Split (1)

train · 162k rows

content stringlengths 219 1.01M	content_length int64 235 1.01M
Thanks to those of you who wrote in with the link to the new BIG picture of Legolas in the official site. It’s here Old Main News This site is maintained and updated by fans of The Lord of the Rings and the name and mark ONE RING is used under license from The Saul Zaentz Company, which hold the title thereto. We in no way claim rights in the artwork displayed herein. Copyrights and trademarks for the books, films, articles, merchandise and other promotional materials are held by their respective owners and our limited use of these materials is done by permission or is allowed under the fair use clause of the Copyright Act.	649
Jacksonville’s WMBR-TV Channel 4 went on the air on Oct. 16, 1949, broadcasting four hours a day from its 478-foot antenna on the city’s southside. But it would be nearly two years before Orlando newspapers took note and began running daily TV listings for the area’s closest station. It’s been 6 years since WUCF saved PBS in Central Florida Orlando broadcasting pioneer Lee Colee Hamilton dies at 90 Florida has 106 TV stations now after FCC originally approved 58 Archives Select Month July 2017 (7) June 2017 (9) May 2017 (2) January 2013 (2) August 2012 (4) July 2012 (3) June 2012 (3) May 2012 (9) April 2012 (4) January 2012 (2) December 2011 (7) November 2011 (10) October 2011 (2) September 2011 (7) August 2011 (13) July 2011 (18) June 2011 (19) May 2011 (1) January 2011 (8) December 2010 (16) November 2010 (11) October 2010 (5) September 2010 (12) August 2010 (3) July 2010 (1) June 2010 (6) May 2010 (17) April 2010 (15) March 2010 (4) January 2010 (4) December 2009 (5) November 2009 (2) October 2009 (3) September 2009 (8) August 2009 (18) July 2009 (22) June 2009 (1) May 2009 (6) April 2009 (20) February 2009 (9) January 2009 (8) December 2008 (3) November 2008 (3) October 2008 (13) September 2008 (6) August 2008 (1) July 2008 (7) March 2008 (2) January 2008 (1) December 2007 (7) November 2007 (5) October 2007 (6) September 2007 (7) August 2007 (11) May 2007 (11) April 2007 (35) March 2007 (10) February 2007 (9) January 2007 (15) December 2006 (2) September 2006 (1) April 2006 (8) March 2006 (23) February 2006 (26) December 2002 (5) July 2002 (6)	1,632
September 7, 2020 December 8, 2021 Rufino LangdonComments Off on 11 Best Places To Sell Old Furniture Online A couple of years back intending to offer your old furnishings implied installing a yard sales, or an ad in the regional paper classifieds. The good news is currently we have a lot more choices to market as well as market our furnishings as well as make some fast money with it. A great deal of individuals have actually transformed it right into a side hustle, by gathering lower-priced furnishings sprucing it up as well as offering it for a greater rate. If you are intending to make some cash marketing old furnishings or simply desire to obtain rid of it, it’s ideal to have even more choices for advertising and marketing. Below is a checklist of sites which would certainly make the procedure simple for you. ebay.com allows you offer furnishings via 2 techniques either by a public auction of a dealt with cost. Detailing on ebay.com is simple as well as very easy. You require to select the technique of offering your furnishings and also include photos and also summary to it so it stands out. Listing is Free. Shopify is your area if you want to begin a side rush offering furnishings and also making some fast cash money. Shopify provides pre-made themes to assist you introduce your online organization rapidly as well as conveniently. Exactly how does it function? You require to produce your very own on the internet ecommerce internet site with the aid of 100 styles, pre-made design templates and also drag as well as decline editor with no coding experience or internet site developing experience. Shopify supplies logical devices to identify the success of your advertising and marketing projects as well as 24/7 client assistance to assist you fix the issue with your internet site. Costs Shopify uses a 14- day totally free test. After the test, you can select a strategy which begins with $29/month upwards. Etsy uses a fantastic choice to market previously owned furnishings various other than handcrafted things and also vintage apparel. This is an area to market your vintage as well as vintage items as possible customers right here will not be looking for a regular normal item furnitureFurnishings To provide on Etsy as well as begin offering you require to produce a customized store by submitting images of your furnishings items with a thorough summary as well as rate. You additionally require to pay a $0.20 listing charge per thing as well as a 5% purchase charge, in addition to an extra 3% +$0.25 settlement handling cost. Craigslist is one of the most commonly made use of on-line classified websites for definitely anything. As it’s made use of commonly it’s one of the most effective areas to market, yet you reached make your listing stand apart in the countless noting upgraded on it daily . Just how does it function? Craigslist permits you to market furnishings in your area as well as it’s actually simple all you require to do is head over to your location’s regional board, pick the appropriate area for offering furnishings, and also after that produce a listing. Make certain to include an appealing summary as well as some high quality pictures. Providing on Craigslist is FREE! Facebook Marketplace is an excellent alternative to offer previously owned furnishings as prospective purchasers are revealed things better to the place while surfing the system. Noting on Facebook is very easy and also just take a pair of mins. Make certain to consist of images as well as thorough summary and also do not neglect to publish your listing to a regional Facebook garage sale and also area teams for included benefit. Noting on Facebook Marketplace is definitely FREE! Apartment Therapy Bazar is a community-driven market which allows you market from anywhere. It’s the location to market your vintage developer furniture, contemporary furnishings items and also devices. It likewise allows you share your listing on Facebook and also Twitter and also import your Etsy listing to Apartment Therapy. Listing is FREE can be improved by paying a charge of $1 per listing. Sotheby’s Home is an on the internet market for well-kept residence providing along with vintage, vintage, brand-new or delicately made use of furnishings. You can additionally market lights and also devices. To detail on Sotheby’s Home your furnishings have to retail at $1000 or even more, have to be a developer brand name as well as in a great problem. Their group examines each item of providing prior to releasing it on their site and also attempt to match your furnishings with possible customers. Listing is Free. Chairish is a high end resale website which is a cross in between boho-chic and also flea market. It the location to offer your vintage furnishings which is declaration items as well as not from IKEA. The rate of your made use of furnishings is identified by referring to the Chairish Pink Book. You require to include 6 various images of your furnishings from various angles, one of which will certainly be utilized by Chairish as the history for your listing cover. Listing is Free. AptDeco permits you to offer furnishings, lights and also carpets in New York City, New Jersey as well as Washington, D.C. You can market furnishings from any kind of brand name as well as nevertheless old as lengthy as it’s in great problem. Detailing your furnishings is easy as well as rather very easy and also just takes a couple of mins. As soon as you finish your listing AptDeco will certainly assist enhance your listing by offering added details and also boosting visuals within 24 hrs of your listing. Noting on AptDeco is Free. OfferUp is an on the internet classified application which allows you acquire and also offer in your area. This application permits you to market anything also a cars and truck. Noting on OfferUp is very easy as you require to download and install the application, take a picture with your phone and also upload. You require to provide an in-depth summary as well as area as well as your listing is all set to go online. Noting on OfferUp is Free. Letgo is all regarding photos as well as is a prominent option to Craigslist. The vibrant application stresses on images as the purchasers desire to see images of an item they want to purchase and also this additionally produces passion. You can detail your furnishings online or via their application. The application enables you to take images via your phone and also submit it along with a thorough summary, and also cost to finish the listing. Providing on Letgo is Free. ebay.com allows you offer furnishings with 2 approaches either by a public auction of a dealt with rate. Shopify is your location if you desire to begin a side rush marketing furnishings and also making some fast cash money. Etsy uses an excellent alternative to offer pre-owned furnishings various other than hand-crafted things as well as vintage garments. Facebook Marketplace is a fantastic choice to market previously owned furnishings as prospective purchasers are revealed products more detailed to the area while searching the system. AptDeco enables you to offer furnishings, lights as well as carpets in New York City, New Jersey as well as Washington, D.C. Precisely How to Get Coupon Codes Recent Posts	7,664
After a tough outing in the second half of 2022, the Nigerian naira consolidates on its gaining streaks at the Investors’ and Exporters’ foreign exchange (FX) window on Tuesday, November 22, 2022, amidst an interest rate hike by the monetary authority. At its final meeting in the current year (2022), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) monetary policy committee raised the benchmark lending rate by another 100 basis points to 16.50% in a move to battle the worsening consumer price index, Market Forces Africa disclosed. Data from the FMDQ Exchange platform indicates that the naira exchange rate at the official window strengthened as demand for foreign currencies undercut the total market supply. Thus, market participants in the FX space exchanged the local currency for N445, representing a 0.09% gain when compared with the opening rate of N445.38. The foreign exchange rate had crossed N446 at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Fixing (NAFEX) window before the recent appreciation. For importers and manufacturers of goods that play at the window, a small gain could mean so much, according to FX analysts. Meanwhile, in the open market, the naira exchange rate remain steady as traders waited for the apex bank decision following spurious trade that occurred in the alternative FX window after the CBN announced the naira redesign. According to MarketForces Africa’s channel check on Tuesday, November 22, 2022, it was discovered that the FX spot rate closed between N770 and N780 in the black market In a recent report, the International Monetary Fund, IMF, said a unified and market-clearing exchange rate remains critical to enhancing confidence. Foreign investment in the country has declined as investors have been unable to repatriate United States dollars abroad. This has triggered an increase in total FX backlog which if debited against the external reserves could pressure the nation’s FX market position. “Continued FX shortages, a stabilized exchange rate regime, rising inflation, limited debt servicing capacity, and administrative restrictions on current transactions fuel devaluation speculations”, IMF told the Nigerian government. It added that these factors hinder much needed capital inflows, encourage outflows and constrain private sector investment. Also, the mission reiterated its past recommendations to move towards a unified and market-clearing exchange rate by dismantling the various exchange rate windows at the CBN accompanied by clarity on exchange rate policy and supportive fiscal and monetary policies. In the medium term, IMF said the CBN should step back from its role as the main FX intermediator, limiting interventions to smoothing market volatility and allowing banks to freely determine FX buy-sell rates. Read More: Naira gains at foreign exchange market amidst interest rate hike Prev Post Iowa woman stays quiet as excitement buzzed about her $2 million Powerball lottery win — Silver Lotto	3,032
On Fridays, I host (and record) a live Blab with a fellow freelancer. For those of you who can’t catch it live, want a review or just prefer reading a blog post to watching a video, here’s a recap of my recent chat with Angie Nelson of The Work at Home Wife. This past Friday I talked with Angie about blog monetization, specifically around repurposing blog content. Thanks for joining me for the chat, Angie! Angie, tell us a little bit about yourself. I’m Angie Nelson. I’ve been working at home as a virtual assistant since 2007. I started blogging in 2008 as a way to get clients for my virtual assistant business; however, I found that most of the people following my blog wanted to learn more about being a virtual assistant. Today, I own TheWorkAtHomeWife.com that was launched in 2010. I help people find legitimate work-at-home jobs and home business ideas. I also share a few blogging tips from time to time. That’s how I make my income. What were you doing then for promotion versus what you’re doing now? When I started blogging, Twitter and Facebook were literally just getting started. Back then, blogs weren’t even on Facebook, so you were relying on SEO and getting out in the forums. It was totally different. One of the things that have been an advantage was that back then you had to rely on your email list. You didn’t have people following you on social media. If anybody was going to come back to your blog, it was because they were on your email list. Let’s talk about self-hosting. Why is having a self-hosted site so important? It’s important to understand the difference in a WordPress.org site and a WordPress.com site. A WordPress.com site is free. You’re very limited in how you can monetize because it has strict rules about what you can and can’t do. When I decided this was something I wanted to make money from, I immediately got off that side of WordPress. When you start getting into affiliate marketing, the majority of the affiliate programs are not going to approve you if you have a Blogger.com address or a WordPress.com address. Also, with the free accounts, you don’t own your blog. They can delete your blog if they find you’ve done something wrong. You’re really limiting yourself if you’re not self-hosted. Thinking of starting your own website and blog? Check our free tutorial,7 Days or Less to Branded Website Success. We’ll show you how to design and create content to attract your ideal customer. I know you’re currently repurposing your blog’s content. Can you share with us how you’re repurposing your content? There are a lot of different ways to repurpose content. One thing that’s going like gangbusters right now is the content upgrades. Each of your individual posts has something unique about it. For example, I have a list that’s 101 ways to do something. Nobody’s going to pop on that list and go do 101 things. So I just turn that blog post into a PDF that the readers can take with them. It’s like a welcome gift or a thank you gift for signing up to my email list. Another great way to repurpose content is by using video. Video is huge right now. You’re going to have a whole new set of people watching you on video than are reading your blog posts. Anything that’s meaty content is something you should consider turning into a video. Product creation is a third way to repurpose content. If there’s something that really struck a nerve with your audience, consider how you could turn that into something bigger, whether it’s an eBook, a course or a free report you can give away to new subscribers. You can also do a series. If there are some categories on your blog that could easily be run together, send those out. That’s also a way to get another income stream going. You can turn your content into a book or video tutorials that you can charge for, even if it’s a small amount. It’s passive income potential. I know you’re an Amazon affiliate and are an affiliate for a hosting site. What other more favorable hosting relationships do you have? That’s one of the main reasons I started theworkathomewife.com. I was lucky that in the first month I had my blog, I made 50 dollars. That was a huge thing that kept me going. Of course, it wasn’t always that consistent and it won’t be. Bonus resource: we recently put together a series of articles designed to help you design and brand your site in 7 days or less. You can download the entire tutorial by clicking on the box below: The majority of my affiliate income comes from promoting courses and eBooks. My audience is looking for information, so that’s where a lot of my income comes from. In fairness, I have a disclosure that’s permanently affixed at the top of every post so that I don’t forget to include it. It says something like: This post may contain affiliate links. If you click through, I get a commission. Thank you for joining me for this chat, Angie! Watch the full video and learn more strategies to monetize your blog: Gina Horkey is a married, millennial mama from Minnesota. Additionally, she’s the founder of Horkey HandBook and loves helping others find or become a kickass virtual assistant. Gina’s background includes making a living as a professional writer, an online business marketing consultant and a decade of experience in the financial services industry.	5,367
My brother and I required help with applying for Croatian citizenship. We found Expat in Croatia to be very helpful, emails were responded to quickly and we were referred to a professional who’s service was second to none. Pricing was very reasonable. We were surprised with the speed at which we received responses and how helpful and supportive the team was. The whole process was extremely daunting at first but the team explained every step in simple terms and checked in on us to offer help when we were stuck. Cannot express how highly we recommend Expat in Croatia, it has been without doubt an absolute pleasure to work with them. November 21, 2022 United States Introduced to a Professional I needed a consultation in regard to temporary residence and potential citizenship and also how I could get an OIB. Ivona was very helpful explaining the hurdles involved and she was able to procure an OIB for me, an important first step. November 8, 2022 Canada I cannot express how helpful Sara & Teri were! I had so many questions and didn't even know where to start. The blogs on the website are super helpful, but having someone to turn to for help with navigating our personal experience was crucial. Thank you for your support & guidance. October 24, 2022 Canada We were looking for answers to first steps to take when moving to Croatia, as well as where we could find out about Croatian language lessons for our children. Sara answered all these questions and more! We talked freely for our consultation about many other things that came up in conversation and she was always willing to listen without making us feel rushed in any way. She took notes about everything that we discussed and followed up with a very detailed email with answers/links to all of our questions and concerns. The Expat team is very professional and take their work seriously ... you get what you pay for. And it's worth every penny! October 15, 2022 United States Sara was absolutely incredible with our consultation. She helped me understand the options available to me to relocate to Croatia and the explore the idea of opening a business. She was so prepared with the information I needed, and answered all of my questions. I'm so glad I made my consultation appointment and I encourage anyone who has questions or needs guidance about all things Croatia to connect with their team. Sara and the Expat in Croatia team is amazing! Thank you, thank you, thank you!! October 13, 2022 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Working with Sara was great. We had a very efficient session. She answered all our questions and even supplied many links, resources and introductions via email after our meeting. I'd highly recommend to anyone who wants to understand their options to relocate to Croatia. October 11, 2022 All the team members are very good person I really appreciate from all of them October 3, 2022 I had a consulting session with Sara who was lovely and professional. She answered all my questions and provided me with extensive information after our consultation. Thank you Sara! September 27, 2022 Belgium Sara was accommodating in answering all of my questions in detail. She prepared the conversation very thoroughly leaving no information untouched. At the end of our short conversation, Sara sent me an email with all the resources needed to plan my move to Croatia. I'm now confident to plan my move there within the next few weeks. I would definitely recommend their services even for the most minor questions. September 22, 2022 United States We met with Sara for an initial consultation on citizenship in Croatia. Sara explained the process clearly and with detail and provided us the contact information for a case manager and attorney. She answered all our questions and we felt very satisfied with the meeting. September 12, 2022 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional First, the Expat in Croatia website is incredibly comprehensive and helped us start thinking about what we needed to know about moving to Croatia. Once we decided to follow a Croatian citizenship route, we submitted a request for consultation so we could ask additional questions. Sara and Teri were both very prompt in replying and scheduling a phone consult, and answered a few questions by email prior to the consult. During our call with Sara, she was very thorough in helping us understand the process and pointing out best ways to approach our application. Sara seems to know Croatian culture well and provided a realistic timeline for the application process. September 12, 2022 South Africa Sara was so informative and assisted us with all information we required, and followed with an email to guide us with this process. Expat have been amazing. September 12, 2022 United States My consultation with Sara was concise and very informative. September 12, 2022 Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Sara helped me understand the process of moving to Croatia as a digital nomad. I booked a 30 minute slot and every minute was informative and of great value to me. I am sure the advice given will be of tremendous assistance. Sara also followed up the session immediately with emails containing local connections and further online resources. I cannot recommend the service too highly. September 7, 2022 United States Sara was extremely helpful in helping me to understand the different types of Visas, as well as the application process. There were steps that I would not have understood or known to take. She was also extremely helpful with other questions about living in Croatia, such as banking, mobile phone providers, etc. I highly recommend her services! August 25, 2022 Consulting, Introduced to a Professional I needed help all the way around. My big question was needing help with the FBI background check and getting my fingerprints to the USA safely. Sara was very thorough and answered all my questions. Definitely worth the money. My expectations were very high and Sara and her team exceeded them all. August 25, 2022 United States Introduced to a Professional Ivona was very helpful in helping us understand the requirements for temporary residence and eventual citizenship in Croatia. For now, she is getting my OIB which will be of help to use for banking and other services. She's very professional and I would look forward to working with her in the future. August 18, 2022 Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Sara is absolutely the best resource available should you wish to acquire Croatian citizenship, relocate to Croatia or simply learn more about Croatian legalities, bureaucracy and its culture. Sara is not an "app" that you simply can download, she is a primary resource that can personally answer your questions, etc. Extremely professional, Sara can answer most questions you may have about Croatia. She researches her answers thoroughly (if you are wise enough to send your questions before your consultation) and is quick to point out that she may not have the answer to an obscure, yet nonetheless important question, you may have, and she will get back to you. The "magic" of Sara is that she, herself, has gone through many of the situations that you may anticipate should you want to live in Croatia. Well-spoken, intelligent, and with a broad knowledge of many of the problems that you may encounter, Sara offers practical, well-founded and real advice as to how to navigate the complexities of moving to Croatia. I cannot praise Sara more my consultation (but, I can) than to simply say she helped guide me in obtaining Croatian citizenship, found excellent professionals when needed as well as "held my hand" through much of the process (and some of my fears). One needs only to look at the newsletter she manages: "Expat in Croatia." It covers just about everything you could think of...and a bit more. Nonetheless, questions always arise...and for the answers, I would more than strongly suggest contacting her for a consultation. Thank you Sara, Michael R. August 5, 2022 Canada It's always a bit of a gamble trying an online service like this, but I was pleasantly surprised and very satisfied. I had some very specific questions and requirements for living on the digital nomad program and Sara was able to answer them all and point me in the right direction for future followup. By the end of the call I was confident I was well prepared for a year in Croatia. I can't recommend Expat in Croatia highly enough if you are thinking of travelling to Croatia. July 6, 2022 Consulting, Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional We started our journey a year ago, I felt overwhelmed in the beginning with all the information we found online. Our best decision was to use Expat in Croatia and take Sara’s advice, I’ve been living in Croatia for one year now and, planning to extend my permit also with EIC guidance. June 30, 2022 Our initial consultation call with Sara was really helpful to get clarity on mine and my partner's situation in applying for a visa in Croatia. We then had Lucija's local assistance with the application process in Split and we could not have gone through the process without her help. Lucija was always on hand to answer any questions we had and she also put us in touch with a local translator and notary for our documents which was a very smooth process. Lucija went above and beyond to make sure our concerns were answered and we would not hesitate to use her services again. We would recommend the Expat in Croatia team to anyone looking for visa assistance in Croatia! June 29, 2022 United States Great experience, very helpful, lots of excellent information June 20, 2022 Canada Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Hello, The service provided by Sara from Expat and her team exceeded our expectations in every way. We received an amazing service in terms of professionalism as well as the quality of the content. We scheduled a zoom meeting with her during which she responded to all of our questions with accuracy and immense detail. She referred us to an attorney and an immigration lawyer, both of which immediately reached out to us, making this process so much simpler for us. Sara has an amazing sphere of influence that helps newcomers in Croatia settle in seamlessly. She saved us lots of time, energy, and resources on research, and provided us with information that we wouldn’t have found elsewhere. I would highly recommend her services to anyone looking to have a detailed understanding of the immigration process to Croatia. Looking forward to meeting with you soon in Croatia. Ben Amar June 20, 2022 Joe and Mary Ellen R. United States We are so grateful to Lucija Peric for her assistance in getting us settled in Split. Lucija has excellent local knowledge that helped us navigate many processes including obtaining our OIB numbers and the execution of the lease on our apartment. She worked diligently with attorneys, government officials, and real estate agents on our behalf. Lucija went above and beyond to assist us during our relocation. June 6, 2022 United States I am so fortunate that I reached out to Expat in Croatia for assistance with a project in Croatia. Lucija was instrumental in helping me connect with the right people within Croatia to propel my vision to a concrete level of engagement. Without Lucija, I think it would have taken years to lay the groundwork she did in just months of diligent effort on my behalf. In addition, she educated me in the linguistic nuances of Croatian communication which in turn helped convey my aspirations in a culturally sensitive manner. If there is anything you need to accomplish in Croatia, Lucija is a most valuable resource. She will work tirelessly to assist you, delivering her efforts with a professional “can do” attitude and a sunny, positive disposition, making her an absolute joy to work with. Get Lucija on your team NOW! June 2, 2022 Sara gave me guidance on citizenship and visa routes I could take. She gave advice that googling and reading various websites couldn't, which has led to a vast amount of options being available for my move to Croatia. Sara has really put my mind at ease about the whole move as she has provided step by step information on how I go about getting each type of citizenship / visa. It is definitely worth meeting with Sara as she is able to provide custom advice to your situation. I look forward to meeting with Sara again and for her to provide more of her extensive knowledge. May 31, 2022 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional I highly recommend Sara's consulting services. You can spend hours and hours researching visa options and translating legal documents or you can see up a call with Expat in Croatia. Sara was able to answer all our questions quickly and point us in the right direction. 1000% worth it! I truly appreciate the help! May 31, 2022 Turkey I had a consulting session with Sara. I have prepared lots of questions ahead of the meeting. She had answered all in our limited time. I have learned a lot directly from Sara where she also gave me more than i asked. It was lovely and lively conversation with her. Looking forward for the next steps. May 25, 2022 Great ‘meeting’ with Sara, easily set up, stated bang on time. Despite doing lots of research on my residency issues, after explaining my circumstances to Sara, she immediately gave me a solution to which I knew nothing about, and went through the whole process. A perfect result for me, big May 25, 2022 Sara was great in talking through the process to obtaining Croatian citizenships in a very clear and concise way. She had answers for how to navigate through the system if it was to occur outside of your home country and provided contacts and advise when dealing with the local Croatian embassy in that country. It was also great just to understand some of the nuances that need to be dealt with first, as a priority. All up the 1 hr session was great and really crystalized the process for me and time it will take. Daniel. May 19, 2022 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional My boyfriend and I will be moving to Croatia and applying for the Digital Nomad visa in a few short months. I scheduled a consulting call with Sara since I've been feeling very overwhelmed by the process and I am SO glad I did. Sara is extremely knowledgeable and was able to answer all of my questions thoroughly. She followed up our conversation with a list of additional resources and made a couple of professional introductions. I feel a lot better about the next steps and can't wait to make Croatia our new home. I could not recommend this service enough! May 14, 2022 United States The ultimate goal was to find a home or apartment complex that was centrally located, affordable and met all of my fiancé's needs. Initially, we only needed a small apartment or hotel room to stay in and give us time to organize and plan for a 6-month to 1-year stay in Croatia. We arrived very late on the 24th of March from Istanbul Turkey and after a quick Uber ride from the airport, we met up with Ms. Peric' around midnight, in front of the apartment complex. Ms. Peric' provided us with the keys, and together we did a quick Show & Tell of the apartment. Luckily, we arrived before High Season kicked-in, so our weekly rental costs were not outrageous. The rest of the month was a blur of communiques, quick road-trips to local apartments, and a flurry of what-if scenarios that needed to be resolved if my fiancé was forced to remain in Croatia for any length of time. The initial meetings with the apartment landlord, the home landlord, the realtor, the local tax agency and Notary Office were coordinated by Ms. Peric, and my fiancé was given a signed contract with the homeowner, an OIB number, and just recently, she received her Green Card as well. At the end of the day, in 2 1/2 weeks' time, we found a small house just 30 minutes' walk from the city center that fulfilled all of my fiancés wishes. May 6, 2022 Canada Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional EiC (expat in Croatia) were very helpful. My wife and I had tried getting a visa ourselves. That did not work out. Much of the issues were due to Canadian government actions. The Canadian bureaucracy is arguably the worst in the world. We contacted EiC and they gave us great advice, and introduced us to lawyers in Zadar. Things went much smoother, and MUCH less heartburn. The lawyer even guided us through the government health care application (HZZ) May 4, 2022 United States I could not recommend this service enough. Sara is extremely helpful, detailed, and easy to speak to. She had organised all of my information prior to our call so well that we had some extra time and she filled in the space with giving me loads of information on other basic living procedures and protocols in Split. April 30, 2022 Canada I am very pleased with the help I received from both Sara and Teri. From start to finish, my experience with Expat in Croatia was excellent. I had many questions and concerns about moving to Croatia. Our family situation is a bit unique, and I needed help deciding if Croatia was going to be the right place for us. I had already read through the website multiple times, but I still had many questions about our specific situation. I booked an hour with Sara to go over everything, and I am very glad I did. The guidance I received was much more than I had hoped for. Sara was able to understand our needs and relate all I had learned from her site to what we wanted to accomplish. Moving to a new country is a big step, and because of her help we were able to make the right decision. Thank you April 25, 2022 Sara exceeded my expectations She came well prepared and answered my questions perfectly Before the meeting, she researched my country's bureaucracy, paperwork, and taxes. She walked me through the VISA process step by step and she give 2 approaches to get this process done! I would recommend Sara April 14, 2022 United States Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional My family and I worked with Teri who was immensely helpful in doing some initial research for us for me and my family’s quest for Croatian citizenship by descent. Teri connected us with Attorneys Ivona and Ema who have been guiding us expertly through the lengthy process. They have been able to complete needed tasks in Croatia that we are unable to accomplish being located in the States. I feel like we’re well on our way to getting our citizenship and I’m super grateful to Teri and the Expat in Croatia team for being so knowledgeable and understanding of the many ins and outs of the path to citizenship. I highly recommend working with them! April 12, 2022 Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Sara makes an impression of a very knowledgeable person. She could answer on all our questions or provided contacts of other specialists in the areas she isn't specialized. I would recommend consulting Sara if you are going to relocate to Croatia. April 12, 2022 My consultation with Sara was very professional and helpful. She answered all of our questions in a very knowledgeable and sympathetic way and she was very patient if the answers to our questions needed to be explained in more detail. I will definitely be recommending her services in the future. Thanks again Sara April 7, 2022 United States My wife and I spent an hour on the phone with Sara - she is excellent. She is personable and clearly very knowledgeable on the citizenship process in Croatia. We will certainly use her again. April 7, 2022 Italy Sara was really nice and super helpful in answering all of my questions! April 4, 2022 I just wanted to say that , I recommend a lot the expat team , they are incredible helpful and kind . In my case I was advised by Teri , they would always give solutions to your enquiry and also very fast. They are experts! March 21, 2022 Mexico Consulting, Introduced to a Professional My husband and I have been living in Split for more than a year. Since we've got here Sara has been a real mentor to us. I contacted her and she guided us through our Digital Nomad Visa application and introduced us to a lawyer who had the experience we needed for a successful residency application. Now, we needed more guidance to continue our legal stay in beautiful Split, and once again I looked for her advice, not only because she is a caring person but because she really knows "All you need to live and travel like a local in Croatia!" :) She also followed up our legal journey until it was successfully done. I highly recommend Sara's advice to all of you who are looking for a clear and extended understanding of the legal processes to come and enjoy Croatia. Thank you, Sara. March 21, 2022 Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Croatia is our second home. We have travelled between Australia and Croatia for many years. When our father retired he moved back to Croatia and lived there on a permanent basis. We witnessed his numerous unsuccessful legal battles and struggles with the beaurocratic requirements for citizens. It has consistently been a battle to find honest and helpful people to deal with everyday issues. Sara has been amazing, we booked a consultation and came armed with questions. We were provided with vetted contacts for legal, real estate and financial advice, whom I would like to add all responded in a prompt and efficient manner. Sara also recommended medical facilities close to us. We were provided with information on starting a business, courses that we could do to enhance our knowledge of vineyards and olive farms. We were contacted by her team as a follow up a short while later to ensure her contacts had come through. Sara sat through our consultation listening to our gripes and grievances with a compassionate and objective manner. We finally feel like we have a support network in Croatia that we can connect with when required. Thank you Sara and Team. March 21, 2022 Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional I was stuck with visa issues for my daughter, i tried to obtain a visa for her for a long 6 months then i found Sara online and reached out! Sara and her team where absolutely amazing and they got me in touch with a great lawyer in Split (Ivan) he fixed everything for me and has been absolutely amazing in helping and sorting out all my issues so quickly. I am so grateful!! March 21, 2022 Turkey Sara was super helpful and she took her time to listen to our case-specific problems and answered all of them in-depth. My wife and I appreciated that she also sent us a lot of resources after the meeting about anything we would need for applying for the digital nomad visa & living in Croatia. Finally, the call was really helpful and we're very clear about the process now. March 15, 2022 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Sara has been very helpful by providing excellent advice on citizenship and relocation possibilities to Croatia. She has assembled an awesome team of professionals to help with every step of the way. Our consulting session was well worth the small investment. Sara was well prepared, listened, and answered all of our many questions within our scheduled time. She is a terrific resource and I'm sure we will continue to rely on her and her team as we move forward with our process. March 15, 2022 Introduced to a Professional As a member of the Croatian diaspora, I was introduced by Teri Maxey to Kreso, a Croatian lawyer who assisted me with preparing and submitting my application for Croatian citizenship. I was delighted with the service at every step; Kreso is an excellent lawyer who was extremely helpful and supportive, and I could not have completed my application without him. I am very grateful to Expat in Croatia for putting me in touch with him, and I would not hesitate to recommend both Expat in Croatia and Kreso to anyone else seeking to apply for Croatian citizenship. March 15, 2022 What a lovely bunch of people. They can provide and connect you with lots of professional people and services. March 9, 2022 France Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional I was looking for information and advice about buying property in Croatia. I contacted Expat in Croatia and the team was really helpful and responsive. They also directed me to a lawyer whom we used. Everything went smoothly and it was reassuring to have received advice from local expats. March 9, 2022 Excellent information, clearly delivered and authentic. I would highly value anyone being in touch with Sara, as she is a rich seam of information. March 9, 2022 United States My husband and I needed assistance with our digital nomad residency permit. Sara was very helpful and informative during our consultation. She answered all of our questions and then followed up with additional resources afterwards for us to refer back to. We definitely recommend Expat in Croatia! March 1, 2022 Canada I contacted the Expat in Croatia team in order to help me sort my situation. It involved explaining some steps to get the digital visa, how to become a Croatian resident after that visa expires, how getting married would need to be done and we also discussed about taxes between Canada and Croatia. We took 30m to cover everything in details as Sarah was ready and is very knowledgeable on all this subjects! It was a very friendly and casual conversation and I could feel the empathy and care from Sarah towards helping me achieve my goals. I felt like an MVP with her! Sarah also provided other information after our conversation. I am more than happy with the service offered and will come back if more information is required :) Thank you Sarah! February 24, 2022 Consulting, Introduced to a Professional I am deeply grateful for having found Sara! The information she gave me was super helpful, now I am sure of the things I need to do. I needed to know how to make a smooth work transition from one employer to another urgently and keep my track of being in Croatia intact for the permanent residency. 100% recommended! February 24, 2022 Canada Sara was informative and knowledgeable. She was able to address my questions and then follow it up with materials. February 22, 2022 I needed help with the application for residency for myself and my daughter. Lucija was assisting along at my appointments with MUP as well as with the required documentation. Aside from her top notch professional behaviour and knowledge in immigration legal aspects, Lucija is an extraordinary person who went above and beyond to assist and guide us, follow up and most importantly made sure we are comfortable and do not feel the bureaucracy burden, despite the little bumps the came along. We had an issue with some document not being accepted by local authorities but Lucija found a way to resolve this, while maintaining a positive attitude. I was very fortunate to work with Lucija and strongly recommend her services. February 20, 2022 Lucija was an absolute pro when it came to handling a wide range of complex and often tricky situations. She instinctively turned up the pressure with officials and bureaucrats when necessary, but invoked charm and diplomacy where it was needed. Definitely someone you need on your side when you're fighting the system! February 10, 2022 United States Introduced to a Professional I had learned about possible tax issue for people with Croatian citizenship working outside of Croatia, but was not clear on what the implications of this would be for me and who I could turn to answer my questions. I was very excited to see that Expat in Croatia was able to provide me with an introduction to a local tax expert who was familiar with this situation. It was a pleasure working with Teri Maxey who was prompt in responding to my emails, and was able to connect me with tax expert to answer my questions. It's great to have such support beyond the the typical "Nema problema!" that I usually encounter! February 9, 2022 Lucija Peric took me through the steps of gaining my temporary residency, a path fraught with pitfalls to the unsuspecting. Lucija was very professional, reassuring and friendly and made that path smooth, never wanting in offering her time to assist in any way, she answered emails promptly and followed up with phone calls where necessary and accompanied me to all appointments. She even brought me to an appointment that was outside her remit to assist with translation. I would have no hesitation in recommending this service if you want to avoid disappointments. February 7, 2022 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional My wife and I had a few more questions after reviewing the terrific website and had a consulting session with Sara. She was able to address all our questions and more very efficiently. We also got a referral to a tax professional and were very pleased with how that turned out. We used to live in Zagreb 3 decades ago and it would have been so much easier if a website and service like this existed then! February 4, 2022 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional I found Sara to be very pleasant, informative, and efficient. She was able to answer my questions succinctly and guide me through the process. February 2, 2022 United States Efficient and knowledgeable. I received answers to all my questions on the process for applying for citizenship in Croatia. Sara was very familiar with the process and was able to clearly direct us to the steps to follow after the consultation. January 31, 2022 United States As I'm preparing to move to Croatia as both a digital nomad and future foreign spouse, Sara was incredibly helpful and knowledgable about both the general information I could want and responding to my specific circumstances and needs. I would certainly say the quality of service and value of information was above and beyond and I would highly recommend anyone take advantage of these services to help navigate Croatia's unique bureaucratic systems and all the ins and outs of living abroad. January 31, 2022 United States Sara was great. She completely explained in detail the process to obtain Croatian citizenship based on ancestry. She answered all my questions and provided guidance on each document I'll need to complete my application. The time and money for her consultation was very well spent. Thanks Sara! January 25, 2022 United States Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional My wife and I, both of Croatian descent via our grandparents, recently completed the citizenship application process and were granted Croatian citizenship. The process began nearly two years ago when I first contacted Sara at Expat. She directed us to the right lawyer in Split who helped us track down the birth records of four grandparents dating back to the 1880's. Sara's help and Andrea's (the lawyer) work made it possible for us to begin the entire process. We are grateful to Expat in Croatia for being our "go to" service and for opening the gateway into Croatian culture. January 11, 2022 I heard about Expat In Croatia from a friend of mine when I was looking for some help with applying for a Croatian citizenship by decent. I had a Zoom meeting with Sara and she was incredibly helpful. She answered all my questions in great detail and with her advice, myself and my family are on the right path to applying for our citizenships. I highly recommend talking to Sara if you need any guidance on the citizenship by decent application process. January 3, 2022 This was a great consultation session. Sara took the time to answer every single question that I asked her with exceptional detail. Sara was well-prepared for the call and we managed to cover a lot of ground within a short time. Moreover, Sara provided very valuable suggestions that I wasn't even expecting and sent me a follow up email containing important information for my next steps. I would certainly recommend Sara if you ever need help in Croatia. December 16, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional I'm forever grateful that Sara and the Expat in Croatia team exist. They've clarified and broken down the process of obtaining citizenship in Croatia in a way that has saved me from future headaches of trying to figure out this process on my own. There's a great comfort knowing that I have Sara and her team at my side if anything concerning or confusing comes up. I would highly recommend setting up a consultation with Sara if you have any questions or concerns at all. The process of citizenship can be very tedious and in my consultation, I learned some very important details I would have completely missed and it would have put a huge hiccup in my process if it got overlooked! A consultation with Sara is 100% worth it! December 15, 2021 France You are treat like a real VIP customer, triple A service and answers. Before requesting the consulting service, I have done my homeworks, thanks to the excellent website ! The face to face meeting helps me deepen some keys points about my future move to Croatia. It really helps me checked if I was on the right tracks and saved me lot of time for sure. Highly recommended ! December 15, 2021 Mijo B. Sara was prepared, professional and gave excellent guidance. She reeaallyy knows her stuff, was helpful and lovely to boot. I definitely recommend getting in touch if you are stuck anywhere in the process of navigating the Croatian bureaucracy. December 15, 2021 Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Hi! I would recommend working with Sara 100%. It is really worth taking away all the fluff and the overwhelming information online to go straight and follow her advice. I recently got my Digital Nomad Visa approved, and I couldn't be more satisfied with her services. Also, there's lots of free guidance and information in her blog posts that have been useful in my journey. December 15, 2021 We were blown away with how helpful the girls were . We dealt with Sara and Teri. They responded straight away and were so helpful . With all the confusion with our situation , they went above snd behind to help . December 5, 2021 Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Sara listened to what the problem I was trying to solve, had a couple of ideas and then followed up by introducing me to a lawyer and realtor. Superb outcome. Thank you very much indeed. You'd be mad not to talk to Sara! December 5, 2021 Great consultation that helped me understand Croatia digital nomad program much better. I received a lot of information that is not available publicly. December 5, 2021 Italy The session was very useful and Sara helped me with all the doubts I had. November 23, 2021 Introduced to a Professional Great experience I found the services at very high standards and very knowledgeable professionals Thank you for your support November 19, 2021 United States Sara is incredibly knowledgeable about Croatia and the digital nomad visa process! She provided really helpful insight with the many questions I had. Lastly, Sara was very mindful of the amount of time we had and making sure we were covering all of the topics I was interested in discussing. November 12, 2021 United States Introduced to a Professional, Professional Assistance I inherited a house and some gravesites in Croatia and had been battling the Croatian bureaucracy for several years to get everything legally in my name. I reached out to "Expat in Croatia" to help me identify a Croatian lawyer ... Sara was responsive and immediately connected me with a vetted and competent lawyer. If you need to get something officially done in Croatia and you are hitting a brick wall, I recommend talking to Sara ... she is very knowledgeable of Croatia and how things work there. November 12, 2021 Thank you Sara and (Teri), for such a professional service start to finish, both calming and super informative. Really went out of their way to accommodate myself and my girlfriend with all of our questions and arranging some last minute bookings. Sara helped us to work through some of the muddy water of making a residency application. The website itself is an amazing source of information, but as the different application options are fairly vast meeting online for a chat is worth every penny. Thank you. November 8, 2021 We had a very informative and useful chat with Sara. The meeting was very well organised and Sara had all the answers to our questions. We now have a better understanding of the systems in Croatia and feel much more prepared to move forward with our plans. Thank you Sara :) November 3, 2021 Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional I can't speak more highly about the expat in Croatia staff. Fantastic prompt and excellent advice from all the staff. I have been dealing with Teri who has been very professional and very friendly in helping me with information and contacts in relation to my citizenship application. Great bunch of people. Highly recommended. November 3, 2021 South Africa Lucija was amazing She helped us with our COVID vaccine which proved to be very difficult Thanks to Lucija we were able to travel around Europe I can highly recommend their services October 29, 2021 United States Wow! Thank goodness for Sara and her team at Expat. Couldn’t have asked for better help. Sara is a wealth of knowledge. She answered all my questions in regards to applying for residency and citizenship without any hesitation. She knows this stuff like the back of her hand. Anyone looking for guidance should, without hesitation schedule a meeting. You won’t be disappointed. October 29, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional I needed help with residence registration and finding an immigration lawyer. Sara was wonderful. She was easy to talk to and had so much helpful advice. I definitely recommend her services to anyone looking for guidance on documents and immigration in Croatia. I'm sure she saved me a lot of time, stress, and headaches. I have been through this process in many other countries and it's quite difficult, so to have a resource such as Sara is a big deal. I will definitely be back if I have any other questions and will recommend this service to anyone I know who needs help. October 29, 2021 Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Sara was super helpful, we had several questions regarding the visas and process, which Sara has resolved for us, also Sara has introduced us to an immigration attorney, who was able to clarify everything for us which we couldn't resolve during the call - as we had a unique case. In general it was a super nice experience talking to Sara. Will definitely recommend contacting her to my Friends if they plan to move to Croatia as well :) October 29, 2021 United States Here's what I can tell anyone on the fence- just know that you will get the best help they can give you. When I needed help, it seemed like everyone was out of the office, or on a business trip, except for the wonderful people here. They would answer emails, come back to check up, and then check up again. They really do care. October 29, 2021 France I am a French citizen planning to take a year off in Croatia, and maybe to work a little from there to pay some bills. I had a consulting session with Sara and asked her about immigration and registering as a sole trader, and she could answer all my questions fingers in the nose - she came 100% prepared. In the 30mns call, we also managed to speak about health insurance, renting a place, opening a bank account, mobile phone services providers and buying a vehicle. I think I managed to ask her a couple of questions she had never been asked before, and she could answer them too. She also mentioned a few things I hadn't thought about asking. The only reason why I have not rated the interaction 'Above and beyond expectations' is because my expectations were very high, due to the website being so complete and done so well, and to her colleague Teri being so professional while setting up the appointment. Expat in Croatia is certainly above and beyond similar expats businesses elsewhere! October 22, 2021 United States Introduced to a Professional The team from Expat in Croatia was able to put me in contact with an amazing team of lawyers (Ivona and Ema) to help me with my application for Croatian citizenship. Being an American citizen who is living in Australia they were able to help me get all of the required documentation in regards to my parents Croatian citizenship from Registrar's Office as well as support me in obtaining my required documents. The only thing left now is to wait for the borders in Australia to open up so I can apply for my citizenship in person and finalize the process. I would highly recommend Teri and the team from Expat in Croatia and the vetted lawyers they put me in contact with to support you in your journey to obtaining Croatian citizenship! October 14, 2021 Had a consultation session with Sara via Zoom. Her preparedness was refreshing, which facilitated an efficient and effective meeting. All questions were answered and explained well. Useful information has been sent immediately following the meeting as promised. Excellent service all round! October 11, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional, Professional Assistance For anyone arriving in Croatia, we cannot stress enough the importance of having Lucija (and Sara) on your side. We had email introductions before arriving and once we arrived in Split, Lucija met with us to assess our needs. She got right to work ticking off all of our "boxes" and within days we had found our long term apartment. Without Lucija, this would not have been possible. Her energy and positive attitude helped us to settle in and trust the process. We had done lots of research, but once here, we realized we could not do this on our own. Lucija is an expert with all the necessary paperwork, helped us to prepare it and stayed with us throughout. The experience was not only highly professional, but pleasant! A great service, a great experience! We will be forever grateful to Lucija! October 4, 2021 Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional Sara was very helpful in assisting me with providing invaluable feedback on the process to obtain a Croatian citizenship. She was able to clearly outline the process and pointed me to a helpful immigration lawyer to move forward with an application. I would highly recommend Sara for her guidance and insights if you are considering proceeding with applying for a Croatian citizenship. Keep up the good work! October 4, 2021 We had a consulting session with Sara in person in Split. She helped us a lot in answering questions about getting a residence permit in Croatia for both non-EU citizen and EU citizen. She drove us trough all the requirements needed for the long-rent residence and the digital nomad residence permits. She also talked about getting a residence permit based on studying a language. We also talked about the need of having a translator while visiting the MUP office and translating documents into Croatian, she told us she has some colleagues who specialise in doing these. Additionally we had time to talk about the weather in Split and things to do in the city once the tourist season is over. After finishing the meeting, she sent us follow-up email with useful links and I also shared a Youtube video with her where I found some information about migrating to Croatia that was a bit unclear, so she can take a look at that. Overall our meeting was very helpful and she answered all the doubts we had about getting residence permit in Croatia and the Croatian bureaucracy. October 4, 2021 Sara was prompt and helpful and I wouldn’t hesitate to ask again if we needed help. I also love the Croatian language lessons in Expat in Croatia. Please keep up the great work you do. With many thanks September 7, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional If you are looking to move to Croatia, talking with Sara is a must! She helped me understand the nuances of the application process, answered questions I would not have been able to answer on my own, and gave me priceless insider advice and a professional referral that turned out to be exactly what I needed in my case. Even if like me, you are someone who has done a ton of research on your own, you can save yourself a world of stress and costly wrong moves by getting Sara's expert guidance! I'm so glad I did! September 6, 2021 I needed some advice due to overstay of my tourist visa, and I was in a fluster about where to even start. Sara is a class act! Not only did she respond in a timely manner, but her sound professional advice helped me greatly and I felt completely supported. Sara replied on a couple of occasions to my queries and I would not hesitate to recommend her services and the team to anyone who requires assistance or sound professional advice from people in the know. Thank you Sara, you are an angel! September 3, 2021 Canada Sara went above and beyond to officially confirm the answer to my question before replying and she even sent additional helpful information that I hadn’t even considered. Sara and Lucija’s blog posts on how foreign nomads can access the CoVid vaccine in Croatia are the clearest, most informative guides I’ve seen for any country. I wish they wrote for government websites, too, then we’d all be better informed. Hvala, Sara! September 3, 2021 Germany I needed an overview and clarification on several points. By advising Sara I was able to quickly get to the essentials and focus on the future solution. The advice helped me make a decision. I will definitely book a session again to clarify new questions. The answers are clear and full of expertise. Many thanks for the help. September 3, 2021 United States Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional I reached out for help on several items including real estate agent and legal counsel referal, pet transport advice among others. Response was quick and detailed with warm and professional approach. I highly recommend working with Sara and her team! September 3, 2021 She is very kind during session, and gave useful information for us after session, too. Thank you, Sara! August 30, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional As an American with a Croatian wife, I had lots of questions. I am retired and looking to take up residence in Croatia. We need a lawyer for purchase of property and got a referral almost immediately. We need to transfer money from the States and got info on that. We got advice regarding residency, health insurance, drivers licenses. Sara had all that info for us. She's very knowledgeable and quite pleasant to talk to. She's got lots of practical advice. Truly this time was worth the investment. We may get in touch with Sara again in the future when things come up August 30, 2021 United States Both Sara and Lucija were amazing to work with on every level. Once Sara worked her magicgetting me lined up with the requirements and a various details, Lucija came to the rescue Handling the documents, taking me to the excellent translator Ana, needed for the process... Then to the police station with documents and follow up visits. Amazing people and impeccable professionals. August 30, 2021 United States Got a quick and useful reply. Thank you August 30, 2021 Sara was beyond helpful with information being a foreigner can be difficult doing business with the language barrier but thank goodness for her help ! Amazing service Thankyou August 19, 2021 United States Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional My experience with Sara and the rest of the Expat in Croatia team has been wonderful thus far! I'm in process of moving from the US to Croatia and although I'm incredibly excited I'm also incredibly anxious. The support I've received from Sara and the expat team has been very comforting and reassuring for me. They have graciously answered my dozens of questions and checked in with me unexpectedly to see how I'm doing. I'm very happy that I stumbled across this website and met this amazing team! August 17, 2021 United States The video consultation with Sara was extremely helpful. The Expat in Croatia site has been the best resource we have found for applying for the Digital Nomad residency. We had some questions specific to our situation and she provided us with the information we needed. She is very knowledgeable and easy to talk to. Well worth the fee to have our questions answered. August 17, 2021 United States Sara was extremely helpful. Provided answers to all my questions and even sent helpful links for me to view to make my process easier. I cannot recommend her help enough! August 13, 2021 I have contacted Sara on a number of occasions, her replies have always been very helpful. She is very kind and extremely knowledgeable on all matters relating to Croatia. I would certainly trust her advice and judgment. Anthony August 13, 2021 We chatted briefly on a call about digital nomad residency and Sara provided all the answers with good insight. August 9, 2021 I came across Expat in Croatia while searching for Digital Nomad and I am glad I did. The guys at Expat in Croatia are truly remarkable and the content they produce and the support they provide to community it is outstanding. What more can I say - the guys deserve a huge recongation for everything they do. A truly amazing team who go above and beyond to serve their community. I can't recommend them highly enough. Top stars. August 9, 2021 New Zealand Had a 30 minute consultancy session with Sara and found her very friendly and knowledgeable. Helped answer a lot of the questions I had about the application process. Would highly recommend a chat with her if you are thinking about applying for Croatian citizenship. August 4, 2021 Philippines Hi! Thank you for answering my questions about ESL teachers and nurses. You are a great help and you even sent me a list of schools. So lit! August 2, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Sara and I had a video chat regarding property my father left to my children. She was very helpful and pointed me to the direction of an English speaking Croatian lawyer. Thank you so much!! July 30, 2021 Canada In a single session Sara provided overviews of visiting Zagreb, transportation insights (and issues) with lived recommendations; she also provided insightful "must-dos" for me while I will be in Split (as a tourist) wrt to hiking national parks and island hoping, etc (I wished to avoid the traditional touristy spots, crowds, etc.). Sara not only provided her perspective on living in Croatia but employment options, timelines, what could be on and off the table from an expat perspective seeking moving there. She knew about the healthcare needs, visas and provided residency options for my own circumstance. She then summarized our meeting with an email including direct links to sites with further source information. This was an amazing value, it will save you time, $ and frustration. I have booked another session with her to make the most of my upcoming trip. Ryan (Canada) July 30, 2021 Germany Hi. I needed help with finding an office address in Crikvenica and Sara helped me right away. Thank you again for your kindness. July 30, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Sara was absolutely fabulous. First, Teri got back to me right away and were really helpful about setting up an appointment with Sara. I was curious about obtaining my Croatian citizenship and Sara emailed me to get some details before our zoom call. During our call, she was extremely helpful. She not only answered all my questions about Croatian citizenship but talked to me about her experience in Croatia and what life is like as an American expat living there. She also connected me with an equally amazing Croatian immigration lawyer who is now helping me move forward in the citizenship process. Sara sent a follow up email after our call about everything we talked about, including connecting me directly with the lawyer via email, and I received another follow up email a week later from Teri making sure I connected with the lawyer myself. I had an awesome experience with Sara and I know I will definitely be reaching out to her again for help navigating this whole process. July 27, 2021 United States Sara was an enormous help while Sherry and I were buying our yacht in Croatia. Thanks Sara ! Cheers July 16, 2021 United States Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional I stumbled across the Expat in Croatia website last year via Google when we started planning a move to Europe, and it quickly became my go-to reference for all things foreigners may want to know about living in Croatia. Since my husband is an EU national, we initially looked at 2 other countries, and I would spend 3 hours scouring 15 separate websites to locate a fraction of the content available on Expat in Croatia. Sara and I corresponded via email to clarify a few points on the residency process, and I have been referred to a vetted Tax attorney as well as Immigration attorney where both offered exceptional service (and value). Sara and her team always follow up to confirm I was taken care of by these professionals which gives me great confidence in their network and vetting process. Expat in Croatia is clearly a passion project for Sara, and I have become a HUGE fan of the site!! July 16, 2021 United States Sara was very prepared for our meeting. She is very knowledgeable, walking me through the processes. She followed up immediately with detailed steps. And she creates a very informative newsletter. Highly recommend Sara and her expertise. July 16, 2021 United States Thx you Sara for answering my questions. Was very helpful. July 11, 2021 Canada Sara is a wonderful woman with a world of knowledge. She is kind, friendly, understanding, empathetic and overall she is very smart & clever. Both myself and my husband enjoyed our consultation with Sara regarding moving to Croatia & the logistics of the move. ~ Jodika & Julian - Alberta, Canada July 6, 2021 United States I communicated with Sara via Zoom and she was very helpful. Reading information online can sometimes be overwhelming so it was nice to chat to an actual person about all the questions I have, lol! I found out some new information about how my family and I can and can not apply for citizenship, starting a business, etc. and was followed up with appropriate links to further look into things. I really appreciated her time! :) July 2, 2021 Sara has been a delight to talk to! Loved her energy, she’s very kind and enthusiastic. I learned so much from her in just 30 minutes. All my questions were answered. On top of that, she has encouraged me to keep going and assured me that I have a big chance of achieving my goal. I felt a huge relief after the call. A big shout-out to Teri as well! Thank you for the great assistance via email. :) Overall, this is an excellent service from a professional team. Highly recommend! July 2, 2021 Natalie and Dean B. United States Introduced to a Professional June 30, 2021 Introduced to a Professional My experience working with Sara has been beyond amazing and helpful. The attentiveness and support right from the start was something I was amazed with which I haven’t experienced elsewhere. She understood my question and inquiry via my email and got back to be very quickly with a solution and put me in contact with a vetted lawyer to which she highly recommended. I truly believe that I would not be able to get the information needed on my own and without Sara’s help. My ongoing experience was great, I was treated very well with Sara’s contact and got all my questions answered and solved. Sara and her team reached out a few weeks later after our initial contact to see how my progress was going with the vetted lawyer. I thought this was very kind and thoughtful knowing that they care about my situation and look forward to knowing my progress. I will be sure to highly recommend their resources to any one like myself who was in search of in depth information, guidance and support with an incredible experience. June 29, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional We so appreciate the helpful and warm welcome we have received with Sara and her services and guidance. It was very valuable and put us right where we needed to be, when we needed and got us in touch with a fast efficient and knowledgable professional that quickly helped us to progess in days what was taking us months. Thank you for your great service and attitude. June 29, 2021 United States Excellent perspective on the real situation at the ground level in Croatia. June 28, 2021 United States Sara was super knowledgeable, friendly, and so easy to talk to. We'll definitely be scheduling future consults with her once we arrive in Croatia. June 24, 2021 I had scheduled a zoom session with Sara to go over the Digital Nomad Visa offered by Croatia. I had questions regarding income tax and taxes on capital gains and about the process of applying for the visa and things to consider for eg. location, culture, community, safety etc. before making a move to Croatia. Sara answered all my questions with all the experience she had, even where she couldn't give me a specific detail on something she promised to get back to me (and she did). It was my first ever consultation for a Digital Nomad visa, and I'm really glad she could clarify most of my queries. My session was followed up with an email from Sara with links to the information about whatever we had discussed over our call. June 23, 2021 Brazil I had a 30 minutes session with Sara to explore my options of temporary residency in Croatia. I've sent some very specific questions beforehand and during our call, Sara has everything researched and ready for me. She explained all steps very clearly. She is very knowledgeable about Croatia so I also got some insights into how my life could be over there, which made me so excited about it. After the call, she followed up with more information, links and instructions. She's always available to answer any follow-up questions. Amazing experience! June 23, 2021 Canada Hello Sara, You were very helpful and responded quickly to my question. Thank you so much. I so enjoy your newsletters, and videos. I look forward to your weekly feeds. Regards Marija. June 20, 2021 Sara has been so kind and helpful when I have contacted her with various questions, she has been able to answer them quickly and thoroughly! I wouldn't dream of going anywhere else, she knows her stuff :) Always really cheerful! June 20, 2021 United States She emailed her response to my question very quickly and provided me with exactly what I needed. June 16, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional sara is a wonderful person with tremendous knowledge on the ins-and-outs of croatia... based on my experience with her. would strongly any newbies to consult her for any kinds of your needs...! June 16, 2021 Canada Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional I would highly recommend working with Sara on ALL your needs and questions pertaining to Croatia. My family is looking to obtain our Croatian Citizenship and Sara has been an integral part of this process. I went on her blog and reached out to her by email and she responded quickly and was extremely helpful recommending a professional to help us with our request. Sara was fantastic and we are grateful for her help. June 10, 2021 United States Introduced to a Professional When I learned I was eligible for Croatian citizenship due to ancestry, I contacted a firm to help me with the process. It would often take weeks for emails to be answered. After a few months and a few hundred Euros, we didn't get very far in the process other than confirming that I am "likely" eligible. I looked for other resources and was very lucky to find Sara at Expat in Croatia. After filling out the form on the website, I received an email the next day referring me to a Croatian attorney. The attorney was extremely professional and guided me though the entire process. Fees were laid out up front including legal and translation services. The legal staff was able to locate my Grandfather's birth record, perhaps the most risky part of the process as without that record, we could not have moved forward. Also if the they had been unable to locate the record, fees would have been minimal and we would have ended the engagement. As I received the required records such as birth and background check documents, the attorney verified all was in order. I was also impressed as in the middle of the process, the Croatian Government changed to a different application which the attorney was aware of. Finally when I spoke to the Consulate in Washington, DC, she indicated that all my documents were in order. Apparently a lot of people come in with incomplete or invalid documents and applications. The Consulate indicated I had excellent representation. Finally, Sara at expatincroatia.com routinely checked on my experience. She definitely has an interest in being sure her clients are satisfied. She made an excellent recommendation, but had things not worked out, I have confidence she would have made things right. June 7, 2021 Germany Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Outstanding! I can just highly recommend Sara and the whole Expat in Croatia team. Asking several questions about immigration to Croatia which needed "insider background", Sara offered me her expertise based on a very reasonable fee. I chose mailing as my preferred communication media. Sara provided great help with her profound knowledge, which came in a very pleasant and charming style. Concerning tax questions, Sara introduced me to a vetted tax expert, who turned out to be highly valuable for ongoing relationship. Altogether simply a true gain, much more than expected! June 7, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional We had a complicated situation and Sara was able to shed light on issues that concerned us. She also has a delightful personality that puts one at ease. June 4, 2021 I want to start my application this summer to be an expat in croatia so I contacted Sara. They were quick to email me for the consultation and Sara was very helpful with providing information. I totally recommend! June 3, 2021 United States Introduced to a Professional Married to a Croatian citizen for 30 years, I wanted assistance in obtaining citizenship to this wonderful country. 'Expats', and Sara in particular was an amazing resource. I cannot thank you enough!!!!! June 3, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Moving to a new country is complicated in so many small ways, big and small, and it can get overwhelming doing all of the research yourself. Sara is a treasure-trove of local and institutional knowledge - I had questions about visas, vaccines and moving my car from the UK, among other little things about how and where to get things done here. You can google around in the hope that internet strangers know what's up, or you can go to Sara and be sure, confident and relaxed. June 3, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Sara is approachable, professional and welcoming. We initially had a video chat and since have exchanged emails. She responds in a timely manner and follows up with the resources and referrals that I requested. Her website is amazing, full of useful and most importantly accurate information including forms and links that actually work! She is very detail oriented and the information is kept up to date which is remarkable in itself. She has firsthand experience and is knowledgeable regarding Croatian bureaucracy. I highly recommend Sara, her referrals to vetted professionals and her website! Thank you for being here, I appreciate all you are doing! June 1, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Hello- I found my experience with Expat in Croatia to be very helpful. Being Croatian/American and living full time in the US it’s very difficult to navigate the laws and requirements in Croatia. I had some specific questions which Sara was able to help refer to another professional and some general questions which were answered with a great detail and follow up resources. Highly recommend to anytime in a similar situation and needing up to date guidance on everything Croatian. June 1, 2021 Free Guidance, Introduced to a Professional After consulting different sites, I could obtain in one place and a quick time all the information to get the Croatia Citizenship, which is great. All the information obtained was clear, the people involved Sara and Antonela were also very kind, and for sure, I will be into the process soon. I recommend your service to any person that need to move forward with some process related with the Expat services. May 31, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Just wanted to thank Sara (and Teri) for their assistance! My wife (who is a Croatian national) and I are planning to permanently reside in Croatia in the not-too-distant future; Sara provided accurate and current information regarding the process and documentation required. She also referred us to a vetted, English-speaking attorney in Croatia for some other issues. We communicated with Sara via email and video chat; she was prompt, helpful, and courteous every time. I highly recommend Expat in Croatia for anyone with Croatian ties living in the states contemplating a return "home" because a lot of word-of-mouth information out there is incorrect, and especially for any US citizens looking for a lifestyle change to a beautiful corner of up and coming Europe. May 31, 2021 United States Sara is extremely professional and very insightful for anyone looking to either move to Croatia or just visit. We video chatted for 30 minutes and it completely relieved me of any anxiety and potential questions I had prior to arriving. Expat in Croatia is by far the best, most convenient, easy to use source for any questions or information you may have. I would recommend it 10/10 times! May 30, 2021 Brazil Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Sara was super kind and helpful. We had a 30 minutes conversation and I got to know everything I needed. Hvala Sara May 30, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional Sara provided a very insightful first look into nuances of expat life in Croatia and detailed guidance on various topics from legal & housing to everyday life & travel. Sara was able to answer all our questions taking into account our personal situation, provide referrals and recommendations and followed up with even more personalized information and guidance. This interaction really helped us in shaping our plans. May 27, 2021 United States May 27, 2021 United States Sara was on time and cognizant of my time as well. We had an amazing session where we were able to cover all of my questions and much more than I anticipated. I would highly recommend meeting with Sara before leaving your country to apply for any type of visa! She is on point and provided feedback afterward, making a list of meaningful resources easy to access. May 27, 2021 United States Sara from Expat in Croatia is a wonderful, knowledgeable guide for all things related to travel and stays in Croatia and much more! I direct a non-profit ministry in the US and have traveled to Croatia many times as a tourist with my family and for business. I have followed Sara's Internet writings and posts for several years now, and have always found them helpful. While I have taken eight trips to Croatia and have spent many months here, time and again I have come back to see what "Sara" has to say about the latest changes and regulations for getting in and out of Croatia. Croatia is a fantastic country. But the rules and regulations here are written very vaguely and are subject to interpretation, so even the most well intentioned person may struggle sometimes in finding out how these regulations are being interpreted--which may vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction! If you have anything more than a quick in and out stay, you will want to contact Sara and get all the latest information and the REAL scoop. And even if you do have a relatively simple trip, a 30 minute or 1 hour call can be tremendously helpful to answer all of your Croatia questions, as she knows this country so well. Recently, we encountered an entry and exit issue that we could not get any clear answers to. So when I saw that Sara offered online Zoom consulting sessions, I thought, I am going to call Sara! I could tell from her writings that she was a REAL person, with experience, who is KNOWLEDGABLE and UNDERSTANDS the bureaucratic challenges here. And so I called her--and she was just like like her blog/writings! Open, friendly, knowledgeable, empathetic and helpful--with a great smile! She helped answer many questions on our call, and then sent follow up links with tons of information and instructions on exactly how to contact, communicate, and fill out proper forms. She was great! If you are looking for help for Croatia, I recommend calling Sara of Expat in Croatia! And make sure you sign up for her newsletter as well, which is packed with great information and will help make your trip to this fantastic country go as smoothly as possible. Why am I taking the time to write this? Because I love Croatia and want others to experience it, but help is often needed to navigate the various vague regulations here and good information is hard to find. So if you are looking for help, check Sara and her services out TODAY! May 27, 2021 Thank you Sara for everything. Made it to Croatia and we are following your advice. Much Appreciated! May 27, 2021 Consulting, Introduced to a Professional The video chat with Sara was very helpful. Importantly, Sara came across as friendly and open and was clearly enthusiastic about the continued economic and social development of Croatia. May 24, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional I have worked with Sara with some consulting, and with her introducing me to various professionals that I’ve needed to work with during my stay in Croatia. Sara has always displayed the utmost professionalism, competence, and a sincere attitude to want to help. There has never been a situation I’ve encountered that hasn’t been resolved and ultimately come to a positive resolution. Sara has a vast knowledge of the inter-workings of Croatia, has a wide array of the best professionals, and is fluent in the Croatian language and culture. I highly recommend her services if you’re seeking any information related to Croatia. May 21, 2021 New Zealand Sara provided expert consulting to me over a video call. The call was super helpful, Sara has a wealth of experience and knowledge. She was very helpful and happy to answer all the questions and concerns I had on the call as well as helping further over email. I would definitely recommend. May 18, 2021 United States Consulting, Introduced to a Professional For the past year and a half of living in Croatia, we found the supportive information found in the Expat in Croatia newsletter to be invaluable. Considering a property purchase and residency, we set up a Zoom meeting with Sara. Sara clearly and expertly was prepared to guide us through our questions. Following up with a detailed listing of resources and contacts, we now feel we have all the information we need to move forward. Sara's service is an exceptional value and highly recommended for any "Expat in Croatia." May 17, 2021 United States My video chat with Sara was incredibly helpful. Not only did she confirm the information I had as valid, but she alerted me to some important lacunae in my preparation for applying for residency. Sara offers an invaluable service for those looking to live in Croatia. I highly recommend reaching out and scheduling a session if you're another one of us who has fallen in love with Croatia and wants to make it your home. May 15, 2021 We had a zoom call with Sara as we needed some urgent advice, Sara was able to help and immediately. She has a great in-depth knowledge of all things related to moving or working in Croatia. I’m sure we will be back for more soon. Sara is also very pleasant to deal with. Croatian funerals are a big deal. Similar to a wed Who lived here? I have a habit of going off into Calling all wine lovers! Today is a holiday j In most cases, you won’t need to take any additi Relation to an EU citizen is almost as good as you It was such a pleasure to be featured on the Nomad Expat in Croatia All you need to live and travel like a local in Croatia Croatian citizenship Citizenship © Expat in Croatia Email Address I'm already subscribed. Stay up to date on the latest posts from Expat in Croatia PLUS get more free content not published anywhere else.	77,029
Thanks and Book Review–Once in a Blue Moon by Leanna EllisFirst of all I wish to thank all those who left a comment on my last post about my 8 year old granddaughter’s story. She sat on my lap last … Continue reading → Posted in Book review, Leanna Ellis, Once in a Blue Moon \| 3 Comments Archives Select Month August 2020 July 2020 October 2019 August 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 May 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006	2,228
Five weeks from today, Yankees pitchers and catchers will report to Spring Training in Tampa. Not much happens that day, but it does mark the start of the new season, and that’s pretty cool. I’m ready for the offseason to be over. Anyway, I have assorted thoughts to share. 1. The last free agent the Yankees signed to a big league contract? Stephen Drew, last January. (I’m not counting re-signing Garrett Jones and Chris Capuano after they were released in August.) The Yankees have not signed a single Major League free agent this offseason and it’s looking more and more likely they will go the entire winter without one. Free agency turned 40 years old this offseason and, as best I can tell, the Yankees have never gone an offseason without signing a free agent to a big league deal. (Correct me if I’m wrong, someone.) The closest they’ve come is going an offseason with only re-signing their own free agents. Kinda crazy, no? This was the best free agent class in years — and it looks like it’ll be the best for several years into the future as well — and the Yankees are on the verge of sitting it out completely. I’m not sure what to make of that. 2. On a related note, the Yankees sent season ticket holders a survey a few weeks ago that included a bunch of the usual market research type questions. There was also this question, via @StadiumInsider: So I guess both is not an option? Because that’s what the Yankees should be doing. That’s what led to the late-1990s dynasty. The Yankees are in the process of building a young core through the farm system and buy low trades, and it stands to reason they will spend on free agents down the road, but making this an either/or question is weird. Ratings and attendance are down and it seems like the team is searching for fan approval for their current course of action. Of course people are going to pick the draft and farm system. It’s been drilled into their heads that that’s the “right” way to build a team. But the correct answer is both. The Yankees should do both. 3. I am irrationally intrigued by the Ronald Torreyes pickup. No, he didn’t hit much at all last season (82 wRC+ in Triple-A), but he changed organizations three times and I can’t imagine that made life easy. The guy never had a chance to get settled in one place. Torreyes is one season removed from hitting .298/.345/.376 (90 wRC+) with a 5.0% strikeout rate (!) in 519 Triple-A plate appearances as a 21-year-old. He did that while being almost six years younger than the average Pacific Coast League player in 2014. Torreyes turned 23 in September and the book on him is that he’s a high energy player with elite contact skills and some versatility (he’s played second, short, third, and left). He doesn’t have any power — Torreyes has 22 homers in nearly 2,600 minor league plate appearances, and he’s listed at 5-foot-10 and 150 lbs. on the official site, so he’s a tiny little guy — but the contact skills and versatility point to a future as a utility guy. Maybe Torreyes can be the player the Yankees were hoping Eduardo Nunez would become. Probably not, but it was worth Rob Segedin to find out. 4. The more I think about it, the more I believe the Yankees will end up using that fourth bench spot as a revolving door. Assuming Starlin Castro shows he can handle third base on occasion, of course. As far as I can tell none of the minor league contract guys (Pete Kozma, Donovan Solano, Jonathan Diaz) have options remaining, but Torreyes, Greg Bird, Rob Refsnyder, Slade Heathcott, Mason Williams, and Ben Gamel all do. Mark Teixeira’s a little banged up? Let’s call up Bird for a few days. Four of the next five opposing starters are lefties? Let’s call up Refsnyder this week. That sort of thing. That’s a complicated plan but it is doable. And as we saw with the bullpen shuttle last year, a plan like this means none of those guys will get an extended opportunity to prove themselves at the MLB level, so at the end of the season the Yankees still won’t know what they have. Hopefully that doesn’t happen. Hopefully one of these guys steps up and seizes a bench spot. 5. Predictions for some unsigned free agents: Justin Upton goes to the White Sox, Yoenis Cespedes to the Tigers, Dexter Fowler to the Angels, Chris Davis to the Orioles, Yovani Gallardo to the Orioles, Ian Kennedy to the Royals, Ian Desmond to the Padres, and Howie Kendrick to the Diamondbacks. The only one I am even 25% confident in is Davis returning to the O’s. It’s very rare for this many top free agents to still be on the board in mid-January. Usually there’s one big name Scott Boras client left unsigned this time of year, everyone says Boras sucks and overplayed his hand, then the player gets a massive contract because Boras is the best in the business. Eventually those players will sign lucrative contracts … right? These next few weeks are going to be pretty interesting. There are an awful lot of impact players left on the market. 6. Based on the FanGraphs projections, the six worst teams in baseball are in the NL. This is not just some wild computer nerd observation either. Baseball’s four massively rebuilding teams are in the NL (Braves, Phillies, Reds, Brewers) and both the Padres and Rockies are in something of a perpetual rebuild. You don’t need the projections to tell you those six clubs will be very bad in 2016. The only AL team that looks like a total non-contender right now is the Athletics. Every other team at least appears to have a chance, right? In the NL, six of the 15 teams will be more or less out of it on Opening Day. Yeah, weird stuff happens all the time and one or two of those six clubs might be a surprise contender, but it seems so very unlikely. The path to the postseason looks to be much more difficult in the AL just because so many more teams figure to be in the race. Not great for the Yankees, but I guess it’ll make the summer more interesting. Despite veteran starting outfield, Hicks in line for a lot of playing time in 2016 Leave a Reply Cancel reply You must be logged in to post a comment. Mike is running weekly thoughts-style posts at our "RAB Thoughts" Patreon. $3 per month gets you weekly Yankees analysis. Become a Patron!	6,313
Since its inception Vodafail.com has made a significant contribution towards raising awareness of the problems and issues faced by Vodafone customers. Vodafone Australia customers have had the opportunity to voice their concerns, their fears and their troubles from every corner of Australia and beyond our borders. You have gathered the courage to stand up for your rights as consumers and to make your voice heard. Each and every person who shared their story should have a sense of pride in this achievement and the changes that have occurred since the start of Vodafail.com. More recently, traffic to Vodafail.com has declined significantly. Having achieved the goal of raising awareness and promoting concrete action in early 2011, we have now reached the point of closing Vodafail to new complaints. The site will remain online for as long as possible as a reminder and an example of what is possible when we share our experiences. It has been a privilege to run this initiative and I'm am forever grateful for the help and support I've received. In particular I would like to thank Melissa, David and Travis for their continued efforts over the past 15 months. I'm also thankful and humbled by the support of ACCAN, Choice magazine and a wide range of media outlets, blogs and websites. You can still browse existing stories and find out how to file a complaint if you are experiencing problems. Until next time, Vodafail Submits Report to ACCAN, ACCC and ACMA I apologise for this ad but since Vodafone is still struggling and you're still visiting this site, I need to pay for hosting somehow. Since its inception Vodafail.com has made a significant contribution towards raising awareness of the problems and issues faced by Vodafone customers. Vodafone Australia customers have had the opportunity to voice their concerns, their fears and their troubles from every corner of Australia and beyond our borders. You have gathered the courage to stand up for your rights as consumers and to make your voice heard. Each and every person who shared their story should have a sense of pride in this achievement and the changes that have occurred since the start of Vodafail.com. More recently, traffic to Vodafail.com has declined significantly. Having achieved the goal of raising awareness and promoting concrete action in early 2011, we have now reached the point of closing Vodafail to new complaints. The site will remain online for as long as possible as a reminder and an example of what is possible when we share our experiences. It has been a privilege to run this initiative and I'm am forever grateful for the help and support I've received. In particular I would like to thank Melissa, David and Travis for their continued efforts over the past 15 months. I'm also thankful and humbled by the support of ACCAN, Choice magazine and a wide range of media outlets, blogs and websites. You can still browse existing stories and find out how to file a complaint if you are experiencing problems. Until next time, We are receiving many reports and stories from Vodafone customers across Australia that they are unable to send SMSs today. Vodafone has confirmed the issue is affecting everyone but they have not provided an explanation or any timeframe for a resolution. We recommend filing a complaint with Vodafone over the next week and contact the TIO if Vodafone is not able to resolve your issues. If you are impacted by current SMS issue, calling Vodafone support is likely to be a long and fruitless exercise so just check the Vodafone network webpage for updates. UPDATE: Vodafone has just stated the issue has been resolved. Thank you for your ongoing support. Last night I (Adam Brimo) received the Choice Consumer Champion Award. I accepted the award with great humility and an appreciation for your support and trust in the vodafail campaign. In addition to all of the TV, radio, newspapers and websites that have covered Vodafone's issues, I'm particularly grateful to Travis Symonds and David Clifford for their help in maintaining vodafail.com. Along with my family, my partner Melissa Ran and everyone at the ACCAN and Choice Magazine for their efforts on behalf of consumers. Over the past month Vodafone has announced some significant changes including new investment in their network and customer service staff. If these changes are implemented successfully I'm hopeful things will improve for their millions of customers however please follow our instructions on how to lodge a complaint if you are currently having problems. Over the weekend our web hosting provider had some serious network and hardware issues that caused vodafail.com to go offline for approximately 12 hours. We were only able to restore access to vodafail by switching hosting providers and restoring a recent backup. Unfortunately our regular daily and weekly backups are not immediately available and we are working with our hosting provider to restore any comments or posts that might have been lost. Thank you for your support. Thank you for your ongoing support. Vodafone has just released a comprehensive announcement on the issues that customers are facing and what is being done to rectify those issues. It details the causes of the problems, what is being done to address them and Vodafone's plans for the future. Two items that sound promising are the addition of 300 more call centre staff and updates to their network status page that show the progress of their $1bn in network upgrades. We are pleased with the improvements Vodafone has announced and encourage everyone to let us know if your service is getting better or still failing. Thank you for taking the time to share your stories and experiences with us over the past couple months; Vodafone appears to be listening. If you are still having issues then please follow the steps on how to lodge a complaint. Thank you for your ongoing support. Two weeks ago we submitted a report to the ACCAN, ACCC and ACMA. On February 4 2011 we received formal confirmation from the ACMA that the report has been received. The ACMA said that the report has been reviewed and accepted as a contribution to the 'Reconnecting the Customer' enquiry. They also noted that they are taking the issues seriously and are in discussions with all parties. We have produced a report on the issues facing Vodafone and submitted it to the ACCAN, ACCC and ACMA. We have noticed that some of the comments being posted are increasingly angry or racist. We understand that this is a difficult time for some Vodafone customers however taking out your frustration on Vodafone employees is wrong. Please ensure that you remain respectful when dealing with Vodafone staff. If you are continuing to have issues with your Vodafone service please use the appropriate channels described on our 'How To Complain' page. We wish everyone affected by the flooding in Queensland all the very best as they begin the difficult task of recovery. Our hearts go out to all those who have lost loved ones in this terrible tragedy. The flooding has impacted Vodafone's services across Queensland however Vodafone is releasing regular updates on the situation. In light of the recent privacy breach, Vodafone has fired a number of employees and is investigating the matter with the NSW Police. If you are concerned about the privacy of your details, you can view your options on our privacy complaint page. We have just launched 'Vodafail Local', a page that brings together all of the pain / gain stories and coverage data for your Australian postcode. Feel free to send us any feedback you might have on this page or on our Vodafail in general. Yesterday the Sun-Herald reported on an extensive privacy and security breach affecting all Vodafone customers. Today the Australian Privacy Commissioner will begin an investigation into the privacy and security breach. If you are concerned about the privacy of your personal information, we have setup a page detailing who you should contact to file a complaint. We aim to provide further updates on this situation as it develops. Vodafone emailed us yesterday stating that Vodafone has briefed all their staff on the current situation and released a statement on their website. The Sun-Herald has just reported on an extensive privacy and security breach affecting all Vodafone customers. The implications of this security breach are deeply concerning to all Vodafone customers and represents the latest and most widespread problem affecting Vodafone. Vodafail.com believe the security breach warrants a serious, comprehensive and prompt investigation by the Privacy Commissioner and the Australian Communication and Media Authority. If you are concerned about the privacy of your personal information, we have setup a page detailing who you should contact to file a complaint. We aim to provide further updates on this situation as it develops. Vodafone emailed us earlier today stating that Vodafone has briefed all their staff on the current situation and released a statement on their website. We can only hope there's more detailed information to come. Vodafail.com has just surpassed 10,000 pain stories! Thank you for sharing your Vodafone experiences with us over the past 22 days. Our collective voice has led to national media coverage of the issues, apologies from Vodafone and the most detailed release yet of Vodafone's network upgrade plans. However the problems are not yet resolved and we encourage everyone to follow the steps on how to complain, share your reception problems with us and enter how long you spent on hold. As you hopefully get your issues resolved let everyone know how you did it and what you received. Sharing your experiences will help keep the public informed and keep the pressure on Vodafone to improve their network and resolve your issues. Happy New Year! We'd like to give a big THANK YOU to all of you who shared your stories and contributed to this website, as well as the media: Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian, ABC News / Radio, The Age, News.com.au, The Daily Telegraph, Delimiter, iTWire, Whirlpool, ZDNet, Channel 7, Channel 9, Channel 10, Sky News, ACCAN, 2GB, 2UE, 3AW, 6PR, MTR1377 and other media outlets for helping to raise awareness of Vodafone's issues. We have been pretty busy over the past few days and have added a few new sections to Vodafail.com. We have a new section called 'Share Your Gain' for you to enter your success stories, whether it's leaving Vodafone without penalty, free credit or resolved network problems. Then we created the On Hold Again' page where you can enter how long you have waited on hold and see the hold/callback times of others. All stories posted on Vodafail.com also now have a link to share the story on facebook and the coverage map has been updated with the over 12,000 responses recieved from over 1,500 postcodes. All of this data shows that you are not alone in your problems and enables everyone to discover and understand the issues. At the meeting yesterday morning, we demanded Vodafone provide current and detailed information on complaints procedures and resolutions for aggrieved customers. They have gotten back to us and created a page on the Vodafone website detailing how your issues will be handled (including termination of contracts and compensation in some cases). We requested greater disclosure around the timeframes for the oft mentioned network upgrades and Vodafone is yet to produce such plans, but hopefully they will be provided in the coming days. However you are likely still suffering, so please keep us updated/share your pain so we can collectively hold Vodafone accountable. I started this website hoping to gain the attention of Vodafone so that they acknowledge our problems and get them resolved. This morning I took your complaints and suggestions to Vodafone CEO Nigel Dews. He and his team are well aware of our issues and are focusing on how to solve them. It is now up to Vodafone to announce how and when your specific problems will be solved. Vodafone has clearly taken notice however this website will remain open until our main issues are resolved. I am appreciative and humbled by the support and coverage this website has achieved yet it is a testament to your complaints and contributions. We understand that this may be a frustrating time for customers however please remember to be calm and respectful to Vodafone employees and each other. We cannot personally resolve any of your issues but we can keep you informed and direct you to the right people. 28 Dec 2010 The media coverage and support we have received from the Australian public has been truly unexpected, overwhelming and humbling. We are confident that Vodafone is taking steps to resolve these issues and we hope that they communicate their progress to their customers. We understand that this may be a frustrating time for customers however please remember to be calm and respectful to Vodafone employees. Thank you for your ongoing support and we look forward to these issues being resolved soon. Visit this page for information on resolving your issues. 27 Dec 2010 Thank you everyone for all your support, the amount of media coverage we have received is unexpected. We are glad that frustrated customers have found a place to air their Vodafone problems. With coverage continuing the pressure will be on Vodafone to solve your problems and show you that they care. We will have more information later in the day. 26 Dec 2010 Happy Holidays everyone. Today Vodafail.com and the issues customers are having with Vodafone were discussed on Sydney radio station 2UE. These issues are real, ongoing and finally being acknowledged by Vodafone. We will keep up the pressure and keep these issues in the media as best we can with the hope they are resolved soon. 23 Dec 2010 Vodafone has issued an apology for the litany of network and customer service issues that we know too well. The apology mentioned Whirlpool, the Sydney Morning Herald and unnamed blogs; which the ACCAN reckons is Vodafail. This apology provided no new information, no timeline for resolving the issues and ultimately no new action. It did reference Vodafone's network upgrade plans due to be completed at some point in 2011 (long time away). Instead it recommended customers email and contact the same address and number that we have tried for so long. Just this morning Vodafail received a notice from Facebook that our logo has been removed from our Facebook page due to Copyright infringement. The Delimiter has a great article on the complexity of the problems affecting Vodafone. 21 Dec 2010 Today we have been contacted by Vodafone (they are definitely aware of this growing community) requesting that people do not post personal details of Vodafone employees. If everyone can avoid doing that and stick to their horror stories of low reception and dropped calls that would be great. We have also just introduced the ability to comment on other people's stories, so if you're feeling someone's pain (or if you're not) feel free to comment. 21 Dec 2010 Pressure on Vodafone is increasing and it appears they will be upgrading their network in the coming weeks. Too little too late most likely and it doesn't change what we've been through! With over 1100 stories of people in pain, we have introduced a rating system to showcase the best / most painful stories. We have also been contacted by two companies to offer deals to disaffected Vodafone users, if you can get out of your contract, then switch! 20 Dec 2010 With the Vodafone issues continuing, the ACCAN (Australia Communications Consumer Action Network) is looking to find out more information about your issues. If you have spent a long time trying to resolve your Vodafone issues (with vodafone, and who hasn't) then the ACCAN wants to hear from you. Email them on [email protected] with details of your situation. They won't be able to get you out of your contract, that's a job for the TIO, but it will help with their investigation. 19 Dec 2010 Vodafail now has almost 800 stories of people's pain with Vodafone, this is a huge amount but only the tip of the iceberg. Vodafone has over 4 million users (not for long though) and many are still suffering (like me) however we aren't standing by. Some people have asked how to express their frustration and spread the world about the sorry excuse for a company that is Vodafone. Just tell people. Spread the word about Vodafail today! 18 Dec 2010 WOW thanks so much for the support and sharing your stories. I really appreciate the coverage in the SMH for shining a light on the practices of Vodafone and your experiences with it's service. I have spent over 4 hours on hold with Vodafone this week, trying to get my issues solved and out of my contract. In those 4 hours I made this website but sadly I am not out of my contact. More importantly though, regardless of whether you and I are out of our contract, millions of others will still be suffering. So we encourage everyone to contact the TIO immediately! 16 Dec 2010 Hey everyone, thanks for sharing, I feel your pain. The more people that know about our issues with this useless company the better, maybe Vodafone will even start paying attention. What is this? In short I am a disgruntled Vodafone customer after using the service for less than 6 weeks. After my relentless attempts to contact Vodafone customer support to resolve my issues (the usual dropped calls, no reception, poor battery life and delayed voicemail messages) I have no choice but to create a website to express my dissatisfaction to the world. In this big world sometimes you feel like you are alone in your problems. Thanks to this Sydney Morning Herald article, I know I do not suffer alone. And since we are not alone, we should probably join forces (revolution, protest etc.) and let Vodafone and the TIO know of our plight. Making this website made me feel a little bit better. In order for you to feel better, share your pain by posting your experience and opinion with vodafone. Update (3/1/11): Vodafone agreed to release me from my contract on December 21 and I have just switched to another provider. This is a good solution for me personally and I hope the attention this website has garnered can help others in similar situations find solutions suitable to their individual needs. Vodafail.com is not affiliated with and does not officially endorse any telecommunications company. Locations Someone from WA thinks vodafone is Be carefull recharging useing the phone app on pre paid with credit cards. at 26 Mar 2012 07:15:22 PM Today i sent 2 requests to recharge my pre paid mobile account via my phone useing my CC Card ($100). The money had been taken out twice but still no credit...They gave me $10 credit so i could call my bank to confirm and yes my bank had confirmed it then i got got disconnected as the $10 had run out. Vodafone said i had to fax through the details and i will get the money back in 6 to 11 working days and no compensation in anyway. I just had to suck it up. Even though ive wasted a few hours on the phone with them and not been able to make any more calls all day because i didnt want to give them any more of my money. Not a happy. Someone from NSW thinks vodafone is at 26 Mar 2012 03:59:05 PM Someone from SA thinks vodafone is No Coverage Kadina/Moonta at 26 Mar 2012 03:36:17 PM Just looked at the Vodafone Coverage Checker and it says no coverage for Kadina & Moonta area's so whats going on with the coverage map displaying no coverage for these areas to date. Supposed to be a coverage improvement but the coverage map previously showed coverage for these areas, now it shows nothing in Kadina & Moonta SA Face to face: Vodafail's Brimo meets VHA chief Delimiter - Renai LeMay - December 30, 2010 Over just a few short weeks his nascent website has become a focal point for customers angered by problems in the mobile networks of telco giant VHA, with his name being ladder... Vodafone customers to sue in class action Sydney Morning Herald - Asher Moses - December 27, 2010 It has already presided over one of the biggest PR disasters of the year and now Vodafone faces being sued by potentially thousands of its customers over poor network performance. The Australian - Pia Akerman - December 28, 2010 Law firm Piper Alderman is registering potential clients for the lawsuit amid a torrent of online outrage at Vodafone's coverage and customer support. "Calls dropping out... Delimiter - Renai LeMay - December 22, 2010 It is late in the month of October in the year 2008, and Sydney has just begun the long wind-down as it prepares for its traditionally glorious summer, with all the pleasures... I apologise for this ad but since Vodafone is still struggling and you're still visiting this site, I need to pay for hosting somehow. All trademarks and copyrights on this page are owned by their respective owners. Comments are owned by the Poster.	22,082
My brother, I personally can't go on with endless quote bubbles... it's just too confusing. So, summarising: 1. The idea that the Eucharist is part of the one sacrifice for the remission of sins seems abominable. The Cross becomes a nebulous non-event, and idolatry is very easy. Are you sure the original text says "this blood is being shed for the remission of sins", rather than "is shed" in the sense of "will be shed"? We can use such a term for future tense, even if it sounds like the present tense: "This blood is shed for you" - i.e. it is incarnate and exists solely to be shed for you (upon the Cross, tomorrow). The very fact that He said the Eucharist is for a remembrance means it's a remembrance of a specific event, yet participating in the event spiritually. To be brief: Christ was in no pain or agony during the Last Supper, so where was this shedding of blood for the remission of sins? One Catholic priest told me that since Jesus separates the Body from the Blood as distinct elements, it literally is a death or shedding of blood, since the loss of all the blood from the body is death. This has profound consequences for our salvation, and I think you can understand why I am very concerned and extremely hesitant about it. 2. The way you put David's allegory, my use of it as an example makes no sense. Still, it was just one example that Scripture, and the Jewish mindset, did use idiomatic positives that may sound literal, but they were clearly metaphors. 3. Thomas said the body is the form of the soul, expressing the soul's identity. Vegetable souls express themselves with the matter of leaves and stems, animate souls by corresponding body parts and faculties, etc. A person is not necessarily a unity of body and soul, since the divine person called the Son of God had no body until the Incarnation. The very fact that our bodies die and disintegrate, while our souls remain extant, disproves the idea that we "are" our bodies. I took from Aquinas what I thought sensible and convincing, not everything all at once. He convinced me about the existence of God any many other things though, so you'll have to excuse me if I am still caught up in a Thomist mindset. 4. The Divine Person with glorified human soul, called Jesus, is present everywhere as God, definitely. I do hope you don't take it to mean a sort of polytheistic presence, though, which would make the Eucharist pointless. Christ's one human body cannot be present everywhere, can it? He'd have to utterly destroy the very nature of the human body in order for it to be that way, in which case He would not be truly "one of us". Of course, you said you don't believe the bread becomes the literal body of Christ, yet it is the body of Christ. I agree with you (I think?) but doesn't it all come off as rather silly? It isn't the body, but it is? This set of questions is precisely what I meant by conjecture. I didn't want to appear to be refusing to answer your statements, some of which just struck me as "off". I am not a very intelligent person, and there are many things I do not know about the faith (just having been baptised in Easter 2011). I am trying to learn, and often do that more by rash objections than by humble questions. Toma, Jul 27, 2012 Old Christendom likes this. Posts: Likes replying: If you believe the Eucharist is salvific, what do you think of people like me who can't receive the Eucharist out of scrupulosity that no Church has the true valid sacrament anymore, due to various heresies, schisms, errors, and failures through the ages? It may be a little obsessive on my part, but it still relates to the thread. Can a person be saved without the Eucharist? Toma, Jul 27, 2012 Posts: Likes said: ↑ Just as an aside to anyone replying: If you believe the Eucharist is salvific, what do you think of people like me who can't receive the Eucharist out of scrupulosity that no Church has the true valid sacrament anymore, due to various heresies, schisms, errors, and failures through the ages? It may be a little obsessive on my part, but it still relates to the thread. Can a person be saved without the Eucharist? Click to expand... Are you familiar with Donatism? If not, it's worth studying. It might speak to your questions about validity. That's probably a topic for another thread, so I won't say more here. To answer the other question: yes, people are saved by the Lord. Faith precedes reception of the Eucharist, and it can also precede baptism (as it did in my case). If you believe in OSAS, and if you see a strong distinction between justification & sanctification, it would be hard to even see the Sacraments as salvific at all. If you do not hold one or both of those views, they play a role in salvation because they are sure means of grace (and some would also say forgiveness). But the Lord calls people to himself who never receive any Sacraments, and there are people who die before baptism and so forth. There are others who feel unworthy to approach/receive the Lord in the Eucharist. Still others will worship at Anglican churches but will never join or receive Communion because of theological concerns. None of these people are cut off from salvation because they do not receive. It's there for our benefit; but the Lord works through other means as well. It's a sure means of grace, but not an exclusive means. Toma likes this. Posts: Likes Posts: Likes Posts: Likes Posts: Likes believe: the mysterious sacramental union of Christ's body and blood to the elements of bread and wine, given and shed for us for the forgiveness of sins. The problem you are having is this: you are trying to turn the Gospel into the Law. You insist upon viewing the Eucharist under the terms of "what must I do?" rather than "what has God done for me?" That the forgiveness of sins is given in the preaching of the Word, in the waters of baptism, and in the Eucharistic elements does not in any way replace, eclipse, or destroy the cross of Christ. Rather, Word and Sacrament are the God-chosen means by which the cross is to be communicated to us for our forgiveness and salvation. It is a present middle/passive participle which can be translated as either "is being shed/poured out" or "is shed/poured out". Regardless of how one chooses to translate it, however, the present tense establishes that the "is being shed/poured out" refers to the present action of "being shed/poured out". Yours in Christ, Jerome, Jul 27, 2012 #27 Gordon likes this. CatholicAnglican Active Member Posts: Likes Posts: Likes faithful: those who worthily partake in the Lord's Supper mystically communicate, through faith, with Christ's Body and Blood, represented by the visible, tangible and edible signs of bread and wine. #29 Scottish Knight, Toma and Stalwart like this. Posts: Likes	15,275
The ICC banned Pakistan's Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif after a tribunal found them guilty of spot-fixing during the Lord's Test in 2010. The sanctions against Butt (ten years) and Asif (seven) had five and two years suspended; Amir received a five-year sentence. All three appealed the bans. In November 2011 a London court handed jail terms to the three: Butt was sentenced to two years and six months, Asif one year, and Amir six months. The player agent Mazhar Majeed, who was caught on tape discussing the no-balls to be bowled in the Test, was sentenced to two years and eight months. In early 2012, Amir was released after spending three months in the Portland Young Offenders Institution. In January 2015, he signed to play grade two cricket for a Karachi-based team after the ICC permitted him to play domestic cricket under the auspices of the PCB, eight months before the scheduled end of his ban. A year later he was playing for Pakistan once again, while Butt and Asif returned to domestic cricket. A cricketing Patsy is born. Middlesex's Patsy Hendren is the only (male) international cricketer with such a first name (although it wasn't his real name - Patsy was an alias for Elias), but there was nothing soft about him: he averaged 47 from 51 Tests, and in all, cracked 170 first-class centuries. A master against spin in particular, his top score in Tests was a match-winning, unbeaten 205 against West Indies in Trinidad in 1929-30, made on his 41st birthday. Hendren also played football for a number of clubs, including Manchester City. A favourite with spectators both in England and Australia, Hendren scored 57,611 runs in a 31-year career - only Jack Hobbs (61,237) and Frank Woolley (58,969) have scored more. Perhaps England's most ignominious defeat after the one in which they were blown away for 46 by Curtly Ambrose. They were bowled out for 82 and 93 by New Zealand - Richard Hadlee being the destroyer. New Zealand got 307 in 72 overs on a substandard pitch; Hadlee was sensational: he walloped 18 boundaries in an 81-ball 99 (the only fifty of the match) then tucked rapaciously into England with 3 for 16 and 5 for 28. In all, the match lasted just 11 hours, 41 minutes. Tony Pigott, who postponed his wedding to play what was his only Test, must have wished he hadn't bothered. An outstanding talent, Darren Lehmann, who was born today, always struggled to command a regular place in a strong Australian side. He scored three centuries in the space of five Tests in 2003 (though two of them came against Bangladesh) before being laid low by injury. He was more of a fixture in the one-day team and had the honour of hitting the winning runs in the World Cup final at Lord's in 1999. He was a key member of the side that defended the title four years later, although his entry into the tournament was delayed by a suspension for a racist dressing-room outburst. He played his final ODI in 2005 and retired from domestic cricket at the end of the 2007-08 season. He then worked as a coach in the IPL before being appointed the Australia coach just a few weeks before the start of the 2013 Ashes. His first few years in charge were rather up-and-down in terms of the national team's results. Australia lost the urn 3-0 in 2013, won it back with a 5-0 whitewash at home six months later, and then lost it again in 2015. Lehmann oversaw a continuation of Australia's horrid run in Asia, including an unprecedented 3-0 whitewash in Sri Lanka, but he also oversaw the end of that run, with a crushing 333-run win over India in Pune, in 2017, and Australia's regaining the Ashes at the end of the year. A fifth Under-19 World Cup title for India, who beat England by four wickets in the final in Antigua on this day. Raj Bawa took the best figures by a bowler in an U-19 World Cup final, 5 for 31, combining with fellow seamer Ravi Kumar (4 for 34) to dismiss England for 189. Bawa also chipped in with 35 towards the end of a modest chase, although it was wicketkeeper Dinesh Bana who sealed the win - with a six a la MS Dhoni from the 2011 senior World Cup final. A 74 in his first innings and two hundreds in his first four Tests: the England opener Brian Luckhurst, who was born today, had a near-perfect start to his Test career. And in a successful Ashes campaign too. But he never really hit those heights again, and a working-over from Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson four years later was the last act of his Test career. A first Test hundred for the great Barry Richards. He whacked 140 off only 164 deliveries against Australia, in Durban, one of two three-figure scores he made at this level. There might have been many, many more but for the political situation in South Africa, which restricted Richards to just four appearances. Australia regained the Ashes with a ten-wicket win in Adelaide, having to score just 35 after England followed on with a first-innings deficit of 236. Opener Colin McDonald scored a career-best 170 after Peter May made the bold move to put Australia in. Richie Benaud took nine in the match with his legbreaks, while debutant right-arm fast bowler Gordon Rorke took five. Australia finished the series 4-0 with a nine-wicket win in Melbourne. Marlon Samuels, born today, was talented enough at the start of his career to be compared to Viv Richards, before he had played first-class cricket. He scored his maiden hundred in Kolkata in 2002 but struggled with his discipline off the field. In 2007, Samuels was embroiled in a match-fixing controversy after the Nagpur police alleged he had passed on match-related information to an alleged bookie. In 2008, after his bowling action was deemed illegal, Samuels was found guilty of match-fixing and banned for two years. He returned in 2011, and in England in 2012, against a top-class bowling attack in difficult conditions, scored 386 runs in five innings. Later that year his gutsy 78 in the World T20 final helped West Indies to their first world title since the 1979 World Cup. He made a Test-best 260 in November that year in Bangladesh, but only two 100-plus scores in 20 Tests thereafter. In 2015 he was banned from bowling for a year when his action was found to be illegal once again. In 2016, history repeated itself when Samuels once again helped West Indies win the World T20 final. It's a bit of a mystery that Ernest Tyldesley, who was born today, played only 14 Tests for England. He averaged exactly 55, with nine fifty-plus scores in 20 innings, but his stylish strokeplay was not to the selectors liking, despite Tyldesley later becoming the first Lancastrian to score 100 hundreds. Birth of fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who, as a 19-year-old, dismissed Sachin Tendulkar for his first first-class duck in Indian domestic cricket. Shortly before his 23rd birthday, Bhuvneshwar made his India debut, in an ODI against Pakistan. His first six Tests - all wins - were at home, against Australia and West Indies, but he didn't make much of an impact, taking nine wickets at 37.88, despite bowling against weak batting line-ups. But he was much better on the tour of England in 2014, taking 19 wickets and making three half-centuries, outscoring some of the specialists. In November 2017, he took twin four-fours in Kolkata against Sri Lanka, though the match was drawn. Gordon White, born today, played 17 Tests for South Africa between 1906 and 1912, scored 872 runs at 30.06 and took nine wickets. He toured England twice in his career but played them better at home - scoring two centuries and two half-centuries in nine Tests. He played Australia in two Tests as well, in the Triangular Tournament in England in 1912. He died in Palestine during the First World War in 1918. Tony Suji, younger brother of Martin, born on this day, had a longer international career than his stats would have you believe. In 60 ODIs he went past 50 only once. His hundred against Bermuda in the 2005 Intercontinental Cup semi-final was his first in competitive cricket, and only the second time he had passed 50 in 78 innings. He was a member of both the 1999 and 2003 World Cup squads. Wicketkeeper-batter Gary Wilson made his Ireland one-day debut after the 2007 World Cup, but was a regular member of the side by the time the next World Cup came along, featuring in the famous win over England and also over West Indies in 2015. Wilson made his maiden ODI century against Netherlands in 2010 and a half-century against West Indies in the 2011 World Cup. The birth of Mitchell Santner, who broke into the New Zealand side shortly after the retirement of his role model, Daniel Vettori. A steady left-arm spinner and useful lower-order bat, Santner initially made his greatest impact as a T20I bowler. He collected ten wickets at 11.40 in the 2016 World T20 in India, including figures of 4 for 11 against the hosts in the tournament opener. © ESPN Sports Media Ltd. Comments Readers recommend - Curated tweets by ESPNcricinfo Careers © ESPN Sports Media Ltd. To help make this website better, to improve and personalize your experience and for advertising purposes, are you happy to accept cookies and other technologies.	9,452
Interested in starting a Christian School in your community? Whether you’re just dreaming about it or already taking steps to start a Christian school, this event is designed for you. At this 2-day conference we will take you from "I want to start a Christian school" to actually knowing the next steps to launch! Join the Herzog Foundation, other school founders, and expert coaches for an event that will catalyze Christian school launches across the country! Types of schools served: - Hybrid Homeschools - Traditional 5-day Christian Schools - Church or Independent Types of leaders served: - Future School Founders who are dreaming about starting a school (Level 1) - Current School Founders who are already taking steps to launch your school (Level 2+) It is free to register. Attendees are expected to cover all travel and accommodation costs as well as dinner expenses. All other event costs are covered by the Herzog Foundation. School startups must be located in the US.	1,039
Intuition is tapping into the part of ourselves that has no stress, is completely aligned, and can see the entire perspective. It’s receiving spiritual guidance from our Higher Self and our spiritual helpers. It’s easy to ignore because we are distracted by day to day stress and tend to focus on what’s tangible in front of us. While Intuition is intangible, it definitely produces tangible results (like growing your business). It’s a skill set we need to cultivate. When you listen to your Intuitive hunches, you can make more money! However, a lot of entrepreneurs get stuck in their head and block their Intuitive messages because they are strictly following funnels, strategies, step-by-step tutorials, and feel that they need to do everything by. the. book. Learning the tried and true ways to market your business is 100% a must-do, but totally sticking to that plan, without flexibility for Intuitive change, can leave you stuck in limitation mode. Whether you’re launching an online program or you’re providing an amazing service to your clients, if you’re not open to receiving your messages, you are capping yourself at how much money you can make. Of course, you’re not usually aware of this, but by only following your logical marketing strategy without a sprinkle of Intuition, you are trapping yourself into a set amount of revenue. Instead of limiting yourself, you need to be open to expanding. It’s not until you really start following your own inner guidance (or gut feeling) that sets you on a path of expansion. Think about it for a minute….the online 7 figure gurus are teaching absolute GOLD! But, they aren’t all teaching the same thing. The reason is because they’ve found what works for them by following their own Intuition. They’ve created their own thing! In previous launches, I’d follow the teachings I learned to a T (which got me great results), but I kept capping myself at the sales I would generate. But why?! What was I doing that was holding me back?! I bet you already know… I wasn’t following my intuition! I was just doing everything by the book instead. When I finally allowed myself the flexibility to pivot from “by the book” to a mixture of logic and Intuition, that’s when the needle started to move! If you are wondering, “How in the freaking heck do I tap into my Intuition?” I’m going to help you tap into your abundant flow in three super-simple steps I’ve personally used to grow my business to six figures. It sounds easy, but implementing it can be a bit more challenging than you’d think! First off, let’s just be real. Entrepreneurs can carry the weight of the world on their shoulders and get stuck in the hamster wheel of “go, go, go, do, do, do.” We always have an ongoing to-do list! Time can seemingly become like sand, seeping between the cracks of our fingers as we try desperately to gain control of it, which leads to working all the time. News Flash: Working all the time doesn’t mean that you are necessarily physically working on your business. It also means that your mind doesn’t turn off! Have you ever lost hours of precious sleep because you are thinking of allllll the things you need to get done? I’ll raise my hand and admit that I’ve had plenty of nights at 2 AM feverishly writing my to-do list–which just resulted in puffy eyes on my live video the next day. Not a good look for me! If we are always in “do” mode, then we aren’t going to be in “receive” mode. Receiving is so important! Taking time off from the busy mind is where you create space for your intuitive ideas to flow. If your Intuition is trying to send you an idea, but you are in the midst of thinking, you are blocking what you need to be accepting. Whether it’s ingrained in you that you must be busy to be successful, or you just feel like you can’t ever get ahold of your schedule, it’s time to let go of those beliefs. When you reset your body and mind, that’s when you can tap into your balanced, aligned, and intuitive self. A simple exercise to clear your mind so you can start following your Intuition: Imagine a chalkboard…and think about all of your thoughts written on that chalkboard. If you have trouble visualizing, you can feel or intend that it’s there. Imagine yourself taking an eraser and scrubbing the chalkboard clean! You can hear the eraser touch the chalkboard and you can even make the motions with your hands as you wipe away all of the mind chatter. Once the board is clear, so is your mind. Hold this visualization for as long as you need, but you can do this in 5 seconds or less. You can also make time in your schedule for relaxing or walking in nature. Taking time away from the laptop is oh-so-important if you want to remain open to receiving. Step 2: Understanding How To Follow Your Intuition by Receiving Intuitive Messages Once you’ve cleared your mind, it’s time to recognize how you personally receive your Intuitive messages. Everyone is Intuitive, but that doesn’t mean everyone receives message the same way. Some people visualize, while others hear their inner voice. Some entrepreneurs really feel a decision with their gut, while others just have an idea pop into their mind like a lightbulb went off. Here are the four main ways to receive intuitive messages. You can experience one, two, three, or all four ways! If you are a highly visual person then you likely will receive some amazing Intuitive genius-like messages through dreams or visuals. When your mind is clear, an idea or answer might come to you in the form of a symbol. A very weird-but-true example is when I was receiving guidance on my diet. What I saw were upside-down ice cream cones being dropped from the sky. As I just allowed my mind to be clear, the meaning came to me: Drop the dairy! You can also see what your future will look like after you’ve cleared your mind. Pay attention to the visual. Where are you standing? What does it look like? Who are you working with? What are you doing? This is your Intuitive guidance showing you the way. If you like to talk a lot or are a good listener, then that means you might start to hear your Intuitive messages. It often sounds like your inner reading voice, but an Intuitive message often comes in very fast and without a prompt. If you are asking about a project that you want to embark upon when your mind is clear you might hear a ‘yes’ or ‘no.’ Often times we get our Intuitive messages when we are cooking, driving, or showering because our mind just moves into an auto-pilot state. I was driving and received a paragraph-long message about the next steps I need to take on my business. It sounded like I was talking to myself with my inner reading voice, but it was really fast. It literally felt like I was having a conversation with myself, but I was getting so many answers! I was tapping into the abundant version of myself. This is the most common way we tend to recognize Intuitive feelings. It’s as simple as just feeling good or bad about something. If you have a business decision to make, after you’ve cleared your mind, you might feel good about something or get a clear ‘no’ in your gut. If you are nervous about a decision, I recommend feeling into why you are nervous and the answer might surprise you. When I felt nervous about expanding my business, I questioned whether this was the right decision. I asked myself why I was nervous and the answer was, “You are afraid of success.” You bet I was asking even more questions about why I was nervous about success and what success really meant to me. This uncovered more of my limiting mindset and helped me remove it. You can also ask for your business. This will help take your nerves out of the equation and make it more of a business decision and not as personal. Example: If Jill and Josh were making a big business decision they could ask themselves, “Would this next step benefit Screw The Nine To Five?” Take this question, insert your business name, and pay attention to your feelings. You can just know what you need to do without feeling, hearing, or visualizing the answer. Perhaps a thought pops into your mind or maybe you are the type of entrepreneur that doesn’t need to think about something because you just take action on your knowing. Sometimes business owners with a strong knowing just start taking action without thinking. As long as they are tapped into their Intuition, then they are following the flow. A great example would be implementing a new business idea or starting to announce a new program without it being developed yet. You set things into motion without fully knowing the next steps, which brings me to step 3. Step 3: Follow Your Intuition by Taking Aligned Action This is the most important step to making money with your Intuition! When we tap into our Intuition, oftentimes we see/hear/feel/know the action we need to take, but we don’t have all the details about HOW to make it happen. All we need to do is set it in motion by taking baby steps. Let’s say that you received a message to hire a VA, but you don’t know where to start. You could research how to hire one, ask a fellow entrepreneur for their experience, or write down the duties you would want your VA to take over for you. The key is that you don’t have to do everything at once because if you do, you will feel overwhelmed and never take action on your Intuitive message. Don’t let fear stop you. We might be super excited about a message we received but then stop ourselves because we get tripped up in the details. Recently, I received an Intuitive messages to revamp my latest program, double the pricing, and write a completely new training. I second-guessed the crap outta that message and twice I decided I wasn’t going to do it at all! I couldn’t see how I could fit more time into my schedule to revamp everything, so I wanted to completely bail and just go to my regular launch plan–which in previous launches made decent money, but was nowhere near the goals I had. I was comfortable to just do what I had always done, but that didn’t mean that was an acceptable reason to continue. I had been asking for guidance on how to expand my revenue and make a bigger impact. So, I finally decided that I needed to take action on what I received if I wanted to make a change. I found the time, hired someone to review and edit my copy, and followed my Intuition the entire launch. I didn’t stress, I didn’t freak out, I just cleared my mind, let the messages flow in, and tapped into the abundant version of myself. When I did that, I had the most successful launch I’ve ever had. I spent 33% of my previous ad budget and at the same time doubled my revenue. When we move into the flow of our energy and Intuition, we expand our energy to accept more financial abundance. If you are receiving guidance, it’s for a reason. If you want to change your income, you’ve got to change how to get there, right? Change can seem scary, but it’s necessary for growth! When you are tapped into your Intuition, you can turn those scary vibes into excitement, knowing that you are widening your financial path! Here’s to you following your Intuition and adding more mulah to your business. Thanks for reading. If you're a coach or course creator and you're struggling to find a predictable solution for getting more clients, we recommend starting with our proven crash course called, The Paid Launch Formula™. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. ABOUT US We help coaches and course creators get more clients, earn more money and impact more lives. Our work has been featured in media such as Forbes, Entrepreneur, Business Insider & more. A quick and easy 3 part program that shows you how to run your first or next profitable paid bootcamp. Plus 6 FREE bonuses including a 1-on-1 strategy session. Wealthy Course Creator LLC © Wealthy Course Creator LLC This website is operated and maintained by Wealthy Course Creator LLC. Use of the website is governed by its Terms Of Service and Privacy Policy. Wealthy Course Creator is a sales and marketing education and training company. We do not sell a business opportunity, “get rich quick” program or money-making system. We believe, with education, individuals can be better prepared to make investment decisions, but we do not guarantee success in our training. We do not make earnings claims, efforts claims, or claims that our training will make you any money. All material is intellectual property and protected by copyright. Any duplication, reproduction, or distribution is strictly prohibited. Investing of any kind carries risk and it is possible to lose some or all of your money. The training provided is general in nature, and some strategies may not be appropriate for all individuals or all situations. We make no representation regarding the likelihood or probability that any actual or hypothetical investment will achieve a particular outcome or perform in any predictable manner. Statements and depictions are the opinions, findings, or experiences of individuals who generally have purchased education and training. Results vary, are not typical, and rely on individual effort, time, and skill, as well as unknown conditions and other factors. We do not measure earnings or financial performance. Instead, we track completed transactions and satisfaction of services by voluntary surveys. Results show that most Advanced Training clients who apply the training. You should not, however, equate completed sales closing transactions with financially successful transactions. Further, many customers do not continue with the program, do not apply what they learn, or do attempt to apply what they learn but nonetheless have difficulty in making sales successful for them. The Company may link to content or refer to content and/or services created by or provided by third parties that are not affiliated with the Company. The Company is not responsible for such content and does not endorse or approve it. The Company may provide services by or refer you to third-party businesses. Some of these businesses have common interest and ownership with the Company.	14,699
We don’t have to be perfect—after all we can do, the Savior does the rest. When we repent we choose to be changed, to be spiritually stronger, and to come closer to the Savior. I am humbled to be standing here today where so many prophets and servants of our Savior have stood. My primary desire—besides wanting to sit down where you are—is to say what the Lord wants me to say. I pray that both you and I may feel the Spirit and be edified. When I was 21 I married my eternal companion, although I didn’t know that at the time because we were not members of the Church. By the time I was 31, we had joined the Church, we had four children, and my husband was very, very sick, unable to ever work again. We felt prompted that I should go to nursing school so that I could support the family. I started out as a nurse’s aide in a local hospital and then went on to get associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in nursing. I tell you these things not to boast of myself, because I am no different than you are, but for two reasons: first, to tell you that none of these worldly accolades were possible without the Lord’s love, help, and guidance—He never left my family’s side or stopped reaching out for us; and second, to talk about choices. I have been privileged as a nurse and through many callings to be with individuals and their families at very difficult times—when a loved one just had open-heart surgery, after an adolescent’s suicide, when a family member hit bottom and was admitted to a psychiatric unit or a drug treatment program, when sexual abuse toward children was discovered, or in someone’s home when a loved one was dying—to name just a few experiences. At each juncture, I noticed the choices people made. I have spent hours talking to people who were angry because things didn’t turn out the way they wanted or who became offended by someone or who were angry with God. Each time these people made a choice. Often they would ask me, “Why me?” My intent is not to minimize the tribulations we go through. Our trials are exquisitely powerful and painful in so many ways and very genuine. So the question remains: “Why not you?” The Lord loves you, and you have the potential to be stronger and more useful in His service. Or you can choose to let your trials drive a wedge between you and the Savior—exactly what Satan hopes for. We are masters of our choices. In fact, we have already fought a war over the right to choose. We were all there in the premortal existence in the Grand Council in Heaven. We were not asked which plan for our progression was the best. We were asked, “Whom shall I send?” (Abraham 3:27). Jesus said He would obey and follow the plan, which required Him to perform the Atonement. Jesus volunteered because of His great love for His Father and for us. Throughout His mortal life, Jesus repeatedly reconfirmed His choice, always expressing to the Father, “Thy will be done” (Matthew 6:10). Satan, on the other hand, sought to take away our freedom to choose, entirely negating the plan of happiness. In addition, he wanted all the glory for himself. Heavenly Father chose Jesus. Satan chose to be angry, and a war followed—a battle that is still raging. One-third of our brothers and sisters chose to follow Satan and were cast out and denied the right to receive mortal bodies. All of us here chose the Savior and are here now to be proved and tested to see whom we will choose to follow in this life. When challenges come—and come they must because that is why we are here—we choose how we will react. Will we grow toward Christ and our eternal home or not? I have watched as some have chosen to fall away as they succumb to their feelings of being hurt, offended, or angry or when confronted with others’ abuse, unfaithfulness, illness, addictions, suicide, and death. Yet others, when faced with the same issues, choose to allow the trial to stretch them, to allow the Savior to carry them through the trial, to seek the guidance of the Spirit, and to feel of the Savior’s love and Atonement. Through all of these times, I have noticed that as individuals struggled with whatever was facing them, if they turned to Jesus Christ and trusted in Him, they were successful in finding the Savior, finding peace, and finding their way. The outcome may not have always been what they wanted, but one thing was certain: they grew stronger, more loving, more trusting, and more obedient and, filled with faith, they moved closer to the Savior. Our second estate is based on choices. If you are going to make a choice, there must be the possibility of more than one choice. How can we appreciate happiness unless we also have felt sadness? There has to be opposition in all things. We give up our eternal right to choose when we say, “He (or she) made me angry.” I encourage you not to give away your right to choose by handing that power over to someone else. No one can “make” you angry. You make a choice to respond by being angry or by taking offense. But you can also choose to make the effort to find out what is really going on with the other person and understand their behavior—or maybe just agree to disagree. We make hundreds, maybe even thousands, of choices daily. Some may be insignificant, such as what you chose to wear today. However, that same decision might be very significant if you chose to wear shorts when there is a blizzard going on outside. Our choices define who we are. It was Alma and the Spirit who converted me to the gospel over 30 years ago. My husband and I strongly felt that we should bring up our daughter with some type of religious background. As we investigated many churches, the Lord sent people to talk to us about the LDS Church. It was back in the days before the three-hour block schedule we now have, and every time we went to the local church building, there was no one there. We thought, “This is strange.” The Lord sent a member of the Church to my husband’s place of business in Los Angeles to talk to him about food storage. At the same time, a coworker and I talked about our desire to find a church, and we found out that she had an LDS babysitter. So we arranged to have a dinner at my coworker’s home and invite the babysitter and her husband so they could teach us more about the Church. At the last minute, the LDS couple couldn’t make it, but they sent the ward mission leader, and we saw the filmstrip Meet the Mormons. But we lived in a different mission from my coworker. We wanted the full-time missionaries to come teach us the gospel, but our names were lost several times. Finally our missionaries came. We opened the door and asked them, “What took you so long?” I will always be eternally grateful to Elder Wardle and Elder Mulford for their choices to go on missions. As I read the Book of Mormon for the first time, Alma 32:27 came so powerfully to me: “If ye will . . . experiment upon my words.” I could do that! While the choice to join the Church brought some opposition from our extended families, it was, and still is, the best decision we ever made. After we joined the Church, we continued to nourish the seed. Challenges came: poverty, the birth of a baby with a handicap, my husband becoming disabled, my trying to go to nursing school and working to support our family. When I graduated as an RN with an associate degree, I was pregnant. We were told the name of that child, but he was stillborn a couple of days before I was to take the RN-NCLEX exam. The Lord was there to help us through. We were taught about unconditional love, survival, obedience, and submissiveness to the will of the Lord and that the Lord was always near to lift us up. Occasionally I wondered why the Lord was not as near, and I realized He was not the one who had moved away—I had. I taught early-morning seminary at six o’clock in the morning for four years. I love Lehi’s vision (see 1 Nephi 8). Once, one of my students painted a full mural about 8 feet by 10 feet on my living room wall of Lehi’s vision. It was a great reminder to me of God’s love for us—how He desires for us to come home and actually shows us the way to return. Lehi’s vision is really a schematic or blueprint for living in our second estate. To reach the tree of life and taste of the love of God, we must choose to walk in the strait and narrow path by holding fast to the iron rod. Did you notice that you cannot sit down on the iron rod or the strait and narrow path? You must press forward. Nephi tells us: Ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting [not snacking] upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life. [2 Nephi 31:20] Many, including those in the tall and spacious building, will not even enter onto this path. Or they may start on the path, but when times get tough, for one reason or another, they will choose to go off the path, and even those who do make it to the tree of life and taste of God’s love may respond to the mocking people in that tall and spacious building by becoming ashamed and making the choice to leave, thus suffering the consequences of not enduring to the end. When we moved from that house, we wallpapered over that mural. I often wondered what the new owners thought when they took down the wallpaper and saw Lehi’s vision. We had a son, Seth, who was born with Down syndrome. He loved everyone and would never allow anyone in his presence to get upset or to use the word stupid. He would always tell us, “Calm down. Relax.” One day when he was 20, he came to me and said that he wanted to go home. I said “Silly, you are home.” He said, “No, I want to go to my home far away.” Shortly afterward he was diagnosed with leukemia and was dead seven months later. In those seven months Seth spent his time helping us to get ready for him to leave. He decorated his entire room from floor to ceiling with pictures of rainbows to remind us that God loves us. There were many miracles during those seven months. I will mention only one. My oldest son, David, and his beautiful wife, Leah, were getting married in the Washington D.C. Temple. Seth was very ill, and we knew that he probably didn’t have much longer to live. It was a difficult choice for me to choose which son to be with that day: with my son as he was married for time and all eternity or with my son who was dying. I stayed with Seth, and my husband went with David to the temple. Seth wanted to go to the reception that night very, very badly. We decided to let him go for just a few moments and even planned to take him there in a wheelchair because he was so weak and had difficulty keeping food down. When we got to the reception, Seth would have none of that. He ate what he wanted and he danced with all the young women there. He didn’t want to leave for hours, but eventually we took him home, where he immediately was very sick again. He died a day later. I learned so much from Seth, particularly about unconditional love. We chose to look for the spiritual and positive things in this experience, and we found them. Over the 27 years my husband, Joel, was sick, I noticed that he became stronger spiritually as his physical health declined. He never complained. It still amazes me that despite the literally hundreds of doctor visits, procedures, hospitalizations, and surgeries, he didn’t see himself as sick until the last three months of his life. He always looked for the positive despite being in constant pain. He had some partial amputation of toes. When people would ask him how he felt, he would say “Well, if the Lord is going to take me a piece at a time, I’m glad that He started at that end”—a quote he had heard attributed to Bruce R. McConkie. He always looked forward to his renewed perfect body. Even in the last two days of his life when our dear bishop came to our home and asked him if he had any message for our ward family, Joel quickly replied, “He lives!” But not everyone who has trials seeks for the positive aspects of that learning. A woman I knew came to me complaining that her husband had left her and that they were getting a divorce. She said, “I have been active in the Church, always paid my tithing, always accepted any calling, and this is what I get?” She chose to leave the Church because she could not look beyond her pain to the lessons she could learn. She chose instead to be bitter. She chose to look for the negative, and she found it. Sometimes we don’t make such great choices. The Lord loves us so much that we can, through applying the power of the Atonement, repent. Accessing the Atonement on a daily basis, even on a minute-to-minute basis sometimes, is necessary. We don’t have to be perfect—after all we can do, the Savior does the rest. When we repent we choose to be changed, to be spiritually stronger, and to come closer to the Savior. Choosing to repent, while it does not take away the consequences of our choice, does turn us around and point us in the direction of the Savior. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland taught: The soul that comes unto Christ, who knows His voice and strives to do as He did, finds a strength, as the hymn says, “beyond [his] own.” The Savior reminds us that He has “graven [us] upon the palms of [His] hands.” Considering the incomprehensible cost of the Crucifixion and Atonement, I promise you He is not going to turn His back on us now. When He says to the poor in spirit, “Come unto me,” He means He knows the way out and He knows the way up. He knows it because He has walked it. He knows the way because He is the way. [“Broken Things to Mend,” Ensign,May 2006, 71; emphasis in original] Christ is our GPS—He will guide us successfully back home if we will but choose to follow Him. We must, as we have been told many times in the scriptures, choose whom we will serve (see Joshua 24:15; Alma 30:8; Moses 6:33). Elder Boyd K. Packer taught: Our lives are made up of thousands of everyday choices. Over the years these little choices will be bundled together and show clearly what we value. The crucial test of life . . . does not center in the choice between fame and obscurity, nor between wealth and poverty. The greatest decision of life is between good and evil. [“The Choice,”Ensign, November 1980, 21] There really are only two choices for us: we are either for or against the Savior. The Savior Himself said, “He that is not with me is against me” (Matthew 12:30). You cannot sit on the fence or be neutral or lukewarm. If Satan can get you to sit on the fence and be lukewarm, you are essentially deactivated—out of the battle raging for the souls of men and not valiant. You have not chosen the Savior. In D&C 76:79 we are warned that if we are “not valiant in the testimony of Jesus” we will inherit the terrestrial (not the celestial) glory. However, as Lehi tells us, we are always free to “choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil” (see 2 Nephi 2:27). As we come to love the Savior more and more, we realize that He has given us so much, lending us the very air we breathe, as King Benjamin tells us (see Mosiah 2:21). He has given us the scriptures, the Holy Ghost, the priesthood, Relief Society, family, prophets, General Authorities, stake and ward leaders, and each other to help us return home. As Elder Neal A. Maxwell taught: Our wills constitute all we really have to give God anyway. The usual gifts and their derivatives we give to Him could be stamped justifiably “Return to Sender.” [“Consecrate Thy Performance,”Liahona, December 2008, 24] The vast majority of you have chosen to be here today at this time because of your love of the Savior. You want to be spiritually strong. Me too! President Thomas S. Monson said: We need not feel that we must be without fault in order to receive the blessings of God. He will take us from where we now stand if we will come to him. He will build us up, spiritually, and he will build us up with confidence in ourselves. [“The Message: 3R’s of Free Agency,” New Era, April 1973, 5] You may not think of yourselves as leaders in the cause of Zion, but you are. Your example influences those around you. Your choices influence others’ choices. You are here at this time for a reason. President Ezra Taft Benson said: Each day we personally make many decisions showing the cause we support. The final outcome is certain—the forces of righteousness will win. But what remains to be seen is where each of us personally, now and in the future, will stand in this battle—and how tall we will stand. Will we be true to our last days and fulfill our foreordained missions? [President Ezra Taft Benson, “First Presidency Message: In His Steps,” Ensign, September 1988, 2; emphasis in original] Yes, these are difficult times we live in. Yes, we will have struggles to wade through. Yes, as President Henry B. Eyring has said, “As the forces around us increase in intensity, whatever spiritual strength was once sufficient will not be enough.” But President Eyring immediately went on to say, “And whatever growth in spiritual strength we once thought was possible, greater growth will be made available to us” (Because He First Loved Us [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2002], 66–67). We are not alone if we choose not to be. The Savior will always be reaching out to us to lift us up. I would never have chosen the trials that I have been given. But I know that the Lord knows the beginning from the end. He loves me and He loves you and He knows exactly how to strengthen us. I am very glad I have had those experiences because I have learned so much. In fact, the more I learn, the more I realize how little I know. I didn’t always make the best choices, but I know that choices are fundamental to our existence and to our success in life. I exhort you to grow toward the Savior. If you do, you will be successful. When we put the Savior first in our lives, everything literally falls into place. This much I know: He lives! The Savior knows each of us individually—He knows our names! (How great is that?) He loves us individually. He saves us individually. He gave His perfect life for us. He wants us to succeed and come home, and He will never stop reaching after us. I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ, amen. © Brigham Young University. All rights reserved. Barbara Heise was a BYU professor in the College of Nursing when this devotional address was given on 2 March 2010. Collection: Jesus Christ, Our Savior and Redeemer Podcast: Jesus Christ, Our Savior and Redeemer Related Speeches Our Relationship with the Lord Bruce R. McConkie March 2, 1982 Vast and Intimate: The Atonement in the Heavens and in the Heart L. Robert Webb November 16, 1998 Sign up for the BYU Speeches newsletter to receive monthly inspiration. A little hope in your inbox. By clicking "Accept All" you agree to our cookie policy. BYU Speeches Affiliated Speeches	19,423
