text:
DRS, GIA and Impunity
Mohammed Samraoui, July 2003 (translation from french)
Mohammed Samraoui, ex-colonel of the Algerian Secret Services (DRS), ex-right hand man of the chief counterspy Smaïn Lamari became the military attaché in September 1992 and was responsible for the local antenna of the DRS at the Algerian Embassy in Germany. In January 1996, he deserted the army and obtained political asylum in Germany. He had just finished writing « Chroniques des années de sang » (« Chronicles of the years of blood ») published by Denoël in Paris.
The interruption of the election process by the « janviéristes » (« januarist ») generals, seen as the end of the democratic experience begun in 1989, paradoxically did not wake up the Algerian democrats. The FIS, feeling robbed of its victory, was the only one (along with the FFS and the new branch of the FLN) to have ferociously denounced the hold-up against the « elimination of the people's choice ».
The result of the putsch and its international condemnation, along with the Islamist « resistance », gave place to a situation where power was faced with three challenges:
The neutralization of the Islamist guerilla.
The need to « sell » a semblance of democracy to the world, with a fake political changeover, where « citizens » would be in the spotlight.
The obligation to undertake unwanted negotiations with donors and false economical reforms in order to make everyone believe in the uprightness of the country, despite its being on the verge of bankruptcy.
Other challenges liable to threaten the régime did not represent short- or mid-term danger for the generals who are the ones with the real power in Algeria.
The identity and cultural contestation in Kabylie was muzzled by the « kabyles in service » or by manipulation, in exactly the same way as Aït Ahmed's FSS (Socialist Forces Front) was weakened in the 1960s and 1970s and his militants were tracked down.
The risks of relocation in Algeria are very minimal, knowing that with the exception of an insignificant minority, the kabyles are very attached to their 'Algerianness', largely proved during the 1954-1962 revolution and the events following.
Where social strikes are concerned, the regime risks very little, as the UGTA has been very docile in their regard. During the 1990s, at the apex of the civil war, hundreds of thousands of workers were subjected to being made redundant (the reduction of staff was one of the measures of the IMF (International Monetary Fund) in order to sustain those in power) while the central syndicate remained passive, happy to make threats which were never carried out.
Manipulation as a political tool
Many articles in the Algerian press (for the most part written by journalists who are experts on terrorism and known for rubbing shoulders with the DRS), tell the story of the GIA (Armed Islamic Group), the AIS (Islamic Salvation Army) and other armed factions, while never mentioning the implication of the Algerian Secret Services . However General Khaled Nezzar himself pointed out its role when he was backed into a corner in court, opposite sub-lieutenant Habib Souaïdia in Paris in July 2002, when he declared (1): « infiltrations are the job of any service. » implicitly admitting the infiltration of armed factions by the DRS. (2) However, General Nezzar either pretended not to know, or did not say, that the armed factions were created by the Military Security (SM) during the first months of 1991 under the umbrella project « global action plan » drafted in December 1990. (3)
More precisely, « Nezzar's plan » was hatched by the power behind the regime, Larbi Belkheir, the principal private secretary of the President of the Republic Chadli Bendjedid, while Generals Mohamed Touati, Abdelmadjid Taright and Mohamed Lamari drafted the plan which was then handed over to the DRS.
When I had revealed that the GIA was born from the DRS on satellite channel Al Jazeera during the month of August 2001, the heads of the SM were keen to get rid of any evidence that they were guilty. Because of the threat of the ICC (International Criminal Court), Generals Mediene Mohamed, also known as Toufik, and Smail Lamari, who needed to eliminate any proof that they were implicated in the genocide of the Algerian people, initially decided to dismiss Colonels Athmane Tartag, also known as Bachir, Chief of the CPMI (4), Farid Ghobrini, Chief of the CPO (5) and Tahri Zoubir also known as Hadj Zoubir, Chief of the news service, in charge of psychological action and disinformation. All three colonels played an essential role in the campaign of terror, repression and murders. The first two either committed these murders, or had them committed by those they commanded and the third covered for them by making sure the media network he had established issued that they were attributed to the « Islamist terrorists ».
The DRS chiefs hoped that by sacrificing the underlings in this way, they would escape Milosevic's fate in all impunity, whereas they were the people actually in charge of the squadrons of death who were responsible for terror, death and devastation, whether they were called GIA, MIA, FIDA, OJAL (6) or any other paramilitary faction of a similar structure.
Due to this divulgement on television and the relative revelations regarding the manipulation of the armed factions who served the interests of a hidden power, instructions were handed out to the press in Algeria in order that the GIA be slowly replaced with the GSPC (7), a « dissident » organization of the GIA, which would spare the civilians while attacking the military and the security forces. Unlike the loud GIA, the GSPC kept a low profile, rarely had press releases and practically never claimed the deeds it was responsible for. This approach was probably due to the fact that huge and unrepeatable errors had been committed by those in charge of 'terrorism management' at the DRS who manipulated the « emirs of the GIA » (8).
On 9 February 2002, DRS Official Antar Zouabri, known as the national emir for the GIA after Djamel Zitouni, was in turn killed at Boufarik in a barbarous operation. His body was then exhibited to the media at the headquarters for the first military region in Blida.
After this, the near-totality of the terrorist attacks taken out in Algeria were attributed solely to Hassan Hattab's GSPC. The media network of those in power only rarely spoke of the GIA. Emir Abou Tourab himself, the presumed successor to Antar Zouabri, ex-Emir of the GIA, pictured as a bloodthirsty man, mysteriously « disappeared »! The GSPC became the new scarecrow to be brandished, in order to frighten a civil society already undermined by endemic divergences and with no hold over the people.
The DRS propaganda took advantage of the painful events of 11 September 2001 and the international lobby against terrorism to label the GSPC a branch of the A l Qaeda of Osama Bin Laden. However, A l Qaeda had never been mentioned by any Algerian newspaper before this fatal date. The aim of this was no doubt to please the Americans, but also to dismiss the specter of the ICC – the International Criminal Court – by keeping a low profile and guaranteeing all the American procedures (or rather political drifts), including their aggression against the Iraqi people.
The generals, in order to escape the ICC, were ready to sell the riches of their country, to renounce national sovereignty (President Bouteflika in Vienna proposed his services in the negotiations with the kidnappers of the hostages in the Sahara by offering a « way out ») and to deny all of the principles of the November 1954 revolution including Algeria's commitment to the right of people to self-determination when he unabashedly declared « Algeria does not need a new State on its borders » and by suggesting that there are « no winners and no losers. (9) »
We must get back to the roots of the GIA and the DRS in order to better understand what was at stake for the « visionary » strategy of the generals and to better understand who exactly benefits from anarchy and chaos.
The roots of armed factions
In early1991, upon orders from Colonel Smain Lamari, the Bouyalist networks of the MIA (10) were reactivated by chief-in-command Amar Guettouchi, head of the CPO (until his death in May 1992 in the Telemly affair described in detail in my above-mentioned book). The MIA – Algerian Islamic Movement – will keep the same acronym (for confusions' sake!) and become the Armed Islamic Movement, after some beating around the bush on the part of the Algerian services which were reviving the divergences between some of their leaders, namely Abdelkader Chebouti, Baa Azzedine and Mansouri Meliani. Ahmed Merah was the only one who was openly part of this game and who neither hid his allegiances nor his frequent visits to his new « employers », allowing himself to be seen in the centre of Antar or Ghermoul, headquarters of the DCE.
The MIA had already been given technical means by the SM during this period, such as walkie-talkies and vehicles, seeing as I had to offer them four vehicles from the car park of the SRA (Service for Research and Analysis) which I headed at the time. The heads of the MIA were requested to recruit individuals in order to create resistance and to make believe that the FIS had been overtaken by its radical wing, amounting to a subterfuge which risked military intervention. However, in early 1991 the ANP (National Popular Army) was not yet prepared to start an attack and the hope of containing the FIS at the legislative elections on 26 December 1991 at a tolerable threshold of 30 percent had not yet been eliminated by the « alchemists » of the Tagarins. (11)
The many officials who had been infiltrated to fill the ranks of the Islamic movement meant that the opinions of the heads of the FIS oscillated continuously between those that proclaimed the Jihad and those that incited to peace, in the same way as there was a division between the modern following of the Djazaara (the Algerian obedience) and the Salafists (partisans of Islamic traditions) who rejected democracy.
At the time of the strike of the FIS, which was considered insurrectional by those in power, and during the events of June 1991, part of the Islamic resistance had already been constituted. Some of its members were 'deserters' or officers from the SM such as Captain Ahmed Bouamra, who after simulating a removal of army numbers and after time spent in Afghanistan, took the lead of the El Hidjra oua Takfir faction in the popular neighborhood of Belcourt, where he preached as an Imam at the Es Sunna Mosque.
A large section of the « Afghans » auditioned at Antar were either returned, or were led to join small factions in the process of being constituted, who seriously believed they were serving the Islamic cause; this category of manipulated Islamists no doubt implemented the criminal plans of Smain Lamari, Kamel Abderahmane and his consorts, by attacking the targets their officers-in-charge designated for them, who generally selected the people who needed to be eliminated: journalists, intellectuals, enemies, problematic individuals in the military, all potential people who could jeopardize the Nezzar plan.
The DRS wanted to disqualify the FIS at all costs from the race to power, but with no legitimate or legal argument to sustain it, it was forced to undertake a series of actions, from secret contacts (between Ali Benhadj and Abbassi Madani and the heads of the DRS) and below-the-belt attacks (false press releases of the special services attributed to the FIS, bugging and surveillance of the heads of the FIS, attempts at dividing them, provocations,.). With this troubled atmosphere as a backdrop, a mad race gripped hold of the heads of the DRS at local levels (Athmane Tartag in Algiers, Mehenna Djebbar in Blida, Kamel Hamoud in Constantine, Abdelwahab in Oran, .) who all surpassed each other in terms of infiltration of the factions they often had set up themselves.
