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Lots of folks who want to improve their lives (e.g. to be accepted by God, to get closer to God, to be loved more by God, to gain God's approval and blessing) try real hard to be a good Christian. The operative word here is "try".
But "good" Christians don't exist. In addition, if someone is declared a " Good" Christian that means somewhere there has to be a bad Christian and a better Christian and a poor Christian. Do you see the judgmental comparison trap we'd get ourselves into?
The moment we "try" to improve our lot as a "Christian" we take the focus off God and place it squarely on our self effort.
In God's Kingdom what we do on our own doesn't count for anything. The only thing that counts in God's Kingdom is surrender to Christ's life allowing him to live His life through us. Christ wants to live His life (not ours) in us, through us, and as us to bring Glory to God. Period.
I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remains in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5.
I taught an adult Sunday School class for years. Our focus for the lessons was always centered on our identity in Christ. Our mission statement was helping each other know, believe, understand, and live out of our true identity in Christ. We taught that allowing Christ to do everything in us and for us and through us would be all we needed to live our lives as disciples o're going to f Christ. During one our lessons about our true identity in Christ, a lady asked me, "But don't we have to do SOMETHING? (she was coming out of a lifelong Catholic background).
"No, " I said. "If we're going to become authentic followers of Christ we have to surrender our old ways of self sufficiency and allow Jesus to live his life through us and do everything."
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. Galatians 2:20.
Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:4-5ing Christ to live His life
So, if we are allowing Christ to live His life through us God's Word calls us Saints, not Christians.


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Tonight, either you or someone you know are probably taking a stand, marching, and speaking out against sexual assault. We join in unity for "Take Back the Night," an international community awareness movement in which rape, sexual assault, and victim shaming are brought to light and denounced. It is an event which originated in Europe, … Continue reading Writing Update and "Take Back the Night"
Month: April 2017
Lessons to Practice #12: Emotionally Charging Your Scenes
Hello and good evening, faithful audience. For this next installment of my "Lessons to Practice" series, I'm taking a closer look at the way in which we bring scenes alive in order to sustain a viable, engaging, and memorable story. In my humble opinion, the most critical key to making a scene grab my readers … Continue reading Lessons to Practice #12: Emotionally Charging Your Scenes
Life Update and New Pinterest Character Board
This week life has been astoundingly great to me. I finally got my counseling license in the mail, which I had been worried about for the past several weeks (insert subtle panic attack here). I also took the final step in securing my next job opportunity, which I will have more details on next week. But most … Continue reading Life Update and New Pinterest Character Board
Lessons to Practice #11: Plotting a Hero's Journey (Part 2 of 2)
I have a super awesome announcement tonight: this past Monday, at around 11:41 AM, I completed my first draft of book 1 in my trilogy, The Virility Project! This is by far my largest and most thematically complex work of fiction to date, and one whose idea I first conceived waaay back in early 2009. After a couple … Continue reading Lessons to Practice #11: Plotting a Hero's Journey (Part 2 of 2)
What are My Inspirations for Writing?
Hello and happy Thursday! How's your night going? I want to thank you - yes, you - in advance for spending at least part of it reading my post. Now that I've settled into a very consistent writing schedule, writing and editing (both line and developmental) six days a week, I thought I would take … Continue reading What are My Inspirations for Writing?
Lessons to Practice #10: Plotting a Hero's Journey (Part 1 of 2)
Hello! I hope this blog post finds you well. I'd like to thank Akaluv, The Eye-Dancers, Meher, and thesarahdoughty for stopping by and liking one or several of my Lessons to Practice posts over the past few weeks. You all help me keep my motivation alive 🙂 Last week, I briefly explored the archetypal three-act … Continue reading Lessons to Practice #10: Plotting a Hero's Journey (Part 1 of 2)
Reading Update: The Pain Behind Dark Comedy
Hello and good evening! I hope you're having a good night and enjoying it in the loving company of either yourself or those closest to you. In mulling over what I said about my current readings last Saturday, I encountered some deep personal feelings about the pitch-black comedy of David Foster Wallace. I used words like "hilarious" … Continue reading Reading Update: The Pain Behind Dark Comedy
Lessons to Practice #9: The Plot Points vs. Hero's Journey Approach
I want to craft a stellar plot. At the end of the day, that is one of my biggest dreams: to compel readers to follow the ups and downs of my story, to take away a great deal of emotional and moral heft, and incorporate my work in some way into their own lives. However, as grand … Continue reading Lessons to Practice #9: The Plot Points vs. Hero's Journey Approach
Reading Update: From YA to Verbal Gymnastics
Greetings! I apologize for uploading this blog post two days behind my set schedule. I took some Me time Thursday to make ravioli from scratch with friends, then go to the movies. We went and saw Ghost in the Shell, and I was blown away at how faithfully the live-action adaptation followed the first two anime movies … Continue reading Reading Update: From YA to Verbal Gymnastics

subset: commoncrawl


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Perched amongst a canopy of 100 year old trees overlooking the Sabie River the style is that of a luxurious treehouse where the main areas link via raised wooden walkways to the nine private suites. If you are looking for a Lodge which has a closer connection to its landscape yet offers private luxury as defined then Narina has achieved this perfect blend of style and experience. Each suite extends out to a private deck with plunge pool and exquisite views.
Enjoy exciting morning and afternoon game drives through Tinga and the world-renowned Kruger in search of the wildlife which inhabit the region. Return to the lodge for delicious meals served in the open-plan dining area.
9 Beautifully appointed Suites
Open all year
A superb number of activities are available from Narina Lodge.
Guests can chose to take part on morning and evening game drives in open safari vehicles and a great way to get to know the Lion Sands concession and you can also head out on bush walks. This is an extraordinary wildlife hotspot. All Big 5 are in residence here – lion, leopard, elephant, cape buffalo and rhino. Other species include jackal, cheetah, giraffe, hippo, zebra and many antelope species. The birdlife is also spectacular in Kruger, including raptors.
The guides are all trained experts on the more specialist areas of bird watching and astronomy. Also there are wonderful surprises to fill your day including bush dinners and breakfasts, wildlife lectures, wellness treatments and local village experiences.
Lots of varied activities including boma dinners, bush breakfasts, wellness treatments in the Africology Spa, wildlife lectures and village/school visits.


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Deconstructing GH: At Least This Mob War Is More Interesting Than Sonny vs. Cyrus With Jason Saving the Day
February 24 - 28:
General Hospital started out relatively slow at the beginning of the week, with a lot of whining from Brook Lynn and Brad, but kicked into high gear later as Cyrus' men made their move against Taggert and the teens found themselves in dangerous situations.
Tightening the screws
Julian's finally beginning to face the consequences of helping Brad keep Wiley. He's been forced to hire a top-notch lawyer to get Brad out of jail. One guess says it's going to be Martin. Now Brook Lynn is threatening him if he doesn't help her deal with Linc. It was nice to see Ava lend her brother a hand, though in the process she's realized she can use Brook Lynn and Nikolas' relationship to her own advantage in getting out of her marriage. Still, Julian and Ava have always had great sibling chemistry, and watching them scheme together should be entertaining. Hopefully, they find a way to stick it to Brook Lynn, because her entitlement issues are headache-inducing. It was great to see Olivia fire her and Ned cut the brat off.
More: Wally Kurth's indie film Really Beautiful
Willow's heartbreak continues
Watching Willow continue to struggle with coming to terms with the truth is gutwrenching. Listening to her talk about her baby dying all alone, with nobody there who loved him, then to be handed over to Nelle and mourned by Michael who was grieving the wrong child was a punch in the stomach. And for her to question if things would have turned out differently if she kept the baby, heartbreaking! Michael asking her to remain a part of Wiley's life as an aunt-like figure was a kind gesture on his part.
Oh Molly
We haven't seen much of Molly in a while, but her latest return has been nothing but her harping on weddings and the bridal industry, not knowing that poor TJ was planning to propose. It became tiresome fast. And when TJ finally did propose, she turned him down because she's been turned off marriage by her mother's failed marriages. This storyline came out of nowhere and felt forced as if the powers that be just wanted to find something to do with Molly and TJ, who are rarely on as is.
More: Soap stars celebrate women in horror month
Unlikely partnership
Taggert made a proposition to Sonny that they work together to take down Cyrus, which Jordan initially opposed. However, one by one, Jordan, Sonny and Taggert are realizing they have no choice but to team up to take Cyrus down. If we are going to get a mob war, at least this is making it somewhat more interesting than just Sonny versus Cyrus with Jason saving the day. With Laura also vowing to do what she has to keep Port Charles safe, things are likely to get a whole lot messier before they get better.
More: GH stars answer fans questions
The winter formal
The big teen dance, that nobody made it to, was this week. Cam and Trina convinced Joss to go so they could put their plan to get Cam and Joss together into motion. However, it appears the only thing that changed Joss' mind was learning Dustin was chaperoning. It looks like Joss has a crush!
Going to? She is already there and will be a mini Carly, get him drunk and crawl in bed with him.
— Allison Phelps (@AllisonGroves57) February 27, 2020
While Cam and Trina were busy being kidnapped by their rideshare driver, Joss and Dev snuck out and were promptly caught by Brando. A fuming Carly confronted Dev with a bullet she found in his backpack, which Brando quickly deduced was a message from Cyrus. I was shocked in last week's Deconstructing GH that Dev was being sent away to boarding school. But with this turn of events, Dev was being kept in Port Charles. Also, Brando is a sharp cookie and Sonny should consider hiring him to keep him around.
I hope he's undercover and will try to take Sonny down, but I'm sure that's wishful thinking.
— justterri09 (@justterri09) February 28, 2020
Kidnapping showdown
Curtis and Taggert set out to rescue Cam and Trina, who were kidnapped by Cyrus' men. Sydney Mikayla (Trina) and William Lipton (Cameron) were absolutely fantastic in their scenes, and maybe this ordeal will bring them together. Jason also sprung into action, and surprisingly Taggert was shot during the gunfire exchanges. Friday's episode ended with his apparent death. However, the teaser scenes for next week suggest he survives. If the show is going to have a mob war then at least someone major needs to be a casualty, otherwise it's a pretty unrealistic mob war.
These are simply my thoughts and observations on this week's episode. Please join the conversation below with your own thoughts!


