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True Sake Newsletter June 2005
Please note that True Sake can now ship to the entire USA.
Give us a call today 415.355.9555
In this issue:
- Women In Sake – The myths and the magic
- Building A Home Sake Collection – Need not be a millionaire
- New Store Arrivals – Those Hidden Honjozos
- Sake Vibes – Brewery Websites
- Special Events
- "Ask Beau"
- The SECRET WORD!
Consider this...
Sake bottles come in all shapes and sizes. Traditionally the only sized bottles were the isshobin 1.8L, which hold 60 fluid ounces, and resemble wine magnums. Then came the 720ml bottles, which hold 24 fluid ounces and resemble the typical wine bottle that is 750ml. Others sizes include the 900ml(30 oz), 500ml(16oz), 300ml(10 oz), and 180ml(6 oz).


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Book Online
Cancellation Policy
Your Float
Liability Notice
About Floating
About Us
Float Blog
Cancellation Policy
Float Los Alamos, LLC has a 24 hour Cancellation Policy. You may cancel/reschedule floats within your account or give us a call, 505.695.9234. Please be prepared to be charged for 50% of a regular 60 Minute Float or $25+tax, if floats are cancelled/rescheduled without 24h notice. Special cancellation circumstances may apply so please call if a last-minute issue occurs. No Call, No Shows and float cancellation under 2 hours will be charged as a 60 Minute Float or equal value of $49.99 + tax 100% used and forfeited. Cancellation Policy also applies to Package and Float Club members. Late arrivals may result in a shortened or forfeited float session as we cannot and will not adjust other float sessions. Thank You.

subset: commoncrawl


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Apple announced yesterday that iPad sales grown 28% year on year, this is largely down to the introduction of 2 new models a new cheaper base model the "iPad" and a refresh of the "iPad Pro" models with a new 10.5″ model.
The success has been achieved by amending the product line to target both the cheaper end of the scale for those looking to update older iPads and the higher end of the market looking for an in between form factor for mobile working.
Apple are already promoting IOS 11 as a big step forwards for iPad users, with a host of new multitasking features designed to make the iPad an even more powerful tool.


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On the back of Dragonborn, I decided to stay in the world and crack on the the Dawnguard DLC. I don't think it's a spoiler to say that the DLC is vampire focused, as pretty much everyone you pass in the street is telling you that there's a group of vampire hunters meeting in Riften and suggesting you should go and join.
Very early into the quest-line, you are given the option to become a vampire…which obviously I took. This for me was the DLC's failing as it seemed to peak far too early. If you take the werewolf quest line as an example, the end goal of becoming a werewolf was something to work toward. As I was made a vampire very early and got all the powers that came with that, there didn't really seem any major goal to complete the quest line.
The story was pretty good, however I personally felt it dragged a little. There were a number of new amazing looking environments to explore, all with their own vegetation (if you like making the potions), but there just felt like something missing. Yes you did get to use your vampire powers (which I still have now I'm back to the main world), but I can't quite put my finger on what was wrong. Maybe the feeling of having no reward to work towards just made the DLC feel like a grind, or maybe I was just trying to get through it so I could get back to building my house.
The latter part of the DLC has your running around various environments to find temples, which was fair enough, but if felt kind of forces, and seemed quite unnecessary. It wouldn't have been too bad if there had been loads of enemies to fight, but enemies were very sparse, which meant I spent the best part of two hours walking, and picking up flower, mushrooms and mining veins on the way.
Now the DLC is complete, I'm quite looking forward to messing around, changing to vampire form, and going to take out villages to increase my vampire skill tree, as I'm sure they'll be a cheevo for hitting the top level.
All in all, the DLC was average at best, removing some of the 'walk to here' quests and giving the vampire powers as a rewards would have possibly made this a lot better.
Approx Time taken to beat – 12 hours
Difficulty setting – Normal
Score – [Rating:3/5]
Games TrailerTags: Crack, DLC, Elder Scrolls V, Enemies, Environments, Flower, Games, Mushrooms, Nbsp, Potions, Quest Line, Running, Score, Skill Tree, Spoiler, Temples, Vampire Hunters, Vegetation, Veins, Werewolf


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Yup, convenient!
How is it I was the only one to see that as it unfolded? It really was quite obvious.
Thankfully Willyloman-American Everyman caught on, or I would have felt truly alone.
So many others, though,.... busy cheering for NATO's destabilizers - The bestest fighters of them all- Backed by the biggest guns. The poor beleaguered Kurdish militias completely supported by the biggest global terror army: NATO. Kurds: Annexers of Syrian, Iraqi and soon Turkish territory. While so many died. And so much has been lost. Wasted. Because the definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and expect a different result-
No wrongs will be corrected- Just a whole big batch of new wrongs are being created.
Federal plan for Rojova advances with U.S. - backed forces
The autonomous federation being planned by Syrian Kurdish parties and their allies is taking shape fast: a constitution should be finalised in three months, and possibly sooner, to be followed quickly by elections, a Kurdish official said.
The plan had taken on even greater significance since the Syria Democratic Forces alliance, which is spearheaded by the Kurdish YPG militia, mounted a rapid new advance westwards this month into Islamic State's last foothold at the Turkish border.
It holds out the prospect of more areas being included in the federation, plans for which were first unveiled in March.
The idea of newly-captured territory joining the "Democratic Federal System for Rojava - Northern Syria" was discussed last week with members of a local council set up to run the IS-held city of Manbij, a target of the campaign.
The political federation for northern Syria builds on three self-ruled regions carved out by the YPG since Syria descended into conflict in 2011 in an uprising to topple President Bashar al-Assad. It has already grown, expanding last year to include the town of Tel Abyad that was captured from Islamic State by the YPG in October.
The YPG has been the most effective partner for the United States against Islamic State in Syria.
Syrian Kurdish groups have made no secret of their aim to link up their two autonomous regions, or cantons, in northeastern Syria with one further west -
Yousef said meetings had been held in the United States, Russia and Europe to explain the plan, and to assure them that the aim was not to establish an independent state.No Syrian flag will fly alongside the flag of Kurdistan. Except perhaps that bastardized one that the FSA (kurds included) always ran around with? - Because the plan is the unite into one Kurdish nation- That has always been the plan!
Letters had also been sent directly to U.S. President Barack Obama and the U.N. envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, who left the main Syrian Kurdish political party, the PYD, out of peace talks earlier this year in line with Turkey's wishes.
"We expect acceptance of this plan and we are working to win international, domestic, and regional support," Yousef said.
Speaking by telephone from Syria, she said the constitution to be known as "the social contract" was nearly complete..
Pending issues included the design of a new flag to be flown alongside the Syrian flag, the location of the main legislative council - to be known as the Peoples' Conference - and the administrative borders of areas in the new system.
"Within three months we should have finished all preparations and frameworks for the social contract," she said.
Once approved by the 151-member assembly which Yousef co-chairs, preparations will start for elections to take place three months later.
They have yet to decide which will be held first - elections for the Peoples' Conference or to regional assemblies. "The entire process will take six months and perhaps less," she said.
As for Israel 2.0
Jews of Kurdistan want more recognition
Crypto jews abound. It's the strangest thing- Benjews. Donmeh.
Israel should accept us," says Sherko Sami Rachamim, a Kurd with Jewish roots, who lives and works in the Kurdistan region of Iraq. For years he has been wanting to settle down with his family in Israel, "but the Israelis closed their doors."
He says that many Jews who converted to Islam like him feel the same. Rachamim is one of thousands of so-called Benjews in Iraqi Kurdistan, whose grandparents converted during the persecution of Jews before and after the founding of the state of Israel
Although some of the converted Jews became devout Muslims, many are Muslim in name only. Like Rachamim, who shrugs when asked about his faith. "I am not interested in Islam." His wife does not wear a scarf, he did not educate his three children according to Islam either, because he feels Jewish.
"People in [the town of] Koya know me for my criticism about Islam; sometimes friends tell me to shut up for my own safety," he smiles, as if it is a joke. "I consider religion a private thing."
After the Kurdish region gained de facto autonomy from Saddam in 1991, Israel organized two secret operations to evacuate Jews - and children of converts - from Kurdistan. Rachamim's parents were airlifted in one of them.
Their sons visited them in Israel, but found out later that they were not allowed to join them. After 10 months their parents returned to Kurdistan. Even though Rachamim had sold his house in order to move to Israel, he was not accepted. "Because my grandfather and father were Jewish they do not accept us," he told DW. Rachamim finds it hard to swallow that Israel only accepts heritage through the mother's line. His wife's Jewish bloodline also goes through the male line of her father, whose mother converted.
Staying in touch
For years there have been close ties between most Benjews in Kurdistan and their relatives Israel, he says. "Before the mobile phones, we would use three-way-calling, calling through another country."
Since last year, the ministry for religious affairs in the Kurdistan region has had a special representative for the Jewish religious minority which has established good relations with Israel. However, the government agency has not been set up to facilitate people leaving for Israel, says Sherzad Mamsani who was appointed to the post.
"We are not a consulate for Israel, nor do we want to bring the Kurdish Jews back to Kurdistan. But both groups can travel to and fro, and we would be very happy if some of them came to invest here, instead of investment only from Iran and Turkey," he told DW.
At the same time, Mamsani is trying to restore Jewish heritage in Iraqi Kurdistan. He recently travelled to the United States, where he spoke to the Congress and asked for support to restore locations like the tombs of the prophets Nahum, Eliezer and Daniel.
A search for identity
In Rachamim's hometown of Koya, which was a trading town, many Benjews remained to build up the community's identity. Benjews here call each other 'cousin,' and for them it makes no difference whether the bloodline runs through the male or the female side. Intermarriage happens, but there is also marriage outside the group.
More to read at both linked articles
Don't Miss! In Honour of Trudeau's Multiple Deceptions


