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For me, 2017 was very much a year of progression of me. Not just in my relationship, which grows and expands each day, but in my life – my legacy. The thing I'll take with me to the next life.
To avoid a headache, I'll split and reflect on what I've encountered in a few sub headings. Let's do this.
Some Kind of Divine Comedy
I started this year in a transitory position. Still in a new relationship, I navigated my way through the end of my college work and back out into adulthood.
Through all this, if I was Dante, Kitten was my Virgil. My guide through it all.
When I was anxious, when I doubted myself, when I sat slumped on the couch and said I should stop writing on this blog, for what do I have left to give? — Well, Kitten was there to slap me upside my head and tell me to relax.
It helped. More than I could put into words. In this blog or TO her.
Me, Myself and I
As I juggled the end of college, I also did a wee bit of mentoring as well.
For those new to the blog and wondering what mentoring details exactly, think of it like this: A mentor is there to help someone who needs a reliant source of information. Instead of, say, a delayed response on a blog, email is there as an option, as are other social networking means. Occasionally, I'll offer up my kik, as I'm usually there chatting to mates any way.
I reassure, I answer questions. Occasionally I give ideas that might help in areas of insecurity or discipline. Anything that will act as a positive reinforcement. And what do I get out of it? Fulfilment. The knowledge that I have helped people.
It's been a wonderful thing, because I have seen these people move on to beautiful harmony with their own partners. And it's nice to know that I could help, even if it's in a minuscule way.
Beyond Mentoring, I've challenged myself in my writing – to think outside of the box. To change. To say something different, so I don't get stuck in monotone gear.
The results are…a work in progress. I have a default writing mode. A default writing voice. I need to figure out how to progress.
The Master in Me
In my own down time, I've done some reflecting on how my own feelings have changed and morphed in the year. There's an element of a Master to me, I have discovered. A personality trait that comes out when provoked, taking sadistic glee in the humiliation of others and in his own Slave.
I say 'element of a Master' because I'm a weird sort of hybrid Dominant. I have so many traits within me and the one that is usually present most of my conscious days is the Daddy Dom that nurtures Kitten.
It's a weird balance, you see. But it's the only way I can make sense of everything that floats around my head.
Last but not least
The relationship between my kitten and I has been ever-smooth. Ever changing for the good, revealing new personality traits that are quite the spark – especially for my stories!
And yet, through all this, I find the need to push myself. For her. For myself.
It's easy, I think, to get in the trap of living day to day in your own mind that you forget you are leading someone, taking care of someone. And I need to beat myself up less for that, while improving my mind. To be better for myself, for her, and for how my dominant self fits into the dynamic of the world around me.
Beyond that, dear reader, I am now 30. I am no longer the 'twenty-something' guy that started this blog. So what does the future hold in store for me? For me in the world? For kitten and I?
I'm sure you'll find out as soon as I do. In the meantime, you should review and reflect as well.


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We had planned an air gun shoot competition (which we host routinely as we live so remotely there is no chance of a stray pellet doing any damage and none of the other "lads from the pub" have a similar set up) and BBQ (yes, I KNOW it's November, but as I said we aren't past BBQing the Christmas duck so this is no biggie for us) and belated fireworks party. When the high winds and teeming rain hit on Saturday we lost power but quickly got it back. Then it started to…pulse, is the best way to describe it. The regular lights could be turned on, the TV worked but the surround sound did not, the kettle could boil (in about 10 minutes) and the computers seemed ok, but DH hit the roof when he called to check in (in a meeting in London, and yes, I KNOW it was Saturday, but we both wind up working more or less some part of every day) and found out all the computer were still on. So DS and I had to run around and do a full shut down of all of them (and that takes a while in our house) then figure out some way to amuse ourselves and Maddie – thank goodness for board games.
As a result all the things we would normally do the day before 17 expected guests were about to descend, like hoovering, and some pre-cooking, didn't get done. We finally got the power back, and the sun was shining on Sunday so we all ran about like lunatics on a day pass from the asylum to get everything sorted. They came, they shot at targets, they ate a lot, and they ooohed! and aahhed! over the fireworks, then they left.
This morning I had to make four passes over the kitchen floor (sweep, mop with hot water, then two with Flash) to get thru the caked on mud from the shooters walking thru the kitchen our the back door, over the field to the targets, and back to the shooting gallery. It looks almost OK now.
As you can imagine I barely managed the Home page for this week (at about 9 PM last night!) let alone and proper scrapping. I did make a few cards before the power went as part of a Christmas gift, but that is it so I;ll wait to share that when I've finished.
I will share my recipe for Boston Baked Beans, which are always a hit with the BBQ crowd. Easy peasy to do in the AM and ready by dinner – I'm not sure I would recommend it as anything but an accompaniment (although it is quite good as part of a sort of chili dog – ie sausage in bun, beans to fill and eat it with a knife and fork, unless you are a teenage boy, in which case you can try to pick it up and take a bite then have it all dribble down your front LOL!) as it is a little sweet.
* 6 cans baked beans
* 1/2 pound streaky bacon fried off
* 1 onion, finely diced, fried off in bacon drippings
* 1/4 to 1/2 cup of molasses brown sugar (or dark muscovado) (and feel free to use less)
* 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 2 tablespoon prepared Coleman's
* 1/2 cup ketchup
* 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
Fry off bacon till crispy
Dice and fry onion in bacon drippings
Dump all beans, all seasonings, bacon and onion into crockpot – cook on low for 6-8 hours (then high, lid off, for 30-60 mins if you like it drier) but check it. Crock pots, like microwaves, vary a lot!
OR put in an ovenproof casserole and cook for at least 1 hour (I'm guessing about 150 for fan assisted or 180 regular oven) Stir occasionally. Oven produces a less sauce-y version.
Hopefully back to scrapping soon…..


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One Piece episode 585: more mysteries behind Punk Hazard and hints of how powerful the Surgeon of Death Trafalgar Law has become.
AnimeShinbun is a community of awesome people posting and discussing the latest anime news. It's part of NewsBoiler, a network of social news sites covering today's pop culture.