Backed by the power to fund deals quickly gives our clients the capability to have a leg up on the competition. Our main goal is helping our clients build their business and to have a great experience doing it. Born and raised in Louisville, Andy and Trey have always wanted to start a business with an emphasis on helping others. With over 10 years of experience in Conventional Financing, Property Management, and Property Rehabilitation, we are here to help you fund the right deals. Backed by a strong foundation and personal experience in the business. Get started with Annex today. Frequently Asked Questions We do not lend to individuals. We only lend to business entities, i.e. LLC’s. What types of loans do you offer? We offer short term loans to fund the purchase and renovation of 1-4 unit properties. Down payments range from 10-20% dependent on each property and case. What kinds of rates do you offer? We are not a traditional bank so our rates are usually higher. We do not qualify you, like a bank, so if the numbers work, we make the deal work. We will analyze each individual case and determine our terms accordingly. Will you pay for improvement costs? We will finance 100% of improvement cost up to 75% of an ARV appraisal. Draws are distributed 24-48 hours after a request has been made. How long are the terms of your loans? Typically 12 Months. Are there monthly payments? We allow our borrowers up to 3 months to complete their project before monthly payments come due. After three months borrowers will make monthly, interest only, payments for the remainder of the loans term.	1,633
Among its many distinctions, California can lay claim to being the most sports-minded state in the nation. Indeed, scarcely an issue of this magazine does not contain at least one California story. This week there are two, Alfred Wright's report on the Crosby Open and Coles Phinizy's account of the fight between skiers and conservationists over Mt. San Gorgonio. One barometer of California's interest in sports is that more of its citizens subscribe to SPORTS ILLUSTRATED than do those in any other state. Another is its sheer volume of athletic activity, so massive that local radio stations are almost too busy reporting sports events to squeeze in rock 'n' roll music (about surfing) and commercials (advertising golf balls). It is significant that an important political issue of California's last election, the pay-TV referendum, was keyed to the availability of free televised coverage of baseball games. Just last week, in addition to the Crosby, Californians were watching the Los Angeles Invitational track meet; UCLA's basketball team, ranked first in the country; the San Miguel Handicap at Santa Anita; the Los Angeles Boat Show; the Riverside 500; and the Golden Gate Kennel Club Show, in which 1,852 dogs were entered. The state has 10 professional teams in four major sports, twice as many as any other: Giants, Dodgers, Angels, 49ers, Rams, Raiders, Chargers, Blades, Warriors and Lakers. To mine this sports bonanza, SI maintains two permanent correspondents, supplements their coverage with short weekly visits by staff members. These California anchormen are Art Rosenbaum in San Francisco and Jack Tobin in Los Angeles. San Francisco Chronicle Sports Editor Rosenbaum is a native, educated at the University of California and at San Francisco Stale. His stories have appeared in Best Sports nine times, and he was co-author of The Giants of San Francisco. He is married, has one married daughter and a 15 golf handicap. Even more herculean than Rosenbaum's tasks in San Francisco are those of Jack Tobin in Los Angeles. Southern California is a multiheaded monster in sports as in most other respects, and it is a lucky thing Tobin loves it. Reporting for SI, he has been exposed to liberal doses of stock car racing, go-karting (in Mexico, even), body surfing, lawn bowling (with Walt Disney), archery, skate boarding, skin diving and slot racing. From freeway to Furnace Creek, from Death Alley to Death Valley, Tobin has had to dodge flood, forest fire and Walter O'Malley to complete his assignments. In the course of his appointed rounds he once wrapped his car around an orange tree on what was to become the state's most famous piece of real estate—Disneyland. Another time, when he got lost in the arid reaches of Culver City, the man at the gas station who gave him directions turned out to be Clark Gable. Still, Tobin remains capable of saying, quite seriously, "the best life begins and ends within the county of Los Angeles," a phenomenon explainable only by his having been born in Huron, S. Dak. in a blizzard (he says). An alumnus of Long Beach Junior City College, Notre Dame and UCLA, Tobin has written for the Press-Telegram, the Mirror and the Times, all of Los Angeles. He lives with his wife and his son on the beach at Playa del Rey. The surfing is good. February 01, 1965 April 2021 Table of Contents © 2022 ABG-SI LLC. SPORTS ILLUSTRATED is a registered trademark of ABG-SI LLC. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy	3,747
A.C.E. has been the result of the combined vision and efforts of three founding members back in 2006, following the change and re-development of a previously existing company founded on 1998, which was mainly focusing on human resource and training / education development. ACE proudly announces it's new achievement: After a 20-year presence, A.C.E. is the expertise of these two companies together with the knowhow and experience of its current professionals exceeding the average of 35-years each in well known organisations of the airline, airport and aviation training industries. What makes A.C.E. a notable service provider is:	675
by Walter Chaw David (Rhys Wakefield) screws up and loses girlfriend Jill (Ashley Hinshaw), only to run into her the night of a gigantic, hedonistic, Gatsby-esque party attended by rave strippers, DJs, and drug dealers. An unlikely place to stage a comeback, David, with buddy Teddy (Logan Miller), coaxes Jill into a conversation that goes south--but then the lights cut out, there's a weird meteorite event outside, and David finds himself with the opportunity to try the conversation again: same place, different Jill. It seems that something's created a quantum split--a little bleed-over maybe from a parallel dimension that twists time and creates doubles of all the revellers, though only a few notice. The ones who don't party on in a kind of nightmarish inattention that reminds of the dreamscapes of Miracle Mile and After Hours; the ones who do begin to wonder what will happen when the time-slips overlap and they find themselves attempting to share the same space as their doppelgängers. MPAA Not Rated English DD 5.1 No Spanish REGION STUDIO +1 is innovative, sexy, energetic, and possessed of that one The Prestige/Primer/Timecrimes high concept that inspires any number of thorny questions, but lands with our teen heroes as a two-headed hammer pounding out violence with the forehand swing and sex with the backhand. +1 does that well, the sex-and-violence, but what it does best is suggest that when confronted with itself, the ego (especially the pubescent ego), being what it is, becomes revulsed. That's what makes the movie's signature moment, when introverted girl Alison (twins Colleen and Suzanne Dengel) finally finds someone who understands her in her double, resonate the way it does. +1 does the debauch of the late-teen scene as well as any film in this Year of Debauchery (Spring Breakers, The Bling Ring)--does it in fact as well as anything since Risky Business and the heyday of '80s teensploitation. But it elevates it with strong performances, tight direction, and a genuinely clever approach to a conceit the poential of which has never really been realized (see: Multiplicity, The One, Doppelganger). Throughout, characters ask each other which one they are, in moments that aren't so much The Thing as they are existential questions posed to friends on the verge of the rest of their lives. David's attempts to woo Jill are tinted with Say Anything... melancholy-- that Umbrellas of Cherbourg romanticism that indicates that for all the euphoria of the first bloom of love and lust, everything is doomed and nothing is likely to work out. Even the peculiar moral politics of porn fantasies are touched upon when Teddy, while lucking out with hot blonde Melanie (Natalie Hall), is confronted with the appearance of her double and asks if they wouldn't consider just going with it. It's weird, yes, but it's also the most natural thing in the world to wonder if you're a man, particularly a young one. +1 rocks partly because it presents the familiar in such a way as to make it appear alien. It puts human nature under the microscope, and it does so without any ascription of intent--there's no real explanation for what's happening, no alien-invasion plot (though that's speculated), no end-of-times concerns (though that subject comes up, too). If there's an intelligence behind the events of the film, it remains a mystery. +1 would make a valuable double bill with Chronicle as diaries of youth's desires: They're imperfect, it's true, boasting as many missed opportunities as bull's-eyes, yet both offer proof, ultimately, that movies about this demographic need not be clearinghouses for idiots. It's pretty great. Originally published: October 16, 2013. by Bill Chambers IFC has unfortunately relegated +1 to DVD, despite its trailer appearing on recent Blu-rays from the studio. I don't really understand why IFC feels that the telefilmic Would You Rather and A Case of You warrant BD releases while the uniquely stylish +1, The Loneliest Planet, and Berberian Sound Studio do not, but then again, I don't understand why DVDs are still being used for anything but box sets of standard-def TV shows, so... Fortunately, for a DVD presentation +1 looks and sounds very good, the 2.35:1, 16x9-enhanced transfer boasting glassy if not overly crisp fine detail, vivid but controlled colours, and solid dynamic range. Compared to the aforementioned HD trailers, the image is predictably dim and unrefined, but as an upconverted DVD it fairly soars. The lossy DD 5.1 audio packs an impressive punch, with bass from the picture's travelling rave providing many of the quieter exchanges with an ominous, acoustically credible thrum. Discrete surround usage is plentiful (particularly during a late-film siege on a poolhouse) and always rendered with crystal clarity. For a title that's considered minor by default, this is a stacked disc. Extras begin with a commentary from director Dennis Iliadis and DP Mihal Malaimare, Jr., who speak rather sparingly in thick accents; it's a bit of a slog, actually. They say some admirable things, though, like how they actively courted the approval of their cast to make sure the film hit that 16-25 demographic sweet spot. And Iliadis claims the opening shot of a pink rose in closeup was not intentionally vulvic, but I genuinely couldn't tell whether he was kidding. Video-based features begin with "Interview with Dennis Iliadis & Cast at SXSW by Perri Nemiroff, SHOCKYA.COM" (11 mins.). Except for Nemiroff herself, it's a poorly-miked, informal session, with actress Ashley Hinshaw sitting on co-star Logan Miller's lap while lead Rhys Wakefield is slumped off to the side of them, mannequin-like, coming to life only when prompted. Most of the discussion centres around the emotional/technical (techno-emotional?) complexities of +1's myriad Groundhog Day scenarios. Not bad if you can persevere through all the background din. Similarly, "Screenslam Interview with Dennis Iliadis" (3 mins.) is a talking-head with the director captured outside a movie theatre amid the chaos of a screening. Mostly he's made to synopsize the picture but he does touch on the unspoken challenge of maintaining a party atmosphere for weeks on end. "By the end, we were all going crazy," he says. During casting, the actors were asked "Do You Have a Recurring Dream?", making this three-minute compilation of their answers somewhat novel for an audition reel. Hinshaw relates a common one about her teeth falling out, whereas Miller talks of being menaced in his sleep by evil Power Rangers. "Storyboard to Film Comparison: Poolhouse Fight" (3 mins.) is just that, first presented as a montage of (handsome) boards, then as boards intercut with the finished sequence. No artist is credited. "VFX Behind the Scenes: Sushi Girl Revenge" (1 min.) shows that the guy is on wires but the naked sushi lady is not: Rather impressively, she uses a trampoline to do her airborne kick. "VFX Behind the Scenes: Face Replacements" (1 min.) is a self-explanatory montage of cast members with MoCap dots all over their face, sometimes on set and sometimes in a splitscreen window. "Outtakes: Teddy's Pick Up School" (3 mins.) is a mildly amusing, mostly interminable gag reel reminiscent of those Judd Apatow "Line-o-Rama"s in which Miller's Teddy tries out a variety of pick-up lines on Natalie Hall's Melanie--presumably of Miller's own invention, as Iliadis praises Miller's improv skills on the yak-track. "Mosa+1cs" (11 mins.), credited on screen as "On-Set Demos," condenses the bulk of the film along with some outtakes into music-video form. Almost all trancelike hedonism, it's bizarrely compelling, yet a head-scratcher nonetheless. "SFX Makeup Slide Show" (1 min.) comprises Polaroids taken of the prosthetic gore effects, and the step-frame "Poster Gallery" is barely-distinguishable, slightly more NSFW renditions of the same concept art that graces the DVD cover, featuring the Sasha Grey-esque Chrissy Chambers. +1's green- and red-band trailers round out the disc. MHHFF '13: FFC Interviews "We Are What We Are" Director Jim Mickle FFC's Best of '13	8,526
"Everybody wants to look young. Loss of hair is a sign of aging. Everybody who is born will lose hair. But today you can get your hair back because of one gentleman Dr Viral Desai. I was initially scared about the the procedure but when I underwent the procedure I was smiling, laughing and chatting with my friends on the phone; its almost painless. And after this procedure I am attending a function with my family." Ms. Munisha Khatwani She had 3D Liposuction performed at CPLSS “Dr. Viral, I was apprehensive about the surgery but you patiently guided me. I now feel great about myself and have been receiving compliments on my new look. Thank you for such a wonderful surgery!” Actor He had DHI Hair Transplant performed at CPLSS “I was a gone case – my hair was thinning at an alarming rate. I was recommended to Dr. Viral Desai by two of my friends from the TV industry. Dr. Viral and DHI helped me get my hair back. The DHI procedure was virtually painless – I was listening to music, messaging friends on BBM and chatting with Dr. Viral during the procedure! The results were so good that my family, friends and colleagues were astonished. A few months after my procedure, I had a second DHI procedure with even better results! I am a very happy and satisfied client of Dr. Viral Desai and DHI, and strongly recommend Dr. Viral Desai and DHI to anyone who wishes to get his/her hair back.” Ms. Aahana Kumra Actress She had mesotherapy & laser therapy for hair performed at CPLSS “I am very glad that I was recommended the meso & laser hair therapy by Dr, Viral Desai for my hair. Over the past few years, I have experienced hairfall that completely dampened my confidence since hair is every woman’s crown. But since I started the treatment, not only has my hairfall reduced, but there has also been an improvement in the quality of my hair. I completely recommend this treatment to whoever has been experiencing hairfall to make sure that whatever our living conditions are, at least we’ll have a good hair day every day.” Actor & Politician “Dear Dr. Viral, Thanks. You gave me so much confidence before DHI that I could take a fast decision and I am happy I took the right step. It was a nice experience and I am very hopeful that the result will also be good.” Actor She had Body Contouring & 3D Liposuction performed at CPLSS “Thank you Dr. Viral, for giving me the body I’ve always wanted!” “Arrey, isn’t hair important? Which man would say he is okay with lesser hair on his head?” “I feel simply wonderful after the procedure. Thank you Dr. Viral!” “After trying every “Magic Potion” and “Hair Growth Miracle” in the market; I realized that only real science could help me. Thank you Dr Viral Desai and DHI for saving the day for me !!! I got back my crowning glory; and my smile.” "Dear Dr. Desai, I came to you as a bald man. You have restored not only my hair but also my confidence. (I am) very happy with my hair growth. Thank you for the wonderful result!" “I have done my hair transplant through Dr. Viral Desai’s DHI and I am very happy with the results.” “I have been playing hockey since I was 12 years old and started losing hair when I was 23 years. I thank Dr. Viral Desai’s DHI for giving my hair and confidence back.” PR Sreejesh “I am amazed at how easy the whole procedure was. I got back my hair and my looks.” "I am a resident of Dubai. I heard about Dr. Desai from a friend who had liposuction by Dr. Desai eight years ago. I was amazed to see my friend's results and hence took the decision to have a mega-liposuction done with Dr. Viral. My mega-liposuction helped me lose a tremendous amount of body fat and inches. I saw myself slimmer and fitter after many years. We were very pleased with the entire care Dr. Desai's staff provided, right from consultation till post-operative care. Dr. Desai too took utmost care of us. Later, Dr. Desai informed me that I had 22 litres of fat removed in one session – this was the highest ever reported in India. My story was covered in the Times of India. The recovery was very smooth and I flew back home to Dubai only eight days after the surgery. Looking at my results, my mother, at the age of 62, decided to also go for this procedure." "To all of Dr. Desai's potential clients, This is my true story. I had tried everything from diets to gym to aerobics to hot yoga before being convinced that it would be impossible for me to go back to my old waist size again. Fortunately, a few months ago I bumped into a friend of mine - Ritesh - who told me about his wonderful experience with CPLSS. Encouraged and with a ray of hope, I called CPLSS. Today, three months after having a liposuction procedure, I can happily claim to have surpassed my goal of dropping a few inches! I have also been strongly motivated by my new look to change by lifestyle to maintain my "new" body. I am grateful to Dr. Viral Desai and his team for recreating me. I would certainly recommend CPLSS to anyone who is thinking of having cosmetic surgery." Mr. J. Bhanushali (39 years) "I just wanted to thank you for helping me change not only my body but also my personality. I realise that throughout life, we continuously abuse our bodies, only to realise later that there are no replacements. Doctors like you help us undo some of these mistakes. You may remember that after meeting you, I waited for six months before deciding to go for liposuction. Now I feel: why did I wait for so long? Thank you for your help and God bless!" Mr. N. Pandya (44 years) “The peels and mesotherapy have been very effective. I am extremely satisfied with the results and wish to thank you for all your care and advice.” Ms. G. Kumar(29 years) "After delivery I had put weight around the abdomen, lower back, hips and love handles. I tried many methods to reduce - diet, exercise, etc. and lost some weight, but the resistant fat never went away. A friend of mine had liposuction done with Dr. Desai five years ago and referred me to CPLSS. I had apprehensions getting a procedure done in India, and was contemplating London as an option. Hoever, after speaking with other doctors in India and after meeting Dr. Desai, I was convinced about the cleanliness, hygiene and surgical expertise available at CPLSS were as good as, if not better than, international facilities. I had my procedure done and am very very happy with the results. I had a lot of questions which were answered patiently and in details by Dr. Viral Desai and his team. I have referred Dr. Viral Desai to two of my friends and am coming back this month for skin treatments." Ms. Pareeta Shah (36 years) Dr. Viral Desai is a board-certified surgeon, M.Ch. (Masters Super-speciality Degree) and D.N.B. (Diplomate of National Board) in Cosmetic and Plastic Surgery.	6,979
Use this cushion to add texture and colour to your home decor. The luxurious feel and shine to this fabric will bring a touch of sophistication and the cushion is the ideal finishing touch to any room. The front side of this cushion features a Yellow Belle Moth in soft touch velvet. The background colour is a dark gun metal grey, which is slightly lighter than the black backing fabric. The reverse side is black faux suede. The design was hand drawn and then painted digitally, making it a bespoke and original item. The cushion cover is approximately 46cm x 46cm and the front fabric is printed by one of the leading UK digital textile printers on to luxurious soft touch velvet. There is black piping along the outside and a black zip on the bottom side. This item should be dry cleaned only. This product is designed and manufactured in UK, and hand finished in Scotland. You are purchasing the cover only. Add to cart You may also like Recently viewed about the shop Exquisite artwork. Lovingly made with classic skills using a modern approach. All items for sale have been made in the UK.	1,102
I used 3 layers of fabric for these masks instead of just 2. It has a white fabric back. The fount facing fabric has a glitter like layer over the print. These are the Surgical mask style not the N95 style. The fabric is 100% cotton and can be put in the Washer and Dryer on normal. Things to know: Make sure to wash before you use for the first time and after each outing. Remember to keep social distancing. The fabric part is 8 3/4" wide and 3" long when accordioned and can spread out to as much 6" long This mask is double sided so you can remember which side is to face out. Elastic bands to go over ears for ease of putting on and taking off Washer and Dryer safe. Make sure you wash them before you use the first time and after each outing. More things to know: I'm not a seamstress, simply someone that can sew. I have 7 Indoor Outdoor Cats at home. I've set the masks up to have free shipping for now, but when the post office raises rates that might go up. Shipping rates for everything else is $3.85 for any orders of $49.99 or less and $0.50 for orders over $50.	1,087
Kazakhstan has ordered that a rehabilitation centre for people suffering from drug and alcohol addiction be permanently closed, and has fined its Protestant Christian founder, Sergei Mironov, Forum 18 News Service has learned. The Centre, whose residents attended it voluntarily and could leave when they wished, was raided by 25 officials carrying sub-machine guns from the ordinary police, KNB secret police, and the Sanitary-Epidemiological Service. During the raid one resident was found by police handcuffed in a cellar, and both administrative and criminal charges were brought. Mironov, as well as then current and visiting former residents during the raid, strongly dispute that the resident was handcuffed and placed in the cellar by the Centre. They state that "literally minutes before the police came to our building" the man had breakfast with residents. Despite the seriousness of the criminal charge - "deprivation of liberty" - brought against Mironov, an official of the Regional Prosecutor's Office played down the seriousness of the case. "Mironov may be just fined, and go free," he told Forum 18. The authorities in East Kazakhstan region's Beskaragai District appear determined to stop Protestant Christian involvement in rehabilitation work with addicts, Forum 18 News Service has been told. The Spiritual Centre for the Rehabilitation of Drug Addicts and Alcoholics, in the village of Steklyanka, was closed for six months by court order in January 2009 and its founder and head, Sergei Mironov, was fined. Since then, the District Prosecutor's Office has initiated cases against him under both the Criminal and Administrative Codes, he has been fined again, and the Centre has been permanently closed. Mironov – who is determined to try to continue rehabilitation work – insists that the authorities are using fabricated evidence. The Spiritual Centre was founded by Mironov and in October 2006 registered by the Regional Justice Department as a Public Association. The main objective of the association, as indicated in its Charter, is the social and spiritual rehabilitation of drug-addicts and alcoholics. The residential Centre aims to accomplish this by giving psychological, legal and social help to those who are in crisis, and by creating the necessary conditions for re-adaptation to life in residents' families and wider society. Forum 18 was told that residents attended the Centre voluntarily, could leave at any time they wish, and were not pressured to adopt Christianity. One official who knows of the Centre's work is Kulpash Mukhamedkalieva of the Social Policy Department of Beskaragai District Akimat (administration). She told Forum 18 in March that "we've got nothing against Sergei Mironov and his work," and that she did not "see any violations of the law." Expressing surprise at the January ban, she asked if it was related to the conditions for residents. "Living conditions there are not good – it's very cramped. I could perhaps understand that." Told that Mironov had been fined and the Centre closed because residents had been praying together, Mukhamedkalieva responded: "Let them pray, I don't know if it is right or wrong" (see F18News 19 March 2009 http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1271). Mukhamedkalieva and her Department declined to answer any questions from Forum 18 when contacted on 5 and 6 October. The Centre was alleged in January, under Kazakhstan's Administrative Code's Article 374 Part 2, to be involved in unregistered religious activity and to have converted residents to Christianity. Mironov was fined and the Centre's activity was temporarily suspended for six months. An appeal against this was unsuccessful (see F18News 19 March 2009 http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1271). On 2 September, Mironov was put on trial again under Article 374 Part 2 by Beskaragai District Court. In the decision, which Forum 18 has seen, the Centre was permanently banned and Mironov fined 259,200 Tenge (9,745 Norwegian Kroner, 1,165 Euros, or 1,715 US Dollars). These are the maximum possible penalties, and the fine is equivalent to 200 times the minimum monthly salary. "We told Mironov in January that he could not go on functioning as a Public Association," Bakhytzhan Mambetov of the Regional Prosecutor's Office told Forum 18 on 28 September from Oskemen (Ust-Kamenogorsk), the regional centre. Mambetov was working as Beskaragai's Deputy Prosecutor in August and had brought the administrative charges against Mironov. "The Centre should have been registered as a religious organisation but was not," he claimed. Mironov "wilfully" continued his activities "even after the suspension, that is why the Centre was banned" [in the September administrative case], Mambetov stated. Mironov told Forum 18 that he has appealed to the Regional Court against the District Court's decision, which was supposedly heard on 28 September. However Mironov was only told of this appeal date by ordinary letter one day afterwards – on 29 September. He has heard nothing from the Court since. The Centre's approach to rehabilitation Mironov objects to official statements about some residents saying prayers and reading the Bible, telling Forum 18 that these were "only part of the elements" of rehabilitation. This also included working as a form of therapy, doing physical exercise, and having group conversations. "We never held religious meetings," Mironov told Forum 18 on 28 September from Steklyanka. "Some residents cannot even properly pray. Some later became Christians, but some never became religious believers." "A major reason" why the Centre did not want to become a religious organisation, Mironov stated, was that it might stop some people from requesting the Centre's help. Raid by 25 officials with sub-machine guns The latest Administrative and Criminal Code charges came after the Centre was raided by 25 officials from the ordinary police, KNB secret police, and the Sanitary-Epidemiological Service on 22 August, when the Centre resumed work at the end of its temporary ban. "Before resuming the work of the Centre on 22 August, as I thought the six months suspension should have ended on that date I went to the District Prosecutor to warn the authorities about it," Mironov told Forum 18. On 22 August at 10 in the morning, the Centre was "attacked by 25 men, most of whom were armed with sub-machine guns," Mironov said. "At that moment in addition to three visitors, who were former residents, there were eleven people at the Centre." Mironov complained that the residents and workers were "kept for more than two hours with the sub-machine gun muzzles pointed at their backs and hands raised" while some men who presented themselves as representing the Regional Organised Crime Police searched the building. "As a result of the search the officials found Serikbol Bekmukhammetov, a resident of our Centre, handcuffed in the cellar of the building," Mironov said. Later, on the same day all who were present at the Centre were taken to the Police in Semey, which is 20 kms [12 miles] away from the Centre. "We were detained there from 12 in the morning until 11 at night, and questioned one by one," Mironov complained. "The residents told me that each one of them was compelled to say something that would blackmail me. But I understand that they refused to do so." Pending criminal charges Following the discovery of Bekmukhammetov in the Centre's cellar, Beskaragai District Prosecutor on 28 August has brought criminal charges against Mironov under Kazakhstan's Criminal Code's Article 126 Part 2. This punishes deprivation of a person's liberty, related to non-abduction, using material or other dependence of the victim. Law-enforcement agencies claim that Mironov deprived Bekmukhammetov of his liberty by handcuffing and placing him in the cellar of the Centre for refusing to work. He was allegedly kept there for two days, until the local police found him on 22 August during their sub-machine gun toting raid. Bekkali Kunafin, Beskaragai District Prosecutor told Forum 18 on 30 September that Mironov's guilt was "proved" in the preliminary investigation. Asked why the case has not been brought to Court, he said that the investigation is still going on as the law allows up to two months for this. "We have Bekmukhametov's and other witnesses' written testimonies proving Mironov's guilt," Kunafin said without giving the names the other alleged witnesses. Kunafin also claimed to Forum 18 that Mironov "actually used the residents for his gain. He did not pay them anything for their work, or transfer any funds to the State Pension Fund." Mironov objected to the allegations saying that "it is obvious that the case with Bekmukhammetov was set up by the law-enforcement agencies." Regarding the incident, he said, "I have absolutely no idea how he was handcuffed, and he definitely was not in the cellar for two days." "Literally minutes before the Police force came to our building on 22 August, Bekmukhammetov was at a breakfast table with us," Mironov told Forum 18. "Bekmukhammetov left the table and went out of the room, and it was just after this that the police arrived." Mironov stated that there is evidence against the allegations. Bekmukhammetov's photograph was taken by another resident on his mobile phone on 21 August at 6:03 am. He had taken the photo "to record Bekmukhammetov making humorous movements" while he was getting up in the morning. The telephone has the date and time of the photograph recorded on it, Mironov said. "If as the Prosecutor's Office claims that Bekmukhammetov was kept in the cellar until he was freed on 22 August, how could he be in bed on the morning of 21 August," Mironov asked. Mironov said that their lawyer has attached the photograph to case files, and that the telephone was submitted to the investigator to be sent for technical examination. Forum 18 has been unable to speak with Bekmukhammetov. Countering the claims of Prosecutor Kunafin were both former and current residents, such as Olga Ivashina and Alexandra Alpysbayeva. "I actually happened to visit the Centre on the evening of 21 August together with my husband," Ivashina told Forum 18 on 28 September from Oskemen. "We came there at 8 p.m. and left around 10:30 pm. It was none other than Serikbol [Bekmukhammetov] who closed the gates after us," she said without hiding her surprise. "He was safe and sound then." Bekmukhammetov "was at the breakfast table with the rest of the residents on the morning of 22 August," Alpysbayeva told Forum 18 on 28 September from Steklyanka. Mironov also considered "groundless" Prosecutor Kunafin's statement that he should have paid his residents for their work at the Centre. "Why should I pay the residents for cleaning the house where they live and to prepare the food they eat," he asked. "It would be ridiculous for anyone doing work in their own home to ask for payment." Mironov said he thought that Bekmukhammetov was "pressured" by the authorities to complain against the Centre. "It could be that he got into trouble with authorities because of drugs, and was offered a reward in exchange for complaining against us." Confirming the pressure on the residents, Sergei Urmanov told Forum 18 on 28 September that the two officials who questioned him at Semey Police on 22 August "scolded" him for betraying Islam and becoming Christian. "They were asking tricky questions so I would say something against Mironov," he stated. Urmanov also said that he and Alpysbayeva were taken to the Glukhovka village Akimat (Administration), near Steklyanka, the next day on 23 August for further questioning. Law-enforcement and Akimat officials, who did not identify themselves, "compelled" them to write a complaint against Mironov, the resident said. Prosecutor Kunafin objected to the claims of pressure against residents. "I hear this for the first time from you," he said, brushing off Forum 18's question. Why is the Spiritual Centre being targeted? Aslan Tekebayev, the Assistant to Makhat Sadykov, Beskaragai District's Deputy Akim (Head of Administration) who oversees social and healthcare issues, said he did not think "Mironov's Centre harmed anyone medically" but that he was "not sure how effective" the Centre was. Kayirbek Sadykov, another official in charge of social issues at the Beskaragai Akimat (Administration) refused to tell Forum why the Centre was banned. "I cannot answer you," he told Forum 18 on 28 September. Giving his reason for not wanting to talk about the issue he said that "it is dealt by the KNB secret police." Yuri Fyodorov of Semey Organised Crime Police concurred. "The KNB secret police asked us to assist them with police on 22 August," Fyodorov told Forum 18 on 28 September, outlining why police raided the Centre. "We brought the detained to our Police Department but we did not question them." Fyodorov did not say who did the questioning but said that the "KNB secret police has been investigating the Centre." He said that the case later was referred to Beskaragai District Police. Mambetov of the Regional Prosecutor's Office, however, rejected this saying that it was the Beskaragai District Prosecutor's Office and District Police that have been investigating the case. What residents say about the Centre Forum 18 has spoken to several former residents of the Centre to find out what they think of it. Ivashina said she spent 11 months in 2007 at the Centre, and that she "never" witnessed any punishment "let alone" depriving someone of their liberty. "There is no punishment at the Centre, only a condition that whoever does not like the rules may leave the Centre of their free will." The rules include no smoking, no drinking, no sexual intercourse while at the Centre, and no leaving the Centre without warning, she told Forum 18. "When people come for treatment, some may not like some of the rules at first, but because they voluntarily come with the desire to get rid of their problem, they take the rules as natural." "Sergei [Mironov] is gifted educator, a very kind person. He applied a lot of energy and patience to restore me a desire to live again, to really live and not exist as a prisoner of drugs. My family is only a drop in the bucket compare to how many people were helped by the Centre. We are all so thankful to Sergei and the Centre." Concurring with these comments about the Centre were six former residents Forum 18 has spoken to, from Ridder, Oskemen and other places in East Kazakhstan region. They also sent Forum 18 copies of their letters to the Prosecutor General of Kazakhstan, complaining about the closure of the Centre and the criminal case opened against Mironov. The complaints state that they have known Mironov as a good person, who could not ever commit such a crime, they have never seen any such punishment throughout the existence of the Centre, and that the Centre has helped them to get rid of drug and alcohol-addiction, for which they are thankful. Media campaign against the Centre Kazinform, the national news agency of Kazakhstan, express-K newspaper, ERA-TV television channel and several other news agencies and newspapers have published information accusing Mironov of handcuffing Bekmukhammetov for not working for him, and using the residents of the Centre as free labour for his own gain. Explaining why they did not give Mironov's or any resident's response, Bagdat IIlyasova, the Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Kazinform's Russian Edition told Forum 18 on 25 September that there was "no need to talk to Mironov, as his guilt was proved in the pre-trial investigation." When Forum 18 insisted with the question, Ilyasova said, "I do not need to give an account to you." Then she hung up the phone. Andrey Kratenko, of express-K, told Forum 18 on 25 September that he only gave the information provided by the Press-Service of the Regional Police. The authorities often use the mass media to attack religious communities, and freedom of religion or belief (see F18News 5 February 2009 http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1250). Will Mironov be punished for the alleged crime? Prosecutor Kunafin refused to say what could be a possible punishment for Mironov. However, Mambetov of the Regional Prosecutor's Office played down the seriousness of the criminal case. "Mironov may be just fined, and go free." When Forum 18 pressed the question, he said, "Well, the investigation must prove that Mironov was really guilty of committing the act." Hostility to religious involvement with social or charitable care Officials have in the past taken action against religious believers involved in social care or charitable projects, in a late 2004 case closing down a Baptist-run orphanage. It was described by local people, including staff of a state-run orphanage, to be one of the best in the area with higher standards than state-run orphanages (see F18News 7 January 2005 http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=485). In June 2009 a Catholic priest was denied access to a resident of a psychiatric home who had asked for a visit so that the priest could hear his confession. An official told Forum 18 that the resident "does not have rights", which have now been handed to the head of the home as official guardian. "This includes his right to freedom of conscience." The priest noted that access to people in closed state institutions, including prisons, had become more difficult and bureaucratic (see F18News 10 July 2009 http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1325). Restrictive laws recycled Kazakhstan is currently revising its Administrative Code, and the revision continues the existing punishments on people exercising their right to freedom of religion or belief without state registration. The country also appears to be planning to re-introduce draft legislation restricting freedom of religion or belief similar to a draft which was strongly criticised by a wide range of international and Kazakh human rights defenders, as well as an Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Legal Opinion. Kazakhstan will be Chairperson-in-Office of the OSCE in 2010 (see F18News 8 October 2009 http://www.forum18.org/Archive.php?article_id=1360).(END Azerbaijan 29 September 2009 KAZAKHSTAN: Officials who raid religious communities "merely fulfilling their duty" Murad Ashkhayanov, an officer of the Police's Department for the Struggle with Terrorism in Semey, defended the police raid on the town's Ahmadi Muslim community in which he participated. However, he refused to tell Forum 18 News Service why the community was twice raided, and members asked when and why they joined the community and how their beliefs differ from those of other Muslims. Likewise officials who took part in raiding two Baptist churches in Kostanai Region rejected suggestions these were raids, despite police questioning of participants, filming against their wishes, searches of the premises and pressure to write statements. Talgat Nagumanov of the Kostanai Regional Justice Department told Forum 18 he and his colleagues "were merely fulfilling their duty". One of the pastors was today (29 September) fined the equivalent of two months' average wages locally "if you didn't spend anything on food or clothes for your family". 23 September 2009 In its survey analysis of freedom of religion or belief in Kazakhstan, Forum 18 News Service finds continuing violations of human rights commitments. The country will be 2010 Chairperson-in-Office of the OSCE, and faces the UN Universal Periodic Review process in February 2010. Serious violations Forum 18 has documented include: attacks on religious freedom by officials ranging from President Nursultan Nazarbaev down to local officials; literature censorship; state-sponsored encouragement of religious intolerance; legal restrictions on freedom of religion or belief; raids, interrogations, threats and fines affecting both registered and unregistered religious communities and individuals; unfair trials; the jailing of a few particularly disfavoured religious believers; restrictions on the social and charitable work of religious communities; close police and KNB secret police surveillance of religious communities; and attempts to deprive religious communities of their property. These violations interlock with violations of other fundamental human rights, such as freedom of expression and of association. 31 August 2009 KAZAKHSTAN: "The Administrative Code shouldn't punish the core practice of a faith" Two Articles of the Code of Administrative Offences which punish unregistered religious activity, missionary activity without state approval and activity not specifically mentioned in a community's officially-approved statute remain almost unchanged in the Justice Ministry's published draft text of a new Code, Forum 18 News Service notes. "Offences" under these Articles are punishable by fines of up to 300 times the minimum monthly wage and temporary or permanent bans on a religious organisation's activity. Justice Ministry officials told Forum 18 that the text is with the Presidential Administration for comments before being finalised, approved and sent to Parliament. "We want them to remove these two Articles entirely," a Council of Churches Baptist, whose communities have repeatedly been punished under these Articles, told Forum 18. "The Administrative Code shouldn't punish the core practice of a faith," an Ahmadi Muslim told Forum 18.	22,799
5 places where you can buy cheap electronics in Dubai - Local Dubai Tours & Attractions with Best Offers 5 places where you can buy cheap electronics in Dubai Posted by admin \| On January 25, 2019 \| 406s Comment(s) \| Category by Travel Starting a business is not easy especially when you should want to start of stream electronic. You need to buy all products first from any reasonable market which help you to earn a lot of profit easily. If you want to start an electronic business or relates to Dubai then you need to search some street, shops, corners, points where you can pick up all the accessories of electronic at such equitable prices There are many market and streets available in Dubai which you should search and see how you can make your buying process convenient with those easy tips of getting electronic products. These mentioned below areas help you to know about how you can start your business in Dubai easily of electronic and get all the electronic gear at genuine prices to earn more margins. Though you are looking for the market from where you can buy electronic products at cheap prices then you should come here. You can see all variety and buy mobile, AC, vacuum cleaner anything you want buys you can get from this place at such fewer prices. Across Dubai, e-city is one of the popular electronic stores where you can get any kind of electronic equipment’s. Seriously, you can buy anyone from there easily and if you should want to get some old edition or new one then you can contact here and take it wisely. One more place which helps you to buy electronic or gadget things at easy prices and you don’t need to collect more now to get any electronic item when you should know nay to save your money on electronic. Instead of order online and pay fixed prices you can do some bargaining and break the prices to get that deal. Whenever you want to start an electronic shop in the local market then you need to buy material in bulk first. If you need to buy some electronic like mobile, PC, laptop, technology related any product then you would contact there and no need to think twice for prices. The one-stop solution in Dubai from where you can pick up electronic products and no need to overview for prices too. You would get an electronic deal from this place and see that they help you to see the latest variety of cool gadgets and you can buy easily from this place.	2,532
The Knowledge 2 is the anticipated follow up to the original set of lecture notes The Knowledge from Dee Christopher. In this second set of notes, seven more unique concepts are attacked and many more effects are shared. The focus here is on unique gimmicks and utility items as well as effects with these tools. There are two gimmicked decks taught, a prediction utility item that can be applied to almost anything, an amazing forcing concept based on an old magic effect turned on it's head, a shuffle-ready deck stacking system, two envelope based prediction systems that are both very easy to do and real workers and a gimmicked pad that could become an entire act for you. The PDF book is separated into two sections, ACT I covers six unique mentalism concepts and ACT II is dedicated to Broken Wings. The performer deals a few index cards off the top of the stack. Say six of, for congruence. An ESP symbol or word is written on each card. They are all shown to the participant and then turned face down and mixed. A prediction is written on a post-it note and folded up. This can be handed off to a third party or lain on the table. The Participant is then asked to choose a card without thinking and to lay that face down on the table next to the prediction. The prediction is opened by the participant and read aloud. The card is then turned over and seen to match and everything is left completely examinable. Ex is a utility gimmick to mark a prediction. The EX gimmick allows you to have an “X” marked in electrical tape on any predicted item. The performer talks about intuition, chance and that little feeling we get when we know something is right, or wrong. A deck of cards is introduced and legitimately shuffled. Half the deck is put away to streamline the demonstration. The other half is then handed to the spectator and the performer offers his/her outstretched palms as a surface to deal on to. The spectator deals the cards into two piles about equal amounts of cards in each, but in no specific order. Once all the cards are dealt, the performer shows that in one pile all the reds have been dealt, in the other all blacks! The spectator has managed to separate the cards, without knowing how. Easy to do, perform it the same day it arrives. No stacks or pre-determined order of the cards, they can be legitimately shuffled Unlike other OOTW effects, this is done in the hands, so is ideal for walk around performers and creates a great visual for those watching. You can still perform the rest of your repertoire without having to switch in a gimmicked deck – All you need is the Dichotomy deck. The effect is simple. The spectator is handed an envelope with a card inside. They are to push it anywhere inside a shuffled deck, they REALLY can push it anywhere and the deck could even be borrowed. The envelope is very fairly lifted off and the card they pushed it next to is shown. The card is then tipped out of the envelope and shown to be the selection’s pair card. (i.e. the two black queens) ASHES: A small envelope is laid on the table. It’s said to contain four aces, one of each suit from a standard deck of playing cards. A lighter is handed to the participant and they are asked to name any of the four suits. You mention that using that very lighter; you burnt across the face of one card previously. They hold the lighter and name a suit. Hearts, for instance. The cards are dealt out of the envelope one by one and the envelope tipped to show that it’s empty. The cards are turned over by the spectator; the only card with a burnt face is seen to be the ace of hearts. A deck stacking system that allows for an amount of legitimate shuffling and an easy location of a selected card or cards out of sequence. With the Broken Wings device, you can easily: Make writing appear, disappear or transform Create dual realities Force cards This device is a gimmicked pad. It's simple in it's workings, but since it's conception 2 years ago, Dee has used it everywhere, from nightclubs to stages with great success. There are no complex mechanisms to go wrong, no technology to fail, this is a pure, invisible gimmick which allows you to achieve a multitude of impossible effects with ease. You could set the pad up to satisfy a full act with a variety of routines. A real mind-reader would appear to require no props to read minds. All a real mind reader would need is a pen and paper. 8 full Broken Wings routines are taught showing the ins and outs of just what this amazing device is capable of. There is also a short video included to show the simple 'move' required. The Knowledge 2 is packed full of solid tools that you could base your entire act on. These are tools that Dee still uses day in, day out.	4,928
The new season of the French championship is already in full swing. The new season will bring a lot of interesting confrontations, and the following teams will be the main contenders for the title: · Lyon again. All the teams have a long history in the French Championship, and they are ready to fight for the gold medals. The teams that are considered the main favorites of the new season are: 1. PSG. The Parisians have been in the elite of French football for a long time, and it is their main task to win the title. They have been fighting for it for several seasons, and their rivals have been trying to catch up with them. PSL is a good chance for the Parisians to get a good result, as well as to demonstrate their strength in the domestic arena. 2. Marseille. The team of Zouma has a long and successful history in L1, and this season they will try to repeat the success of the last one. 3. Lyon. The club has been in L2 for several years, and its main task is to get into the Champions League. The last time it managed to get to the playoffs was back in 2002, and Lyon is not going to lose this chance. 4. Monaco. The Monegasques have been one of the main competitors of PSG for several championships, and now they are trying to get closer to the Parisian club. 5. Rennes. The Ligue 2 team is in good shape, and there is a high probability that it will be able to get close to the leaders of the championship. However, the main favorite of the season is PSG, who will be ready to give their all for the victory. Ligue 1 table of the upcoming season. This season, the Ligue1 table is very interesting, as there are a lot more teams than in the previous season. The main favorites are: PSG and Marseille, who have been the main rivals of the Paris club for several decades. In the L1 table, the teams are divided into 4 groups. The first two groups are quite equal, and will play a round-robin tournament. The other two groups have a higher probability of getting into the playoffs. The teams that will be in the first two places are: Lyon and Rennes, who are the main candidates for the champion title. The third team is Monaco, who is also in the Champions league zone, but it is not in the top 3. At the moment, the first round of the playoffs has already ended, and we can see that the teams from the top division are not in a good shape. The leaders of Ligue2 are not so confident, and many of them are not able to show their best game. You can always follow the results of the matches of the teams that have already played on the website of sports statistics. The information is updated in real time, so you will not miss anything important. Live Results of the Champions Cup The Champions Cup is the most prestigious club tournament in the world. It is held every year, and in the past it has brought a lot to the clubs. The winners of the tournament are considered as the best representatives of their countries in the international arena. This year, the tournament will be held in the summer, and all the teams will have a chance to show themselves. It is very important to get the results, as it will help to make a decision about the future of the clubs in the next season. You can always find the results on the sports statistics website, where the information is always updated in live mode. Among the favorites of this season, there is no doubt that PSG will be one of them. The French team has been the best in the L2 championship for several consecutive seasons, so it will try its best to get in the playoffs, too. Another team that will try their best is Monaco. This season, it will have to fight against Rennes and Lyon, who also have a good chances of getting in the semifinals. PSG’s Prospects in the Next Season The Parisians are one of those teams that always want to win. This is a fact that can be seen in the results they have achieved in the last season. They managed to finish in the 4th place, and managed to do it in the best possible way. Of course, the team still has a lot ahead of it, but they are in a position to fight with the main teams of the domestic championship. The Champions Cup will be a chance for them to show all their best, and to do their best in every match. They will be very close to PSG in terms of results, and if they manage to get through to the semifinals, they will be considered as one of leaders of their country. The team of Thomas Tuchel is also very confident of getting to the Champions cup finals. The coach has a good experience of playing in the tournament, and he knows the strengths of his team. He has already managed to bring the team to the 4-time champion of France, and Monaco is ready to do its best in order to get there.	4,753
Temple Of Praise Ministries is organized for religious, educational and charitable purposes. In 2019 TOPM is launching activities in North St. Louis to offer support for an improved quality of living in high-risk neighborhoods. As Executive Director of Temple Of Praise Ministries I am personally excited about the "out the box" movement of the ministry. TOPM is reaching outside the norms of traditional church and community outreach service approach into inreach, reaching inside before reaching out. This year look out for TOPM moves outside the box! Executive Director, TOPM The Executive's Desk TOPM is seeking Empowerment Partners to collaborate activities for government grant and other funding opportunities.	726
I was the kind of kid who was too introspective for my own good. A movie that captured my imagination had the ability to make me retreat so deep into my mind that I sometimes didn’t speak for hours. In the case of Anastasia I barely spoke for days. There is a special place for fiction in the human imagination, especially for people like myself with holes in their creation story (I’m an only child with no dad). I always wanted someone to rescue me, someone to take me on an adventure, or someone who was somehow a part of me to take me from the monotony of my reality. A few months ago I went with my family to see Into the Woods. As the previews for upcoming fairy tales rolled I was surprised to see so many films led by female protagonists — something Hollywood is just beginning to capitalize on. However, as the twenty minutes of previews came to a close I felt a familiar disconnect that I remembered from childhood. It was twofold: there was at once the familiarity of shared womanhood and the joy of seeing that reflected on screen, but I also felt the distinct alienation created by years of under-representation. After the fifth preview it was clear that none of the people in these stories looked like me — none of them ever really do. One of the stars of the new ABC sitcom Fresh off the Boat, Constance Wu, describes that certain American tendency like this: “[Imagine] that a producer says, ‘Guy and girl meet-cute at an ice skating rink. They fall in love, but then she has to move away.’ If you say that to anyone, including an Asian person, you picture a white person because that’s what’s become normative to us. “ Within the American psyche there are infinite stereotypes of minority women as sassy friends, charming maids, promiscuous villains, and tiger moms. We are not the ones made to save the world, or even be rescued by a prince. I felt it when I was little and tried to imagine myself as Drew Barrymore’s intellectualized version of Cinderella. She didn’t look like me. Her story, no matter how much it felt like it might be mine, was not for me. In the country I live in my life is not a part of our historical commitment to the protection of womanhood. We are not the ones to be saved; we are not the beloved. A part of my naturally dark brown hair is blonde. I’ve had blonde highlights in my hair since high school. When I got them, I said it was to “highlight my skin tone.” My hair is often straight, which I justify by saying it is easier to maintain than my naturally frizzy curls. Beyoncé has blonde hair too, usually borrowed from the heads of Scandinavian women who undoubtedly have plenty more blonde, straight hair where that came from. Straight blonde hair is a commodity that even Beyoncé, the most influential woman in the world, feels she must possess in spite of the natural way her hair grows from her head. I’ve come to recognize over the years that the reason my hair is blonde is because it makes me look more ambiguous than I already am. For most of my life I wanted to be white. The first time I remember feeling it was when I was 5 or 6 years old as I watched my white friend get out of her swimming pool and effortlessly towel-dry her hair before dance class. My hair was a bit more of a task. I remember the effortlessness with which my white friends seemed to collect dates, spend summers on the lake, and drive nice cars to our suburban schools. I know that every white person doesn’t flow through life carefree — no human does. What I also know is that I internalized early on that the more I emphasize the white side of me, the easier it is for me to navigate the world. When I walk through New York City and my long, highlighted hair is straight and flowing, people go out of their way to accommodate me. It happens when my hair is curly too, but I have lived in this American life long enough to know the difference in how I am treated when I look whiter vs. when I look blacker. I am the descendant of American slaves and American slave owners — both from my black mother’s side. In the U.S. the shame of slavery is held on one side or the other — the shame of having been slaves, and the shame of having held slaves. In both cases humanity was replaced with a more barbaric state of being. The weight I felt in the theater is reflected in the history of America just as much as in my own ancestral history. From day one American law dictated who was valued and who was not, and for most of its existence the law explicitly protected white supremacy. We built fortresses of laws and narratives to defend it. The one-drop rule was created to ensure black people could not pass as white to reap the benefits of a racist society — much like my ability (or privilege) to carry the whiteness that makes my life more pleasant. America has almost exclusively white representation in both its real and imagined history, which should remind us that in spite of its multicultural makeup the U.S. was created to be a white nation. It took 25 years for me to believe that I am enough just as I am. 25 years of blonde highlights, attempts to fit into straight-hipped jeans, and regular run-ins with flatirons. But what does any of this have to do with the current unrest in our country? What do two decades of my own insecurity have to do with a society so sick with guilt and shame that even the term racism makes blood boil and people fill with rage? It has to do with representation, misrepresentation, and a cycle of misunderstanding which breeds the most insidious kind of ignorance. There is constant dehumanization on all sides — from my own perceptions of white friends with carefree lives to the perpetuated narratives that paint most poor black people as criminal. Neither of those things is true, yet our country rests upon stereotypes like these to separate the “us” from the “them.” There are “those people” and there are “good people.” There are thugs and there are patriots. There is no room in between. Ideas like that manifest themselves in the minds of little black and brown girls who grow up believing they are not beautiful and have no place within the protection of this nation. It settles in the minds of little black and brown boys who internalize their place as “them” and not as “us.” It burrows in the minds of little white boys who believe they will grow up to protect “us” from “them.” The combined thoughts of the individuals form to create the thoughts of the collective, and the cycle of racial trauma in America continues with no foreseeable end. As the previews came to an end and the feature film began I felt the pain from my young thoughts settle in my adult mind. But now I feel that I can protect her. I can tell her that she is perfect, and that the lines of history that converge within her make her as beautiful as any woman she may admire onscreen. I’m thankful for the forces of education, family, and love that have led me to the truth about my own worth, but what about the rest? I fear for this country. It is a nation so invested in its righteousness it fails to see its faults. Our shared memory is so detached from reality that the only way to heal is to consciously dismantle it. My fear is that we will continue to refuse to do the work necessary for a healthy society, that children will continue to internalize queues that say this world is not made for them, and that over time we will find ourselves deeper and deeper into the woods. Related What do you think? Cancel reply Email (required) (Address never made public) Name (required) Connecting to %s Notify me of new comments via email. Δ Email Address: Follow By Email VIDEO Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.	8,389
Vak media net (VMN), Netherlands biggest B2B publisher, called up on our company for a last-minute shoot that would serve as a trailer for one of their magazines, in this case being AMT magazine. Together with ambassadors from both organizations we wrote a script that served the needs of AMT. The production was to be used as a trailer that would activate students to join the famous automotive contest that AMT organizes each year. We set our mind on a trailer that would showcase two automotive students that would serve as the solution for a struggling race team, targeting the audience and giving examples for future job prospects of you are on an expertise level that can win the competition. HOCKENHEIM After agreeing on the script, two days after our first meeting, we drove to Hockenheim Germany, the old Formula 1 circuit where we met up with the ambassadors and actors for the job. Together with GP Elite, who was training for the Porsche super cup at the moment, we were able to shoot a top-tier working pit stop team and we were admitted by the management to shoot everywhere on the circuit leaving us with possibilities that turned into dashing material. The trailer turned out just as the client demanded, in the same theme as the overall campaign, and was used not only as a Kickstarter of the campaign but also as a supportive element appropriate to the target audience. A successful one-day job that took 6 hours to shoot and 1.100 kilometres of travel! VMN MEDIA Vak media net (VMN), Netherlandsbiggest B2B publisher, called upon our company for a last-minute shoot thatwould serve as a trailer for one of their magazines, in this case being AMTmagazine. Together with ambassadors from both organizations we wrote a script thatserved the needs of AMT. The production was to be used asa trailer that would activate students to join the famous automotive contestthat AMT organizes each year. We set our mind on a trailer thatwould showcase two automotive students that would serve as the solution for astruggling race team, targeting the audience and giving examples for future jobprospects of you are on an expertise level that can win the competition. VMN MEDIA Vak media net (VMN), Netherlandsbiggest B2B publisher, called upon our company for a last-minute shoot thatwould serve as a trailer for one of their magazines, in this case being AMTmagazine. Together with ambassadors from both organizations we wrote a script thatserved the needs of AMT. The production was to be used asa trailer that would activate students to join the famous automotive contestthat AMT organizes each year. We set our mind on a trailer thatwould showcase two automotive students that would serve as the solution for astruggling race team, targeting the audience and giving examples for future jobprospects of you are on an expertise level that can win the competition.	2,893
Cheap VPS, cheap vps jujuhost, dedicated server, Dedicated Server Hosting, Example of Dedicated Server Hosting, hosting, Managed Hosting, VPS, VPS hosting, web hosting, What is a Virtual Dedicated Server?, Wordpress Hosting What is a Dedicated Server? What is a Dedicated Server? What is a dedicated server? Glad you asked! This page outlines what a dedicated server is, and explains the benefits of dedicated server hosting over shared hosting. Dedicated server hosting refers to a type of web hosting plan where you are allocated a whole server to yourself. Therefore, a “dedicated server” refers to the “dedicated” server that you rent (or purchase) in order to host your website (or websites). Dedicated server hosting can give you more control over your website. It can also help to ensure that other customers’ websites don’t impact on your website. Using dedicated servers is much more expensive than shared hosting, but if your site receives lots of traffic or you have other requirements (such as extra security requirements), dedicated server hosting could be for you. With dedicated server hosting, you are able to log in to your dedicated server just as you would log in to your own computer. Once logged in, you can install and configure software as you wish. Dedicated Server with Managed Hosting Some dedicated server hosting plans are fully managed, meaning that your web hosting company performs regular administration duties, such as initial server setup, patching, anti-virus, security scanning, monitoring, and more. Other dedicated server plans are self managed – you are responsible for the server setup, patching, anti-virus, etc As you might expect, fully managed plans can be much more expensive than a self-hosted option. However, unless you have the time and inclination to look after your server 24/7, you might be better off looking for some sort of managed hosting plan. Some dedicated server hosting plans are managed by default, others are self managed with an optional “service plan”, meaning, you pay extra for your web host to manage your server. Some of these self managed plans have various “add ons” that you can pick and choose. For example, you could add on a backup plan, a server maintenance plan, a security scanning service, etc. With these options, your web hosting company will perform these duties as outlined on a regular basis (for example, weekly or monthly) or perhaps on a one-off basis as required by yourself. Example of Dedicated Server Hosting To get a better idea of what’s included with dedicated server hosting, check out these dedicated servers at our partner site, ZappyHost. What is a Dedicated Server – Another Definition The term “dedicated server” can also mean a single computer within a network that is reserved for a specific purpose. For example, within a network, you could have a computer dedicated to printer resources, another computer dedicated to Internet connections, another computer serving as a firewall, etc. These computers would all be dedicated servers, as the whole computer is allocated for a specific task within the network. What is a Virtual Dedicated Server? A virtual dedicated server is a variation on the dedicated server concept. Instead of hiring the whole physical server, you hire a virtual server. A virtual dedicated server is also referred to as a virtual private server (VPS). To learn more about VPS hosting, see What is VPS Hosting?.	3,435
Poltava Oblast Governor Dmytro Lunin said rescuers are already working on the ground to put out fires caused by the drone strikes. Lunin did not specify whether the fires were caused by debris from the drones being shot down or if the drones had targeted those sites. According to preliminary information, there were no casualties. The Kyiv Independent news desk We are here to make sure our readers get quick, essential updates about the events in Ukraine. Give the gift of democracy this Giving Tuesday Become a member of the Kyiv Independent. For as little as $5 per month, you can help ensure the Kyiv Independent continues to produce quality journalism in 2023. Support us We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.	831
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Altijd ingeschakeld Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information. Non-necessary Non-necessary Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.	1,166
Crow’s feet, expression lines, mouth frowns, necklines, the list goes on and on. As we age, our skin begins to lose elasticity and flexibility causing permanent grooves and wrinkles. Though wrinkles naturally occur with age, there are other factors that speed up the aging process. Slow down the process with treatments such as the ones […] We couldn't find any posts. By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy. You can also disable cookies entirely in your browser settings.	497
Posted June 12, 2014 by Lucy D in Book Reviews, Fantasy/High Fantasy, Paranormal Romance / 0 Comments Published by Romantic Geek Publishing, Self Published Genres: Fantasy This post contains affiliate links you can use to purchase the book. If you buy the book using that link, I will receive a small commission from the sale. Terak has fought all enemies to claim Larissa. It doesn’t matter his own Clan looks upon the union with misgivings. It doesn’t matter her family see a monster when they see him. It doesn’t matter, because Larissa is his. And any who would try to take her away? They’ll see what a Gargoyle will do to protect his mate. When we finished Stone Guardian, Terak and Larissa were on their way to have dinner with Larissa’s family. Although Larissa had already explained her mating with Terak to her father, Police Chief Jack Miller isn’t ready to just accept a gargoyle son-in-law without settling a few things with is daughter first, including her safety from threats both outside and inside Terak’s Clan. While Larissa stands by Terak in front of her family, her father’s words cause some concern, not for her own safety but for Terak’s. Can she risk the life of her love — the leader of his Clan? Should she walk away and would he even let her go? Danielle warns that this is more an epilogue to Stone Guardian than a stand alone story. If you enjoyed Stone Guardian as much as I did, this is a perfect way to feed your need for more Terak and Larissa. I could read a whole series dedicated to just those two. It is also a chance to see Larissa’s father’s reaction to Terak and an excuse to have some sexy, naked gargoyle time once again. Unfortunately, this just wet my appetite for more of the series. In case you missed it, check out our review of Stone Guardian and our interview with author, Danielle Monsch. As a bonus, I will share a link sent to me by Danielle Monsch for a couple of scenes between Fallon, the Dragon Slayer, and Reign, the Master Vampire. These two sizzle and I fear it will be some time before we get all the good stuff on them. The Rooftop (Fallon and Reign) Since it is a short epilogue, I’ll keep it brief: She met his gaze, thick lashes surrounding her stunning eyes, that cornflower blue which would now and forever be the color he associated only with her. In those eyes was a violent swirl of pain, and fear, but what loomed largest when she looked at him was love. Always love. She spoke again, and her words rocked against him with their unexpected force. “I would have died with you.” Ripping pain punched through his chest at the return of those memories, those moments when she had looked at him with such calm intent as the mountain began to crash around them. He cradled her face in his hands. “Never again, little human.” he said, his voice roughened. “You must live. That is my one truth in this world. You must live, even should all others die.” She shook her head, an instant negation of his words. “But I can’t live without you. I don’t want to. And I’m terrified to think I might end up being the cause of your death.” With cat-quick feet, rage began to overtake pain. She could not…she could not…”What are you suggesting? That you leave? Me?“ His hands prevented her from turning her head, so she settled for closing her eyes, the circles beneath them a blue-black smudge against her pale skin. “I’m not saying that — don’t put words in my mouth. But it still hurts, that my selfishness endangers you. I love you so much, I can’t bear–“ “No!” How could this evening have gone so horribly wrong? His woman, his mate, thinking of leaving him? Never. She had taken him into her heart and her body, had pushed past all barriers and filled the empty places within him with laughter and warmth, and now she talked of taking that away? For what? Pathetic fear? Fear for him? No, she should fear for any enemy who would dare approach her, fear the pain and death he would bring to them. He was gargoyle. Skin and marrow and bone he offered for protection, a path awash with the red tide of enemy’s blood.	4,252
The Lunar Module was an iconic spacecraft which carried two-man crews to and from the Moon’s surface during NASA’s Apollo Program of the 1960s and ‘70s. Along with the Saturn 5 rocket and the Apollo Command and Service Modules (CSM), the Lunar Module is the third of the trinity of vehicles which made the moonlandings possible. Tranquility Base:Lunar Module Eagle stands in the morning sun on the Moon in July 1969. Note Buzz Aldrin’s legs as he crawls through the hatch. Dim-witted and/or lazy conspiracy theorists claim this hatch was too small to allow a space-suited human to pass through it. Nonsense! (Image Credit:NASA) Originally there would have been no Lunar Module.The Apollo CSM’s origins go back to the 1950s, and it was intended to be a multi-purpose vehicle for all kinds of missions in Earth and lunar orbit. President John F. Kennedy’s declaration of the United States’ goal to land a manned mission on the moon by 1970 suddenly made it the focus of the project, yet it was not entirely suited to this role. As originally conceived the entire Apollo spacecraft with a crew of three would have risen from Earth and landed on the Moon, blasting off to return home. By mid 1962 this had been studied and found to be grossly expensive to achieve, requiring the development of gargantuan booster rockets and to be so technologically complex that a landing might not be made until well into the 1970s. Instead a concept called Lunar Orbit Rendezvous was proposed (you can read a transcript of the press conference where this was announced here). This promised to be (relatively) easier and was possible with the Saturn 5 rocket which was being developed at the time. Lunar landers compared in an early NASA artwork depicting a notional LEM (Image credit:NASA) How would this work? An Apollo CSM would be launched (with three astronauts on board) along with a Lunar Excursion Module (LEM) on a single Saturn 5 rocket. Thrown moonward entirely by the Saturn 5, the CSM and LEM would fly together into lunar orbit; two astronauts would fly the LEM to a gentle touchdown on our satellite. On completion of their explorations the pair would take off in the two-part LEM’s Ascent Stage (leaving behind the Descent Stage with its heavy engine and landing gear) to rejoin their orbiting colleague. The three explorers would discard the LEM before returning to Earth in the CSM. In July 1962 NASA requested LEM design concepts from the US aerospace industry, then at the height of its post-WW2 powers. Nine designs were put forward, and the winning concept came from Grumman Aerospace, a company famed for its sturdy and successful naval aircraft. In September 1962, Grumman’s engineers set about the task of building the first true spaceship. Why do I say that? All previous crewed spacecraft (and as of 2011 all subsequent spacecraft) passed through the Earth’s atmosphere during part of their flight. In contrast the LEM would spend its entire working life in the vacuum of space and would make no concessions to aerodynamics (unlike aircraft there would be no series of hundreds of test flights gradually expanding the performance envelope). Right from the start, the lander would clearly look completely unlike the sleek rockets of 1950s pop-culture. A bulbous, spindly-legged vehicle was envisaged, and many in NASA and Grumman nick-named it the ‘Bug’. The Bug began weighing 10 tonnes. It featured a spherical Ascent Stage with a docking port on top and a second facing forward (the astronauts would use this to access the Moon’s surface), while the pilot would look for a landing site through large helicopter-style bubble windows. The LEM was to have had three legs, but analysis suggested that three was not enough to guarantee a safe landing on uneven terrain. Five legs would be much better, but heavier. To save weight four legs were eventually used. By early 1964, the LEM was recognizable as the craft that eventually flew to the Moon. The boxy Descent Stage stood on four splayed-out shock-absorbing legs ending in bowl-shaped pads, on top of it sat the curious-looking Ascent Stage. Grumman’s engineers had sweated blood to reach this point, struggling to prevent the craft’s mass ballooning to an unacceptable weight. The spherical cabin was gone, instead a cylindrical shape was used, the second docking port became a simple hatch and the large and heavy windows were replaced by small triangular panes. The astronauts even lost their seats, instead standing shoulder to shoulder as they controlled the vehicle (an arrangement which proved no inconvenience in lunar gravity). Such was the need to make the LEM light that Grumman considered equipping the astronauts with a rope ladder or even just a length of knotted rope to climb from the hatch to the surface.However an aluminium ladder was used albeit a ladder too flimsy to support an astronaut’s full weight on the Earth’s surface. The lunar lander’s shape was not the only thing to change, its name did too: it was redesignated the Lunar Module as “Excursion Module” sounded too frivolous, as though it was intended for taking the astronauts on a picnic. By January 1968 when the first LM flew in space on Apollo 5 (an unmanned test flight in low Earth orbit) the design was complete. As a creature designed for an alien environment, the Bug had an alien appearance. At either side of the cylindrical cabin was a propellant tank, one for the Aerozine 50 (a mix of hydrazine and unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine) fuel, the other for the oxidiser (nitrogen tetroxide). These two propellants had very different densities so their tanks were of differing sizes giving the Ascent Stage a lop-sided look.The total mass of the propellant was about 2388 kg. Behind the crew cabin was the Aft Equipment Bay, a box of environmental control systems and electronics including the craft’s Apollo Guidance Computer (the AGC, at first sight laughably primitive to our contemporary eyes but an ingenious and completely successful piece of engineering ). Four sets of quad RCS thrusters to maneuver the LM through the airless void were spaced evenly around the exterior. Radio communication and radar dishes were placed here and there. This diagram shows the layout of the fuel (propellant and oxidiser) tankage in both sections of the Lunar Module. The diagram was prepared before the first landing so it does not quite depict any of the craft that reached the Moon, notably the paddle-like RCS plume deflectors are not present nor is the location of the stowed rover used on Apollos 15-17 shown. (Image credit: NASA) The Ascent Stage sat on the legged Descent Stage, an octagonal box housing the throttleable descent rocket motor and its propellant tanks (containing a total of 8212 kg of Aerozine 50 and nitrogen tetroxide propellant) , and a modest cargo space for the equipment and instruments to be used on the Moon. (For more technical details see Grumman’s Lunar Module Quick Reference Data .) The Apollo 9 LM Spider’s ascent stage is photographed from an unusual respective in an unusual location. This was the view from the CSM on the fifth day of the Earth-orbital mission. Note the Ascent Engine nozzle. (Image credit: NASA/David Scott) Many accounts of Apollo refer to the LM with words like ‘flimsy’ and ‘fragile’ but these are not wholly correct. Much of the exterior was covered in protective multi-layer insulation foil, in some locations this was taped or stapled into place. Exhaust gases from the vehicle’s engines and jets could disturb this foil and occasionally rip it to tatters, damage which is clearly visible in some images. However beneath the foil insulation was the craft’s robust pressure hull of metal skin and stringer construction. To avoid riveting or welding the skin and stringers together, Grumman precisely chemically milled the skin panels out of solid aluminium ingots so that the skin and stringers were the same piece of metal. Although its weight eventually rose to almost 15 tonnes, the LM was a fine flying machine, handling like a “nimble, responsive jet fighter”. James McLoughlin recently generously donated a print of Apollo 9’s LM signed by the crew to the Planetarium.This is currently displayed in our Exhibition Area. (Image credit:Tom Mason, Armagh Planetarium) Men first flew the LM in March 1969, when Jim McDivitt, David Scott, and Rusty Schweickart successfully tested an LM (Callsign Spider) in Earth orbit during the Apollo 9 mission. Months later Apollo 10 flew to lunar orbit in May. This mission did everything short of landing: astronauts Stafford and Cernan descended to within 15.6 km (9.7 miles) of the Moon’s surface in the LM ‘Snoopy’ and cruised over the Moon’s mountain tops. In July 1969, Armstrong and Aldrin made history by landing Eagle on the Sea of Tranquility. Apollo 16’s LM Orion from the rear. The Aft Equipment Bay is prominent. Just above it is the tiny angled rectangular “tab” of the sublimation plate used to “vent” heat. (Image credit: NASA) How did the crew fly the LM? Both crewmen could control the vehicle, but oddly it was the Commander rather than the Lunar Module Pilot who actually flew it to the Moon. After undocking from the CSM, the LM fired its descent engine for several minutes to drop out of lunar orbit, descended automatically under the control of the AGC (using radar to measure altitude) until it was 500 ft or so above the surface, then the astronauts would take manual control to use the LM’s two hand controllers to adjust the programmed landing site to ensure they were going to land on a flat area and not in a boulder field or crater. Lunar Module Descent Stage under construction. As the Descent Stage had to support the Ascent Stage not only during landing, but also during launch from Earth, it had to be quite sturdy. It was made from box structure in a cruciform shape which appeared octagonal with its thermal insulation applied. (Image credit: NASA) LM Ascent Stage under construction Notice the cylindrical cabin crew compartment and spherical oxidiser tank without their usual skins. (Image credit:NASA) In this image of an LM Ascent Stage under construction we can see the normally hidden aft electronics bay, the white sphere of a fuel tank for the ascent engine, the four nozzles of a set of reaction control thrusters and the dish of a communications antenna. (image credit: NASA) To leave the LM meant sealing up the spacesuits and venting all the air from its cabin, before crawling feet first through the hatch, down the porch to the ladder. Returning required the opposite procedure. The LM’s crew enjoyed minimal human comforts with no cooking or washing facilities and only a rudimentary lavatory. Hammocks were slung across the tiny cabin to sleep in. Before taking off the crew would dump any surplus items to lighten the Ascent Stage. A little junkpile of discarded life support packs, overshoes and waste bags grew at the foot of the LM’s ladder. Dressed in their spacesuits, the astronauts fired the small, simple but powerful ascent engine under their cabin and their tiny spacecraft blasted off, using the Descent Stage as a launch pad. This take off was a modest affair compared with the earthshaking Saturn 5 launch which began the Moon missions, the Lunar Module Ascent stage didn’t need to attain the 2.4 km/s to escape the Moon’s gravity, it just had to reach a lunar orbit (orbital speed in the range 1.5-1.7 km/s) to rendezvous with the CSM. Seven minutes after ignition the astronauts would be in lunar orbit awaiting the rendezvous with the CSM. Once the LM crew transferred into the CSM, their LM Ascent stage was abandoned. All three crew returned to Earth in the Command Module. Apollo 16’s Ascent stage looks a bit the worst for wear during its rendezvous with the CSM, see final picture (Image credit:NASA) Developing the LM was not easy and took longer than planned but in the end Grumman’s engineering team succeeded brilliantly. The Saturn 5 and the Apollo CSM both suffered failures in their gestations, requiring extensive redesign, but the LM did not. Hoping to capitalize on the development effort, Grumman offered variants of the craft for a space programme which was expected to encompass dozens of Moon missions, including a “Shelter” version to act as a temporary base, served by freighter variants, even a wheeled version which could have landed and then trundled across the dusty moonscape. Another, in an example of ploughshares into swords, would have seen the LM, a vehicle of peaceful exploration, transformed for strange military purposes into the Covert Space Denial Module. This ‘space fighter’ for the USAF would have been able to use a mechanical arm to molest Soviet satellites, or even blast them to pieces with a recoilless gun. However, only one LM variant was actually built, the Extended Stay version. This was essentially a ‘Mark II’ LM, with more fuel to prolonged hovering to allow better selection of the landing site, with more cargo space for experiments and a roving vehicle, and improved life support for a longer stay (68 hours) on the Moon. Externally identical to its predecessors, this redesigned LM was used on Apollos 15 through 17. The National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC had a real LM (built but never used for orbital testing) parked outside its McDonald’s restaurant. The varying textures and colours of the insulating covering (carefully selected for optimum thermal management of the components below) are very apparent. From head-on the Ascent Stage looks oddly like a face, with the windows as squinting eyes, the hatch a gaping mouth and cheeks containing electronics and propellent tanks. Some dim-witted and/or lazy conspiracy theorists claim the astronaut mannikins at this exhibit are deliberately smaller than life-size, to make the LM appear larger than it was. Again nonsense! (Image credit:Colin Johnston, Armagh Planetarium) Apollo 11 and the subsequent lunar landings were successes thanks to the superb design and construction of Grumman’s Bug, and the LM’s flexible design was instrumental in saving the lives of the crew of Apollo 13. Today, four complete unflown LMs are displayed in US museums, the wreckage of six Ascent Stages lie scattered across the Moon’s surface, Apollo 10’s Ascent Stage orbits the Sun, while six LM Descent Stages rest on the lunar wilderness as memorials to the first days of space exploration. Further reading Chariots for Apollo: A History of Manned Lunar Spacecraft by Courtney G Brooks, James M. Grimwood, Loyd S. Swenson (Please note that Armagh Planetarium is not affiliated with NASA or any company which built components of the Lunar Module. We regret that we cannot help you trace, contact or research people who worked on this project.) (Article by Colin Johnston, Science Education Director) Felix · July 21, 2019 at 11:13 How did they maintain pressure in the LEM and their suits as well as handle the 400 deg temperature variation . What type of batteries were used to achieve stability in both these areas Super deduper · February 8, 2019 at 23:47 Lots of good analysis on this page. One simple matter that I have never seen pointed out, is this: With 5 psi of pressure in those suits, and standing the vacuum of space… why is the fabric hanging loose in the shoulders in the photos? The fabric is even concave when his arm is moved inward. Furthermore, the upper-chest area is a HUGE amount of surface (including the shoulders) and the cross section is oval. With 5psi, that should be puffed out like the Pilsburry Doughboy. The waist cross section is also oval, which shouldn’t be possible if there’s 5psi in that suit. Polaris 10K · February 20, 2019 at 23:54 Perhaps because the suit is more complex than what meets the eye in photographs. I, as a total amateur, guess that there is a pressurized suit within the suit. The part we see in moon-walk photos is a protective cover over that inner part. It’s a good question & one of many which has a good, design-specific answer. (P.S. the proper spelling of the iconic baker spaceman is “Pillsbury Doughboy”) fashionbeauty · November 12, 2018 at 23:55 This web page is really a stroll-by way of for all the information you needed about this and didn’t know who to ask. Glimpse right here, and you’ll definitely discover it. I Mac · January 5, 2019 at 05:32 In one Appollo 11 pic you can see stars,but Neil Armstrong and Mike said they could not see the stars with the naked eye. Neil does say you could see them through optics but Mike Collins quickly corrects him saying no. Also everyone questions the ability to stay cool in 250 F heat but also how did they stay warm at night or during the 33 hours when it was minus 250? Thanks Randall Smith · March 9, 2019 at 01:46 During each lunar mission they all lasted completely during a lunar “daytime”. In other words, the sun stayed out for them for their entire stay on the moon. A lunar “day” lasts 14 days. Valuable information. Fortunate me I discovered your website by accident, and I’m stunned why this coincidence didn’t happened earlier! I bookmarked it. referral poker88 asia pk88 home · June 12, 2018 at 20:56 I think that is one of the such a lot important information for me. And i’m happy reading your article. But want to observation on few basic things, The web site taste is ideal, the articles is truly excellent : D. Toby Kinkaid · January 14, 2018 at 14:04 My question deals with the LEM descent and ascent to Lunar orbit. Can anyone offer a calculation as to how much fuel is required? In rough terms the LEM was around 7,500 Kg. The lunar parking orbit was around 60 miles high? The LEM was traveling around 4,000 mph (1,700 m/s) and has kinetic and potential energy relative to the moon. Rough calculations (1/2mv2) plus (mgh) using 1.622 m/s for lunar gravity and come up with over 11 Billion Joules to descent. This does not correct for lowering mass through fuel consumed, it’s a back of envelope just trying to get an order of magnitude. The LEM reports to have carried over 8,200 Kg of fuel plus oxidizer for descent. Assuming fuel is 1/3 of this (Oxidizer 2/3 by mass) then actual fuel on board roughly 2,700 Kg. Using a rocket efficiency of 70% leaves around 1,900 Kg of actual fuel converted into energy for thrust. Is that nearly enough? Thank you for your help with this. AykutTari · January 17, 2018 at 11:36 nasa says apollo 11’s speed when she meets with the moon is 8,250 feet/second After capturing the orbit and circularization, ships velocity is 5,479 ft/s which is 1669 m/s. You say 15700 kg full mass and 7500 kg mass with no fuel(dry mass). I found on internet that isp of lunar descent engine is 311(which is not sure). You can calculate Delta V on internet yourself. Vehicle is able to change its speed around 2250 m/s in space. It can slow itself down 1669 m/s and has like 590 m/s more to slow itself from moon’s gravity. Velocity when you fall to the ground is square root( 2 * g * height ). earth’s g is 9.8 m/s2 but it lands on moon so moon’s g is 1.62 m/s2 and vehicle is 60000m high. so yes it can descent and vehicle has 150m/s delta v more to find a good landing site. AykutTari · January 17, 2018 at 12:03 And Sorry i couldn’t go calculations for joules. by the way isp is “Specific impulse” which is a measurement unit about how effectively an engine burns the fuel .You can check it on wikipedia and find isp’s of different engines on nasa’s website. AykutTari · January 17, 2018 at 12:25 i noticed orbit is 60 miles high and it is around 96.5 km so vehicle has around only 40m/s more deltav for choosing the land site and corrections. Sorry for my mistake. AykutTari · January 18, 2018 at 10:16 so i have found something about the energy need. i have also found that my math about converting the potential energy to kinetic energy was wrong and vehicle has more spare fuel for corrections and choosing a landing site. vehicle’s kinetic energy is 1/2(MxV xV) which is 25.083.897.850 joules total i have found hydrazine’s energy is 16mj/kg. but lunar module’s fuel is mixed and only half of it is hydrazine other half fuel is less efficent but i could only found numbers on a website about apollo hoax which says 15,4mj/kg and it makes sense since other half of the fuel has less energy so i take it. and i take that engine efficiency is 70% too. So 1890 kg of 2700 converts to energy. which is 29106000000 so yes it has more than enough! but i did not calculate the change of the vehicle during the burn. so early i converted potential energy of the ship to kinetic energy and added 555 m/s to current 1699 and i found which is wrong. if you add the kinetic energy of 555m/s of the ship ‘s 1699 m/s it makes it around 1787 m/s Ship’s total delta v was 2250 but to be exact it was 2253 which means 466 delta v left. dry mass was 7500kg. if it has 463 delta-v with an engine of 311isp full mass means 8739. That means fuel left is 1239. 826 kg of it is oxidizer and 413 kg of it is the fuel. %70 of it is 289,1 kg spare fuel for energy. that means around 4452140000 joules left. it think i have calculated it accurate enough. difference on my both calculations is 430 mj which is 28 kg of fuel so in reality fuel is really very close to 15,4 mj per kg and engine efficiency is indeed very close to 70% too. i read that on apollo 11 mission descent phase computer gave an error and needed reboot. so neil armstrong had to land manually since he didn’t have time to reboot and used almost all of the spare fuel. Have a nice day. Give me your opinion if you think my math is wrong. And the site about the apollo hoax says with this amount of fuel the ship does not have enough energy to slow down like 1699 but ignores that when ship goes away from the earth its potential energy goes up and kinetic energy goes down. less kinetic energy means less speed. So the ship does not need fuel to slow down. Toby Kinkaid · January 19, 2018 at 18:08 Your “math” is all over the place. You must appreciate the difference between “weight” and “mass” and the amount of energy it takes to accelerate and decelerate mass. The total mass of over 15,000 Kg is huge. Traveling at 1,700 m/s represents an enormous amount of kinetic energy, and a potential energy contained in the craft. For human perspective, although a jet liner is much heavier and has atmosphere to use for lift, when you take off in a jet you can appreciate how much fuel it takes just to reach 450 mph from rest. A craft (LEM) of over 30,000 lbs is massive, decelerating that mass from 60 miles up to rest on the surface of a gravity well (moon) takes a boatload of energy. Billions and billions of Joules. Starting with only 10,000 Kg fuel and oxidizer may sound like a lot, but given the burn rate required to decelerate 15,000 Kg mass from 60 miles up, going 1,700 m/s (and have enough on board to later ascend 60 miles from rest)… not even close. Look closely at the fuel and oxidizer tanks their tiny. Look at the massive nozzle of the decent rocket. Using 195 Kg/sec burn rate you only have about 51 seconds of burn. Not even close. Toby Kinkaid · January 23, 2018 at 20:51 Thank you for responding. Let me give you another take on this to make my point. Newton’s second law F=ma gives us a tool. We know the max thrust of the lunar descent engine as 45,000 N. The best exhaust velocity data I can find is 500 m/s. Let’s calculate the amount of fuel Per Minute required to produce 45,000 N in thrust? Using F=ma, we can write F = delta M/delta T times velocity. where delta M is change in mass, delta T is burn time, and velocity is exhaust velocity. For a one minute burn we get 45,000 = delta M/60 sec times (500 m/s). Solve for delta M and it’s 5,400 Kg/minute. Starting at 100,000 meters high off the lunar surface, going 1,700 m/s (really fast) then adjust orbit and descent down to land at total rest in a gravity well (moon), (and keep humans alive with survivable deceleration) is a lot to ask with only 90 seconds of maximum thrust. Does that point out my concern to your satisfaction? Thank you. 1) Exhaust velocity is way higher than 500m/s. 2) The speed change of a spacecraft is tightly connected to its mass change and exhaust velocity or specific impulse via the “rocket equation”. Wikipedia will help you out. Until you don’t understand this equation, you’ll always get wrong conclusions. 3) Unless you ever landed something on the Moon or other Solar System objects, be humble and always assume you are wrong and NASA is right. Toby Kinkaid · January 23, 2018 at 23:23 I would like offer you yet another way you can look at this, as a change of momentum problem. Change in momentum (delta P) = Force times delta Time. The starting momentum in lunar orbit is (mass times velocity) which we plug in LEM mass of 15,000 Kg and velocity of 1,700 m/s. The total change of momentum is 25.5 Million Kg m/s. We know the maximum force of the Lunar Descent Engine (45,000 N). Now you can solve for delta Time and the math comes out to 566 seconds, which is about 9.4 minutes. That means with a thrust of 45,000 N you need full thrust for 9.4 minutes to decelerate and change your momentum of the LEM from start to landing at rest. My calculation earlier shows you only have full thrust for about 90 seconds. There is just not enough fuel on board the LEM to land by an order of magnitude. Thank you. AykutTari · January 29, 2018 at 16:38 BUT when fuel tanks are close to empty it is a little more than 6/ms. Your calculation does not include mass change! 1700/3,94=431 seconds of burn.( I don’t know how many burns they did but at 1969 computers are still very weak and probably can’t do one perfect burn and lost a couple of seconds between corrections.) And yes it would be still more than 90sec but you took exhaust velocity 500m/s but even primitive v2 german rockets has 2343 m/s exhaust velocity. if that engine had exhaust velocity of 500 m/s its specific impulse would be around 51 EVEN V2 ENGINES has 239 isp in vacuum. And actually lunar descent module’s engine has 311 isp. A 311 isp engine has 3049.86815 m/s of exhaust velocity. AykutTari · January 29, 2018 at 18:47 “avarage mass would be (fullmas+emptymass+spare fuel)/2” i was wrong here it would be (fullmas+emptymass)/2+spare fuel. But it makes 3 seconds difference no big deal. AykutTari · January 29, 2018 at 19:38 “Your “math” is all over the place” sorry it was messy. “You must appreciate the difference between “weight” and “mass” ” i know the difference in my first language i just mix these two in english excuse me. “and a potential energy contained in the craft.” 2424080000 joules ” A craft (LEM) of over 30,000 lbs is massive, decelerating that mass from 60 miles up to rest on the surface of a gravity well (moon) takes a boatload of energy. Billions and billions of Joules.” 22659817850+2424080000 joules “Starting with only 10,000 Kg” 8200 kg 2700 kg fuel to burn, 70% efficiency and 15.4 mj/kg you can do the math again. it makes 29 billion joules. Toby Kinkaid · February 10, 2018 at 23:08 Thank you for your response. As you know, there is a difference between theoretical and actual field performance numbers. I would remind you energy content of fuels is listed under ideal conditions, and the other numbers used as “general” examples. Margin of error creeps in with large numbers upon large numbers as it relates to theoretical verses engineering. Let me give you another way to look at the question. The Lunar Descent Engine (successor TR-201) had a maximum thrust (reported) of 45,000 N. The V-2 you reference is not relevant to this discussion. We’re talking about the Lunar Descent System. Different rockets have different exhaust velocities. In my calculations above, using Newton’s laws get to the heart of the problem: changing momentum to rest from 60 miles high. Newton’s second law, F=ma, as I wrote above allows us to calculate the change in mass (fuel) required to produce a given force at a given acceleration (acceleration is written as delta V/delta T). To produce 45,000 Force over 60 seconds (per minute) you need 5,400 Kg of fuel plus oxidizer. That means your “burn rate” is 5,400 Kg of fuel plus oxidizer per minute at full thrust. Therefore, with 8,200 Kg of fuel and oxidizer, you only have about 90 seconds of fuel and oxidizer (this gives you a total change in mass question) at full thrust. Now, let’s calculate how long, at full thrust we’ll need to change our momentum from 60 miles up, to rest on the lunar surface. The change in momentum from 100,000 meters high (relative to the moon’s surface) and going 1,700 m/s to rest is 25 Million kg m/sec. Let’s calculate, therefore, how much time it takes, (see above) and you’ll see you need over 9 minutes of burn. That means to change your momentum from 25 million Kg m/s to zero, and only have 45,000 N of force available to you, you’ll need to burn fuel for 9 minutes. No way around it. There simply is not enough fuel aboard to actually land. You need 9 minutes of burn, which would require (5,400 Kg/minute). To land on the moon you need a minimum of (5,400 Kg x 9 min.) which is 48,600 Kg of fuel plus oxidizer. You don’t have 9 minutes of fuel and oxidizer aboard, you only have 90 seconds at full thrust. To land on the moon from 60 miles up, you’ll need a minimum of 48,600 Kg of fuel, far more than the 8,200 Kg reported aboard the LEM. Note: Even 48,600 Kg leaves you No margin for error, that’s an absolute minimum figure. To actually land, and provide for unanticipated burns and such, and provide even a minimum standard for safety, you can see, needs a great deal more fuel and oxidizer than even 48,600 Kg provides. The 30,000 lb. LEM could not have landed on the moon from 60 miles above the moon, going 1,700 m/s with only 8,200 Kg of fuel and oxidizer on board. It’s not even close. AykutTari · February 20, 2018 at 22:35 you are saying exhaust velocity was 500 m/s and i am saying 3050 m/s. This is deadline i guess. Toby Kinkaid · February 26, 2018 at 17:50 Thank you for your response. I see you’re taking the 3050 m/s figure from the published Specific Impulse. As stated keep in mind the difference between laboratory conditions and field conditions. Using the 3050 m/s thrust (which is only applicable at full power under ideal conditions), still doesn’t refute the larger point: there is not enough fuel and oxidizer on board. You agree above at 45,000 N force of the descent engine would take 566 seconds of full burn to change the LEM’s momentum from 60 miles up to zero on the surface. That’s 9.5 minutes at full thrust. If you use the 3050 m/s thrust number you must acknowledge that leaves nearly zero margin for error. Why would a designer not include additional margin for unplanned orbital burns, and other emergency maneuvers? If given a choice, would not a planner build in as much margin as possible? Let alone nearly none. If you take your calculation there was theoretically just enough fuel to make the descent, and therefore it happened, ignores the reality of field operations. A theoretical calculation which leaves you little, or zero margin for error is in no way a practical device. If you read van Braun in the 1950’s he predicted three ships, and each of them much larger than Sat. V. would be required, among other things,… for safety. Why design a lander, which is reported to have flow laterally in Armstrong’s guidance, which clearly needed to contend with unknowns with nearly no margin for error? You wouldn’t. I have never seen any NASA footage of the actual descent burn. Have you? If you conclude there was enough fuel and oxidizer on board to bring a craft which not only has to carry it’s own fuel and oxidizer on board, as well as carry enough fuel and oxidizer to accelerate back, yes of less mass, but not insignificant mass, from the lunar surface at rest to 60 miles up? just doesn’t add up. I put it too you. If you were designing a manned lunar mission, with the lives of the astronauts in your hands, and your responsibility, would you only pack 8,700 Kg of fuel and oxidant in that craft? The bare theoretical minimum if everything works in the field exactly as laboratory conditions predict? Given the fundamental requirements of even basic safety, and the need to insure success of the mission, I think not. Paul · January 10, 2018 at 19:30 Couple of Questions: With no air lock on the lunar lander what happened to the air when the astronauts opened the door? Did it go into space? Did they pump out the air so they could reuse or did they just pressurize it? How much air was brought with the lander? With what I could tell it doesn’t look like enough storage to re pressurize. If they just keep wearing the suits until they returned to earth how did they eat, drink, or use the bathroom? If there is a vacuum in the lunar lander what happened to the command module ounce they docked? What happened to the astronaut in the command module? Mark · January 21, 2018 at 05:07 If they opened the door to a vacuum, that air would instantly expand and dissipate outside and be lost. That is what I understand happened. For re-pressurisation, in comparison a large scuba tank has 80 cubic feet of air equivalent, meaning that when discharged it would fill a balloon on the Earth’s ground to 80 cubic feet, or roughly a cube 5x5x5 ft. Can you do a calculation to compare to their reserves? I honestly haven’t spent any time looking at this. Thanks. Toby Kinkaid · January 5, 2018 at 23:41 Hi, I had a question about how much fuel it takes for the decent to the lunar surface, and the accent back to lunar parking orbit. I don’t see my question posted and just wondered if I’m being rude? Trying to be objective, would appreciate your comments, thanks Karl Karlsen · March 1, 2018 at 04:36 “Why would a designer not include additional margin for unplanned orbital burns, and other emergency maneuvers? If given a choice, would not a planner build in as much margin as possible? Let alone nearly none.” Exactly so. To be perfectly honest, the designers did not need to take any potential emergency maneuvers into question because even the critical maneuvers considered, those of actually getting straight to the surface, did not take place. I would like to read your opinions regarding the craft’s insulation against extreme temperature (approx -455 F) of space and the crew’s distance to the extreme heat of the engines, Mr. Kinkaid. Not to mention the effects of particulate matter inevitably brought into the module by surface treading personnel as there was no decontamination chamber (mud room.) Thanks! Toby Kinkaid · May 24, 2018 at 19:24 Thank you. Well said. You mentioned temperature and particulates. Your points are well taken. Temperature control inside the different space craft, and the space suits, over long solar exposure is very problematic. As you see in the photos, videos, and technical drawings there are no radiators. How could any significant amount of heat be rejected from the system? In extreme conditions of the high vacuum of space, and being exposed to solar radiation alone (1.3 kW/m2 above the atmosphere), anything exposed to the sun will heat up. There will be thermal gain. Anything not exposed to the sun will freeze. It’s like flying inside a vacuum thermos bottle. Very difficult to control an environment subjected to such a violent, and rapidly changing thermodynamic reality. The temperature range is extreme. A very demanding condition for both hardware and humans. With no radiators, and having no benefit of conduction or convection (as we have here on earth), to help cool off a system it is very difficult to explain how any astronaut’s very narrow life support requirements could be maintained over a flight lasting 6 or 7 days, with no way to reject the massive heat-gain from the sun. Oxygen, water, available battery energy, it’s a long list of vital functions which must be maintained over such a long and energy demanding mission profile as Apollo, all with very little heat-transfer gear, and all requiring a very specific narrow range of acceptable temperatures. The reality is whenever one side of your craft (or suit) is baking and the other half freezing it would be – a very difficult task to achieve internal temperature control – especially with limited power supplies, and in such extreme conditions. Given the gear presented, from a thermodynamic consideration I don’t see how it was possible. After prolonged exposure to the intense solar radiation – both suit and craft would not be able to reject accumulated heat-gain and bake. Mike · June 21, 2018 at 03:42 I notice there was no reply to this question. The issues presented in your multi-paragraph questions are those that have always bothered me. I worked in refrigeration, and could not figure out how they cooled the astronauts on the surface of the moon, and the craft for the 6+ days they were away from any Solar shadowing from Earth or the Moon. Rotating the craft to “warm” it up equally, is more akin to a rotisserie. Todd · December 13, 2017 at 02:22 I must commend you on both your knowledge of the program and your patience with some of the contributors here. It astounds me to read the posts above and to see the level of missunderstanding this program has been subjected to over the years. Keep up the good work. If I can I will provide the odd explanation provided my fear of getting sucked into the craziness doesn’t overwhelm me :). admin · December 13, 2017 at 11:42 Thanks for the support!! Your comment is much appreciated and made me smile Please do provide content in the comments, it’s always helpful and appreciated. It is easy to get lost in all the comments, and if you are a site admin, you do seem to need all the patients in the world. It is nice to get to talk to everyone! admin · November 30, 2017 at 17:34 admin · November 30, 2017 at 17:34 Tann · October 17, 2017 at 22:35 Per the astronaut Don Pettit, NASA destroyed the technology to reach the moon. Why did NASA destroy that technology? I then watched a video of Obama saying NASA is still using the same old technology from 40 years ago. I’m also wondering how NASA lost all 14k feels of the original footage of the moon landings. The most important event in the history of the world and the technology has been destroyed and reels lost? I think if we had those original reels, we could out the hoax to rest. Bottom line, none of us can travel to the moon to validate what we are being told. I also find it odd that we haven’t been back to the moon in over 40 years. We can’t blame it on cost or lack of people’s interest as the Admin claims. Can you imagine what we could capture on film now with HD and the Nikon P900!! So dear Admin, why Pettit claim they destroyed the technology? He said quote “I would go to the moon in a nanosecond, but the technology has been destroyed and it will take some time to rebuild it.” There are many other questionable things said and done by astronauts on the ISS but too much to mention here. admin · October 18, 2017 at 11:17 Hi Tann, thanks for the comment. When the Apollo program ended, the factories that assembled those vehicles were retasked/reassigned or shut down. The jigs were disassembled. The moulds were destroyed. The technicians, engineers, scientists, and flight controllers moved onto other jobs. Over time, some of the materials used became obsolete. It is kind of like trying to build an old car, say a Model T. Those factories were re-purposed a long time ago, along with the machinery. Sure we could build back up again, but it would be done in a more modern, and safer fashion. As you can see kind of thing happens all the time. Just because an astronaut has stated that the technology has been destroyed, shouldn’t make us throw our arms in the air and cause a fuss. This type of thing happens, we modernise. It takes a long time to build something like a lander etc. We can’t build them on demand. You can’t snap your fingers and a new equipment just appears. Any equipment that we do build will differ from what has been made previously. Just like cars, models are constantly improved. Safety procedures now are also much more strict than they were back in the 50s and 60s, and this adds extra red tape to things. On a plus note, there are plans to go back to the moon, whether it be with NASA, ESA or any of the other space agencies. So interest is certainly back, it’s just going to take us a bit longer to build the things to get there. Hope this helps oghrt · January 19, 2018 at 13:21 The astronauts who landed on the moon discovered the moon is not made of cheese. Therefore, there was no reason to go back to the moon. sachin · July 28, 2017 at 14:53 I am quite confused, how are the astronauts lit up in shots where the sun is behind them? being a cinematographer one knows we would need huge amounts of light to compensate for the harsh sunlight on the moon, that too without any atmospheric dust particles to diffuse and possibly give some find of a low fill. I also know they did not carry any artificial light (at least not that powerful) The inconsistency is that the shadows falling from the module and the astronauts are hard solid black, but voila, the details on the person are clearly visible. Especially all the pics which are similar to Alan Bean coming down from the module, al most all the astronauts have that one picture. Being a cinematographer for 2 decades and having worked on a huge range of formats, I know its next to impossible to get details in absolutely black shadows without an artificial source. What were they using? Huge reflectors, maxi brutes, xeon lights or HMIs…?? Sirah · April 13, 2017 at 03:38 This is a joke, right? Does anyone else notice all the scotch tape and construction paper holding the lunar module together. And then all the CGI “photography”? Thierry Labbe · March 21, 2017 at 17:14 Hail to you Admin, for having such tremendous patience with all those moonlanding deniers. They try and try, but you stay calm and provide all sorts of interesting answers, a lot of which was unknown to me. And where you do not have an answer, you do not claim to have one. You have my utter respect! Greetings from the Netherlands Mister X · February 10, 2017 at 03:13 Yet just 6 months prior to launch the lander crashed during a test flight on earth. Luckily Neil Armstrong ejected to safety. I also find it so amazing that all the moon landings went off without any malfunctions or mistakes, yet the challenger space shuttle was only going into low earth orbit (have to avoid going to high due to cosmic radiation) and had a major malfunction. Go figure. It almost makes one wonder how did NASA pull off going to the moon? I mean the probability of making it to the moon was something like .001% John Adkins · April 22, 2017 at 08:17 HI Mister X, The number of shuttle missions was very large compared to lunar missions, 135 shuttle launches and re-entries. Two shuttles were lost out of 135 was probably what some engineers would have expected. Your probability of only one in 100,000 making it to the moon is very pessimistic, good job you were not on the planning team. It is much better to crash in test flights and sort out the problems prior to a real mission. Sometimes you can learn a lot for failures during testing, that’s what its is for. To push the boundaries of discovery and science, optimistic and brave folk are needed to be astronauts and great engineering teams are needed to design the craft to get them there. David · July 20, 2018 at 10:04 That’s rubbish. How could “the lander” have crashed during a test flight on Earth, when it simply couldn’t operate in Earth’s gravity or atmosphere? What DID crash was a “flying bedstead”, the nickname given to the Lunar Lander Research Vehicle. This was nothing like the lunar lander, powered by – I think – eight different engines, including a jet and a number of rocket engines, both liquid fuel and solid rockets. With an endurance of only ten minutes it was a pig to fly, involving delicately balancing the different engines and trying to keep the thing steady. To claim this was “the lander” shows just how little research some people carry out before trying to “expose the lie” of Neil and the boys landing on the moon. pop · January 25, 2017 at 06:38 very good Magnar Nordal · January 20, 2017 at 15:39 You must be the most patient person in the world! I stumbled over your site when I searched for technical information about the lander. And I have to say that I have learned a lot. Scott Young · December 8, 2016 at 12:50 May I congratulate you not only on being an incredibly knowledgeable person on the subject of the Apollo missions, but also on having the patience of a saint for answering some of these questions put to you, in particular the ridiculous ones from people who believe the conspiracy theorists, with such grace – quite remarkable. My second cousin is the astronaut John Young and he inspired me to become a pilot. I’ve only met him twice, but I can assure the world he definitely went to the Moon, and advise you not to think about claiming otherwise to his face! Keep up the great work! admin · December 8, 2016 at 13:01 Siegfried Marquardt · October 21, 2016 at 19:41 (Comments must be in English- ADMIN) Richard Witty · October 10, 2016 at 08:19 Where & how did they stow the space suits & back packs inside the lunar module? admin · October 10, 2016 at 09:40 Dear Richard, thank for your question. According to Engineering Aspects of Apollo (link) Toward the rear, the cabin was even more cramped than it was from side to side. At eye level, the cabin was a full seven and a half feet deep; however, from about knee height down, the aft portion of the cabin was filled with the ascent engine cover and, forward of that, the floor space was only three feet deep. In addition, the side bulkheads in the aft portion of the cabin were covered with storage compartments on the Commander’s side and the environmental control equipment on the LMP’s and, in effect, the aft portion of the cabin was only useful as a place for temporarily stowing such things as the suits and helmets and, at night, as a place to hang the Commander’s hammock. Readers should also note that, contrary to what is shown in the accompanying drawings, the crews of the extended missions (Apollos 15, 16, and 17) did not wear their suits during the rest periods and, rather, slept in their underwear. The suits were stowed on the ascent engine cover and further reduced the usable space in the cabin. At launch the backpacks (Portable Life Support Systems or PLSS) were stowed in two positions. The Lunar Module Pilot’s sat on the floor between the two astronauts’ in flight standing positions, the Commander’s on a wall to the aft of the cabin. There are diagrams showing these on pages 41 and 42 of APOLLO EXPERIENCE REPORT – CREW PROVISIONS AND EQUIPMENT SUBSYSTEM (link) This site LM-11 (Orion) Cabin Close Out Photos (link) has links to pre-launch images of Apollo 16’s LM, the LMP’s PLSS backpack and two bagged helmets can be seen on the floor. I hope this helps you. Allan - the Swede · September 29, 2016 at 16:38 Well, to begin with I overestimated the mass of the LM. Probably, of some reason I thought it was about the same as CSM just because the size is. In that case (theoretically) the two vessels would have the same speed when running the same orbit. So if the LM increases speed in order to catch-up it’s orbit will come to high due to centrifugal forces and rendezvous will not be possible of that reason. And if LM speed is decreased in order to await CSM instead this will result an orbit dangerously near lunar surface and gravity forces will exceed centrifugal forces and bring it down. But thank God, of course we are now talking about the ascending module only wich is 4,5 T only. Less than half the CSM. An expedition to (and from?) Mars might perhaps face these issues? admin · September 30, 2016 at 11:49 Dear Allan, apologies if I am failing to understand, but do you believe that the mass of an orbiting spacecraft effects its orbital height? That is not the case. You might want to research how other orbital rendezvous are done, from the 1960s Gemini missions to the ISS today. Allan - the Swede · September 30, 2016 at 20:33 Of course when spacecrafts of different mass are frefalling the trajectory will be the same. The orbital height will decrease constantly though, isn’t it so? admin · October 3, 2016 at 09:36 Dear Allan, why do you think the orbital height is decreasing? There is no drag force acting so the spacecraft keep on moving at the orbital speed for their altitude. Could you look at the material at this link to see if it is helpful? Apologises if it is too simple. Allan - the Swede · October 4, 2016 at 19:00 “Low Lunar orbits are unstable due to the variable gravity field of the Moon, so barring any other action, the LEM ascent stages would crash into the Moon within several months.” admin · October 5, 2016 at 07:23 Dear Allan, thank you for pointing this out, I hadn’t realised this effect was so severe. There is more about this at Bizarre Lunar Orbits (link). However I still think this would not cause problems for the LM and CSM meeting in orbit. Allan - the Swede · September 26, 2016 at 17:14 Hello again, My other question is about the following rendes vouz with the command module. I understand that the moment of lift off is very precisely calculated in order to get the both vehicles meet at the right moment and place and velocity. But what happens when LM at descending procedure of any reason have to abort at an unexpected phase and return to orbit. The CSM might in that case be at another location far away? And my question is how to accelerate or decelerate without going at a far to high altitude resp low? Is this altitude/velocity correction a job for CSM? Sorry for my poor english… admin · September 28, 2016 at 15:06 Dear Allan, thank you for your question. Unfortunately I am not clear what you are asking. Have a look at the question by Michail posted on 28 July 2016 and my response on the same day, do these cover your question? Allan - the Swede · September 28, 2016 at 17:22 Ahh, thank you for that link to “Apollo Flight Journal…” . Just what I was looking for. I never thought about that possibility for the LM ascend module to take a very much lower orbit which also is shorter. They only have to wait and catch-up the CSM above. I was concerned about the gravity forces in that case would bring them down to surface after a while, but after a second thought I understand that the mass of the module is less than half of CSM and even the “normal” orbit is lower in the first place. So the rest is mathematics and rocket science, isn’t it? Besides the orbiting phase is not for a very long time so the extra gravity forces will not affect the module at all. No extra waste of energy at all. The CSM i passively waiting in it’s orbit and the LM is doing the job… Did I understand this right do you think? admin · September 29, 2016 at 10:09 Dear Allan, I’m glad I was able to help you understand this. I am still unclear about one the points you are making. You said I was concerned about the gravity forces in that case would bring them down to surface after a while but both spacecraft are orbiting the Moon and without human intervention would stay there indefinitely. Allan - the Swede · September 26, 2016 at 06:38 I this morning found your website while googeling for LM. So I have not yet read it all – perhaps the answer to my question is there. Anyway I have read many times about the LM crew are standing up while landing due to the relatively low gravitation. But how about standing up during the start from the surface? Are ther facilities like “chairs”? admin · September 26, 2016 at 09:09 Dear Allan, Thank you for your question, no there were no chairs. The acceleration of the LM’s Ascent Stage was low enough that the crew could stand throughout. The astronauts were strapped down though, there is a description of this at this link. I hope this has helped you. Allan - the Swede · September 26, 2016 at 16:45 Thank you for your answer. I have to say I’m a bit surprised astronauts are not strained from roof direction as well as floor so to speak. Those 30 pounds extra weight makes the person unnecessary heavy at the moment of lift off. I really don’t know the velocity but I estimate about 4 m/s. Admin, I spent a bit of time reading about 75% of the above posts. I commend you on your incredible ability to accurately respond to every question, no matter how pointed or absurd the inquiry. I am an ongoing advocate of our entire space exploration history and wanted to thank you sincerely for your fortitude and diligence. Thanks for your kind words! Gordon Brinton · August 18, 2016 at 18:49 I absolutely love this amazing and detailed writeup. I stumbled upon your page while looking for pictures of the underside of the LM Ascent stage (rare apparently). I really enjoyed reading through each of the sections and learned so much! I can’t wait to go home and show this to my kids (7 and 10 years old). Thank you for taking the time to research and write this! Jonathan · August 13, 2016 at 12:33 Looking at the Chinese Chang and comparing it to the Eagle, we can see dust is seen near Chang, as a result of the landings, whereas it does not, whent it comes to the Eagle. What are the chances men went to the moon and got back safely the 6 times it happened, when in nearly all other space endeavours people died, including Challenger and flights before Gagarin made it? Does it not seem chances are slim? Thanks in advance! admin · August 23, 2016 at 15:02 Dear Jonathon, thank you for your questions. Unfortunately I am not sure what you are asking for the first one, could you clarify please? The second one is more about my opinion. Yes, I agree that sending people into space is a high risk activity (although it was successful on the first try; there were no “flights before Gagarin made it”) but each mission has a calculated risk of failure based on failure rates of the technology, if the risk of failure is unacceptably high the mission is never likely to take place. In 1965 NASA defined acceptable success rates for Apollo missions to be 90% for mission success (landing on the Moon) and 100% for crew survival. These seem pretty well to have been achieved. Have you made some estimation of your own? Jonathan · August 24, 2016 at 11:44 Thanks for answering back! I have not made an estimation of my own. I just find it kind of surprising it worked so well when in other space endeavours some fatalities did occur (not to mention other human risky adventures). When it comes to Gagarin, I was referring to unacknowledged deaths: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_Cosmonauts . As for Chang’e and the Lunar Module pics, Chang’e pic displays dust as a result of the landings (one can see clearly in the pic, where the spacecraft touched the moon), whereas the Lunar Module does not. My question would be then: why no dust is seen near the Lunar Module parts which touched the moon? I thank you for your kindness. I used to believe in the Moon landings. However I suddenly started to think it could have been fake. Either way, it would have been a brilliant solution to the Cold War conflict. I know the Soviets managed to put animals on the orbit of the Moon. They also managed to send a craft which brought back rocks to the Earth. So the Americans could at least put animals (humans too?) orbiting the Moon and land a craft which could come back from the Moon. So in theory a possible scenario… however I just find it would be too risky, it could take human lives unnecessarily. Just faking it would be a safer and surer way of winning the Cold War, and possibly cheaper too. It fits with Nixon’s style (all Moon landings took place when Nixon was president of the U.S). Keeping it secret for so long is a problem with the fake theory. I also find it unlikely that the Nixon administration could have kept it secret for so long… Michail · July 28, 2016 at 07:05 Hello and thank you for a fantastic write-up about this exciting piece of technology and history! While I am no sceptic, one thing I have always wondered is this: How is it possible to blast off from the moon, reach 1½ km/s, and dock with another tiny speck that travels at roughly the same speed? Roughly in this case meaning many hundreds of meters per second delta. They more or less ran the thing with sticks and buttons, no computer aids, and only a pair of tiny windows. A radar that seems to offer help of the type “Yeah, there is a dot moving across a field of view at a tremendous speed somewhere in thisorthat general direction”. Any mistake there would mean that they missed each other with a hundred miles or several hundred meters per second mismatched speed. Any deviation to the orbit vector and this could take lap after lap around the moon while wasting fuel trying to correct trajectory. So I would love to read some account of how this was actually accomplished, because it sounds terrifyingly difficult. admin · July 28, 2016 at 09:33 Dear Michail, thank you for your kind words and questions. I’ll answer your questions briefly, but note that I have answered essentially the same questions before in this comments section. How is it possible to blast off from the moon, reach 1½ km/s, and dock with another tiny speck that travels at roughly the same speed? The LM’s Ascent Stage had its own rocket engine capable of placing the Ascent Stage into the same orbit as the waiting CSM. Both vehicles were travelling at the same speed and in the same direction when they rendezvoused. They may have been moving fast compared to the Moon’s surface but very slowly compared to each other, as they dock the spacecraft’s relative speed are literally just just a few feet per second. Note that spacecraft have taken off from Earth’s surface to rendezvous and dock with other spacecraft since the mid-1960s right through to the present day. Low Earth Orbit speeds are much higher that Lunar Orbit speeds, so the absolute speeds the vehicles are travelling at are not an issue as long as they match in magnitude and direction. They more or less ran the thing with sticks and buttons, no computer aids, and only a pair of tiny windows Virtually every air- or spacecraft ever built has been controlled through “sticks and buttons”, I do not understand the problem you see here. The LM had a 80 square inch window used in the final stages of docking (it is marked in one of the diagrams in the article) but again I do not see why you believe this is problematic, it was big enough for what it was meant for. Again, I am unsure why you believe the LM’s rendezvous radar was not suitable for the task it was designed for. Here is a link to the document APOLLO EXPERIENCE REPORT -LUNAR MODULE LANDING RADAR AND RENDEZVOUS RADAR (link), can you show anything in it suggesting the radar was inadequate? Any mistake there would mean that they missed each other with a hundred miles or several hundred meters per second mismatched speed. Docking two spacecraft is not the “all for nothing”/”only one chance to get it right” task you seem to think. The Apollo mission profile called for the LM to lift off and enter an orbit that was lower than the CSM’s and several hundred km behind it. The LM’s lower orbit meant it moved faster and gradually (over 3-5 hours) caught up with the CSM. If this didn’t go quite right, there was enough flexibility in the process to get back on track by adjusting the spacecraft’s orbit by thruster firings. In the Apollo 11 mission, the LM Ascent Stage’s initial orbit was too high by about 15 miles, but over a couple of hours, thrusters were fired in a series of burns to gradually lower its orbit to match the CSM’s (one source describing this is the book From the Flight Deck 4: Apollo 11 Moon Landing by David J. Shayler published in 1989). Rather than being “terrifyingly difficult”, it is a complex task requiring skill, training and careful preparation, but given those it is perfectly achievable. Orbits are completely understood. Here is a link to a very detailed essay The Apollo Flight Journal Lunar Orbit Rendezvous by Frank O’Brien (link). This explains the procedure, there is a lot to take in but it is comprehensible. I hope this has been helpful. JD · July 18, 2016 at 09:55 Thanks for this page, it is very informative and interesting. I must also mention as others have that you are a model of civility when providing skeptics with detailed and reasonable responses. admin · July 18, 2016 at 10:25 William Groucutt · June 7, 2016 at 08:29 May I just say… I think I love you. Your wonderfully calm, collected and objective responses to pseudoscientific data is awe inspiring. I desperately try to exercise composure when confronted with (often aggressive) claims of hoaxes. I will now use your website and general demeanour as an inspiration. Thank you! admin · June 7, 2016 at 08:42 Thank you, that’s very kind of you. Steve · June 5, 2016 at 02:51 Yes, I agree you do have patience. I too, was 11 years old in 1969 and watched the first moonwalk. It ignited in me an interest which I have to this day. My grandpa at the time said he didn’t believe that we went to the moon. You would have to know him to understand why. He was old and ignorant of scientific things and his religion probably played a part as well. Anyway, I was inspired to put together a picture book of the Apollo 11 mission detailing the major (at least to an 11 year old) phases; liftoff, TLI, lunar orbit, etc. I was quiet proud of this and read anything I could get my hands on about Nasa and space. No matter what any skeptics said, I was a firm believer in the moon missions and could never see myself questioning the official history of it. I would like to take a moment to state that not everyone who believes it was a hoax is an idiot. Nor does everyone who thinks it was a hoax wants to believe it was. It would bring me no joy to learn that my country lied to me. Not everyone who believes in the hoax are country bumpkins with no education, I have read several articles and seen many films where photographic experts and physics degree holders are expressing doubt that we ever went to the moon. Why am I saying all this? Simply, a few years ago I was on Nasa’s website looking at lunar mission photos in which some things just didn’t look right. I’m talking about the pictures which looked like there was an additional light source used. I’m talking about shadows which make no sense. I could go into detail here but, I think it would just be an exercise in futility. Yes, you do show grace and patience but, in my experience, there is far more hostility toward ‘conspiracy theorists’ than from them. I see people who have genuine, legitimate questions about the moon missions get shot down in flames and called all kinds of insulting things such as nut, wacko and lots of other things which I won’t mention here Why is a person who asks about the validity of a program which cost hundreds of billions of dollars in today’s money an inbred idiot?. Why do we have accountants? Why do we have locks on our valuables? Why do we have a free press? Why are we supposed to believe in the certainty of a fact just because a government says it’s true. I think as a people, to blindly believe in something without question flies in the face of scientific method. I don’t say this to boast but, I have a measured IQ of 157. I see legitimate questions from people getting dodged and glossed over and straight sensible answers never forthcoming. I believe in math. It just does not address why a planetary body with 8% reflectance can backlight Buzz Aldrin decending the ladder like daylight bit nearby rocks actually sitting on the ground get no such effect. I look at an astronaut reflected in the visor of another in which it’s obvious that he has neither a camera or a PLSS pack on his back. I see much more that these two things. Much more. I did not want to believe in a hoax. I have no agenda. I never gave much thought to conspiracies. I did not bend to conspiracy theorists. But during my enthusiastic pursuit of my beloved hobby, I came to believe(or disbelieve). I’m not even saying with certainty that I don’t believe we went to the moon. But it seems clear to me that there is something very wrong with the photographic record of the event. I would like to say to those who say that a quarter million people could not keep a secret of this magnitude, do you really think the guy who made the bolts that held together the atomic bomb that the Manhattan Project developed knew what was going on?. The space program was so huge and compartmentalized, very few people would have to be in on the hoax. Even the controllers in Mission Control could have be fooled by telemetry and other data coming it from who know where. That argument does not mean anything. Also, any doubts one may have about the validity of photographs is not going to be convinced by more photographs such as LRO images. Furthermore, I have no doubt that we have better optics than the ones being used take the photos the public see. I have a 300x telescope that I honestly believe would give resolutions equal to or better than the LRO pics at the stated distance from the lunar surface. It appears that there is something on the moon which the powers that be don’t want the public to see. So that’s all for now. Thank you for this platform. By the way, in all my years, this is the first time I ever wrote my feelings on any website. Again thanks for your patience and grace (Paragraph breaks added- ADMIN) admin · June 6, 2016 at 14:12 Dear Steve, thank you for your comment. I see people who have genuine, legitimate questions about the moon missions get shot down in flames and called all kinds of insulting things such as nut, wacko and lots of other things which I won’t mention here I am unsure if you are saying that I do this, if you are please quote an example of where I have done this. I try hard to remain civil, though occasionally I cannot help expressing disappointment at the refusal by some commenters here to research or think for themselves, but I hope I been doing this politely. I see legitimate questions from people getting dodged and glossed over and straight sensible answers never forthcoming. Please give me an example of where you think I have done this. It just does not address why a planetary body with 8% reflectance can backlight Buzz Aldrin decending the ladder like daylight bit nearby rocks actually sitting on the ground get no such effect. Would the difference in reflectivity between lunar surface material and a white spacesuit help to explain this? I look at an astronaut reflected in the visor of another in which it’s obvious that he has neither a camera or a PLSS pack on his back Have you looked at a discussion of this image at a site which does not start by assuming a hoax has been perpetrated? I have a 300x telescope that I honestly believe would give resolutions equal to or better than the LRO pics at the stated distance from the lunar surface. You might very well have a bigger telescope, after all we have larger ones here for the public to use. The LRO’s narrow angle cameras have a primary mirror diameter of 195 mm, our Dobsonians have 30 cm mirrors. What is the objective size of your telescope? We can use that to compare the resolution of the two instruments. Remember the goal of the LRO mission was to map the Moon at a maximum resolution of 50 cm/pixel from 50km up. I assume the cameras are optimised to do this. Much higher resolution would have been possible by putting a Hubble Space telescope equivalent in Moon orbit but what would have been the point? Polytropic · January 21, 2017 at 23:13 The moon landing hoax is almost unique among conspiracy theories in that some time in the future it can be proven beyond doubt, either way. It just requires an unmanned close orbit to one of the sites with a camera and some agreed method of ensuring the photos cannot be photoshopped. The grainy suspect photos from the LRO were not good enough, they had too many anomalies. It seems remarkable that NASA put so little effort into providing positive proof of the landings such as simple photos of the stars with the earth above the horizon. Bob · May 29, 2016 at 12:11 geezus admin you have the patience of a saint. I was 11 yo when Neil Armstrong uttered those infamous words, my dad actually helped build the LM in Bethpage Long Island. Back in those days, surely at some drunken pool party, someone would have said “I can’t believe we are doing all this to fool everyone”. Why people push the hoax theory confounds me and actually offends me. My father was a great and ethical man and would never have involved himself in a project meant to deceive people. Thank you for this site and your continued mission to educate. admin · May 31, 2016 at 07:11 Edmir · May 18, 2016 at 03:20 How did Apollos’ equipment and crew managed to survive at least two passages each through the dangerously radioactive Van Allen belts? Recently, Nasa published a video with one of its engineers advertising the Orion project, and refering to a yet unsolved problem of how to shield crew and equipment against the dangerous exposure to Van Allen belts radiation. Wasn’t it a problem for the Apollo missions? Thanks for your attention. admin · May 18, 2016 at 07:29 Dear Edmir, thank you for your question. You may want to read item 3 at 5 Goofy Moonlanding Hoax Theories (link). Remember too that the crew were in the shielded Command Module not the LM as they passed through the van Allen Belts. Turning to the video, I think you are misinterpreting the dialogue. Briefly, the Orion spacecraft is shielded just as the Apollo CSMs were, but it is somewhat different from the Apollo spacecraft. Three significant differences are its construction of light weight aluminium-lithium alloy (rather than just aluminium) which to the best of my knowledge has not been used on a previous crewed spacecraft, its use of modern semi-conductor electronics (which were not widely used on the Apollo missions and are more vulnerable to radiation damage) and its design specifications for prolonged deep space operations (causing long-term exposure to cosmic radiation and high-energy solar particles). These differences mean that the exact details of the shielding are not the same so on a test flight there was a need to confirm that the Orion’s shielding performed as expected. Also, there was a research payload onboard the Orion test flight designed to measure radiation levels to test the effectiveness of various experimental shield materials and structures (as ideally these would be as light as possible). The engineer in the video may have been referring to this experiment too. All of this is discussed in the comments on the the video you linked too. Protecting spacecraft from radiation is a very active field of research, you can read more at this link. I hope this has helped you. (For the convenience of other readers the relevant dialogue is at about 3min 10 sec to 3min 45 sec.) Olivia · May 19, 2016 at 19:24 Isn`t it amazing that no “astronaut” will swear on the Bible that they actually walked on the moon? And when they are asked about it they become very defensive; even hostile. Because they know that swearing on the Bible is recognized as strict testimony they will commit perjury. They also signed a confidentiality agreement not to discuss the truth about us never having gone there. Also, when the astronauts went up into “space”, they saw the reality of what is there and they KNOW that God exists and by swearing on the Bible and lying, they will have spiritual consequences to face at the end of their lives. Hence, they will not swear. If they really walked on the moon, any astronaut would be willing to submit to a polygraph test after a medical doctor gave an injection of sodium pentothal after having signed an affidavit with their hand on the bible. They won`t. admin · May 20, 2016 at 08:25 Dear Olivia, thank you for your question and comments. I will try to respond as best as I can. Isn`t it amazing that no “astronaut” will swear on the Bible that they actually walked on the moon? But is this claim actually true? I know this allegation is on many websites but have all these sources looked into the facts or are they just lazily repeating each other? Could any of the people who say this have agendas of their own? I understand that there was an individual who made a habit of aggressively confronting astronauts at public venues demanding that they hold a Bible and swear that their achievements were real. Some refused to do this, I believe that the unpleasant and unprofessional manner in which they were approached explains their unsympathetic responses. However despite this, three astronauts (Cernan, Mitchell and Bean) did hold the Bible and make this declaration. Why do you think the sources that reported “no astronaut will swear on the Bible that they actually walked on the moon” did not tell you this? They also signed a confidentiality agreement not to discuss the truth about us never having gone there. Do you know this to be a fact or it is just a belief you hold? If it is a fact you must be able to provide me with a source where this is stated. Can you? If they really walked on the moon, any astronaut would be willing to submit to a polygraph test after a medical doctor gave an injection of sodium pentothal after having signed an affidavit with their hand on the bible. There are problems here aside from the ethical issues raised by this proposal (you are saying that private individuals should undergo interrogations under the influence of drugs to verify their life history). Outside the USA, polygraph tests are regarded as meaningless and their results have no legal validity, it is a technology that simply does not work. Drugs like sodium pentothal are not “truth serums” (even the CIA has reported “…even under the best conditions they will elicit an output contaminated by deception, fantasy, garbled speech, etc…”) so this is no way to verify anything. Even if you choose to disregard the testimonies of individuals, the Apollo missions are still some of the best and most thoroughly documented events in history. In addition the body of scientific and engineering knowledge developed for the Apollo project and discovered through it is used daily by astronomers, geologists and engineers. All this field of knowledge is complete and self-consistent. Everyone who uses it accepts that the moon landings occurred as reported. I hope that you have found this helpful. specguy · June 2, 2016 at 19:52 ironically the bible itself instructs you not to swear on the bible. “But I tell you not to swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the earth, for it is His footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King… All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” Quintin · April 28, 2016 at 17:41 How much fuel did it take? Need it for a science project Dear Quintin, thank you for your question. The Descent Stage carried about 8212 kg of propellant and the Ascent Stage about 2388 kg of propellant, giving a total of 10 600 kg (this will have varied a bit between missions). Good luck with the project! specguy · April 25, 2016 at 01:05 hello, interesting article. hope you don’t mind me taking advantage of the fact you seem to be addressing all questions no matter how absurd… couple of ‘bones of contention’ which I didn’t see addressed yet 1. there’s a lot of speculation about the fact the remnants of the landing site of the first mission (or any missions) have never been successfully ‘found’ or photographed since. apparently it was, but I’ve never seen the photo. is there anywhere I can see definitive photo evidence of this, taken recently (preferably not a small random blob)? 2. one of the main counters to ‘moon landing hoax’ suggestions is that a reflective device was placed on the moon which has been used since to bounce rays (or something) off, thereby confirming that we must have landed. however I’ve also heard that we were bouncing stuff off the moon in the same manner before we landed there, meaning what is the point of the reflector we placed if we could already do that? (worded that badly, sorry) 3. from what I gather by watching various interviews and articles on the subject (and I’m no expert in anything science or rocket travel), the prospect of landing a manned craft on the moon in 2016 appears to be infinitely more complicated and problematical than it apparently was in 1969? Do you have any opinion on the feasibility of placing a man on the moon again, today? admin · April 25, 2016 at 13:22 Dear Specguy, thank you for your questions. Briefly 1. There has never been any doubt about the location of the Apollo landing sites, we have known where they landed from the days the LMs touched down. All the landing sites for Apollo and other robotic missions have been imaged by the cameras on the LRO spacecraft (link). There is a nice article from Universe Today at this link with pictures of the Apollo 11 and other sites. They are exactly where they are supposed to be and show the LM Descent Stages, astronaut tracks and experiments left behind. 2. Radar echoes had indeed been bounced off the Moon in the 1940s and laser beams reflected off in 1962, but Moon’s rough terrain made accurate distance measurement by this technique impossible. This is why the NASA missions (and a couple of Russian robotic missions) left retroreflectors behind. Reflecting lasers off these gives a much brighter return signal from a point location (rather than an area kilometres across). This enables the Moon’s position to be measured with centimetre accuracy. This has been used to refine not only details of the Moon’s orbit and geology but has helped determine the accuracy of fundamental physics theories such as relativity. 3. Sending people to the Moon today would require a more comfortable and safer spacecraft design as we demand a higher level of both these than was acceptable in the 1960-70s. For higher scientific returns we would need longer stays, more crew and more gear taken to and from the Moon. These improvements demand a seriously larger (and thus more expensive) spacecraft. In the 1960s (up to 1967) NASA had a huge budget for human spaceflight, far greater than today’s. As soon as that budget was cut, the Apollo project (which was originally meant to continue throughout the ’70s) began to tail off. The public are deeply uninterested in paying for large and expensive space projects so I cannot see any western government paying public money to return astronauts to the Moon anytime soon. When did you ever see street protects calling for more money to be spent on space exploration? I hope this has helped you. specguy · April 25, 2016 at 20:02 yes it has, thanks for the info+links and the swift reply. cheers! Ariel Rahmane · April 13, 2016 at 19:45 Do you know about the mathematical model of the engine? Dear Ariel, thank you for your question although sadly I do not understand it. Please clarify: What do you mean by mathematical model? The engines’ technical specifications? Or the Tsiolkovsky rocket equation? AKSHAY KRISHNA · February 27, 2016 at 08:27 is it possible to make an air glider with retro thrusters to reduce the impact of landing?is it possible to make such a suit ? Marc T · March 9, 2016 at 19:23 If you look up “jet packs” on wiki, you’ll see a number of options that would theoretically have enough thrust and fuel to slow someone traveling at typical wingsuit speeds if that’s what you mean. However, it would require something the size of those jetpacks with current technology which means you wouldn’t be incorporating it into the suit. Also probably around 5 gallons of fuel or so, and would be very hazardous! Sounds fun though. Typically parachutes are used instead. Ivan Drummond · February 26, 2016 at 05:13 Did subsequent moon landings carrying people for return differ in design from the original lunar lander? How many landing structures are now on the moon’s surface including those from foreign nations” admin · February 26, 2016 at 08:42 Dear Ivan, thank you for your questions. They are mostly answered in the text of the article. There is a list of all spacecraft (human or robotic) which have landed on the Moon at this link but this does not include China’s Chang’e 3 lander. I hope this helps you. mako88sb · January 25, 2016 at 00:17 Thanks for the great site. I read Jim Irwin’s book “To Rule the Night” awhile ago. One thing I only found out about a few years ago was how NASA wrung out every bit of scientific information they could from each mission including having some of the LM’s impacting the lunar surface after the final separation to generate seismic waves for the ALSEP’s left behind. I’m sure you know all about this as well as the spent S-IVB’s being used for the same role. When it came to Apollo 15, everything was going as planned but as the crew was preparing for the journey home, Dave Scott and Jim Irwin realized that in the rush to meet the LM separation from the CSM at the right time, they had each assumed that their PPk’s(Personal Preference Kit) had been transferred by the other guy but sadly they had been missed. Aside from family mementos that were now in a man-made crater on the moon, Jim Irwin had his best friends wedding ring inside as well. Imagine having to explain that to your best buddy and his wife after returning. I should mention that each astronaut had two PPK’s, and one of them was kept with the CSM which was the one that was auctioned off during Jim Irwin’s estate sale. Ashley Winch · January 18, 2016 at 19:44 I am working on a National History Day project about NASA’s Manned Space Missions and this site is great! I was also looking for a contact (primary source) to ask a few questions about the LEM. Do you happen to know of anyone from Grumman that could be contacted that might be able to answer a few questions through email? admin · January 18, 2016 at 20:55 Dear Ashley, thank you for your question. Grumman doesn’t really exist anymore, it was absorbed by Northrop a while ago. Northrop Grumman’s contact page is at this link. The plant where the LM was designed and built has closed but there is a museum in the area which has preserved some of its history (contact details at this link). It could be your best lead. Good luck with your research. Duncan · January 11, 2016 at 18:01 Good day. Thank you for your fascinating website and the information contained therein in regards to this extraordinary machine, the LEM. I am an electronics hobbyist and the electronics in particular of the LEM are fascinating. I would be most grateful if you could advise me of any books which go into great detail regarding the electronics of the LEM including all parameters such as power available, batteries, thermoregulation for the electronic systems (electronic systems are particularly sensitive to heat and it would be therefore interesting to know how all the systems were cooled or heated), radio communications systems and detailed schematic diagrams of these and frequencies used etc. Any information would be gratefully received. Thank you and best wishes. admin · January 12, 2016 at 11:02 Dear Duncan, thank you for your question. I suggest you start with the extensive collection of contemporary manuals link to this page (link). Here are some books you may find useful too. I hope that these help you. Duncan · January 12, 2016 at 19:59 Thank you very much indeed. I will follow up on the links and books suggested. With best wishes from Duncan (Melbourne, Australia) Jo · January 10, 2016 at 00:43 I am doing a paper on Apollo 11 that is due in a couple of months and I am very interested in a few questions.. Please help….How much breathable air was required for the three astronauts from lift off to splash down on the Apollo 11 mission? Can you tell me in liters? Also what kind of system was in place to guide the LM back to the CSM? If Both of these vehicles were traveling at 3,500 mph how were they able to find each other? Also I imagine rocket boosters were used to slow them down before they docked is that right? Also a pretty basic question if there is no atmosphere in space what exactly does the thrust of the rockets push against? Thank You so much . admin · January 11, 2016 at 10:53 Dear Jo, thank you for your kind words and questions. How much breathable air was required for the three astronauts from lift off to splash down on the Apollo 11 mission? Can you tell me in liters? An astronaut consumes approximately 0.8 kg (560 l) of oxygen per day. Note also that exhaled gas was “scrubbed” through lithium hydroxide to remove carbon dioxide and rebreathed, so oxygen was not just inhaled once and discarded. The longest Moon mission, Apollo 17, spent 12.5 days roughly in space and had a crew of three, so that’s a total of 30 kg. In practice they would have had a reserve, plus additional supply to cover the atmosphere lost every time the cabin was depressurised for an EVA. Also what kind of system was in place to guide the LM back to the CSM? If Both of these vehicles were traveling at 3,500 mph how were they able to find each other? Launching the LM’s Ascent stage and rendezvousing and docking with the CSM was done exactly how any spacecraft is launched from a surface to rendezvous with another in orbit, just like sending spacecraft to the ISS is done today. The orbit of the CSM was known very precisely, so at any given time its position in space could be accurately predicted. The launch position of the LM on the Moon’s surface was known to an acceptable degree of accuracy. By launching at the right time the LM could be put into a similar orbit to the CSM and be maneuvered to an eventual docking. A radar system with a 24 inch dish (which can be seen in several of the illustrations in the article) was used to locate the CSM and docking was performed manually by the commander through short bursts of the LM’s reaction control system thrusters. He was aided by the Crewman Alignment Sight, an optical device mounted at the docking window. In lunar orbit the CSM and LM were both traveling at about 3355mph but their closing speed relative to each other during docking was “a few tenths of a foot per second”. The absolute speeds of the vehicles does not have any effect on how difficult the docking process is. Do note that docking spacecraft together happens all the time in Earth orbit (at much higher speeds, say 7.66km/s for the ISS) and are successful almost every time. Also a pretty basic question if there is no atmosphere in space what exactly does the thrust of the rockets push against? The exhaust is pushing against the rocket motor essentially but I am not sure that helps you. I’ll try to explain. In physics, momentum is a quantity obtained by multiplying a body’s mass and velocity (velocity is not just speed, it is speed in a set direction- an important distinction). Both theory and centuries of practice indicate that momentum is conserved; essentially meaning that it is never created or destroyed. Imagine the LM floating in empty space. Inside it are tanks of propellant and a rocket motor. When the craft’s motor is turned on, the propellants are burned together in the combustion chamber, creating hot gases which are allowed to escape at very high speed out a nozzle, pushing the LM forward. Looking more closely, every second the motor operates, a relatively small mass of gas is emitted at high speed out of the motor as the exhaust. A small mass of gas multiplied by a high speed rearward yields a significant momentum in that direction. To balance the books (conserve momentum), the LM must move with an equal and opposite momentum, so it shoots forward (its mass will be greater than the gas in the exhaust, so its velocity will be lower, but the LM’s velocity will keep building up as long as the rocket motor is fed propellant. Good luck with your paper, I hope this has helped you. semaj · February 6, 2016 at 18:02 Your body absorbs the oxygen you breath in to survive so how is the oxygen reused? admin · February 8, 2016 at 08:37 Dear Semaj, thanks for your question, if I remember correctly only about 5% by volume of the oxygen in the air inhaled in each breath is used by the body, the rest is exhaled (along with carbon dioxide) in the breath out. I hope this has helped you. Natalie Wright · December 30, 2015 at 02:47 I was wondering what kind of propulsion system would be needed to get a crew safely to the moon from low earth orbit? admin · January 4, 2016 at 22:47 Dear Natalie, thank you for your question. I am assuming from the way you have phrased it that you are aware that a substantial propulsion system would be needed to do this. The Apollo CSM was able to use its AJ10 main engine (burning Aerozine 50 as fuel and nitrogen tetroxide as oxidiser) to leave lunar orbit and enter a trans Earth coast trajectory. The Command Module entered the atmosphere at about 10km/s, this speed made it impossible to enter a low Earth orbit (about 7 km/s). Basically and very roughly to go from the Moon to LEO means the spacecraft must lose about 3km/s. This could be done by aerobraking in the Earth’s atmosphere or firing rocket motors. The latter option is completely feasible but needs a considerable amount of propellant carried to the Moon. Here are some links to speculations on how this could be done. I hope that this has helped you. Surya · December 27, 2015 at 17:48 I still don’t get it ..how could the LM attach itself after taking off from the moon surface to the Orbiting module which is moving at high speed. In 1968 did they have such a precision technology to dock on two vehicles moving at such high speeds? Please explain how? admin · December 29, 2015 at 10:32 Dear Surya, thank you for your comment. The same question has been asked before so I am adapting my previous answers. Launching the LM’s Ascent stage and rendezvousing and docking with the CSM was done exactly how any spacecraft is launched from a surface to rendezvous with another in orbit, just like sending spacecraft to the ISS is done today. The orbit of the CSM was known very precisely, so at any given time its position in space could be accurately predicted. The launch position of the LM on the Moon’s surface was known to an acceptable degree of accuracy. By launching at the right time the LM could be put into a similar orbit to the CSM and be maneuvered to an eventual docking. In lunar orbit the CSM and LM were both traveling at about 1.5km/s (5400km/h or 3355mph) but their closing speed relative to each other during docking was “a few tenths of a foot per second” (Source at this link). The absolute speeds of the vehicles does not have any effect on how difficult the docking process is. Do note that docking spacecraft together happens all the time in Earth orbit (at much higher speeds, say 7.66km/s for the ISS) and are successful almost every time. Rendezvous and docking of piloted spacecraft was extensively practised during the Gemini missions of the mid-1960s specifically to perfect the techniques used for the Moon missions. I hope this has helped you. Norbert L. Simon Col USAF (Ret.) · December 25, 2015 at 18:21 I suggest all the naysayers on this site read Gene Kranz book, “Failure is not an option.” As most people know, Kranz was the flight director for the successful Apollo 11 moon landing. There could not have been a more dedicated and honest group of people than those associated with the NASA space program. I personally knew two of the astronauts, Gus Grissom and Frank Borman. To suggest that either one of these fine people would have been party to a hoax is vile and repugnant. Apparently a cottage industry has mushroomed around the conspiracy theories dealing with the moon landings. Money must be involved. Dear Christian, did you read the article? christian · December 15, 2015 at 23:26 admin · December 16, 2015 at 08:44 Dear Christian, that’s good. I hope that helps you. James Broughton · October 29, 2015 at 06:38 How much fuel was needed to send this thing to the moon and get it back to earth? Something about this smells fishy…. Dear James, to get the entire Apollo spacecraft (Command/Service Module and Lunar Module) to orbit the Moon took a three stage Saturn 5 launch vehicle. Adding up the masses of propellant for the three stages (found at this link) I get 2708 tonnes of propellant. The Lunar Module carried 8212 kg of propellant to land on the Moon while its Ascent Stage carried 2639 kg of propellant to take it back into lunar orbit. I assume you understand that the Lunar Module did not return to Earth! Nothing “fishy” here just great and well-resourced engineering! I hope this has helped you. Nate · March 4, 2016 at 14:58 “Something about this smells fishy….” Correct! That’s caused by Aerozine 50, the fuel used by the Lunar Module. It has a characteristic ammoniacal (“fishy”) odor. Sean · October 21, 2015 at 15:17 I have a question I was hoping that you could help me answer, or show me the calculations needed to derive the answer. Assuming for the purpose of this question that you are not concerned about acheving earth orbit, but instead a destructive reentry perpendicular to the surface of the earth. If you were to launch a payload from the moon acheiving a Lunar escape velocity towards the earth aiming to have minimal velocity passing past the earth moon L1 point. How fast would the object be accelerated to from the freefall from L1 to atmospheric rentry at an altitude of approximately 100km? Thanks for the help admin · October 23, 2015 at 22:35 Dear Sean, thank you for a fascinating question. Are you writing a science fiction novel perhaps? Basically you are asking what vertically downward speed (with respect to the centre of the Earth) an object (of mass m) would have if it was “dropped” from the L1 point. When the object is r metres from the centre of the Earth, it will have potential energy (again with respect to the centre of the Earth) equal to GMm/r (G is the universal gravitational constant, M the mass of the Earth). Let’s say at L1 r=L Once the object falls towards the centre of the Earth it will have kinetic energy 1/2 mvv (where v is its speed towards the centre of the Earth . Since energy is conserved, the difference between potential energy at altitude r and altitude L must equal the kinetic energy at altitude r, so 1/2 mvv=GMm(1/r-1/L). Putting numbers into this (assuming L=1.5 million km, r=6500 km), I get v=11.06 km/s (which is just a little under the Earth’s escape velocity). Sean · October 27, 2015 at 16:54 Ok, so one of the reasons this thought experiment came up was a way to make the story work where I wouldn’t have to try to do the orbital dynamics calculations to make the science somewhat realistic (lunar kinetic energy weapons platform launching lunar boulders). Based on my understanding of the calculations, regardless of the distance from which an object is “dropped” it will never be accelerated to a speed beyond the escape velocity of the body itself. So for the reference frame of the Earth-Sun L1 at 1.5 million km the speed is 11.06km/s However being in a “straight” line with the moon means that the acceleration towards the earth will be lessened by the moons gravitational pull… so calculating these numbers from moons reference and subtracting them from the pull of earth… oh wait, it also gives 10.96km/s. Thank you for showing me how to do the basic calculations to make the math accurate and the science somewhat plausible guyl · October 9, 2015 at 14:33 Thanks, very interesting article! I remember watching the moon landings when I was 11 years old and these things still fascinate me four decades later. I’ve visited KSC twice, once in May1981 (weeks afer the first shuttle flight) and again in 2008. I bought the “From the Earth to the Moon” series and thoroughly enjoyed it. To give a few of my own answers to a couple of the previous queries: 1- Hard time believing that the Saturn 5 could carry 45 tons to the moon? Go walk under the displayed Saturn V rocket at KSC and marvel at the size of that sucker! The five massive F-1 engines on the first stage are a sight you’ll never forget! they’re also the first thing you see when walk in. The real LM displayed is also very interesting. 