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Professional real estate photography is only one of the services we offer you when creating an exposé. From the compilation of meaningful data to the target group-oriented text creation to virtual video tours, we are well positioned to ensure that your property in Hamburg, Croatia or Spain makes a good first impression on prospective buyers.
An exposé by Jürgen Weiss Immobilien contains:
Whether your property is located in Hamburg, Croatia or Spain, as an experienced and well-connected real estate agent, we ensure a high-quality exposé in each of our areas of activity. As with the entire brokerage process, this step is also completely stress-free for you. We collect all necessary documents and official data, book photographers and use our professional equipment to present your house or apartment in a meaningful way. We focus on a customer-oriented approach in the descriptive texts and market your property to specific target groups via numerous channels such as real estate portals, print media or social networks.
Thanks to our industry experience, we know which marketing strategy suits which target group. That's why we not only use our professional photographers to put your property in the right light, but also offer more modern forms of presentation that appeal to younger target groups in particular. Using the latest 360° camera technology, we create innovative video tours, for a virtual tour of the property. In addition, our digital floor plan drawings stimulate the imagination of prospective buyers and give your real estate exposé the expressiveness it needs to convince potential buyers.
Contact us if you are planning a sale or rental in Hamburg and tell us about your property. We will be happy to advise you and, after we have gained a personal impression, we will create a suitable marketing strategy, including a high-quality real estate exposé. We are available for you by phone as well as via our contact form and look forward to welcoming you soon at Jürgen Weiss Immobilien.


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Army Recognition
ADEX 2016 Official Online Show Daily News & Official Web TV
2nd Azerbaijan International Defence Exhibition
27 - 30 September 2016
Baku, Azerbaijan
Poly Defence at ADEX 2016
ADEX 2016: Poly Defence exhibits its new HZ 51M mechanized bridge
The Chinese defense company Poly Defence presents a new type of mechanized bridge here in Baku, during this 2nd edition of ADEX exhibition. The HZ 51M fast mechanized bridge is a set of military equipment already in active service in "several different countries, including China", a representative of Poly Defence told Army Recognition.
The HZ 51M complete set is composed of one erection vehicle and six transportation vehicles.
The bridge is 17 – 51 m long, 4 m wide and features a high-speed deployment capability ensure all sorts of vehicles with a tracked load of up to 55 tons or an axle load of up to 13 tons to rapidly cross any obstacle.
The erection and retrieval time of a complete 51 m-long bridge is 60 min. The design using longevity is 10 000 times, according to Poly Defence information. The whole system can be loaded by a crew of 3-4 men and operates at temperature from -41°C to + 50°C.


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Rush Limbaugh of "The Rush Limbaugh Show, " has announced that he is currently battling advanced lung cancer.
The radio host made the announcement Monday after two medical institutions confirmed his status on January 20th.
According to reports, Rush went in for a check up after noticing something was wrong on January 12th.
He now plans to take several days off from the show to undergo treatment.


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As shops begin to open and life may seem to be returning to a 'new' normal, you may be thinking of returning to the shops and joining that ever-long queue to grab a bargain at Primark.
Challenging the 'trends culture'
The culture of trend shopping is damaging. Not only does it perpetuate inequalities within society but is extremely detrimental to our planet and those working along supply chains. If COVID-19 has highlighted anything, it is that as consumers we have become more conscious of what we buy, as we are faced with a change in our everyday priorities and lifestyles. Only shopping for essentials has shown us that prioritising needs over wants for the first time in decades is actually not that difficult. However, the fact that it's taken a global pandemic to highlight this, only shows the importance of this message: trend culture is harmful to people and the planet.
Some thoughts on sustainable fashion
It's Fashion Revolution week. A week that remembers the horrors of the Rana Plaza factory collapse in 2013 and fights for much needed change in the fashion industry. This week may go by fast and you may blink and miss this campaign, but it's crucial that current fashion habits of trend buying begin to slow if we are to make a substantial difference to the harmful and detrimental effects of the current fashion industry on the world's poorest and our suffering environment.
Sustainable Fashion Tips
Being aware of alternatives to the high street has certainly made me more conscientious when purchasing clothes. I'd figured I'd write up a few ideas of how I am attempting to become more sustainable and yet still allow myself to enjoy shopping and fashion, whilst having a wardrobe to be proud of.