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- As it is with most champions, the key to becoming a skilled Lee Sin player is to adapt your strategy to maximize his passive ability.
- Lee Sin can burst by using his abilities and their secondary activations in rapid succession but that quickly depletes his energy.
- 李青的 Flurry adds 40% attack speed to the two basic attacks that immediately follow, each of which also refund 15 energy. In order to maximize this buff's effects, stagger (space out) your abilities with autoattacks in between.
- Sonic Wave/Resonating Strike Resonating Strike is a great way to close in on your opponents. You can use Sonic Wave at range and then close the distance with Resonating Strike Resonating Strike, initiating melee combat. Or, if you are already in melee combat, you can use Sonic Wave as you fake a retreat, hit Resonating Strike Resonating Strike, coming back for more.
- You can use Sonic Wave/Resonating Strike Resonating Strike when you are slowed, go through some walls, and chase enemies through a slowing AoE e.g. 特朗德尔的Pillar of Filth Pillar of Filth.
- Be careful when immediately using Resonating Strike Resonating Strike after Sonic Wave. You may end up charging right into a turret, an enemy champion in the brush, or even outnumbered and alone if you're not careful.
- The combo of Sonic Wave and Resonating Strike Resonating Strike plus Safeguard is very useful for hit-and-run exchanges.
- One of the most effective methods of harassing with Lee Sin is to use Resonating Strike Resonating Strike to attack an enemy and then immediately retreat with Safeguard. This can be a powerful move early on in the laning phase. You can begin using this combo as early as Level 2 and often the opposing champion(s) have limited means of retaliation.
- On the top lane, if you face a Champion who mainly use AOE spells to harras (e.g darius Decimate), You can force him to push the minion wave without getting hit by using the method mentioned above and then make an easy gank with your jungler.
- Sonic Wave/Resonating Strike Resonating Strike and Safeguard is also effective for tower diving.
- You can add Dragon's Rage to the combo if you otherwise lack the damage to finish the target off.
- Smartcasting Safeguard might be just enough to give you the edge you need, when using this strategy, to dash in and out with a kill.
- Safeguard has a primary defensive use but it can be effective in an offensive context as well. If an enemy champion is out of range of Sonic Wave, but is in melee range of an allied minion or champion, use Safeguard to jump right in.
- Safeguard is essential to have "leveled up" when you're facing off against a bruiser.
- Safeguard cannot be cast while snared, even if Lee Sin targets himself, as it classified as a dash/movement ability.
- If you are engaging an enemy that has a snare try to dodge it with Sonic Wave/Resonating Strike Resonating Strike or Safeguard.
- Alternatively self cast the Safeguard preemptively to negate (most of) the snare's damage.
- Tempest is great for clearing minion waves and Lee Sin can afford to spam it.
- Tempest and Sonic Wave is a great combo for fighting champions with stealth or those trying to juke or hide in brush. Combining both skill can keep an enemy revealed for up to 7 seconds and at higher ranks or with CDR it's enough to have the combo ready again.
- If Resonating Strike Resonating Strike is used, the target will no longer be revealed. However using Cripple doesn't stop the reveal from Tempest.
- Cripple offers great utility. Its attack speed slow is useful when engaging AD enemies with Lee Sin and the movement speed slow when Lee Sin or the enemy wishes to retreat.
- Using Dragon's Rage can disrupt the enemy team's positioning at the beginning of a teamfight . Not only will Dragon's Rage knock an enemy back (preferably the tank or bruiser), but it will also knock up the champions hiding behind him.
- Dragon's Rage can also be used to interrupt a channeling ability if your team has their interrupts on cooldown.
- During a team engagement, try to use Dragon's Rage on a carry who overextends to isolate them from their team and pick up an easy kill. You can also use Resonating Strike Resonating Strike to get behind the carry and Dragon's Rage them to your team, temporarily disabling any enemies that get hit by their own carry. Follow it up with a Safeguard to get back to your team.
- Be careful about using Dragon's Rage as a finisher, as one incorrect calculation may lead to the target escaping instead.
- You have to make sure to aim Dragon's Rage correctly as this can prove to be crucial mistake in team fights. For example: kicking an enemy champion out of range of a friendly 阿木木的 Curse of the Sad Mummy.
- As all of Lee Sin's abilities scale only on bonus attack damage, attack damage items are crucial to his build. Depending on which way you want to look at it, either Lee Sin's damage output will fall off as the game progresses without attack damage items or Lee Sin scaling well into late game with attack damage items. , , or are good choices but only if doing well or pretty late in the game. Getting on Lee Sin will have profound effects with his damage output and regeneration.
- Lee Sin requires a fair amount of survivability due to how close he must get to enemies while he fights and the time it takes for him to utilize his passive, getting items like and early can have noticeable results. Building Lee Sin tanky is important because to use his ult properly he needs to be able to survive being in the middle of the fight.
- If played in lane, will be more beneficial than , especially if building more towards the tanky side of tanky DPS.
- Lee Sin, complementing his ability to slow movement speed and attack speed. is a viable item for
- Buying a Lee Sin building health and consider complementing it with a and/or . Getting tanky with a or will allow you survive longer and eventually give you more attack damage if you get and increasing maximum health, increases the health regeneration from . or a is generally great idea for a
- Lee Sin, even though Lee Sin is manaless and this item grants mana. Since he has 7 skills, he can constantly proc the effects of and make use of his good base attack damage. Coupled with his passive, he is very likely to proc the effect giving him excellent DPS and chasing.
is a good, all-round item for
- ability power to slightly improve the shield from Safeguard without sacrificing an item spot purely on AP, in addition to its plethora of beneficial effects and stats. will also provide some
- However, given his strong attack damage scaling and natural squishiness, it is best to get late, instead going for attack damage/durability items such as , , , or a few .
- Lee Sin can drop a tower fast if he has because his low CD abilities do not require targets to cast, allowing him proc the bonus damage every 2 seconds.
- With Lee Sin can singlehandedly push a turret. a midgame
- Since Lee Sin does not use mana and scales well with attack damage, it can often be better to build the much cheaper rather than the more expensive but more popular (which Lee Sin wouldn't be able to use the mana portion of anyway).
- When playing jungle Lee Sin, you can use to place free wards for not only vision and map control, but also for synergy with Safeguard. This allows you to hop over walls to gank/escape enemies.
- Attack speed items are a non-optimal build path on Lee Sin. His innate Flurry grants him natural attack speed and most of his damage, like an AD caster, comes from attack damage scaling abilities.
Lee Sin is one of the best junglers having both great clearing speed and sustain. In addition to the above, being a good duelist makes him a great counter jungler too.
- Remember to use Iron Will Iron Will before using Smite and/or Sonic Wave, as it restores health through spell vamp.
- Starting items: OR , × 3 OR , × 5
- Skill progression: Sonic Wave/ Tempest → Safeguard → Sonic Wave/ Tempest → Safeguard/ Sonic Wave → (Whichever you haven't gotten).
- Jungling order: 20px Blue golem ( Smite) → 20px Wolves → 20px Wraiths → 20px Red Lizard ( Smite) → 20px Small Golems → Gank
- Alternate order: 20px Wolves → 20px Blue golem ( Smite) → 20px Wraiths → 20px Red Lizard ( Smite) → Gank
- Most of his spells deal physical damage. Investing in armor items will mitigate his damage output. However Tempest does magic damage with 1.0 AD ratio.
- Resonating Strike Resonating Strike will deal a lot of damage when you are low on health. Try to dodge his Sonic Wave so he can't use Resonating Strike Resonating Strike to finish you off.
- Cripple will only slow you if he hits you with Tempest. Make sure you stay away from the ability's AoE in order to avoid the slow.
- Beware when committing to kill Lee Sin. With wards in his inventory to place and cast Safeguard on, jungle monsters or enemy minions to hit with Sonic Wave and Resonating Strike Resonating Strike to, and having Dragon's Rage available to knockback enemies a large distance or knock them up into the air, Lee Sin has an enormous amount of potential to escape and evade dogged enemies, causing said enemies to waste a large amount of time chasing him at best.
- Instead of battling him in minion wave, try to fight him when he is alone so he can't make the full use of the dash from his Safeguard.
- When playing as a stealth champion, wait until Lee Sin uses Sonic Wave and Tempest so you won't get revealed.
- 李青的 Dragon's Rage will knock you back to a set distance. If he targets you, it's better to run away in the direction he kicked you rather than running through Lee Sin to escape.
- Be extremely careful not to use Flash to escape while affected by Sonic Wave. Lee Sin can activate Resonating Strike Resonating Strike to jump to you, from a long distance away as it's range is 1100.
- Save Flash until Sonic Wave wears off or Lee Sin has already used Resonating Strike Resonating Strike.
- Keep in mind that Lee Sin's abilities have high energy costs when engaging him. He will be vulnerable and unable to take much action if he is energy-starved.
- Keep your team spread to minimize the effect of his Dragon's Rage.
- Lee Sin's biggest counter is time since his damage falls off greatly late game. Play carefully early game!
Champion spotlight编辑
本文是英文页面 Lee Sin/Strategy 的翻译,最后翻译时间:2012-11-30 ,点击这里可以查看翻译后英文页面的改动。


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St. Francis Fountain an indelible part of San Francisco
It's been swirling around for a while now, the persistent rumor that St. Francis Fountain may be closing. The rumor has poignancy because it would be a loss for 24th Street, where the Mission's beloved diner, candy shop and soda counter has been a working-class breakfast fixture for nearly 100 years. It would also be yet another defeat for the city of San Francisco, which would lose one of its oldest businesses, just when it's trying to create the mechanisms to preserve them.
Fortunately, owner Peter Hood says that rumors of St. Francis Fountain's demise are overblown. There was a time last year, faced with rising rents at St. Francis and his other Mission brunch restaurant, Boogaloos, that he and business partner Levon Kazarian considered shutting the doors, citing "years of pent-up frustration" from dealing with a city bureaucracy that does not always make it easy for small-business owners.
But after they publicly let off some steam, they decided to stay the course, and are still working hard to keep the doors open. They are doing it partly for their kids, who love going to the candy shop and soda fountain as much as previous generations, but mostly for the community that still exists in this corner of the Mission, where on weekends you can find hipsters and Latino families side by side in the vintage wooden booths, eating the Nebulous Potato Thing and drinking milk shakes.
"A lot of things have changed in S.F., and it's nice to still have that one place to go and sink your feet into what feels like an older San Francisco," Hood says.
St. Francis Fountain opened in 1918 at 24th and York as a homey, family-owned luncheonette and candy store run by recent Greek immigrant James Christakes. It stayed that way until 1947, when the second generation of the Christakes family gave it a face-lift, bringing in the soda counter, booths and other classic American-diner elements.
When Hood and Kazarian took over in 2002, they added a fresh coat of pale pink to the walls and ceiling and revamped the kitchen, but left the rest of the space recognizable to diners from a half century before.
However, those diners might not recognize some of the food: Hood and Kazarian spent years serving brunch at nearby Boogaloos and brought over their style of breakfast classics with a Latin American twist. In came dishes like the Nebulous Potato Thing, a plate of seasoned potatoes topped with melted cheddar, sour cream, fresh salsa and, if desired, an egg or guacamole.
It's just the thing to soak up a hangover or improve a bad morning, as is the Chef's Mess, an aptly named scramble of eggs, bacon, mushrooms, melted cheese, tomato and sour cream.
Nothing on the menu is especially life-altering, and not all the ingredients are local and organic. But that's not really the point of a diner like this, which should be as warm and comforting as your favorite sweatshirt.
I've spent happy mornings keeping company with their griddled banana bread, peppery sausage patties, cheesy omelets, sourdough French toast and weekend Benedicts, especially the Valerie with tomato and avocado. Midday also brings a very good patty melt and BLT, along with other burger and sandwich combos. It's a menu of diner standards, done exactly how you want them.
One of the pair's biggest changes was the addition of several vegan options, like the Devil Burger, a satisfying-enough tangle of marinated and fried seitan topped with "vegannaise." Vegan chorizo, jack cheese and other breakfast ingredients feature prominently in everything from scrambles to vegan rancheros.
Besides the diner, St. Francis Fountain has always kept a lively soda fountain and candy counter. Here you can revisit the past with vintage candies and trading cards at the front display, or sit at a counter stool and order an egg cream or milk shake like the Orange Dream, made with vanilla and orange sherbet.
The Christakes family made their own ice cream, but when Hood and Kazarian took over, they started using Mitchell's — another Mission fixture. The move also freed up that ice cream-making labor for their expanded menu.
St. Francis recently flirted with serving dinner again, but has since stopped in an attempt to keep the scale of the restaurant manageable. But Hood has big plans for 2017. He wants to give the interior and menu a refresh, and start using the evenings for pop-ups like a Friday-night fish fry. He also dreams of someday making peanut brittle and other candy again, just the way the Christakes family did.
Most of all, though, Hood and Kazarian are committed to keeping St. Francis Fountain open.
They've started doing more catering and events, and have applied for legacy business status from the city, which would give them some protection from the fickleness of the market.
"I'm happy about us deciding to stay there and keep it alive," Hood says. "We're working on staying another decade, and hope to be around for a long time."
Anna Roth is a freelance writer in San Francisco. Email: email@example.com Twitter: @annaroth
What: Nebulous Potato Thing ($7.50), Valerie Benedict ($11.50), Chef's Mess ($11), Patty's Meltdown ($9.50)
Where: St. Francis Fountain, 2801 24th St., San Francisco, (415) 826-4210. www.stfrancisfountainsf.com
When: 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday-Sunday