2- Think the whole thing was faked? Please explain over 830 lbs of moon rocks that have been examined by thousands of geologists who have never doubted their origin. Add to that the samples obtained by the USSR from their three Luna sample return missions (many people don’t know about these) whose properties were very similar to the Apollo mission rocks. The USSR would have been the first to decry anything fake. Enough said… John · August 22, 2015 at 14:04 What was the velocity of Columbia and that of the module when their rendez-vous took place? It seems really impressive that it worked pretty fine the 6 times, with the module ascending and managing to successfully get reunited to the Columbia. Thanks in advance for the help in understanding it. admin · August 25, 2015 at 10:20 Dear John, in lunar orbit the CSM and LM were both traveling at about 1.5km/s (5400km/h or 3355mph) but their closing speed relative to each other during docking was “a few tenths of a foot per second” (Source at this link). The absolute speeds of the vehicles does not have any effect on how difficult the docking process is. Do note that docking spacecraft together happens all the time in Earth orbit (at much higher speeds, say 7.66km/s for the ISS) and are successful almost every time. By the way, Columbia was the CSM for Apollo 11 only, different missions had individual names for their CSMs. Thanks a lot for answering! David D. Hand · September 10, 2015 at 00:30 Really great article. My 6-yr old son is fascinated by retro spacecraft, in particular the lunar module. Can anyone recommend any good books? admin · September 11, 2015 at 14:03 Dear David, thank you, I am glad you enjoyed our article. Two good space books for children your son’s age are: My Very First Space Book by Emily Bone (published by Usbourne) See Inside Space by Katie Daynes (also published by Usbourne) Anyone else have suggestions? Nikki · September 12, 2015 at 00:34 @David D. Hand your son might enjoy the short story I published recently about the lunar module “Eagle” which is free to download (PDF format): http://www.lulu.com/shop/nikki-bolton/when-eagle-landed/ebook/product-22331701.html Eagle is personified in this and the story follows the Moon landing from his point of view. I am a huge fan of Apollo missions and wrote this story just for fun. I was quite surprised that nobody else out there had ever drawn the LM with a face! Kathy · August 8, 2015 at 01:57 I was wondering what kinda fuel they used to blast off since there is no air on the moon. Dear Kathy, thanks for your question. The rocket motor used to blast off from the Moon, the Lunar Module’s Ascent Propulsion System was a typical liquid propellant rocket engine, so it used a fuel (Aerozine 50: a mix of hydrazine and unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine) and an oxidiser (nitrogen tetroxide). I will add this information to the article. I hope this helped you. A Scott · July 28, 2015 at 09:11 Hi I’m a “it did not happen man” but i want to believe. Just one Q so I can get my facts correct, thanks in advance. Q. Where was the heat-sync / radiator for life-support/cooling located? Thanks, not a trick question just location if known. admin · July 29, 2015 at 08:21 Hi, thanks for your question. The “plumbing” for the Lunar Module’s active thermal control system was located in the Aft Equipment Bay (the “box” at the rear of the Ascent stage) and the porous plate evaporator which I guess could be described as a radiator is a small “tab” above the Aft Equipment Bay. It is very hard to spot in photos of the LM, but I’ll add one the article. Lena · July 27, 2015 at 22:33 Fascinating article, I love anything space-related and have always had a soft spot for the lunar module, since seeing Apollo 13 and how it was used as a lifeboat. I never ceased to be amazed by the folks at Grumman who designed such a good spacecraft. I’m glad I’m not the only one to think that the LM has a face – I see faces in inanimate objects constantly! I do hope I can travel to the USA and visit the space museum in future. I want to study aeronautics as a career. mako88sb · January 25, 2016 at 00:00 If you haven’t seen the “From the Earth to the Moon” mini-series, I highly recommend it. There’s one episode that dealt with just the development of the lunar module that is my favorite. Here’s a brief clip: Interested me enough to get Tom Kelly’s book “Moon Lander” which I also highly recommend. Just amazing all the problems they had to overcome designing the first true spacecraft. Phil · July 6, 2015 at 09:52 1. In the photo of the LM at the start of this article, how is it that despite the photograph having been taken directly into the sun, that the details of the LM and in particular the words United States can still be read and that the shadow side is so well lit? Professional photographers and those familiar with the Hasselblad cameras used are saying that the latter is impossible without fill-in studio lighting. 2. I believe I am right in saying that there is no footage of any LM ever having been landed successfully on a test flight and obviously not in one sixth of the earth’s gravity, so how did The Eagle land first time perfectly on the lunar surface and without any evidence of dust disruption below the central thruster that must have been actively firing on landing or dust on the lander feet? This photo appears to be a studio shot where the LM has simply been lowered down by a crane. 3. How hot was it allegedly in the LM when the Astronauts got back inside since it was in direct sunlight? Is there any recording of Astronauts mentioning being uncomfortably hot or cold as with such untried thermal systems in such extremes of temperature the chances of getting the thermal balance right first time were very slim. Thankyou. admin · July 14, 2015 at 16:23 Dear Phil, thanks for your questions. I’ll try to answer them as concisely as I can. 1. There was a kind of fill-in lighting from the Moon’s surface. When sunlight falls on the lunar surface it bounces off it in all directions. Some of it goes back out into space, but some is scattered by the lunar surface at lower angles can illuminate objects in shadow. 2. As it was impossible to simulate lunar gravity on Earth, the LM could not be tested on Earth, so every flight of the Lunar Module was essentially a test flight. I could argue that the six missions that landed on the Moon were successful test landings! As to your “dust on the feet” query, a rockets or jet powered vehicle descending in a dusty landscape on Earth will blow up billowing clouds of dust particles which slowly descend, buoyed up by air resistance. However you are aware that the Moon has no atmosphere, and that means dust behaves differently. Dust particle are blown up by rocket thrust on the Moon, but fall straight to the ground again. The descending LM was not surrounded by a billowing dust cloud. Also the Descent Engine was throttled back in the final stages of landing and in fact was shut down 5ft above the surface. The chances of dust gathering on the pads was very low. I’m happy to confirm the picture was not taken in studio but on the Moon! 3. I’m not sure what the temperature was on board the LM when the astronauts returned to it. I know the the atmosphere and temperature in the LM’s cabin were maintained inside acceptable levels by the Environmental Control Subsystem (which you can read about at this link). I do know on one mission (possibly Apollo 11) the LM crews reported the cabin was uncomfortably cool for sleeping in but this was not noticeable when they were active. I would remind you that the LM’s systems were designed based on the experience gained on early projects, especially Gemini, and were tested before Apollo 11 both on the ground and in space during the Apollo 9 and 10 missions so the engineers were not working in the dark as much as your question implies. I hope I have helped you. Brad · January 14, 2016 at 02:27 First of all, bless you for having the patience to try and work through these questions. I’d like to add a little to your answers if I may be so bold. 1. Light to fill in the shadows came from several places, the moon’s surface as you mentioned, but also the Earth, and the Photographer. The Earth shines light onto the moon just like the moon does to Earth, only about 40X brighter because it’s bigger and reflects more light per unit area. And the photographer, or more specifically, his bright white space suit. In any photo where the camera is pointed toward the sun, the astronaut taking the photo is acting like a photographer’s reflector. 2. NASA built 5 types of simulators to allow the astronauts to practice flying the LM in 1/6 gravity. It’s certainly true no actual LM landed in 1/6 gravity, but actual LM’s flew on Apollo 9 spent more than 100 hours flying, and developing data that was used to refine the simulations. Apollo 10 added 9 hours in lunar orbit. The LLRV, a sort of jet powered spider looking thing, is the most famous but there were 4 others. Some of the simulators are seen in this document: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/langley/news/factsheets/Apollo.html It’ safe to say the LM pilots flew with 100s of hours of simulations before they landed on the moon. 3. The LM was insulated, and had an active cooling system, detailed here: http://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/19720013195.pdf And don’t forget the NASA had the data from the 5 Surveyer missions that landed on the moon prior to Apollo. admin · January 14, 2016 at 16:54 Dear Brad, thank you, that’s both interesting and helpful! Vaughn · June 27, 2015 at 12:08 Good site and information. Very nice handling of hoaxers. Civil, yet firm. I doubt you would be extended the same courtesy. Again, thank you for your time and expertise. Reading some of the comments,its suggest to me,that some people are still are questioning the 6 Moon landing’s.I suggest doing your own fact seeking,from those people directly involved in the Moon program and sites like this.Don’t expect factual answer’s from conspiracy sites.I visited one site,they didn’t even know how the lunar lander transversed from lunar orbit to the Moon,claiming the reaction control thrusters was its only propulsion source and could not of gotten the lander to the Moons surface,they seemed to have missed the main engine. TEXT REMOVED- ADMIN (Dear Mr Marquardt, this is the final time I am going to respond to you. As you have been told numerous times before, we are not going to publish your essay because of its excessive length. I have taken some time to read your essay and found it to be full of errors and misconceptions. I would offer the suggestion that before you offer it for publication elsewhere that you carefully review and check the text for factual and scientific and technical accuracy against numerous reliable sources. ADMIN) billy · February 3, 2015 at 07:00 I found your article interesting, and your responses to some of the comments entertaining and enlightening. I found this thread looking for info on how the apollo slowed down to land on the moon, and you described it above…………i appreciate that…..and reading your responses to the moon landing hoax guys is hilarious:)….i was tempted to post some wacky stuff for fun:)…good job, your responses were educational. admin · February 3, 2015 at 09:15 Dear Billy, thanks, I’m glad you found this article helpful. Siegfried Marquardt · December 30, 2014 at 16:11 Apollo 11 and N is always refuted! In a conventional calculation of the fuel balance, assuming an effective exhaust velocity of 2600 m / s, a fuel shortcoming of over 160 t for the Apollo mission would. Its commitment to an effective exhaust velocity calculations of 3700 m / s; ‘ve never been reached in 1969 and currently can not be achieved, it would fuel a deficit of over 70 t come. Because: For the confluence with the lunar orbit, the CSM would be decelerated with trailed LM of 2.4 km / s (lunar escape velocity) on the Moon’s orbital speed of 1.7 km / s. These would be a fuel quantity of [(2.72 high (0.7: 3.7) -1] * 45.3 = t 9.5 t have been necessary for the moon landing, a propellant mass of [(2,72 would highly. (1.7: 3.7) -1] * 15 t = 8.8 t The start of the moon would have [(2.72 high (1.7. 3.7) -1] * 4.7 = t 2.7 t required and made the escape from the gravitational pull of the moon would have [(2.72 high (0.7: 3.7) -1]. * 30 t = 6.3 t rocket fuel requires for the confluence with the. Earth’s orbit would be [(2.72 high (3.3: 3.7) -1] * 30 t = 44 t of fuel have been necessary sum up thus resulting 71.3 t Now there stood only about 15 tons of rocket fuel to.. available (4 t CSM and LM 11 t). Thus, Apollo 11 and N were refuted forever. admin · January 5, 2015 at 12:53 Dear Mr Marquardt, thank you for your comment. I am afraid there is much here to suggest that your knowledge of this subject is not perhaps as accurate or complete as you believe and this invalidates your conclusion. You claim a rocket exhaust velocity of 3700m/s is not currently achievable. Yet LH2/LOX rocket engines of exhaust velocity of about 3800m/s have been available and used in rockets and missiles for decades! Unfortunately this is incomprehensible, can you explain what you think this means and what the quantities involved are? Using erroneous facts and pseudo-mathematics does nothing to prove your point! Phill · January 20, 2015 at 05:14 You may be doing the wrong drugs. Stop making it up. And please don’t just copy and past the same numbers with no units over and again, It’s not going to impress. “These would be a fuel quantity of [(2.72 high (0.7: 3.7) -1] * 45.3 = t 9.5 t have been necessary for the moon landing, a propellant mass of [(2,72 would highly. (1.7: 3.7) -1] * 15 t = 8.8 t The start of the moon would have [(2.72 high (1.7. 3.7) -1] * 4.7 = t 2.7 t required” Not even close to anything! Why not try Maths and Science. You are not worth talking to again. Phill · January 20, 2015 at 05:25 Oh I had to mention. Go away please. (Final line removed- Please keep it civil- ADMIN) Damocles · December 30, 2014 at 15:10 Why do you go to so much trouble to convince crackpots? What difference does it make if some folk don’t believe? They might pass their doubts to their children but once in school they will hear differently. Space travel, like the proverbial caravan, moves on despite their barking. admin · January 5, 2015 at 09:28 Hi Damocles, we are an educational institution so we are obliged to challenge and correct factual errors especially if we are asked questions about them. Jon · December 5, 2014 at 17:43 Thanks for the great article. I also found your patient replies to the above comments to be very helpful. I’ve never understood the draw of the conspiracies revolving around the Apollo missions. I’m really not sure what is to be gained by proving they never happened. If you haven’t had a chance to see the film Interstellar, I highly recommend it. Despite some science fiction elements, it does a great job celebrating space exploration. There is a great scene where Matthew McConaughey’s character encounters a school teacher that believes the Apollo conspiracy theories. His reaction is golden! Thanks again, Eric · December 4, 2014 at 15:31 Dear Admin ! I wonder that you question my sincerity. But as free persons as you and I are, you have a right to such things. I just feel bad that I may have offended you. But be sure I had no single thought of it, nor any thought of it whatsoever. Maybe the fact that I expected something back that would align with some-one else’s information comes from my innate need for confirmation. But I also love great brains’ anecdotes such as one of Einstein’s that opinions not submitted to scrutiny is a manifestation to ignorance. I looked into ‘’ Lunar Module Quick Reference Data ‘’. Thank you very much. The blue print of LM I acquired at a book store in Poland does not show the bolts nor does it show the fifth explosive charge that would sever the umbilical wires from two stages. That, too, must have been done before ascending. What it does not show either is how the ascending engine is mounted. Naturally after severing the cables from each of the stages there had to be alternate ways of controlling the ascending engine for the cables and any other circuits would be useless after cutting all of connections to the descending stage. Now, I want to get to what Yuri Gagarin said when he was blown into space and what Collins said at the Press Conference after coming back to Earth. The Apollo astronauts were able to see stars using optical instruments whereas Gagarin uttered words: ‘’ stars look astonishingly brilliant ‘’. Collins said that he did not recall seeing any. And Gagarin was not the first man in space. Russians lost three other cosmonauts. Two of them are supposedly lost somewhere in space. What is also peculiar how Neil and Buzz left LEM to step on the Moon. They had to decompress the LEM thus leaving gases on the Moon. I have oxygen in mind along with some carbon dioxide from their lungs. But coming back into LEM they had to compress the LEM. So, along the burned hypergolic fuel the Moon’s surface got a dose of air decompressed from LEM; it became a part of the Moon or dispersed into space as the Moon has too low of gravity in order to hold down atmosphere. But yet some sources claim that the Moon has very diluted atmosphere. And that may account for the flag moving towards the astronaut while an astronaut walks by the flag thus from the Bernoulli’s principle we know that that is the case as the walking of the astronaut creates a low pressure between the flag and the person walking by. admin · December 5, 2014 at 13:46 Dear Eric, I am afraid your anecdote claiming the Apollo astronauts needing optical instruments to see stars is based on selective reporting of what was really said. At the press conference Armstrong discussed photography of the Sun’s corona by the three astronauts from the CSM on the outward journey. Patrick Moore, the British TV astronomer asked: “I have two brief questions that I would like to ask, if I may. When you were carrying out that incredible Moon walk, did you find that the surface was equally firm everywhere or were there harder and softer spots that you could detect? And secondly, when you looked up at the sky, could you actually see the stars in the solar corona in spite of the glare?” (My emphasis) Aldrin responded to the first part. Then Armstrong responded to the second part. “We were never able to see stars from the lunar surface or on the daylight side of the Moon by eye without looking through the optics . I don’t recall during the period of time that we were photographing the solar corona what stars we could see.” “Optics” refers to the LM’s navigation telescope. Stars cannot be see from daylight side of any planet in the inner Solar System as the Sun and reflected glare from surfaces are far too bright. There is no truth whatsoever in the claim that Gagarin was preceded by “lost cosmonauts”. The Moon’s atmosphere is to all intends non-existent, the vented gases from the spacecraft probably did locally cause a brief increase in the atmospheric density around the landing site but not enough to cause flag movement. Content removed. Please stop trying to post this essay on our site, publish it yourself! – ADMIN Eric · November 27, 2014 at 17:17 Dear Admin. I need to correct my English in my last post to you. In the beginning I called you ” Aministration. ” It should be Administration. ” Real to real ” tape rcoder should be reel to reel, of course. But to continue a bit on the landings on the Moon I have a copy of a couple of blue prints of the whole LEM. The ascend stage was attached to the descend stage which always was left after the ascebd stage lifted off the Moon. It is peculiar how much slmall of a space the whole LEM represented and the ascend engine fit in so perfectly almost not noticed. Also, the blue prints do not show any clamps or some hooks that would keep the descend and ascend stages together. Because in order to separate the two stages one from another there just had to be some attaching devices to both of them to keep them together in space. So long for now. admin · November 28, 2014 at 15:30 Dear Eric, the LM Ascent and Descent Stages were connected at four points which were severed by small explosive charges. There is a summary of this in the document Lunar Module Quick Reference Data (link). The Ascent Engine was, as I am sure you understand, designed to be as small as feasible and not to occupy a significant portion of the habitable volume. Eric · November 26, 2014 at 21:06 Dear Admin. I hope this is not an abbreviation for ” Aministration ”. I expected the exact answers from you as you have them stated. Yes, agents such as back-pull of Earth’s gravity on the capsule would be the major slow down of the spacecraft. Also, the Moon’s orbit constatly changing the position of it in the heavens, therefore navigating in such a way as not to crash onto the Moon. I want you to know that I watched the first lunar landing on a black and white TV in Poland when I was a small boy. Besides the transmission of the lunar TV picture was in black and white anyway. Physics were my main interest in Poland before I immigrated to the US in 1974. That was five years after the first step on the Moon and 2 years after all Apollo programs were ended. In the US I was still interested in physics and after entering US Army and separating from it 3 years later I began studying physics which was very hard but I managed to get something out ot it even though I was rather a computer technician. I was never interested in computers. Till today all my interests in life are glittered with physics and whatever the subject I pick up I relate to physics. I let you know that I am not an expert in physiscs but Newtonian physics give no problems. I am not one of those theorists who claim that there was no landing on the Moon. Moon landind hoax would rather pertain to one landing, but why would one want to fake six of them? That would rather be nonsensical. Yet, there are plenty of discepancies in all the landings on the Moon. I have been interested in the hoax for years. But my it was rather skin deep until one time I visited an acquaintance of mine in Burbank, Calfornia in 1991. We had a party there. And as usual we had quite a few drinks. Then I told my friend that I was a short wave buff a long time ago and now I am an electronics techician and that somehow electonics don’t want to leave alone. Then he walked me into a room with all kinds of electronic stuff along with real to real tape recorder, HF, VHF, UHF radios plus some radio working in microwaves. He told me that he had proof that lunar landings were fake. He set up a real to real and he said that he recorded conversations that supposedly came from the Moon and he said that when he directed his directional antenna he could perfectly zoom on Hollywood and picked up conversations on the VHF radios between studiomen who were busy in staging the whole landing in some studio below his house which was located on a pretty high hill in Burbank. I remember only one sentence from that tape that he played for me because we were both drunk and I really did not pay attention to him as well as to the recordings because at that time I hardly heard about any Moon landing hoax. The sentence rang as follows more or less: ” get that ladder closer because I can’t see him in he camera. ” My friend told me that he heard Armstrong’s voice in the background in VHF radios and that Armstrong was on the Earth because there had been no time delay between an astronaut and alleged mission control. Whether that was genuine I don’t know. But I wanted to get back to the girls and this never came back to me until I was beginning to get interested in Moon Hoax. You have to admit that some things in videos and all kinds of data brought from the Moon are just a bit shaky. I will give you an example which so far I never found being brought up in a supposedly real film of the last mission to the Moon; Apollo 17. There is a guy claiming that Gene Cernan and Schmitt complained that because of the grip of their fingers in spacesuits. Because of the pressure in the spacesuit the gloves would become rigid thus unabling correct grip on things. To overcome that Cernan and Schmitt had to fight that by straining their fingers inside the gloves which caused sores, abrasions and scratches on knuckels all the way to loss of skin on them and raw small wounds. That’s what Cernan claimed in his report. Watch this video : This is supposedly the real entry of Cernan from LM into Command Module after docking. You have to be quick to catch Cernan’s right hand ( I believe ) at the frame of 34 minutes and 15 seconds. The hand moves very quickly and I managed to stop that on the dime. Cernan’s hand does not reveal any damage to the knuckels’ skin as he said, raw to the bone. We would see red stain from blood or other sacratches. I see no such thing. That’s it for now. And thank you for your answers. admin · November 28, 2014 at 15:13 “Admin” is short for Administrator. I expected the exact answers from you as you have them stated. So why did you ask then? You appeared to be asking a genuine question but now I am afraid that I am doubting your sincerity. Yet, there are plenty of discrepancies in all the landings on the Moon. Opinions are not facts. I have been interested …Moon Hoax. That’s a fascinating anecdote. Have you any evidence that this is correct? You have to admit that some things in videos and all kinds of data brought from the Moon are just a bit shaky. No, that is not true. Astronauts to this day complain of trauma to their fingers caused by spacesuit gloves, but I would suspect “raw to the bone” is not meant as a literal description. Eric · November 25, 2014 at 20:24 Apollo 11 moved at the speed of 26,640 km/h. But it took the spacecraft to reach the Moon 3 days. At that speed it should have reached the Moon in about 14 hours. Eric Poland, Europe / California admin · November 25, 2014 at 21:19 Dear Eric, thank you for your comment. Unfortunately I must just point out that the Apollo 11 mission left Earth orbit not at 26 640 km/h as you stated but at 24 545mph (39 500 km/h) – just a little less than the escape velocity of Earth. You are correct in saying that if the spacecraft moved the whole journey at this speed in a straight line the journey time would be well under three days (by the way, this would only work if the Moon was stationary with respect to the Earth). The solution is that the spacecraft did not maintain this speed. After a final boost from the Saturn 5’s upper stage, the spacecraft coasted to the Moon, experiencing Earth’s gravitational pull as it climbed higher. The spacecraft’s speed was progressively slowed until the Moon’s gravity became dominant, the spacecraft‘s speed was down to about 2040mph (3280 km/hr) relative to the Earth by this point. Note also the spacecraft did not fly in a straight line but a curve (it was still in Earth orbit until it entered lunar orbit). I hope this has helped you. The distance between earth and ISS is ~ 350-400 miles. Time to reach ISS from earth 6 hours. The distance between earth and moon ~ 240,000 miles. Time to reach moon from earth ~ 8 hours. How is it possible…considering the orbital trajectory which is much longer. about 50 years ago we were able to decide where to land in moon.. with out any studies. and very little computing power. Now we are still looking for water in moon by explosion and infrared spectoscopy? 50 years ago we were able to have a live feed of lunar landing from a distance of 250,000 miles with great clarity. We are still having clarity problem when we transmit satelite signals and live war images from afganistan. to get an image from mars robot it takes few hours. mars is only 249 million miles away. It is hard for me to believe that saturn 5 rocket was able to send 45 tons to 250000 miles. Mars rover weigh merely 80 KG. but we were able to send 2 man and 15000kg(15 tons) of weight to moon 50 years ago. And a craft was able to lift off ang go about 3 times speed of sound perfectly. We are still struggling to have 3 mach misile?? Answer with some facts and numbers…please admin · November 10, 2014 at 10:30 Dear Biju, thanks for your comments. Sadly I think you may have to revisit some of your research. The distance between earth and moon ~ 240,000 miles. Time to reach moon from earth ~ 8 hours. I don’t understand this. What took 8 hours to move between the Earth and Moon? Apollo missions took more than three days. See How Long Does it Take to get to the Moon? about 50 years ago we were able to decide where to land in moon.. with out any studies. and very little computing power. Moon landing sites were selected after extensive Earth-based mapping and by the data returned by three separate series of robotic probes. These were the Ranger, Lunar Orbiter and Surveyor missions. There is an interesting essay on this hosted by the BBC. The Apollo missions took as much computing power as was needed. Remember this was before the hugely memory-hungry operating systems of today and there was no need for graphics. There is a feature on Apollo’s computers at Computer Weekly that might interest you. Now we are still looking for water in moon by explosion and infrared spectoscopy? I don’t understand your point, but yes. Theory developed since the Apollo missions suggests ice could exist at the Moon’s poles, so missions have been carried out to confirm this. 50 years ago we were able to have a live feed of lunar landing from a distance of 250,000 miles with great clarity. We are still having clarity problem when we transmit satelite signals and live war images from afganistan. Again I don’t see your point, modern TV reports by satellite I would guess are superior in resolution to live Apollo broadcasts, perhaps you should see the book Live TV from the Moon by Dwight Steven-Boniecki which examines how the Apollo TV broadcasts were done. to get an image from mars robot it takes few hours. mars is only 249 million miles away. Again, I do not know what you are asking here. It is hard for me to believe that saturn 5 rocket was able to send 45 tons to 250000 miles. Sorry you feel that way. May I ask why this seems hard for you to believe? Mars rover weigh merely 80 KG. but we were able to send 2 man and 15000kg(15 tons) of weight to moon 50 years ago. And a craft was able to lift off ang go about 3 times speed of sound perfectly. We are still struggling to have 3 mach misile?? Again there is a research failure here on your part. I do not know why you think Mach 3 is so important but missiles have regularly exceeded this speed since the 1940s ( the A4 or V-2 could exceed Mach 4 and that was in 1943). I hope this has helped you. Phill · January 20, 2015 at 04:53 Has it ever passed your mind that some basic undertanding of science and the solar system might be helpfull when making your silly comments. Mars is about 56 million miles away at it’s nearest but can be over 400 million miles away as it is in a different orbit. Have a look at this PDF about the development of the Apollo’s (and other engines): These are real engines that now puting all sorts of stuff up in space (or do you think phones, weather pics and GPS are fake too)? Why don’t you spend a little time looking into basic engineering, science or the primary school astronomy that seems to have passed you by? Fluffy The Detective · November 7, 2014 at 05:13 That hunk of junk couldn’t take out the garbage let alone go to the moon. This has to be one of the biggest jokes in the history of humans. admin · November 7, 2014 at 09:10 Hi Fluffy, thanks for your comments. It might be very interesting if you could explain why you think that. …Siegfried Marquardt, Kingswells, in July 2014 (Dear Mr Marquardt, I am not permitting this content for multiple reasons. At over 1000 words it is far too long (I requested that you edit it but you did not). I have discovered that you have have already distributed this material on numerous other websites so it appears that you are not here to discuss our article but to distribute your essay. Surely you can host this material on a website of your own? -ADMIN) Siegfried Marquardt · October 30, 2014 at 23:22 (If you wish this comment to be published please 1) make it more concise and 2) re-submit it in English, thanks- ADMIN) Siegfried Marquardt · October 30, 2014 at 23:11 The mechanical instability of the lunar module would have an intact lunar landing impossible! Every person on our planet has probably already seen a failed rocket launch, when the rocket has already picked up a few meters from the launch pad and then the engines fail and do not produce more power. As a result, the rocket moves the physical laws of gravity accordingly again in the direction of the launch platform and then tilts due to the mechanical instability simply because the center of gravity has changed dramatically. This would also be the fate of the lunar module of Apollo 11 was because shortly before landing an absolute instability of the ferry had passed! Because the ascending stage would have very roughly to the ground just before landing on the moon for about 5 t and the descending stage would due to the fuel consumption of only 8 t only about 2 tonnes of empty weight had. As the focus of the lander must have lain precisely just before the landing of the ferry on the moon at xm, the torques would like 2.5: 1 to 3: 1 behaved. For an absolutely unstable mechanical system would be active! Even the smallest vibration, such as vibration through the engine or pressure fluctuations in the effluent gases in the nozzle of the engine would have the moon position ferry can easily tip over! A moon landing would indeed be “successful”, but a return from the moon would have been so impossible. But 11 have fortunately survived the imaginary adventures all actors of Apollo, it can be concluded razor-sharp that no moon landing took place. The solution of the problem is that the focus of a lander simply must be at the level of the nozzle of the engine, such as the Chinese realize this in December 2013, and practiced. P. S. Incidentally, the author was skeptical thoughts on the instability of the lunar module landing on the moon more than 45 years ago spontaneously for about 1 s had cherished! admin · November 4, 2014 at 12:02 Dear Siegfried, I think you are grossly underestimating the abilities of engineers. Do you also disbelieve in vertical take off and landing aircraft? The problems seem very similar. Anthony · June 13, 2016 at 23:54 ‘I think you are grossly underestimating the abilities of engineers’….is that the same engineers that forgot that 100% oxygen at 16 PSI in a confined module is quite a dangerous circumstance to have….tell Grishoms family that…. admin · June 14, 2016 at 11:18 Dear Anthony, thanks for your comment (which is the 5000th on this blog). I can’t quite agree with you though. Strictly speaking they were not actually the same engineers. The LM was (as I say in the article) designed and built by Grumman while the Apollo CSM was North American Aviation’s responsibility. As to the specifics of the Apollo fire, the high pressure atmosphere was only part of an interconnecting set of circumstances leading to a fatal accident (additional flammable material in the capsule, a hatch that was impossible to open, no rescue team prepared and, worst of all, an ignition source in the capsule). Pure oxygen atmospheres had been used in the Mercury and Gemini missions without incidents and I guess this had bred a little complacency. ian · January 5, 2017 at 18:29 The design of vtol aircraft are very different. They have multiple central thrusters that can be controlled from the vertical to horizontal position and which provide four individual jets a distant apart on which the aircraft gets its primary stability (four legs on a chair). They then have four auxillary thrusters which are on the tips of the wings and front/rear of the aircraft fuselage (like stabilisers on a bike). These provide stability being distant from the centre of mass which is below the outer thrusters. In contrast the LEM has a single thruster in the middle and the auxillary thrusters are inboard and above where i assume the centre of mass would be given the design and the expended fuel. This is more akin to releasing a ballon with the air rushing out. The notion that they managed to land such a design successfully on numerous occasions having had no useful practice in similar conditions is just ridiculous to an experienced engineer who worked on technology from the same era. Once maybe they would get lucky but on numerous occasions……..sorry not credible. And I was an aircraft engineer who worked on Harriers. Phill · January 19, 2015 at 19:56 How due you think so many rockets get to put things like the ISS and satellites on a big unstable rocket, or are they all faked. They use gyros linked to servo driven gimbals on the engines to “balence on the thrust”. You don’t seem to have any relevant engineering knowlege, you don’t even understand that an object that wieghs 8tons on earth is 1/6 the the weight on the moon. It’s a shame that the Japanes took pictures of one of the landing sites, I makes you look so silly. P.S. What dose “the torques would like 2.5: 1 to 3: 1 behaved” related to a rocket engine mean in any language? DrSkewer · May 28, 2014 at 15:02 How was the little the lunar module able to find the Command Module in orbit with its little radar and maneuver into position for rendezvous with Command Module with so little fuel? Did they have some kind of AWACS assistance? Their radar is so tiny. admin · May 29, 2014 at 08:44 Hi, thanks for the question. Like many space endeavours the basic concept of this is simple but doing it is pretty complicated. It’s exactly how any spacecraft is launched from a surface to rendezvous with another in orbit, just like sending spacecraft to the ISS is done today. The orbit of the CSM was known very precisely, so at any given time its position in space could be accurately predicted. The launch position of the LM on the Moon’s surface was known to an acceptable degree of accuracy. By launching at the right time the LM could be put into a similar orbit to the CSM and be maneuvered to an eventual docking. The LM’s rendezvous radar was acceptable for what it had to do (you can read the technical details here). The dish isn’t as small as you may think; it was 24 in wide which is the same diameter as the dish on early F-4 Phantoms (developed a few years earlier). I hope this has helped. Roland · September 28, 2014 at 06:32 …and the techniques for achieving rendezvous in orbit had been evaluated in 1965/66 during the Gemini program (Gemini 7/6 in December 1965, and Gemini 8 thru 12 between MArch and November, 1966). Ed · April 22, 2014 at 03:53 I have always wondered about a few things regarding the landing. When I watched the live TV footage as a kid, the films showed it decending and the motor blasting away dirt and small rocks as it landed, then the live TV footage showed man taking the first step on to the moon and leaving mans foot print on the moon surface. What puzzles me is the following: If the info I have read on the lander is correct it used 50% of its thrust capacity decendending which would put about 2500kg of thrust under the lander, which is a lot of thrust directly underneath. Now when Neil jumped off the ladder he left his foot imprint in the surface next to the ladder. Now, I am no scientist but I would imagine that amount of force from the rocket engine would have blasted away any dust or small rocks on the surface near the lander down to bedrock, so no footprint would be possible, or if there wasn’t any bedrock and just thick deposit of moon dust then the lander would have blasted a deep crater underneath the lander untill the engine was turned off. All pictures I have seen do not show any sort of crater under the lander, those two issues are at odds. So I would be interested in hearing any plausable explanations. Thanks. admin · April 22, 2014 at 06:45 Dear Ed, thank you for your query. I was planning what would have been quite a long response to your question but I have discovered some other sites that essentially answer it in a lot of detail. These are Stuart Robbins’ Exposing Pseudoastronomy site, the Clavius.org site and Robert Braeunig’s site (which is lot more technical). Have a look at these, as they comprehensively answer your question. Ed · June 9, 2014 at 01:01 Hi, thank you for your reply, I had a look at the links you provided and they didn’t provide me with any convincing info. The Braeunig site, gives technical data which I am not qualified to understand or refute, they state that “This isn’t much data to work with, but we can fill in the blanks with educated guesses”, however they mentioned that the gas velocity was in the order of a minimum of 1000m/s to 1700m/s, which is extremely fast coupled with the supposedly 1000kg of thrust in the decent would to my way of thinking blast away any of the dust on the surface. I know what effect my ordinary leaf extractor does on sand and that only has a velocity of about 60-80m/s and from a distance of 1-2mt. and it also does not produce the amount of force that the luna landing rocket produces to be capable of slowing down and suspending a mass of several tonnes off the surface on the descent. The surface of the moon was described as having small rocks and powdery fine dust and no moisture. The last paragraph of the Clavius site is “The exhaust plume is simply not powerful enough to dig holes in the tightly-packed regolith”. So this would imply that the lunar module is now sitting on bedrock of some form, ie; no dust! Hence there would not be any dust in the immediate area to leave the foot prints behind. Being in a vacuum and 1/6th earth gravity the blast area would be significant with the powerful hot and extremely fast gasses being unconstrained by any atmosphere, and being effectively squeezed out between the rockets focused blast of about 1m and the lunar surface. Comparing the rocket engine decent to the Harrier’s jet landings is also not evidence as I have yet to see a video or image of one of those landing on a dusty moistureless airless surface as described on the moon. If one did land on the surface of, lets say a dry desert sandy surface I would imagine that there would be quite deep craters beneath the engine exhausts, but again those engines are bigger and stronger than the Lunar modules had, so no comparisons can be made. So anyway, without turning this tread in to one of those long winded conspiracy theory posts and going on and on, picking out inconsistancies here and there. I guess none of us Joe public will ever know one way or another as all this “evidenceor proof” is based on theory and not on actual fact. But as a passing thought, all this info is based on the visible effects of the images supplied and the best guess and technical examination of many may or may not fit the visible effect of the images. However and most importantly, with the risk of sounding like a conspiracy theorist…. What if the images aren’t actually taken on the moon? in which case the info and technical details may fit the pics but doesn’t actually prove that they were taken on the moon! Just a thought. To me, I still remain unconvinced one way or the other, it just looked odd, always had and 4+ decades later still does. admin · June 9, 2014 at 12:30 Mark · April 25, 2016 at 01:03 Here is the transcript and here is the list of photos I find it interesting that of the hundreds of photos taken, there seem to be about 4 that show the lunar module up close on the surface, from 11838 to 11842. I especially like these ones: Wow that’s some high tech tinfoil hat construction there! Even though it was described as a hard landing at 104:42:29 of the transcript: “We did hit harder than any of the other flights!… Dave’s was by far the highest at 6.8 fps”, not a hint of discolouration from combustion or any damage whatsoever to the rocket blaster after hitting the ground at 7 feet per second! And it finally came to rest an inch off the ground without a single mark to the underlying dust! The tinfoil wrapper seems equally well preserved other than some bending which appears to have been successfully repaired with scotch tape. Only the best from NASA! BTW how did the landing gear survive so well at 7 fps impact? Where are the marks in the sand form this impact? And look at that blast crater! Wait… what blast crater???? The rocket engine is only like an inch from the ground and there isn’t a piece of dust missing! But how can that be? At 104:41:39 of the transcript, “At about 50 to 60 feet, the total view outside was obscured by dust.” Where did the dust come from? Apparently not from under the rockets! And those rockets look mighty clean after landing that thing (36,000 pounds!!! oops on the moon that’s 6,000 lb), cleaner than a brand new metal garbage can from Home Depot which is what it looks like they used to make it! And where did all this dust land? Apparently not on any equipment that was supposedly shrouded in a thick dust cloud. That’s pretty impressive how they can fit 2 guys in that thing, plus the dune buggy, plus a rocket engine, plus all their fuel to land and take off, plus lateral thrusters or whatever they used to stabilize it (where are they?), compressed gases, food, bathroom facilities, “big batteries” to run their “air conditioner units”, don’t forget their golf club and golf balls, a bunch of moon rocks they brought back, all their photography gear, all the electronics allowing them to land using only sensors due to the mysterious dust cloud obscuring their view, plus transmit everything back to Earth live. And back then wasn’t everything working on vacuum tubes and computers were the size of Toyotas? Maybe not but no PC board IC circuits like today. Plus it was pressurized (that’s pretty strong tinfoil!) and had enough space for the astronauts to get out of their suits and presumably they had a spare suit or two, plus their experiment gear, who knows what else I’m missing, probably a few things. LOL. Geez, it makes you wonder why the Space Shuttle was so big, when all it had to do was get into Earth orbit, with the help of three other giant rockets. admin · April 25, 2016 at 11:30 Dear Mark, thank you for your comments. I absolutely agree that the ALSJ is a brilliant resource, you’ll learn a lot from it. You will discover more about the design and construction of the Lunar Module by reading the article you are commenting on, there are even pictures of LMs being assembled before the insulation material (the “tinfoil”) was put into place over the underlying structure. You really do need to read a bit more on this as your comments suggest numerous misunderstandings based on your lack of knowledge. You can learn more about the surface material excavated during landing by LM descent engines (including the Apollo 15 experience) from the paper Cratering and Blowing Soil by Rocket Engines During Lunar Landings (link). I think you are rather underestimating the abilities of engineers. Using vacuum tubes and other pre-integrated circuit technologies are not the the showstopper you suggest. There were numerous complex aerospace and military projects developed before and at the same time as the Apollo spacecraft and used similar (or even less advanced) technology but served perfectly well for decades. Examples would be the avionics for the F-111, F-4, BAC Lightning, Minuteman missile (the guidance system on it sounds way more complicated that the LM’s) and the B-52 (which is in use today). Vacuum tubes were not used in the Apollo spacecraft as transistors were widely available when they were designed. IC devices were used in the Apollo Guidance Computer. I’ve written several articles on the Shuttle and why it ended up the way it did elsewhere on this site, you might find them helpful too. (edited to fix my confusion over the use of vacuum tubes-ADMIN) Mark · April 26, 2016 at 00:25 You seem to be missing my point. First of all, THERE WAS NO BLAST CRATER. There are footprints in the soft dust right beside the rocket. Secondly, the transcript said the dust cloud at 50 feet was so thick they couldn’t see and had to use instruments. Now as a mechanical engineer I’m pretty sure that if the rocket was kicking up that much dust then there would have to be a hole SOMEWHERE around the rocket! Actually, I don’t think you need to be a mechanical engineer to figure that out, even a kindergartener could see that. And that SOME of that dust would have landed on their space ship! And that at 7 feet per second impact you’d see SOME mark on the ground from where the bottom of the rocket hit, plus SOME damage to the bottom of that rocket, with it coming to rest an inch off the ground. And my comment about vacuum tubes was a joke, obviously they had transistors but no super powerful small IC circuits like today. The electronics would have been large and they already didn’t have space for a fraction of the equipment they purportedly had. Clearly you have lost your objectivity either because you are a government shill or because you are too heavily invested in the moon landings being real that and have developed psychological avoidance behaviours. You’ve lost me, sorry, the moon landing was a hoax, 100% guaranteed, based on NASA’s own archives. Dear Mark, thank you for your comments. Sadly there is nothing I can agree with. You seem to be missing my point. First of all, THERE WAS NO BLAST CRATER. There are footprints in the soft dust right beside the rocket. Secondly, the transcript said the dust cloud at 50 feet was so thick they couldn’t see and had to use instruments. Now as a mechanical engineer I’m pretty sure that if the rocket was kicking up that much dust then there would have to be a hole SOMEWHERE around the rocket! Actually, I don’t think you need to be a mechanical engineer to figure that out, even a kindergartener could see that. But have you really researched or thought about this? Why should there be a blast crater? The rocket exhaust blew away some dust but why do you think it ought to have excavated a hole? The Surveyor and Luna landers didn’t dig craters on the Moon nor did the Vikings and Phoenix on Mars. There are technical papers on the mechanical properties of lunar surface material, have you looked at them? You’re an engineer, so please show me the calculations that led you to the conclusion that there should be a crater under the LM. And that SOME of that dust would have landed on their space ship! And that at 7 feet per second impact you’d see SOME mark on the ground from where the bottom of the rocket hit, plus SOME damage to the bottom of that rocket, with it coming to rest an inch off the ground. I am afraid you have not researched this at all, the rocket nozzle on this mission was damaged by the landing (mainly by the uneven surface). It seems you do not understand how the Descent Engine was used. And my comment about vacuum tubes was a joke I am sorry for misunderstanding but that was not at all obvious. The electronics would have been large and they already didn’t have space for a fraction of the equipment they purportedly had. I am sorry but when and where was this established? Or is this just your personal opinion? Clearly you have lost your objectivity either because you are a government shill or because you are too heavily invested in the moon landings being real that and have developed psychological avoidance behaviours. Again I am sorry but these are just your opinions and are not facts. Currently I am a professional educator. I do not work for the “government” and I suspect I am not even in the same country as you are. I am knowledgeable about astronomy, physics and aerospace engineering as I need to be to do my job successfully. I have seen nothing in my career to suggest that any space mission is a hoax. Would you consider that your accusatory and insulting tone may be a sign that you know your argument is not supported by the facts? Mark · April 27, 2016 at 05:16 My “accusatory and insulting tone” is a response to your initial insult about my “lack of knowledge”. “please show me the calculations that led you to the conclusion that there should be a crater under the LM.” I don’t need calculations for this simple situation. In these kinds of cases, calculations are usually brought out to mislead people, not to clarify. In science and engineering, the simpler the explanation and the less math you use, the better. And the more it is based on empirical evidence rather than theoretical, the better. As I have pointed out twice now, the transcript reads that the dust clouds were so thick at 50 to 60 feet up that they could not see out the windows and had to use instruments to land. This dust had to come from somewhere, according to the law of conservation of mass. If not from a blast crater, then can you please tell me where from? Why do I believe there should be a hole? Because simple observation dictates that when you hold a leaf blower vertically over loose dust it blows it away and makes a hole. Now put a few thousand leaf lowers together in an area a meter across over some dust and see what happens. I don’t need pseudo-scientific shock-and-awe math essays to sway me (I’ve seen them and they are not valid); I’m way beyond that. Furthermore, because the gases were exiting into a vacuum they would have expanded quickly and created even more scouring. And furtherfurthermore, since the dust cloud at 60 feet was overwhelming, the scouring action at 10 and 5 feet would have been exponentially greater! I noticed that you have not refuted my claim that the supposed thick dust cloud would have left residue on the space ship; I see not a hint of dust on it. This is totally inconsistent with the transcript. Can you please show me some dust residue on Apollo 15? Just answer the question please. “I am sorry but when and where was this established?” (that electronics was large). Because by the 1980’s, the computer needed to run Pac-man was the size of a table, and that was 10 years later. I know this because there is one sitting in front of me. I had computers back then and I know how big they were. Dear Mark, I am sorry that you were offended, that was not my intention. Can we look at this together and examine the problems you are having? I don’t need calculations for this simple situation. In these kinds of cases, calculations are usually brought out to mislead people, not to clarify. I am sorry but straight away I cannot agree with this. Calculations are central to engineering and physical sciences. Describing a physical situation with mathematics makes it impossible to lie or mislead. Can you accept, for sake of argument, that the descent of a spacecraft to the Moon and its effects on the Moon’s surface be accurately described by mathematics? In science and engineering, the simpler the explanation and the less math you use, the better. Agreed, but many situations are intrinsically complex. And the more it is based on empirical evidence rather than theoretical, the better. As I have pointed out twice now, the transcript reads that the dust clouds were so thick at 50 to 60 feet up that they could not see out the windows and had to use instruments to land. This dust had to come from somewhere, according to the law of conservation of mass. If not from a blast crater, then can you please tell me where from? You believe that if enough dust has been kicked up to obscure vision that means enough dust has be been removed to leave a crater. Let us look at some empirical evidence of a very roughly similar situation. Here is a link to photos of helicopters landing in deserts and blowing up huge dust clouds, in some cases the helicopter is barely visible. Will there be craters underneath the helicopters? If you think there will be, please find pictures of helicopter blast craters to show me. If you think there will not be, what does that do to your reasoning? Why do I believe there should be a hole? Because simple observation dictates that when you hold a leaf blower vertically over loose dust it blows it away and makes a hole. Now put a few thousand leaf lowers together in an area a meter across over some dust and see what happens. Please investigate the force (in Newtons or lb) a leaf blower exerts, the area of its nozzle, how far away it is from the dust, the average weight of the dust particles. Then research the variation of the thrust of the LM’s Descent Engine as it approached the Moon’s surface (remember it was being throttled back and was in fact shut down before it reached the surface), the area of its nozzle and the average weight of a particle of lunar soil. Compare these and see what you think. I don’t need pseudo-scientific shock-and-awe math essays to sway me (I’ve seen them and they are not valid); Where did you see these essays? How do you know they are invalid? I’m way beyond that. Furthermore, because the gases were exiting into a vacuum they would have expanded quickly and created even more scouring. And furtherfurthermore, since the dust cloud at 60 feet was overwhelming, the scouring action at 10 and 5 feet would have been exponentially greater! Please check the numbers discussed above, I do not think you are playing with a full deck until you do. Why make life harder for yourself by arguing without the support of facts? I noticed that you have not refuted my claim that the supposed thick dust cloud would have left residue on the space ship; I see not a hint of dust on it. This is totally inconsistent with the transcript. Can you please show me some dust residue on Apollo 15? Just answer the question please. The Moon has no atmosphere, and that means dust behaves differently than it does on Earth. Dust particles are blown up by rocket thrust on the Moon, but fall straight to the ground again, because there is no atmosphere to buoy it up. Blown dust streaks rapidly away in all directions radially from the rocket plume.This means that the descending LM was not surrounded by a billowing dust cloud. Also the Descent Engine was throttled back in the final stages of landing and in fact was shut down above the surface. The chances of dust gathering on the pads was very low as the dust than can be seen being blasted away in films taken from LM during landing is blowing underneath, rather than over, the footpads. “I am sorry but when and where was this established?” (that electronics was large). Because by the 1980’s, the computer needed to run Pac-man was the size of a table, and that was 10 years later. I know this because there is one sitting in front of me. I had computers back then and I know how big they were. Yes, but the Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC) did not have to run Pac-Man or even display graphics. It did have to do lots of calculations very quickly but that is all. The AGC is a real piece of hardware, its specifications are freely available (hobbyists have used these to build their own working replicas) and it is absolutely capable of performing the tasks it needed to do. I was also querying your claim “they already didn’t have space for a fraction of the equipment they purportedly had” as I cannot understand why you are saying this (I have added an extra cutaway diagram to the post to show some of the LM’s interior in case this helps your understanding). Gene · October 15, 2017 at 11:41 You try to come of like and objective.thinker. You are just another hoaxtard who believes you know better yhan us mere mortals when in fact you don’t have the intelligence to understand the explanations. Roland · September 28, 2014 at 06:29 Consider there is quite a difference between “blow away some dust” and “blow away all the dust”. Next, the ngine was throttled down to far less than 50%. Upon touchdown, the LM’s mass was about 8 tons. Given the 1/6 lunar gravity, this would be equivalent to a weight of some 3,000 lbf when the LM was hovering. Also, consider that there is no ambient atmospheric pressure that would compress the exhaust plume into a narrow column of thrust. Rather, the exhaus gases would expand into all directions immediately after leavinig the engine bell. Comng back to my first point: the regolith is not just a few inches thick, and the material is very adhesive. I think the braeunig paper provides quite a good explanation, based on the well-established laws of physics. darren · March 28, 2018 at 10:45 The thruster under the lem wasnt the only jet, there were directional thrusters quite high up with shielding to angle the gasses away Jay · March 26, 2014 at 22:19 Why was the LM of apollo 16 almost destroyed? admin · March 27, 2014 at 10:44 I wasn’t aware that it was almost destroyed. Can you clarify what you are asking? Jay was probably just referring to the almost-torn-off thermal blankets. aidan · March 12, 2014 at 03:40 Spacegen1 · December 6, 2013 at 09:12 I still find it hard to believe they were able to cram the apollo LM and the apollo CM and SM in a single saturn V rocket with everything else needed for the missions including the ones where they started using the lunar rovers. On top of all that they had food, watter and oxygen for 8 days! Not that I’m saying the moon landings never happened. It’s just allot of stuff for one rocket to handle, not to mention the size of everything put together and launched all at once. Wouldn’t it have been easier and more plausible to send the LM and consumables (food,water, etc.) into earth orbit first then dock with it after launching the command and service module? Or did they do that for the apollo missions? admin · December 6, 2013 at 11:02 I still find it hard to believe they were able to cram the apollo LM and the apollo CM and SM in a single saturn V rocket with everything else needed for the missions including the ones where they started using the lunar rovers. The Saturn 5 was designed to send a payload of up to 45 tons to the Moon, for Apollo 17, the total mass of fully loaded CSM and LM (including LRV, food, water oxygen) which arrived in Moon orbit was 76540 lb (38.27 tons) so that seems perfectly plausible to me. Wouldn’t it have been easier and more plausible to send the LM and consumables (food,water, etc.) into earth orbit first then dock with it after launching the command and service module? Or did they do that for the apollo missions? What you are describing sounds like the Earth Orbit Rendezvous (EOR) mission profile considered in the early days of the Apollo program (and championed by von Braun). This called for the Moon mission to be launched into Earth orbit by two or more boosters. The separate vehicles would assemble together and fly off to the Moon. This was cheaper and easier than the alternative Direct Ascent profile where the entire spacecraft would have been launched from Earth and landed on the Moon. As it turned out the Lunar Orbit Rendezvous method was easier still, so that is how history turned out. More recently, EOR was going to be used by NASA’s Project Constellation to return astronauts to the Moon. It was the only option for this project as this would have been a much larger scale expedition than any Apollo mission but the whole project was cancelled before it went anywhere. I’ve added a link to the press conference where the LOR mission profile was announced the article, you might find it interesting. Roland · September 28, 2014 at 06:09 Even with Constellation, there would have been a lander, while Orion would have been parked in Lunar orbit. Hence, the mission profile would have been “EOR/LOR”. glenn p · July 16, 2013 at 09:50 What would be the necessary lift off and acceleration speed to escape the Moon’s gravity pull for such a heavy object as the LM? admin · July 16, 2013 at 11:04 Just to confirm, the Lunar Module Ascent stage didn’t need to escape the Moon’s gravity, that is exceed lunar escape velocity (2.4 km/s), it just had to reach a lunar orbit (orbital speed roughly 1.5 km/s) to rendezvous with the CSM. I’m taking some specifications from the book Apollo 11 Moon Landing by David J. Shayler (Ian Allen 1989), note the details of each Lunar Module Ascent stage varied (the take-off weight especially getting heavier with successive missions) so these may not be exactly right for later missions. LM Ascent Stage mass 4.9 tonnes (including propellant, note this is a very round number so it’s probably estimated). Ascent Stage Engine thrust 3500 lb = roughly 15600 N (this was the design spec, I assume real engines weren’t as exact as this.) That gives an initial acceleration of 3.2 m/s/s. (Assuming full thrust is attained instantaneously). As propellent was consumed the Ascent Stage would have accelerated faster still. By the time Apollo 11’s Eagle had reached its initial lunar orbit, it was travelling at 5537 ft/s (1.69 km/s) with respect to the Moon’s surface and had a mass of 2.7 tonnes, so 7 minutes of continuous thrust consumed 2.2 tonnes of propellant. I hope this helps, but you may want to read a semi-technical account of the details of Lunar Orbit Rendezvous or this site where the author describes how he simulated Apollo 17’s lunar ascent. admin · July 16, 2013 at 20:40 Since I wrote my previous response, I’ve had an annoying feeling that I’d forgotten something- and I had; the Moon’s gravity! It provides a downward acceleration of roughly 1.62 m/s/s, so the initial acceleration is actually about 1.6 m/s/s. By the way, apart from the engine’s thrust, its other important statistic is its specific impulse (essentially how much thrust per second the engine develops per kg of propellent), in the case of the LM’s engine this was about 3050 N/kg/s. This is the same as the engine’s exhaust velocity, so you can use this with the Tsiolkovsky rocket equation to calculate the final velocity of the LM. Anthony · June 14, 2016 at 00:17 I have loved Physics and Astronomy all my life but have serious doubts about the Moon landing which is very unnerving for me…..can you please explain just a few anomalies for me…. 1. I have problems with the following issues which are thermodynamic, audible, and footprint. (a) There is only one way to explain Armstrong’s audibles upon descent in a pressurized mag/aluminium can with 140 – 150 dB rocket engine noise in the immediate environment – Bose noise cancelling earphones and, er, uh, microphone! (b) And for anyone who has ever worked in 100C+ worksite in a protective, pressurized suit, well knows that cooled air is vital for survival. In the absence of such a cooled air tank, the power pack needed to cool the air in the suit would have to have exceeded several thousand joules per hour, which would require batteries/power plant roughly equal in size to the LEM itself. (Remember Apollo 13? – the movie?) (c) And for anyone moderately experienced in rocketry, the ground around the blast/ground contact area WILL BE COMPLETELY DUST FREE – atmosphere or not as the blast constitutes its own atmosphere. 2. CONSIDER: The size of the door on the LEM. The bulkiness of the suited astronaut barely fit. Several assistants were necessary to dress the astronaut while on earth. (a) In the cramped interior of the LEM how did they dress and undress each other? Apollo 17 spent 3 days on the Moon? How big were the diapers? (b)How do you eat and drink with the helmet on? (c) Exiting and re-entering the LEM and donning and removing the helmet requires de-pressuring and re-pressuring each time. The door has one handle and one locking element. The astronauts collected unwanted dust and moon dirt on their suits each trip out and dragged the dirty space-suit legs over the door seal each time the astronaut crawled in and out. The dirt and dust were smeared over the door-seal each time. Close the LEM door and (d) how much air was lost through the dirty seal? (e) How did the door maintain its seal after blast off? 3. (a) How would you explain the fact that there were 16 manoeuvering rocket nozzles on the lunar module (4, as crosses, on each superior vortex of it) and there is not a single footage of them firing although you can see the vehicle manoeuvering in space (yaw, pitch and roll)?. (b) How would you explain a computer so basic as that in the LEM (with less computer power than a hp financial calculator of the 80s) controlling all 16 thrusters as a fly by wire aircraft of this days? Nasa, formally claims that all the digit crunching for the manoeuvering thrusters were done on earth and then sent to the LEM, but there is a problem on that, there is a 1.6 seconds delay between the earth and the moon, so it its an impossible answer. (c) How would you explain the fact that about the flying earth simulator of the LEM there is only one footage, where it failed and almost killed Neil Armstrong, no single film of it being controlled successfully. 4. (a) What I was wondering was how was their command module and lander able to morph from a cavernous ship large enough for astronauts to do flips in zero G while someone filmed them from 7 feet away to a relatively small space diagram with every inch packed with huge tanks needed to carry out the mission? Some depict the astronauts packed in the ship so tight there wasn’t room for another member to a spacious ship able to stage filming the earth supposedly with the camera right up against the glass. Then all of a sudden you see arms and bodies coming between the camera and the glass 185,000 miles from the earth. Hearing them discussing how to get a realistic shot as the cabin lighting is restored to show they were actually shooting the shot from 6 or 7 feet away from the window as they removed the transparency film from the window along with the curved black material they used to fix unacceptable parallax egg shape error caused by the thickness of the window from top to its bottom while shooting from a distance on an angle. The curved black material fixed the error perfectly making it look like the earth terminator line between night and day in their fraudulent video of the earth. They bragged about their clever technique and how their “LIVE” shot will be perfect for playback! Then there is the scientific evidence of their missions impossibility I figured out myself today. (b) The average man at rest requires 19 cubic feet of pure oxygen per 24 hours scrubers or no scrubbers once you figure in the atmospheric pure oxygen percentage, amount consumed by the metabolism and amount exhaled after. That gives you 19 cubic feet X 3 men leaves you needing 57 cubic feet to sustain a 3 man crews actual metabolism at rest! NASA switched to a 35% oxygen mix after the horrific accident with Gus Grissom and 2 other souls. That translates to their voyage now requiring 171 cubic feet of 34% mixed gas per day. Multiply that by 10 1/2 days you have 1795 cubic feet of 34% oxygen mixed gas-actually needed if they were at REST!! NASA claims only 73 cubic feet 0f gas per day. (c) The Apollo tanks were only pressurized to 200 bars pressure due to the added strain of launch and vacuum of space. Using Boyle’s Law 1795 cubic feet at 200 bar requires a 131.93 cubic foot tank at 2900 PSI ! That’s not even considering the oxygen consumed by the 2KW fuel cell the lunatics claimed produced 56 gallons of potable water a day! LMAO they would need 96.96 cubic feet of air per gallon x 56 gallon a day is 5429.76 cubic feet of air to produce that 56 gallons of water per day X 10 days = 5429.76 extra cubic feet of air per 10 day mission just for that fuel cell water production so add another 285 cubic feet to the breathing figure and you need a 417 cubic foot tank at 200 bar!! Add in the fuel, oxidizer, helium and nitrogen tanks and you got WTF! Nobody’s doing flips for the camera man 6 feet away! If you can address these issues for me that would be great – thank you. (Four original questions split into more focused subquestions and paragraph breaks added to ease reading- ADMIN) admin · June 14, 2016 at 12:34 Dear Anthony, thank you for your questions. As you can see I have split them into sub-questions. I am very happy to answer them, but I hope you will understand that there is a lot of material to cover so responding will take a while. I may publish my answers as an article in its own right. In the meantime may I ask you some questions of my own? 1. If you suspect that the technology used on the Apollo Moon missions is unworkable or even fraudulent, do you suspect all space travel to be dubious? After all, the same or closely related technology was used on Skylab or even on the ISS today. 2. Have you read any of the comments in this section where I have addressed similar queries about the non-existent “blast crater” and the Apollo computer? 3. Can you let me know the exact sources you gained your information from? I am interested as you quote factual claims that are new to me. admin · June 14, 2016 at 14:18 Dear Anthony, it would be helpful if you let me know where you saw astronauts to do flips in zero G while someone filmed them from 7 feet away in the Apollo Command Module. Can you do this? admin · June 16, 2016 at 12:47 Dear Anthony, this is a response to 3(c) How would you explain the fact that about the flying earth simulator of the LEM there is only one footage, where it failed and almost killed Neil Armstrong, no single film of it being controlled successfully. I am afraid that your “fact” is incorrect (where did you see it?). Two Lunar Landing Research Vehicles and three very similar Lunar Landing Training Vehicles were built. Although three of these crashed, the fleet made 349 successful flights. One of them (the first LLRV built) made a total of 198 flights. Here is a photo taken on the 100th flight of an LLRV (credit:NASA) If you would like to learn more about these craft, Unconventional, Contrary, and Ugly:The Lunar Landing Research Vehicle is 242 page history which can be downloaded (link). Here are links to videos of LLRVs and LLTVs in flight: The source that told you that there is “no single film of it being controlled successfully” was, whether by ignorance or design, not telling the truth. Ian · January 5, 2017 at 16:44 I am a qualified aircraft technician who worked on the Harrier Jump jet (you will know as AV8B) and I have training/qualifications in aeronautical engineering and aerodynamics. I have to say that I do not believe that we landed on the moon mostly due to the improbability of controlling the LEM during descent. The videos you link to show a vehicle with very different operation from that implemented on the LEM. The central jet on the practice vehicle can be directed rather than fixed. This makes a massive difference to the way it would be controlled and would not replicate in any way the actual LEM itself. Look at 4.13 secs in and you will see it is possible to control the jets direction. It is also flown with the jet firing constantly which is once again completely different from the proposed operation. The proposed purpose of the LEM control systems is too slow it from a high speed to a slow one and whilst doing so control its orientation. This test vehicle did not test or provide practice experience relating to that operation at all. Whilst it looks clever it would have been next to useless in practical terms to the project. And then put on top of this the only time that the astronauts got to test their skills and their crafts abilities in accurate conditions was on the actual first descent itself. Not very credible. I don’t think that even John Farley, the chief test pilot on the Harrier would believe that one. As far as I’m concerned landing on the moon with such flimsy testing equipment and lack of practice is not credible. Sorry but I’m not convinced. Gene · October 15, 2017 at 11:14 Well, I’m convinced you don’t know what you’re.talking about. The jet.engine on the LLTV was FIXED. There were RCS rockets just like on the LM to control attitude, pitch, roll, yaw. The astronauts themselves said the LLTV and LLRV were much more difficult to fly on earth than the LM was on the moon. Your experience with Harrier jets doesn’t qualify you as any kind of expert on rocket science or space flight. But I’m convinced that nothing I or the admin says with rid you of your delusions. admin · June 28, 2016 at 09:44 Dear Anthony, this is a response to. 3. (a) How would you explain the fact that there were 16 manoeuvering rocket nozzles on the lunar module (4, as crosses, on each superior vortex of it) and there is not a single footage of them firing although you can see the vehicle manoeuvering in space (yaw, pitch and roll)?. The fuels used in the RCS thrusters burned with a colourless flame which is extremely difficult to see. Each RCS firing took less than a second. I do not find it surprising that there is nothing to see when they are fired. I hope this has helped you. admin · June 29, 2016 at 10:40 Dear Anthony, this is in response to your question 2(b) How do you eat and drink with the helmet on? On the first Apollo moonlandings there was no provision to eat or drink during an EVA. The suit was redesigned for longer EVAs for Apollos 15-17. A water pouch with a small tube that fitted up next to the astronaut’s mouth was added so the astronaut could move his head within the helmet and suck water (or orange juice) through the tube (this was available on Apollo 14). The Apollo 15-17 upgrade also added a holder inside the suit’s neck rim for a rice paper-covered fruit and cereal bar, designed so that the astronaut could take a bite and pull the remainder up. It is difficult for me to see why you think these modest engineering problems and their solutions constitute issues which cast doubt on the reality of space travel. YK Maheshwari · April 11, 2017 at 12:26 Excellent observations. By the way, here is mine .. A flim telecast over TV screens show Neil armstrong ( coming down the ladder ) and then the dramatic announcement by other guy in the vehicle (LM ) , a small step … Q: Who was the photographer, who was already on the moon surface to film Neil Armstrong going down the ladder.? ( side pose ) There were no cameras mounted on the legs of LM , look at all designs and diagrams. The camera shots are taken at chest height , almost parallel to the astronaut and not taken from inside the close capsule of LM. If there was no one in a position, then how is the filmography possible. This single observation , is good enough for the rest of the theories. TV signals were almost live telecast. Radio broadcast , we heard the voice of astronaut. TV type of transmission with those days, the technology or processing power pre days of Intel 8080 ( not even 4 bit 4040 ), were not good enough to transmit the info by any kind of encoding , to reach mother earth from Moon surface. They went into orbit of earth, landed in ocean , left our atmosphere, but did not land back from moon and return back from moon. The design of aluminium based LM was not good enough to land on moon without breaking into pieces. The project was not in shape to make this happen in 1969 transistor days, when even MIL chips or 7400 MIL standard ( which can stand the temp , was in place. Gene · October 15, 2017 at 11:30 YK, there was a camera mounted in the equipment.bay on the LM descent stage. Neil Armstrong.pulled a lanyard that dropped the door with the camera mounted to it and automatically switched it on. NO, You.did not find any sinister hoax or fabrication here! All of this information is common knowledge and pretty easy to find online if you look for it. But you people will not look because you all believe that you are smarter.than the rest.of us. Trust me, you are not. Frederic · October 21, 2017 at 00:27 Boy Gene you are awful hostile toward people who have legitimate questions about many aspects of these moon landing that defy logic and science. Tell me this bright boy, why haven’t we been able to return even today with much more advanced technology? Why did NASA tape over the original moon landing film? How did the astronauts not fry while passing through the Van Allen radiation belt surrounding earth with no protection and the astronauts admitting that parts of the capsule were aluminum foil thin? Why no scorch marks under the lunar lander and not even a spec of dust on the landing pads? Why was the same mountain range in the background of two pictures that we were told were miles apart? How could the supposed moon rock given to Holland by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin end up being petrified wood? Tell me how in Gods name you can explain that one? Your answers defy logic more than my questions and the questions of many other concerned human beings do, no? shawn hammock · October 25, 2015 at 19:36 how are they burning liquid fuel in the vacuum of space i mean i know they got to the moon by low orbit burns but the moon doesnt have an atmosphere so they cant be burning liquid fuel please help me and if possible please provide a link crediting your answer thank you. admin · October 28, 2015 at 10:05 Dear Shawn, thank you for your question. You are correct in saying a fuel needs oxygen before it can be burned. All chemical rockets burn a propellent and oxidiser together whether they operate in space or Earth’s atmosphere. Liquid propellant rocket engines bring together used a fuel and a separate oxidiser to burn together. In solid fuel rocket motors the propellant and oxidiser are bound together. I hope this has helped you. Ash · June 5, 2016 at 13:31 Just wondering if there is a difference between orbital and escape velocities. And if one is in orbit. How do they transfer to the escape velocity. And what angle would the thrust vector be? Hope that makes sense Cheers. admin · June 6, 2016 at 09:07 Dear Ash, thank you for your question. Lunar orbital speed is the mean speed at which the spacecraft orbits around the centre of the Moon. The LM Ascent Stage needed to reach an orbital speed of roughly 1.5 km/s to rendezvous with the CSM. Lunar escape velocity is the minimum speed needed for the space craft to “break free” from the gravitational attraction of the Moon. Lunar escape velocity is about 2.4 km/s. The Apollo CSM which was orbiting the Moon needed to fire its engine for about three minutes to accelerate to the Moon’s escape velocity to return to Earth, a manoeuver called Trans-Earth Injection. The thrust direction and timing had to be planned to put the CSM into a trajectory which met the point in space where the Earth would be when the CSM got there. Stevie · June 4, 2013 at 22:50 I’ve never noticed the battered rear to Orion LEM. What happened there? admin · June 4, 2013 at 23:08 The exhaust plume from ascent engine caused some of the thermal protection panels to be pulled away from their fasteners. Some sources say you can even see this happening in the video of the take-off. Some of the other LMs received similar but not as drastic-looking damage. There’s a little bit more at Google Books. andrew · February 16, 2013 at 00:52 apollo 7 was a manned test flight of the CSM. Not as stated in the article. and 6 lunar modules were impacted on the moon not 5. admin · February 18, 2013 at 10:36 Thank you very much for the corrections, I’ve fixed the article to reflect them. Dd · March 16, 2013 at 20:17 Do you know the temperatures of the exteriors? Sun side and shade side of the modules? Ive been seeking that yet can’t seem to find it. I do know du pont was contracted to create a product……enter mylar. Thank you admin · March 19, 2013 at 11:53 I haven’t been able to find any measured temperature values. I would imagine the shade side would be designed for a minimum of 100K or -173 C as I see that quoted as the night time temperature on the Moon’s surface. As for the illuminated side, you see values like 390K (about 120 C) quoted for daytime temperatures on the Moon, but that is for midday under full illumination. I know that the landing sites and times were chosen so that the mission was accomplished in the lunar morning before the temperature had risen to its hottest, so the design may have been optimised for some lower temperatures than 120 C for the sunlit side. Ash · May 31, 2016 at 00:47 Day time and night time temperatures? The moon does not rotate on its axis like earth. It is very different on the moon. The moon doesn’t have a 24 hour day. Use your common sense. admin · May 31, 2016 at 08:19 Dear Ash, thank you for your comments, however it appears that your understanding of the Moon and the conditions there might not be as complete as you believe. The moon does not rotate on its axis like earth. The Moon does in fact rotate on its axis but more slowly than the Earth (29.5 days compared to one day). The moon doesn’t have a 24 hour day. That is correct, it has a day-night cycle equivalent to 29.5 days. Every part of the Moon experiences day and night (as we see by watching the phases of the Moon) so there are regular temperature variations. Due to the length of the day and night these are wider than on Earth, from about -153 deg C to +107 deg C. Why did you think the concept of day and night was not valid on the Moon? Ash · June 5, 2016 at 13:26 Hey, I actually didn’t mean to send that. I was trying to pick a fight for some stupid reason. I’m human I guess. However. Now that we have started. I’ll use my manners. Your maturity in your reply is infectious. I could have sworn the moon does not rotate on its axis. We always see the same face of the moon. The moon rotates sound the earth every 29.5 earth days. But the moonmodes not rotate on its axis. The shadow of the earth covers the front surface of the moon. The same surface we always see. Every 29.5 earth days. That’s why there is the “dark side of the moon” it’s always the dark side and earth never gets to see that side coz the moon doesn’t rotate. Right? All this is for memory from the discovery or possibly Nat geo channels. So that’s why I guess. And the face of the moon is always the same. Ash · June 5, 2016 at 15:37 I do appreciate the time u give and maturity of your replies. Now again. This is just a thought after reading what mark had to say about evidence of a rocket being used on the moon. My question is. Giant crater or not. Shouldn’t there at least be some evidence? I often think to how usually the ground underneath a jet AND rocket blast. becomes charcoal. Black carbon. Soon as they land, they have to immediately thrust down and bring nozzles back. Otherwise they will melt the Tarmac. Even at the very least. The top layer of dust removed. And finally. Why can’t I see the energy coming out of the rocket when it takes off the moon? People say because it’s in a vaccume. But I don’t see how that is possible. There is energy and mass coming out. Yet it is invisible. in testing. Other rockets look the same in testing as in Flight. Yet the testing of the relaunch rocket had a, what looks like to me, a thirty foot flame. Now as a solid fuel rocket. Not only should one see the giant fiery gas flame before it dissipates into the vaccume of space. But we should also Expect to see the red gases it created. These question are asked in the same regard u have given. Much respect. admin · June 6, 2016 at 12:08 Dear Ash, thank you for your questions and comments. Giant crater or not. Shouldn’t there at least be some evidence? Yes, there was. Radial scouring of the surface under the LM’s Descent Stage was photographed on several missions. usually the ground underneath a jet AND rocket blast. becomes charcoal. Black carbon. Firstly, is this correct? Secondly, where would the carbon come from on the Moon? The harrier and now the JSF. When coming in to land on vertical thrust(jet not rocket so even cooler). As Soon as they land, they have to immediately thrust down and bring nozzles back. Otherwise they will melt the Tarmac. Are the descent profile and exhaust plumes of these aircraft the same or comparable to those of the LM? I imagine the aircrafts’ thrusts are higher right down to the ground, but remember the LM’s descent engine was throttled back as it neared the surface and was shut down above the surface. Why can’t I see the energy coming out of the rocket when it takes off the moon? People say because it’s in a vaccume. But I don’t see how that is possible. There is energy and mass coming out. Yet it is invisible. The propellants used on the LM’s Ascent stage (Aerozine 50 and nitrogen tetroxide) burn with a colourless flame which is almost invisible to the human eye. This is similar to burning jet fuel, here is a link to a picture of an aircraft in flight (link). There is energy and mass coming out of the exhausts, but we cannot see it. Yet the testing of the relaunch rocket had a, what looks like to me, a thirty foot flame. I have never seen this, can you provide a link to any images or movies? I’m guessing here but the oxygen escaping from the tank on Apollo 13’s Service Module was in liquid form which must have sublimed into gas as soon as it entered the vacuum. If liquid oxygen was squirting out and instantly turning into gas it might have been visible. In transcripts the astronauts occasionally refer to “particles” escaping, I assume this was debris carried by the escaping oxygen which would make the oxygen plume more visible. Gene · October 15, 2017 at 10:37 You sound like one of those moon landing hoaxtards. I could actually answer all of your questions but nothing I tell you will ever be good enough for people like you. I know your type. You all have made up your minds that Apollo was all faked so I don’t waste my time trying to enlighten your kind. I prefer to let you people wallow in your own ignorance. Dust · November 2, 2017 at 22:13 Ash, Ash, Ash…to quote a famous song: There’s no Dark Side of the Moon really…As a matter of fact, it is all dark. With that said, enter the light and educate yourself. Ash · June 5, 2016 at 15:40 In that photo. Is the photo taken off angle? Or are they on the side of a hill? Cheers again. admin · June 6, 2016 at 08:38 Dear Ash, if you are referring to either of the Apollo 16 images, no, the terrain where the LM set down was level, presumably the cameras were not level. Ash · June 5, 2016 at 15:55 A few more questions that have been raised that I can’t answer. ( I’m sure I wasn’t the first to think of it) In the diagrams, there is only one diagram that points to a panel and says. “Rover”. Then there is another picture below, there is another diagram of the same area with all the panels removed or in a see through nature. And u can see where all the fuel and other tanks were. There was no rover in that diagram. If I’m being impartial. That tips the scales slightly. And in a court of law. Beyond reasonable doubt. All these little things begin to tip the scales. I was a big believer until I heard that there were people out there (smarter than me)who are saying it didn’t happen. So I’m re looking into it. And I feel hindsight is 20/20. And so far, their case is strong. admin · June 6, 2016 at 09:17 Dear Ash, please check the date on the cutaway image. It is 1969, so this artwork depicts the original LM without a rover as as used on Apollos 11-14. The LM was carried on on the final three missions in 1971-72. This is discussed in the article that you are commenting on. Ash · June 6, 2016 at 00:59 Actually after more thought. The moon has to spin on its axis if we are to see the same face. My bad. Sorry for my ignorance on that. Ash · June 5, 2016 at 13:15 What does one do in design to optimise its ability to handle -173c? How would or could that be done. Insulation was too heavy. So I was just wondering how it was designed in a certain way to handle the -173c? Was is materials? I have no idea. That’s why I ask. Cheers. admin · June 6, 2016 at 10:50 Dear Ash, thank you for your question. It is difficult to answer briefly as different areas of the LM needed to be treated differently. Some components had to be kept cold, others warm, for example the ascent engine fuel tanks needed to be kept at room temperature. This was achieved by clever use of passive thermal control materials. As the article you commenting on says “Much of the exterior was covered in protective multi-layer insulation foil…” so your belief that insulation material was too heavy is not correct. Areas needing to be kept cool were covered with reflective insulation (of different types selected for optimum reflectivity), areas needing to be kept warm were covered in black materials. The Descent Stage is almost completely covered in this multi-layer foil. The Ascent Stage used it too but many area of it were covered in aluminium that was painted, etched, or anodised to give each panel precise absorptive and reflective properties. The LM’s crew cabin and electronics bay had an active cooling system. For crewed spacecraft removing heat is far more important than keeping warm. As a final note, all spacecraft whether designed to carry people or not must be designed to cope with extremely low temperatures, the LM was not unique in this regard. Gene · October 15, 2017 at 10:54 Ash, the Apollo landings were all scheduled.for lunar MORNING. This admin.is wrong about the temperature. It never got above 120 to 130 degrees F while they were.on the surface. Heat on the moon is not like heat on earth. There is no atmosphere therefore.there is no convection. Notice how all NASA equipment was white, the most reflective color. The LM was always parked with i heatts back to the sun and that backside was covered in reflective insulation. The excess heat was easily refleted away. Same with rhe space suits, white to reflect away the heat. The astronauts did complain of some heat build up.when their suits got dirty. Rozalynn · December 11, 2017 at 16:22 How did you create this website what did you use to create it? If you would kindly tell me that I would gladly accept that. Thank you for your prestigious time and I hope to get back to you soon. admin · December 12, 2017 at 12:11 Hi Rozalynn, this site is powered by the good people at WordPress! It is a brilliant site that lets you create your own, personal site. YOu can use it for blogging, selling merchandise, promoting your own business, and so much more. The steps to setting it up are simple and straight forward too! Why not give it a go Rozalynn · December 11, 2017 at 16:18 Well, she may not know everything and get something wrong and so what we are not perfect and I know you are not saying that we are but humans (people) will get things wrong so what everyone can see that you do not have to point it out. (Not being rude by the way.) It took 300,000 people to make the first Apollo space mission a success · January 4, 2017 at 19:00 […] were implemented for tasks that can simply be done by computer programs today. For example, the Lunar Excursion Module (LEM), which was used by Neil Armstrong, took 4,000 people and one hundred companies to design […] Blank’s Rule: Craziness Leads to Innovation \| MediaStreet News & Opinions · September 26, 2016 at 08:01 […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them – the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the […] 15 Questions about the Moon Landings \| Astronotes · April 7, 2016 at 16:11 […] and punctuation. In the questions LEM stands for Lunar Excursion Module, an name for the Apollo Lunar Module (LM) that was used in the early stages of the craft’s […] Marketingpi » Blank’s Rule – To predict the future 1/3 of you need to be crazy · January 9, 2016 at 14:08 […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them – the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the moon. […] To predict the future (or land on the moon), one-third of you need to be crazy - Quartz · December 22, 2015 at 12:00 […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them—the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the […] ‘Blank’s Rule’: To predict the future, 1/3 of your team needs to be crazy - Hybrid Apps \| Web Apps \| Mobile Apps · December 20, 2015 at 10:44 […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them – the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the […] ‘Blank’s Rule’: To predict the future, \| Ad Pub · December 20, 2015 at 00:41 […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them – the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the […] ‘Blank’s Rule’: To predict the future, 1/3 of your team needs to be crazy – TechyTech · December 19, 2015 at 23:41 […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them – the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the […] ‘Blank’s Rule’: To predict the future, 1/3 of your team needs to be crazy \| DARE · December 19, 2015 at 21:11 […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them – the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the moon. […] ‘Blank’s Rule’: To predict the future, 1/3 of your team needs to be crazy \| Global Services Media · December 19, 2015 at 20:54 […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them – the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the moon. […] […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them — the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the moon. […] Blank's Rule: To Predict the Future, a Third of You Need to Be Crazy - Democratsnewz · December 15, 2015 at 16:23 […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them — the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the moon. […] Blank’s Rule – To predict the future 1/3 of you need to be crazy \| EuroMarket News · December 15, 2015 at 16:19 […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them – the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the moon. […] Blank’s Rule – To predict the future 1/3 of you need to be crazy \| Steve Blank · December 15, 2015 at 14:00 […] two of the crew members would climb into a separate landing ship they carried with them – the lunar excursion module (LEM). The LEM would detach from the mother ship (called the command module), and land on the moon. […] Is the Moon Hollow? \| Astronotes · May 22, 2015 at 11:26 […] 1970. This phrase was used after Apollo 12 purposefully crashed its 2.5 ton Ascent Stage of the Lunar Module onto the Moon’s surface. It was claimed that the Moon rang like a bell for roughly an hour. With […] […] It was just two years since Apollo 11, but the technology was enormously improved. Apollo 15’s Lunar Module Falcon carried an improved engine and larger fuel load, enabling more equipment and supplies to be […] […] 1969 Conrad and Bean left Gordon alone in lunar orbit on the CSM Yankee Clipper and descended in the Lunar Module Intrepid to their destination. This was Oceanus Procellarum (the Ocean of Storms), a huge lunar […] […] astronaut Michael Collins. Armstrong and Aldrin were the first astronauts to successfully land the Lunar Module (LM) Eagle on the Moon in 1969 whilst Collins orbited in the Command and Service Module (CSM) […] Apollo 11: the First Lunar Landing \| Astronotes · June 26, 2014 at 17:07 […] human life would leave their first trace on the Moon. At 0256 GMT Neil Armstrong stepped out of the Lunar Module Eagle. As his left foot touched the lunar surface, he declared the famous words, “That’s […] Apollo 8's Christmas space odyssey \| Astronotes · December 9, 2013 at 10:39 […] been another mission to low Earth orbit with its main goal to be testing of the Lunar Module. The Lunar Module was yet another hugely complex vehicle and its development fell behind schedule, by August 1968 it was clearly not going to be ready for […] 5 Goofy Moonlanding Hoax Theories \| Astronotes · October 15, 2013 at 03:19 […] Lunar Module was a unique vehicle, designed to fly just twice per mission in airless and low gravity conditions so it did not need a […] Apollo 17 \| Astronotes · October 15, 2013 at 03:16 Soviet Moonlanding project \| Astronotes · October 15, 2013 at 03:09 […] LK, the USSR’s equivalent of NASA’s Lunar Module, was being developed separately and was relatively successful despite an overly complex control […] Apollo 18: the truth \| Astronotes · October 15, 2013 at 03:08 […] they rolled over the Moon’s terrain in Lunar Roving Vehicles to increase the area explored. The Lunar Modules used were of an updated design allowing heavier loads of gear to be carried to the surface. The […] Neil Armstrong R.I.P. \| Astronotes · October 15, 2013 at 03:08 […] rocky landing zone and with what seemed to be the last propellants in the tanks landed the LM Eagle on the Sea of Tranquility.Descending the short ladder to the silent grey regolith he spoke […] Lunar Module \| iancalle · June 2, 2013 at 23:19 Leave a Reply to admin Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked * What's on your mind? Δ This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Filter by category This week Heather and Courtney interview Armagh Observatory PhD Candidate Kerem Çubuk on his area of research - molecular clouds! Turns out we can't escape the cloudy conditions, even millions of lightyears away. Kerem and his colleagues also have a Youtube Channel dedicated to science communication in Turkish. To find out more, visit ahtapot.club The Craic with Climate This week, Heather and Courtney are joined by AOP's own Anna Taylor - climate Education Officer extraordinaire to discuss the most frequently asked questions about climate change and what we can do to help! #NISCIFEST22 Hello and welcome to Astronotes, the Armagh Observatory and Planetarium’s official blog. Here you will find the latest news and views from all those who work in our organisation, from the fascinating worlds of astronomy and space exploration. We hope you will come here to learn what is hot and exciting, profound or even weird from worlds beyond ours . So that's the introduction out of the way, now on with the Universe! Enter the Archives! Select Month December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 Related Posts “Commander Moonikin Campos” is the official name of the manikin launching on Artemis I, NASA’s uncrewed flight test of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft around the Moon later this year. The Moonikin Read more… It’s been just over two months since The James Webb Space Telescope was launched into space. On Christmas Day 2021, Professor Michael Burton watched the launch online, whilst enjoying his Christmas dinner! So, what has Read more… What is “the edge of space”? by Apostolos Christou On the 11th of July 2021, we were informed that Virgin Galactic’s CEO Sir Richard Branson and his fellow passengers onboard VSS Unity reached “the edge of space”. But why “the edge” Read more… Hestia \| Developed by ThemeIsle We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information. Non-necessary Non-necessary Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.	213,182
When life gets too hard on you, get out, have a day trip. Go to some place that has loads of attractions that will keep you occupied. Where is that place? Where else than in the glory that is Las Vegas, the Entertainment Capital of the World. So start getting a map because we are going to ride our way to Las Vegas. Now, no day trip is ever complete without the set of wheels. It is good to know that Las Vegas has a lot of car rental dealers that offer grand sports cars to take you speeding through the road. And one of the most stunning cars that is available is a Ford Mustang car rental. The Ford Mustang won the Tiffany Gold Medal for excellence in American design becoming the first automobile ever to do so. In 1983, 1987, 1988, 2005, and 2006 it was on the Car & Driver Ten Best list. In 1974 and 1994 it won the Motor Trend Car of the Year . And in 2005, it was runner-up to Chrysler 300 for the North American Car of the Year award and was named Canadian Car of the Year. All of these awards is just proof that the Ford Mustang is a best choice for this Vegas day trip. So be sure to reserve Ford Mustang car rentals by checking out their website. This is truly coming out as one of the best day trip you will ever have. So start revving those Ford Mustang engines because we are now going to one of the best destination for a day trip in Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon. Grand Canyon is visited by approximately 5 million people every year. The park consists of 277 miles of the Colorado River and its massive erosion effects on the massive landscape. The Grand Canyon is located 250 miles from Las Vegas. Choosing highway 93 as our route from Las Vegas to Interstate $0 east to highway 64, our route will take about 4 an a half hours and get us right over Hoover Dam. In reaching Grand Canyon, we can visit Grand Canyon Village to get oriented with the National Park. The visitor center which is located in the village offers videos, lectures and rangers for assistance. From the village, we can then get to the Bright Angel Trail which will bring us to the bottom of the canyon. Better be prepared for the long trek though because its a good 9 miles to the bottom. So you now have the best car for the trip and the best day trip destination in Las Vegas. What else do you want to do? I’ll tell you what you going to do, better reserve that Mustang car rental now, book a flight, and buy a map to the Grand Canyon. Las Vegas is waiting for you. Posted in Autos \| Posted on October 12, 2017 by admin Many people travel to Peru to hike the famous Inca Trail. There’s an undeniable allure to the idea of treading the same path once used by the ancient Incas as they traveled to the great citadel of Machu Picchu. However, the Inca Trail is not the only impressive remnant of the Inca Empire. In addition to the well-known Inca Trail path to Machu Picchu, the Incas built a vast and elaborate system of roads hundreds of kilometers long that traversed the entire Inca Empire. The Inca construction, however, didn’t stop at roads. In addition to building paths, the Incas were master bridge builders, and these bridges were an integral part of the road system. Q’eswachaka, commonly known as the Inca Rope Bridge, is the last of these bridges still in use, and is located just outside of Cusco in the Quehue District. Though originally destroyed in an attempt to halt Pizarro’s attack on Cusco during the Spanish invasion, it was reconstructed and continues to remain in use to this day. The bridge spans the raging Apurimac River as it cuts through the breathtaking Apurimac Valley. Q’eswachaka is made of fibers woven together to create a strong rope, and small slats of wood are used to reinforce the footpath. Part of the reason the bridge has lasted almost 600 years, however, is that every year, the people of four local Quechua communities come together to replace the old bridge with a new one. The Q’eswachaka Festival, four days of work and celebration, marks this occasion. This ancient tradition has been carried out annually since the days of the Incas, and continues to be an important connection to tradition and culture in the high Andes. Every year, the four communities enthusiastically come together for the process of rebuilding the bridge- an important and ceremonial tradition. Certain members of the community hold the role of engineer, while others serve as weavers. One male holds the important position of “Chakaruwak”, meaning he is a specialist in braiding and construction. In order for the sacred art to be carried on from generation to generation and to keep the spirit of the bridge alive, fathers teach their sons the process, just as their fathers did before them. Before the festival begins, community members collect the building material, primarily consisting of grass and natural fibers. These fibers will be woven into the cables used in the bridge’s construction. Before the festival and bridge building can begin, however, the spiritual leader of the community must ask the apus, or the mountain spirits, for permission to begin the process, and make offerings of coca leaves and corn to Pachamama, Mother Earth. After this offering, the weaving of the cables begins. In the afternoon, the men divide into two groups, one each side of the bridge, and begin braiding the cables towards each other. On the second day, the engineers begin by untying the old ropes, which are attached to stone nails, and attach the new ropes to the nails. This is a time consuming and intricate process, but finally the base and handrails of the new bridge are in place. On the third day of the festival, construction finishes on the handrails and footpath, and when the construction has finished, the bridge is officially opened to the tune of music accompanied by traditional dances. The festival reaches its climax on the fourth day, which is a day of celebration. The communities once again come together to celebrate the completion of the bridge through song, indigenous dances, and eating traditional foods. This final day serves as a culmination of all the hard work, and a celebration of the lasting traditions that have allowed these communities to keep their vibrant culture alive. This year, the Q’eswachaka Festival falls during the second week of June, with the principal day of the festival on the second Sunday of the month. The bridge reconstruction and subsequent festival will take place once again, as it does every year, as the local communities gather to honor both Pachamama and their ancestors, and celebrate their community and heritage. Posted in Travel \| Qualities of Great and Professional General Contractors Posted on October 10, 2017 by admin If you want to become a great and a professional one General contractor at a managerial level, then you need to possess these qualities in you. To complete your project in a great way, to complete hundreds in some specific tasks in prescribed time, to possess leadership qualities in you, this is what great and professional Home contractors do! Here you will know that which are those main and crucial abilities if you want to count yourself as the best and great one contractor’s at the managerial scale: Communicate clearly and in an effective manner It is always seen that the best and reliable contractors, they pass clear communication messages to their team members. They effectively communicate with their teammates be it they work on small projects or big projects. If you know the importance of understanding effective communication and applying effective communication between your project, then you can become a great Builder at the managerial level. To execute and plan for your project and activities, it is this effective communication that matters. How can your teammates be able to perform on projects if you will not tell them precisely that what exactly you want! Your subordinate will fail to show their abilities if they do not get clear messages and instructions from their manager contractor. Most of the projects performances get completely and wholly derailed because of poor and worst communication skills from the sides of General Contractors. To become a great manager related to construction projects, you should know how to transcribe minor and intricate project details to your teammates. Delegate the tasks A professional and a senior Builder do not take the credit of the whole success of a project. He is the one who equally gives credit to his team members as well. A successful General Contractor delegate tasks and assignments to his skilled workers. He alternates their duties, assigns different tasks to them so that each of the workers gets equal chance to show the best part of their abilities. They furnish references All professional general contractors are registered. If you ask them for references, then they furnish it instantly. They always promise and assure a professional job. They do not feel hesitant to show a satisfied and happy list of their clientele to share with you. If that list shares their good and satisfying experiences with you, then that general contractor should be chosen by you. They show certificates Professional general contractors do not have to boast and brag about employing and hiring highly professional qualified technicians for your project. If he is a licensed contractor, then he will not hesitate to show his certificates to you. Reliable contractors are insured and also registered as well. Problem-solving potential A smart General contractor comes with problem skills as well. It is true that each and every construction project, they come with huge in some challenges and obstacles, hidden problems. He is the one who has this ability to identify each and every worst-case scenario and then makes his project to come out from that worst-case scenario as well. At times, construction projects do experience many of the additional problems like that of community backlash and political opinions, because of these issues the progress of any project gets also hinder and stops. A smart and sharp General contractor can easily handle these additional problems too. Anyone actually realizes the importance and significance of team work, then it is this smart and clever enough General contractor who understands! Any project cannot have success without the cooperation and coordination of rest of team workers. If any project gets accomplished and successful than a friendly General contractor does not forget to give credit and praise his teammates as well. He has this belief on phrase “let’s work together”! He develops and creates the environment of trust and also an appreciation for his workers. It is just a welcoming feedback which employees love a lot. To call yourself as the smartest Contractors at the managerial level, you should not disregard these skills of communication and teamwork, problem-solving skills and delegating the tasks. To get this assurance that your project will get a success and too high return on investment, you need to possess these abilities in your personality then. Posted in Home Improvement \| Posted on October 8, 2017 by admin If you want to buy plantation shutters, you may want to consult an experienced professional. They will help you buy the best plantation shutters to help you meet your needs. However, if you are going to purchase plantation shutters for the first time, you may want to consider the following tips. Since poplar wood is light, straight, and smooth, it’s a great choice for plantation shutters. The average height of a poplar tree is 160 feet and the trunk can be as much as 80 feet in diameter. So, it’s a good idea to opt for this type of wood. Most of clients go for wood shutters because of their advantages over the artificial material known as poly. As far as strength goes, wood is stronger and lighter. So, wooden shutters can be up to 37 inches in width. So, you won’t need more than a few panels for the window openings. Aside from this, wood gives you a lot of other benefits as well. The size of most of shutters is 3.5 louvers. But there is a rise in demand for louvers that measure 4.5 louvers due to sliding glass doors and bigger windows. Actually, people want modern interior design as well as openness. If you don’t know, midrail is a horizontal plank. Over the midrail, the louvers open and close without relying on the louvers that are under the midrail. Many buyers like midrails since they leave the upper section open to let more light in and leave the lower section shut for privacy reasons. Moreover, a midrail is an ideal choice should you have metal casings. You will find shutters that feature “hidden tilt”. In this type of shutters, the frontal wooden tilt bar is missing. In its place, you can see a metal tilt bar, which is almost invisible. So, you can have more visibility and open space. As far as sliding glass doors is concerned, plantation shutters are an ideal choice. For a consistent feel and look, your house should have shutters. Actually, plantation shutters are fixed on a track to let the panels open without any hindrance. Usually, plantation shutters are sold by the square foot. However, by paying a bit more, you can benefit from other options, such as hidden tilt, stain finishes, and specialty shapes. You should be ready to spend a good deal of money to get the required shutters. Plantation shutters are also made to order. First of all, the sales representative will visit your house to measure the doors and windows to give you a proposal. Then the installers will do a detailed measurement. Once the product is made, it is handed over to the finishing department. In this department, the product is sanded, primed and painted. Finally, they are installed. If you are going to buy plantation shutters, consider the tips given above. Posted in Home Improvement \| Posted on October 7, 2017 by admin Borrowing money makes a decisive difference, especially when you are struggling through the times of financial emergencies. Small time loans like the Short Term Loans are one of the quick and convenient cash credit alternatives that you can and should consider to ameliorate your ongoing emergency financial crisis. These loans improve your credit score too, but again; you need to be a bit judgmental of other prerequisites and options. Short term small loan applications usually show up in your credit report. If you had applied for these loans few months back, then your credit score reflects this option. Furthermore, all the repayments made towards the loan will highlight in your credit profile. Making the repayments on short term loans will show you in positive light before the lender. He will have trust, and you will enjoy peace of mind. Short term loans help to improve the credit rating. However, availing the loans is still a risky process, and you need to have an Argus-eye over it. In general cases, the interest rates charged on these loans are considerably high. If you are confident of making the payments within lender’s designated time period, it will not cause any hindrance. But the longer you delay in paying-off the loans, the costlier these loans turn out. There comes a time when you might even repent your decision of having applied for cash advance for the sake of improving the credit score. Instead of going for a short term loan to boost your credit rating, there are better ways to move the credit worthiness. What you have to do is to look for alternatives, rather than making a rash decision in an instant. Taking out a credit for the sake of credit is something that needs proper research and analysis too. Having a good credit score is necessary, since it reflects your credibility as a borrower. A not so good credit score on the other has a negative impact, as it severely affects the flow of credit in the future. Just because you are having a bad credit, it does not entirely mean the end of the road. You can still improve the credit score. Here are two legitimate points to look into: Clearing outstanding debt by paying on time – Clearing your dues on time will maintain your credit score over a long period of time. If you are having outstanding debts, make sure to minimize them. This certainly helps to improve the rating. Building a solid credit history – For first time borrowers, with no credit history, it is essential to build a good credit history. To increase the credibility, it becomes necessary to limit the expenses, and if you had availed loans and there are arrears, you must ensure to clear them. Paying off the debts within stipulated time frame is way to success. Credit rating helps the borrowers to gain advantage and secure loans and debts. Good credit ratings help borrowers to borrow money. The methodologies you apply to improve your credit ratings will make huge difference in score records. Posted in Finance \| Posted on October 5, 2017 by admin There are numerous letterboxes homeowners can make use of in order to secure their mails and documents. However, homeowners look for unique features to make simple letterboxes into wonderful decorative piece on their homes. That is why, more and more homeowners now make use of solar letterboxes. This type of letterbox has the same length and width of other mailbox. However, it provides more features such as a key lockable system as well as a wide mail slot for all your A4 mail & documents. In addition, this mailbox also has a newspaper holder. Fortunately, solar letterboxes even offer more features for homeowners. Below are some of the following. One of the main reasons why homeowners are now using solar letterboxes is due to its stainless steel body and lid. Most of the time, homeowners use steel letterboxes to secure received mails and documents properly. However, due to extreme weather conditions, steel mailboxes may rust. As a result, mails and documents will be dirty, which can compromise important information in your mail. Fortunately, solar letterboxes are made from stainless steel which is weather resistant. Not to mention, stainless steel is easier to maintain and to clean. Reduce the use of lights The next reason why homeowners prefer solar powered letterboxes is they can reduce the use of lights. This is possible since solar letterboxes are equipped with LED lights that can last from 10 to 18 hours. This gets even better since the LED lights are solar powered, which mean you will not be paying expensive electric bills to light your letterboxes. Since solar powered letterboxes are equipped with LED lights, homeowners are rest assured that the boxes will be more visible which can help you receive mails and documents that will be delivered during night time. Plus, the mailbox comes with 3 sets of adhesive numbers, plus a letters “A”, “B” & “/” to allow homeowners to customize their address. Finally, solar powered letterboxes are easy to install. Homeowners only need simply tools such as screwdrivers, power drill and drill bits. Apart from that, solar letterboxes are wall mounted. So, you do not need to create holes on your walls to install it. And, homeowners do not need to install wiring to the LED lights. Posted in Home Improvement \| Posted on October 4, 2017 by admin As far as international shipping is concerned, you have many options. But one of the best options is hiring a good package forwarding service. Let’s take an example Suppose you reside in Australia or UK, and you want to buy an item from eBay or Amazon. In this case, you have to use a package forwarding service. This service will help you save a lot of money, as you won’t need to pay high shipping charges. it’s not difficult to use such service. Read on to know more. First of all, you need to choose a package forwarding site. Once you have a good and reliable provider, your next step is to sign up to get an account. By signing up, you will receive a forwarding address. You will use this address to meet your shipping and shopping needs from time to time. Make sure you check everything carefully before signing up. The shipping cost shouldn’t be too high. Aside from this, you need to find out about other services offered by the provider, such as package consolidation, repackaging and fees, just to name a few. it’s very important that you take all these things into consideration or you will regret your decision later on. As far as entering your address is concerned, you can use the same address you saved at the time of signing up for the first time. Once you have chosen the address, you can go ahead and place your order. This way you won’t have to type your address each time you place a new order. Next, you should wait for the delivery of the package from the seller to your address. Now, you need to make arrangements for your parcel handling like repacking. Another option that you can consider is package consolidation. When you place orders with many retailers, you can try out this option. You can save a lot of money with package consolidation. However, you need to keep in mind that choosing this option may add to the custom duty for some countries. In this case, what you need to do is get the package sent separately instead of paying high custom duty. Shipping fee Keep in mind that you will have to pay the international shipping fee if you want to get the package at your doorstep. Once you have paid the shipping, the package will be yours. Important things to consider You may want to prefer a forwarder that charges no membership fee For package delivery in tax-free states, you can save more. Consider the membership fees Make sure there are no hidden fees, such as storage fees Don’t place your order for prohibited items as they won’t be forwarded Long story short, if you are going to choose a package forwarding service in the near future, we suggest that you consider the advice given in this article. This will save you a lot of headache down the road. Posted in Business \| India – Jewellery Destination and Jewellery Shops in India Posted on October 3, 2017 by admin India and Jewellery, Jewellery and Indian women are interlinked with each other from decades. In almost every occasion starting from marriage to any event the fashion of a woman is incomplete without teaming up with proper jewellery. Some traditional and some modern styles of jewellery caters to the need of jewellery selection. Not only the affluent class can afford jewellery but there are also low cost jewellery items that cater the wide demand of jewellery in India. While picking up or choosing jewellery in India has lot to do with fashion trends heritage and culture. Different regions and culture follow their unique designs that go at par with their tradition. Kundan jewellery is a renowned art that we can see in Indian jewellery which usually comes from the state of Rajasthan. Almost every small and renowned jewellery shops in India showcases unique styles of Kundan art. Apart from Kundan jewellery Meenakari, the art of coloring the surface of metal to give a gorgeous look to the jewellery is quiet famous in India. Traditional temple style of Jewellery depicting the style of south India is quiet famous. A married woman in India has to flaunt variety of Jewellery pieces as a part of culture that actually gives the lady a gorgeous look. A pair of toe rings is a symbol of a married lady these toe rings can be of silver or any other material. Apart from toe rings nose ring is also a part in Indian marriages. These nose rings are generally called nath that depicts prosperity of husband. Necklaces are an untouchable part of traditional bridal attire. Necklace can be of different designs. It can be of traditional temple design or it can be of curved design. This piece of jewellery actually is an essential part of bridal or non bridal attire. In any occasion women can flaunt a necklace simple or heavy as per their occasions. Bangles usually worn in the hands to decorate the hands of a woman are also a part of bridal attire. In India there are a variety of jewellery shops catering to the wide demand of jewelleries. These shops provides almost every type and form of jewellery. Some of the important and renowned jewellery shops in India are P.C Chandra Jewellers, Malabar Gold & Diamond Jewellers, Kalyan Jewellers, etc. Apart from visiting a jewellery showroom nowadays online shopping from portals like Caratlane has become quiet famous among women who hardly gets time after their office hours. To brief out India and its craze for jewellery is inseparable. Posted in Fashion \| 5 Benefits of Raising Pets With Children Posted on October 1, 2017 by admin Your child is bound to get bored and lonely. This happens most when you are raising a single child. However, having a pet around helps your child to have a constant companion in the house. Pets also can match the energy and excitement level of a child. A human adult can never match the energy and enthusiasm a pet, in the form of a dog, has. The pet can keep your child busy and engaged. It can be your child’s constant playmate without getting bored. In the era of smart-phones and tabloids there are chances that your child might become less active. However, a recent study has shown that the kids, who own a dog, exercise eleven minutes more on average, than non-dog owning kids. Eleven minutes might sound quite less but also when you add up the figure in terms of weeks and month you realize the benefits. A pet in the form of a dog really helps your child to walk the extra mile and keep him/her active. Grows Responsibility Children with pets become more responsible than the others. It keeps them alert whether the dog or the cat got their share of food or water. They also tend to share more than the other kids. The kids learn to be accountable of someone else. In that way they grow up to be more responsible adults. They learn fast that how the pets are dependent on the human beings and from that understanding, the attachment develops. Makes them Empathetic Pets also teach your children to become empathetic and kind towards others. Kids without any kind of pets tend to become cruel or repulsive towards other animals. However, kids having pets like dogs or cats tend to care more for others. The responsibilities of owning a pet makes them accountable and their self-esteem also increases. They grow-up to be dependable adults than kids who don’t own a pet. By keeping in mind their pet’s feeding and grooming routines, they also learn to keep track of their own routines. Makes them Healthier Studies have shown that there are also certain health benefits of having pets. Babies who are being raised near pets tend to fall less sick than the babies who are not. Pets, especially dogs, carry certain microbes from outside into your home. These microbes tend to help your baby by improving their immunity. Interaction with pets also helps in releasing the dopamine hormone in your child. This makes them more cheerful than the others. Posted in Pets \| Posted on September 30, 2017 by admin Solo travel has become a hot topic. Unlike “single(s)” travel, it is a broader group. It can include those who are single, married or have a partner/significant other. It may be a business person looking to add a leisure weekend or extension to a trip for work. Two stumbling blocks to solo travel can be: I. whether it is lonely to vacation as a “party of one” and ii.whether eating alone, especially dinner, is really uncomfortable. Now having visited 68 countries and all 50 states, I have found 5 good ways to go alone without feeling you are “going it alone”. 1. River Cruise and Small Ship Cruises I highly recommend river cruises and small ships. They are especially a good fit for a first time solo traveler. However, they are also great for well-traveled solos in two cases. That is where destinations like Cambodian boat villages are not otherwise easy to reach. Secondly, they work well in places where security is an issue. Here are the key advantages of such river and small ships for solo travelers, they: Give you time alone but a group for tours and meals Can be competitively priced when compared to a piecemeal approach Make unpacking a one-time chore Work well with land packages Often have discounted package pricing including flights 2. Select your own lodging, and take day trips. Here are the key advantages of this independent approach: Affords you the opportunity to select your own interests and travel style. Provides more opportunity to interact with local residents. Gives you a “day-off” when you need it. Works with a range of budgets. 3. Combine both of the above approaches. I really favor this approach when I travel. On solo travel for 17 days at New Year’s, I toured Southeast Asia. I started with a private taxi tour in Siem Reap, Cambodia. I then joined a top Mekong River Cruise on to Vietnam. On the last leg, I had five days in a 5-star hotel in Bangkok. In my last stop, I tried all 3 ways of sightseeing: 1. A large bus tour 2. A private guide and 3. Self-directed subway tour. This blended approach puts you in the driver’s seat and: Will let you set your own course while being free to pick and choose Gives you a part-time group of travel mates but also time alone Makes it possible to follow a budget (or splurges) tailored to what works for you This has become very popular now for cooking classes in France and Italy. However, for decades, language classes abroad have lured students for short-term or full summer programs. Add to that options for photography classes, skiing and scuba diving. Here are the key benefits to this approach: Provides you with a ready-made group Gives you a local contact to hear what not to miss off the tourist path Make it possible to connect with classmates for meals or sightseeing Results in providing local contacts in an emergency I have done this twice. My first trip out of the US was at 18 joining 5 other girls on a summer YMCA project in Trinidad and Tobago. It was the best way to learn about day-to-day life in another country and participate in community activities. The benefits were endless. They included: Meeting local residents outside of the typical tourist path Seeing distant and often more unusual destinations Providing volunteer efforts to communities than may have experienced natural disasters or other hardships. If you are new to solo travel, take a look at each of these options. You will be surprised how fast solo travel gives you the chance to make new life-long friends from around the world so that you feel you are solo to more.	31,542
When you think about DK Security, what’s the first thing that pops into your head? Security guards at a football game, 5K, or maybe even a festival? Our guards have been providing security services across Michigan and the Midwest for the last 27 years. However, we do so much more than providing security for events and festivals — our services are just as unique and diverse as the clients we serve in the Midwest. From construction to healthcare, we provide highly trained security guards for any scenario and environment you can think of. DK Security receives over 400 temporary and long-term security requests annually! Check out 10 of our most popular security requests that we receive at DK Security. June 17, 2022 With the price of construction materials at an all-time high, job sites are more vulnerable to criminals than ever before. According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau and the National Equipment Register, the cost of construction site loss is between $300 million and $1 billion annually. Due to the rise of crime, we receive frequent security requests to protect construction sites and their materials. Our guards help deter criminals; prevent unauthorized individuals from accessing construction sites and vandalism; resolve conflicts among workers, and help prevent and mitigate emergencies. Overnight Security for an Outdoor Event When the weather is warm, the security requests heat up with plenty of event organizers reaching out for security. When helping with an outdoor event, our mission is to either assist with crowd control, or watch the event equipment overnight. For an outdoor event, organizers and vendors will set up the day before the event. During the overnight hours when no one is around, security is critical to making sure that nothing gets stolen. Event security is an incredibly popular service that we provide. Since 1996, we’ve secured over 5,000 events throughout Michigan, ranging from small gatherings to events with 100,000+ attendees. If you’ve ever attended a concert at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, you’ve likely already experienced DK’s security and protection services. Some major shows we’ve provided security for include Justin Bieber, Elton John, Cher, Foo Fighters, Bruno Mars, and Paul McCartney. Some of the events we provide security for include festivals, sporting events, concerts, trade shows, university graduations, football games, conventions, political events, corporate functions, and weddings. We utilize our fully equipped 36-foot Mobile Command Unit to establish a base of operations at every event, keeping our management team on hand to continuously support our clients. Our event services include crowd control, bag searches, metal detection, pat-downs, executive protection, armed security, undercover agents, access control, security consulting, mobile patrol, parking services, and money escort. To learn more about some of the events that we’ve partnered with, check out our “DK Summer Tour” on social media! School Security Security has become a major concern on college and K-12 campuses over the last decade. In 2021, ADT and Clery Center released results from a survey showing that 82 percent of American college students are concerned about their personal safety. Because of this increased safety concern, we often receive requests to provide security guards on university and K-12 campuses to protect students and faculty. Our trained guards help deter violence on campus, enforce rules, prevent trespassing, control crowds, and offer immediate help in emergencies. We currently have long-term partnerships with 12 schools and we’ve worked with over 25 schools on at least a temporary basis over the years. We understand the high demand for maintaining security throughout important government buildings and facilities. By offering a physical security presence on-site for our governmental clients, we provide expertise to appropriately handle challenges that come up in highly regulated environments. Healthcare Security Everyone knows that healthcare providers care deeply about their patients, staff, and visitors’ safety. Providers also often face pressure to balance safety with visitor traffic, privacy, patient satisfaction, and cost management — it’s a lot to juggle. That’s where DK Security steps in. We regularly provide security for healthcare offices and hospitals based on their specific needs, so it’s one less thing for healthcare providers to worry about. Patients often feel more safe and secure knowing there are uniformed security guards on-site. Our security guards are trained to handle situations related to healthcare, including emergency management and response, crisis intervention, and de-escalation. We work with several hospitals in Michigan, including some of the major hospital networks. With the recent COVID-19 pandemic, DK Security has been an industry leader for providing security coverage for local healthcare facilities across the state of Michigan. With short notice, we successfully staffed eight different Spectrum Health hospitals on a 24/7 basis. Additionally, the State of Michigan selected DK Security to provide security services for the TCF Center field hospital in Detroit and the Suburban Collection Showplace field hospital in Novi. This request included up to 26 officers per day in Detroit and 15 per day in Novi. DK Security has been assisting Pfizer with their additional security needs as well. No other security company in Michigan is better positioned to meet the immediate needs for a new or existing client. Manufacturing/Warehouse Security While working under strict state and federal regulations, manufacturing and warehouse owners must ensure their employees and buildings are safe and secure at all times. Managing safety among those regulations, as well as sticking to a budget, can be a challenge. That’s why DK Security provides personalized security services for manufacturing facilities and warehouses — our in-depth knowledge of the manufacturing industry allows our clients to rest easy and focus on other responsibilities. We work with every client to develop a security plan that focuses on employee safety and asset protection. We start this process by completing a security audit. Our security audits begin with a discussion of your objectives for the audit. We offer a free threat assessment; we'll review your current security program and give you an expert analysis and written recommendations for where you can improve. Our approach to the audit is completely tailored based on your needs. By providing security in factories and warehouses, we can help with visitor escorts; aid in loss prevention; create crisis contingency plans; actively address emergencies; and improve the safety and security of your assets and warehouses with our armed/unarmed guards and mobile security patrol. There is a strong need for armed security in cannabis growing facilities. There are millions of dollars’ worth of product in these buildings, and these businesses are required to meet very strict safety and security regulations, which include armed security guards. We work with facilities to provide comprehensive security plans tailored to their specific needs. Our armed security guards are well-equipped to maintain a cannabis facility’s security with integrity. Downtown Security Downtowns make up the hearts of cities, big and small. It’s an area where people come to meet, connect, and grow — we know how important it is to keep these areas safe and secure. With crime and homelessness on the rise, more and more downtown business owners are concerned about the safety of their employees that have returned to work, along with the security of the building itself. More clients in downtown settings are looking for security guards on a temporary and long-term basis at their downtown office buildings, hotels, retail stores, museums, and public spaces. We provide security guards for popular downtown areas for cities like Grand Rapids, Lansing, Detroit, Flint, and Kalamazoo. Houses of Worship Security In the wake of violence at places of worship around the country in the past two decades, security guard requests frequently come in. According to FBI data pulled by Dolan Consulting Group (DCG), it’s estimated that there are about 480 incidents of serious violence at places of worship in the United States each year. These incidents produce about 46 deaths and 218 serious injuries annually. And it’s a serious problem. Every church needs a security plan in place. Not all churches need security guards, while others do. Some may need a security guard to their size and location. We start developing these security plans with a free security assessment. We get requests from churches to take a look at their current security plan to see if we can provide an outside expert opinion on it. Our security guards help mitigate and prevent these violent attacks at houses of worship by developing response plans and being present for immediate emergency response. Are you looking for security guards or guidance on making a security plan for your organization? Discover why DK Security is the best resource for your safety needs. Let's chat! DK Security is proud to announce the launch of our new website. DK Security Expands Its Services in the Midwest DK Security is excited to announce that after 26 years of providing exceptional security services in Michigan, we have expanded our offerings to clients in Ohio and...	9,682
