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Hi guys, now you know we are always the first to understand that things are complicated and never just black and white and that a junkies relationship with their doctor/s is something pretty unique (we could all write a book right?) and we are not saying we want all prescribing doctors arrested – that is not the point here, and its a very long way from it.
But just like when you scratch at the ugly scab that is the war on drugs and you find governments' lying, scheming for their own economic ends, even wheeling and dealing in the very drugs they lock thousands of their citizens up for..and you scratch deeper still and you see the roots of these global drug laws rooted in fear and racism, xenophobia and cultural ignorance, economies and GDP's, total monopolies by companies and the ever larger monolithic pharmaceutical industrys' that orchestrate and lobby for the very laws they securely tie up ever tighter still, seeking global domination and a pill for everything we could never even imagine we needed one for….- there is certainly no concern for our youth or environment, – …..Well, I thought you might like to read this article that gives some background into the explosion in Oxycontin in the USA today. How big pharma is raking it in, how the doctors are earning billions as well, how USA overdose rates continue to rise and rise year on year, how prisons keep increasing their numbers of paid lobbyists at Capitol Hill to make sure that, although violent crime is, and has gone down (yes that's right) in the USA for many years now, more and more laws keep getting introduced to ensnare the illegal immigrant, the petty criminal etc, so society can pay for these 'Titan prisons' and maintain the jobs within them, in the cities that the bureaucrats would flourish because of these disgusting, concrete jungles of inhumanity..
But let's just get a glimpse of how big pharma do things – or rather – how little pharma can grow into HUGE pharma, courtesy of the American taxpayer, and another drug dependent generation – paying the 'Right Man' this time, not the junkie down the street….
PS – Remember, we don't always dig the journo's language when describing people who use drugs, but we will overlook that somewhat for the sake of the piece. Always write in to the editor to challenge their language if you see or feel that oit is inaccurate, sweeping, or causes offence.
Poison Pill: How the American opiate
epidemic was started by one
pharmaceutical company
Written by MIKE MARIANI FEB 23, 2015
(The link to complete article above and at the end of this text – thanks in advance to Mike Mariani – Here is an extract)
The state of Kentucky may finally get its deliverance. After more than seven years of battling the evasive legal tactics of Purdue Pharma, 2015 may be the year that Kentucky and its attorney general, Jack Conway, are able to move forward with a civil lawsuit alleging that the drug maker misled doctors and patients about their blockbuster pain pill OxyContin, leading to a vicious addiction epidemic across large swaths of the state.
A pernicious distinction of the first decade of the 21st century was the rise in painkiller abuse, which ultimately led to a catastrophic increase in addicts, fatal overdoses, and blighted communities. But the story of the painkiller epidemic can really be reduced to the story of one powerful, highly addictive drug and its small but ruthlessly enterprising manufacturer.
On December 12, 1995, the Food and Drug Administration approved the opioid analgesic OxyContin. It hit the market in 1996. In its first year, OxyContin accounted for $45 million in sales for its manufacturer, Stamford, Connecticut-based pharmaceutical company Purdue Pharma. By 2000 that number would balloon to $1.1 billion, an increase of well over 2,000 percent in a span of just four years. Ten years later, the profits would inflate still further, to $3.1 billion. By then the potent opioid accounted for about 30 percent of the painkiller market. What's more, Purdue Pharma's patent for the original OxyContin formula didn't expire until 2013. This meant that a single private, family owned pharmaceutical company with non-descript headquarters in the Northeast controlled nearly a third of the entire United States market for pain pills.
OxyContin's ball-of-lightning emergence in the health care marketplace was close to unprecedented for a new painkiller in an age where synthetic opiates like Vicodin, Percocet, and Fentanyl had already been competing for decades in doctors' offices and pharmacies for their piece of the market share of pain-relieving drugs. In retrospect, it almost didn't make sense. Why was OxyContin so much more popular? Had it been approved for a wider range of ailments than its opioid cousins? Did doctors prefer prescribing it to their patients?
Because there was simply so much OxyContin available for over a decade, it trickled down from pharmacies and hospitals and became a street drug, coveted by teens and fiends and sold by dealers at a premium
During its rise in popularity, there was a suspicious undercurrent to the drug's spectrum of approved uses and Purdue Pharma's relationship to the physicians that were suddenly privileging OxyContin over other meds to combat everything from back pain to arthritis to post-operative discomfort. It would take years to discover that there was much more to the story than the benign introduction of a new, highly effective painkiller.
In 1952, brothers Arthur, Raymond, and Mortimer Sackler purchased Purdue Pharma, then called Purdue Frederick Co. All three men were psychiatrists by trade, working at a mental facility in Queens in the 1940s.
The eldest brother, Arthur, was a brilliant polymath, contributing not only to psychiatric research but also thriving in the fledgling field of pharmaceutical advertising. It was here that he would leave his greatest mark. As a member of William Douglas McAdams, a small New York-based advertising firm, Sackler expanded the possibilities of medical advertising by promoting products in medical journals and experimenting with television and radio marketing. Perhaps his greatest achievement, detailed in his biography in the Medical Advertising Hall of Fame, was finding enough different uses for Valium to turn it into the first drug to hit $100 million in revenue.
The Medical Advertising Hall of Fame website's euphemistic argot for this accomplishment states that Sackler's experience in the fields of psychiatry and experimental medicine "enabled him to position different indications for Roche's Librium and Valium."
Sackler was also among the first medical advertisers to foster relationships with doctors in the hopes of earning extra points for his company's drugs, according to a 2011 exposé in Fortune. Such backscratching in the hopes of reciprocity is now the model for the whole drug marketing industry. Arthur Sackler's pioneering methods would be cultivated by his younger brothers Raymond and Mortimer in the decades to come, as they grew their small pharmaceutical firm.
Starting in 1996, Purdue Pharma expanded its sales department to coincide with the debut of its new drug. According to an article published in The American Journal of Public Health, "The Promotion and Marketing of OxyContin: Commercial Triumph, Public Health Tragedy," Purdue increased its number of sales representatives from 318 in 1996 to 671 in 2000. By 2001, when OxyContin was hitting its stride, these sales reps received annual bonuses averaging over $70,000, with some bonuses nearing a quarter of a million dollars. In that year Purdue Pharma spent $200 million marketing its golden goose. Pouring money into marketing is not uncommon for Big Pharma, but proportionate to the size of the company, Purdue's OxyContin push was substantial.
Boots on the ground was not the only stratagem employed by Purdue to increase sales for OxyContin. Long before the rise of big data, Purdue was compiling profiles of doctors and their prescribing habits into databases. These databases then organized the information based on location to indicate the spectrum of prescribing patterns in a given state or county. The idea was to pinpoint the doctors prescribing the most pain medication and target them for the company's marketing onslaught.
That the databases couldn't distinguish between doctors who were prescribing more pain meds because they were seeing more patients with chronic pain or were simply looser with their signatures didn't matter to Purdue. The Los Angeles Times reported that by 2002 Purdue Pharma had identified hundreds of doctors who were prescribing OxyContin recklessly, yet they did little about it. The same article notes that it wasn't until June of 2013, at a drug dependency conference in San Diego, that the database was ever even discussed in public.
Combining the physician database with its expanded marketing, it would become one of Purdue's preeminent missions to make primary care doctors less judicious when it came to handing out OxyContin prescriptions.
Beginning around 1980, one of the more significant trends in pain pharmacology was the increased use of opioids for chronic non-cancer pain. Like other pharmaceutical companies, Purdue likely sought to capitalize on the abundant financial opportunities of this trend. The logic was simple: While the number of cancer patients was not likely to increase drastically from one year to the next, if a company could expand the indications for use of a particular drug, then it could boost sales exponentially without any real change in the country's health demography.
Read the rest of the fascinating article here – Poison Pill: How the American opiate epidemic was started by one pharmaceutical company, MIKE MARIANI FEB 23, 2015


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34 Definitions of Beats
The definition of beats, the meaning of the word Beats:
Is beats a scrabble word? Yes!
- n. - A United States youth subculture of the 1950s; rejected possessions or regular work or traditional dress; for communal living and psychedelic drugs and anarchism; favored modern forms of jazz (e.g., bebop)
- n. - A regular route for a sentry or policeman
- n. - The rhythmic contraction and expansion of the arteries with each beat of the heart
- n. - The basic rhythmic unit in a piece of music
- n. - A single pulsation of an oscillation produced by adding two waves of different frequencies; has a frequency equal to the difference between the two oscillations
- n. - A member of the beat generation; a nonconformist in dress and behavior
- n. - The sound of stroke or blow
- n. - (prosody) the accent in a metrical foot of verse
- n. - A regular rate of repetition
- n. - A stroke or blow
- n. - The act of beating to windward; sailing as close as possible to the direction from which the wind is blowing
- v. - Come out better in a competition, race, or conflict
- v. - Give a beating to; subject to a beating, either as a punishment or as an act of aggression
- v. - Hit repeatedly
- v. - Move rhythmically
- v. - Shape by beating
- v. - Make a rhythmic sound
- v. - Glare or strike with great intensity
- v. - Move with a thrashing motion
- v. - Sail with much tacking or with difficulty
- v. - Stir vigorously
- v. - Strike (a part of one's own body) repeatedly, as in great emotion or in accompaniment to music
- v. - Be superior
- v. - Avoid paying
- v. - Make a sound like a clock or a timer
- v. - Move with a flapping motion
- v. - Indicate by beating, as with the fingers or drumsticks
- v. - Move with or as if with a regular alternating motion
- v. - Make by pounding or trampling
- v. - Produce a rhythm by striking repeatedly
- v. - Strike (water or bushes) repeatedly to rouse animals for hunting
- v. - Beat through cleverness and wit
- v. - Be a mystery or bewildering to
- v. - Wear out completely
Beats is worth 7 points in Scrabble, and 8 points in Words with Friends
There are 5 letters in beats: A B E S T
6 Anagrams of Beats
Words that can be created with an extra letter added to beats:
52 words found using the letters in "Beats"
5 Letter Words
4 Letter Words
Sponsored Links
3 Letter Words
2 Letter Words

subset: commoncrawl


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PHOTOS: Home of Bea Arthur listed
The late Golden Girls star lived in the Brentwood, Calif. estate for decades. Built in 1924, the 7,085-square-foot home was renovated by Arthur's son in the 1980s.
The home includes 5 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, a tennis court, circular swimming pool and hiking trails.
Arthur, who also starred in the 1970s series Maude, died in 2009.