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Book one of the Cherub series
By Robert Muchamore
Available now from Simon Pulse (US) and Hodder (UK)
Review copy
I enjoy stories about child spies, like Alex Rider or the Gallagher Girls or Jimmy Coates. Cherub is a popular series from the United Kingdom, now being re-released with updated covers. I believe THE RECRUIT first came out in 2004, which meant it looked pretty dated. I missed hearing about this series when it first came out, but when the re-release came to my attention, I wanted to give this spy series a shot.
James Adams is heading towards jail. He's got an anger problem, and after his mom dies, he starts hanging out with the wrong kids at the orphanage. It's just small marks on his record now, but he's sure to eventually do something that'll really get him in over his head. But there's no reason to write him off. He has potential. And a secret agency known as CHERUB notices.
CHERUB uses children as spies, because adults so rarely suspect kids. They can enter homes unsuspected, as friends of a mark's children, or pretend to be harmless vandals. It's the perfect opportunity for James.
I liked that THE RECRUIT explored the lives of kids who aren't often protagonists, especially in children's literature. James has lots of rough edges. I also liked that it tackled difficult topics, and didn't reduce complicated issues to black and white stances. After James completes his first mission, he isn't entirely sure that things worked out for the best, since no one involved was entirely good or bad. I didn't enjoy how much time was spent on boot camp. I would've eaten up as a kid, but found it a bit distressing to read about a kid going through something that is hard on adults.
I think that THE RECRUIT could be read by younger readers - nine or so. The language isn't overly difficult, and it's very engaging. However, the subject matter (including terrorism, underage drinking, and drugs) probably bumps up the intended age of the reader. For concerned parents, I think that everything is presented in an age appropriate way and not in a favorable light.
THE RECRUIT was a fun, fast novel, but I don't think I'll keep reading the series. It skews a bit too young for me.
April 20, 2014
Review: The Recruit
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Molly Stevens appears on Dara Ó Briain's Science Club!
Sunday, September 01, 2013
Prof Molly Stevens appeared on the BBC2 programme Dara Ó Briain's Science Club episode Invisible Worlds and discussed nanotechnology and regenerative medicine. She presented her innovative materials having applications in bone tissue engineering and explained the possibilities and capabilities of her research for healthcare applications!
[Until 12 September, click here to see the episode on the BBC iPlayer!]
Category: General Stevens Group News Prof Stevens News


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A Morgantown native returns home and creates an internationally popular electronic music magazine.
➼ Joseph Wensell has never been afraid of taking chances. He grew up in Morgantown but moved to Washington, D.C., after graduating from high school in the late 1980s, without any plan or connections. He spent some time doing dishes in Irish pubs until he got a job at a record store. Wensell would spend the next five years selling music, ending up running the flagship store for Washington-based Kemp Mill Music. But after a few strong-arm robberies, he decided it was time to get out of retail.
He took an advertising sales job at a local business resource publication. It was a tough gig for someone without any advertising experience, but he excelled at the work, which eventually led to a job at Jazz Times. Although Wensell started out as an assistant in the advertising section, he was soon selling ads to record labels and music festivals, bringing in significant revenue for the publication.
It was the late 1990s—the perfect time to be in the music journalism game. CDs had overtaken LPs and cassettes, and record labels were scrambling to re-release their back catalogs in this new format. "They had tremendous ad budgets," Wensell says. The magazine swelled with advertising—by the time Wensell left the publication in 2005, Jazz Times was putting out 200-page issues 10 times a year. But he left the publication to follow a love interest to Paris, France. "It was a big risk, but throughout my entire life I've taken risks."
Europe has a robust jazz scene and Wensell noticed U.S. labels didn't buy ads in publications there, so he figured he could easily parlay his existing business relationships into some advertising sales. The timing wasn't right, though—the music industry was in turmoil as customers abandoned CDs for music downloads. So, once again, Wensell took a chance. He'd developed an eye for good graphic design during his years in advertising, so he taught himself how to use Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, thinking he might get work with music festivals designing posters, programs, backstage passes, and the like. But customers were most interested in his web design skills, so that's where he shifted his focus.
Wensell had been in France for five years when, taking another chance, he moved to Chicago to help a friend open a jazz club. Wensell was supposed to do all the branding and menus. "Within three months of opening the joint closed." He then tried to start a multimedia company with another friend, but that venture didn't get off the ground, either. "I decided I needed to stop working with friends."
He returned to Morgantown about five years ago after a family member fell ill and, while continuing to do web design and graphic design work, he decided to give magazines another go. His time in Europe had opened his eyes to the EDM scene—that's "electronic dance music," for the uninitiated. Wensell noticed the scene was growing larger and larger in the U.S. "It's a gigantic industry. It's everywhere. You hear EDM in television commercials. The whole video gaming industry is nothing but electronic music producers doing soundtracks," he says.
So in 2015 he launched Beat Selector, an online quarterly magazine featuring EDM news, album previews and reviews, and interviews with top DJs, producers, and label runners.
Wensell has produced 13 issues of Beat Selector so far, which are available through his website and the digital magazine platform Issuu. While the magazine isn't turning profits yet, Wensell is developing relationships inside the scene and is working with writers all over the East Coast and across the Atlantic. "It's read all over the world," he says. "I just know it's going to get better and better."
And, maybe best of all, he's doing it all from his hometown. "As long as you have a phone and internet connection, that's all you need."


text: Store-brought foundations have words listed in the ingredients that normal people can't pronounce. Not to mention what it does to our skin and eyes. This all natural herbal and plant powder foundation is beautifully sheer, but good for your skin too. You don't have to worry about itchy red eyes and skin, and inhaling harmful … Continue reading Homemade Plant Based Powder Foundation


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In ancient times channeling was personified by the Oracle of Delphi. More recently in the 1960s, Jane Roberts re-introduced people to the concept of channeling with her release of the Seth materials. While bringing channeling into the mainstream was a good thing, Jane Robert's method of channeling – deep trance channeling of which she remembered nothing afterwards – created the impression that channeling was something special that only unique individuals could do. Nothing could be further from the truth. Everyone can channel, and you don't have to be semi-comatose to do it. Channeling can be as simple as listening to your inner voice, or being inspired in meditation to paint a picture. Sometimes channeling can prompt you to write crazy stories….like me.
I'm a conscious channel — I am in control of what I say or write rather than going off into a trance from whence I would later emerge with no recollection of what happened — but I still can't explain how I do it. You don't have to believe in this stuff, however. If nothing else, you can read my channeled material for its entertainment value.
Guiding the Storm March 2019
It Depends on You June 2018
Taking a Different Path May 2018
The End of the World March 2018
Consciousness and Creation February 2018
Doomsday and the Tides of Time January 2018
Channeled material from prior to January 2018 is now only available in my eBook, "The Storm Wind: Channeled Guidance For Unsettled Times." (Removing the free content was not my idea – it was a requirement of Amazon's KDP program)


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Sheriff Craig Webre announced Torry "Bird" Hunter (age 27) is in custody in Lafourche Parish following his arrest in Rapides Parish last week. Hunter is charged with Attempted Second Degree Murder in an October 11 shooting incident. Pachen Canty was arrested on October 13 for helping Hunter flee the scene of the crime.
As previously reported, investigators responded to a reported shooting on St. Louis Street in Raceland just after 8:30 p.m. on Sunday, October 11. Through investigation, detectives learned two men were engaged in a verbal altercation when one of the men, later identified as Hunter, brandished a handgun and fired two rounds at the other man, one of which struck the victim in the abdomen. Canty, who was present during the incident, then drove Hunter away from the area. Canty was located and arrested on Tuesday for Harboring a Fugitive (Accessory after the Fact). She was released from jail the following day after posting $5,000 bond.
The Rapides Parish Sheriff's Office reported Hunter was arrested for Simple Burglary on Monday, October 19, resulting in a parole violation. He was transported from Rapides Parish to the Lafourche Parish Detention Center on Friday, October 23 and booked on the outstanding warrant for Attempted Second Degree Murder. His bond is set at $150,000.


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What Is Vegan Cornbread?
Vegan cornbread is a version of cornbread made according to the conventions of vegan cooking, specifically without dairy, eggs, or any other kinds of animal products. The vegan lifestyle typically involves ingredient substitutions for recipes such as vegan cornbread, and many of these ingredients are soy-based. Soy is one of the main sources of protein in vegan diets, and many vegan cooks have their own preferences for soy milk flavors in this recipe. Other ingredients include some flavor sources such as spices or even vegetables that can often differ from some non-vegan baking recipes.
Eggs are usually one of the wet ingredients used in baking to hold the dry ingredients together and create the right consistency. Vegan cornbread recipes frequently substitute canola oil in order to achieve the same effect. One favorite feature of vegan cornbread is that it can be sweet or savory, depending on individual flavor ingredient preferences. Some cooks like to mix in maple syrup for some added sweetness and for a thick cornbread texture. Others prefer to add apple cider vinegar instead of maple syrup for a more savory version of vegan cornbread.
Various vegan cornbread recipes call for all-purpose flour or whole wheat pastry flour mixed with cornmeal, baking powder, and a measured amount of salt. Some of these basic recipes are not as sweet as some non-vegan versions of cornbread, and this type of cornbread can be a favorite side with salads or vegetable soups. Vegan cooks often have their own unique flavor ingredients such as ground flax seeds for a nutty-tasting cornbread. Many vegans recommend the use of flax seed in a variety of dishes due to its high amounts of beneficial omega-3 fatty acids. Some also mix chopped scallions, bell peppers, and even jalapeno peppers in with the cornbread batter for some additional crunch and spiciness.
Cooks who are new to the vegan lifestyle may wonder if non-dairy soy milk will create the appropriate textures for baked goods. When high quality soy milk is correctly measured and thoroughly blended with the rest of the ingredients, experienced vegan bakers report good results with their cornbread recipes. Soy milk can often have some slight differences in fat content, so richer breads can usually be achieved with higher-fat soy milk. Another advantage is that a good portion of the fat in soy milk tends to be of the healthier non-saturated variety.