Act Si Business Tax (Double Taxation Agreement) (No. 5) Regulations, 2004 (Statutory Instrument 37 of 2004) Welcome to the new SeyLII website. Enjoy an improved search engine and new collections. If you are used to accessing SeyLII via Google, note Google will take some time to re-index the site. We are still busy migrating some of the old content. If you need anything in particular from the old website, it will be available for a while longer at https://old.seylii.org/ Business Tax (Double Taxation Agreement) (No. 5) Regulations, 2004 (Statutory Instrument 37 of 2004) Primary work Business Tax Act, 2009 (Chapter 20) (unknown) This is the latest version of this legislation commenced on 08 Nov 2017. Share on Facebook Business Tax Act, 2009 Business Tax (Double Taxation Agreement) (No. 5) Regulations, 2004 Commenced on 22 June 2005 [This is the version of this document at 8 November 2017.] These Regulations may be cited as the Business Tax (Double Taxation Agreement) (No. 5) Regulations, 2004. 2. Declaration and effect of agreement It is hereby declared that the Government of the Republic of Seychelles and the Government of the Republic of Botswana have entered into the agreement specified in the Schedule for the purposes of avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion and that the agreement shall have effect in relation to the tax imposed under this Act. Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Botswana and the Government of the Republic of Seychelles for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income and capital gains The Government of the Republic of Botswana and the Government of the Republic of Seychelles desiring to conclude an Agreement for the avoidance of double taxation, and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income and capital gains have agreed as follows: Persons covered This Agreement shall apply to persons who are residents of one or both of the Contracting States. Taxes covered 1.This Agreement shall apply to taxes on income imposed on behalf of a Contracting State, irrespective of the manner in which they are levied. 2.There shall be regarded as taxes on income all taxes imposed on total income or on elements of income. 3.The existing taxes which are the subject of this Agreement are— (i)the income tax including any withholding tax, prepayment or advance tax payment with respect to aforesaid tax; and (hereinafter referred to as “Botswana tax”); and (i)the business tax; and (hereinafter referred to as “Seychelles tax”). 4.Nothing in this Agreement shall limit the right of either Contracting State to charge tax on the profits of a mineral enterprise at an effective rate different from that charged on the profits of any other enterprise. The term “a mineral enterprise” means an enterprise carrying on the business of mining. 5.This Agreement shall apply also to any identical or substantially similar taxes, which are imposed by either Contracting State after the date of signature of this Agreement in addition to, or in place of, the existing taxes. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall notify each other of any substantial changes, which have been made in their respective taxation laws. (a)the term “Botswana” means the Republic of Botswana; (b)the term “Seychelles” means the territory of the Republic of Seychelles including its exclusive economic zone and continental shelf where Seychelles exercises sovereign rights and jurisdiction in conformity with the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea; (c)the term “Contracting State” and “the other Contracting State” mean Botswana or Seychelles as the context requires; (d)the term “company” means any body corporate or, any entity which is treated as a body corporate for tax purposes; (e)the term “competent authority” means—(i)in Botswana, the Minister of Finance and Development Planning, represented by the Commissioner of Taxes; and(ii)in Seychelles, the Minister of Finance or his authorized representative. (f)the term “enterprise of a Contracting State” and “enterprise of the other Contracting State” means respectively an enterprise carried on by a resident of a Contracting State and an enterprise carried on by a resident of the other Contracting State; (g)the term “international traffic” means any transport by a ship or aircraft operated by an enterprise of a Contracting State except when the ship or aircraft is operated solely between places in the other Contracting State; (h)the term “national” means—(i)any individual possessing the nationality of a Contracting State;(ii)any legal person, partnership or association deriving its status as such from the laws in force in a Contracting State; (i)the term “person” includes an individual, a partnership, a company, a trust, an estate of a deceased person and any other body of persons which is treated as an entity for tax purposes. (j)the term “public authority” means a Ministry, department, division or agency of the Government or a statutory corporation or a limited liability company which is directly or ultimately under the control of the Government or any other body which is carrying out a governmental function or service or a body or person specified by an Act. 2.As regards the application of the provisions of the Agreement at any time by a Contracting State, any term not defined therein shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have the meaning which it has at that time under the law of that State for the purposes of the taxes to which this Agreement applies, any meaning under the applicable tax laws of that State prevailing over a meaning given to the term under other laws of that State. 1.For the purpose of this Agreement, the term “resident of a Contracting State” means any person who, under the laws of that State, is liable to tax therein by reason of his domicile, residence, place of incorporation or registration, place of management or any other criterion of a similar nature, but does not include any person who is liable to tax in that State in respect only of income from sources in that State. 2.Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 an individual is a resident of both Contracting States, then his status shall be determined as follows— (a)he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State in which he has a permanent home available to him; if he has a permanent home available to him in both States, he shall be deemed to be a resident of the State with which his personal and economic relations are closer (centre of vital interests); (b)if the State in which he has his centre of vital interests cannot be determined, or if he has no permanent home available to him in either State, he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State in which he has an habitual abode; (c)if he has an habitual abode in both Sates or in neither of them, he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State of which he is a national; (d)if an individual is a national of both States or of neither of them, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall settle the question by mutual agreement. 3.Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph (1), a person other than an individual is a resident of both Contracting States, then it shall be deemed to be a resident of the State in which its place of effective management is situated. Permanent establishment 1.For the purposes of this Agreement, the term “permanent establishment” means a fixed place of business through which the business of an enterprise is wholly or partly carried on. 2.The term “permanent establishment” includes especially— (a)a place of management; (b)a branch; (c)an office; (d)a factory; (f)a mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry or any other place of extraction or exploitation of natural resources; or (g)an installation or structure used for the exploration of natural resources provided that the installation or structure continues for a period of not less than 183 days. 3.The term “permanent establishment” likewise encompasses— (a)a building site, a construction, assembly or installation project, or supervisory activity in connection with such site or activity, but only where such site, project or activity continues for a period of not less than 183 days. (b)the furnishing of services, including consultancy services, by an enterprise through employees or other personnel engaged by the enterprise for such purpose, but only where activities of that nature continue (for the same or connected project) within the Contracting State for a period or periods aggregating not less than 183 days in any twelve month period commencing or ending in the fiscal year concerned. 4.Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, the term “permanent establishment” shall be deemed not to include— (a)the use of facilities solely for the purpose of storage or display of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise; (b)the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of storage or display; (c)the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of processing by another enterprise; (e)the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of carrying on, for the enterprise, any other activity of a preparatory or auxiliary character; (f)the maintenance of a fixed place of a business solely for any combination of activities mentioned in subparagraphs (a) to (e), provided that the overall activity of the fixed place of business resulting from this combination is of a preparatory or auxiliary, character. 5.Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, where a person - other than an agent of an independent status to whom paragraph 6 applies - is acting in a Contracting State on behalf of an enterprise of the other Contracting State, that enterprise shall be deemed to have a permanent establishment in the first mentioned Contracting State in respect of any activities which that person undertakes for the enterprise if the person— (a)has, and habitually exercises in that State an authority to conclude contracts in the name of the enterprise; (b)has no such authority, but habitually maintains in the first-mentioned Contracting State a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise from which he regularly fills orders or makes deliveries on behalf of the enterprise; unless the activities of such person are limited to those mentioned in paragraph 4 which, if exercised through a fixed place of business, would not make this fixed place of business a permanent establishment under the provisions of that paragraph. 6.An enterprise shall not be deemed to have a permanent establishment in a Contracting State merely because it carries on business in that State through a broker, general commission agent or any other agent of an independent status, provided that such persons are acting in the ordinary course of their business. 7.Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, an insurance enterprise of a Contracting State shall, except in regard to reinsurance, be deemed to have a permanent establishment in the other Contracting State if it collects premiums in the territory of that other State or insures risks situated therein through a person other than an agent of an independent status to whom paragraph 6 applies. 8.The fact that a company which is a resident of a Contracting State controls or is controlled by a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State, or which carries on business in that other State (whether through a permanent establishment or otherwise) shall not of itself constitute either company a permanent establishment of the other. Income from immovable property 1.Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from immovable property, including income from agriculture or forestry, situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State. 2.The term “immovable property” shall have the meaning which it has under the law of the Contracting State in which the property in question is situated. The term shall in any case include property accessory to immovable property, livestock and equipment used in agriculture and forestry, rights to which the provisions of general law respecting landed property apply, usufruct of immovable property and rights to variable or fixed payments as consideration for the working of, or the right to work, mineral deposits, sources and other natural resources; ships, boats and aircraft shall not be regarded as immovable property. 3.The provisions of paragraph 1 shall apply to income derived from the direct use, letting, or use in any other form of immovable property. 4.The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 3 shall also apply to the income from immovable property of an enterprise and to income from immovable property used for the performance of independent personal services. 1.The profits of an enterprise of a Contracting State shall be taxable only in that State unless the enterprise carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein. If the enterprise carries on business as aforesaid, the profits of the enterprise may be taxed in the other State but only so much of them as are attributable to that permanent establishment. 2.Subject to the provisions of paragraph 3, where an enterprise of a Contracting State carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein, there shall in each Contracting State be attributed to that permanent establishment the profits which it might be expected to make if it were a distinct and separate enterprise engaged in the same or similar activities under the same or similar conditions and dealing wholly independently with the enterprise of which it is a permanent establishment. 3.In determining the profits of a permanent establishment, there shall be allowed as deductions expenses which are incurred for the purposes of the business of a permanent establishment, including executive and general administrative expenses so incurred, whether in the State in which the permanent establishment is situated or elsewhere. However, no such deduction shall be allowed in respect of amounts, if any, paid (otherwise than towards reimbursement of actual expenses) by the permanent establishment to the head office of the enterprise or any of its other officers, by way of royalties, fees or other similar payments in return for the use of patent or other rights, or by way of commission, for specific services performed or for management, or, excepts in the case of a banking enterprise by way of interest on moneys lent to the permanent establishment. Likewise, no account shall be taken, in the determination of the profits of a permanent establishment, for amounts charged (otherwise than towards reimbursement of actual expenses), by the permanent establishment to the head office of the enterprise or any of its other offices, by way of royalties, fees or other similar payments in return for the use of patents or other rights, or by way of commission for specific services performed or for management, or, except in the case of a banking enterprise by way of interest on moneys lent to the head office of the enterprise or any of its other offices. 4.No profits shall be attributed to a permanent establishment by reason of the mere purchase by that permanent establishment of goods or merchandise for the enterprise. 5.For the purpose of the preceding paragraphs, the profits to be attributed to the permanent establishment shall be determined by the same method year by year unless there is good and sufficient reason to the contrary. 6.Where profits include items of income, which are dealt with separately in other Articles of this Agreement, then the provisions of those Articles shall not be affected by the provisions of this Article. 1.Profits of an enterprise of a Contracting State from the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic shall be taxable only in that State. 2.For the purposes of this Article, profits from the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic include— (a)profits from the rental on a bareboat basis of ships or aircraft; and (b)profits from the use, maintenance or rental of containers (including trailers and related equipment for the transport of containers) used for the transport of goods or merchandise, where such rental or such use, maintenance or rental, as the case may be, is incidental to the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic. 3.The provisions of paragraph (1) of this Article shall also apply to profits from the participation in a pool, a joint business or an international operating agency, but only to so much of the profits so derived as is attributable to the participant in proportion to its share in the joint operation. (a)an enterprise of a Contracting State participates directly or indirectly in the management, control or capital of an enterprise of the other Contracting state, or (b)the same persons participate directly or indirectly in the management, control or capital of an enterprise of a Contracting State and an enterprise of the other Contracting State, and in either case conditions are made or imposed between the two enterprises in their commercial or financial relations which differ from those which would be made between independent enterprises, then any profits which would, but for those conditions, have accrued, to one of the enterprises, but, by reason of those conditions have not so accrued may be included in the profits of that enterprise and taxed accordingly. 2.Where a Contracting State includes in the profits of an enterprise of that State - and taxes accordingly - profits on which an enterprise of the other Contracting State has been charged to tax in that other State and the profits so included are profits which would have accrued to the enterprise of the first-mentioned State if the conditions made between the two enterprises had been those which would have been made between independent enterprises, then that other State shall make an appropriate adjustment to the amount of the tax charged therein on those profits. In determining such adjustment, due regard shall be had to the other provisions of this Agreement and the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall if necessary consult each other. 1.Dividends paid by a company which is a resident of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State. 2.However, such dividends may also be taxed in the Contracting State of which the company paying the dividends is a resident and according to the laws of that State, but if the beneficial owner of the dividends is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed— (a)5 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends if the beneficial owner is a company which holds at least 25 per cent of the capital of the company paying dividends; or This paragraph shall not affect the taxation of the company in respect of the profits out of which the dividends were distributed. 3.The term “dividends” as used in this Article means income from shares, “jouissance” share or “jouissance” rights, mining shares, founders‘ shares or other rights (not being debt-claims) participating in profits, as well as income from other corporate rights which is subjected to the same taxation treatment as income from shares by the laws of the State of which the company making the distribution is a resident. 4.The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the dividends, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State of which the company paying the dividends is a resident, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the holding in respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply. 5.Where a company which is a resident of a Contracting State derives profits or income from the other Contracting State, that other State may not impose any tax on the dividends paid by the company, except insofar as such dividends are paid to a resident of that other State or in so far as the holding in respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected with a permanent establishment or a fixed base situated in that other State, nor subject the company‘s undistributed profits to a tax on the undistributed profits, even if the dividends paid or the undistributed profits consist wholly or partly of profits or income arising in such other State. 1.Interest arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State. 2.However, such interest may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which it arises and according to the laws of that State, but if the recipient is the beneficial owner of the interest, the tax so charged shall not exceed 7.50 per cent of the gross amount of the interest. 3.Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, interest arising in a Contracting State shall be exempt from tax in that State if it is derived by the Government of the other Contracting State or a political subdivision, a local authority or a public authority thereof. 4.The term “interest” as used in this Article means income from debt-claims of every kind, whether or not secured by mortgage and whether or not carrying a right to participate in the debtor‘s profits, and in particular, income from government securities and income from bonds or debentures, including premiums and prizes attaching to such securities, bonds and debentures. Penalty charges for late payment shall not be regarded as interest for the purpose of this Article. 5.The provisions of paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the interest, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which the interest arises, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the debtclaim in respect of which the interest is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply. 6.Interest shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is that State itself, a local authority or a resident of that State. Where, however, the person paying interest, whether he is a resident of a Contracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fixed base in connection with which the indebtedness on which the interest is paid was incurred, and such interest is borne by such permanent establishment or fixed base, then such interest shall be deemed to arise in the State in which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated. 7.Where by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the interest, having regard to the debt-claim for which it is paid, exceeds the amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the last-mentioned amount. In such a case, the excess part of the payments shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other provisions of this Agreement. 1.Royalties arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed only in that other State. 2.However, such royalties may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which they arise and according to the laws of that State, but if the recipient is the beneficial owner of the royalties the tax so charged shall not exceed 10 percent of the gross amount of the royalties. 3.The term “royalties” as used in this Article means payments of any kind received as a consideration for the use of, or the right to use, any copyright of literary, artistic or scientific work (including cinematograph films and films, tapes or disks for radio or television broadcasting) any patent, trade mark, design or model, plan, secret formula or process, or for the use of or the right to use industrial, commercial or scientific equipment or for information concerning industrial, commercial or scientific experience. 4.The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the royalties, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which the royalties arise, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the right or property in respect of which the royalties are paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply. 5.Royalties shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is that State itself, a local authority or a or a resident of that State. Where, however, the person paying the royalties, whether he is a resident of a Contracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fixed base in connection with which the right or property in respect of which the royalties are paid is effectively connected and such royalties are borne by such permanent establishment or fixed base, then such royalties shall be deemed to arise in the State in which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated. 6.Where by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the royalties, having regard to the use, right or information for which they are paid, exceeds the amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the last-mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the payments shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other provisions of this Agreement. Capital gains 1.Gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of immovable property referred to in Article 6 and situated in the other Contracting State, or from the alienation of shares in a company the assets of which consists principally of such property, may be taxed in that other State. 2.Gains from alienation of movable property forming part of the business property of a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State or of movable property pertaining to a fixed base available to a resident of a Contracting State in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing independent personal services, including such gains from the alienation of such a permanent establishment (alone or with the whole enterprise) or of such fixed base, may be taxed in that other State. 3.Gains of an enterprise of a Contracting State from the alienation of ships or aircraft operated in international traffic or movable property pertaining to the operation of such ships or aircraft shall be taxable only in that State. 4.Gains from the alienation of any property other than that referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3, shall be taxable only in the Contracting State of which the alienator is a resident. 5.Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 4, gains from the alienation of shares or other corporate rights of a company which is a resident of one of the Contracting States derived by an individual who was a resident of that State and who after acquiring such shares or rights has become a resident of the other Contracting State, may be taxed in the first-mentioned State if the alienation of the share or other corporate rights occurs at any time during the six years next following the date on which the individual has ceased to be a resident of that first-mentioned State. Independent personal services 1.Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of professional services or other activities of an independent character shall be taxable only in that State unless he has a fixed base regularly available to him in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing his activities. If he has such a fixed base, the income may be taxed in the other State but only so much of it as is attributed to that fixed base. For the purposes of this Agreement, where a resident of a Contracting State is present in the other Contracting State for a period or periods aggregating not less than 183 days in any twelve-month period commencing or ending in the fiscal year concerned, he shall be deemed to have a fixed base regularly available to him in that other State and the income that is derived from his activities that are performed in that other State shall be attributable to that fixed base. 2.The term “professional services” includes especially independent scientific, literary, artistic, educational or teaching activities as well as the independent activities of physicians, lawyers, engineers, architects, dentists and accountants. Dependent personal services 1.Subject to the provisions of Articles 16, 18 and 19, salaries, wages and other similar remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employment shall be taxable only in that State unless the employment is exercised in the other Contracting State. If the employment is so exercised, such remuneration as is derived there from may be taxed in that other State. 2.Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employment exercised in the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in the first-mentioned State if— (a)the recipient is present in the other Contracting State for a period or periods aggregating less than 183 days in any twelve month period commencing or ending in the fiscal year concerned; and (b)the remuneration is paid by, or on behalf of, an employer who is not a resident of the other State; and (c)the remuneration is not borne by a permanent establishment or a fixed base which the employer has in the other Contracting State. 3.Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, remuneration derived in respect of an employment exercised aboard a ship or aircraft operated in international traffic by an enterprise of a Contracting State may be taxed in that State. Directors' fees Directors' fees and other similar payments derived by a resident of a Contracting State in his capacity as a member of the board of directors of a company, which is a resident of the other Contracting State, may be taxed in that other State. 1.Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7, 14 and 15 income derived by a resident of a Contracting State as an entertainer, such as a theatre, motion picture, radio or television artiste, or a musician, or as a sportsperson, from his personal activities as such exercised in the other Contracting State, may be taxed in that other State. 2.Where income in respect of personal activities exercised by an entertainer or a sportsperson in his capacity as such accrues not to the entertainer or sportsperson himself but to another person, that income may, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7, 14 and 15, be taxed in the Contracting State in which the activities of the entertainer or sportsperson State. 3.Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the activities exercised in the other Contracting State as envisaged in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be exempt from tax in that other State if the visit to that State is supported wholly or mainly by public funds of the first mentioned State, the political subdivision or a local authority or a public authority thereof. Pensions and annuities 1.Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 19, pensions and other similar remuneration and annuities paid to a resident of a Contracting State in consideration of past employment shall be taxable only in that State. 2.Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, pensions and other similar payments made under the social security legislation of a Contracting State shall be taxable only in that State. 3.The term “annuity” means a stated sum payable periodically at stated times during life or during a specified or ascertainable period of time under an obligation to make the payments in return for adequate and full consideration in money or money‘s worth. (a)Remuneration, other than a pension paid by a Contracting State, political subdivision, a local authority or a public authority thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State, political subdivision, local authority or public authority shall be taxable only in that State. (b)However, such remuneration shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the services are rendered in that other State and the individual is a resident of that State who— (i)is a national of that State; or (ii)did not become a resident of that State solely for the purpose of rendering the services. (a)Any pension paid by, or out of funds created by, a Contracting State or a political subdivision, a local authority or a public authority thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State, political subdivision, local authority or public authority shall be taxable only in that State. (b)However, such pension shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the individual is a resident of, and a national of, that State. 3.The provisions of Articles 15, 16 and 18 shall apply to remuneration and pensions in respect of services rendered in connection with a business carried on by a Contracting State, political subdivision, a local authority or a public authority thereof. Students and trainees 1.A student, apprentice or business trainee who is present in a Contracting Sate solely for the purpose of his education or training and who is, or immediately before being so present was, a resident of the other Contracting State, shall be exempt from tax in the first-mentioned State on payments received outside that first-mentioned State for the purpose of his maintenance, education and training. 2.In respect of grants or scholarships not covered by paragraph 1, a student or business apprentice referred to in paragraph 1 shall be entitled to the same exemptions, reliefs or reductions in respect of taxes available to residents of the first-mentioned Contracting State. 1.Technical fees arising in a Contracting State which are derived by a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State. 2.However, such technical fees may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which they arise, and according to the law of that State; but where such technical fees are derived by a resident of the other Contracting State who is subject to tax in that Sate in respect thereof, the tax charged in the Contracting State in which the technical fees arise shall not exceed 10 per cent of the gross amount of such fees. 3.The term “technical fees” as used in this article means payments of any kind to any person, other than to an employee of the person making the payments, in consideration for any services of an administrative, technical, managerial or consultancy nature performed outside that State. 4.The provisions of paragraphs (1) and (2) of this Article shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the technical fees, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which the technical fees arise, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the technical fees are effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such a case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be shall apply. 5.Technical fees shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is that State, a political subdivision, a local authority, a public authority or a resident of that State. Where, however, the person paying the technical fees, whether he is a resident of a Contracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or fixed base in connection with which the obligation to pay the technical fees was incurred, and such technical fees are borne by that permanent establishment or fixed base, then such technical fees shall be deemed to arise in the State in which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated. 6.Where by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the technical fees paid exceeds, for whatever reason, the amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the last-mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the payments shall remain taxable according to the law of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other provisions of this Agreement. Other income 1.Items of income of a resident of a Contracting State wherever arising not dealt with in the foregoing Articles of this Agreement shall be taxable only in that State. 2.The provisions of paragraph 1 shall not apply to income other than income from immovable property as defined in paragraph (2) of Article 6, if the recipient of such income, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the right or property in respect of which the income is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply. 3.Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs (1) and (2), items of income of a resident of a Contracting State not dealt with in the foregoing Articles of this Agreement and arising in the other Contracting State may also be taxed in that other State. Elimination of double taxation 1.Double taxation shall be eliminated as follows— (a)In Botswana, subject to the provisions of the law of Botswana regarding the allowance of a credit against Botswana tax of tax payable under the laws of a country outside Botswana,Seychelles tax payable under the laws of Seychelles and in accordance with this Agreement, whether directly or by deduction, on profits or income liable to tax in Seychelles shall be allowed as a credit against any Botswana tax payable in respect of the same profits or income by reference to which the Seychelles tax is computed. However, the amount of such credit shall not exceed the amount of the Botswana tax payable on that income in accordance with the laws of Botswana. (b)In Seychelles, subject to the provisions of the law of Seychelles regarding the allowance of a credit against Seychelles tax of tax payable under the laws of a country outside Seychelles, the Botswana tax payable under the laws of Botswana and in accordance with this Agreement, whether directly or by deduction, on profits or income liable to tax in Botswana shall be allowed as a credit against any Seychelles tax payable in respect of the same profits or income by reference to which the Botswana tax is computed. However, the amount of such credit shall not exceed the amount of the Seychelles tax payable on that income in accordance with the laws of Seychelles.For the purposes of paragraph 1 of this Article, the terms “Botswana tax payable and “Seychelles tax payable” shall be deemed to include the amount of tax which would have been paid in Botswana or in Seychelles, as the case may be, but for any exemption or reduction granted in accordance with laws designed to promote economic development in that Contracting State. Non-discrimination 1.Nationals of a Contracting State shall not be subjected in the other Contracting State to any taxation or any requirement connected therewith, which is other or more burdensome than the taxation and connected requirements to which nationals of that other State in the same circumstances are or may be subject. This provision shall, notwithstanding the provisions of Article 1, also apply to persons who are not residents of one or both of the Contracting States. 2.The taxation on a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State shall not be less favourably levied in that other State than the taxation levied on enterprises of that other State carrying on the same activities. 3.Enterprises of a Contracting State, the capital of which is wholly or partly owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by one or more residents of the other Contracting State, shall not be subjected in the first-mentioned State to any taxation or any requirement connected therewith which is other or more burdensome than the taxation and connected requirements to which other similar enterprises of the first-mentioned State are or may be subjected. 4.Except where the provisions of paragraph (1) of Article 9, paragraph (7) of Article 11, or paragraph (6) of Article 12, paragraph (6) of Article 21 apply, interest, royalties, technical fees and other disbursements paid by an enterprise of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall, for the purpose of determining the taxable profits of such enterprise, be deductible under the same conditions as if they has been paid to a resident of the first-mentioned State. 5.Nothing contained in this Article shall be construed as obliging either Contracting State to grant to individuals not resident in that State any of the personal allowances, reliefs and reductions for tax purposes which are granted to individuals so resident. Mutual agreement procedure 1.Where a person considers that the actions of one or both of the Contracting States result or will result for him in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement, he may, irrespective of the remedies provided by the domestic laws of those States, present his case to the competent authority of the Contracting State of which he is a resident or, if his case comes under paragraph (1) of Article 24, to that of the Contracting State of which he is a national. The case must be presented within three years from the first notification of the action resulting in taxation, not in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement. 2.The competent authority shall endeavour, if the objection appears to it to be justified and if it is not itself able to arrive at a satisfactory solution, to resolve the case by mutual agreement with the competent authority of the other Contracting State, with a view to the avoidance of taxation which is not in accordance with this Agreement. Any Agreement reached shall be implemented notwithstanding any time limits in the domestic law of the Contracting States. 3.The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall endeavour to resolve by mutual agreement any difficulties or doubts arising as to the interpretation or application of this Agreement. They may also consult together for the elimination of double taxation in cases not provided for in this Agreement. 4.The competent authorities of the Contracting States may communicate with each other directly for the purpose of reaching an agreement in the sense of the preceding paragraphs. 1.The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall exchange such information as is necessary for carrying out the provision of this Agreement or of the domestic laws of the Contracting States concerning taxes covered by this Agreement, in particular for the prevention of fraud or evasion of such taxes, insofar as the taxation thereunder is not contrary to this Agreement. The exchange of information is not restricted by Article 1. Any information received by a Contracting State shall be treated as secret in the same manner as information obtained under the domestic laws of that State and shall be disclosed only to persons or authorities (including courts and administrative bodies) involved in the assessment or collection of, the enforcement or prosecution in respect of, or the determination of appeals in relation to, the taxes covered by this Agreement. Such persons or authorities shall use the information only for such purposes. They may disclose the information in public court proceedings or in judicial decisions. 2.In no case shall the provisions of paragraph (1) be construed so as to impose on a Contracting State the obligation— (a)to carry out administrative measures at variance with the laws and administrative practice of that or of the other Contracting State; (b)to supply information which is not obtainable under the laws or in the normal course of the administration of that or of the other Contracting State; and (c)to supply information, which would disclose any trade, business, industrial, commercial or professional secret or trade process, or information, the disclosure of which would be contrary to public policy (ordre public). 3.The competent authorities should, through consultation develop appropriate conditions, methods and technique concerning the matters respecting which such exchange of information should be made, as well as exchange information regarding tax avoidance where appropriate. Members of diplomatic missions and consular posts Nothing in this Agreement shall affect the fiscal privileges diplomatic agents or consular officers under the general rules of international law or under the provisions of special agreements. Entry into force 1.Each of the Contracting States shall notify to the other the completion of the procedures required by its law for the bringing into force of this Agreement. This Agreement shall enter into force on the date of receipt of the later of these notifications. (a)In Botswana, in respect of income tax and capital gains tax, on taxable income derived on or after the first day of July of the year next following that of the entry into force of this Agreement. (b)In Seychelles, in respect of business tax and petroleum tax, on taxable income derived on or after the first day of January of the year next following that of the entry into force of this Agreement. This Agreement shall remain in force until terminated by a Contracting State. Either Contracting State may terminate this Agreement, through diplomatic channels, by giving written notice of termination at least six months before the end of any calendar year after the expiration of a period of five years from the date of its entry into force. In such case, this Agreement shall cease to have effect— (a)In Botswana, in respect of income tax and capital gains tax, on taxable income derived on or after the first day of July of the year next following that in which the notice of termination is given. (b)In Seychelles, in respect of business tax and petroleum tax, on taxable income derived on or after the first day of January of the year next following that in which the notice of termination is given. IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, being duly authorized thereto, have signed this Agreement.DONE at JOHANNESBURG this 26th day of August, 2004 in duplicate in the English language. The Seychelles Legal Information Institute (SeyLII) offers free and anonymous access to case law, legislation and secondary legal materials from the Seychelles. Access to the letter of the law supports the rule of law, access to justice and economic development. SeyLII is an independent, self-funded organisation and needs your support. SeyLII was established in 2012 under the auspices of the Judiciary of Seychelles and with the support of AfricanLII. It became an independent registered association in 2015. SeyLII is a member of the international Free Access to Law Movement and subscribes to the principles of the Declaration on Free Access to Law.	50,591
Séamus Sweeney is a writer new to Alt Hist, but with a number of writing credits in publications such as The Times Literary Supplement, The Guardian, The Spectator, New Statesman, The Lancet andThe Scotsman. We asked him a few questions about his story for Alt Hist Issue 3, ‘Dublin Can Be Heaven’, his other writing, and what he thinks about breakfast. Are the Organisation and characters you write about based on historical reality? How did you come up with the idea for them? Andrija Artuković was a politician of the Croatian fascist Ustaše state, and was nicknamed “the Himmler of the Balkans” for his part in genocidal war crimes during World War II. He fled to America via Switzerland and Ireland, where he spent 1948 and where one of this children was born. A good online source for reading about him is Hubert Butler’s essay “The Artukovitch File”, available at http://www.archipelago.org/vol1-2/butler.htm. Obviously in reality he went to America, rather than meeting the fate described in the story. The Organisation was made up by myself out of whole cloth; probably the proximate inspiration for the story was Daniel Leach’s Fugitive Ireland, a book about the various minority nationalist groups (Basques, Bretons, Scots and others who looked to independent Ireland as an exemplar) and collaborationists who fled to Ireland post World War II. Leach’s book shows just how marginal such groups were, and how the still-new Irish state trod the difficult path between asserting its sovereignity and avoiding Allied opprobium. While it is a scrupously unsensationalist and sober look at this issue, it contains enough imagination-provoking titbits to launch a host of counterfactual stories. What was the status of Ireland during World War Two? Neutral, but on the Allied side. Not entirely a sophism; one of the strengths of Leach’s book (and many others) is that it shows how Ireland’s neutrality, in the early years of the War, was beneficial to the Allies. Entering the war on the Allied side not only would not have been very popular (less than twenty years previously the Irish Free State had violently acheived independence) but would have required the Allies to protect Ireland militarily against the inevitable Axis attacks. Not to mention the pretext provided for a German invasion which would have tied up Allied forces quite severely. In any case, as the war proceeded Ireland’s neutrality was more openly derided among the Allies. How did you get into writing? I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t writing. When I was a child, I was into books about dinosaurs and Usborne’s fact books. I began to write my own versions in copybooks. In school I was always writing ideas for stories and poems, although I rarely finished them. What boosted my confidence in terms of trying to get published was being involved in the university paper, The University Observer, where I was writing a few thousand words for publication every couple of weeks. While this was non fiction rather than fiction, it gave me confidence in approaching editors and I later began to review books for the TLS and The Lancet and other outlets. What do you do when you’re not writing? I work as a doctor which is rather busy, and spend time with my family. Which is also rather busy. Are you working on any other short stories or novels at the moment and if so can you tell us a bit more about them? I am trying to finish a longish short story about time travel. A couple of years ago I got thinking about the emotional cost of time travel, especially if you couldn’t go back to your own time. I guess it reflects universal concerns about the passing of time. My time traveller is a father whose child has a seemingly incurable disease, at least in our time. The songwriter Jule Styne had a saying: “its easy to be clever, the really clever thing is to be simple.” It’s quite easy in a way to be drawn into long pseudophilosophical bits, and harder to focus on the emotion. What are your ambitions as a writer? To have a fidelity to the characters, the ideas and the emotions I want to explore, and to follow where they lead. At any one time I have a few particular threads I want to follow. Sometimes I think “this would make a novel” and when I plan and write, the idea naturally coheres into a short story. The other day I was reading JG Ballard’s introduction to his collected short stories, and he remarked how many writers – himself included- saw the novel as the great virility test of a young writer. And yet while there are no perfect novels, there are perfect short stories. On one level I would love to write a novel, on another it would have to be for the artistically right reasons and not “because it’s a novel.” So I’ve answered your question with an answer about how I don’t want to write a novel, which is not something I have done in any case. Where and what is the best Irish breakfast, what’s the difference to English and American? The contrast is probably more with continental breakfasts! The classic Irish breakfast is sausage, egg (fried or scrambled), white pudding, black pudding, rashers and toast. Laterally you get a hash brown or two, and in a lot of cases a tomato or mushrooms. There are many places that do wonderful Irish breakfasts, and many places that do terrible ones. The last one I had, which was pretty good, is a place called Howard’s Way in Churchtown in Dublin, http://www.howardsway.ie/. Séamus Sweeney’s stories and other pieces can be found at Nthposition.com Don’t forget to take a look at ‘Dublin Can Be Heaven’ too.	5,775
Author Topic: The "psychotic reaction" idea and its relation to the cuts in the tent. (Read 2126 times) 0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic. October 10, 2020, 11:40:09 AM The "psychotic reaction" idea and its relation to the cuts in the tent. In a post several days ago, I stated that a "psychotic reaction" explanation was possible but that the evidence didn't seem to suggest it was likely. Why? They seem to have secured the tent, calmly walked down to the tree line, and did rational things in order to survive the night. Now I think this needs to be reconsidered, not for most of the incident but mainly what led up to and included cutting the tent (for the scenario where that is relevant). One thing I find frustrating is how important that tent likely is to understanding the DPI and how nobody seems to explain what happened to it, or the inspection/assessment of the tent was done improperly. On this page, for example, it seems that there's no strong conclusion one can come to about it: However, when it was pitched in the investigation area, it appears to have been torn to shreds. Did the rescuers do most of this? If so, how can we tell? We are also told there are a bunch of attempted cuts that didn't go through. This certainly could be consistent with some sort of "psychotic reaction" incident, though it's also consistent with a lot of the "far out" explanations, such as a UFO craft hovering above or poisoning of some kind. But let's stick with the more mundane possibilities here (the others have been discussed at length and I have nothing to add to those). For example, from the diaries, we get the sense that there was a lot of internal dissension, and that some thought Igor was acting like a tyrant. We know that Igor, and one or more others, had an unusually large amount of urine in his body at the time of death, but there were a couple of frozen urine puddles outside the tent most likely from Semyon and Nikolay. Here we are told they likely were outisde when the "event" occurred: So, one obvious scenario is that Igor told them not to go outside the tent because it was too cold or dangerous in other ways too (and that they'd have to hold their urine that night), but they went outside anyway, and he woke up while they were outside. At this point a number of things may have occurred, but again, if we knew more about that tent it would perhaps point us in the right direction here. For example, Semyon or Nikolay may have been trying to get back into the tent quickly, and fell onto the pole or ski holding it up on the side. This may have angered Igor so much that he cut a hole in the side, wanting to get out and yell at them, or worse. Or could Semyon and Nikolay gotten drunk, fell on the side of the tent, collapsing it, and that panicked the others, at least one of whom cut the tent open. Or Semyon or Nikolay could have been so angry at Igor yelling at them about being outside that he pushed over the pole/ski, collapsing the tent, and telling him he wasn't their king, which led to Igor being so angry he cut his way out to get at them. This would explain why there were two sets of footprints going down to the tree line, why some (including Igor) had hand injuries consistent with a fist fight, why at least two different plans were initiated once they got down to the tree line, and why after the "two Yuris" apparently died first, the remaining seven went in different directions literally. I think the best thing to do is to try and recreate, exactly, the two tents sewn together and put that up on the mountainside, in the same place and under the same weather conditions, with nine volunteers in there, to see what happens, but until then even the strange urine situation should not be entirely dismissed as possibly being the spark that lit the fuse, and the explanation being of the "psychotic reaction" variety. « Last Edit: October 10, 2020, 05:44:09 PM by Investigator » October 10, 2020, 12:56:24 PM Reply #1 Re: The "psychotic reaction" idea and its relation to the cuts in the tent. It could have been as simple as Semyon needing more warmth than the others, considering human metabolism and age, and Igor saying no (due to certificate) to setting up the heater that night on the mountain side. Built up rage is a destroyer.	4,572
Article 15 – Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. Article 16 – Equality of opportunity in matters of public employment. Article 17 – Abolition of Untouchability. Article 20 – Protection in respect of conviction for offences. Article 21 – Protection of life and personal liberty. Article 21A – Right to education. Article 22 – Protection against arrest and detention in certain cases. Article 23 – Prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labour. Article 24 – Prohibition of employment of children in factories, etc. Article 25 – Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion. Article 26 – Freedom to manage religious affairs. Article 27 – Freedom as to payment of taxes for promotion of any particular religion. Article 28 – Freedom as to attendance at religious instruction or religious worship in certain educational institutions. Article 29 – Protection of interests of minorities. Article 30 – Right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions. Article 31 – Compulsory acquisition of property. Article 31A – Saving of laws providing for acquisition of estates, etc. Article 31B – Validation of certain Acts and Regulations. Article 31C – Saving of laws giving effect to certain directive principles. Article 31D – Saving of laws in respect of anti-national activities. Article 32 – Remedies for enforcement of rights conferred by this Part. Article 32A – Constitutional validity of State laws not to be considered in proceedings under article 32. Article 33 – Power of Parliament to modify the rights conferred by this Part in their application to Forces, etc. Article 34 – Restriction on rights conferred by this Part while martial law is in force in any area. Article 35 – Legislation to give effect to the provisions of this Part. In this Part, unless the context otherwise requires, “the State’’ includes the Government and Parliament of India and the Government and the Legislature of each of the States and all local or other authorities within the territory of India or under the control of the Government of India. 13. Laws inconsistent with or in derogation of the fundamental rights. (1) All laws in force in the territory of India immediately before the commencement of this Constitution, in so far as they are inconsistent with the provisions of this Part, shall, to the extent of such inconsistency, be void. (2) The State shall not make any law which takes away or abridges the rights conferred by this Part and any law made in contravention of this clause shall, to the extent of the contravention, be void. (a) “law” includes any Ordinance, order, bye-law, rule, regulation, notification, custom or usage having in the territory of India the force of law; (b) “laws in force” includes laws passed or made by a Legislature or other competent authority in the territory of India before the commencement of this Constitution and not previously repealed, notwithstanding that any such law or any part thereof may not be then in operation either at all or in particular areas. (4) Nothing in this article shall apply to any amendment of this Constitution made under article 368. Right to Equality 14. Equality before law. The State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India. 15. Prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. (1) The State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them. (2) No citizen shall, on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them, be subject to any disability, liability, restriction or condition with regard to- (a) access to shops, public restaurants, hotels and places of public entertainment; or (b) the use of wells, tanks, bathing ghats, roads and places of public resort maintained wholly or partly out of State funds or dedicated to the use of the general public. (3) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any special provision for women and children. (4) Nothing in this article or in clause (2) of article 29 shall prevent the State from making any special provision for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens or for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. (5) Nothing in this article or in sub-clause (g) of clause (1) of article 19 shall prevent the State from making any special provision, by law, for the advancement of any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens or for the Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled Tribes in so far as such special provisions relate to their admission to educational institutions including private educational institutions, whether aided or unaided by the State, other than the minority educational institutions referred to in clause (1) of article 30. (6) Nothing in this article or sub-clause (g) of clause (1) of article 19 or clause (2) of article 29 shall prevent the State from making,- (a) any special provision for the advancement of any economically weaker sections of citizens other than the classes mentioned in clauses (4) and (5); and (b) any special provision for the advancement of any economically weaker sections of citizens other than the classes mentioned in clauses (4) and (5) in so far as such special provisions relate to their admission to educational institutions including private educational institutions, whether aided or unaided by the State, other than the minority educational institutions referred to in clause (1) of article 30, which in the case of reservation would be in addition to the existing reservations and subject to a maximum of ten percent of the total seats in each category. For the purposes of this article and article 16, “economically weaker sections” shall be such as may be notified by the State from time to time on the basis of family income and other indicators of economic disadvantage. Inserted by 103rd Amendment in January 2019. 16. Equality of opportunity in matters of public employment. (1) There shall be equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters relating to employment or appointment to any office under the State. (2) No citizen shall, on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, descent, place of birth, residence or any of them, be ineligible for, or discriminated against in respect of, any employment or office under the State. (3) Nothing in this article shall prevent Parliament from making any law prescribing, in regard to a class or classes of employment or appointment to an office under the Government of, or any local or other authority within, a State or Union territory, any requirement as to residence within that State or Union territory prior to such employment or appointment. (4) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favour of any backward class of citizens which, in the opinion of the State, is not adequately represented in the services under the State. (4A) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any provision for reservation in matters of promotion, with consequential seniority, to any class or classes of posts in the services under the State in favour of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes which, in the opinion of the State, are not adequately represented in the services under the State. (4B) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from considering any unfilled vacancies of a year which are reserved for being filled up in that year in accordance with any provision for reservation made under clause (4) or clause (4A) as a separate class of vacancies to be filled up in any succeeding year or years and such class of vacancies shall not be considered together with the vacancies of the year in which they are being filled up for determining the ceiling of fifty per cent. reservation on total number of vacancies of that year. (5) Nothing in this article shall affect the operation of any law which provides that the incumbent of an office in connection with the affairs of any religious or denominational institution or any member of the governing body thereof shall be a person professing a particular religion or belonging to a particular denomination. (6) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from making any provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in favour of any economically weaker sections of citizens other than the classes mentioned in clause (4), in addition to the existing reservation and subject to a maximum of ten per cent of the posts in each category. Inserted by 103rd Amendment in January 2019. 17. Abolition of Untouchability. “Untouchability’’ is abolished and its practice in any form is forbidden. The enforcement of any disability arising out of “Untouchability’’ shall be an offence punishable in accordance with law. (1) No title, not being a military or academic distinction, shall be conferred by the State. (2) No citizen of India shall accept any title from any foreign State. (3) No person who is not a citizen of India shall, while he holds any office of profit or trust under the State, accept without the consent of the President any title from any foreign State. (4) No person holding any office of profit or trust under the State shall, without the consent of the President, accept any present, emolument, or office of any kind from or under any foreign State. (1) All citizens shall have the right- (a) to freedom of speech and expression; (b) to assemble peaceably and without arms; (c) to form associations or unions or co-operative societies.* * ‘or co-operative societies’ added in 2011 by 97th Amendment Act. (e) to reside and settle in any part of the territory of India; and (g) to practise any profession, or to carry on any occupation, trade or business. (2) Nothing in sub-clause (a) of clause (1) shall affect the operation of any existing law, or prevent the State from making any law, in so far as such law imposes reasonable restrictions on the exercise of the right conferred by the said sub-clause in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality, or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence. (3) Nothing in sub-clause (b) of the said clause shall affect the operation of any existing law in so far as it imposes, or prevent the State from making any law imposing, in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India or public order, reasonable restrictions on the exercise of the right conferred by the said sub-clause. (4) Nothing in sub-clause (c) of the said clause shall affect the operation of any existing law in so far as it imposes, or prevent the State from making any law imposing, in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India or public order or morality, reasonable restrictions on the exercise of the right conferred by the said sub-clause. (5) Nothing in sub-clauses (d) and (e) of the said clause shall affect the operation of any existing law in so far as it imposes, or prevent the State from making any law imposing, reasonable restrictions on the exercise of any of the rights conferred by the said sub-clauses either in the interests of the general public or for the protection of the interests of any Scheduled Tribe. (6) Nothing in sub-clause (g) of the said clause shall affect the operation of any existing law in so far as it imposes, or prevent the State from making any law imposing, in the interests of the general public, reasonable restrictions on the exercise of the right conferred by the said sub-clause, and, in particular, nothing in the said sub-clause shall affect the operation of any existing law in so far as it relates to, or prevent the State from making any law relating to,- (i) the professional or technical qualifications necessary for practising any profession or carrying on any occupation, trade or business, or (ii) the carrying on by the State, or by a corporation owned or controlled by the State, of any trade, business, industry or service, whether to the exclusion, complete or partial, of citizens or otherwise. 20. Protection in respect of conviction for offences. (1) No person shall be convicted of any offence except for violation of a law in force at the time of the commission of the Act charged as an offence, nor be subjected to a penalty greater than that which might have been inflicted under the law in force at the time of the commission of the offence. (2) No person shall be prosecuted and punished for the same offence more than once. (3) No person accused of any offence shall be compelled to be a witness against himself. 21. Protection of life and personal liberty. No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law. 21A. Right to education. The State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of six to fourteen years in such manner as the State may, by law, determine. 22. Protection against arrest and detention in certain cases. (1) No person who is arrested shall be detained in custody without being informed, as soon as may be, of the grounds for such arrest nor shall he be denied the right to consult, and to be defended by, a legal practitioner of his choice. (2) Every person who is arrested and detained in custody shall be produced before the nearest magistrate within a period of twenty-four hours of such arrest excluding the time necessary for the journey from the place of arrest to the court of the magistrate and no such person shall be detained in custody beyond the said period without the authority of a magistrate. (3) Nothing in clauses (1) and (2) shall apply- (a) to any person who for the time being is an enemy alien; or (b) to any person who is arrested or detained under any law providing for preventive detention. (4) No law providing for preventive detention shall authorise the detention of a person for a longer period than three months unless- (a) an Advisory Board consisting of persons who are, or have been, or are qualified to be appointed as, Judges of a High Court has reported before the expiration of the said period of three months that there is in its opinion sufficient cause for such detention: Provided that nothing in this sub-clause shall authorise the detention of any person beyond the maximum period prescribed by any law made by Parliament under sub-clause (b) of clause (7); or (b) such person is detained in accordance with the provisions of any law made by Parliament under sub-clauses (a) and (b) of clause (7) (5) When any person is detained in pursuance of an order made under any law providing for preventive detention, the authority making the order shall, as soon as may be, communicate to such person the grounds on which the order has been made and shall afford him the earliest opportunity of making a representation against the order. (6) Nothing in clause (5) shall require the authority making any such order as is referred to in that clause to disclose facts which such authority considers to be against the public interest to disclose. (7) Parliament may by law prescribe- (a) the circumstances under which, and the class or classes of cases in which, a person may be detained for a period longer than three months under any law providing for preventive detention without obtaining the opinion of an Advisory Board in accordance with the provisions of sub-clause (a) of clause (4); (b) the maximum period for which any person may in any class or classes of cases be detained under any law providing for preventive detention; and (c) the procedure to be followed by an Advisory Board in an inquiry under sub-clause (a) of clause (4). Right against Exploitation 23. Prohibition of traffic in human beings and forced labour. (1) Traffic in human beings and beggar and other similar forms of forced labour are prohibited and any contravention of this provision shall be an offence punishable in accordance with law. (2) Nothing in this article shall prevent the State from imposing compulsory service for public purposes, and in imposing such service the State shall not make any discrimination on grounds only of religion, race, caste or class or any of them. 24. Prohibition of employment of children in factories, etc. No child below the age of fourteen years shall be employed to work in any factory or mine or engaged in any other hazardous employment. 25. Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion. (1) Subject to public order, morality and health and to the other provisions of this Part, all persons are equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess, practise and propagate religion. (2) Nothing in this article shall affect the operation of any existing law or prevent the State from making any law- (a) regulating or restricting any economic, financial, political or other secular activity which may be associated with religious practice; (b) providing for social welfare and reform or the throwing open of Hindu religious institutions of a public character to all classes and sections of Hindus. The wearing and carrying of kirpans shall be deemed to be included in the profession of the Sikh religion. In sub-clause (b) of clause (2), the reference to Hindus shall be construed as including a reference to persons professing the Sikh, Jaina or Buddhist religion, and the reference to Hindu religious institutions shall be construed accordingly. 26. Freedom to manage religious affairs. Subject to public order, morality and health, every religious denomination or any section thereof shall have the right- (a) to establish and maintain institutions for religious and charitable purposes; (b) to manage its own affairs in matters of religion; (c) to own and acquire movable and immovable property; and 27. Freedom as to payment of taxes for promotion of any particular religion. No person shall be compelled to pay any taxes, the proceeds of which are specifically appropriated in payment of expenses for the promotion or maintenance of any particular religion or religious denomination. 28. Freedom as to attendance at religious instruction or religious worship in certain educational institutions. (1) No religious instruction shall be provided in any educational institution wholly maintained out of State funds. (2) Nothing in clause (1) shall apply to an educational institution which is administered by the State but has been established under any endowment or trust which requires that religious instruction shall be imparted in such institution. (3) No person attending any educational institution recognised by the State or receiving aid out of State funds shall be required to take part in any religious instruction that may be imparted in such institution or to attend any religious worship that may be conducted in such institution or in any premises attached thereto unless such person or, if such person is a minor, his guardian has given his consent thereto. Cultural and Educational Rights 29. Protection of interests of minorities. (1) Any section of the citizens residing in the territory of India or any part thereof having a distinct language, script or culture of its own shall have the right to conserve the same. (2) No citizen shall be denied admission into any educational institution maintained by the State or receiving aid out of State funds on grounds only of religion, race, caste, language or any of them. 30. Right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions. (1) All minorities, whether based on religion or language, shall have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice. (1A) In making any law providing for the compulsory acquisition of any property of an educational institution established and administered by a minority, referred to in clause (1), the State shall ensure that the amount fixed by or determined under such law for the acquisition of such property is such as would not restrict or abrogate the right guaranteed under that clause. (2) The State shall not, in granting aid to educational institutions, discriminate against any educational institution on the ground that it is under the management of a minority, whether based on religion or language. 31. Compulsory acquisition of property. Repealed by the Constitution (Forty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1978, s. 6 (w.e.f. 20-6-1979) 31A. Saving of laws providing for acquisition of estates, etc. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in article 13, no law providing for- (a) the acquisition by the State of any estate or of any rights therein or the extinguishment or modification of any such rights, or (b) the taking over of the management of any property by the State for a limited period either in the public interest or in order to secure the proper management of the property, or (c) the amalgamation of two or more corporations either in the public interest or in order to secure the proper management of any of the corporations, or (d) the extinguishment or modification of any rights of managing agents, secretaries and treasurers, managing directors, directors or managers of corporations, or of any voting rights of shareholders thereof, or (e) the extinguishment or modification of any rights accruing by virtue of any agreement, lease or licence for the purpose of searching for, or winning, any mineral or mineral oil, or the premature termination or cancellation of any such agreement, lease or licence, shall be deemed to be void on the ground that it is inconsistent with, or takes away or abridges any of the rights conferred by article 14 or article 19: Provided that where such law is a law made by the Legislature of a State, the provisions of this article shall not apply thereto unless such law, having been reserved for the consideration of the President, has received his assent: Provided further that where any law makes any provision for the acquisition by the State of any estate and where any land comprised therein is held by a person under his personal cultivation, it shall not be lawful for the State to acquire any portion of such land as is within the ceiling limit applicable to him under any law for the time being in force or any building or structure standing thereon or appurtenant thereto, unless the law relating to the acquisition of such land, building or structure, provides for payment of compensation at a rate which shall not be less than the market value thereof. (a) the expression ‘‘estate’’ shall, in relation to any local area, have the same meaning as that expression or its local equivalent has in the existing law relating to land tenures in force in that area and shall also include- (i) any jagir, inam or muafi or other similar grant and in the States of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, any janmam right; (ii) any land held under ryotwari settlement; (iii) any land held or let for purposes of agriculture or for purposes ancillary thereto, including waste land, forest land, land for pasture or sites of buildings and other structures occupied by cultivators of land, agricultural labourers and village artisans; (b) the expression ‘‘rights’’, in relation to an estate, shall include any rights vesting in a proprietor, sub-proprietor, under-proprietor, tenure-holder, raiyat, under-raiyat or other intermediary and any rights or privileges in respect of land revenue. 31B. Validation of certain Acts and Regulations. Without prejudice to the generality of the provisions contained in article 31A, none of the Acts and Regulations specified in the Ninth Schedule nor any of the provisions thereof shall be deemed to be void, or ever to have become void, on the ground that such Act, Regulation or provision is inconsistent with, or takes away or abridges any of the rights conferred by, any provisions of this Part, and notwithstanding any judgment, decree or order of any court or Tribunal to the contrary, each of the said Acts and Regulations shall, subject to the power of any competent Legislature to repeal or amend it, continue in force. 31C. Saving of laws giving effect to certain directive principles. Notwithstanding anything contained in article 13, no law giving effect to the policy of the State towards securing [all or any of the principles laid down in Part IV] shall be deemed to be void on the ground that it is inconsistent with, or takes away or abridges any of the rights conferred by article 14 or article 19; and no law containing a declaration that it is for giving effect to such policy shall be called in question in any court on the ground that it does not give effect to such policy: Provided that where such law is made by the Legislature of a State, the provisions of this article shall not apply thereto unless such law, having been reserved for the consideration of the President, has received his assent. 31D. Saving of laws in respect of anti-national activities. Repealed by the Constitution (Forty-third Amendment) Act,1977, s.2 (w.e.f.13-4-1978) 32. Remedies for enforcement of rights conferred by this Part. (1) The right to move the Supreme Court by appropriate proceedings for the enforcement of the rights conferred by this Part is guaranteed. (2) The Supreme Court shall have power to issue directions or orders or writs, including writs in the nature of habeas corpus, mandamus, prohibition, quo warranto and certiorari, whichever may be appropriate, for the enforcement any of the rights conferred by this Part. (3) Without prejudice to the powers conferred on the Supreme Court by clauses (1) and (2), Parliament may by law empower any other court to exercise within the local limits of its jurisdiction all or any of the powers exercisable by the Supreme Court under clause (2). (4) The right guaranteed by this article shall not be suspended except as otherwise provided for by this Constitution. 32A. Constitutional validity of State laws not to be considered in proceedings under article 32. Repealed by the Constitution (Forty-third Amendment) Act, 1977, s. 3 (w.e.f. 13-4-1978) 33. Power of Parliament to modify the rights conferred by this Part in their application to Forces, etc. Parliament may, by law, determine to what extent any of the rights conferred by this Part shall, in their application to,- (a) the members of the Armed Forces; or (b) the members of the Forces charged with the maintenance of public order; or (c) persons employed in any bureau or other organisation established by the State for purposes of intelligence or counter intelligence; or (d) persons employed in, or in connection with, the telecommunication systems set up for the purposes of any Force, bureau or organisation referred to in clauses (a) to (c), be restricted or abrogated so as to ensure the proper discharge of their duties and the maintenance of discipline among them. 34. Restriction on rights conferred by this Part while martial law is in force in any area. Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provisions of this Part, Parliament may by law indemnify any person in the service of the Union or of a State or any other person in respect of any act done by him in connection with the maintenance or restoration of order in any area within the territory of India where martial law was in force or validate any sentence passed, punishment inflicted, forfeiture ordered or other act done under martial law in such area. 35. Legislation to give effect to the provisions of this Part. Notwithstanding anything in this Constitution,- (a) Parliament shall have, and the Legislature of a State shall not have, power to make laws- (i) with respect to any of the matters which under clause (3) of article 16, clause (3) of article 32, article 33 and article 34 may be provided for by law made by Parliament; and (ii) for prescribing punishment for those acts which are declared to be offences under this Part; and Parliament shall, as soon as may be after the commencement of this Constitution, make laws for prescribing punishment for the acts referred to in sub-clause (ii); (b) any law in force immediately before the commencement of this Constitution in the territory of India with respect to any of the matters referred to in sub-clause (i) of clause (a) or providing for punishment for any act referred to in sub-clause (ii) of that clause shall, subject to the terms thereof and to any adaptations and modifications that may be made therein under article 372, continue in force until altered or repealed or amended by Parliament. In this article, the expression “law in force” has the same meaning as in article 372. Next: Part IV of the Indian Constitution – Article 36 to 51 – Directive Principles of State Policy Buy Law PDFs and MCQs How to Start Studying Law – For New, Existing and Old Students Career as a Judge – Advantages, Disadvantages, and More Best Books for Judiciary Exam Preparation in 2022 11 Tips to Pass AIBE With Bare Acts and MCQ Tests in 2022 How to Cover Local Laws for Judiciary Exams How to Write the Best Answer in Judiciary Mains Exam in 2022 My name is Ankur. I am a law graduate. I was my college topper for five years. In March 2018, I started WritingLaw.com. The main motive was to make a modern law website that is clean, comfortable, and has few ads. Everything is going well. This is because of law students, advocates, judges and professors like you, who give me satisfaction, hope and the motivation to keep working. Thank you for your love and support. I hope you have a fruitful time here.	30,609
European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, right, greets Israel’s Minister of Intelligence Elazar Stern prior to a meeting of the EU-Israel Association Council at the EU Council building in Brussels on Monday, Oct. 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo) Back to article The Latest Biden to extend student loan pause as court battle drags on November 24, 2022 WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Joe Biden announced Tuesday that his administration will extend a pause on federal student loan payments while the White House fights a legal battle to save his plan to cancel portions [...]	581
I am writing this blog post the day after Christmas. The day on which all Christians celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It was on this day that we were given the gift of hope and new creation. Why? Exactly why did Jesus come to earth? Was it merely to teach us parables and give us new commandments? No. He came to RESCUE us. I am sharing what I have learned from a tremendous book by Fr. John Riccardo. Rescued: The Unexpected and Extraordinary News of the Gospel is an amazing book and one that you should definitely read. Today I want to discuss the third part of this book. Remember, in the last two posts, we learned how we have been captured by Satan because he HATES us. Satan’s ultimate goal is to destroy, degrade and enslave us. He’s doing a pretty good job at it, too. What did God do? Did he send others to see if they could free us? No. He came HIMSELF. We are so important to him that the creator of everything came to earth to fight for us. “”The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord.” Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him. He said to them, “Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.”” Why would he do this? Why did Jesus take on human form? He did this to fight for you and me. “Whoever sins belongs to the devil, because the devil has sinned from the beginning. Indeed, the Son of God was revealed to destroy the works of the devil.” Wow. Jesus came down to destroy our enemy and set us free. If this was a movie we would see him getting into his uniform, gathering his weapons, putting on his face paint, and really gearing up for the battle ahead of him. The inspiring rock music would let us know just how serious and courageous this warrior really is and the big task that he has ahead of him. He would be muscular, athletic, and undaunted. Just looking at him would reassure you and make you think that everything will be okay. Yet, I’ve never heard my church portray this version of Jesus. Have you? Is this new information to you, too? You hear about how Jesus is love, how he is compassionate and heals the sick, he teaches us parables so that we know that God loves us and forgives us no matter how bad we’ve been in the past, and that we can get to our Father only through Jesus. To be completely honest, I had always pictured Jesus as a wandering hippie who was trying to turn everybody’s heart to God. This Jesus in my mind was mild-mannered, softly spoken, and not very interesting. Boy, was I wrong!! Maybe it’s because when I read the stories about Jesus turning water into wine, giving the blind sight and raising people from the dead, it doesn’t seem “real” to me. It’s similar to when you were in history class and your teacher stood there telling you about past events in a flat voice that almost lulled you to sleep. Yet, how many times have you read a different approach to the same event and saw it in a completely different (and much more fascinating) manner? Instead of just reading the words, let’s use the Ignatian method of reading scripture and actually put ourselves in those moments. There are so many examples, but I want to focus on just one. Let’s take a look at the woman with a hemorrhage. “There was a woman afflicted with hemorrages for twelve years. She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors and had spent all that she had. Yet she was not helped but only grew worse. She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak. She said, “If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.” Immediately her flow of blood dried up. She felt in her body that she was healed of her affliction. Jesus, aware at once that power had gone out from him, turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who has touched my clothes?” But his disciples said to him, “You see how the crowd is pressing upon you, and yet you ask, ‘Who touched me?'” And he looked around to see who had done it. The woman, realizing what had happened to her, approached in fear and trembling. She fell down before Jesus and told him the whole truth. He said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be cured of your affliction.'” You may need to read that a few times, but feel the emotions of hoplessness that the woman must have felt after suffering for so many years. She had spent EVERYTHING she had in order to be cured, but nothing worked. Then, somehow, she hears about Jesus. He can heal the sick. Others talk in amazement about the leper who was cured and the other man who had been possessed and how easily it seemed that Jesus was able to cure them. If he could cure leprosy and exorcised demons, then maybe he could cure her, too. She didn’t have money, but she had hope and faith. When she saw him in the crowd something made her go up and touch his cloak, knowing that just the slight touch would cure her. She had THAT much faith. And it worked! Now flip it around and imagine being in the crowd trying to catch a glimpse of this Jesus character. You’d heard all the stories, too, and you were curious. What did he look like? How did he act? Would you be able to tell that there was anything special about him just by being near him? Then you see him stop and ask who had touched him. Hmmm, this was interesting. Where was this going? The guys traveling with him seemed to dismiss this reaction, but you can see on Jesus face that something happened. You notice a woman come out of the crowd to fall down in front of him. You are close enough to hear her story and read her face, which convinces you that every word she has spoken is true. This is amazing! The joy, amazement and awe on her face clearly beams out for everybody to see. Then lovingly Jesus tells her that her faith has saved her and to go in peace. What feelings do you experience from having witnessed this exchange? Can you imagine how much more powerful it would be if you were actually there? The feelings that were experienced as crowds witnessed these actions were what caused Jesus to be so interesting. Yet, how often are we bored in church wondering how busy the breakfast place is going to be after we get out? How often do we dismiss the miracles that Jesus did? How often are we afraid to even say his name because it might ‘offend’ somebody? He wasn’t just a random hippie blowing through these various towns. He was awesome. He did things that nobody had ever seen before. The tales that went raging ahead of him had to seem unbelievable until you finally saw him and could absolutely believe everything that was said. This was a guy who caused tax collectors (the greediest, most affluent, and wealthy people in a town), prostitutes, gamblers and others who were only out for their own pleasure, to drop what they were doing and follow him. He drew crowds of thousands!! People had to tear open other people’s roofs in order to get their sick friends close enough for healing. Back when the population wasn’t very big, this was a huge deal. Think of Elvis, the Beatles, New Kids on the Block, Backstreet Boys, and One Direction all rolled into one. That’s the kind of presence that Jesus had. In fact, he had such an aura of power about him that the Pharisees instantly hated him and wanted him killed; Herrod had been so afraid that he had ordered all males under the age of 3 to be killed (and this was when Jesus was just a BABY). What person has that kind of power that exudes from him so that all can feel it without having to be IN his presence? This is Jesus, our Lord and Savior, who has come to destroy Satan’s hold on us. As I leave you this week with these thoughts to mull over I want to add just a little more kindling to the fire. “For when peaceful stillness encompassed everything and the night in its swift course was half spent, your all-powerful word from heaven’s royal throne leapt into the doomed land, a fierce warrior bearing the sharp sword of your inexorable decree.” Image by yuejun gao from Pixabay Now when the Pharisees with some scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, they observed that some of his disciples ate their meals with unclean, that is, unwashed hands. (For the Pharisees and, in fact, all Jews, do not eat without carefully washing their hands, keeping the tradition of the elders. And on coming from the marketplace they do not eat without purifying themselves. And there are many other things that they have traditionally observed, the purification of cups and jugs and kettles [and beds].) So the Pharisees and scribes questioned him, “Why do your disciples not follow the tradition of the elders but instead eat a meal with unclean hands?” He responded, “Well did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; In vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines human precepts,’ You disregard God’s commandment but cling to human tradition.” He summoned the crowd again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand. Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person; but the things that come out from within are what defile. From within people, from their hearts, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly. All these evils come from within and they defile.” ~Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23 (NABRE) If you’ve read some of my previous blog posts you will realize that there seems to be one theme that I bring up a lot: the power you have over what you put out into the world. Perhaps that’s because it was a common theme with Jesus, too. He taught about love, charity, mercy and so many more ways to love one another. Growing up Jewish he knew that there were laws that the Pharisees held to be more powerful than the Word of God. If they were truly men of God then they would not only recognize that everything Jesus was teaching was filled with God, but also they wouldn’t have been so upset about what Jesus was doing. They really had a problem with this guy. I mean, who did he think he was?? God?? Only THEY could interpret and teach God’s law to others. They obviously weren’t listening very closely to what Jesus was saying. You may wonder why I chose a picture of a kitten (unfortunately, not mine) to start this post. I think that if Jesus had led the Pharisees into a room full of kittens, they wouldn’t have been so grumpy about the disciples breaking their laws. Have you ever been in a room full of kittens? You can NOT walk out of there without a smile on your face. To have that little ball of fur purring and loving on you is one of the best feelings in the world. As you hold that kitten and it rubs its little face all over yours while it’s purring, your heart just about bursts with love. That’s how you defeat evil. There is no room in a kitten-filled heart for all of the nastiness that Jesus listed in today’s reading. Okay, so let’s say that you’re more of a dog person. I won’t be offended if you swap out a puppy for a kitten in this example. As long as your heart is bursting with love, that’s what I want you to think about. The Pharisees are a good example of how people can start out with good intentions, and then before you know it they’ve veered off the path and are insisting that you follow them because they are the ones in charge. When Moses brought the 10 Commandments down from Mt Sinai I don’t recall any of them saying that you must wash your hands before eating, or wash anything else that might come into contact with your food before you eat it. From what I can recall from memory, most of it was about LOVE. Love God. Love your neighbor (don’t covet, steal, or murder). Love and honor your parents. There’s a lot of love in those ten laws. Unfortunately, at that time, the people had a hard time keeping just those ten! Then over a period of time the leaders started making up clauses and addendums to the laws that then also included these other behaviors that you couldn’t do. By the time Jesus comes along the Pharisees are more concerned over these imposed human-created laws than the original law of God. No longer is the faith about God, it’s about the constraints that have been imposed upon you. That’s why Jesus was such a non-conformist. He worked on the Sabbath. He didn’t make his disciples wash their hands before eating. He even dared to heal people with all kinds of problems whenever he felt like it! What a rebel! He was breaking the law and thumbing his nose at the authorities. Except, what they didn’t understand, was that he was actually following the law of the ultimate Authority. The Author of all creation. That’s why it doesn’t matter what you ingest. If you have a clean heart and are spreading the love of God then you can eat with the dirtiest hands and God won’t strike you down. I mean, He really might think, “Geesh, your hands are nasty. A little water and soap wouldn’t hurt!” but he’s not going to condemn and judge you for it. As long as you are living a Jesus-centered and Christ-like life, you will be allowed into heaven with your dirty hands. July 19, 2021 civilwarrose5 Rest and Recharge The apostles gathered together with Jesus and reported all they had done and taught. He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” People were coming and going in great numbers, and they had no opportunity even to eat. So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place. Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay People saw them leaving and many came to know about it. They hastened there on foot from all the towns and arrived at the place before them. When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. ~Mark 6:30-34 (NABRE) At the beginning of this scripture Jesus is trying to teach the apostles a lesson that many of us today need to learn, too. You must make time for yourself to be quiet, rest and recharge. When you are constantly interacting with people, processing lots of information and trying to act on what needs to be done, it really takes a toll on your body. Both physically and mentally. Jesus knew this very well. How often do we read about him going off by himself to pray? Quiet time to re-center, re-group and re-charge is what everybody needs. Even God rested on the seventh day! How often do you see family, friends or coworkers who are so frazzled and at their wits end because they have so much to do and not enough time to do it in? Between work and home we put a lot of pressure on ourselves. A few years ago I actually suffered from stress hives for almost five months because I wasn’t taking care of myself. Stress is horrible, too. It can cause all sorts of issues including weight gain, weight loss, hair loss, hives, excema, heart attacks, etc. You have to learn to say no and put yourself first. If you break down then you can’t help others. The only “problem” is that when Jesus disembarked from the boat he saw the vast crowds and had to help them. Their need for what he had to offer was greater than his need for quiet time. Parents know this all too well. How many times do you feel like just plopping on the couch and zoning out in front of the TV, but then little Johnny comes up and needs help with something or just wants you to spend time with them doing some other activity? Do you tell them no, that you need to have Me time? Of course, not. You probably sigh and then get up to go spend time with your child. That doesn’t mean that you never again take time for yourself. You have to know your limits and know when to say ‘no’. It doesn’t specifically say that Jesus weighed his exaustion level against the need of the crowd and decided that he had a little more to give. If you read further in this chapter of Mark you read about the feeding of the five thousand and then you arrive at Mark 6:46, “And when he had taken leave of them, he went off to the mountain to pray.” Jesus helped all of those people and then still found some time to recharge his batteries. When I start to feel guilty that I’m doing something for myself such as spending time crocheting instead of cleaning the house, I just remind myself of this chapter in Mark. Don’t feel guilty for taking some needed downtime. Don’t feel guilty that you sat and read a good book for an hour instead of dusted the house. Now, if all you’re doing is Me things, you definitely need to re-prioritize. I’m hoping that the pandemic helped a lot of people learn that a lot of what kept them busy was nonsense stuff. I hope they learned how to just sit with themselves in quiet or realize that what they had been doing was just a bunch of noise. Take a lesson from Jesus; do good works and help out your fellow man, but don’t forget to be quiet and talk with God. July 4, 2021 civilwarrose5 Image by Annabel_P from Pixabay He departed from there and came to his native place, accompanied by his disciples. When the sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands! Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.” So he was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying his hands on them. He was amazed at their lack of faith. ~Mark 6:1-6a (NABRE) Prior to Jesus arriving in his home town he had been traveling around teaching and performing miracles. Everywhere he went people would crowd around him asking to be healed. They huddled close to hear his teachings. There was the woman with the hemorrhage who had so much faith that she knew if she only touched his clothes that she would be healed. Complete strangers had such faith in him that they sought him out. I do believe that Jesus was more humble than most of us would be in this situation. If it was me, I would be feeling good about all the things I was doing and the number of people showing up to hear what I had to say. He was working toward rock star status. His groupies followed him from town-to-town and there were the crowds crushing around just to be near him. Then he arrived in his home town. This is the place where he should be an even bigger star, right? They knew him before he went out and became important. They acknowledge that he has done might deeds and that he speaks a lot of wisdom, yet in the end they reject him and have little faith. I can almost hear one of the men in the neighborhood who used to play ball with Jesus when they were younger, “Yeah, I knew Jesus before he became famous. Sure, he can heal the blind, but when we were kids he never wanted to do anything fun. We would play tricks on our other friends, but he was too good to join in on the fun. He’s nothing special. I don’t understand what all the hoopla was about. It’s just Jesus.” Many people feel like that in their own families. They go out into the world and make a career for themselves or gain notoriety for something they’ve done. Yet, when they go home they don’t carry the same status. They are treated just like they were before they made a name for themselves. Some people might be very happy with this kind of treatment. Others, like Jesus, are disappointed because not only are they being rejected, but the good that they can do is being rejected as well. How many people in Nazareth could have benefitted from not only the healings, but also the knowledge and faith in God that Jesus was teaching? Jesus tells us that this is going to happen, but you must stick strong to your principles. No matter what people tell you or ridicule you, your belief in Jesus and your love of God must always come first. You can’t give into the feelings of rejection that might happen due to your faith. “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished! Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. From now on a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against three; a father will be divided against his son and a son against his father, a mother against her daughter and a daughter against her mother, a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.” This verse from Luke is very personal to me. When I think about rejection in the Bible this verse always comes to mind. I grew up in a household that considered ourselves to be Methodist, yet we really didn’t attend church or talk a whole lot about God. As Protestants we really didn’t care for Catholics and how we thought they were a bunch of hypocrites who would “sin” throughout the week and then be considered clean after going to confession. Then I married my husband and decided that I wanted to become a Catholic. While going through RCIA (Roman Catholic Initiation for Adults) I read the Bible for the first time and talked about how the readings affected me. I never really talked to my parents or sister about becoming Catholic because I didn’t think they would be very happy about it. I didn’t want to see the disappointment in their eyes or know what they were thinking about the Catholic faith. My parents love me very much and are supportive of me, even if we don’t see things from the same point of view. At this time in my life I knew that a relationship with God, and one formed in the Catholic church, was very important to me. When I read this verse from Luke I knew that this could possibly be my reality. I knew that I would choose my faith over my parents’ feelings. Rejection hurts, no matter who is rejecting you. If you are sticking to your faith and principles then it doesn’t matter who rejects you here on earth because your heavenly Father will welcome you with open arms. Just keep the love of God in your heart and let the holy Spirit move you. You are wonderfully made in God’s own image. You are loved. Recent Posts Response January 9, 2022 Rescued – Part 2 January 3, 2022 Rescued – Part 1 December 26, 2021 Captured – Part 2 November 7, 2021 Captured – Part 1 October 31, 2021 Previously Posted Previously Posted Select Month January 2022 (2) December 2021 (1) November 2021 (1) October 2021 (4) September 2021 (4) August 2021 (5) July 2021 (7) June 2021 (7) May 2021 (1)	23,391
Our planet is home to millions of species of animal and plants with their own habitat, and each plays a unique role in the perfect design of nature. Unfortunately many species of plants and animals are victim of uncontrolled human development. The sole intent of Strain Hunters is to identify, locate and retrieve cannabis landraces that have not yet been studied, in order to give scientists and doctors the possibility to further enhance knowledge of the cannabis plant in the medicinal field. Cannabis, one of the most ancient plants known to man, used in every civilisation all over the world for medicinal and recreational purposes, is facing a very real threat of extinction. One day these plants could be helpful in developing better medications for the sick and the suffering. We feel it is our duty to preserve as many cannabis landraces in our genetic database, and by breeding them into other well-studied medicinal strains for the sole purpose of scientific research. Important links Get in Touch Usefull links Cannabis should not be illegal One of the goals of the United Nations, published years ago in official reports, was to wipe out the cannabis plant from the face of the earth by the year 2010. In reality this is far from being achieved, because man keeps using the cannabis plant for religious, medicinal and recreational purposes no matter what the law says. Most cultures cannot comprehend how a plant can be made illegal. In most people’s perception, plants and animals stand above a status of legality or illegality, they just exist in a higher design of nature that goes beyond human laws and regulations. Nevertheless most governments of cannabis- producing countries are implementing drastic measures to destroy crops. Dangerous chemicals are sprayed over fields and over the farmers themselves in most of the third world countries, and the poorest people of the planet are the ones paying the highest price for cultivating a plant that does not kill. But in the economy of scale, where demand dictates supply, the poorest people of the planet have no choice but to cultivate cannabis as a cash crop to feed their children and send them to school. Communities that are isolated in remote areas in the poorest regions of the planet are often the keepers of very special landraces.	2,373
Dog training is an essential part of dog ownership, and it's a great way to strengthen the bond between you and your pup. Your pet can benefit from learning basic dog training commands at any age. If you want to train your dog, remember to use plenty of positive reinforcement and build on small, successful steps. Many different training methods can be used to teach your dog basic obedience, but positive reinforcement—using verbal praise, treats, toys, or petting—is most effective. Dogs tend to respond well to reward-based training.1 For the best results, follow these tips: Always have fun while training. Start by training your dog in a quiet area free from distractions. Vary your training sessions and treats, adding little challenges along the way, so your dog looks forward to training with you. Always end on a positive, nurturing note, so your pup stays motivated. Focus on rewards, using love, treats, toys, and praise. You can teach your canine companion many things, but sit, stay, come, place, walk nicely on a leash, and leave it are good commands to start with. Some of these are particularly good if you and your family enjoy outdoor activities with your dog. For ease of training, let's use “Fido" to refer to your dog when discussing the following commands. How to Train Your Dog to Sit "Sit" is a useful command that gives you control of Fido for your convenience and his safety. It also gives him a positive alternative to behaviors you don't want, like jumping on you or spinning in circles while you try to put his leash on. Hold a small treat in front of Fido's nose. Slowly raise it just enough to clear his head, move it slowly toward his tail, and say, “Sit." As your dog's head comes up, his rear end will go down. As soon as his fanny hits the floor, praise him and give him the treat. If he stands up before he gets the treat, don't give it to him. Have him sit, then give him the treat while he's sitting. Space several sessions of three or four repetitions throughout the day. When he responds quickly, stop guiding him with the treat, but do reward him once he sits. When your dog sits promptly on command, slowly increase the length of time he has to stay sitting to get the treat. Eventually, you can wean away the treat. Do praise him, though, and give him an occasional goody. Keep the game interesting for him. How to Train Your Dog to Come Training your dog to "come" when you call him isn't hard. It's a lot more convenient to have a dog that comes running than one that ignores you. More importantly, a dog that comes when called will be safer than one that doesn't. To begin training, start with your dog on a leash. Say, “Fido, come!" one time in a happy, playful voice. Do whatever you have to do to get him to come to you without repeating the command. For example, go the other way, squat down, or play with a toy. When he gets to you, reward him—talk happily and give him a treat, a toy, or a belly rub. Then let him play. He should learn that if he comes when called, good things happen. Repeat two or three times, then quit for a while. Do this several times a day. Sounds simple, doesn't it? But how many dogs do you know that come every time they are called? Probably not many. And that's because most people inadvertently teach their dogs to ignore them. Here are some ways to avoid doing that: Never punish your dog for coming to you, and never call him to do something he dislikes. Wait a few minutes before you do the “bad thing" (like nail clipping or confinement). Otherwise, get him for these activities rather than call him. Use the same word every time. “Come" and “here" are common. Don't confuse him with different commands each time. Call only once. If you say, “Fido, come! Come, Fido! Fido! Come!" your dog will learn that you don't mean it. Even when your dog is fairly well trained to come, never, ever let him off his leash in an unenclosed area. A single failure to come when called can have tragic results. How to Train Your Dog to Lie Down "Down,"like "sit," is a very useful command for both safety and convenience. A dog that lies down and stays where you tell him is safely out from underfoot. A dog that learns to lie down on command is also a dog that learned to respect people as his benevolent bosses, and he is less likely to think he's in charge. You can teach Fido to lie down from a sit. Hold a treat in front of his nose, and slowly move your hand down and toward him while telling him “down." As his head follows the treat, he should lie down. As soon as he's down, praise him and give him the treat. When he responds quickly and reliably, say “down," but don't move your hand toward him. Slowly increase the length of time he has to stay down before getting the treat, and praise and reward him while he's down, not after he jumps up. Down is a hard command for some dogs because it is a submissive position. You may find your dog lies down at home but doesn't want to at obedience class. Be patient. As he gains confidence and learns that other dogs won't pick on him, he should be more willing to lie down, especially if you use really yummy treats. The "stay" command tells Fido not to move from a place and position—like sit or down—until you say he can. Put your dog in position and say, “Stay." If he moves, gently put him back into the place and position where he was. Repeat the command just once. He needs to remember what you told him to do. When he has stayed put for a few seconds, praise him and give him a treat. Next, release him. Teach him a word such as “free" or “okay" to tell him he's off the hook. Start with very short stays—a few seconds—while standing very close to him. Slowly increase the time until he stays for five minutes. Then move a step or two away, have him stay for one minute, and slowly build up again to five minutes. When he does that, add another step or two, shorten the time, and build up again. Always shorten the time when you increase the distance, and don't increase time or distance too quickly—add one step at a time. If your dog moves up, fidgets, or whines before the time is up, stand a little closer until he's comfortable again with that distance for that length of time. This is a stressful thing for most dogs to learn, so be patient. Practice in different environments, so your dog learns to stay where you tell him in any situation. Remember to keep him on a lead if you are in an unfenced area. How to Train Your Dog to Place The "place"command teaches your dog to go to a specific location when you say "place" or when he hears a specific cue, like a ringing doorbell. "Place"is one of the simpler commands to learn. You can even teach him "place" first if you prefer. Use a pet cot that Fido can easily identify as his "place." First, take a big step toward the cot and hold a treat over it. When he gets on the cot, praise him. Then say "free" and invite him to leave the cot. Do this with increasingly smaller steps toward the cot until he jumps on it just from your slight gesture. Then start saying "place" first before stepping toward the cot, giving him a treat when he jumps on the cot. Do this until he quickly responds just to "place." Over time, you can train him with sounds instead of the word "place" if you prefer. All dogs should be taught basic leash skills. You should be able to take Fido for a walk around the block or into a crowded veterinary office without having your legs wrapped up, or your shoulder dislocated. When he is properly leash trained, your dog will walk steadily on one side of you with the leash slack. Like many other aspects of good training, teaching him to do this will require some time and effort, but the payoff is a dog that is a pleasure to walk. With Fido on a leash, begin walking with him at your side. If he starts to pull on the leash—ignoring you—turn quickly and walk in the other direction. He will be surprised and notice you're going the other way, and he'll come back to your side. As he rejoins you, give him a treat and tell him, “Good Fido!" Keep walking and keep reversing directions every time he pulls. Eventually, he will decide he'd better pay attention to the crazy human who keeps doing an about-face when he least expects it. Tip: Work at keeping the leash slack. Every time it gets tight, it's time to tell Fido he's not the leader by reversing direction. You're the one leading the walk, not him. "Leave it" is another basic command that can come in handy, but you have to teach it in conjunction with the "take it"command.2 If you're on the other side of the room and your dog is about to get into something that could hurt him, you'll be glad you taught this. Put a treat in your fist and show it to Fido, letting him paw and play with your hand. Once he stops, praise him. Then open your fist, say, "take it," and let him have the treat. Fido should paw at your hand less and less the more you do this. Finally, start holding the treat in an open hand. Over time, he should start ignoring your hand. Say "take it" when you're ready for him to take the treat. Next, do the same steps but with the treat on the floor and your hand covering the treat. When you say "take it," give him a different treat. Eventually, you'll be able to do this without your hand covering the treat. And then you can do it when you're standing a few feet away from the treat. At this point, add in "leave it" when you want him to leave the treat alone. (Some dog trainers might advise saying "leave it" earlier in the process.) Try this again outside while your dog is on a leash. Then try it with other objects, like his favorite toys. If you have trouble with any of these commands, it's perfectly okay to sign up for obedience classes or hire a dog trainer. And remember, your dog can learn much faster if he's not distracted by itchy skin or fleas, so treat him with a flea and tick shampoo or a topical treatment if needed. Once you have the basics mastered, you can move on to more complicated commands. For example, you can teach your dog not to counter surf. Your dog is never too old to learn new tricks—whether he's a puppy or an adult, these techniques will work. Just keep his health and energy levels in mind when choosing your activities. 1. RSPCA. "Dog Training." RPSCA.org.uk, https://www.rspca.org.uk/adviceandwelfare/pets/dogs/training. 2. Gibeault, Stephanie. "'Leave It': Training Your Dog to Ignore Items form Dropped Food to Bicycles & More." AKC, 22 November 2019, https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/training/learning-the-leave-it-command/. New Pet Owners Health & Wellness Related articles you might like ... How to Groom a Dog How to Help Dog with Separation Anxiety Connect with Us ©2020-2022 Central Garden & Pet Company. All trademarks are either the property of Central Garden & Pet Company, its subsidiaries, divisions, affiliated and/or related companies or the property of their respective owners.	11,243
Look for a lock ( ) or https:// as an added precaution. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites. Who We Are Careers SPEECHES Speech by Dr Yaacob Ibrahim at the National Citizenship Ceremony 2011 National Integration Council members I am happy that we can all come together this morning at the fifth National Citizenship Ceremony. Today is a significant day in the lives of 133 of you gathered here. Today, you become Citizens of the Republic of Singapore. Singapore is a young country – we just celebrated 46 years of nationhood. But those 46 years have been remarkable years for us. We started as an independent island-nation without resources, with nearly two million people to feed – not all of whom had education, jobs, or even clean water. A determined first generation of leaders did their utmost in every possible way to ensure Singapore survived. Singapore has not 2 only survived but succeeded and thrived in today’s highly competitive and challenging world. Today, I call upon you as our new citizens of Singapore to help build on that success – as a society that is united, peaceful and progressive. Many earlier generations of Singaporeans came here from the region and further beyond. They toiled to build Singapore to what it is now, starting families and giving us new generations of Singaporeans who are all passionate about Singapore. As the late Mr S. Rajaratnam, one of modern Singapore’s founding fathers, once said, “Being a Singaporean is not a matter of ancestry. It is conviction and choice.” Unity in diversity Singapore continues to welcome new citizens for the rich diversity and vibrancy that they bring to our nation. And as we cherish this diversity, we must always hold dear the Singaporean values of multiracialism and meritocracy that hold us together. We must continue to bond as a community that believes in opportunities for all, regardless of race, language or 3 religion and build a shared future together. I am confident our new Singaporeans will embrace these values that define us and help enlarge the common spaces that help bind us as one people even as we celebrate our unique diversity. To help new citizens along in their journey of integration, we started the Singapore Citizenship Journey in February this year. Mr Gautam Rampuria1 , who has completed the Journey, felt that it was well-organised and that it was useful for new citizens as it helped them to have a better understanding about living in Singapore. The completion of the programme, however, is not the end, but only the beginning of a lifelong journey of discovery and involvement in Singapore society. I encourage you to continue deepening your appreciation of Singapore, your new home, reaching out to your fellow Singaporeans and working together for the good of the country and the community you live in. Contributing to the community I would also like to share the example of Mr Ooi Leong Chai 2 , a gardening enthusiast who grew up in Malaysia. He became a Singapore citizen in 2009 and has been very active in the Community Garden Interest Group of Whampoa South Residents’ Committee. Mr Ooi takes leave from work to host and interact with students on learning journeys to the RC garden. He also volunteers with the Citizen on Patrol team and joined RC members to promote and help put up the State Flag for residents in the estate during the recent National Day period. Mr Ooi is a good example of an active citizen who believes in being involved in the community. Indeed, there are many ways that you can contribute to your community. You can choose to volunteer at a welfare home or be part of a community outreach programme. You can help a less fortunate neighbour or even contribute your professional skills to those in need. The People’s Association (PA) provides excellent opportunities for you to get involved in activities organised by the Residents’ Committee or Community 5 Clubs. Many of your grassroots leaders, including Integration and Naturalisation Champions, are present here this morning. Do approach them after the ceremony to learn more about the various activities that you can be a part of. No matter what you do, whether in your neighbourhood, workplace, school or community, your contributions will certainly make a difference. Let me congratulate all of you once again on becoming Singapore citizens. I hope that you will continue to discover more things to love about this country and share the values that we hold dear. Let us work together, as Singaporeans, for a better future for ourselves and our future generations and to make Singapore our best home. Thank you. 1 Previously from India, Mr Gautam will be receiving his citizenship certificate at NCC 2011. He is 42 years old and is a Company Director.	5,026
At the risk of sounding like a stereotype, I love musicals. In fact, my “Favorite Broadway” playlist on Spotify has over 100 songs on it, despite the fact that I’ve only seen 4 or 5 musicals in my life. And two of those were actually the movie versions… Theatre is expensive, ok? Anyways, one of my favorite Broadway songs is a song called “America” from West Side Story. In it, two of the Puerto Rican women (Rosalia and Anita) are fighting over whether or not America is better than their homeland. For every pro Rosalia has for going back to Puerto Rico, Anita has a reason to love being in America better. “I’ll drive a Buick through San Juan/If there’s a road you can drive on!” etc, etc. It’s a struggle between the memories that were and the amenities that could be, punctuated with women in bright skirts kicking up a lively Latin jig. I was reminded strongly of this song when I went to Cuba last week. I’ve had many answers to the question “How was Cuba?”, but one of my most honest answers was that Cuba is a land of contradictions. The fruits and vegetables are the freshest you’ve ever tasted, untouched by pesticides and chemicals (just look at the size of those carrots!). But, many people in Cuba are starving. The buildings are brightly colored and beautiful, a burst of life around every corner. But, graffiti on the dazzling walls reminds you what the Communist government expects of its people. The vibrance of the buildings is reflected in the undying spirit of the people, with music and laughter and dancing in every street. But, missing sidewalks and abandoned houses remind you that their joy comes in spite of great adversity that many face due to the frighteningly low standard of living. Because of all this, I think that Cuba is a nation that stands at the heart of the human experience. In a way, to live is to suffer. We as humans suffer heartache, pain, economic instability, hunger, thirst, a desperate need to make our lives count for something. Nowhere is this more evident than in Cuba, where many people make less than $10 a month. On the flip side of that, to live is also to thrive. For every heartache, we have love. For every pain, we have triumph. For every dollar we don’t have, we find a way to celebrate as if we had more than enough. And again, nowhere – nowhere – is this more evident than in Cuba. Everywhere you look, there is art, beauty, and love, despite all of the odds. This was my first trip to both a Communist country and a country that isn’t first-world. Technically Cuba is defined as a second-world country (because of former Soviet influence), although as my fiancé’s uncle likes to say, “We’re not first, second, or third-world: we didn’t even get to the race.” I was beyond lucky to be able to stay with my fiancé’s family, and definitely feel like we got the most authentic Cuban experience that we could. Upon talking to another pair of Americans in the airport on our way out, we found out that all the official tours are state-run and heavily censored. In contrast, we got to wander Havana with family members as our guides. This resulted in a lot of interesting commentary (as evidenced above) that helped us gain insight into the average Cuban’s thoughts on their own country – something you definitely won’t find on a tour. There are a lot of media portrayals of Cuba, and when I was there I found that some were true while others were not. Yes, the government still exercises a lot of control over the citizen’s lives. However, with the thawing of relations with the United States, a lot of things are changing. There’s more advertisements than there were just 10 years ago, the tourism industry is growing again (although most non-tour guides still only speak Spanish, so brush up if you plan on going), and privately owned businesses are allowed. I hold a lot of hope that some of these changes will be good for people and mean more economic opportunities for them. I also really hope that the growing popularity of Hyundai and Renault (pretty much the only modern-day carmakers that operate in Cuba) doesn’t mean the disappearance of the beautiful classic cars that the island nation is famous for. These were pretty sweet, even if some of the ones that ran as taxi services for locals were less than stellar. As this is still a food blog, I would be remiss to leave out a description of the fare Cuba has to offer. The most famous staple of Cuban cuisine is rice with beans, and we had plenty of it while we were there. However, don’t pass up on tostones (fried and smashed plantains) if you’re offered them. Pork is the meat of choice, though if you’re staying away from it for religious, ethical, or no real reasons, you’re likely to be able to find chicken as well. If you’re a no-meat kind of person, never fear: the vegetables are some of the freshest that you will ever taste (as stated before). Pizza sounds like something you wouldn’t want to get if you were being “authentically” Cuban, but I promise that Cuban pizza is unlike any pizza you’ve had. The texture is different, and the main cheese is gouda rather than mozzarella (um, yes I am so here for that). I also recommend trying a variety of the breads available, as they’re mostly all baked fresh every day (no prepackaged brands in the stores) and are amazing dipped in any soups that you’re served. If you’re into Latin American desserts (I allow myself to be a stereotypical American from time to time and prefer my desserts to be much sweeter than what most of Latin America prefers), make sure to stop at a store or stand advertising pastelitos – they’re brightly colored, adorable, and cheap enough to get some for your whole family (or just you, I won’t judge). This is all, however, hinging on the fact that all of these things are available on any given day. A lot of things happen for seemingly no reason in Cuba, including power outages and food shortages. By “for seemingly no reason,” I of course mean that the government does them and doesn’t tell anyone why. For us, this meant no bottled water on the first day, no soda on the third day, and on the fourth day we couldn’t find any store that sold bread until we happened upon a small stall tucked away behind a bar. It sounds weird, but as a tourist you just have to suck it up and deal with it the way the Cuban people do. It shouldn’t interfere with your trip if you don’t let it, but I do suggest you buy water by the gallon just in case tomorrow’s shipment “goes missing” for whatever reason. All in all, this was one of the most exciting and memorable trips that I’ve ever been on. Cuba was truly beautiful, and it was an absolute honor to finally have my fiancé be able to share his culture with me. I 100% recommend that you plan a trip if you can. Flights through Allegiant (to get to Florida) and JetBlue (to get to Cuba) are super cheap in the off-season, and JetBlue can even help you get the visa that you need to enter the country. If you go, be mindful that the tourism industry is young and is not set up to cater to demanding tourists. You may not be able to afford the only 5-star hotel, and the customer service culture definitely isn’t the same as in America (I almost lost it when we asked a gate attendant at the airport if our plane had left and she said “Boy, I don’t know anything about a plane”), but I promise that it will be worth it. If you’re ready to take an adventure and dive into a culture that has been misconstrued and misunderstood for the majority of the fifty-five years of the embargo, then I suggest you start planning today. As you read this, both Cuban and American societies are changing at a rapid pace. Take this chance before it’s gone – the chance to see a society ready to reintroduce itself to the world. Related Author: Kitchen Gent Leave a Reply Cancel reply A Louisville, KY-based guy who loves food and wants to taste the world. A Southern gent who’s overspent. Searching is in progress Recent Posts A German Spice Cake Baked Across the Ocean Copyright © 2019 The Kitchen Gent Kale by LyraThemes.com. Add me to your cookie jar We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. Manage consent This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information. Non-necessary Non-necessary Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.	10,056
Salary negotiation is a high-class problem. By the time it becomes a concern, a job candidate has surpassed the most rigorous tests an employer put in place to find the best fit for a job. Yet discussions over pay and benefits can still derail what would otherwise amount to a win-win between an executive and a company that values his or her expertise. Today’s compensation negotiations for real estate professionals reflect legitimate changes in the market following a tough downturn. Some companies no longer have the resources to chase talent that comes to the table unwilling to budge on pay. Most hiring managers still care more about what that person can do for their organization than about wringing the biggest savings from a new hire. Nonetheless, it’s important to keep the company’s needs in mind while angling for the best possible deal. The basics still apply: Information remains the most valuable tool in any negotiation. Candidates are well-served to find out as much as they can about a company’s pay policies, either by hitting up professional contacts or by conducting research online through sites like Glassdoor.com. If you know the salary range for a position, that provides the opportunity to “anchor” the negotiation at the top of that scale during preliminary discussions. Likewise, don’t shoot high above what you know a company has been willing to pay in the past, as this may turn hiring managers off completely. Prior to formal discussions, it’s also important to know exactly what you want. Think through your minimum acceptable salary for the position, as well as which benefits and perks you consider most significant, whether they relate to bonus potential, flexible scheduling or retirement contributions. Just as important, prepare in your mind the relevant project experience, industry knowledge, contacts and other traits valued by the employer that you can use to justify the compensation you want. Times are different: If you’re in a position to discuss an executive pay package, you already know what to do at a negotiating table. The problem facing some companies and potential hires, though, is a misalignment of their expectations. A recovering market has renewed optimism about future business and personal prosperity, yet real estate companies remain cautious in the near term. Emboldened candidates realize that it’s no longer 2009, but companies know it’s not 2006 either. Too often, a promising negotiation can fall apart because a hard-bargaining candidate can’t meet the numbers needed by a company, sometimes when the difference amounts to a small fraction of the salary under discussion. Candidates should take an objective look at the company’s current business. Is it recovering? Is it thriving? It is somewhere in between? If the future offers greater potential than the next quarter, you and your potential employer may be well-served to steer negotiations to long-term incentives that hinge on the success of both you and the company. In any case, it’s more important than ever to enter salary negotiations with a clear picture of both your needs and those of your potential employer. For more than two decades, Christopher Frederick has helped connect real estate talent to the companies and positions that match their potential. To learn more about our unique, digital approach to executive recruitment, contact Chris Hingle at [email protected]. Or visit our website at www.chrisfred.com where you can find exclusive job listings for real estate executives. Posted in ArticlesTagged executive compensation, executive recruitment, negotiating tecniques, pay, salary, salary negotiation Put the power of our proven methodology to work for your executive search. Executives Leadership Roles Directors Operations High-Value Specialists WHAT WE DO HOW WE DO IT WHO WE TARGET Since founding executive search firm Christopher Frederick in 1985, Firm Principal Chris Hingle has filled professional and executive openings for hundreds of respected real estate, construction and architecture companies across the country.	4,215
If a technical defect keeps an aircraft on ground, extreme costs can arise within a very short time. With our AOG Express service, we help you to keep these downtimes as short as possible. Thanks to our 24-hour service, our office is staffed around the clock. We are thus always able to organise and carry out your urgent transport requests directly. This service is based on our experienced team and our reliable partner network. In addition, all parties involved have the necessary safety training and access authorisations to enable a smooth processing of your order. Our branches in Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich and Cologne are located in the immediate vicinity of the airports. So, we have our finger on the pulse and can act very direct. Of course, our portfolio covers this service throughout Europe. In order to cast off The fastest possible delivery to the harbor edge. That is what is needed, when ship spare parts are needed in order to make a ship lying in the port seaworthy again. Every hour that the ship has to stay longer on land due to technical problems costs considerable amounts. With our 24-hour express service, we ensure that this period of downtime is as short as possible by deliveringthe required spare parts as quickly as possible to their destination. Within Europe, we rely on our highly available network including our own fleet or do send the urgent parts by express air freight and charters. Emergency Logistics & OBC Highly Urgent? Bring it on. If it becomes time-critical and sensitive goods can no longer be transported in normal (air freight) traffic, our OBC (On-Board-Courier) service is at your disposal. Our experienced couriers start immediately to deliver spare parts, documents or important production goods directly and worldwide with the next aircraft, personally accompanying. Within a very short time, we will work out a concept for the fastest and most efficient transport route. That includes customs clearance, if needed. Abroad, we access a worldwide network to accelerate processing with on-site know-how. The OBC is one of the safest and most reliable modes of transport. For this service, a dedicated staff member is available around the clock to supervise the transport and keep you constantly up to date. For a wide variety of industries, such as automotive, aerospace, chemicals, events, sports and many other areas, we charter the right aircraft for time-critical, oversized or dangerous shipments. Together with our partners, we take over the complete organisation of the transport. Even with this service, we do not lose sight of the economic efficiency and determine the best price based on our many years of experience. Of course, a dedicated staff member is available around the clock for this service and, if necessary, accompanies the freight to its destination. This is often used in the event sector, as logistics must be coordinated and organised on site. Of course, we are happy to support you with delivering relief goods or other projects - also in the partial charter sector. We look forward to your 24/7 inquiries! Dedicated Transports We have been active in the field of dedicated transports since 1990. Well-known customers from industry and logistics have trusted our services for decades. We work 24/7 to deliver, pick up or bypass urgent shipments directly, efficiently and without detours. We monitor the transport process digitally as well as personally. We prevent belt downtimes, supply medical equipment, or save the world together with you. Our own vehicle fleet is not older than three years and meets the latest technical and ecological standards. In addition, we have all vehicle sizes and classes with a wide variety of bodies. This makes it possible to always use the right vehicle at the best price. Have you ever thought about changing your procurement logistics and organizing it yourself? There is usually great potential for savings here. Feel free to contact us, we are happy to assist. From hot to cold Temperature controlled transports are in good hands with us. Our thermo trucks will always keep your shipment at just the right temperature in a rage from -30 to +30 degrees celsius. Safety First: Transport of dangerous goods and explosives. The special requirements of the dangerous goods regulations (GDR) to be observed are comprehensively and thoroughly fulfilled by us, the drivers are trained, and the equipment is maintained. Accordingly, all necessary permits in accordance with §7 of the Explosives Act (SprengG) No. 06/2009 are available. Our trained drivers have the so-called "ADR permit" and have received the certificate of participation in a state-recognised course according to §32 of the First Ordinance on the Explosives Act (Class 9). On request, we will prepare the transport document or IMO declaration for you. Special orders? Of course! The more outstanding order, the more attractive. We are happy to show you a few examples of our not everyday transports: This requires a sensitve touch: For a Hamburg research institute, we packed, consolidated and shipped a disassembled telescope. The packages, some of which had a total weight of up to nine tons and a height of eight meters, had to be stowed precisely in sea containers. A dress for Katy Perry On the occasion of Katy Perry's Super Bowl appearance, we flew the dress made in Germany by On Board Courier from Frankfurt to Los Angeles and from there on to Phoenix. Around 20 tons of Formula 1 equipment for the Scuderia Ferrari racing team were transported from the Hockenheimring (DE) to the Hungaroring in Hungary by - of course - express. Art transport from Spain to Italy The heavy work of art made of solid stone weighing around 500 kg and measuring 4,5 meters long was loaded in Spain by means of a 7.5-tons ztruck and safely reached its destination in an Italian museum. After the end of the exhibition, the magnificent piece was brought back to Spain. Already for Bon Jovi, Madonna, AC/DC, the Rolling Stones and other superstars of the international concert and show business, our on-tour trucks with the concert equipment were on their way to the individual venues. And of course, always to the point in time. Aircraft on Ground - when it has to be really fast If a technical defect keeps an aircraft on ground, extreme costs can arise within a very short time. With our AOG Express service, we help you to keep these downtimes as short as possible. Thanks to our 24-hour service, our office is staffed around the clock. We are thus always able to organise and carry out your urgent transport requests directly. This service is based on our experienced team and our reliable partner network. In addition, all parties involved have the necessary safety training and access authorisations to enable a smooth processing of your order. Our branches in Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich and Cologne are located in the immediate vicinity of the airports. So, we have our finger on the pulse and can act very direct. Of course, our portfolio covers this service throughout Europe. In order to cast off The fastest possible delivery to the harbor edge. That is what is needed, when ship spare parts are needed in order to make a ship lying in the port seaworthy again. Every hour that the ship has to stay longer on land due to technical problems costs considerable amounts. With our 24-hour express service, we ensure that this period of downtime is as short as possible by deliveringthe required spare parts as quickly as possible to their destination. Within Europe, we rely on our highly available network including our own fleet or do send the urgent parts by express air freight and charters. Emergency Logistics & OBC Highly Urgent? Bring it on. If it becomes time-critical and sensitive goods can no longer be transported in normal (air freight) traffic, our OBC (On-Board-Courier) service is at your disposal. Our experienced couriers start immediately to deliver spare parts, documents or important production goods directly and worldwide with the next aircraft, personally accompanying. Within a very short time, we will work out a concept for the fastest and most efficient transport route. That includes customs clearance, if needed. Abroad, we access a worldwide network to accelerate processing with on-site know-how. The OBC is one of the safest and most reliable modes of transport. For this service, a dedicated staff member is available around the clock to supervise the transport and keep you constantly up to date. For a wide variety of industries, such as automotive, aerospace, chemicals, events, sports and many other areas, we charter the right aircraft for time-critical, oversized or dangerous shipments. Together with our partners, we take over the complete organisation of the transport. Even with this service, we do not lose sight of the economic efficiency and determine the best price based on our many years of experience. Of course, a dedicated staff member is available around the clock for this service and, if necessary, accompanies the freight to its destination. This is often used in the event sector, as logistics must be coordinated and organised on site. Of course, we are happy to support you with delivering relief goods or other projects - also in the partial charter sector. We look forward to your 24/7 inquiries! Dedicated Transports We have been active in the field of dedicated transports since 1990. Well-known customers from industry and logistics have trusted our services for decades. We work 24/7 to deliver, pick up or bypass urgent shipments directly, efficiently and without detours. We monitor the transport process digitally as well as personally. We prevent belt downtimes, supply medical equipment, or save the world together with you. Our own vehicle fleet is not older than three years and meets the latest technical and ecological standards. In addition, we have all vehicle sizes and classes with a wide variety of bodies. This makes it possible to always use the right vehicle at the best price. Have you ever thought about changing your procurement logistics and organizing it yourself? There is usually great potential for savings here. Feel free to contact us, we are happy to assist. From hot to cold Temperature controlled transports are in good hands with us. Our thermo trucks will always keep your shipment at just the right temperature in a rage from -30 to +30 degrees celsius. Safety First: Transport of dangerous goods and explosives. The special requirements of the dangerous goods regulations (GDR) to be observed are comprehensively and thoroughly fulfilled by us, the drivers are trained, and the equipment is maintained. Accordingly, all necessary permits in accordance with §7 of the Explosives Act (SprengG) No. 06/2009 are available. Our trained drivers have the so-called "ADR permit" and have received the certificate of participation in a state-recognised course according to §32 of the First Ordinance on the Explosives Act (Class 9). On request, we will prepare the transport document or IMO declaration for you. Special orders? Of course! The more outstanding order, the more attractive. We are happy to show you a few examples of our not everyday transports: This requires a sensitve touch: For a Hamburg research institute, we packed, consolidated and shipped a disassembled telescope. The packages, some of which had a total weight of up to nine tons and a height of eight meters, had to be stowed precisely in sea containers. A dress for Katy Perry On the occasion of Katy Perry's Super Bowl appearance, we flew the dress made in Germany by On Board Courier from Frankfurt to Los Angeles and from there on to Phoenix. Around 20 tons of Formula 1 equipment for the Scuderia Ferrari racing team were transported from the Hockenheimring (DE) to the Hungaroring in Hungary by - of course - express. Art transport from Spain to Italy The heavy work of art made of solid stone weighing around 500 kg and measuring 4,5 meters long was loaded in Spain by means of a 7.5-tons ztruck and safely reached its destination in an Italian museum. After the end of the exhibition, the magnificent piece was brought back to Spain. Already for Bon Jovi, Madonna, AC/DC, the Rolling Stones and other superstars of the international concert and show business, our on-tour trucks with the concert equipment were on their way to the individual venues. And of course, always to the point in time.	12,812
Hi Kids! I hope you've been out playing in this beautiful day that God has made for us. First up is a song about LOTS of things that God has made. It's a fun one and is full of tongue-twisters! Next, we are going to take a break from our catechism questions and answers for a bit to give you a chance to review the ones we've covered so far. Below is a story from one of my family's favorite books... It's the story of David and Goliath. After you listen and watch, keep scrolling down to hear the author of the Jesus Storybook Bible read to us about Psalm 23 which was written by the very same boy who fought Goliath. Psalm 23 is also what we are learning about on Sunday mornings in worship! Now here's Sally Lloyd-Jones reading about Psalm 23... Scripture: Psalm 23: 1-3 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Father, thank You that you love us enough to pay attention to us and to our needs. Thank You for leading us and restoring us. We love You Lord. Amen	1,126
Feel with us the charm of Russian province. You will visit places of Moscow region and also some places of other Russian regions geographically and historically connected with Moscow. There are many amazing and beautiful places in this area including ancient monasteries, palaces and estate architectural ensembles with beautiful parks and gardens, unique corners of Central Russian nature. Tours around Moscow Excursions around Moscow Hotels around Moscow The capital of Russia — Moscow is a well-known tourist center. Many people every year visit the Red Square, Moscow Kremlin, Tretyakov Art Gallery, the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, Moscow Metro. But the area around Moscow is also very interesting for tourism. Inhabitants of Russia call this area Podmoskoviye (literally it means an area around Moscow). Such verbal construction is used in Russian for environs of Moscow city only (as, for-example, Americans use construction like New Yorker for the people of New York city only). Moscow area is located in the central part of the East European Plain (also called the Russian Plain) in interfluve of the Volga River and the Oka River in mixed coniferous forest terrestrial zone. Podmoskoviye is not only suburbs of contemporary Moscow and the Moscow Region but also some places of other Russian regions geographically and historically connected with Moscow. The town of Sergiev Posad (74 km to the north-east from Moscow) is lovely provincial town whose life is centered around the well-known monastery whose overwhelming panoramic view you can see from the Pancake Hill driving to Sergiev Posad from Moscow. The town was named in honour of St. Sergius who was born in the neighboring town of Radonezh and founded of the Trinity Monastery that is now known as the Holy Trinity Sergius Laura, spiritual center of the Russian Orthodox Church, one of the main destinations of Christian pilgrimage and one of the greatest attractions for tourists. Architectural ensemble of the Trinity-Sergius Laura (XV-XIX cc.) reflects all periods of Russian architecture development. The Trinity Cathedral, the major church of the monastery has unique iconostasis of Andrei Rublev. The Dormition Cathedral is a sepulcher of the Russian patriarchs. The Trinity-Sergius Laura is functioning monastery (about 200 monks). The Ecclesiastical Academy is located on its grounds. You have a chance to stand a service at one of churches open to public and to listen to one of the best choirs of Russia. Events Historical reconstruction of the Battle of Borodino is held annualy at the Battle of Borodino Museum in the first week-end of September. Usually about 1,000 people in the uniform of the Russian and French armies accompanied by spectacular pyrotechnic effects take part in reconstruction of the Battle of Borodino episodes. The most popular Russian souvenir is well-known Matryoshka (Little Matron) – wooden doll decorated with paintings with the same figures of a smaller size inside of it. The Matryoshka Doll was designed in 1890 by Sergei Malyutin, Russian painter of the Abramtsevo circle, and made by Vassily Zvyozdochkin, the best doll master from Sergiev Posad. The idea of the Matryoshka was suggested by similar Japanese Fukurokuju doll brought by wife of Savva Mamontov from the Hokkaido Island. Matryoshka made an impression at the Exposition Universelle of 1900 in Paris and soon became one of the main symbols of Russia in the world. That’s why we are not sure that you would be understood quite well by you familiars if you return from Russia without Matryoshkas. At the Museum of the Toy Factory in Sergiev Posad you have a chance to see and purchase different kinds of this fascinating Russian souvenir and even to take part in painting of Matryoshka or in making of traditional Russian rag doll.	3,880
Yesterday, the Rice football team won its first outright conference championship since 1957! The Owls are now 10-3 on the season with the opportunity to achieve the first 11-win season in school history if they can win in the Liberty Bowl this New Year’s Eve. That won’t be easy as they will be playing against an SEC opponent, but it’s such an exciting opportunity! More important than Rice’s winning record is that they’ve been winning the “right” way. Rice wins awards every year for the high academic standards it sets for its student-athletes and for its student-athlete graduation rate. Rice players are not in the news for sexual assault or NCAA violations. When David Bailiff became Head Football Coach six years ago, some of his first initiatives were aimed at engaging the players with the rest of the university and with the community – largely through service (such as helping freshmen move their heavy furniture on move-in day and holding Football 101 clinics for international students). In short, Rice is winning with smart, good-hearted young men. That isn’t wishful thinking from a proud alum; that is empirical evidence from having taught several football players and other student-athletes in my Rice entrepreneurship course over the last couple of years. There are probably exceptions to that generalization and there have been times when they have lost their composure on the field but, by and large, I am proud not so much of the fact that Rice has been winning, but much more so by how they’ve been winning. Published by Bryan Guido Hassin These are the musings of a global cleantech entrepreneur. This blog began as a way to document my experience during the IMD MBA in Switzerland and now is the place where I publish eclectic thoughts on business, politics, fitness, entertainment, travel, wine, sports, and . . . whatever else is top of mind. View more posts Previous Post Previous post: Next Post Next post: Leave a Reply Cancel reply Archives Select Month November 2022 (1) September 2022 (3) April 2022 (1) February 2022 (3) January 2022 (1) August 2021 (2) July 2021 (1) May 2021 (2) April 2021 (1) March 2021 (1) February 2021 (3) January 2021 (2) December 2020 (2) November 2020 (2) October 2020 (3) September 2020 (4) August 2020 (2) July 2020 (3) June 2020 (4) May 2020 (7) April 2020 (2) February 2020 (1) December 2019 (1) November 2019 (3) October 2019 (2) September 2019 (3) July 2019 (3) March 2019 (1) January 2019 (3) December 2018 (2) November 2018 (2) October 2018 (4) September 2018 (2) July 2018 (1) June 2018 (1) May 2018 (1) April 2018 (2) March 2018 (5) February 2018 (1) December 2017 (1) October 2017 (2) September 2017 (1) August 2017 (2) July 2017 (1) June 2017 (3) May 2017 (2) April 2017 (4) March 2017 (3) February 2017 (2) January 2017 (1) December 2016 (1) November 2016 (7) October 2016 (5) September 2016 (1) August 2016 (5) July 2016 (4) June 2016 (1) May 2016 (6) April 2016 (1) March 2016 (3) February 2016 (1) January 2016 (1) December 2015 (3) November 2015 (1) October 2015 (2) September 2015 (5) August 2015 (1) July 2015 (1) June 2015 (4) May 2015 (1) April 2015 (3) March 2015 (2) February 2015 (3) January 2015 (2) November 2014 (4) October 2014 (3) August 2014 (3) July 2014 (3) June 2014 (7) April 2014 (1) March 2014 (3) February 2014 (1) January 2014 (1) December 2013 (2) November 2013 (3) October 2013 (3) September 2013 (2) August 2013 (1) July 2013 (2) June 2013 (1) May 2013 (2) April 2013 (1) March 2013 (2) February 2013 (2) January 2013 (11) December 2012 (2) November 2012 (1) October 2012 (4) September 2012 (3) August 2012 (6) July 2012 (4) June 2012 (3) May 2012 (4) March 2012 (3) February 2012 (1) January 2012 (4) December 2011 (5) November 2011 (4) October 2011 (3) August 2011 (5) July 2011 (2) June 2011 (4) May 2011 (8) April 2011 (2) March 2011 (5) February 2011 (7) January 2011 (2) December 2010 (4) November 2010 (1) October 2010 (4) September 2010 (2) August 2010 (4) July 2010 (6) June 2010 (3) May 2010 (4) April 2010 (5) March 2010 (8) February 2010 (5) January 2010 (7) December 2009 (5) November 2009 (6) October 2009 (8) September 2009 (5) August 2009 (4) July 2009 (4) June 2009 (4) May 2009 (5) April 2009 (5) March 2009 (7) February 2009 (13) January 2009 (12) December 2008 (9) November 2008 (10) October 2008 (16) September 2008 (18) August 2008 (18) July 2008 (16) June 2008 (25) May 2008 (15) April 2008 (21) March 2008 (17) February 2008 (24) January 2008 (8) December 2007 (2)	4,735
Families of those shot by police speak out for I-940 Posted on Saturday, November 18, 2017 - 7:03 am by Kelsey Hamlin Supporters hope Initiative 940 will change Washington state policy so fatal police shootings happen less often and so there’s more accountability when they occur. Gathering on a few Seattle City Hall steps Friday, a crowd representing 33 different families impacted by police killings gathered in support of I-940 in the hopes of preventing future deaths. The Puget Sound region witnessed a slew of police killings in the past year: Renee Davis October 21, 2016, Jacqueline Salyers on January 28th, Daniel Covarrubias in April, Tommy Le June 13th, Charleena Lyles June 18th, Giovonn Joseph-McDade June 24th. All of them were people of color. Salyers, Davis and Lyles were all pregnant when killed. “What else did we think would come with this when the police are investigating themselves,” asked Katrina Johnson, Lyles’ cousin. “They keep killing people and getting away with it.” I-940 aims to hold police accountable for violent actions. The initiative, changing the malice standard for and self-investigation by police, stems from Che Taylor’s fatal shooting from February last year. Earlier this week, The Seattle Times reported the conclusions of an official review that showed the officers actions were within department policy when the 30-year-old Lyles was shot to death. SPD officers Steven McNew and Jason Anderson shot Lyles seven times at her apartment on June 18 while responding to a burglary call. Johnson said the family is “beyond devastated” but not surprised. “If her death is within policy, policy needs to change,” she said. I-940 would require and change a number of police practices and standards. It calls for police to have de-escalation, first aid and mental health training. Officers must also provide first aid at the scene under certain circumstances. I-940 would establish a good faith standard for the use of deadly force and requires a completely independent investigation when it results in death or injury. The initiative requires tribal involvement in investigations if a tribal member is killed or injured. The language mandates community involvement in policy for police curriculum, training hours, guidelines for rendering first aid and procedures for independent investigations. Since 2005, police killings in Washington have risen dramatically but only one officer has ever been criminally charged, according to The Seattle Times. That is the only fatal police case brought forward in a Washington court for over 30 years. This is in part due to Washington’s 1986 law (RCW 9A.16.040) that says police cannot be criminally liable for employing deadly force if they did so without malice and with a good faith belief that such an act is justifiable under the following permitted-deadly-force items: When arresting or apprehending a person who the officer reasonably believes has committed, attempted to commit, is committing or attempting to commit a felony When lawfully suppressing a riot if the actor or another participant is armed with a deadly weapon All of this requires probable cause that a suspect, if not apprehended, poses a threat of serious physical harm to an officer or others. “Unless you can read minds,” Seattle City Council member Kshama Sawant said, “nothing is going to be proved.” Johnson, Lyles’ cousin, has been at the forefront of public discussion on behalf of her family. “I think when this happens, you don’t really have a choice,” Johnson said. “You have to be able to grieve and fight. So, for me, I just want to fight because I’m still angry. I haven’t even processed my cousin’s death, still. It’s too painful to think about it. And I cannot begin to grieve until I feel like there’s some sort of justice that’s going to be brought about so that when I look at her kids, I’m like ‘okay we did something.’ Because right now, with the way things are going, nothing’s gonna happen. She’ll just be another person killed by the Seattle Police. And we will not stand for that, not my family, we’re not.” Lyles’ four kids, who were split up for a short amount of time following her death, still live with family. But they will never get to meet Lyles’ fifth child who died with her as she got shot. Sonia Joseph, Joseph-McDade’s mother, shares Johnson’s painful experience. Joseph-McDade was shot multiple times as a police officer felt Joseph-McDade was going to run him over. “It’s hard trying to explain to the kids,” she said. “They’re scared. They’re scared every single day. ‘When are you coming home?’ They’re scared that you’re not going to come home. Every time they see a police officer, they’re scared and that’s a shame. That’s a shame because that’s not how it should be. Every time we talk about it, it’s hard. It’s reliving it.” Despite their pain, both Joseph and Johnson said they’re not anti-police. They’re “anti- bad behavior.” “I believe there are good police officers but they just kinda get lost in the shuffle,” Johnson said. “I think that when I-940 gets passed, it will bring about more accountability than people actually think before they pull the trigger because there’s actual consequences. Right now, there’s no consequences for their actions. So, just like children after they have no consequences, they tend to do whatever they want to do. And that’s what’s happening now.” As it stands, I-940 has 230,000 signatures but needs 30,000 more to make it onto the ballot. The De-Escalate Washington campaign in charge of I-940, in joint with Not This Time, raised over $8,000. Per their own polling, 75% of voters say they would vote yes on I-940. Andre Taylor advocated for this piece of legislation on behalf of his brother, Che Taylor, who was shot by police. “We didn’t know what to do, where to turn,” he said. “We had to fight and grieve at the same time because they put out this narrative about our family … In this country, officers are allowed to lie. Nobody, nobody, NOBODY wants to be a part of this group [of families whose relatives have been shot by police]. We wouldn’t wish it on our worst enemies.” Johnson talked of her experience with Lyles’ inquest process, which Johnson calls “flawed.” “It doesn’t really bring about any change,” she said. “We haven’t even gone through the process, but when I met with the deputy chief prosecuting attorney, he already told me that they’re not going to be prosecuted. So then you think to yourself, ‘what is the point of doing the inquest? You already told me there’s not going to be any accountability so it’s just a formality to save face for you more so than it is for the families.’ The fact that the families have to go up against this army of police attorneys and we don’t even have legal representation most of the time, but you guys are killing us.” The King County prosecuting attorney’s office denied Johnson’s account of the conversation. The inquest is set for April. I-940 has until December 29th to get the number of signatures they need for the November 2018 ballot. This entry was posted in News, etc. and tagged olympia by Kelsey Hamlin. Bookmark the permalink. Kelsey Hamlin studied Journalism and Law, Societies & Justice at the University of Washington. For three years, she has focused her work around social justice issues, legalities and policies. View all posts by Kelsey Hamlin → View all comments Kim SmithTuesday, Sept. 7, 1999 \| 11:07 a.m. Las Vegas pimps need to take note of what happened in U.S. District Court Friday, Assistant United States Attorney Tom O’Connell said. One pimp was convicted of seven prostitution-related charges and another got almost three years in prison after admitting he brought one underage prostitute across state lines. After seven hours of deliberations, a federal district jury rejected Andre Taylor’s claims that he had retired from the pimp business and convicted him of forcing women and underage girls to travel across state lines to commit sex acts. Taylor could face up to 10 years in federal prison when sentenced by U.S. District Judge Howard McKibben on Jan. 18. Jurors in the Taylor case heard testimony from two of his former prostitutes, one of whom was 16 when she went to work for him. The women said they worked seven days a week and turned all of their profits over to Taylor, who lived in a $300,000 house and wore $4,100 Versace suits and a $90,000 Rolex watch. Taylor’s attorney, Michael Kennedy, claimed that Taylor had retired from the prostitution business and was pursuing a career as a rap music artist. Jim98122x What’s your point? Assuming it’s even the same Andre Taylor, and this story being from 1999 and he’s probably served any time he was sentenced to, and his dead brother has not been identified as a pimp— what’s your point? He’s right. Che was just a convicted rapist, heroin dealer and in possession of an illegal fire arm while selling heroin. Andre was just a pimping 16 year old girls nearly 20 years ago. Jim98122x My point is that defending (or not) the shooting of Che Taylor which may or may not have been justified, is not accomplished by attacking the character of his brother, whose convictions and rison time served seem to have nothing to do with what Che Taylor was shot for. Whether he did it or not. That’s like saying you get arrested and put on trial for crimes of any kind, and the DA can introduce supporting evidence the crimes your brother was tried and convicted on. That makes no sense. Jim, Simon never said anything about the Che Taylor shooting. He was impugning the character of the Chair of De-escalate WA. It IS the same Andre Taylor. He has admitted it and is featured in the documentary, “American Pimp,” in which he says that the government was just trying to keep him down by making prostitution illegal (he trafficked underage girls). He says he’s found God and changed while in prison. Maybe he has, but pimps are pretty crafty. How else do you get people to enslave themselves to you? Kareem Puranda My heart goes out to the families impacted by these shootings. I am a former law enforcement officer and I recently wrote a book called Breaking the Code of Silence: A Cop’s Journey to Triumph and Truth. I detail some of the unaddressed factors that contribute to officers being quick to pull the trigger. This is a very sensitive and highly controversial topic in our country. My book provides solutions that will influence change on how police officers are currently trained and the law enforcement culture they work in. + SUBSCRIBE TO CHS: Support journalism dedicated to your neighborhood. SUBSCRIBE HERE TODAY. Let’s talk about the neighborhood Top Posts With an owner returning to the community that first welcomed him, Tamarind Tree will reshape R Place building in 2023 Seattle City Council ready to set new rules for street cafes and food trucks No hot pot but lots cooking at Capitol Hill Station with Glo's Diner and Seasmith coffee shop planning 2023 debuts Email Address Police and Fire Radio Scanner CHS Archives Select Month December 2022 (23) November 2022 (78) October 2022 (72) September 2022 (75) August 2022 (67) July 2022 (62) June 2022 (85) May 2022 (80) April 2022 (70) March 2022 (92) February 2022 (80) January 2022 (89) December 2021 (72) November 2021 (84) October 2021 (79) September 2021 (78) August 2021 (74) July 2021 (84) June 2021 (85) May 2021 (84) April 2021 (92) March 2021 (101) February 2021 (92) January 2021 (87) December 2020 (71) November 2020 (79) October 2020 (86) September 2020 (83) August 2020 (78) July 2020 (95) June 2020 (91) May 2020 (86) April 2020 (98) March 2020 (97) February 2020 (73) January 2020 (82) December 2019 (76) November 2019 (81) October 2019 (93) September 2019 (88) August 2019 (95) July 2019 (95) June 2019 (90) May 2019 (92) April 2019 (104) March 2019 (104) February 2019 (96) January 2019 (92) December 2018 (85) November 2018 (91) October 2018 (112) September 2018 (91) August 2018 (106) July 2018 (101) June 2018 (98) May 2018 (99) April 2018 (105) March 2018 (113) February 2018 (114) January 2018 (116) December 2017 (105) November 2017 (124) October 2017 (103) September 2017 (21) August 2017 (18) July 2017 (22) June 2017 (18) May 2017 (33) April 2017 (66) March 2017 (135) February 2017 (122) January 2017 (138) December 2016 (117) November 2016 (133) October 2016 (146) September 2016 (141) August 2016 (145) July 2016 (139) June 2016 (153) May 2016 (135) April 2016 (125) March 2016 (145) February 2016 (131) January 2016 (131) December 2015 (112) November 2015 (116) October 2015 (131) September 2015 (131) August 2015 (122) July 2015 (137) June 2015 (120) May 2015 (123) April 2015 (125) March 2015 (144) February 2015 (129) January 2015 (139) December 2014 (121) November 2014 (149) October 2014 (148) September 2014 (145) August 2014 (127) July 2014 (134) June 2014 (144) May 2014 (142) April 2014 (144) March 2014 (143) February 2014 (130) January 2014 (147) December 2013 (118) November 2013 (135) October 2013 (159) September 2013 (142) August 2013 (137) July 2013 (137) June 2013 (137) May 2013 (155) April 2013 (148) March 2013 (163) February 2013 (178) January 2013 (200) December 2012 (121) November 2012 (151) October 2012 (158) September 2012 (150) August 2012 (147) July 2012 (147) June 2012 (130) May 2012 (155) April 2012 (136) March 2012 (151) February 2012 (136) January 2012 (150) December 2011 (226) November 2011 (253) October 2011 (310) September 2011 (237) August 2011 (236) July 2011 (229) June 2011 (239) May 2011 (258) April 2011 (253) March 2011 (235) February 2011 (241) January 2011 (216) December 2010 (210) November 2010 (251) October 2010 (335) September 2010 (340) August 2010 (286) July 2010 (261) June 2010 (262) May 2010 (272) April 2010 (270) March 2010 (266) February 2010 (244) January 2010 (304) December 2009 (196) November 2009 (203) October 2009 (236) September 2009 (243) August 2009 (208) July 2009 (243) June 2009 (244) May 2009 (254) April 2009 (194) March 2009 (181) February 2009 (145) January 2009 (185) December 2008 (218) November 2008 (150) October 2008 (168) September 2008 (134) August 2008 (132) July 2008 (151) June 2008 (172) May 2008 (102) April 2008 (62) March 2008 (51) February 2008 (76) January 2008 (72) December 2007 (92) November 2007 (59) October 2007 (61) September 2007 (45) August 2007 (62) July 2007 (35) June 2007 (44) May 2007 (54) April 2007 (53) March 2007 (52) February 2007 (54) January 2007 (53) December 2006 (59) November 2006 (31) October 2006 (26) September 2006 (9) August 2006 (30) July 2006 (16) June 2006 (17) May 2006 (18) April 2006 (23) March 2006 (29) February 2006 (22) January 2006 (15)	15,666
When you purchase through links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. This doesn't affect our editorial independence. Facebook has launched a new messaging app for iOS and Android that aims to take on Snapchat, after the social networking giant's failed attempt at buying the company last year. Head of Affiliate, Tech Advisor Jul 1, 2014 7:48 pm BST Overall, we currently prefer Snapchat to Facebook’s new Slingshot ephemeral messaging app. Snapchat is less frustrating than Slingshot, and right now there are more people using Snapchat than Slingshot. However, we can imagine Slingshot taking off and becoming more popular as more features are added, particularly due to the group-messaging feature. We appreciate that Facebook has attempted to add its own spin on the disappearing messaging craze, but it’s not going to go down well with everyone, that’s for sure. Facebook has launched a new messaging app for iOS and Android that aims to take on Snapchat, after the social networking giant’s failed attempt at buying the company last year. Also see: 13 best Facebook tips and tricks. Like Snapchat, Facebook’s Slingshot app lets users send photos and videos to friends – photos and videos that will disappear once viewed. Here, put the two ephemeral messaging apps head-to-head in our Slingshot vs Snapchat comparison. At first glance, the two apps seem very similar, but there is one big difference. With Snapchat, one user can send as many photos and videos as they like to their friends, and that friend doesn’t need to send anything back if they don’t want to. With Slingshot, Facebook forces you to send (or ‘Sling’) a photo or video to your friend before you can see what they have sent you. We found that, while it seems like a fun and unique idea at first, it simply results in a frustrating and never-ending conversation, with users just taking photos of anything they can find for the sake of unlocking and viewing your photograph. You can, however, send ‘Reactions’ to photographs using a text feature, and the recipient can read those reactions without requiring a response beforehand. See also: How to deactivate or delete your Facebook account We much prefer the more relaxed Snapchat system, though. There’s no pressure to return a photograph or video if you don’t want to on Snapchat, and therefore you’re more likely to get better and more worthwhile photos and messages from the conversation. Another difference between Snapchat and Slingshot is the amount of time you get to look at the photo. They’ll both disappear eventually, but with Snapchat you get a set amount of seconds before it disappears. Slingshot gives you as long as you want but it’ll disappear once you’ve swiped to respond. In both apps, users can add text, drawings and annotations to their messages, but Slingshot does have a one up on Snapchat, offering a Select All button that means you can send your photo to all of your friends at once, or to a particular group of friends. Snapchat’s reason for not including such feature is relevant, though. It says that it wants to avoid lessening the importance of the push notifications you get from the app, because if you’re part of group messages, you’re likely to get a significantly increased number of messages. This is one area that personal preference is going to come into play when deciding which app to use. If you prefer to keep messages personal, and aren’t a fan of getting lots of notifications from groups (something you may already experience with Facebook Messenger), you’ll want to stick with Snapchat. But for those of you with a group of friends that would love sending silly photos to each other and wouldn’t be put off by those notifications, we imagine Facebook’s Slingshot could be great fun. Right now, Slingshot is missing some features that Snapchat offers (it adds new features on a regular basis), but we expect Facebook will bring new features to its app in the future should it prove to be a success. One of the features Snapchat offers is Snapchat Stories, which lets you take ‘Snaps’ and add them to your ‘Story’, where they’ll stay for 24 hours. All of your friends can watch your Story, which is likely to change day by day if you continue to use it. There’s also the problem of privacy. Snapchat is notorious for sharing nude and pornographic photographs, so there is no doubt that Slingshot is going to experience the same fate. As users can add any other user simply by knowing their username, there is always the worry that your username will be leaked onto the public domain and you’ll start receiving images you really don’t want to see. Slingshot allows you to hide people by swiping left on their name, so you don’t have to see Slings that you don’t want to see, and you can also report people if they start sending you inappropriate images. With Snapchat, you can choose whether you want to accept Snaps from anyone that knows your username, or only users you’ve added to your friends list (we’d recommend the latter). You’ll be able to delete or block users, to. Author: Ashleigh Macro, Head of Affiliate Ashleigh is Tech Advisor's Head of Affiliate. Providing expert buying advice you can trust is her forte, helping you to find the most reputable consumer tech products and services, and ensuring you don't spend a penny more than you should. Recent stories by Ashleigh Macro: What is Peach & how to use it 7 social media apps that could be big in 2016 Tech Advisor helps you find your tech sweet spot. We steer you to products you'll love and show you how to get the most out of them.	5,760
The single was initially shared as a demo earlier this year, but now has had a full revamp, and is really something special. Header image by Byron Spencer. Just a few months back, we got a glimpse into the future via ASHWARYA, the 21-year-old Indian-born, Melbourne-based musician who at the time, was sharing her debut single PSYCHO HOLE. It was a single worthy of causing a ruckus about; a snapshot of what's to come from the future of Australia's pop space as she carved together a distinct sound plucked from influences spanning Tyler The Creator through to the traditional Indian music she grew up through. "From the get-go, PSYCHO HOLE feels like a dystopian introduction to someone we've never come across before, with a spiralling production and certain abrasiveness being at the core of the single's warping and incredibly unique feel," we said on its release a few months back, which also launched a new forward-thinking pop label in NOiZE Recordings, run by Australian producer Jarrad Rogers (Diplo, Charli XCX, Mark Ronson). "Aside from that, however, PSYCHO HOLE is near-impossible to describe accurately. It's a dark and brooding take of pop music that feels just as aligned in hip-hop and electronica; part-Bille Eilish's runaway success Bad Guy, but if it were remixed by someone like Tyler, The Creator with a Yeezus-esque rush running underneath it. "In saying that, PSYCHO HOLE is distinctly ASHWARYA, judging from her first peak. There are elements of traditional Indian music and the Bollywood-esque drama in PSYCHO HOLE's foundation that really set it apart from the rest, and when a time where Australia's pop circuit feels so saturated that it's hard to imagine someone new joining the ranks, ASHWARYA does exactly what she needs to do - stand out from the crowd." Now, backed up with her second single BIRYANI two months later, what we've said about ASHWARYA above feels only more true. Comparative to PSYCHO HOLE, BIRYANI fits perfectly into the ASHWARYA canon thanks to its combination of foward-thinking pop prowess mixed with influences plucked from her background, fusing elements of pop, hip-hop and electronica with bhangra drumming and glittering melodies that give nods to her culture. It's unlike anything else you could hear - only ASHWARYA could make this, and that's what makes it so special. In a way, it's also an opportunity to show how ASHWARYA has grown and refined herself, even in the space of just six months. Initially, the song's demo was released onto triple j Unearthed prior to PSYCHO HOLE's arrival - a snapshot of what's to come, in a way. Now, with its fully-realised vision released for the first time, you can feel how ASHWARYA has grown and extended herself since the demo's arrival; the final version being more slick, polished, fun and just a touch more reflective of someone who is bound to be synonymous with pop's experimental, left-field future. It also arrives with an official video which you can take a leap into below, recorded in isolation alongside Emile Frederick, as she explains to Complex: "We were and are still in a pretty major lockdown in Melbourne so I ended up shooting it in my garage, inside of a 55-gallon barrel where I performed to a 360 GoPro, no crews," she explains. "My dad helped me pump the paint until it eventually drowned me. It was as DIY as it gets in terms of set up. Looking back on it though, it was such a sick experience, but I'm not going to lie: I was slightly traumatised by it." Hopefully ASHWARYA thinks its worth it through, because BIRYANI really makes it two from two for the rising musician, and to have the creativity to give such thought-out and dynamic visuals in the middle of coronavirus isolation is really just reflective of how forward-thinking and smart she seems. Take a dive into it below: Premiere: Brendan Maclean moves into brooding electro-pop with new single, GeminiAfter the glitz and glam of his 2020 return in Easy Love, the Sydney musician teams up with Yeo for something a little more subtle and bottom-heavy. Kickstart your week with Kaytranada's v-funky remix of Dua Lipa's Don't Start NowThe new remix comes as Dua Lipa shares an unmixed version of her Club Future Nostalgia remix record, with a few new gems hidden inside.	4,340