Abbassi Madani and Ali Benhadj's arrest on 30 June 1991, combined with the wave of repression and the deportation of militants to the « secure » camps in the south led activists to opt for living in hiding. Once the SIT (Islamic Work Syndicate, an organization which was close to the FIS and contested the hegemony of the UGTA) was forbidden, the DRS was able to take charge of the organization due to a network of agents which gravitated around the brothers Eulmi (Omar and Abdenacer), Said Makhloufi and Abdelkader Moghni, turning it into a « guerilla » organization which had to give birth early 1992 to the MEI – the Islamic State Movement.
While the FIS was preparing its congress in Batna in July 1991, Chief-in-command Amar and his agent Ahmed Merah were busy organizing the Zbarbar resistance, while the Chief of government Sid Ahmed Ghozali sent ambassadors (sheik Sahnouni and sheik Zebda) to Chréa to propose to Said Makhloufi (wanted since June 1991 for instigating the general strike in May-June 1991 of the FIS and for being the author of the pamphlet on civil disobedience) to take the direction of a second FIS which would be funded by the DRS!
The failure of the Zbarbar congress mid-January 1992 which was supposed to federate the armed factions of the centre (namely the MIA, EL Hidjra our Takfir, the secret members of the SIT and other factions) did not give the DRS the opportunity to control the « nebulous » ensemble of factions.
Mansouri Meliani, having detected the maneuver, made the Chief of the DCE, Smaïn Lamari abort his unification project. The latter in fact will never forgive Mansouri Meliani for his foresight, as he had him arrested by the El Achour end of May/early June 1992 (his arrest was only announced in July, after the assassination of Mohamed Boudiaf, when he had been detained and tortured in the police barracks at Châteauneuf), and had him condemned to death and executed after a summary trial.
It is pointless to expand on the voting process which came to a standstill and on its nefarious consequences for Algeria. Robert D. Kaplan writes to this purpose in La stratégie du guerrier (12): « the annulment of the second round of scrutiny in Algeria in January 1992, was in no way the reason behind Islamic terrorism and civil war, except for in the beginning ». With the excuse of curbing the rise in fundamentalism, the entire Algerian society has been dismantled whereas the main military players, with a couple of exceptions, still have the same posts since 1991, and over the same period of time five heads of state and a dozen heads of government have been « consumed ».
The strategy of the generals could be efficient only in case of armed conflict, the repression and the confinement of Islamic activists were but a prelude to the expansion of the GIA which, aside from an uncertain period (around the time of the arrest of Abdelhak Layada in Morocco and the enthronement of Djamel Zitouni as « National Emir ») (13) would be taken charge of by the DRS in order to run its counter-guerilla operations with the aim of eradicating the Islamic dispute, quieting the democrats and maintaining the subservience of the people.
Meanwhile, the squadrons of death and other shadowy organizations from the laboratories of the DRS, such as OJAL, the FIDA, continued to be rife, pursuing their dirty job of putting those who had the nerve to resist in line, leaving only two alternatives: the grave or exile. The terror campaign would also ensure the reign of the despots, who already had the control of the state levers, the henchmen in key posts and the division of government stocks between « the warlords ».
From September 1994 to July 1996, Djamel Zitouni, at the head of the GIA, followed in the wake of the eradicators to power, attacking Abbassi Madani and Ali Benhadj, denouncing the peace offering of Saint Egidio (14), multiplying the massacres of civilians living in the regions known for their sympathy with Islamists (Larbaa, Meftah, Médéa, Chlef.), engaging in a pitiless fight against the resistance of the AIS and getting rid of the chiefs of the Islamic movement who were imprudent enough to join him (Mohamed Saïd, Abderazak Redjem, Saïd Makhloufi). General Kamel Abderahmane (head of the DSA) and Colonel Athmane Tartag, also known as Bachir, who had even suggested to Captain Ahmed Chouchane, ex-Officer of the Special Forces and instructor of the Cherchell Academy known for his piousness, to second the shady Djamel Zitouni with the aim of murdering Islamic opponents. (15) Kamel Abderahmane himself had organized a meeting for him with the National Emir of the GIA, proving the extent to which the GIA was a mere tool in the hands of the authorities.
The skills of terrorist Zitouni were used to apply the recommendations of the IMF which the government didn't dare to do. Zitouni's GIA saw to destroying and burning down all the unproductive companies in deficit which the government no longer wished to fund. Workers were suddenly made redundant, without the state having to announce redundancies, thus avoiding confrontation with the workers and economizing on the intervention of the police in the face of the contestations.
At the time when the GIA was hounding the obsolete public enterprises, no property of the generals (factories, hotels, businesses,.although some of these were located at the heart of insecure areas such as Larbaa, Khémis El Khechna, Blida.) ever was damaged in the slightest way. This apparent calm is odd when one thinks of the madness which seemed to have gripped hold of the armed factions at the time, who were burning or murdering babies.
By eliminating Zitouni, the DRS endeavored to erase all traces of its implication in the terrorist attacks in France in 1995 and in the kidnapping followed by the murder of the monks of Tibéhirine, as Warrant Officer Tigha Abdelkader, working for the CTRI in Blida at the time of these events, related later on. (16)
Antar Zouabri, who succeeded Zitouni in July 1996 was also known for being an official of the DRS. He adopted the same principles as Zitouni, i.e. maintaining chaos by perpetuating the massacres in the Mitidja in the periphery of Algiers. The pinnacle of horror was reached in 1997 and 1998 with the massacres at Rais, Bentelha, Beni Messous and Relizane, where army factions stationed not far from where the carnage took place (which at times lasted hours), shone in their passivity, deeming it pointless to intervene. There is no doubt that the army was either implicated or an accomplice in these odious crimes. This was confirmed by the fact that the attackers who arrived in trucks took all their time to accomplish their deeds and left in no hurry either. No man of rank in the army deemed it useful to check on what was taking place and no culprit was arrested or tried for his crimes against humanity. General Nezzar explained this lack through the instructions left for the soldiers to not leave their neighborhood at night in order not to run any risks. The militaries « shut up » in their barracks did not hear the moans, the groans or the cries for help of the women, children and old men who were being slaughtered for long hours with not a living soul ever intervening.
In a country where impunity reigns almighty and where the most basic human rights are scorned, one could not expect any reaction from those in power. Who took advantage of these massacres which forced the inhabitants of faraway villages to choose the « security » vote in order to give the country the new majority of the RND, a political party created a couple of months earlier? Beyond the terror which it inflicted on its citizens, the GIA had once again come to the rescue of those in power seeing as, on the international level Algeria brought the proof of its intention to establish democracy and did not oppose the changeover (that of the RND dethroning the FLN), thus subtly removing the necessary financial support for its struggle against Islamism « knocking at Europe's doors ».
What were the consequences of this civil war which killed more than 200 000 people, during which thousands 'disappeared' (more than 12 000 according to some non-governmental organizations, more than 7000 according to Algiers), millions were internally displaced and half-a-million went in exile?
The first conclusion one comes to is that there are no rights for the people, who remain incapable of freely voting their representatives. Civil war has above all endeavored to reinforce the power of a military oligarchy within state institutions, the preservation of their interests and the distribution of a couple of grants – or rather crumbs – to the 'civil' puppets who swear their allegiance.
This is a sad outcome for the 'saviors' of Algeria. Ten years after the interruption of the voting process in January 1992, and even though it was dissolved, the FIS still lives in the minds and hearts of millions of Algerians, terrorism has not been eradicated, corruption, undeserved privileges and vote-catching gimmicks are all in lieu of governance. Increasing anarchy reigns endemically in a country where there are no rights, making the black market lawful, and the bazaar economy a substitute for a market economy; worse still, distraught youth, bereft of illusions, now only focuses on emigrating. Young Algerians seek refuge in drugs, violence, prostitution or delinquency, while others find the only way out of unemployment and a hard life is suicide.
1. Habib Souaïdia, Le procès de « La sale guerre » (The trial of the « Dirty War »), Paris, 2002, p.242.
2. Department for research and security, following the ex-Military Security (SM – Sécurité militaire). Mohamed Medienne is chief whereas Smaïn Lamari, number 2, is head of the DCE (Counterspy Division), the third structure is the DCSA (Direction centrale de la direction de l'Armée/The Central Office for the Heads of the Army).
3. The « global action plan » of the Minister of Defense – which aimed to impede the FIS access to power was put forward to the President of the Republic end 1990. In his memoirs, General Nezzar writes about the « staff headquarters' political reasoning ». See Khaled Nezzar, Mémoires, Alger 1999, p.217.
4. CPMI: centre principal militaire de recherche et d'investigation (the main military centre for research and investigation). Part of the DCSA which will play a central role in the repression after January 1992. The centre is located in Ben Aknoun, Algiers.
5. CPO (principal centre of the operations, or « Centre Antar »), department of the DRS.
6. MIA: Mouvement islamique armé (Armed Islamic Movement), FIDA : Front islamique pour le djihad armé (Islamic Front for the Armed Jihad), OJAL: Organisation des jeunes algériens libres (Organisation for Young Free Algerians).
7. Salafi group for preaching and fighting.
8. See the account of the press release on the sacrifice of Djamel Zitouni after the murder of the monks of Tibéhirine, covered in my book Mohammed Samraoui, Chronique des années de sang, Paris 2003, p.
9.« L'Algérie n'a pas besoin d'un nouvel Etat à ses frontières » (« Algeria does not need a new State at its borders »), La Gazette du Maroc, 10 March 2003
10. In the beginning of the 1980s an armed Islamic opposition was formed headed by Mustapha Bouyali. It was pulled down in 1987, its members imprisoned and subsequently released upon presidential grace.
11. The ministry of Defence, in the broader sense the Generals.
12. éditions Bayard March 2003 page 93
13. Abdelhak Layada, the second head of the GIA was a DRS agent. At his unforeseen arrest in Morocco in June 1993, the DRS lost a moment of control and two other Emirs who were not enfeoffed were selected: Sid Ahmed Mourad, aka Djafaar El-Afghani (killed 26 February 1994) and Chérif Gousmi (killed 26 October 1994). This is when the DRS took on a new head of the GIA by enthroning Djamel Zitouni responsible for the drift of the GIA as a tool for anti-insurrectional struggle.
14. In November 1994 and January 1995, the entire opposition representative was assembled in Rome under the aegis of the Catholic community of St Egidio in order to elaborate a platform for exiting the crisis, which was categorically rejected by the Algerian government.
15. For more details on this, see the account of Ahmed Chouchen http://www.algeria-watch.org/farticle/nezzar_souaidia/chouchen_temoignage.htm
16. See « Les sept moines de Tibhirin enlevés sur ordre d'Alger » ('The seven monks of Tibhirin kidnapped upon orders from Algiers') Libération, 23 décembre 2002.