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"He's A Hypocrite": Why I Was Wrong About Chris Christie
A year ago, I wrote: "The smartest move in politics today is to move against Washington and the two major parties. And the smartest man in politics may be Chris Christie." I take it back.
At the time, the New Jersey governor had channeled the public's disgust with political dysfunction, chastising House Republican leaders for refusing to allow a vote on a Hurricane Sandy relief bill. Christie said the game-playing that derailed the relief bill showed "why the American people hate Congress." He accused his own party's leadership for "selfishness," "duplicity," and moral failure.
His approval rating topped 70 percent.
Now his numbers are dropping, because he wasn't so smart. Rather than stay true to his post-partisan image, Christie ran a hyper-political governor's office that focused relentlessly on a big re-election win to position him for a 2016 presidential race. In this zero-sum gain culture, Christie enabled (if not directly ordered) an infamous abuse of power: the closure of traffic lanes on the George Washington Bridge in a fit of political retribution.
If not criminal, it was pretty damn stupid. His reputation is in tatters. Reporting a poll conducted jointly with ABC News, Philip Rucker and Scott Clement of the Washington Post wrote:
Christie has benefited from the perception that he has unique appeal among independents and some Democrats, a reputation the governor burnished with his 2013 reelection in his strongly Democratic state.
But that image has been tarnished, the survey finds. More Democrats now view Christie unfavorably than favorably, with independents divided. Republicans, meanwhile, have a lukewarm opinion, with 43 percent viewing him favorably and 33 percent unfavorably. Overall, 35 percent of Americans see him favorably and 40 percent unfavorably.
Christie has fallen from first to third among potential GOP presidential candidates, according to the Washington Post–ABC News poll, behind Rep. Paul Ryan and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.
A plurality of respondents said the bridge episode represents a pattern of abuse in Christie's office. While most Republicans give him the benefit of the doubt, 60 percent of Democrats and half of all independents don't think it was an isolated incident. There is good reason for the suspicion.
First, the governor is deeply engaged in the minutia of his office, an operation that doesn't discriminate between politics and policy. As the New York Times reported this week in a must-read analysis:
Mr. Christie has said that he had not been aware of his office's involvement in the maneuver, and nothing has directly tied to him to it. But a close look at his operation and how intimately he was involved in it, described in interviews with dozens of people — Republican and Democrat, including current and former Christie administration officials, elected leaders and legislative aides — gives credence to the puzzlement expressed by some Republicans and many Democrats in the state, who question how a detail-obsessed governor could have been unaware of the closings or the effort over months to cover up the political motive.
In other words, how stupid do you think we are, governor? Christie either knew or should have known that his administration was snarling Fort Lee in traffic and endangering lives.
Second, the governor's team is now under siege. Everything they've done and will do is cast in suspicion. Accusations that previously might have brought them a benefit of the doubt are now filtered by scandal. Like the Times story today about pressure applied to the Hoboken mayor to support a development project favored by Christie. The leverage his team used against the mayor: flood relief linked to Hurricane Sandy.
The Christie administration's actions were little different from the game-playing of the House Republicans that drew his wrath a year ago. A politician trying to smartly distance himself from Washington can't be a hypocrite.
Having leaned too far over my skis a year ago, I'm not prepared to write Christie's political obituary today. But there is a growing sense of how it might read, starting with what I wrote after Christie's mea culpa news conference Jan. 9:
While Christie said many of the right things in a lengthy and wide-ranging new conference—the contrast to President Obama's response to 2013 controversies was unmistakable—his actions were far from dispositive. We don't know how voters in New Jersey and beyond will assess his truthfulness. We can't predict whether the investigations will uncover more wrongdoing. And we need to find out whether the George Washington Bridge incident is isolated, or part of a pattern of abuse.
In the three weeks since that column, polls suggest a good number of Americans doubt his veracity and wonder whether he was running a corrupt administration. Voters aren't dumb.
By: Ron Fournier, The National Journal, January 30, 2014
"Standing With The People": Democratic Governors and Statehouse Candidates To Adopt Obama's Minimum-Wage Message
Democratic governors and candidates competing in battleground states are planning to make a minimum-wage increase a centerpiece of this year's campaigns, taking the baton from President Obama's State of the Union address Tuesday night, according to a memo shared with National Journal.
Raising the wage was a core part of Obama's larger theme of boosting "opportunity" for all, and it's a policy that Democrats running for statehouses think will help them politically, according to the memo from the Democratic Governors Association.
"No issue better crystalizes the broader debate between 2014 Democratic and Republican gubernatorial candidates than that of a minimum wage hike," DGA Communications Director Danny Kanner says in the memo.
This is a big year for the Democratic Governors Association, given the number of Republican governors swept in during the 2010 wave who are now up for reelection.
Republican governors from Florida to Wisconsin have consistently opposed efforts to raise the minimum wage, and Dems think that choice will come back to bite the GOP. The DGA points to a recent Wall Street Journal poll showing 63 percent of Americans support raising the wage and a separate Quinnipiac poll showing a plurality of Republican voters agree.
While it's not surprising that Democrats would echo the president on a central policy goal, raising the minimum wage has until recently been seen as the domain of the party's progressive wing and an issue that candidates in battleground states might shy away from.
But that doesn't seem to be the case when it comes to a handful of gubernatorial races, at least. In Maine, while Republican Gov. Paul LePage has vetoed legislation to raise the minimum wage, Rep. Michael Michaud, the presumed Democratic nominee, cosponsored a bill in the House to raise the wage nationwide.
Democrat Mark Schauer, who is hoping to oust Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, has proposed boosting the wage to $9.25 an hour and indexing it to inflation, and said he would make hiking it a top priority if elected.
In Iowa, Jack Hatch wants to go even further and raise the wage to $10.10, which would give the important political state the highest minimum wage in the country. Charlie Crist, the Republican-turned-Democrat former governor, who is running to reclaim his old seat in Florida's statehouse, also supports setting the wage at $10.10.
Meanwhile in Illinois, where Democrats are hoping to defend Gov. Pat Quinn as he heads into a tough reelection battle, all four Republican challengers oppose Quinn's proposal to boost the wage.
And Democrats think the message will resonate as well in redder states like Kansas, where they're hoping to push aside Republican Gov. Sam Brownback.
Kanner says Democrats will use the minimum wage to present a larger economic message.
"These are two starkly different economic philosophies, and the minimum wage debate makes that clear. In this case, Democrats are standing with the American people while Republicans, once again, thumb their nose at them," he said.
By: Alex Seitz-Wald, The National Journal, January 29, 2014
"Back Street Abortions?": New Law Could Force All Of Louisiana's Abortion Clinics To Close
Women in Louisiana could lose all access to abortion services if the state succeeds in enacting a secretive overhaul of its clinic regulations. The requirements are so stringent that every one of the five clinics currently operating in Louisiana would have to close, according to a lawyer advising the clinics. The new regulatory framework would also impose a de facto 30-day waiting period for many women—an exceptional requirement.
"What it amounts to is a back door abortion ban," said Ellie Schilling, a New Orleans attorney. "The way the [Department of Health and Hospitals] went about passing these regulations was in a secretive and undemocratic way. The public definitely doesn't know what's going on."
DHH enacted the overhaul just before Thanksgiving, when it passed the rules as an emergency measure, effective immediately—exempting them from the normal comment period. None of the clinics were given notice; one heard about the declaration of emergency from anti-abortion protestors.
It isn't clear what emergency the agency was responding to. There has been virtually no reporting on the new rules, and DHH did not respond to questions submitted Monday. The Declaration of Emergency states that the agency proposed the licensing standards in order to comply with two acts passed by the Louisiana legislature in 2013, but a complete overhaul goes well beyond their demands. DHH formally declared its intentions to make the emergency rules permanent in December.
According to Schilling, the law gives the agency the ability to shut down every existing clinic in Louisiana immediately, by imposing new space requirements that none of the existing clinics meets. Providers would lose some of their rights to appeal noncompliance citations, while new and complex documentation and staffing requirements create more opportunities for DHH to cite clinics for deficiencies. "Deficiencies are used to create this impression of clinics being repeat offenders, and that's a basis for revoking their license," explained Schilling.
The regulatory overhaul would also give the state tools to prevent new clinics from getting a license. Proposed facilities—like a $4.2 million Planned Parenthood health center on South Claiborne Avenue in New Orleans—would have to prove to DHH that their services are needed; it's unclear what criteria the agency would use to determine need. "It certainly seems that one intention is to prohibit Planned Parenthood from entering the market," Schilling said. (Planned Parenthood clinics in Louisiana do not currently offer abortion services. "We are evaluating all our options" in light of the regulations, a spokesperson said.)
The new rules place a significant, unjustified burden on women by requiring that they undergo blood tests at least a month before an abortion procedure. That means that unless a patient happens to have gone to the doctor previously and had those tests done by chance, she will face a mandatory 30-day waiting period.
"I've never seen anything like this. It's pretty outrageous," said Elizabeth Nash, state issues manager at the Guttmacher Institute.
Louisiana already has a 20-week cutoff, and so the waiting period could dramatically shorten the window in which women are legally allowed to have abortions. There is no medical rationale for conducting those particular tests so far in advance; they are routinely conducted by providers prior to an abortion, and legislation passed in 2003 that tightened the laws governing Louisiana's abortion providers stipulated that they had to be done within 30 days of the procedure. To the contrary, forcing women to delay the procedures increases their expense, and raise the risk of complications.
Dozens of other states have passed waiting periods or regulations, known as Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers, or TRAP laws, which single out abortion providers with burdensome rules. But Nash said that a de facto 30 day waiting period combined with requiring clinics to prove need for their services makes Louisiana's law striking. "It's a great way to eliminate access," said Nash.
All that's stopping the state from completing the overhaul, Schilling said, is going through the motions of a public hearing. One is scheduled for Wednesday morning in Baton Rouge, but bad weather threatens to cancel it. It isn't clear if the state would hold another hearing, as it was already scheduled at the very end of the comment period. Legal challenges would surely follow, but as Nash warned, rolling back clinic regulations in the courts is challenging.
"As it is right now, you have to go to the major cities to have procedure done. If these clinics close, where will the patients go? Then what are we back to? Back street abortions?" said Missy Cuevas, who is fighting a legal battle with the state after her New Orleans clinic lost its license a little over a year ago. With more than two decades of work in women's health, Cueva has seen the burden on Louisiana women grow as regulators clamp down. Five to ten women still call every day looking for services, even though she's been closed for so long.
"If we make it any more difficult, where are the patients going to go—Houston? Atlanta? My patients can't afford to go to Baton Rouge from New Orleans, much less to Houston or Atlanta. It's going to force women to go back to what they used to do before, and women will die."
By: Zoe Carpenter, The Nation, January 27, 2014
"Not A Smart Media Strategy": The RNC's Endless, Misguided War With MSNBC
Someone at MSNBC offends Republicans. Conservatives explode. MSNBC apologizes. Rinse, and repeat.
This is the cycle we've seen play out several times in the past few months, with the spat reaching a new high (low?) point this week with a tweet from the TV network suggesting Republicans are racist.
"Maybe the rightwing will hate it, but everyone else will go awww: the adorable new #Cheerios ad w/ biracial family," read the tweet, which has since been deleted.
Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus quickly called for a boycott, saying no RNC staffers, officials, pundits, or strategists would appear on MSNBC until the network apologized. In short order, MSNBC President Phil Griffin personally did so, calling the remark "outrageous and unacceptable" and saying the person responsible had been fired. Priebus then called off the boycott, instead placing MSNBC on "probation."
Sure, the tweet was an offensive cheap shot. So, too, was former anchor Martin Bashir's statement that someone should defecate on Sarah Palin, and the comments made by guests on Melissa Harris-Perry's show about Mitt Romney's adopted black grandson.
Still, it's unclear what purpose is served by dialing the outrage machine up to 11 over a few dumb remarks made on cable TV. Is it to discredit MSNBC? Well, in a PPP poll this week, registered voters named Fox News, once again, the most trusted TV news source. MSNBC came in second to last, at six percent — ahead of only NBC, and tied with Comedy Central.
In other words, the RNC is maligning an oft-maligned network, which, contrary to popular opinion, is not beloved by liberals the way Fox News is by conservatives.
Indeed, Priebus' Network-esque defense of the "right wing" seemed more about channeling the right's grievances and giving the base a short-lived sense of vindication. But that has little appeal for the more moderate swath of the public his party wants to court.
On its own, this would be sort of comical, though mostly harmless. But coupled with the RNC's vote to ban MSNBC and CNN from hosting future presidential debates, it's indicative of the party's tendency toward insularity. The whole thing ends up being a myopic charade that could ultimately make the GOP — so desperate to rebrand — even more cloistered.
The RNC is right to be upset over MSNBC's insensitive needling. But retreating into the safe confines of Fox News won't help the GOP achieve its stated goal of attracting a broader array of voters. Next time, try a strongly worded statement and then carry on.
By: Jon Terbush, The Week, January 31, 2014
"Preserving Welfare For The Rich": Farm Subsidies Reveal Congressional Double Standard
Congress has left me confused. Stunned, actually, as well as bewildered, chagrined and slightly depressed. The GOP-dominated House has passed a bill that defies compassion, mathematics and common sense.
OK, so there's nothing unusual about that. Point taken.
But the recent passage of a farm bill, after months of delay, is an especially sharp example of congressional priorities — protect the rich and punish the poor, comfort the comfortable while brutalizing the afflicted. The bill will cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), usually known as food stamps, while preserving subsidies for farmers, most of whom could get by quite nicely without help.
By contrast, many Americans are struggling with a globalized, roboticized economy that has devalued the average worker. The new economy has forced down wages, eliminated job security and abandoned traditional perks such as pensions. It is quite possible to work 40 or 50 hours a week and still need help to put food on the table, as the managers of food pantries around the country will attest.
Yet, congressional observers are predicting that the farm bill will pass the Senate and get President Obama's signature. While most Democrats don't like the cuts, the current bill, they figure, is the best they can do. It takes about 1 percent from SNAP — around $800 million a year in the $80 billion-a-year program — but that's less than conservatives had initially sought.
Still, if Republicans really care about deficits, if they really want to rein in government, if they believe people ought to stand on their own two feet and refuse the "welfare state," why are they preserving welfare for those who need it least? Do they not see the glaring hypocrisy in their insistence on farm subsidies?
The bill does end the least politically defensible part of farm welfare: direct payments, paid to farmers whether they plant or not. But it continues a host of other unnecessary programs that cost billions — including crop subsidies and crop insurance. Indeed, the bill increases some crop subsidies, such as those to Southern peanut farmers. And the remaining programs are just as bad as the direct payments.
Take crop insurance, which has its roots in the Dust Bowl era. Though conditions have changed substantially since then — the small family farmer has virtually disappeared — crop insurance has mushroomed. In 2012, according to The Insurance Journal, taxpayers spent $14 billion insuring farmers against a loss of income. Is there any other business in America that gets that sort of benefit? Aren't farmers supposed to be entrepreneurs willing to take risks?
This farm welfare comes at a time when agricultural income is soaring. Last year, farm income was expected to top $120 billion, its highest mark, adjusted for inflation, since 1973, the Insurance Journal said. Lots of millionaires and billionaires are on the list of those receiving the assistance.
One case of mind-boggling hypocrisy is that of U.S. Rep. Stephen Fincher, a Republican and a farmer from Frog Jump, TN, who collected nearly $3.5 million in subsidies from 1999 to 2012, according to the Environmental Working Group. In 2012, he received $70,000 in direct payments alone — again, money paid to farmers whether they plant or not. (Can anyone say "moochers" and "takers"?)
Fincher, however, supports draconian cuts to food stamps. During a congressional debate over the SNAP program, he said, without apparent irony: "We have to remember there is not a big printing press in Washington that continually prints money over and over. This is other people's money that Washington is appropriating and spending."
I don't know why the cognitive dissonance doesn't make his brain explode.
Fraud, by the way, is rampant in farm subsidies, although you're unlikely to hear anything about it. While the occasional welfare cheat or food stamp grifter is held up as an example of widespread abuse, neither politicians nor reporters talk much about the fraud involved in agricultural programs. You have to burrow into reports from the Government Accountability Office for that. They point to millions stolen by farm cheats.
It's enough to make you wonder what the food stamp critics are really upset about. Government spending? Or giving the working poor a little more to eat?
By: Cynthia Tucker, The National Memo, February 2, 2014