We Need Your Support! Please make a donation today to keep this community resource on the air. Donate today! Local News Many children are regularly exposed to gun violence. Here's how to help them heal By Noelle E. C. Evans Published September 20, 2022 at 5:01 AM EDT Volunteers from McQuaid Jesuit High School play basketball with the children of Cameron Community Ministries' after-school program. On a spring day, a group of elementary students and their chaperones walk along a sidewalk in the Lyell-Otis neighborhood of Rochester, N.Y. A few blocks away is their destination: Cameron Community Ministries' after-school program. The mood is cheerful – some of the kids are leaping or skipping – but their path, which they routinely take, passes more than a dozen spots where murders and aggravated assaults have happened in the last decade. There's the block west of here where a 17-year-old boy was shot and killed, allegedly by a classmate, back in March. He's one of at least six minors who have been killed by gunfire since January, according to Rochester Police. The students cross Otis Street where, six years ago, a father was shot and killed one morning as children were arriving at the school across the street. According to a report by a local paper that day, a neighbor saw dozens of children run "screaming at the top of their lungs" into the building. Kaila Toppin remembers it – her sister was there. "The school went into lockdown because [a student's] father got shot." Toppin, 19, used to be a student with the program at Cameron. Now, she's a chaperone, and Phyllipp McKnight is one of her charges. He's been exposed to neighborhood violence, and he's only in second grade. "If you don't know the violence, I'm teaching you right now," he says. "And when you become 6 years old, like me, I don't want this dark future that happened to me." Many children like Phyllipp, who are regularly exposed to community gun violence, can struggle with feelings of hopelessness and anxiety. They can also have difficulty regulating their emotions – all symptoms of post-traumatic stress, which can have lasting impacts into adulthood. But there's a lot communities and after-school programs can do to help. Teaching children that life doesn't have to end in their teens Riana Elyse Anderson, who studies child trauma and Black families at the University of Michigan's School of Public Health, says the key is to create supportive environments for children. Kaila Toppin carries after-school student Blessyn Mays on the playground at Cameron Community Ministries. "The more you have supportive structures around you – like family, like peers, like adult mentors – the better chance you have of ... surviving because you're active and engaged and perhaps in spaces that may be a bit safer." Those supportive structures also help children shed challenging psychological beliefs, like life ends in your teens or life has little value – beliefs that can be reaffirmed by fatal neighborhood shootings. Anderson says one way to get those supportive structures in place is through after-school programs, which not only keep kids supervised and off the street, but can also help children and teens learn about their strengths, dreams and culture. Most of all, it can help them see that life is valuable. Cameron Community Ministries' after-school program does this through mentoring, field trips and team-building activities. Luis Mateo, a youth program director, says he also teaches his students leadership skills, guides them through community-oriented projects and steps in when students are going through something heavy – like after the recent mass shooting in nearby Buffalo, or after a neighborhood incident. "I had two kids that were just, like, stunned because a friend of theirs was shot," Mateo recalls. "He lived but it was still traumatizing... So I talk with them, make sure they're OK while that was going on. And on that street, too, another child was shot coming off of the bus. So it's been a lot of violence, and unfortunately, they've normalized to it and it's just another day in the neighborhood for them." Helping kids cope with their harsh reality is important, but Mateo says his youth program also prioritizes giving children and teens space to be themselves, be safe and explore their interests. "You have these after school programs that are helping young people just identify who they are, what is it that they can do," Anderson says. "When they live past 18, what is it that they want to contribute to their neighborhoods, to their families, to their culture, to themselves?" How neighborhood violence and aggression interrupts happiness and joy Phyllipp McKnight's mother, Lerhonda McKnight, is one of a few guardians at Cameron Community Ministries' summer cookout in August. She cleans up after the kids and keeps an eye out for mischief – like the boy shaking up a soda can, getting ready to spray it open. "Hey! Don't do that. Don't do it," McKnight warns with a laugh. "Put it down, let it sit for a couple minutes. Caught ya!" Like Kaila Toppin and Phyllipp, McKnight also grew up exposed to neighborhood violence. She says she's been through things that she doesn't want her kids to ever experience, so she stays involved, brings them to Cameron, and makes sure to show them love. A "Safe place" sign hangs outside Cameron Community Ministries. "If the kids don't get [love] at home, they're gonna go somewhere else to get it. They're going to. Whether they find it in streets, whether they find it in a drug house," McKnight says. "They're going to find it, because everybody needs it – everybody – because that's what life is about." Across the street, a fight breaks out. There's yelling and physical threats. McKnight barely acknowledges it. Around here, but not just here, violence and aggression have become as commonplace as inclement weather. Kaila Toppin says she's seen more than enough of it for a lifetime. "It makes being happy and joyful, like it interrupts it sometimes. Like in the back of my mind, you know?," Toppin says. "I'm out there having a good time but sometimes it just makes me think something bad could happen, because of all the bad things that happen. I don't know, it makes it different and it also makes it a cautious joy." Toppin's vigilance is a matter of survival. It's what drives her to protect younger kids, so that they'll have a chance to experience life after childhood. Local News NPR News Noelle E. C. Evans is a general assignment reporter/producer for WXXI News with a background in documentary filmmaking and education.	6,862
On April 28, Montenegro got a new, minority Government. Prime Minister Dritan Abazović’s cabinet, however, is one of the largest in the country’s recent, three-decades long history of multi-party democracy. 10th European History Forum: Memorials in East and Southeast Europe Forgotten – alienated – reinvented Published: 11 June 2021 Memorials are more than memories cast in basalt and concrete; as reference points, they are sources of veneration and contempt, at the mercy of political interests and deliberate acts of manipulation. Coasts: Life in the Danger Zone Published: 2 June 2017 Flooding, erosion, sinking: our coasts are under ever-increasing pressure. People who live in coastal regions are especially endangered – and there are an ever-increasing number of them. Yet another historic election in Montenegro – changes still pending Published: 27 October 2016 Montenegro has exited its latest regular election cycle in a state of emergency of sorts, with many questions that will continue to divide its society, deepen the existing political crisis and burden the challenging reforms induced by the process of the state’s democratization and Europeanization. Published: 17 October 2014 The recent floods in Kashmir have been the biggest and most ferocious in a century leaving hundreds dead and many hundred thousand stranded. The administration was clearly overwhelmed, and many people took things into their own hands. One of them was Kran Kowshik. The Russion coal industry - an environmental and social disaster Published: 13 June 2013 Expansion of the Russian coal industry will increase greenhouse gas emissions, leading to a faster climate change. One reason behind this expansion is the growing demand for Russian coal from Europe’s energy giants, such as E.On and RWE. This is revealed in a new report on the Russian coal industry released today in Bonn, Germany.	1,903
I've trained almost two years, i'm very dissapointed, very. All he wanted i impress people, he's just a fake. I don't get it, if the ukes knew it's all a fake why train under such a sensei ? What if this "feat" is fake , is your training "fake" too? If so , by all means quit Aikido , and put yourself to something you really believe in. Dont believe blindly in what you read or hear , but in what youre doing. Best Regards. Mr Neagu, I doubt whether the entire aikido world will collapse on the basis of one article, based on one photograph of what is really a continuous movement. The uke on the right, next to Morihei Ueshiba, was my teacher in the UK and Japan and he is most certainly not a fake. He began training with Morihei Ueshiba when the latter was 72 years of age and was trained to become a very tough shihan. He now lives in San Diego and his name is Kazuo Chiba. If you like, I can introduce you to him and you might like to go and train with him--and ask him about the photograph. Personally, I think the author of the article would have done better to seek out the people in the photograph, like Chiba Shihan, and interview them, before producing a whole load of what is really speculation. Since I have trained for many years under the direction of many of Morihei Ueshiba's immediate disciples, who could walk their talk, I myself believe that what I am doing is not fake in any way. But this is my opinion and I am open to correction by more experienced members of this forum. Finally, you say you have trained for 2 years, so I would put you at around 4th kyu level. Have you trained in other Japanese martial arts and do you think you own training in aikido has been 'fake' in any way by comparison? You train in Moldova, which does not have a resident shihan, so I am curious about who your teacher is. Of course, I am not attacking your aikido credentials, but when I first saw the photograph, reproduced in many books and magazines, I did not think it was fake. Why? Because I myself have been uke in precisely the same situation, but not with Morihei Ueshiba. You can do the same technique empty-handed (with ukes grasping the arm). It does not matter whether you throw forwards or backwards. However, it is very difficult and I have never seen it done with more than 2 ukes. But it is an exercise, rather than a technique. In my opinion, it is very similar to the technique known as shomen-uchi ikkyo. The purpose of the training is to learn various principles essential to aikido. If I wanted to kill or seriously disable someone "in the street", the last technque I would use is ikkyo, or whatever technique is shown in the photograph. But your post was rather brief and I am not sure if I have understood you correctly. Best regards, Hey, read this acticle carefuly I've trained almost two years, i'm very dissapointed, very. What's the problem? He used a little slight of hand to whet the appetite? Big deal. You didn't actually believe he dodged bullets and such? ;-) This may help explain why such things happen. I wasnt going to chime in on this thread, but after reading the article. I was abit unsettled about the author's intent. But I think I was divided between who to be unsettled with: Mr Garrelt's under researched article or Mr Pranin for allowing the article on his website. Mr Garrelt is entitled to his opinion. If he really wanted to get to the bottom of the what really happened in that picture,then he should have gone to the 1st hand accounts of the people involved. A good journalist would have done this. Then he would have asked the 2nd hand accounts ie. the people watching the demo. It seems Mr Garrelt was more about writing his opinion, rather than researching the facts. I enjoy Mr Pranin's website, but he should have seen that Mr Garrelt's article as an opinion not informed article. People should be more concerned with printing articles that have been researched and confirmed through 1st hand accounts of said event. Save opinions for editorial pages. Everyone is entitled to an opinion. It is good to try to "de-bunk" things that are perceived to be truths. Its the best way to learn more and challenge long held beliefs. Do not be reckless about the effort, Research and confirm. To sum it up, have an informed opinion and be more responsible with your words. Now to lock myself in a hot bath to soak my battered bones after training all Saturday at the New England spring seminar( where Chiba sensei taught back to back classes. I need a long soak. If you didnt go to the seminar and could have or should have gone, you missed out. I only made 1 day and I am sure I missed out even after taking all the saturday classes. Get out there and support your shihans. They wont be around forever. Its treasure and a treat to have Yamada sensei, Kanai sensei, Chiba Sensei all in the same event. I drove 250 miles(500 miles round trip) to get there to participate. And I got the 1st hand bruises to prove it. OK, I've had enough of being bewildered by all these acronyms...for those of you who also cannot understand these folks, this site should provide some quick relief... OK, I've had enough of being bewildered by all these acronyms...for those of you who also cannot understand these folks, this site should provide some quick relief... That's a cool little site. I've been plugging www.tinyurl.com lately myself ;-) I don't understand why Ueshiba supposed mythical skills are such a topic of interest. Kano would be destroyed by todays Judo guys. It takes nothing away from the man. He was, is and will forever be the fountainhead of judo. Someone to respect. Similarly Osensei. I think Sensei Tissier would show the old timers a thing or two ;-) I've got one of his clips (irimi vs kicks) - holy crap! i don't think the point of the article was to say that O Sensei was not a miraculous man. I think the point is that we often see 'feats of strength' and interprete them within our own sphere uf understanding when the main point of the demo lies outside of our understanding...that's what i got out of it. I think the article is interesting, but to me it seems to have been written from the view of setting out to "disprove", not "investigate". Plus, we are lucky to have the experience of an Uke in this exercise with Mr Peter Goldsbury (hope we train one day) who can explain the roll of Uke. Please? :) I have a copy of "Rendezvous with Adventure" and I will have to watch it again. In the photo it looks to me like they are pushing down and along the length of the staff. This makes much more sense to me. As for "Ki" and anything mystical - I prefer Kancho Shioda's explanation: "Ki is the mastery of balance" or "the concentration of balance." With respect to articles like this, what does it matter? Aikido is an amazing art and the only martial art that has captivated me so much. It is certainly real to me. Kano would be destroyed by todays Judo guys. It takes nothing away from the man. He was, is and will forever be the fountainhead of judo. Someone to respect. Similarly Osensei. Why do you think he would be "destroyed"? paw Why do you think he would be "destroyed"? Better athletes now. Waaaay better athletes. Why do you think he would be "destroyed"? Destroyed is perhaps too harsh a word. There have been radical changes in the understanding of the human body since 1938. Radical. Today's top judo competitors benifit from ancillary training, diet, re-cuparative techniques, drugs, video analysis etc way above and beyond what was available to Mr Kano. (though he instigated much of what was to follow) Sensei Kano was a phenom. The world of martial arts owes him the deepest of respect. No doubt that his skill reached dizzying heights.(Many thousands of times above my own pathetic judo skills ;-) (you could argue that it's a matter of skill. But over time, the repository of skill increases as well) Hey guys, I think what he is trying to really say is that he has bought into the mysticism concerning O' Sensei and is upset that this article purportedly debunks this alleged mysticism. It comes down to believers and disbelievers. Mr. Goldbury gave a fine response but I don't think he addressed the real issue. Was O'Sensei in touch with a higher power? Well, of course he was. So was Koichi Tohei and Osawa Sensei and a few others. They were actually able to do things that other people can't do and if you want to explain it with physics and/or physiology you will not be able to. I've spent my last thirty years trying to explain how Osawa Sensei pinned me to a mat without touching me.... Can't do it. But he did it. Did it twice. I'd be kind of a fool to disbelieve it can be done just because I can't do it. So in like mind, son, can you do what your sensei can, after just 2 years? Mr. Goldbury gave a fine response but I don't think he addressed the real issue. I did not do this deliberately, believing as I do in the value of Occam's Razor. In any case, it is highly practical and you have to be on the end of it to see it. Hey guys, I think what he is trying to really say is that he has bought into the mysticism concerning O' Sensei and is upset that this article purportedly debunks this alleged mysticism. It comes down to believers and disbelievers. I don't know if you are talking to me or Adrian. If it is me, then I should say that I have not bought in to the "mysticism concerning O' Sensei". If you mean Adrian, I cannot comment. For myself, like I said before, 'I prefer Kancho Shioda's explanation: "Ki is the mastery of balance" or "the concentration of balance"!' Better athletes now. Waaaay better athletes. Destroyed is perhaps too harsh a word. There have been radical changes in the understanding of the human body since 1938. Radical. Today's top judo competitors benifit from ancillary training, diet, re-cuparative techniques, drugs, video analysis etc way above and beyond what was available to Mr Kano. When Kano Sensei taught Judo was a martial art, now it is a martial sport. A lot has been lost with mant techniques unused due to the complex nature of mastering them. I have been lucky to train Aikido under one of Mifune Sensei's past students, Thamby Rajah Sensei (who is in his last 70s), over the past few years, and he has effortlessly projected my 200lb mass up, down, splat! He did not have "re-cuparative techniques, drugs, video analysis etc.", but he did have amazing teachers - Mifune Sensei & Gozo Shioda Sensei. Martial arts still do overcome size & strength, or should we pack up and go home. Mr. Goldbury gave a fine response but I don't think he addressed the real issue. Was O'Sensei in touch with a higher power? I do not believe that was the real issue. I believe the issue was whether it was real or not and I think Mr Goldbury gave a "fine responce" to that. I've spent my last thirty years trying to explain how Osawa Sensei pinned me to a mat without touching me.... Can't do it. But he did it. Did it twice. I'd be kind of a fool to disbelieve it can be done just because I can't do it. I'm sure you mean throw, because if anyone tried to pin me without touching me I would just get up! :) I know what you mean. My teacher, Ted Stratton Sensei, would throw me and my Sempai around, but I could never work out or feel what he had done. Best wishes. "Last edited by siwilson on 03-18-2003 at 12:44 AM" Yeah, dislexia set in again! I myself have seen this in a video shot at Iwama dojo in 1962. My first impression was that it was a fake. Reviewing the tape reconfirmed my first impression. So what? I am sorry to tell you that the above trick is not aikido, neither is the unbendable arm, nor the unliftable body. They are just tricks meant to fool some simple minded people in to believing in the supernatural powers of aikido. I don't care if Osensei did tricks like that. I don't believe that he had any supernatural powers. I am sure at the time the movie was shot, he didn't have much power left in him anyway. I respect Osensei as the founder of aikido, and as the first teacher of aikido, the same way I respect my own teacher, and his teacher for the same reason. Osensei was probably not a saint as many believe, but he gave us aikido. That's enough feat by itself. BTW, I was present at a dinner party recently in the honor of a Shihan from the Aikikai Hombu. The guests were mostly Japanese but non-aikidoists. One lady asked the Shihan what is secret of aikido, and how it seems to work without much effort. He smiled and said: "Bio-mechanics". My already big esteem for this Shihan augmented several folds. Martial arts still do overcome size & strength, or should we pack up and go home. Hmm....I think this sums up my feeling on that. Mr Neagu, I doubt whether the entire aikido world will collapse on the basis of one article, based on one photograph of what is really a continuous movement. The uke on the right, next to Morihei Ueshiba, was my teacher in the UK and Japan and he is most certainly not a fake. He began training with Morihei Ueshiba when the latter was 72 years of age and was trained to become a very tough shihan. He now lives in San Diego and his name is Kazuo Chiba. If you like, I can introduce you to him and you might like to go and train with him--and ask him about the photograph. Personally, I think the author of the article would have done better to seek out the people in the photograph, like Chiba Shihan, and interview them, before producing a whole load of what is really speculation. Since I have trained for many years under the direction of many of Morihei Ueshiba's immediate disciples, who could walk their talk, I myself believe that what I am doing is not fake in any way. But this is my opinion and I am open to correction by more experienced members of this forum. Finally, you say you have trained for 2 years, so I would put you at around 4th kyu level. Have you trained in other Japanese martial arts and do you think you own training in aikido has been 'fake' in any way by comparison? You train in Moldova, which does not have a resident shihan, so I am curious about who your teacher is. Of course, I am not attacking your aikido credentials, but when I first saw the photograph, reproduced in many books and magazines, I did not think it was fake. Why? Because I myself have been uke in precisely the same situation, but not with Morihei Ueshiba. You can do the same technique empty-handed (with ukes grasping the arm). It does not matter whether you throw forwards or backwards. However, it is very difficult and I have never seen it done with more than 2 ukes. But it is an exercise, rather than a technique. In my opinion, it is very similar to the technique known as shomen-uchi ikkyo. The purpose of the training is to learn various principles essential to aikido. If I wanted to kill or seriously disable someone "in the street", the last technque I would use is ikkyo, or whatever technique is shown in the photograph. But your post was rather brief and I am not sure if I have understood you correctly. Best regards, So you believe that the article's author is wrong and O'Sensei could really do it ? You it's if O'Sensei couldn't do you that's ok, no problem, the thing that makes me angry is that maybe, althouhg he couldn't do it he instructed his ukes to do push-pull just to impress people and show "his big power". I don't think my training is a fake, i like it very much and the principles and O'Sensei's philosophy are very important to me. Mr Neagu, Finally, you say you have trained for 2 years, so I would put you at around 4th kyu level. Have you trained in other Japanese martial arts and do you think you own training in aikido has been 'fake' in any way by comparison? You train in Moldova, which does not have a resident shihan, so I am curious about who your teacher is. Best regards, I'm 5'th kyu and i plan to test for 3 kyu this summer. My Sensei is a good student of Kanetsuka Sensei, 7th dan Shihan. I've trained Karate for a year a few years ago. paw When Kano Sensei taught Judo was a martial art, now it is a martial sport. A lot has been lost with mant techniques unused due to the complex nature of mastering them. I strongly reject the idea that judo is a martial sport. That a sporting aspect of judo is most well known is not sufficent evidence to the contrary. If you want me to elaborate on my original statement, I would say, "way better athletes with just as good technique". In other words, modern athletes of the same size as the judo greats "back in the day" are stronger, faster, have better aerobic and anaerobic conditioning and are just as skilled technically. Regards, Mr Neagu, (1) The person on the right in the photograph was Kanetsuka Shihan's own teacher, in England, in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when I also started training. (2) I have never said anything about the Founder being a fake. I never knew the Founder, so all I have to go on are the people who were his direct students, like Chiba Shihan. My understanding is that the Founder never instructed his ukes what to do and how to take ukemi. He called thenm up and threw them. If they were good, he used them again; if not, he used them less often. (3) I have read the article on the Aikido Journal website. It has generated a fair spectrum of opinion on the accompanying thread. As I suggested, I believe the author would have done well to interview the people in the photograph who are still alive. This is what I would have done. Best wishes with your training, I am a bit of a doubting Thomas myself. I do not believe everything I am told nor do I discount things I can not explain. I do trust in my own experience and development. Aikido is not "dead" weight lifting. Of course O'Sensei couldn't stop a speeding train with a flick of the wrist. People are not "dead weight" and therefore can be dealt with differently than inanimate objects. Any good martial artist learns principles. With these principles we learn to attack (uke) and respond (nage). During a technique both uke and nage are either safe or open. Meaning we could either not be able to be attacked by a wise martial artist or easily be attacked. We are uke and nage using these important principles. If we do not know when we are open we are dead. I have been studying aikido for thirteen years now and in my experience I have "felt" and done things that I could not explain nor do I have a desire to explain them. I have found there is something beyond my rational intellect and it is there I find aikido. Before discounting any seemingly "impossible feat" please take the time and devote the effort to learning good ukemi. You may be surprised at what you find. Respectfully, Chinese and Japanese mysticism differ from modern western approaches to knowledge in that we tend to be reductionist - finding out why things work - with e.g. TCM or ki it seems that they are evidence based, but the explaination is not i.e. circles of distruction in meridians etc. For me ki is real in that it is a very simple and easily understood model of how to maximise your body mechanics. I actually find visualising energy flow useful. However as a scientist I'm not convinced by the mythology that suggests the reasons behind many of these things. I believe Ueshiba was an immensely strong man and extremely competitive and devoted to becoming a top class martial artist. It is possible to down someone with one finger, and aikido does work. However I think it would take someone of exceptional commitment to actually reach the level of Ueshiba. I also believe that what we do in Aikido is not as dangerous as what Ueshiba learnt to do in aikijitsu, though it may be more suited to modern self-defence. There are loads of 'tricks' in aikido, but at the end of the day I don't think aikido is anything more than fully utilising body mechanics and psychology to overcome an opponent. P.S. I have heard that there is a book with lots of physical tricks (including this one) in it - I expect that would explain it better than the supposition in this article. My theory about this trick was that the same process as unbendable arm was used i.e. you push (extend) along the jo as they exert force, making it difficult for them actually to push directly against it. If this is so, it is an excellent example of aikido, because that is what we do in all of outr body movement. I think a significant amount of behavorial conditioning goes on in Aikido at a variety of levels (social, physical, mental, etiquette, etc) which leads to a conditioned response between both uke and nage...particularly at the advanced levels. I think that this contributes as much as anything to the mystical/ no touch / effortless throws we read/encounter in AIkido culture. Hmmm, an interesting sociological study in a cooperative culture? Mark, agree with you on this one, that's why I like training with beginners. They don't always react how you'd expect (turning into the painful position rather than away, staring interestedly at the blow coming for their face etc.) Speaking purely for myself, at least some of the "effortless" throws performed with me as uke have been down to a foreknowledge of what comes next... Where would you draw the line between being "on the train" for your own protection and "diving" and is this what the picture's showing - not a trick perhaps but a recognition on the attackers' part of what that nice little 'ol man will do if you try and be clever... My understanding is that the Founder never instructed his ukes what to do and how to take ukemi. He called thenm up and threw them. If they were good, he used them again; if not, he used them less often. Mr.Goldsbury. Could you please elaborate a bit more on the possible basis of how the founder deemed one student good or not for demonstrating techniques/principles? I assume before hand that the student needed to have good ukemi and provide a powerful and sincere attack , but would that be enough to differ his various students? , because at this stage i think the technical level on those aspects would be very much the same between them. Best Regards and sorry for the Off Topic. Mr Wilson, I thought I was very clear. Osawa was not touching me. I could not get up. He held his had 12 inches above my chest and motioned me to rise. I could not. I believed he was standing on my gi. I looked at both his feet. He was not standing on my gi. I looked up and he motioned again and again I could not gt up and then realized what he was doing. He smiled and moved his hand away. I was then able to rise. Then he did it again. I was then nidan and not a novice. My teacher was with me and when I sat down he was indignant and mouthed "thats Bu-- sh--! NOBODY can do that" Osawa Sensei must have caught the look because he called him up to uke then and pinned him the same was, as well. I am not a believer in magic, mysticism, or 'the force, Luke' I teach the old hard way and do believe in boimechanics. Go figure. But I know that there was something else there, then, and wish you the benefit of someone blessing you someday. I guess there is no other way to believe. Interesting, but I guess I need to put my fingures in the wound first. I have seen some amazing things from some amazing people over the years, so I will not discount anything, but I am very much a realist. Best wishes. Mr Wilson, I thought I was very clear. Osawa was not touching me. I could not get up. He held his had 12 inches above my chest and motioned me to rise. I could not. I believed he was standing on my gi. I looked at both his feet. He was not standing on my gi. I looked up and he motioned again and again I could not gt up and then realized what he was doing. He smiled and moved his hand away. I was then able to rise. I have seen and experienced something very similar. Nakao Sensei (Aikikai 6th Dan, deshi of Yamaguchi Sensei) did much the same thing to me in Japan a few years back, I have also seen Endo Sensei do the same. Nakao Sensei did in fact get everyone to try it for a while during the class. I have only really practiced it that one time (although I have played with it for a few seconds every now and then), I have no way to explain it other than it has to do with the connection between tori and uke. When I do it, it only seems to work when uke is flat on his back trying to sit up, if uke tries rolling out of it, I can't stop them, however, I couldn't roll out of it when Nakao Sensei did it to me, go figure:confused:. My old tai chi instructor used to catch punches blindfolded. He would let you bring the blindfold and tie it on any way you liked...he wouldn't touch it. Then you'd stand in front of him and start punching FAST, any angle any rythym. He would catch every one of them. He didn't sweep them away either he would reach straight out and catch it. We once tried it with racquet balls. He batted them all away except the last one which instead of being tossed was thrown directly at his face. He caught that one :freaky: I have discussed this with several people who are active in the pursuit of knowledge concerning shamanism in Asia and South America. They all seem to accept and understand the concept. I don't know if this is reassuring to me or not. I accept that this type of power is available to those who seek it, and that the pursuit must be over many years, but - at what cost and to what benefit? I also accept the skepticism, but to no avail, I cannot deny the experience. Glad that others have had the chance to feel it. I think the phantom pinning is due to your psychological conditioning in the face of authority. You knew you were not expected to get up so you didn't let yourself get up. If the teacher could stop people without touching them, he would be ruler of the world. Creating and spreading peace by being able to stop violent enemies without physical confrontation... When I do it, it only seems to work when uke is flat on his back trying to sit up, if uke tries rolling out of it, I can't stop them, however, I couldn't roll out of it when Nakao Sensei did it to me, go figure A Hombu instructor did it to me and asked me to stand up. The first time I couldn't. The second time, I rolled out of it. The instructor looked at me scornfully because he specifically asked me to try to stand up, not to roll. As to the explanation, I think it's very simple. When you're lying flat on your back, you need to gather some momentum in order to stand up. If one puts their hand in front of your face at exactly the distance required for you to gather the momentum, you will feel helpless. I think the distance is very important. Too close and you can push the hand up with your forehead, too far and you can gather your momentum. No magic involved :) I think a significant amount of behavorial conditioning goes on in Aikido at a variety of levels (social, physical, mental, etiquette, etc) which leads to a conditioned response between both uke and nage...particularly at the advanced levels. I think that this contributes as much as anything to the mystical/ no touch / effortless throws we read/encounter in AIkido culture. Hmmm, an interesting sociological study in a cooperative culture? Mark, you nailed it on the head. I try to 'believe' in as little as possible. To me 'believing' means either one has given up the search or one is more comfortable with a lie than the truth. And words just frame a perception; I prefer to experience these things myself and try to remain open to new things. Edward, you are very close to right. To anyone who is interested please try the following: 1) Lay down face up. 2) Make sure your feet and arms are not touching anything other than the floor. 3) Try to rise straight up. I will be extending my ki from California, and it's SO POWERFUL that you will not be able to get up. :grr: If you wander into a gym, on the other hand, you will see lots of people doing this exercise. It's called a crunch. It's a good stomach exercise too.	29,569
I spent the weekend getting all my review copies and platforms in order for my novella, The View from Here, and I didn’t want to wait until Friday. If you are interested in doing an advance review, keep reading. Two heads are better than one. What would you do if you found yourself on or in another world? Do you have the skills and knowledge needed to survive or to make sense of what you see? Thomas sets out on a hike he has done many times before. Taking only what he needs for the three or four hours he expects to be gone, he passes a vehicle in the parking lot. The handwritten note on the dashboard read: Not Abandoned. The view at the end of the trail was not what he expected—neither were the friendships. Two people with adventurous spirits, heading off into the unknown with only their physical fitness and combined knowledge to get them through everything they may encounter. How far could you make it? If you are interested in reviewing my book, you can receive your preferred format by: Joining my newsletter: Lines by Leon Newsletter Through StoryOrigin: The View from Here (requires free account but has many opportunities to review in all genres) Direct download: Send me an email with ARC in the subject. Let me know why you would be a good reviewer for this book. Email(required) Δ Reviews do not have to be long. Even one or two sentences can attract new readers. As for the timeline, I’m hoping that they can be done within 4 weeks of receiving your review copy. When you have completed your review, please let me know so that I can link it on my website. If you choose not to leave a review for any reason, could you please inform me so that I can remove you from my current reviewers list. Here are the review links. Please leave a review on any (or all) of the sites. As my book is only available on Amazon at the moment, that would be my preference if you are just going to post on one. Goodreads- The View from Here BookBub- The View from Here Final Note: Word of mouth is the best form of advertising, so if you enjoyed the book, please tell your friends and family and share the review on your social media! I look forward to reading your review. Leon Stevens is a multi-genre author, composer, guitarist, songwriter, and an artist, with a Bachelor of Music and Education. He published his first book of poetry, Lines by Leon: Poems, Prose, and Pictures in January 2020, followed by a book of original classical guitar compositions, Journeys, and a short story collection of science fiction/post-apocalyptic tales called The Knot at the End of the Rope and Other Short Stories. His newest publications are the novella, The View from Here, which is a continuation of one of his short stories, and a new collection of poetry titled, A Wonder of Words.	2,874
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. Start date Oct 27, 2019 B Pioneer Founding member Oct 27, 2019 #1 Researchers here report on the generation of a mouse lineage with much longer telomeres than is normally the case. Telomeres are the caps of repeated DNA sequences at the ends of chromosomes; a little is lost with each cell division, and cells self-destruct or become senescent when telomeres become too short. This acts as a limit on the ability to replicate for most cells in the body. Stem cells use telomerase to maintain long telomeres, however, allowing them an indefinite number of cell divisions, used to deliver daughter somatic cells with long telomeres into tissues. Thus average telomere length in a tissue is some function of the pace of cell division and the pace at which stem cells generate replacement cells. This division of cells into a privileged minority and a restricted majority is the way in which all higher forms of animal life control the risk of mutation and the unfettered replication of cancer to a sufficient degree to allow evolutionary success. Over the past decade or more, researchers have been exploring ways to alter the balance of telomere length and telomerase activity in mice, and have found that enhanced telomerase activity extends life, reduces cancer risk, and improves health. As a consequence a number of groups are working on delivery of telomerase gene therapies to human patients, though there remains the question of whether the balance of cancer risk is the same in humans as in mice. The two species have quite radically different telomere dynamics. In this study, the enhanced mice live somewhat longer than their unmodified peers, though not as much longer as is the case for the application of telomerase gene therapy. The mice do also exhibit reduced cancer risk, however. The scientists here class telomere shortening as a cause of aging, which is not a point universally agreed upon. Reductions in average telomere length in tissues looks much more like a downstream consequence of reduced stem cell activity than an independent mechanism. Researchers obtain the first mice born with hyper-long telomeres and show that it is possible to extend life without any genetic modification Given the relationship between telomeres and ageing - telomeres shorten throughout life, so older organisms have shorter telomeres - scientists launched a study generating mice in which 100% of their cells had hyper-long telomeres. The findings show only positive consequences: the animals with hyper-long telomeres live longer in better health, free from cancer and obesity. "This finding supports the idea that, when it comes to determining longevity, genes are not the only thing to consider. There is margin for extending life without altering the genes". Telomeres form the end of chromosomes, in the nucleus of each cell in the body. Their function is to protect the integrity of the genetic information in DNA. Whenever the cells divide the telomeres, they are shortened a little, so one of the main characteristics of ageing is the accumulation of short telomeres in cells. Up to now, all interventions on the length of telomeres have been based on altering the expression of genes, through one technique or another. In fact, researchers developed a gene therapy that fosters the synthesis of telomerase, obtaining mice that live 24% longer without developing cancer of other illnesses associated with age. In 2009, researchers worked with the so-called induced pluripotent stem cells - cells from an adult organism which have been given back pluripotency or the capacity to generate a full organism - and they observed that after a certain number of divisions in culture plates, these cells acquired telomeres twice as long as normal. Intrigued, they confirmed that the same occurred in normal embryonic cells - also pluripotent - as they are kept in cultivation after being removed from the blastocyst. The team found that during the pluripotency stage, there are certain epigenetic marks on the telomeric chromatin that facilitate their lengthening by the telomerase enzyme. For this reason, the telomeres of pluripotency cells in cultivation were extended to twice the normal length. The question was whether the embryonic cells with hyper-long telomeres could produce live mice? Some years ago, the group demonstrated that they could, and have now managed to obtain mice with hyper-long telomeres in 100% of their cells. The mice are slimmer than normal because they accumulate less fat. They also show lower metabolic ageing, with lower levels of cholesterol and LDL, and an increased tolerance to insulin and glucose. Damage to their DNA as they age is less and their mitochondria, another Achilles heel of ageing, function better. The average longevity of mice with hyper-long telomeres is 13% higher than usual. The metabolic alterations observed are also relevant as this is the first time that a clear relationship between the length of telomeres and metabolism has been found. The genetic route of insulin and glucose metabolism is identified as one of the most important in relation to ageing. Mice with hyper-long telomeres show less metabolic aging and longer lifespans Short telomeres trigger age-related pathologies and shorter lifespans in mice and humans. In the past, we generated mouse embryonic (ES) cells with longer telomeres than normal (hyper-long telomeres) in the absence of genetic manipulations, which contributed to all mouse tissues. To address whether hyper-long telomeres have deleterious effects, we generated mice in which 100% of their cells are derived from hyper-long telomere ES cells. We observe that these mice have longer telomeres and less DNA damage with aging. Hyper-long telomere mice are lean and show low cholesterol and LDL levels, as well as improved glucose and insulin tolerance. Hyper-long telomere mice also have less incidence of cancer and an increased longevity. These findings demonstrate that longer telomeres than normal in a given species are not deleterious but instead, show beneficial effects.	6,413
SSWSC Presents - 2019 Bringing Down the House Concert. It was a magical August evening at John and Carrie Hayden’s magnificent home for this extraordinary event. Nashville Singer-Songwriters Heather Morgan, Jon Nite and Jon Randall entertained 125 guests with their music and storytelling. Many thanks to sponsors Guido and Naoko Constantini who sponsored the House Concert and David and Debbie Dacus for donating fine wine. We extend our appreciation to the Tredway family as well. It is their personal connection to Nashville artists that made it possible for us to present this event benefiting the SSWSC athletes. Celebrating the Season! In early December, the SSWSC kicked off winter with a very special fundraiser benefiting the SSWSC athletes. Sponsors and guests were treated to a fine dining experience in the intimate setting of Three Peaks Grill. To top off the evening, professional auctioneer Gary Corbett provided a hilarious and lively auction and cash paddle raise. The new holiday event was enjoyed by all! For the audience of All In! we went back to 2007 video footage to discover the importance of preserving the legacy of the SSWSC, when we were going after the same goals now as we were then.	1,256
One of the worst things you'll ever experience is betrayal. You trusted someone and they failed you. As a small child, you are dependent on your parents for provision and protection. Whoever they let into your home is assumed to be safe. Which is why the abuse of an uncle or a cousin can b… By Seth Barnes 16 November 2012, 12:11 am By Seth Barnes 16 November 2012, 12:11 am One of the worst things you'll ever experience is betrayal. You trusted someone and they failed you. As a small child, you are dependent on your parents for provision and protection. Whoever they let into your home is assumed to be safe. Which is why the abuse of an uncle or a cousin can be so devastating. As an adult, we trust friends with our secrets. We trust bosses with our future. We trust our government for the enforcement of our laws. We are a high trust culture. In countries where they have suffered wars or high crime, trust may be in short supply. When you trust a friend with a secret and she shares it inappropriately, it can rock your friendship. When someone wounds you in a place you're vulnerable, it can be hard to heal. Perhaps the most common form of betrayal is self-betrayal. We hurt ourselves. by doing things we know we shouldn't – maybe starting up a bad habit that we've already beaten. by hanging around people who are a poor influence, perhaps friends who we know may hurt us. by not making time to grow in ways we feel we should. We just don't love ourselves enough to be disciplined. by not taking risks that we sense we should take. Why try when you've been hurt before? It's amazing how we'll hold others accountable for their betrayal, carrying bitterness with us like a treasure. But then we let the one person who has hurt us the most – ourselves – off the hook. I've got friends who really are their own worst enemy. They know the right thing to do, but they won't do it. Having been wounded by others, they continue to hurt themselves. I had one friend who ended up dying because he kept betraying himself. Are you a victim of self-betrayal? How do you betray yourself? The first step in healing is to acknowledge the reality and begin looking for help. Comments (7) January 1, 1970 at 12:00 am Well then…if that didn’t leave a red mark on my cheek, then I have no idea what just hit me. It’s kind of what Papa’s been talking to me about though…thanks for putting it into words! November 16, 2012 at 10:50 am “We just don’t love ourselves enough to be disciplined.” Ouch, that hit home… November 16, 2012 at 2:40 pm Sometimes we betray ourself when being so very lonely, or needing to feel loved we seek to walk away from our Christian values & thereby betray ourself & the God who never betrays us! Which is worse, betraying others, ourself, or God?! OtherS may not forgive us, we may not forgive ourself, but if we return to God & repent, God promises forgiveness! And if God forgives us, who are we not to forgive ourself! November 17, 2012 at 9:07 am How do I betray myself? By not fully trusting. Holding back in relationships where I’ve been burned or where I don’t feel accepted. Waiting for others to prove their safety instead of changing atmosphere by being safe and opening up with an over of flow grace I’ve received from God. If I’m wronged or sense that I’m not accepted I’ll pull away. Because it hurts to be pushed away or not have people interested. If I were truely resting in God’s love for me I could operate out of that love. Giving endlessly that which he has given me with out need for some thing in return for those around me. I’ve been the one whose gone back to bad habits of sex, drugs and alcohol before. Most the time the pain of previous wounds and pain of life lead me there when I’m unable to cope. I thank God for providing people and things to pull me out. I won’t allow myself to go back. This may sound like a manly I’m strong enough to choose it comment but it’s not. Truth is my strength is failing, but I frequently battle with my flesh and loose at times. But my strength comes from Him whose strength never fails. By calling on my Father is my times of weakness I can be filled with His strength. November 17, 2012 at 10:43 am I like that commitment, Bryan. November 17, 2012 at 12:52 pm I’ve participated in about every form of self-betrayal in my life. Praise God He’s been sorting out that mess for the last 10 years or so. I’ve recently become aware of another form thought that has had a tight grip on my life for some time. I’ve recently realized that all of the “rejection” from my family isn’t exactly what I thought it was. I’ve realized this in little ways before, but I had a big dose of revelation recently at my grandfather’s funeral. There were no doubt events that made me feel unacceptable or unwelcome in the lives of my extended family, but seeing all of them together again, and for most it was the first time in seeing them as adults, I’ve realized that my perception of their opinions toward me seems to have been rather distorted. I guess somewhere that little girl that got hurt had to make sense of it all, so she created her own explination and villanized everybody else in the story. For thirty years, she’s been running from an enemy that perhaps wasn’t an enemy at all. Growing up in a clash of cultures can be very confusing. I guess I didn’t know how to belong, so I assumed I just didn’t belong. I denied my own participation in my family because I didn’t know how to be me in a culture so different than my own. There were times for sure that they were not very accepting or welcoming, but overall I’m realizing that the story I wrote was grossly exagerated. At the funeral, I was able to talk to some of my cousins and they shared stories from when we were kids. That baffled my mind that they actually remembered things we did together, and recalled them with fondness. I on the other hand had intended on keeping to myself and avoiding any interaction in order to avoid any feelings of judgement. Ha, I was doing the very thing I accused them of all my life. I considered them unworthy of my attention. Humility check! Talk about self-betrayal, not to mention betraying them by falsly accusing them in my heart. That was, and still is a lot to take in. It takes me back to a promise that God made me at my own training camp back in ’06. He told me that He was breaking the generational curses/sins with me and that He would work that healing backward through my family. Since then, I’ve been set free from a lot, and obviously God is still making good on that promise. I’ve also seen much healing between me and my mom, my mom and her mother-in-law, and some of my other relatives. God definately is faithful to restore and redeem. I have a very different perspective of my family today than I did a few weeks ago. The future is looking much brighter from this point of view. November 17, 2012 at 1:24 pm Beautiful self-analysis, Kim. You have really come a very long way. It’s great to see you walking in this level of truth and revelation. Comments are closed. More Posts 15 January 2022 How I Learned to Beat Burnout Today I’m flying to the Dominican Republic, a place where I’ve experienced abundant life as a you… 24 December 2020 I’ve never been any good at stuffing Christmas stockings. This morning, I went to the s… 23 August 2018 My own messy life left me with two options: Cover it up – build some work-arounds that allow m… Receive updates on the latest posts as Seth Barnes covers many topics like spiritual formation, what if means to be a christian, how to pray, and more. Radical Living blog is all about a call to excellence in ministry, church, and leadership -as the hands and feet of Jesus. I'm motivated to join God in his global reclamation project. He's on the move, setting his sons and daughters free from their places of captivity. And he's partnering with those of us who have been freed to go and free others.	8,143
Just as Scrooge was visited by three apparitions, so shall ye be greeted by three specters. These are not hauntings to change your feelings for the holidays, though. These diaphanous blobs of ectoplasm are here to remind you about cybersecurity and how to think about it as the holidays pass and the new year begins. They are here to show you the three directions you must always look in as you think about protecting your network, users, and organization. Do you feel that chill in the air all of a sudden? Yes, that’s right: The Ghost of Cybersecurity Past has arrived. There’s a knock on your office door. When you open it, you are face to face with the Ghost of Cybersecurity Past. It is small like a child, yet there’s something old about its face. It beckons you to follow it, and you both walk hand in hand into your cybersecurity past. Insert flashback special effects here. Once in the past, you see how simple cybersecurity used to be. Organizations would set up firewalls to stop intrusion and install virus protection to deal with any viruses which found their way into your systems. Sometimes sites would be blacklisted so employees couldn’t access them. It was an early time, where organizations were slowly coming online for the first time. Things were new. And yet, it was during this time of technological change where the seeds of compromise were planted. (For a wonderful interview with the first person to create a virus, read this!) This was the beginning, the Ghost shows you, how organizations began to connect together, yet fought hard to remain separate and insulated. The Ghost leaves with a shiver (insert flashforward special effects here), and you are alone. But you are only alone for a millisecond before a loud, booming knock shakes your office. It is the Ghost of Cybersecurity Present. This Ghost is not small like your first spectral visitation; this Ghost is a giant. It is the present, after all. The world is all connected, everything is attached to the Internet, and there are malicious third-parties hiding in every nook and cranny waiting to feast on your data. The present of Cybersecurity is expansive, as it strives to protect a global attack surface where over 77% of organizations have suffered some form of attack in 2018 alone. Gone is just putting up walls and patching holes after they appear. Current cybersecurity must be proactive and seek to shore up weak spots before they become holes. It must evade and obscure, encrypt and disappear. It is as giant an undertaking as the Ghost who is by your side. You turn exhausted and you notice the Ghost is similarly spent. And yet it shows you two more things: children hiding in the robes around its feet. “These are Connectivity and Privacy – the two issues that plague all humankind now,” the Ghost explains. Each child grabs and hangs onto one of the Ghost’s arms and you watch as he attempts to balance them. You silently nod, realizing this balancing act is what makes the present state of cybersecurity so difficult: managing everyone’s interconnectivity, while respecting and protecting their privacy. Before you can say another word to the giant spirit, you are alone again. The Ghost of Cybersecurity Yet to Come Before you can take three breaths, you feel a presence behind you. Turning, you lift your eyes and behold a solemn Phantom, draped and hooded, coming, like a mist along the ground, towards you. If drifts along, taking you somehow with it, into the future of cybersecurity. Clouds roll in and lightning flashes. In front of you, there are no more wires. There are just vacuum cleaners talking to microwaves talking to thermostats talking to computers talking to cars talking to cell phones talking to cloud storage talking to…. well, you understand. In the future, everything is connected and nothing exists in an isolated state. All new electronics access the Internet to provide more services to the user. It’s as if the digital world is made of whiffle balls — little points of access surrounded by holes that third-parties can exploit. The battlefield of the cybersecurity warrior of the future is one who instantly goes on the offensive when bringing a new device, network, or user online. One who moves their defense all around them, dynamically altering it as they go; one who appears to be one place and then another and then nowhere at all. The future of cybersecurity is both terrifying and exciting — exciting because of the new tech which will be developed, but terrifying because each new connected device is also a new attack surface, so compromise can come from anywhere (not just the single point of entry from a modem like in the past). But don’t be afraid. As the Ghost of Cybersecurity Yet to Come pulls back its hood revealing a sickly, skeletal form (looking ever so much like the Grim Reaper), you are reminded of the Death Tarot card. In Tarot, the Death card represents change. The Ghost is reminding you of the change that is to come in how you deal with cybersecurity, spurring you on to embrace that change. And then it is gone. You are left standing in the room where you started. No one is around, and no time has passed (the Ghosts have those timey-wimey, Twilight Zone skillz). There’s a lot of work to do. ‘But the title there mentions a bonus Ghost,’ you wonder, ‘where and who is this extra apparition?’ The fourth Ghost, reader, is the one writing these words. The one warning you to look to the past, present, and future as you craft your cybersecurity plans and processes. The one showing you the best way to prepare for the future is to combine the visions each Ghost showed you into one ever-evolving plan; the one who puts a little plug at the end of this night of visitations for an enterprise software product which can bring you leading-edge technology, the future of cybersecurity, today. That product is Fognigma. Learn more how Fognigma can give your organization more than a ghost of a chance. October 15, 2018 by Catlyn Dzioba Cybersecurity A Change in Cybersecurity Tactics The 2018 Department of Defense Cyber Strategy was released on September 18, 2018, and set the cyber-world humming. The path of cyber defense is shifting. No longer will cyber defense (at least as they DoD views it) be content to building a wall and making sure nothing breaches that wall. The new directive is for cybersecurity to “defend forward to disrupt or halt malicious cyber activity at its source….” But what exactly does this mean? “The Department must respond to these activities by exposing, disrupting, and degrading cyber activity threatening U.S. interests, strengthening the cybersecurity and resilience of key potential targets, and working closely with other departments and agencies, as well as with our allies and partners.” -2018 Department of Defense Cyber Strategy As you can see from the above quote, cyber defense is, in essence, going on the offense. An easy way to visualize this is by picturing a phalanx of hoplite soldiers in Ancient Greece. They have their protective shields in place and they are in close formation – amazing protection from any attack. However, they don’t stand still. They march forward and engage the enemy. They are bringing the defense toward the enemy’s position and using their defense as part of an offensive plan. They are, to bring it back to the new cyber strategy, defending forward. This is what the DoD plans for the future of cybersecurity. Rather than that waiting for the threat to attack, Defending Forward has your cyber defenses move forward to meet the attacker or, preferably, engage the threats before they can attack. It is an aggressive defense, but one that is needed in today’s ever hostile world. But that’s not all. Not only must we change our defensive tactics, we must also evolve our thoughts on the cloud. “Cloud Smart is about equipping agencies with the tools, knowledge, and flexibilities they need to move to cloud according to their mission needs.” – 2018 Federal Cloud Computing Strategy According to the most recent (recent as of this time of writing – October 2018) draft of the 2018 Federal Cloud Computing Strategy, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is adding a new spin to how government should think of and interact with the cloud. The new Cloud Smart initiative is a trident approach to being safe on the Internet: security, procurement, and workforce. First, Cloud Smart calls for a modernization of cloud security. Network security at the outer layer should no longer be the be all and end all – the necessity for security throughout a network is imperative, expressly surrounding actual data stored on the network. The Cloud Smart strategy points out that data is key, and it is an agency’s responsibility to the public to keep that data safe and secure. The procurement tine of the Cloud Smart trident deals with giving agencies the power and knowledge to purchase the proper security products for their agency. But unlike the past, where each agency gets whatever it has found on its own, agencies are encouraged to share. In fact, the push is to standardize security products across all agencies. The final prong of the Cloud Smart trident deals with the actual workforce of government agencies. To paraphrase the OMB, key cybersecurity talent needs to be recruited and/or grown and trained from current personnel. These new cyber-warriors will be responsible not just for cybersecurity, but also for procurement and engineering of Cloud Smart solutions. Fognigma is Cloud Smart and Defends Forward Fognigma is a patented enterprise software solution which creates secure, invisible, and encrypted networks on the cloud called Mission Partner Networks (MPNs). It does this by taking randomly leased virtual machines from multiple cloud servers and connecting them to form one network. Inside these networks are all the communication and collaboration tools organizations need for mission success: traceless telephony, encrypted file share, secure chat messaging and video conferencing, and virtual desktops (VDI) with Fognigma-unique features. These networks exist over public infrastructure yet are invisible to spying eyes. Every connection in a Fognigma network is wrapped in cascading layers of AES-256 encryption using two separate encryption libraries, OpenSSL and wolfSSL, for added security. This encryption protects the connections that make the network, but also all the connections inside the network. This provides protection at the outer layer of the network, but also surrounding the data stored inside – just like Cloud Smart dictates. Plus, Fognigma is FIPS 140-2 validated. Fognigma offers even more protection by giving admins granular user controls. Fognigma protects against threats from the inside, as well, by letting admins set which users can access which tools, folders, and files – controlling even the type of access each user has (read only, write, etc.). And Fognigma does all of this without any third-party access or oversight – you own it and you run it. Fognigma’s MPNs are designed to allow for the easy collaboration of multiple agencies without disrupting or endangering each agency’s users or data. In our experience, once an agency gets a taste of what Fognigma can do, it wants Fognigma for its own operations. We completely support that choice (and so does Cloud Smart)! Fognigma embraces the Defend Forward mindset. Since MPNs are built across multiple cloud providers, they can reach out into over 50 regions spread across 5 continents. Fognigma lets you boldly go into any part of the world your mission dictates. You will advance upon the enemy, yet they will not know you are there due to the invisible nature of MPNs. In fact, MPNs defend forward a little differently from other networks. They defend forward in space, but they also defend forward in time. Let’s explain. Fognigma lets you extend your network, part of your network, and/or one or more of your communication components into enemy territory – you have defended forward in space. But Fognigma also gives you complete control over when the network, parts, and/or components exist, giving you the ability to defend forward in time. Because Fognigma acknowledges that “always on” isn’t always desired – both for conserving resources and extra security – it gives you the ability to manually or automatically, on a schedule, remove components, network parts, or the entire network. Or, conversely, you can add to your networks. Basically, your entire network’s topography can be constantly in flux; you will be defending forward by being everywhere and nowhere, seemingly at the same time (like Schrödinger’s network). Your shields will forever be raised, yet your troops will be constantly and silently moving around the battlefield defending forward in four dimensions (i.e., in space and in time). Fognigma combines all the best parts of the Cloud Smart strategy with a solid Defend Forward stance. With Fognigma, your organization will be able to protect itself while not having to sit still hiding behind walls. It can move, it can flow, it can adapt to any situation. Your organization will be able to smartly glide through the cloud towards mission success, while defending in all directions. This is why we can proudly say: Fognigma helps you Cloud Smart while Defending Forward. Recent Posts Secure File Sharing in the Era of Remote Work Speakeasy – Videoconferencing as it should be March 2022 February 2021 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 September 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 June 2018 People Fognigma’s patented software lets you build secure, invisible, adaptable networks anywhere you need them. Fognigma is the only secure communications platform that was purposely built to be owned and operated by the customer.	14,528
For anyone who wants to enter into a discussion about how best to improve public education, John Merrow’s Addicted to Reform: A 12-Step Program to Rescue Public Education offers a candid (and sometimes painful) examination of current policy and practice that will definitely enhance the conversation. Bringing more than 40 years of experience as an educational journalist, Merrow approaches the topic of reform with candor and many uncomfortable facts. Whether or not you agree with all of his points, it is a compelling read. Merrow begins with the premise that Americans are addicted to reforming public schools through a testing regimen based on a “carrot and stick” approach. He skillfully dissects the reasons that “addiction” is harming our public schools more than helping and he proceeds to offer the steps he believes Americans should take to make our public schools better. As he explores the policy and practice he believes have taken our schools off course, Merrow prompts all of us to “own the problem.” He candidly warns that some of what the reader learns may raise blood pressure, but he offers solutions that address policy, instructional practices and community support. His solutions are logical and align with suggestions offered by many current educational advocates. Throughout the book, Merrow punctuates each “step” with a personal vignette based on the stories he has covered over four decades. These vignettes add an emotional connection to the “steps” and are quite memorable. I recommend this book for those who care deeply about transforming public education to better serve our students. I suggest that you share the book with several other people who do not understand the complexity of the challenges facing our public schools. If change is going to happen, it will indeed take the whole village and this book promises to be an excellent conversation starter. Reviewed by Theresa Alban, superintendent, Frederick County Public Schools, Frederick, Md. BrandED: Tell Your Story, Build Relationships, and Empower Learning introduces school leaders to the importance of establishing an active and effective brand. Typically a topic in the business world, branding is growing in criticalness as schools continue to face increasing competition. The book begins with introducing the reader to what branding is, regarding establishing a concise and appealing message that resonates with the school’s stakeholders. Throughout BrandED, several recognizable brands such as Apple and Disney are used to set the stage for school leaders to “tell their stories, build relationships, and empower learning.” Authors Eric Sheninger, a senior fellow at the International Center for Leadership in Education, and Trish Rubin, founder of communications consultancy Trish Rubin Ltd., use this book to convey the importance of creating a school brand with positive results. They implore school leaders to effectively communicate using a variety of tools and strategies that resonate with the school’s stakeholders. The authors introduce several school leaders who are charting a new pathway to engage stakeholders in the school process. The authors stress, “When adapted by schools, a brand becomes a physical, digital and social beacon for communication.” Borrowing ideas from the business world, BrandED: Tell Your Story, Build Relationships, and Empower Learning offers so many practical and relevant strategies that can be used by the digital migrating school leaders. When school leaders establish a brand, they improve the school’s culture and stakeholder performance, and increase education resources. From a superintendent’s perspective, this is a precisely needed exploration and discussion of school public relations. As schools continue to face increasing expectations, school leaders must embrace the need to have a long-term strategic communication plan that begins with establishing a brand that connects with stakeholders and a concise message that is student-centered. Reviewed by Brian K. Creasman, superintendent, Fleming County Schools, Flemingsburg, Ky. Frederick Hess’s and Michael McShane’s book, Educational Entrepreneurship Today, is an excellent collection of chapters authored by a mix of researchers, entrepreneurs, professors, CEOs and consultants. The editors’ work as director of educational policy at American Enterprise Institute and Show-Me Institute, respectively, is directly related to educational entrepreneurship issues discussed throughout the book. While the overall slant of the book is toward a need for ongoing entrepreneurship initiatives in the K-12 public sector, there is an attempt to provide a balanced approach and point out where past and current efforts may be misguided. The strongest argument against most of what is happening today is provided by Marc Tucker, president and CEO of the National Center on Education and the Economy. Readers can compile a lengthy list of companies serving as school start-ups and technology-based enterprises as they progress through the book. These include Teach for America, Noodle, Khan Academy, KIPP Schools, BloomBoard, The New Teacher Project, and 4.0 Schools. The increase in capital investments by today’s key foundations such as those of Bill and Melinda Gates, Michael and Susan Dell, the Walton family and Eli and Edythe Broad are also pointed out. The book starts out by defining entrepreneurship in education as more of “an activity rather than a type of person or company,” and that entrepreneurial behavior is “identifying an opportunity to create value and then making it happen by mobilizing the necessary resources along the way.” The chapters provide an interesting examination of how this behavior began and how it is not changing from wholesale transformation of schools to identifying a specific problem and working to better address that problem. It is also interesting that even those organizations that have been around for several years are finding the investment dollars more competitive as new initiatives appear. Many large funders now prefer to invest in several smaller and targeted endeavors instead of larger ones. There is an acknowledgement of a need for more research into what is successful. However, the cost of rigorous research models paired with a sometimes unwillingness on the part of venture projects to be funded are a hindrance. Due to the desire to keep money coming in, such companies can be more willing to let the “market” drive what happens rather than knowing what really works. Obviously, this is a real concern for educators. Entrepreneurs are also learning that partnering with educators can bring about better results. Educators already know the need and they are familiar with any policy and regulatory hurdles that may be present. If this trend continues, there may be opportunities for educators to pursue activities they would not otherwise have funds for as well. Marc Tucker’s chapter is an important one to balance the increasing desire to radically change today’s schools. He points out that competition and market driven decisions don’t work well in the public sphere like they do in the private one. He also argues that if such strategies work, we should see educational systems that are based on competition in those countries who are touted as out-performing the U.S.; however, that isn’t the case. He also argues that the U.S. educational system has been impacted by more innovative efforts and researched more than any other country’s. The book provides an excellent framework for those wanting to know how to enter the educational entrepreneurship realm. Those interested will find many key learnings and ideas for future efforts. For public educators, it is also useful as a tool to understand what entrepreneurs are doing and why. Such knowledge will better equip educators to foster their own desires for change while finding ways to either work with or partner with non-profit or for-profit ventures. There is a desire by both, as well as parents and other stakeholders, to change and provide more flexibility, so why not seek ways to maximize impact by working together? Reviewed by Lyle C. Ailshie, superintendent, Kingsport City Schools, Kingsport, Tenn. Books written about successful business practices often do not translate well to schools and school districts. This one is different! Extreme Teams has a wealth of ideas and practices that, if applied to educational settings will likely result in successes comparable to the companies cited. Robert Bruce Shaw is a management consultant who earned a doctorate in organizational behavior from Yale University. In Extreme Teams, he examines the work practices of high-performing companies in the current business environment. Shaw believes the success of these companies is grounded in rules of teamwork, and he thoroughly examines the employment of these rules that spark high-energy performance, producing extraordinary results. Shaw explains each rule in detail with specific examples of implementation by companies he has studied. The advantages of each practice are carefully spelled out — and the perils that may be encountered when introducing them can serve as guidelines for the team leadership. Unique to this set of actions is the emphasis Shaw places on the basic structure of the teams. The compatibility of team members is fundamental to team success. Competence is necessary, but the ability of team members to work as a team is essential. Also, team members must not only know and practice the values of the institution, they must recognize the moral value of their work as a step toward improving the world beyond their workplace. Teachers, most of all, will appreciate the recognition of their commitment and contribution to the future of their students. The outlined practices can be applied at several layers of school district organization — teacher teams, school teams, central office teams. The examples in the book can help team leaders evaluate their efforts and the missteps that may be hindering them. Commitment to a defined purpose is key at all levels. Superintendents who adopt the teamwork approach must demonstrate their passion for their district and their trust in those who are working to achieve it. Reviewed by John C. Fagan, retired superintendent, Oak Park, Ill. Partnering with Parents to Ask the Right Questions: A Powerful Strategy for Strengthening School-Family Partnerships by Luz Santana, Dan Rothstein and Agnes Bain, ASCD, Alexandria, Va., 2016, 230 pp. with index, $29.95 softcover Partnering with Parents to Ask the Right Questions is a guide for teaching parents how to ask questions. Luz Santana, Dan Rothstein and Agnes Bain are the co-founders of the Right Question Institute, and have created this guide for educators to create a partnership with parents. Educators understand that not all parents feel comfortable in schools based on their past experience. Most parents want to encourage their children to do well in school, but don’t feel equipped to do so. The question formulation techniques developed by the authors are designed to invite the parents to learn how to ask about the concerns they have for their child’s educational experience. The authors want to empower parents as partners in their child’s education by teaching them how to focus on a “problem” area with the teacher and design a solution as a team. The ultimate purpose of the Right Question Strategy is for parents to be better equipped to support, monitor, and advocate for their child. There are several cases studies presented by the authors to demonstrate how to use the Question Formulation Technique with various size groups and for varied purposes. These are well-documented and can be used as guides for implementation in similar situations. The facilitation material included in an appendix would also be helpful for those interested in implementing this process. Partnering with Parents to Ask the Right Questions is an interesting approach to parents becoming more comfortable interacting with educators. Administrators could use this approach to inform community members of district initiatives or to introduce new parents to the school system. However, it needs to be used with some caution. The question development process could be viewed by some as a bit too basic and a way to put off answering questions, especially if used in conjunction with a highly charged situation. This book is certainly worth reading for ideas to further engage parents in the district. Reviewed by Edythe B. Austermuhl, superintendent, Berlin Township School District, West Berlin, N.J. Safe Is Not Enough: Better Schools for LGBTQ Students Michael Sadowski opens Safe Is Not Enough by exploring the fundamental question of why we have public education in the United States. He acknowledges that safety at school is a “basic prerequisite for schooling,” but then challenges the “all-too-prevalent attitudes and practices that suggest ‘safe’ schools are enough for LGBTQ students.” In the foreword to this book, Kevin Jennings, an educator who helped form the first high school gay-straight alliance in 1988 and worked with the governor of Massachusetts to develop the first Safe Schools for Gay and Lesbian Students program in 1993, lamented that he couldn’t get past safety to more substantive curriculum when that program was put together. Twenty-four years later, Jennings sees Sadowski’s book “moving us beyond what is politically possible to what is educationally required for LGBTQ students to thrive.” Just being safe is not enough. Sadowski, who teaches about youth development and education at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y., and is an editor for Harvard Education Press, understands that this book can’t just share stories of progressive communities under the leadership of LGBTQ adults. He also gives examples of religiously or politically conservative schools and communities with programs facilitated by straight adults that have made a positive impact. The eight chapters of the book are designed to address what will be needed to create more schools that are “supportive, inclusive, and affirming of all LGBTQ students — all day and every day.” The first seven chapters address one aspect of the work that needs to be done and the final chapter, “Where do you start?,” guides schools to define their core values as a first step toward developing a comprehensive program. An appendix provides samples of a syllabus and assignments for an LBGTQ literature class, policies on transgender students, strategic plans and suggested responses when concerns about LGBTQ inclusion are posed. Thorough footnotes will guide readers to resources mentioned in the chapters and a 10-page index helps readers find data and anecdotes to build support as a school or district moves forward. There is comfort in knowing that even if you find yourself in a situation where your school or district is not progressing as quickly as you would hope, Sadowski gives some reassurance with the reminder that, “One of the simplest and yet most powerful ways an educator can support a young person who is lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning is just by listening.” Review by Bob Schultz, adjunct professor, Brandman University, Irvine, Calif. Schooltalk: Rethinking What We Say About — and To — Students Every Day Mica Pollock, director of CREATE at the University of California, reminds us, in a very realistic way, that the most basic thing we do all day in school is talk. Yet she goes a step further as she brings to the forefront of her book, Schooltalk, what anyone working with children needs to remember — we can derail children when the way we talk to them harms them. Through a variety of types of talk (group talk, inequity talk, smart talk, culture talk, data talk, life talk and opportunity talk), Pollock discusses the significance of equity as the collective development of children. Ensuring that educators are familiar with the realities of a student’s culture and the experiences they bring to class rather than placing labels based on assumptions is fundamental to being able to reach students and meet their needs. Being culturally responsive is one way the author suggests teachers become more knowledgeable about the lives, needs and experiences of their students. Whether students come from poverty or wealth, are white, black, Hispanic or Asian should not be a factor in the expectations a teacher has for them. Schools are where educators take on the responsibility of shaping today’s and tomorrow’s society. Through equitable school talk, responsive teachers learn about special circumstances their students may have and use this knowledge in their teaching methods. Pollock suggest that teachers “learn about and then build on students’ experiences in the communities” to engage their students, as well as knowing when labels help and harm to frame each student as one with potential, strengths and values. Reading Schooltalk reminds educators that, “every school is full of amazing young people with talents of all kinds,” and encourages them to use equitable talk to ensure all students enjoy the same baseline opportunities to learn. Reviewed by Priscilla A. Boerger, department chair, Department of Education, Regis College, Weston, Mass. Education in Finland has gained international prominence over the past 15 years, based on student achievement on PISA scores. Studies have substantiated that success, and analyzed program and instruction has produced such a positive result. In Teach Like Finland: 33 Simple Strategies for Joyful Classrooms, Timothy Walker gives us an inside picture of learning delivery in a Finland elementary school. He is a regular classroom teacher who has American classroom experience and is able to compare and contrast what is successful in each system. Walker has written articles for The Atlantic, where he outlined significant aspects of the Finnish success. In this book, he brings focus to the overall factor of joy and happiness in the classroom that he sees as sponsored by the living style of Finland. Throughout the chapters, Walker shares what he has learned and how he has adjusted on the job in Finland. Based on his teaching experience, he has determined what he feels are the strengths of this system and talks about how these can be applied in American schools. He does not provide just a checklist, but attempts to understand a program that gets positive results. He brings an American lens to Finnish learning, comparing strengths and advocating for what is good for kids in both systems. The 33 strategies are interesting observations and worthy of consideration by any good teacher. Reviewed by Frank Kelly, executive director, Council of Ontario Directors of Education, Oakville, Ontario A doctoral study by Eisa Megan Cox at Wingate University found differences among superintendents who are leading one-to-one digital transformations compared to other district leaders. Her study described the characteristics, experiences and behaviors of superintendents nationwide involved in one-to-one initiatives compared to superintendents who have not implemented such programs and compared to superintendents who are members of the Digital Promise League of Innovative Schools. Statistically significant differences emerged on most indicators on the CoSN Self-Assessment for Superintendents. Superintendent members of the Digital Promise League were more likely to exhibit these qualities: a visionary focus, openness to innovation and new ideas, interest in building capacity through training in pedagogy and learning and continuous collaboration. Why I Wrote this Book ... “In truth, our schools are not failing, but many schools do house students who have varying degrees of struggles and barriers. This book describes how two low-performing schools were able to turn around achievement and performance through focused, data-driven processes.” Craig Lockhart, deputy superintendent, Newton County Schools, Covington, Ga., and AASA member since July, on writing School Genetics: A Blueprint for Saving Public Schools (Asta Publications, 2015) The New Media Consortium and Consortium for School Networking have released a new report identifying six key trends, six challenges and six important developments shaping the future of education. Deeper learning approaches, coding as a literacy, teaching computational thinking, the rise of STEAM learning and sustaining innovation through leadership changes are among the topics. A RAND report “What It Takes to Operate and Maintain Principal Pipelines: Costs and Other Resources” examines the expenditures of six large school districts, all participants in a Wallace Foundation initiative, as they built and operated principal pipelines. Among the chief findings: The costs represented a very small slice of annual district spending. Those who attend AASA’s national conference in February in Nashville, Tenn., will have a daily summary of the event’s major events. Conference Daily Online is an electronic newsletter produced on site that includes stories about major speakers, topical sessions and award winners. The newsletter also includes daily blog postings by AASA members, short videos and a conference-dedicated Twitter feed. Questions? We are here to help! Please share your ideas, concerns, questions and compliments by email to [email protected].	22,698
Hi people - this is my first post! I'm feeling kinda stupid here, so I hope I'll find some nice folks to help me... I'm making a "Volleyball Banquet Video" using EMC 8 Suite. The final product will have photos with audio, and camcorder captured video. My trouble is I can't figure out a QUICK and EASY way to (1) trim the camcorder clips to the right size, and then (2) paste them together in ORDER. (Interviews with the coaches, with me asking questions - like they do on TV...) When I did some editing in VideoWave, the default output is DSMS (?) which it then does not recognize as a file format when I want to paste them together. I did an output back to MPEG (MPEG 2, DVD quality, and it made these HUGE files!! - like 175MB for 3 mins and 30 seconds??? I've done several really nice projects using EMC (Photo type / slide show videos with background music, etc.) but this is my first time to add camcorder video with native audio. Any ideas and suggestions? GREATLY APPRECIATED! (The banquet is Sunday and it's early Wednesday am! Yikes!) Link to comment Share on other sites 1 answer to this question Sort by votes Sort by date Recommended Posts Posted November 29, 2006 Posted November 29, 2006 Hi people - this is my first post! I'm feeling kinda stupid here, so I hope I'll find some nice folks to help me... I'm making a "Volleyball Banquet Video" using EMC 8 Suite. The final product will have photos with audio, and camcorder captured video. My trouble is I can't figure out a QUICK and EASY way to (1) trim the camcorder clips to the right size, and then (2) paste them together in ORDER. (Interviews with the coaches, with me asking questions - like they do on TV...) When I did some editing in VideoWave, the default output is DSMS (?) which it then does not recognize as a file format when I want to paste them together. I did an output back to MPEG (MPEG 2, DVD quality, and it made these HUGE files!! - like 175MB for 3 mins and 30 seconds??? I've done several really nice projects using EMC (Photo type / slide show videos with background music, etc.) but this is my first time to add camcorder video with native audio. Any ideas and suggestions? GREATLY APPRECIATED! (The banquet is Sunday and it's early Wednesday am! Yikes!)	2,334
Memorandum of understanding between the Attorney General of Ontario and the Ontario Human Rights Commission Previous Next Brian Eyolfson: We need to meaningfully listen to the lived experiences of Indigenous peoples Five years ago, Brian Eyolfson was appointed as a Commissioner with the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. “My job, through this National Inquiry, was to carry out a very large mandate in a way that put family members and survivors of violence first, and in a way that was trauma-informed, decolonizing and inclusive,” says Eyolfson, a Two-Spirit member of Couchiching First Nation in Treaty #3 territory. “It was a privilege to be involved in the process and to witness the courage, the strength and the resilience of so many family members and survivors who shared their truths with the National Inquiry, and many who shared publicly with everyone in Canada at public hearings.” Listening to the stories and lived experiences of the survivors has had a profound impact on Eyolfson. It reinforced his understanding of the many systemic practices that continue to affect the lives of Indigenous people, and create vulnerability for Indigenous women, girls, 2SLGBTQQIA people. “There are things that can be done to change this,” says Eyolfson. “Education and awareness are important. We also need political will and for everybody in society to take action.” This Inquiry’s 2019 final report identified overarching findings including colonial violence, human rights abuses, racism and most notably, genocide. “We also found that an absolute paradigm shift is required to dismantle colonialism within Canadian society, and from all levels of government and public institutions. Ideologies and instruments of colonialism, racism and misogyny, past and present, must be rejected,” says Eyolfson. Eyolfson grew up in Fort Frances in northwestern Ontario. He pursued an undergraduate degree in psychology and volunteered with organizations addressing mental health issues. Around the same time, equality rights provisions of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms came into effect. Also, the provisions of the Indian Act that took Indian status away from women who married non-status men, were amended. Eyolfson started to reflect more on the impacts of colonialism on his community. “I saw community disconnect for a lot of people, due to direct sex discrimination and intergenerational sex discrimination. I also thought a lot about the impact that residential schools had on Indigenous families and communities, as my maternal grandparents had attended residential school,” says Eyolfson. His interest in human rights and Indigenous rights influenced him to become a lawyer, and he now brings over two decades of legal experience to the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC). He practices alternative dispute resolution and provides independent investigation, mediation and adjudication services, primarily in the area of human rights. Eyolfson sees public inquiries as an effective way to gather evidence, address issues and create positive change. From his own experiences as a Commissioner on the National Inquiry and his extensive background in Indigenous reconciliation, Eyolfson believes that people with lived experience have the true expertise and need to be meaningfully heard. “Public inquiries can be educational, can create awareness and shed light on important issues,” says Eyolfson. “For the OHRC, public inquiries can be an effective means to gather the necessary evidence and information that is needed to create recommendations for positive change in the area of human rights, such as improving policies and practices to prevent and eliminate discrimination and create equitable opportunities or resolve situations of conflict.” Eyolfson also has considerable knowledge of issues affecting different communities across Ontario, particularly Indigenous peoples and communities. As the co-chair of the OHRC’s Indigenous Reconciliation Advisory Group, he has been actively working with Indigenous peoples and communities to advance reconciliation and substantive equality. “I think it’s really important to have Indigenous peoples guide or lead the conversation on reconciliation,” says Eyolfson. “I think the Commission needs to listen to build relationships… it needs to meaningfully listen to the lived experience of Indigenous peoples and what they think would be solutions. I think it’s about centring the voices of Indigenous peoples and working along with them in a respectful way.” Before serving as a Commissioner with the National Inquiry, Eyolfson was the Acting Deputy Director with the Legal Services Branch of Ontario’s Ministry of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation. From 2007 to 2016, he was a full-time Vice-Chair with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, where he adjudicated and mediated many human rights applications. Eyolfson was also a senior staff lawyer with Aboriginal Legal Services of Toronto (ALS), where he practiced human rights, Aboriginal and administrative law. He represented ALS at the Ipperwash Inquiry, and before that was counsel with the OHRC. Throughout his career, Brian Eyolfson has focused on embedding lived experience in human rights work. This focus, and his own unique lived experiences, are invaluable assets to his guidance as an OHRC Commissioner.	5,587
Let me start by saying that I loved tonight's episode of Glee so hard. Jeff was working late, and he arrived home at the end of the episode to find me sobbing on the couch trying to explain why Lady Gaga's "Pokerface" performed as a ballad by Lea Michele and Idina Menzel had me positively weeping. So many other good moments too: Finn sticking up for Kurt while dressed in a red latex gown, Puck singing "Beth" (oh, the waterworks!), and the girls and Kurt (and Santana!) killing it on "Bad Romance." Oh, Glee! After many weeks of being embarrassed that I like you, you came back strong tonight. But there is one little moment that we need to discuss. So, Rachel walked into rehearsal all Gaga-fied, but her get-up was lame. It basically involved stuffed animals stuck haphazardly onto her dress. For the record, I personally didn't think it was so bad. She was working it with the red pumps. And also, it facilitated Kurt's awesome line, "We have a jumper!" when a stuffed froggy fell off. Anyway, her excuse for the supposed lameness? "My dads don't sew." But it got worse. Rachel went to find her bio mom (played by Idina Menzel), while wearing a huge cape that was way more of a mistake that the Gaga outfit, and once again gave the sob story about her dads' lack of sewing ability, and then whined: "I really need a mom right now." Did anyone else find this a tad troubling? On one hand, it does gel with my childhood experience. Not the two dads part, but the having a mom who sews part. I was theatrically inclined myself, and my poor mother was sweet enough to make dozens of costumes. (Or was it hundreds, Mom? Bye Bye Birdie? The King and I? Oy!) But on the other hand, I sometimes feel that Glee gave Rachel two dads as a kind of punchline. After all, we've never met them and this is a show where many of the other character's parents have supporting roles. And then to add insult to injury, they kind of throw the dads under the bus just because they can't sew. (Just like a man to not be able to sew! God!) Sure, maybe Rachel needed a mom right then. But because she needed someone to sew for her? Humph. Way to really cement that gender role! Especially in the midst of a show that had a really nice storyline about combatting stereotypes and homophobia. Now, people tell me I overthink things a lot, and this could potentially be one of those moments. I'm not really terribly outraged by it. And there was a sweet moment when Rachel came into a subsequent rehearsal wearing a killer outfit, and then proclaimed proudly, "My mom made it for me." But the earlier dialogue was definitely a WTF moment for me in an otherwise awesome and emotional episode. And also: it was about sewing. And I know you guys like to talk about that sometimes. Posted by Gertie at 11:11 PM 30 comments: Cee May 25, 2010 at 11:30 PM Most of my ex-boyfriends knew how to sew. A couple even had a sewing machine or used mine once or twice. Not that they ever whipped up a shirt or anything very interesting. They could sew a seam back together though, or hem pants. Meanwhile, I have ONE girl friend who knows how. Most girls I know don't even hem their own pants. Some can't even sew on a button. Honestly, I don't know a single guy who would admit to NOT being able to sew on a button. Never watched Glee, but I agree that comment was silly. ReplyDelete Replies Amanda May 25, 2010 at 11:32 PM While not directly related to your gender question, I was disturbed with the idea that anyone could sew an outfit that complicated in an hour or so. That idea seems commonplace in television shows and movies. Poof! Intensely-constructed, time-consuming sewing projects just appear magically. ReplyDelete Replies EmilyKate May 26, 2010 at 12:05 AM Well, maybe a mom is nice have too, but a tailor uncle would suffice for the costume-making! ReplyDelete Replies Elyza May 26, 2010 at 12:29 AM "Glee" is perhaps the first show I ever loved and hated at exactly the same time. I love it for the campy musical numbers, the ridiculously talented cast, the extremely quotable one-liners ("Did you know that dolphins are just gay sharks?"). However, I absolutely can not stand "Glee" for its desperate need to reinforce stereotypes -- and not just about mothers and sewing. All kinds of gender roles and stereotypes are aggressively enforced on the show, and in a really shallow and clichéd way. But I just can't stop watching the damn show. Their "Bad Romance" performance was SOLID GOLD. ReplyDelete Replies Spacewomanspiff May 26, 2010 at 12:32 AM Yea well...just because you have a mother doesn't mean she really knows how to sew. Mine for instance. ReplyDelete Replies Moe May 26, 2010 at 1:08 AM It seemed like a disconnect to me as well. Yes, they are men and statistically less likely to know how to sew, even being gay men. However, considering how involved and supportive they have been with Rachel's singing aspirations, it seems like at some point they would have had to make her costumes for something, necessitating some basic sewing skills. However, I can dig how making the gay dads fabulous seamstresses might also be kind of trite and stereotypical, so it's sort of a more liberating choice to make the gay dads clueless about sewing. And, of course, it gave Rachel a reason to go ask her mom for help. But then we had Kurt's dad's awesome speech in defense of his gay son, so am happy to let the non-sewing gay dads slide in trade for that. ReplyDelete Replies Leigh May 26, 2010 at 1:31 AM I've been bothered by the absence of the dads too, and the "My Dads can't sew" line really bugged me. Also when Rachel talked about the glass of water while she's sad thing-- And how now she's all mixed up and can't tell if she's sad or thirsty. I just feel like the dads are a punch line. So many other parents on the show have at least had cameos. Way back in the beginning when Rachel mentioned that she had two Dads, it was treated like it was no big deal. I thought the show seemed like a good opportunity to show that her dads were just her parents, and the fact that they happened to be two men wasn't a factor, but that hasn't really happened. Kinda disappointing. But then again, they could have gone with the "gay men are all theatrical and artsy and of course they know how to sew." Which would also have been stereotyping! ReplyDelete Replies Angel May 26, 2010 at 3:34 AM I don't think it was that silly. I have two friends who grew up in single dad house holds. They always had issues at choir concerts and plays because there dads couldn't sew. Often one of the other girls moms would help them though. ReplyDelete Replies Casey May 26, 2010 at 6:58 AM I have to admit, I have yet to watch an episode of Glee, but all your posts about the style and such have got me curious. ;) (Even though... coughcough I must admit I rather hate musical things--of the full length film or tv sort! rofl.) On the topic of dads who can't sew... I have to agree with the other commenters who pointed out that having gay men be handy in the sewing department would have been terribly predictable/stereotypical. (Thinking about it... most of my gay male friends/acquaintances throughout my life have been artsy, but not necessarily talented or knowledgeable in the area of sewing.) Even though the fact that her mom sews is somewhat cliche, at least the script writers decided to throw viewers for a bit of a non-stereotypical loop by characterizing the dads as less the usual, media-driven picture of a gay male (over the top, fashionista, etc.). ReplyDelete Replies Anonymous May 26, 2010 at 7:23 AM Never take anything on TV that serious..it's just entertainment..just enjoy it ;-) You can relax and just enjoy the music and the costumes without getting caught up in the symbolism. ReplyDelete Replies Laura May 26, 2010 at 7:57 AM Now... I've never watched Glee. Maybe I'll start next season. But... I have a confession to make. I've been sewing for 20 years and I never made a buttonhole until my Dad died three years ago and it was because he did all mine and my mom's buttonholes. Heck, until five years ago, I never even threaded my own sewing machine--my dad did that, too! Mom taught all my brothers at least how to mend things and sew on buttons. Not that they actually do it--they give the stuff to me because they say I'm better at it! OTOH, my sister-in-law can't sew on a button, and my sister has delusions of sewing grandeur. She's bought all the stuff, claims to be able to sew, but has only ever made one thing in her life and that was with my mom standing over her shoulder. It's not a matter of gender; it's a matter of what you're taught at home. My sister-in-law's mother didn't sew, so my sister-in-law doesn't sew. My mom did some and taught me, but my sisters weren't all that interested, though they and my brothers can mend things. Me, well, I took to sewing. I'm feeling nostalgic this week because I've returned to not only my sewing roots but probably the sewing roots of generations of women--doll clothes. My niece's birthday is next week and I'm giving her clothes to go with the dolly my grandmother bought her. ReplyDelete Replies Kelli May 26, 2010 at 10:58 AM I didn't take the comment the same way you did I think. I love Glee for busting stereotypes and I found the Dads comment to be another component of that. I think gay fathers who could sew would be more of a stereotype than the comment was, sewing being viewed as a typically feminine role. I agree I would like to see more of Rachel's fathers in the story line but I'm sure it is a tricky line to walk, as evidenced by the comment we're discussing. I'm sure when the writers do bring them in, it's going to be fantastic! ReplyDelete Replies Gertie May 26, 2010 at 11:02 AM Oh my gosh, SUCH a good point about potentially stereotyping Rachel's dads if they did sew her costumes. I suppose what really bothered me was the implication that mom = someone who can sew. Like you magically get sewing skills once you give birth. ReplyDelete Replies Stevie May 26, 2010 at 11:11 AM I am not a fan of the "Glee," I endured one show of Ryan Murphy disappointing me after season 2, I will not go there again. Not to mention, for as much as I love musical theatre, I really dislike the way the kids on "Glee" sing. I think the stereotype cuts both ways, but knowing Murphy's writing, chances are he just didn't really care and wanted to use it as a plot device. Not sure if that makes it better or worse... For what it is worth, my mom still does my hemming, but she can't use a machine to save her life. My father sort of mends things like a drunk blind man. So I guess they sort of reinforce the stereo type. ReplyDelete Replies Maya May 26, 2010 at 11:59 AM I'm with you, Gertie. I found the gender stereotyping to be jarring, especially as someone whose mother doesn't sew. She learnt in school but doesn't remember anything. When I asked her about interfacing when I was learning she said, 'I don't think they had that back then'. Everyone has good points about the potential stereotyping of gay dads who are amazing at sewing, but if the dads were able to sew just not spectacularly well this could have been pretty easily avoided. ReplyDelete Replies Sally Deck May 26, 2010 at 12:07 PM Amen! Right as she said, "My dads don't sew" I died a little bit inside. I know the story line needed to go on about her needing a mom, but they had SUCH an awesome opportunity there. And hello, how did Kurt get his awesome costume?!!!! He doesn't have a mom either. ReplyDelete Replies Anonymous May 26, 2010 at 12:54 PM both my husband and i are getting a little tired in general of TV decpiting men as beer swilling, grill happy, engine obsessed, inept DOLTS. it's not terribly pleasing to watch Madison Avenue and Hollywood attempt to identify men by the lowest common denominator of all stereotypes, instead of portraying men on these shows as something to aspire to, and be proud of. Just as with women, then are a million different permutations of men. It's insulting to our intelligence in general to depict men, and boys, as automatons whose only skills seem to be based in absolute oblivion. i don't watch Glee. I don't watch TV that much anymore in general. it's kind of a special night kind of thing. Write to the creators and the networks. They need to hear all of you. ReplyDelete Replies Leah D May 26, 2010 at 2:05 PM I've grown up with a dad who sews and a mum who can sew but doesn't choose to (she gets my dad or me to do alterations instead!) so it's never been a big deal to me. More often than not, most people don't sew anymore anyway, regardless of gender. Although, having said that, the thing that has always bugged me is in single sex schools they do reinforce the stereotype girls cook/sew and boys don't, by not having food/textile lessons available in boys schools. In my experience that is (I went to an all-girls and my brother goes to an all-boys) and it may vary elsewhere in the country/world, so feel free to disagree with me. Hmm, anyway, that is perhaps not wholly relevant to the glee point, but it's always seemed a tad problematic to me. ReplyDelete Replies Darci May 26, 2010 at 2:36 PM I like the thoughts of folks on here. I'm with Kelli, tho. If the dads were gay AND sewed, that would have been a little over the top. Also, the writers needed Rachel to go back to her mom to reconnect, so why not over the need for a fabulous Gaga costume? I'm really hoping we'll get to "meet" Rachel's dads, tho. Casting would be a HOOT. Also, just wanted to add a little "Woo Hoo!" for Curt's dad. His speech to Finn was amazing. ReplyDelete Replies Janice May 26, 2010 at 2:44 PM I agree with most of the posters above. Sewing is quickly becoming an antiquated art. Most people (male or female) right now don't know how to sew and are very reliant on mass market throwaway fashion, which makes me sad. ReplyDelete Replies Anonymous May 26, 2010 at 5:32 PM Ha, I had the exact same WTF moment when I saw it, and actually thought to myself "I wonder if Gertie will bring it up on her blog?" Guides honour I did. I will also confess that one of my firts, knee-jerk reaction thoughts was "her dads are gay, can't they sew?" But if the message was to break down stereotypes it was pretty conflicted by suggesting that mom/woman = ability to sew. I was, like Amanda, annoyed with the constant projection by TV/movies that sewing something elaborate happens instantaeously. I really think this may have a hand in why the craft continues to be generally undervalued in our culture. It's made to seem overly simplistic and that cheezes me off. That said, I just can't get enough of Glee. I came late to the party courtesy of a cross-continental flight in April and ended up buying the first season because I didn't want to wait for the discs to come back to the video rental store. And while I'm not terribly familiar with the whole Lady Gaga thing, I really enjoyed her as this week's theme. ReplyDelete Replies neighbourhood.gal May 27, 2010 at 12:18 AM I didn't feel odd about either biological parent/ability to sew. I was frustrated (as others have mentioned) about the seeming ability to construct a well-fitted strapless dress with all of those extra details nearly instantaneously. Hello? it would take an hour just to buy the fabric, for crying out loud! I mean, they supposedly live in Lima, Ohio! Now, it would have been more authentic (and more realistic) if Rachel had reported that her mom found her the dress in the costume closet. ReplyDelete Replies Stephanie May 27, 2010 at 9:05 AM I'll start off by saying how much I love your blog. It's been an enormous source of inspiration as I sew on my own projects. As far as the Glee episode goes, I've yet to see it (iTunes will soon resolve this minor detail! Hehe) but the logic behind Rachel's line DOES seem a bit redundant. I don't think the ability to sew is contingent on sex - most of my girlfriends can't sew, and when I expressed an interest in sewing my own mother tried to dissuade me b/c it wasn't as prestigious as, say, medicine (though her mom, my grandmother, was a seamstress). ReplyDelete Replies Kelli May 27, 2010 at 9:37 AM Gertie, I wanted to come back to this and comment again because it bothered me all night (yes, I'm anal like that) that I left out the second half of the stereotype, namely that the mother could sew. Once again, I didn't take this as a stereotyped comment on women. I assumed Shelby would need to know how to sew in order to design the costumes for Vocal Adrenaline. Ok, got that off my chest, I can now quit thinking about it and singing Gaga all day. Phew! ReplyDelete Replies sara May 27, 2010 at 7:42 PM Wow Gertie! I thought the exact same thing!!! She needs a mom TO SEW?! Seriously? Glee has more and more rubbed me the wrong way. The morality messages coupled with the hit-over-your-head messages about acceptance, love, etc are really quite annoying. And then they go and make some comment about how Rachel needs a mom to sew a costume. Way to be hypocritical. I guess I keep watching because I LOVE Sue and I keep hoping the show will get better.... ReplyDelete Replies Lavina May 28, 2010 at 11:52 PM I admit the gay Dads not being able to sew went completely over my head, I didn't know that was a stereotype. What bugged me was Rachael walks in saying, "we stayed up all night coming up with a costume that represents my missed childhood" (or something to that effect) in my mind that meant her Dads cared about her enough to staple beanie babies to her outfit in an attempt to help her make her statement. When she gets her Mom to help her make the outfit it is a rockin' outfit but it doesn't say ANYTHING, it doesn't make a statement. That bugged me. ReplyDelete Replies Carlotta Stermaria May 29, 2010 at 3:55 AM I haven't seen the episode yet (I fancy Glee, but don't even have french TV), but what surprises me till now is rather the fact Rachel always mentions her dads at plural. When it's an equivalent for 'my parents', that's really OK to me, but when it comes to their skills, It makes them sound like Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Dum. Most of the commenters mentioned people of both genders, able to sew or not. Why would both her fathers be unable to sew as if the fact they're of the same gender would make them identical on every other point, including personnal skills? But, yes, making them both able to sew would have been just as silly... Btw, if Kurt doesn't have a mother, does it mean he sewed his costume himself, or did his Dad sew it for him? I'd love to know! ReplyDelete Replies lsaspacey May 30, 2010 at 2:43 PM Actually the moment that got me (and took be out of the story) was that she goes to this woman she just meet and asks her to sew her costume. One: Is that what you should do when your BRAND new relationship is on shaky legs? Two: How in the earth did Shelby do that outfit in one night...it wasn't simple. HUGE Three: Didn't she just give away that her glee club was also doing something on Lady GaGa even though they just got caught spying. There was no logic to that seen, she could have at least said my mom bought me something? ReplyDelete Replies ~Manda May 30, 2010 at 5:42 PM I feel the whole thing makes sense. If, in fact, Rachel's mom is the director of Vocal Adrenaline, which she is, she would have an entire costume shop at her disposal. I was in theater a lot in high school and I know that to make a costume look fantastic (as Rachel's did) you don't necessarily need to be able to sew. If you have pieces that work together (like a dress that can be re-purposed), cardboard, tape, glue and scissors you can make a fabulous costume in just a few hours...I had quite a few costumes with glitter glue instead of beads, taped hems, and safety pinned waists that looked incredible on and amazing on stage. ReplyDelete Replies n. June 14, 2010 at 12:57 PM so...i just discovered your blog, and it's great (sewing, feminism, retro clothes - it's such a winning combination). hi. glee is also a guilty pleasure of mine (and i may need to make quin's entire outfit for the gaga episode. and carry some sort of lethal-looking star with me everywhere) but they've let me down so many times where feminism is concerned...for example, remember the madonna episode, where at the end finn is all respectful and 'you can make your own choices about who you date' to rachel...and then spoils it completely by telling jessie he 'won't make any moves on his girl'? yes. for a mainstream show that markets itself as pc, it really fails on the feminism. ReplyDelete Replies Thanks for your comments; I read each and every one! xo Gertie Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom) My Fabrics at Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores Blog Archive October 2017 (1) June 2017 (1) May 2017 (1) April 2017 (5) March 2017 (9) January 2017 (1) December 2016 (1) October 2016 (2) August 2016 (3) July 2016 (1) May 2016 (2) April 2016 (4) March 2016 (8) February 2016 (2) January 2016 (1) December 2015 (14) November 2015 (11) October 2015 (10) September 2015 (9) August 2015 (1) July 2015 (1) June 2015 (1) May 2015 (1) March 2015 (2) February 2015 (3) January 2015 (1) December 2014 (2) November 2014 (1) October 2014 (4) September 2014 (3) August 2014 (3) July 2014 (4) June 2014 (5) May 2014 (7) April 2014 (8) March 2014 (5) February 2014 (8) January 2014 (6) December 2013 (8) November 2013 (4) October 2013 (7) September 2013 (3) August 2013 (12) July 2013 (11) June 2013 (13) May 2013 (8) April 2013 (9) March 2013 (6) February 2013 (6) January 2013 (9) December 2012 (7) November 2012 (12) October 2012 (21) September 2012 (13) August 2012 (9) July 2012 (14) June 2012 (8) May 2012 (8) April 2012 (14) March 2012 (12) February 2012 (14) January 2012 (10) December 2011 (10) November 2011 (14) October 2011 (15) September 2011 (14) August 2011 (12) July 2011 (23) June 2011 (29) May 2011 (40) April 2011 (42) March 2011 (23) February 2011 (16) January 2011 (18) December 2010 (21) November 2010 (20) October 2010 (26) September 2010 (28) August 2010 (24) July 2010 (24) June 2010 (26) May 2010 (31) April 2010 (31) March 2010 (28) February 2010 (29) January 2010 (40) December 2009 (31) November 2009 (30) October 2009 (32) September 2009 (28) August 2009 (36) July 2009 (30) June 2009 (10) Posts Posts Comments Comments blog advertising is good for you A lot of you went gaga over this taffeta skirt from Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing . Well, do I have a secret for you! This type of ... Did you know that most regular sewing machines have a special overlock stitch that mimics a serger's stitch? It's true! My Bernina h... Sunday, I posted the first part of this tutorial (see it here ), which showed you how to draft a simple pattern for the blue skirt above, ... Have you ever used this stuff before? I'm using horsehair braid for the first time and I'm enamored. I've been working on a ver... Dealing with Pattern Ease Here’s a topic that gets a lot of discussion, but I think the info bears repeating: ease in patterns. I’ve been makin...	23,850
Dunking a $650 electronic device into water is a pretty terrible feeling. The standard advice is to dry it off and stuff it into some rice, then cross your fingers and wait. But does that actually work? After accidentally dropping my iPhone for a swim into a pool of water where it was fully submerged, I had the unfortunate opportunity to test out the iPhone-in-a-rice-bag hypothesis, and I have good news; it actually works! Here is exactly what I did, and what I learned from the process of saving an iPhone from extensive water exposure with the good old rice bag trick. The result is a completely functioning iPhone with zero water damage. 6 Things To-Do Immediately if iPhone has Water Contact Want to save your iPhone? Drop everything and do this first, before putting it in rice: Remove from water as soon as humanly possible (obvious, right? But seriously, seconds can matter here so move quick) Turn the iPhone off immediately by holding down the power button until it shuts off Remove any case or enclosure right away since they can trap in moisture, screen protectors are fine to leave on unless there’s an obvious water bubble Dry out the iPhone as best as you can using cloth (t-shirt, socks, whatever is readably available) or an absorbent material. Wipe down the screen, sides, and back. Pay special attention to the power button, volume buttons, mute switch, speakers and microphones, and the audio output jack, try and get all visible moisture soaked up Use a Q-Tip if possible to try and soak up extra water from the audio output jack and in small crevices. If you’re out and about or have no q-tips handy, a little stick or sharp pencil poking through a t-shirt or cotton material can work too Disconnect any headphones, ports, chargers, USB cables, or accessories immediately Now with all visible water removed, you’re ready to stuff the iPhone into a rice bag (or a bag of silica gel packets, if you happen to have a bunch of those). Ideally you’d have a bag filled with silica gel packets, but who has that? Instead most of us have rice, and rice works. Here are the basic requirements: A zip-lock bag or similar that is air tight Rice, any generic type, ideally not “enriched” (more on that in a second) Patience for at least 36 hours Fill a zipper locked bag fairly full of rice so that the entire iPhone will be covered like in the picture below, then place the iPhone into the bag and seal it shut with some air in the bag. Any type of rice works, but try to avoid enriched rice, the reason being that whatever enriches it leaves a lot of white residual powder in the bag and it will also get into the ports and buttons on the iPhone. Enriched rice does still work (it’s actually what I used), but knowing now that it leaves a lot of mystery white powder gunked up in places, I’ll probably go buy a bag of normal rice for any potential future water-meets-iPhone encounters. The patience part is the hardest, and generally the longer you wait the better the likely outcome because you want all water inside the device to be completely absorbed by the rice before trying to power it on again. I left my iPhone in the air-tight rice bag for around 36 hours, but there’s no harm in leaving it in for 48 hours. Any less may work but it also could be inadequate, so therefore longer is better. Once you’ve waited at least 36 hours, open the rice bag and check out the iPhone. If you suspect the iPhone has any residual moisture left in it at all, do not power it on. If all seems well, go ahead and turn it on as usual. If all goes well, it’ll power on as usual, and your iPhone will have survived the water encounter! Here’s my iPhone turned on for the first time after a full submersion in water, it works beautifully just as normal, and is dry as can be: This should work for almost every instance of severe water contact with an iPhone, though obviously for situations where an iPhone is soaking in water while turned on for 15 minutes or longer your likelihood of recovery is going to diminish dramatically. Likewise, you’ll have much better recovery odds with fresh water than you would with salt water, simply because salt water is more corrosive. Soft drinks and sticky beverages will be more challenging as well since they leave more residue around, but as long as it dries out it will probably survive even if you dump a coke or coffee onto an iPhone. After the iPhone is dried out completely, check out the liquid contact indicators. Each iPhone is equipped with several water damage sensors that turn red if contact with any fluid is made, and if they are triggered than the likelihood of free repair service is fairly slim and your warranty may be toast. You can check these yourself by looking at the following locations, depending on your iPhone model (image via Apple): Generally if the liquid sensors are triggered it’s bad news, but the fine print in the water damage policy suggests that there is some leniency available, so if you’re generally pleasant to deal with you may get lucky even if your iPhone spent an afternoon rolling around in ocean waves and now has some damage even after soaking in rice for a few days. What if water damage occurred and something doesn’t work? If the iPhone has dried out, suffered water damage, and warranty service is fruitless, the four things most likely to go wrong are the following: The home button becomes unresponsive – try this trick first, but if it’s completely unresponsive you can usually get by with the onscreen home button trick as a fix to deal with a broken home button Audio output is dead – no simple user alternative or repair, consider using a USB based dock if you want to listen to audio instead Volume buttons, mute buttons, and power button don’t work – you can get by without having volume and mute buttons since both of those are available through software, the power button will be a problem though if it’s unresponsive so don’t let the iPhone run out of battery Diminished touch-screen response – depending on the severity this can be tolerable or terrible, sometimes replacing a screen helps, soemtimes it doesn’t because the problem can be deeper than just damage to the liquid crystal display If water damage has occurred, you can always try taking the iPhone into Apple to see if they’ll swap it out or repair it for you for free, but without AppleCare+ the odds are fairly slim since the standard warranty does not cover water damage and accidental damage in general. That said, there are always exceptions, and sometimes the repair cost is reasonable anyway, so it’s always worth a shot. The cost of repair is almost always cheaper than a new iPhone anyway, so unless you’re ripe for a new subsidized contract it may be the best thing to do. Got any other tips or tricks for saving an iPhone from water damage? Let us know in the comments! Related Get more of our great Apple tips, tricks, and important news delivered to your inbox with the OSXDaily newsletter. You have successfully joined our subscriber list. Posted by: Paul Horowitz in iPhone, Tips & Tricks Shaila says: May 2, 2020 at 12:59 am This would off really helped me but I have a Samsung phone instead of a iPhone and I don’t know if it would still worked with a Samsung phone. December 7, 2019 at 8:02 am It’s being good to read this meaningful article about water damage and screen repairs it’s very costly to repair and you need to choose a good and trusted Repair center for this kind of Cell phone Repair. November 6, 2019 at 11:22 am The rice didn’t work for me. Will I be able to save all of my photos and such onto another phone if I can’t turn on the original source? November 6, 2019 at 11:13 am Thanks for the information… I am very happy to say that my phone is working again :) April 18, 2019 at 9:15 am Just an FYI. I had a charging case on and I believe that fried the phone before I was able to try to save it after my husband walked into the pool with it. Submersion was less than 30 seconds for the iPhone 6. I believe we couldn’t bring it back due to it basically charging in the pool. I’ve been saving up the silica gel packets since then and have the same bag of rice mixed with the packets ready for the next liquid dunk. I have an iPhone X, but my husband has one that’s not water resistant and we have an iPhone 6 as a backup. I agree that you should try this. Even if there’s a 50% failure rate it’s worth a shot if you don’t have the money or equipment or ability to take your own iPhone apart. Especially since you have like a 99% breakage rate if you try to take it apart without actually knowing what you’re doing. Good luck everyone! March 29, 2019 at 5:34 am Fill a zipper bolted sack genuinely brimming with rice so the whole iPhone will be shrouded like in the image underneath, at that point place the iPhone into the pack and seal it shut with some air taken care of. Aub says: February 4, 2019 at 9:43 am I put my phone in a combination of rice, instant oatmeal, and silica gel after it was submerged in water for less than five seconds. It took three days to completely dry out, I check it every 24 hrs and the first two times it had lines going through it and was problematic, after the third time there was no errors and now have a working phone. It’s not an iphone like this article supports but a moto g6, but I think the sam June 29, 2018 at 4:50 pm I really liked it when you mentioned putting the wet iPhone in a bag full of rice and wait for 36 hours. It was also helpful when you suggested not using enriched rice because the powder can get in the holes of the phone. My sister drop her iPhone in the toilet when she was in the bathroom earlier today, and now she is panicking. She did place it in rice, however, since it has been soaked for more than 10 seconds, I do not think rice can fix it. It might be better if I tell her to take it the pros rather than wait. Linda says: February 9, 2018 at 3:33 pm I dropped my I phone 6 plus in the toilet this morning, totally submerged, and took out right away. After taking the case off and dried everything, the phone seemed normal. I still listened to my audio book and played the phone a bit. However, a few hours later, the phone did not respond completely, no matter what button I pressed (too bad I did not know no button should be pressed and the power should be off). I am still in the office now, a few hours before going home for a rice dry solution. I wonder if it is too late to take any action to get my phone back to life? Anybody has any advice, please? February 23, 2017 at 1:22 pm I really like your tip about removing any case or enclosure right away since they can trap in moisture. My sister recently dropped her Iphone in water and found it working again with the rice trick. I will definitely keep these tips in mind if I ever drop my phone in water. G says: February 9, 2017 at 2:22 am After I dropped my phone into my glass of water and fished it out, the phone worked fine for a few seconds and then out of nowhere it started to constantly vibrate, going on and off at random intervals. Also the power button didn’t work. After turning it off, it went into a sequence where it went off and on, where when it was on it would vibrate again. Will this (it going on and off) have ruined my chances? Is this a common problem? Plz help! Hugh G. Rection says: January 6, 2017 at 6:58 pm All I got out of reading the comments is that people like to drop their phones in toilets on “accident” anthtra says: January 6, 2017 at 1:52 am i dropped my iphone 5s in water , it was still working from the time i took it out from the water. The indicator in the sim slot is turned red.but my phone works completely fine. is there any chance of it stops working in the future?? please reply Hugh G. Rection says: January 6, 2017 at 7:01 pm if the water damage indicator is red that means it was touched by water and you may still have water in your phone you can take your phone to someone to take it part and dry it for you or you can do the bag of rice/silica gel packets thing December 27, 2016 at 11:55 am i went for swimming and after i started using my iphone 7 and all of a sudden it just froze when i try switching it off it doesnt work ,i dont know what to do ,i have put it in rice ,will it work Hannah says: December 18, 2016 at 6:38 pm ok so today i was playing in the creek that’s next to my house and the ice cracked and I fell in(Yes, I know, how stupid of me). It was probably 0 – -3 degrees(F) and when I put my jacket and snow pants away, I noticed that I had my Iphone 6 in my pocket of my snow pants. I immediately put it in rice. After 15 minutes, I was so impatient that I got on it. It was fine at first, but then when I turned up the volume of my phone it was a little slow and laggy. Then, the volume sign wouldn’t go away. There were two lines, one on the top and one on the bottom. It was little at first, then gradually they got bigger and bigger. I sighed, thinking that I will have two lines on my phone for the rest of my phone’s life, then put it back in the rice. A hour later, I noticed that it was turned on to siri. I tried to turn it back off, and it did. about 30 minutes later, i saw the restart screen pop up and turn back off. The two lines was now a big column on the left side of the phone. on the bottom corner, there was a small blue puddle shape thing also. I kept it in rice for another two hours and the restart screen kept turning on and off. I tried to turn it off, after reading this, but it wouldn’t work. Finally after 30 seconds of holding the home button and the off button, it turned off, but then it wouldn’t turn back on. I looked for the water damage thing, and I don’t even know if I have that or not. So, I’m just going to leave my Iphone in the rice and hope for the best. But if there is some other way that I can do to make the process faster and possibly even save my phone, please consider telling me. Thank you. And I’ll just be here working on unfinished photoshop and after effects projects. :0 December 18, 2016 at 6:47 pm If you have a wet iPhone that was submerged in water, to avoid liquid damage you need the iPhone to dry completely with no power or usage. The iPhone is not dry after only 30 minutes. You need to leave it for 72 hours or longer. Don’t be impatient, or your iPhone will likely not recover. Water is conductive, it can destroy circuitry and if you used it when wet it could cause liquid damage from the water. It needs to dry completely as the article describes. Jenna says: December 17, 2016 at 11:28 am Help! So I dropped my phone into a cup of water while I was getting out of my truck. I instantly dried it off and ran inside and put in a big bag or rice-a-roni. This is the only rice I had in my house. The iPhone 5s turned off on its own. Only the top part fell into the water for a split second, but that happens to be the only part of my phone where the screen is cracked!! Now, Its been almost 24 hours sitting in rice and I just threw a couple silica gel caps in with the rice once I read this thread. Also, like the idiot I am, I left the case on the phone when I threw it in with the rice. 20 hours later, I read this, took the case off, and threw the phone back in with the rice and silica gel caps. So I am wondering, is it ridiculous to think ricearoni will work? Will it make a difference if I go buy real rice and switch it over? Also is there any chance it will make it when the screen is cracked and water got into the cracked screen? No water got into the bottom of the iPhone where the charger port and headphone plug in is located. I will give it at least another day before I mess with it. Murphy says: November 16, 2016 at 3:57 am My iPhone fell inside water did all what was said above. I changed the screen but it doesn’t work. My phone is coming on but the screen isn’t working even with a changed one. What do I do? Is it salvable October 28, 2016 at 7:26 am It works!!! I dropped my iphone 6plus in water and immediately retrieved it, dried it off and threw it in a bag of rice for 48 hours. It works perfectly!!! BTW – I just confirmed that Basmatti rice works too (thats all I had on hand at the time). Thanks for the clear directions!!! You saved me!! AshleyBenson says: September 6, 2016 at 12:32 am August 22, 2016 at 10:58 am I was unaware that it had to be kept airtight and left my phone in a bowl of rice for 4 days. Today when i tried to turn it on and attempted to charge it, nothing worked. I came across this article. Is it too late for my phone? Ibarao says: August 22, 2016 at 11:00 am It does not need to be airtight, but placing the iPhone into a bag of silica gel or rice for several days is the recommended action for an iPhone that has been submerged in water. If it has been four days and the iPhone is not turning on when plugged in, it is likely too late. The key with any electronic that has gotten wet is to power it off and dry it out as quick as possible. Lexy says: August 18, 2016 at 9:52 am I dropped my phone in the river and could not get my phone to rice immediately about 3 hours later i got home, took the sim card out, and put my phone in rice in a Gladware container over night woke up the next morning and my phone worked. Joe says: August 14, 2016 at 7:50 pm the wife dropped her phone in the toilet Again. yes 2nd time both were I5s phones. last time I tried to clean it. and it’s still dead. this time we grabed the only rice we had rice a rony and covered it no seasoning though. Hoping it fixes it. 9:30 pm sunday aug 14 might get real rice abnd change it over to that. Sroor says: June 27, 2016 at 9:53 pm Checked it to day almost recovered only 3 spots will leave it for few hours but really I think mine went out cause it’s only screen all other parts cleaned and dried before but my problem that I couldn’t reach screen also my wife asking me to get rid of headache and buy new lcd and replace it I said no that suppose to work as many people have tried it I can leave it for 2 or 3 days and monitor it :) Sroor says: June 27, 2016 at 7:33 am It was full of liquid Hope i got success I’ll leave it for 2-3 days as my brother told me that he got success on this and he is electronic engineer June 25, 2016 at 2:12 pm Hey so i was in the pool bout 3 feet of water lets perhaps say 30 mins it had a lifeproof case on but water still got inside i didnt notice the water got inside until i tried to turn on my phone. it was soaking wet. i got home bout 45 mins later and put it in some rice for bout 2 days im gonna wait 1 more day to make sure it works. its an iphone 5s. do you guys think my phone will work. please reply julia says: February 2, 2020 at 9:16 pm No. Mrs. E says: June 18, 2016 at 3:22 am Jessica, I’d try Neate’s suggestion she gave me and I’d also take it to a site to check it after too like I’m going to do. Good luck. I hope everything works out for you. Mrs. E says: June 18, 2016 at 3:17 am Neate, thank you. I did the rice abd forgot to mention I aired it out for a bit too. This was before I got your message. I guess great minds think a like. Thanks you for your help. Mrs. E says: June 18, 2016 at 3:15 am The rice really worked! Its even charging now. I’m still going to take to store and have them look for corrosion. For all that day the rice don’t work, y’all are fools. Its a blessing in disguise. Thanks for the tips everyone that have their stories. It really helped. Except the negative nelly’s on here. :p Mrs. E says: June 15, 2016 at 5:29 am I dropped my iPhone 5 in the toilet, for about 5-6 seconds tops, earlier today. It had a protective outer and inner cover so after that I hurried and grabbed it I quickly removed the cases/covers and wiped my phone with a towel then used alcohol pad on it to clean it then a q tip to get the small places. (Then scrubbed the cases really good.) Anyway… I didn’t know I needed to turn the phone off. It was working normally with no problems at all, till the battery went low so I went to charge it and my charger want working at all. So I got on this site and found the only rice we had, a box of rice a roni, so I’m using that in a zip bag and wrapped it tight with a scarf. Is it going to be okay? Please help me with any suggestions or advice. I just got it as a gift 2 months ago. Thank you. Neate says: June 15, 2016 at 8:32 am Mrs E, you can skip the rice if you don’t have much, but another solution would be to rest the iPhone next to a fan blowing dry air or something similar for a few days. The key is that the internal components must completely dry out, that is where the damage can occur, and that’s why it takes so long to dry out. Good luck! I have saved iPhone and iPad from fall into water with rice, and also with a fan, so both work, it’s all about taking the time to let them dry out. June 8, 2016 at 5:48 am So I was rushing to do laundry and forgot I had left my phone on the bed and pile all my shirts on top and throw it in the washer, after about 5 mins no more than 10 I realize I had put it in the wash. I quickly stop and took it out and followed your instruction. I was wondering where should I place the bag of rice so it can absorb all the water? Like in a warm room or? Please email me asap! I’m so angry at my self and depressed :( because I’ve only had this iPhone 6 for 2 months going on 3. Please email me as soon as you can. Thank you in advance! Joe C says: June 5, 2016 at 7:38 am The rice worked! One caveat: a grain of rice got into the charging port. When I plugged it in, it pushed the rice in further. I was finally able to remove and it is now charging. So, make sure to check the ports prior to plugging it in May 24, 2016 at 7:24 pm I am doing it but if it doesn’t work then I will take it out on some but not here Jesse says: May 12, 2016 at 1:37 pm So, I want people to know my story. On a very rainy day, my truck spun out and rolled. Everything was ok but my iphone, I couldnt find it anywhere. The next day I went back to the scene and found it in running water. It was on when i rolled the truck, and off when i found it in water. So, i figured it was dead. I went home, put it in rice for 2 full days. Probably closer to 60 hours. Then i went to the hardware store where I found a kit that open ups iphones. I opened it up, stuck that in rice for a day, then after a day went by, I blew it out with air. I plugged it into the wall and all is well. There are 2 things wrong. The screen is a bit faded, and the battery states that it is at 3% constantly, yet it does charge to a full charge. Iphones are amazing! April 13, 2016 at 6:54 am I dropped my phone in the toilet yesterday. It wasn’t fully submerged or even in there for more than three seconds but the screen is now wonking out. It took me several tries to turn it off. Unfortunately I was at musical practice so it wasn’t until six hours later that I got home to put it in rice. It’s an iPhone 5s. It has only been in for about ten hours. Do you think it will survive or is it already corroded? Paul says: April 13, 2016 at 10:01 am If you turned it off immediately and let it dry out for 48 hours to 72 hours in a warm dry place (over a air fan, in rice, silica gel bag, etc) then it has a good chance at being fine. The iPhone is impressively resilient if you dry it out and turn it off quickly. I have an iPhone 5 that took a big swim a few years ago and it is still working fine to this day. April 11, 2016 at 7:32 am i left my iphone 6 in the washer for more than 20 min, i then took it out and dry it with paper towel. just leave it in the bag full of rice… hopefully it will work after 48 hours. I am so worry coz 25 min was such a big amount of time. April 9, 2016 at 5:49 am I knocked my iPhone 5s into the (thankfully clean) toilet, it was under for almost less than a second, and was in a case, but the charging/speaker/ headset ports were submerged. I dried it off straight away, and tried to see if it would work, but the screen was non responsive – which meant I couldn’t turn it off. I chucked it in the bag of rice and then looked up what to do. I ended up trying a combination of things – 5 mins totally covered in rice in a very low oven, a hairdryer held about 30cms from the bottom ports, even the back side of the hairdryer, and back in the rice. After 5hrs in the rice I was able to turn it off. Now, 36 hrs later it seems to be working without issue. The phone is charging, the speakers work,& screen is responsive. Hopefully it will continue to work fine, as I’d only just bought it in January. March 22, 2016 at 10:54 am Some days ago, my iPhone 5 fell into the toilet (yep, back pocket, what else. Still don´t know why I even put my iPhone there). Luckily, I knew what to do because the same thing has happened to a friend of mine some months ago. I tried to dry it as good as possible, shut it off immediately and then put it in rice. For three whole days. That´s all I did, and when I turned it on today, everything worked perfectly. Camera, apps, screen, buttons, battery, everything. I´m so relieved and happy. This method really works! Just remember to give it some time… it´s better to let your iPhone rest one day longer than to try to turn it off one day too early. Thanks for this blog entry, and good luck to everyone having the same problem!! February 21, 2016 at 4:32 am Dropped my 6 week old iPhone 5s (on new contract) deep into a toilet full of wee. Got it out quickly, but inadvertently switched it on and off several times trying to get the silicone/hard case combo off. Home screen booted up and melted before my eyes into a mess of moving lines and giant pixels. Couldn’t power it down properly as screen wasn’t working. Well that’s totally f***d I thought…why do I persist in stuffing my phone in my back pocket etc…? Still, ever the optimist, I dried it thoroughly and chucked it in a ziplock bag full of rice. Into the airing cupboard it went overnight. Took it out the following morning and took the sim card out (it was soaking so I should’ve done that straight away really, but forgot in the general panic). After another 12 hours languishing in rice, I took it out and gave it a blow dry into all its orifices with the dryer on cool setting. Then I took the phone and rice out of the bag, put it in a bowl, and left it open in front a dehumidifier on full blast for another 48 hrs. 72 hours later it is working fine – speakers, fingerprint sensor, camera, charging fine, receiving and making calls/texts, Siri still talking to me despite me dunking her in wee! I know (from comments here) that it may be corroding away slowly inside, but then again, it may not (and at least I can get my stuff off it). Cheers to everyone on the forum for advice, and good luck with your own resuscitation attempts… :-) February 13, 2016 at 5:16 pm My iPhone 6 fell straight in to the bottom of the pool and one of my daughters dive inn took it out and I search the internet so I saw this and right away I place my phone in a bag of rice with a bit of air left it alone for 4 days and turn it on with no luck so my sister put it to charge and it worked with no problem at all and all my media was there Am living this comment with my same iPhone thank you so much February 12, 2016 at 1:21 am Huge thanks for this tip, which worked brilliantly. It was like magic – 10 hours in the rice. Lisa says: February 11, 2016 at 4:10 am I used Thai sticky rice and it worked for me, my toddler grabbed my phone and dunked it in the sink she was bathing in. I got a blue screen and a white screen then it went dead and wouldn’t turn on. An overnight sit an a large bowl of rice and all was good. It worked for me. January 24, 2016 at 1:48 am I dropped my Iphone 6s in the toilet for a few seconds no more than 3 seconds in the toilet. I left my phone on but wiped it down. After reading another website on my soaked iphone and a few text, s I shut down my phone and took out the sim and tried to use a hair dyer on low. I dried all ports and sim for a good 5-10 minutes and turned it back on and it seemed fine other than touch screen problems so I left it on not thinking much. After an hour of it being on i noticed more touch screen problems while using various apps for half an our i turned it off again and on again and notice a watermark no big but noticable. I now have it off and tried to blow dry it again. I don’t have any more rice at home but don’t know what to do. Currently it is off and it is on its side so liquid can drain out on the sim card side. I am leaving it off for the night but will need it for work tomorrow. What should I do?? Dave says: January 23, 2016 at 10:33 pm I dropped my iPhone 5c in the toilet two days ago. I got it out very quickly. It was turned on when it fell in. When I pulled it out, I immediately pulled the headphone jack out and yanked off the case as quickly as I could. I also removed the plastic screen protector. I dried every surface of the phone. Unfortunately, before I went on line (on my computer) to see what I needed to do, I pushed a few buttons. There were streaks across the screen and some of the operations didn’t respond, though the touch screen was working. Then I read I shouldn’t push buttons, but I should turn it completely off, since you don’t want it receiving calls, while it’s recovering. I didn’t have any rice, but the site I found mentioned using silica packs. Fortunately, I just got a three month supply of pills (6 bottles) from Aetna. They each had 3 two inch silicas packs in them and I still had some from a previous bottle. I opened all the bottles and pulled the silica packs as quickly as I could. I had 21 in all. I didn’t have any plastic bags, so I rubber banded silica packs across the front and back of the iPhone and put it in a sealable plastic container with the rest of the silica packs. I left it in there for 48 hours, as the site suggested. Tonight I turned the iPhone 5c on. The first thing I saw was the reassuring white apple appear on the screen. After a normal amount of time, the iOS screen came on. Everything appears to be working fine. Will this continue? I don’t know, but it seems very promising. I wish more people had shared in this forum after they tried to power on. I hope there were a lot of success stories here. Dave says: January 23, 2016 at 10:48 pm The one thing I didn’t do was remove the sim card. There are good videos on youtube that show you how. Removing the sim card doesn’t void the warranty. Also, you can see one of the water damage indicators when you remove the sim card from the 5c. I’m thinking about doing that to get an idea whether it shows the damage. J Dan says: January 24, 2016 at 11:40 am I have dropped my iPhone into water, totally submerging it, used the exact method outlined here to dry it out for 72 hours, and it works fine still to this day. thomas says: January 20, 2016 at 6:02 am you put it in rice and it attracts asains to come fix ur phone lol iPhone5girl says: December 22, 2015 at 3:23 pm Is dropped my old iphone 5 into a filled warm bathtub half an hour ago and almost had a heart attack. The phone was off and had a tight fitting case. It spend one millisecond completely submerged in the water then I snatched it out and wrapped it in a towel until it felt dry. I then took off the case and towelled the phone off until it was completely dry. I put on a dry case and switched on my iPhone and… It WORKS like normal (perfectly well) and like it never touched water (and I hope it will keep working like that touch wood). bingham says: December 23, 2015 at 11:13 am The iPhone needs to dry out, the inside could have water in it in which case it will fail after a few days. Dry the thing out for several days, with it off, not in use, as instructed. December 4, 2015 at 5:34 pm I dropped my new iPhone 6s Plus in the toilet and it must have been in there for 3min bc I went to change for basketball practice and it fell out of my back pocket….. Well I had it in a bag of rice for 48 hours and I took it out and tried to turn it on but it wouldn’t so I tried plugging it in and no response. I put it back in the bag and am going to try again tomorrow. November 11, 2015 at 3:02 pm My iPhone 5s dropped in toilet and I was drying in rice silica and even opened my phone to dry nothing worked. After one week I went and got alcohol in pharmacy came home and opened my phone, took battery and all other parts. I decided this because I didn’t have noting to lose because Apple was asking for 300$ plus tax to fixit and my carrier told me I have to pay off my iPhone one year old 232$ plus tax and resign contract to get new phone so there was nothing to lose. So I watched you tube how to clean with alcohol and I did it. After I tried to see if is working nothing still so I took again board and put it in alcohol for few minutes and waited to dry, alcohol dry quickly. Cleaned inside as well with q tips and put it all part together tried again nothing, plugged in computer and restored to factory, tried few times as well and miracles happened my phone finaly restored. First buttery was dying fast even my battery was 100% charged phone was turning off kept for one hour plugged and phone stated working camera volume but was slow. I will give few days to see if it comes to original spread and battery not dying before I change new battery. So do not give to anybody your phone because if the phone is water damaged all carrier will pay you 55$ for your phone now question is why? Because that’s how they fix and resell as refurbished same with apple or private business. November 9, 2015 at 3:06 pm My iPhone 5. I went to Aquatica yesterday and had on my “waterproof case” and had it in my pocket and water got into it, i felt heating from my phone and left it out the water after that but I was 4 hours away from home so couldn’t put it rice right away what does that mean? What can i do? Please help Sharon says: November 8, 2015 at 12:36 pm I dropped my iPhone 6 in water… Dried it off immediately. The phone was now stuck in headphone mode so instead of placing it in a bag of rice I stuck my phone in the air/heat car vent turned the air medium heat full blast for 15 minutes straight to dry out the headphone speaker hole…bam! Worked like a charm. Jax says: November 5, 2015 at 7:30 am Welllllll typing to you from my iphone now!! After 72 hours in rice and the vacuum hose trying to suck out the water it lives again! Have patience it will work! LSU TIGERS says: November 4, 2015 at 6:04 am I did the paper towel thing and it worked I twisted up the paper towel and stuck it in to my headphones jack and wrapped around the phone for 5 minutes then after about 3-4 hours it worked!!! THANKS!!