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WhatsApp Beta new update available to download for beta users but the update is not available for all WhatsApp users. This only for WhatsApp beta testers. If you want to become beta tester so join the WhatsApp beta program, And we would like to inform you that a new update has come for those who are using Whatsapp Beta 18.104.22.168, which you can download via APK file.
If the beta program has fulled so don't worry about this. You can download manually the latest WhatsApp beta 188.8.131.52 APK file.
If you want to download WhatsApp beta latest version click the link below:
WhatsApp Beta 184.108.40.206 Download APK
And if you are already using WhatsApp beta so you update your WhatsApp via Google Play Store.
- Group video and voice calls now support up to 8 participants. All participants need to be on the latest version of WhatsApp.
- The dark mode is now available. Try it by going to Settings > Chats > Theme > select 'Dark'. For users on Android 10, dark mode is enabled automatically when you turn it on in system settings.
If you like this article and read our next announcements on our Telegram Channel!


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Finally dug into my basket of selvages to make something constructive out of themmy collection. I have been saving them for awhile, inspired by Karen's blog! Make sure you make a coffee before you start browsing...you can get lost in this blog LOL. Here is my overflowing selvage basket:
I cut out a foundation fabric and chose selvages that were interesting and that matched the pink and brown fabric:
Here is the finished thread catcher with a pin cushion filled with plastic pellets to anchor it to my sewing machine cabinet:
The lining has pink polka dots and hearts :-)
At least my garbage will now look pretty LOL!
This is the second one I made last week...finally took some pictures today:
Close up of the wording on the selvages:
I used selvages for the back of this one as well, but used the ones with no words on it since you don't see much of it.
My friend, Gail, was busy with her selvages yesterday and covered this sewing bench with hers! Wow, that turned out cool too. Check it out here. I have at least 8 of those benches here and some could use a new cover. I started arranging selvage strips to make a bench cover this afternoon :-).


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Coders Try Debugging Shutdown and Constitution on GitHub
BY Miranda Neubauer | Wednesday, October 9 2013
Could the answer to the government shutdown be debugging the Constitution?
That's the solution several coders and developers are jokingly suggesting on a GitHub thread first posted by Dave Rupert, lead developer for Paravel, an Austin, Tex., web design company.
Earlier today he posted the following in a section of the White House's GitHub repository:
I noticed a bug over the past week or so and it seems reproducible:
Go to U.S. Government.
U.S. Government is shut down.
Expected results: Government should be working.
I'm unable to debug or propose a fix since there's not an open, transparent stack trace. Conflicting error messages are being thrown as well.
Hope you can resolve this soon. It would seem that the U.S. Government would value 100% uptime in order to be a reliable and trustworthy source for the rest of the world.
Thanks! Love this project and would like to continue using it.
The post has prompted many more very nerdy, but hilarious, programmer jokes and suggestions. Among the funniest:
"Looks like new code added to the getter on healthCare() is causing some of the constitution tests to fail."
"Confirmed. Oddly enough, the Canadian fork of this seems to be working fine."
"the method :
republicanAnswer(NSString)question (NSObject)party{
if( party.democratic){
return NO;
}else if (party.republican){
return YES;
seems broken"
"When I ran strace, I found fsync was hanging on /dev/passed-legislation/aca"
"Note that @JeffersonDavis actually forked this project before. A lot of people contributed, but @WhiteHouse had IP concerns and shut that down."
"Well when we have a habit of changing project manager every four years, what did you expect to happen? Inconsistent leadership builds crappy software."
"The issue seems to originate from a commit on 1776-07-04."
The theme of "debugging" the shutdown had earlier already been circulating on Twitter and elsewhere in the following post:
America was not shut down properly. Would you like to start America in safe mode, with free healthcare and without the guns? (Recommended)
— Chris Hall (@cshallwriter) October 1, 2013
(via @MichaelRoston)


text: The exploration of one's inner self is the most incredible adventure that a human being can undertake. There's no limit to the amount of creativity we can tap accept the limits we impose on ourselves and the obstacles we refuse to overcome. Knowledge, wisdom, creativity, and a spiritual life are there for us when we connect our consciousness to what's infinite in the universe; a quiet mind, a heart that's open, the ability to love and forgive, the ability to be happy and to live a compassionate life becomes possible when we learn to master internal chaos and our lack of balance. We are the problem, but we are also the solution to the problem. We just have to learn how to do it…


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The twins are officially, 1 year and 1 month old.
Unofficially, they are 1 year old (being preemies).
Though I've been fretting over their growth for the last one year, I've now realized that since the day they crossed the 1 year mark, they may not have grown much physically (SS is STILL stuck at 9kgs), but their mental activity has grown exponentially.
They have started showing signs of understanding what we say. Responding properly to our requests (commands don't work with these two!! Pesky twits)
RS will go round in circles when we ask her to. She will start dancing at the slightest hint of music. She even gets up to dance on hearing the Azaan.
SS is taking body building to different heights. I really must get hold of baby-dumbells for him. This guy is least intesrested in stuff that weighs less than him!!
We all know by now how much the twins love and care for each other.
For mini-people, barely a foot and half in height, they are super charged on emotions.
But not everything is rosy in the house of MomofRS. There are wars, there are battles. There are fights which disrupt the whole house. There are hair-raising screams and shreiks. There are blood-curdling howls.
There is enough drama and action to keep one entertained throughout the day!! AND night!!
All thanks to the "Terrible Two" entering their "Terrible Twos"!!
Yup, the twins have officially entered their "Terrible twos" phase. I was under the impression that this stage came on much later. I was Soooo wrong!!!
The reason behind this sudden spurt of activity is the discovery of ….."Legs".
The twins have discovered that their legs can take them places. So they can squeeze their way through the tiniest gap in the door. They are now on a discovery mission to locate hitherto unknown regions of the house. Their expeditions bring on some not too favorable results.
The waste bin in the balcony is upturned and its contents put on display for them to take their pick.
The clothespins are pulled out and thrown down from the balcony.
Leaves are yanked from the plants.
Buckets upturned, water spilled .
Utensils stolen from the kitchen and spread out in the drawing room. Utensils banged till deformed.
Nooks and cranies crawled into. Loud yelling when unable to crawl out of the same nook/cranny.
Clothes pulled down from their pegs. Floors wiped with the pulled down clothes.
Mobile chargers yanked from their sockets.
Remote control banged till it cracks.
Shoes pulled out from their stand and thrown all over the house.
Drawers opened and their contents spilled on the floor.
Newspapers, magazines ripped to shreds.
Cupboards opened. Clothes pulled out. Clothes peed on.
Cooked food pulled down from the shelf. Being drenched in dal.
These are all the attacks on the house.On inanimate things.
Now, on the attacks on each other.
– SS playing with some toys. RS totters to the kitchen and returns with the pressure cooker lid. RS comes up to SS and bangs the lid on SS's head.
– RS playing with some toy. SS demanding the same toy. RS refusing to part with it. SS hits RS hard on her nose.
– SS playing with some toy. RS demanding it. SS running away with it. RS grabs his shirt and gives a good yank. SS goes sprawling on the floor.
– RS playing with some toy. SS snatches it from her. RS tries to get it back. SS running away with it. RS catching up fast. RS smashes the toy to the floor in anger.
Something tells me, that though the twins love each other, they are also each other's worst enemy.
Is it something to do with them being scorpions??
Anyhow, I'm having my hands full just keeping track of their activities (AND blogging about it :D)
A gentle warning to those who wish to come over to visit. My house looks like a victim of the Katrina attack (the typhoon, NOT the bimbette!!)
Enter at your own risk.


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Needless to say this weekend we were sun deprived. Continuous overcast and light rainfall plagued South Florida keeping us wanting to stay indoors . Still, plenty events went on as planned despite the rainy weekend, so here are some of things you missed over the weekend:
Fashion Week Miami Beach
The Magic City flexed its fashion muscles with Funkshion's Fashion Week Miami Beach. The event feature runway shows by Vanidades, Bejeweled Swimwear, Go Red For Women campaign, Kurru Kurru, Ever After, Dragana Ognjenovic and Richie Rich -- just to name a few.
EliteXC Heat at BankAtlantic Center
Kimbo Slice went down after 12 seconds! And he didn't even lose to his scheduled opponent Ken Shamrock. He lost to replacement fighter Seth Petruzelli. Many are saying this is the end of Slice's career. While we aren't exactly sure that's true, we still had plenty of other action to focus on at Saturday's EliteXC event.
We Believe Local Journalism is Critical to the Life of a City
Engaging with our readers is essential to Miami New Times's mission. Make a financial contribution or sign up for a newsletter, and help us keep telling Miami's stories with no paywalls.
Support Our Journalism
Jay-Z at Bayfront Park
Leave it to Jay-Z to decide "99 Problems" to a certain under-qualified vice presidential candidate who would be a heartbeat away from being president if her running mate wins. Sunday night, Hov showed up at downtown's Bayfront Park to encourage young South Florida voters to register to vote and participate in their civic duty come Election Day. Click here for our recap on the event.