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>Speak No Evil
But today? I'm silent. As the night before Christmas. As the lambs. As Hellen Keller.
Because as I sit here typing, I'm regaining my composurE from being verbally back-handed by a homie. And ouch did that tongue lashing sting. But – it also hurt so good. Because it was another reminder of how much I have yet to learn. About love. About life. About relationships. About myself. About the world in general. Twas quite a humbling experience if I do say so myself. And while a few years ago I would've disagreed, today, I'm glad I don't know it all. 'Cuz if I did, then that would mean there is nothing else beyond what I know now. And if that was the truth, fuck that would suck lol. Not only would it suck, but life would be boring as hell.
They say the loudest one in the room has the most to prove. I'm not loud. I promise. Well, maybe when I'm drunk … and playing Taboo. But at the same time, closed mouths don't get fed right? And mufucka – I'm HUNGRY. I guess as with everything else in life, you gotta find the right balance. Know when to speak and when to be spoken to and when to just STFU lol. 'Cuz it's better to keep quiet then talk out your ass or put your foot in your mouth later. So I'm just gonna sit here in silence, while I throw an imaginary steak on my bruised ego.
And the next time someone asks me what I want to do for my birthday? I'm just gonna take a BIG CHILL pill and let them handle it. It's probably the most one can do, without doing too much.