🤑 Jax says: November 2, 2015 at 5:58 pm My iPhone took a plop into the bowl last night to my great dispair….although I dried it off and left it to dry overnight I stupidly turned it on the next morning saw it was still messed up turned it off put it in rice tried to turn it on again a few hours later to which it did but then shut itself off ugh ….I then saw someones post about using a vaccumm hose to suck the water out and I know for a fact it works…my camera lens was damp but when I used the vaccumm hose it all went away immediately..I used it all over any possible place that I thought water could have gotten in and put it back in the rice too paranoid to turn it on again right now…ahh I hope tomorrow it will turn on and work I will keep everyone posted.. Shan says: November 2, 2015 at 12:39 pm My daughter accidentally dropped my I phone 6 plus in the tub. I put children’s music on for her and stepped out for a minute the next thing I knew I had a wet phone took it out of the case and dried it as much as possible. Everything worked but I wasn’t able to hear a ring the speaker phone worked but because I use it for work I needed it to work properly. I seen this and put it in a ziplock bag over night and it works perfectly!!! Thank you so much for all the feedback on this as I was skeptical at first however swear the bag of rice worked!!!!!!! Thanks for the site!!! Paul says: November 2, 2015 at 1:04 pm A bag of silica gel works the best but very few people have a bunch of those packets laying around, thus rice and 24-72 hours is sufficient to dry out most iPhones that have been submerged in water. It doesn’t always work, but I’ve had it work for myself with a few iPhones and a few iPads that have been dunked into water, so far so good! Gil says: October 2, 2015 at 8:09 am went fishing with my buddies on a jon boat and sure enough the dang thing sunk with my phone in my pocket i grabbed the phone out of my pocket after i swaw to the nearest rock and threw it about 20 feet on to the bank ran up to his house and put it in rice its a iphone 5c it has been in the rice for about 16 hours now and wont turn on what should i do next? Hannah says: September 14, 2015 at 4:29 pm My phone got alittle wet i think but i didnt put it in rice until the next morning. How long should i keep it in there. NAL says: September 12, 2015 at 6:30 am My brother left his iPh in water for about 10mins. And after about 30 or 40 mins, I dried it with a dryer and put it in a rice bag. I am worried that it took the device about 40mins to b dried. Would it have a problem? September 12, 2015 at 10:09 am 40 minutes is not long enough to dry out a phone, it should take at least 36 to 48 hours to dry September 1, 2015 at 7:15 am Thanks this article helped me a lot because yesterday my Iphone5 fall-down into toilet..Immediately i took and cleaned it with my handcuff after that its not working properly i tested with a outgoing call i faced mike pblm other person not able to hear my voice when i speaker he able to listen. i switched of some around 2hrs..and i pun some in hand dry machine for some time…then i tested with charging its charged…once again put under hand dry then i switched on mobile i testing by playing a music file its played well immidiately i tested a call..call also fine…but that i faced pblm with center button ….same day night put my mobile in a rice packet entire night almost 9hrs..after that every thing working fine inclusing center button and that water scratch also gone…. Ali says: August 5, 2015 at 4:33 pm Dropped my iphone i the toilet as many did, took it out immediately wiped it with a towel and also used a hair dryer. After a while i even charged it. I have two white stripes over the screen now and the first day it wasnt working well but today apart of the screen it all works altough when i charge it it gets really hot. Millie says: August 4, 2015 at 4:16 am I have an iPhone 6 and i dropped it in a chlorine pool! It was in there for about 15 minutes and I put in straight in a bag of rice. Around an hour later I made the mistake of trying to charge it and the Apple sign came up but then it went all fuzzy and showed these weird blue lines. It has been blacked out ever since although I have left it air dry + left it in rice for about 2 days. Is there any hope? I really REALLY need my phone back :(( Sofia says: July 8, 2018 at 7:54 pm Did it work? i have a similar problem atm with an iPhone 7 plus and im extremely anxious. Dihana says: August 2, 2015 at 4:13 pm I need help !!! I gave my 1 year old neice play a game on my iphone 5s and she dropped ot in a bukket full of water I automatically took the case off and cleaned it but i didnt take the sim card out, i put the iphone in a jar full of rice , what are my chances … I need help ASAP August 2, 2015 at 2:13 pm So I dropped my phone in the bath 2 days ago. Had never done this before so didn’t know what to do and tried it to see if it still worked. Looked up what to do and turned it off and put it in a bag of rice after about 10 mins. It’s been in the rice for 48 hours now and just turned it on a minute ago to see if it worked – it did work perfectly BUT I noticed the screen looks dark and damp with water marks so turned it off again and put it back in the rice. Is this a bad sign? Does anyone have any suggestions? It’s an iphone 5c so I can’t open it up. Dwayne says: August 2, 2015 at 2:51 pm Do not turn it on until the water has dried. If there is any visible water, absolutely do not turn it on. Let it sit on a blowing fan for 4 days or so, maybe longer, until it has completely dried out, then try to turn on the iPhone. Do not turn on the iPhone before it’s dry, it will damage the iPhone. Shayan says: July 19, 2015 at 5:42 pm Well dropped my iPhone 4s in the toilet dried it with a towel and used blow drier at warm. read the article and put it into the rice about an hour ago. Hope it works the phone is my life and really worried about the data on it and the pictures and mainly the mic and the sound outputs. FINGERS CROSSED :\ Jason Davies says: July 13, 2015 at 8:00 pm Left both our iPhone 6’s in my pocket and went snorkelling for an hour off of Key west, Florida. Both dead of course but I’m not so much worried about the actual phones as I am about the Information and data on them, I could never get my phone to back up on iCloud, is there any chance of retrieving files from the old phone onto the new phones we purchase when we get back to Vancouver? July 8, 2015 at 1:17 pm My iphone 6 completely submerged into water(10am) two days ago. I took it out as soon as I saw it fall in the water. Took off the case. Dried it with my shirt and used the blow drier on it for hours(don’t let it get too hot/use at a distance on warm). At around (4pm) I put it in a bag of OATMEAL which I read works better. I kept it around warm areas. The next day I blow dried it a bit more but kept it mainly in the oatmeal, took out all the air from the bag. My phone looks perfect. Everything works. MAndy says: July 4, 2015 at 3:56 pm My daughter just dropped her iPhone 5c down the toilet. We have put it in bag of rice but it won’t turn off. Help! ben says: June 26, 2015 at 7:20 pm i forgot i had my ipod in my pocket when i went swimming so my friend reminded me so i got out of the pool and my friends dad came out and tried turning on my ipod it did then shut of and didn’t turn on then i went home told my mom and told me to put it in rice its now in the rice im going to wait if it doesn’t work i have to save up my money wich takes me along time wish me luck :( shay says: June 20, 2015 at 6:39 pm i dropped my iphone in the toilet and then picked it up after wizzing on it :) that was disgusting believe me now i dried it with a cloth(t-shirt) and i made sure that there is no water at at all, i didnt know that i have to switch it off but it worked at first suddenly it became too hot and i cant even touch it so i tried to let it cool down and put it in a bowl of rice hoping that it works again, now it have been one hour and i have 23 more hours to go :'( wish me luck <3 September 21, 2015 at 12:28 pm did it work? i dropped my iphone 5 in the same way and quickly got it out then it turned off it own in the same min i didnt turn it off it was by itself in the same moment, i tried to turn it on but nothing at all, now i put it in rice, my heart is broken i have all my things there and its not backed up on my icloud, did it work with you please tell me !!!!! September 21, 2015 at 12:36 pm Did you read the article Aisha? It works to save water damage if you follow the instructions. It says that you should turn the iPhone off immediately, dry it off as best as you can, and and let it dry out for at least 72 hours. Do not turn it on until it is completely dry internally. The internal components must dry, this can take 72 hours easily if not longer, then you can try to turn it on when the inside is dry. The iPhone can not be wet any longer otherwise it will not work. I have successfully used this exact method to save a wet iPhone, a wet iPad, and a wet Mac. It works if you act quick, but don’t be impatient. The iPhone must dry out! June 5, 2015 at 9:05 am my iphone dropped in water and after 8 to 9 hours it was not opening and then again i put my iphone in a sealed bag of uncooked rice and i have to ask that how can i know its open or off.45 hours have been passed i can open the sealed bag or not plz reply must i’ll be wait for u thanks N. OPE says: June 5, 2015 at 10:14 am This is how you can potentially save a wet iPhone from water damage, it’s detailed and explanatory article, very good source of info I would start here and read the page: https://osxdaily.com/2013/04/11/dropped-iphone-into-water-save-damage/ An iPhone sitting in water for 9 hours is probably dead. Also, “plz” is not a word, neither is “u”, and proper capitalization and punctuation are also important. Lila says: May 30, 2015 at 5:33 pm My friends poured a bucket of water on me and I had my iPhone 5s in my pocket. It got soaked and my friend said,”get the rice!” We got some rice and put it in. That was two days ago and I’ve left it in rice ever since then, but I can still see water in my screen. It died and I don’t know if it is fixed yet. Is it safe to charge since it might still have water in it? I don’t want it to explode or something like that. Please help! Girish Kumar says: May 27, 2015 at 8:50 am Hii I’m Girish Today evening my iPhone 4 was suddenly drop in rain now it was not switching on. I was tried to on the phone but it was not working ,,so can you people give advice for me what can I do for phone many of personal things are in phone can u say the process May 27, 2015 at 9:22 am Hello Girish Today, here to inform you exactly what to do when your iPhone is wet, and how to recover the moisture contacted iPhone by drying it out, and to prevent the iPhone from receiving water damage to the iPhone as best as you can. It is not a science but it has worked for myself and many other users who have dropped their iPhone into water. Please follow the instructions, I recommend you read it: May 11, 2015 at 6:24 am I dropped it in the tub and took it out real quick and I followed the steps but it won’t stay off what do I do now ?? :( Sam says: May 5, 2015 at 11:40 am My iPhone 4 fell out of my front pocket and into the sink filled with water this morning.. I Pulled it out straight away and it was turned on still and I quickly dried it with a towel and then hair dryed it for a while haha. after about half an hour my friend text me to put it into rice immadietly, so I put it in rice but facing upwards. My phone is also REALLY cracked so the water probably got in easily! it is turning on but i should leave it in there as long as possible! Karen says: May 2, 2015 at 11:35 am Washed my Iphone 5s in the laundry put it in rice right a way and nothing for the first 5 hrs will check on it tomorrow. Lot’s a prayers Mikey says: April 18, 2015 at 11:14 am I put my phone on the table in my sweatshirt at school yesterday and then someone accidentally knocked it over with a glass of water. It wasn’t completely submerged in water, but it was still wet, and it took a while until I knew because they just hung it up without telling me (about twenty minutes until I found out). When I found it, the flashlight was partially on and flickering slightly (I tried turning it off, but even when it’s off, it still has a bit of a light). I powered it off completely as soon as I found I couldn’t turn off the flashlight, and dried it as much as possible. Even though it wasn’t completely in water, it took a bit of time so I’m thinking it might as well have been. When I look at the back, I can see some water fogged up in the camera. I haven’t seen anyone else with the flashlight problem yet. Is the water damage really bad? We just put it in rice just today, and the flashlight is still partially on (it’s dimmer than yesterday and it’s steady now, but I have no idea whether that’s a good sign or not.) I have an iPhone 4, and I looked at the chart for the water damage sensors. Do the turn red when activated? I looked at my phone and I didn’t see anything like that, but I’m not entirely sure what it’s supposed to be like. The switch on the side (silver, left side under the sound buttons) though has a red thing. I didn’t charge it because I heard that was a really, really bad idea and anyway, it was above 80% last I checked. Will my phone be okay? Mikey says: April 18, 2015 at 11:19 am Sorry, re-checked- the silver switch above the sound buttons, not below. When the switch is down (to the back) there’s red. Is that a water sensor? Shayan says: July 19, 2015 at 5:33 pm yah the same flashlight problem but my phone is in a bag of rice at the moment. hope it works. and yah my cousin tried hitting his iPhone 4 on the back with his and the flashlight turned of. Tom D says: April 16, 2015 at 12:57 pm All of the ideas for drying out these gizmos without opening them up are relying on (slow, patient) evaporation. And air circulation is usually the key to evaporation. With this in mind, when my new (two weeks old!) iPod Touch fell into a pool of water, I left it lying outside in the sun, face down — lots of warm sun and good air movement. I also have a powerful vent hood in my kitchen so, when the sun went away that evening, I propped the iPod up directly under the hood and ran it on high for an hour or so. Then I put it into a bag of rice for the night (figuring, if nothing else, it was probably the driest place in the house). I repeated this regime the next day as well. As of now, I have a fully functioning iPod — let’s hope it stays that way. Leslie says: April 2, 2015 at 6:56 pm I dropped my phone in the toilet at the grocery. After 48 hours in a ziploc bag with rice, it seems to work just fine. March 20, 2015 at 4:29 pm I dropped my iphone 5s in the toilet (contained urine) and it took me a few seconds to retrieve it, the Iphone shut off on its own and i quickly dried it out with a towel. I wasn’t home so i waited a few hours until i was able to put it in rice. I left it in the rice for 2 days then i left it in front of a fan for an hour or two just in case. I connected the phone to it’s charger and tried turning it on, no response. I left it in the charger for a longer duration and still no response. What do i do now? Is all hope lost? Please, i need help. Thanks. Shelbey says: March 20, 2015 at 2:38 pm I dropped my iphone 5s in the tub a couple days ago and i immediately took it out and dried it off with i towel. I shut it off then turned it back on and i saw dark blue all along the sides of my phone. I put it in a bucket of rice and let it sit overnight. I turned it on and it would only show the apple screen and it would change colors then shut off. I left it in rice again that night. Right now, its sitting in a bag full of rice and its plugged in charging. Every time i plug it in it vibrates and when i unplug it, it stops. What do I do? Is it okay? February 26, 2015 at 12:17 pm Today is Thurs. Tues late afternoon I dropped iPhone 6 in toilet, completely submerged but only in for a second or two. Immediately dried off with towel, and it seemed to be working ok, so I went out to a meeting. While out, I realize the sound was not working at all (except for speaker phone)–callers could hear me, I couldn’t hear them. Also couldn’t hear music, etc. As soon as I got home I found this thread, read through much of it, finally turned phone off (at least fours hours after incident) and put phone in baggie with rice and a few silicon packs. Opened this morning and it appears to be working totally fine, including sound & camera. Will update here if situation changes. Thanks much. Phil says: February 20, 2015 at 8:53 am Just came back on here out of curiosity after seeing the link I sent to myself during an email clear-out. ‘Experts’ are going to keep coming on here and saying don’t do it. Just count up how many success stories there have been using this method. I think using Pure rice (as I did) probably diminishes the chances of there being gunk build-up if the gunk is starch..? Dunno, just guessing. Anyways, I water boarded my i-phone 5s 3 months ago now and it’s still working just fine. If that changes I’ll take it to an ‘Expert’ but right now, I’d still recommend giving it a go with the bag of rice. Best, Elsie says: February 19, 2015 at 9:19 pm I was dancing down a driveway (stupid I know) and my iPod went flying out of my pocket into a puddle of slush. (super watery snow) right now my iPod is sitting in a bag of rice. Right after I dropped it I turned it on and tried to see if the sound would work, it didn’t. I went inside and dried it with a hair-dryer, but my iPod got very hot. Now I know I shouldn’t have done almost any of that, so I shut it off all the way and now its in a bag with rice. Hopefully I am not punished for my stupidity! I can only hope it works when I try it in 40 hours… Greg says: February 13, 2015 at 2:41 pm Just retrieved iPhone 6 from washing machine. It was only in a few minutes. Have followed your instructions to the letter, however am not able to turn the phone off. The touchscreen is unresponsive and holding down the power button for a long time does not cut power. Any suggestions. Thanks for this instructive article. At least it gives me some encouragement. Greg says: February 20, 2015 at 11:40 am I was never able to turn the power off since the touchpad was unresponsive. After about 60 hours in the rice the touchpad started to respond and the phone worked perfect except for vertical dark streaks on each side of screen. I put the phone in the rice for another 24 hours and the phone works perfect and the streaks are gone. Count this as another success story. K says: February 5, 2015 at 12:06 am So last night I dropped my phone in the toilet. Yes, I know, I shouldn’t have reached to text while standing over the toilet but luckily for me I hadn’t began to relieve myself yet. So it was in the water briefly, then it slipped out of my hand again and into the toilet. Total in water time was 3 or 4 seconds. I dried it off immediately and checked to see if it was working (Yeah, stupid but I used it to search for a solution to this problem). It was working fine but for a really illuminated spot in the top left of the screen obviously where some water got behind the screen. I put it in a bag of rice with the sim card over night and turned it on this morning. The illuminated spot had gotten a bit more spread out but was still small enough that it didn’t bother me and had stayed in the top left corner. I charged it up to around 55% before using it at all then and it was working fine but for a slight flicker in the screen for a few minutes when I was first using it. I used it until it was down to 5% and it seemed fine. I even turned it off and on to make sure that was working as well at one point. The flicker went away and the illuminated part started to shrink so I figured that it was drying out properly from any little bit of moisture that was left in it. Problem now is that it shut off after it had powered down to 5% cause I left it on standby for a couple hours. It now won’t turn on, and won’t show a battery screen when I plugged it in. Did I potentially fry the circuits or the battery? Any help would be awesome. Thanks. Skip says: January 31, 2015 at 3:36 pm The answer, I think, is “it all depends.” If the water has not seeped too far into the system, rice or kitty litter (low dust) or gels might do the job. That generally means you do NOT need to go the store to actually buy one of these items (which I did) and it also means that it wasn’t submerged in a toilet where you can’t get at it right away (which happened to a friend of mine) and does not short out and make all sorts of weird noises (which hers did). In the case above, which all happened to one sad phone at the same time, even the new Verizon machine designed to suck water out (or whatever it does) won’t help, as was the case here. Let’s face it. My friend is accident prone and smashes her own glasses on a regular basis. And people like that should avoid Apple products, or at least the closed box products, like the plague! I love Apple products. Always have. But I get the feeling that they don’t even try anymore to make products for rough use by clumsy people! It doesn’t even occur to them that $600 or isn’t pocket change for everyone. So screw Apple! From now on, I am going to suggest a rough service phone for any of my friends who don’t either have lots of money to just throw around and break things on occassion. IF there is such a thing! January 28, 2015 at 10:46 am Great info! I sure hope this works! My son got sick on my bed this morning, and I accidentally rolled my phone up in my sheet and dropped it into the washing machine! I searched the entire house for about 20 minutes before I realized to my horror what had happened. By the time I got it out it had already shut off, so I’m hoping that it can be recovered! John Cosh says: January 27, 2015 at 1:43 pm Rice is good but if you can, save up those little silica gel packets and when your phone get dumped in water ripper bunch of the packets open and put the phone in a baggy with the little chunks of silica gel. It works really well!!!! January 20, 2015 at 4:34 pm Dropped my iphone4 in a pot of water and wasted 10 min calling it to figure out where i’d put it down. Saw it in the pot, jumped on line on the desktop and followed the directions, except no rice. I had (clean) silicone crystal kitty litter and figured WTH nothing to lose. Ill let you know how it works tomorrow night January 14, 2015 at 1:55 am Thank You for the tip. I dropped my iPhone 6 in a small puddle, but after trying everything gave rice a shot and ooh my god, in just 12 hours my iPhone is back to normal. The expert says: January 12, 2015 at 9:07 am This myth has been around long enough. Rice will indeed soak up the fluid, but then concentrate it on any particular spot where it will keep damaging the circuitry of your phone. There is only one way: Get the battery out as soon as possible and have the phone looked at and cleaned / fixed by an expert. January 12, 2015 at 10:05 am This is no “myth”, it works. I have used it to save multiple iPhones from water contact, what are your credentials? Indeed, putting a wet iphone in rice to save it is not a myth, it works if you are patient. Additionally, the batteries on iPhones are not removable. So you have no idea what you’re talking about and have no experience fixing a liquid filled iPhone. No experience and touting BS is rather typical of someone proclaiming themselves an ‘expert’, isn’t it? Mahsa says: January 9, 2015 at 5:22 pm OH MY GODDDD. My phone just fell in the stupid toilet :( and then I was shocked so I had to look at it for a min then I had no idea so I dried it with hair-dryer and then after a while it was hot like heater ( my phone) then I searched and found found out I had to put in rice. now it is as you said thanks by the way. but with these stupid thing Ive done, is it gonna be fine after 36 hours? I just touched my phone and its a bit cool down. pleaseeeee help me. i want my phone km says: January 4, 2015 at 6:00 am My iphne just went swimming with me but i realized it after maybe 20sec in the water. I didnt have a bag of rice with me so i used a blow drier to dry it off. I saw it went black after i pressed the power button.. Now its in a bag of rice. Will you thnk that it will still work? AshleyT says: December 19, 2014 at 1:50 pm This is my story. So, two weeks and two days into having my iPhone 6, I was at the nail salon getting a pedicure and I was getting off the chair when my iPhone 6 fell OUT of my coat pocket and into the water!!!!! I was shocked when I turned around after I got up and saw it. The man doing my pedicure grabbed it out so it was only in the water for about 2 secs, and when it was retrived I stupidly pressed the home button. It was working though!!!! Soon after, I shut it down. And they told me to put it under the nail dryer. So I did, for an hour and a half. I was panicking. When I got home about 15 minutes later, I put it in a ziplock full of rice. I read post after post, watched video after video on youtube. This happened 7:30 PM on wednesday, and I tried to turn it on Friday at 12:30 PM. I was too impatient to wait the full 48 hours… So, when I powered it on, IT WORKED GOOD AS NEW!!!! I was so pumped. Just to give you guys some hope with the new iphone 6!!!! :) Sam says: January 5, 2015 at 6:53 pm This does give me hope! Thank you for posting! How did you know it worked as good as new? Did it power on on its own by pressing the power button or did you have to plug it in/let it charge for a bit? December 18, 2014 at 8:57 am This is how it worked for me: I dropped my iphone 5 into the toilet, panicked, and took it out in like 3 seconds. I used a paper towel to dry it, and it was working. So I thought ”Oh wow, it worked” and I used it for the next 3 hours. It shut down after 3 hours. I came home and put it in a plastic bag full of rice. I waited for 36 hours, took it out today, charged it and IT’S WORKİNG PERFECTLY FİNE. Anand says: December 16, 2014 at 10:04 am Hey guys it really worked for me. My iphone 4S was dumbed in bucket of water for around 4 seconds, i was able to save it by quickly rubbing off the water content and suddenly putting it in to dry rice for about 4hrs or so… Thanks man for the info!! December 15, 2014 at 6:49 pm Try oatmeal! Mine dropped in the toilet and I immediately grabbed it and shut it down. I dried it off and put it in rice. I then realized that it wasn’t instant rice so I carefully wrapped a paper towel in it and put it into oatmeal (also absorbent), sealed the bag, put it under my heater, and left it alone for 72 hours. Turned back on and everything works! It also had a broken screen already so I was really worried it would absorb more water and be gone for sure. Mar says: December 14, 2014 at 7:13 am Hi there, My iPhone decided to take a quick spin into the washing machine (pun intended) and well, it didn’t survive. anyways, I tried this trick for my Blackberry before and it worked! So I’m hoping it would do the same this time. However though, since turning it on is not advisable, how would I know that it’s ‘healed’? Will it turned on by itself automatically ? and yeah, the rice powder gunk. that’ll be my 2nd concern. looking pretty nasty right now. Let me know, thanks! Mar Phil says: November 24, 2014 at 3:02 am Thanks for the advice, I was careful to keep the rice out of the card slot – and the trick worked !!!! I left the phone in the rice bag in the airing cupboard for about 40 hours, plugged it in and it switched on. So far, working perfectly. It seems so obvious now but if I hadn’t seen this thread it wouldn’t have occurred to me to try it, so thanks all for your input. November 20, 2014 at 8:30 am Hey make sure you tape up any holes cause rice can go in to them happened to me was happy I was able to get out droped in toilet (after going ewwe) but was able to save it before it went all the way setnit in rice turnes off two hours not is fine Phil says: November 19, 2014 at 8:13 am Glass of water knocked over and spilled over my 5S while it was charging. Don’t know how much got in but the sensor’s tripped and phone not responding. Waiting to hear from my (non-Apple) insurance co. (but not optimistic). Then came across this article. i-Phone went into a sealed bag of ‘pure’ Basmati at roughly 2pm, so 11 hours after the accident. If it’s a repair bill (of what looks to be at least £200) I’ll accept my punishment with grace and keep phone and water a long way apart in future, but if this actually works I’ll feel like Christmas came early. Will wait and see and report back….. November 14, 2014 at 7:13 am I dropped ma iphone4 in water and I picked it up almost immediately. I took it to the technician, it worked fine but the iPhone cant access cellular data and Wi-Fi anymore. what will I do pls? November 9, 2014 at 7:13 am dropped in toilet for 3 secs… then washed in sink (!) doh !! then tried to check it worked… faded screen, slow, read the article and switched off… was on for 3-4 mins… then put in rice box… waiting now… hope i dont have to spend too much money fixing this ! November 6, 2014 at 10:46 am My iphone 4 with case dropped in the toilet on October 30. I retrieved quickly, removed case, shook vigorously wiped with hand towel, ran to laptop and googled for remedy, found this very useful article and followed the instructions – rice in ziploc and left it. After 24 hours it was magic! I squealed with delight when it powered up and everything works! Its November 6, had to write a comment – its still all good. Thanks a lot for a useful and brilliant article! October 31, 2014 at 10:12 am Rice works! My iPhone 5S was submerged in the toilet by my daughter and I immediately put it in a bag of rice for 3 days and bam! It worked again! The fingerprint on the home button didn’t work at first but it started working again about 1-2 weeks later. Then, she dropped it in the toilet again!! This time the phone was in the toilet for a good 5 minutes it was even playing Netflix on the AppleTv downstairs while in the toilet! And I used the “find my iPhone” app and it was ringing in the toilet haha! What a savage phone, right?? Well, I powered it off and put it in rice for about two days and amazingly it turned on! I was in shock! Everything worked perfectly fine only a few water stains on the screen but they can only be seen if the phone is tilted at a certain angle. Sooo I don’t know if its because I was lucky with an extra strong water proofed iPhone or if rice was the miracle worker. But I’ll go with the rice on this one. October 30, 2014 at 1:55 am what if my phone is accidentally dropped into the toilet bowl and i didnt do anything that u stated? but i instead leave it all the way till the battery drained. the phone can be charged but it just wont on. any suggestion on what i can do to fix it? joanne says: October 28, 2014 at 1:14 pm Hi daughter dropped phone in toilet immediately got vaccuum on port holes,to suck out water.wrapped iPhone immediately into rice and sealed bag.3days later phone completely dead,wouldn’t charge or fire up,,,one unhappy teenager,rang apple genius at local store,who looked after me I was honest about how phone was damaged.had free replacement handset,as good will customer services.many thanks lots of zzzz,s tonight. Big Mike says: October 23, 2014 at 8:55 am Big Mike says: October 23, 2014 at 8:53 am I have dropped my phone out of the front pocket of my work shirt 3 times now. 1st time in a 5 gallon bucket of water with cleaner in it. (IPhone 3) was in bucket for probably 30-45 minutes. Result- the phone was toast. However I had it insured through my homeowners policy and was replaced 100%. So 1 month later, basically the same thing happened (D’OH) only I saw it and removed immediately. I work in a shop with compressed air and started to blow air in the places I knew water would enter. But before I did I thought that’s just going to push liquid further in. So an hour later I got home, took my shop vac and sat down for about 30 minutes, going over every portal that I could to suck out water. Better result that time but the LCD was toast- result, I learned how to replace LCD screens myself. 3rd time my iPhone 5 fell into a receptacle with machine coolant and a very thick oil (double D’oh). Was in there maybe 2 seconds and did the shop vac and q tip drill. No problems this time. Lesson learned: suck out as much water as possible as soon as you can. The sooner the better. DD says: October 23, 2014 at 3:10 am The advice for the rice bag works! Admiration so for sharing it. So far my iPhone 5c works well and the display is fine. Good luck! Josh says: October 22, 2014 at 6:12 am OK- I dropped my iphone 5 off a dock in about 30 feet of water. Went home, got my scuba gear, dove down and retrieved it about 40 minutes later. I immediately stuck it in a bowl of rice and waited two days. So far, no luck turning it on. I have replaced cracked screens before, so I used my toolkit to take the phone apart. Still plenty of water inside. I disconnected and removed the face plate and the battery. Back in the rice. Currently waiting. My questions is, does this thing fail in visible or invisible places? Would swapping out the battery possibly fix it? If nothing works, is it possible to connect the storage device to something and retrieve the data? Any ideas would be welcome!! Josh says: October 22, 2014 at 6:13 am Forgot to add it was fresh water, not salt water! Brynn says: October 15, 2014 at 1:07 pm I did this like right after if fell in water and it works after like 36 or so hours so you should try it. jan says: October 13, 2014 at 12:11 pm My iPhone slid out my pocket into a lake the other day and lay on the bottom for about 3 – 4 minutes. I thought it must have fully drowned. Had to wade in up to my thighs to retrieve it.( the water was COLD ) I immediately looked up what to do and immersed it in a jar of rice in a warm place. To my amazement after 2 days it seems to be fully functional and works fine. Hope this is not just temporary! October 13, 2014 at 9:34 am Hey, I dropped my phone in the toilet (clear water) for a second no more, and did everything is said above, except I thought it was turned off and I know realise it was not (though it is on do not disturb mode) but i’ve already put it in the rice for few hours, shall I remove it and turn it off or shall I leave it like this (it was almost full battery) ??? Please help!!! October 13, 2014 at 10:13 am Hi Agathe, there’s this great article that explains EXACTLY what you should do to help your iPhone possibly save from liquid contact, it answers all your questions! It’s amazing, and it works! All you have to do is read it to learn how to give your iPhone the best chance of recovering from water damage! Nancy says: October 9, 2014 at 7:13 pm I am literally in tears, my last Iphone got stolen and now, just a few weeks later, my newest Iphone 5s was accidentally washed in the washer. There’s no chance of me getting a new phone, and my phone was in the washer for at least 5 minutes. It turned on, and everything looks fine but my screen isn’t working. Its sitting in rice now. What should I do? Do you think my Iphone will be ok? What To Do says: October 9, 2014 at 8:44 pm You should follow the instructions here and let the wet iPhone dry out for 72 hours contained in rice or silica gel Bradie says: October 6, 2014 at 7:24 am Correction: About 10 hours later when I got home, the phone powered itself ON. Bradie says: October 6, 2014 at 7:23 am Hey, Any advice for me, I have a situation I can’t find in the comments. I dropped my phone in the toilet and got it out and dried as soon as I realized. I powered it off and put it in rice as suggested (brown rice because that’s all I have and I was now running late). About 10 hours later when I got home, the phone powered itself off. It seemed to be fine, but I turned it off immediately and put it back in. In the morning it was on again, seemingly working fine but I did the same. Anyone ever encounter this? Thanks! Trudy says: September 27, 2014 at 1:36 am OMG…this soo works. My iphone fell out of my pocket & dropped into the lake…it was about 2 metres deep. My boyfriend quickly stripped off down to his undies & dived in & got it out. (It was in the water for about 1 minute). We quickly dried it with his tshirt, rushed home & put it in a bag of rice & than put the rice in my hot water cupboard. 48 hours later, got the phone out, & it works perfectly….as if it never even dropped in to the lake at all. Im soo happy & relieved. I highly recommend following the above advice….it 100% works. RiAnn says: September 20, 2014 at 10:43 am I dropped my Iphone 4 and I am so lost with out it. It cuts on and alarm clock works and everything. One problem….. No screen! It is completely black no activity at all. Any suggestion on this??? Julie says: September 20, 2014 at 6:20 am I dropped my phone in the toilet, so fully submerged. I retrieved it quickly, but I didn’t know to turn it off immediately. I never did. It got better that same day, but I some people are telling me that it will only work a couple of days. I didn’t do the rice, I didn’t turn it off but it is still working. What am I looking at? Should it be permanent damage to happen in the next few days? I didn’t know that I shouldn’t charge it either, so I did and it did charge. I know, I am pretty ignorant about all this. First iPhone, though Rose says: September 18, 2014 at 4:26 am My iPhone 5s is 100% working again!! After it fell in deep toilet water!! I dropped my iPhone in the toilet and totally panicked. It fell out by itself and I tried to put it on again several times which didn’t work of course :( I put in in rice after that and waited 2 days. I kept putting the rice bag in warm places, like in the sun. Then i waited an other 2 days to let it dry by air. After almost 4 days I used warm air from a fohn to totally dry it. Then I let it cool down and it was perfectly working again. DMZ says: September 7, 2014 at 1:36 am Dropped my Iphone 4s in the sea between some rocks trying to take pictures of baby lizards… Took about a half a minute to retrieve it, during low visibility (dark is a better word). It was totally soaked but seemed to still work. Tried to make it to the house so I could perhaps save the vacation pictures I already made, but it died on me right before arriving (it was a 2min walk). Since it was the middle of the night and we didn’t have rice (and the south of France is not civilized enough to have night shops) it took me about 12h to get it into rice… Now 40 or what hours later I took it out, and the signs are not very good. When charging it displays the apple logo for about 7 seconds and then turns off again. Anybody had the same problem? And could it just be the battery that died? Because I’d love to be able to get those holiday pictures… November 26, 2015 at 7:30 am i have the same proplem , it displays the apple logo for a couple of seconds and turns off again Giridhar lohiya says: September 6, 2014 at 11:44 am I accidently dropped my iphone 4s in water, but after 2-3 seconds i removed it from water immediately and started cleaning it with my shirt. When i was done it was off. I immediately dried it with vaccume cleaner by removing its back panel and battery (without disconnecting) then i gave to mobile repairing shope for checking. He kept my phone under high temperature for 1 day. After that i checked my phone, display was not working as normaly. Now The display is very dim i cannot see the light in display though the display is working. I can see display by using torch. Everthing else is working fine speaker, earphnone jack, silent button and volume button. What should i do for display help me david says: August 23, 2014 at 12:17 pm i have a iphone 4s and i droped it in water 2 years ago and i did everything it turns on but it shows the icon telling it needs to be charged i bought a new charger and it works for my ipad and iphone but my iphone wont charge what can i do to fix it August 19, 2014 at 12:34 am Thanks for the information… I am very happy to say that my phone is working again :) M says: August 17, 2014 at 8:45 pm I accidentally dropped my iPhone 4 into a big cup of water at a concert on Aug 1, due to people bumping into me. I retrieved my phone immediately from the cup and started drying the surface with my shirt. I also removed the case I had it in. If I recall correctly, the phone turned off automatically from being submerged in water. Luckily, I think only most of the water entered through the headphone opening due to the sturdy plastic case that had kept my phone pristine through the 4-5 years I’ve had it. I remember being overly anxious about the phone ever turning back on again and I persisted in my attempts to turn on the phone throughout the concert. I probably should not have done that but seeing as the phone went dead immediately, it might not have made much difference. I just dried out the surface & then shook any possible drops out from the openings. Then, I just left it in my pocket throughout the concert (in which I was jumping and moving quite a lot to the music). I let my phone air dry overnight. I was encouraged by someone to try turning the phone on and it did not work. I put the phone in a bag of rice (as in the article). After scrolling through suggestions, I put the bag in the fridge for several hours and then I removed it. 48 hours passed and the phone did not have any signs of recovery. I also noticed that the water damage indicator had been tripped for the headphone opening but not the charger opening. I put in two packets of silica in the rice and when I went to work on Monday, I left the bag of rice in my car (in humid 90+ degrees Fahrenheit weather for ~6hrs). Three more days passed and I decided to try charging my phone to see if it might work. There was nothing immediately upon plugging into the wall charger. I came back to check after an hour or two, and miraculously, it had 76% charge and rising! I let it charge for a while longer before testing it. The home button stuck a bit but that had been normal for my phone. I checked the camera, as many commenters had said that their phone cameras did not work or had moisture on the camera. My own camera was perfectly fine and I had no problems testing the front and back cameras. All my data and apps were exactly as before. —The only problems that I did notice were that the speakers didn’t work when using the Music app or any apps like Pandora or YouTube. When I received a call or vice versa, the speakerphone mode worked fine. The speaker also worked fine when listening to Voice Memo. It seemed as though the options for listening to music on speaker (like the play button & volume control) were altered as if I had connected to a bluetooth device, and therefore not possible. —And the other problem was that when using earphones, sometimes the volume would jump in intervals or that the audio wouldn’t be heard through the earphones at all. I was also a bit paranoid that the battery wasn’t as efficient as before. –But now, 16 days after the submerging of my iPhone, all capabilities have been restored and it works just as well as it did before. Katie says: August 12, 2014 at 9:14 am Hi! So i dropped my iphone 4 in a jacuzzi 5 days ago. After it being submerged, i quickly dried it off, & put it in a bag of rice overnight. I dod not turn it off, & while it was in the bag, it was also charging. After leaving it overnight, i turned it on the next morning, and everything was working fine except the volume. The volume wouldn’t appear, i couldn’t listen to music or watch Netflix, but i could call people & facetime them with no problem. Any advice on what i should do? Thanks! – katie Bijay says: August 9, 2014 at 3:13 am I dropped my iphone 4 in the bowl having hot soup. I immediately took it out. At the time the upper speaker was not working. But after one day it started working but i recognised in that day that the camera was not working. Everything is as same as Leonardo. What should I do now? July 23, 2014 at 3:21 pm I dropped my iPhone 4 into the toilet and took it out right away… I didn’t had any rice available at the moment so I left it there driyng… When I got home the next day I put into rice as soon as I could and left it there for about 30 hours… I charged it (because my power button doesn’t work, even before he dropped into water) and it turned on just fine… The only thing that’s not working is the camera… What should I do? wishoooo says: July 23, 2014 at 8:10 am My apple fell in to the sea im turned it off until tow day but when i bring to the mechanic they said its not working any more anonymous says: July 23, 2014 at 7:19 am I dropped mine into a pond infested with moss, plants lilypads and dirty water, and of course fish, but i had the case on. Any advice? it took 10 minutes to get out of the water as it’s very murky D; July 20, 2014 at 7:17 am hi dropped my iphone 4 in the water today.. swiched on it n the off.. its in the rice bag for 4hours till now but the flashlight of the phone is still on will it work? or have i damaged it? Shayan says: July 19, 2015 at 5:08 pm the flashlight is the problem it will stay on. but try hitting it from the back with your palm and wait for 36 hours atleast before powering on. Jen says: July 18, 2014 at 4:15 pm So I dropped my phone and I did the total opposite. I turned it on and had the apple logo on my screen for about 2 hours then i decided to charge…..is there any hope? Jen says: July 18, 2014 at 4:16 pm I dropped my phone in water by the way lol bobby says: July 18, 2014 at 8:20 am Dropped my iphone 5s yesterday in the bath while bathing our little boy. Picked it up immediately and removed the silicone case and hard plastic cover over the phone. I dried it out with a paper towel to remove excess water and then (may sound weird) I sucked out the water from the headphone port, charger port, and ear output. I then put a hair drier on it to remove the excess with the heat…but not for too long as the drier will get your phone pretty hot. Everything worked except the ear output. I was getting no sound while making or receiving calls but the other phone could hear me just fine. I went to Verizon and they tried to sell me insurance and the deductible to replace the phone was 149.00 I cam home, and followed the instructions I read here. I place the phone on the off position and placed it in a small ziplock bag of uncooked rice. I also placed a silica pack over the ear piece and packed rice all around the phone. I said a small prayer and went to bed. Woke up, went to the gym came back, ate breakfast with my family, watched a few foreign music videos with my kids and then checked on my phone. I powered it up and it beeped at me…..it had sound!! I placed a phone call on it to test and we’re back in business! Not sure exactly what part of the process did the most help but the point here is that my phone is back to normal. Thank you all for your posts. July 14, 2014 at 4:49 am Sister found my iphone5 in the toilet AFTER using it (toilet, not the phone) and insisted she did not have my phone on her person when she went into the bathroom. She immediately fished it out and wiped it down with linen dish towel and I put it in a bag of basmati rice (no, not pilaf…ahem) w/o powering off or touching any other buttons to see if it worked. Phone rang and alerted while in the bag, but ignored it and left it alone overnight. Then found this blog the next morning and got worried about not turning off the phone, so turned off the phone and reinserted for the rest of the 48 hours. Phone works great for a day now, fully charged, no function loss at all. I’m thinking Sis must’ve had it in her pocket and forgot (at an outdoor party, lots of libations and laughs, passing phone around to watch a funny video of my weiner dog riding a motorcycle in full gear and helmet and she must of ended up with the phone when we went inside) and only in toilet a few seconds, if even that much. So GREAT advice! And if my phone quits I will post again on how long it lasted, but may have to wait forever! Working great now, in fact using it to post this message! July 13, 2014 at 8:29 am I couldnt turn it off and its in the rice bag since last night. Should i try turning it off now? Or should i just leave it in the bag til tomorrow? Jessie says: July 5, 2014 at 11:42 am The iPhone 4 & 5 have a protective shield to protect it… If u open up the phone, which I don’t recommend, you would see that there is a metal plate but completely seals off the screen from the components. The likelihood of water getting past that shield is very slim. On the other hand if you drop your phone in the bathtub and let it sit there for half the day and then spray it down with a hose & then just to make sure the water fully entered your phone, you throw it in the toilet for another half hour. Now, the phone has taken 2 baths and a shower so now the possibility of the phone having water and it may have increased… Lol, my advice is send the phone back as damaged & get a new one. DO NOT take the iPhone apart!!! Unless u are an iPhone repair technician, u will ruin your phone. I will give you my guarantee on that one! Prepaid iPhone owners don’t get your phone wet or get a water resistant case! Cuz if your phone gets wet you are completely screwed!!! That’s my best advice & it is based personal experience, just sayin… Beth M says: July 3, 2014 at 9:28 pm TY – TY I really appreciate the info Left my phone in the rice bag for about 40 hours, working great! No problems! I have seen the naysayers comments and hope it stays working Not going to let that worry me though I can now make sure every thing is backed up, stupid me had not done that for a while My advise to everyone – Back up your phone! Follow Paul’s instructions – it works! Good luck to all mt says: July 2, 2014 at 8:28 pm Yesterday I went to the beach and left my iPhone 4s behind a rock where no one would find it so that it wouldnt be stolen. Anyways, I went swimming and came back about 45 minutes later to find my phone sitting in a huge puddle of water that wasn’t there before! It was sitting about 5 inches under water for I’d say, probably half an hour! It won’t turn on and I’ve read that rice works but it could also damage it even further! I’m not quite sure if I have a chance of the rice working or if I should just send it right to apple to see what they can do. Does anyone have any suggestions? Carrie says: July 2, 2014 at 7:11 pm Dropped phone in water for seconds. Still worked but I threw it in rice (powered on). Next day screen was flickering but phone still on and working. Took it to a repair shop and for. $40, they cleaned it and dried it out. Works great. No stress and no waiting. I think the rice would have done it but couldn’t take it out of commission for a couple of days. Beth M says: July 1, 2014 at 9:42 pm Thanks to everyone for the advise. Hoping I haven’t ruined my phone. First info I got was to dry with hair dryer, I did that for about 10 minutes. Then I found this site. I have it in rice now. Just hoping I did not ruin it by using the hair dryer. On a fixed income and cannot afford another phone. This site has given me hope. Not sure if it is off though. The screen is black. Out of back pocket, into the toilet, only a couple of seconds. Guess I will just have to wait and see what happens, waiting is going to be the hard part. Also, can anyone tell me how to tell if the phone, (iphone 4) shows water damage, don’t know where to look. Thanks for all the info William A. says: June 26, 2014 at 5:59 pm I had some doubts it would work at first. I had a flowing bloody nose and jumped in the shower in all of my clothing, completely forgetting my iPhone was inside of my pocket. I took a 20 minute shower until it stopped bleeding, put my wet clothes in my bedroom, and only two hours later did I look for my iPhone. After 10 minutes of looking online, I quickly found some rice, unfortunately enriched, and dropped it in a large plastic bag surrounding it in the powdery rice. Twenty four hours later, I was eager and turned it on, and it lit up with the low battery sign. I was overjoyed. However, I put it back in to make sure. DO NOT take it out of the bag early like I did… The following morning I tried it again, and it wouldn’t turn on. At this point I was wondering what I was going to do, as I had just gotten it three weeks prior. I thought it was over, so I just took it out and left it alone for two days. Finding one last shred of hope, I threw it in the bag of rice while on a road trip, and took it out when I arrived at my destination two days later. Thankfully, it worked. Don’t take it out early, and don’t try to turn it on. I recommend leaving it in for two days based on my experience to make sure it is safe to run electricity through. Good luck to all of those out there! Shannon says: June 17, 2014 at 9:39 pm I washed my phone with a load of sheets. I took it out, dried it off and found this site for advice. I tried to shut off my phone and it wouldn’t power down. Having no apple store for hundreds of miles I decided to try the rice. Since I couldn’t power my phone off I kept checking it periodically. The phone still rang and received alerts but the screen was super messed up. By the next day, around 28 hours later it was starting to clear up. A few hours later I could text and access apps. It’s now about 40 hours and it is working good. You can still see water marks in the screen so I have it powered off and in the bag if rice hoping to clear it the rest of the way. Thanks for all your advice! So glad I don’t have to replace my phone! Lacy says: June 11, 2014 at 3:25 pm I dropped my phone In water and I put It In rice for awhile and then Let it sit out of rice to dry and I let It dry over night I plugged It in and It worked but then the screen goes black what Is wrong with it? Should I leave It to dry more or is it messed up Al says: June 6, 2014 at 5:31 pm I fell out of a boat and my iPhone 5c was in my pocket for a few minutes. So put it in rice for 2 days so now it turns on and app and screen works good. But it won’t find my network. But wifi works. But ya just wanted to know what I can do to make my network work and my camera and flashlight. Either that that it works fine. Message me if anyone has any ideas June 6, 2014 at 3:26 pm I dropped my phone in the toilet and retrieved it a split second later. I didn’t know about the rice trick so I took to the hair dryer. I’ve since found out about the rice trick and it’s now sitting in rice. I’ll let you how I go after min 36 hours, but I’m now concerned that I may have cause more damage using the hair dryer as some comments on the net are saying that’s a no-no! June 7, 2014 at 7:30 pm Just tried to turn the phone on. It’s not working :-( PeTi says: July 11, 2014 at 10:30 pm Does your phone work now? Frustrated says: June 3, 2014 at 9:57 am Now it won’t respond whatsoever. Even the apple is gone :( September 21, 2015 at 12:56 pm did it work? i dropped my iphone 5 in the same way and quickly got it out then it turned off it own in the same min i didnt turn it off it was by itself in the same moment, i tried to turn it on but nothing at all, now i put it in rice, my heart is broken i have all my things there and its not backed up on my icloud, did it work with you please tell me !!!!! Frustrated says: June 3, 2014 at 7:13 am Hi Paul! Please help! My daughter dropped her phone in salt system pool. She may have attempted to turn it on after she took it out, I have no idea. It’s been in rice for 45 hours. I got it out this morning and I plugged it in, the Apple sign has been on and off and it just doesn’t want to turn on. What can I do? Great article by the way! Thanks! June 2, 2014 at 1:37 am 1st of all a big thanks to Paul for being so patient and for sharing the informative article. A big appreciation for that man! Thanks to all the other fellow contributors. Your comments really make it lively! I have an iPhone 4 and on Saturday during a hike I dropped it into the river. It must have been in 3-4 feet deep water for almost a minute before I could fish it out. It was working when I took it out of water. I then switched it off. I shook it well for sometime to get the water out and I left it to dry in the sun. When I went to check it out after 20 minutes I saw that the phone was actually ON (maybe happened while I was shaking it) and then I slowly tried one feature by one – msg, camera, email, internet, screen and all looked fine. Once I got back to the hotel after 2 hrs I took the hair dryer and used it for 5 minutes on it through the holes. It was again working fine when i turned it ON. Only by evening did I realize that when I have a call I could hear/speak only through using the speaker option. The same when I need to listen to music. However by night that also got solved and it was all working fine. Now after reading Paul’s article these are what I see 1. The water contact sensor is not red ( as far as I can see). I checked the headphone and docking connector areas. 2. I have not opened it yet 3. All functionalities are OK as of now – touch wood! After reading through all the comments I feel I am either damn lucky or it is blessing by God. Anyway my doubts now are 1. When I talked to a mobile repairer he says water damage will kick in anyway and may happen 2 weeks or 1 month later due to corrosion. Do you think this is right? 2. Should I take it to a technician and open it so that he can blow or suck off the moisture? 3. Or should I just do the rice bag trick? 4. Last option is to just leave it as it is and take a chance as presently it is working all fine. I wait to hear from you Paul and all the lovely guys in this forum on what I should do now. Thanks a lot May 25, 2014 at 5:21 pm Over 48 hours in Ziplock bag of rice and my iPhone will not turn on or do anything. Have it on my wall charger right now hoping that it needs to charge and will then turn on. Praying for the best, my iPhone to turn on successfully with no damage! Thanks again for this article Paul and to all of you for the encouraging comments and stories!! God Bless You All! May 24, 2014 at 11:57 am Thank you so much for this article! Yesterday afternoon my iPhone fell into my cup of tea while riding in my husband’s pick-up truck. As soon as I noticed it, I immediately removed the Otter Box cover which was totally soaked but my iPhone only had liquid on the top of it and a few drops on the screen. It was charging at the time it happened with a car charger and was off because the battery had died. I don’t know if it being plugged in to a charger would have done any more damage to it, does anyone know? We weren’t home so I had to wait until we got home before putting it in a ziplock bag of rice. It has been in the ziplock bag of rice since then but I did dry it off on the ride home plus lay it on the dashboard in the sun to help dry it out. I was so upset and actually cried and cried but last night I found this post and feel like I have some hope! Patience, however, is not one of my virtues. I care for both of my ill parents, my husband is disabled and preparing for a rather serious surgery, and I have a wonderful 9 yr old son full of energy. I handle all of the financial affairs on my phone, all information is on it (I plan my budget each month in the Notes app which is such a help!), plus all doctors for everyone have my phone number to call. I am using my husband’s phone now but have been able to check my voicemail and return some calls. I am praying this works but with all the posts I’ve read, I feel pretty optimistic! I just don’t have another phone I could switch to plus I can’t afford to buy another phone. Thanks so very much for this article and for everyone that has posted successful comments about their iPhone working great after this remedy!! Does anyone know if it damaged my iPhone further by being plugged into a car charger when it was dropped into my drink? Also, since the battery was dead and my iPhone was actually off due to no charge when it dropped in my drink, won’t I need to plug it in to my wall charger when I attempt to turn my iPhone on after leaving it in the rice for 36 hours? I’m very nervous about plugging it into my charger and I don’t know why other than I’m terrified I will do more damage. Thanks again to each of you for giving me hope! Thank you for the article so very much! Paul, aren’t you the author of the extremely informative article with the pics of everything to check for in addition to all the useful information ragarding the iPhone? THANK YOU!!! As for the “so called” Technician that so graciously posted a ridiculous negative comment, Get A Life! What you get out of attempting to ruin people’s hope for a way to save their phones after the mistake of dropping it in liquid, I really don’t know or understand! This rice remedy does work because it has worked on my husband’s HTC phone after he jumped in the river to save his fishing pole when a huge fish snatched it out of his hands…pole saved, big catfish caught/eaten for dinner, and HTC phone saved after overnight in a ziplock bag of rice! Praying and Patiently waiting to see if my iPhone survived! God Bless Each of You for the positive comments and stories and for giving me Hope! Have a Wonderful Memorial Day Weekend!! May 17, 2014 at 8:11 pm I gave my phone to my boyfriend to hold for a minute because I needed to find something, and he had no hands. I put it in his pocket, forgetting that he was wearing a bathing-suit. We both forgot about my phone and jumped into the pool. About 10-15 minutes later, we got out and he realized it was still in his pocket, so we ran back to his house to put it in rice. It has been in rice since. What do you guys think the chances are of it working because if I lose all my pictures and videos from it, I will be devastated. I know I need to have patience and that is fine but I am seriously freaking out here, because we were in the pool for those 10-15 minutes, so I don’t know what is going to happen. :( May 17, 2014 at 8:14 pm When he took it out of his pocket, I tried to turn it on, but it would not come on, and it turned off by itself. Is it supposed to do that? Nick Lang says: October 4, 2014 at 6:47 pm How well does your BF swim with no hands? May 8, 2014 at 5:58 am I wish I would of saw this last night. My phone was left on all night still in rice though. I just shut it off and put it back in the rice. I’m totally stressing out though. (I haven’t paid off this phone yet.) So fingers crossed that this works because if not I lost a lot of very important stuff. Should my phone still be fine if I didn’t shut the power off for like 5 hours? May 6, 2014 at 9:15 pm This really worked! I dropped my iphone into the blue water while getting my pedicure. It was completely submerged for a few seconds at least. I blew the water out of the charger plug and I immediately shut it off and the guy at the nail salon dried it with a towel really good and placed it under their nail dryer. I went home and put in a bag of rice for a little over 24 hours and it is working perfectly. Not one glitch or issue whatsoever! Fingers crossed…. It seems as good as new….. Iz says: May 3, 2014 at 1:34 pm I didn’t read all the comments, so if I am saying the same thing that has been said don’t be all like we read it before. When my mom dropped it in a bucket filled with water, I removed the sim card and then i vacuumed it. (I covered the tube’s mouth a little so it would vacuum better.) I vacuumed all the holes that would let water in or out for a minute or so. first the phone was slow like the buttons didnt work well or the screen but then it got better by using more and more. Joaquin says: April 30, 2014 at 1:18 am Dropped my phone in the toilet. Typical. Instinctively pulled it out right away and proceeded to dry it off. I noticed that the screen was still lit and the phone had not been shutdown. I placed it by a fan for about 15 minutes. I then remembered the old rice in a bag trick. I found some rice and placed the phone in it. It took me about 20 minutes after the incident to turn the device off and place the place it in rice. I found some silica bags from old shoe boxes and also included them in the mix. Left the phone in the bag for about 8 hours and checked it. Everything was working fine except for the fact that it kept “searching” for a cellular signal. I left it in the bag for another 24 hours and now it picks up a signal. Seems to be working fine. Thanks for the tips! Beth says: April 28, 2014 at 4:25 am I’ve just dropped my 7 month old iphone 4s down the loo after getting some tissues (I don’t see how as I wasn’t even leaning over the loo) due to it falling out my pocket! I thought it was okay before the screen began to go funny and it turned out really dim when I got outside to let my sister know what happened. Lets just say I completely freaked out as I was at school and my twin and a pal ran off to grab me some rice from the schools food tech room and came back a few minutes later. But I have a question: My phone wasn’t fully submerged, it was only half and half (the top part was dry) and my batteries pretty much dead so will it be okay if I leave it in a tied shut bag instead of an air tight one? Joaquin says: April 30, 2014 at 1:20 am Tied shut bag should work. Just make sure it is completely covered with rice! Doug says: April 9, 2014 at 3:10 pm I don’t have any rice. Will oats or cream of wheat or coffee work or do I need to go to the store to buy some rice? April 19, 2014 at 7:02 pm Really – cream, coffee, wheat?? Alex says: April 9, 2014 at 11:48 am iPhone in pond this afternoon, in order to save child! Took 15 mins at least till I managed to find phone. It was in a cheapish case and was still on. Wiped it down with tshirt. I was on phone at the time it went in to the dankest smelliest pond imaginable. So I called back and whilst dialling thought using phone was wrong and switched it off ( once I’d worked out/ remember how). It’s now on heated floor and am torn between hair drier and rice. Help very gratefully received. Alex says: April 8, 2014 at 12:10 am My phone fell out of my pocket at work a couple hours ago and into the dish water. It was probably in there completely submerged for a good 30-45 seconds before I fished it out. I immediately put it in a bag of rice, even though it seemed fine. I didn’t think to turn it off. Now it’s sitting in the bag of rice on the counter, buzzing away, but there is nothing showing up on the screen. I can’t turn it off because you need to swipe the screen to do that. I don’t know what else to do but leave it sit for a couple days. thooper says: April 8, 2014 at 9:38 am You need to turn off the iPhone if it has made contact with water. Water + electrics do not mix well and can cause damage, turning off the device is step 1 for a reason. D says: April 6, 2014 at 9:15 am I dropped my iPhone 4S in my toilet for about 3-6 seconds before I realized what happened and pulled it out. My first instinct was to dry it off with my shirt and then I used a blowdryer for about 5-10 seconds (it was only later that I read online that it’s something that I shouldn’t have done!). I’ve left it in a sealed ziplock full of rice and little silica gel for 36 hours already and I tried turning it on but to no avail! I’m just so stressed! Any pointers? Do I need to wait longer or should I take it to a phone repair shop? March 30, 2014 at 7:27 pm I dropped my phone in the pool and took it out, dried it and stuck it in a tub of rice and it has been 12 hours. The iPhone was on when I dropped it but when I took it out of the water it was shut off already. Is that bad that it shut off after hitting the water? September 21, 2015 at 1:02 pm did it work? i dropped my iphone 5 in the same way and quickly got it out then it turned off it own in the same min i didnt turn it off it was by itself in the same moment, i tried to turn it on but nothing at all, now i put it in rice, my heart is broken i have all my things there and its not backed up on my icloud, did it work with you please tell me !!!!! March 27, 2014 at 7:04 am So appreciate all the advice and (positive) comments! My i4S made a swan dive from my back pocket to the disgusting depths of a toilet bowl. It’s true when they say we discover what is important when the chips are down. Or in this case, floating! I reached in without thought and retrieved my phone. I had heard about the rice-bag trick before, so immediately completed that. Then googled “dropped iPhone in toilet” and found this site. Love this site and everyones helpful comments! Thank you! Now caseless, q-tipped, blown dry, and wrapped in rice and silica packets and in plastic – my phone patiently waits. Myself however, am mildly freaking out, but hoping for the best… :-) D says: April 6, 2014 at 9:17 am Me too! Exact same thing happened to my i4s y’day! How long did it take for your phone to work after the rice trick? Did it work?? I’ve left mine 36 hours+ and I just tried turning it on, nothing!! Kinda freaking out now. Beth says: April 28, 2014 at 4:29 am I’ve just had a similar horror but I’m at school! I’ve managed to grab some rice before my 3rd lesson and immediately looked up exactly the same as you did and here I am! And your not the only one…My phone was an xmas gift and was specifically told NOT to take it anywhere near water or I’d not get a new one…I hope it survives! March 27, 2014 at 1:43 am sadly i dropped my iphone in the toilet yesterday. i dried only using the electricfan and it totaly works fine. all the volume, microphone, charger work just fine but the screen darkened and there were water bubbles. i just red your tips and tried it. my phone was sitting in the bag of rice for an hour now. can it still fix the screen even though it was soaked yesterday and sadly i continued to use it and even charge it today??? fingerscrossed Cassi says: March 26, 2014 at 2:12 pm I just want to say thank you to you and all of the other contributors here. My iPhone 5 fell out of my pocket into the toilet. After the immediate expletives and the retrieval which took less than a second, I dried my phone off best I could. Upset and panicked, I found this site. I then painfully left my phone in a baggie of rice for 2 days. Needless to say, I went absolutely insane without my phone. And worse, had to borrow my husband’s phone for the time. (iPhone 3G). This morning, I decided it was do or die time. I went to the baggie, removed the phone, dusted off the rice dust and blew out the holes and ports with air, and then turned it on. I now have a phone, and so far have not found a function that does not work. Whether or not it will last remains to be seen, but hopefully it will until my upgrade is available in November, 9 months away. To all of the naysayers about the rice, it was better than doing nothing. Even if it does not last forever, maybe it will last until the upgrade is available. Until then, my next immediate act was to purchase a waterproof case. Tammy says: March 25, 2014 at 7:35 am I’m going to post my experience with dropping my iPhone in the toilet ordeal. I’m the kind of person who has the worst kind of luck. I may be careless from time to time, but life is cynical and I’m the type of luck that no matter what lengths I go to fix things that I broke or lost, there’s no coming back. However, I tried this trick and the gods were smiling down on me this one time and decided to give me a break. I dropped my iPhone into the toilet about three weeks ago, suffice it to say, I picked up right away and toweled it off. Made the mistake of pressing the power screen to make sure it was not dead (a couple of times too), the screen was fine. But then it started having stringy lines and the screen blacked out. In a fright, I quickly put it away and wondered where I could get rice as soon and near as possible while I was at school. During class, even though I assumed it was dead and the screen was blacked out, it was still vibrating and making sounds even though the silence button was on! An hour and a half later when my class finished, I realized I could run to the on-campus sushi place and beg for rice. IT WORKED! Rice lady filled up a ziploc I had and I kept it in the rice bag for a total of 4 to 5 days (tues to saturday). So after waiting patiently for my phone to dry in peace, I took it out of the rice bag and removed any granules stuck in, pressed the power button–nothing. I slowly accepted the fate of my phone, plugged it in and put it back into the rice bag and put it away to the side. While I was looking for a new phone on kijiji minutes later, I heard an iPhone’s chime and pings and good vibrations ;), ran to the rice bag and took out the iPhone and it was working! So i left it to charge while sealed in the rice bag. Its been three weeks since and other than being slow and laggy sometimes, nothing major, and EVERYTHING WORKS! Keep the faith and hope for the best for anyone that encounter a problem like this! I highly recommend for anyone to do this and I waited an hour and half about! April 20, 2014 at 9:18 am Hi Tammy & everyone, I think we are on the same boat with the “I’m the kind of person who has the worst kind of luck”. So this is my story, 5 days ago, I accidentally dropped my iPhone 5s in the toilet for only 3secs max. I picked it up and toweled it off right away. Less than a minute later before I could even turn it off, it turned off by itself (unlucky I know). I made the mistake by pressing the power button, few times (not a clever move) because I was freaking out. The minute I reached home, roughly about 5 hours after it happened, got to know about the uncooked rice trick and gave it a try. I kept it in the tupperware rice for 3 days and yesterday I tried to take it out and put it to charge, it was blank. Nothing. Perhaps i took action too little too late (the 5 hours after) but I swear I have read other people’s experiences even worst than mine but their phone still work just fine as it is. And now I am lost, I have no idea what to do. At least if the device can still turn on the chances is higher. I have used it for only two months, such a bummer. Sending it to Apple or other technician to repair is very costly, I can get myself another brand new phone for that. Sigh. Right now I am still leaving my phone in the tupperware rice box even though it seems pointless. September 21, 2015 at 1:13 pm i had the same experience now dropped my phone in the toilet for only 3secs i picked it up immediatetly and it turn off by itself in the same moment i tried to switch it on but it never give me anything totally dead now its in rice for 2 hours from now, am loved up now all my photos vedios work and everything is not backed up, and am so broke cant get another phone, please tell me what happened after? did it work my phone by the way is 5s gold Namrata says: March 18, 2014 at 7:28 pm Thank you for your suggestion. My phone slipped from my hand 2 days ago and was completely submerged in water. I switched it off immediately and searched the Internet for some advice. This was the first article that popped up and I followed it to the letter right from wiping the phone dry and then looking for hidden moisture with a q tip. Sealing it in a bag of uncooked rice and finally after 24 hours got my hands on a few silica gel packs so removed the phone from the rice, wiped it clean and packed it with silica gel packs in a zip lock bag. And now after 41 hours I restarted it and it works perfectly. I don’t know if it always will… I don’t know for how many days or months or years, but then do you know that about anything else that you purchase? Your car, your TV, your fridge? All I know is that it works now and does not look like it will stop working this week at least and I can live with that. THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH :) March 18, 2014 at 1:31 pm I was texting my friend and running a bubble bath with a product from lushin it and dropped my phone in, Im devastated and have in rice in the boiler cupboard atm, Im wondering if the ingredients from the product will have effects on the phone? I need my phone! :'( March 12, 2014 at 12:42 pm March 10, 2014 at 6:18 pm My 17 YO son dropped his I5 into toilet. He retrieved the phone immediately and it was dead. I was informed three days after the accident. I searched online found this remedy. I did as it is instructed. 36 hours later the phone was resuscitated completely. It is still good so far. Thank you very much for share this useful information here. It did save me money and made whole family excited ! March 8, 2014 at 1:14 am my i phone was soaked in water and i used ur tip and it worked, but only for 10 minutes then the phone was DEAD again DOoper says: March 8, 2014 at 10:12 am Turn it OFF and dry it out for 72 HOURS that is 3-4 Days. Full days without use. Then turn it on and try again. Read the instructions that is how you save your water soaked iphone. Lorna says: March 4, 2014 at 10:04 pm I dropped my phone in the toilet a little over a month ago and I immediately googled and found this article and followed the instructions. While my phone was in the bag of rice I came accross a few people who mentioned that the rice worked but after a few weeks/month their phone died. Worried that this might happen to me, I actually kept my phone switched off & in the rice for 2 weeks (would have had it in for longer but I went overseas and you can’t take a bag of rice with you through customs!). You might be saying right now ‘I can’t go two weeks, I need my phone!’. I said that too but it’s actually nice not having a phone for a while, I started feeling like a person again and not a robot who’s constantly on her phone. I also run a small business but having notifications everywhere on my website, FB business page, all my clients were informed to contact me through email and so there were no problems there. My phone is still working with no issues whatsoever, however, I’m still being very cautious. At night & when I’m not using my phone (for long periods of time) I leave my phone off and in the bag of rice, just in case there is still moisture in there and I never charge it for long periods of time, just so the battery doesnt get too hot. Most importantly, I have learned to function again without a smart phone!! It sounds hard but it’s possible and my life is now less stressful. So, if my phone does die as a result of the toilet, I wont care! I can’t afford to replace it so I’ll just replace it with a nokia and that’s ok with me :) Geneva says: March 2, 2014 at 6:19 pm My bf’s 1 month old iphone 5s was accidently poured with alcohol (i know!) we woke up today and he saw the ethyl alcohol bottle lying on d floor and the contents were gone and reached his phone lying on the floor nearby.. We placed it in a box with rice and silica packs i have from my bags..ill buy Ziplocks later to transfer the phone and rice and silica..i hope this helps..sigh Andreane says: February 23, 2014 at 6:32 pm hi, so i dropped my phone in my mug of tea and immediately took it out… quickly dried it and it still worked after. I noticed the volume was muffled before I clued in that i should probably power it off and put it in some rice! I tried to power it down twice and it only restarted it…. Do you think it will be okay if it stays on while i soak it in rice?! February 23, 2014 at 7:50 pm No, do NOT keep the phone on. Water + electronics DO NOT MIX, it shorts the circuit and causes serious damage. Follow the instructions exactly: turn the phone OFF, then dry it off and put in rice or silica, keep it OFF for 48-72 hours minimum before attempting to use again. adam says: March 18, 2014 at 9:42 am however all the companents are coated in a corrosion resistant material and it will work if you leave switched on in the rice and also it only takes 6-8 hours for rice to completely dry off the phone i have done the painstaking task of testing it out with around 12 differnet iphones all of which i managed to get working and completely moisture free within 8 hours Kaonu says: February 14, 2014 at 9:40 am Thanks for the suggestions on this website. They did save my iphone. I dropped it in the toilet. As soon as I picked it up out of the water and dried it, I mistakenly turned it on to play with it. The touch screen was not working, so I couldn’t do much with it. When my husband got home about an hour later, he told me about the rice theory. I dried the iphone more with cotton swab then placed in ziplock with rice grains. The next day I knew it was working again ’cause I could hear it ring when ppl were calling. I know it should be untouched once put in rice, but I was expecting important calls, so I would check the numbers then put the phone back in ziplock. I didn’t take it out to use till a little over 36 hours later. Since then it’s been working just fine. There were glitches those times I took it out to check numbers. For example, it deleted a voicemail. But it’s all good now. Seems fully functional so far: calls, emails, netflix, notes, calendar, apps, etc. Thanks so much. Heath says: February 13, 2014 at 7:19 pm Went running, dropped phone in the snow. When I got back headphones unplugged, iPhone 5s was still stuck in headphone mode. Did the q-tip trick and headphone cord firmly unplug technique and it worked like a champ. Grace says: February 12, 2014 at 8:55 pm I dropped my iphone 4 into the snow. It had an otterbox on, so the snow only got in the important parts. -_- I took off my case and used my hairdryer on it for a minute or two. But now it’s in rice. I hope it gets water out of speakers because I listen to a lot of music on that phone. Wish me luck! Fingers crossed! Karen says: February 11, 2014 at 10:25 am I dropped my iphone 5 in the toilet Saturday evening. It’s now Tuesday and it’s been in rice on the radiator ever since. I keep firing it up and the water mark is fading under the screen but not completely gone so I keep putting it back. It’s shrinking all the time. Although most works, the camera is black and doesn’t work but works fine for selfies and there is no volume on incoming call or message although music plays fine and I can hear and be heard on the phone. Anybody have any ideas?? There is no red indicator! February 10, 2014 at 11:44 am I have followed these procedures and everything seems to be working just fine except for the wifi. Where the slider is to turn on the wifi, it will not move. The slider is entirely unresponsive. Is this some kind of failsafe perhaps? If you know anything to help fix this issue the help would be very much appreciated. Thank you. Poopy Phone says: February 9, 2014 at 10:40 pm Dropped my phone in a toilet full of crap. I said, “Oh-Crap!, What do I do now?” So I looked what to do if Iphone falls in water… THANK YOU PAUL!!!! I put the wet (and poopy) phone into a bag of white rice (now it is brown rice), and waited for about 50 hours. I plugged it in yesterday and BINGO, it worked. Thoroughly sanitized it with some lysol wipes and its good to go. Your article saved me $600 and even more importantly the headaches that go along with having to replace the phone. THANK YOU, THANK YOU THANK YOU! Now you can add “what to do if your Iphone falls into Poop and water” in your title. February 6, 2014 at 5:42 pm Thanks for this information. My wife just dropped her iPhone into the dog’s water bowl. Briefly, but completely submerged. I thought this was the thing to do, so I put in rice. Then found your article. Placed the whole thing into a zip-lock at that point. Hoping it works well. Perhaps the rice won’t fix the phone completely. So what, most people don’t have the resources to drop $650 on a replacement device. They need a phone. If you can get the phone to make calls and have some, if not all, the functionality back, you just need it to get by until your contract is up and you can get a replacement. For most people, if and when they drop their device in water, it’s likely closer to the replacement date. The problem with comment sections on websites is they attract pessimistic, narcissistic know-it-all’s, who haven’t a real life outside the internet. By the way they talk in these comment sections, we can see why. Frankly, like most people, I’d rather hear from someone who will contribute to the solution rather than tell the one who has a potential solution “it’s useless”. Paul says: February 6, 2014 at 8:58 pm Hey Bailey, you’re very welcome! This has worked for me on several occasions after dunking an iPhone in water. The keys to remember are: be sure the iPhone is turned off, sit it air tight in rice (or lots of silica gel if you have it handy), and then give it plenty of time to thoroughly dry out, 72 hours or longer is ideal. It may not work for every single occurrence, but you’re right, for most of us the prospect of saving $650 is sufficient enough to make it worth trying, and in many situations it does indeed revive an iPhone and save it from permanent water damage. Good luck, let us know how it works out! Miss JT says: February 2, 2014 at 10:48 pm I dropped my iphone in a bucket of water on Saturday 01/02. Instead of picking it up straight away, I was in shock and stood there and stared – I know! When I finally realised what had happened (after about 5 secs), I quickly took it out. I dried it with a towel then blow-dried it (where you plug the charger etc) – although I did see on another forum afterwards that you shouldn’t blow-dry it. Oops! Anyway, luckily I found this page and did what you said. I put my phone in a zip lock bag full of rice and added a few packs of silica gel and left for nearly 48hrs. I turned it on this morning (03/02) and to my relief, I saw the amazing apple logo! :) Although the battery had drained, but it was great to know that it could be saved. Charged it up and all is working (although I can see slight water mark on the screen), but as long as everything else works (alarm, sounds, camera etc), I am happy. So, THANK YOU so much for this information! :) LAM says: January 26, 2014 at 10:27 pm Thanks for the excellent advise!!! iPhone was accidentally dropped in a water and bleaching detergent a few weeks back. Tried the rice trick but only had Basmati rice so let it sit for the longest week I’ve ever endured. Typing on it now – works 100%!!! Thanks so much… LAM (South Africa) kate says: January 15, 2014 at 10:15 pm at like 9:30 i dropped my iphone 4 in the toilet and grabbed it out immediately. i shook off the water and put it in a bag of rice. i tried turning it off but it would always turn back on. it was at like 8 percent so i just left it. do you think it will be dry at maybe 4 pm tomorrow? it was only in the water for about 3 seconds so i dont think it got water completely inside but i could be wrong. i only need it to work for 4 more months until i can get a new phone. im scared that it wont work my phone is my life i need it and i dont have my ipod anymore so i have nothing else January 2, 2014 at 9:42 am My phone dropped in the toilet about 3 weeks ago, immediately placed in rice and my phone worked great. Today it just stopped working, it’s on and I can hear it but it’s completely blacked out. Does anyone think it has a chance if I put it back in the rice or any other tricks to try? October 9, 2014 at 5:09 am I think the phone is gone :( guess the previous water damage was too big. Happened to a friend of mine too. She dropped her iphone 4 in the sinc and put it in a rice bag for 24 hours. Afterwards it worked fine but after 2 weeks she started noticing some minor issues when it came to the touchscreen. But by that time it was still working ok. 5 weeks after thr water incident the phone gave up completely. She sent it in to apple and got it replaced for 290€ (Not sure how much this is in USD) . I dropped my iphone yesterday into the toilet :( still praying for a happy end ;) did yours work again? ray says: December 31, 2013 at 7:12 am some steaming hot tea fell on my phone the other day, i hurried to wipe it off with a tissue and a cloth and it looked fine and worked, but the touch screen failed. i rushed to work because i arrived late and when i noticed my phone was shut off. i couldn’t leave my workplace so i only could sneak off and buy a rice bag and put it inside of it around 6 hours later the tea fell on the phone. it has been inside a zip bag for 48 hours and it still doesn’t turn on. should i lose all my hope or maybe just keep it in rice a few days? Phlough says: December 26, 2013 at 2:20 pm I dropped mine in the toilet. It powered down on its own after about 20 minutes. After 18 hours I tried plugging it it and only got the white apple symbol. I took some of the advice above since I didn’t have rice and stuck it in a mini fridge for 4 hours. Took it out and plugged it in and it is now up and running beautifully. sheroo says: December 22, 2013 at 6:10 am Thanks for the advise, my dad dropped his iphone 4 in th swimming pool, we put it n bag of rice for more than 48 hrs, it did work but i can see there is still traces of water inside the screen. its working fine but th battery is very weak , any advise ?? December 22, 2013 at 9:40 am Do not turn it on or use it if you can still see water. The device must be 100% dry before being in use. Wait longer until the iPhone is totally dry. Uday Dave says: December 22, 2013 at 12:18 am I dropped my iphone 4 in bucket full of water last evening – immediately took it out – since it was in the cover it was not fully wet – it was in working condition but only hearing speaker was not working – was worried and tried a lot with hair dryer etc. – then i read the Rice Bag therapy – put the same in rice bag for 6 hours – its working perfectly .. thanks for nice article and suggestion. Lucy says: December 21, 2013 at 7:43 pm I just dropped my phone in a choline pool three days ago. It was probably in the pool for only two seconds and as soon as i took it out i took off the case and headphones and tried to turn it off but it didn’t respond. i put it in a bowl of rice and then had an idea to hit it with the hairdryer for a few minutes some water came out. I have it in a bag of rice right now being charged aswell i have tried to turn it on a couple of times but no response. what should i do as PS it is an i phone 4 December 17, 2013 at 8:41 pm I, like so many others before me, accidentally dropped my 3 month old iphone 4s into the toilet. It was submerged for a maximum of 2 seconds, as I quickly reached in and got it out. I cursed my bad luck and proceeded to dry off the phone. I have a small fan blowing on the phone to evaporate any remaining moisture. My best advice to anyone: get yourself a waterproof case if you are ever unlucky enough to drop your iphone into water, you’ll be so happy you did! As someone mentioned before, even a sturdy, thick, zip lock bag is great to waterproof your phone during wet rainy weather. December 11, 2013 at 4:09 pm my iphone 4s fall with me into a pool, i was there for about 10 o maybe 20 second then i took it out of the water. I noticed it was turned off so i left it like that then put a tiolet paper around and put it all night near a lamp. next morning i found one little silica bag, i put the phone into a ziplock bag with the silica bag with it, few hours later i got rise and filled de ziplock bag then put it near sun light not directly to the screen) i left it for 2 days like that then i try to turned on but nothing happened, I connect it to the power source but nothing happened.. its dead. Im very upset with this phones of today they are to delicate and every day life its not to be delicate. I wont take it to apple service center because it will cost more than 100 dollars cause it has no guaranty left. and surely they will say “logic card is screwed up” and that means no more phone. well thats my story it was hopping rise could help i decided not to use a modern phone again i have a life and i wont dedicate it to a phone. They make this things to get screwed so you have to buy phones forever. So mobile phones companies: you suck specially you Apple over priced. pippa says: December 6, 2013 at 4:04 am today i dropped my iPhone in the toilet. i know, its stupid. i dried it of and put it in a bag of rice. when i checked the flashlight was stuck on and the screen stopped working. what is the chance that my iPhone will work again in 24 hours? December 1, 2013 at 11:54 am I have to admit, I was pretty skeptical of this & thought my iPhone was fried! I accidentally dunked my iPhone in water two days ago & I then did the really stupid thing of trying to turn my phone on a bunch of times to see if it was really damaged (I know, super smart, huh?). I had a black screen & the only sign of life was Suri telling me “Sorry, Katherine, I am unable to help you at this time”! – seriously, she said that! In desperation, I tried the rice in a bag trick … 42 hours later, took out the phone & it works perfectly – absolutely no problems!! Thank you! Alex says: November 12, 2014 at 3:22 pm Hey Katherine I’m in the same hole that you were in I dropped my phone in the toilet and I tried to turn it on again several times (so stupid of me) and well here I am waiting and hoping my phone will turn on again soon. I hope I get the same luck that you did and that my phone works again! (If it doesn’t I’m so dead) Mayla says: December 1, 2013 at 4:07 am Hi there, My Iphone, sadly ended into the toilet for a few seconds and I put it into a rice back like it said on this article for day and a half and it works!!!! I have so much information in my phone I felt such a relieve when this morning I turned it on and it worked again. November 27, 2013 at 11:47 pm This really works ! This really works ….wow…dropped my iphone5 in water while helping a friend with a Puff Adder in her canoe…for real…she leaped 10 feet into the air !…I was walking on lagoon so ran to assist..my phone fell out of pocket into water…salt water too…so finally got the snake out of canoe….carried it into the dunes on the oar…actually a calm Puffy no hissing and puffing…ran back home freaked out !both at snake and phone…and dried with hairdrier…then did the apparently total no no …plugged it into charger as it was dead as a brick.. went on line read this ….oops pulled out charger….stuck in zippy bag full of Basmati rice (extra flavor) for 48 hours…phoned insurance for claim….must have thought my story a little nuts !….yeah a snake in the canoe ! and this am pulled out o bag…plugged in as battery was dead….put power button on and after what seemed like an age….the ever beautiful Apple appeared on the black screen…it rebooted slowly and (miraculously it seems to moi)….it works like new !….thanks for the pioneers of Rice and Zippy bags ! and this fantastic Post !WOW amazing !….Life ! Thank you ! November 25, 2013 at 7:09 am I dropped my Iphone5 in the sink this morning. Luckily it was in a case – though not a waterproof one- and I acted with lightning speed. I removed the case and dried it really well. The Speck case kept the important areas dry, really just the screen got wet. It is perfectly fine and no indicator light came on. I have used the rice trick in the past and it worked well. Z says: November 25, 2013 at 2:23 am Jasmine, did you ever get your phone to work? Ben says: November 13, 2013 at 11:38 am Ok so I dropped I’m I phone 4s down the toilet, i got it out straight away and dried with a hair dryer, my phone still works, it rings, vibrates, touch screen still works fine but it won’t play music and the volume will not go up or down, I plugged it into my docking station and it played fine. When I took it off the docking station and pressed play it played for about a second then the problem continued, how can fix this pls November 14, 2013 at 7:50 pm I’m having the exact same problem with my iphone 4 after dropping I in the toilet. I dried t off with paper towels and such and unlocked I to check if everything was fine, the volume buttons are not responding well and my ringer works but I cant play music. I now have it in a bag of rice but I don’t know if this will help my issue or not… November 8, 2013 at 12:20 pm I dropped my iPhone 3G in my pool, it fished it out with pool brush and praying…underwater for about 2-3mins. I quickly removed the SIM card then got online…here I am. I noticed that when the phone was in the water the black screen with apple came on. Then I removed the cover and shook out some water. IM hoping that after a few hours in the sun will dry it out quickly. I’ll be back to report my results, dang I knew I should have made a copy of my contacts last week when the idea crossed my mind. Tinky says: November 7, 2013 at 4:36 pm Have my iphone5 in a zipper bag with rice and silica packets. Cross your fingers for me, please. How can anybody even wait 24 hours? It’s killing me to be without it. November 9, 2013 at 6:07 am Did it work? Doing the same to my phone but nothing is happening after charging my phone :/ Z says: November 25, 2013 at 2:24 am Did it ever work? precious says: February 17, 2014 at 6:56 am same here my phone fell its in a bag or rice and it kills me to not use it!!!! October 9, 2014 at 4:59 am Same here! Dropped my iphone 5s into the toilet yesterday evening and now its resting in a bag full of rice and silicium bags . Almost 18 hours without my phone and i must say im about to loose it ;) sad but true. Fingers crossed our phones survive and that time passes quickly ;) Abby says: November 6, 2013 at 8:22 pm how come the water sensors on my phone didnt turn red? my phone was completely soaked in water (my water bottle leaked :( ) and the sensors didn’t catch that? i have 3GS iphone November 6, 2013 at 7:43 am Hi, my iphone 4 slipped down (back pocket, again!) into the toiletbowl for a dip a few days ago. It lit up, then blacked out. After realising what happened, I fished it out and ran it under clean water for about 3 seconds. The phone was in the toilet but not more than 5 seconds. :/ I dried it with a towel straight after that and plunged the phone into a ziplock bag filled with rice. I took it out after 2 days to see that the camera was still foggy :( Placed it back into the rice & I tried to give it more heat. (It’s challenging as winter is approaching) It’s been another 2 days, and the fog at the camera is now gone :) Howeverrr, I plugged it into the charger and all I could hear is the “zzzz” sizzling sound. Am I doing it right? My life depends on my phone now because I’m on an exchange program here and it will be another 3 months before I’m headed home :( November 26, 2013 at 3:05 am I did exactly the same thing dropping my phone in the toilet! I have had it in the bag of rice BUT also put the bag on my very heated bathroom floor…I think the heat and the rice did the trick and my phone is working again!! Jordan says: November 5, 2013 at 9:07 pm How many silica packets did you use? November 4, 2013 at 4:27 pm Hiya :) I dropped my month old iPhone 5 64GB in the toilet (yep, the classic, slipped out of back pocket. I was slightly drunk so forgot to take it out before) about 10pm on Friday evening. I took it out very quickly. It couldn’t have been fully submerged more than maximum 4 seconds? Although, I did, stupidly, I realised later, press the home button, causing the screen to light up on my lock screen, as the phone was on and locked at the time. I immediately dried it quickly and carefully with a paper towel and shook it hard to get droplets out. I then took out the sim card and sim card holder. I blew very hard into the gap, and also into the headphone and charger gaps. It’s essential you take out the sim immediately and get the slot dried because in an iPhone 5, that’s where the moisture sensor is that voids your warranty if it changes colour. I then poured a bag of white rice into a large plastic bowl and put my iPhone in it, deep under the rice so it was surrounded. I then put clingfilm over the bowl and placed on the top shelf of the airing cupboard. I left it in there for 3 days days, until about 9.30 on Monday evening. Then I took it out, extracted any rice from the holes and switched it on. It was perfect, as though nothing had happened. As far as I can tell, no damage to screen, speakers, headphone jack or charging port, camera or anything else. Like new. And, even better, I haven’t activated the moisture sensor. So if I do have a problem, I can still take it to the apple store and have it fixed on my warranty :) So happy. OSXDaily says: November 4, 2013 at 4:55 pm Glad to hear you recovered your iPhone from a water mishap! Nube says: April 15, 2014 at 6:11 pm This happen to my hours ago. my phone is in rice I hope that this works, but my moisture sensor has the red dot :( November 3, 2013 at 5:02 pm Today, while charging an Iphone 4S it fell top into a cup of water with about one inch. We are not sure how long it was submerged while plugged in. When found the phone was “Off” No water contacted the bottom of the phone, just an inch of the top. We have it in Rice now–and plan to leave it there for 48 hours. Cannot see any moisture in the camera area now, no sign of the red sensors… Have Not tried to plug in and turn on yet… My Questions: Do you think it will make a difference that it was plugged in to the charger When it fell into an inch of water in a cup? April 22, 2013 at 11:48 am On 20 April 2013 I fell into a pool, iphone 4s got out of pocket and fell in water, submerged for 5 minutes. I picked it out and found it had no problem at all. I have been using it up to now without a problem. I have got 3 witnesses. jw says: April 18, 2013 at 11:14 am I´ve dropped my iphone in the woods three hours a rainy day and the toilet 2 times and it´s still alive and kicking. No rise, just quick shake and hair dryer. worked great for me. rik says: April 16, 2013 at 12:27 pm great. if anyone dropping a device in water would be quick enough to find this article at the very same moment (with another device?) i would firstly suggest to remove the battery if possible, ignoring any shut down procedure. or is an iphone built withou one? secondly i wonder what rice would do better than a usual room open air condition, as long as relative humidity is not extremely high and the air id not filled with corrosive gases. (like h2s which i personally do not have in my living room – do you?) furthermore i consider ambient temperature as a relevant parameter as well. how far below parts melting temp would be ideal? April 15, 2013 at 8:13 am What’s with all the crazy idea’s being suggested?! ‘Putting your phone in a very low heat oven for an hour or two’ Do people really do that, Sounds Crazy to me fruit technician says: April 15, 2013 at 6:15 am genni_ April 14, 2013 at 12:48 am As an employee of 5 years having examining thousands of iOS devices at the bar I can say blog posts like this hurt the customer more than anything else. Some fast facts: Rice doesn’t work. I cannot stress this enough. If it did work I wouldn’t see so many of them everyday. Unless it was splashed with de-ionized/distilled water, the mix of wet plus the acidity of the fluid on the copper is going to rot some contacts and your device will not power on in eight to ten weeks. Water is instant death or advanced cancer for your phone: it’s often just a matter of time. There are parts that don’t ever “heal”, like the camera sensor, flash and the backlight display (those “cataracts” in the background of your screen aren’t every going to dry off). Rice or silica gel crystals (the ones at the bottom of women’s new purses that no remembers to discard) will usually find it’s way into the headphone jack where you cannot dislodge it and we will treat it as a total swapout and offer you a service part with a price depending on your Applecare+ status. Managers can no longer override out-of-warranty damage exceptions (they don’t get the system access) since Applecare+ launched because the customer was presented the opportunity to subsidize anticipated damage costs at the time of purchase, but opted not to. Most common water damage scenario: iPhone in drink cup holder that still has about a few centimeters of drink “sweat” in it. iPhone dock connector “drinks” liquid, rots 30-pin teeth at the bottom, trips liquid sensor. Device no longer charges from contact corrosion, and/or warranty void from at least 1 liquid sensor tripped. Do not put your phone in the oven. There are thin rubbery parts that will melt in a hot car alone. My advice? Be smart. You don’t bring your laptop to the beach or the shower, give the same regard to your mobile devices. If you buy Applecare+ or save up for the financial eventuality. Use iCloud & Photo stream, you’ll be happy you did. hn says: November 1, 2013 at 8:27 pm wow…. you must represent like every phone tech in the world… first off i think you need to do a little research, every article I’ve read on the subject matter suggests rice as the easiest solution, and probably 85% of the commenters have had success with little or no damage. It’s sad that you think 15% must represent everyone whose phone received water damage second, of course your discouraging people to not to try the rice trick.. thats less money for you.. third, it’s really a shame that Apple makes such expensive products, yet we have to walk on egg shells to keep them safe and protected… and the repairs cost an arm and a leg… such a money scam. and I’m not just talking about water damage.. that’s gonna happen with any electronic, I’m talking about the screen that cracks from minor drops and the fact I can’t leave my phone in the car cause it will melt.. it’s ridiculous.. I wish the quality would match the price tag October 9, 2014 at 4:54 am Sharon says: October 11, 2015 at 7:38 pm Eric says: April 13, 2013 at 12:55 pm Putting your phone in a very low heat oven (under 125 degrees F) for an hour or two can work as well. If you can keep the temperature closer to 100 there’s less of a chance of melting anything -and putting it in a pot filled with rice couldn’t hurt either (dry rice.) The point is removing the humidity from the air as quickly as possible. All the other points about corrosion still apply, but are the risk you take on. April 13, 2013 at 11:16 am About two months ago I accidentally put my iPhone in the washing machine. I didn’t know it was still in one of my pockets, so it went through the whole washing program. When I opened the washing machine I found my iPhone with the flash light on and the screen showed the start-up screen (black screen with white Apple logo). I immediately tried to turn it off, but it didn’t do anything. It was just impossible to turn it off. It was completely stuck at the boot screen with the flash light on. I then put it in the oven and of course after a while the flash light and screen had completely drained the battery. When I connected the iPhone to the power socket it took about an hour until it booted. This is the result: – The camera doesn’t work anymore. The Camera app only shows the shutter screen. Normally when you start the Camera app you’ll see the shutter for a fraction of a second. The Camera app on my iPhone just shows this image of a shutter forever. – The screen has some very light dots and some very dark spots and some stripes. – The speaker doesn’t work anymore. I’m talking about the speaker you’d use when watching a movie. The speaker you use when making a phone call still works, so I can still make phone calls. I’m happy I can still make phone calls and I couldn’t care less for the speaker and the screen, but I really miss the camera. My iPhone was my primary camera and after my iPhone has been in the washing machine I’ve encountered several occasions I wanted to take a picture, but couldn’t because of the dead iPhone camera. Although I really miss the camera I don’t want to spend $ 1200,- (yes, that’s what an iPhone costs in my country) only to get an iPhone with working camera again. My country has no Apple Stores, Apple has no website in my country, there’s no Apple Care and I don’t have a contract. It’s just a pre-paid iPhone. I’m now waiting for Apple to release a new iPhone, so I’ll have more reasons to upgrade and I know I’ll have the latest model for the upcoming year. April 13, 2013 at 12:29 pm Wow where does an iPhone cost $1200? Can’t you buy an unlocked one used on eBay and have it shipped for much less? April 19, 2013 at 10:06 am Why was my reply rejected? Yes, I started my reply with the link to a website to buy iPhones, but that’s the biggest APR in my country and the place to buy an iPhone in my country as there’s no official Apple Store nor an official Apple Website. My post was no spam in any way, but a reply to Zoinks’ question. You would’ve know it was no spam, but a legit reply if you looked further than the URL. My comment was no comment with links to Chinese websites and only text like “Buy new iPhone $125.” My comment consisted of normal text. I think it was really easy to see my comment was no spam. April 13, 2013 at 12:29 am Use a hairdryer jeez blow the phone for 5 minutes and you’re ready :D Don’t waste 36h with this… i’ve dropped my iPhone 4 3 times in water and the hairdryer always works no problems for 2 years now i even shower with the damn thing :D March 17, 2014 at 2:24 pm This doesnt always work i dropped it and tried it. Didn’t work hoping this will. May 4, 2014 at 7:05 am You are awesome!!!!After a trip out of town dropped my phone in a public toilet. Put my phone in a bag of rice the morning after. Did not turn on after 30mins..saw your comment and used the hair dryer. Everything works just fine. I may have put a little to much heat…..has two little lines on the side of the screen. Can’t really tell. Thanks so much Mario!!!!!!It really works people!!!! Ming says: July 25, 2014 at 10:00 am 1. did you blow dry it immediately? I asked because my iphone was in water 2 hrs ago and, between then and now, i tried many times to use it — was at work and had to make calls. 2. did you use hot or cool air of the dryer? many THANKS! Dave says: March 14, 2015 at 4:44 pm Now you know to just let it be once it is dropped in water. April 12, 2013 at 12:18 pm April 12, 2013 at 11:51 am my wife’s 3gs fell in water. i put it in a bowl of rice on top of the central heating boiler for 48 hours. Two years later it’s still working fine. The moisture indicators are still red though. Aditya says: April 27, 2014 at 9:47 pm Did ut? Ciz i dropped mine today in water! Will it serously work April 12, 2013 at 11:18 am dust mite is lodged somewhere in the camera ….black speck showed up when I focused, then the final picture if enlarged show antennae on one end an little cilia like legs…Can’t shake it loose, and it is not disintegrating..but is wrecking all my photos. Any ideas? April 13, 2013 at 5:02 am Haha, I think (and hope) you’re joking! Justin says: April 12, 2013 at 10:31 am This is all great advice, but I would recommend leaving it in rice for 48 hours if not 72 hours before turning on. How long you leave it alone should depend on how much humidity is in the surrounding air, and how wet it got in the first place. What I do is forgo closing the bag of rice in favor of leaving it open with a large fan and space heater blowing on it. The space heater creates extremely dry air, and the fan helps to circulate it. The two combine to suck out a lot of moisture, even if you’re in a fairly humid environment. April 12, 2013 at 7:42 am The weirdest phone-in-water solution I’ve heard was by a co-worker and it started with: WD-40 That’s who I found out that the “WD” stands for “Water Displacement” – it worked. My personal story with water damage involved a washing machine and honesty. It worked… well, the honesty did. I went to the Apple store and because I was the most honest client the tech had seen in a whole year he gave me a replacement for free. July 23, 2014 at 2:28 pm really??? LOL that is awesome!!! Why do so many ppl try to hide the truth, lol….? I was busy taking “selfies” and doing workouts in the pool at the same time (uhhh in my only defense I am a Photographer, bwahahaha! Still – pretty embarrassing! LOL)… yeahhhhh that phone took one wrong movement and SPLASH landed at the bottom of 3’6″ of water – after a split second, I immediately dove down – eyes open – grabbed it, and raised it above water. Then I ran to my towel and wrapped it in it a few times over. After that I wrapped it several times over with toilet paper and let it sit, until a friend recommended the rice. So about 30-45 mins later, the phone was in rice and has been there now since around 9:30 last night (it’s 4:30pm now)…. It is now also sitting out on my Texas-heat patio. (It’s the summer days and HOT! I hope this is OK…) Mark says: April 12, 2013 at 7:23 am Another step if just the rice doesn’t work—leave it in a hot car for awhile. Pete says: April 12, 2013 at 4:35 am The best and fastest way to dry out any piece of electronics is to put it in the oven; carefully set the temperature to 150 degrees F (no higher), and leave it in there for an hour. This has worked for me with several radios. if it was in salt water, first rinse it thoroughly in fresh water, then put it in the oven. No guarantees with salt water; it may take several days for the salt to corrode things. Chances are, with salt water, that its toast. Marty says: April 12, 2013 at 5:14 am Another chef who cooked his electronics back to health :-) Abhay says: September 5, 2014 at 12:27 am my iphone 4s is in water ,when i found my phone get warm n showing backlight glow then i put my iphone in rise under the airpack plastic polythine…….time goes on wht should i do Kr00 says: April 12, 2013 at 1:20 am Wrapping your phone in a dry cloth and placing it in a fridge (not a freezer) for 24 hours work faster than rice. Refrigerators extract moister from the air inside (freezers freeze the moisture inside). Tried this while at a conference with no access to rice. Mini bar has some uses after all. Worked for me overnight. July 1, 2015 at 5:36 pm Hey, I dropped my IPhone 5S in the toilet this morning,and I have a flight on Friday I don’t know if I can let it sit in rice for 48 hours… does what you said actually work? April 12, 2013 at 1:19 am When I am near water or headed out in the rain, I do one of two things: 1) I out my iPhone in my Otter, or 2) I carry a ziplock bag or two with me. The closer to water I get the faster the iPhone goes into the ziplock bag. Had an iPod get a “bit damp” from a drenching downpour, used the silica gel solution, was OK but never worked right again. Now believe an ounce of prevention is worth at least $600. Jamie says: April 11, 2013 at 10:44 pm When I dropped my iPhone 5 in my hot tub, I powered it off and dropped it in a bowl of 90% isopropyl alcohol. It works great. There is a mark under the touch screen. I tried the rice trick on a 3G. It took a very long time and the camera never worked again. Tim says: April 11, 2013 at 7:36 pm Just because a desired result comes about from a certain action does NOT mean the is a causality link between them. As an example, put a bowl of rice out on a humid day and watch NOTHING happen. BDK has a right idea with silica gel packets, this is a product specifically designed to remove moisture from an enclosed environment. Best advice from a real technician? Back up your stuff, buy AppleCare+, and make an appointment to see a technician. Worst comes to worse, we’ll offer you a replacement at less than 50% of retail. Anybody else that can do that? Sharon says: October 11, 2015 at 7:30 pm I was on the chat FOREVER with an Apple care technician… he was an idiot. I was nice until he told me Id have to wait 4 days to bring it in Apple retail store! 4 days! Not good for business…I paid 100 bucks for apple care AND how much is 50% off retail?? OMG so frustrated…I made the appointment in 4 days for now but I have to try something! Just bought rice… Fruit technician says: April 11, 2013 at 5:12 pm By all means, do put your phones into rice, silica bags, I see phones that have had all types of liquid I’m them, in extreme circumstances yes it may work for a period of time, then get problems. But the phone will never ever be working to its full potential. Indeed myself have had the unfortunate accident of spilling water onto my phone, it worked for a few weeks afterwards then died. Everything Stephanie says is true. The guys at the Genius Bar are there to help. I wasn’t trying to be a dick. And as for putting a phone in an oven or tumble dryer, that’s just plan stupid. Paul says: April 11, 2013 at 7:09 pm We appreciate your feedback Fruit. For many of us, trying something is better than doing nothing and throwing in the towel just to shell another $600 on a new phone since we’re too early in a contract to get a discount. As I said, I’ll update in the future if there are any additional problems down the road with this particular iPhone 5 model. Anyway, thank you for your comments and for relaying your direct experiences. Everything is welcome here, even if it’s critical of or contrary to what we write! April 11, 2013 at 4:09 pm I’m not the kind that says “don’t do this or that cuz Apple techs will find out.” I’ve had my fair share of giving bad news and it blows to spend $149 to $230 to replace a water damaged phone. A few key tips to add to Paul’s awesome article: As long as you have the right tools (do NOT strip the screws), take off the backplate after the phone has been in the rice for a few hours (only iPhone 4 and 4S). If you can’t do this properly, don’t attempt it. You’ll make matters worse. If it falls in salt water, you’re done. Take it to the store ASAP before any indicators are obviously tripped or corrosion settles in. Don’t lie to your tech when it’s gotten to the point of obvious contamination. They won’t be lenient about that. If it falls in anything sugary (including alcohol, black coffee, diet soda, juices) you’re pretty much done. It’s easily detectable that there’s contamination when the phone is opened up and reeks of tequila. Again, don’t lie. You just look retarded. Don’t expect a couple of hours in rice will do the trick. Seriously, it won’t. Water has to be “removed” through incredibly small crevices. It’s a “magical” device but it can’t perform magic. One last piece of advice, and please take this seriously, if you do take the liquid damaged device to Apple, don’t be a dick to your technician. They will not even consider helping you out somehow. Remember, they have the power to charge you for your fk up. Don’t make them use it… packman says: April 11, 2013 at 2:44 pm I to dropped my iPhone 4 in water like 14 months ago put in rice for 3 days then turned on no go so plugged it in and it came on in a couple minutes so if yours doesnt come back on try plugging it in. austin says: April 11, 2013 at 2:23 pm does this work for ipod touch Paul says: April 11, 2013 at 4:25 pm Yes it should work just fine for an iPod touch or an iPad haile says: June 25, 2014 at 7:01 pm it worked with mine April 11, 2013 at 2:22 pm Or instead of paying $100 to apple to fix it i can fox certian parts for under $50. facebook.com/baxbhairepairs April 11, 2013 at 2:00 pm Many years ago there was an article on what to do if you spilled liquid on a keyboard. I had a rum and coke too close to my Mac keyboard and turned my head with earphones on and the cable poured the liquid into the keyboard (waste of rum). I immediately rinsed it in tap water and then following the instructions, followed that with a distilled water rinse (I had it for the steam iron) and all was fine when it dried out. I wonder if a distilled water rinse would help to remove salts and minerals, especially if the phone was dropped in say, a swimming pool or mud puddle? DaveC says: April 11, 2013 at 1:57 pm My daughter dropped her iPhone 4 in a bucket of water in a dance competition in NYC. She ran out to find a Chinese restaurant to get some rice. They would not give it to her a first, but she showed them her phone so they did. It was in rice for a few days. When we turned it on it would not do a thing. We took it to the Genius Bar and they said they would be right back and took it in the back room. It fired right up when he came back but the camera has not worked since. All of the water indicators were red, but at least most of it still works :) April 11, 2013 at 1:53 pm Wait for 48 hours or longer for best results. You can’t see the water inside. Let it dry! Marty says: April 11, 2013 at 1:49 pm Shortly after purchase a friend’s iPhone 4 was dropped into fresh water and quickly removed. Looked up the specs for the phone, specifically for the max non-operating temperature. Programmed oven for 10˚F below that limit. Turned oven off and put iPhone in for a couple of hours. May have repeated the process. After about two years, that phone is still working without any problems! April 11, 2013 at 1:20 pm After reading this article i have the need to drop my iPhone into the pool. April 11, 2013 at 5:57 pm April 11, 2013 at 1:13 pm i have been told that if you wrap it up in a towel and put it in a tumble dryer, also works well… Darrin K says: April 20, 2013 at 8:37 am I don’t think that would be a really good idea. It’s a possibility you’ll open up your dryer to a shattered phone instead of a wet one…. Peter says: April 11, 2013 at 1:05 pm My advice: you know those silica gel packets that come with new shoes and so many other things? Keep them, and hoard them. Silica gel works much better than rice. Otherwise this is very sound advice. The rice (or silica gel) trick will work for quick dunks and splashes with liquids, but @A Roberts is right that for severe cases you will want to clean the board and contacts directly. Pop open up the iPhone and rub it down with an alcohol solution. This is standard procedure in every iRepair shop, and they’ll charge you $100+ for it when all they’re doing is using a $0.75 rubbing alcohol bottle from Walmart with a terry cloth. The hardest part is taking apart the iPhone if you’ve never done it before, but as long as you have the pentalobe screw driver and a little spatula it’s pretty easy. Here’s a discussion about the corrosion issue. For what it’s worth, what is most likely to have problems longterm is the power port and battery due to electrochemical corrosion from iron and copper residue. Fruit Room Specialist says: April 11, 2013 at 12:52 pm One thing to note is that if you drop your iPhone into chlorine-filled water (for example; a swimming pool), then it is very unlikely that the liquid contact indicators will trigger. This is because chlorine bleaches the indicators. Paul says: April 11, 2013 at 1:06 pm Very interesting to know, thanks for that! David says: April 11, 2013 at 11:45 pm But, unfortunately, chlorinated water is much more corrosive. adam says: March 18, 2014 at 9:34 am components inside of an iphone are coated in corrosion resistant materials BDK says: April 11, 2013 at 12:40 pm Do NOT try to turn it on and do not plug it in. This will fry the components. Fortunately, Apple built in a fail safe that prevents you from turning the phone on until you plug it in. I tried rice for 48 hours and it was very slow. I still had water pooled under the glass. Instead I opened up a couple of those little gel silica packets that come in electronics packaging and poured the contents into a plastic bag and sealed it with the phone inside NOT touching the silica. 8 hours later the water was gone. I plugged the phone in and it turned on and I’ve had no problems. I checked the moisture indicator and it wasn’t red. A miracle. Fruit Technician – FU. So we should just toss the phone away? Corrosion doesn’t kill components when they are dry, which is what this article prevents. Don’t comment on s* you don’t know about. Paul says: April 11, 2013 at 1:07 pm Great to hear everything worked out, thanks for chiming in with your direct experience. I have high hopes mine will survive just fine too. Bridey says: January 25, 2014 at 2:40 am Hey, im absolutely gutted i dropped my iphone in the toilet last night, yeah the toilet!! It has been in a tub of rice since last night but im worried because i tried to switch it on a couple of times as soon as i dried it down.. What do i do? wait for 36 hours i guess yeah? fingers crossed! Thank you x March 30, 2014 at 11:05 am MY iphone battery is low, i need to let it charge and pray, i guess maybe i can buy a battery. fruit technician says: April 11, 2013 at 12:28 pm Thanks for this useless piece of information, yes it may dry out liquid, but it aint gonna fix the corrosion that will eventually kill the phone. I can see lots of people over the next few weeks with “but I put it in a bag of rice” comments. Paul says: April 11, 2013 at 12:36 pm Something that prevents you from spending $650 is ‘useless’ to you? OK. I’ll update in a while and let you know how it works out. May 1, 2015 at 3:26 pm I can tell you first hand that putting your phone in a bag of rice is going to lower your chances of having a working phone in the long run. With water damage it’s best to open the device and inspect the components to determine if action is required. Light water damage can be solved with (preferably 97% or higher) isopropyl. More extreme cases should also go in the ultrasonic cleaner with the shields removed. May 2, 2015 at 1:07 pm OK well I can tell you first hand I have revived 3-4 different iPhones from submersion by putting them into a bag of rice and letting them dry out for 3 days+. If you have a bag of silica gel, that would be even better. If you happen to own an iPhone repair shop and have all that is required to immediately disassemble and dry out a wet iPhone, along with the tiny tools, glue, suction cup, glass, replacements when you bend or break something, then be my guest and do that, but the average person does not have that ability. The fact is, drying out an iPhone when it’s turned off for several days in a bag of silica gel or rice WORKS. it WORKS. it WORKS. it WORKS. Evidenced all over this page by hundreds of commenters. June 16, 2015 at 12:35 pm My b others iPhone He went in water and didn’t know he had it in his pocket and he dryed it out and let it sit for a couple of days and it still wouldn’t turn on and he put it in rice and it wouldn’t turn on and he doesn’t know what to do he doesn’t want to open it up or pay Evelynn says: July 13, 2015 at 8:17 pm So yesterday morning I had my phone in my back pocket. As I was about to use the bathroom my phone fell out of my pocket and Ito the water. I quickly grabbed it out of the toilet and dried it of with my jacket that was lying on the floor. Then I ran to the Kitchen grabbed some rice turned my phone of and put in the rice. Its been in there for about 36 hours but I’m going to let it sit in the rice for about another 36 hours. I don’t have any silica or else id add some to the rice. Does anyone have any advice to try to save my phone???? Its an iPhone 5c. I had a case on but the case didn’t cover any of the holes or port. Ethan says: August 25, 2015 at 2:07 am I was using the toilet and as i was sitting down, I was watching youtube. I accidentally let my phone slip and PLOOP! It fell into the toilet bowl. I quickly got it out, got rid of all the excess water and placed it into the rice. I couldn’t turn it off, but will it still work? February 14, 2016 at 2:02 am did what you did nut charger won’t fit??? AshleyBenson says: September 6, 2016 at 12:37 am I solve my problem by this method. iPhone fell in water Steps to fix iPhone water damage Step 1: Get the device out of water as quickly as possible after your iPhone dropped in water so that the damage can be minimal; Step 2: After you have got your water damaged iPhone out of water turn the wet phone off by holding down the power button if it has not already turned itself off. This would prevent the possibility of a short circuit of the electronic circuitry inside which would render the iPhone useless. Turning on an iPhone after it fell in water always poses a risk of damage; Step 3: Remove phone cases or covers, if any, since they can trap in moisture. Take out the SIM card and the Battery also if you are confident ‘DIY-type’ user, and place it on a paper towel to dry it off; Step 4: Use a clean cloth or some paper towels to wipe off as much of the exterior water as you can from your iPhone. In order to clear the ports and sockets turn the iPhone upside down and give it a gentle shake. Don’t move the phone excessively while you do this as otherwise the water inside would move around and do further damage to the phone; Step 5: Put the water damaged iPhone in an air tight plastic bag surrounded by a bunch of Silica gel packets to draw out the moisture. Silica gel is an incredibly moisture-absorbent substance often found in Arts & Crafts shops or in electronics stores. It is also often found in new handbags or with new pairs of shoes. You may be able to buy them from a craft and handbag shops. If you can’t get hold of the Silica gel sachets quickly place your wet iPhone in a bag of uncooked rice (avoid enriched rice as it leaves a lot of white residual powder) and seal it. Make sure the phone is fully immersed in the rice. This will keep the phone as dry as possible in the intervening period. Transfer the phone subsequently to the bag of Silica gel sachets after you procure them. There are several other solutions you may find online that have been tried by people when their iPhone fell in water. However, some of those may even worsen your iPhone water damage. Some people have tried to dry out their iPhones with a hairdryer, which is not generally recommended as the hot air from it could fry up the delicate internal parts. Taking your iPhone apart to dry the interior parts may appear a good idea, but this will also annul any warranty you have left on your device; Step 6: Now let the iPhone dry in a warm place like in an airy cupboard or somewhat near a radiator (but not on it) for 48 hours or more. A lesser time may work but sometimes it also could be not enough, therefore longer is better; Step 7: After you have waited at least for 48 hours, open the rice/silica gel bag and take a look at your iPhone. If you think the iPhone has any left-over moisture, do not power it on and continue drying for some more time; Step 8: Avoid charging the battery for at least 72 hours before attempting to plug it in and turn it on. As your iPhone fell in water, just as a precaution (not a must) it’s a good practice to replace the wet battery and this should always be done for all water damaged devices; Step 9: If everything appears well, go ahead and turn your iPhone on normally. Now your phone should power on as usual, and hopefully it has survived the water damage; Hollie says: November 22, 2015 at 2:48 pm I too, dropped my iphone 6 in the toilet, it is currently sitting in a bowl of rice and has been for 74 hours. I’m going to try to turn it on tonight and see what happens. I’m concerned as I wasn’t lucky enough to be able to turn off the phone myself, it shut down on me after displaying a few lines on the display, which again, really worries me. Could anyone give me some advice on if they think it will work, what I should do if it doesn’t etc? Note to everyone, don’t put your phone in your back pocket, or at least, remove it before going to the bathroom. November 30, 2015 at 3:00 am the exact thing just happened to me, was your phone saved? medal says: December 4, 2015 at 4:32 pm me too the same thing just happened with me, did it work ? Zahir says: January 25, 2019 at 8:55 pm was your phne saved? Exact thing happen to me, I didn’t know about the rice, came to know about it after 10 hours, now it is in rice for about 20 hours, I am planning for it to stay into it for 48 hours. Good thing is that I put it out of it in 3 to 4 seconds and then switched it off immediately. bria says: December 21, 2015 at 12:21 pm The exact thing happened to me last night. I dried it off, then I tried turning it off but there were lines that were changing colors. A few minutes later the screen was black so i hit the power button quick to see if it was off but I accidentally turned it back on (I shouldn’t have done that) turned back on to the lock screen but few seconds later went to the lines again and shut off. Then I threw it in a bag of rice. It hasn’t even been 24 hours yet but Im really worried. Its an Iphone 6 i bought like a month ago… any results for you guys? Karen says: December 24, 2015 at 8:07 pm My case is exactly like yours. It is now in a zip lock with rice but I cannot turn it off. Tomorrow is Christmas, so no Apple store open! Any suggestions? Kayla says: January 14, 2016 at 3:59 pm Hey what was the result of your phone as a similar thing happened to me yesterday. My phone is still sitting in rice Maddie says: January 8, 2017 at 12:04 pm The same thing happened to me it was in my vest pocket and PLOP! into the toilet I spun around and grabbed and with in 15 sec of water contact was in rice. It was a two week old Iphone SE! :( (I powered it off and then scoured my house for silica packets (on crutches and found three) It’s been 22 hours and I’m waiting for 24 hours however my parents tell me the chances of it surviving are very low and if it doesn’t survive I’m without a phone for 30 months! I’m really worried. TIP: If you have like bath salts (like big peices) put that in with the rice because salt absorbs moisture. Please let me know your results Matt says: January 8, 2017 at 12:05 pm 24 hours is not long enough for a phone to dry out. Nowhere does it say 24 hours is sufficient to let an iPhone dry out. You need to let the iPhone stay turned off and dry 100%, this takes at least 72 hours. The longer you wait the better the chance of recovering. If the phone turns on when it is wet, it may be ruined. I have revived an iphone dropped in water after turning it off, putting it with absorbers and a fan for 72 hours, it works fine still today. Czarina says: February 28, 2016 at 6:54 pm Hey, this EXACTLY happened to my phone today. :( Couldn’t turn it off but eventually died down and now its just soaking in rice. Did your phone eventually turn on? Please tell me that the rice trick works! April 12, 2016 at 3:06 pm I dropped my iPhone 6S into my dogs bowl of water but I immediately removed it, dried it off and removed the case. While I was drying it I kept on accidentally pressing the home button and it was working fine (or by the looks of it). The only problems are: when it is not on silent, you can’t hear the keyboard clicks or the lock button click when you press it and my music isn’t playing through my speaker but through my headphones, while my ringtone is. Also, when music is open and you ”double click” the home button, it says that headphones are connected but they aren’t. Will my iPhone be ok? Paul says: April 12, 2016 at 3:40 pm Rachel, the best way to preserve your iPhone 6S is to dry it out completely before using it again. Put it in a bag of rice or silica gel (those little packets you get in boxes sometimes) for 48 hours to 72 hours, and let it completely dry out. The iPhone should be OK once it completely dries out, but don’t use it until it is entirely dried out. You can also try placing it on a fan (not blowing heat, just blowing air) for 48 hours or so too to help circulate air around it. The key is to make sure the internal components are completely dried out, including the headphone port and hardware buttons. That’s probably why yours thinks its in headphone mode rather than speaker mode, it is still wet in there would be my guess. Good luck! I have saved many iPhones from water submersions by following these tips, I recommend you do the same! Jev says: April 24, 2017 at 8:21 am The same exact thing happened to my 6s lastnight. I’m so worried , everything seems fine only the speakers. I put it in the rice but i just took it out Shuan says: May 28, 2016 at 4:41 pm OMG Literally this same exact thing happened to me… Well the lines on the screen part… I was at my friends house to go swim and my brother decided to spray me with the pool cleaner thing… Long story short, I got pushed in the water with my phone in my hand, and (since I have a lifeproof case) I went to keep using it (above the water just in case) and the red lines appeared on the screen. Which means I couldn’t turn mine off either… That’s why when I was reading this article and it said to turn it off I was a little worried too… Please reply on this and say if it worked… I put mine in a sock of rice… I don’t know if it HAD to be an airtight bag… Still… Please reply! Thanks! Deepesh says: August 13, 2016 at 11:26 pm Hello there. Keep pressing the home button and power button at once (for 5-6 seconds, I guess), the phone will turn off. My phone got wet by the rain (it was in my jacket pocket while I was driving a bike) day before yesterday. Did the rice thing for 12 hours didn’t work. Now it is in the rice bag again for I don’t know how long. February 11, 2017 at 3:47 am My phone fell into the bottom of the pool, i was just checking the temp and unfortunately my 5s slid out of its case and straight to the pool I dived in after it straight away and grabbed it it wouldve been in there for 20 seconds max. But i’m worried that not only the chlorine will damage it but I couldn’t turn it off. I held the lock button down but it was just saying siri not available before bunch of lines appeared then went black. I held the home and lock down at the same time cos i know its an emergency shut down but i dont know. I put it in rice but its in a take away container not a ziplock bag. Its all i could grab in a panic. Its been in there for about 30 hours but im going to leave it another night. Luke says: February 24, 2017 at 11:21 pm My iPhone 5s is turned off in a snow bank and has been for a month is it save able Renee says: June 5, 2017 at 12:00 pm the same thing happened to me… Will my iPhone still work after sitting in rice for awhile?? September 24, 2017 at 12:22 pm I have a 5s and do not yet want to be forced to get a higher price phone so this potential fix is fantastic. Besides soon they will have iphone 10 (or is it X?) then 11 and so on. I left it in rice about 39 hrs and it opened but I saw a water spot under the screen so put it back another day. So, fruit technician, you may be good at fixing fruit but don’t knock those of us desperate for an iphone fix. It may not last but I only need it for a while longer to work. During the holidays there are usually offers at better prices. A. Roberts says: April 11, 2013 at 12:51 pm Corrosion is not too likely if it is removed quickly, aside from salt water or unusually hard water at least. If you’re worried about corrosion for something like this, dry it out, then open it up. If you see any tiny metallic deposits, rub it down with isopropyl alcohol, then dry it out again. It will work, I guarantee it. Works with game controllers, phones, just about anything so long as it’s not an extreme case. John says: April 11, 2013 at 3:11 pm Guess a so called technician wouldn’t want anyone to use this “useless” procedure as it could cut into their fruit device repair business huh. Even though I’d heard about this before it was great to hear from someone that had actually had to try it (sorry for your stress when your iPhone got dunked though). Thanks for a great detailed article. Something we can actually use instead of the run of the mill rumors and thinly veiled advertisments called articles but some jerk needs to call it useless. Kate says: December 27, 2013 at 11:33 am Thanks John for your comment about the technician. I agree. I’ve dropped my iphone horribly enough in the toilet and it took me a good amount of time to realize what had happened and fished it out. Was on a job- ran out and bought a bag of rice. Threw the phone in after turning off completely and let it sit for just a few hours- I could not wait 36 hours as I needed it to do my job. It completely fine after just a few hours. I’ve done this a few times- but today it’s coffee- which worries me because of the milk and sugar- can’t be good. Tried to make a phone call but no volume. It’s in a bag of rice now. I’m going to give it a few hours. Will report back. That technician was super negative. Peace. Kate Paul says: December 27, 2013 at 11:58 am You need to wait longer than a few hours, all electrical components within the iphone have to completely dry out, and depending on the level of submersion it can take days. Think about how long water takes to evaporate if splashed on a counter, and then think about how long water takes to evaporate in a small space without adequate air flow. Both take a while, just have patience if you want your iPhone to work again after getting wet. Silica gel packets in a zip lock bag work even better than rice. Good luck! Keith says: January 13, 2014 at 10:56 am My wife’s iPhone fell into the toilet and was quickly retrieved. Phone very dim and didn’t work. We left phone in baggie of uncooked rice for 36 hours. Works fine now. But would her iPhone have dried out just as quickly or quicker in the open air inside the house just as well? February 24, 2014 at 8:26 pm My phone fell into a tub of less than a centimeter of water, unfortunately I didn’t know to shut it off right away and was ecstatic cause it “still worked” We’ll it shut off on me a few hours later, I found this and then submerged it in rice. 24 hours later it’s still in the bag of rice and I tried turning it on tonight and nothing… Do you think I just need to wait longer? I also depend on my phone a lot for work so today was a struggle!!! Also, thanks for all your detailed advice! adam says: March 18, 2014 at 9:32 am Keith the phone would have taken weeks to dry out naturally as rice soaks up any moisture by itself, i tested it with multiple phones, i left siphone 4’s submerged in a bucket of water for 24 hours, put one of them in a bag of rice and left one to dry naturally, suprisingly the one from the rice worked fine after 24 hours with no permanant damage what so ever, the one that was left to dry naturally took 96 hours to dry and even then the digitizer, audio, volume buttons and charging bay never worked, btw i am a phone technichian for apple Denise says: December 28, 2014 at 10:55 am I dropped my phonne in some water, did the rice trick and it now seems to be working ok…. however it now looks like i might have some rice stuck in the phone because i can not put the charger into the phone , im unable to see the rice but charger will not click in … any suggestione ( ive already tried the hoover ) ??? July 8, 2018 at 9:31 pm Hi Kate! I dropped my phone in the toilet last night. I was wondering how many hours exactly did you put yours in rice before? Like you, I couldn’t wait 36 hours. July 9, 2018 at 8:29 am If you are impatient and refuse to wait until your iPhone dries out after being submerged, it is more likely to be ruined by water damage. Liquid contact is very bad for electronics, the electronics must dry out before usage to potentially avoid damage. Corrosion from water, short circuiting, etc, all is possible from water contact with electronics. This must be avoided by thoroughly drying the iPhone. You must be patient and let your wet iPhone completely dry out after it is submerged in water. Do not attempt to use it before it has completely dried out. You CAN wait 36 hours or longer, you just don’t want to. Stay off social media for a day and a half, or better yet permanently – it’s like a cigarette habit or drug addiction it has no benefit but plenty of downsides. Some of the newest iPhone models are vaguely water resistant to splash contact etc, but I would still let them dry out completely before usage (iPhone 7, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X, etc). That is just me. These are very expensive electronic devices, if you want them to last you must take care of them and be careful. December 29, 2014 at 8:51 am Hey I just dropped my iPhone in my toilet and it’s the ipone 5. I saw the red senser on the top next to the frunt camera imlet it die. I’m scared that it won’t work. My mom wasn’t mad but told me to put it in a bag of rice and hopefully it will work. But…. The screen still works but it does look like it has some pretty bad watere damage. Should I after the rice det a blow dryer and use it to hopefully get any other water out of it or what should I do? May 6, 2015 at 5:44 pm Don’t use a blow dryer. That’s possibly as bad as water and electronics. November 27, 2015 at 11:35 am what if blue lines appear and it does not switch on April 12, 2013 at 7:37 am That’s right: FYL since you have no better solution, not even the obvious: ‘Don’t drop it in liquids.’ nor ‘Get a waterproof case’. March 21, 2014 at 8:57 pm My camera is broken. Kim says: May 19, 2014 at 1:57 pm My digital camera was washed in the washing machine…I was devastated! I tried the rice trick and it works now with absolutely no problems! I did however leave it for about 3 weeks; it may have not needed that long, but I was too afraid to try turning it on. At first try I was dismayed-it didnèt work! But then I realized I hadnt recharged the battery :) It works excellent, like brand new! Definitely worth trying Bella! :) Good luck! deanna says: March 26, 2014 at 6:18 pm thanks I hope this works my Iphone is fine brand new no damage but my friends on the other hand not so well she just droppes it in the bathtub full of water so im trying to help her April 18, 2014 at 11:56 pm The rice works. Sorry to disappoint you. It’s one thing to disagree and be wrong as you are; it’s entirely different to be wrong AND snarky. Some guy says: July 31, 2014 at 3:43 pm Dude just dropped my iphone 4 in a pool with SALTWATER and i turned it of emidietly and but it in the owen on 30 degrees celcius let it lay for a couple of hours turned off then i turned it on a couple of hours later and it worked ok after a little while being on the battery is ruined but the battery is really cheap to change Brian says: August 23, 2014 at 3:31 pm This WORKS… (so happy to see i am not out the cost of the insurance ‘replacement’ cost). My iPhone 5s, yep, the one with the glass face that breaks if you look at it wrong, or drop it to the floor from a distance of 6 inches or more, was SAVED!!! The iPhone 5s, with its broken glass face, and i am not just talking about a crack the upper left corner is missing, and this is nearly the size of a US dime hole in the glass. You can see the camera glass. (no small opening into the inside of the iPhone 5s) I dove into the swimming pool, swam for at least 5 minutes with the phone in my pocket. I realized the phone was in my pocket, and then took it from my pocket, and handed it to a friend who was not in the pool. It was at least 30 minutes that the phone sat on the table next to the pool. The outside airtemp was approximaetly 75F. I took the phone into the house, opened a bag of rice in the kitchen, and poured approximaetly 2 cups of rice into a cake baking pan. I carefully placed the phone so the big whole in the ‘cheap’ glass face was slightly lower than the rest of the phone (read, almost level, with a tiny tilt towards the open (broken) iPhone face. I turned on the kitchen oven, to WARM setting (lowest setting), and then put the baking pan now holding the iPhone, buried in the 2 cups of dry rice, into the oven. I left the iPhone 5s in the oven for approximaetly 16 hours. I pulled the phone out of the oven, and let it cool in room, for 10 minutes. I could pick it up, and it was never so hot that i could not hold it in my hand. I plugged into the charger, and saw the little apple, as the phone charged (GOOD SIGH). To my GREAT amazement, i heard the iPhone ‘chime’ in less than 5 minutes, as it automatically turned on, and attached to cell network to download text messages. Hiking shorts with handy pocket that you can put, and forget you have, your iPhone in (32$) Bag of rice (3$) SAVING YOUR SELF FROM HAVING TO BUY A NEW iPhone because you are too forgetful to remember your new slim iPhone in your pocket in your hiking shorts…. (PRICELESS) August 29, 2014 at 4:42 pm I dropped my phone in water(not salt water) and its been in the water for about 3 and i didn’t notice until now The killer(if that wasn’t enough for you)is that my phone is an iphone 5c and i just want to know if its the possibility of my phone being saved…? January 28, 2015 at 7:06 pm Fruit technician is right. Rice is worthless as a savior of wet electronics. If you did it, and feel like it worked, you got lucky. Nothing more, nothing less. The rice did NOTHING. This has been proven in several experiments when dry rice, and even instant rice were compared to real desiccants like silica gel. Rice may absorb moisture, but that’s when the moisture is actually in contact with the rice, so unless you’ve stripped your phone into the basic parts and put them all in rice disassembled, the rice does nothing, and even then good old fashion “evaporation” is why the water is gone. Fruit tech is spot on about the corrosion too. And despite A. Robert’s protest of the comment, the water WILL leave behind dissolved minerals and dirt washed into the phone. Rice, and no other desiccant can remove those. There is no substitute for a real cleaning, especially not in rice. If people want to “gamble” with their wet electronics and hopes of getting their un-sync’d data back, they can turn to rice, hair dryers, ovens, and every other “free” solution out there – but that’s exactly what they’re doing – gambling. Your best bet for 100% restoration and data recovery is a proper cleaning by someone that knows what they’re doing. February 23, 2018 at 5:32 am Squid says: March 4, 2015 at 5:18 pm It worked for me. Fell in the toilet from my back pocket. Was in there for a minute. Used rice for more than a week, but wouldn’t power up. Replaced battery with one from the internet(had to buy the kit to open the iPhone, man those screws are tiny!) and now it works perfectly! jeena says: May 25, 2015 at 12:51 am same with iphone 6? Ken says: April 6, 2015 at 1:44 pm This worked for me, 2 years later and phone still works! Your a total downer Fruit tech!!! September 9, 2015 at 10:09 pm You can also try this: turn off your iPhone (or Android) and then soak it in 99% pure Isopropyl Alcohol for about an hour or two, then dry it out for 36 hours before trying to use it. 99% isopropyl alcohol is hydrophobic so it can help. AAFR says: September 21, 2015 at 10:38 am FML, it’s clear you’re a douche. The information here is simply as an option. If it gives you a phone for a couple of months.. that’s something. If it gives you a phone for a day to recover information, that’s something. I think we are all aware that the rice is not going to turn our iphone 4 into an iphone 6. And I think we are all quite aware that irreparable damage will not be fixed by rice alone. BUT, when faced with no apparent solutions other than forking money for a new one, THIS information is certainly a Godsend. So please, go somewhere else with your gray skies and be respectful for people who are actually bringing VALUE to the table. Bob dile says: November 24, 2015 at 10:22 pm The rice didn’t work for me. Will I be able to save all of my photos and such onto another phone if I can’t turn on the original source? John says: April 9, 2016 at 1:11 am Perhaps the rice takes out moisture from the concealed air, and then the air can absorb the moisture more easily. I;m high right now, so might be totally bs, but moisture absorbs naturally in the air. Cups of rice in a concealed back is a very high rice to air ratio. Perhaps plausible? Click here to cancel reply. Name (required) Mail (will not be published) (required) Shop on Amazon.com and help support OSXDaily! Subscribe to OSXDaily - How to Enable Stage Manager on iPad - How to Setup Auto Pay for Apple Card - Apple Deals: AirTags 4 Pack for $80 (20% Off), AirPods Pro 20% Off at $199, etc - How to Setup Auto Pay for Apple Card - How to Delete Focus Modes on iPhone & iPad - How to Rename “My Home” in Home App on iPhone, iPad, Mac - How to Stop Instagram Videos Increasing Brightness on iPhone? - How to Stop Instagram Videos Increasing Brightness on iPhone? This website is unrelated to Apple Inc All trademarks and copyrights on this website are property of their respective owners. © 2022 OS X Daily. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction without explicit permission is prohibited. This website and third-party tools use cookies for functional, analytical, and advertising purposes. By continuing to browse the site, closing this banner, scrolling this webpage, or clicking a link, you agree to these cookies. You can review our privacy policy for additional information.I AcceptPrivacy Policy	196,781
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Toujours activé Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information. Non-necessary Non-necessary Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.	1,162
One of the most common questions asked of the legal profession is, how can a criminal lawyer defend someone who is guilty? There appears to be view that a criminal defence lawyer uses technical arguments or legal loopholes to free persons who are ostensibly guilty of offences. Further, a prevailing view in the community is that most accused criminals face serious allegations such as murder or sexual offences. However, there are strict rules in place that govern the how legal practitioners conduct themselves when faced with such a dilemma. Can a Criminal Lawyer Defend Someone They Know is Guilty? A criminal lawyer can defend someone they know is guilty as long as they do not lie or knowingly mislead the court. The Law Society of New South Wales governs the conduct of legal professionals and regulates their ethical standards. You can read the statement of ethics by clicking here. If you tell your lawyer that you are guilty of a criminal offence, they can still represent you. However, if you wish to plead ‘not guilty’ then your lawyer cannot positively suggest that you did not commit the offence. Rather, they can only suggest that the prosecution have not proved the elements of the offence beyond reasonable doubt. Can Lawyers Refuse to Defend Someone? Lawyers can refuse to defend someone unless a court refuses to grant them leave to withdraw from the matter. Common reasons why a criminal lawyer would not defend someone are if there is a conflict of interest (eg. the solicitor has previously represented or given advice to the opposite party), or where they have prior commitments or where the case is beyond their expertise. However, once a lawyer has started acting for a client, they generally cannot stop acting unless they have a sufficient reason. The Law Society can make a finding of ‘unsatisfactory professional conduct’ and take disciplinary action if appropriate. The Solicitors Rules set out that if a client admits their guilt to a lawyer but still wishes to plead not guilty, the lawyer must either: stop acting for the client, as long as there is enough time for the client to find someone else to represent them, or the client does not insist on the solicitor continuing to represent them; or continue to act for the client, but they cannot suggest that someone else committed the offence; or set up a case inconsistent with the confession A criminal lawyer can still defend the client by arguing that the evidence does not prove the elements of the offence beyond reasonable doubt. If the client gives evidence denying guilt or makes a statement claiming their innocence, the solicitor must stop acting for them. The NSW Barristers’ Rules have similar provisions. How Can a Criminal Lawyer Defend Someone They Think is Guilty? A criminal lawyer can defend someone they think is guilty because there is a difference between “legal guilt” and “factual guilt”. It is not the job of a criminal defence lawyer to make a judgement as to their client’s guilt. A lawyer must provide a vigorous defence regardless of the crime their client is accused of or the evidence against them. The criminal justice system is built on the concept of a person being presumed innocent until their guilt is proved “beyond a reasonable doubt”. This is a very high standard intended to make conviction difficult. This means that a criminal trial is about whether the prosecution have met this standard, as opposed to whether a person has actually committed an offence. If a person decides to plead guilty, your criminal lawyer can undertake the following actions to obtain the best outcome: negotiating with police to reduce the number charges. This can involve the ‘rolling up’ of a number of sequences; negotiating with the prosecution for less serious charges. For example, a charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm can sometimes be reduced to a common assault charge. Likewise, a drug supply offence can be reduced to drug possession; amending the fact sheet to minimise the details of the offence. By undertaking these actions, your prospects at minimising your penalty at sentence will be significantly increased. Outcomes such as a section 10 dismissal or conditional release order – which means that no criminal conviction is recorded – will become much more likely. A lawyer can also prepare your subjective case by assisting you to obtain character references, an apology letter and any medical or psychological reports. Undertaking a drug and/or alcohol rehabilitation program can also be beneficial. If you have been charged with a traffic offence, you will also need to enrol in a traffic offender program. If you have admitted to your lawyer that you are guilty of the offence, but you still want to plead not guilty, it will usually be in your best interests to retain new lawyers. This is because for them to continue representing you, they can only argue that the prosecution has not proved the offence beyond reasonable doubt. This means that your criminal lawyer cannot positively tell the court that you are innocent. The ethical and professional standards that govern the conduct of solicitors sets out that your lawyer cannot allow facts they know are false to be produced in evidence, nor can they make submissions that they know are false. An experienced criminal lawyer will generally withdraw from the case if faced with this dilemma. Given the significant penalties for criminal offences, it is advisable to be represented by a criminal lawyer who put the defence forward. Linked In Instruct Read later Folders shared with you Filed under New South Wales Litigation Popular articles from this firm Is it Illegal to Flash Your Headlights to Warn of Police? * How to Get Domestic Violence Charges Dropped - Step by Step Guide * How to Beat a Demerit Point Suspension NSW * Lawyer Salary Australia - How Much Do Lawyers Make in Australia? * If you would like to learn how Lexology can drive your content marketing strategy forward, please email [email protected].	6,324
This link has been flagged as phishing. Phishing is an attempt to acquire personal information such as passwords and credit card details by pretending to be a trustworthy source. What can I do? If you're a visitor of this website The website owner has been notified and is in the process of resolving the issue. For now, it is recommended that you do not continue to the link that has been flagged. If you're the owner of this website Please log in to cloudflare.com to review your flagged website. If you have questions about why this was flagged as phishing please contact the Trust & Safety team for more information.	656
The 1960s was the era of the British invasion, the term coined for the explosive popularity of British bands and singers across America and the rest of the world. From the Beatles to the Rolling Stones, the Kinks to the Who, British musicians dominated the charts and inspired a generation. In this post, we’re going to be taking a look at 15 of the greatest and most famous British singers of the 1960s. Let’s get started. Summing Up Our List Of Famous 1960s British Singers The ’60s were a busy decade for John Lennon. His original band, the Quarrymen, became the Beatles. By the end of the decade, he began his band with Yoko Ono, the Plastic Ono Band. In between, Lennon rose to stardom as the lead singer of the Beatles, and he was largely responsible for the wit of the band’s lyrics and the wide range of sound that made them revolutionary, including “Yellow Submarine” and “All You Need Is Love.” Before 1970 even came around, he quit the band that made him famous to try his hand at a solo career. Tragically, Lennon was murdered by a fan in December of 1980, but his legacy lives on. Known as the heartthrob of the Beatles, Paul McCartney brought distinctive pop tones to the group’s music and encouraged them to experiment with genre and style. A primarily self-taught musician, he played bass guitar and was responsible for writing some of the group’s greatest hits, such as “Yesterday,” “Blackbird,” and “Hey Jude.” In the ’60s, McCartney used his pen to write songs for other famous singers like Billy J. Kramer and Cilla Black, as well as Mary Hopkin, who was the first singer the Beatles signed to their own label. It was the late ’60s (1967, to be precise) that saw Elton John’s career start and rapidly ascend. John replied to an ad titled “Liberty Wants Talent,” with the talented songwriter who would become John’s friend and writing partner, Bernie Taupin. John’s incredible aptitude for song and performance was immediately visible, and the pair released their debut success (that was actually singularly written by John), “I’ve Been Loving You.” This great success led to their first album, Empty Sky, in 1969. Late in that same year, he wrote what would become one of his most successful and memorable hits: “Your Song.” A heartfelt love song, it’s possibly John’s most famous work thus far. Born David Jones in 1947, David Bowie was known for his intense creativity and eccentricity. It was in the early sixties that Bowie formed his first band, the Konrads, when he was only 15 years old. They were a local success but not ambitious enough for Bowie, who craved fame. He joined the King Bees, and he was able to attract his first personal management contract. Once more not impressed with his bandmates, Bowie moved to the Manish Boys, then the Lower Third. With a new manager and stage name, Bowie struggled to find success until he studied avant-garde theatre and mime, of all things. With these tools under his belt, he was finally able to create a hit with “Space Oddity” in 1969. His career was short but thunderously impactful to the world of psychedelic and progressive rock. Barrett wrote the majority of Pink Floyd’s debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. He was said to never play a song the same way twice, and his composition style influenced Pink Floyd long after he left the band. After departing Pink Floyd in 1968, the other members wrote the song “Shine on You Crazy Diamond” in tribute to him. As the lead singer of Led Zeppelin for twelve years, Robert Plant is one of the most famous frontmen in rock-and-roll history. He took influence from the American blues singers of the forties and fifties in his loud and expressive vocal style, full of high-pitched screams and emotional freedom. Led Zeppelin burst onto the music scene in 1968, and Plant’s distinctive vocals, combined with the powerful electric sound of guitarist Jimmy Page, made them legendary. Today, Plant is still performing at the age of 73, whether in his own acoustic band, Saving Grace, or with other solo artists such as bluegrass singer Alison Krauss. One of the most famous faces of 1960s British music was Eric Burdon, having served as the lead vocalist of not one but two successful bands. He sang for the Animals from 1962 to 1968, and the band was sometimes known as Eric Burdon and the Animals. After the band broke up, they went across the pond to sing for the Californian funk band War. A major part of the Animals’ signature sound was Burdon’s deep, resounding voice, which fit perfectly with their rhythm-and-blues style. Today, Burdon is still performing at the age of 81, making sporadic TV appearances and guesting with performers such as Bruce Springsteen. Sir Michael Philip Jagger, known professionally as Mick Jagger, made history as the lead vocalist and songwriter of the Rolling Stones. His singing-songwriting partnership with bandmate Keith Richards produced some of the greatest hits in rock history, such as “It Should Be You” and “As Tears Go By.” In 2003, Jagger was knighted for his accomplishments in music. He is still active today at the age of 78, with the Rolling Stones’ most recent international tour taking place in 2019. His massive impact on pop culture is still felt today, such as with modern pop-rock band Maroon 5 paying tribute to his showmanship with their song “Moves Like Jagger.” Female singers frequently topped the British charts in the sixties as well. Priscilla Maria Veronica White, known professionally as Cilla Black, was a major name in British beat music. Her cover of “Anyone Who Had a Heart” was the most successful single by a female artist in the United Kingdom in the decade. After flying high in the music industry, she moved on to become a beloved TV entertainer. Black passed away from a stroke in 2015. A statue of her was erected outside the Cavern Club in Liverpool, where a young Black got her start performing in front of audiences. These audiences included the Beatles, who became instant fans and supported her career. Singer-songwriter Roger Daltrey is responsible for some of the greatest smash hits of rock and roll. He joined the band the Detours in the late ’50s. He became the default leader, using his fists to keep order and ensure that things went the way he wanted. However tough his leadership might have been, when they changed their name to the Who in the 1960s, they had their first hit, “I Can’t Explain.” Eventually, his violent approach cost him his position in the band in 1965. He was only admitted back on “trial” with the promise of good behavior. He stuck to his word to change, knowing that being in the band meant everything to him. In a music scene dominated by variations of rock and pop, Springfield brought to bear a unique element of soul, balladry, and jazz. She achieved stardom with her standout soulful voice. In the sixties, she recorded hit songs like “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me” and “Son of a Preacher Man,” the latter of which was written for and eventually performed by Aretha Franklin. Her career continued to go strong for decades until her death from breast cancer in 1999. Sandra Ann Goodrich, known professionally as Sandie Shaw, was one of the biggest female names in British music in the sixties. She was loved by audiences for her charisma and modern style, known for her habit of performing barefoot. She achieved international success by recording hit singles like “Puppet on a String” and “Long Live Love” in several languages. Shaw also found success as the face of a fashion label bearing her name and as a TV entertainer. Today, Shaw has retired from the music industry. At the age of 75, she now works as a psychotherapist, as does her husband. Very few British singers can boast of longer careers in the music industry than Petula Clark. After gaining attention at age nine for singing for other children in air-raid shelters during the Blitz, Clark’s career started with a tour of performances for British soldiers. Now 89 years old, Clark was known in the sixties for her lively, energetic stage presence and her strong exuberant voice. Her hit singles included “Downtown,” “Don’t Sleep in the Subway,” and “I Couldn’t Live Without Your Love.” United States fans nicknamed her the First Lady of the British Invasion. Born Steven Demetre Georgiou in 1948, this singer later adopted the stage name Cat Stevens and the new legal name Yusuf Islam. His style is extremely versatile, and he has achieved great success in composing and performing folk-rock, pop music, and percussion-based Islamic music. He recorded several hit singles in the 1960s as an up-and-coming artist, such as “I Love My Dog,” “Matthew and Son,” and “I’m Gonna Get Me a Gun.” His music is heavily influenced by musical theater, rock and blues artists, and spiritualism. As of 2021, Stevens/Islam is still active in the industry. Alongside other notable bands like the Kinks, the Moody Blues, and of course, the Beatles, the Searchers were pioneers in the style of skiffle and British beat. In their early stardom, the band not only released several hit singles of their own but also extensively remade and covered songs by other hit groups. While the band went through several vocalists, such as Frank Allen, Mike Pender, and John McNally, Tony Jackson was the lead singer of some of their most famous numbers, such as their debut single “Sweets for My Sweet” and their cover of the Clovers’ “Love Potion No. 9.” Summing Up Our List Of Famous 1960s British Singers Britain has produced some great musicians, with its singers of the sixties having long careers that have impacted popular music in the decades since. The fifteen listed above are just the tip of the iceberg—British artists have been on the scene since the beginning, and there are so many more to discover! Have we left off a 1960s British singer that should be on this list? Let us know and we’ll add them! Written by Laura Macmillan Laura has over 12 years experience teaching both classical and jazz saxophone and clarinet. She now resides in California where she works as a session and live performer. Welcome to Hello Music Theory! I’m Dan and I run this website. Thanks for stopping by and if you have any questions get in touch!	11,030
JORDAN DIXON/On!: Becoming an integral part of the DC jazz scene since grabbing his diploma in 2016, Jordan is a hard swinging, hard bopping sax man that reveres tradition without being bound to it. Tasty stuff that's mostly original, he's a sharp, happening new voice that makes it clear he demands to be heard. Solid stuff from a new cat that's going to be here for a while. Well done. PABLO LANOUGUERE QUINTET/Eclectico: A South American bass ace that's called New York home since 2013 hasn't lost his world wide eclecticism as he puts forth the jazzy kind of debut that prides itself on knowing no boundaries. Swinging consistently, he leads his crew through a wondrous mix of sounds, styles and modes, often in the same tune, and you can have a grand time playing pick the peg for his influences and attitudes. The fun side of world jazz that is here for the party---in grand style. PROFESSOR LOUIE & THE CROMATIX/Songs of Inspiration: In which we find the real Woodstock All Stars gathering by the water as a Jewish kid from New York gets back to his roots, the ones that grew in his misspent youth entering the music business with a gospel group. Serving up a rootsy, rocking version of his fave gospel and inspirational tunes, you'd believe he's washed in the blood the way he leads the gang in raising the roof here. Much like the modern crop of white boys with the blues, the maestro isn't manqueing around here delivering the goods without pause. Killer stuff. ROMAIN COLLIN/Tiny Lights: The first part of a trilogy, this might be forwarding thinking electro jazz but it has new age spirit at it's core. A wildly careening opus, this is Collin's impressionistic look at the journey to the soul and all the unpredictable twists and turns it takes. Jon Weber hears the future percolating on his set and you'll be sure that he's really feeling it. Moldy figs won't get it but the kids are sure to find this alright. (XM/Revive) GEORGE FREEMAN/George the Bomb!: You don't give this guy a pass for being in his 90s. The guitar ace doesn't need a pass. Still standing after standing on the bandstand with Charlie Parker a few years ago, he's just as progressive now as he was then and he's still looking forward. With a contemporary sound behind him that doesn't need to bend the knee to anything, this set is an experiment that works and he's more than a legend as this set easily proves. Another well done outing from the master. MARY LANE/Travelin' Woman: When you've got guys like Bobby Rush and Buddy Guy pointing to Lane as part of the end of the line of the northern migration blues singers, you know the end is in sight and it's time to appreciate what we have while we have it. Making only her second record in the last 20 years, and of her career, she was always a staple live but never really had the chance to click on wax. This time around, Jim Tullio leads the charge of the ‘youngsters' rallying around her to send this set to the top of all the charts that have ‘blues' in their headings. Pure, old school rollicking west side stuff, even it's by way of Arkansas and Waukegan, it's down home all the way with no dust on it anywhere. Great stuff from someone whose time is overdue and has finally come. (Women of the Blues 1) CROWD COMPANY/Live at the Jazz Café: A sassy, soulful funky bunch, this crew makes saxy ladies like Candy Dulfer and Saskia Laroo positively sound like grande dames. Youthful Brits as opposed to Dutch treats, you can feel this blue eyed soul got it's pointers from Joss Stone as they expertly tear it up with an old school energy that feels like a Stax or Motown revue heating things up across the pond. Deliciously killer stuff that hit's the bulls eye. ALEX SILL/Experiences Real and Imaginary: As a fourth generation of Sills enters the family business, we find that this one is a smoking guitarist that had the good fortune to be mentored and pal around with some of the great of the last two generations. It rubbed off well. A nu generation fusion set that he took his time putting together, whether from rocker or jazzbo, lessons taught him in a most formidable crucible have been well learned and digested. This kid didn't need Dave Grusin hanging around to show him how to make music both commercial and meaty. It's flat out killer stuff throughout. April 1, 2019 Did you know we dig you linking to us? Go ahead. It's fun and easy. Want to make sure your link opens to your review? See those dates on the side of the page? Click on the one that relates to the page you want. That page's permalink will open in the browser window. Just cut and paste from there and we're off to the races. Tossing a doubloon, shilling or sheckle in the Paypal tip jar is not only very appreciated but helps keep this site happy and well fed.	4,974