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| 15.5°C Dublin
THE Fine Gael chief whip whose constituency offices were attacked on Friday said he and his family have been intimidated and threatened since the Government introduced the household charge two years ago.
As two men arrested in connection with the arson attack were released without charge yesterday, Wexford TD Paul Kehoe said he "could not help but suspect" a political motive behind the attack.
"I have been getting threats through Facebook and phone calls and text messages," he said. "I have been receiving [threats] ever since the property tax, and since the household charge was introduced in 2011." Gardai are investigating separate attacks on the Fine Gael TD and his close constituency colleague, Martin Lawlor, a solicitor in New Ross.
Mr Kehoe said: "I got a call early [on Friday] morning that someone broke into the back office. They emptied out all of the newspapers and boxes and files, put them into the middle of the floor and set them alight."
As the fire was in a back office, it wasn't immediately visible but the caretaker was eventually alerted by a fire alarm.
Mr Kehoe said that the fire could have spread to three stories of apartments above but for the mass concrete between the offices and the apartments.
Martin Lawlor, Mr Kehoe's former director of elections and long-time Fine Gael activist, also appeared to have been targeted. Offices used by Mr Lawlor were also attacked on the same night.
According to Mr Kehoe, the intruder burst through a side door with a wheelie bin. The bin was set alight and pushed into the boiler house, damaging the oil burner. A car parked outside, near Mr Lawlor's offices, was also set alight.
Mr Kehoe was sceptical that the two attacks on a Fine Gael TD and a well-known Fine Gael activist were unconnected.
"I hope that it is not the targeting of me and Michael Lawlor because of our political allegiances," he said.
He said that he did not know the two who were arrested for the attacks. He said he hoped the garda would fully investigate the attacks and added he would fully cooperate with their inquiries.
Irish Independent


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LeBron James vs. Nick Saban. It's happening.
The NBA all-star and noted Ohio State fan has reportedly sent a letter to Alabama's football program expressing a concern over possible copyright infringement regarding a series of online videos capturing typical barbershop conversations, according to ESPN. Alabama shared a tease for the first episode of it's "Shop Talk" on Twitter recently, and it was quickly met with a letter from James' multimedia company, Uninterrupted.
The Alabama video series preview shows a glimpse of a barbershop conversation involving Alabama head coach Nick Saban and former Crimson Tide standout Julio Jones.
James's online video series is dubbed "The Shop" and has already released a pair of episodes on Uninterrupted.
It is worth noting that imitation is the cheapest form of flattery in many respects, and this sort of stuff happens all the time in various forms. There are few original ideas out there to use to your advantage any more, and Alabama using a barbershop series to help promote its program is just another example of that. How far this friction will go with Uninterrupted remains to be seen, although the letter sent to Alabama seeks to come to a peaceful resolution through conversation rather than have to resort to any legal proceedings if they can be avoided.


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Posted on Oct 3rd 2014
At Colorado Gift Company, we are always in search of Colorado products to add to our offerings. One of our favorite new discoveries is Almonds & Sea Salt in Dark Chocolate by Chocolove- Boulder, Colorado. The rich, Belgian chocolate paired with whole dry roasted almonds and sea salt is absolutely delicious!


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Design and manufacture of playground equipment, HDPE panels, products and components to trade companies worldwide
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Harvey Fliehs - Groton, SDWe have a lot of retired guys that drive truck, and it can be difficult for them to get in and out of the cab to check the load. The Load Judge keeps my employees in the comfort of the truck and out of the dust. We also like the moisture sensors, which help my drivers determine which bin to dump in according to moisture levels. It's easy enough for everyone to use without issue.
Read Testimonials >


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About Me
Who am I? I am an old soul in a young body. I am somebody who did not fit into "the box." My heart and head were always in opposition as I followed the path society has laid out for its youth. I had been ignoring who I was for so long that somewhere along the way I lost myself. I couldn't figure out why I was so unhappy when I was doing everything I was "supposed" to be doing. Nor could I figure out why life had always been so difficult for me. It wasn't until recently that I realized that life doesn't have to be hard. I reconnected with my heart and began following my own path. Instead of doing what I was "supposed" to do I began doing what my heart desired. Then, amazingly, each and every step stopped being so hard. Life became exciting and beautiful again and I felt more alive and joyous. I could see the endless possibilities that were out there. I am a woman who heard her calling and is striving to embody wholeheartedly that calling each and every day.
I have to start by saying that I have an amazing mother who raised me to question the status quo. She brought my family and I up with preventative medicines like herbal teas, vitamins and homeopathic remedies. She was way ahead of her time. She strongly believed that there were things we could do to be healthy and did not need to wait until something was so bad we had to go to the doctor. That being said, it took us some time before we really cracked open the energetic healing world. It took a little direction from the Universe before we actively sought healing assistance.
* * * * *
As a child I would get terrible hip pain that randomly came on and lasted a few days. The pain made it difficult to do much of anything. When I told the doctors about it they said that it was probably just "growing pains". -Fast forward a few years-I had an accident that led my parents to take me to an upper cervical chiropractor. In passing I told him about my hip pain and he said there is no such thing as "growing pains". It turns out that when my hips hurt like that it means my atlas bone is out and I need an adjustment. This was when the seeds of realization towards the limitations of Western medicine began and my love for holistic medicine was born.
That realization became more apparent when, in high school, I was having issues with my stomach and intestines. As a result of those issues I developed anxiety. It became very difficult for me to go to school and live my life. I saw many different doctors. None of them could tell me what was wrong with me or make me feel any better. I was so tired of telling different doctors my symptoms and explaining what I was feeling just to have them stop trying to figure out what was wrong and, instead, try to push anti-anxiety medication on me. I had completely given up hope that I'd ever feel better or be able to live my life normally again. Then, we stumbled upon an acupuncturist who also worked with Chinese herbs. He put me on a strict diet and treated my emotional issues as well as physical ones and within 10 days I was feeling so much better. He did not cure me but drastically decreased my symptoms and, most importantly, made it so I could live my life again. It wasn't until a few years later that my symptoms completely disappeared. After a few intense years of self discovery and healing, I had a HUGE energetic shift. I realized that I can't control everything and shouldn't try. I began to let go and go with the flow of life. Suddenly, my stomach and intestines were okay.
All the tension and other emotions I was holding while trying to control my life were presenting themselves in my gut and making me physically sick. It wasn't until I uncovered the root issues and healed the emotional traumas that I was able to heal my physical symptoms for good. All that being said it was not nearly as easy as it sounds nor as quick. It was a process that stretched over a number of years. There were many layers that had to be dealt with before I finally reached the root issue and was able to begin healing it. There was significant personal work to do but along the way I had the help of a number of amazing healers to help guide me along my journey. I hope to be able to help you as they have helped me.
* * * * *
Each individual's issues are unique and can not be helped or healed the same way as others. For some people a sore throat can be healed by medicine prescribed by a doctor; for other people they may have blocked energy stuck in their throat from not speaking their truth and once that energy is cleared their throat feels better. Just because one way works for someone does not mean that the other way is no good. I think it is important to have many different healing modalities in the world so that each person at each step along their journey has the potential to find something that will help them. My hope is to help empower those around me to take ownership of their individual healing journey and assist in finding the tools that best align for that.