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SOMERSET County Cricket Club's head groundsman, Simon Lee, is leaving the club at the end of the season after 20 years of service.
Lee is to join Hampshire and cited a desire to work at an international ground as the main factor behind his decision.
Lee told the club website: "This has been a massive decision for me to make.
"I've given it a lot of thought and I want to challenge myself at a larger venue that regularly hosts international cricket.
"I've been at Somerset for nearly 20 years and this is one of the hardest decisions I've ever had to make.
"I have so many incredible memories of Somerset. I've seen two World Cups and seen the likes of Graeme Smith and Chris Gayle make big scores.
"There have been some incredible wins in the Championship and so many more great memories that I couldn't even begin to name them all.
"I feel like I'm leaving the club in a good place and that we've improved the field massively in the last 10 years.
"I probably take the most satisfaction from the fact that we've been able to change the characteristics of the pitches in four-day cricket and are able to give people exciting cricket to watch.
"That's taken a lot of hard work over a 10-year period and there's been a lot of pressure, but when Members come up to you and tell you that they're really enjoying the cricket that they're watching here, it makes it all worthwhile.
"The fact that we get so many people coming to the ground to watch cricket shows that we must be doing something right and I'm very proud to be leaving that legacy."
Somerset director of cricket Andy Hurry said: "Simon Lee has played an integral role in the success of the club during his time here.
"His attention to detail, hard work, professionalism and desire to provide the best possible surface are absolutely second to none.
"I can't speak highly enough of Simon and I'm in no doubt that every coach or director of cricket who has worked with him will speak about him in similarly glowing terms.
"Understandably, Simon's ambition is to work at an International ground and, after everything he has done for Somerset, I know that I speak for everyone involved with the club when I wish him every success in the next stage of his career at Hampshire."
Le and his team shared the Best One-Day Pitch Award at the prestigious 2018 Business of Cricket Awards.
He will remain at Somerset to carry out necessary autumn renovations before moving to the Ageas Bowl, with Somerset's recruitment for a new head groundsman now underway.


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Wedding Cakes
Ron Ben-Israel Cakes is one of the finest couture cake studios of our time, known for innovative and impeccable creations. Founded by Ron Ben-Israel in 1999, the bakery and studio has recently relocated to a new, expansive location in the heart of Manhattan's Garment District, occupying an entire floor of The Nelson Building. From romantic inspirations to modern designs, Ron Ben-Israel Cakes will create a one-of-a-kind design for our Four Seasons bride with customized flavour profiles. Ron recommends the romantic choice of a champagne cake with Valrhona dark chocolate buttercream and fresh strawberries for your special day, or for the more passionate couple, he recommends choosing a coconut cake with Passionfruit with lime buttercream and salted caramel to end the evening with a spark. The RBI team cannot wait to work with you to create your wedding day dream cake.


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Sheriff Keller Provided 'Riverdale' with a Much Talked About Shirtless Scene This Week!
Some people are saying this could be the biggest twist yet on Riverdale… Sheriff Keller is super hot!!
Martin Cummins, who plays the role of the Sheriff and Kevin's dad, went shirtless on the latest episode of The CW show and everyone was blown away by how buff his body is.
In the scene, Veronica (Camila Mendes) went snooping around the Keller house and found the Sheriff doing bicep curls in the basement. When she saw him, she remarked that she didn't realize he worked out that much and he said he does it for discipline rather than vanity.
Hoping to see more of Martin's hot body? Keep watching Riverdale on Wednesday nights at 8/7c on The CW to see if we get another shirtless scene.
See some screencaps in the gallery…
Posted to: Martin Cummins, Riverdale, Shirtless


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Sorry that this post is so late. I also just wanted to quickly say that I picked up the player's handbook 2 this week and it is awesome. There are some sweet new classes that might get some use in an upcoming delve I am running. Stay tuned for more details.
Our heroes, having just finished cleaning out a thieves den, we asked to remove the local dragon problem. They went back into the depths of Kobold Hall to pay the dragon a visit. Because the dragon was expecting our heros to give him treasures they were able to position themselves around the dragon and pounce from all angles. Using sword and spell our heroes quickly brought the dragon to the ground. Treasure was spread around and Hesikiah found a holy symbol of Ioun which he will use to smite enemies in the name of his god.
Our heroes returned to town to great fanfare. The party was awarded with gold and a horse. Kane is now the proud owner of a brown and red colt named Scorch. As their fame spread so has requests for their service. They were approached by a local cleric who needs their help. The cleric has noticed a long abandoned tower on an island in the middle of the river seems to have new residents. The cleric is worried that whoever is in the tower has taken up the dark arts of the previous resident. The heroes accepted the challenge and made their way to the tower.
The heroes entered the ruins of the tower. They were greeted by a hoard of skeletons. Kava rushed into battle with axes swing and Sarge pushed his way in with his hammer smashing. The skeletons surged forward towards the party but were blasted back by Hesikiah's turn undead prayer. Riding behind the wave of Hesikiah's prayer the party overcame the bony bastards. Exploring the chamber Sarge found a Toxic Warpick, Kane found a secret door in a coffin, and Hesikiah found a very ornate mirror. When they looked into the mirror they saw a shadowy face of a woman. She said 'help' and urged the heroes to go deeper into the tower to set her free.
Descending to the level below our heroes were greeted by a powerful stench. In a dark, filth-ridden chamber, lurking dead lurched towards them. Heskiah's attacks burn the zombies with radiant damage. Sarge was covered by a glob of filth one of the zombies hurled at him. The stench was so powerful he wasn't able to make full strength attack. Kava killed a zombie only to have it rise behind him and swat at him again. Hesikiah's Lance of Faith put him down permanently. Sarge was able to shake off the filth and the party sent the zombies back to the grave.
Descending once again the party entered a room that seemed to be an old barracks. They heard a growling and around a corner came a pack of rotting and diseased dogs. Working in packs they lunged at the party. The party managed to prevent getting surrounded by using a moat of cover. They hacked and slashed and pounded the pooches into pulp.
The party has been successful so far in their quest but they still don't know the nature of the evil but Hesikiah has started to act a little strange about his mirror. Maybe it holds the answers?
Filed under: Dungeons and Dragons | Tagged: D&D, Dog, Dragon, Skeleton, Zombie | Leave a comment »


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Thanks to the recent cooler temperatures and light precipitation, Lacombe County has lifted its Fire Advisory.
Fire permits are still required for all outdoor fires, excluding fires used for cooking or warming purposes and burning barrels. The public is reminded that conditions are still relatively dry even though they are safer for burning and to ensure they are familiar with the conditions included with permitted burns. Fire permits can be requested through our iPhone app (myLacombeCounty), through our online Fire Permit Request form, over the phone, or in person.
Please visit our website (www.lacombecounty.com) for the most current information.


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The New Spies
This Article was written by:
Posts: 3
No Comments View Rating Report to LibrarianI am a basic Space Marine. My name is Felix Stronglark. I am 42 years old. I live in a city call brokelock on the planet Hasfts IV. My barracks is on a large hill-fort I am a biker which has 6 battle-brothers including myself. The squad sergeant is a close friend of mine from my old village called Gordiun. I'm going to tell you a tale of battle that leads up to where I am now. I was 15 years old when a message came round the village I was living in with my parents.
It said: "This is sent by the mighty Space Marines of the Ultramarines chapter, not to do the following is an insult to the Emperor and therefore those who disobey this will be shot. You must send at least one male from each family who is ready to fight and die for the Holy Emperor. The chosen male must come out into the local market square at 12:00 noon tomorrow. A marine Recruiter will come and see if any are worthy.
My father read this out at the dinner table the night before that was when I decided to go.
"Move your dyi you useless novice pups!" shouted Sergeant Otitvan. It was basic training. Myself and the fellow recruits were having our last exercise. The next day we got awoken early and got told by Sergeant Otitvan that we would be accepted as scouts the next day and would be shipped to a battlefield within a week.
After 1hour in the Thunderhawk we landed. We got out the ship then went over to the Sergeant who told us that the Orks were pushing back the eastern front with an unknown weapon and that we should go and scout out their base to try and fight the weapon and destroy it. The next day we set off. The night before we had been briefed about what we had to do on this mission. The plan was that the Orks were going to be distracted by a squad of Space Marine Bikers. They provided a hit and run mission at the front line of the greenskins so that we could get in unnoticed. The squad turned a corner and the last thing I remember was a heavy club swinging at my head I jumped back just a little too late, the club came smashing into my face.
"AAAARRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!" I screamed in pain and fury. I remember getting my boltpistol out and firing a shot at the beast but it didn't do anything. I blacked out cold.
I was trapped I let out a gasp of air. I stood up picked up my pistol and it all came back to me. The Ork, the club, the shot and the pain. I was filled with fury. I turned around and sprinted down the tunnel. I saw my squad lying on the floor I checked every single one of them they were all dead apart from Gordiun. He stood up and took the other members cartridges from their weapons I picked up the sergeants bolter and turned it in my hand.
The sergeant's bolter must be taken back." I said. We picked up all the ammo then sneaked out the tunnel into the jungle with the orks right in front of us. We saw the leader standing alone bellowing into what looked like a tube.
He was bellowing in his harsh language. Gordiun and I sneaked up behind him and we both thrust our chainsword at it with no mercy.
He turned with a look of shock on his face then he fell down dead. Me and Gordiun turned and sneaked back to the battlefield. We saw two Marine bikes left in the rubble. We sprinted towards them and leaped on them.
When we got back to base we were promoted to a basic Space Marine and given our fist purity seal! I was put into a Biker squad along with Gordiun and then training started all over again!