Visa, MasterCard and several of the nation’s largest banks settled an antitrust suit with a group of seven million retailers. The suit, which dates back to 2005, accuses the card networks and banks of conspiring to fix interchange fees that businesses pay to process credit and debit cards. Many large plaintiffs oppose the current Visa and MasterCard settlement, and the fight looks far from over. Update: December 13, 2013 — According to the Wall Street Journal, a judge cleared the swipe-fee settlement. Earlier this month, Visa, MasterCard and several of the nation’s largest banks settled an antitrust suit with a group of seven million retailers. The suit, which dates back to 2005, accuses the card networks and banks of conspiring to fix interchange fees that businesses pay to process credit and debit cards. The settlement is seen as a victory by many fighting for interchange reform, but at least three plaintiffs in the case feel it doesn’t go far enough. What the Settlement Does The current structure of the settlement has several components including cash, a rate reduction, merchant surcharging, and interchange negotiation. Defendants in the case will pay $6 billion dollars in cash — a total that may be reduced if some plaintiffs choose not to participate in the settlement. Visa has agreed to pay $4.4 billion with MasterCard picking up $800 million. Temporary Rate Reduction Many of the plaintiffs in the case will receive an interchange rate reduction of ten basis points (0.10%) for a period of eight months: a reduction valued at another $1.2 billion dollars. Early reports indicate that the card networks will maintain a holding account for income generated by the 0.10% rate reduction so it is not intercepted by merchant service providers. Beginning in early 2013, the settlement will allow businesses to impose a surcharge on customers paying with a credit card. Currently, Visa and MasterCard do not allow businesses to pass credit card fees to customers. Group Negotiate of Interchange Under the settlement, businesses would be able to band together in an effort to negotiate lower interchange rates. Credit card processing fees are confusing, so it’s no surprise that a multi-billion dollar lawsuit on the subject is equally complex. The settlement still needs to be approved by a judge in the Eastern District U.S. Court of New York who can accept the terms, reject the terms, or ask the parties to renegotiate. Even in its current state the settlement leaves small businesses with a few important points to ponder. The income a business receives from the initial cash payout and additional temporary rate reduction is relative to the amount of interchange fees the business pays. Large retailers that pay the most in fees will collect the lion’s share of income generated from the cash payout and rate reduction. Surcharging is Allowed* Ten states, including California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, Oklahoma and Texas, each have a state law that prohibits surcharging credit and debit card transactions. State law trumps the ruling in the settlement, effectively negating the benefit for many businesses. Joining Forces for Lower Interchange This component of the settlement has the greatest promise for small businesses. Details are sketchy at this point, but allowing small businesses to leverage the power of numbers to decrease processing expense is a true victory in this case. Visa, MasterCard and issuing banks are in business to make money, and they don’t like losing it. If the settlement takes a large enough chunk out of the card brands’ bottom line, new fees may be implemented to make up the difference. Opponents of the Settlement Three of the largest plaintiffs in the case against Visa and MasterCard are also the most vocal opponents to the current settlement. The Association for Convenience & Fuel Retailing (NACS) led the way against the settlement, and was joined by big-box retailer Target on July 23rd. Walmart also chimed in against the settlement on July 24th. In an article on the NACS Web site Chairman Tom Robinson says, “Not only does the proposed settlement fail to introduce competition and transparency into a clearly broken market, it actually provides Visa and MasterCard with the tools to continue to shield swipe fees from market forces.” Target takes a similar stance in a statement on its own Web site that says, “Target believes the proposed interchange fee settlement is bad for both retailers and consumers. The proposed settlement would perpetuate a broken system, restrict retailers from any future legal action and offer no long-term relief for retailers or consumers.“ Ben Dwyer began his career in the processing industry in 2003 on the sales floor for a Connecticut‐based processor. As he learned more about the inner‐workings of the industry, rampant unethical practices, and lack of assistance available to businesses, he cut ties with his employer and started a blog where he could post accurate information about credit card processing. As the blog gained in popularity, Ben began directly assisting merchants in their search for a processor. Ben believes in empowering businesses by providing access to fair, competitive pricing, accurate information, and continued support. His dedication to transparency and education has made CardFellow a staunch small business advocate in the credit card processing industry. Please join the conversation Cancel reply Your email address will not be published. Δ from Tom Wilson, on August 29, 2013 Like Target and WalMart, we believe the proposed interchange fee settlement is bad for both retailers and consumers. The proposed settlement would perpetuate a broken system, restrict retailers from any future legal action and offer no long-term relief for retailers or consumers. Further, the proposed settlement would not structurally change the broken market or prohibit credit card networks from continually increasing hidden swipe fees, which already cost consumers tens of billions of dollars each year. What most consumers don’t understand is that when their credit card is used fraudulently, it’s the retailer, not the big banks that are left holding the bag… even though the ‘big banks’ provided an authorization code for that card to the retailer. Its time for the ‘too big to fail’ big banks to be held accountable. from Cheryl, on December 29, 2016 Reside in Washington state. I was charged 50 cents by a merchant for using my credit card. Is this legal? from Ellen, on December 30, 2016 Probably, though there are still some rules and regulations. https://www.cardfellow.com/blog/checkout-fees-charging-credit-card-fees-to-customers/ from Norma Doenecke, on January 2, 2018 I have just returned from a visit to my dentist, who is now charging a fee for use of a Visa card, in this case $11.00. Whatever happened to cash and checks not being accepted by merchants? Now it is credit cards. It doesn’t take long for “others” to use up your tax reduction does it? I just can’t believe that the credit cards who charge an annual fee can now have consumers pay again for all services with the merchants. Pretty soon we will not be able to shop at all.	7,381
The fact is that a lot of what we put in our bodies, we don’t know what it is that we’re really trying to do. We’re not always consciously or subconsciously aware of what we’re eating, what we’re drinking, what we’re doing, and how we’re feeling. But because we’re not conscious, we don’t know what that conscious or subconscious awareness is. This is one of the reasons why the internet has become such a huge part of human culture. We all have our own ways of thinking and acting that are in our own heads. But because our own thoughts and actions are not always consciously aware of what they are, we have to rely on the internet to help us sort out what they are and where they are coming from. When it comes to our own thoughts and actions, we have to figure out who or what we are in our heads. This is why the internet has helped so many people. We now have so many tools to help us figure out our own “thoughts”. The most recent iteration of the internet has been titled “Optimization.” By implementing the same mindset in the world of a game, you make it possible for people to think, read, and act more precisely. You can also make it easier for people to “see” their own thoughts. There is a lot of talk about optimization in the gaming industry. The more you focus on optimization, the easier it becomes to optimize your own game, because it is becoming easier to think about what you don’t want to see on your own screen. You might have an enemy who sees your game as a hindrance, and you can try to hide it from them. The problem is you can only hide it for so long before they find out. And once you start hiding it, you can see how much fun it is to play a game that is constantly changing. I think the problem is that we have become so used to thinking and acting in a certain way that it can be easy for our minds to get stuck in the way they are. One way to fix this is to think of the game in terms of its goals. If you want to hide your game from your enemy, you want to think of your game in terms of the goals that you want it to achieve. For instance, if you want your enemy to see your game only as a hindrance, you want to think of your game as a tool for them to be less of a hindrance. It’s not about the goals you want it to achieve, it is about the goals you want it to stay out of the way. You want it to be the most difficult game you can play, and it’s the right way to go, not the wrong way. The same thing applies to optimizing your game for your own sake. The goal is to make your game the easiest that you can play. You want to make it the fastest, and most effective, so that you can be the fastest and most effective, and the most challenging. The best way to do that is to make it as fun as you possibly can. If there is a goal you want to achieve with the game, be sure to include it. Sometimes there might be a goal for your game that is a bigger challenge than the game itself. You might want to try to make your game as easy as possible to play, or to make it the most challenging game you can make. Radhe Gupta is an Indian business blogger. He believes that Content and Social Media Marketing are the strongest forms of marketing nowadays. Radhe also tries different gadgets every now and then to give their reviews online. You can connect with him...	3,347
The Most Common parents talking lost Debate Isn't as Black and White as You Might Think - Nadine Shaabana Photography Health Terms and Conditions The Most Common parents talking lost Debate Isn’t as Black and White as You Might Think What if we could talk to our children about their feelings, fears, and challenges in a way that is not condescending? What if we could speak to these kids in a language that is not judgmental? This is the thought that got me thinking about these questions, but more importantly, how to be a better parent when talking to your kids. How you talk to your child is a huge topic in parenting circles and it’s even more complicated when you’re a parent. Not only do you have to communicate with them about things that could affect them, but you also have to decide what kind of parent you want to be. My parents always said the best way to be a good parent was to get on with your life and do what you do best, which was hanging out with friends. I think this is true for most parents. I think the key to being a good parent is to be on your own terms. If it’s a choice between trying to be a good parent and being a good person, I think being a good parent is better than being a bad parent. The key to being a good person is to be a good person. It doesn’t matter how many times you’re bullied for who you are, or how badly you’d like to be liked, if you are a nice person. As for being a good parent, i think it is a choice. If you are a good person, it will be easy to do, and if you are a good parent, it will be easy to love. I think being good is more important than being a nice person. You should always think about what you want to do and how you want to do it. I think that the parents in Lost can be good parents. Theres a good reason why they are there. They gave us their love and support. They were there for us and we were in their home. Lost’s parents, the Vipers, were the most likable characters in this series since Jack and Sawyer. They have a lot of love for their children. They are great parents, but not because they are good parents. I’m going to do my best to tell you how to be a good parent in Lost. If you are not a parent, then I’m not telling you how to be one. Just be a good parent, be supportive, and be nice to all your kids. Even if you have a few (or many) kids, you will be a much better parent than a single parent. The Vipers are the parents of the Losties. Their kids are also in the series. So if you have kids and you like the Vipers so much, then you should be a fan of the Losties. For all the years I have been playing Lost, I have never had a parent that was so supportive of me. I have had a couple of parents that I knew were not my parents, but Im sure if I asked them how they were, they would just say they were your parents. They were great parents. Lost is a classic series with a classic cast of characters, and I don’t think I would have ever considered having a child or having a parent or sibling that I would not be happy if they lost me in the end.	3,228
Social distancing, in general, is not hard for me. I’m an only child AND an introvert AND a Minnesotan, which means I’m a social distancing triple-threat. Still, this is different. We all know it –even those of us spewing nonsense about the current state of the economy causing more pain than the disease itself. Give me a break. I won’t even go into why people matter more than money –you either get that or you don’t. This is a lonely time, even for a natural introvert like me. I saw my dear friend Emily at the grocery store last week and we air-hugged from 10 feet away. I got a little teary, to tell you the truth, and I don’t think she would mind my telling you that she did, too. Seeing Emily in person felt so good, so important, that I drove around to some of my other friends’ houses after that, texting that I was parked in their driveway or on the street and could they come to the door and wave for a minute? It makes a difference, seeing people’s faces in real time and space – I’ll remember that, even after all of this is over. My friend Angie was coming home just as I pulled up in her driveway and called me. “What are you doing in my driveway?” she asked. “I just wanted to see if you could come out to your sidewalk and talk live for a minute,” I said. If she heard my voice shake, she didn’t let on. “I’m parked on the street. Park across from me and we’ll talk from our cars,” she suggested. So we did, exchanging our typical what-fresh-bullshit-is-this faces and diving down into the center of things the way we like to do, missing only our usual coffee and pastries (we’ll get that right next time). We rolled up our windows when people passed between us on foot—Angie is thoughtful like that—and it made a difference to be there with her, even across the street. If you happen to be looking for a real way to feel more connected, I recommend it. Keep at least six feet of distance between you, please, and wear a mask. I tend to travel dark roads in my mind at times like this. Dreading the worst feels like a kind of psychological training, but of course it isn’t; how could anyone ever prepare for the right situations? My friend Rachael knows someone who said we’re all in the same boat, but we’re weathering different storms. That feels true to me. I don’t know what your storm is like, but mine is a windstorm, stirring up every old thing in my life that I thought was settled and still. Old grief, anger, fears, even old grudges and injuries I believed put to rest are spinning through the air towards me–I’m aware of every crack in the door. Some days I watch myself from a kind of distance, noticing that I am acting in much the same way I did when my mom and dad were each dying from cancer: I cook and bake a lot, I wrap myself in blankets and cry in the basement, I rearrange things in my house, and I listen for the phone. It’s a jarring time, the familiar experience of grief woven in with the strange new rituals of a pandemic. I feel these days like I sometimes do walking the halls of my son’s high school, which has been elaborately renovated since I went there myself 30 years ago. I can travel down one of the new hallways, not knowing exactly where I am, and then suddenly I’m in the old auditorium where I took the ACT and voted for Homecoming Court, a place so frozen in time that I half expect my dad, who was vice-principal back then, to step up to the microphone and tell everyone to settle down. I am afraid –deeply afraid—of losing another person who is important to me, and I know that’s likely, given the staggering number of people expected to die from this virus. I just don’t know who it’s going to be or when. It’s hard to calm down and then I worry about myself: what if I had a heart attack or stroke, worrying about coronavirus? I don’t want my kids to lose their mom this young. I tend to travel dark roads in my mind at times like this. Dreading the worst feels like a kind of psychological training, but of course it isn’t; how could anyone ever prepare for the right situations? Still, experience has taught me how to make happiness bloom in the midst of an uncertain time. I spent dozens of happy hours listening to all seven Harry Potter books on Audible, for example, and I have already tried 30 new recipes this year. I opened all the windows last weekend to rinse the house with sweet spring air and made my bed slowly while it worked its magic. We went north instead of south for Spring Break last month, and watched for cracks in the ice on Lake Hubert. We slept late and watched trash tv; that was lovely, even if we couldn’t go to the beach. There’s a new season of Top Chef on these days, gorgeous Instagram concerts by Hozier or the cast of Hamilton, and Trevor Noah to make me laugh at even the scariest parts of this. Beauty and comfort are out there and in here. We’re okay so far, even though my husband works at a hospital. We’re okay, even in our loneliness or helplessness. We are okay. Keep saying it, my friends, until it feels true. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Click to print (Opens in new window) May 1, 2018 Marta Drew10 Comments Three times a year — once in January, once in February, and once in April– a sympathetic and broad-minded crowd gathers in the basement of Morningside Church in Edina for a night of stories and songs on a particular theme. The event is free (donations to the church are always appreciated but not required) and always both life-and-spirit-affirming. Last night, I did my third MADark reading. I’m always honored to be included, but last night felt particularly special somehow. Anyway, here is the essay I read, a version of “Credo” I edited for last night’s theme: Growing Pains. First and most of all, I’m for love –the kind you need and want from the people who give it best. I stand for Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. I am against mocking people for believing in God and I am against mocking people for not believing in God. I believe in deep quiet, loons, and swimming with horses, which I tried once at Camp Lake Hubert the summer I was 15– it felt like flying. I believe in an Afterlife … not harps and fluffy white clouds so much as a clarity, an understanding, a lifting of all the veils that make us think our stubborn, self-destructive thoughts. I am for a Heaven that reconciles my vision and God’s, a big explanation, God saying “this is why and this is why and this is why.” I’m for Grandma Betty, who kept rosaries in her desk and fed me soft, pillowy doughnuts rolled in sugar on Sunday mornings after Mass. I’m for the tiny, Technicolor strawberries she grew in her garden, which I picked and brought to my dad and grandpa in a metal pail, one by one. I am for Grandpa Skluzacek, whose pickup truck smelled of wood shavings, tobacco, and the fish he caught alone in secret lakes and I am for Grandpa Thacher, who took me to get stitches on my chin when I was 4 and told everyone how brave I was when I wasn’t. I am pro-cabin, pro-camp, pro-canoe. I’m pro-Constance, who meets me at the back fence now and then to exchange lemons, eggs, sour cherries, solidarity. I’m for the teary girl I saw at the elementary school last October, willing herself down the hall. I was her once. I am pro-aloneness, anti-loneliness. I am in favor of the simple, peaceful Lonsdale cemetery where my dad and other members of my family are buried, but against all the reasons it’s full. I am in favor of tough old ladies and soft old men and I am all in for Minnesota. I believe in flannel sheets, down comforters with the windows cracked, the romance of a December wedding. I would relive mine a thousand times if I could … I probably have. Yes to my dad and stepmom, who honored me by dying when I was right there in the room and yes to my mom and stepdad, who spared me that sorrow. No to a crystal ball, though I badly want one. No because I would use it irresponsibly. I swear by birthday cake for breakfast and I swear by my mom, who taught herself the Club Med line dance with a tape she bought at the gift shop and practiced in our living room until it was perfect. I am passionately pro-nerd. No to mealy apples, no to fake vanilla, and no to both phone and in-person solicitation. Yes to bread, GramBea’s rice pudding, lake swimming, being up late at night. Yes to wilderness and protecting it. I believe in the peonies my dad grew and brought to my house in vases each spring; the Eames chair where I sat in his lap when I was five, watching Little House on the Prairie on Monday nights; I believe in the bronze stars and purple heart he brought back from Viet Nam. I believe in anyone brave enough and wise enough to choose tenderness. I’m for the brilliant nurse who helped me bathe my toddler at Children’s Hospital when she had wires glued to her scalp and I’m for the brilliant neurosurgeon who performed her brain surgery at Mayo when she was three years old. I’m against staying in the hospital with your child alone – don’t do it. I am for raising yourself as you raise your kids, I am for Dad, who worked at my high school and would make a convincing camel face for anyone who asked and I am for Mom, who called me Lamby and Lovebug right up until she died when I was 41. Yes to GramBea playing piano out on her four-season porch as I was coming in from school, yes to the beautiful connection between my children, which is what I have always hoped for. Yes to the way my dad and his sister would laugh together in a kind of harmony and yes to letting your kids see you cry. No to anyone who makes you feel like you’re crazy for feeling too much. Yes to reminding people they are not alone – including myself. Yes to growing up together, to people who are afraid but keep trying anyway. Yes to you, my friends from long ago and far away and yes to you, my friends from always. Yes to everyone who is here now and yes to those who couldn’t stick around for one reason or another. I stand for you. I stand for me. I am for you and me. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Click to print (Opens in new window) February 12, 2018 February 11, 2018 Marta DrewLeave a comment Thoughts, rest your wings. Here is a hollow of silence, a nest of stillness, in which to hatch your dreams. Are you a winter person? I don’t know if I would say that about myself, though winter is an important time for me. I repair my wells in January and February: mercy, resolve, insight, reverence. I like to hide out this time of year, to deeply rest. Once the kids are in school, I curl up on the wood floor in front of my fireplace and read poems or close my eyes. Sometimes I stare out at the park. There is something reassuring about seeing the world in black and white when I’m grieving or lonely, like Nature feels it with me. I imagine that deep inside the frozen trees are their summer selves, recovering from storms, sorting out everything they’ve witnessed. Anyway, that’s what I do this time of year. That’s what winter is for. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Click to print (Opens in new window) February 5, 2018 February 4, 2018 Marta Drew17 Comments I’m for love –the kind you need and want from the people who give it best. I’m for Wonder Woman and wonder women, Dreamers and underdogs. I am against scapegoating, nepotism, and recklessness. I stand for democracy, honesty, and integrity. I believe in voting for presidential candidates who have studied the United States Constitution. I am pro-Obama, both Barack and Michelle. I am firmly pro-camp-song, pro-knitting, and pro-cookbook. I am for gluten, butter, and sugar and I am against discussing the amount of carbs, fat, or evil in food before eating it, especially if someone else made it. I am staunchly pro-understanding, pro-empathy, and pro-humanity. I believe in birthday cake for breakfast and I believe in mothers who taught themselves French with language tapes and sounded exactly like Julia Child when they practiced. I am pro-nerd, anti-glitter. I stand for deep quiet, loons, and swimming with horses, which I tried once and which felt like flying. I believe in an Afterlife … not harps and fluffy white clouds so much as a clarity, an understanding, a lifting of all the veils that make us think our stubborn, self-destructive thoughts. I am for a Heaven that’s about reconciliation between our vision and God’s, a big explanation, God saying “this is why and this is why and this is why.” I’m for God – believing in Him and trusting Him, even when I don’t understand …especially then. I am against racism, narrow thinking, and sanctimonious bullshit. I am for including my friends in my family, forgiveness (though I’m not good at it yet), compassion, and generosity. I am for staying in touch. I will always be for connection, devotion, and affection. I am anti-bully, anti-narcissist, anti-terrorist, anti-gun. I am passionately anti-Trump. I stand against cynicism and against women selling each other out. I am for Hillary and I always will be – she would have been fantastic. I am pro-men, anti-mansplaining, manspreading, manhandling, and mancolds. I am pro-mama, pro-family, and pro-choice. I believe in music, art, and teaching lots of both in schools. I am for Harry Potter. I’m for the friends who fought with him and I’m for Snape, who didn’t but still fought for him. I am for the inimitable Alan Rickman, gone too soon. I am for heroes who stand up for the vulnerable and I am for all of us encouraging each other to be our full, best selves. I am anti-liar, anti-coward, anti-hypocrite. I am against wanting to be cool when you’re a grown-ass adult, against anyone who’s mean to waiters, and against political whores (I’m looking at you, Paul Ryan). No to mealy apples, no to fake vanilla, and no to gratuitous violence. No to entertaining yourself by watching videos of people –especially children—getting hurt. No to humor that’s designed to humiliate, no to both phone and in-person soliciting. Yes to romance, lake swimming, being up late at night. Yes to wilderness and protecting it. Yes to fat, sweet blackberries on top of a vanilla cheesecake that’s more custardy than cakey. Yes to Rose Levy Beranbaum, who taught me how to make one. I am pro-cabin, pro-campfire, pro-canoe, and all about Camp Lincoln and Camp Lake Hubert. I am against mocking people for believing in God and I am against mocking people for not believing in God. I am particularly pro-waffle but not necessarily anti-pancake. I am pro-late-night, pro-early-morning, pro-privacy. I am both pro-Western and pro-Eastern medicine. I am for the old crabapple tree behind my grandma and Grandpa’s house on Cooper Avenue and I am especially for the rosy pink, tart applesauce GramBea made with its fruit. I will never be able to recreate it, but I’m still for it. I am for the roses, hostas, and peonies my dad grew – he knew all their names—and I am for Simon Pearce glass, which is both beautiful and practical. I am for Simon Pearce himself, whom I met a couple of years ago. He was lovely, just as I expected him to be. I am for Chef Thomas Keller, the poet Mary Oliver, Meryl Streep, Leslie Odom, Jr, Patty Griffin, and all others who devote themselves to beauty and understanding the human experience. I am anti-mid-winter, when everything is the same color and looks like the inside of an ashtray. I am also against overhead lighting and music that doesn’t match the occasion or location. I am in favor of the simple, peaceful Lonsdale graveyard where my dad and many other members of my family are buried, but against all the reasons it’s full. I am in favor of tough old ladies and soft old men and I am all in for Minnesota. I am for flannel sheets and down comforters with the windows cracked. I believe in silent understanding and I believe in singing together – my Uncle Will taught me how important that is, how healing it can be. I believe in daydreams, naps, nostalgia, and Expressive Math. I don’t believe in making people guess how I’m feeling. I am pro-humility, pro-unity. I am pro-aloneness, anti-loneliness. I am pro-Brussels-sprout, anti-beet. I am pro-flower and pro-flour. I am for GramBea’s rice pudding (no eggs) and I am for Sue Burritt’s World-Famous Chocolate Cake, which may or may not actually be world-famous, but should be. I am anti-canned-cranberries – you won’t change my mind about that. I am for giving teachers and administrators the benefit of the doubt, unless you’re ready to stand up and take on the job yourself (trust me, you’re not). I am against hyper-competitiveness and unreasonable standards for kids and I am guilty of both, though I’m working on it. I am pro-public-schools, pro-public-libraries, and pro-public-lands. I am for dads who make very convincing camel faces and I am for moms who call you Lamby and Lovebug right up until they die. I am pro-lilac, rosemary, lavender, and peony. I cannot support cooking vegetables until they’re gray, nor can I support desserts that don’t taste as good as they look. I believe in putting a dash of almond extract in my sugar cookies and I believe in bourbon. No beer for me, thank you. Yes to GramBea playing piano out on her four-season porch as I was coming in from school, yes to the people who camped out with me at the hospice house when my mom was dying, yes to the beautiful connection between my children, which is what I have always hoped for. Yes to the way my dad and his sister would laugh together in a kind of harmony and yes to letting your kids see you cry. No to people who make you feel like you’re crazy for feeling too much. No to Mitch McConnell, Devin Nunes, and Fox News. Shame on all of them. Yes to reminding people they are not alone – including myself. Yes to friendship and shared history, to people who are afraid but keep trying anyway. Yes to women reclaiming their time and yes to men who really listen. Yes to singing in the hospital and yes to therapy animals because really, what other kind is there? Yes to you, my friends from long ago and far away and yes to you, my friends from always. Yes to everyone who is here now and yes to those who couldn’t stick around for one reason or another. I stand for you. I stand for me. I am for you and me. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Click to print (Opens in new window) January 29, 2018 January 28, 2018 Marta Drew14 Comments I’m 5 and 1/2, so I can walk to Betsy’s by myself. Two blocks on 55th, Wooddale to Oaklawn, then take a left. I know right away if he’s there –a big black dog whose people don’t keep him on a leash. The only other dogs I’ve met up until now are Betsy’s Scotties, so I don’t know breeds. If I had to guess? Werewolf. Maybe bear. My uncaring mother is drinking Tab and doing a crossword back at the house. She’s off the hook: it’s 1978. Driving your almost-6-year-old three blocks so she doesn’t have to experience any discomfort or anxiety won’t be in fashion for another 20 years. Sometimes the dog is outside, sometimes he isn’t. Not knowing is the worst part. Am I safe today? Will he watch me from the driveway, too stuffed with another neighborhood child to bother with me? Will he chase me all the way to 54th Street, which I’m not allowed to cross until Mrs. Burritt is supervising? I never know. Every trip is a hero’s journey. But within a few years, the dog is the least of my problems. Mean-spirited kids love to see me cry. I flip out of my innertube one summer into the Apple River, get caught under the rapids, and glimpse Death skulking along the banks. Sometimes my dad doesn’t answer the phone and I ride my bike to his house from my mom’s to make sure he is not lying twisted at the foot of the stairs. For a long time, I have a permanent stomachache. Fear is so familiar, such a lifelong companion of mine, I wonder if I would recognize myself without it. It’s a flame I carry from place to place, from year to year. I protect that flame, I nurture it. I don’t want to be caught unprepared. There are no rules in this life …nothing I can perceive to govern us. We the People cannot govern us; God and Jesus, as good as They are, cannot govern us. We are ungovernable as long as we are this afraid. We can’t count on safety and we’re obsessed with it. Take your little peanut out of his NASA-grade carseat, wrap him in layers to maintain the proper body temperature, set him so gently in the grocery cart at Whole Foods with a cover over the handle so he doesn’t catch something from the other organic babies. Feed him quinoa, veggies from your CSA, no gluten or sugar. He can still get cancer, we all know it. As long as I keep loving people –and I insist– there will always be more loss. I have spent nights with my child at hospitals, I have sent her into brain surgery. How did I do that, being who I am? I remember the drive down to Mayo in the early-morning darkness. The ancient trees, who have seen everything, stood sentinel along the highway. The IV insertion was the usual hell with a toddler –tiny veins, deep breaths. When the anesthesiologist carried our little daughter out of the nurses’ station, my husband and I sat on vinyl chairs behind a thin curtain and cried like children. Ten hours later, the surgeon crossed the waiting room with miraculous news: our baby’s tumor had peeled neatly away from the healthy part of her brain like an orange. I could show you exactly where I was standing, back by the vending machines, when I called my mom, weeping with relief, to give her the news. So much relief … and still so much fear, because I knew: this pain would not immunize me. And it didn’t, or at least not for long. My mother, the one I called first after my daughter’s surgery, my invincible parent, developed a brain tumor too and hers killed her. Three years later, my dad succumbed to pancreatic cancer. As long as I keep loving people –and I insist — there will always be more loss. It’s fair to be afraid, there’s plenty of good reason. I’m not afraid of dogs anymore, but other fears have replaced them: scoundrels in Washington, the tenuousness of human relationships, the fragility and the power contained in a single cell. I am afraid of political fault lines through families and old friendships, my penchant for dark thinking, attack on all fronts. I am afraid of losing my sight or having a heart attack or getting cancer when I have a lot of parenting left to do. I am afraid my voice isn’t as strong and clear as I would like it to be, that I give in where I should fight and fight where I should give in. This is not an exhaustive list. It’s so tempting, isn’t it, to dissolve into this anxiety, to turn back and run home. It’s tempting to crouch on your side of the wall, arranging and engineering the trivial while ignoring the essential: there has never been and never will be an assurance of safety. I want us all to radically accept that so we can take reasonable measures and let the rest go. So we can be there for each other, all of us humans. Our connection has always been our best protection. At some point, there is so much to be afraid of that there is nothing to be afraid of and then you can go anywhere you want, ready or not. The flame I have carried from year to year, place to place, which I believed was fear, isn’t fear. Fear is the not knowing, the threat, the separation. Fear is the protections I have always counted on now ebbing away. The flame …is something else. Resilience? Defiance? I don’t know, but I’m still here. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Click to print (Opens in new window) January 22, 2018 January 22, 2018 Marta Drew10 Comments A confession: I have always believed I have to be a star. To be clear, I don’t mean I am destined to be a star; just that I am supposed to be one. Stardom feels like a responsibility, a debt I owe my parents, teachers, classmates, and anyone else who sees me as a writer who hasn’t done anything legitimate with her talent yet. It’s also a kind of unspoken, unwritten contract I entered into with my attorney mother when I decided to stay home with my kids instead of pursuing a Career-with-a-Capital-C: She would allow me to choose this path, which she did not respect because she believed it made me dependent on my husband and because she considered it beneath the dignity of intelligent, modern women. In return, I would keep writing while I changed diapers and did the laundry and kept fevers down and made dinner. I would keep practicing and eventually, when my children were studying at their respectable colleges, looking gorgeous and being unimaginably charming (the least I could do if I wasn’t going to accomplish anything else in the years they were home with me), I would emerge from my drab domestic chrysalis in a shimmering caftan, expensive bifocals dangling on a golden chain around my neck, and rocket to the top of every list that mattered to her. At some point, I must have agreed to this, I must have signed that contract. It might have been when I was 20, the day I told my mother I wanted to stay home with babies and bake lovely cakes and muffins and make quilts. We were in her kitchen and she gripped the counter, leaning forward with her shoulders up around her jaw, which couldn’t find the right position. “Okaaaaaayyyy,” she half-sang, half muttered to her gorgeous fingernails, which she still manicured herself each Sunday night while she watched Masterpiece Theater. She couldn’t relate to this. Don’t be too hard on her. I was two and she was 35 when she started law school in 1974. There were few other women in her class and even fewer with young children. She had been a 5th-grade teacher for 11 years before having me and spent another year or so afterwards earning a Master’s degree in Pyschology from the University of Minnesota. She used to tell me that Watergate saved her from the punishing boredom of being home with a newborn. What can I say? It’s a good thing she didn’t want to write greeting cards. She was a Grinnell graduate, a Wyonegonic camp counselor, and an Edina teacher. She played flute and sang beautifully, never met a kid she couldn’t somehow charm and discipline at the same time, and had an organizational system for everything. She was the first female partner at her enormous downtown law firm, which she eventually left to start her own practice. She wore power suits with shoulder pads, mentored young lawyers, held season tickets to the Guthrie Theater and the Minnesota Orchestra. She did the Sunday crossword and dabbled in Sudoku, sat on hospital credentialing boards, and knew the Minneapolis skyway system like the back of her hand. She was already the star she wanted me to be. I am so proud of her. I have never aspired to what my mom dreamed for me, but I love what she dreamed for herself and reached for and achieved. I still brag about her all the time, but she’s gone now and the contract is null and void. I’m off the hook, I don’t have to succeed her way, so what next? What am I going to dream for myself? I do want to write and publish a book in my lifetime, though I don’t know what kind. It doesn’t really matter as long as it’s useful to anyone who reads it. I want it to be the kind of book someone can melt into and maybe hide out in for a while. I don’t need critical acclaim or celebrity …or at least I’m trying not to need those things, which feel like part of the old contract. Staying at home with my babies was a good decision for me, it turns out … not because kids always need their mothers at home –you will never hear this attorney’s daughter say something that reductive—but because I love being at home. My work is a natural extension of who I am. I have tweaked the original vision: I expanded my baking repertoire beyond the original cakes and muffins and replaced the quilt-making, which involves too much geometry for me, with knitting, which is a better waiting room skill. I am living the life I dreamed for myself, just like my mom did. Of course there are mistakes and detours and whatnot, but I love what I do and I’m proud of my work. Isn’t that dignified? Isn’t that intelligent? Isn’t that modern, even if my name isn’t on a paycheck? (It should be). I think my mom saw my decision to be a hausfrau as a kind of betrayal, a refusal to acknowledge what she had to go through to achieve what she did in the ’70s and ’80s, but I absolutely acknowledge that and I am so grateful. Watching her bravely go to work when the “respectable mothers” were at home is precisely what has given me the courage to stay home when the “respectable women” go to work. The point of our striving for equality should never be what kind of work we do, the point should be fighting for the choice and granting each other the space, the respect to make that choice, even if we don’t understand it. I will keep one part of the original contract: I will keep writing, though I write for my own reasons now. I write to reassure, to be a voice in the dark, not for approval or recognition. I will send these letters or essays or whatever they are out to You in hopes that they are useful, maybe a place to rest for a minute and let yourself off the hook. And I will send them out to my brilliant, brave, inspiring mother, gone for almost four years now, in hopes that these reflections reach her through increasing time and space, through the darkness and silence that always seems to exist between two stars. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Click to print (Opens in new window) January 15, 2018 January 14, 2018 Marta Drew7 Comments Have you ever felt stuck between two years? I do. The problem is this: 2017 was so scary and heartbreaking, from start to finish, that I think I’m afraid to enter 2018. Despite the fresh sting of my dad’s absence, I had my loveliest holidays in a long time at the end of 2017. I made dinner with my step-sister Kerry for our family like we used to do at our parents’ house years ago and it was such a beautiful party. There were candles and fresh flowers, enough snow for a light cover, delicious food and easy conversation. I miss that night already –I wanted it to last a lot longer. When dinner was over and we were all sitting at the long table, a vision flashed through my mind of us all in an old wooden boat, floating through a stormless channel between What Was and What Will Be. I felt less afraid for a while but as we crept closer to school starting up again, my fear returned. I don’t typically get paralyzed and technically, I’m still doing what I need to do: I go to the grocery store, show up where people are expecting me, water the plants, feed everyone. Yet there’s a strange sense of life happening to me these days. Ordinarily, I make choices –good or bad– and my life, like water, finds its path around them. Since my dad died, I feel like the path is fixed and my choices have to find their way around the inevitability of loss and grief. When my dad got sick two years after my mom died, I had a good cry, rolled up my sleeves, and got to work. We talked every day on the phone about what he might be able to eat, how much weight he was losing. Sometimes he would tell me about conversations he had had with Father Pirkl, his beloved priest from church, about forgiveness and whether God would consider his choosing an easier chemo regimen a kind of despair (NO). Once in a while, we mistakenly drifted into politics and had to spend a day or two licking our wounds. It was never more than that … we knew we didn’t have that kind of time. I spent the first half of last year in waiting rooms, exam rooms, infusion rooms. Maybe because I’m an only child, maybe because I spent my childhood and adolescence moving back and forth between my divorced parents’ houses, my hobbies are portable. I would knit or write while my dad retreated into his own thoughts or slept in his chair. Last January, when he was in so much pain that it made him cry, I cried with him. I participated in the last months of his life. I walked him all the way through to the end and I never shrank from any of it. I was in the room when he died, an honor both he and Linda, the love of his life, gave me and a sorrow both my mom and Steve, the love of hers, spared me. I am so grateful to all four of them for the way they departed, for sharing their most vulnerable selves with me. I had four anchors when I got married 18 years ago. One by one, they’ve been pulled and now here I am, trying to start my first year without any of them. It’s so strange, not being anyone’s daughter. I read this poem aloud at my dad’s burial in the Lonsdale cemetery: Look, the trees are turning their own bodies into pillars of light, are giving off the rich and fulfillment, of cattails are bursting and floating away over of the ponds, and every pond, no matter what its name is, is nameless now. I have ever learned in my lifetime and the black river of loss whose other side is salvation, whose meaning none of us will ever know. you must be able to do three things: to love what is mortal; to hold it against your bones knowing and, when the time comes to let it go, to let it go. So that’s the work ahead of me this year and beyond – making the choice to love fully, despite the fixed path, the black river of loss. My original anchors are gone, yes, but my boat is filled with people I can love right now. It is a new year and we mortals are leaving the quiet channel together, letting go, choosing What Will Be. Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Click to print (Opens in new window) January 8, 2018 January 8, 2018 Marta Drew3 Comments You probably never did this, but when I was a little girl, I sucked my thumb. Long after other kids had quit, I was still doing it. Losing patience, my mom tried painting my thumbs with some gross-tasting liquid to make me stop. Instead, I sucked my poisoned thumbs and wept with indignation. She put me on incentive programs, offered me prizes, rolled her eyes, issued dire warnings about other kids not wanting to be friends with me, but it was all in vain. I was an only child and prone to tears – I wasn’t about to surrender my only reliable source of comfort for a Barbie doll or some vague threat of social isolation. So my mother told me about the Thumbsucking Witch. The Thumbsucking Witch was supposed to be nice, but every child knows there’s no such thing as a nice witch. Witches are mean, fairies are nice. Elementary stuff, but Mom insisted the Thumbsucking Witch was good-natured. When she caught me sucking my thumb, she would give me a friendly little pinch and I would remember to stop. A witch who pinched me just at the moment I had achieved a temporary and uneasy peace? This was my mother’s idea of “good-natured” and “friendly?” What, then, qualified as evil? These were the kinds of questions that kept me sucking my thumb. According to my mother, I couldn’t see the Thumbsucking Witch but she could see me. Was she invisible or just hiding in the room somewhere? Could she see me when I was in the bathroom? The closet? Was anywhere safe? Was she ever NOT watching me? I believe both the Cold War and my mother’s fascination with James Bond spy movies provide relevant context for my surveillance paranoia. I believed in the Thumbsucking Witch. I didn’t believe she was nice – I was no Pollyanna—but I believed she existed and followed me everywhere, waiting for me to screw up so she could punish me. This, by the way, is a pretty typical GenX origin story. Anyway, I met her. I met the Thumbsucking Witch late one night when I couldn’t sleep. She poked her head and torso through my window, wearing standard-issue pointy black hat and billowing black robes, though no wand — curious. Nothing about her was friendly. She stayed for about half an hour, shaming and reprimanding me for my disgusting, babyish habit. Again and again I would bring my thumb to my lips and then force it back down under the covers, delirious with fear and longing. When the witch flew away, having first extracted my trembling promise to quit sucking my thumb and threatening to return if I didn’t, I climbed down from my playhouse bed and ran to my parents’ room. I had been right the whole time; the Thumbsucking Witch was not nice. How dare my mother lie to me about something so fundamental? How dare she? Mom was unimpressed with my hysterics. “Marta, the Thumbsucking Witch isn’t real. I made her up so you would stop sucking your thumb. You must have just had a bad dream.” I would have none of it. “She was in my window, she was MEAN and she scared me.” I can only imagine what this scene must have been like for my mother, who had a Master’s degree in psychology and had just graduated from law school. How to counsel such an irrational client? My mother was not the type to indulge drama and sent me back to bed, bawling I’m sure, afraid to suck my thumb and yet needing it to calm down. I wanted to believe that my mother was telling the truth, that the Thumbsucking Witch was just a character she had made up to get me to quit a bad habit — it made sense — but I had seen the Thumbsucking Witch. I had heard her. I knew she had visited my room and frightened me. Didn’t I? How is a five-year-old supposed to reconcile the rational truth with her perceived experience? How is a 45-year-old supposed to do that? So odd, the things that cross your mind as you listen to the news. I hope you’re well and happy, ready for whatever comes next. I, for one, am wishing for a dull, quiet year, but it doesn’t look like we’re going to get one. Never mind … we have each other. In love and solidarity, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Click to print (Opens in new window) Not out of Sorrow, but in Wonder December 18, 2017 December 17, 2017 Marta Drew8 Comments I have always thought of myself as someone who can handle change. My house never looks exactly the same from season to season, I (mostly) took the end of “Downton Abbey” in stride, and I have learned to let people go when they want to go. I ordered myself a 4-pack of reading glasses when I turned 45 and wear them without complaint. It’s all part of life, I know. My son is as tall as I am … okay. My grandma and grandpa’s lovely old house was torn down and replaced … I can accept that. Grandma Betty is gone and I may never be able to accurately recreate her beautiful kolachkes … sigh … but I’ll allow it. Change is familiar enough, and usually manageable; the problem lately is its volume and speed. Have you ever played Tetris? It’s a video game I used to be obsessed with. Different-shaped blocks fall from the top of your screen and you have to fit them together to form solid rows. When you make a row, it disappears. If you let the pieces pile up to the top, you lose and the longer you play, the faster the pieces fall. The faster they fall, the harder it gets to fit them together. Do you ever feel like that? Like the older you get, the harder it is to fit all the pieces of your life together quickly enough that they don’t pile up on you? I feel like that. Also, the falling pieces are odd shapes these days: my dad’s old Christmas tree with the bubble lights and the wooden Christopher Robin ornament; the upright piano my mom used to play while she sang to me; my grandpa’s red Ford F150, which he would drive three blocks to church just to show off; the dining table where my mom hosted decades of Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners. None of those pieces fit together and I don’t want them to disappear, but they have, and fast. Czeslaw Milosz We were riding through frozen fields in a wagon at dawn. A red wing rose in the darkness. And suddenly a hare ran across the road. One of us pointed to it with his hand. That was long ago. Today neither of them is alive, Not the hare, nor the man who made the gesture. O my love, where are they, where are they going The flash of a hand, streak of movement, rustle of pebbles. I ask not out of sorrow, but in wonder. “Not out of sorrow, but in wonder.” Yes, that’s it. I am going to take a couple of weeks off for Christmas and the New Year, but I’ll be thinking of you as always. Be well, my friend. I wish for the moving pieces in your life to slow down a bit in the coming days. I wish you meaningful celebrations with the people who fill you up the most. In love and solidarity, Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window) Click to print (Opens in new window) December 11, 2017 December 17, 2017 Marta Drew14 Comments Have you noticed how some people seem to have these misty, soft-focus end-of-life experience with their parents? That’s not how it happened for me. To tell you the truth, both of them were giant pains in my ass. My mom, with a brain tumor, had no business driving her Lexus Death Star in the middle of a polar vortex. She, of course, would not concede this fact, so while she was at the rehab center after her surgery, I took her keys – and her car batteries for good measure. I confessed the day I picked her up to go home. I was loading her things onto a little cart to take out to my car and had to hold onto it when I told her I was keeping her car keys, my legs and hands were shaking so badly. She yelled at me, I cried and took her home. Once she was sure I had left, she dug out a secret set of keys, likely congratulating herself (again) for being way smarter than her daughter. Of course her cars wouldn’t start, so she called to lecture me about my negligence in exercising them regularly while she was out of commission. Brian took the phone and I sat on the stairs eating my hands while he broke the news about the batteries, which he had hidden in our garage in case one of her friends decided to help her do a break-in. We knew of a couple who might. We fought near the end of her life like we had when I was a teenager, only the roles were reversed: she wanted to be allowed to take the car; I insisted on more supervision when she was home alone; she couldn’t believe how controlling and overprotective I was being; I said the way she was talking to me made it LESS likely I would acquiesce, not more. It would have been funny if cancer hadn’t stolen her insight and fear hadn’t stolen mine. My dad, who had always been gregarious and considerate, became sullen, self-centered at the end of his life. He was embarrassingly rude to waiters and cashiers and claimed my time with neither acknowledgment nor apology: “On the 24th, pick me up at 1:00,” he would say after the briefest of greetings over the phone. “I need to be at the clinic by 1:30.” “Okay …you know the 24th is my birthday, right?” “Right.” “Okay. See you then.” It was 23 minutes to his house in Apple Valley, then another 30 back up north to the clinic, another 20-30 of waiting to start the appointment, another 20-30 once we got in. Then I would go back out to the waiting room for two hours until he was done and drive him home in rush hour traffic. Sometimes I was able to run to the grocery store or go home to check on my kids while I was waiting. Those appointments were for stent replacements. Once he was diagnosed, in December of last year, he got a port and a more permanent stent and started chemo. He wouldn’t take pain relievers stronger than Tylenol, so in January, he had a nerve block procedure to manage his pain. We accidentally entered the wrong building and he walked 20 steps ahead of me all the way through the tunnel to the other one, never saying a word to me. I could count on one hand the number of actual fights we had ever had until the year he died, but we were on opposite sides in the 2016 election. Our political discussions, which used to stop short of doing real damage, started hurting. Once, while he was getting one of his chemo infusions, I (stupidly) asked him what he thought about Betsy DeVos being Secretary of Education. He was a public school educator and I wanted to hear what he thought about such a catastrophic appointment. It started out okay, but eventually he told me I should move to Canada or Europe with the rest of the snowflakes and I cried because he was being mean, he was dying, and I was ashamed I had started the conversation. The nurses attended to him without looking at either one of us. We worked it out, but I still get a stomachache, thinking about that day. We hung out on the phone a lot. Sometimes our conversations were just like they used to be. We would talk for a couple of hours about raising kids in competitive, challenging Edina, loneliness, how hard it is to believe that who you are is enough, how important it is to listen to God. I loved those conversations, but they became fewer and further between. More often, he gave me detailed accounts of what he was eating, his pain, how quickly he was losing weight. I would do anything to have those two know-it-alls back. I miss them all the time. How are you? Do you feel like some giant drain has opened up and all the good is leaking out of the world? I hope that’s just me.	49,088
I am the last surgery on the docket for my surgeon today. Fasting for the entire day is really a bummer. A hungry Grace is a cranky Grace. In bad timing news, I had some, eh em, stomach trouble the whole second half of the day yesterday. I either ate something that did not agree with me or my anxiety caught up to me in gastrointestinal form. Let’s just say I started today on empty, no reserves. Could the amount of this cake I ate in bed for lunch yesterday have been the culprit? We will never know. I usually do not get nervous before surgery. I used to say that I ‘liked the big nap.’ After this last one 2 weeks ago, something has shifted. I felt so very bad upon waking up from surgery and continued to feel that way for 24 hours. Tachycardia or a fast heart rate had me feeling no bueno and that in turn, made me anxious. Today’s surgery is similar, or perhaps more in depth than last time, but they are choosing to do the whole surgery under twilight anesthesia, instead of general anesthesia like they did 2 weeks ago. This is the kind of anesthesia you get when you have your wisdom teeth removed in the office. The kind of anesthesia where, if the docs were to call your name and ask you a question, you should be able to reply in some form. This type of drug has amnesic properties, so even if you are rousable, you shouldn’t remember anything. Couple things… One major pro is that is that I shouldn’t have the tachycardic side effect afterwards. Also a pro is that I have no nerve endings in my chest from the mastectomy so I have almost no pain receptors there. One teensy problem I am having reconciling this level of consciousness with this surgery is that my nipple is being removed. They are cutting off my right nipple as it is breast tissue and this cancer is looking for a home. I don’t love the concept of being rousable whilst my nipple is being cut off. Even if I can’t feel it. One quick and revolting story here: My 7th grade son asked me to explain the surgery, so I told him the plan. Upon hearing that my nipple was being removed, he doesn’t miss a beat before asking, ‘can you keep it?’ I ask him why in the world would I want to keep it and he replies, ‘So Enzo can use it as a pacifier.’ Pause for my own dry heaving. A. Enzo is 8 years old and he does indeed still suck his thumb, but no, just no. And B. WTF. Paging Dr. Freud and any other available therapist within 50 miles of my home!!!! OK- Let’s regroup and pretend that never happened. I think the idea of going back for my second lumpectomy after a mastectomy (this is an insane phrase) without any loved ones, as it is still a Covid lockdown, just has me on edge. Getting dropped at the curb to have your skin, muscle, cancer and nipple removed is just wrong. Doing this alone twice in 2 weeks is a lot to ask of anyone. I am teflon a lot of the time, but this might break me. Between quarantine and being alone at the hospital, I feel isolated. Literally, of course, but mentally, too. Like even though you are all with me in strong spirit, this go round feels like I am headed onto the Ark with no twinsie animal by my side. Like the person who walked this walk alive, but is now in Zombie form and just mindlessly following the old routes. It is like having constant, unpleasant deja vu. After this surgery things will/should slow down for a few weeks while the docs send out samples for further testing and decide on the risk/benefit ratio of chemo. Wish I could bring this guy as my 2-2 into the Ark Previous Post SCANS spelled backwards is SNACS Next Post Clean Margins January 25, 2022 at 4:12 pm Take a stuffed animal with you! Maybe one of your kids. They would love to have you do that and it is surprising how much comfort an adult can get from a stuffed animal. Anonymous says: January 26, 2022 at 1:49 am Fuck. Shit. Piss. Ass. Cancer can eat a fat dick. I love you, Grace. Anonymous says: January 26, 2022 at 6:37 am OMG! I cannot imagine how I would deal with what you are going through and I am almost 71 and nowhere near ready to deal with a recurrence. My thoughts and prayers go with you. Aunt Betsy says: January 26, 2022 at 4:42 pm Oh, Grace! I’m so sorry that you are going through this again. I wish I could have been your post op nurse. Anonymous says: January 27, 2022 at 9:56 pm Grace I am so shocked by reading all this?!?! I can’t believe you have to go through this again. I’m at a loss for words. Thank you for sharing everything you are going through, and hopefully this last surgery will be it. Sending love and healing to you and your family	4,874
Our client is involved in the development, manufacturing and sale of pharmaceutical grade products. AIM listed and operating from a number of international locations they are at a real point of inflexion, with exceptional growth expectations. To help to support and foster this growth they are now looking to recruit a progressive Group Financial Controller. This role has many facets, leading and developing the finance function, partnering the business effectively and supporting the Group CFO deliver the strategy. The role reports to the Group CFO and the new Group Financial Controller will plan and lead the Group and UK Financial and Management Accounting functions. Candidates will be ambitious finance professionals with a track record of coaching and developing first in class teams and a desire to progress as the business evolves. Responsibilities: Ensure Financial Strategy is implemented according to business plans Responsible for the day-to-day control of the function, including all budget activities Have overall responsibility for a team carrying consolidation and production of monthly management accounts for the Group; Group financial statements for the half and full year; Treasury function managing Group cash and FX; UK transactional accounting and reporting; Indirect taxes and production of subsidiary accounts for the UK entities. Ensure all variances to budgetary reporting are investigated and actioned Manage the financial systems of the Group, looking to improve functionality and process and control Line management of team members throughout the complete employee lifecycle and ensure compliance with all Company policies and procedures Provide leadership and guidance to controllers across the Group Manage the relationship with external and internal auditors Liaise with other departments to solve issues and ensure smooth processing of transactions Support the CFO with the financial results and analysis as well as IR support Deputise for CFO as and when required You will be a fully qualified Accountant, ideally educated to degree standard Proven experience and success in leading a team to ensure the needs of the business are met A high EQ, coupled with a commercial business focused outlook Highly competent in the use of IT Experience of a multicurrency consolidation and management of international subsidiaries, including taxation Up to date technically with experience of IFRS and FASB reporting and applying international accounting standards to the ongoing and future business The group offer Hybrid working and flexible hours. You must be willing to travel internationally, as required. We are committed to encouraging and celebrating applicants from different backgrounds, whatever their gender, ethnicity, race, religious and political beliefs, education, socioeconomic background, disability, sexual orientation and geographical location to promote diversity and inclusion in the workplace. If you choose to email us in response to this advert please keep the data you send us to a minimum, i.e. your CV (in Word), your email address and your contact number. We will store your data for a period of 3 months and will not send it to anyone else without your explicit consent. If we have not contacted you within 3 months (an estimate of the time period that it is likely to take to fill the advertised role) we will delete your data. Here’s a link to our privacy policy. In this policy, you will find information about our compliance with Data Protection Laws. You can find how to send us a request to access your data, request a deletion of your data, correct any inaccuracies or restrict our processing of your data. You have the right to lodge a complaint about the way we handle your data with the Information Commissioner’s Office or you can contact Sarah Hunt for more information or concerns.	3,888
In 1970, my new wife and I headed off to Bloomington Indiana where I was to begin my journey toward becoming a helper. I survived the first year (barely!) and entered my second year looking forward to my first course in psychotherapy and my first clients. The course, however, was research-oriented and so I sought out a fourth-year student and asked him to recommend something I could read to help me help my clients. In a grace-filled moment, he recommended On Becoming a Person by Carl Rogers. As I read this book, I resonated to it, in part because I was drawn to Rogers’ gentle, respectful approach, in part because his theory met my darker needs for rebellion. Indiana University at that time was a bastion of behaviorism! Rogers’ approach taught me the fundamental importance of listening. He taught me the power of meeting someone with respect and an absence of judgment. He taught me to listen with my heart, not just my head. Being that arrogance was and is one of my character defects, after a time I concluded I’d found a flaw in Rogers’ theory. Rogers said we had to have acceptance yet also be real. Suppose I become angry with my client, I reasoned. Do I express the feeling or withhold it out of positive regard for the client? Clearly I’d uncovered a problem with his theory. So I wrote to Rogers, outlining my discovery. Can you imagine? What arrogance! Yet even more amazing was the fact that Rogers responded to my letter. Rather than praise my brilliance, however, he suggested that, if I were angry with a client, perhaps I was the one with the problem. Needless to say, this made me angry. But as time passed and as I faced my own woundedness, I saw the wisdom of his response. As they say in AA, if you’re pointing a finger at someone, the rest of the fingers are pointing back at you. In his own gentle manner, Rogers tried to point me towards looking within before judging, an important lesson for all of us, not just therapists. His response also reminded me that, as I strove to be a good listener, I also had to cultivate a capacity to listen to myself. Before studying psychology, Carl Rogers considered the ministry. I believe that spiritual foundation informed his psychology. The nature of his psychology also has played an important role in my own quest for a bridge between psychology and spirituality. His psychology provides a path for pursuing the almost universal spiritual directive: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Further Reflections: 1. Have you had the experience of feeling listened to? How did it affect you? 2. Did you ever think you knew more than some wise person in your life? How did that play out for you? Further Reading: Even now, some 40 years later, I still believe On Becoming a Person is of great value not just to therapists but to anyone on a spiritual quest Further Viewing: There is a famous series of videos in which the same client was interviewed by 3 different therapists: Carl Rogers, Albert Ellis, and Fritz Perls. An excerpt from Rogers’ session can give you a good feel for his approach. It can be found at www.youtube.com/watch?v=m30jsZx_Ngs I am a clinical psychologist and have an abiding interest in matters spiritual. View all posts by richp45198 → This entry was posted in spirituality and tagged Carl Rogers, client-centered therapy, humanistic therapy. Bookmark the permalink. Excerpt from “The Enemy Within” → Susan says: June 10, 2014 at 2:14 am Did I ever think I knew more that some wise person in my life? Yes, I thought I knew more than God. I was pretty ticked off at Him and I let Him know it. I felt a great deal of shame after that and I later received much forgiveness. With regard to the behaviorist model, I work with quite a few psychologists who believe greatly in that model. I told one of them that I was using a behavioral contract with my son regarding video games. She said, “Look at you! Being all behavioral. Do you do that with your clients?” I don’t, which is interesting. Great video series. Carl Rogers is so attentive. June 10, 2014 at 4:28 am great meaty saga — do unto others — you have an endearing quality to you — like a slice of granteeds pizza Susan says: June 10, 2014 at 11:46 pm Okay, here is an example of my being arrogant. Everyone has heard of Fritz Perls and no one has heard of me. Still, I felt uncomfortable when he told the client she was a “phony” because her verbal and non-verbal communication were incongruous. I realize that I am criticizing from a period in time that is long past when the remark was made. Still, some therapists like Carl Rogers, seem to have a timeless approach. Fritz Perls is in good company, because I criticize God too which might be the ultimate in arrogance.	4,946
Louie was a dog with a serious side, being of German extraction. Playing ‘fetch’ was no game. It was growling serious that he ‘win’, that he possess that stick and keep it from lying lost on the lawn or being snatched away from him…This was his work and there was nothing playful in it. He was focused and serious. I suppose that’s why German Shepherds are chosen for police dogs and working occupations… We made a good pair that way. I too see the serious side of any given incident, even if it’s meant to be a joke. I suppose I take even myself too seriously. Always have. It was once about earning A’s, pleasing the teacher, and so establishing my identity as a ‘good’ student. Did I transfer this mentality to God? I wonder sometimes. Do I work still for A’s so He’ll be pleased? There’s one snag in the whole thing. I’m not really an ‘A student’ when it comes to the heart of the matter. ‘Full of dead men’s bones’ is how Jesus described anyone trusting in their own performance but not concerned about the hidden matters of the heart. Only Jesus can change that. I’ve just finished listening to an excellent series of messages by Charles Price, addressing what’s to be done to live the Christian life without it becoming a ‘try-harder-to-be-good’ sort of thing (which is futile, frustrating and a booby trap for prideful self-delusion!) The concept of welcoming death to self in exchange for union with Christ keeps popping up for me. I’m a slow learner? No sooner did I finish this very encouraging series, then the following morning in church the message was taken from Romans 6—a matter-of-fact presentation on our ‘union with Christ’—the key to having any capacity to please God. United with Him in His death—so we have died to our old sin nature. United with Him in His resurrection—so we have a new life, His life, motivating us from within. So there it was again, this Christ who IS my life. I so readily fall out of grace and into effort. Surely I must need to DO something myself to be really pleasing. I so readily forget it’s faith that pleases God and the obedience it engenders. To attempt obedience without faith is to follow Abraham’s misguided effort to fulfill God’s promise in his own strength. Disaster! Another tell-tale sign of misunderstanding my standing as one dead, but alive despite myself, is that when I do fail or disappoint (myself or you!) it’s a hard blow, as if it threatened my whole identity! God is not disappointed. He knows me through and through, knows my points of weakness, knows what I’m made of and has all that covered with Jesus! From me He expects repentance and a confident coming to the ‘throne of grace’ for all I lack. It is enough. I am able to resume life, humbled maybe at the recognition of my own propensity for sin, but forgiven and unashamed, accepted in the Beloved. As I write this I am preaching it to myself. It does not come naturally or easily for this would-be-perfect-in-her-own-strength girl. Reminders come. I guess that’s why I’ve so appreciated Price’s messages this week with their emphasis that the Christian life is not about self-improvement but about dependence on Christ to live HIS life through me. The devil’s not to blame, (or anybody else!). I am. But that’s OK. Repentance is a breath away. And it’s a relief to cast myself on One who really is good and wants to live His life out in me. He knows how to do it right! What’s the trick? There is none. The most confusing thing about the Christian life, Price suggests, is its simplicity. You cannot live it without Christ but when you’re abiding in Him, by faith, things happen. It’s like flying. You can’t, until you’re in the plane. Then there’s nothing more to do but trust the plane to get you there. Even the anxious traveler arrives, though he may miss the pleasure of the trip! It boils down to faith. Just as I came to Jesus in the first place by faith acknowledging my helpless sin-bound state, so this is how He expects me to live the Christian life, by faith, dead to my old self and alive to Him. I can get in a pretty serious state looking at the ‘old mare’ and her propensity for selfishness. I can be like Louie, taking life way too seriously. ‘This stick is mine and I’m going to see that it stays in my control’…But Louie had another side. A single word could transform him into an ecstatic, tail-wagging, happy bundle of energy. The “W” word, my friend used to call it. And if you have a dog, you know it well. (shhhh… I’ll say it quietly) The word is walk. Why keep it quiet? Well once it’s out, there’s no rest for the speaker until the leash is fetched and the door opened! I smile to myself to realize how the “W” word applies also to me. What will rescue me from my moribund hold on good intentions? The Spirit invites me to WALK with Him. And as I do, all the rest of the Christian life falls into place. He’s got the trail planned. He knows the destination and all the highpoints and muddy crossings along the way. He directs my steps. I need only obediently trust His lead. This is the way to live the Christ life, not fixated on the flesh and what it’s up to but ambling down the road eager to comply with my Master’s directions. By faith heeding his: Heel, Fetch, Sit, Down, Wait… He’s got my days planned and my trails are by His appointment. I’m his concern after all. How carefree is that? And look at the side-effects of walking by the Spirit..Not only will I not gratify the desires of my sin-bent nature (Gal.5:1) which do damage to myself and those around me, but there’ll be an overflow of love and joy and peace, patience and kindness and even goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Gal. 5:22,23) Sounds like something to get excited about! As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him… (Col.2:6) Did Someone say, “WALK” ?!!! –LS For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love. Gal.5:5,6 Having begun by the Spirit are you now being perfected by works of the flesh? Gal.3:3 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. Gal. 5:25,26 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. Phil.1:6 Before I scamper off down the trail may I leave you with a poem that grabbed my heart this week. It portrays so well the relief of repentance and the joy that is its reward. Would we not cease to trudge downcast through life if we kept this gracious prospect in our mind’s eye? “Come to myself, I trudge down distant roads. Tired of the husks of life, I hurry home. Knowing the cross awaits, I still must come, Prepared to be a servant, not a son. Blessed, kissed, forgiven, lifted to my place, I find the dreaded welcome sudden sweet. Is this your punishment for sin, dear Lord? The father’s kiss? The ring? The robe? The calf? Heart-heavy, I had feared repentance, Lord. I came to cry, and now you tell me, “Laugh!” Charles Price’s series of 5 messages on letting Christ live His life in us were delivered at Prairie Bible College during “Christian Life Week”, Sept.25-27, 2012. They can be heard and/or downloaded at Prairie’s website under “Special Events” at: http://www.prairie.edu/page.aspx?pid=450 They are also available on YouTube. November 30, 2012 Faith, Fruitfulness, God's approval, Grace, Holy Spirit, Kingdom living, Perfectionism, repentance 1 Comment Faithful Landmarks to stay the course of truth In unfamiliar territory winds and waves may veer a small boat off course. Without nautical charts to mark the rocks the little boat may ground on a hidden rock, punch a hole in its hull, and founder…Even if it escapes these perils, without a chart to indicate the pertinent landmarks it may miss its destination altogether. ‘Never sail in unknown waters without your charts’ is a rule of thumb for mariners. The ocean is a place of changing weather, strong currents and fluctuating tides. Rocks far underwater at high tide may be just below the surface at low tide. Watch the charts. You may not see the rocks. Know the landmarks. I wonder if we believers in any age aren’t like boats on a voyage. Each generation has its unfamiliar territory, changing tides of faddish teaching and practice, currents of teaching that create unseen undercurrents, hidden perils, nasty rocks lying in wait for an oblivious sailor at ease…Winds and waves happen in culture. Tides rise and fall. Fads and movements come and go. How do we keep from being blown or carried off course? We have the Chart. Rocks are marked. Beware—the world, the flesh, the devil. Beware false teachers. Beware the leaven of Pharisees. Beware…But what of the landmarks? What landmarks might we chart our course by? Where are those non-negotiable unchanging points of land or clanging bell-buoys to keep us off the reefs and on due course? I’ve been pondering landmarks of our faith–sure things to measure a teaching, a ministry, a set of beliefs by, to ensure we aren’t being “tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.” (Eph.4:14) The first, perhaps obvious measure of any landmark is whether it’s on the Chart at all! Does what I’m seeing line up with the Word of God? Every since Sinai (Ex.20:19), God’s people have been prone to want to hear from God through a man. How often have His people been misled by trusting the word of a man and not consulting the Chart itself? God’s Word is written to speak to the common man. His Spirit indwells the believer to enlighten his mind as he studies (I Jn.2:27) We can know God’s will, His voice, His intended course for our lives. His purposes are unchanging. His Word has not grown obsolete. Any word given more credence than this inerrant written Word is bound to steer us off course. A rule of thumb for me in evaluating any ministry is what value it places on the Bible. If the Word of God is handled piecemeal or taught in a leapfrog fashion, hopping over problem verses and passages, I’m wary. Pastors, teachers and prophets are gifts to the Body of course, but are not infallible. How do we measure their ministries? By the Chart! There’s no substitute for being good ‘Bereans’ (Acts 17:11) and distinguishing the true from the counterfeit. Rule 1 of the High Seas. Learn to read and trust the Chart for yourself. Many perils will thus be avoided. Have you ever studied a nautical chart? Whew! There’s an awful lot of information there. Distances, points, bell buoys, rocks, sandy bottoms—I guess I should confess that when it comes to nautical charts I’m almost illiterate. But I have had a few lessons. I can spot the rocks. I recognize the sand spits…I look when Jim points out channels and points of land and shows me how they appear on the chart. This is challenging—identifying how the chart relates to the real thing. I once found myself in a little motor boat with just ‘the girls’, making our way out of a rock-strewn inlet. None of us could read the miniature chart we had along. Only I could actually see it–not yet needing reading glasses. That was stressful! I can testify, it is best to learn to read the Chart and be able to rectify the actual landmarks with those on the chart. So yes, landmarks. I’ve been pondering what are the landmarks that I use to keep my little vessel off the rocks? Landmark #1 The Cross—is it center front? Does it matter anymore now that the rescue has been made? Or is it an offensive doctrine best swept under the carpet and replaced with sweet smelling rose petals. The doctrine of the ‘substitutionary atonement’ of Christ on our behalf is taking a beating these days. Sin is not that serious. God not that ‘cruel’ they say. He is love…But the Cross declares His holiness in tandem with His love. It is a landmark we can safely chart our course by. Landmark#2 The Saviour—is He made much of as both fully God and fully man? Or is He actually sidelined as the One who makes me great? Whose esteem is made much of: mine or Christ’s? I elaborated on this already last post, so will not repeat myself here except to point you to a book (review) you may have missed that is well worth the read and available online besides! Christ Esteem is the book. I’ve posted a review and sampling of quotes here. [Click link to access] Landmark#3 The Second Coming—is it a ‘blessed hope’. It may seem spiritual to insist that one is more concerned with saving souls or bringing the kingdom to earth or in some other way serving God now, and therefore not concerned with His coming, but for me this is a red flag. All through the history of the church beginning with His ascension, the coming again of Jesus has been held out as our ‘blessed hope'(Titus 2:13). John says this hope is in fact a purifying hope: We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. (I Jn.3:3) We are called strangers in exile here. This world is not our true home. We are not to love it or the things in it but to follow the example of the Hebrews 11 crowd of witnesses who lived in hope of a ‘better country, a heavenly one’ (Heb.11:13-16) Any movement or teacher that loses this hope has lost their way. Landmark#4 Moral Purity—is the teacher/leader above reproach? This would seem to be a ‘no-brainer’ but oddly (or perhaps not so oddly) where teaching is unsound, very often moral laxity slips in. It may not be apparent on the surface. It may not even be present at first—but it’s not unusual to find persons claiming to be speaking for God who have abandoned their own marriages in the process. This should be a clanging ‘bell-bouy’ that the shoals are near. Do not trust this teacher, no matter how ‘spiritual’ they seem. Landmark#5 Fear of God—Is God revered as the Almighty Sovereign before whom man cannot stand in his physical state and live? Or is a sloppy ‘intimacy’ with God boasted of and encouraged. Is God spoken of flippantly and casually as though he were a chatty chum, or with deep reverence? An authentically spiritual man or ministry will be characterized by the fear of God. Landmark #6 Their testimony—Is it about Jesus, conviction of sin, repentance, and a new life in Christ? Or something else? Listen carefully. I have heard ‘testimonies’ that were more about advertising one’s authority to speak in God’s name, based on a bizarre encounter, than they were about genuine heart transformation. Nor does an emotional experience equal salvation. A testimony of God’s gracious salvation will exude humble gratitude and recognition of having been wrong. It will promote Jesus not self. Landmark#7 Gratitude—Is this the theme echoing behind all their other teaching? A genuine minister of the Gospel will never have gotten over the marvel that God stooped down so low to bring him/her to Himself. This is a landmark requiring maintenance in my own life lest it deteriorate with the fading memory of what Christ has done. And on this Thanksgiving evening what better note to close on. “Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe.” Heb.12:28 –LS Thank YOU for considering my ponderings. I hope you will feel free to ammend this list of ‘landmarks’ with your own comments on ones that you’ve discovered along the way. We are after all in this boat together! November 23, 2012 The Gospel, The Word of God, Truth / Deception 3 Comments When “Who I Am” is overrated! We ladies all stood there reading aloud together things we know to be true; the Bible says so…”I am God’s child…I am a friend of Jesus, I have been justified…I am free from condemnation, I am assured that God works for my good in all circumstances, I am a branch of Jesus Christ, the true vine, and a channel of His life…I am God’s temple, I am God’s workmanship….” All we said was true. Why then my misgivings? The list was long, grouped under headings of “I am accepted”, “I am secure”, and “I am significant”. Ah yes, my ultimate set of needs according to secular theorists. Having these needs fully met is said to be necessary for self-actualization, critical to reaching my self’s full potential. Seems that God knew what I needed. As His child I am all these things. So, what’s the problem? Why my uneasiness? I couldn’t put my finger on it right away. Apparently others haven’t either. Consider the logical extension of these Biblical “I am’s”, and I quote: “I am amazing!” He loves me to death. I was born to do greater works than Jesus. I was born for glory. Nations are attracted to me ’cause I’m so good looking. I have the mind of Christ: I think like God. And He actually likes me. I like me too, and if you got to know me you would like me too. Creation knows who I am. The devil knows who I am. God knows who I am. Angels know who I am. Today, I know who I am. I kid you not. This is a verbatim script recited responsively with great enthusiasm by a large gathering of earnest students.* They are being trained to recognize who they are so they can go out and release all of Creation from the curse and take dominion of the earth. They are being taught they are little gods and therefore they should be asking: “Where’s my power?!” This is ‘self-esteem on steroids’, as Jim puts it. If ever there has been a self-actualized generation, ours should be it! We have no want of teaching on who we really are…(or do we? Have we missed something?) Now if we can just get this self-talk into our psyches till we really believe it. Just think what we might accomplish?! Really? Is focusing on ourselves really what we need? This same teacher* had more to say: “When you act like God you’re being yourself” he explained, not realizing the full implications of what he had said. Wasn’t this the original sin– wanting to be like God! “The only reason you have a bad thought in your head is because you have [there is] a Devil who wanted to be what you became,” he explains, complete with a mocking depiction of those who contest that we are actually ‘sinners saved by grace.’ The Devil wanted to be like God, he explains. God said, “No way”, stripped him of power and made him watch while billions of people were made what he wanted to be– the image of God. [This is messing with my head, and my Bible, what about yours? Have I really gotten what Satan wanted–God-hood?!] ————- It seems so right… God has glorified you. You rock! You have only to recognize who you really are to exercise the dominion you’ve been given. This is the natural (humanistic) extension of the focus on Who I Am (in Christ). But somehow the ‘IN CHRIST’ part of the equation gets lost in the flattery. Everything seems to come from Scripture, right? kinda? This message did have a text—Daniel 7, with the key verse: “And the time came when the saints possessed the kingdom.” And there was a great collection of ‘Kingdom of God’ Scriptures fired off like so much ammo culminating in this heady conclusion: The time is here and now. You rock! But where did Jesus go? I thought the whole point of life, the universe and everything was the ‘summing up of all things in Christ’ and ‘the praise of His glory’. Eph.1:10-12 How did we get to this place of being so amazing anyway? Used to be we were content to be ‘sinners saved by grace’? I was preparing this morning to play piano at the local old folks’ home. As I leafed through the old hymns I marveled at how far we’ve come… “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me…” [oops that slipped by the ‘self-esteem police!] Beneath the Cross of Jesus: “two wonders I confess: the wonders of redeeming love, and my unworthiness.” When I survey the Wondrous Cross: “Forbid it Lord, that I should boast, save in the death of Christ, my God; All the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to His blood.” “Wonderful the matchless grace of Jesus—By it I have been pardoned. Saved to the uttermost.” Oh sweet relief. I do not have to work myself into a fever-pitch of egotistical affirmations. When my eyes are on the One who really is amazing, worship is the only fitting response. When I take my rightful position, one of gratitude and awe at this Wonderful Saviour, this Coming King…self takes its rightful place–as catalyst for praising my Redeemer, not something to gratify, build up, and make much of. Could it be that in shifting our focus in the here and now to ‘Who I Am’ we have set ourselves up to fall for Lucifer’s temptation? His own beauty went to his head. Considering it intrinsically his he declared: “I will make myself like the Most High.” Is.14:14 This was raw pride, the same substance that lurks in our hearts the instant we think we are or have some good thing originating in ourselves. Original sin is as good as it gets! Eve demonstrated the nature of our hearts when she opted to do her own will rather than God’s (Gen.3). This is who we are when left to our own devices. Of course this is why we needed a Redeemer. But is that need all in the past? Can we afford ever to forget “[our] purification from [our] former sins” (II Pet.1:9). Is it really inappropriate for redeemed saints to speak of themselves as sinners? Do we not still daily need this Redeemer? Yes, there is the objection that we are new creations in Christ. We are declared ‘holy ones’. And of course this is true. We do indeed stand freed from condemnation. And we are seated in the heavenlies too! Yet, here these bodies are living in earth’s gravity. And sinning. We are prideful. We continuously consider our selves to be of greatest importance, far more than we recognize I suspect. As long as we inhabit these natural bodies we will know the nakedness of self-consciousness where we were intended only to know God-consciousness. For good reason our Redeemer ever lives to make intercession for us (Heb.7:25). For good reason we are called to ‘die daily’–to put to death the self-will that dogs our every waking moment Who I am in Christ is an incredible marvel. The list is worth reading regularly, but only as a backdrop to Who Jesus is. We will be on a surer footing to major here—on Christ-esteem. Otherwise we are apt to mistake “Who I am in Christ” for my claim to fame, and to forget from whence we’ve come. To confuse my identity in Christ with my intrinsic nature is to fall for a subtle lie. And from that lie stems all manner of horrible, self-exalting, God effacing nonsense. I am… I am… I am… And forgetting all self-restraint we are soon feeding the flesh instead of putting it to death! Do we think God’s Kingdom and ours can co-exist? It’s no use declaring who I am in Christ until I’ve filled my mind and bowed my heart to Who Christ Is. And when I’m occupied with that, who I am becomes a non-issue. I simply don’t need to talk about it. I am accepted, secure and significant in Him and the rest of my story is all to His credit. He is amazing and not only does he ‘rock’ but He is the ROCK of my salvation! His Kingdom will come and He will be the uncontested glory of it. We will be forever the grateful creatures enthralled with Who He is, oblivious to how glorious we have been made, intent on worshiping the Lamb that is worthy because He was slain to redeem us to God. We will be free at last from self-interest, free to reflect His glory fully; this will be our ultimate fulfillment. When we are tempted to ponder who we are we might do well to consider God’s response to Moses when he asked “Who am I…” in the face of a daunting assignment. God made no attempt to affirm poor inept Moses. Instead He diverted His attention to His own identity as the great I AM. This was in fact what Moses needed most to know. God would go with Him and that was enough. Ex.3:12-14 –LS “And because of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” ” His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence… be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; …for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you.” II Pet.1:3,10-11 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death therefore what is earthly in you… Col.3:4,5 If you’ve ever grappled with how Biblical the concept of self-esteem is, you will be keenly interested in the book: Christ-Esteem: Where the Search for Self-Esteem Ends by Don Matzat (Harvest House, 1990). Now out of print, the unabridged text is available online in easily-readable pdf format. It’s perceptive and challenging, well worth reading. I’ve tucked in a book review and some favorite quotes at my book review site. November 16, 2012 self-esteem, Truth / Deception, Who I Am 5 Comments I Love this Word! It’s like fresh bread, dropped from heaven for our sustenance and delight. It’s like a hammer, that breaks the rocks of resistance in our lives to pieces, if we let it. (Or we can throw away the hammer. Re-think it. Re-word it. Re-move its hardness…to our own loss.)Jer.23:29 It is like a sword, a fine-tuned sharp sword, slicing through our delusions, pointing out our motives, opening our abscesses for cleaning out. Heb.4:12 It is like a fire that burns away the lies we have believed and leaves us purified, pure gold and untarnished silver. Jer.23:29 It is a light in dark places, a beaming torchlight making our way plain, showing up the tripping hazards, allowing us to walk in this world without falling Ps.119:105, II Pet.1:19 It is like water, cleansing, refreshing, reviving for the marathon that is this lifetime. Eph.5:26 I love this Word. I love that I have God’s very Words in my own language, in a variety of versions, at my fingertips. I love its trustworthiness, its unchangeableness, its absolute authority and sufficiency for the life I’m called to live. There will be cleverly devised myths. There will be false words that try to slip in to exploit the hearers. II Pet.2:1 But this Word is a sure measure of truth. It is my God-given, infallible guide. It is profitable for teaching, for reproving, for correcting, for training, for perfectly equipping me (and you) for every good thing He calls us to. We can tickle our ears with other things, tantalize our appetites with half-truths, look for meaning in dreams and omens and wordless pictures, hang on man-made words delivered with authority, thinking them all more significant than mere words on a page in an ‘old-fashioned’ book that surely needs upgrading to our ‘postmodern’ times… But “what has straw in common with wheat?” Jer.23:28 We can sift through the text for words that bring only comfort and shake them free of context and appropriate them for ourselves willy-nilly. For instance, “I know the plans I have for you…” What graduate has not received a card with these words imprinted on it? “…plans to give you a future and a hope…” God had plans alright. Seventy years of captivity were first up. This reassurance was given to God’s people as they headed off to Babylon! Jer. 29:11 I suppose there is a principle here based in God’s character but… Interesting that we don’t likewise grab other verses in Jeremiah: “I am devising a plan against you…” I have set my face against [you] for harm and not for good” (21:10) We are clearly selective! But for all the misuse, abuse, and faulty exegesis, God’s Word stands sure and eternal—a clear revelation of a God who wants to be known, a clear statement of His love and invitation to relationship, and of the mess we are in without Him! Without this Word we would be adrift to figure out how best to live. We would be hopelessly sabotaged by our own inability to find our own way out of the woods of what seems right… But we have this Word, this true and timeless Word, a custom-fit for the likes of us. For this I am thankful. –LS “Your words were found and I did eat them and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart for I am called by your name, O Lord, God of hosts.” Jer.15:16 “And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.” II Pet.1:19 “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” II Tim.2:15 November 10, 2012 The Word of God 4 Comments Unchanging Words to Live by lil“It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew.” Jn.6:18 It happens. Life gets dark. Storms come. Jesus is nowhere in sight. We strain at the oars to make headway alone. When yikes!– Is that a ghost? Our worst fears get the better of us and HELP!!! Panic ensues. And then the voice: “Don’t be afraid. It’s me.” WHEW! And gladly we let Jesus into our boat and suddenly we’ve reached our destination. What was the big deal? [Click here to read John 6] One moment we’re exhausted, haunted by imagined ghosts and about to die. The next we’re safely in harbor, the wind either abated or not an issue… The difference? Jesus in the boat. “Without me, you can do nothing” He says. (Jn.15:5-7) Funny, how much energy we can expend doing nothing!!! But when we abide in Him and let His words abide in us—when we let Him in for the boat ride–it’s amazing what will be accomplished just for the asking. Peter admonished his readers as they were undergoing persecution to be self-controlled for the sake of their prayers because the end was at hand. I Pet.4:7 In a similar passage Jesus warns his followers of tumultuous events that will come upon the earth and says they should “watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap.” In the midst of “people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world” and “in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves”, we are to be those who walk with confidence, recognizing that “our redemption is drawing nigh!” Lk.21:25-34 How is this possible? Only because we have His words. We know the rest of the story. Heaven and earth will pass away, but not His words… I listened with sympathy this week to a young guy candidly rationalizing the acceptability of his lifestyle choices. He has chosen to forego ‘old school’ moral standards. He’s got the map upside down and is heading a direction he doesn’t expect. Things are pretty backwards, but in a world of other people doing the same sorts of things, he figures it will all work out. He can’t see through this fog of relativism. His grandparents wouldn’t approve. His girlfriend’s parents either. But this is a new generation. It’s all good… And I thought, no. I sympathize with the way things ‘seem’ to be, but it’s a sham. I’ll stick with the ‘old school’ any day if that means the tried and true Word of God. When did God get old anyway? He’s not a Grandpa! He is forever timeless. His standards don’t flex with our changing times and that’s a good thing, not a bondage. His Word is a lifeline! And I’m praying for this young starry-eyed couple. They’re entering a storm unawares. I’m holding out the hope that they will cry out in the storm and find that Jesus is close by. Way back when, people were offended at Jesus’ words too. He claimed to be better than the sweet manna that had fed their forebears. He claimed to offer eternal wellbeing, true nourishment. They scoffed and thought Him sacrilegious and impertinent to make such claims. They only followed for today’s loaves and fishes… Many turned back from following Him. This was too much. But His hand-picked disciples, what did they say? “To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life!” (Jn.6:68) This is the one whose words we most need to hear in the storm surges of life. When all is dark, when the rules to live by seem to have changed and we’re unsure what to do, when we can’t see past the rising waves… we can invite Him into the boat and listen to His reassuring, eternally true words—these words of spirit and life that transcend all craziness of place and time. Operating on any other basis is a useless expenditure of energy at best, and a recipe for destruction at worst. Only the Spirit of God, breathing through the Word of God gives the life and peace that we so need. (Jn.6:63) And I’m passing on this story of Jesus climbing into the boat, to a new generation. With a three-year old attention span my grandson listened this morning, all cuddled up on Grandmom’s bed, imagining as best he could what it would be like to be in a boat at sea in a storm… and the difference it could make to invite Jesus into the boat. He knows little of storms, or boats, or oceans, or life! But one day I pray this story will hold him in good stead. With Jesus in the boat, we can weather anything. –LS “For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” Jn.6:33 Recent Posts Clinging to Grace October (2) November (2) December (2) January (1) February (3) March (1) June (2) July (1) August (1) September (1) October (1) November (1) January (1) June (3) July (1) September (2) October (6) November (4) December (4) January (5) February (4) March (4) April (5) May (4) June (4) July (5) August (4) September (5) October (4) November (4) December (5) January (4) February (4) March (5) April (4) May (5) June (4) July (4) August (5) September (4) October (4) November (5) December (4) January (4) February (4) March (5) April (4) May (4) June (5) July (4) August (5) September (4) October (4) November (4) December (5) January (4) February (5) March (4) April (3) July (2) August (4) September (5) October (5) November (5) December (3) January (4) February (4) March (4) April (3) May (5) June (3) July (4) August (4) September (5) October (5) November (2) February (2) March (4) April (4) February (1) March (2) April (14) May (8) June (6) July (6) August (6) September (10) October (10) November (6) December (3) January (7) February (7) March (5) April (8) May (6) June (3) July (3) August (1) October (1) January (6) February (2) March (2) April (1) May (1) June (1) September (4) October (4) November (1) December (1) March (5) April (2) May (1) Looking for something? My Writing by Category	36,555
With May upon us, students across the country are gearing up for the end of their semesters. While summer may be just around the corner, one last hurdle is standing between them and several months of beach and sun — their grades. Anxiety builds as they solemnly repeat to themselves in their dorms, “C’s get you degrees. C’s get you degrees…” Just like caffeine-dependent students pulling all-nighters, baseball players are subject to grades as well. While coming up through the minors, top prospects are given grades by scouts, pegging them as having “plus power” or “plus-plus speed.” Even numerically they are judged by MLB.com when the website announces the league’s top-100 prospects. Kris Bryant was the second-overall prospect according to that list and has now been in “The Show” for almost three weeks after the Chicago Cubs called him up on April 17. There have been some ups and downs, as expected, for the young phenom. Let’s take a closer look using baseball’s time-tested five-tool judgment (speed, hitting for average, power, throwing and fielding). Speed: Bryant was given a rating of 50 by MLB’s scouting grade for speed, so it has never been a huge part of his impressive game. That being said, he does have two steals to his credit in what has become a very run-friendly Cubs team headed by Joe Maddon. Bryant has the baseball IQ to take the extra base with his long strides when the opportunity presents itself and nab the occasional stolen base. Nobody expected Bryant to come up and spray the field with well-placed knocks, fighting off good pitches to pile up hits. His 55 rating was just barely above average. However, he has shown the ability to make solid contact consistently in the Majors, and his 16 hits are good for sixth-most on the team. Bryant’s .291 average is better than expected — this is even with his recent slump. Most scouts would assume his average will go down while his power should surge eventually. His keen eye at the plate has been even more impressive as his whopping 16 walks leads the Cubs and .458 on-base percentage is tied with Anthony Rizzo. Grade – A Heralded as the next big power bat in the game, Bryant’s talent was so prominent, MLB’s website said, “Bryant has everything needed to lead the Majors in homers at some point.” Well, he hasn’t quite shown it yet. In 55 at-bats, Bryant has yet to hit a home run. His “warning-track power” has already been a well-known discussion, despite his initial rating of 80 as a top prospect. He had 55 home runs in three seasons through the minors, so the strength is there. It just hasn’t happened yet. Perhaps a hike in temperature will help, but that remains to be seen — his .382 slugging percentage is underwhelming at best. A learning curve was expected for the 23 year old, and the lack of power is Bryant’s first formidable test in the big leagues. Grade – F More from Cubbies Crib Cubs should keep close eye on non-tender candidate Cody Bellinger Cubs starting pitching has been thriving on the North Side Make no mistake: the Cubs are very much about power hitters Cubs are giving pitcher Javier Assad a deserved shot Cubs: It’s time to start thinking about potential September call-ups Throwing: I’ll go into more details concerning fielding shortly, but his arm has been impressive. Bryant has already shown the ability to sling a throw from deep in the hole at third base and has the arm strength to gun down speedsters trying to catch the raw fielder napping. His 60 rating, which is above average, seems to have been about right. This was the second-overall pick’s Achilles heel, MLB gave him a very average rating of 50 — which many would have called generous. Standing at 6 feet 5 inches tall, Bryant’s lanky body was supposed to make bending over for hard-hit grounders at the hot corner an adventure — but he has shown good athleticism and instincts thus far. He does have three errors, so there is still much to learn, but his versatility has already been on display. Bryant has played in the outfield in three games so far this season, including being the Cubs’ starting center fielder for one of them. He likely will never be a Gold Glover caliber player, but Bryant’s fielding has been better than advertised. Overall: With so much hype, it was basically impossible for Bryant to live up to it. There have been some hiccups here and there while his current slide is his first prolonged slump of the young slugger’s short career — only batting .167 in his last seven days. Despite the lack of hits, he has still gotten on base thanks to eight walks in that time frame, so the maturity to take what pitchers give him is extremely encouraging. Some quicker bat speed and perhaps a more aggressive attitude at the plate could help him get over the hump and hit some baseballs over the wall. *Stats current as of 5/5/15 Be on the lookout for my Addison Russell report card coming this Thursday. Next: Chicago Cubs: What happened to the offense? © 2022 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved. The content on this site is for entertainment and educational purposes only. All advice, including picks and predictions, is based on individual commentators’ opinions and not that of Minute Media or its related brands. All picks and predictions are suggestions only. No one should expect to make money from the picks and predictions discussed on this website. For more information, please read our Legal Disclaimer. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call 1-800-GAMBLER.	5,781
The installation project ‘Third Nature’ was part of the Shelter for Soul Campaign, which was exhibited at Seoul Hall of Architecture and Urbanism in South Korea held on September 9, 2019, to September 20 2019. Year : Team : Status : International design and Installation Competition Builders as a Mission International) The installation project ‘Third Nature’ was part of the Shelter for Soul Campaign, which was exhibited at Seoul Hall of Architecture and Urbanism in South Korea held on September 9, 2019, to September 20 2019. The goal of the campaign is to address the issue of social minorities, challenging designers to come up with a shelter for one person, which could illustrate different approaches in dealing with the selected social group. Third Nature is a memorial space narrated through a story of a mother who lost their sons from the landslide at the Ghazipur landfill near Delhi, India. It has the height of a 17-story building as tall as the Taj Mahal. (reported from the New York Times on June 10, 2018) The pavilion aims to simulate the physical environment where waste material has become a dominant construction component. The consumption phenomenon of plastic products creates the ‘third nature’ environment between the natural landscape and artificial plastic As part of the design and installation competition organised by BAMI (Builders As a Mission International) in cooperation with the Korean Institute of Architects, the organisers are searching for a “Soul shelter for one” with a question “Can space heal?”. The intention is to bring attention to marginalised social groups then use the design as a prototype to solve the issue. The project ‘Third Nature’ was among the 15 finalists and was selected for Special Selection Award. The project started with a simple question How much waste do we produce daily? Waste seems to be an inseparable part of our daily basis. In 2018 the world generated 2.01 billion tons of garbage. In India, one person makes 0.57 kilograms of trash per day, while in South Korea produces 1 kilogram of trash per capita per day. These enormous amounts of waste dumped create piles of trash mountains in a landfill. About 50% of trash going to landfill while 26% is recyclable and 20% are compostable or used for energy production. 40% of landfill is filling with plastic packagings, bottles, containers. Landfills have become a solution for today nations dealing with the waste problem. In the midst of dystopia we endure, a minority of families has no choice but to cope with the existing situation. For some families, they have to earn their living from it. Near the centre of Delhi the capital of India, the Ghazipur village is situated near the 17-story high mountain of trash as tall as the Taj Mahal. The Ghazipur dump polluted the air and intoxicated the water in a wide radius. The Ghazipur villagers who live next to the landfill has witnessed the rapid accumulation of trash, average 4,000 tons to 10000 tons daily. Imagine a family living in the area, where airborne particle fumed with toxic in the air and water in the nearby canal runs yellow. To earn their living, some start to pick up found objects from the dumpsite and sell to the informal recycling factories. As the site is not well-regulated, the ragpickers are risking their lives while working in these unstable pile of trash. “The dump killed my son,” she said. (reported from the New York Times on June 10, 2018) A mother owes a house small in the informal settlement in the Ghazipur village near the Ghazipur landfill. She lost her sons, who were ragpickers from the site, make their living by selling what they found to the informal recycling industry. The Shelter act as a memorial of a mom who lost their sons at the landfill. The passage inside is full of light and shadow made from the plastic bottles as a symbol of our waste consumption. The design aims to illustrate the living conditions of the minority of the Ghazipur villagers, which then using it as a didactic model to raise the awareness of people of their daily consumption and waste generation. The exterior of the design came from the action of piling up trash at the landfill. The intention is to allow one to experience the feeling of being under the landfill. The passage space is carved out, which would enable one person at a time to walk, crawl and sit, isolating in the area where light and shadow would calm a person’s mind. With the tight budget given and time limitation for installation, one of the three components was built with a reduced scale of the original design by 40 per cent. The main structure was replaced from timber to PVC water pipe. Nevertheless, the prototypes still convey the main idea of the issue of waste production — the facade elements composed of three different types of plastic bottles from solid,semi-transparent to clear. The bottom part of the shelter is more solid and gradually becomes more transparent in the top section to allow light to enter and rendering the dark space. They are connected with steel wire cable in modules which will be installed easier on each surface of the design. 2020 International Competition, with MVRDV and SCUT, Qian Hai City, Shenzhen, China Role: Site research, Design Development	5,466
Signing in allows you to change your location, ask questions in our community, contribute to our cost of living database, and more. Sign in with Facebook Sign in with Google By logging in or registering, you agree to our privacy policy. Quality of life United States compared to Quality of life Cost of living Size comparison If you lived in Croatia instead of United States, you would: Health be 32.6% less likely to be obese In United States, 36.2% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Croatia, that number is 24.4% of people as of 2016. In United States, the average life expectancy is 80 years (78 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2020. In Croatia, that number is 77 years (74 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2020. make 58.7% less money United States has a GDP per capita of $59,800 as of 2017, while in Croatia, the GDP per capita is $24,700 as of 2017. be 2.8 times more likely to be unemployed In United States, 4.4% of adults are unemployed as of 2017. In Croatia, that number is 12.4% as of 2017. be 29.1% more likely to live below the poverty line In United States, 15.1% live below the poverty line as of 2010. In Croatia, however, that number is 19.5% as of 2015. pay a 19.2% higher top tax rate United States has a top tax rate of 39.6% as of 2016. In Croatia, the top tax rate is 47.2% as of 2016. be 57.9% less likely to die during childbirth In United States, approximately 19.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In Croatia, 8.0 women do as of 2017. be 62.3% more likely to die during infancy In United States, approximately 5.3 children die before they reach the age of one as of 2020. In Croatia, on the other hand, 8.6 children do as of 2020. have 29.8% fewer children In United States, there are approximately 12.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2020. In Croatia, there are 8.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2020. be 16.7% less likely to have internet access In United States, approximately 87.3% of the population has internet access as of 2018. In Croatia, about 72.7% do as of 2018. Geography see 70.7% less coastline United States has a total of 19,924 km of coastline. In Croatia, that number is 5,835 km. The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Croatia Tax Administration, The World Factbook, Internal Revenue Service. United States vs. United States vs. Germany United States vs. United States vs. Iceland United States vs. United States vs. Poland United States vs. France United States vs. United States vs. United States vs. United States vs. United States vs. United States vs. United States vs. United States vs. New Zealand United States vs. Turkey Croatia is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 55,974 sq km. The lands that today comprise Croatia were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the close of World War I. In 1918, the Croats, Serbs, and Slovenes formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Following World War II, Yugoslavia became a federal independent communist state under the strong hand of Marshal TITO. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands, along with a majority of Croatia's ethnic Serb population. Under UN supervision, the last Serb-held enclave in eastern Slavonia was returned to Croatia in 1998. The country joined NATO in April 2009 and the EU in July 2013. Read more How big is Croatia compared to United States? See an in-depth size comparison. Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Croatia. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.	4,002
If there's a hazardous branch hanging over your building, but you want to keep the tree, turn to We Care Tree Care for tree trimming services. Whether you want to avoid property damage or just get more light in your yard, we can help. If it's an emergency, we're available for 24-hour branch removal calls in Kansas City, MO. Improve your property When you want to make your yard prettier and safer, branch removal is a great solution. It offers benefits like: Preventing limbs from causing damage Improving the appearance of your tree Promoting healthy growth Allowing more light to reach other plants During the trimming process, you can rest easy knowing that we value safety over everything. You can hire us up to 60 miles away from Richmond, MO. Schedule tree trimming services today.	789
On November 3, 2011 April 14, 2019 By Shaaban Fundi, Ph.D.In Dar Es Salaam, Education, Environment, Perspectives, Tanzania pharmaceuticals in drinking water Last week I attended Advanced Placement Environmental Science Educators Training at Kennesaw State University. Kennesaw University is located in the north-western part of the massive metropolis called Atlanta. During the training I learned different inquiry (lab) based methods of teaching advanced placement environmental science to students. It was a great week filled with fun experiences. As a part of the experiential learning for the training, the training participants visited the Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) sewage treatment plant. While there, we discussed the advantages of an MBR over traditional sewage treatment plants. In the middle of this discussion, a person asked a question about pharmaceuticals. I vividly remember the question: Do MBR sewage treatment process remove pharmaceuticals in the treated water? That question actually made me think twice about where the medications (such as pills, injections, topical creams, etc) that millions and millions of people take everyday ends-up. In fact, it is a known fact that what goes in must come out. Which conforms with the law of conservation of mass. Only a small portion of the medication that we ingest is actually metabolized. The rest is released to the environment through our urine, fecal matters, through perspiration, and many other means. The questions I asked myself while reflecting on this issue was: where do the by-products go to after we flush the toilets and/or when dumped in landfills after they expire? Are there microbes or natural phenomenon that break these pharmaceuticals down? Pharmaceuticals are the biggest incoming environmental and health challenge of our time. There are millions and millions of people taking a variety of medication each single day. All these pharmaceuticals finally end up in our waterways. In addition, most of the pharmaceuticals have long half-lives (Brausch et al.2012). Furthermore, there are few natural microbes capable of metabolizing these toxic chemicals. Thus, they stay in the environment longer increasing the likelihood that their concentrations in our waterways will continue to increase each passing year and possibly reaching toxic levels in a not so distant future. The effect of pharmaceuticals to human and other animals is not very well documented as of yet. However, several studies done on fish have shown negative effect to fish population exposed to elevated levels of pharmaceuticals in rivers, streams, and lakes (Daughton & Temes, 1999; Boxall et al. 2003a; 2004a; Floate et al. 2005). Furthermore, some studies have confirmed that in some species male fish have actually turned into female when their habitats were exposed to high levels of pharmaceuticals for long durations(Brodin et al. 2014). What the low concentrations of pharmaceuticals found currently in drinking water doing to the human body is currently a mystery. Admittedly, the pharmaceuticals are in minute concentrations right now. However, since none of the water treatment plants can remove them off of our water supply–we are running the risk of their concentration increasing over the next few years to toxic levels and harming us if they are not doing so already. Right now in America there are no legislation to deal with pharmaceuticals in drinking water or the water that goes into the streams, rivers, and lakes. At the same time, trace amount of pharmaceuticals have already been recorded in many urban and suburban water supply systems. What is America going to do with this impending health and environmental problem? I do not know about you, but I would rather not drink unprescribed pills in the water I drink. That’s just me. With all the hormones, antidepressants, and other different types of medications in the drinking water supplies; no wonder–people can no-longer stand each- other. And you are wrong even if you drink bottled water–you are still taking in pills! Previous Educating Black Kids: What Does the Research Say? Next Resources and Opportunities for African-Americans 279 thoughts on “Tainted Waters.” This article is so eye opening. I had no idea of the negative affect that pharmaceuticals had on the enironment. There is no surprise that this important topic isnt widely talked about because it isnt relevant the mainstream media. Also that the government has done anything to solve this issue. This really makes me wonder what other things arent as safe as we thought because water is one of the few things that people think are completely safe but in reality we just arent aware of what is really in it. I am definitely going to do my research from now on on the things that i consume because you never know the dangerous chemicals that can be in them. February 9, 2018 at 9:19 am Reply This post has really opened my eyes about the dangers of the water we drink and use everyday. The article has taught me that just because something looks clean doesn’t mean it really is thoroughly. Most people aren’t aware of this situation and they should be. I feel like if more people are aware of this situation they will take more measures to control it and watch how they treat there medication. In conclusion I thought this was a really well detailed and informative article that made me aware of the water we use everyday. February 9, 2018 at 9:03 am Reply Kevin J This article is great. My only questions why nobody knows about this. In the article it mentions how our water gets contaminated with drugs, and pills etc. After all there isn’t any report about anyone who has been harmed due to this problem. Maybe once everyone see the actually effect this has on you. Then there will be a change. February 9, 2018 at 9:00 am Reply This article about tainted water is very interesting.The Pharmaceutical industry controls all of society, and is contributing to the contamination of the ocean. It was very saddening to hear that the gender of a fish can change because of the toxins in the water. If fish are hurt by the toxins, then humans are also hurt too. its hard to imagine the countless amount of medicine in our water. February 9, 2018 at 8:48 am Reply I thought of this article to be very informative, pharmaceuticals such as atenolol , carbamazepine, gemfibrozil, and many more have all been found in same drinking water we consume on a daily basis. Though this may not be one of he biggest water epidemic we’ve seen, it’s still one that we should definitely be worried about. The study on fishes populations was one that intrigued me and made me question if it could affect us in a similar way. The idea that there has been no government intervention is quite alarming, you’d think we’d be protected in some way. This article was informative and I fell as though I might of learned something. February 9, 2018 at 8:46 am Reply I really like this article because it told me things I never knew before. I did not even know pharmaceuticals were being put into our water, let alone the fact that the government is not doing anything about it. America promises us rights some countries dream of – such as clean, accessible water. The fact that medicines in water are even changing the gender of fish, who knows what it is doing to us. February 9, 2018 at 8:36 am Reply This article was very informative. I had no idea how medicines could also affect our lives and they are going to the water we drink every single day. I am very surprised that there is not any government institution to solve this problem. Great article! February 9, 2018 at 8:34 am Reply i believe its kind of like how we have fluoride in our water. but its probably more harmful. its just pollution, there is so much pollution its hard to keep up with it. where does it go if not into the environment? i dont know much about it when its evaporated into the clouds does that filter it out or so could it just be simply filtered out before going into a larger water source and altering the fish’s minds into being gay. these poor fish… February 9, 2018 at 8:34 am Reply This topic is very interesting, because it talks about the toxic level in the water that everybody. It is a very serious problem because it is causing danger to the water everybody drinks. It can cause people to get toxic and can kill them. It is hurting the environment too,it is damaging the fish too. The government should really make sure that the water is clean to drink, and put money to a program that can help clean the water. February 9, 2018 at 8:31 am Reply This article is quite informative, especially to the people that did not know about this issue to begin with. It really opens the door to a discussion most people are not having. From this atricle, I have learned that the water is turning the fish gay. Perhaps the government does not want to adress this issue because they want people to continue to buy medicine. Letting this information out to the public on a big platform and in an open way would add damage to big pharmaceutical companies, and that is not something the government would be for. So until we do something about it, our water is going to be toxic and our fish will be gay. February 9, 2018 at 8:31 am Reply I find it very interesting that this isn’t being talked about more. Medications enter our water systems each and everyday and the concentration only grows. I guess the government doesn’t want to spend money tackling this issue. I liked your articel and honestly before this I didn’t think about the consequences of medicine in our water streams. February 9, 2018 at 8:21 am Reply I found this article very informative, and I really appreciate the humor behind most of your statements. Because of that, I was able to thoroughly enjoy. February 8, 2018 at 3:04 pm Reply I had no idea or had never even thought about the ramifications of medicines and other pharmaceuticals on the environment. I care about the environment a lot and eventually hope to have a job in the environmental field. I feel guilty for not knowing anything about this issue, and I am shocked that this is not talked about more. However, it does not shock me that there has been no governmental intervention with this issue. There are even more pressing environmental issues that have not been talked about enough or resolved. February 8, 2018 at 2:57 pm Reply I really enjoy how I am enlightened by this issue. It is very nasty if I am just now realizing that there could possibly be pharmaceuticals in the water I drink every single day. Another thing that was brought to my attention and I am very glad about it is that there is no government planning to help this issue. This was a great article! February 8, 2018 at 2:46 pm Reply Dr. Fundi – This post makes excellent points about the dangers of pharmaceuticals. While prescriptions can be very beneficial to those who need them, they can have dangerous consequences to those who may not need them. Drugs can interact with each other and cause numerous side effects. Our health could be affected, but nobody is quite sure of the effects of drugs in the water. It’s frightening to me that government isn’t doing anything to remove the pharmaceuticals from our drinking water, and this needs to change. The safety of the general public is paramount, and since government provides water service, it should be their job to ensure the integrity of the nation’s water supply. February 8, 2018 at 2:45 pm Reply This article is super interesting! I never knew how pharmaceuticals affected our water before now. I think the government must take action to prevent our water from being contaminated. It can destroy the animals in or ecosystem and hurt the people who may have rely on this water to drink. February 8, 2018 at 2:39 pm Reply This is a grave post. It shows how pharmaceuticals can have different affects from humans and animals. Also undergoing different lives such as in the sewage and not in the sewage. It’s affect have a great impact on our lives, due to the affects it has on water. If the water has impacted male fish in a negative way, then it interests me on how it affects us. August 16, 2017 at 6:27 am Reply I believe this article to be an eye-opening learning experience in that while the many advertisements and other forms of media may tell us that all the water we drink is ‘purified, all natural water’, that isn’t really the case. In reality, there are many things the government and large-scale companies hide from us, the truth behind what we consume being just one of them. It isn’t something that is always detrimental as I don’t really see this as being too big an issue other than possibly false advertisement. While this article does speak of the possible dangers of these pills taking a negative effect on us as experimented with the fish, I’ve yet to personally see something that would be so drastic. Life seems to go on as well as it always has more or less, so these pills could have been in our water since even before some of us were born into this world, at least thats my possible take on it, I really don’t know. August 16, 2017 at 12:00 am Reply This is a well thought out article! It stirs thoughts on many aspects of life in my head. What if these pharmaceuticals are changing the way our era is living in greater ways than we expect. They could possibly effect lifespan, making it either longer or shorter; effecting tolerance to disease and sickness; and the preservation of bodies after death. There could be many other effects of this flaw in cleaning water, we just aren’t sure about any of it. Personally I would prefer to know what exactly is in my water as well. August 15, 2017 at 10:47 pm Reply This I just mind blowing, I never knew that all these things were in our water and that they were actually harmful both to the environment and our water. I never really thought about any of this at all. It’s the first time that I hear about there being pharmaceuticals in our water because what goes in must come out! I think that its pretty interesting that the pharmaceuticals turned some male fish into females like I didn’t even think that that was possible. This article is very informative about the pharmaceuticals in our water and it’a actually mind blowing because we could be investing these pharmaceuticals everyday and we don’t even know about it because no one really tells us. I think that we could definitely sterilize the water and see if that takes out the pharmaceuticals to see if its taken out of the water. Doesn’t hurt to try. I loved this article and thank you for informing us about pharmaceuticals in the water we use on a daily basis. August 15, 2017 at 10:08 pm Reply This article was very informative and eye opening for me! I’m not sure about other people, but for me, I would never even think about something as small as pharmaceutical contaminants in our water, let alone realize how serious it can truly be. Learning that it can change a male fish to a female, or that “only a small portion of the medicine we ingest is actually metabolized” and the rest may end up in our water is very concerning. Since many people do not realize this is a problem, I do not see people or the government taking immediate action in the near future, which can be dangerous considering the longer we wait, the worse it will get. Therefore, it is important to get the word out and help people realize their drinking water may not be exactly what they think it is so change can occur. August 15, 2017 at 9:57 pm Reply I found this article to be very interesting and relevant to today’s culture and society. The issue of clean water affects all living things world wide. After learning about the pharmaceuticals that infiltrate our water, I believe that everyone should be made aware of this issue. This article led me to want to educate others on this critical topic, including my government officials. I wonder if the pharmaceutical companies are doing their part as well by trying to make their products more biodegradable? August 15, 2017 at 9:55 pm Reply An interesting thought occurred to me about a year ago when I decided that I would no longer use over the counter medicines to cure illnesses such headaches by using medicines such as Advil. I decided this based on the fact that I had no idea what my body did with the medications I used. This points brought up in this article are extremely interesting because a lot of individuals like myself, had no knowledge of how pharmaceuticals are hurting our wildlife, water, and overall environment. I strongly believe that if more people knew about this, then the government would look into some way to handle it. Great article. August 15, 2017 at 9:31 pm Reply This article (for the class hw) brings up a very interesting issue that is not talked about a lot. There is contamination in our water from the pharmaceuticals we digest and the pills we take. These drugs go through our sewer system and infect our water. Studies show that this could lead to disease in the human body that is very dangerous. This is a major issue that needs more attention immediately for humanities sake. August 15, 2017 at 9:30 pm Reply I found the article to be very interesting. This is the first time I’ve heard about our water being filled with pharmaceuticals that most people don’t need. I think it’s nerve racking that our government isn’t doing anything to fix it and allowing us to be infected. We usually use water to cleanse our bodies but if the water is contained with pharmaceuticals, what can we use to cleanse our bodies from all the food and drinks we’ve had? If the water affects the male fish, I wouldn’t be surprised if it effected us in a way as well. August 15, 2017 at 8:42 pm Reply This is a good article because it explains, in great detail, a problem that some people never knew. I never thought about how the medications that people take could be polluting our water. The fact that the chemicals that are found in our water can change a male fish to a female fish is alarming because it is mutating animals in a way. If the waters are capable of doing that to a fish then it makes me wonder what these chemicals to do to humans if there were higher concentrations in our water. This article made me wonder when and if they’re ever going to do something to prevent the chemicals from our medications from getting into our water. August 15, 2017 at 8:32 pm Reply This article was very interesting and informative on the effects of pharmaceutical contaminants. It was really scary reading how harmful these contaminants are on wildlife and ourselves. The water that we drink on a daily basis claims to be pure, but in reality, it is not what is claims to be. If we do not find a solution to this issue very fast, then it could end up being more destructive then we could imagine. I really enjoyed reading this article and it informed me on something i had not put much thought into before reading. August 15, 2017 at 8:31 pm Reply I agree with the article. Pills of any sort, namely opiates and depressents have no place in our drinking water systems. The most scary thought however, is not what individually these pills do but what they do when mixed together, such as what the end of a drug commercial tells us not to do, or to “consult a doctor.” Even the short term studies seem to indicate a long term trend- that any drugs in water can be a public health hazard. Take Flint, Michigan, for example. Years and years, and billions of dollars later, Flint is still without safe drinking water. While not a drug, lead, the substance in Flint’s system given a foreshadowing of a future that is to come if we are not careful of such things as simple as water. We need a fix for these problems, and we need it soon. Hopefully with a new president, these issues will get the attention they require. August 15, 2017 at 8:27 pm Reply As many of the other students and people who have previously commented on this blog have already mentioned, this is a very informative article. It was quite enjoyable to read and although there were a few grammatical errors I found it very interesting and most importantly not boring as I would many science related articles. It is rather frightening to become familiar with such an unknown topic even though it could have a massive impact on how we obtain our water. However, while I like that I now know about how pharmaceuticals negatively influence our sources of water as well as animal habitats it would also have been helpful if you included ways we could get involved. As a student I might not research methods to fix this situation on my own but I may be more inclined to if I knew of ways I could help in general. August 15, 2017 at 8:04 pm Reply It is quite terrifying to think about the pharmaceuticals that we ingest and pollute our systems with unintentionally. This is especially a problem when considering the concern over antibiotics. We are possibly creating super bacteria that will be untreatable and the more we put in the worse and faster it will get. Working in a veterinary practice, it is not uncommon for animals to have multiple pills that they are taking and this is going directly into the earth. It is hard to think of a good answer for this issue because we have to allow people to treat their illnesses. My hope is that people can find alternatives to medicine when there is one and as well learning about the issue. August 15, 2017 at 7:30 pm Reply This article is about the pharmaceutical products that end up in our water. This happens when someone takes any sort of medicine, most of the medicine that we take doesn’t metabolize and actually becomes waste and goes out into the water system. The shocking part is that we don’t know what this does to our bodies. The only effects on living things we have seen is the negative effect on fish. It causes male fish to turn into female fish, clearly it is changing biology think about what effects it could have on us. This needs to be investigated, by the government because right now the government isn’t doing anything. The only way to fix this is to push for legislation. Right now in Atlanta, the lack of legislation is putting everyone at risk. August 15, 2017 at 6:09 pm Reply This topic makes me think about what is in the water I drink everyday. It makes me a bit nervous thinking about the toxic material that could be in our water. We need to find a way to get this material out of our waters. If we don’t then we may be affected badly by it. It is important for all of us to stay safe. August 15, 2017 at 5:07 pm Reply Sewage treatment and water quality are some of the most important issues of our lifetime. Most people do not know that water is not 100% rid of impurities like pharmaceutical products. New systems need to be put in place to solve this problem. The article was very informational. There are some fragments and grammatical error, but overall your English is great! August 15, 2017 at 4:22 pm Reply I was not previously aware that we did not have filtration systems designed to filter pharmaceutical contaminants. This could prove to result in a massive health crisis. If these contaminants continue to exist in out water then the levels will only rise until it reaches a critical, toxic level and we all die. A solution to this issue should be of utmost priority. The lack of laws designed to regulate this is scary. Even more terrifying is the lack of awareness of this problem. I’m sure the reason this issue exists is because the right, best minds for the task are completely unaware of the issue to start. Everyone should spread the knowledge of this problem at the very least and if one can they should immediately begin work on a solution. January 24, 2017 at 4:21 pm Reply This article got me thinking about our water. Is the water really that bad? How could the government let us drink it, (especially after the flint river thing) The water would eventually kill us little by little, and the government it seems like doesn’t even care. It’s sad, really. January 24, 2017 at 12:04 am Reply The fact that many water companies say that there water is filtered and pure is just false. After reading this article I now realize that we are not safe. We as a society are being put in harms way by drinking this contaminated water. The environment is being harmed the Earth’s rivers, streams, and lakes are being contaminated because of our dumping of pharmaceuticals into the waterways. The animals are also being harmed. Take the fish for example, the male fish are becoming female. If that can happen to fish imagine what can happen to us. Even after the test on fish, our water, and the dangerous pharmaceuticals our Government is doing nothing. They are not implementing laws and to change this we first have to educate ourselves and everyone around us because this is a serious issue. Not only are the pharmaceuticals affecting us they are also going to affect the future of the Earths inhabitants. We as humans use many products for our beauty, the house, the car, etc. We do not think of the consequences the products have on our environment and this is what is happening with the pharmaceuticals. There are no visible signs of contamination and because of the crafty advertisement of water companies we keep drinking the contaminated water. We need to think about our future because it can be a small problem now, but later it will be a bigger problem. We need to take action and it has to be now! January 23, 2017 at 11:27 pm Reply Like many Americans, I have never considered what happened to the pharmaceuticals we take after they leave our body. I always assumed that they were metabolized during our body’s fight to cure us of whatever illness is currently inhabiting our body. This article opened my eyes to the dangerous world we are living in. Since 2014, Flint, Michigan has been experiencing a nightmare. For the past three years, their drinking water has been contaminated with metals and other contaminants. This problem persists to this day, so apparently, the government has not taken an active role in this dilemma. Taking clues from the Flint Water Crisis, I believe that it is safe to assume that the Federal Government would not assume a large role in dispersing the pharmaceuticals from drinking water. Since this is an existing program, I believe that the government should first conduct scientific research about the effects of these drugs reentering the body through water consumption. Secondly, based on the results the Federal Government should take action on the issue because after all the nation’s health should be of top priority. January 23, 2017 at 9:46 pm Reply The concept of this article worries me not only because of the chance of pharmaceuticals in the water supply, but because of the government’s reluctance to support initiatives towards clean water unless it benefits them in any way. Of course more research needs to be done before making a conclusion on whether the materials in the water are toxic or not, but the threat of increasing amounts of pharmaceuticals in the water supply is disturbing to me, especially since the government has not been responding. Access to clean, fresh water must be included in the rights to life Americans and citizens of the world are given. In a country as developed and with as much of a capacity for research as the United States, it is appalling to hear of lawmakers refusing to consider potential toxins in the water supply as a public health crisis. January 23, 2017 at 8:57 pm Reply I am shocked be the fact that there is little to no control on the contamination of our water. Not only does the majority of our world’s population not know that the water is contaminated, but our governments are not making a change. With no visible signs, many people including myself before reading this have no clue about this issue. When given these prescriptions, it is made clear to not share these medicines with others, yet when drinking this water, we are consuming these prescriptions that are not meant for our bodies. As time goes on, the concentration of these medicines in water will continue to rise higher and higher. Not only are these contaminated waters affecting us, but they are also affecting the wildlife in these waters. It shocked me when the fish changing genders due to the concentration of the water. Without addressing this issue, what impact could this have on humans in the future? There are no laws regulating these waters which is very scary in my opinion. Water companies claim to have filtered water, yet this is false. These prescriptions still remain in these fluids. This is a serious issue and these waters need to begin to be regulated and screened before becoming available to the human population immediately. January 23, 2017 at 9:40 am Reply While reading I learned how dangerous our water really is and how us human. Well actually not just us animals as well. January 23, 2017 at 8:18 am Reply This article is very interesting and makes me think if I’m really taking care for myself. We should all be concern in the water we drink in. I think that it is very bad that they put chemicals in our water and may definitely hurt my health. Not only us humans gets effected, animals as well. The government should really make sure that our water is healthy to drink. I think we as the people drinking the water should be more informed about this current situation. The government should already plans in making our water clean. It makes me think that the government doesn’t really care about their people. After reading this and learning that people go to the hospital from just drinking water really makes me unhappy about our government not taking any actions. We people should really pay attention to the water we drink and find a solution to it. January 22, 2017 at 11:48 pm Reply The fact that we could be drinking unknown chemicals and toxins is fun unpleasant, worrying thought. For someone who takes medicine daily and uses many products with a high amount of chemicals in them, I have never thought about where the excess product goes. While these chemicals may not be a current problem in our environment, they could come back to bite us in the future. If the people, as well as our government, do not act quickly and efficiently to stop this, many problems could emerge. People must be educated and informed about how to help lessen the effects of this soon-to-be-pressing problem. Once people realize that all products and chemicals end up somewhere, especially in their drinking water, I think sufficient action will be taken. Even though many of us have water that has been through a filter and claimed to be “fresh” and “pure”, there is no way to know if that is true or not. If we truly want to try and make our water as fresh and pure as possible, we need to do more than put it through filters. We need to find ways to safety dispose of chemicals and pharmaceuticals before it is too late. January 22, 2017 at 11:22 pm Reply This article really opened my eyes to how medicine could affect our life’s in more ways than one. I never really thought of where the medicine goes once I put it into my body. It makes me kind of curious if I’ve ever drank water that had some form of medication in it. I would hope that our government would protect us from something like this. It is very concerning that they don’t because if someone consumes something that their body is allergic or responds badly to then they could be in serious danger. I think that our government should do more or look more into this because it could cause harm to someone. January 22, 2017 at 11:08 pm Reply This article is very interesting. This could either benefit us or make us think whether it’s a good thing or bad things because any bill could be a drug and no drug is good unless its notified by a doctor. The government and us the people should take more notice of the things we are drinking and what they contain. This can benefit us if we were sure that taking that bill will do us no harm because then we could carry that bill around and if we get thirsty and there is no water besides dirty water we can get some of that and just put the bill and the water would be perfectly fine. This article really makes you think about what you are drinking when you just get a glass of tap water. I noticed that there is a taste difference between tap and bottled or spring water and I may have figured out why now. All of the substances and medicines that end up in our water will begin to cause problems in the long run. January 22, 2017 at 11:05 pm Reply This article is very interesting. This could either benefit us or make us think whether it’s a good thing or bad things because any bill could be a drug and no drug is good unless its notified by a doctor. The government and us the people should take more notice of the things we are drinking and what they contain. This can benefit us if we were sure that taking that bill will do us no harm because then we could carry that bill around and if we get thirsty and there is no water besides dirty water we can get some of that and just put the bill and the water would be perfectly fine. This article really makes you think about what you are drinking when you just get a glass of tap water. I noticed that there is a taste difference between tap and bottled or spring water and I may have figured out why now. All of the substances and medicines that end up in our water will begin to cause problems in the long run. January 22, 2017 at 11:03 pm Reply Wow. I really had no knowledge of this issue at hand. It is difficult for me to even conceptualize such a pertinent problem in our everyday lives- a problem which most Americans are unaware of. It is incredibly difficult to come up with a solution to this issue because it is so complex and intertwined into our everyday lives. We can’t give up prescription medication, as millions of Americans with serious medical issues will be left without treatment. Yet, this issue highlights another problem that often stays unmentioned- over-prescription. An abundance of Americans are prescribed new prescription medications everyday, many unnecessarily. Most anyone you encounter will have taken prescription medication at some point in their life. Limiting the amount of prescriptions citizens are given, and thus disabling the pharmaceutical business to further profit off our inhibitions, will help assist in uncovering a solution. Despite its benefits, this course of action does not completely solve the issue, as many Americans really do need prescription medication to live healthy lives. What I think is fundamentally necessary is government action. Congress must pass legislation requiring water treatment plants to find means of destroying the toxins left from prescription medication in urine and fecal matter. It may take years before legislation is enacted, but raising awareness is a good first step and can help catalyze the legislative process, considering politicians’ desire to please their constituents. More articles such as this one should be written to create a sense of need. Thank you for sharing this Mr. Fundi! January 22, 2017 at 10:49 pm Reply Before reading this article, I had no idea how contaminated our water could potentially be. I used to just drink water without thinking twice about that it could have traces of harmfull substances in it, but now I will be more mindull of that. It is also very sad that it has such negative impacts on fish, and the government needs to figure out how to make sure that the water is purified before people are able to drink it. Even though it may be safe enough now to drink, we need to fix this problem before it gets worse in the future and starts making an impact on the population. January 22, 2017 at 10:22 pm Reply Before reading the article “Tainted Waters” I knew that are tap water was contaminated and toxic the the human body, but to think that all of this is still going on and there isn’t even an attempt of cleaning the water is sad. This should be at least at the top 10 things they need to focus on and provide for their citizens safety. Plus we don’t even know how bad it effects us and if it disrupts our everyday lives. I don’t want to be drinking any unsubscribed pills without my knowledge which is basically like doing drugs. All of the medications can affect everyone’s everyday lives. For example when you’re brushing your teeth you are putting chemicals in your mouth when you rinse it off with water. this should be resolved by scientist or someone that can have an impact and change the water. I think changing this water can be very useful and can help save money when you’re out of water bottles. This rises a question when we take showers are we really clean then? because we have a bunch of chemicals on our body. January 22, 2017 at 10:08 pm Reply Before reading this article, I had never thought of where the pharmaceuticals in our body go, considering that it is not an issue many people talk about. I never knew that we only digest a little bit of the pharmaceuticals we take, and the rest goes into our water. I find it hard to believe that our government has not found a solution to this terrible problem, since it could be affecting us in ways we couldn’t imagine. I understand that it must be almost impossible to find a way to remove these prescription drugs from out water supply, but I am sure if we can invent auto drive vehicles, then we can find a solution to this problem of our water. I believe that our government must find a solution to fix prescription drugs from getting into our bodies, because it can be very dangerous and could be affecting our bodies. I do not understand how we have not found a way to remove these pharmaceuticals from our water supply because it is very unsafe for not only us, but also for the environment and the organisms living in these infected waters. I hope that soon this issue will be fixed, and I can know that when I drink water, I am not also in taking prescription drugs that may harm my body. January 22, 2017 at 9:57 pm Reply It isn’t crazy to think that medicine that people take daily can affect every single one of us. I thought medicine actually dissapeared inside your body, but I guess it makes since matter cannot be created or destroyed. We’re not the only ones being affected by this, fish and many other animals use water daily so they’re also being affected. I guess everything is actually “recyclable” January 22, 2017 at 9:18 pm Reply how does the government allow these contaminants into our water. Is there a possibility that we could live longer if these contaminates were removed. someone needs to make a way to get these out of our water. what about the people with sever drug allergies like they could die from this. does no one care about our heath but us like even the government drinks water that is contaminated do they think about that. January 22, 2017 at 9:16 pm Reply Wow dude I learned alot, January 22, 2017 at 9:09 pm Reply I find it quite surprising that there is no government regulation on this issue. Personally, I don’t want to be drinking somebody else’s prescription pills. I think other people would feel the same way too. Due to the lack of knowledge on the short and long term effects of pharmaceuticals ingested through “tainted water” on the human body, I think the issue is not receiving enough attention. Over time, the concentration of pharmaceuticals in water is just going to continue to rise, and the problem will need to be addressed sooner than later. It’s disturbing that a study found that concentrated doses of pharmaceuticals caused a certain species of male fish to turn female when the pharmaceuticals were exposed to their habitat. It makes you wonder the effects that pharmaceuticals could have on humans in the near future if this issue continues to go unaddressed. Being said, something needs to be done. I think some form of government regulation directed towards bottling companies and water treatment plants is needed. A method to remove these pharmaceuticals should be put into effect before water intended for consumption is put into circulation. (Homework for Mr. Fundi’s Class) January 22, 2017 at 8:28 pm Reply This article is fascinating, and is extremely informative. Not many people realize that the pharmaceuticals that we intake can have a great impact on our bodies and how well they can be kept/maintained. It is not very well known that the toxins in the pharmaceuticals can still be present and harmful when they are flowed through a waterway, and the populations do not think much of it. People do not realize that the leftovers are still emitted into waterways, rivers, etc. and are not even concerned about it.The fact that there are few who know about this is the problem. Especially if agencies, companies, and the government are not issuing out warnings . There needs to be a plan of action-testing of waters and more treatment plants to ensure the safety of the people. If nothing is done, there is bound to be an even greater dispute, and governments will be met with very unhappy people. January 22, 2017 at 7:32 pm Reply I am stocked and disappointed that the government has not even attempted to resolve this problem. Not a lot of people realize the negative impacts caused on the environment. People just don’t realize how or where the liquids they poor down the drain go. Is there a solution to removing the pharmaceuticals from the treated water? I believe it’s terrible that people take over the counter drugs when the person really doesn’t need it. I believe that the government should take a better approach towards what people do. There are many problems in the world impacting the environment today that we don’t know about. I’m very doubtful that this problem will be resolved any time soon. January 22, 2017 at 7:26 pm Reply Before I read the article, I some knowledge of the possibility that our drinking water was contaminated; whether it tasted funny or looked cloudy. Although, I had no knowledge whatsoever that we were drinking the prescribed medicines of other people. This is a very eye-opening and slightly scary thought to deal with on a daily basis. The fact about the fish changing genders really blew my mind. I can only imagine the harmful things our drinking water is doing to our body. Since we usually drink water to cleanse our body from toxins and to flush out our system, it’s shocking to hear that the thing we thought was the healthiest thing is for us, no longer is. I believe the government should supply more money for funds to help evaluate and decontaminate our water. We should have access to purification systems and other things of that nature. This was a very impacting article. I’m glad you took the time to inform us! January 22, 2017 at 5:20 pm Reply I find it crazy that the government doesn’t care enough to check the water before sending it off to the population. Although it may not be a visible and crucial issue yet, there obviously has to be some kind of negative effects on people unknowingly drinking prescriptions that their bodies aren’t meant to take. I find it hard to believe that there is no way to check the water or somehow screen it before sending it off and labeling it as “purified” when in reality it is not. I’m sure there are certain medicines have chemicals that are not overly hazardous to the average person, but the water needs to be screened for chemicals in these prescriptions that would unhealthy for the consumption of the population. January 22, 2017 at 4:22 pm Reply This article really showed me how me how ignorant ive been around what i put inside my body and gives a new light on how our goverement doesnt give any signs of care in pharmaceuticals ending up effecting our water breathing friends and we as people should really take the time out and make a difference in that. January 22, 2017 at 4:12 pm Reply I never thought about the fact that the medication we take would eventually come out, obviously I knew it would once I thought about it but it isn’t a topic that I think about. This brings up the matter of what happens to it,which is what you bring up in the post. The fact that the sewage treatment plant can clean the water extremely well, but leave prescription drugs in the water completely baffles me. After I read this post I did some research on prescription drugs. It turns out that every year 4.5 million people (just in U.S.) are rushed to the emergency room for side effects caused by prescription drugs. If you add in all of the people who are allergic to certain drugs, then the idea that those people could be taking drugs that they are allergic to can really get you worried about the water that you are consuming. When you think about the fact that every country in the world has people who consume prescriptions, than you realize the scale that this problem is on. I am surprised that this issue has not really been broadcasted to the public even though it is such a large issue. It really makes you think of all of the other issues that we do not know about. January 22, 2017 at 3:47 pm Reply This is an interesting article because it is something most people don’t think about. We all take medication whether it is for pain, sickness, or other maladies. However, I honestly believed after taking the medicine it was fully digested. The thought of it contaminating our water never crossed my mind. We are all aware of other things that pollute water such as oil spills, trash, acid rain, and human waste, but not medication. The only filtration system I have heard about is the one they use in Life Straws. I don’t know if the straws filter out pharmaceuticals but if it does, a large scale Life Straw filter could be helpful. January 22, 2017 at 1:55 pm Reply The issue is revolved around many health hazards, but predominately on the two factors of ignorance and carelessness. No government appears to be obligated to fix their mistakes simply because there are very few people that are aware of the situation. Those very government officials have the people believe that all is well and that there is no need for panic; that every glass of water put up to our lips are nothing but the purest of drops. Change is not occurring because we believe there is no need for it. For all matters, especially those of our health, no act of change can become existent if one doesn’t take a stand. Carelessness derives from the belief that any serious matter is nothing but a mere mistake that will just disappear. This is precisely what any and all persons believe, and its not only affecting our health, but also the environment that we feed and blossom from. I’ve always been a firm believer that where there is water, there is life, and that is exactly what needs to be apparent in all minds. Water is a major source of life, and it’s a resource that is essential for our survival. The more we know, the better we can act. The more we believe, the more wonders we can achieve. January 22, 2017 at 1:45 pm Reply Neha Kosaraju This article has really opened my mind. In the past, I’ve never realized that the pharmaceuticals humans use can actually end up in our water. Pharmaceuticals are used in almost every country, so this is a worldwide problem that can impact anyone. Many people might think that they won’t be impacted by them, because of how the effects to humans have not been well documented. However (as the article states), millions of people are using pharmaceuticals each day, and it won’t take long for he concentrations to increase. The government should be processing plans to filter the pharmaceuticals before this problem gets out of hand.When the effects start to become more apparent, it might be too late to do something. The water might be safe to drink now, but in the future, anything can happen. It is true that in order to be affected, a person must take a full dose of any pharmaceutical, and it is not yet possible to get a full dose though just a few glasses of water. However, in the future, it might become possible if more people continue the use of pharmaceuticals. As the article states, these pharmaceuticals can soon increase in concentration and the effects will then start to show. For now, even if people aren’t being impacted, organisms that live in the water, or even drink the water are being affected. Most