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Historically, mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) was purified from mammalian cells using mild nonionic detergents such as NP-40 and or Triton-X100 that resulted in dissociation of core regulatory components essential for its native kinase activity. Consequently, these older kinase assays required MnCl2 to artificially enhance the weak phosphotransfer activity observed (Bai et al., 2007; Kim et al., 2002). With the use of the zwitterionic detergent 3-[(3-Cholamidopropyl) dimethylammonio]-1-propanesulfonate (CHAPS), the mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) containing Regulatory-associated protein of mTOR (Raptor) and Lst8 (also known as GbetaL) can be successfully purified as a complex. This in vitro kinase assay allows for purification of mTORC1 that resembles its physiological state and retains kinase activity under physiological MgCl2 concentrations (Sancak et al., 2007). The activity of mTORC1 can be further enhanced through the use of hyperactive mutations within the kinase domain of mTOR or inclusion of GTP-bound RAS enriched in brain (Rheb) that is supplemented into the in vitro kinase assays. Rheb is a small-G-protein that binds to and activates mTORC1 to phosphorylate downstream substrates, such as eukaryotic initiation factor 4E-BP1 (4E-BP1) (Burnett et al., 1998), ribosomal protein S6 kinase 1 (S6K1) (Kim et al., 2002), Signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) (Dodd et al., 2015), and proline-rich Akt substrate of 40 kDa (PRAS40) (Dunlop et al., 2009).
Materials and Reagents
Note: An overview of the whole procedure can be found in Figure 1.
Figure 1. mTOR in vitro kinase assay. As described in the "Procedure", preparation of (A) mTORC1 complexes, (B) Rheb-GTP and (D) drug inhibitors (rapamycin/FKBP12 and wortmannin) and incubation of mTORC1 substrate (4E-BP1) within the mTORC1 kinase assay (E).
Representative data
Figure 2. mTORC1 directed phosphorylation of 4E-BP1. Western blotting showing phosphorylation of purified GST-4E-BP1 after in vitro mTORC1 kinase assay performed in the presence and absence of GTP-Rheb. Levels of myc-mTOR and HA-Raptor are shown as controls.
Note: All buffers are stored at 4 °C unless otherwise stated.
This protocol was adapted as previously reported (Dunlop et al., 2009). This work was supported by an Association for International Cancer Research (AICR) career development award to AT and a Tuberous Sclerosis Association Junior Fellowship to KD.
Please login to post your questions/comments. Your questions will be directed to the authors of the protocol. The authors will be requested to answer your questions at their earliest convenience. Once your questions are answered, you will be informed using the email address that you register with bio-protocol.
You are highly recommended to post your data including images for the troubleshooting.
You are highly recommended to post your data including images for the troubleshooting.


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Forest Hylian (4e Race)
From D&D Wiki
Forest Hylian[edit]
Forest Hylians are blessed with having a natural... relationship with nature.
|Racial Traits
|Average Height: 5'10"-6'2"
|Average Weight: 139-199 lbs.
|Ability Scores: +2 Strength, +2 Dexterity
|Size: Medium
|Speed: 7 squares
|Vision: Low-Light
|Languages: Common, Elven
|Skill Bonuses: +2 Athletics, +2 Stealth
|Fey Origin: Your parents are of Fey Origin, so you are considered a Fey for the purpose of effects related to origin.
|Forest Flurry: You gain the Forest Flurry power. Or you can choose:
|Forest Strike: You gain the Forest Strike Power.
"I was with my ambush group, waiting for a group of Dark Hylians. Our scout came back into the trees. The message was spread that they were coming. We all nocked our arrows. When I gave the command, we all fired a volley, then we quickly let loose another volley. Their archers never got to fire a single arrow at us."
Play a Forest Hylian if you want...
- To be good at bow and arrows, or swords.
- To be good at climbing and stealth.
- To be a member of a race that favors the Ranger, Rogue, Fighter and Barbarian classes.
Physical Qualities[edit]
Forest Hylians look just like Hylians. They normally wear camoflauge paint on them when they're going into a forest battle.
Playing a Forest Hylian[edit]
Forest Hylians are quite good natured, and quite humorous to be around. But, like the Hylians, they are still honor-bound.
Forest Hylian Characteristics: Good natured, humorous, honor-bound.
Male Names: Same as male Hylians and Elves
Female Names: Same as female Hylians and Elves
Forest Hylian Adventurers[edit]
Three sample Forest Hylian adventurers are described below.
Westraif is a male Forest Hylian Ranger. He was a commander in the Elite Forest Rangers. One day, while ambushing a group of Dark Hylians, a surprise group came in while they were engaged in hand-to-hand combat, ending up in the destruction of most of them, though they destroyed quite a bit of the surprise group in the process. Westraif was taken prisoner. Suddenly he heard a commotion in the back. He was quickly tied to a tree, and he saw 6 adventurers fighting valiantly. That was when adventure called.
Felencia is a female Forest Hylian Rogue. She was born in an adventuring group. They had a wizard with them, who said that she would meet with a terrible challenge. During a battle, a Hylian was found bound and gagged. She released him and pulled him to safety. As she helped the other adventurers, there were a bunch of words being yelled that sounded like they had no meaning. She saw a demon approach her, then as she struck it, it merged with her. The Hylian vanished before her eyes closed. When she woke up, she heard the wizard say that her challenge was that she must be able to control the demon that was inside her. "It can either benefit us, or destroy us."
erith is a male hylian cleric. He left his forest home one day to deal with what appeared to be a blighted area. Finding it was an area affected by a small infestation of undead, he teamed up with a group of adventurers to clear it out and work with them to track down the cultists responsible
Back to Main Page → 4e Homebrew → Races


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Hurricane City – Chapter 62 (Holy Baptism)
After equipping the new blue glove, my attributes had improved greatly. My Health had reached 1720 points, Defense 333, Attack 234-302. Too bad, the Attack was still quite a lot below Murong Shan Shan's 265-345.
The Princess resided on the left part of the Palace. Without many difficulties, I had already found her, and she seemed to still recognize me. When she knew I was entrusted by Drake, she revealed a rare smile.
Princess Misha took out a piece of exquisitely carved jade, "Drake gave me this in the past. Could you please help me bring it to Drake? I really want to see him!"
After I took the jade piece and felt that the princess had nothing else to say, I immediately used the Return City Scroll, and in the blink of an eye, I appeared next to the auction house. When I was preparing to leave the city for the mission, I saw a player had set up a stall at the city's gate. He displayed seven or eight skill books in there, all had a price tag on them.
That selling player kept approaching the players who passed by the roadside, "Fellow brothers, please come have a look. Freshly acquired eight skill books, still very hot! Will trade for a wife with a good appearance, not for equipment!"
This dude, while selling things he also looked for a wife. This kid would have a bright future!
"Hey, brother. You're selling so many books?" I approached to find out. There were many varieties of skill books, all prices were only in gold coins. I wondered, "Why only sell for gold coins?"
"Yes, our boss received a secret Profession Advancement mission and must pay 100 gold coins. These days, who would have that much gold coins? So, we could only sell the skill books we just got!"
When I heard it, I felt a joy in my heart. Currently, [Moon Monochrome] had only provided an online trading system to use RMB for buying and selling items, but hadn't opened an RMB to gold coins exchange system. So, the gold coins that the general players were getting right now would usually not enough to learn skills. Even to learn low-level skills would need 1 gold coins. Especially expensive were the Magician skills, which cost would increase the higher its level is. A level 20 skill would cost up to 5 gold coins. Unless a player was completing a mission, it would be hard for a player to have more than 10 gold coins just from killing monsters alone. Mostly, the Magician would need to borrow gold coins from their friends. Only a few players would have an excess amount of gold coins.
I took a look, and among the 8 skill books, I had not seen 3 of them. Two of it were skill books for a Level 20 Clerics, which were also an attack type of skill. For the current Lu Xue Han who could only restore health, these skills should be very useful. The other skill book was a Frost Armor for a Level 24 Magician, which would also be very useful for Xu Lin. The three of them together costed 80 gold coins.
I looked into my inventory, and there were just 84 gold coins. For ordinary players, this sum of gold coins would be almost impossible to get, but the mission that I had done wasn't few either. Moreover, the coins I got from the Golden Horsemen mission was quite a lot. So, I barely could afford it. No wonder that this kid couldn't sell any skill book despite of already trying to sell for so long. The average players only had few gold coins, even the rich!
I quickly bought the skill books. Even though no one had bought it yet, but with time, some people would find the coins to buy it. If I wait for later, regretting would be too late!
Three skill books, it was considered okay…
Retribution (Requirement: Cleric Level 22): Deal a certain divine damage onto a target. Damage dealt to a demon monster would be doubled. Cooling Down time 3 seconds. The damage value would increase with the level increase.
Reflection (Requirement: Cleric Level 25): Within 30 seconds after casting, will reflect once a magic attack and inflict the same degree of magic damage. Spell duration will increase with the level increase!
Frost Armor (Requirement: Magician Level 24): Increase the caster's Defense 120 points for 30 minutes. The attacker will suffer a freezing effect, move speed and attack speed will be reduced by 50%. Skill effectiveness will increase with the level increase.
When I looked the description, I was dumbfounded. Retribution was okay since a Cleric should have an attack magic. But Reflection was a little sick. Just imagine a Magician who put all the points into Intelligence attacked a low resistance Cleric, the reflected magic attack would probably instakilled that low health Magician! Frost Armor was even more abnormal. Even the Level 1 skill would increase the caster Defense for 120 points. This would reduce the probability of the Magician being instakilled. And more to it, the attacker movement speed would be reduced by 50%. Thus, a Thief or Warrior with close combat skill would be difficult to get near the Magician to attack again.
In my inventory was still the skill book for Archers, War God's Force. This time, Xu Lin, Xin Yu, and Lu Xue Han wouldn't say I was biased. With these powerful skills, the chance of us to win the 5-person team competition would greatly increased. I couldn't imagine how great the award would be for the team competition…
When I looked at the time, it was already 16:30. There was still another half hour before the agreed time with Murong Shan Shan. I should simply go to submit the mission.
I went by detouring the sawmill. The scene at the Wild Horse Plain was still as usual, only the Flying Knights regiment wasn't there anymore. Perhaps, when I went to the palace to do the mission, Roger had also returned with the remnant soldiers to the kingdom. There were already players practicing at the sawmill, so even with Roger soldiers already gone, there would not be much danger.
I went directly into the Golden Horsemen Commander's camp. When Drake saw me coming, he immediately let out a smile. But when I handed him the piece of jade from the princess, this big and tall man had tears falling out, almost killed my voice.
Drake began to summarize the results of my mission that I had been doing for the last two days, "Brave warrior, thank you for your help. Our Golden Knights could finally return to the Kingdom. We no longer need to fight aimlessly. To express our gratitude to you, I decide to let you undergo a Holy Baptism to make you stronger!"
System Prompt: Drake wants to get you through the Holy Baptism, will you accept it?
I was stunned. Shouldn't a Holy Baptism only be done by a High Priest or an Oracle? Could it be that Drake from the Golden Horsemen was also one?
I thought for a moment. Accepting it shouldn't be a bad thing, so I waved my hand and picked OK!
System Prompt: You were baptized, and acquired a passive skill – Divine Blessing.
TL Notes:
- Notes