text:
While the suggestion of privatizing Sasktel has been floated by the government for the past year, the idea took on new life yesterday with the Premier once again musing about the possibility of a referendum on privatization should the right offer materialize:
If we were to get an offer as a result of the offer thats happened in MTS for a majority of the company and we believed that it was good for the province for any number of reasons, it checked a lot of boxes in terms of keeping jobs in Saskatchewan, the head office here, better coverage, well then I cant say yes to that deal because we didnt campaign on that, Wall said. But I dont think I should say no either without checking with the shareholders.
The Premier obviously believes that there is a scenario in which a privatized Sasktel would be good for the people of Saskatchewan as long as certain conditions are met. Could this be the case? To evaluate the desirability of privatization, I think we need to look at a few different variables, such as affordability, access to service, quality of service and return on investment to determine whether we as a province would fare better under a privately-owned or publically-owned telecom.
Lets look at your bare bones landline package first.........
Brad Wall, SaskTel and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea - Behind the Numbers

subset: commoncrawl


text:
There is much misinformation in the world of plumbing. For instance, people believe that when you flush the toilet, the water moves clockwise in the southern hemisphere due to the rotation of the earth. The truth is that such a movement does not occur at all. The rotation of the planet cannot have an effect of that magnitude on the toilet. Other myths follow a similar pattern. They begin with a popular idea and then misapply it. A water heater is not an exception when it comes to misinformation and myths. Here are some common water heater myths:
A water heater can explode
This myth is based on the fact that anything that involves pressurized water or gas tends to blow up. This belief is wrong because the water heater has safety measures that shut the heater down or releases heat when pressure builds up. Therefore, a water heater cannot explode. Call up your local water heater repair company when the device rattles.
DIY water heater repair is straightforward
It is not advisable to repair your water heater system on your own without consulting the professionals that know how to do it better. Setting up a new heating element may appear straightforward, but it can result in slow heating and dangerous leaking gas if you do not install it correctly. You might be tempted to engage in DIY water repair especially when you need the fix completed as soon as possible, but you should remember that the system is more complicated than it appears. Therefore, it is more reliable to call on local water heater repair company to help you fix issues relating to your water heater.
Tankless water heaters are costlier than other types of water heater
The fact is that the installation of a tankless water heater requires expensive venting. This type of setup depends primarily on the location where you prefer to install your system. One of the features of a tankless water heater is that it is highly efficient, allowing buyers to recover the installation cost over a few years.
Tankless water heaters can produce unlimited hot water
Tankless water heater does not have endless hot water. It works by heating water on demand. Hot water emanating from the tankless system is in greater supply because the water is not coming from a tank.
The answers above have debunked some of the popular myths about your home water heating system. Rather than believing a myth about the water heater, it is advisable to contact professionals to help you fix any problems with your water heater.
I am a Realtor®, and pride myself in providing you with the quality experience you expect for all your real estate needs. My goal is to provide first class service and help you achieve your real estate goals.


text:
does not see the Internet virtual hosts xampp - xampp opens his folder htdocs !, but on the LAN sees these hosts!
xampp running on linux mint, dns server - win2003, proxy - zentyal. a couple of days already struggling, do not understand what I'm doing wrong?
I need to host multiple sites using xampp and the Internet to access it.
Thank you all in advance!


text:
Weekend Fun In The City: Hangout spots
So, D.C. is kinda small and not many places that are teen friendly, because come on, we don't like playgrounds anymore (I still like the swings though… :D). So, where can you go that's reachable and has pretty much all you need to spend less money? Well, Georgetown is the place, if you know what you're doing and where to go. I'm going to assume a good amount of the people who should really be reading this are 16-20, so stay out of the bars! Now that that's finished, on to the fun stuff. Georgetown is probably one of the most expensive parts of D.C. All of the stores are pretty costly there.
The Georgetown Waterfront is a very chill place to be. It's got a nice view of the Potomac River and the tall buildings in Crystal City. When the sun sets, and the sky is orange, the reflection of the windows and the river make it a beautiful sight. It's also a nice place to take a girlfriend, boyfriend, or just a group of friends. If your at the pier, you get a nice view of the boats and the people partying and having fun. The lawn area is a nice place to sit down and just ponder over the water.
There are many different kinds of stores around this area and there is a movie theater (Georgetown Loew's) directly behind the river. Right beside it there's a Hershey Ice Cream Shop. There are also high-classed restaurants (and low class for us) and other kinds of convenience stores like your average corner store and CVS. There is a Barnes & Noble and an Apple Store, so you have plenty of places to sit around and chill. The night life is pretty cool as well. There's a guy I like to call "The Metallica". He is usually near the waterfront playing his electric guitar or with a band playing some fun jazzy stuff. Georgetown isn't the safest place in the world, but it's better than most places. Just watch your back and keep an eye open, but otherwise have fun.
–Jason Barnes


text:
Home Insurance
Home Owners Package
Rest assured that your most valuable things are taken care of. We provide extensive coverage to protect your home and its contents and will work with you to develop a customized home
insurance policy that is right for you and your home. What's more; we offer a variety of premium discounts such as: Claim Free, Mortgage Free, Alarm System, Mature Citizen, and New Home
Discounts…just to name a few. And when you bundle your home and auto policies with the same insurer you can also reduce your premium.
Tenants Insurance
Even though you don't own your home, you are still at risk. Our Tenants Insurance is for anyone who rents their dwelling. This type of coverage can protect your personal property against fire, theft, vandalism, and other unforeseen circumstances.
Insurance for a condos is different than insurance for conventional homes or rented dwellings. We have several insurance products suited for condo owners who own and occupy a unit that is owned and insured by a Condominium Association, or a similar type of organization. Contact one of our brokers today and find out what type of condo coverage is best for you.
Cottage and Second Home
We understand the meaning of "Home Away From Home." So no matter if your cottage is used seasonally or is a second home, you have better things to do there than worry about the right coverage. Our cottage and second home programs provide the right coverage for your retreat, including theft and liability.
Contact us today for a non-binding quote at 905-668-5823.
Did you know?
- Bundling your home and auto policies can result in further premium discounts. Ask one of our brokers to help you save more!


text:
Hello beta group!
The first beta build has expired so we wanted to push out an update to the group with a few fixes and an extension on the expiration. This build will expire on October 31st, 2015.
We have a little more polish to wrap up with the new bootstrapper, so it is not included with this update. Quality is very important to us, even in beta! We plan to push out a follow-up update in a few days with the new bootstrapper framework. More to come!
In the meantime, please take a moment to upgrade to the new beta build (5003lt). Links and release notes for this build are below:
Beta 2 Downloads:
• X1SearchSetupBeta.exe (bootstrapper that will determine the correct bitness, download the MSI and walk you through the install process)
• X1Search32.msi (x32 bit version)
• X1Search.msi (Since x64 is the standard there is no bitness in the name)
Release Notes (X1 Search 8.4 Beta 2, build 5003lt)
New Features and Improvements
- OUTLOOK: Updated Outlook scanner naming throughout product to make them consistent
- Added GPO to control "Start X1 when I start Windows" option
- Added GPO to control "Start X1 Minimized" option
- Added GPO to control "Start X1 Indexing Service when I start Windows" option
- Updated Data Source list to always display default connectors first (Outlook, Files)
Bug Fixes
- Fixed an installer issue that caused custom install paths to be overwritten by the default path (Only evidenced in beta)
- Fixed an issue that caused UI to be too small if user removed data sources
- Fixed an error that could lead to an "ArgumentOutOfRangeException" crash
- Fixed an error that could lead to a "DataGridException: SetCurrent cannot be invoked while another SetCurrent is in progress" crash
- Fixed an issue that caused refinement tabbing to break when one or more columns were not visible
- OUTLOOK: Fixed an issue that could lead to broken previews for emails attached to other emails
- OUTLOOK: Fixed an issue that caused incorrect network error message from appearing when X1 is unable to access a local PST message
- RAPID: Fixed an issue where blank Rapid searches would produce erroneous highlighting of "0"s
Thank you again for your continued support as part of our beta community!


text:
Here you will find the EU and EØS regulatation implemented April 2018 for EU.In EØS area it will be implemented by end of June 2018. Both Industry and Horeca segments have now lower allowed levels of Acrylamide in food in addition to follow ALARA ( As Low As Reasonable Achievable.) When it comes to French Fries processing, using Zeracryl lactic acid will secure the French Fries Producers and Processors to prepare a healthy Product and to follow the new rules.
In EØS area it will be implemented by end of June 2018.
EU and EØS new and stricter regulation Acrylamide in Food 2018
EU Commisionand EØS allowed levels of Acrylamide in Food 2018