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This episode we're featuring the newly released music of Dave's old boss, Darren Antonio! Dave started out by playing his pick from the album, a very Radiohead-esque tune, then followed up with the maybe popular Evermore and finished strong with the Grapes of Wrath (the band, not the novel).
For the middle segment, Brandon and Dave let you know the Things You've Been Doing Wrong and enlighten you on how to make your life better.
Brandon's turn then came around, where he too celebrated Darren Antonio with a song from the album. He then worked through some alone time before playing a Sam Flax song and ending on the ever-Australian band The Perishers. Enjoy!


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7 Street Foods to Try from Around the World
Arepa (Colombia)
What is it: Flabreads made with flour or ground maize dough. Colombian arepas are often enjoyed topped with butter, cheese, or chorizo among other choices of toppings
Banh mi (Vietnam)
What is it: Vietnamese sandwich made with baguette and fillings like meat, pickled carrots, and vegetables among others
Chili crab (Singapore)
What is it: Commonly found in hawker centres across Singapore, chili crabs is a delicious, spicy dish. Ingredients include crabs, chili, and a special sauce that strikes that balance between sweetness and sourness
Crepes (France)
What is it: From sweet to savory, crêpes in cities like Paris are among the delicious must-try eats when in France.
Currywurst (Germany)
What is it: Widely available across Germany, curryworst is pork sausage (steamed then fried) served with curry powder, ketchup, and fries.
Halo-Halo (Philippines)
What is it: Literally meaning mix-mix, halo-halo is a quintessential Filipino dessert made with shaved ice, beans, leche flan, ube (purple yam), evaporated milk, and a wide array of other sweet ingredients often served topped with a scoop or more of ice cream.
Jerk chicken (Jamaica)
What is it: Chicken marinated in a special sauce then grilled over charcoal


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The time for rollovers has come, and will continue for the next 20 years or more. Talk to most advisors, and they'll tell you quite a bit of their business already comes from retiring baby boomers rolling qualified retirement plan assets into individual retirement accounts.
A recent report from Boston-based Cerulli & Associates shows just how huge the rollover business is. At year-end 2003, IRAs held more than $3 trillion in assets, with traditional IRAs accounting for most of that total, Cerulli says. That's more than the $2.4 trillion in assets that are now held in defined contribution plans.
Luis Fleites, the Cerulli analyst who authored the report, "Capturing and Retaining Rollovers: Positioning for Success," says that participants in IRAs who are age 50 and older "now hold 59% of 401(k) assets." So once these boomers retire, lots of money will flow out of 401(k)s. Job changers, too, he says, will be moving assets out of 401(k)s. Cumulative rollover contributions from retiring boomers and job changers, Fleites says, is projected to exceed $1.9 trillion between 2004 and 2010.
Annual rollover contributions in 2003, Fleites reports, hit $150 billion. "The surge in rollover inflows–$19 billion more than 2002 amounts–is partly attributable to rising equity markets," he says. "It also reflects the lingering effects of layoffs, early retirements, and job terminations during the bear market, as many of these employees are finalizing their rollover provisions."
Of the advisors Cerulli polled, nine out of 10 said that rollovers will become a larger component of their business going forward. Fifty-six percent of the advisors surveyed, Fleites reports, "believe that rollover assets will increase more than 16% during the next five years." Eleven percent of those polled, he says, "expect their client rollover assets to increase by more than 40%." But 28% of the advisors said they have no plans to implement a strategy to capture new rollover assets. Why? "Many advisors are confident that rollovers will continue to come their way without requiring a tactical or strategic change in their business plans," Fleites says.
Morris Armstrong, a planner with Armstrong Financial Strategies in New Milford, Connecticut, admits that he doesn't "actively solicit" rollovers. His retiring clients like his "planning and investment approach," giving him "the opportunity to manage their newly developed IRAs."
Advisors responding to Cerulli's survey said that approximately 20% of their books of business are rollover assets. Banks reported the highest percentage, 23%, Fleites says. But little deviation was found among the various channels. "The small disparity of client assets in IRA rollovers by channel is rather surprising because traditionally we expect to see significant client profile differences between wirehouse clients and insurance clients," Fleites says. Insurance advisors have the smallest average accounts. "Wirehouses and RIAs, both of which have clients with much larger account balances, must attract or capture larger rollover balances in order to maintain the same proportion of rollover assets that other channels report," Fleites points out.
Advisors who actively seek rollover assets tend to have smaller average account balances, Fleites found. These advisors are "more willing to look down market for new, younger prospects who will grow into bigger rollover clients." Existing clients generate the majority of rollover assets, Fleites notes, "further reinforcing the argument for increased data mining." Moreover, current customers account for approximately 54% of new rollover accounts, almost evenly split between existing clients with new rollover accounts and existing clients transferring accounts from other rollover providers.
While interviewing mutual fund companies, broker/dealers, and individual advisors for the survey, Fleites noticed a surprising trend: there are a limited number of options in terms of retirement income products available to clients. Retiring baby boomers have historically been offered an immediate annuity or income ladder, he says. "In many cases, [those products] still work, but retirees have lots of needs" like long-term care and wealth transfer, so they need more options. "Retirement income is becoming a service that requires products, and there hasn't been that much development or focus on it because [baby boomers have been accumulating assets] for the last 20 to 30 years," he says.
Responding to an informal poll of advisors performed by Investment Advisor, Greg Plechner, a planner with Fee Only Wealth Management in Old Tappan, New Jersey, says there are three reasons why his rollover business has been booming over the last few years. While the Bush Administration has instituted two major tax law changes–the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act (EGTRRA) and the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act (JGTRRA)–rollover rules for non-spouse beneficiaries haven't changed, Plechner says. The "stretch" IRA has become a haven for unmarried employees or those doing estate planning, Plechner says. Employer-sponsored retirement plans "almost always limit the options available to a beneficiary by forcing distributions to the beneficiary in a period of time shorter than is required under the regulations (i.e., the single life expectancy of the beneficiary)," he explains. A stretch IRA, on the other hand, "does not force this distribution and thus guarantees the beneficiary the ability to delay taxation as long as possible while providing full access to the balance as needed."
The "portability provisions" of JGTRRA created a number of ways for advisors to transfer their clients' retirement plan balances from one account to another, Plechner says. For instance, he points out that after-tax contributions and 457 plans can now be rolled over to an IRA. Pre-tax IRA contributions can now be consolidated with rollover IRAs. And "qualified plan balances can, with a few restrictions, be consolidated with much greater ease," he says.
Let's not forget the one-person 401(k), which Plechner says "has created the greatest rollover opportunities in the last 10 years." The one-person 401(k), he says, allows those who are self-employed to take loans from the plans; SEPs and Keoghs don't. "A client can roll the SEP, Profit Sharing, Keogh, or pre-tax IRA into a one-person 401(k) and immediately borrow [against] the plan balance, up to 50% of the account balance or $50,000, whichever is less," Plechner says. Unlike SEPs and Keoghs, one-person plans also allow catch-up contributions.
Bedda D'Angelo, a planner with Fiduciary Solutions in Andover, Massachusetts, who also responded to the IA poll, says many of her clients are retiring early and starting consulting businesses. She's been rolling their 401(k) assets from previous employers' plans into a one-person 401(k) so clients have the option of "taking a loan to fund their startup costs without dipping into capital." But she recommends that doctors and lawyers who may have to defend themselves against a malpractice suit keep their assets in a qualified plan. Why? "Qualified plan assets are protected from creditors, whereas IRA rollovers are not," she says.
About 90% of Steve Merkel's business at Investor Solutions in Coconut Grove, Florida, comes from IRA rollovers from brokerage firms. He's also seeing a lot of clients rolling their qualified plans into IRAs. Merkel warns that you have to spend time keeping up with new rules that affect qualified plans and IRAs. For instance, IRA contribution limits for those aged 50 and younger were increased to $3,000 this year from $2,000, and people aged 50 and older can now contribute up to $3,500 to an IRA annually. Next year, the limits jump to $4,000 and $4,500, respectively, and in 2008 will reach $5,000. Thereafter, according to the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, "the limit is indexed for inflation annually in $500 increments."
The bulk of Merkel's clients are retired wealthy individuals, and he's noticed many taking advantage of a new law that allows them to withdraw money from their IRA without paying the 10% penalty. "Congress realized that not everybody was waiting until age 591/2 to retire," he says, so lawmakers amended the law to allow someone retiring at age 50 to tap into their IRA, "but they have to take [out] the same amount every year until they reach age 591/2."
Lawmakers are also making it harder for taxpayers to deduct IRA contributions. When IRAs were first developed, Merkel says, anyone contributing the maximum $2,000 could deduct it from their taxes. Today, however, "if you're married and [you and your spouse] jointly make more than $60,000, and one of you has a retirement plan where you work, you won't get the deduction," Merkel says.
Jeffrey Smith, a planner with North Shore Investment Consulting in Grayslake, Illinois, predicts the rollover business for advisors will continue to spike, prompted by "corporate plan sponsors' increased emphasis on 401(k) plans, the commensurate reduction in defined benefit programs, and the tendency for young professionals to change employers much more frequently."
The rollover market is booming, and if you're an advisor who hasn't tapped this lucrative market, you have time. But be proactive. Start combing through your clients' data to see if they have qualified retirement accounts that can be rolled over to an IRA. Take the advice of Neil Brown, a planner with Advanced Financial Planning in Columbia, South Carolina. "Advisors are looking at the largest transfer of wealth from generation to generation that we have ever seen, and should be positioning themselves to take on clients." Brush up on the IRA distribution rules and stretch provisions, Brown counsels, and become an expert in beneficiary designations.
Washington Bureau Chief Melanie Waddell can be reached at [email protected].