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a 4ft single ended modern spray of calla lilies, orchids, roses, and seasonal foliages with organza bow detail.
Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm
Saturday 9am to 4pm
Sundays and Bank holidays
MaSK Flowers
11 Military Road
If you have received or sent someone flowers from us that you or they were really impressed with, send us an email and we will add it to our review page that is coming soon. If you think we can improve something tell us about that too - remember with your feedback we can improve our business for others.


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Regions: Inuvialuit Settlement Region, Gwich'in Settlement Area
Tags: climate change, greenhouse gases, carbon, water
|Principal Investigator:
|Sonnentag, Oliver (19)
|Licence Number:
|Université de Montréal
|Licenced Year(s):
|Feb 09, 2017
|Project Team:
|Jennifer Baltzer (collaborator, Wilfrid Laurier University), Philip Marsh (collaborator, Wilfrid Laurier University)
Objective(s): To continue the year-round eddy covariance measurements of carbon, water and energy fluxes at Trail Valley Creek and Havikpak Creek, established in 2013.
Project Description: The project of the present application is the continuation of year-round eddy covariance measurements of carbon, water and energy fluxes at Trail Valley Creek and Havikpak Creek, established in 2013.
The key methodology is tower-mounted micrometeorological measurements around the eddy covariance technique using an open-path infra-red gas analyzer and a sonic anemometer. These measurements are supported by measurements of net radiation, photosynthetically active radiation, soil moisture and temperature, snow depth, air temperature and relative humidity, etc. to aid in the post-processing and interpretation of the eddy covariance measurements.
The project is in an excellent position to make use of a well-established network of different avenues regarding knowledge transfer to northern Aboriginal communities. Through the Wildfrid Laurier University (WLU)-Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT)-Partnership Agreement and its dedicated Community Liaison, numerous outlets have been used in the past to communicate research results obtained by Dr. Oliver Sonnentag and his research team to individuals and communities in the NWT: Tusaayaksat Magazine (spring 2016), ClimateWire (2/23/2016), Scientific American (11/19/2015), TVA Nouvelles (11/18/2014), Moose FM (10/23/2014), Deh Cho Drum (9/4/2014), Inuvik Drum (7/31/2014), Deh Cho Drum (9/5/2013).
The fieldwork for this study will be conducted from February 3, 2017 to December 31, 2017.


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On Feb. 14 Entertainment One will release the soundtrack to "Soundtrack for a Revolution," last year's documentary about civil rights protest music.
The film, which was directed by Bill Guttentag and Dan Sturman and executive produced by Danny Glover, featured footage of contemporary artists like TV on the Radio, John Legend and The Roots covering classic protest music. Now, you can listen to those covers on your iPod.
We have a tracklist and a video of The Roots and TV on the Radio covering "Turn Me Around" below.
Soundtrack for a Revolution
1. "Wade in the Water" performed by Angie Stone
2. "Eyes on the Prize" performed by Joss Stone
3. "This May Be the Last Time" performed by Anthony Hamilton & The Blind Boys of Alabama
4. "We Shall Not Be Moved" performed by Mary Mary
5. "Will the Circle Be Unbroken" performed by Richie Havens
6. "Turn Me Around" performed by The Roots & TV on the Radio
7. "Woke Up This AM" performed by John Legend
8. "The State of Mississippi" performed by Wyclef Jean
9. "We Shall Overcome" performed by Anthony Hamilton, Blind Boys of Alabama, Joss Stone, The Roots, Mary Mary & Richie Havens
10. "Oh Freedom" performed by Vivian Green
Soundtrack for a Revolution Clip from Brndn on Vimeo.


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The Laubach method was developed specifically to help adults with limited or no reading skills achieve success and become confident readers. This structured, phonics-based series works even with learners who have had negative experiences with other reading programs.
Laubach Way to Reading is based on Dr. Frank Laubach's years of research in teaching adults. The series begins with establishing the letter-sound relationships through the use of one-of-a-kind phonics charts. Then, learners progress step-by-step from the known—spoken words—to the unknown—written words.
Skill Book 4: Other Vowel Sounds and Consonant Spellings


text: An exhibit in New York is highlighting works by eight unlikely artists - former and current inmates at Guantanamo Bay. Their paintings offer a glimpse into life inside one of the world's most notorious prisons. The prison holds 41 prisoners today, some without charge, and US President Donald Trump has talked about filling the empty cells again. Al Jazeera's Gabriel Elizondo reports from New York, US. Guantanamo Bay Arts & Culture United States US & Canada


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Stroma was formed in 2002 and has become the market leader in building energy performance, sustainability and compliance. Construction is an everchanging industry due to an evolving marketplace and shifting regulation. Stroma possesses the service catalogue, expertise and commitment to innovation that means we can represent and work with you to meet these challenges.
Our talented and multi-skilled team delivers value to our clients at all tiers of the supply chain. This stretches from initial consultancy support before a project breaks ground, through detailed site inspections as work commences and ongoing advice as an asset progresses through its operational lifecycle.
We very much look forward to working with you.
Martin Holt,
Chief Executive Officer
We're always interested in hearing from talented individuals who want to join the Stroma family. Whether you're a time-served professional with years of experience working in the construction industry, or an enthusiastic apprentice building your career. People are at the heart of Stroma and our staff are the foundation of this business. The management team are fully committed to investing in people development and rewarding the hard work of our team members.
The scope of talent we have at Stroma is truly remarkable. Across the Group we have Energy Assessors, Building Control Surveyors, Air Tightness Testers, Acousticians, Rope Access Technicians, Ecologists and specialist Consultants – working together with Admin teams, Sales staff, Estimators, Marketing teams, Finance and HR professionals. Our biggest strength lies in working together, pooling our shared experience and resources to deliver excellence for our clients.
5th August 2020
The government has released more information on its Green Homes Grant scheme.
Registered Office: 4 Pioneer Way, Castleford, West Yorkshire, WF10 5QU


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The mission of the MAT Special Education Program is to prepare teachers who are able to use effective pedagogy, both in instruction and classroom management in the P-12 setting for diverse learners with mild disabilities; committed and able to implement the application of principles of educational foundations based on high academic standards and best professional practice in the diverse learning needs of special education students with mild disabilities; committed to developing school and community partnerships that lead to addressing content in a variety of functional and academic areas so that students are prepared for graduation, post-secondary education, employment, and adult life; able to use reflective practices necessary to be effective teachers for students with diverse learning needs; and use technological resources as a tool for instruction, as well as for adaptive and assistance devices for students with disabilities in the P-12 setting .
The program supports the university mission of engagement by linking field experiences with coursework beginning with the junior semester and continuing through every semester until graduation. Teacher candidates are not only taught the concepts of identifying students with potential disabilities but participate in the collection of progress monitoring data, observation of the development of individualized instruction based on current educational standards, and the use of technology, included assistive technology to promote student growth and overall life success.
Student Learning Outcome 1 (Content Knowledge)
Graduates of the MAT in Special Education Program will demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of content needed to teach in interrelated disciplines as an independent teacher in a specialized setting or as a co-teacher in the general education setting. Candidates will:
a) Demonstrate an understanding of course content gained through Master's level coursework by,
i. completing a comprehensive review of current research related to special education and mild disabilities and,
ii. describing and comparing characteristics of student with disabilities with students without disabilities.
b) Evaluate current research and practice in special education.
c) Collect and evaluate student performance data.
Student Learning Outcome 2 (Instructional Planning)
Graduates of the MAT in Special Education Program will plan effective teaching and learning experiences for diverse learners. Candidates will:
a) Describe the learning environment and the diversity of learners.
b) Identify data collection methods to determine current student performance by,
i. choosing multiple assessments to assess student performance and,
ii. describing assessment results related to student performance.
c) Describe of instructional strategies that address deficiencies in student performance.
d) Interpret assessment outcomes related to student performance and needs.
e) Define a range of current resources related to the improvement of student performance, including technology.
Student Learning Outcome 3 (Instruction)
Graduates of the MAT in Special Education Program will apply effective teaching and learning experiences during clinical. Candidates will:
a) Describe data collection procedures to assess student performance,
b) Develop instructional goals to meet the needs of diverse learners,
c) Identify multiple instructional strategies used in the clinical setting for diverse learners including,
i. stating a rationale for the use of instructional strategies,
ii. stating a justification for appropriate pairing of instructional strategies to instructional goals and,
iii. describing subsequent instruction to meet diverse needs.
d) Identify multiple assessments to measure instructional goals including,
i. stating a rationale to justify data collection and,
ii. reporting student performance related to instructional goals.
e) Define instructional competencies to demonstrate an in-depth understanding of the content they teach including,
i. identifying professional dispositions that ensure that all students learn.
f) Define a range of current resources related to the improvement of student performance, including technology.
Student Learning Outcome 4 (Assessment)
Candidates will demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and dispositions needed to assess and analyze student learning, make appropriate adjustments to instruction, monitor student learning, and have a positive effect on learning for all students. Candidates will:
a) Identify assessments to assess and monitor student performance including,
i. selecting a pretest to assess the current student performance and,
ii. selecting a posttest to assess the progress of student performance.
b) Critique the impact of instruction on student performance data including,
i. analyzing negative trends and,
ii. predicting potential achievement.
c) Interpret assessment outcomes related to student performance and needs.
d) Describe instructional procedures to modify instruction based on student performance data.
e) Describe data collection, analysis, and interpretation of the assessment process.
Last updated: 2/26/2018
Master of Arts in Teaching • PO Box 8134 Statesboro, GA 30460 • (912) 478-5203