text:
Why once a week backup is not enough
Backup is probably one of my favourite topics when it comes to data security. It's relatively simple, it can save you from an unexpected disaster, it's automated and in most cases, doesn't require expensive or complicated setup.
Why backup?
If you own a car then you most likely have it insured because you never know what could happen due to your or someone else's fault. You also probably have some form of health insurance in case you get sick or injured. Or not because you like living on the edge; I think you get the picture, insurance/backup is important and can save your butt without dipping into your hard-earned savings.
There are two kinds of people, "those who have had a storage failure and those who will have one in the future".
3-2-1 strategy
What is 3-2-1 strategy you might ask? It means:
- Having 3 copies of your data
- On at least 2 different media
- And 1 being offsite
This concept has been popularised thanks to Peter Krogh, a well-known photographer who wrote that there are two kinds of people, "those who have had a storage failure and those who will have one in the future".
3 – Having three copies of your data
Many people underestimate this requirement because they think one is enough. True, one is better than none but what if it's the one that's connected to your PC/Server that got fried during last night's storm and took the backup drive to the silicon heaven with it? Your data would be gone. There are dozens of other reasons why you want to have three copies, such as viruses, ransomware, malicious damage, corruption and theft among others. It's understandable that this setup isn't always possible but there are tools that can help you with your most important documents, such as BackBlaze, CrashPlan or Carbonite. I'll talk about cloud backup storage in my next blog.
2 – Data saved on at least two different media
You could have your data saved one a computer and a different partition but they could be physically still stored on the same hard-drive which would exposed them to the same risk as the main drive. Good effort but not the smartest. You can pick up an external drive from Staples, Officeworks or online for less than a $100 that would cover all your data. For businesses, there are paid and far better and more efficient tools based on very precise matrix. I won't cover them here as this is more about generic, sound backup principles.
1 – Keep one copy offsite
Off-site copy is important in case something happens at the primary site, whether it's loss, theft, fire or aforementioned lightning that can fry your data. Literally. For home, you can use solutions like CrachPlan, BackBlaze or Carbonite that will keep your data safe and in the cloud.
One note: don't confuse backup tools with synchronisation tools (Dropbox, Google drive, Sync and so on), they are not the same thing! If you delete file on your hard-drive, it gets removed in your cloud storage immediately. True, you can often recover it within certain period of time but what if you don't notice or forget or accidentally remove something you might need in the future, beyond the recovery period? It certainly happened to me. Luckily, I had a backup and was able to recover however my heartrate went up when I discovered that one of my contractors removed files from our shared folder because he was running out of space.
By now you understand the importance of backups and why you should keep one off-site or in the cloud. In case you're still wondering and thinking 'nah, it won't happen to me!', here's a story from a client that had recently realised the importance of backups.
One of the employees received a social engineered email and curiously clicked on the link that loaded ransomware on their computer and started encrypting files on the computer as well as remote server. Most of their files got encrypted before they realised what had happened. They disconnected it and luckily we were able to disconnect the computer, clean it from pesky ransomware and restore the data on the server without much downtime. Not having functional backups would cause them headaches beyond 'pay or not to pay'. If they had backup done only once a week, they would have to spend working overtime to catch up with all their work they did since the last backup. That's why once a week backup isn't the best idea – time is valuable and storage is dirt cheap. Talk to us today about free audit of your backup solutions.


text:
View our one pagers on 1Source's premier services. We offer a range of audio, video, web, and event solutions.
Enter the email address that you signed up with and we will email you a password reset link.
For your security, this session will expire in due to inactivity. If you want to extend your session, please select the 'Continue' button. If you select the 'Log Out' button or do not respond, your session will automatically close.


text:
After my mother's day surprise from Taelor, I fixed him some breakfast.
We'd spent almost an hour talking about cheese and corn. Cheesiness and Corniness. The cheese people and the corn people. About how they lived side by side. About how the sun wasn't good for either because one would melt and the other would pop. We talked about the bridge connecting them and how it'd be crackers with corn chips railings (so no one would fall off the bridge). Basically, it was a very invigorating conversation which left us both hungry, so I made him a cheese fondue.
After lunch, we headed out. It was Saturday, and I'd arranged to take the kids on a trip to a dinosaur park. It was the same park I'd brought Shawn and Taelor to earlier in the week, only this time there was enough time to see MUCH MUCH more of it.
Joi, Kao, Isaac and Korageth (Isaac's friend) were all there along side me and Taelor. Shawn needed a nap, so he would join us later ((RL had him)).
I announced the rules, and soon as that was done, we headed on by taxi.
Upon arrival, we began at the gallery of the museum. Isaac got up on one of the exhibits, to which I had to remind him of the sign. *smirks*
We walked about and Korageth told the kids fascinating stories about how dinosaurs came to be, and how some got their name, and why they had different natures and skills. It was oh so informative. For me too. I quite liked having another grown up to help me with the kids, and it helps that this one in particular was a very warm man…I mean, bird.
ANYWAY! We explored the labs too and soon we found ourselves outside. It took us a moment to realize that we were outside, BUT within a cage. A dinosaur cage. A T-Rex, to be exact.
PANIC! I had kids with me and there was a dinosaur right there. To say the least, we ran – at first. But then quickly learned to be more stealthy IF we wanted to survive and go unseen. So we did.
Least until we saw a RAPTOR. That was a "run" moment. We dashed and thank God we found shelter in what seemed to be a broken down building. It literally had pieces hanging off it's walls – broken. We prayed no raptors followed us, but knew we couldn't stay there for long.
Korageth, Isaac and Shawn went out to scout for a way out. When they came back, I'd changed little Kao's wet clothes. It had been raining and the little dear was shivering in fear and cold. All the kids were crying and frightened. I was too, but couldn't really comfort them in the thick of it. I needed to get them outta there.
Anyway, we followed the boys who had found a way out and soon we were in another building.
This one was much more secure, but it was very clear that it'd been abandoned. The kids were less frightened, but it wasn't over. We needed a way to get out and we couldn't tell from where we were (inside) just where to go. So we took another chance and made it quickly to a high point, using the elevator just outside the office.
From way up high, we saw nothing but green. Well, until I spotted a paving and realized we weren't so far from the way out. So we made our way down quickly, back into the building.
We opened and shut doors, looking for what would be the main lobby and pathway to the entrance to the building. The entrance being a good enough exit for us, we celebrated once we found it.
There was no hesitation on our part. We raced down the pavement and caught the very first taxi home!
Once we got home, I noticed there was more than one wet undies. The kids were still so scared that most of them had…umm…peed a little. The poor little dears.
I shooed them all to go get washed up then meanwhile, I took Taelor home to get washed up too and ready for bed.
He washed his hair in the shower, but when he came out, I asked him to help me go check the mail. So he put on his wellies, coat and umbrella and went out to go help his mommy get the mail.
There WAS mail! And it was for him – from Jinx. He opened it and a fairy popped out, free. There were a bunch of other cool things, but Taelor was super excited about the fairy and asked if it could sleep over, to which, I agreed.
I dried his hair and then we said bed time prayers. Once I tucked him in, it didn't take long before he was fast asleep. I sang to him the entire time.
What a day! 🙂


text:
1979 Born in San Antonio, TX, raised in Houston, TX
1995 San Antonio , TX begins to search for his voice in art.
Graffiti and abstractions take form
1998 Begins studio painting
- 2006 2nd Sight Studio opens, James travels back and forth to New Orleans ( Paints in Jackson Square)
- 2008 Curator for C.A.L.O. (Contemporary Art and Literature Organization)
2009-14 Teaches art, The San Antonio School for Inquiry and Creativity
- 2018 Opens NMDK Studio
- 2018 Opens Gaslyght Modern
James Saldivar has worked as Curator and board member for C.A.L.O.'s (Contemporary Art and Literature Organization) Una Noche de La Gloria. He has taught at the The San Antonio School for Inquiry Creativity for four years as the High School Arts Director, James taught not only his student but the rest of the teachers on how to teach their classes through art with various projects and working with them side by side infusing both classes to gain the best possible results from the students. Saldivar now teaches out of his studio .
James was born in San Antonio, and moved to Houston, TX as a child where he was raised. He lived in Houston for 12 years before moving back to San Antonio where he has lived and worked to present time. His paintings consist mostly of abstracts with a strong language of color and the dialogue of how it creates, changes, and moves mood. "Color and the emotion are what intrigues me most of all, the conversations they have and how one without the other just doesn't seem make sense."
Since the 1990's his work has involved the juxtaposition of color. The works since then have gone from graffiti, and abstracts to conceptual works, figuration, and back to conceptual abstraction. What he's working on now has a touch of his philosophy on life. It's representational ( in a metaphysical sense), conceptual, and abstract all wrapped
up .
His current body of work, the "Organics" is a touch back to the beginning days in his studio. Over the years and being away from them they seemed to have evolved . The contemplation on research he's done on the chemicals he uses to create his wet on wet fluid technique he needs for his paint to flow, have definitely grown and minimalized. He moved away from them in 2010 to focus on his "Drips". Each painting in this series has a strong, moving, and very emotional backdrop. His reason for painting and the need to speak his mind through them leaves James at a very vulnerable position which can be taken advantage of, and does at times, yet this only proves to feed his work with more experience and wisdom to continue on his journey through life and his work as the universe sees fit. Saldivar's techniques the " Organics" and the "Drips" are both representing how we as humans have the need/ want to control our lives and as much as we can. The universe is going to do what its going to do no matter what we want. At times it may seem as if we have control but don't be mistaken, it's just a falsity and merely coincidence.
James Saldivar
Professional Experience
- 2ND Sight Studio Owner 2007-Pesent
- Murals
- Painting/ Figurative, Abstract, Mixed Media
- Drawing/ Charcoal, Pastel, Colored and Graphite Pencil, Markers
- Art Teacher, The San Antonio School for Inquiry and Creativity 2009-11
- Steering Committee Member - Una Noche de la Gloria
Individual Shows
2018 " The I in Us" Frieght Gallery, S.A.,TX
Group Shows
2013 "Nine Lives" Silkworm/ Lonestar Art District, S.A.,TX
2009-11 "Una Noche de la Gloria' Historic Guadalupe Arts District, S.A.,TX
2009 "Black, Red,and White" High Wire Arts, S.A., TX
2008-11 "On and Off Freds. Rd Bihl Haus Arts,, S.A.,T X
2007 "Visiones de Virgin de Guadalup"e Centro Cultural Aztlan, S.A.,TX
2007 "Culture Vulture " Mandala Art Gallery. S.A.,TX
2007 "Huevos Ranchero"s Gala Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center, S.A.,TX
2007 New works Circle Infiniti Art Space, S.A.,TX
2007 S.M.A.R.T Fest One9Zero6 Art Gallery, S.A.,TX
Curatorial shows
Collaborative/ Assisted Murals
2008 Feb. Assisted with Community Mural Project / Mannhcke Park Neighborhood
Association in conjunction with the Witte Museum
and the Office cultural Affairs, San Antonio, Texas
2007 Aug. Assisted with "Brighter Days" Community Mural Project/
West side Mental Health Clinic in conjunction with San An to Cultural Arts , San Antonio, Texas
2007 June Assisted with 30th Anniversary Community Mural Project, Presa Community Center, San Antonio, Texas
1998 May Area 210 Retail Space, San Antonio, Texas
1998 Feb. Valadez Automotive, San Antonio, Texas
1997 Dec. Bumper Outlet "Wall of Fame" Mural Project, San Antonio ,Texas
Independent Murals
2018 Essex Modern City, S.A.,TX
1998 Street Fashions Retail Space, San Antonio, Texas
1997 Sepios Ice House, San Antonio, Texas
1997 La Popular Bakery, San Antonio, Texas
On and Off Freds. Rd Tour Catalogue, 2008-13
The Current
San Antonio Express News http://www.mysanantonio.com/entertainment/Art_in_church_Its_not_what_you_might_think.html?showFullArticle=y
Great Day SA 1.14.10
Latin Fusion TV 10.10.09