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WASHINGTON – The Trump administration on Tuesday proposed relaxing pollution standards for power plants nationwide, a move that could slow the decline of U.S. carbon emissions and lead to hundreds more premature deaths, and thousands of asthma attacks and missed school days.
The Environmental Protection Agency's Affordable Clean Energy rule, which President Donald Trump planned to tout at a roundtable meeting in Charleston, W.Va., on Tuesday evening, represents the administration's most ambitious proposal to bolster the nation's coal industry. Although it probably would have a modest impact on curbing carbon dioxide emissions in the power sector, it could potentially increase human health risks from other pollutants.
The measure, which would replace an Obama-era rule that set strict carbon dioxide limits for each state and encouraged the shuttering of coal plants, is likely to widen the environmental policy divide between red and blue states.
In New Mexico, the clean power plan rollback is unlikely to alter Public Service Co. of New Mexico's plan to shut down the coal-fired San Juan Generating Station near Farmington in 2022, nor the utility's likely withdrawal from the nearby Four Corners Power Plant in 2032, if not sooner. That's because market economics, not government regulations, are dictating the utility's decision, which is based on declining costs for natural gas and renewable energy generation compared with coal, according to PNM executives.
Still, New Mexico's two democratic senators, Martin Heinrich and Tom Udall, both strongly criticized the EPA's announcement.
"President Trump is taking us in the completely wrong direction," Heinrich said in a prepared statement. "When we know exactly what we need to do to reduce our contributions to climate change – and when we have the capability to create thousands of new jobs and build a thriving clean energy economy – President Trump's decision to retreat from leadership is shortsighted, willfully ignorant, and immoral."
Udall called it a "big win for polluters."
"The EPA's new rule guts the clean power plan, the latest – and most damaging – chapter in this administration's campaign to surrender the fight against climate change," Udall said. "Today's announcement represents head-in-the-sand denial of climate science and a giveaway to corporate polluters on the backs of future generations, plain and simple."
"We're pleased that the proposed rule recognizes and respects the environmental and energy needs of each state," said John Mura, communications director for Kentucky's Energy and Environment Cabinet. His state has made progress in cutting emissions, but 79 percent of its electricity still comes from coal.
Several Democratic leaders said Trump's proposed rollback is irresponsible.
"This is a declaration of war against America and all of humanity – it will not stand," California Gov. Jerry Brown, D, said in a statement. "Truth and common sense will triumph over Trump's insanity."
Journal staff writer Kevin Robinson-Avila contributed to this report


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The 2018 Gunnedah Youth Expo will be held on Tuesday 10 April 2018.' More information will be made available in the New Year. This is an opportunity for young people in our community to connect with local and regional organisations that provide services for Youth (12-25 year olds). Some of the stall holders include;
Lots of fun activities, FREE giveaways and information for young people and their families. This is an opportunity not to be missed!
For more information, please contact Sewa Emojong, Youth Development Officer, Gunnedah Shire Council, on 6740 2100 or 0427 103 415.
Youth Week began as a NSW Government initiative in 1989, and has since grown to be a celebration of young people in every state and territory across the country.
It is organised by young people, for young people, in communities across NSW and Australia. Following the success of the NSW Youth Week program, Youth Week became a National event in 2000. National Youth Week is jointly supported by the Australian Government, State and Territory Governments and Local Governments.
National Youth Week is an opportunity for young people to:
View the Gunnedah Youth Week Program 2018 here.
For more information, please contact Sewa Emojong, Gunnedah Shire Council Youth Development Officer on 02 6740 2100.
Get Involved! - NAIDOC Week celebrations are held around Australia each July to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. NAIDOC Week is celebrated not only in Indigenous communities, but by Australians from all walks of life.
NAIDOC originally stood for 'National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee'. This committee was once responsible for organising national activities during NAIDOC Week and its acronym has since become the name of the week itself.
The Gunnedah NAIDOC Week Committee meets each year to develop a full program of activities and events throughout NAIDOC Week that showcase the rich indigenous history and culture of the region. The week is a great opportunity to participate in a range of activities and to support our local Indigenous community.
For more information about NAIDOC Week please see the NAIDOC Week website.


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Nature is full of some incredible things. The magnificent beauty of the galaxies. The colour and scent of flowers. The satisfaction of eating fresh vegetables that have grown in the garden. The majesty of the large beasts. The cuteness of the small beasts!
There's some amazing stuff out there. The more that humans explore nature, the more we find. The further we travel, the more stars we find. The smaller the objects we can see, the more layers of reality are discovered. The intricate workings of the human body still have their many mysteries. Even the simplest life form is incredibly complex.
God is amazingly creative. He's made a world of such awesome wonders. It's amazing how creation isn't just functional, it's beautiful. Think of the creatures that inhabit the dark depths of the ocean but are spectacularly colourful. Or the incredible designs on butterfly wings.
The interesting thing with following Jesus is that nature takes on a new significance: nature has been made by a loving creator for His purposes and enjoyment. He has made humanity, in His image and likeness, to dwell in this world of matter.
The spiritual life isn't about denying the material things, but putting them in their correct priority. We do not pretend that suffering doesn't exist; we use what we have to alleviate suffering.
Luke 12:33 (NIV)
Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.
Nature is not, then, a deity in itself. It has been made by The Deity, to serve His purposes. However, nowhere do I see in the Bible that this is permission to plunder the Earth's resources. Indeed, when we damage the environment, we destroy the world in which other people live. Caring for the environment is, I believe, a reasonable way of responding to God's creation. Think of how He made a beautiful Garden, Eden, and placed the man and woman there to tend it and care for it. He did not say, "go and destroy this Garden in your quest for material possessions."
Genesis 2:15
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.
I read a while back an interesting idea that Christian environmentalism incorporates the human element.* Rather than deifying nature, and downgrading humans, it seeks to take into account how the human treatment of the planet affects not only nature but all humanity, too. It included an awareness of such things as the manufacturing conditions of the products we buy. I personally believe there are many good environmentalist arguments for vegetarianism, for example, as well as acknowledging that many foods suitable for human consumption are instead fed to farm animals, which are then consumed by the small proportion of rich Westerners who can afford fast food. I digress. What was the point I was trying to make? Ah, yes – that being a follower of Jesus necessarily impacts on the way I perceive nature.
All too often we followers of Jesus have been linked to a philosophy of guns, hunting, destruction of the planet, and cruelty to animals and even to our fellow humans. But surely there is a distinction between religious 'Christianity,' in which man-made rules become the highest law; and a life genuinely lived following the Lord Jesus Christ and living as those called to tend His Garden? While such things – environmentalism, issues of diet, and our treatment of nature – may well be secondary to the primary issue of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, one of our greatest apologetics is found in the way we live our life.
Peter 3:15-16 (NCV)
But respect Christ as the holy Lord in your hearts. Always be ready to answer everyone who asks you to explain about the hope you have, but answer in a gentle way and with respect. Keep a clear conscience so that those who speak evil of your good life in Christ will be made ashamed.
Finally, acknowledging God as Creator has significant effects on my life: I have Someone to thank for the glorious wonders of nature. I can enjoy and appreciate animals, plants, the changing seasons, the stars, the weather, the land formations… I can also be creative – as I am made in the likeness of Creator God, so He has bestowed at least a little of His creativity on all His people. I have a reason to care what happens to the planet, and to do what I can to look after the environment. And I can enjoy the spectacular discoveries of the natural sciences, as human exploration reveals more and more of God's spectacular works.
*David Tyler, Creation – Chance or Design?


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By reversing a district court's grant of summary judgment that originally favored the taxpayer (see "Tax Matters," JofA, March 05, page 88), the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals opened the door for further interpretation of the "sham transaction" rule as it relates to contingent liability transactions. The case, involving Black & Decker (B&D), was remanded last year to the district court for further analysis to determine if the transaction in question served a legitimate business purpose or was a sham. Should the court rule that this was a sham transaction, it would give the IRS firmer footing in aggressively litigating transactions it considers tax shelters. The case is one of several appellate rulings during 2006 that breathed new life into IRS positions on contested transactions, including Coltec ("Tax Matters," JofA, Jan. 07, page 67), which, like B&D, concerned the economic substance doctrine as applied to contingent liabilities.
Black & Decker created a separate corporation, Black & Decker Healthcare Management Inc. (BDHMI), to manage its health care claims. In doing so, B&D transferred $561 million, along with $560 million in contingent health care claims, to BDHMI in exchange for its stock. B&D then sold this stock to an independent third party for $1 million. B&D claimed a $560 million capital loss, the amount of the assets originally transferred to BDHMI less the $1 million proceeds from the stock sale. The IRS disallowed the loss under the sham transaction rule.
As discussed in the district court ruling, to be considered a sham, a transaction must meet two criteria: First, it serves no business purpose other than to provide tax benefits to the taxpayer (the subjective test), and second, it offers no reasonable possibility of a profit and thus lacks economic substance (the objective test). In granting summary judgment, the district court found that while the transaction was indeed tax-motivated—a point conceded by B&D—it nonetheless had economic substance because BDHMI provided a legitimate economic service to every participant in the B&D benefit program. The IRS appealed.
In remanding, the Fourth Circuit ruled that the district court had applied the objective test at the wrong level. The district court had evaluated whether BDHMI itself engaged in legitimate, economically based business activities. Instead, it should have applied the objective test to the transaction that carried the tax implications—the transfer of assets to BDHMI in exchange for its stock and then the sale of that stock at a loss, the Fourth Circuit said.
Black & Decker Corp. v. U.S. (CA 4 2/2/2006), 97 AFTR 2d 2006-841.
Prepared by Karen M. Cooley, CPA, instructor of accounting, and Darlene Pulliam, CPA, Ph.D., professor of accounting, both of the College of Business, West Texas A&M University, Canyon, Texas.


