Parish Staff & Life Teen Core Team.
For the retreat component, teens will be able to choose between the Life Teen Fall Retreat (Nov. 8-10, 2019) or the Life Teen Spring Retreat (Mar. 27-29, 2020)
To register for Confirmation 2020's cycle, simply register through our youth ministry registration (as Confirmation is concurrent with our Life Teen Youth Ministry.) You can register for both here.
The Confirmation preparation component of the year will begin in October 2019.


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from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- (Zoöl.) Any crustacean of the genus Palinurus and allied genera, as the European spiny lobster (
P. vulgaris), which is much used as an article of food. See lobster.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun large edible marine crustacean having a spiny carapace but lacking the large pincers of true lobsters
Sorry, no etymologies found.
Sorry, no example sentences found.


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Home > Law > Law School Journals > Law Review > Vol. 10 > Iss. 1 (1975)
Article Title
The concept of a limitation upon the charges that may be imposed for the hire of money is hardly modem. Although it may not be the oldest usury law, a reference to Deuteronomy should suffice: "Unto a stranger thou mayest lend upon usury; but unto thy brother thou shall not lend upon usury."
Recommended Citation
John W. Edmonds III,
Virginia Law of Interest and Usury,
U. Rich. L. Rev.
Available at: https://scholarship.richmond.edu/lawreview/vol10/iss1/4