text:
NEW Outlast Gameplay Walkthrough Part 8 of the Story for PC and PS4. This Outlast Gameplay Walkthrough will also include a Review, Reactions, Scary Moments and the Ending.
Subscribe: http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=theradbrad
Twitter: http://twitter.com//thaRadBrad
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/theRadBrad
Outlast is a psychological horror video game developed and published by Red Barrels for Playstation 4 and PC. In the remote mountains of Colorado, horrors wait inside Mount Massive Asylum. A long-abandoned home for the mentally ill, recently re-opened by the "research and charity" branch of the transnational Murkoff Corporation, has been operating in strict secrecy... until now. Acting on a tip from an inside source, independent journalist Miles Upshur breaks into the facility, and what he discovers walks a terrifying line between science and religion, nature and something else entirely. Once inside, his only hope of escape lies with the terrible truth at the heart of Mount Massive.


text:
Clemson Professor Says South Carolina Doesn't Need More Foreign STEM Workers
Monday, March 18, 2013, 9:50 AM EDT – posted on NumbersUSA
An op-ed written by Clemson Professor Mark Thies and published in the Greenville News says the number of U.S
. students enrolled at Clemson in STEM fields is up 60 percent over the past five years. Furthermore, he says that one-third of STEM graduates aren't working in the field and starting salaries within the field have remained flat since 2010.
- He says that enrollment in his Thermodynamics class is the highest its been in his 28 years of teaching. He uses his observations to criticize both the Gang of Eight's immigration proposal and Sen. Lindsey Graham's suggestions that the U.S. suffers from a "brain drain" – highly educated people leaving the country because they can't stay and work in the country after graduation.
Thies teaches Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Clemson University in South Carolina.
"[A]ccording to Ross Eisenbrey in The New York Times, almost 90 percent of Chinese and Indian students who earn STEM PhD stay here. Ross comments (and based on my 28 years at Clemson University I concur) that if a student is talented enough to be wanted by industry, they are essentially guaranteed to get a work visa."
Thies says it's not just recent graduates that are seeing flat starting salaries. He says experienced STEM workers have also seen their salaries stop rising and there's evidence to prove that there are no labor shortages in the high-tech industry.
"[T]he National Association of Colleges and Employers, which tracks STEM salaries of new graduates, reports that overall engineering starting salaries have been flat since 2010, with a tiny 0.3 percent increase. Similar trends exist for more experienced workers. In fact, according to Professor Norman Matloff (EPI Briefing Paper No. 356, Feb. 28), no study other than those sponsored by industry has ever confirmed a shortage! Industry's continual claims that there are too few Americans in STEM fields — and that U.S. citizens are less talented than their foreign counterparts — have been refuted by several recent studies.
"As far as the brain drain is concerned, Matloff's study reached a somewhat startling conclusion: There indeed is a brain drain — but it's an internal brain drain, as the best and brightest U.S. students move out of the STEM field after graduation into areas where salaries are more lucrative because of less worker competition."
Read Prof. Thies's full op-ed at GreenvilleOnline.com.
Subscribe to our News Feed


text:
– Truman Capps
Pronunciation is a difficult issue over here. The English tend to assume that their pronunciations are inherently more correct than ours, so they'll laugh at you if you ask for a kebab (pronounced keb-ob) instead of a kebab (pronounced keb-ahb), and won't understand when you talk about aluminum foil as opposed to al-oom-in-e-um.
This was also true during my program's excursion to Bath, a small town in Southwest England. When English people asked me what I was doing that weekend, I would say, "I'm going to Bath" (as in, splish splash I was takin' a), and then, so as to avoid any confusion, add, "Or Bath." (long A sound English pronunciation). The consensus from most people I talked to was that I was giving the matter too much thought, as I often do.
Bath is probably best known as the site of an ancient Roman bath, situated over the town's hot springs (which are some of the only hot springs in the whole UK). Romans occupying England back in the day would flock to these baths to socialize, enjoy the naturally warm waters, and argue about whose idea it was to leave central Italy for a cold, drizzly island that was prone to occasional Viking attacks.
Bath still trades pretty heavily on this history, as evidenced by the spiffy museum they've built around the ruins of the ancient Roman bath complex, as well as the adjacent gift shop and café built over what I can only imagine are the ruins of the ancient Roman gift shop and café. It was a Friday, so the museum was packed, particularly with a rambunctious group of French middle schoolers, who were living proof that all large groups of middle schoolers the world over are eye-gougingly annoying.
The baths at Bath had religious purposes, as well. What I found most interesting was that angry Romans would inscribe curses against their enemies onto thin strips of lead, which they would then fling into the baths in hopes that the gods would honor their wishes. They had a bunch of these translated curses available on display, and I was struck by the fact that all of them seemed awfully petty for members of the civilization that conquered basically everything in Western Europe. Most of the curses were from people asking the gods to give other people bad luck because they'd stolen some minor valuables or had gotten a bit snippy about who had the best slaves. All I'm saying is, I expected a little more from the people who built the Pont du Gard.
On the way out, they offered us a complimentary glass of water taken from the thermal spring. Apparently the water in the spring fell as rain as long as 10,000 years ago, and then spent the intervening millennia seeping through the Earth, collecting underground, and then getting boiled back up again by geothermal heat – this should've been an indicator that this wasn't going to be one of my better hydration experiences. The water tasted about like water tastes when you leave your Nalgene in the back of your car for several hours on a hot day. So, for the record, whether it's three hours or 10,000 years, water just does not keep very well.
Adjacent to the springs where large numbers of men used to congregate and bathe together, the Anglicans built a giant church in 1156.
Cathedrals in Europe are like Taco Bell in America – they're so plentiful that you never have to go too far to find one, and after a while you almost stop noticing them. You can only be totally blown away by high ceilings, fan vaulting, and stained glass so many times. Unlike Taco Bell, cathedrals usually have no drive through, although if you're willing to wait inside, the Anglicans do make one hell of a Seven Layer Burrito.
We continued our walking tour through the city, looking at the various 18th century buildings and (mercifully) bypassing the Jane Austen museum when it started pouring down rain.
We took shelter in the lobby of the Bath Fashion Museum and one of the girls in our group suggested that we tour the fashion museum while waiting for the rain to stop. The girls all thought this was a great idea; the male contingent was not as enthusiastic. However, the rain refused to let up and we had nowhere else to go, so…
This already wonderful educational experience was not improved by the presence of the same group of obnoxious French middle schoolers, who may well have been stalking us as some sort of urban commando training. They went capering back and forth through the fashion museum, as uninterested in The Evolution of the Scarf as I was, until I bumped into a knot of them in the 'Interactive Display' room.
This was a room in which reproductions of Victorian era corsets were available for visitors to try on. In the room in front of me, a few dozen French boys and girls were chaotically doing just that, fighting over the available corsets and struggling to tighten them on to one another, all under the somewhat helpless gaze of a chaperone.
I spent a moment watching French 11 year olds prancing around in Victorian era underwear before making my exit, checking over my shoulder for Chris Hansen, just in case.
Truman Capps has been further documenting his shenanigans on his blog, Hair Guy.


text:
Congregation Gates of Heaven's 9th Annual Cherry Blossom 5K Race and Walk for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) will be held on Sunday, April 30, with presenting sponsor Price Chopper/ Market 32.
The Race/Walk will start on the grounds of Congregation Gates of Heaven, at 852 Ashmore Ave., Schenectady. The schedule of events and registration can be found at www.5kraceforals.com.
Last year the race/walk had over 800 participants. The proceeds from the Race/Walk registrations go to the Lewis Golub ALS Clinic at the St. Peter's ALS Regional Center.
Online registration closes on April 26 though one may register the day of the event. However, T-shirts are only guaranteed to those who register by April 12.
The ALS Race is also sponsored by Bilinski's, Goldstein Auto Group, Law Firm of Alex Dell, Davey, OrthoNY, Goat Cloud Communications, Clear View Bag Co, Inc., Access Therapy Group, Apex Solar Power, Harris Brand Recruiting, Metro Ford, MHS Photography, Benchemark Printing, WNYT, Fleet Feet Sports, Clifton Park Podiatry, JCB Specialties, Inc., Our Daily Eats, Pepsi Beverage, United Bat Control of New York, 99.5 The River, The Daily Gazette, Mitola Family Dentistry, Stone Industries, The Weber family, Niskayuna Fire District 2, Niskayuna Fire District Grand Blvd., Larry's Foreign Auto Service, Orange Theory Fitness, RedFin, Family Medicine of Malta, Stack'd Protein Pancakes, Digital One, Digital X-Press, Main Care, NALC Branch 29, Niskayuna Police Department and Town of Niskayua, and Schenectady Auxiliary Police.