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This thread will highlight the milestones we pass on the development of foobar mobile. Initially it will be very illustration sparse, as the core of the player takes preference.
This thread will highlight the milestones we pass on the development of foobar mobile. Initially it will be very illustration sparse, as the core of the player takes preference.
31st July
Development work has officially started, we are very close to the first goal, so it is assured that the project goes ahead.
First priority is to get some of the core foobar classes (Windows) so they can work cross-platform, this work takes place now.
4th August
Essential parts of foobar2000 codebase now compile on Xcode/LLVM; we are going over the codebase getting rid of Microsoft OS & toolchain dependencies.
To those of you familiar with the foobar2000 SDK:
* PFC project now works with all major compilers that support C++11 (LLVM, GCC).
* PFC features that relied on Windows API now have POSIX equivalents (pfc::thread for an example).
* Various classes from 'helpers' have been moved to PFC for easier reuse.
* 'SDK' project defining all interfaces for foobar2000 components now works with LLVM compiler (GCC testing pending).
Some of these changes will soon make it to the public foobar2000 SDK, so anyone using PFC in their own projects will benefit from this as well.
14th August
The database design is complete and implemented on Windows, testing is almost finalized prior to porting to the various platforms.
24th August
Media indexer ported to iOS, next up android and windows phone.
27th August
We have audio playback in iOS simulator now - using foobar2000 engine ported to iOS. Tests on actual hardware pending.
Playback uses foobar2000 engine ported from Windows with all the features (playlists, ReplayGain, gapless, DSP capability), interfaced with Apple audio codecs for MP3 & AAC handling but using original foobar2000 demuxers for each format.
More to follow soon.


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Jaguar and Land Rover customers can now make use of a convenient new online booking facility to book their vehicles in for scheduled maintenance or any other services. This functionality is available through both the Jaguar and Land Rover websites, as well as the Jaguar Engage and Land Rover Engage smartphone applications for Apple and Android devices.
Lisa Mallett, Marketing Director, Jaguar Land Rover South Africa said:
"We put customers first in everything we do – from a warm welcome at one of our new dealerships to a seamless experience when booking a service. In this instance, research showed that nearly half of all customers prefer an electronic booking system for their convenience, so we invested in the technology to enable this."
Customers can visit the Jaguar or Land Rover booking pages to schedule their vehicles for a service, or visit their nearest dealer's specific website. The process walks customers through entering their vehicle details and specifying the services they require, ranging from scheduled maintenance to requested items. Every new Jaguar and Land Rover has a 5-year/100 000km Care Plan, which covers all service and maintenance costs. Customers with vehicles still under Care Plan, can simply select this option and complete their booking.
For customers who no longer have an active Care Plan and still wish to enjoy the full peace of mind of that comes with world-class Jaguar Land Rover service and original parts, the online booking system displays estimated pricing for service items, including parts and labour.
Finally, customers who create an online service booking can also select a service date and time that is most convenient for them. Options are also given to wait while the work is performed, in the case of minor service items; to request a shuttle for drop off and collection; or to book a courtesy vehicle, when available. To further aid convenience and planning, lead times are provided for all of the above options.
Jaguar and Land Rover online service booking is available now, via www.jaguar.co.za and www.landrover.co.za.


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For a long while we have been living in a world where most instances of Genius, and indeed most of the most talented people, are evil in their net effect.
By evil I mean quite precisely destructive of virtue, beauty and truth - as these transcendental values are traditionally conceptualized.
This applies almost wherever you look: philosophy, prose, poetry, music, science - and in more modern areas like journalism and comedy.
I am particularly impressed by the extent to which so much of comedy has been an agent of evil - especially satire. And I mean the most accomplished, most creative and innovative comedy - the funniest comedy: how it has culmulatively and almost sytematically attacked meaning, purpose, hope.
At any rate, this is one of the biggest problems of Western culture - the extent to which its greatest exemplars were evil; hence destructive of the basis of their own pre-eminence.
Indeed, this seems the norm: there are exceptions, but the evil Genius is the usual kind of Genius.