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An Impetus to Psychological Splinting:
Muscle splinting is a phenomenon where the body will try and protect itself by causing certain muscles to become hypertonic or stiff in order to help protect underlying visceral or somatic tissue. A couple examples that come to mind would be in the case of appendicitis or whiplash.
Considering appendicitis, when a doctor performs an abdominal exam they will palpate and percuss four quadrants of the abdominal region, in the lower right quadrant is an area known as McBurney's point which is about 1/2 way between the umbilicus and anterior superior iliac spine (ASIS) or about 2/3rds of the way down for doctors practicing in Europe. The muscles superficial to the appendix will tighten up to help protect an inflamed appendix and this point will cause pain when palpated in a pt with appendicitis.
A similar mechanism takes place in a whiplash patient regarding the muscles around the neck. Again, the body is trying to protect itself.
As I wake this morning there is a bit more stress and anxiety inherent with another trip and another round of reviews for my impending Part III boards testing. In the medical community the Part III analog is called Step 3.
Steps 1 and 2 for MDs or Parts I and II for DCs are essentially test which cover basic sciences like chemistry, physiology, anatomy, biochemistry, pathology and the like. For chiropractors I know Part 1 consist of 9 hours of testing spread out over a two day period of time and part II is a bit longer and also spread out over two days. Part III is only a 4 hour exam with half given in the first two hours, then a 20 minute break then another 2 hours of testing to finish up. Part III is more clinical in nature and among other things covers all the basic exams, such as the aforementioned abdominal exam.
I'm not exactly sure why but some things stick very well the first time I hear them while other things take considerable focus and effort to get in my brain. One thing that stuck when first learning the abdominal exam is a condition known as Caput Medusa. I guess it has a catchy name that's hard to forget. Caput Medusa (CM) is a distention of veins around the umbilicus and although it can be caused by increased pressure in the inferior vena cava the liver is usually what I think of first regarding CM and portal hypertension.
My writing has gone a little tangential but my original thinking was engaged in finding insight into a possible phenomenon I'll refer to as psychological splinting. The brain is a visceral organ but instead of thinking in terms of a physical insult or any type of trauma we may also consider psychological insult or trauma and ways we, as humans may and up splinting ourselves psychologically in order to help protect ourselves.
As mentioned earlier, I am currently in a position which allows me an opportunity to use myself as a kind of living laboratory in order to examine my own responses to increases in stress and anxiety. In order for my brain to help figure out a scientific type allegory I was lead to the concept of muscle splinting and have just started to ponder and consider implications associated with such thinking.
However, I am pressed for time so I'll have to allocate portions of my four and a half hour trip to Kansas for further evaluation and pondering of psychological splinting.
Foot Keystones
There are three arches in the foot; a lateral and medial arch as well as a transverse arch.
In each of these arches, one bone in each arch acts as a keystone to each arch, the place where maximal stress and load takes place.
In the medial arch the navicular bone is the keystone. In the lateral arch it's the cuboid and the transverse arch most commonly has the 2nd metatarsal as the keystone. An interesting part about this is that those bones, particularly the navicular and cuboid bones are bones that we, as chiropractors, have specifically learned to adjust.
The second metatarsal bone is most common in people with normal biomechanics however that load might also be found on the third or sometimes even as far over as the 4th metatarsal depending on the particular individual.
Morton Neuroma is found along the transverse arch, usually between the 2nd and 4th metatarsal and most commonly between the third and fourth metatarsal. It is a perineural fibrosis (a thickening of tissue around one of your nerves) and causes nerve degeneration of the common digital nerve. This usually results in a burning pain (which is common for nerve injuries) and often refers to the dorsal or top surface of the foot.
High heeled shoes have been linked to the development of Morton's neuroma. However, it should be noted that when referring to something like high-heeled shoes we come back to a basic situation of altered biomechanics.
One type of psychological splinting discovered for myself.
Today, it looks like I've managed to put off final packing for my trip by writing in this blog so, avoidance may be considered one type of psychological splinting (PS) that I employ in my own life. Beyond that, however, I've taken note of the method employed for my own method of PS which would have to do with reaching out to others and communications. I would consider avoidance to be a general manifestation of PS while the mode employed i.e., communicating, to be a subset of that general mode.
That insight comes about as a result of recalling that, in the past, when I would be driving to school and have a particularly imposing and intimidating test looming that I would often text my girlfriend at the time and that communication frequency was much higher than normal communications under less stressful circumstances.
As a further offshot and tangent, I know have to wonder if the artificial manufacturing of stressful situations in a coupled relationship is done so that increased communications does take place and as such may be somehow perceived as a benefit to the one who might instigate say, an argument when no perceivably real genesis for an argument or altercation exist to begin with.
Reference: for those interested in some of the neuromusculoskeletal (NMS) aspects of Muscle Splinting: The role of autogenic inhibition in the reduction of muscle splinting by Herbert Miller, PhD


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Monthly Archives: August 2014
The girl and the online newspaper
It finally happened.
AXS Entertainment, the new owner of Examiner.com, has finally accepted me to be one of the AXS Contributors.
As I stated back in June and then updated in July, Examiner.com has jumped the shark. I clearly stated my dissatisfaction with the turn of events since AXS Entertainment took over the operations of The Examiner online newspaper. In addition, I sent several emails to the company, not accepting their first answer that the company is 'going through a transition'.
After several back and forth emails in which I clearly stated my qualifications to be transitioned to the new platform, I received the formal invitation last week. Yeah, yeah, fill in my statistics, attach some writing samples, blah blah blah.
The acceptance email came a week later, on Aug 9, and I accepted the terms offered.
Am I convinced that staying as a contributor to this company is worth the time and effort? Ummm… that would be a big fat NO.
In July 2014 I earned a whopping $10 and change from them, so I am still cautious with the opportunities offered by AXS and Examiner. The new terms allow for ongoing posting of content, as well as the ability to 'claim' pre-assigned content requests; however the reimbursement for the 'claimed' content is so minor, I am pretty sure I won't bother with it much. Not only that, the rules and regulations for posting the 'claimed' content are so detailed and restrictive, I imagine that it is a huge pain in the arse just to get the articles approved for publishing.
I'll post again about this topic in a month or two, after I feel out the new process. If it is worth staying, I'll acknowledge it. If I need to snicker and walk away, I'll acknowledge that, too.
Oh – and I'm still on a Facebook hiatus until further notice. If you want to get ahold of me, email me at thedeadgirl25 (at) yahoo (dot) com.
Oh Oh – one more thing! There are publishing announcements coming soon. Changes and endings. Stay tuned.
Suck It, Facebook
There was a problem, and I blame it all on Facebook.
My 65-year-old Aunt was innocently reviewing her Facebook page and – what! Something that I had 'Liked' was on her Facebook feed.
Dammit, Facebook! Why are my simplistic and basic "likes' and comments showing up on my family's Facebook feeds? I am a liberal, conversational, tolerant person. Please tell me why my 'likes' and 'comments' are showing up in the feed of my conservative, Republican Auntie's feed? And my mother?
I am insulted, embarrassed, and just plain disgusted. I have deactivated my Facebook account until further notice. If you want to get ahold of me, email me at firstname.lastname@example.com
Thank you, and God Bless.


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Ships USPS $3.00.
This wonderful perfume can be worn day or night, for work or romance. A truly beautiful and beautifying scent.
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It makes sense to align your green footprint with your use of natural skin care products. And these days, it is not that difficult to do. Even in these politically revolutionary times, the botanical scent trade continues to thrive through family and tribal trade routes and connections. Methods of production are both ancient and modern, and when you think of all the labor and knowledge, and the thousands of years that have gone into perfecting the art of perfumery, the cost is still economical.
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The quote in this image was taken from Archbishop Sheen's "Life of Christ", Chapter 46: At the Bottom of the List.
Here is the complete quote in context:
"The hatred of Judas against Our Blessed Lord was due to the contrast between his sin and the virtue of the Divine Master. Iago says of Cassio: "He hath a daily beauty in his life that makes me ugly." Judas' disgust with himself was vented on One Who made him uncomfortable by His Goodness. The hatred against Divinity is not the result always of unbelief, but very often the effect of antibelief. Conscience, Christ, and the gift of faith make evil men uneasy in their sin. They feel that if they could drive Christ from the earth, they would be free from "moral inhibitions." They forget that it is their own nature and conscience which makes them feel that way. Being unable to drive God from the heavens, they would drive his ambassadors from the earth. In a lesser sphere, that is why many men sneer at virtue--because it makes vice uncomfortable. A chaste face is a judgment. Judas was more zealous in the cause of his enemies than he ever was in the cause of Our Lord. When men leave Christ, they seek to redeem their reputation by going to extremes."


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A Reveiw of Professional Software Development
A while back, I read the book Code Complete, by Scott McConnell. I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Code Complete is full tips to make one a better programmer. It is written in a similar fashion as books such as The Pragmatic Programmer, Programming Pearls, or The Practice of Programming. Because I enjoyed reading Code Complete, I decided to tryout another McConnell book, and I purchased the book Professional Software Development from Amazon. I think I may have passed on this book if I browsed it first.
I feel that maybe half of the material in the book carries any relivance and it doesn't really address any new topics. The basis of the book is that programmers make bad code, and standardized software engineering techniques should be used to improve software. For instance, McConnell talks about the drawback of the "Code and Fix Development" style. Where developers rush into the coding process without any planning. I wouldn't say the book was a total waste to read, but I expected it to be better based on Code Complete.
The majority of the book is about how software engineers should be licensed in a similar manner as doctors, lawyers, and accountants are today. I tend to disagree with this opinion. I think that voluntary certification would be a better way to go then to have Government issued licenses for software engineers. I don't see what good would come out of forcing software engineers to be licensed.
Overall, there is some good information in this book, so it is not a total waste of time to read. I would recommend getting a copy from a library rather than purchasing this book.