text: Beach Goddess Posted January 5, 2015 I'm not really a pink person but Beach Goddess and the rest of you on this thread are such great advocates for LP Pink that I might have to try it. You all make it sound so... necessary! Hi Donsie, this really is a beautiful luscious scent. I second Platypuss's advise to give it a whirl. If it's piercy or stabby at first, let it age several weeks. My samples seem to age faster (theory on that above, total personal theory). If it's still piercy, let it age more - totally worth it. I got the medicinal smell from the LP Incandescence due to rasp/ verb but need to revisit to see if that's aged and mellowed. I never got that cough drop thing from new brew of LP Pink but did get really stabby raspberry (noted in reviews above) but it definitely ages to the mellow vanilla pink goodness that's so wonderful. I am not a Pink Person AT ALL (I don't really get along with Occo Pink for instance... ) but this is still one of my favorite scents ever - just SO good and cheerful, and not too pink, if you know what I mean. Just get a sample vial to start with? HI Platypuss! I don't mesh with OCCO Pink very well either, think bc it doesn't have the vanillas, OCCO White I like more. Totally agree that it's not too sweet like some may think a PINK scent would be. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites


text:
Problems with MatterControl and CTC Bizer
sion last edited by unlimitedbacon
I'm testing MatterControl and I'm quite impressed how "intelligent" the slicer is in comparison to Makerware. However, some problems occured while using:
1. The prints are off-centered on the bed, in X as well as in Y direction.
2. When pressing "Sleep (Cold Pause)" on the printer, it moves to positive Z at first, then goes into negative X and Y direction while slamming to the front and left of the printer. The print ist ruined then.
As printer setting I used FlashForge Creator Dual.
Thanks for help!
Thanks for the feedback
- This does not surprise me. We do not have a profile for the CTC Bizer, and it has different bed dimensions than the Flashforge. We could create a profile for the Bizer, but we would need the following information:
- The physical dimensions of the bed
- The distance between the homing position and the front left corner of the bed
- We had never tested that function before. I'm not sure what the trouble is, but you can always pause through MatterControl instead. While paused, you can use the Controls page to move the print head away from the print, and cool it down or heat it up. When you hit resume, it will go back to the correct location.
- This does not surprise me. We do not have a profile for the CTC Bizer, and it has different bed dimensions than the Flashforge. We could create a profile for the Bizer, but we would need the following information:
Thanks for your help!
Next time I'll try to find the middle position of the bed and avoid the Sleep function.
Okay, I did some reverse engineering and what I found out was:
1. The print bed center of the CTC has the coordinates X0 and Y0. This must be set in in the settings.
2. In the Start GCode, when homing the axis (G28), they didn't get calibrated. This must be done using G92 X152 Y75 Z0 A0 B0. If this isn't done, the printer doesn't know where it is, that was the reason why prints were off-centered.
3. When using the Sleep function, the printer goes to X-115 Y-75 Z150. If (default by Mattercontrol), the coordinates X0 and Y0 are the front left of the print bed, it tries to go below these values, resulting in hammering.
My Start GCode now looks like this:
G28 ; home all axes
G0 Z5 F5000 ;set warming position
M1200 MatterControl; Build Start Notification for Makerbot
When using Makerware, there is an A and B axis for the two extruders. I will try to find out how this effects Dual Printing.
Would be cool if you could add this as a new printer profile!
That's some really good research. I put together a profile for the Bizer. Can you try it out and let me know how it goes?
G92command is actually not necessary. MatterControl tells the printer where the homing position is using an
M206command in the On Connect G-Code. I changed this to use the values you gave.
Thanks! Your profile seems to work, at least via USB. I just entered the correct bed dimensions.
However, I usually print via SD Card, then the Connection GCode is not included in the file. As well, the M206 does not seem to work correctly when exported to .x3g. In the RepRap Wiki this command is marked with "???" whether it works with Makerbot. I will check this at the weekend.
Makerware enters the build percentage in the GCode using M73. Is there a way to add this here as well?
Ok. I have added the the CTC Bizer profile to MatterControl. It is available now if you go to add a new printer.
We were able to replicate the SD card issue here. Will have to investigate it more.
M206command is not actually sent to the printer, but is intercepted by MatterControl's S3G processor which remembers the information and takes the appropriate action when communicating with the printer using the S3G protocol. This is why you can't really say Makerbot does or does not support that command.
We were able to replicate the SD card issue when printing doing a print entirely with the second extruder, but not with the first extruder. Was this the case for you as well?
Thanks for adding the profile!
I tried this one. When using only the right extruder, the prints are off-centered about 5mm in negative x-direction. When using only the left extruder, they are completely off-centered, as you can see in the pictures. (both printed via SD Card)
right extruder: https://www.dropbox.com/s/1tx7b0ywmzo46p4/extruder%20right.jpg?dl=0
left extruder: https://www.dropbox.com/s/y1eve6x5mah992s/extruder%20left.jpg?dl=0
Sorry for the messy printer
Roberto74 last edited by
I'm also working on the CTC Bizer and trying to figure out how to customize gcode that is generated by MC in order to better support the heated bed. In particular, I'm printing from the SD card and the gcode that is generated to heat up the bed seems to not be supported by the printer.
Is there a way to edit or influence which gcode instructions are generated for a specific printer profile?
I can provide full details on start/end gcodes differences, if needed.
ryan.lutz last edited by
Custom G-Code is found in the Printer category of SETTINGS: http://wiki.mattercontrol.com/SETTINGS/Printer/Custom_G-Code
Instructions for generating a profile can be found here: http://wiki.mattercontrol.com/Custom_Printer_Profiles
Roberto74 last edited by
Thank you for the links! I improved the start/end gcodes generated by MC to match more those that Makerbot desktop generates for SD card printing and I'm doing some tests... what is still missing is that MC has a variable that holds the value of the current layer number (i.e. [layer_num]) but not the actual percentage over the total number of layers printed (e.g. like 95% or something similar). Makerbot Desktop has an M73 message that is used to display that... any clue if I can extract this from MatterControl OR if I can find a way to add this output in the source code myself? Thanks!
ryan.lutz last edited by ryan.lutz
At the moment MatterControl does not work this way. I created a feature request for this, so it will be up to the dev team as to whether or not they want to proceed with making this happen: https://github.com/MatterHackers/MatterControl/issues/1861


text:
SBI Clerk Recruitment 2020 – Apply Online for 8134 Posts
SBI Clerk Recruitment 2020 notification regarding filling of Clerk Job Vacancies. The Bank organization invites online application from eligible candidates having required qualifications. These 8134 Clerk Posts are in SBI, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, Amravati, Andhra Pradesh, Bangalore, Karnataka, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, Bengaluru, West Bengal, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, Chandigarh, Punjab/Haryana, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Hyderabad, Telangana, Jaipur, Rajasthan, … Read more


text:
Child protection advocates rallied at the Capitol on Tuesday to urge lawmakers to pass legislation to fix the state's troubled child welfare agency.
Several dozen bills have been filed so far this legislative session to address the issues that plague Child Protective Services and the foster care system housed within the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. Some fixes would include reducing caseworkers' turnover rate, increasing visitations of children who are reported abused, and offering better protection.
Advocacy groups like the Texas Association for the Protection of Children, which coordinated Tuesday's event, said that this is the first time they have seen this much attention given to CPS and foster care. They are hopeful that laws passed this year will be a good starting point to launch major reforms in the future.
TEXAS POLITICS DELIVERED EVERY DAY: Sign up for our Texas Politics email
Several issues and events — including child abuse deaths, a federal ruling that deemed part of the state's foster care system unconstitutional, and caseworkers leaving in droves — have created a sense of urgency in the legislature to fix the child welfare system, said Madeline McClure, head of the child protection association.
"It's a perfect storm," she said.
Late last year, Sen. Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown, filed a sweeping bill that would require, among other things, all children to receive medical examination within three days of entering care and the creation of a foster care oversight and quality assurance unit to monitor the performance of all providers who serve foster children and families.
On Monday, State Rep. Cindy Burkett, R-Sunnyvale, filed a sweeping bill — the Child Protection Act — in the House that she said would strengthen early intervention, implement strategies to retain workforce, and strengthen the kinship program that places foster children with their family members.
"The end goal is to make the most vulnerable in our population safer. The first and foremost way to accomplish that is with prevention and early intervention techniques," Burkett said during Tuesday's event.
McClure said that the biggest hurdle will be making sure the legislature injects enough state funding to implement the changes. With the tight budget cycle, it's unclear how much will go toward child welfare.
LIKE US ON FACEBOOK: Our Lone Star Politics page brings Capitol news to your Facebook feed
Late last year, lawmakers gave Family and Protective Services $150 million in emergency funding to hire 829 employees — including 550 caseworkers and investigators — as well as to fund a $12,000 raise to staffers to keep them from quitting.
Hank Whitman, commissioner of the child welfare agency, said Tuesday that they are asking for more money for 2018 and 2019 — the Senate's budget proposal increases the agency's general revenue by 13.5 percent over 2016-2017 — to build on the progress that they're already making.
"The budget is tight and they're many competing priorities — we realize that. But we all know that an investment in our children is an investment in our future," Whitman said.


text:
Star Trek: Beyond finally delivers both a good sci-fi action movie and a good Star Trek movie. And it's an odd-numbered one! Truly, we live in interesting times.
Category: Movies
on The Force Awakens (major spoilers)
I want to discuss the entire movie, but I also recognize (and seriously appreciate) the internet's commitment to avoiding discussing spoilers. I won't be the one to ruin that, so all my spoilerriffic comments are below this cut.
on The Force Awakens (no spoilers)
It is a good movie. It is, most importantly, definitely a Star Wars movie, and a downright fun one at that. It feels like the original trilogy, (the only trilogy, as my wife would say, and now that we have better Star Wars to look forward to I don't feel any need to perpetuate any…
on "The Martian" (with spoilers)
Yes, it's The Martian, the latest great hope of science fiction, after a decade that's given us a few high-concept contenders for classic sci-fi. Based on a novel by Andy Weir that I read faster than anything I've read recently, it's basically a fictional descendent of Apollo 13: A mission in space gone horribly wrong,…
on Interstellar and Internal Consistency (spoilers!)
A fair warning: There are spoilers within. Read at your own discretion. Christopher Nolan's interstellar is out this week, and us regular astronomers are finally getting to see what critics have been gushing about and calling "the most scientifically accurate movie ever" (ok, not those words, but if you're reading this at some point in…