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Throughout history there have been crises that were so devastating they could only be contained with the deliberate action of society as a whole. That is why existential` threats -wars, pandemics, natural disasters- become a showcase where we are able to measure the character of a leader.
The empathy of great leaders leaves a mark. Their strength and honesty prevent them from underestimating great challenges that societies face. They are able to persuade us of the importance of facing hardships together, leaving behind differences in the pursuit of a common goal. The best leaders surround themselves with the best minds and the most experienced professionals to present a response that is proportional to the challenge. Due to their integrity, they don't shy away from telling the truth, even when it may be hard to hear. This gives confidence to those who listen, making them eager to follow their lead.
A good leader listens to experts and shows flexibility. He leaves behind previous plans, if necessary, in order to adapt to a changing environment, putting together sensible programs to mitigate the damage of a crisis, increasing the likelihood of rebuilding successfully after it subsides.
In contrast, a bad leader will use a crisis to foster divisions. He will not acknowledge his mistakes. When possible, he will recklessly blame those who have not submitted to his mandate, turning society against them. He will not hesitate to disseminate biased or incomplete data if it supports his skewed narrative, even if by doing so the crisis worsens. A bad leader lies and hides relevant information if it helps him to minimize the severity of what is coming, or to hide his mistakes. He does not listen to experts and opts to surround himself with those who validate his narrative, even if it has little to do with reality. He prioritizes short-term actions, even if they prevent the possibility of reaching long-term goals. A bad leader is unable to articulate relief programs that go beyond what is immediate.
Mexico faces the worst possible crisis with the worst possible leadership. A leadership that confirms how much easier it is to destroy than to build. In only 16 months, the government of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) has caused irreparable damage. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, indefensible mistakes have become evident: defunding public health, gutting the Seguro Popular health insurance program, wrecking drug procurement structures without first implementing alternative supply chains, and cancelling the construction of hospitals just because they were being built under public-private initiatives. Was the previous public health system perfectible? Certainly. The decision of the AMLO administration to dismantle it without knowing what would replace it was a disturbing display of irresponsibility and ineptitude. Moreover, taking much needed resources from the public health system and injecting them into AMLO's clientelistic hand out programs can now be described as criminal.
It is evident that the AMLO government will have no resources to deal with the effects of the COVID-19 shock. Tax collection will plummet in 2020. Tax revenue numbers for 2019 are fake, as they appropriated funds from the Revenue Stabilization Fund (FEIP) and considered these to be income. The AMLO government will also take a painful hit from its absurd effort to rescue Pemex without first making deep structural changes to a company that is unsustainable in its current form, and is the third most indebted company in the world. If Pemex already lost MXN $658 billion in 2019 (US $35 billion) with Mexico's export grade oil mix at US $55, the company will lose much more with a 70% lower price. Many of us sounded the alarm saying that AMLO's unconditional rescue of Pemex would hinder Mexico's public finances. That is exactly what has happened.
It is absurd that the AMLO government decided to maintain austerity despite the worst global economic contraction in 90 years. AMLO's insistence on transferring valuable public resources into pet projects (the Dos Bocas oil refinery, the Mayan Train and the Santa Lucía airport) went from being irresponsible and ignorant to insane. The anticipated devastation of private companies following the COVID-19 shock (especially without the introduction of any fiscal relief) along with the lack of public investment, will result in Mexico's worst economic performance since 1932. The lack of private investment in production capacity and the absence of public investment in infrastructure will combine to decimate Mexico's potential output and will cancel any possibility of recovery. Stagnation will be permanent.
No government in the history of Mexico will have produced as many poor people as AMLO's. Is that what he meant with his "poor first" campaign slogan? If so, it will end up being his only achievement.
* Jorge Suárez-Vélez is an economic and political analyst He is the author of The Coming Downturn of the World Economy (Random House 2011). A Spanish version of this Op-Ed appeared first in Reforma's newspaper print edition. Twitter: @jorgesuarezv


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For $64.99/month, you can finally get whole home automation added to your home security system. Connect ADT Control with smart lights, locks, thermostats, and more. Over 5000 devices are able to be connected, so your house can become more secure and energy-efficient. Owning a complete house system that reacts to your routines and lifestyle is why the Video and Home Automation solution has become one the most popular Salinas home security tiers.


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I am currently stitching the Carolyn Pearce Strawberry Fayre heart etui as a stitchalong project. This week, I've been stitching the primrose flower and calyx at the bottom of the front heart panel. See the end of this post for all the information you'll need to join in!
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This pretty little primrose flower sits at the base of the heart shape. The calyx needs to be stitched first. I found that the design was a bit off-centre for this shape, so I corrected it in pencil before stitching the outline. It's also a bit oversized, I feel, but I can't do much about that now!
The calyx has one layer of stitched padding, worked with one strand of Anchor 266, before Cretan stitch is worked over the top using two strands. Keep your padding stitches well away from the edges of the shape, so that the shaping ends up being gradual, and not lumpy.
Using Cretan stitch for filling in this calyx means that you will need to work the long arms of the stitch VERY flat – almost horizontal. It's sort of like a flat Fly stitch – the movement of the needle is almost identical to Fly stitch.
Mary Corbet has a good video for showing how to do this stitch.
To give the impression of a rounded front to the calyx, angle the horizontal arms up slightly at each side.
The primrose flower itself is then stitched in the same way that the small pink flowers were, using House of Embroidery Pale Lemon substitute. I found that I had to 'tidy up' the outline of this flower as well, before stitching it, as it was decidedly squiffy!
The instructions say to then whip the Blanket stitches with the copper metallic thread – I didn't read the instructions properly, so I whipped the short parts of the stitches, instead of the long uprights, but the finished look isn't much different. Hopefully.
It's then suggested that the Blanket stitch petals have two more blanket stitches worked into alternating loops of the original row, to make a loopy edging. I felt this was too tiny to manage tidily, so I changed that to a line of Stem stitch worked in the HoE thread again, to finish the outline. Neater, and more successful, I think.
The centre of the primrose has a 'forget-me-not flower ring' of beads made from number 11 beads – Mill Hill 275 with one Gold one for the middle. I used one strand of silk thread and a betweens #10 needle to make it.
The filling stitch for the primrose leaves is Tied Wheatear Stitch. I did three straight stitches to each section in Anchor 265 substitute with one strand, before tying them down with Oliver Twists 004 variegated substitute. I can't find a video to help with this stitch, but the diagrams in the magazine are good.
The small leaves at the top centre of the heart are also stitched using the same stitch and thread colours, so do these at the same time, so save re-threading your needles! I could only manage two of the straight stitches in each space, rather than three for these smaller leaves, though, or it got too crowded.
These are the leaves once outlined with Anchor 268 in one strand.
I have needed to make quite a lot of minor adjustments as I've been stitching this part of the etui, which I find quite frustrating when working from a published design. I think my main gripe is that the shapes are too small for some of the stitches suggested, as well as the drawn outlines being 'off' sometimes. I think this might put off less-experienced embroiderers, as they might blame themselves when it doesn't come out as successfully as they were expecting. But I'm enjoying doing the actual embroidery, as usual!
Next week, I'm planning to tackle the beaded forget-me nots.
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The Strawberry Fayre design, plus the complete list of materials, appears in Inspirations magazine number 95. The publishers do sell a full materials pack (not including the mother of pearl ruler though!), but it's rather expensive, so if you can use your stash, and just fill in with bits and pieces, then so much the better! The magazine is published in Australia – if you live in the UK, as I do, it is cheaper to buy a back copy from Manor House Magazines, and save a lot on the shipping.
EDIT: The materials pack from Inspirations, and the magazine from Manor House in the UK are not available any more as at March 2018 – I don't know if any more stocks will be available now, unfortunately. The publishers may bring out a digital pattern pack later, which they sometimes do with popular projects from their magazines, but we'll have to wait and see…..
To read about this project stitchalong from the beginning, start here. The post about which FABRIC to use is here. The post about the THREAD SUBSTITUTIONS that I made, plus WHERE TO BUY the threads and beads, etc., is here.
To look up all the posts in this series in the sidebar, see under the CATEGORIES list, under: Embroidery / Full size (others' designs) / Strawberry Fayre heart etui, or use the SEARCH BOX at the top of the blog, and search for 'Strawberry Fayre' to get a list of all the posts (but it's in reverse order, sorry!).
Are you interested in doll's houses and stitching? Then why not visit my website, where you can buy doll's house needlepoint kits to make all kinds of soft furnishings for one-twelfth scale dollhouses. There are over 280 kits to choose from, plus chart packs, fabric project packs, tutorials, and lots of eye candy to inspire you! Kits are available on 18 and 22 count canvas, 28 and 32 count evenweave, and 32 and 40 count silk gauze, so there's something for everyone – from beginners to experts.