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Professional Photo Print of Original Watercolor Artwork
Elephant Goddess Print
We don't accept returns, exchanges, or cancellations.. Unless stated otherwise in the description.
But please contact me if you have any problems with your order.
Returns and exchange details
All sales are final. If you have any questions, please email me at firstname.lastname@example.com


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Unfit Roger Federer 'sorry' for final pull-out
Back injury in semis prevents Swiss ace from taking on Novak Djokovic in title clash
London: Roger Federer pulled out of his ATP Tour Finals showdown with Novak Djokovic just before the final was due to start on Sunday because of a back injury, casting doubt on his fitness ahead of the Davis Cup final.
Roger Federer during his on-court interview after pull-out of final
Federer, 33, felt unable to take part in the showpiece clash at London's O2 Arena after suffering the back problem during Saturday's gruelling three-set semi-final victory over Swiss compatriot Wawrinka.
"Unfortunately I'm not match fit to play match tonight. Clearly I wish it wasn't this way. You try all year to be ready for the ATP World Tour Finals and I didn't want to end this way," six-time Tour Finals champion Federer told the crowd during an on-court interview.
'I tried everything'
"I'm sorry I'm here in a tracksuit. I wish it weren't so. I tried everything I could last night and today — painkillers, rest — until the very end, but I can't compete at this level with Novak. In a final like this and at my age, it would be too risky. I hope you understand."
Novak Djokovic lifts the ATP World Tour Finals trophy at London's O2 Arena on Sunday for the third successive year. Pics/AFP
"I hurt my back late in the match yesterday against Stan. I am very disappointed and I hope to be feeling better soon," Federer said. "It's been an extremely difficult decision because I love playing in London and the ATP World Tour Finals have been an absolute highlight of my career. Unfortunately, my back problem does not allow me to play right now. I hope all tennis fans will understand."
Sunday's withdrawal was only the third walkover of Federer's career. Speculation of a withdrawal mounted when Federer, who took nearly three hours to defeat Wawrinka in a match that didn't finish until nearly 11.30pm local time, failed to show up for a scheduled practice session on Sunday afternoon.
The world number two then confirmed his decision to pull out following the Bryan brothers' victory in the doubles final With Federer sidelined, Djokovic was awarded the Tour Finals title for the third successive year — making him the first player to achieve that feat since Ivan Lendl in the 1980s. It was hardly the way the World No 1 would have wanted to take the silverware however.
Sunday's withdrawal was only the third walkover by Roger Federer in his career
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What is LED?
LED is the abbreviation for light-emitting diode. Simply put, LED is a new silicone-based conductor of light. This technology has been around for a decade now but with recent breakthroughs made by ProTerra LED in development of this technology, it is now "The New Revolution in Lighting."
Where have LEDs been used?
LEDs were commonly used in aesthetic and specialty lighting applications such as architectural accents and traffic lights. ProTerra LED using its new patented technology is now taking LEDs to the next level and producing LED products such as Street Lights, Office Lights, Parking Lot Lights, High Bay Industrial Lights and Security Lights to name a few.
What are the advantages to using LED lights?
ProTerra LED's lighting solutions advantages are many. They contain NO mercury or lead, energy costs are lowered, carbon footprint reduced, replacement + maintenance and disposal costs are lessened, no ballast and associated costs, minimization of light pollution (streetlights), and also reduced air conditioning costs (inside lighting). It is a truer and healthier light that incredibly is also the most environmentally friendly and energy efficient of all lighting technologies. ProTerra LED lighting solutions are very rugged and long lasting so not only can industries, hospitals, cities and utilities save money on energy use, but they can also find substantial savings in maintenance and labour costs.
How much energy can be saved by converting to LED lights?
ProTerra LED lights are extremely energy efficient. Savings of Up to 80% in Lighting energy savings alone can be utilized depending on the product. Nationwide a country could reduce the need to run 3 - 4 coal fired power plants. This will tremendously reduce Green House Gases along with achieving huge energy savings.
What are Ballasts?
Ballasts are a sometimes complex device intended to limit the amount of current in an electrical circuit. They are a weak link in many lighting systems as they typically have to be replaced every three years. ProTerra LED has developed new technology that has enabled the ballasts to be eliminated and replaced with a much more efficient and longer lasting, power supply unit (PSU).
What is Thermal Management?
To get the maximum life out of an LED you must ensure the design, allows for the removal of heat that can build inside a fixture. ProTerra LED is a leader in Thermal Management technology which has allowed them to develop higher wattage lights.
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Light Pollution is unwanted or wasted light. It is also known as Sky Glow and is the glow seen above cities and towns in the night sky. Light Pollution can and will be greatly reduced by ProTerra LED streetlight with the latest LED and flat lens technology.
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RoHS is the abbreviation for Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive. This mandate restricts the use of hazardous materials in the manufacture of various types of electronic and electrical products. ProTerra LED is fully RoHS compliant which means NO mercury or lead is used in its products.


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text: Great video. Joe and I both got goosebumps. And after you check that out, make sure you read my post from yesterday about McCain and Palin and their rather troubling connections to anti-Semites. Then send the link for the video to your Jewish friends, just copy and paste this into an email:


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OSHA Forklift Certification Class this Saturday 9/7/2019!!!
OSHA Forklift Certification Class this Saturday 9/7/2019!!!
Start time is 8:00am. Walk-ins welcome! For any questions, please call 215-245-7080. Fee is $125 for pre-registration or $150 for walk-ins. Location: 3161 State Road, Unit A3, Bensalem, Pa 19020.
- On-Site Certified Instructors
- Classroom & Hands-On Training
- OSHA Forklift Certification good for 2 years (when you complete this class)
- Testing On-site (Forklift)
- Wallet Card (OSHA Forklift Card)
- Handouts along with Instruction Folder
- 4 – 6 Hours — 1 Day Class
Come to the office to pay by cash, check, or money order. Or use the link below to pay via PayPal:


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Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, 2015
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The recent and on-going crisis of the Ebola virus in Africa, the scourge of Aids and to a lesser extent the fear of bird flu a few years ago, perhaps can give us some insight into the plight of the person with leprosy, mentioned in today's readings from the Book of Leviticus and in the Gospel of Mark. In Old Testament times leprosy inspired fear and dread, and those suffering from it were isolated and cut off from their communities.Perhaps that's why, over the centuries, leprosy was used as a metaphor for sin. Pope Francis uses a different image which he calls "spiritual destitution". "If we think we don't need God who reaches out to us through Christ, because we believe we can make it on our own, we are headed for a fall." And that way of putting it perhaps reminds us of the 'fall' of Adam and Eve which disrupted the harmonious relationship between God and humankind. It was then that God took the initiative, because only God could restore that relationship, because God alone can truly save us and free us from sin. And that he did when in due time, he sent his only-begotten Son, to become one like us in everything but sin. He came to heal a broken and fragile humanity, and he continues to do so through the gift of the Holy Spirit and the sacraments of the Church.
Those readings and metaphors are a fruitful basis for our thinking and reflection as we approach the Season of Lent, which begins next Wednesday. We cannot transform and change our lives for the better without God's help, and if we think we can, then we are deluding ourselves. And we also need good friends to accompany us on our journey of faith, and encourage us to seek God's help. We are all in some way or other subject to incapacity, whether through sin and selfishness, or simply human weakness and fragility. If our lives are to be transformed and renewed, then we need the grace of the Holy Spirit and the support and encouragement of each other.
Lent offers us once again an opportunity to reflect upon the very heart of Christian life: God loves you and me with a steadfast and unconditional love, and he asks us to love him and our neighbour in return. Lent is a favourable time to renew our journey of faith, both as individuals and as a community, with the help of the word of God and the sacraments, and especially during this season the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It is a journey marked by prayer, fasting and almsgiving; three of the principal ways that help us grow in our love for God and for our brothers and sisters, especially the poor and the isolated.
This special time is given to us by the Church to help us in preparing to celebrate the Paschal Mystery of the passion, death and resurrection of Christ - the great feast of Easter - in just over six weeks' time. During this time the Church exhorts us to get to know God better, and to get to know ourselves better too! He wants us to "incarnate", to embody, that love and compassion in our relationships with one another and to express it in a practical way, particularly to those who are in any kind of need. He commands us to use generously the gifts and talents we have received from the Holy Spirit for the building up of the community of his Church; to help build that communion of love, compassion and mercy, which reflects the very life of the Trinity.
My experience over the years is that in order to do as the Lord asks of me, my heart must be united with his heart; I must come to know him more deeply, and abide with him day by day with ever greater commitment. Lent is that "favourable time" for me to ask myself some searching questions about where I stand with God, and how I am responding to the commission he has given to all of us who are baptised. I cannot do that fruitfully unless I become more attentive to the word of God in the scriptures and through spending time each day in prayer. I cannot, from my own resources, produce the fruit that will last, unless I allow the living Word of God to nurture my faith and trust in Him who loves me unconditionally with a steadfast love; who looks on me in my weakness with great mercy and compassion.That living word of God is life-giving. It not only informs my mind and heart, so that I come to know him better, but also transforms my life so that I can indeed become "the light of the world", "the salt of the earth." I know too that I will never be perfect in this life, but I am often comforted by the words of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta: "God doesn't ask us to be successful - he asks us to be faithful."
"Behold I stand at the door and knock." This Lent, I shall be asking myself the question, "Am I open to hear that knock at the door of my heart each day, and am I going to open that door and welcome him in, whatever the cost to myself?" If I'm realistic, I know I have so little to give him, yet in my heart of hearts, I also know and believe that the little I have, he can, and will, multiply in abundance.
With an assurance of my prayers and blessing for you all this Lent,
Apostolic Administrator