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Category Archives: Editing
Momentum Might Be Returning…
Sometime in June (I can't find the card atm), I set a goal for myself of 1,000 words a day, no excuses. When I first sit down to begin writing each day, I write the date on an index card, and the number of words currently in my manuscript. Once I reach 1,000 words more, I get to put a little star next to the number. On the rare occasion I write 2,000, I get to put a second star. If I go over, that's awesome, but it doesn't count toward the next day. Later, if my word count reaches what it should have reached by a certain time, I can put a checkmark on the day I missed, but the opportunity for a star is lost.
Happy Saturday
Saturdays are almost always happy, aren't they? Even in the winter, I like Saturdays. A summer Saturday is just icing on the cake. And there was cake today, and much rejoicing. Today we celebrated the 18th birthday and the high school graduation of a dear family friend, Casey. Such an exciting time to see him happy and launching into the "adult world" (if you ever figure out what that means, Case, let me know!).
My Original Second Post – from the other blog!
Yes, yes, I know. I'm going to have to get more creative with my blog titles. There is just no room in my head for that yet between all of the reading about book marketing, and finishing editing, and beginning the second book, and KIDS. Oh yes, my house is overflowing with children. My own Little Goose has been quite socialized this week with her cousin visiting from Nebraska (and MAN, does that girl have a social life for a nine-year-old who spends all of one week a year in the state! She has more friends here than I do.)


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Canadians might have to get used to high-profile recruits having splashy media conferences to announce which NCAA school they will attend.
R.J. Barrett's decision to commit to Duke was carried live on TSN on Friday evening, following a similar production in June 2015, which saw Kitchener's Jamal Murray select Kentucky as his American institution of choice.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
Big Barrett Duke announcement part of new trend for Canadian ballers Back to video
After setting a freshman scoring record while at Kentucky, Murray was picked seventh overall by the Denver Nuggets and is now a starter there.
It wasn't always like this.
Andrew Wiggins, the No. 1 recruit and high school player of the year, made his own announcement in his low-key style back in 2013 at a small ceremony at his high school in Huntington, West Virginia. Wiggins, of course, would go on to be the first selection of the 2014 NBA draft and the rookie of the year.
Tristan Thompson, who became the fourth pick of the 2011 draft and at one point was ranked by some outlets as No. 1 in his high school class like Barrett currently is, committed to Texas 1.5 years before he even made an official visit in September 2009, alongside Cory Joseph. About seven months later, Joseph quietly announced he'd be rejoining Thompson at Texas.
In 2012, Anthony Bennett, who would go on to make history as the first Canadian-born No. 1 overall NBA pick, merely tweeted that he would be staying in the Las Vegas area and going to UNLV and other future first-round picks quietly announced their commitments.
With Canada now churning out elite prospects on a near-annual basis, expect more recruit reveal moments, which will capture the attention of the entire basketball world.
Barrett's friend Simi Shittu, of Burlington, is ranked No. 6 in the current class by ESPN and has yet to make a decision.


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One of my dear friends, Kate, posted this recently on Facebook in response to my question on how she liked the draft pieces I had sent her, as I work away on my NaNoWriMo novel (Book Two of the Talbot Trilogy: Blood and Fire)… I so depend on her to keep me going!
Here's what Kate said, about my writing:
I crave more dammit.
Also, I know you sent me just bits and pieces but the way it's set up, jumping from group to group, would be kinda a neat thing to do in terms of style and structure, but only for getting them all to talbot. It adds …umm …what's the word I'm searching for… Intensity ? I found myself wanting to read faster and wanting more .. Sucked in… I'm struggling to find the words at 1am but you know what I mean? I think you should switch to that structure but just to get all the groups to Talbot and even as the hunters meet up with Charlotte and then there is two groups together forming one group. Then you get pike finding ray. There is another group formed. Then the good vamps(Matt and Andrea) and then the bad vamps ( Susie and Jason and their plans). Then you get De Sade and then the werewolves. So it'll tricky to get it all working and flowing right but if anyone can do it properly, it's you. Just my opinion though. I feel like It adds the "edge of your seat" effect. When I was reading it, I was getting pumped the wolves were heading out, pumped pike is searching for rayvin, pumped the hunters are on their way. So much toget pumped for the way the today bits are set up haha. Ok. Done ranting haha. I'm starting to ramble.
Love you, Katey-bear!


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You are here
Africans in British North America
Among the first documented Africans in British North America were approximately 20 men and women who arrived at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619. They were captives, likely from the kingdom of Ndongo in present-day Angola. Privateers had seized them from a slave ship bound for Mexico and traded them in Virginia. The Africans worked the tobacco fields in Jamestown alongside white indentured servants, but it is not clear if they were considered slaves.
By 1700 there were 27,817 enslaved Africans in British North America. In 1740, there were 150,024. By 1770, the number of slaves had grown to 462,000, about one-fifth of the total colonial population.
Volume and Direction of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade from all African to all American Regions, from Atlas of the Transatlantic Slave Trade by David Eltis and David Richardson.
Plan and Sections of a Slave Ship.
Library of Congress


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2 Years!
Hi Everyone!
Just stopping by with a quick word of thanks. Today celebrates 2 years that this blog has been operating. I am excited to meet this milestone and I couldn't have done it without each of you. Thanks for stopping by to read my updates!
Here's to MANY more!
Happy Reading!


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Supreme Court Halts Bucklew Execution
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Supreme Court has put off the execution of a Missouri inmate with a rare medical condition who challenged the state's refusal to disclose the source of its lethal injection drug.
The justices on Wednesday said a lower federal court needs to take another look at the case of convicted killer Russell Bucklew.
Bucklew's attorneys said the combination of the secrecy surrounding the execution drug and Bucklew's medical condition affecting his blood vessels makes for an unacceptably high risk that he would experience extreme pain if injected with a lethal dose of pentobarbital
Bucklew would have been the first inmate put to death since last month's botched execution in Oklahoma. Bucklew is on death row for killing a man during a 1996 crime spree.