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To listen to audio on Rock Paper Scissors you'll need to Get the Flash Player
At Merkin Hall, April 25, 2013
Lebanese pianist, composer, and singer Mike Massy has an inborn agility that springs from his unique heritage: Classically trained in both Western and Middle Eastern canons, enthralled with the cosmopolitan worlds of jazz, chanson, and good old pop, the young artist has carved out a space for himself and for a different sound in a tough scene. And done so with striking delicacy.
Massy is one of a small handful of "underground" Lebanese musicians just winning a foothold in the regional mainstream. His songs can move from an elegant string quartet ("Khalasna Ba'a"), to a sultry call-and-response between piano and his soaring voice, from distinctly Eastern Mediterranean pulse to slow-burning ballads.
"I am mostly influenced by my musical background in Classical and Baroque music, from my conservatory training, but inspiration also comes from the radio," Massy explains. "Lebanese people listen and dance to everything. We've been occupied by France, by the British, by the Ottomans, and all these influences come naturally as a heritage for my generation. I didn't have to figure out how to mix it. I simply refined what was already around me."
This distillation of Lebanon's multifaceted music is coming to the U.S. for the very first time, as Massy performs with a backing trio (piano, percussion, upright bass) at Merkin Hall on April 25, 2013 (presented by the John Paul II Mission). In a program combining Massy' originals with Arabic classics, jazz standards, and even an unexpectedly gorgeous, Middle Eastern-inflected Madonna cover ("Frozen"), Massy will give American audiences an introduction to an overlooked, increasingly creative, cosmopolitan scene that has defied war and hardship.
For tickets and additional information, call 212.501.3330 or go to kaufmanmusiccenter.org.
{full story below}
Despite childhood spent in bomb shelters and dire poverty, Massy still managed to gain a broad, rigorous musical education, beginning with piano lessons as a boy. The radio provided solace and, at the same time, a constant reminder of war, as harsh news broke through the French and American pop, the Arab classics that make up the musical landscape of Lebanon.
Later, Massy trained at the conservatory, studying Arabic Opera. He became fascinated by both Western Baroque music and melodically complex Arab-Andalusian mouwachahat songs. This training, combined with the natural sonic multiculturalism of Beirut, drove Massy to bring his many musical loves together.
He can sing in Arabic with jazz-inflected polish, or turn a pensive standard like "Nature Boy" into an evocative, filigree statement, thanks to his lithe tenor and thoughtful use of ornamentation, instrumentation, and mode. While drawing on deep emotions, Massy often uses quirky imagery—both in his lyrics and his music videos—and isn't afraid to poke a little fun at Lebanese traditions. One of the English-language pieces Massy will perform in New York, "I'm Wise," gently satirizes the Lebanese dabke linedance, launching into a humorous account with the traditional exclamation of joy and excitement, "owf!"
The combination has garnered an enthusiastic response, one Massy says he never expected, in a country where concert culture is still emerging and alternatives to cookie-cutter pop are few and far between. After the release of his album Ya Zaman (2011), he won the Murex d'Or, the top award for musicians and actors in the Middle East and North Africa, and he has taken the airwaves by storm.
Regardless of the genre or approach, Massy takes his cues from the greats, like Fairouz, whose music has impacted young singers across the Arab world and whose restraint proves instructive and inspiring.
"You need a lot of maturity not to oversing and try to show everything you have," reflects Massy. "It takes a lot of effort to search for the point where the song becomes central, not the technique or beauty of the voice. Fairouz is on stage to sing and not to show people how beautiful her voice is. That's true artistic maturity."
Massy makes sure his ornamental and vocal virtuosity are in service to the songs themselves, whether he's discovering new sides to familiar international tunes or seeking the right arrangements for his own works. "You have to find the balance between innovative, interesting arrangements and compelling songwriting," notes Massy. "My sound is really different from the other music on the Lebanese scene. My songs are not trendy; I try to find the strongest, simplest approach and let it speak for itself, in hopes of creating something timeless."


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Church of the Highlands's mission is to meet people at the crossroads of life with the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to help one another along the journey of spiritual growth. Please let us know how we can help you.
If you're a first time visitor to our website, we would love to have you visit our church this Sunday. You'll get a warm welcome and a wonderful message from God's Word. Feel free to browse our website and get to know us. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to give us a call at 423-493-4111 or send us an email.
From all of us at Church of the Highlands, welcome!
1 Comments on this post:
Debra Wade
Camp Joy us wonderful. I went there as a young Girl. I also sent my Daughter there years ago. We both were blessed by the Camp. An Lord willing my Daughters Son my Grandson will be going soon. SO THANK YOU CAMP JOY WHAT A BLESSING THAT YOU HAVE BEEN TO MY FAMILY AN TO MANY OTHERS. PRAISE GOD FOR YOU LABOR FOR THE LORD AN ALL THE BOYS AND GIRLS THAT HAVE ATTENDED THIS WONDERFUL CAMP. THANK YOU FOR OUR MEMORIES THERE.


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Most of you Baby Boomers out there likely know where the title of this post came from. Even though I use the film as the header above that is not what this post is about. Instead, it is about how we are giving up our country and maybe the world, just to get a few dollars more into our pockets
The movie with the above title came out in 1967. There were a string of movies that put Clint Eastwood on his road to fame. They were called Spaghetti Westerns as they were low budget films made in Italy. I enjoyed those films, but like I said above, this post is not about that.
1967 was just about the time that companies started moving the manufacturing facilities out of the U.S. I went into the consumer products business world three years later and quickly found out why that was happening.
I worked for a company that was determined to keep our manufacturing facilities in the U.S., but month after month in those beginning years we lost market share. Our product only cost a couple of dollars more than our competitor who moved their products off shore. After a half dozen years or so the writing was on the wall. Either go to the cheap labor or go out of business. The American consumer was not about to pay even a 1% difference to buy American made. Over the fifty or so years since that time the migration to foreign produced goods was complete.
It seems ironic that there is now so much grumbling about everything being made in China. The 'Buy American Made" slogans did nothing to convince people that what we have today was coming.
And now for a few dollars more, too many of us seem willing to let a future despot, or at least one who hopes to be that, become the leader of our country for another four years. Nothing matters to him except making the deal for a few dollars more. Morality, empathy, and anything else that gets in the way is quickly cast aside.
Now it seems that our greed for a few dollars more is moving to the next stage. We are putting mountains of debt out our children and grand children to pay off. To make matters even worse, if that is really possible, we seem to be willing to ignore the life threatening problems of climate change simply because we don't believe it to be imminent!
I wonder if anyone will "get" it when we close the door. I wonder if they will realize that they gave up everything for a few dollars more in their pocket starting about 50 years ago.
For a few dollars more…