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Take the price of gasoline. Not until a tankful for a fuel-efficient subcompact began sucking $40 to $50 a week from a household budget did people cut back on driving and start organizing trips.
Not until a stop at even the discount Costco pump required a raid at the ATM did Hummer jockeys trade off pseudo-prestige for penny wisdom and a less offensive vehicle.
Call it economic coercion or a realization that adopting conservation as a personal virtue has its rewards, the instant result is a more sensible energy policy than waiting for drilling in wildlife refuges to maybe produce oil with no hope of returning to the days of cheap gas.
Sky-high carbon fuel's silver lining is in lessening the clouds of global warming pollutants. It has triggered businesses and government agencies to reduce energy consumption with methods that will be useful whether electrical power is generated by coal, sun, wind or waves.
Manufacturers are having to weigh shipping expenses against labor costs when deciding to produce goods in foreign countries and some are choosing to be labeled "made in America."
As transportation tolls bring the prices of produce cultivated far away more in line with fruits and vegetables grown closer to their homes, consumers are opting for local rather than exotic. That's good news for Hawaii farmers and for sustaining a larger measure of agriculture in the islands. Still, misguided mega-farm subsidies and biofuel policies have contributed to higher costs for meats and processed and milled products.
Gasoline prices also have commuters rethinking mass transit and though tiresome bouts with heavy traffic are part of that equation, at least people seem more willing to leave their cars in the garage.
But as I said, if it isn't one thing, it's another.
The federal government reports that Americans drove 9.6 billion fewer miles in May, the seventh consecutive month of year-to-year decline. The 3.7 percent drop was the third largest in the 66 years since record-keeping began.
Because people are driving less, they aren't buying as much gasoline, and that has sent gasoline tax revenue into a tumble, so much so that in the next fiscal year, highway funds to pay for road projects will fall short. To prop up the highway fund, which will have about $4 billion at year's end -- less than half of the $10 billion spent on the war in Iraq in a single month -- the Bush administration wants to transfer mass transit funds, which the city is counting on to help pay for a new rail system.
The ever-optimistic administration sees no need to raise the 18.4-cent-a-gallon gas tax, advocating instead "congestion fees" and tolls, taxes with other names. It also proposes privatization and allowing market forces to right the sinking fund, saying market forces have worked to reduce oil prices in recent weeks from record highs about $147 a barrel, as compared to $40 in 2004.
It's one thing to say the old supply-and-demand system has succeeded in tamping down oil prices for now. But it's another to see how the economic volatility has burned hotels, airlines, tourism, retailers and, worst of all, jobs.


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Next Page
Superior Court Civil Rules Table of Contents
(I) Jury Trials
(a) In every case scheduled for jury trial, the court shall schedule a Trial Management Conference which shall take place within 14 days before jury selection, or at such other time as the court shall order. At the Conference, parties will be present or available by telephone, prepared to discuss conduct of the trial and settlement.
14 days prior to the Trial Management Conference, unless another time is
directed by the court or agreed to by the parties, all parties shall file with
the court and serve on the other parties Pretrial Statements, which shall
include, by numbered paragraphs, a detailed, comprehensive, and good faith
statement, setting forth the following:
1. A summary of the case that can be read by the court to the jury at the
beginning of trial;
2. Disputed issues of fact;
2. Disputed issues of fact;
3. Applicable law;
4. Disputed issues of law;
5. Specific claims of liability by the party making the claim;
6. Defendant's specific defenses;
7. Itemized special damages;
8. Specification of injuries with a statement as to which, if any, are
claimed to be permanent;
9. The status of settlement negotiations;
10. A list of all exhibits to be offered in the direct case of each party.
The parties, or their counsel, shall bring exhibits, or exact copies of them, to
court on the day of the Trial Management Conference for examination by opposing
parties or their representatives;
11. A list of all depositions to be read into evidence;
12. A waiver of claims or defenses, if any;
12. A waiver of claims or defenses, if any;
13. A list of the names and addresses of all witnesses who may be called;
14. Whether there will be a request for a view and, if so, who shall pay
the cost in the first instance;
15. The names and addresses of the trial attorneys or non-attorney
Except for good cause shown, only witnesses listed in the Pretrial Statement
will be allowed to testify and only exhibits, so listed, will be received in
Preliminary requests for instructions about unusual or complex questions of law
shall be submitted in writing at the Trial Management Conference.
Supplementary requests may be proposed at any time prior to the time the court
completes its instructions to the jury.
(II) Bench Trials
The court may direct the parties to attend a Trial Management Conference in non-jury cases. Written pretrial statements are not required in non-jury cases unless ordered by the court. Requests for findings of fact and rulings of law shall be submitted in writing in accordance with a schedule to be determined by the court.
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Superior Court Civil Rules Table of Contents


text: World Wide Vital Marketing & Public Relations Inc., Is a marketing and public relations firm specialized in Advertising, Design, Marketing, Printing & Public Relations services who combines all sources in one. Diversity News Publications publishes Diversity News Hollywood, Diversity News Online, Diversity News Los Angeles and Diversity News, a consumer news magazine. For more information you visit web site at http://www.diversitynewspublications.com/ or follow on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/eediversitynews


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May 11, 1894
With their wages slashed and no reduction in rent at the company housing, Pullman Palace Car Company factory workers walk off the job. The workers sought the support of the American Railway Union, which gave notice in June that its members would no longer work trains that included Pullman cars. The strike and boycott crippled railway traffic nationwide and at its peak involved 250,000+ workers in 27 states.


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Tattoo Transfer Paper
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Products In Tattoo Transfer Paper (Total Products 2, Showing: 1 -> 2)


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Publication Year: 2016 Subject: Forest Management & Restoration (FMR) Kind of Data: spatial data Geographic Coverage Country / Nation: Indonesia
1 to 2 of 2 Results
Jan 25, 2018 - The Sustainable Wetlands Adaptation and Mitigation Program (SWAMP)
Murdiyarso, D.; Purbopuspito, J.; Kauffman, J.B.; Warren, M.W.; Sasmito, S.D.; Donato, D.C.; Manuri, S.; Krisnawati, H.; Taberina, S.; Kurnianto, S., 2016, "The potential of Indonesian mangrove forests for global climate change mitigation", https://doi.org/10.17528/CIFOR/DATA.00031, Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), V2Dataset of The potential of Indonesian mangrove forests for global climate change mitigation
Mar 4, 2016 - General
Cerutti, P.O.; Lescuyer, G.; Essiane, E.; Tsanga, R.; Assembe-Mvondo, S., 2016, "PRO-FORMAL project", https://doi.org/10.17528/CIFOR/DATA.00011, Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), V1In 2003, the European Union launched the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade process, known as FLEGT. This process aims to curb illegal logging and timber trading. The key instrument to achieve this goal in partner countries is the Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) l...
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Project Description
Mainstreaming Climate Resilience into Development Planning
Donor / Partner: ADB | Duration: 2015-2019 | Location: Cambodia
About: Action to tackle climate change in Cambodia is crucial. Cambodia will be a hotspot for climate change in the region. Average maximum daily temperatures in the wet season are projected to increase from between 1.7 to 5.3°C. Average dry season temperatures will also increase with a range of between 1.5 to 3.5°C.
Trends in precipitation are also expected to change over the coming decades. Seasonal variability in rainfall patterns will grow, resulting in wetter wet seasons and drier dry seasons. While it is projected that average precipitation will increase in the basin over the coming decades, periods of annual agricultural growth are expected to lengthen significantly.
Agriculture is the most important sector in Cambodia, accounting for around 33% of GDP and employing more than 50% of the country's labor force. The majority of the population is vulnerable to changes in conditions affecting the agriculture sector and the natural systems and resources that underpin it. As a result, climate changes including increased average temperatures during the growing season and more variable and shifting rainfall patterns could have devastating impacts on the country's agriculture sector and food security. Water resources are particularly important for the functioning of the agriculture sector and food security more broadly.
To address these challenges and achieve sustained institutional and technical capacity to integrate adaptation concerns into development planning in Cambodia, ICEM will undertake the following outputs:
- Output 1 – SPCR coordination, technical support, and capacity to mainstream climate resilience into development planning strengthened.
Output 1 includes eleven activities and focuses on building the capacity of national and provincial policy makers, technical staff and civil society organisations (CSOs) in climate resilience for development planning. It will accomplish this through directed training and workshops, as well as on-the-job training and providing coordination and technical support for SPCR infrastructure investment projects. It will also include updating planning guidelines and technical design standards integrating climate resilience and adaptation considerations.
- Output 2 – Detailed feasibility studies for selected NAPA projects conducted and development of NAP.
Output 2 will result in at least 6 feasibility studies of high priority NAPA projects with at least 2 of these to directly address vulnerable groups such as women and children, as well as unfunded SPCR priorities. This output will also require at least 2 of the feasibility studies to be developed into funding proposals to be submitted to selected global adaptation funds. An important additional activity that has been added since Package 1 was first issued for tender is the inclusion of activities to develop Cambodia's National Adaptation Plan (NAP) as part of the UNFCCC NAP process for identifying medium- and long-term adaptation needs and strategies.
- Output 3 – Climate change adaptation knowledge products developed and disseminated.
Output 3 will utilise the activities from Outputs 1 and 2 as well as other sources to develop knowledge products and develop and conduct public awareness campaigns. It will also develop systems of compiling, storing and disseminating knowledge products and other information and use this information to update the secondary and tertiary curriculum in relation to climate resilience.
- Cambodia Climate Change Toolbox
A major output of this project is an online decision-support toolkit to display projected climatic changes in areas with planned developments. The toolkit allows for climate change parameters to be incorporated in project design and management. It is designed for use by government staff and infrastructure and development planners.
Summary video on climate change adaptation in agriculture, water resources management, transport infrastructure and urban development
វីដេអូសង្ខេប ស្តីពីការអនុវត្តបន្សុំានឹងការប្រែប្រួលអាកាសធាតុក្នុងវិស័យកសិកម្ម ការគ្រប់គ្រងធនធានទឹក និងហេដ្ឋារចនាសម្ព័ន្ធដឹកជញ្ជូន និងការអភិវឌ្ឍក្រុងSummary video on climate change adaptation in agriculture, water resources managment, transport infrastructure and urban development
Posted by Strategic Program for Climate Resilience – Cambodia on Sunday, December 2, 2018