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Monday, July 18, 2011
My Secret Life
I have never once mentioned to this neighbor that I am an opera singer, so her surprise was understandable. Because, mostly, I don't think of myself that way. I am a mom who happens to sing, not a singer who happens to have children.
I am an incredibly normal mom who deals with all the same things every other mom deals with: Temper tantrums (my own as well as the children's), messy rooms, dirty dishes, piles and piles (and piles) of laundry, stacks of bills (but not stacks of money), grocery shopping with all three children in tow, to-do lists that are a mile long, and more. While you might find me singing as I do the dishes or vacuum, I'm usually not thinking about whatever aria is sitting on my piano waiting to be learned. In fact, I'm highly embarrassed about all of the time I didn't put in to practicing for this latest opera, which included some of the most difficult ensemble music I've ever sung.
The other day, while I was running errands with Sophia I wasn't wearing any make-up (sorry, Mom), had barely combed my hair, and had on old jeans and a faded t-shirt. The clerk punched in my phone number for the rewards card, verified my name and then looked at me and said, "Oh! I saw you sing opera in a concert last year! It was amazing. You have a really amazing talent." And just like at the funeral, I had to recover a little bit from my embarrassment--not because I was wearing my pj's, but because I forgot. I was just your average, run-of-the-mill mom, out buying favors and decorations for her soon-to-be-five-year-old's birthday party. I certainly didn't feel like someone with a "really amazing talent" and I most definitely didn't look it.
It feels kind of like a secret life, even to myself. Of course my closest friends know. But it just doesn't come up in regular conversation with most of the people I interact with. Because children are the thing I have in common with most people, and it's what we talk about. It's what all moms want to talk about. And while it's really fabulous to be up on the stage in front of an audience, it's much more satisfying to make sure my home is a haven for my three children, who are my greatest gift in life. As exciting as applause is, it's so much better to see my girls be excited about their personal triumphs. And, thrilling as it is that my picture was in yesterday's paper, I'm so much more thrilled when one of the girls draws a picture of me. My children bring me a lasting joy that you can't quite put a price on.
And so I go about my life as a mother, and occasionally I am reminded that, oh yeah, I sing pretty well, too.
I'm sure I'm not the only one with a secret life. In fact, I'm pretty sure we all have one. What's yours?
Lara Neves
Lara is mom to three daughters—two teens and a tween. She loves to share her parenting and homemaking triumphs and failures here at Overstuffed! She was diagnosed with Lyme disease in 2015 and has been fighting it ever since. When she isn't working on her mother of the year award, you can find her reading, singing, or taking photos.
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26 comments:
Love it Lara!! thanks for sharing. i wonder what my secret life is? i will have to think about that one...ReplyDelete
I feel like that.ReplyDelete
I have cards where women have said so many nice things about me, I even have one from a grandma who said that I had saved her daugther and her grandaughters life and that when she saw them she would always remember me (I was moderately heroic that day). I sometimes have women come up and hug me at the grocery store.
But it's SO removed from what I do here. It's not like they cross at all.
It is weird.
Wish you were online right now....
Better get some baby in bed.
Your secret life is secretly what I WISH I could do so bad. I've always wanted to be able to sing but just wasn't given the gift. In the next life for sure!ReplyDelete
I had someone ask me the other day what I did. Did I just stay at home? Did I have a job? Of course, my first answer was that I most happily stayed at home with my children. But then, nervously so, I said, "And I write books."ReplyDelete
It's a little thrilling to be able to say that, but I don't very often. My close friends and my blog friends know my book is getting published, but it's not like I wear a sign or anything... most people don't know. It doesn't really come up in casual "grocery store line" conversation, know what I mean?
I hope that one day, someday, I get to hear you sing in person.:)
I don't have a secret life...unless it's my blog. Most people who know me in person don't know I have one:)ReplyDelete
In a previous life I was a social worker. In my "secret life" I play the piano, but I think in Utah culture that kind of stuff is less secret because well, if you sing or play the piano you get to display your talents OFTEN and many people you interact with are also your church associates....interesting cultural difference I wouldn't have thought of before this post....ReplyDelete
Most people know me as a mom and a violin teacher. With four littles and being in a small town, I don't do a lot of performing. What's funny is the shock when people find out that I've been a doula- it's a bit of an unusual "side job."ReplyDelete
I had to laugh when I got married I did the hula. Some of My family member did even know that I could.ReplyDelete
Last week someone saw a vidio of me doing hulu and asked " hey are you the girl that does hulu?" It was nice to say yes and to be called a girl. (hehe)
What a sweet post, Lara! I have heard you sing (on your blog of course) and am blown away by it. It is interesting all the little pieces that make up the whole of us, don't you think. Some are so surprising to others, but to you, they are just regular.ReplyDelete
I honestly don't think I have a secret life. I am as you see me. I often wish I did. :) But my life is pretty great as it is.
Doesn't your neighbor know that those pajamas are supposed to be invisible?!?!?!ReplyDelete
Thanks for posting. I love many of the things I do in my life, but none nearly as much as being "Papa" (my 3 yr old thinks that's my real name) to four amazing kids, so this post really strikes a chord with me.
Thanks for posting :)
What I like most about you is your amazing ability to balance your core values, like being a wife and mother, with your own pursuits, like using your incredible talents. ANd you humbly admit to your talents. That is the coolest.ReplyDelete
I have 2 secret lives. 1. Is teaching water aerobics and swimming lessons. 2. Is working for the school district with at risk teens. What makes it secret is that the people from the 1. don't know about 2. So when they see me in other situations they are totally confused. Makes me laugh! But really I am a mom first and foremost!!ReplyDelete
I really enjoyed reading this post! I have a couple things: Not many real-life people know I have a blog(s). Second, lots of people know I play the piano but several are surprised when I tell them I get the wonderful opportunity to play once a month in the lobby of the Joseph Smith Memorial Bldg. Or occasionally, there are people that I know who are visiting the JSMB and they run into me while I'm playing the piano. It throws them off, it is fun :)ReplyDelete
That is great humility. Wouldn't it be an interesting experience if we recognized each other's talents? So, the clerk at the store would say, "Oh Audrey, you are a super great listener! I remember that." I wonder if it would change our behavior if we felt more accountability for these talents that we are given? It is truly a great thing to be a mom too and a great opportunity for growth as well.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousTue Jul 19, 04:55:00 PM
Unfortunately, the musical side of me has gone to waste as the "mommy" thing has taken over. I've been miserable without my music. That is about to change, as when school starts in a month, regardless of "whether or not we will be here still", I am going to bring back that talent. I'm either going to volunteer to teach choir at my girls' school, or voluntter to accompany my son's school's choir, or take voice lessons or teach piano lessons. Something--I spent my whole life building a talent that I never use right now, how depressing is that? So, I'm looking forward to building it once more. It's nice that you never left your talent, I regret not having used you as a voice teacher more when I had the chance! --Amanda B.ReplyDelete
I loved this post Lara! And yes, you are a Mom and yes, you are an amazing Opera singer! The red pajamas I cannot verify. My secret life is slightly similar. Singing talent. I can act too. But, I am busy Mommying. I think it's great that you stay connected to your talents. I need to be too, but it's not realistic just yet.ReplyDelete
Undercover opera singer, I like the sound of that (just wish I had a voice to match yours!!).ReplyDelete
Hope you're having a lovely summer, Lara!
My secret life? I am an artist both on canvas and stage, though I havent's practiced on canvas in years. I sing in an accapella women's four part harmony choir where with the exception of my daughter, I am the youngest person there by at least 25 years. I also act with our community theatre and once had the opportunity to go with my college instructor to New York because she thought I had a great talent. However, I was pregnant with my first daughter and began the greatest and most demanding role of my life. Mostly now I perform as "Mom" in the production at our house titled "Parenthood or The Ever After That Happens After You Harbor A Parasitic Organism For Nine Months." I'm also a caseworker, which is normally where people know me from. Well, that and that I have five kids.ReplyDelete
How fun to have a secret life you can enjoy and look upon fondly. I'm thinking about what my secret life might be...ReplyDelete
I hope the performance went well on Sunday. I was bummed I couldn't listen since I was at church.
Secret or not, you are lucky that you are so amazing at both singing and motherhood!ReplyDelete
Um ... I blog.ReplyDelete
My secret life is pretty boring
I love this part: "I am a mom who happens to sing, not a singer who happens to have children."ReplyDelete
This is such a great post! I love that people see you being busy and working hard and being a great mother... and oh yeah, you have serious amazing singing talent!!
I have known other people who fit the category "a singer who happens to have children" and while everyone can make their own choices, I think their children might miss out and down the road they will regret it.
But you will be the one to set a good example in your home. This is something you do, but it's not your whole life. I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to be able to see and hear you sing sometime! :)
What strikes me most is you GOT IT! You know exactly what your priorities are and you live them.ReplyDelete
I admire that in you greatly! Not all women discover their worth as a mother and seek it from their outside secret lives.
Well done
A big "BRAVO!" for both identities. :)ReplyDelete
That's very cool. You are very talented in many areas. :)ReplyDelete
This was SO interesting to read. I'm always wondering how I will end up negotiating that line. It was refreshing to read how you have and how happy you are as a result. :)ReplyDelete


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Tomorrow marks the first night of the BFI London Film Festival 2018!
Stan & Ollie, A Private War, Sometimes Always Never and Ray & Liz will be making their big screen London debuts. Congratulations to all of our talents for helping these films come to life.
Stan & Ollie: JP Kelly (Production Designer)
A Private War: Michael O'Connor (Costume Designer)
Sometimes Always Never: Stephen Haren (Editor)
Ray & Liz: Emma Rees (Costumer Designer)


text: A 'strong-man' from the age of 18 he became a champion wrestler by 1900. He then continued an unrivalled career as a word-class wrestler, winning many prestigious awards. His career culminated in a match with the renowned Frank Gotch which he lost. He retired in 1911 and went on to write several books on both philosophy and physical culture. He remained in contact with the fight and strength fraternity. Hackenschmidt died at the age of 90, in London, in 1968.


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New York City – With the restyling of Versace's 5th Avenue store, the Italian fashion house looks to its compatriots at EC Studio to display the luxury accessories in the best …
COPENHAGEN – What does Muuto's purchase by US-based Knoll mean for a company that adheres strictly to its Scandinavian roots?
SAN FRANCISCO – Frame speaks to Primo Orpilla, co-founder of Studio O+A, about the challenges and drivers of contemporary workplace design.
Yokohama, Japan – Hibinosekkei + Youji no Shiro, the studio behind some beautiful kindergartens in Japan, has a surprising philosophy on learning spaces for young children.
EINDHOVEN, Netherlands – The Digital Realists exhibition design by Modebelofte presents the augmented, multilayered world experienced by digital natives.
Frame 116 – 'The retail sector is like a miniature version of society', say Judy Cheung and Christoph Vogl, the duo behind Cheungvogl Architects.
As Frame launches Grand Stand 6, dive into what some of the featured designers have to say about the ever-expanding field of stand design.
Intrigued by the innovative Woods collection developed in partnership with Fantoni, Frame reaches out to Metrica's chief designer and partner Robin Rizzini.
AMSTERDAM – Looking backwards to move forwards, the extension of Hotel Arena makes history and locality its guiding forces.
Frankfurt – On 13 October, The Arts+ visitors can participate in an interactive photography session with Frame x Thomas Brown.
AMSTERDAM – 'Form and function go hand in hand,' says Christiane Müller, as she explains the creative process which begins long before the embossing rollers roll.
MACAU – In the Galaxy Macau resort, Cha Bei (Standard Chinese for teacup) is a unique space for dining, shopping, and lessons in baking and cake-decorating.


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*I used this recipe for "rice crispy treats" from the Gluten
Free Goddess for the inside of the bars
*One bar of this chocolate for the coating
*Shredded coconut, if desired
How To
These are so decadent. But I love that the
chocolate bar is only sweetened with
filtered beet sugar.
my own using a small 8″ non-stick saute pan on top of a small
sauce pan filled with some water).
*Transfer to fridge until cooled
*These do very well sitting out at room temperature,
the chocolate does not melt. Perfect to eat like a "Tootsie Roll Pop"


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Tube Talk will celebrate its 15th anniversary on Wednesday the 27th of June 2018 at 6pm for 6.15pm start in Templar House,
81-87 High Holborn, WC1V 6NU, 7th floor Holborn side of the building.
We'll have cakes and soft drinks (alcohol is prohibited in the building) and then as usual we'll head to the pub around 8pm.
You are of course invited to join us and celebrate 15 years of continuous support to our members.
Former members and friends past and current of Tube Talk are invited to come along to our special evening. Please register with firstname.lastname@example.com so we can add your name to our guest list for the security team. Tube Talk Charter Certificate