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She was a dancer, she was always a dancer. From the time her memories started she had already been taking dance lessons for two years. Admittedly it was mostly disorganized jumping and spinning around, but she had several costumes from several ensembles. And one more thing, even the parents of other children began to watch her when she came on stage. She had presence, stage presence.
Her father watched her every rehearsal, and remembers almost the exact week when the joyful romp became a joyful performance. She counted out the choreographed steps and used concise, but shortened hand and wrist movements to memorize the routine . She could do this anywhere, waiting for food at restaurants, watching television, anywhere at all. The dance floor was in her mind, and the shorthand was an extension of her body.
When the actual rehearsal came, her body mimicked what her shorthand had already worked out, except for the spinning. The shorthand for spinning was a little twirl of the wrist, but that was not at all like the real thing.
Initially, she spun and just got dizzy after a minute. It took years before being able to "spot" off stage by keeping your head fixed, then quickly spin it around to complete the next turn. We have all seen the technique in professional dancers, but it was amazing to see this in pre-teens. By the time she was a teenager she had the technique down pat. And she was improving her speed of turning her head after having it fixed on a point.
All the while her body was perfectly vertical, arms and legs in exact pose. It was powerful to see, and powerful to experience. And then something happened.
Her eyesight began to fail her. The snap turning of her head to the fixed point began to give her blurred vision. She said nothing at first, worrying that she might have to stop dancing. She continued on, and unless the performance required a tight spin, she never noticed the blurred vision.
Unfortunately a new choreographer like to introduce several star dancers by writing in long spins, longer than she had ever done before. As it turns out, she could easily outspin everyone in the class, so she got the starring lead. Happy as she was, she began to worry about the blurred vision. Could it have longer lasting blurring for the next series of steps?
For several days of rehearsal she studied what was happening. It seemed to her that it was just blurred vision, not dizziness or nausea, certainly not upset stomach. That was a relief, so she focused on what she could actually see, something that a fast camera lens could capture.
It took several weeks before she was certain it wasn't blurred vision, it was blurred objects, not her vision of the objects. She was seeing clearly , but what she was seeing was blurry. She tested this theory by slowing her spin slightly, and the result was that the box shaped object that she used for her focal point was sharper and less blurred,
She knew that this might seem like a perspective issue. Logic told her that the perception of the box being in focus could be the effect of going slower. It just seemed unusual that it was so consistent, by going just a little bit faster there was an exact degree of blur that postured . After a time it didn't seem reasonable that her body was that responsive. Some days it shouldn't be as blurry if it was her fault.
Her final conclusion is that it didn't matter what she thought she saw, she wasn't dizzy and she came out of the spin exactly when she needed. The show was a hit, and everyone agreed that they couldn't take their eyes off of her .
It's now years later, she is still dancing, but also taking physics in college. The professor offhandedly states that nothing is created and nothing destroyed, just states are changed. Very typical sophomore concepts to open the inquiring mind. Nothing destroyed, just changed.
She thought about this, and reasoned that it made sense when times were simpler, and change was slower, in a practical sense it meant that all atoms, or even parts of atoms are already existent. Nothing new created since the Big Bang. Everything made since is using the current storehouse. The question is, when do we run out of supplies. We want to make sometime new but there aren't "parts" available. Where do the parts come from if nothing new is created. The answer is simple, some things must be taken apart so that new things can be made.
This balance would be perfect if we don't mind losing some things in order to have new things. The trouble is that the timing can be all wrong, millions off things are still needed in the modern world and billions of things want to be made. The young dancer thought that physics was starting off badly. How would we know when there was a parts shortage? It didn't make sense to her ordered mind. But it was a problem that she tried to work out the best she could without asking her professor. It was too soon to ask a silly question. Where was the raw material for new things?
Obviously, the earth was mostly untouched, the bottom of the sea floor, plenty of things die off each year. It was a silly question. But is it an infinite supply? The sand of a desert seems infinite, but there are countable grains.
And who collects the supplies to make them available? Suddenly the dancer studying physics thought she might need a second minor in theology.
Then it came to here in a dream, she could technically see a little less than 180 degrees. She doesn't know what the state of the molecules are for things she can't see. What if reality is only that which we can observe? That's very egocentric but maybe that's only a perspective thing.
Suddenly a memory flashed from years ago. A box sitting off stage right, getting more blurry the faster she turned. More blurry because the detail is in the molecules, and if the molecules aren't there, then it's half formed, blurry. Getting out of bed she felt unsteady on her feet. She had heard about first year college students having delusional thoughts. She worried that the stress of leaving home does funny things.
She went to the bathroom to splash some water on her face. She looked at her image in the mirror and laughed inwardly. She couldn't see the room behind her head. Maybe the world doesn't exist there. Perhaps as she moves to one side, the world is being taken apart in order to build the world that is coming into view on the other side.
She thought she could re-create the dancer's spotter vision, by not focusing on anything, but intently looking just the same. And with her dancer's reaction, she could move from side to side to see if anything is out of the ordinary. She tried several times, but nothing seemed strange except the dancer's slight jerking from side to side. She decided to get the toothpaste behind the mirror while she was finishing her jerking routine.
The movement of the mirror magnified the speed of her body's jerk movement, and for a nanosecond there was a blurry line around her head. Blurry on the left as the room decomposed, blurry on the right as the room was being built.
Using the scientific method she repeated this a dozen times. Her vision was not blurry, parts of the room that she could see in the mirror were blurry, just like that box years ago. She thought that in the morning she should go see a counselor… and change her major to physics with a minor in dance. There are new things to explore.
(a story)


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Paxton had just begun throwing on flat ground at the distance of 25 feet when MLB suspended operations because of the global coronavirus pandemic. Friday, the league and union were expected to begin talking about the financial issues surrounding a shortened season that would likely be played without fans in the stands. The players had already agreed to a prorated salary that based on the proposed 82 game season would cut their pay almost in half.
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When I weep,
don't feel you
have to wipe away
these salty tears.
Being formed by
experiences of Life,
they turn to ctystal drops
as they fall from my eyes,
then I can see.
What gifts are these my friends,
what gifts indeed………
This Glorious New Day
Trees, street lamp, bracken
filled the space across the road
till Sunday's flash winds whipped them up
and threw them down like violated rag dolls….
Now rising sunlight sears through windows,
bakes red roof tiles, warms wildly piqued wasps
and I notice – my heart is thankful
for I have this glorious new day.


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Joy Beyer posted an update 4 years, 4 months ago
Not sure where to start
Joy – We created the Cystic Fibrosis forum for this very purpose. The two moderators of the CF form are Tre and Luisa. Both of them suffer from CF, and I'm sure that they will be able to give you some great advice and help you find the information that you not only want, but the information that you need as well.
Thank you for joining our forum.
Joy Beyer started the topic Mom of 22 year old daughter in the forum Introductions 4 years, 4 months ago
I have no one to discuss CF with other than her doctor. It would be nice to speak to someone regarding this.
Joy Beyer became a registered member 4 years, 4 months ago
Joy – My name is Michael Morale, and I'm the Forums and Multimedia Director for Cystic Fibrosis News Today. I want to thank you for taking the time out of your day and becoming a member of our Cystic Fibrosis forum. Our job is to make sure that we provide you with the information that you're looking for, and to try to assist you in any way possi…[Read more]
Hi Joy! My name is Tré LaRosa and I'm one of the Forum Moderators. Thanks for becoming a member! I'm excited about what this forum could become as a place for quality discussion and a welcoming place for the community. Looking forward to your contributions!


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Golf Jr., Sr. Members Find Success This Season
Golf has had a strong season with a 10-3-1 record due in great part to "the strong play of our upperclassmen" Golf Coach Chuck Hutchinson said. Highlights include them being 5th in the Blue Jacket Invitational out of 16 teams and they were 4th in the Region.
At the same time, one of the team's youngest members, 7th-grader Gavin Hutchinson, also was in the spotlight this year when he placed 2nd in a national Drive, Putt and Chip contest at Augusta National during the Masters Weekend April 4.
The team was totally supportive of Gavin, Coach Hutchinson said.
"They all have embraced him and rooted for him in person and on social media," he said.
Despite his age, Gavin is a disciplined player.
"He has a strong work ethic, and he has the maturity to keep his head in the game and the positivity to look forward to his next shot," his dad said.
He plans to continue to pursue golf in college and hopefully beyond.
"He enjoys the competition, being outside, and the fact that he can play anywhere he goes," Coach Hutchinson said.
Gavin's older brother Grant, who is a senior and captain on the golf team, is also a strong player. In fact, he came within a stroke of also making it to the national Drive, Putt and Chip contest a few years ago.
Grant, along with senior Solomon Kiger and Junior Jake Delbusse have been real leaders on the Socastee team this year.
"The experience that they bring to the team is incredible," Coach Hutchinson said.
Looking ahead, he said, "We have a lot of young talent but replacing our Seniors will create a challenge."
Dawson Bell is a senior. He joined yearbook because he loves to write and take pictures. He has always been interested in art and figured this will only...


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News For This Month: Toys
Things to Have On Mind When Buying the Sex Toys
There are many reasons that motivate people to buy sex toys in the market. In the past, you could not find the sex toys in the shops like today. You can easily locate the stores selling the sex toys in the market these days. When purchasing the sex toys there are aspects that you need to consider. Here are the factors that you need to ponder when purchasing the sex toys.
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You need to ponder the efficacy of the sex toys. It is important to know that you need to find an efficiency sex toy. It needs you to find more information related to the efficiency sex toys that you need to purchases.
Lastly, the long-lasting features of the sex toys need to be considered as well. It is advisable to purchase the sex toy that you can use for a number of years. You need to be certain with the characteristic of the durable sex toys before you can go to the market. You need to be cautious since you can never lack the counterfeits sex toys in the market.
Getting To The Point – Vibrators


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After a two-week hiatus, Mark Bonner's men are back! The U's welcome Michael Appleton's Lincoln to the Abbey looking to make it three league wins on the bounce...
Kick-off at the Abbey is at 3:00pm and tickets are still available to buy. Get yours online, over the phone by calling 01223 566500 (option 1) or by purchasing from the Abbey Stadium Ticket Office.
Get in the mood with our Match Preview and find out what manager Mark Bonner and Joe Ironside had to say ahead of the game.
The Digital Matchday Programme is available for supporters to view and if you are coming to this afternoon's match, take a read of our Matchday Guide.
Make sure to stay across the club's website and social media channels in the build up to kick-off, as we bring you all the pre-match build up from the Abbey Stadium.