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FEB. 25, 2020: Fixing Anderson Dam is a priority for Valley Water
FEB. 24, 2020: Valley Water CEO Norma Camacho statement on Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project
- At Valley Water, we are working to protect our community's drinking water, keep residents and businesses safe from flooding and natural disasters, repair and replace aging dams, reservoirs and pipelines, while reducing toxins, hazards and contaminants in our waterways.
Take our two-minute survey and be heard!
Anderson Reservoir is currently limited to about 58% of its capacity due to seismic concerns (see News and Updates tab below for current operating capacity), costing Santa Clara County valuable drinking water resources. This project covers earthquake retrofitting of Anderson Dam to improve reliability and safety, and returns the reservoir to its original storage capacity.
Anderson Dam creates the county's largest surface water reservoir—Anderson Reservoir— which stores local rainfall runoff and imported water from the Central Valley Project. The reservoir is an important water source for treatment plants and the recharge of the groundwater basin. Besides restoring drinking water supplies, the upgrade also supports compliance with environmental regulations. Valley Water's regular reservoir releases ensure that downstream habitat has healthy flows and temperatures to sustain wildlife.
A breach of Anderson Dam at full capacity could have catastrophic consequences, including inundation of surrounding land more than 30 miles northwest to San Francisco Bay, and more than 40 miles southeast to Monterey Bay.
In December 2016, the Board was informed by Valley Water staff that findings from the geotechnical and geologic investigations performed during the project's design phase led to the conclusion that a more extensive dam retrofit than had originally been envisioned would have to be performed. Further, the Board was informed that the more extensive retrofit work would double the previous project's estimated cost. Valley Water staff presented the Board with a water supply cost-benefit analysis that showed the benefits of the more extensive retrofit project significantly outweighed the cost of not proceeding with the retrofit, which would require Valley Water to purchase additional imported water every year to make up for the loss of long-term storage at Anderson Reservoir. Based upon this information and analysis, the Board directed Valley Water to continue work on this critical infrastructure project.
*This project was voter approved as part of the Safe, Clean Water and Natural Flood Protection Program.
Virtual Public Meeting May 28, 2020
Valley Water held a virtual meeting on the Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project on Thursday, May 28, 2020.
At this meeting, Valley Water focused on the most recent directive from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to begin draining Anderson Reservoir on Oct. 1, 2020 and begin the construction of a tunnel with a low level outlet in 2021. Valley Water also discussed the next steps as it works towards seismically retrofitting Anderson Dam.
- View a recording of the May 28, 2020 public meeting
- Get your sample letter of support and action alerts on Assembly Bill 3005, the Expedited Dam Safety for Silicon Valley Bill
Virtual public meeting scheduled for May 28, 2020
Valley Water invites the public to join its virtual meeting on the Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project on Thursday, May 28, 2020 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
At this meeting, Valley Water will focus on the most recent directive from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to begin draining Anderson Reservoir on Oct. 1, 2020 and begin the construction of a tunnel with a low level outlet in 2021. Valley Water will also discuss the next steps as it works towards seismically retrofitting Anderson Dam.
To access the virtual meting, use the following code:
Webinar ID: 959 8219 3283
Questions can also be emailed through May 27, 2020 to the liaison or by calling 408-630-2342. Arrangements are underway to allow questions to be asked and answered during the virtual meeting.
Current Restricted Operating Capacity:
Currently, Anderson Reservoir is limited to 58% of its capacity due to seismic concerns.
On April 10, 2019, Valley Water hosted a public meeting at the Morgan Hill Community and Cultural Center. View the meeting below:
Valley Water also met with the community in October 2018. That video can be seen below. The agenda and handouts can be found in the "Reports and Documents" section of this page.
Project Update
Valley Water is moving forward on the project design for the Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project. The design work is undergoing a series of independent reviews to ensure best outcomes and staff is working to complete a draft Environmental Impact Report for public review. The project is one of Valley Water's largest capital projects to date and is a critical public safety project. Valley Water is committed to ensuring the best design for maximum protection and is aiming to break ground in 2021.
Progress of the Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project work
Following the seismic stability evaluation, Valley Water initiated the Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project in 2012 as a permanent fix to the risks identified by the seismic study. In addition to seismically retrofitting the dam embankment, the planning phase of the project identified the need to:
- Replace the existing outlet pipe that runs below the dam to improve capacity and reliability
- Increase the wall height of the concrete spillway to approximately 9 ft and the height of the dam crest to 7 ft to provide more freeboard required to pass the revised Probable Maximum Flood (PMF)
This project is currently in the design phase. Geotechnical and geologic investigations have been performed in many areas around the dam to collect data for the retrofit project and to complete the design of the additional project elements. As part of this investigation previously unidentified seismic deficiencies were discovered:
- The upstream embankment shell materials are also susceptible to liquefaction during a MCE. Liquefaction describes a phenomenon whereby a soil loses strength in response to earthquake shaking, causing it to behave like a liquid.
- The existing Transition Zones (special material placed between the clay core and the rockfill shells to protect the core) were determined to be inadequate to prevent failure due to possible fault offset leading to seepage and erosion through the bedrock foundation beneath Anderson Dam during a major earthquake
These findings have resulted in modifications to the reservoir restriction and the extent of necessary retrofit work to stabilize the dam. The maximum water surface elevation in the reservoir was restricted an additional 10 feet in January 2017 to accommodate greater potential deformation due to liquefaction of the upstream shell. The retrofit project which was originally planned to include large upstream and downstream buttresses has been modified to a nearly complete replacement of Anderson Dam in place. This replacement will ensure the post-project facility has removed all liquefiable material in and beneath the embankments and will be built to the most modern design standards and with rigorous quality control. Finally, a new high level outlet will also be constructed to allow rapid drawdown of the upper portion of the reservoir in case of an emergency.
Valley Water is working closely with the State's Division of Safety of Dams and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Both agencies have jurisdictional authority over the dam and reservoir, and Valley Water must obtain their review and approval for all project design plans. In addition, the project is continuously overseen by an independent panel of dam experts. Environmental documents will be prepared to comply with federal and state regulations, and permits will be obtained from several regulatory agencies for water diversion activities during construction, including full dewatering of the reservoir.
Completion of the design, obtaining all regulatory approval and acquisition of permits will be completed before construction commences, currently planned for 2021.
Updated April 2020
Informational materials:
- Anderson Project FAQ (2020)
- Anderson Dam Neighborhood Update - March 2019
- Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project Fact Sheet
- Notice of Preparation and Initial Study
- Anderson Dam Planning Study Report
- Reservoir Operating Restrictions
- Dam Safety Program
- Inundation Map (2016)
Anderson Dam Virtual Meeting Matierals
Materials from Past Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Public Meetings
Materials from Community Update Meeting Wednesday, April 10, 2019:
Materials from Community Update Meeting Monday, June 4, 2018:
Materials from Community Update Meeting, Wednesday, October 24, 2018:
Materials from Community Update Meeting Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2017:
- Agenda
- Project Description
- Updated Project FAQ
- PowerPoint Presentation (PDF)
- Construction Sequence animation (PPT)
- Click here to view a video of the meeting
Materials from the Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project
Public Meeting on March 22, 2017:
- Agenda
- Project Description
- Updated Project FAQ
- PowerPoint Presentation
- Download the Dec. 13, 2016 update presentation
- Responses to questions posed at the January 2013 public meeting
Key Performance Indicator for the Safe, Clean Water Program
Provide portion of funds, up to $45 million, to help restore full operating reservoir capacity of 90,373 acre-feet.
In May 2015, the Board approved, as part of its annual groundwater production charge setting, that $14 million of Safe, Clean Water funding be transferred to the Water Utility Enterprise Fund as reimbursement for the Anderson Dam project in FY16 instead of the Safe, Clean Water-scheduled $15 million transfer in FY18. The purpose of this earlier transfer was to offset the groundwater production charge increase for FY16. The next fund transfer is scheduled for FY28.
Brings the dam into compliance with today's seismic standards
Increases reliability and safety of our area's largest reservoir by protecting it from earthquakes
Eliminates operational restrictions issued by the state Division of Safety of Dams (DSOD) which would restore Anderson Reservoir to its full capacity of approximately 90,373 acre-feet, regaining 48% or about 43,500 acre-feet of water storage for our current and future water supply
Ensures compliance with environmental laws requiring reservoir releases that maintain appropriate flows and temperatures to support downstream wildlife habitat
Minimizes the risk of uncontrollable releases from the reservoir which could cause downstream flooding
Geographic Area of Benefit
Anderson Reservoir is the largest of the 10 water district reservoirs and provides a reliable supply of water to Santa Clara County. It has a total storage capacity of 89,073 acre-feet (one acre-foot is 325,851 gallons of water, enough to serve two households of five for one year). Anderson Dam was built in 1950 and named after the key founder and first president of the water district, Leroy Anderson. A long, deep natural gorge located three miles east of U.S. 101 in Morgan Hill provided a suitable dam site.
Findings of the original seismic stability evaluation completed in 2011 on Anderson Dam indicated that the downstream and upstream embankments could become unstable during a very large magnitude earthquake and the rupture of faults underlying the dam may have adverse impact on the outlet pipe and intake structure.
A storage restriction of about 55 feet below the dam crest has been put in place to protect the public, reducing the allowed storage capacity to 52,553 acre-feet. This voluntary restriction exceeds the 45-foot restriction approved by the regulatory agencies (California Division of Safety of Dams and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) and was instituted by Valley Water in response to additional findings during the design phase of the Anderson Dam Seismic Retrofit Project (ADSRP). The water district and regulatory agencies believe that this restriction will prevent the uncontrolled release of water in case the dam is structurally damaged after a major earthquake.
About the Safe, Clean Water and Natural Flood Protection Program
In November 2012 the voters of Santa Clara County overwhelmingly approved Measure B, the Safe, Clean Water and Natural Flood Protection Program, as a countywide special parcel tax for 15 years with a sunset date of June 30, 2028. This Program replaced the Clean, Safe Creeks and Natural Flood Protection Plan, which voters approved in November 2000.
The Safe, Clean Water Program was developed with input from more than 16,000 residents and stakeholders and was created to match the community's needs and values. The voters of Santa Clara County identified five priorities:
Priority A: Ensure a Safe, Reliable Water Supply
Priority B: Reduce Toxins, Hazards and Contaminants in our Waterways
Priority C: Protect our Water Supply from Earthquakes and Natural Disasters
Priority D: Restore Wildlife Habitat and Provide Open Space
Priority E: Provide Flood Protection to Homes, Businesses, Schools and Highways
Other: Six projects from the Clean, Safe, Creeks Plan have been carried forward into the Safe, Clean Water Program.
Each year, Valley Water prepares a report providing a progress update for each of these Program priorities, along with fiscal year accomplishments.
To ensure transparency and accountability to the voters, the ballot measure also created an Independent Monitoring Committee, appointed by the Santa Clara Valley Water District Board of Directors. The Independent Monitoring Committee annually reviews the Program's progress to ensure the outcomes are achieved in a cost-efficient manner and reports its findings to the Board.
In addition, the Program requires three independent audits, the first of which was conducted in FY 2017.
View the Safe, Clean Water Program's annual reports, annual IMC audit reports, and independent audits, including a staff response, on the Valley Water website.