text: Up-inya Hers something for everybodies enjoyment. www.explosiveresultsonline.com and wieghtloss.explosiveresultsonline.com Also a way to make alot of money for free. Yea you read that right Free. Honestly put your wallet away 100% free I didn't beleive it either until I did it. Its been working great. In this economy everybody needs to make a little extra bucks. Well most of the times it costs money to sign up to programs and make money so I wanted to make something that didn't cost anything not one red cent and still be able to make alot of money! Well here it is www.explosiveresultsonline.com what happens is the fortune 500 companys pay you right to paypal! You can make money right after you create a free account. I made my first 60 bucks in 4 hours and within 2 weeks I was making between $200 and $500 a day. My best day so far was $992. Its extremely easy go check it out www.explosiveresultsonline.com what do you have to lose nothing cause ITS FREE


text:
Browse Categories
Browse by Location
Basic Search
Advanced Search
Nintendo Wii U mod and all the games (5,096 total)
Items for Sale
Video Games
Nintendo Wii
I offer digital versions of all games so you don't have to worry about ever scratching, breaking or losing them.
I install the games so they appear on your Wii U's main channel menu. These are full game versions and you can play them online and are exactly as if you were running the games from disc - but loads much faster.
The mod includes a 2TB USB hard disk and I will install all 164 Wii U games in the list for $175.
I have several options for even more games.
You can get an optional SD card with 259 Wii U eShop games, all DLC (Downloadable Content - extra levels/characters etc) and 4,675 other games for the GameBoy, NES, SNES, Sega, Atari, ColecoVison and Nintendo-64 consoles for just $50 extra.
Here's a video that shows how that works:
Here are all the options:
1) 2TB USB hard disk with all 163 Wii U games - $175
2) All DLC, SD card with 259 eShop, all DLC - $50
Each mod includes a years' worth of free game updates. As new games are released and I have them I will copy them to your hard disk at no cost (other than return shipping). Currently about 3/4ths of the 2TB drive is filled with Wii U games so there is plenty of room for expansion.
Installing the games as channels on the Wii U takes about two days.
I also have premodded Wii U's loaded with all 164 Wii U games on a 2TB portable hard drive. That package costs $350 plus shipping (if applicable).
And for $50 extra you can get all the all the DLC, eShop games games bundled with the Wii U..
And if you like I can also mod the Wii channel on the Wii U so it can play all the old Wii and GameCube games. Please let me know if you would like information on that mod and I will send it over.
Thanks and have a great day.
PS: I also mod the Switch, Wii, Xbox 360, DS, DS Lite, DSi, 2DS and 3DS
Please see this link so I can send you the current game list:
This listing has been
, and is no longer available.
Seller Info
Sign-in Name:
Member Since:
Last Login:
more than 1 month ago
View more ads
from BostonBC
Save this seller
to your favorites
Listing Info
Asking Price:
US Dollars
Always in stock.
Boston, MA [United States]
Shipping within United States:
US Postal Service 2-3 Day Priority Mail:
each item
No shipping outside of United States
Refund Policy:
Ask seller for details.
Date Posted:
more than 1 month ago
View more ads from this seller
View ratings for this seller
Browse more ads in
Nintendo Wii
About Us
Link to Us
Copyright © 1999-2020 Sell.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use
Designated trademarks and brands are the property of their respective owners.


text:
I am Allister from Mumbai married to Alisha with 1 son, I remain at Dadar as well as my MIL likewise used to stay near us next lane as well as later on after retired life shifted to Panvel. I was really interested ... unfaithful
I am Allister from Mumbai married to Alisha with 1 kid, I stay at Dadar as well as my MIL also utilized to hug us next lane as well as later on after retired life moved to Panvel. I was extremely fascinated to my MIL considering that the day I initial met her she has small boobs and also an extremely good round ass reasonable and also really alluring. We both constantly had an excellent connection as SIL as well as MIL as well as constantly friendly, I never ever believed that we would certainly ever land up sharing a bed and also enjoy such pleasureful time.
After her retired life she used ahead to our house to satisfy our little girl along with her little girl and also remain with us for some couple of days and also leave back so additionally we utilized to head to Panvel as well as spend time this utilized to occur but absolutely nothing took place during these days. On one Sunday when she was bending as well as serving my partner when I just obtained a peek of her gorgeous little boobs however nipple areas were in some way just how visible and after simply considering the boobs I desperately wanted to see her nipples and also maintained pursuing days with each other as well as really did not let any type of event however was somehow not feasible but in this duration she discovered some modification and recognized that I was peeping to obtain the peek and somehow she stopped doing such activities.
After a month it was once again we existed at Panvel and I once again I could peep as well as see and the next day I located that she was just finding celebrations to bend and also allow me see the look and this continued for some days. I simply developed some courage and also when she was cooking toughed her waist from behind and started offering her a massage therapy for which she told someone will come don't do and I promptly quit and went as well as sat in the hall watching TV, at some point later on she came and asked was I upset I claimed no and she just grinned and also told me my FIL is mosting likely to his native with my BIL for some work the next day I just said ok as well as she left instantly afterwards it clicked me that indirectly she is simply welcoming me, now the issue is I had my other half as well as little girl I in some way made her prepared that we both go back to Mumbai for this I could see my MIL long face. We left the following day to Mumbai and also promptly for 3 days I departed from office but didn't educate this to my spouse my strategy was to visit Panvel as my MIL was all alone. For the shock next morning I got to Panvel and by MIL had an extremely delighted face looking at me and immediately asked for her daughter I stated I came alone just for you as well as she was all flushing. I really did not knew what to say she informed me to sit and also she stared preparing tea as well as I just went behind her as well as gazed rubbing her waist for which she again claimed a person will certainly come and it's not right yet i just neglected everything and informed her nobody is right here as well as it's just you as well as me please do not state no and my hands reached her boobs and simply pushed it she began carrying out my hands as well as I just kept compeling it over her cloths then finally I simply turned off the gas as well as took her to the bedroom and also secured both people inside as well as ensured her that no one is around its simply you and me please don't state no currently I have actually been waiting on this minute from such a very long time, let me see your boobs and also have fun with them and suck your nipple areas like a kid she was just thinking twice however somehow I just obtained my hands inside her maxi and got to till her boobs as well as looked feeling her little nipples till this moment she had actually simply surrendered her body to me without waiting much time and also I removed her maxi and began pushing her boobs as well as drew her nipples much like a child. She really did not liked what had happen so she was just sobbing and also I began consoling her and informed her that me and her little girl do not have an excellent sexual life and also also she admitted concerning her relationship with my FIL is likewise not that excellent it was mid-day we had some food as well as I somehow gaming consoled as well as she was quiet and quickly after ending up lunch she hugged me as well as I might not quit myself and also looked pressing her substantial butt from behind as well as once again took her to the bed room and informed her it's quite alright to have such relationship we are simply attempting to satisfy our hidden needs and informed her not to stop as well as let it proceed according to the flow as well as just drew her maxi as well as started massing her magnificent butt and afterwards started playing with her unshaven pussy as well as asked her to clear those hair and also come for the surprise she simply did as I stated and also I looked licking her pussy which just made he go horny as well as when I found her comfortable on the bed provided her my dick to play she was firstly waiting and after that I pulled her head near my dick as well as offered her to suck it for my surprise she was simply excellent and as soon as after this simply didn't thrown away much time applied some coconut oil to her pussy and also my dick and also just slid it in and also in till it just got to deep inside and the sexual moaning sound was just originating from her mouth as well as begging to go slow-moving given that she had actually never ever had any intercourse for many years somehow just had it sluggish and finally emptied all my cum inside her pussy for it being risk-free as her womb has actually currently been removed. Promptly hereafter I called my better half as well as told her that I was at Panvel as I had actually been for a conference as well as would be staying there. We both had supper and also as a young couple once more went inside the bed room and have 2 even more sessions as well as rested. Following day we had bathroom with each other as well as once again proceeded she likewise was also comfy as well as enjoying the existence of my cock inside her pussy. It's almost over 2 years we both are having an excellent sex-related life, just pierced all her openings (Mouth, Pussy & Anal) and also nearly attempted many different settings too. Whenever I obtain comp offs that just gets counted on our honeymoon time.


text:
Chocolate chip cookies!
mmmmmmmmm…. recipe…
Today we celebrate the very first day of winter. I decided to celebrate it with cookies!
And I thought that I would share the recipe. Here goes:
I adapted this recipe from the Beautiful Biscuits one, and I think that I have perfected it. I've certainly used it enough times!
125g (4oz) butter
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of brown sugar, lightly packed
1 medium-sized egg
1 3/4 cups of self-raising flour
125g (4oz) chocolate chips or pieces (I prefer to use about 175g of chopped dark chocolate, but I LOVE my chocolate!)
60g (2oz) Walnut/pecan pieces (optional)
1) Cream together butter and sugars.
2) Add lightly beaten egg.
3) Mix in flour thoroughly.
4) Add chocolate pieces and nuts if you wish. Mix well.
5) Shape balls of dough to the size that you prefer. Remember, they rise a LOT, so heaped teaspoonfuls make good, medium-sized biscuits. Place on lightly greased oven trays. ALLOW ROOM FOR SPREADING!
6) Bake in moderate oven (I usually have mine on 180° C) for 10 to 12 minutes.
Makes about 45 small biscuits, or 22 larger ones. It all depends on size.
June 1, 2008. Tags: biscuit recipe, chocolate, chocolate biscuit recipe, chocolate chip biscuits, chocolate chip cookies, chocolate cookie recipe, chocolate-chip biscuit recipe, chocolate-chip cookie recipe, cookie recipe, recipe. Uncategorized. 1 comment.