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Qualifiers for The Boston Major happened this weekend, and fans were shocked when Team Liquid were defeated both by Greek team Ad Finem and Russian side Virtus.pro, the latter of which eliminated them.
Teams from China, Europe, North America and South East Asia all competed in qualifiers to grab a place in the last 16 and the chance to compete for $3.1 million US dollars.
Team Secret also saw unexpected defeats, and like Team Liquid were fan favourites. Both teams did change up their rosters after The International 6 in August, however, with Liquid adding Amer "Miracle-" Al-Barkawi in place of Adrian "FATA-" Trinks. Secret, on the other hand, almost completely switched up their roster.
Virtus.pro's success makes them the only Russian-speaking team at the Boston major, and Mineski and WarriorsGaming.Unity also saw somewhat unexpected success, beating Fnatic who did not pass the group stage.
Elsewhere, in Chinese qualifiers, two youth teams, Invictus Gaming.Youth and LGD.ForeverYoung, also surprised everyone by making their way past both full rosters who also competed in qualifiers.
North America, however, saw a less dramatic qualifier, as Team NP and compLexity progressed as expected. Some controversy occurred, however, when European teams qualified after playing in these North American pre-qualifiers, seemingly exploiting the lack of specific criteria from Valve regarding where a team must be based in order to compete.
The full list of teams and details can be found here. Does this not get you in the mood for The Boston Major, Valve's last major tournament of the year?


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When English professor Achsah Guibbory first encountered poems by the 17th-century poet John Donne in graduate school, she was struck by—among other things—their subject matter. "They were about sex!" she says. "I didn't really think that people in the early 17th century wrote poems that had to do with sex." To boot, they were funny, clever, challenging, and direct. "When you read them you felt like he was speaking directly to you."
We're sitting in Guibbory's office on a cloudy March morning, and after I ask her to share a favorite Donne poem from that time in her life, she rushes to her desk, seizes a volume, and begins to recite "The Good Morrow": "I wonder, by my troth, what thou and I / Did, till we loved? Were we not weaned till then? / But sucked on country pleasures, childishly?"Those lines alone support her points; they're rich with erotic jokes. "Country" puns on the female anatomy, and "sucked"—which, she tells me, would have appeared in print with a long "s" that resembled an "f "— refers to another forbidden word.
Guibbory has been at Barnard since 2004, when she came from the University of Illinois, and has served as an Ann Whitney Olin Professor of English. Her students have loved Donne for many of the same reasons she fell for him: for being a "bad boy," she writes in her new book, Returning to John Donne (Ashgate Publishing Company, 2015) and for his "double-entendres, his boldness, his wit."
On multiple occasions, students' ideas have influenced Guibbory's thinking on the poet. Many Donne readers highlight his disdain for women, and with good reason. (Of Eve, he wrote: "One woman at one blow, then kill'd us all, / And singly, one by one, they kill us now.") But one student argued that, in some misogynistic poems, "a deeper dynamic was at play," Guibbory recalls.
Her insight helped Guibbory realize that, in certain poems that seem to punish women, "he's not really talking about women and sex but about the church—it's not misogynist, it's really anti-religious authority."The church is often identified as a woman in the New Testament and the relationship between humans and God is described as a marriage in both the Old and New Testaments. His wish to avoid committing to a woman, she explains, mirrors his wish to avoid committing to a church that insists on religious conformity—a dangerous position in Donne's time, and one more safely communicated through analogy than through direct statement. "As long as I've done this," Guibbory says, "I still have students who think new thoughts. There's this great back-and-forth, and it's so exciting to me."
Religion provides a thread through Guibbory's courses, which extend well beyond Donne's terrain. In her junior English colloquiums—required English- major courses focusing on Renaissance and Enlightenment writers—she emphasizes religious identity, conflict, and toleration. Her Milton class places the writer of Paradise Lost within the contexts of his time and place, showing how his political and religious concerns intersected with his literary ones. For next fall, she plans a senior seminar that explores the treatment of sexuality, sin, and spirituality within a range of authors—from Donne and Milton to Professor Mary Gordon '71.
Milton's devotional poetry first inspired Guibbory's scholarly interest in Christianity. Later research prompted her to bring Judaism into the mix: she discovered that certain Protestants disapproved of ritual and ceremony because they saw it as a continuation of Catholicism and—to her surprise— Judaism. She then began to explore how 17th-century English Christians understood the relationship between their religion and its Jewish antecedents. Such concerns anchor much of her work, including Christian Identity, Jews, and Israel in Seventeenth-Century England (Oxford University Press, 2010). Other publications include Ceremony and Community from Herbert to Milton (Cambridge University Press, 1998) and The Cambridge Companion to John Donne (Cambridge University Press, 2006).
Religion is also key to her new book; Returning to John Donne supplements her most important published essays on Donne with new ones. The pieces are linked, she wrote, by "an overarching concern to define what is distinctive and original about [Donne] while locating his writings within various historical and cultural contexts: early modern thinking about time and history; religious attitudes toward sexuality; the politics of Elizabethan England; religious conflicts within the church." The new essays explore Donne's Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions—a prose work written during a serious illness—as well as the "dark side of Donne's love poetry" and the writer's role in the history of religious tolerance.
That role, the essay argues, has long gone underrecognized, partly because of the unusual arc of Donne's religious life. Donne was born Catholic in Protestant England, and he and his family faced intense persecution. In his Satyre III (which, like much of his work, went unprinted during his lifetime), Donne argued for "radical liberty of conscience," protesting such persecution, arguing in favor of the separation of church and state, and doubting that "true religion can be found in any existing church."
Then, for unknown reasons, Donne took orders for the priesthood with the Church of England in 1615, and became the dean of St. Paul's Cathedral in London in 1621. Now an emblem of the inseparability of church and state, he urged conformity on his flock. But in analyzing Donne, Guibbory finds that "toleration has more shapes than one." Unlike many at the time, Donne came to embrace the idea of a merciful, inclusive God, and also "sought to embody those qualities himself in his approach to salvation in his sermons, trying to build bridges rather than shore up boundaries that divide." In his writing, he hinted— radically—that even Catholics and Jews could be saved. He was most intolerant of those who, he wrote, "think none pure at all, that are not pure our way."
Donne's role in the history of toleration hasn't been recognized, Guibbory suggests, because of his proclamations in favor of conformity and his move toward a seeming conservatism. "It looks like he goes from writing sexy poetry to being the dean of St. Paul's," she says. The traditional understanding of the history of tolerance is also to blame: it's generally seen as a later development among the radical Protestants who suffered under the thumb of the Church of England—such as fellow poet John Milton—rather than among Church adherents like Donne.
Pondering such matters, Guibbory says, helps her approach similar ones in today's world—such as the question, among Orthodox Jews in Israel, of who counts as Jewish. "We understand a lot more about where we are now when we look at the past," she says. "What's going on now casts light on how we read the texts." In her classes, she relates current events to older works: as the Charlie Hebdo events unfurled in France, for instance, her English colloquium happened to be reading about the French revolution and the enshrinement of liberté, égalité, fraternité—"but who counts as brothers?" she asked. "We could bring up that question then."
The very acts of inquiring and seeking connections mirror principles of Donne's work.When we read his poetry or prose, Guibbory writes, "We watch him thinking, questioning, trying to understand and represent experience, or at least his reaction to experience (whether actual or imagined, it does not matter). Donne is always trying to figure things out." And he entices us to figure him out: to analyze his metaphors, to follow his arguments, to ponder his conclusions. "The result," Guibbory writes, "is the feeling that we are discovering truths even as he is. And this is what makes Donne so much fun to teach in a classroom, why he always seems new, why I keep returning to Donne."
—By Abigail Deutsch
—Illustration by Yann Kebi


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