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Jalopnik Reader Ron Schendorf has provided this weekend's Weekend Wallpaper. It's an amazing photo of Kuno Wittmer's #93 Dodge Viper GTS-R. I asked Robert to give us the low down.
Well this one was the winning GTLM team #93 Dodge Viper GTS-R driven by GTLM Champion driver Kuno Wittmer. The car was on display outside of Cipriani's on 42nd st for the IMSA TUDOR United Sports Car Racing championship ceremony with all the dirt and debris still on it from the final race in Georgia, Petit LeMans.
It seems pretty clean to me! I'm going to imagine the rain gave it a wash before Ron took a photograph of it. Awesome indeed. I am sorry I misread and thought his name was Rob. In any case, I am not the first to screw it up.
He just has to accept his new Robert moniker.
Photo credit to Ron Schendorf. Used with permission. For the desktop size version of this photo click here.
Weekend Wallpapers are featured on Saturdays. Got one you'd like us to run? Send it to email@example.com with the subject "Weekend Wallpaper." Just make sure you have the rights to use it.


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Letting the model know whats expected with DAZ3D
The original shot idea has an Oswin lookalike holding herself up on the tops of two Dalek. The final Dalek graphics I hope to get from Stu of CutnPasteGraphics.
For the shoot dummy heads will be used so the pose shown can be shot, "Oswin" looking skyward for "Rescue me chin boy, and show me the stars". To enable everyone to get a better idea of what I'm aiming for I used a virtual model in DAZ3D, bought a dress for her and experimented with limb positions.
If there are any Dalek builders out there reading this I'd love some help making a top the right shape so the models hands rest in the right place.


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What is SEO Audit?
Before you begin the process of SEO audit for your website, you need to understand what it means. SEO audit is a process with which you can evaluate your website's search engine friendliness. There are many tools you can use for the SEO audit for your website.
It is important for you to do an SEO audit of your website once in a while because it improves the website's performance online. The SEO industry is changing regularly and it is important to keep your site updated. SEO audit is an important procedure that helps your website to stay in sync with the regular updates to Google's ranking algorithm.
Now that we have a brief look at what SEO update is and why it is important, let's jump into how to perform an SEO audit for your website!
The entire process can be divided into five simple steps-
- First step: checking for Google penalties
- Second step: checking out the search appearance of your website
- Third step: Performing technical SEO audit
- Fourth step: Performing On page SEO audit
- Fifth step: Performing Off-page SEO audit
1: checking for Google penalties.
The first thing you need to do when performing an SEO audit for your website is to check if your website is in any way penalized by Google. Being penalized by Google puts a negative effect on your website ranking and traffic. So, how do you find out if your website is penalized or not? There are two easy ways.
The first way is very easy- all you have to do is to log in to Google search console and select 'Manual Actions' situated in the left menu. You'll see the reasons if your website has any manual penalty on it.
The second way, you are going to log in to Google analytics, and then proceed to Acquisition/ All traffic and then select Source / Medium situated on the left menu. By doing this you are going to compare the Google organic traffic for the dates when Google released an algorithmic change. If there a sudden drop or increase in organic traffic, then it means your website was affected by the algorithmic changes.
If you find your website to be penalized by Google, the best way to proceed is to find out the reason for the penalty and rectifying it during the auditing process. Doing this will not only help with your ranking but would also make your website more reliable for the users.
2: Check out the search appearance of your website
Now you have to go online and run a simple Google searched for your website or blog, and check the list of things below to see how your search appearance for the website looks:
- Is the first item on the result page your homepage?
- Are the descriptions below the homepage and other pages accurate?
- The name and other information on the GMB page- are the correct?
- The pages listed on the first page of Google results, are they relevant?
- Is Google showing site links with your listings?
Now scroll down to the bottom of the search results page and look at the related searches results
- Are these related searches relevant to your brand?
- Are there any relevant searches for which you can create a page and utilize it?
If there is some problem with your search appearance, then it means that there are a number of issues for your website. You need to fix these issues before getting on to the next step.
Claim your Google my business page and make sure all the information there is accurate. Also, review your site structure, and homepage SEO. Once you've dealt with these issues, it's time to move on to the next step, which is technical SEO
3: Performing Technical SEO audit
Now that you've done a Google penalty check and a search appearance check, it's time to do a thorough website review with Technical SEO audit.
For a layperson, this may seem scary, but there is no need to be scared. The steps are quite easy. A Technical SEO audit is important in order to make sure that search engines have proper access and they can index your pages without any problems.
Go through the list and check out if your website has any issues with its technical SEO.
- Your website- is it registered with Google search console?
You need to have your website registered to Google search console. It is a free tool from Google that gives information to the webmasters about their own websites. Things such as the number of indexed pages, the keywords for which the site ranks, security and indexing issues, all can be found in the various tool options and reports. It is imperative that you have your website registered with Google search console to keep up with everything.
Is the domain name specified for your website?
To avoid a duplicate content issue, make sure that you've specified your preferred domain name in Google search console and website setting. Google considerswebsites with 'www' in front of the domain, and without 'www' in front of the domain as different. Such as- 'https: //www.w3webschool.com' and "https://w3webschool.com' may be the same website, but due to the absence of 'www' at the beginning of the second link, Google would consider it as a different website. So make sure you have specified your domain.
The robots.txt file
Websites have robots.txt file which controls which pages are accessible by search engine crawlers. You need to make sure that there are no problems with the file; otherwise, there can be serious optimization issues.
The URLs. Are they SEO friendly?
Review your URL structure to see if they are SEO friendly. The URLs on each page need to be unique and properly formatted. Good URLs include keywords, but they are never keyword stuffed, use hyphens '-' to separate the keywords, have less than 255 characters, and are unique to each page. See if your URLs match all these criteria's before moving onto the next step.
Also, Read
What are Keywords and How to do Keyword Research?
What are Content Marketing and its future?
The breadcrumb menu- activated or not?
The breadcrumb menu is shown at the top of the page and helps us to navigate easily to the homepage following the menu links. It makes the site easier to the users, so make sure that the breadcrumb menu is properly working.
The structured data and if it is enabled:
The structured data helps Google to understand the context and meaning of the content on the age and gives your website additional ranking benefits. It is used by Google to enhance the presentation of any website in search results, or voice searches. So while doing the technical SEO audit you need to see if you have structures data enabled for your homepage, breadcrumb menus, articles and products.
Canonical URL for all the pages:
Canonical URL helps the webmasters to deal with duplicate content issues and also helps Google to identify which are the most important pages of a website. Every page of your website must have a canonical URL.
404 optimization:
404 pages are shown to the user when they try to find a page that is not on your website. Make sure that your website has 404 pages optimized for smooth and easy user experience.
XML sitemap optimization:
The XML sitemap contains all the website pages that are important for your website and Google needs to know about. Once the XML sitemap is generated by your CMs, it'll be submitted to Google through Google search console.
Does your website have HTTPS?
HTTPS means that a website has a secure certificate installed and the URLs that start with HTTPS have a better advantage over non-secure websites. Making sure that your website is HTTPS will only make your rankings better.
How fast is your website?
It is important that your website loads faster than your competitors. The website page speed is a difficult task to handle, yet one of the most important, as the speed with which the website page loads especially on mobile effects your ranking. There are a number of things you can do to speed up the loading speed-
- Compress all your website images
- Consider using a CDN if you have lots of images
- Use browser caching to minimize HTTP calls
- Make the size of CSS and HTML smaller by minifying them
- Use page speed service or caching plug-in to serve the cached pages to your users.
- Removal of unnecessary javascript from the pages
- Update PHP to its latest version
- Update website and software to the latest version.
A mobile-friendly website?
People are using mobiles more than computers and laptops to search for websites these days. So obviously your website needs to be optimized for mobile. Google mobile first index excludes those websites from mobile searches that are not optimized for mobiles. So check if your website is mobile friendly with Google mobile-friendly test tool.
Your website available in more than one language?
If your website is available more than one language then it should have the necessary SEO setting in the HTML, if not, Google would consider all the translated content as duplicated content. So make sure you have the proper SEO settings in the HTML codes.
Optimizing the website structure:
Check out if your website structure is optimized. You need to check a few things like see if your website has a clear content structure if there is a proper contact, privacy policy, about page.
4: Performing On-Page SEO Audit
Through the use of keywords and on page SEO elements, you need to give the search engine crawlers right signals.
Here is a brief list of all the things you need to check during your on-page SEO audit-
Check your titles and descriptions and optimize them: this includes your titles and descriptions, make sure that they are relevant to your website. Make sure that they are SEO friendly.
Proper text formatting: make sure that the tests on your pages are not plain texts. You should use H1 for the main title and H2 for the main headings.
Check out the SEO content: check your SEO content for uniqueness and freshness. Make sure all the contents on your pages are unique and fresh, and not copied from anywhere. Update your website content on a daily basis.
Functional internal link structure: having a functional link structure helps your website to rank better. Make sure that you have linked related pages together; each of your pages has 2-10 internal links
The image SEO: having a lot of images on your page may make it attractive, but make sure that they are all compressed to the minimal size so that the loading time of the page is not long.
Check Broken Links: you can use the crawl errors report in your Google search console in order to find the broken links in your website. Fix them by doing 301 redirects to a valid URL or by fixing the links. There are many tools that also check all your external links to find broken links
5: Performing Off-page SEO audit
Off page SEO audit, often referred to as link building refers to methods used to promote the website on the internet. You need to be careful while performing off page SEO audit because if you make any mistakes it can be really risky.
Make sure you evaluate your incoming links and find out which ones are the toxic links. There are many tools to do this. Or you can use links to your site report from Google search console.
Answer the following questions while you review incoming links report
- How many domains are linking your website
- Are these domains considered to be trusted?
- Number of links pointing to your homepages and internal pages
- Which pages have most incoming links?
- The percentage of the links based on keywords
- The toxic score of each link
Corrective measures need to be taken based on the answers to these questions. If there are only a few domains linking to you, you need to get links from websites and blogs that are related to your subject. Create a list of websites and blogs you can use for guest blogging or outreach campaigns.
Make sure not all the links are pointing towards your homepage, but some of them point towards internal pages as well.
The links need to be more natural and not keyword based. Use only your domain name, and things like click here, or link etc.
If you are thinking to learn Advanced SEO then we are here w3webschool provide Low cost with 100% Practical Class SEO Training so do not waste time anywhere contact today for demo after that you decide to join w3webschool.