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This is 500 words about a Batman episode. This is the BATMAN 500.
"See No Evil" feels like the introductory episode for a major character. It's about a guy that can turn invisible. How is every other episode not about this guy? And the guy, Lloyd Ventrix, is voiced by Michael Gross, AKA Burt Gummer, the charismatic gun nut from the Tremors series. He does one of the most underrated voice acting jobs in the series in "See No Evil," broadly going from GRAND VILLAINOUS PROCLAMATIONS to bitter, hateful whispers on a scene-by-scene basis in a way that Batman: The Animated Series almost necessitates at this point. And Lloyd's backstory isn't sad so much as it's a wasted opportunity. Like a lot of the not-quite-tragic members of Batman's rogues gallery, he was a guy that wanted to do right, but was sabotaged by his own need to do wrong. And when he couldn't do right, he just did more wrong. Despite all this, Lloyd never comes back. Oh well. I love "See No Evil."
Kimberly, a young girl, is visited by an invisible, gift-bearing friend that she calls "Mojo." Anyone who isn't Kimberly knows that this is probably not an imaginary friend, and it turns out to be Lloyd, Kimberly's father who is an ex-con that Kimberly's mother wants nothing to do with. But this isn't a case of "Awww, the kid's gonna be torn between the two." When Kimberly finds out that Mojo is Lloyd, she doesn't recognize him at first, and then, when she does recognize him, immediately wants to go back home to her mom. Not that it's a problem for Lloyd. When Lloyd approaches his ex-wife in a diner, he tries to buy her lunch and flashes a big wad of money around instead of talking to her or trying to connect with her in any way. These slight details show that Lloyd isn't a man who is interested in having any kind of meaningful relationships with these people. He just wants to have them. Wife, kid, money. It doesn't matter whether they actually like him or think that he's a good person. Just having them around means that he's a success.
This episode wouldn't work if the animation was lackluster, and the way the characters move in "See No Evil" may be the smoothest that this show has seen since "On Leather Wings." Every punch feels like a punch. No one acts like they're a robot suit being controlled by tiny, blind aliens. You never lose faith in Batman because someone drew him to look like he's slowly forgetting that most of his joints don't work.
"See No Evil" also features my favorite side character in the show: Cop who really has to poop. During Lloyd's mass theft of a jewelry auction, we see a cop get locked out of a bathroom that Lloyd is changing in, and then one that Batman is changing in. He then gets knocked out by Batman exploding from out of the bathroom in costume. Poor PoopCop. Part Man, Part Poop, All Cop.
For the next episode, click here!


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You are here
SBA Names Minnesota Encore Entrepreneurs of the Year
Spicer, Minn. – Ron Wothe (Owner, General Manager, and Winemaker) and Kim Wothe (Owner, Bookkeeper, and Records Management) of Glacial Ridge Winery, Inc., based in Spicer, have been named the Minnesota Encore Entrepreneurs of the Year by the U.S. Small Business Administration.
The Encore Entrepreneur of the Year award is based on success as measured by sales and profits, increased employment opportunities created by the business, development and/or utilization of innovative or creative business methods, and demonstrated entrepreneurial potential necessary for long-term business success and economic growth. The business owner must have a three-year track record and must have started the business after the age of fifty (50). Bernadette Berger, Southwest Initiative Foundation, nominated Ron and Kim for this award.
Ron was 58 when he first went to the Southwest Initiative Foundation (an SBA microlender) with the idea of establishing the first winery in the Glacial Lakes area. In August of 2007, Ron and Kim officially opened Glacial Ridge Winery with just two wines in their reserve. The business has grown steadily since then and they currently offer over 20 different varieties of wines.
Glacial Ridge Winery is located in the heart of West Central Minnesota. Surrounded by the natural beauty of the Glacial Lakes area, the winery is situated on 17.5 acres of land with a farmhouse, a large production building, a sales building, with an 800 tree apple orchard.
Wineries are a relatively new concept in Minnesota, which is growing as more and more Minnesota farmers are planting grapes. Glacial Ridge Winery products are award winning hand-crafted wines all made at their boutique winery using mainly Minnesota Grown grapes and some with their own apples. The varieties that are on the shelf depend on the grape available for the season. They've had fun doing different wine blends, such as "Wicked" which is a port style Frontenac and a Cabernet Sauvignon blend.
In 2013 they produced 4,000 gallons of wine, purchasing grapes from 12 local growers, providing additional income to local farmers.
The winery is a popular destination for small groups and day trippers. The winery hosts a wide variety of special events throughout the year including holiday events, ticketed dinner parties, and fundraising events. The winery's most popular summer events include the Free Outdoor Summer Concert Series and an annual Grape Stomp. Glacial Ridge Winery offers park-like grounds which have been used for weddings, receptions, graduations, and other special events.
One full-time, seven part-time and two seasonal jobs have been created in rural Kandiyohi County, as a result of Glacial Ridge Winery. In addition, they have a dedicated volunteer network that contributes voluntary labor to a number of winery events, especially the Grape Stomp, which utilizes 30 volunteers contributing 240 labor hours in one day.
Ron and Kim were instrumental in creating the Heartland Wine Trail which encompasses 6 wineries, including Buffalo, Clara City, Waconia, Delano, Kimball, and Spicer. Also, Minnesota wineries banded together to create the Savor Minnesota tasting event each year in April at a location in the Twin Cities area.
Ron and Kim have done an excellent job working with local businesses and community organizations, for cross promotions to expand both marketing dollars and customer reach. They work locally with the Spicer Commercial Club, Spicer WinterFest, New London Retail Association, and the Willmar Lakes Area Convention & Visitors Bureau on a variety of co-marketing and events throughout the year.
Ron and Kim will be honored at the Minnesota Small Business Week Awards program on May 6, 2014, at the Minneapolis Marriott Northwest.
For more information:
Ron Wothe (Owner, General Manager, and Winemaker)
Kim Wothe (Owner, Bookkeeper, and Records Management)
Glacial Ridge Winery, Inc.
15455 Old Mill Road
Spicer, MN 56288


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The Best Fantasy Book Series
List Rules List is ranked according to how good the series is as a whole. No science fiction!
A votable list of the all-time best fantasy book series, ranked by readers of fantasy fiction. Of fantasy books, readers can expect an intricately-created imaginary world with its own culture, history and rules of engagement. The setting of most popular fantasy book series is internally consistent or self-coherent, where inspiration from mythology or folklore remains a consistent theme.
Most authors of the top fantasy books use magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary plot element, theme, or setting. In the structure of a good fantasy book, the fantastical element of the story can be anywhere: the story may occur entirely in a fantasy world (like J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series) or fantastic elements like magic can exist alongside an apparently real world setting (as in the seven Harry Potter novels by J.K. Rowling). Fantasy follows rules of its own making, but the great fantasy books are consistent with the rules that they lay out for themselves. In the best fantasy books, the reader suspends disbelief and loses himself in the imaginary world of the book.
Some of the fantasy book series included in this list are of the grand epic fantasy genre, some are more character-driven fantasy or coming of age tales, some may be simply fantasy that's part of a series. Vote up your favorites to determine the best fantasy series of all time. And if we missed any epic tales you love, be sure to add them to this list of the best fantasy book series. Then, check out the best new fantasy books - many the start of series that may soon be new favorites.


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Alexandria Heart & Vascular Center offers a number of online services for the convenience of our patients. Please select the appropriate link below to learn more.
Pay Your Bill On-line
Pre-Procedure Instructions (Below)
Section 1557 Nondiscrimination Statement
Peripheral Artery Disease
Please read the following instructions carefully to ensure your procedure goes as planned. Failure to follow these steps could lead to cancellation of your procedure.
PLEASE: No food, drink or water after midnight.


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HERDEM's typical transactions include credit facilities, banking service agreements, structured finance and derivatives, capital markets, venture funds and the private equity transactions.
HERDEM's commercial and corporate team work together to combine negotiation and lawyering skills with sector knowledge aiming to respond together.
HERDEM's government contracts practice focuses on broad multidisciplinary government contracts comprised of compliance requirements.
Global business faces new and increasing regulatory challenges in many parts of the world and with all aspects of intellectual property.