text:
Rewards Network® encourages members to contribute feedback in the form of written reviews after visiting participating restaurants, bars and clubs. These reviews are intended to help other diners make informed dining decisions, and to provide participating restaurants with insight into their perceived successes and areas for potential improvement.
To best serve both diners and restaurants, we ask that the feedback provided be meaningful and constructive. Here are some guidelines that will help you to provide valuable content:
We want to hear original thoughts about your personal experience. Please do not include information that is copied from someone or is the intellectual property of any other website or source.
Information contained within a review should be factual. We encourage you to share your opinions but ask you to avoid exaggerating, misrepresenting your experience or including hearsay.
A review should focus only on your dining experience. To judge whether a comment is relevant, check to see if it relates directly to a ratings category from the survey component of your review (Food, Service, Cleanliness, Value). Irrelevant content, such as promotional material, reference to other businesses or discount/loyalty rewards programs and opinions about the dining program itself, is not allowed (To share your thoughts on a Rewards Network program, please contact Member Services at email@example.com).
Obscene, distasteful, profane, insulting or malicious comments are considered inappropriate and will not appear online.
Reference to illegal activities by a restaurant, including excessive charges, stolen credit cards or threats will not appear online and will be immediately investigated by Rewards Network.
Reviews are intended to be for diners by diners, and should be unbiased. Reviews by restaurant employees and competitors with malicious intent are not allowed.
All reviews, whether positive or negative, will be published to our websites unless 1) the review does not meet the established guidelines and/or violates Rewards Networks' Terms and Conditions the reviewer specifies they prefer the feedback be sent only to the establishment. Unless reviewers choose to identify themselves in the body of the review, comments are anonymous, and only the first and last initials of the reviewer will be displayed.
Rewards Network will not edit the text within a review unless it references a specific dining program name or currency. In such cases, program names will be neutralized to "dining program" and reference to "miles," "points," etc. will become "benefits" or "rewards." This is done so reviews can be posted to multiple dining program websites operated by Rewards Network.
Rewards Network reserves the right to determine if a particular review is compliant with the "Content Guidelines for Dining Reviews" and/or Rewards Networks' Terms and Conditions, and will, in its sole discretion, exercise the right to remove it as appropriate.
To ensure quality and accuracy, the ability to contribute a review is limited to members who have actually dined at a specific program restaurant. After each verified dine, members are emailed a link to complete a review for that specific dining experience. Reviews can also be accessed through the Account Center.


text:
Took a wee trip down the coast to Largs today. Decided to put my kilt on just for the hell of it. It's an expensive piece of clothing just to have hanging up to drag out once a year for Christmas or New Year.
Took a wee trip down the coast to Largs today. Decided to put my kilt on just for the hell of it. It's an expensive piece of clothing just to have hanging up to drag out once a year for Christmas or New Year.
The clearout is still an ongoing process. On Saturday we managed to fill 5 bags with clothes, books, a pair of inline skates and a pair of ice skates, and take them to the PDSA shop.
I've still got a load of books, but since some of them were picked up at the SF group bookswap, I'll take them along and put them back in the pile for others to take.
There's still a load of clothes I could get rid of, so I'll have another rake through the (rather massive) collection of t-shirts, and get some more bags filled.
Well the weather was decent enough, so we headed up Dumgoyne. Small hill, but deceptively steep. It's a fair slog to get up.
While we were at the top, an old guy appeared. We headed down before him, but he came bounding past us. I think he was part pensioner and part mountain goat. I can only hope I'm half as fit when I get to his age
Back off the hill and I went into the Glengoyne distillery to do the tour, which I've been meaning to do for a couple of years. Picked up a bottle of their 10 year old before heading home.
The reaction to the wee painting I did (see previous post) has been really positive and encouraging, both here, and on FB. So with that in mind, tomorrow (weather permitting) I'm off hillwalking. I'll be taking the camera, and looking to get some pics that will hopefully be the inspiration for another attempt at a landscape. This time of a place that actually exists.
So, fingers crossed that the weather holds out and that I get *that* photograph.
First attempt ever at a watercolour.
A while back I got a little watercolour set on a whim. I'm absolutely not artistic, but fancied giving it a go.
I found a tutorial online, and this is my attempt at the painting from that. I'm not kidding myself that it's any good, but it was actually fun to do, and to me that's the important thing, not the end result.
West Lothian Schools pipe band
I think this band is from Australia
On Saturday, we headed up to Callander to do a wee walk to the Bracklinn Falls. Nice wee walk, of about 5 miles all in, with the falls themselves being really nice and in a fantastically scenic part of the country.
The downside was my hayfever kicked in and when I sneezed, my teeth clashed, and I chipped a bit out a filling, and now have to get that fixed. I've an appointment for Thursday, so that's ok. There's no pain, so I don't mind the wait.
The Piping Live festival is has just started, so there's the sounds of pipes in the city centre. This will culminate in the World Pipe Band Championships on Glasgow Green at the weekend.
Unfortunately, George Square is being renovated at the moment, so all the activity that usually takes place throughout the week is now at St Enoch's Square, which is easy to get to but not as central, or as big. Hopefully it'll be back to normal next year.
So, the trip for next year is to Cape Verde. I don't think that it'll add much, if anything, to my travel blog* – click on the Blogger link in the "about me" bit on the right – as it seems to be volcanic landscapes and beautiful beaches. I pretty much expect it will be a chill out and catch up with some reading type holiday. Which is totally fine. There's been a lot of stuff in the last year that's not been good, so a relaxing holiday is just what's needed. Then again, there seems to be trekking to be done, so I'll take the walking boots. You never know.
(*the blog was set up when we went to India last year, so friends could see where we were and what we were up to. I kept it going with this year's trip to Jordan, which to my shame I've still to finish posting. It's almost there though. Feel free to have a look and leave any comments.
Just over a week ago it was my birthday, and I headed into town with Karen, to meet up with a friend to see Roman Holiday at the GFT. We were a few minutes early, so I waited outside while Karen checked if he was inside, which he was.
There's renovations going on at the moment, and the wall hiding them has become a wall for commenting on post-it notes, about what cinema means to you. When I got in, Karen had posted a message on the wall. (see pic). Nice wee surprise.
After the movie (which was great), we headed to Nanakusa for some Japanese food, before finishing off the day with a couple of drinks. Really nice day.
Then yesterday I got a belated birthday present from a friend we don't see that often. *geek happy dance*


text:
Magnificent Redemption
Revenge. Unrequited love. Spirituality
Desmond Moses Anderson, an honor student and nationally recognized four-sport athlete destined for a promising future, is dealt an unjust hand during his freshman year of college in the 1960s when he was sentenced to a 40-year prison term in the Deep South for a crime he did not commit.
But Desmond knows adversity first hand, growing up in a riot-torn, crime-ravaged urban community in the North, which formed his steel-willed determination. In this novel, Desmond's life is skillfully depicted upon his release from prison through diverse themes of murder, sexual liaisons, homosexuality, Alzheimer's disease, and spirituality.
Revisit with him—four decades later—his past relationships, his family bonds and the crimes that robbed him of his bright future and threaten the final chapter of his life.
"Magnificent Redemption" was a magnificent read! The novel really filled a void in the publishing world. A storyline which focuses on African American males that excel in sports and academics, are service oriented, and love the Lord has not been done before in such a compelling and realistic manner.
The fact that the story centered on Newark, NJ, my hometown, was icing on the cake! I grew up with, and know plenty of males like Desmond Anderson, the central character. Unfortunately, the mass media typically doesn't report on the strengths and courage of the Black men in cities like Newark, nor on the Black women who love them.
Magnificent Redemption does. It is an honest portrayal of what it's like for African Americans now and in the 60s. I highly recommend the book and commend Marc Curtis Little for telling this story.
–Cheryl Mitchell Wade, screenwriter, California
This action-packed novel is a must read. I am especially grateful for the insight Marc Curtis Little shares into a heartless world of greed, insensitivity and despair. Magnificent Redemption helps us to strategically target our enemy as we pray for redemption for many who go astray. Kudos, Brother Marc Curtis Little!
–Lola Hardaway, evangelist and author, Florida
"Wow is an understatement! This book is excellent, and twisting and the ending blew me away!"
–K Jones, New York
"As a Newarker myself, I really connected to this book. The ending was so very unsuspected! I applaud Marc Curtis Little and his ability to tell Newark's story alongside a cultural portrait that few would understand—unless you grew up Black in Newark during that time."
–Charles Mapson, corporate executive, Texas
"Don't Blink When God Calls, Angels in the Midst, and now Magnificent Redemption. Marc Curtis Little never disappoints in his writings."
–Julie Etta, evangelist, Georgia
I enjoyed reading this book. I was drawn in from the beginning. The characters were authentic, and being from Essex County, New Jersey, the places were familiar. I could not turn away from the storyline. I always try to predict the ending of a book, but the ending of Magnificent Redemption had an unexpected twist, which was not predictable at all. This was my first Marc Curtis Little book, but because of the all around good, entertaining read, I am planning to read Don't Blink When God Calls and Angels in the Midst, as well as future titles.
–Kassundra, coordinator of the Ronald Murphy Readers Book Club, New Jersey
Here's what two judges from the Writer's Digest Self-Published Book Awards competition had to say about Magnificent Redemption:
"Good work on this story! The production and cover were well-done and will draw the reader in. Also, the plot and conflict of a past mistake coming back to haunt Desmond is interesting. The racial tension is built up well and portrayed well. While there were important social themes here, the exploration of the issues does not come off overly preachy. Desmond was a good character whose past helped to examine the questions inspired by the plot."
The novel was evaluated on a scale of 1 to 5. Here is how Magnificent Redemption was rated by one judge:
Grammar: 4
Production Quality and Cover Design: 4
Structure and Organization: 3
Plot: 3
Character Development: 2
"The front cover is intriguing and draws the reader in. The colors are just right. The back copy is well-done and compels the readers even more to crack open this book! I love the author's bio and photo on the back; I really like the author's acknowledgments and personal tributes in the book as well, but I'm not sure they belong up front. The author's extensive research shows clearly. The characters were all well-drawn, and I really like the addition of each individual's needed redemption in the introduction. That was a brilliant touch. (I'm really bummed that Dez's redemption required him to die though).
I loved the interior elegant font for the book's title and at the beginning of the introductory material and wonder why it is not on the cover as well as at the start of each chapter. The first letter of each chapter's first word would look great with that addition. The photo of the book's cover on the current chapter heading just doesn't work for me. Another thing that was bothersome is that Eve's acceptance of Dez's sexual relationship with Charlene doesn't ring true; and I understand that Charlene is alluring, but I find it hard to accept that Dez would sleep with her even the first time because he knows that she is trouble and a threat to his relationship with Eve. Since it is integral to the story, I know it can't be removed, but perhaps it can be better justified."
The novel was rated on a scale of 1 to 5. Here is how Magnificent Redemption was rated by another judge:
Grammar: 4
Production Quality and Cover Design: 4
Structure and Organization: 3
Plot: 3
Character Development: 2