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The iPhone alarm woke me at 5h00. It was time to go. I had done the big miles yesterday to open up support station options for this day and I had Malekholonyane in mind. The big climbing was over and I was confident in the navigation that lay ahead for the day. The generator was silent, so no electricity. I got out of a warm and cozy bed and it took forever to get dressed in all the layers, it was pretty cold (-7C). My spirit was good and I felt up to the challenge of this day.
Mr Ngcobo was in a deep sleep on top of a double mattress in front of the fire but his crew were ready for me, busy preparing breakfast, bacon and eggs. My appetite wasn't there and I felt terrible having to leave the crispy bacon on the plate. It took me forever to get myself sorted out, maps, eating, food for the day, filling bottles, organizing my back pack. I am still a bit perplexed to this as I am generally quite well organized but I was just fumbling all over. Some lessons in here for future attempts.
I left around 6h00 into the cold dark, fortunately no wind. I struggled to get my body working so I just turned the pedals over and kept moving forward. About 20 minutes in my hands were just too cold and I stopped to put my crab finger Sealskinz gloves on, they were superb, hands warmed up quickly and I was rolling again. I had noticed that some riders on previous days had taken a shortcut at the sharp right turn and I decided to try the same as it would intersect with the jeep track. I had decided before the race to try some new route options this year and this was one. What appeared to be a nice track ran out very quickly and I was bouncing across the open veld soon enough. A lone Wildebeest was observing my quest. About half way down the valley I lost confidence in the plan and turned back to the known route. About 10 minutes later I could see where I would have joined. Now know what to expect, will use it in 2017.
The jeep track through Ntsikeni Reserve was terrible, I couldn't find a rhythm and was pushing my bike up pretty much every grassy hill. The pushing over the rough terrain was taking its toll on my body and I started feeling strain on my back. On bad days it feels like a knife stabbing into my back, on most days it's just fine. I chose to ignore my back, there is no room for such thoughts in a race like this. Even thought the jeep track was pretty clear I was trying to track myself closely on the map and at one point I turned back to retrace and recheck my route. It cost me about 10 minutes just to realize I was correct in the first instance which was rather irritating but I knew this was the right way of doing things. I was looking for the turn to the right to drop down to Politique Kraal but simply just did not see it and ended up against the reserve fence high above the optimal route. Another irritation which cost me probably another 10 minutes as I had to scramble down the ridge to get to the well ridden cattle track. I eventually popped out at Politique after a highly frustrating traverse of the reserve. I had easily wasted 30 minutes being inefficient with the route and it wasn't helpful if I wanted to get a big day in. From there all went fast down to the gorge crossing. I was caught in two minds at this point. Either drop to the gorge and try and carry my bike out or take the jeep track around and avoid portaging. I decided on the gorge, it was to be a poor decision.
I picked up my bike to carry it across the stream. My back hurt so I pushed it over the rocks. The exit is a steep loose rocky path which really requires the bike to be carried on the back. I lifted my bike onto my back and instantly felt discomfort, to the extent that my hips felt numb. It was a known pain, I feel this every morning when I wake up but it goes away as soon as I get moving. I had felt it before going down Breedtsnek, so bad that I felt like I was going to pass out. I decided to drag pull my bike up the path and took twice as long to get to the path at the top. My back was in trouble and my mind wasn't strong enough to convince it that it was nothing. I was in a very dark place and there was no obvious way to get myself out of it. A MRI in March had shown a bulging disc on L4/5 to be the cause of this back pain. I had filed this behind a closed door in my mind, it is not helpful nor healthy to keep such doors open when participating in endurance events. I cast my mind ahead and wondered how I would get my bike up the VuVu climb or Lehanas, many thoughts played through my mind. I sat down on the top of the hill to calm myself and allow my thoughts to slow down so I could recompose and re-calibrate. I picked up my bike to check if maybe some rest had helped. It made no difference. My hips and legs went numb with the weight on my back. I had burst a disc in my neck a few years ago on C6/7 which resulted in a most horrific and painful month up to the point where I had a double fusion of the C5/6 and C6/7 vertebrae. I have had no discomfort of my neck since then but having had first hand experience of a burst disc, I did not want to knowingly head down that track again.
I had been on the hill for about 15 minutes wrestling with my thoughts. It was not smart to continue and risk worsening an already problematic and lingering injury. My 2016 Race to Rhodes was over. I had prepared well for this race and for every possible eventuality but I was not prepared for the emotions of such a dramatic decision.
I was overcome with emotions.
The disappointment was overwhelming.
I got on my bike and started crawling towards the tar road to get to a place with a good cell signal so I could inform the race office and my wife. Riding to the road I was overcome with emotions every so often, having put is such a super effort the previous day I was going to have very little to show in the end. I was also quite worried about my back and wondered if I would ever be able to return to this event. Once one allows emotions in during endurance events, there is plenty for them to feed on. I allowed it all to empty out, I'm not one for lingering over disappointment and wanted to get this emotionally painful experience behind me as quickly as possible.
I eventually rolled through to Glenn Edward where I settled in to wait for my wife to pick me up. It was to prove a very special experience in own right.
Post Mortem. I delayed writing this blog for a while. It is today exactly 4 weeks since the Sunday I had to withdraw from Race to Rhodes. The emotions have settled. My back unfortunately hasn't. I will need a treatment and strengthening regime over the coming months to improve my back issues. I am not worried, we'll get it fixed.
One thing is guaranteed. I will be back!