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Review by Anna Dean
Dreamers Awake, curated by Susanna Greeves explores the enduring influence of Surrealism through the work of more than 50 women artists. A revisionist show, works range from the collaborative printmaking of Tracy Emin and Louise Bourgeois, to photography by Lee Miller, Francesca Woodman, Claude Cahun, to the sculptural works of Sarah Lucas and Kiki Smith. Dreamers Awake presents an explicitly feminist influence and contribution to the Surrealist movement that reaches across time, medium, and modes of gender expression in the past 100 years.
Floating above the works in the high ceilings of the gallery are the words of art historian Mary Ann Caws:
'Headless. And also footless. Often armless too: and always unarmed, except with poetry and passion. There they are, the surrealist women so shot and painted, so stressed and dismembered, punctured and severed: is it any wonder she has (we have) gone to pieces?'
Caws' 1991 condemnation of misogynistic, violent depictions of women in surrealism is vital to hold on to. Salvador Dali compartmentalised the female form – literally – to a set of drawers in his drawings and sculptures, whilst the context and content of Hans Bellmer's work raises concerning questions of consent and autonomy of young women. However, in the case of many women artists in the show, 'dismembered' tropes of objectification are instrumental to the feminist politics of the work.
Beneath Caw's statement is Kiki Smith's Siren. A mannequin figure, almost decorative in its' beaded glory, is stitched with linear indications of flesh. Despite it's disjointed composition, Smith's Siren communicates female energy, presence and agency. Where her head and her vulva 'should' be depicted, Smith places two kingfisher-green bird heads. Glisteningly alert, heads tilted, the birds engage with each other from the site of the mind and the site of the body. Perhaps the issue here, Siren suggests, is that we regard such symbolist ventures as works of 'headless' women. That women's work must be representational (for such surreal ventures stress and dismember representational progress) is a paradoxical pressure that risks re-confining the female artist's task to controlling their object status.
Moving through the show, we suspect perhaps female 'pieces' aren't as passive as Caw's claims they are.
Leonora Carrington was at the heart of the surrealist movement. Her work explores internal, psychological, deeply personal life through complex surreal, symbolist compositions. The visual language of Carrington's narrative paintings employ anthropomorphism, exploring and articulating her internal landscape through ambiguous hybrid creatures; human and animal, mythic and modern, who come to represent elements of her growing, emergent identity— with infinite possibility.
In a movement of sexualised, objectified female representation, Carrington does not reject female symbolism, she crafts a new language in her feminist negotiation. Carrington forges a language of expression which explores the symbolic, representative potential of objects, over which she has complete autonomy.
Greeves explains: 'Objectification is the charge against misogynists: in the feminist lexicon the fetish denotes the exploitative, fragmenting male gaze of advertising, pornography and art. Making parts of the female body into literal objects is a way to own and ironise this gaze. The body as still life operates in the sphere of the domestic and in a genre traditionally assigned to women, meanwhile infusing it with a challenge.'
(The Form of the Flower is Unknown to the Seed, Susanna Greeves, exhibition catalogue essay. p.21)
This language is not directly intelligible, Carrington's dream-scape-esque work presents a heteroglossia of internal references; figures and objects reoccur and move across her body of work which exists from and for her self expression.
Berlinde de Bruyckere's Animal raises such questions from an explicit distance. We approach her sculptures, domestic patchwork, sack-like figure's, to read their form. Do we read a body? What does it mean to read bodies? Do these bodies consent to our gaze? What are the ethics of this object — where do we start, and where does 'it' end?
In Shana Moulton's video My life as an INFJ, the artist is projected stepping in and out of the video frame — perhaps a door we see through. Projected body parts projected fall into the shadows cast by counter-part objects installed in the gallery space. Sitting with the work, we begin to question the artist's presence. Are we voyeurs of her private world, or might we be looking at something unintelligible to us, watching us on terms we are unaware of? Are the hand, lungs, eye, and heart floating behind their ceramic counterparts belonging to, or representative of, the artist? Moulton (projected) dances in the cupboard, a shelf unit holding the objects of the space — the sum of her parts. Yet Moulton performs intangibility, she can pass through these objects. The hand smiles at us, it has a face.
The longer one stay's with the work, the more a critical narrative of bodily autonomy and spatial ownership emerges. This space is explored on the artist's own terms, an intention that fosters a productive, and at times comical, ambiguity. The lamp glows red; warm, inviting — a warning. The hand with the face speaks but we cannot hear. We suspect the artist can.
Pioneering a revolutionary 'female' mode of representation is inseparable from questions of existing objectification. In approaching these questions, artists in Dreamers Awake work to unsettle a patriarchal logic of thing functioning as they seem/should be. As artists explore the tension between material expression and objectification, they investigate the materiality of female experience through objects, reclaiming the creative value of such aesthetics. It is this tension between female/object relations, between object-maker and objectification, that is Dreamers Awake's most relevant offer to a contemporary feminist viewer.
Dreamers Awake is at White Cube Bermondsey, 144-152 Bermondsey St, London SE1 3TQ to 17 September 2017.
For more information about our reviewer, Anna Dean, follow on Instagram and WordPress.


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Well before Al Gore shamed Americans into considering the environment, hotels were encouraging guests to reuse sheets and towels. Nevermind that there was a fiscal advantage for them not to launder these items on a daily basis...it still created awareness of the problem and made some guests think twice.
But, all those little soaps and plastic mini-bottles of shampoo and lotion continue to make me shake my head in wonder at just how many landfills we're packing with these absolutely nonessential throw-away items. On a recent trip to Dickinson ND and the Strom Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, a group of us were discussing the opportunity to save money on these throw-aways while reducing the environmental footprint we leave with these unnecessary necessities.
Had the opportunity to stay at the way-cool hotelVetro in Iowa City last week...and they are several steps ahead. The industrial-looking locker room-style soap/shampoo dispensers would never work for an upscale hotel...so Vetro has partnered with the guys at The Soap Opera to develop customized bathing gels, conditioners and shampoos with evocative scents like Blackberry & Sage and Fig.
Good for the environment. Good for the bottom line. And, good for the Soap Opera as, if guests like what they just smeared over their body parts, they can buy it and take it home. Very cool.


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Welcome from the Undergraduate Dean
Dear Student,
We are delighted that you aspire to "Be the Solution" to the world's greatest challenges! Joining one of the majors or programs in the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences (BSOS) at University of Maryland is the perfect place to learn the knowledge and skills to really have an impact.
The College draws on its proximity to Washington DC and worldwide connections to enrich its teaching, research, and service. As the home of some of the most popular majors on campus such as Government and Politics, Psychology, Geographical Information Systems, and Economics, to name but a few, the BSOS community works to enhance international relations, advance global sustainability, understand societies and cultures, and improve the human condition. In all that we do, BSOS aims to BE THE SOLUTION to the worlds' greatest challenges. Diversity of every kind permeates everything we do. The quality of your education is enhanced by your interactions with fellow students and faculty who bring a richness of diversity to the University.
University of Maryland is the ideal choice for academically talented students who wish to fully engage in a challenging and immersive intellectual environment. Please check out our academic majors, minors, and living-learning programs using the menu at the left.
BSOS Academic Advisors are key resources in assisting undergraduate students in identifying academic opportunities to best fit their interests and goals.
Internships and research experiences, education abroad, service learning, and student leadership opportunities round out a student's career and personal development beyond what the traditional academic classroom setting can offer.
Participating in one of Maryland's living-learning or freshman communities, including Honors College, College Park Scholars, CIVICUS, Global Communities, Carillon Communities, or FIRE is one way for first and second year BSOS students to share their common interests with each other and with faculty in a closely joined residential community. A freshman UNIV100 course is another way that BSOS students can work closely with an academic advisor and be part of a small, personalized learning community during their first semester on campus.
BSOS Alumni help to shape the world as researchers, policy makers, and practitioners in a wide range of fields including government, business, law, health, and others.
Please feel free to be in touch if you have questions.
With best wishes,
Dr. Katherine F. Russell
Associate Dean, Undergraduate Education
BSOS-UGDean [at] umd [dot] edu


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Written by Hayley Bromfield • Published 4th June 2018 • 3 minute read
We understand the challenges that can be faced in each sector, and we know how to prepare and protect our clients should they ever need it. In recent years, there has been increased scrutiny amongst the media towards charities, and even more hard-hitting scandals this year have had an impact on public perceptions. It can take a hundred good stories to build a reputation but only one bad one to bring down the house.
We've helped charities in the eye of the storm and advised clients in high profile situations. Our support can help you to prepare for and react decisively to an issue or crisis situation. If you want to take steps to protect your organisation today, please don't hesitate to get in touch.
Developing a crisis response strategy
We know that most comms issues can be navigated effectively with the right strategy and support in place. Having the confidence that you can mitigate a risk comes from knowing you are properly prepared. We work closely with clients to create straight-talking crisis comms strategies that cover:
• Situational analysis – a review of key events that could impact your organisation
• Risk assessments – what issues are you likely to encounter? What could have the most impact?
• Crisis team structures – including Trustee support
• Comms protocols and checklists – a clear structure to follow at a glance
• User handbooks – communicating your crisis strategy in a format that can be easily accessed and used when the time is of the essence
• Template materials – to help speed up response times during a crisis situation.
Training days
Part of being able to respond to a crisis is being confident when handling media. The media will view your chief executive like any other CEO – they are the leader of the organisation and should be prepared to be scrutinised.
Journalists argue that they are reporting what the public needs to know, or wants to know, reflecting public mood. Spokespeople should be media trained, armed with facts and prepared for the toughest questions.
At PHA, our expert teams have been on the sharp end of media questioning, and can expertly prepare any spokesperson. Our tailored media training sessions train spokespeople to:
- Structure key messages
- Learn to control media interviews
- Develop prepared responses
- Understand the media
- Learn different interview styles.
In addition to media training, our crisis simulation training days will put comms teams through their paces, with a mock crisis scenario involving how to deal with news of the crisis breaking, the first stages, the first calls from journalists, the CEO being doorstepped, and more.
Real-time support
During a crisis, even those with agreed protocols in place often require additional support. Crisis management experts are used to dealing with difficult situations, and good ones are not afraid to tell clients how it is once they see the depth of problems in an organisation. They should be able to bring with them not only expertise but contacts and links to other third parties who can help.
Getting up to speed on an issue quickly is vital. At PHA, we offer a 24/7 service that monitors social and traditional media coverage including sentiment. Our twice-daily reports with analysis and recommendations mean that you can always be sure of informed decision making.
Support from PHA can be scaled up or down depending on the level of crisis. From handling all media enquiries and social posts to acting as a sounding board for critical response deadlines, you will always be working with a dedicated senior comms consultant who will be on-hand at a moment's notice. We also plug clients into media lawyers were necessary to help protect reputations and advise on other issues should the need arise.
Proactive PR
Following on from a crisis, it's important to focus on the future and how or where you need to re-build relationships. Our third sector specialist team can help with:
- Reviewing existing content and communications
- Stakeholder engagement strategies
- Thought leadership/feature placement
- Proactive awareness-raising or fundraising campaigns.
If you would like to know how PR can help protect your organisation, please don't hesitate to get in touch today.


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Writing "nano-curses" for microcontrollers2010/05/24
My main contract these days is developing into a software stack that needs to both send a lot of debugging and status data, and receive commands over the serial debug port (which in the next generation will be Bluetooth…). The problem is, I need to be able to deal with this in the main codebase in a relatively sane manner. That means using xterm command sequences, but hiding them behind some kind of API. The obvious candidate would be curses, of course.
So, I'm developing a microcontroller version of curses, that's intended to be as lightweight as possible given the complexity of the problem. The first major cost is the terminal buffer, which has to be at least a byte for every character on the screen. I might experiment later with a non-buffered curses, especially as this is not intended to run over "slow" connections in the first place (at least for my application). The real challenge is going to be figuring out things like subwindow scrolling rules, and all the quirks like keeping track of the cursor when a tab is inserted, etc.
I plan on releasing this code as open-source once it's reasonably usable, and I have somewhere on my as-yet-nonexistant website to put it…