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Atheists: No God, no reason, just whiningSuperstar atheists are motivated by anger — and boohoo victimhood.
I can't stand atheists — but it's not because they don't believe in God. It's because they're crashing bores.
Other people, most recently the British cultural critic Terry Eagleton in his new book, "Faith, Reason, and Revolution," take to task such superstar nonbelievers as Oxford biologist Richard Dawkins ("The God Delusion") and political journalist Christopher Hitchens ("God Is Not Great") for indulging in a philosophically primitive opposition of faith and reason that assumes that if science can't prove something, it doesn't exist.
My problem with atheists is their tiresome — and way old — insistence that they are being oppressed and their fixation with the fine points of Christianity. What — did their Sunday school teachers flog their behinds with a Bible when they were kids?
Read Dawkins, or Hitchens, or the works of fellow atheists Sam Harris ("The End of Faith") and Daniel Dennett ("Breaking the Spell"), or visit an atheist website or blog (there are zillions of them, bearing such titles as "God Is for Suckers," "God Is Imaginary" and "God Is Pretend"), and your eyes will glaze over as you peruse — again and again — the obsessively tiny range of topics around which atheists circle like water in a drain.
First off, there's atheist victimology: Boohoo, everybody hates us 'cuz we don't believe in God. Although a recent Pew Forum survey on religion found that 16% of Americans describe themselves as religiously unaffiliated, only 1.6% call themselves atheists, with another 2.4% weighing in as agnostics (a group despised as wishy-washy by atheists). You or I might attribute the low numbers to atheists' failure to win converts to their unbelief, but atheists say the problem is persecution so relentless that it drives tens of millions of God-deniers into a closet of feigned faith, like gays before Stonewall.In his online "Atheist Manifesto," Harris writes that "no person, whatever his or her qualifications, can seek public office in the United States without pretending to be certain that … God exists." The evidence? Antique clauses in the constitutions of six — count 'em — states barring atheists from office.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled such provisions unenforceable nearly 50 years ago, but that doesn't stop atheists from bewailing that they have to hide their Godlessness from friends, relatives, employers and potential dates. One representative of the pity-poor-me school of atheism, Kathleen Goodman, writing in January for the Chronicle of Higher Education, went so far as to promote affirmative action for atheists on college campuses: specially designated, college-subsidized "safe spaces" for them to express their views.
Maybe atheists wouldn't be so unpopular if they stopped beating the drum until the hide splits on their second-favorite topic: How stupid people are who believe in God. This is a favorite Dawkins theme. In a recent interview with Trina Hoaks, the atheist blogger for the Examiner.com website, Dawkins described religious believers as follows: "They feel uneducated, which they are; often rather stupid, which they are; inferior, which they are; and paranoid about pointy-headed intellectuals from the East Coast looking down on them, which, with some justification, they do." Thanks, Richard!
Dennett likes to call atheists "the Brights," in contrast to everybody else, who obviously aren't so bright. In a 2006 essay describing his brush with death after a heart operation, Dennett wrote these thoughts about his religious friends who told him they were praying for his recovery: "Thanks, I appreciate it, but did you also sacrifice a goat?" With friends like Daniel Dennett, you don't need enemies.
Then there's P.Z. Myers, biology professor at the University of Minnesota's Morris campus, whose blog, Pharyngula, is supposedly about Myers' field, evolutionary biology, but is actually about his fanatical propensity to label religious believers as "idiots," "morons," "loony" or "imbecilic" in nearly every post. The university deactivated its link to Myers' blog in July after he posted a photo of a consecrated host from a Mass that he had pierced with a rusty nail and thrown into the garbage ("I hope Jesus' tetanus shots are up to date") in an effort to prove that Catholicism is bunk — or something.
Myers' blog exemplifies atheists' frenzied fascination with Christianity and the Bible. Atheist website after atheist website insists that Jesus either didn't exist or "was a jerk" (in the words of one blogger) because he didn't eliminate smallpox or world poverty. At the American Atheists website, a writer complains that God "set up" Adam and Eve, knowing in advance that they would eat the forbidden fruit. A blogger on A Is for Atheist has been going through the Bible chapter by chapter and verse by verse in order to prove its "insanity" (he or she had gotten up to the Book of Joshua when I last looked).
Another topic that atheists beat like the hammer on the anvil in the old Anacin commercials is Darwinism versus creationism. Maybe Darwin-o-mania stems from the fact that this year marks the bicentennial of Charles Darwin's birth in 1809, but haven't atheists heard that many religious people (including the late Pope John Paul II) don't have a problem with evolution but, rather, regard it as God's way of letting his living creation unfold? Furthermore, even if human nature as we know it is a matter of lucky adaptations, how exactly does that disprove the existence of God?
And then there's the question of why atheists are so intent on trying to prove that God not only doesn't exist but is evil to boot. Dawkins, writing in "The God Delusion," accuses the deity of being a "petty, unjust, unforgiving control freak" as well as a "misogynistic, homophobic, racist … bully." If there is no God — and you'd be way beyond stupid to think differently — why does it matter whether he's good or evil?
The problem with atheists — and what makes them such excruciating snoozes — is that few of them are interested in making serious metaphysical or epistemological arguments against God's existence, or in taking on the serious arguments that theologians have made attempting to reconcile, say, God's omniscience with free will or God's goodness with human suffering. Atheists seem to assume that the whole idea of God is a ridiculous absurdity, the "flying spaghetti monster" of atheists' typically lame jokes. They think that lobbing a few Gaza-style rockets accusing God of failing to create a world more to their liking ("If there's a God, why aren't I rich?" "If there's a God, why didn't he give me two heads so I could sleep with one head while I get some work done with the other?") will suffice to knock down the entire edifice of belief.
What primarily seems to motivate atheists isn't rationalism but anger — anger that the world isn't perfect, that someone forced them to go to church as children, that the Bible contains apparent contradictions, that human beings can be hypocrites and commit crimes in the name of faith. The vitriol is extraordinary. Hitchens thinks that "religion spoils everything." Dawkins contends that raising one's offspring in one's religion constitutes child abuse. Harris argues that it "may be ethical to kill people" on the basis of their beliefs. The perennial atheist litigant Michael Newdow sued (unsuccessfully) to bar President Obama from uttering the words "so help me God" when he took his oath of office.
What atheists don't seem to realize is that even for believers, faith is never easy in this world of injustice, pain and delusion. Even for believers, God exists just beyond the scrim of the senses. So, atheists, how about losing the tired sarcasm and boring self-pity and engaging believers seriously?
Charlotte Allen is the author of "The Human Christ: The Search for the Historical Jesus" and a contributing editor to the Minding the Campus website of the Manhattan Institute.
I can't stand atheists — but it's not because they don't believe in God. It's because they're crashing bores.
Liberal L. A. Times knows how idiotic the New Atheists are!
11 Comments on "I can't stand atheists — but it's not because they don't believe in God. It's because they're crashing bores."
October 31, 2009 at 6:34 am
The reason atheists cant run for office is because your country is run by christians who think were all a bunch of hedonistic nhilists bent on the destruction of god, and that since we're somehow evil because we disagree of a few things as to whats considered moral. the prejudiced ingrained in the american publics minds about atheists (you posted on this yourself about how atheists are the least trusted people in america) will keep them out of office. I'ts no different than being afraid of blacks because you think theyre all criminals.
Atheists have no moral compass to guide them by, hence they cannot distinquish between wrong and right outside of what the law says.These facts explain why atheists interpret the Bible as they do — as a volume of "babble" and full of nonexistent contradictions. Atheism is not elevated enough to allow even its most educated subjects to understand the Bible. Therefore the Bible puzzles them as calculus puzzles the dimwitted.
Atheism make dimwits of all its subjects and makes the most "learned" or "educated" more dimwitted than the ignorant. Not only does atheism prevent atheists from properly understanding the TEN COMMANDMENTS and the Bible, but it prevents their minds from being elevated enough to understand the simplest common sense facts.
For example: It is the educated atheist who get the roles of males and females mixed up, and who think homosexuality and lesbianism are normal. It is the atheist who can't tell whether a human is human while he or she is yet in the womb. It is the atheist who gets justice mixed up and who thinks the innocent human embryo and fetus should get the penalty of death and the criminal murderer ought to get life for his death worthy crime. It is the atheist who thinks the terminally ill ought to receive the sentence of death for their noncriminal sicknesses. It is the atheists who condemns the righteous and exonerates the wicked. The list of examples can go on and on.
November 6, 2009 at 5:30 am
Erase the past minitrue! WAR IS PEACE, FREEDOM IS SLAVERY, IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH!
and atheism id deliberate ignorance.
January 16, 2011 at 6:59 am
That was a pathetic argument. It's obvious why atheists ask these questions "over and over," they aren't getting any kind of legitamite answer from theists. Why aren't they getting any answers? Because there are none.
So get of your high horse and take a nice tall glass of shut the hell up.
March 15, 2011 at 12:01 am
An interesting perspective. I suppose that after having people try to convert us or save us from ourselves so many times, we generalize you almost as much as you generalize us. Perhaps it would do both parties good to step back and/or shut up.
August 15, 2011 at 4:38 pm
Actually Ben it would be better if you'd shut up. I'm quite enjoying atheiststooges and hope the blog continues!
August 15, 2011 at 4:41 pm
PS and for the most part I couldn't care less about converting you Ben. Most of the time among the people I work its ALWAYS the atheists jumping on some perceived injustice ("oh my did you see what the new receptionist put on her desk!–its a picture of her new baby in communion clothes! I'm phoning the manager!!")
December 6, 2011 at 5:21 pm
Also, I love the line that says 'no god, no reason'. If that is not a load of s***, then I don't know what is. God is faith, and faith (blind faith) has NOTHING to do with reason, because the whole concept and definition of faith is 'without/despite of reason'. Way to go, Christianity, you've made fools out of yourselves yet again.
And also, 'Jakes'? Don't touch the keyboard if you don't have anything substantial to say.
["oh my did you see what the new receptionist put on her desk!–its a picture of her new baby in communion clothes! I'm phoning the manager!!"]
Point One: A mature, working adult would not speak in such a manner. Therefore, you are a child, or are illiterate.
Point Two: How is that an offense? Now, you are just drawing for straws in thin air. Get some actual logic.
November 2, 2012 at 11:47 am
I'm tired of this BS. At the end of the day, atheism is right, because gods are all completely fiction. Deal.
May 17, 2013 at 7:33 am
The ongoing (and ongoing…) theme of ex-christians (who obviously were so not) is they regarded our Lord as if He is a vending machine and they're mad because they got Twinkies and not the donuts
Pushing the wrong button does that. Love your blog.


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There was an amazing list of things that a white boy growing up in Virginia wasn't allowed to do – not in the 1950s. You couldn't use the same restrooms as blacks, couldn't eat at the same restaurants as blacks, couldn't swim in the same pools or even at the same public beaches as blacks, couldn't stay in the same hotels as blacks. And you never, ever drank from the same water fountain as blacks.
As Virginians and Southerners, we were inculcated with a belief that black people – coloreds was the term used at the time – were beyond inferior, they were physically dangerous to be near. This was simply the way we were raised. We were taught not so much loath blacks as to fear them.
Today these views seem laughable, quaint and deeply offensive. But they were real at the time, and were the law of the land in many Southern states like mine. In 1959, the state of Virginia went a step too far by closing the Norfolk city schools because one black girl had been enrolled in my high school. This was the beginning of the end of Jim Crow laws, at least in the cities. Rural Virginia remained (and may still be) a bastion of racist beliefs and actions.
I'm reminded of how odd all of this seems in the year 2012 by the vote in North Carolina to prohibit same-sex marriage. A few years from now someone is likely to write a wide-eyed, startling account of this time, noting how people's inculcated, heart-felt beliefs did not jibe with fairness or equal rights.
What's true about marriage is that it is a civil event that is often linked to a religious ceremony. What's also true is that the views we sometimes hold in our hearts are irrational and formed by fear rather than logic. The argument that same-sex marriage threatens traditional marriages stands as a stark parallel to the "danger" I was taught lurked within every dark-skinned person. It is a ghost, a fiction that some find useful in protecting their turf.
I do not believe that my marriage (now 45 years strong) is in any way threatened by the existence of a same-sex relationship, and neither do I believe it to be threatened when that relationship is transformed into a marriage. Unless we plan to return to an era when any act of homosexuality is banned, we're not going to be able to prohibit gay and lesbian liaisons – just the legal act of marriage. But oh, how important is that legal act. It provides people with rights and privileges that married couples take for granted. For example, the right to visit a desperately ill mate in the hospital is often denied without a legal marriage in place. Insurance protections and custody rights are also in jeopardy without a marriage license.
Looking back on Jim Crow Virginia in the 1950s, I find myself amazed that intelligent people could have practiced such virulent forms of racism, and that we could deny individuals their rights on the basis of unproven "facts" and emotion-laden opinions. I'm thankful that we did not take votes on these issues lest our history prove even more discomfiting.
Which brings us to the vote in North Carolina. I'm inclined to believe that people will look back on even the attempt to deny the right of two consenting same-sex adults to marry as an indictment of deep-seated prejudices based in passion rather than dispassionate thinking.
Even the state House Speaker – who backed the anti-gay marriage position – acknowledged that it is "a generational issue…. I think it will be repealed within 20 years."
Hence the success of this effort will prove the ultimate embarrassment in future years. People should remember the South's Jim Crow past as they contemplate its intolerant present.