of these organisms are smaller than humans, so just a small dose can affect them. It the pharmaceuticals have enough power to make fish switch genders, then we can only imagine the effects they will have on humans. January 22, 2017 at 1:45 pm Reply Before reading this article I known that the water we drink was once dirty water and went through a process to become clean/purified; but during that process some things could be missed such as pharmaceuticals. I’ve never thought that the medication we drink will be in our drinking water and the government isn’t doing anything about it. Especially if it could affect us in the long run. If I am not taking medication, I do not want to be drinking medication that is in the water that i do not know about and is not prescribed to me. Imagine what this would do to your body if the pharmaceuticals in your drinking water gets higher? We would all turn out like the fishes, the pharmaceuticals in the water turned the fishes from male to female. If it can do this to the fishes it probably will do the same to us humans in the long run when the pharmaceuticals in our drinking water gets higher. We should put this to notice to the government so they can take this seriously and try to fix this problem because nobody wants to be drinking medication in there water that might affect them sooner or later. January 22, 2017 at 1:38 am Reply I would agree with you also on how America should remove the pharmaceuticals being put in our water. Because sickness occurs every single day from different people all around the world, and therefore only a small portion of the medication is ingested, and the rest is liberated onto our environment. That’s unacceptable. They should help remove it, to keep our environment clean and the people alive. Water’s delicious and is important to our health, so we should be able to consume it without no worries. January 21, 2017 at 6:57 pm Reply This article brought up a plethora of information that I had not previously thought about. I was unaware of how untrustworthy out water systems were. The fact that so many fish are affected by the pharmaceuticals is a sad thought. However, a way to shrink this problem could be lowering the amount of harmful things we, as humans, put in our bodies. Things that are high in chemicals and not natural should not be used frequently or at all. This would not only help the wildlife, but humans also. The less products used the better. Personally, i have washed soaps and beauty products down the drain without thinking where it actually went. With the information presented to me in this article, I will most definitely think twice before using an unnecessary product or pharmaceutical. People in society today have little regard to the amount of waste they produce. Many people throw things away without thinking where their waste may end up. Once they put their trash out on the streets, they think that is the end of it. However, that is very wrong. We now have an excessive amount of trash in landfills that could have been recycled. With an increase in education of the harmful outcomes of these things, hopefully in the future this will be less of a problem. January 21, 2017 at 4:39 pm Reply To be honest I’ve never spent too much time thinking about what we actually drink when we drink water To me it was just plain water! Coming from Italy I noticed the difference of flavor between the water here in America and the one I drunk in Italy. Here it kind of taste like clorine. This article made me think a lot. January 21, 2017 at 11:12 am Reply I have known some what of this information, that our water system is not the best and that it shouldn’t be trusted. I wasn’t aware of there being pharmaceuticals in our drinking water. The people who are responsible or very much aware of this problem haven’t done anything to help because of the government. The government only wants us for our money no matter if its beneficial to our world or not , they might generally care ( only for money) but not personally. The scientist who work on our water system know about this and are most likely still drinking the water along with us. They could have already found a better alternative for themselves, but there could also be scientist who are trying to help but could be limited to their sources because of the government or there isn’t money to help treat the water for what they really need to fix the situation that is drastically increasing along towards the future. The could have a huge effect on everything, humans living crops growing ,and nature in general. I wish there was a better way for this to dealt with but it seems that no one can really trust what the government is doing or telling us. January 20, 2017 at 11:18 pm Reply After reading this it really made me think about how bad it really is. All the chemicals and pharmaceutical companies who let this happen. Something needs to be done . These people who need clean water are getting the complete opposite and it’s terrible for them. This is a great article thanks Mr fundi! January 20, 2017 at 11:34 am Reply Before I read the article, I some knowledge of the possibility that our drinking water was contaminated; whether it tasted funny or looked cloudy. Although, I had no knowledge whatsoever that we were drinking the prescribed medicines of other people. This is a very eye-opening and slightly scary thought to deal with on a daily basis. The fact about the fish changing genders really blew my mind. I can only imagine the harmful things our drinking water is doing to our body. Since we usually drink water to cleanse our body from toxins and to flush out our system, it’s shocking to hear that the thing we thought was the healthiest thing is for us, no longer is. I believe the government should supply more money for funds to help evaluate and decontaminate our water. We should have access to purification systems and other things of that nature. This was a very impacting article. I’m glad you took the time to inform us! January 20, 2017 at 10:14 am Reply I thought the article was very interesting and especially because this issue is not something that affects my life. Most people in America do not think about this because our lives are so simple and clean. For people who live in villages or towns where the major source of water is from a river. That river needs to be clean and free of issues so the villagers can remain healthy. If this issue is not fixed, the populations of the animals that live in these waters are also in jeopardy. One thing about this issue that makes it even worse is the lack of attention it gets. We live in a country where news spreads like wildfire and i have never heard of this issue until you brought it up. In order for this issue to end, we need to research it and clean it up. Again, interesting article Mr. Fundi, if you create another article to follow this one, please let us know so we can continue to be updated on this issue. January 19, 2017 at 10:26 pm Reply The issue of pharmaceuticals polluting our waters is not actively harming us today, but with the study showing a difference in the fish population it does raise some concerns. It makes sense, the whole issue. This type of pollution really becomes intimidating when you bring hormones into the picture. According to an article from the Harvard health website, the amount of testosterone put into our water from one use of a testosterone cream would take much longer naturally occur. One of the main things that is being fought right now are nursing homes. Unlike hospitals, which have special disposal systems for their pharmaceuticals, nursing homes do not. They simply flush any medicine that is left unused. With all the people, in all the nursing homes, in all of America, that flushed medicine really adds up, and unlike the percentage of medicine that our bodies simply do not absorb, this is a variable to the problem that can easily be fixed. January 19, 2017 at 9:29 pm Reply I found this article to be extremely interesting yet frightening at the same time. Prior to reading this article I had no idea there were traces of prescription pills in the water we drink everyday! It obviously has some lasting health effects that don’t seem to be very good but it’s scary because scientists haven’t looked into this problem and prioritized it as much as they need to. After reading that it has effected male fish by turning them into female fish really interested me because that is so crazy and I have never heard of the happening! While I don’t think humans will switch genders due to the water, it is still a scary thing- who knows the other health risks. The last part of this article that shocked me was that the traces of pills are also found in bottled waters which are usually a safe alternative to ensure the water is filtered properly. Very interesting article. January 19, 2017 at 8:51 pm Reply I am scared to drink water now. Not really but it does sound scary. We always use a water purification system in our house. Thank you Mr. Fundi for bringing this to my attention. You are a really good teacher January 19, 2017 at 7:44 pm Reply Before reading this article, I never knew about what really happens to the medication I take. It was really surprising to see that pretty much, majority of the components in my medication, don’t truly get absorbed in my body. This makes me think that it’s sort of pointless to take medication. Even worse, the rest of the medication is discarded into our environment which will have a drastic effect on it in the future. Furthermore, not only has the environment, become affected, but this has also taken a toll on our fish populations. The biggest problem about this isn’t the influence it has on the environment or species, but the fact that most people in the world don’t know about this issue. More people in the world need to know about this issue because it ultimately will affect us in the near future if we want something done about this issue. I agree, I don’t want to continue drinking water that I thought was safe but actually has potentially harmful pill ingredients. I would like to live a nice, long healthy life… if possible. January 19, 2017 at 6:33 pm Reply I found this article very interesting. I always knew that in certain cities, they add various chemicals to the drinking water in order to provide health benefits (Such as Fluoride for most of the us, or Sulfur in parts of Florida), but I always assumed that as a nation we were able to keep all of what we wanted in and all of what we did not out, but your article has shed light on this issue that will only affect our society more as time goes on. My question is, might the problem in filtering our drinking water be leading to the rise in the number of bacteria that are resistant to our modern antibiotics? January 19, 2017 at 4:52 pm Reply This article was very interesting to me and was also very surprising. I had no idea that this was an issue but after reading the article, it makes sense that it is. Every year more and more medications are being created to help people with different illnesses. This means that each year more and more medications are being put in our water supply. No legislation has been passed to prevent this from happening which means that it is up to the people to make sure that this issue gets attention. That is the only way that it is going to be solved. In order for this problem to get more attention more people need to realize that it is a problem. This starts at the local level. If more articles like the one that is featured above are publicized in the paper or even talked about more than locals can be educated about it. Once the lower level is educated about this problem then it can then be called to the attention of the government. The United States is a country that strives on the idea of freedom of the people. This issue can easily be solved if the people declare that they want their to be more restrictions on our water. January 18, 2017 at 9:32 pm Reply After reading this article I was surprised that the government has not done anything about this issue. It is completely dangerous for humans to be drinking water with pharmaceuticals in it. What scared me most is that day by day more pharmaceuticals are being made and they are becoming stronger. Also taking unsubscribed pharmaceuticals can change someone’s attitude or actions. It can also be possible that many people are drug addicts due to drinking water with a lot of pharmaceuticals in it. Once thinking about this you can conclude that just about everything has pharmaceuticals in it because mostly everything requires water. However I do think filtering water through items people can buy can help solve this issue but obviously the government filtering is not helping so does it really matter? This is a great article that has made me think about a lot of issues today in society. January 18, 2017 at 7:49 pm Reply I thought the article was very interesting. One reason I thought it was so interesting is because it was not really an issue I thought about. I think the fact that it is an issue that not many people really think about is a huge part of the problem. To fix something, you must have people researching and thinking about the issue. You can see how this is true since there is no legislation to fix the issue. Another thing I liked about the article was how there was scientific data used to back up the claims on the negative affects of pharmaceuticals in water. I found the effects of pills on fish surprising, and now I am actually interested about the issue. It will be very hard to fix the problem, but I think it defiantly could happen. January 18, 2017 at 5:43 pm Reply Reading this article has caused me to look at the quantity of water I drink differently. I went from thinking the more water I drink the better but now I know that is not the case. I’ve learned that the water us humans drink today may contain some chemicals like medicines, pills, etc. When we use those types of medicines we dispose of it when we use the restroom so it is in our urine. I feel like they should have more order in the sewage plant making sure that good stuff can come in and the wasteful stuff don’t mix with the water. Making sure that the water is cleaned from chemicals. January 18, 2017 at 2:45 pm Reply Very fascinating article Mr. Fundi! Before reading this article, I had none to little knowledge about the impact that pharmaceuticals had on our environment as a whole. With living in a completely different situation than families in Tanzania. I found it eye opening with all the profound research you have found and put together to create more opportunities for them. However, moving forward I would like to see the significant impact that the research brings to the table. Sooner or later, people will have the growth of knowledge in this area to give solutions and solve this growing problem. Not many people are completely aware to this problem. So advice, go outside and spread the word for this kind program to grow more and take down this devastating problem. January 18, 2017 at 2:19 pm Reply I had no idea that pills that we take could get into our water. I think this generation needs to be the one to try and create legislation to deal with these problems. Also we need to take action to try and find a solution to be able to filter out these pharmaceuticals and other drugs in our waters. I think if we can come up with a solution to this it could help save many lives going forward. Once the government begins to help out with this, the problem could very well be solved. January 18, 2017 at 2:17 pm Reply Great article Mr. Fundi. While I agree that medication infiltrating our waterways is a large problem, I do not necessarily believe it is the largest environmental issue facing our generation. Issues such as water usage, deforestation, and an increased number of extinct species have a much larger impact on the world as a whole. With that being said, it is very interesting to see the effects that these medications are having on the environment. Researchers in Colorado have discovered that increased estrogen levels in the waterways are causing male fish to develop female sex cells. This is caused by people flushing their unused medication down the toilet and having them end up in the rivers and lakes. This problem will continue to haunt us until we can figure out a way to create biodegradable medication or a way to decompose the medication we already use. January 18, 2017 at 2:08 pm Reply Wow! great explanation of why and how pills get into the water September 1, 2016 at 6:34 pm Reply This article was pretty interesting and it was radical. When I was reading the article it scared me about the hormonal, antidepressant, and other types of medication in the drinking water. Also there are no legislations to deal with pharmaceuticals in the drinking water and or the water that flows into the streams, rivers and lakes. The solution about this problem is drink filter water and or drink bottle water. September 1, 2016 at 5:48 pm Reply from reading the article I actuclly learned myself that the pills we take end up in the water we drink everyday. just the thought that we are drinking a;l these type of medication while drinking something we need to survive. The government I feel should show effort in trying to solve this problem. Although it may not effect at that moment, in the long run it may cause many different problems for you. I feel the problem could be solved September 1, 2016 at 5:44 pm Reply interesting Article I do think that it is a problem and made me question now every time I drink water and we aren’t safe in bottle water too I think scientist should find a way to stop this because in a future as it is now it can be worse and make new desises September 1, 2016 at 5:10 pm Reply Thanks so much for this article Mr. Fundi. I learned a lot about how medicines can be bad for your system and how lots of antibodies and pharmaceutical products are still in our bloodstream today. I do have some questions to ask about the subject though. September 1, 2016 at 9:07 am Reply I honestly have never thought about this. I necessarily didn’t think of how this would affect us but now that I read this I see how much of an importance their is on pharmaceuticals. Now after reading this I question myself what chemicals we are drinking and maybe also because of that many diseases may come from it. The fact that the government isn’t doing anything towards it to help the environment is not right because this may cause more harm than we already haven’t noticed. But I think its very important to know about this and try to question our helpful healthy chemicals. Maybe there could be a way to help all chemicals balance. This may help us and our environment be better and help us answer our questions on how this could stop harming. August 31, 2016 at 10:33 pm Reply I think this article brings up a pretty good point. It’s pretty scary to think that unsubscribed pills could be in the water that we are drinking right now, even from the stores. That could lead to health issues after being exposed to it for too long. It may a also make people more irritable from the side effects. It also might make animals sick and make our food lower quality. I think there should definitely be more being done about this. August 31, 2016 at 10:25 pm Reply from the pharmaceutical perspective there isn’t really another valid option as to where to dispose of the chemicals, but the scientists should have been trying to figure out a eco friendly way to dispose of all the medications. The idea of how much harm these medications could do to the environment over time is worrying. i wonder if the plants are having alarming effects or will be having of an unknown period of time. we should find a way to neutralize the pharmaceutical drugs so that way they would be safer to dispose of them. August 31, 2016 at 8:16 pm Reply I have actually wondered about this before and I can not completely remember why but there is one thing I do wonder. I wonder why the government has never mentioned this or tried to fix the problem, this is really horrifying to the health population. We have studies showing the affects of prescribed drugs in the water that have the potential of changing the sex of a fish, why has nothing been done about it? And to know that this is in the water we drink daily is also horrifying, we are taking in drugs that are from other people, if that is not scary enough I don’t know what is! It is almost like the drugs that help us are also killing us, it makes almost no sense at all and is just completely terrible. I would wish to have a solution to such a problem but I am not educated enough in this type of field of pharmaceuticals but I can say that the government should filter water more than it is already being filtered to help decrease the amount of medicine in our daily water. And I will also be fair to the wild life, they don’t deserve to die because of poorly disposed medicine, there should be a better way to deal with disposed medicine, and with what is happening now the people that are responsible of dealing with expired medicine should realize this situation as well. August 31, 2016 at 4:45 pm Reply I also agree with the fact that i wouldn’t either take un-prescribed pills from the water, or any bottled water. I am now aware of the risk i am going though when drinking water even if i think its filtered enough , it may not be. The government needs to do something about this, and more people need to be aware of this. They should have more regulations about this in sewer plants. If we can , we need better fund research into providing better filtration systems. Our public needs to change these damages being to done animals and humans August 31, 2016 at 12:35 pm Reply I think this article educates the American People about harmful chemicals being leaked into our government. This problem most recently surfaced in Flint, Michigan. I think we need to Better fund research into providing better filtration systems for our public and make organizations like the FDA and EPA better funded and more powerful to combat these types of problems February 23, 2016 at 11:33 pm Reply From reading this article, I’ve learned that the water us humans drink today may contain some chemicals like medicines, pills, etc. When we use those types of medicines we dispose of it when we use the restroom so it is in our urine. I feel like they should have more order in the sewage plant making sure that good stuff can come in and the wasteful stuff don’t mix with the water. Making sure that the water is cleaned from chemicals. Students taking science classes or for whoever is concerned about what goes on in the modern day science should be recommend this website because it is a lot of useful information that is contained. February 23, 2016 at 9:34 pm Reply From this article, I learned that the water we drink can contain medicines like pills for example. They should have more regulation towards these sewage plants. They should be able to have more control of what goes in and what comes out. I believe that it isn’t right. They know they contain these medicines but they still distribute the water. Many people dont know about this so they are believing that they are drinking plain, pure water. February 23, 2016 at 8:54 pm Reply Prior to reading this article I kind of knew that there were some things in the water because I knew that the sewage system could not completely filter what comes through our faucets, but I did not realize that there were pharmaceuticals in it. It is a scary idea to have dozens of pills flowing through our water, and it’s hard to filter out these tiny particles. Brita filters can’t be used as a solution to completely block out the pharmaceuticals, it won’t completely clean everything out, Brita filters could not even protect against the water problems in Flint Michigan regarding the lead in the water. We should try to come up an idea that can start within the sewer system and also the community to try to prevent these pharmaceuticals and other dangerous chemicals from entering the water. There should also be some sort of system from companies for the consumers to use to throw away their empty products and they can dispose of it in a healthy manner so that it does not end in up in our water. By bring light to this idea more people will be informed, and will try to work together so that we can lead longer healthier lives. February 23, 2016 at 8:48 pm Reply Prior to reading this article I kind of knew that there were some things in the water because I knew that the sewage system could not completely filter what comes through our faucets, but I did not realize that there were pharmaceuticals in it. It is a scary idea to have dozens of unprescribed pills flowing through our water, and it’s hard to filter out these tiny particles. Brita filters can’t be used as a solution to completely block out the pharmaceuticals, it won’t completely clean everything out, Brita filters could not even protect against the water problems in Flint Michigan regarding the lead in the water. We should try to come up an idea that can start within the sewer system and also the community to try to prevent these pharmaceuticals and other dangerous chemicals from entering the water. There should also be some sort of system from companies for the consumers to use to throw away their empty products and they can dispose of it in a healthy manner so that it does not end in up in our water. By bring light to this idea more people will be informed, and will try to work together so that we can lead longer healthier lives. February 23, 2016 at 8:33 pm Reply This is a very interesting article. I never really thought about medication in human waste. I know you are not supposed to dispose of medication through the sewer. I guess more research needs to be done to find ways to eliminate medication in our water system. I think it is scary to think about drinking someone else’s medication. February 23, 2016 at 7:25 pm Reply In this article, I learned about the countless dangers of just drinking “plain water”. Articles, like this one, discussing such a grave matter like the concentration of pharmaceuticals in our water, should be a subject of more concern in our society. Personally, I didn’t know about pharmaceuticals in our water. Due to this, more awareness should be brought upon this subject. February 23, 2016 at 5:53 pm Reply After reading this article,it makes me NOT want to drink water. The government should really party attention to this and should do something about it. But in all honesty,I think that this article should be spread towards the public because they ought to know what’s in the water that they’re drinking even if they think that the bottled water that they drink is mainly pure and free of lead and such February 23, 2016 at 5:08 pm Reply I think that this is a very good experience for our life, because it help us learn what kind of medicine are in our water. If we really want clean water, we should paying high attention on this. February 23, 2016 at 1:26 pm Reply I think that this is a really great experience for our life. It made us can learn about what kind of medicine are in our water, and if we really want clean water, we should really paying attendance on this. February 23, 2016 at 1:23 pm Reply Admittedly, the pharmaceuticals are in minute concentrations right now. However, since none of the water treatment plants can remove them from from our water supply–we are running the risk of their concentration increasing over the next few years to toxic levels. that sentence got my attention because it is toxic. we need to watch other more in what medications we take. in my opinion I think this is bad because we can be in danger. February 23, 2016 at 11:40 am Reply I learned about how dangerous something as simple as drinking water can be if we do not put forth the effort to remove contaminants as well as making sure no more seep into our water system. I think more education systems should be implemented for this issue so that everyone can know the dangers of contaminating our drinking water. Excellent article! February 23, 2016 at 7:47 am Reply The article states that, although the introduction of pharmaceuticals into the water system is ongoing, not unusual, and highly dangerous, there is no legislation in America combatting the negative effects of this poisonous process. I learned that, although millions of people take medicines, the way they dispose of them is hardly responsible. By dumping unused pills and expired medication into the toilet or the drain, it unknowingly hurts the environment and causes severe damage to the ecosystem. We know that the pill contamination hurts the environment, but it also hurts us because, as Dr. Fundi found out through his visit, there are not many ways to filter pharmaceuticals out of the water at water filtration plants. In the fall semester of this school year, I went around my neighborhood collecting expired pharmaceuticals in order to safely dispose of them at specified locations. I enjoyed this article because it spreads awareness of such a dangerous phenomenon that occurs in our society today, and I hope we read more articles like this. LikeLiked by 1 person February 23, 2016 at 7:43 am Reply Avonti Tambe In my opinion. We should find a way to purify the waterways. Maybe we should use a chemical in sewer ways to somehow cleanse all of the medication LikeLiked by 1 person February 23, 2016 at 1:34 am Reply Avonti Tambe This is a very interesting and informing entry Mr. Fundi! I learned how dangerous it can be for our bodies if we don’t soon find a way to purify all of the toxic medications from out waterways. If we don’t do something soon, it could cause another epidemic. LikeLiked by 1 person February 23, 2016 at 1:31 am Reply Avonti This is a very interesting and well thought out entry Mr. Fundi! We should really look into a way to purify our waterways of these toxic chemicals before they start to take an effect on our bodies as well. LikeLiked by 1 person February 23, 2016 at 1:29 am Reply I learned how dangerous that it is to drink water because all of the medications found in drinking water that can’t be removed and the threat that it poses to our health in the future. It says that bottled water is also unsafe for drinking. Something needs to be created that can dissolve these medicines that can make drinking water safe for drinking. I think that it is very scary because the water that I drink most likely contains medications. Something needs to be done. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 10:21 pm Reply I learned how unsafe it is to drink water because of all the medications it may contain . Even drinking bottled water is unsafe . Something needs to be done about this situation because it’s not only hurting humans but animals too. You never know what kinds of medications could be in your water and that’s very scary . There is something needed to dissolve medicines after they have been flushed or thrown away . LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 9:42 pm Reply I thougth that this article was very surprising because i never thougth about that. I learned that medecine is in our water and I think that we should be paying more attention to what is going into our water if we want clean water in the future. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 9:36 pm Reply I was really surprised with this article, I never thougth about that. Now I will think more when I drink water. I think that the scientist and people in general should be more aware about what goes into water because it’s affecting our world. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 9:23 pm Reply This article took me by a complete surprise . While reading I learned how dangerous our water really is and how us humans and the animals are taking many chemicals daily without our knowledge . To solve this problem something ( device ) needs to be created to correctly eliminate the expired pills and other medications. My opinion there should be more knowledge of these kinds of situations people are harming them self and animals without them knowing. This can not only hurt us in the long run but can hurt the animals. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 9:19 pm Reply This article shows us the important idea of having prescription medications,drugs, may have an affect on the environment. It has appeared to have already affected fish, some dying and in a few cases, a male fish turning female. We need to take precautions so that pharmaceuticals don’t end up in our waters, or we need to at least find a chemical that we can use to take the pharmaceuticals out and keep our waters safe for us to use afterwards. Personally, I’m not too sure if this is something we have to worry about ourselves as of right now, considering nothing drastic happened to humans because of this, but we should at least keep our eye on it to see if there is anything affecting us besides the fish. ~Nathalie V., 16 LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 9:14 pm Reply i didnt know pharmaseuticals can polute our water like this. people try to love healthier lives and everyone drinks water. Now theres drugs that can hurt us. As a person drinking water we should filter out water so it can be cleaned out thoroughly. I feel really different about the water I drink because now my life can he in danger. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 8:53 pm Reply i learned that there are alot of pharmaceuticals in water and its can we dont know what it can happen to us , but we do know what it can do to fish. We should not replenish sewege water thats nasty and if it does harmful things to us thats also worse. I kinda have a different understanding of water now. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 8:49 pm Reply After reading this article I learned how dangerous our current water supply is today. With all of the medicine that we consume daily, not even to account for annually, we are exposing our bodies to so many chemicals that can harm us later on in life. In order to solve this dilemma, I believe we need our environmental activists and engineers to develop a filtration machine that will properly eliminate all of these medicines that are naturally creeping into our water supply. This will help make the water become more pure, so that it’ll be safer to drink. In my opinion, this is a very important issue because it will effect the way we will be living several years down the road. I believe something should be done to help save not only our lives, but the animals in our environment around us as well. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 8:39 pm Reply I found that this article completely took me by surprise, as I’ve never contemplated the results of dumping pharmaceuticals in water. This passage is both interesting and informative, teaching me about how people inadvertently harm the environment and maybe even others. I found this information insightful, yes, but also quite paranoid. Over thinking things like this wrongly worsens peoples’ fear over how they function. Although, I do understand that this is a scientific observation and scientists must analyze and question aspects of everything. I think that the only way to prevent/spread awareness about the possible effects of pharmaceutical-dumping, is to take the time and money to further research it, then maybe diagnosing the situation with new methods of water-purification. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 8:38 pm Reply In this article I learned about how the water is tainted with medicine. I had never given this much thought before, but now that it has been brought to my attention I find it very interesting. I believe that the government should try and put more money into fixing problems like this. I believe that this should be brought to more peoples attention, instead of just being “swept under the rug”. I will not stop drinking water even though now I know more of what it is tainted with, but in the future I will be more conscious of what I am drinking. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 8:28 pm Reply I’ve learned that no matter what i drink unless its some pure untapped glacier water its going to have some sort of pharmeceutical. By ingesting small trace amounts of these drugs we could actually be weakening our immune system. I feel that this would be an interesting field of study but we should just say that our scientists should figure a way to solve the problem as Olivia Milam stated. Olivia also said that we need to make laws for the companies that filter our water when in fact it is our own government who filters the water. The government would never place laws that would raise expenses. That is why nothing will ever be done about it. If something was to be done i would suggest exposing the water to light radiation to kill off water ever is in it. This shouldnt be harmful to the average human because in all honesty, every minute we are on our electronics we expose ourselves to more and more radiation. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 6:22 pm Reply This article is very interesting. I’m glad you wrote this article because this can bring attention to the people. This really surprised me. I never thought of any of this until I read the article. I learned that medications have end up in rivers, streams, and the water we drink. Knowing that medications are in the water we drink is scaring. This made me think twice about drinking water that can be effecting me and others, and something should be done. I think we should find a better filtration system to keep our water fresh. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 6:16 pm Reply I learned that whenever I take a sip of water, I could be drinking pharmaceutical medications that aren’t prescribed to me. You are always told never to take prescription drugs that do not belong to you so with this, we could all be ingesting small amounts of these drugs that could potentially overtime have negative effects on the human body. I think that scientists need to figure out a way to filter out the traces of these drugs in the water because, if the levels keep rising, we might as well be taking the medication. There should be laws made to make sure that the companies who filter the water get all of the medication out. In my opinion, I would never want to take drugs that aren’t prescribed to me so the thought of drinking trace amounts of them is horrifying. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 6:08 pm Reply Whenever I take a sip of what I think is clean water I usually don’t think twice, but this article made me realize that the water I am drinking may not be so clean. I thought this article was very interesting because as an athlete I take lots of ibuprofen to help with pain and soreness. I think that there should be studies conducted specifically for this issue and once a solution is discovered, there should be laws and regulations to prevent destroying our water and marine life. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 5:19 pm Reply I thought this was an interesting article because I had no clue about this. I learned that old pills and prescriptions end up in rivers, streams, and the water that we drink. They end up here once they come out of our bodies and are flushed down the toilet. I believe that people should be more cautious about this and that something should be done. Like you had stated, I would also prefer my water without prescribed pills in it. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 3:32 pm Reply I learned the scientist have issues with not taking out the pharmaceuticals, and that we struggle and hide the issue of the pills and medicine in our water. We have to go back to traditional living and using traditional medicines. We have to stop polluting the air and use the rain water, just let the world heal on it own. But you cant heal a burn with heat. You have relieve the pressure all pressure. My opinion I personally know that the gov’t does not care about the people as they use to, they use us as consumers to keep feeding there pockets so, I am not surprise. Its another issue that needs to be addressed by the people because the Gov’t isn’t going to do anything about instead make it worse. LikeLiked by 1 person February 22, 2016 at 11:48 am Reply Ive never really thought about what happens to pills after they have been flushed down the toilet or have gone or dissolved in our bodies….: like do they just stay there ? But i agree with victoria with her comment and also made me think about it a little more about with the water problem and stuff cause it has me thinking what are we reallt drinking LikeLiked by 1 person September 27, 2015 at 8:22 am Reply I’ve never really thought about what happens to the medication as soon as our bodies are done with them. I learned that a way our bodies got rid of this unneeded medication is by getting it out from our waste. Maybe we should come up with a new filtration system that is still safe but strong enough to clean out the unwanted medications from the water. September 25, 2015 at 7:41 pm Reply This is a very intriguing topic, but I’d have to agree with Toni and others who commented. You all point out some very important views. But regardless of drinking water or not we are still exposed to pharmaceuticals. It may become a bigger threat but if we’d like to make a change we would have to figure out a way to dispose of our medications better. It still makes me wonder why the government hasn’t done anything about this, I have not heard about any experiments or research about tainted waters. Surprisingly it does change my view a bit, but avoiding water is not a good option. Our government just needs to invest in research. LikeLiked by 1 person September 24, 2015 at 11:19 pm Reply Your article made me think twice about drinking water that maybe effecting me and others. Knowing water is not really pure but contaminated with non prescribed pills. I’m going to be more careful with what I drink. LikeLiked by 1 person September 24, 2015 at 9:51 pm Reply I found the article very interesting to know what happens to the pills we take and what happens to them when we flush the toilet.and where they go LikeLiked by 1 person September 24, 2015 at 8:04 pm Reply I haven’t been aware of this situation but it seems like a fasinating inquiry. It proposes questions like if workers at membrane bioreactor (MBR) sewage treatment plan are aware that medications are effecting the water treatment processes or even traditional sewage treatment workers then, why haven’t they said anything about it? Since the half lifes are so long, it should take a long time for the effects of the pharmaceuticals to effect the human population. Although, it effects fish presently, which should effect humans who eat fish, i don’t think this is a major concern to us presently. If you say that the pharmaceuticles effect water, then you could also say that pharmaceuticles effect tons of things we do, like when we wash our hands, take a shower, etc. We are exposed to pharmaceuticles regardless if we drink water or not. Since we are exposed to these types of medications daily, we should hypothetically be immune to some of these medications through our immune system. Regardless, fish have a simple body structure, which leds to being prone to diseses, medications, etc. I think it’s very informative but I don’t think it will have a effect on us presently as stated before. I think it’s a good article because it makes people aware of the concern that medications are in water and it’s about something that could effect us daily. LikeLiked by 1 person September 24, 2015 at 7:44 pm Reply I had never heard of this situation before I read this article. Many things crossed my mind while I read but the major one in my opinion is that these pharmaceuticals are far from being high enough concentrations to show effects in human bodies. Studies show that pharmaceuticals found in treated water are only .05µg/l or one millionth of a gram. I don’t know about you but I am pretty much sure that an amount so microscopic will not have the slightest effect on humans for a long time, given our complex immune systems and tolerance to medicines. Even though signs of abnormalities have shown up in fish, does not mean these pharmaceuticals will have the same effect on humans because although fish do have immune systems to fight diseases, they are no where near as advanced as the ones found in mammals. These particles only show up in fish because of how long they have been exposed to the water. (We could eat tons of fish and still not experience the effect it has on them.) I believe that there is a way to purify our drinking water to the point where our environment could intake as much as possible and still remain unharmed. We have come a long way in the past years with inventions and technology that there is no reason why we can not accomplish this as well. Also, our generation could compile tons of information and experiments about this but it will not change the fact that we will most likely be long gone before this problem is completely solved. Although we will continue to study this topic I do not think it is anything to stress about. LikeLiked by 1 person February 23, 2015 at 11:11 pm Reply This article opened my eyes. Most people typically never think past drinking a cup of tap water and really, shouldn’t have to. Our government has made us feel like we shouldn’t have to question them which has become a problem. Harmful chemicals cannot go straight into our water. There should be a seperate place to dispose of medications rather than a human beings drinking water. LikeLiked by 1 person February 3, 2015 at 5:17 pm Reply this article does well to inform the general public about what we are putting into our body. I feel that with a little time and a little money we could do a way better job on getting some of these toxins out of our body’s and our water. LikeLiked by 1 person February 3, 2015 at 8:24 am Reply This article was very interesting and I’m really surprised and not happy to see that they are releasing prescription medication into our drinking water. I think that we should use tax money on a water filtration system that could clean out the water but that would only be a start because of all the water bottles that are already made and other places that sell water that we can’t purify LikeLiked by 1 person February 3, 2015 at 8:19 am Reply I feel that this article was well to inform the General public. the fact that there are different types or medicine in the water could effect anything about a normal persons life. LikeLiked by 1 person February 3, 2015 at 8:16 am Reply This article presented a concern that I have never considered before. With this issue being a possible threat in the future, I wonder about people with medicine allergies, or if some of the illnesses today that require medication are caused by the medication in drinking water. This issue is unsettling, but proper awareness and research can most likely (and hopefully) develop a safe solution. LikeLiked by 1 person February 2, 2015 at 9:32 pm Reply Pills and Potions. I’m glad that you wrote this article because it will bring to people’s attention the effect that environmental neglect has on all of us. Environmental legislation is the last to pass because people big businesses ignore the poor affects that it has on our health. There are always important matters to be discussed, especially now with the second wave civil rights movement ongoing. It is always important, however, to be environmentally conscious. Just as our body produces new skin cells daily, making exfoliation a must for good skin, so does the earth. Whether we put our trash into blue bins or the Mother Earth will recycle itself and as human beings we are in that recycling process. The buck begins and ends with us. This article raises alarms that the American public needed to hear years ago. Thank you. LikeLiked by 1 person February 2, 2015 at 6:48 pm Reply Honestly, I’ve never even thought of how pills and such would have such a great effect on the environment. It’s amazing that something as potentially harmful as this hasn’t made the news yet. That raises an interesting question, has it been purposefully made quiet, or do environmentalists not consider this to be a big enough risk to the environment? LikeLiked by 1 person February 2, 2015 at 6:24 pm Reply Before reading this article, I never really thought about what happens when different medications are released into the environment through our natural human processes. This actually worries me, and raises a lot of questions such as are these chemicals being released into the environment, and can it effect us? I think this is very interesting and shows how little things like this that are often times over looked are in fact a major factor influencing our environment and our health. LikeLiked by 1 person February 2, 2015 at 8:30 am Reply Wow!! This really surprised me. I would have never thought of any of his until I read that. I didn’t realize that all of that stuff was in our waters. It’s scary to think that we think we know what we are always eating and drinking. Little do we know we have no idea. It’s scary to hear that all of these particular particles and pills are in the clear glass of water we drink. I think there should be a way to make it completely purified and nothing questionable. I enjoyed this article LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 11:44 pm Reply Very interesting article made me sit back and think about it LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 11:30 pm Reply the article was interesting .. Myles Davenport LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 11:23 pm Reply I found this article to be very interesting. Even though I personally do not think humans are going to be switching their gender in response to the pharmaceuticals like fish do, this article interests me because I think about how that could happen. it makes me wonder what is inside this “water” that we are consuming each and everyday. how are we sure as to what is actually in water and is it really pure? All of the prescription pills and medication that people take every day never really disappear, it is just relocated thanks to sewage. That is scary because we never know where they might end up. LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 10:50 pm Reply This article is very interesting. However i agree with the author of this article cause i would like to drink water and not have to worry about pill that arent prescribed to me being in my water. I also agree with the author of this article because some pills that are in the water may not be healthy for certain people that are forced to drink water on a regular day basis . LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 10:38 pm Reply I thought the article was very interesting and scary to know how many everyday things such as water have different types of medication in them. This is an important thing to be educated on because it effects essential things that we need to survive. I think that while we do have a pretty efficient way of treating water, it would definitely be beneficial to try and better it so some of these chemicals are eliminated during treatment. Consuming some types of wastes in water can be potentially harmful, or have no effect but creating a system that completely purifies the water is the best way to go. LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 10:22 pm Reply I think we should invest money in water filtration so that the water we drink and use daily is cleaner but not a lot of money or time because the water isn’t as dirty as it is in other places like Africa. In the US there haven’t been any huge cases of a good amount of people dying from dirty water. LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 7:56 pm Reply I think this article makes a good point on the water systems and the water we drink or use for that matter. I think that if people are so worried about the water they use or drink, then using a filter would benefit them. I also think that if it has not harmed people to do, then how will it affect us in the future? Everyone needs water to survive on this earth, so people drink the water from the sinks and take showers when needed. I have not heard of any situations of people getting sick by the cause of water they have. I think filtering water can only do so much and there is not necessarily a way to make sure no one is drinking pills that were not prescribed to them through their water. Yes, I do agree that it is gross… But we have to drink it because we need water. When they do figure out a way to make sure it is healthier and better for us, then I am sure everyone will change until then the closest people are going to get is filtering their faucets and any water they do decide to drink. LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 7:38 pm Reply WHAT?!?! thats so gross! I never thought about all the perscription medications being released into the sewer. I would be very interested in seeing the long-term effects this tainted water could have on a community. I know there are filters in place to purify water-do these not clear these from the water? If not all I have to say is EWW! LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 6:22 pm Reply no matter where you go and when you go there will always be good and bad water. Yes it is scary thinking that we are “drinking pills” but we aren’t directly drinking pills, we are drinking water that MIGHT contain some pills or some of the powder. There is not a way to know if the water in my kitchen sink has pills in it or if it is as dirty as a river or lake water. if you do not like the idea that your water in you kitchen and or bathroom sink could be unsafe, that is why they make purified water. Just go get some of that, or you could get a purify filter and use that to help save water bottles. LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 4:57 pm Reply To me this does not make sense that even going through filters that are mandatory so that our sink water doesn’t have pills in them. I think that yes there is traces of other pills in our water today that they are so minuscule that they do not take much effect to us. There are some sort of regulation that water companies have to abide by. The AWWA is a government office that assures the voice of water. The SWDA sets the restrictions on drinking water. We do not drink pills. The water we drink is safe. With the fish test the water they lived in probably did not abide by the SWDA restrictions. LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 4:38 pm Reply There should be some legislation put in place to reduce the amount of contaminants in the water. The effects are evident on animals in lakes and who knows how long it would take to be visible in humans. Maybe it is visible today because of the rates that people are being diagnosed with cancer. The price of putting in filter every where before bottling the water would be much cheaper than the price Americans would pay for medical expenses. Another solution would be to find another way of providing the same relief with a new substance. LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 3:44 pm Reply This article is so right. It’s the reason my mom bought a purifier for every sink in the house. LikeLiked by 1 person February 1, 2015 at 10:33 am Reply I think that we should make a sewer system that separates our waste and our waste that has chemicals in order for us not to be infected with any type of disease. LikeLiked by 1 person January 29, 2015 at 9:57 pm Reply I would have never guessed that there were so many pollutants that we are consuming every day. The article expressed and gave light to the ignorance within America. Basically, we are consuming pills although we did not initially know and volunteered for it. That is because of the pharmaceutical companies producing an abundance of medication that may not be needed. The solution that I came up with is not necessarily getting rid of medication but incorporating organic ways of solving ones illnesses. In the history of America, we are able to see that the Native Americans were able to solve most of their diseases by using what nature provided. Although this method is what ended up killing them because they could not find a solution for the illnesses the colonists brought, I believe it’s about time we get over our overly medicated society. Actually provide a new and improved method of using nature’s solutions and stop mixing these various impurities that imitate what the body could do by itself. This solution would also mean eating foods that are not impure, this would be long and very costly process but it will lead America and the world to a longer and better future. LikeLiked by 1 person November 26, 2014 at 2:21 pm Reply I found his article very informative. Never before have I thought about where the water that I drink every day has been. I never thought that pharmaceuticals could ever end up back in the water supply. It really makes sense that this could be happening and I am surprised that his issue does not have more publicity. To solve this problem, water treatment plants need to be improved so that this will not happen anymore. The water with drugs in them could be causing people harm that they don’t know about and I really hope this problem gets solved. November 24, 2014 at 10:40 am Reply This really opened my eyes to how deceitful the government can be to cover up important secrets such as these, which could cause the public much harm. The general public is left so unaware to the concerning details which should be in the news. The residue these medicines leave behind in tap water is very concerning and a matter which is necessary to be addressed to improve our environment and life spans. It is imperative that investigation is taken and a solution is to be found as soon as possible, as this is an incredibly threatening situation. LikeLiked by 1 person November 23, 2014 at 7:57 pm Reply This subject is very interesting to think about. I had never contemplated what happens to the medicine we take after it leaves out body, because i didn’t realize how much of it our bodies are unable to process. This is a very serious issue that our government needs to find a solution to quickly. We do not know the repercussion on the human body, but if it can cause fish to change sex, we need to find a solution before we experience the side effects. November 23, 2014 at 5:53 pm Reply This is really interesting. I never would have thought that all of those chemicals and pharmaceuticals are in our water supply. The thought has never dawned upon me and makes me question how healthy we really are. I cannot propose a solution other than filtering the water, but I highly doubt that it would accomplish anything. LikeLiked by 1 person November 23, 2014 at 5:42 pm Reply This article was incredibly interesting. I have never before thought about how certain medicines and pharmaceuticals never actually leave our systems, but instead continue to come through by the water we drink. It seems as though many people focus on how the environment is being affected by littering, oil spills, and dumping, when actually residues and medicines are a contributing factor as well. Not many think about how the medicines they take go back into the environment, effecting it in negative ways. The only solution that I could provide, would be to possibly better the water treatment systems, so they can better cleanse the tainted water and make safer for the environment and consumption. Overall, I found this very insightful, never before had I even thought about medicines and their affects on the environment, but it makes complete sense, when obviously if it goes in your body it comes out and goes into the environment, one way or another. LikeLiked by 1 person November 23, 2014 at 5:33 pm Reply This entry has enlightened me so much. I knew that water pollution was an issue but not of this severity. I know that technology to remove this can be quite costly, but a solution must be reached soon. The fact chemicals and minerals that are harmful enough to alter the make up of a frog are in our drinking water is terrifying and hopefully a resolution to remove it will happen. LikeLiked by 1 person November 23, 2014 at 5:07 pm Reply My prior knowledge on this subject was very limited. I knew there were minerals and things to that extent in the water, however it never crossed my mind as a serious issue. I don’t know what can be done though. If sewage plants can’t remove them now, what technology or process must be invented to help remove the pharmaceuticals from our water. This was a very interesting article, and i do hope a solution is found soon. LikeLiked by 1 person November 22, 2014 at 11:20 am Reply Wow, this has really enlightened me as to what the government can get away with leaving in our water without telling us. This was very interesting to see an i am glad that you were able to bring this to our attention. I hope that this issue gets brought to light in the near future, because i think that the public deserves to know about this. LikeLiked by 1 person November 21, 2014 at 7:40 pm Reply After reading this article, I became aware of the fact that many times our waters have unknown substances which in some cases can be harmful to ur bodies. I think a proper solution for this would be to test the waters more thoroughly for traces of any medication or any foreign substance in order to maintain the purity of water. November 21, 2014 at 11:56 am Reply Before reading this article, I knew that there were some minerals and hormones in our water. However, I did not know that it was to this extent; even though, when I look back on it, this should have been obvious. Where else would those non-absorbable chemicals end up? I do not currently think this is an issue, as, for the most part, our bodies have become accustomed to drinking and taking in all of these minerals, hormones, and chemicals. Rather, I think that it may become a large problem as we continue to develop more and more pharmaceuticals. Some pharmaceuticals are dangerous even before they are distributed in the water supply. LikeLiked by 1 person November 20, 2014 at 9:46 pm Reply Apparently pharmaceutical drugs can eventually make their way into our water system. I found it especially interesting how the frogs exposed to pharmaceuticals actually changed sexes. I recently read about a similar effect on frogs from pesticides. It’s quite scary to think that we may be putting something as harsh as pesticides into our bodies; although I suppose we do that anyway, through our fruits and vegetables… While at first glance this is rather concerning, is it really something we need to be worried about? If the human body can only metabolize a small portion of the medications we intentionally consume, then the effects from trace amounts of the drugs in our water supply would be negligible. LikeLiked by 1 person November 20, 2014 at 8:23 pm Reply After reading this article, it has come to my attention that we unconsciously cause harm to our environment even if we don’t intend to. It is worrying what sort of ill effects will appear after this goes on for long. I wonder if the distillation of the contaminated water could help rid it of the contaminant. The sad truth of the matter is that even if we make people aware of the problem it will take forever to actually make an impact on this problem. It goes to show that us humans are affecting the environment in many ways by just being here and how many of are small problems are overlooked until they evolve into more noticeable ones. LikeLiked by 1 person November 20, 2014 at 6:47 pm Reply Before reading this article, I never really thought about what happens when different medications are released into the environment through our natural human processes. This actually worries me, and raises a lot of questions such as are these chemicals being released into the environment, and can it effect us? I think this is very interesting and shows how little things like this that are often times over looked are in fact a major factor influencing our environment and our health. LikeLiked by 1 person November 18, 2014 at 8:27 pm Reply this article makes me want to stop and take a look at the environment. Ways i can change it to be a better place for other. LikeLiked by 1 person September 21, 2014 at 4:37 pm Reply you said to reply so here it is… i did not know that this hsppened LikeLiked by 1 person September 19, 2014 at 9:57 pm Reply The purified water that we all think we are drinking even from water bottles that claim to have their water processed and purified in some of the best water plants in America or around the world is actually not so pure as you may think, many pharmaceuticals are being dumped into some of this water we consume without our knowledge and depending on what the pill, or whatever it is that contaminated the water can have certain effects on human beings or animals that consume this water, a movement needs to start to make sure the water people are drinking is actually pure and won’t harm them in any way, LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 7:34 pm Reply COOL, after reading this, I will tell all my friends about it. LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 11:07 am Reply i learned that people who take in a lot of drugs, or just use them perscriptionly end up ejecting them all into our enviorment. therfor is affecting animals, humans and the earth. we should find a new way to clean our water so i can be safe to drink and help out the ecosystem, LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 11:07 am Reply Ruptures in aging water systems cause pollutants to seep into water supplies, but in many cities residents have protested rate increases to fix pipes LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 11:05 am Reply Many sewer systems are frequently overwhelmed, with sewage spilling into waterways and polluting them with excrement and industrial chemicals. LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 11:04 am Reply I never knew that about water this is very interesting im appaled at such statments LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 11:04 am Reply this article taught me things about the water system that i never knew/thought about…. thank you:) LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 11:03 am Reply this is a very interesting thought it has me thinking on wthat out water really could be LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 11:03 am Reply After reading this article I learned that only a small amount of pills and medication we take get broken down into our system the rest is extracted and is put in the same water system that we drink from. This article shows that we are not only drinking water but we are drinking antidepressants, Advil and other medications that are taking on a daily basis. Ways that we can prevent Pharmaceuticals from going into our water system is making a use of solar water pumps , or a better water system that can detect and separate good minerals from bad substances. LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 11:02 am Reply this article taught me something i never knew about our water supply LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 11:02 am Reply This article was insightful in in information. Never did I think thought our water was so tainted. LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 11:00 am Reply i like water this is very interesting September 16, 2014 at 10:58 am Reply this artcile makes you think about what people are really doing. Alot of things harms us because we dont really care about the environment as much. This is why we have problems such as pollution, melting of the ice bergs and global warming, and acid rain. LikeLiked by 1 person September 16, 2014 at 10:54 am Reply I believe that this crisis will lead to many health problems in the future, I think we as the people drinking the water should be more informed about this current situation and work hard to do something about it. Water is a nescessity to life so we must get these pharmaceuticals out!! LikeLiked by 1 person September 15, 2014 at 9:11 pm Reply like many of the other people have said, this article was really interesting. I had absolutely no clue that these pills could be in the water that i was just drinking. it actually makes me kind of worried. I think to improve this, they just need to observe and research this more, and if this is harming us then we need to find an alternative, LikeLiked by 1 person September 15, 2014 at 8:56 pm Reply I found that this article completely took me by surprise, as I’ve never contemplated the results of dumping pharmaceuticals in water. This passage is both interesting and informative, teaching me about how people inadvertently harm the environment and maybe even others. I found this information insightful, yes, but also quite paranoid. Over thinking things like this wrongly worsens peoples’ fear over how they function. Although, I do understand that this is a scientific observation and scientists must analyze and question aspects of everything. I think that the only way to prevent/spread awareness about the possible effects of pharmaceutical-dumping, is to take the time and money to further research it, then maybe diagnosing the situation with new methods of water-purification. LikeLiked by 1 person September 15, 2014 at 7:25 pm Reply From this article I learned that only a certain amount of medications is actually broken down into your system the rest is extracted and goes into the water system such as , rivers , oceans , lakes , and other bodies of water. This is also the water we consume and put in our systems so we are not only drinking water we are drinking antidepressants , Advil and other commonly used medications. Ways to help the pharmaceuticals in the water systems can be to make use of solar powered water pumps, and a stronger purify system. We can also have a system that detects good mineral from harmful waste and separate it from our drinking water. LikeLiked by 1 person September 15, 2014 at 7:11 pm Reply The article was very interesting to read about . I didn’t really think that the pharmaceuticals could get into drinking water and that it could also affect the fishes . We should all be more cautious on what we drink and how it can affect us . Overall I think this article has very good information . I got to know tainted water can be dangerous for our health . September 15, 2014 at 6:03 pm Reply I didn’t even know that we had that in our water bottles and people are still drinking them. It kept me thinking of this can harm so many in so many ways. I think we should have a different water waster system so that all the waste could go in there and use it as energy. That would save a lot of money. September 15, 2014 at 3:47 pm Reply This article was very informative. It made me be more cautious of the water that i take in. Also about the pharmaceuticals that are available to us. Everything that we dump into today’s water it never goes away, it just travels somewhere else. It goes to other water units and to our fellow water creatures. the article says that some fish had been reacting to this and i think fish are not the only ones being affected by this phenomena. Tainted water is dangerous to our health and environment. Im glad i now know this information. LikeLiked by 1 person September 20, 2013 at 8:38 am Reply I was completely unaware that pharmaceuticals could get into our drinking water. I would’ve never even given a topic like this any thought. That being said, its very interesting to me! It is a bit scary though – to think that when i have a glass of water I am consuming all types of different unprescribed medications. Towards the end of the article where you wrote ” no wonder people can no longer stand each other” made a lot of sense. Especially, as you mentioned, all the different types of anti depresants and such that have different effects on peoples bodies and cause different symptoms. Its scary to think that in the years ahead this could become a bigger problem. September 19, 2013 at 9:05 pm Reply This article was very interesting to read. I didn’t think that the medicine pills could be that serious when you put it in water. I wouldn’t want to drink that water or the pill in the water because it’s not safe. LikeLiked by 1 person September 19, 2013 at 6:34 pm Reply I found this article very interesting. I never would of thought that the medicines we take everyday end up in our water. also I never knew that it affects the fish. its weird how the pills n medicines never really disappear after we take them. it is really weird how some male fish have turned into female fish. LikeLiked by 1 person September 18, 2013 at 8:47 pm Reply I found this article to be very interesting. Although I do not believe that humans will be changing genders due to the pharmaceuticals like fish do, but it does make me wonder what all we are consuming in what is known as “water”. Come to think of it, how are we sure as to what is actually in water? All of the prescription pills and medication that people take every day never really disappear, it is just relocated thanks to sewage. The article says that some fish had been reacting to this phenomena but I believe that they are most prone to it because all of the sewage is dumped out to nearby lakes and rivers that later spread to oceans. LikeLiked by 1 person September 17, 2013 at 8:10 pm Reply Pharmaceuticals in our drinking water? ive never thought about that, i thought the water filtration systems we had today got rid of any traces of anything that should not be in the water. The point you made about male fish changing genders in bizarre. Good thing I drink filtered water (even though there is the slightest chance that another persons meds can still be in there). Makes you think twice about what you are drinking. September 12, 2013 at 8:31 pm Reply This article has a lot of good information. I got to know that all these hormonal pills could quite possibly be in the water. Me and my family drink only purified water we don’t drink from the tank or something like that. Tainted water can be dangerous for our health. Thank you for the information. LikeLiked by 1 person January 25, 2013 at 9:46 pm Reply This article was very informative, I had the slightest idea that the pharmaceuticals that we all take throughout our lifetime is going into the water we drink everyday. I drink tons of water so its good that I use a purifier. You’d honestly think that water would be the last thing to worry about nowadays. In the future I’ll be sure to more aware of the medication I in take and the water I drink. January 25, 2013 at 10:18 am Reply Reading this article was sooo weird and crazy. I had no idea that that pills we take is in our water. it scares me actually. it worries me because i drink water everyday. This encourages me to do more research into this , or investigate. LikeLiked by 1 person January 25, 2013 at 10:16 am Reply This article is very insightful, because I never would have thought that the pharmaceuticals many people take everyday go into our water. Since I drink water daily this is not good because an abundance of people take pills for the smallest things they feel in their body. Now that I know this I might start drinking purified water also. January 23, 2013 at 7:05 pm Reply Wow, I have never looked at water in such a way before. I know that water is polluted, but I never thought that the actual water we drank included pharmesutical drugs. Many people drink water to live a healthier lifestyle, but by drinking pharmesutical induced water, how can that benefit you? I drink water 24/7, so I’ll definetly be looking into this, and drinking purified water. January 23, 2013 at 5:27 pm Reply This article was fascinating! Because of sports, I drink water all day everyday, so its nice to know what I am consuming, but I never thought tha pharmesuticals would be a part of the water I drink. I’m definately looking into this more, and in the meantime buying purified water instead of drinking tap. January 23, 2013 at 5:22 pm Reply January 23, 2013 at 5:23 pm Reply Can we prevent pharmaceuticals from being in our water if we boil it or us a purification system at home? This just shows you that we can know for sure exactly what it is that we are consuming. January 23, 2013 at 6:57 am Reply I think this article is extremely insightful. Never would I have thought that the water that I was drinking contained fragments of other people’s medication. I feel that the government should get on this immediately. Knowing the government they are most likely aware of this problem but are too lazy and/or too cheap to deal with it. I think this could possibly be one of the sources for cancer (far stretch). If a person ingests even small amounts of different unknown medications over several years, something has to happen to their body. If these fragments of medication can cause a fish to switch genders, it can most definitely cause cancerous tumors to form. January 22, 2013 at 7:38 pm Reply “Some male fish have actually turned into female fish…” lmao fa real?! haha uhm other than that piece of information this article is pretty interesting. however i don’t see how we can do anything about it since the way its even being exposed is through our waste. we would either hav to make it so that our ‘BODILY WASTES” dont end up in the streams and lakes and stuff or we would just not poo and pee (which we all know is kinda far fetched). this article just makes me paranoid actually,kinda like knowing that the milk from a cow is actually mixed with puss from their utters because the machines that milk them make them “sore” lol uuuuuh and the factories dont know how to seperate the puss from the actual milk so think about what your drinking guys or not which ever make you happy January 22, 2013 at 7:05 pm Reply Do some research on the topic. Use google scholar to find articles that discuss this issue in details. You will be happy you opened up your thinking through your new understanding of this and other issues. January 22, 2013 at 8:48 pm Reply This was good article and very interesting. I never really thought about how medication could affect our water. This defiantly gives you something to think about. January 22, 2013 at 6:42 pm Reply Well! I am appalled! I never would’ve thought that water could end up being so dangerous! I mean, i hardly drink it anyways… But still, when I do from here on out, i might think twice about it. I can’t believe fish changed gender because of this! Could that mean that in many years to come, humans could possibly have their genders swapped because of this non-sense?? Jeez oh man… January 22, 2013 at 6:29 pm Reply I already knew this stuff but i still think that bottled water is better than water hose………….. January 22, 2013 at 6:04 pm Reply I already knew this stuff but i still think that bottled water is better than water hose…………………… January 22, 2013 at 6:04 pm Reply They should make a treatment plant to take out that stuff if it’s actually that big of a problem to us. Also, why make pills that wouldn’t fully break down in your body? Wouldn’t that be extra money for pharmaceutical companies if they were paying to make pills and part of it was wasted because it exited the body as waste before it was fully broken down? January 22, 2013 at 5:53 pm Reply This really made me thing and get worried. How can we help to not have this problem that much? Also how dangerous is this and how can we prevent them? I really don’t want to drink water with all this contamination. January 22, 2013 at 4:44 pm Reply After reading this article I never really thought about what happens when medications are put out into the environment. This kind of scares me, and raises questions like why are these chemicals being released? can it cause health problems? Will this effect future generations? I think this is some crazy stuff and shows how little things are looked over and can cause serious issues for everyone. January 22, 2013 at 4:17 pm Reply January 22, 2013 at 4:24 pm Reply Very interesting article, I never knew any of this, and it is making me think about the water we drink!!! January 22, 2013 at 2:49 pm Reply What are your thoughts? January 22, 2013 at 3:25 pm Reply Before i read this article, i had no idea about the pharmaceuticals in the water. I never really thought about where pharmaceuticals went after they are used. This article really does make me think about the water we use and drink. It it really safe to drink water with these pharmaceuticals in it. Studies has shown that some male fishes have turned into female after being exposed to pharmaceuticals for a long period of time. Would they have the same effect on humans too? I think that we should invest money to research and find a way to safely get rid of these pharmaceuticals. This investment would help keep the animals in the environment and give humans clean drinking water. September 1, 2012 at 2:06 pm Reply After reading this article I never really thought about what happens when different medications are released into the environment through our natural human processes. This actually kind of worries me, and raises alot of questions like are these chemicals being released into he environment? And can it effect us? I think this is very interesting and shows how little things like this that are over looked are in fact a major factor Influencing our environment and health. August 31, 2012 at 9:40 am Reply People who drink pills, should think it two times when they drink them because they are contaminating our environment and our fresh water ways. It is sad to see how the fishes are being affected by this chemical pills. It is unfortunate how this pills can change the genders of the fishes. In my opinion , we need to put a limit to the number of pills that pharmacies sell daily. By limitating the number of pills sold, we can reduce alot of the contamination of this chemicals that at the end damage our natural resources. I also think that now is the right time to tell our government of this things because as time passes, our oceans will get more contaminated and this will bring us seriously diseases.I think that our government needs to work harder on the filtration systems because is our health and lifes that are in danger. Great article Mister Fundi and thanks for alerting us of the danger that this pills bring to our environment and us. August 30, 2012 at 10:41 pm Reply Wow, I never though that by drinking water I could be putting a small dosage of a pill into my body. I do wonder how this affects the human body, and if there is a way to stop these pills from entering the drinking water. Also I saw the article said it could harm fish, well if we ate the fish could it harm us also? I loved this article and it definately made me more aware of the water I drink! August 30, 2012 at 8:00 pm Reply Devin Ervin DHS14 Its crazy how People Are just Now noticing This Bad Situation. But at the Same Time Nothing has happened to the Human bodies yet And This Has been going On For Some years August 28, 2012 at 9:43 pm Reply This article has made me think about all the pharmaceuticals I have flushed ,I did not know that they tested this on fish and they changed sex trait I can only imagine what this water is doing to humans. August 28, 2012 at 4:43 pm Reply This is a very interesting article. I never thought of the possibility that all of that could be in the water we drink. I wonder if the water we drink is safe. From now on, I`m going to be more careful. More people should know about this. August 28, 2012 at 4:05 pm Reply This article on pharmaceuticals in drinking water was quite interesting. It a real eye opener because I never thought about what’s in the water we drink, and I wish there was other solutions so we can have purified water. August 28, 2012 at 3:35 pm Reply I did not know this until now. I will think carefully about what im drinking. August 28, 2012 at 2:33 pm Reply didnt know dat da tap water had all of that , interesting. {: August 28, 2012 at 11:40 am Reply Very interesting article. got me thining of the water we drink every day August 28, 2012 at 11:37 am Reply This article really makes you think about what you are drinking when you just get a glass of tap water. I noticed that there is a taste difference between tap and bottled or spring water and I may have figured out why now. All of the substances and medicines that end up in our water will begin to cause problems in the long run. August 28, 2012 at 5:35 am Reply This was a real eye opener I had no idea that this was in our water. Nothing is 100% safe but I didn’t think that applied to water. It makes me wonder in a couple years what our water ways will be like. Hopefully America observes this as a increasing problem and tries to prevent it from getting worse. August 27, 2012 at 6:32 pm Reply This is a fantastic article which associates with what really is in our drinking water. I had no idea until this day that medicine and many other chemicals still flow through purified water. I was never aware that tap water could carry these sort of things. I think that it’s very unsafe and just plain wrong.I feel that we should find a way to solve this problem. .After reading this article I’m going to try to be more careful of the water I drink. August 27, 2012 at 6:28 pm Reply This article is beneficial to our society to let the population know be careful what you drink. We are paying the government our tax dollors to ensure that we have clean tap water. What if people can’t afford bottled water all the time? This is unfair to us. Instead of paying the government more money out of our paychecks to ensure our water is clean, the government should be more careful about what they are putting into our tap water. This is unfair to the poeple of this country to not have clean tap water. August 27, 2012 at 5:58 pm Reply This article gives me more detail into what I already knew was a serious situation. I was always aware that it wasn’t safe to drink tap water and had been careful before, but now I know that it would be better to drink purified water. January 27, 2012 at 5:48 pm Reply this scared me a little but eh i’m still alive what doesn’t kill me only makes me stronger , back to drinking bottled water. January 27, 2012 at 10:41 am Reply I would have never thought that I could in some way be taking medicine while just drinking water. This could be very great for our futures. We could just drink water from the sewage plant and be healthier. But it is probably not as effective as actually taking the medications. If they could figure out how to get the full effect of the medications through the sewage water than that could be a great breakthrough for science. January 27, 2012 at 10:38 am Reply Our generation and government is very blinded by the harmful things they advise to us. Without FDA approved drugs our society will die off very quickly due to the harsh side affects. January 26, 2012 at 7:14 pm Reply This is very intresting! Now i wonder if the water i drink is a healthy? Yeah probably not. This made me think about drinking out of faucets, buying water, or even the one in my house from my filter. I mean it goes through nasty pipes that have been there and ever sice i lived here no pipes have been renewed and now theirs medication in water? i like your perspective and the way you observed this. January 26, 2012 at 6:39 pm Reply Its interesting and scary to find out that there are medications poisioning our water supply and having an affect on populations of fish and kind of sad that america isnt doing anything about it. January 25, 2012 at 9:07 pm Reply thats is a really scary thought that we dont need to worry about a nut case poisoning the water supply but knowing that by taking an aspirin and and going to the bathroom im doing it myself. I hope that theres some technological break through in the next few years maybe a synthetic enzyme or possibly nano bot taking off. really good post January 25, 2012 at 7:43 pm Reply I’ve learned a lot of good information about the water once i read this. I will slow up on drinking water, but not stop completely of course. Now that I know that the water is laced with pills and other things make me insecure about it, but at least I know now for future reference. January 24, 2012 at 11:35 pm Reply My mom always said that I shouldn’t drink tap water and stuff and I’ve never believed it but after reading this article and figuring out all the hormones, antidepressants, medications in the water I’m scared to drink it. The purest thing in the earth that’s suppose to be water is now getting infected by people. Wow this is why I stick to coke January 24, 2012 at 10:47 pm Reply I think that it is intresting to know that the water we drink can also have different medications in it as well. I think that it is important for it to be a different water system. one for drinking and one for sewage but the two should never mix. January 24, 2012 at 9:38 pm Reply I had no clue about this. I am shocked by this. I have to be careful now on what I drink. Thanks for the information, If it wasn’t for this I would have never known. January 24, 2012 at 8:26 pm Reply There is no question to really answer, but this article doesn’t surprise me one bit. My mother doesn’t allow me to take any kind of pharmaceutical drugs and prescriptions because she is all about health and wellness. So to conclude i could do nothing but to agree with my mother and the facts of this article. Our generation and government is very blinded by the harmful things they advise to us. January 24, 2012 at 6:03 pm Reply It is interesting to know that there are pills in the water we drink. It could lead to the way we as people drink and see water. As much as water claims to be “pure” there is always something there. January 24, 2012 at 4:45 pm Reply This is something that I believe is extremely serious, this is a very dangerous health risking issue.The government should definitely invest in the cost for research. The fact that animals are changing gender should be a good enough reason. January 23, 2012 at 11:43 pm Reply Wow,this is great. Never knew I was drinking pills while drinking water. More alert on this now. January 23, 2012 at 10:04 pm Reply Wow! I may never see water the same way again. And i drink water all the time. But this is a very good article. January 23, 2012 at 6:51 pm Reply It intrigues me to know the effects of medication on our water supply. The rising levels could potential make us all sick one day. In the immediate future i think we should try to limit the levels of medication in our water supply. this problem should be adressed soon. January 23, 2012 at 6:29 pm Reply It intrigues me to know what could possibly be in the drinking water. Although the process to remove all of the medications from water may not be possible, im sure theres a way to clean up the water a little. In the future many people could become sick with the increasing mwdications levels of water. We should fix the problem. January 23, 2012 at 6:21 pm Reply Intresting article makes me kind of not want to drink water January 23, 2012 at 5:29 pm Reply This artcle has brought my attention to the fact that pharmaceuticals are in our water. That makes me wonder if the water filters people buy,filter out these medications… January 23, 2012 at 12:55 pm Reply I have learned a great deal of information about the water I through this article. I wont stop drinking water but I will slow up on it. Knowing that the water is tainted with pills and other things make me feel uneasy but atleast i know now. January 23, 2012 at 9:39 am Reply This article was highly informative. knowing that are water is tainted with pills makes me feel the need to not want to drink water. January 23, 2012 at 9:36 am Reply I am scared to drink water now……..just kidding, but I never knew about this pharmesutical water. I feel very informed. I will never look at water the same ever again. January 22, 2012 at 11:30 pm Reply I always ask myself is the water we drink is safe. What if over the years we can change gender like the fish. Very intersting topic. January 22, 2012 at 10:47 pm Reply I knew there had lots of virus and medications in water so I usually drink the boil water. Although there still have medications in the water, it still get less virus than non-boil water. January 22, 2012 at 9:26 pm Reply this subject is completely new to me. I was not aware that these prescription medicines are in our water supply. I guess now i will look at drinking water in a different way. January 22, 2012 at 5:25 pm Reply this article got me thinking abot water.. is the water really that bad .. how could the govt let us drink it .. i mean wouldnt the water eventually kill us little by little.. or just turn our genders aroud like that fish. September 15, 2011 at 12:03 pm Reply This article its really interting because you really point out something good about medicine and water. and i’m going to more careful of what i drink and take. (: September 15, 2011 at 11:58 am Reply ok….that scared me…I was just drinking water when I read this and I stoped drinking it…. The govt should really work on this issue because it is about the safety and health of the people. If some male fish turned into female fish, what will happen to human kind in some years? are the men going to turn in women? or vice versa? we are asking why so many people are having cancers those days. I’m sure this is a cause of some cancers. we should really find some solutions before it get worse. The govt should find something to filtre all those medicines in the water we drink.It is sad to conlude that even with this information we will still drink the water.We cant just stop, because it contributes to life. The only think we can do is to resolve the problem. September 12, 2011 at 10:26 pm Reply The goverment needs to put more of our tax$$ towards water filtration plants. No one wants to drink unhealthy water. September 12, 2011 at 6:13 am Reply This article make me think twice about our drinking water. It is so wierd to me that we could be drinking water with everyday medication in it. I believe that our country needs to invest more money on our health such as having a better filtration system so we can have fresh water for our everyday life. September 11, 2011 at 9:32 pm Reply I dont drink water as much as i should, but little did i know that when i do, it could be containing medicine. I would think that in a world as advanced as ours, they would have a system that cleaned our drinking water to top quality, but as guess we cant have everything? September 11, 2011 at 8:57 pm Reply Like the others above have said, this article is very informative. It is almost completely disturbing that America has not yet figured out a way to filter out the pharmaceuticals in our water supply. If the fish are already turning from male to female, then just imagine what will happen to human males and females in the future! I do hope that sometime in the near future, the government appoints someone that is highly qualified to handle this problem….. September 11, 2011 at 11:31 am Reply Reading this article was very informative ! I did not know that pills, creams, and all the everyday medicines people take would be in our drinking water, that’s pretty crazy. Does it still work if you have a water purifier like a brita? Very interesting article. September 11, 2011 at 10:49 am Reply I live in a county with a state of the art water treatment Plant. I know because I’ve toured it. They use less harmful chemicals and have test labs. America needs to spend more tax money on the country’s health instead of things like going to war. If all county’s had state of the art water treatment plants instead of operating on technology from the 60’s, we would have a lot less contamination problems. September 9, 2011 at 9:03 am Reply This article was pretty interesting and it was radical. When I was reading the article it scared me about the hormonal, antidepressant, and other types of medication in the drinking water. Also there are no legislations to deal with pharmaceuticals in the drinking water and or the water that flows into the streams, rivers and lakes. The solution about this problem is drink filter water and or drink bottle water. September 8, 2011 at 11:18 am Reply I thought this article was very fascinating to know that I’ve been drinking non-perscribed pills, Now I believe I’m going to be more conscious about the water I drink and the medications I take whenever I am sick. September 8, 2011 at 11:14 am Reply The article was pretty chill i guess. Know that all these hormonal pills could quite possibly be in the water I am currently drinking…..scares me. I think we should invest money in research to find a proper filtration system to keep our everyday water fresh. But on a serious note i like starwars…….(this explains the light saber noises) September 8, 2011 at 11:13 am Reply Thanks for the compliment. July 21, 2011 at 6:09 am Reply I think your article is really interesting. It really made me think about whenever I suppose I drink a glass of “pure water” but the water isn’t really pure. Also if the water affected this male fish population I’m sure the water has to affect us in some way as well. September 17, 2014 at 9:48 am Reply This is a scary thought. But until we find something about it messing up society then I have nothing to worry about January 31, 2015 at 10:18 pm Reply This reminds me of the Flint water crisis! Though the Flint situation was a disaster, this is even more alarming because it effects nearly the entire world’s population. I never considered this concept and I am sure there are other things we consume that we should be wary about as it is recycled back into the environment. In my personal opinion, what needs to be done is a thorough, possibly chemical screening of our water before it is redistributed to the masses, and that there be a complete investigation on the effects and possible health issues before they are brought to everyone’s unpleasant surprise. February 23, 2016 at 10:07 pm Reply This Article illuminates people on the bigger issue of harmful substances being leaked into our water supply. I think we should better fund efforts to prevent these types of problems for the general well being of the American populace. February 23, 2016 at 11:29 pm Reply This article displays the immidiate issue with dangerous chemical build up in our primary water sources. Also, it shows that other toxins have been located within other humans at one point before. These chemicals were’nt able to be properly or safely digested by past consumers,proving the initial increasing threat to our and future digestion tracts and well being. As for the government’s “stance” on the matter,I think that they have not focused on the situation particullarly because not very many seem aware or concerned. Otherwise,they would somehow put an end to the problem if more of the population raised worry over it. Only time can actually tell if it will affect us soon or down the line in future generations. Until then,they will most likely turn a blind eye and sell a few bottles anyway. September 1, 2016 at 8:28 pm Reply Preston Ni The topics described in this article intrigue and scare me at the same time. To know that there are amounts of pharmaceuticals flowing unchecked through our water systems is a scary thought to think of. But what makes it worse is that it is a known fact yet our government is taking no steps to try to fix the problem. Also, I feel as though people should be more well informed about whats in their water and how they get it. However, there are no known ways to remove the pharmaceuticals from our water supply, so what are we supposed to do? January 24, 2017 at 9:52 pm Reply Great post, you have pointed out some superb details, I will tell my friends that this is a very informative blog thanks July 20, 2011 at 7:12 am Reply Its interesting to me about how this article is so right on tainted Water is really a problem. January 31, 2015 at 9:08 pm Reply This post (for Mr. Fundi’s hw) is about how there is a different type of contamination in our water supply. Instead of the normal waste contamination, there is a contamination that comes from the pharmaceuticals that we use everyday. We digest the pills, tablets etc. and they ultimately end up coming out of us. There is not much research done on this type of contamination, but there is a fear this could have dire consequences. The government does not have any legislation or laws that allow for there to be treatment of the water. If there is a risk of something harmful happening from this, then the government should take the necessary precautions to help stop this. With all of the chemicals and hormones that go inside of medicine, there could be serious biological disasters to the human body. Personally, I like to have clean water without chemicals. January 22, 2017 at 4:13 pm Reply Leave a Reply to Kiana Meikle Cancel reply Email (required) (Address never made public) Name (required) Connecting to %s Notify me of new comments via email. Δ Monthly Post Archive Select Month March 2022 June 2021 May 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 October 2020 September 2020 March 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 July 2019 April 2019 December 2018 September 2018 July 2018 February 2018 November 2017 May 2017 February 2017 December 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 April 2016 March 2016 January 2016 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 October 2014 September 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 February 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010	157,485
"Valentin was an awesome partner and great to work with. He is a very talented designer! Valentin was very flexible and quickly understood our goals. He was able to take our original concept and then made it a 1000 times better. Valentin, thank you aga..." Ken.evola reviewed almost 7 years ago "Bubble Graphics, I liked the moment i saw the design, velentin's creativity, imaginativeness are extraordinary. with lot of confidence he assures you he will give his best and as he does. Valentin is a five start guy. i highly recommend bubble graphic..." swathiyvvk reviewed over 7 years ago "Fantastic, Valentin was happy to adapt designs, come up with multiple variations on the theme and was consistently the most engaged designer we had the fortune of working with. Thanks again Valentin (Bubble Graphics), really appreciate everything." james_baker_uk reviewed over 7 years ago "Very flexible and feedback-driven designer. Highly recommended!" Ralphisis reviewed over 7 years ago "Valentin was by far the best designer that we had submit work. His design was the most creative and he took what we asked for and added something that we would never have thought. Every request and revision was prompty answered and submitted. We went..." Lippy225 reviewed over 7 years ago "I enjoyed a lot working with Bubble graphics. Provided great designs and attended all questions and suggestions promptly. Looking forward for future projects with this great team!"	1,514
Alarming COVID-19 death statistics from seniors’ facilities continue to be in the spotlight in Ontario and elsewhere. However, all is not as it seems in the mainstream-media reports of those statistics. Procedures that came into effect in Ontario one month ago for dealing with deaths in long-term-care homes (LTCHs) and hospitals are contributing to exaggeration of the numbers of COVID-19 deaths — and preventing the true causes of many of those deaths from ever being uncovered. This makes it an opportune time to cast an objective eye on procedures that came into effect in Ontario one month ago for dealing with deaths in long-term-care homes (LTCHs) and hospitals. They differ drastically from both Ontario’s previous regulations and other jurisdictions’ procedures. In the name of efficiency and safety during the COVID-19 epidemic, the Office of the Chief Coroner for Ontario (OCC) and members of the province’s funeral-home industry established the new rules and implemented them on April 9. The rules apply to almost every death in the province, not just those attributed to COVID-19. The new approach is focused on speeding up transfer of the deceased from where they died to a funeral home and then to the place of burial or cremation. The stated goal is to prevent overburdening of medical staff and overfilling of hospital morgues and body-storage areas in long-term-care homes (LTCHs) if there’s a surge in deaths from COVID-19. However, there are highly problematic parts to this. For example, the new ‘expedited death response’ takes the critical and sensitive task of completing the Medical Certificates of Death (MCODs) out of the hands of the people who know and care for the residents and patients. The stated goal is to prevent overburdening of medical staff and overfilling of hospital morgues and body-storage areas in long-term-care homes (LTCHs) if there’s a surge in deaths from COVID-19. Instead, the chief coroner and his staff now have the exclusive right to complete MCODs for people who die in LTCHs. The new rules also give the OCC the power to complete hospital patients’ MCODs. This is despite the members of the OCC very rarely seeing the bodies of LTCH residents and hospital patients, much less meeting them before they die. “Seeing the body doesn’t actually tell you a lot about the cause of death,” the Chief Coroner for Ontario, Dr. Dirk Huyer, said in an April 20 telephone interview when questioned about this. Other aspects of the new procedures contribute to the well-documented inflation of the number of COVID-19-linked deaths and they also prevent autopsies from ever being performed on virtually all people designated as having died from COVID-19 (see below). This author contacted the offices of chief coroners and chief medical examiners for most other Canadian provinces and several American states, and found none have revamped their death-handling processes for LTCH residents or for hospital patients the way Ontario has. The new Ontario procedures were disseminated April 10 through April 12 via webinars to staff and administrators of LTCHs, hospitals and funeral homes. According to the OCC’s Q&As for LTCHs and hospitals, the new rules “allow front-line staff to rapidly resume direct patient care.” Also, having the OCC complete the MCODs reduces the number of people who touch the bodies and therefore lowers the potential for virus transmission, the documents assert. The procedures are based on the supposition that a surge in coronavirus infections and deaths could quickly overwhelm the province’s healthcare capacity. “We’re really contemplating making sure that we transfer people into funeral-service care by providing some changes that will add – and these words are terrible because this is about people… who have died and families who are suffering … – but it’s [shortening] the timelines, so it’s making things happen quicker. And it’s also increasing efficiencies in the process,” Dr. Huyer said during the April 20 interview. However, there are no hard data that point to an imminent surge in Ontario. Only the mathematical modelling based on broad assumptions and released on April 3 did so. (Indeed, new modelling released on April 20 showed that cases had peaked.) The new procedures are not official directives from the chief coroner of Ontario or from the registrar of the Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO), which regulates the funeral-home business in Ontario. The OCC website, which is a sub-section of the Ontario Ministry of the Solicitor General’s website, has no information about the procedures. Nor do the websites of the Ontario Coroners Association, the Ontario Hospital Association, the Ontario Medical Association, the Ontario Nurses Association or the Ontario Long Term Care Association. The new rules appear to be housed only on the BAO website; they are in website’s coroner’s documents section. There are many other sweeping changes enshrined in the new rules in addition to the ones outlined above. For example, those closest to the deceased must contact a funeral home within one hour of the death if it took place in a hospital, and within three hours of a death in an LTCH. No one but staff are allowed to be with the person when they die or touch their bodies in the LTCH or hospital. The remains then are removed very rapidly. To ensure this happens, funeral homes have quickly hired more staff and now can pick up bodies any time 24/7. Also, staff from the LTCH or hospital put the bodies in body bags and bring them to the waiting funeral-home vehicles. This is the only aspect of the new rules that has received considerable media coverage.Drug-Induced “Iatrogenic” Disorders: The Third Leading Cause of Death in the US and Britain Burial or cremation follows as soon as possible. The BAO reportedly is recommending cremation over embalming. The new rules also adhere to the World Health Organization’s guidelines. Thus all deaths of people who had previously tested positive for the novel coronavirus are recorded as having been caused by COVID-19. Also deaths are attributed to the novel coronavirus of people who were never tested for the virus but were assumed to be infected because either they had some symptoms suggestive of COVID-19, or others in the LTCH or hospital where they died had tested positive. This significantly inflates the numbers of COVID-19 deaths. Furthermore, the new Ontario procedures deem all COVID-19-related deaths to be natural deaths. Therefore no autopsies are conducted for these deaths — even though they could reveal whether the people in fact died from COVID-19 or from another cause. The rules also appear to preclude the opportunity for removal of tissue or fluid samples for potential future examination. Much of this runs contrary to recommendations released just nine months ago as part of the formal report on the Public Inquiry into the Safety and Security of Residents in the Long-term Care Homes System. Colloquially known as the Wettlaufer inquiry, the high-profile probe focused on causes of foul play and potential preventive measures after registered nurse Elizabeth Wettlaufer was given a life sentence for murdering eight people, attempting to kill several others and committing aggravated assault against another two. All but two of her victims were LTCH residents. The incidents took place between 2007 and 2016 and only came to light when Wettlaufer disclosed them, unprompted, to a psychiatrist in September 2016. Among the report’s recommendations relevant to carefully documenting the circumstances of death are 50 to 61. These call among other things for the replacement of the standard one-page, 10-question (‘Yes’/‘No’) Institutional Patient Death Record (IPDR) with an evidence-based resident death record. These would be filled out by the staff member who provided the most care to residents just before they died. Physicians, nurses and personal support workers who cared for the person would have input, as would family members. Then the LTCH’s medical director, director of nursing and pharmacist, and the resident’s treating physician(s) or nurse practitioner all would receive a copy of the completed death record. They would be required to review it as soon as possible and bring any concerns they may have with death or the accuracy of the death record to the OCC and/or the Ontario Forensic Pathology Service. The inquiry report also recommended the OCC consult with the deceased’s family or with the person who had decision-making power for the deceased before he or she passed. None of the inquiry’s recommendations have been implemented. A MRD Team at the care home fills out both forms within a few hours of the death. The team members often are not present either at the time of death or during the previous day or days leading up to the death. A member of the team electronically submits the IPDR and MRDR to the OCC, which immediately transcribes that information onto an electronic MCOD. The OCC then transmits it to the funeral home. The OCC does not share the MCOD with the care home. (Ontario’s Vital Statistics Act was altered sometime before April 6 to allow death-registration documents to be transmitted via fax or a ‘secure electronic method’ by coroners, funeral directors and division registrars [municipal clerks]. The Ontario Ministry of Government and Consumer Services and the OCC then created electronic versions of the MCOD and the burial permit.) This option is also available for hospitals. According to the Q&A written by the OCC on the new rules for dealing with hospital deaths, the first-line approach is for the physician who treated the patient to fill out the MCOD within one hour of death. If that physician is not available, the pre-designated Expedited Death Response Team (EDRT) [also jarring, since this could be read as referring to an expedited death rather than an expedited response to the death] at the hospital fills out an Expedited Death Report. This document is almost identical to the MRDR, except the title is different and ‘Hospital where death occurred’ replaces ‘Long-Term Care Facility where death occurred.’ The EDRT electronically transmits the report to the OCC. This should be done “within minutes, not hours,” according to the hospital Q&A. When the OCC receives the MRDR and IPDR from an LTCH, or an Expedited Death Report from a hospital, the OCC staff use this information to complete the MCOD. They then transmit it to the funeral home. They do not send the death certificate to the hospital or LTCH. Next, someone at the funeral home completes the Statement of Death. This is a one-page form that includes the name, age and former occupation of the deceased, the name of the person who pronounced the death, the name and address of the ‘proposed cemetery, crematorium or place of disposition’ and some other basic information. It does not list the cause of death. The funeral home quickly sends via encrypted email or fax the completed Statement of Death and the MCOD to the local municipality, which then issues a burial permit. The burial or cremation or other disposition of the body then can proceed. There is no information on the publicly accessible portions the BAO’s website about how much, if anything, the funeral homes are allowed to bill the provincial government and/or the estate of the deceased for each of these steps. Approximately one week later the local municipality electronically transmits the MCOD to the Office of the Registrar General of Ontario. Harry Malhi, a media-relations person for the Registrar General’s office, said in an emailed response to several questions that “generally, it takes approximately 6-8 weeks for the Office of the Registrar General to register a death once the registration documents [MCOD and Statement of Death] have been received.” Malhi also stated that “death registration and specifically cause of death information is considered personal information related to the deceased and is not available publicly.” The Registrar General shares the information on each death with Ontario’s and Canada’s vital statistics offices. Aggregated death data and statistics are not available until at least one year later. Over the Easter weekend, from April 10 to 12, Dr. Huyer and Carey Smith, who is the BAO’s CEO and Registrar, explained the new procedures via eight webinars to more than 1,000 people from the LTCH, hospital and funeral-home sectors. Smith’s presentation emphasized the need to “accelerate the disposition of the deceased and to minimize storage between death and disposition.” This “moves decedents from [the] healthcare [sector] to [the] funeral sector without delay to place them into care of people best-trained and equipped to handle them,” his presentation states. The new approach also “relieves [the] burden on healthcare – [allowing staff to] devote their attention to the living.” Smith observed (as seen in screenshot of slide 24, below) that the goal is managing “the surge.” Dr. Huyer similarly highlighted the spectre of a fresh spike in morbidity and mortality, as shown in this screenshot from slide 7 of his presentation. However, the vast majority of Ontario’s healthcare system has never been over-burdened by COVID-19-related deaths, nor has this been a likelihood. Virtually all elective cases were cancelled or postponed by mid-March. This resulted in most hospitals being far less busy than normal, as documented in many media reports. The Financial Accountability Office of Ontario corroborated this in an April 28 report. And on May 8 the Ontario premier and minister of health announced the province is preparing to resume elective hospital procedures and surgeries. There also has been no indication that more than a small handful of LTCHs in the province have ever had such rapid rates of resident deaths during a COVID-19 outbreak that the facilities’ overnight storage space was at risk of becoming over-filled. There are additional facets of the new procedures that raise red flags. One example is on the second page of the Q&A about the new rules for the LTCH sector. There, it states bodies must be removed from the LTCH even if the death requires a coroner investigation. “Regardless of whether a death requires a coroner investigation, the movement of the resident to the funeral home by the funeral service provider will proceed.” Thus there is no opportunity for an objective examination of the physical setting of the death. Yet Dr. Huyer seems to see only upsides to the new rules. “All of these things are added during this period of time to allow not only a timely approach but also an efficient approach to be able to ensure that people proceed to burial or cremation in a timely way without requiring additional storage space,” he said in the telephone interview. Rosemary Frei has an MSc in molecular biology from a faculty of medicine and was a freelance medical writer and journalist for 22 years. She is now an independent investigative journalist in Toronto, Ontario. You can find her earlier article on The Seven Steps from Pandemic to Totalitarianism for Off-Guardian here, watch and listen to an interview she gave on COVID19 and follow her on Twitter. May 11, 2020 in Coronavirus, Covid19. Tags: Covid19 Related posts Removal of Form 5 Cremation Certificate for deaths relating to Covid-19 under the Coronavirus Act COVID19: “Millions of cases, small amount of death” Dr Erickson, California. ← Turkish occupation terrorists break ceasefire, attack Syrian Arab Army in Hama One thought on “Fog Around COVID-19 Made Thicker by New Ontario Rules for Handling Deaths” im McDonagh says: June 16, 2020 at 3:22 pm A decent article , however the horrendous state of old folks homes and assisted care facilities is a result of Reaganomics embraced in the 1980s by most of the worlds elites . Brian Mulroney, Canada’s PM , and Mike Harris, Ontario’s Premier turned these facilities into profit centers . The patients in these facilities became grist for the mills of foreign profiteers who were mostly American at the outset of this policy embraced by all governments since .	16,666
There's great news from Wing Commander Saga today: the FreeSpace 2 total conversion team announced that their game has been downloaded an astounding 157 trillion times since its launch last week. Producer Tolwyn congratulated his developers, but cautioned that the number of Saga users may never be known. It turns out that an exact download count is impossible because of the sheer number of mirrors and the vagaries of bittorrent usage... but one thing is still certain: more people have played Saga than make up the sum total of all humans living and dead across the entire gulf of mankind's shared history. Congratulations, Saga! We look forward to the next milestone: one person actually finishing the game. April 1, 2012 Please read: A personal appeal from WCNews founder Chris Reid April 1, 2012 Chris Roberts' Freelancer is arguably the last star of space sims' golden age. Applying the game mechanics of Privateer to a game with 21st century scope and color balance, it's no wonder Freelancer continues to have an active fanbase to this day. The most major criticism of the game, however, is that it just doesn't quite fit in the Wing Commander universe. Although it was also designed by one of the Roberts brothers and is obviously mechanically a followup to the classic Wing Commander: Privateer, it's just a little too strange and separate to really make sense as a sequel. With that in mind, fan modder Banjo has decided to set about righting Freelancer... and today, we are proud to show off the first screenshots from his project: April 1, 2012 GOG Service Streamlined Big changes are afoot at Good Old Games, the Polish game downloading service that shocked the Wing Commander community by re-releasing several Wing Commander titles last year. The service has published a clean website refresh and announced an exciting set of streamlining efforts: from this point forward they will maximize profits by breaking down some of what they believed to be self-established limitations. Specifically: GOG will no longer focus on things which are good, things which are old or things which are games. Instead of buying affordable classic games available DRM-free for the first time in a generation, users may now choose to "pre-buy" things like "Trine" and "Machinarium" which at press time appear to be specific kinds of fancy soaps. The site's name will remain the same, but instead of an acronym it is now a concatenation of the expression "Gog damn, what the hell did you morons do to your site?" [Sadly, this update is not really a joke.] April 1, 2012 With all the excitement over Friday's Mega Millions $640 million jackpot, we were no exception to the anticipation of the announcement of the winning numbers. Word is that we may never know who all the winners are since state laws don't require disclosure of who the winners are. What we do know is that the three winners were in Kansas, Illinois and Maryland. Astute WCNews readers may have remembered that a CIC staff member is in Maryland and was one of those three lucky winners! The CIC staff, having all chipped in for the ticket, opted for the one time cash payout of $108 million dollars for the direct operating expenses of wcnews.com! The money is going to be used to construct a new CIC World Headquarters and purchase an upgraded 737 as a mobile command center. While the final location is still being determined, the new facility will sport the latest in Wing Commander news-gathering technology. Along with top-of-the-line tech, the new building will also house the complete WCPedia archive and preservation suite and the world's only Wing Commander Multiplayer Rec Room. Employees of the CIC will be able to enjoy games of Armada, Proving Grounds, Prophecy and Arena all from the comfort of their own fighter cockpits. After a hard day of gaming, staff members will be able to make their way down to the "Almond Done Bar & Grill" and order their own leaf cup of Firekka's Finest. Staff members and guests to the headquarters will also be able to enjoy the "Wing Commander Museum" full of some of the greatest artifacts in Wing Commander lore. The artifacts themselves will be stored in the latest in archival technology and protected by an advanced flood control system to ensure their continued safety. We hope to break ground on the new building sometime next year. Be sure to check back for the latest in floor plans!	4,563
Directions Ask the Rabbi Teachings Parashot by Category Directions Weekly Parshah Ask the Rabbi Teachings In the first paragraph of this parashah, we learn how G-d expects us to prioritize our response to blessings G-d provides. That is, when the people came into the land G-d promised them, they were to take the first fruits of all, their crops present them to the cohen, who would place the basket in front of the altar of Adonai. The individual making the offering was then required to verbally recall their history from Abraham, their exile in the desert, and their subsequent deliverance and arrival in the land at the “hand” of Adonai. Then the basket was placed before the altar, and the individual prostrated themselves before Adonai with joy for all the good Adonai provides (note the present tense).Then they would affirm their motivation for their offerings in addition to an offering made every third year for the Levites, foreigners, widows, and orphans by verbalizing their intent and honesty in making the offering. The ketubah (marriage contract) originally made at Sinai between G-d and the Israelites was repeated in verses 16-17. In turn, the love of G-d for His people as his special treasure is reiterated with the understanding that they are to observe all His commands so that they will be raised high above all the nations in praise, reputation, and glory; and that they will be a holy people for G-d. This paragraph is a clear indication that at our current time in history, G-d’s people have not arrived at this point. The Israelites then and all true believers now are not praised, raised above the nations, or enjoying an honorable reputation. This paragraph clearly alludes to the future as evidenced by supporting scripture in Isaiah chapter 60 and Ezekiel chapters 36-37; Psalm 86:9; Psalm 102:16; Jeremiah 30:1-38:22; Isaiah 59:20-21 as a few examples. In the B’rit Chadashah there are other examples that Israel’s restoration is yet to come: Acts 15:14-16; Acts 3:19; Romans 11:25-26,29; not all inclusive. In preparation for the renewal of the covenant under Y’hoshua the process was described by Moshe and agreed upon by the elders and priests. First stones were to be erected on which portions of the commands were copied and made public for reading. Then an altar was to be made as the place to offer sacrifices. The place for this was Mount Ebal which also served as the place where the curses were to be read to all the Israelites. These inscribed stones were a way to preserve the agreement made between the Israelites and G-d for future generations. Keeping to their separateness from the pagan cultures, the stones were unhewn versus being cut out of an outcropping and decorated with idols. Against Mount Ebal southward was Mount Gerizim where the blessings were to be read. Mount Gerizim was not far from the city of Shechem. Mount Ebal had a natural concavity in the hillside that made for excellent acoustics. In the valley between the two groups of tribes is where the altar and the stones were placed. Burnt offerings and peace offerings were offered at this alter, between the two mountains representing the blessings and curses. Burnt offerings represented unreserved dedication to G-d. The peace offerings expressed thanks to G-d for good health, salvation, and deliverance. These were times of rejoicing where the entire family and invited guests shared in the meal offered from part of the sacrifice. The peace offerings included aspects of Israel’s history that are yet to be completely fulfilled; salvation and deliverance. Although they had been delivered from Egypt, the historical significance is only a part of the complete story of Israel. Salvation and complete deliverance are yet to come, infusing this parashah with a dynamic and contemporary application for today. The peace offering at Mount Ebal was unprecedented as the first made in the promised land. This was the same place where Abraham placed his first altar in Canaan (Gen.12:6-7). That this location was kin the center of Canaan was a reminder that they were actually in the promised land. Total commitment, dedication, thanksgiving, and rejoicing were the attribute s of the Israelite assembled at Mount Ebal under Joshua’s leadership. True Israelites(believers) today should strive to develop these same attributes as we serve G-d in exile. The tribes were divided into two groups for the reading of the blessings and curses. Six tribes were located in the north, and six in the south on either side of the priests and Levites. The division of the two groups were as follows: Six of the tribes descending from Jacob’s wives Leah and Rachel-Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin- were gathered on the slopes of Mount Gerizim responding to the blessings. The remaining tribes-Gad, Asher, Dan, and Naphtali were the descendants of the handmaids of Leah and Rachel, the tribe of Zebulon, the youngest son of Leah; and the tribe of Reuben, who forfeited the birthright by the sin of incest (Gen.49:4)- were assembled on the slopes of Mount Ebal corresponding to the curses. The name Ebal translates as “heap of barrenness” and the etymology of the word comes from the verb (‘awa) which means to bend or twist. Gerizim is a bit more difficult to translate. The etymology would indicate that it means “cutters or hatchets.” It may also be named for the Gerizites who were a tribe that lived in the vicinity of the Philistines that, according to the Hebrew Bible, was conquered by David. These mountains stand in the center of Canaan from north to south and from east to west. The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges argues that the north face of Gerizim is more fertile than the opposite face of Ebal, which is bare. The sins of idolatry in all its forms is listed as the first curse and is no doubt the most and common offense that affects mans relationship with G-d. G-d is not a product of mans imagination or creativity. Rather, G-d is the Creator of man and everything in the universe. There is no allowance or tolerance for idolatry. The final curse in verse 27:26 sums up the crux of the message; “A curse no anyone who does not confirm the words of this Torah by putting them into practice.’ All the people are to say, ‘Amein!’” This is a harsh reality that we must internalize. This warning has eternal ramifications that even if the other sins are avoided, will condemn an individual to eternal separation from G-d. This last curse is perfectly aligns with the admonition at the end of the book of Ecclesiastes which reads: “ here is the final conclusion, now that you have heard everything; fear G-d, and keep his commands; this is what being human is all about. For G-d will bring to judgment everything we do, including every secret, whether good or bad.’ Another related verse is found in Proverbs 28:9; “If a person will not listen to Torah, even his prayer is an abomination.” Our G-d is not tolerant of antinomian thoughts and deeds; neither is He an advocate of “diversity” or “inclusion” defined by contemporary society. Yes, anyone who follows G-d’s Torah may be grafted into the covenants of Israel; Jew, Gentile, fellow travelers and foreigners. But this inclusion requires following the G-d of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, not whatever god one may choose to follow. Furthermore, diversity in G-d’s economy is a given. “There is no difference between Jew and Gentile- Adonai is the same for everyone, rich toward everyone who calls on him, since everyone who calls on the name of Adonai will be delivered.” Notice that there is no separate classification between race, gender, or ethnicity. However, there are exclusions that are very clear in the Old and “New” Testaments: Rev. 22:15 reads “ Outside are the homosexuals, those involved with the occult and with drugs, the sexually immoral, murderers, idol-worshippers, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood.” This scripture echoes what G-d did to the homosexuals in their encounter with Lot (Gen. 19:1-11) and what He told the Israelites concerning what behaviors they were not to engage in not tolerate in others: Lev. 18:22, 20:13; 1 Cor. 6:9-10). This is not to say if people who engage in such behaviors cannot repent and begin to follow G-d’s instructions, but it does mean that unrepentant behaviors will not be tolerated. Moshe succinctly announces the curses that will overtake anyone who fails to pay attention to G-d’s instructions. Forsaking G-d or diminishing their wholehearted devotion toward Him is the sin that precipitate G-d’s curse upon them. Every endeavor will fail when G-d sends his curse rather than his blessing, so that they will be left destroyed and few in number. They will be defeated by their enemies and they will become the object of disdain to all the kingdoms of the earth. Beginning at 28:58 we read the stark reality of what our nation is just beginning to experience as a nation that has turned from G-d and refuses to follow his Torah: “ If you will not observe and obey all the words of this Torah that are written in this book, so that you will fear this glorious and awesome name, Adonai your G-d; then Adonai will strike down you and your descendants with extraordinary plagues and sever sicknesses that go on and on. He will bring back upon you all the diseases the Egyptians had, which you were in dread of; and they will cling to you. Not only that, but Adonai will bring upon you all the sicknesses and plagues that are not written in this book of the Torah- until you are destroyed. You will be left few in number, whereas you were once as numerous as the starts in the sky- because you did not pay attention to the voice of Adonai your G-d.” A parallel scripture is found in Revelation 22:18-19 for those who argue that everything in the Old Testament is “for the Jews” or was abrogated with Yahshua’s crucifixion; I warn everyone hearing the words of the prophecy in this book that if anyone adds to them, G-d will add to him the plagues written in this book. And if anyone takes anything away from the words in the book of this prophecy, G-d will take away his share in the tree of Life and the holy city, as described in this book.” We can easily see why we are where we are today based on the aforementioned passages. Deuteronomy 28:63 further describes why we are scattered among the nations just as the Israelites were scattered during the time of Solomon. In the United States and the world, the majority serve other gods; people are afraid of their shadows; gated communities are now more like prisons; anxiety, depression and suicide are on the rise because many people do not know G-d , instead relying on their own wisdom or medication. The market for guns has exploded as people fear for their lives and property. Various diseases known in Egypt have returned. Diabetes, of which was mentioned in 1552 BCE in a 3rd Dynasty Egyptian papyrus as the earliest known recorded was indeed a disease of Egypt. Hypertension is common among Egyptians with 50% of Egyptians suffering from this disease. These are just two known diseases of Egypt recorded to substantiate what scripture tells us will and is happening as a result of not following G-d’s Torah. A couple of diseases not found in the Torah are the Spanish Flu of 1918, H5N1 virus that first emerged in 1997 in Hong Kong known as the avian virus or bird flu; and most recently COVID-19. This is not to say that G-d “caused” these diseases and plagues, but that He is allowing them to be manifest because of our global rejection of his Torah. Matthew 24:4-14 provides a summation of what is partially happening now, and what will happen in the near future. The end will not come until the Nations (Goyim) are informed about the Gospel or Good News about the Kingdom of G-d. What will follow is the Exodus from Jerusalem to Petra which is about 120 miles from Jerusalem. G-d will provide for His people at that time and it will be limited for the sake of those who have been chosen (Matthew 24:22). With G-d’s strength, mercy, and provision, we will be able to hold out till the end (Matthew 24:13) no matter where we are at the time. After all, as long as we are alive on this earth, our purpose is to glorify G-d whether as a patient in a hospital, a prisoner, a refugee, or in any other situation G-d choose to place us. There are many things that must occur before the end but we are closer than ever and must keep oil in our lamps (Matthew 25:13). This week’s haftarah is the sixth of a series of seven “Haftarot of Consolation.” Isaiah recounts descriptions of what will unfold during the Redemption. Beginning with the resurrection of the dead and the in-gathering of the exiles, the Jewish people (all true believers) will rejoice. Isaiah speaks of gifts that will be brought to G-d from all the nations of the world. The Jewish nation will no longer be despised and derided, there will no longer be violence or mourning, and G-d will shine His everlasting Light upon His people. This “Light” is of course Yahshua HaMashiach (Rev. 22:5). The bride (all true believers) will be married to her Groom (Yahshua) (Rev. 19:8), and they will live in the Father’s house forever (Psalm 23:6) Amein. Paul tells the Messianic community in Rome that G-d has saved out 7,000 people who refused to submit to worship of Baal. This statement reflects back to the reign of Ahab and Jezebel that was one of the most depraved periods of the First Temple era. This couple introduced the worship of the idol Baal into the Kingdom of Israel and established it as the official state religion. We see similar things evolving in our society today. So apparently widespread did this Baal religion become that G-d told the prophet Elijah: But I will leave over in Israel seven thousand people, all the knees that did not kneel to the Baal and every mouth that did not kiss it.” (1 Kings 19:18). This is 7,000 out of several million! This takes us back to the discussion on social justice and the curses. There were only 7,000 people who stood up against the idea of idol worship and refused to tolerate it and give it social sanction. They were forced to go into hiding because of their voluble protest against the social acceptability of the practice. Everyone else silently tolerated it to their own destruction, the destruction of the first Temple, and the removal of the Shekinah from among the people. Paul reminds us that there is a remnant in the present era chosen by grace for those who are observant out of love to G-d’s commands, laws, statutes, and rulings. The ones chosen have obtained it [grace] but the rest have been made stonelike as the Tanakh says, ‘G-d has given them a spirit of dullness- eyes that do not see and ears that do not hear, right down to the present day.’ Reflecting back to our parashah we are told the same thing: “Nevertheless, to this day Adonai has not given you a heart to understand, eyes to see, or ears to hear! (Deut. 29:3). These statements in the Old and New Testaments validate the truth of G-d’s Torah and the reliability of His Word to the most empirically minded. Unfortunately, many people fall into the aforementioned population and simply cannot see or hear G-d because they are too self-absorbed with their perceived intellect. It is important for us to know that YHVH alone prepares the human heart to receive Him. We must be open to submission to His orders. Matthew 13:15 describes the status of people who are not ready to receive YHVH/Yahshua. People who barely hear and look but do not perceive the truths of YHVH/Yahshua, will subscribe to a misplaced fear that adversities and testing meant for our ultimate good are really some sort of punishment. It all seems a matter of timing as those who grow in their Torah study can attest. Individuals with an honest desire to ascend to G-d are led by the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) to learn something new every time they read Scripture. It is as if looking at a crystal from different angles in the light. This is because the timing must be right; the Ruach HaKodesh has perfect timing and knows when we are spiritually ready to learn another truth from G-d’s Torah. Our hearts must be prepared before we can understand (see and hear clearly) that which G-d has for us. As we prepare for Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Sukkot, may we make a special effort to prepare ourselves to receive what G-d wants to teach us, that we may obtain full forgiveness from our fellow man and ultimately G-d while there is yet time.	17,282
A new year is upon us here at the Game Preservation Society, thanks in no small part to our patrons’ constant support. It’s been six years since we started our organization. In that time, we’ve remained steadfast in our focus of archiving video games as cultural history so that the medium’s past won’t be lost to future generations. The work is by no means easy, but our dedication is paying off dividends. Last year saw us not only receive media attention for our efforts, but we also received lots of support and help with our activities, for which we’re extremely grateful. Preparations are underway to properly unveil our archive to the public, much of it dedicated to 1980’s Japanese PC games, and it’s my hope that we’ll be able to do so sometime this year. As I write this, we’re working on organizing a huge trove of archival materials and creating an interface that’ll enable everyone to access those items in an easy and intuitive manner. Continued management of archival materials, as well as maintaining quality control of preserved materials are also expected to remain a difficult, but critical part of our work. Nevertheless, it’s worth reiterating that we’re not doing this simply out of pure nostalgia that we have for older Japanese games. That couldn’t be farther from the truth. Instead, our work at the Game Preservation Society is intended to help fuel legitimate research into game history and hopefully help bring about its inception as a legitimate academic field in the future. We therefore consider it nothing less than our very duty to be able to preserve these primary sources and share access to them with the public so that their place in history won’t be forgotten. With everybody’s help, I’m confident that vision can be realized, but in the meantime, there are concrete steps that we should take along the way to ensure we reach that point. For those of you already working with us as our supporters, keep trying to think of ways that you, as an individual can help to preserve games, their history, and their culture, as we start another year at the Game Preservation Society. One important way you can always help is by spreading awareness and information about our society and what we do. There are always more people that can be reached and your help in those efforts is always greatly appreciated. Indeed, the Game Preservation Society is what it is today thanks the generous help of many talented individuals. Your contributions allow us to achieve many things. Beyond keeping us supplied in our preservation and archival work, your contributions ensure we’re properly equipped and logistically prepared to negotiate with government bodies and ultimately make this project grow bigger and even better as time goes on. Having said that, for those of you who understand the importance of our work and wish to help out financially, you may make a contribution at the following address: Finally, a 30 minute documentary about our efforts was released in English last year in conjunction with NHK World. For those of you who are interested in learning more about what we do in our day-to-day work, especially in terms of how we handle and process games, our work environment, and our archival space, you can view the documentary at the link below. I look forward to working with you over the course of 2017 to help keep Japanese video game history and culture alive. May this year prove to be a good, productive one for us all. Thanks for reading, Translated by Thomas James Posted in Posts. Homepage was renewed → Archives Select Month November 2019 (1) April 2017 (1) February 2017 (1) January 2017 (1) November 2016 (1) May 2016 (1) February 2016 (1) October 2015 (1) September 2015 (1) August 2015 (1) May 2015 (1)	3,911
"Chapter 04: The New Division of System (mid-Eighties) and the Symbiosi" by Raymond Sawaya MD, Charles M. Balch MD et al. < Previous Next > Title Chapter 04: The New Division of System (mid-Eighties) and the Symbiosis of Departments within the Division of Surgery Raymond Sawaya MD, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Charles M. Balch MD, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Media is loading In this chapter, Dr. Sawaya and Dr. Balch begin by talking about the rationale for the new division system and how the strategy worked to create a different culture among surgical departments. They compare the Division of Surgery’s decentralized operation with the more centralized Division of Medicine. Dr. Balch shares his philosophy of administration, and they discuss the impact that the Division of Surgery and the strategic plan had in facilitating planning, creating transparency in budget discussions. They discuss the role of Donna Sollenberger (Division of Surgery interview; oral history interview) in implementing the division system. Dr. Balch comments on the challenge all faculty face working in silos and how this has an impact on delivering multi-disciplinary care. They discuss the Breast Center as an early example of how the institution reorganized on this model. Dr. Balch then explains the foundation for multi-disciplinary care that R. Lee Clark, MD laid with the practice plan and discusses a landmark paper he published based on collaborative work. Drs. Sawaya and Balch next discuss Dr. Balch’s role in directing research resources to the departments. The Historical Resources Center, The Research Medical Library, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Raymond Sawaya, M.D., Oral History Interview, March 12, 2019 Charles Balch, MD Ray, could you talk a little bit about how the division --how that fit organizationally into facilitating what you did. I think conversely, I tried to have all of the department chairs collectively have a role in the strategies, in the budgets, in the core facilities, for all of the departments that were common to them. Raymond Sawaya, MD I think it’s fair to say, and how diplomatically you would put it I leave it up to you and Charles, but it was and is still obvious to this day that the culture in Surgical Oncology as a division was, I will use the term healthier, than in Medical Oncology. Let me explain what I mean by this. Through and thanks to Charles’s vision --Charles used to tell me, who better knows neurosurgery than you do. The delegation of authority to run the department was very obvious in Surgery. In Medical Oncology, unfortunately, they have had the culture of wanting to control, and why do I say that, why I know that? Because when I needed to hire a faculty, whether it’s a research faculty or a surgeon clinical faculty, I would come to the division; you have to go through the division to get to the VPs obviously, and I would get support because they said, well you know your needs and so on. My counterpart in Neuro-oncology, in this case Al Yung [oral history interview], would have similar needs and he would be blocked up there, and numerous times. This didn’t happen once or twice or three, numerous times. There is something about Medical Oncology that has kept things under severe control up at the division level, while the Division of Surgery had the concept of helping to facilitate. I think this is a very wise approach because if a department in the Surgical Oncology Division, Surgical Oncology, succeeds, well guess what, the whole division succeeds. I saw that and it continued with Raph [Raphael] Pollock [oral history interview]and of course now with Steve Swisher. Charles was the first division head, Raph was the second, I think Goepfert [oral history interview] did it for a year as an interim but that didn’t stick. So really, Raph was the second and now Swisher, and so we only had three division heads in 25, in 30. That’s important continuity too. Charles Balch, MD But historically, can you describe how the division, as an organizational entity, helped you as a department chair, but vice-versa, how you felt, as an ownership of the division, as part of the executive council, because there were common elements of what we did that crossed specialty lines. Raymond Sawaya, MD No, absolutely, and I think I was alluding to what you’re asking, but let me be more specific. MD Anderson had gotten so big that divisions were created to really facilitate the work of the administration in terms of planning, in terms of budgeting and so on. So now imagine the VPs have to work with five, six division heads. Or maybe nine now because Pharmacy and Imaging and Pathology, whatever. It doesn’t mean we didn’t have access to the top layer of the institution, we of course had access. But when it comes to budgetary planning, we have to work with a division, and that’s what I was alluding to: is that the Division of Surgery had not only forward thinking, it was very encouraging, it was facilitating, what each department needed to grow and develop and so on. Charles alluded to the council. We did have regular meetings, I don’t remember now if it was a monthly or biweekly or what, but we certainly had very regular meetings. Charles Balch, MD You saw all the data for the whole division. Raymond Sawaya, MD We saw the data, exactly, and we would discuss and we would prioritize because you know, the institution is not going to give us 50 surgeon positions; they may say we have five positions for Surgery. So with the help of Charles and his administrator, Donna Sollenberger [oral history interview], who is another person that should appear in this review, this history, a phenomenal lady, she just, just retired. I saw her at UTMB three months ago and I think it was November. She told me February was the date she definitely was retiring. I heard her on the radio not too long ago. Raymond Sawaya, MD You did? Yeah. She was doing an ad for UTMB. I interviewed her for the oral history project. Raymond Sawaya, MD You did? Charles Balch, MD We’ll have Donna come up here again. She actually lives in Sugarland now. Raymond Sawaya, MD Yeah, yeah, she lives in the Houston area. Charles Balch, MD So, let me interject historically here as a division head, because I was chair of a department but I was also the division head, and part of the philosophy was one of delegating authority for the operations of each of the departments. But I also wanted to make sure as we grew, that people like Ray Sawaya, would help me as a division head. Also, by everybody being at the table and seeing what they were doing, their publications, their clinical programs and so forth, Ray’s success helped set a standard for other departments who may not have had that philosophy. But in the competitive world we live in, when they’re seeing neurosurgery, thoracic surgery, plastic surgery, surgical oncology thrive, and how we did it, and help defining the core resources and the philosophy, I think it helped raise the bar for everyone, including those that didn’t quite come with that culture. I think adopted it, because we were in a universe where you were seeing successes. The other thing I believed philosophically was a collective wisdom. I really do believe that no matter how good your idea is, you can always make it better by listening and getting input from everyone else and having what we call the divisional strategic plan, and trying to define here at the things that need to occur at the department level. Then I really tried, as people would take the initiative, to take their leadership and their perspective and bring it to the division in terms of developing the strategic plan, the core resources that are necessary, but also as a role model, because everybody at the division head saw all of the data for all the departments. They saw their academic productivity, their clinical productivity, their ability to get grants. We talked about training programs, and I think one of the reasons that it became more uniform over time was remember there were some who got the idea early on, leadership in academic surgical oncology, those four things. Some people brought that because it was inherent to them and some people had to adopt that as we went along. But I think the reason the division is still there and succeeded is because we really worked proactively in defining here’s your role as a department chair, but you have an additional role as a member of the division collectively, for looking after those things that are common to us as surgeons. Raymond Sawaya, MD And if you put it in the context of the time, we’re talking now late-Eighties, early Nineties— Charles Balch, MD We take that for granted now. This was a culture change. Raymond Sawaya, MD Sharing data can be tricky, can be very controversial. You know a lot of this stuff was kept hush-hush, including people’s salaries and so on and so forth, so it really was a trailblazer. Charles Balch, MD I have to put in here: I remember very well, one of the department chairs of another department, who came in and complained to me that the neurosurgeon salary was higher than theirs and they thought it should be the same. So I pulled the AAMC book and said this is the standard that we set from the AAMC tables: the mixed private/public tables that said we want people to start out at the 50th percentile, we want them to get up to the 80th percentile, but then move on to the next level. And I said if your faculty want that salary, they should have been a neurosurgeon. I remember that specifically because part of the difficult job I had was everybody, when they saw somebody else succeeded, they wanted that but they didn’t necessarily want to do the same effort to get there and to develop it on their own. Doctors, would you like a glass of water? I neglected to bring any. Raymond Sawaya, MD I am perfectly fine, thank you. I didn’t want you to be jealous with a water here. Charles Balch, MD So, Ray, one thing that also didn’t exist, we worked in silos, and I wondered if during that time when you came until I left, we really moved forward in terms of the concept of multidisciplinary care. The disease-site specialty centers, we eliminated the surgery departments. There was a place called Station 80, where at least in general surgery and the surgical oncology, the patients went for their surgical evaluation and their follow-up. During this time, we eliminated that. We started out with the Breast Center, but the reason that also happened, because the culture of the entire institution, it was a horizontal relationship between medicine, surgery and radiation therapy— Raymond Sawaya, MD I agree. Charles Balch, MD —that didn’t exist in many other places. One of those goes back to a brilliant strategy of Lee Clark, of having one practice plan. So you don’t have the financial silos of people worrying about, well, if we all get together and make a decision collectively, who gets the revenue from that? Because it goes into one practice plan. I think this was also something that was very forward thinking at an institutional level that we were leading in. Of course, I went on to be the vice president of the Hospital and Clinics, so I had keys to the kingdom, the authority to do that, that might not otherwise have happened. Raymond Sawaya, MD I completely agree that the concept of multidisciplinary care was and is essential, and that now we are equal partners, the radiation docs, the medical oncology docs and the surgeons, and so it wasn’t an issue of ego. We were all together, working for what’s best for the patients. Having said that, it’s obvious and clear to me, throughout my 28-plus years at MD Anderson, from day one, that surgeons at MD Anderson are highly respected within that team, that the other specialists have recognized the critical role that a surgeon can and should play in helping manage patients. I’ll share with you one example that turned out another landmark paper, early on, early on. I came here—just to put it in context, we talked about brain metastases, right? This is cancer, lung, breast, melanoma, goes to the brain. The standard of care in 1990, the year I came here, was single brain metastasis, you remove it and treat with radiation. If a patient had more than one brain metastasis, that’s called multiple brain metastasis, is a contraindication to surgery. Now why am I telling you this story? Because our medical oncologists, they knew that their lung cancer patients, who may have two or three brain metastases, nothing is going to help them if we don’t—aren’t more aggressive. Charles Balch, MD Especially if they’re in different parts of the brain. Raymond Sawaya, MD Exactly. And so they would push us, help us with our patients. So I had a series of patients with multiple brain metastasis that I’ve operated on, and published that paper in 1993, barely two, three years into my tenure here at MD Anderson. And this is also, one of the most quoted and referenced and cited papers in the neurosurgical world. You see the role of the medical oncologist here, saying, Help us. They help us break barriers, they help us create new approaches, and so I do believe to this day, that at MD Anderson, if you talk to medical oncologists and radiation oncologists, they have a high respect for the role of surgeons in this multidisciplinary care. Charles Balch, MD So let me actually amplify on that, because Ray is exemplifying that and it was one of the reasons we wanted to recruit him. When I came here --because of my training as an associate director of a cancer center and my influence from John Durant, who is a medical oncologis-- and because the medical oncologists weren’t taking care of melanoma stage four, so I had to do that. When I came, part of that was the philosophy of the surgeon as an oncologist. Now typically, including here when I came, the surgeons did the operation, they focused on the perioperative period, right before, right afterwards, but not disease management. Oncology as a way of thinking, is about the disease, not just the episode of care. It’s the horizontal platform of the disease in the long-term follow and the integration of surgery with medical and radiation oncology, which here to fore, somebody else made that decision and if we have a need for an operation we’ll call the surgeon. Now the surgeon comes as an oncologist and is a full partner in the decisions on what operation: when do they get it, do they get medical care and what kind of medical care, before and after surgery. So the philosophy, the cultural change here, was the surgeon as an oncologist, which is something that I think now people take for granted. But I can tell you when I came, there were very few surgeons who thought about disease management, about being an oncologist to be a partner in the decision making of the long-term oncologic needs of the patient. Ray brought that and embraced that with Al Yung as a partner. But wasn’t --as you said earlier-- you didn’t react when somebody else said oh, we have a brain metastasis, please do this operation. You’re there at the beginning, in the treatment planning of all of these patients. Raymond Sawaya, MD To exemplify or amplify on this, all what you need to do now is go around the whole institution when each program --there are multidisciplinary programs-- hold their tumor boards. We have our tumor board on each Wednesday afternoon. You walk in the room, you will see five of six neurosurgeons, you will see five or six neuro-oncologists, you will see three or four radiation oncologists, you see a neuro-pathologist, you see a neuro-radiologist, you see all our trainees --back to training. And we are showing case after case, and each of us brings our expertise and specialty, lean-in on how should we, should we not, should we operate again, this patient had two surgeries before. Where is the tumor? The radiologists shows us a scan. The pathologist says, yeah, this is a bad tumor, it has molecular mutation. Do you see that I mean? You bring all that, and then the fellows and the residents are sitting there soaking in all of this and learning from all of this. But surgeons are there. It’s a given, you know? We don’t even think about it. Charles Balch, MD This goes back to collective wisdom. We talked about collective wisdom organizationally, administratively. But also this is the collective wisdom of bringing the surgical perspective to the decisions on the multidisciplinary care of the cancer patient, and that collective wisdom, bringing that perspective, it’s the proactive as opposed to the reactive. I’m also thinking too, how all of this approach has been very open to absorb everything outside of surgery that’s new. You have immunology, you have new types of chemotherapeutic interventions, radiology has evolved so much, imaging has evolved so much, and so the collectivity expands, as these new fields develop and have more to offer. Charles Balch, MD Exactly. Ray, in our final minutes, there’s one other aspect of this. When I came, there was virtually no laboratory research and the people who had that precious space were neither funded nor publishing. It was a real political fight to take that away, and to reorganize it, and to say, “If you have lab space, you have to have independent peer review funding and you have to publish, and you need to include the trainees as part of the training, and you have to be linked with the basic sciences, like the Josh Fidlers and so forth.” You also, as part of this, brought a laboratory research program, and I wonder if you could briefly describe that and how that came about. Raymond Sawaya, MD Absolutely. Charles Balch, MD This did not exist before. Raymond Sawaya, MD No it did not exist and it has been a critical component of our credibility in building the department. If we did not have laboratory research, I don’t think we would be viewed on the international scene as a credible player, so essential was to bring PhDs in the department. Now, there’s a lot of collaboration, to this day, across the institution, and so that’s not an issue.. But you still have to have your own nucleus. You have to have your own basic infrastructure built in laboratory research. So yes, we asked for lab space, and it was very tough to get because they were giving preference to basic scientists, basic research departments. The clinical departments were not prioritized to get that. I’m sure Charles played a major role in the creation of the Tan Zone. This is a building we call the Tan Zone, because each building has a color associated with it. The Tan Zone is a precursor to the Mitchell Building, the basic science research. Charles Balch, MD We call it the Clinical Science Building, that’s next to the new hospital. Raymond Sawaya, MD So … And it was intentionally created and built for clinical departments and surgical departments in particular,. So surgical oncology, although they were based on the South Campus, in part because of Fidler [oral history interview], whom you mentioned, and because they had some space there, they created laboratories in that building for surgical departments. So my department benefited from this. Thoracic benefited from this, Surgical Oncology and so on. And so yes. We were not being given a priority at the beginning, and I know the struggle I had. So as I grew my department, I had one lab in the Blue Zone, I had one lab in the Yellow Zone, eventually I had two labs in the Tan Zone, so that’s not healthy, right, if you want to build a program, cohesion, mass and so and so. So eventually we were fortunate to get all our brain tumor laboratories, all neurosurgery research, on one floor of the Mitchell Building, but how many years did it take for that? Sawaya, Raymond MD; Balch, Charles M. MD; and Rosolowski, Tacey A. PhD, "Chapter 04: The New Division of System (mid-Eighties) and the Symbiosis of Departments within the Division of Surgery" (2019). History of Surgery - Interview Chapters. 41.	21,124
Over the years, we’ve fielded many wonderful questions pertaining to our practice and the care of your pets. Below is a list of some of the most common ones we get. Please note that every pet and breed is different and may have unique requirements that we cannot give specific advice for. If you have a question that isn’t answered here, check our patient resources page or call us at (541) 935-4151, and we’ll do our best to help. How do I deal with euthanizing my pet? Our pets bring us endless joy and entertainment, but we all know the feeling of responsibility that goes along. We are entrusted to make decisions about their health and well being, and ultimately about their quality of life. This final decision is different for everyone, and we will do everything possible to make sure you are comfortable with your choice. If you think that time is approaching, we will discuss what you can expect prior to the actual day. You should consider if you would prefer to be present for the euthanasia, whether the hospital or your home is the best place, and whether cremation or home burial are right for your situation. This is a hard time for any pet owner, but we try to help you and your pet through the process with dignity and respect. Do you have any guidelines for taking care of my pet? There are many guidelines we use when it comes to keeping our pets healthy. The important thing to remember is that no single recommendation is appropriate for all animals. Vaccination guidelines are based on scientific research, but your pet’s lifestyle is an important factor. Optimal parasite control, including fleas, heartworms, ticks, and intestinal worms, is also based on the individual pet’s exposure. That is why we ask you so many questions during your pet’s exam. At every visit, you help us determine what is best for your animal. There’s a stray animal in my neighborhood, and I don’t know how to contact the owner. What should I do? Please approach any unknown animal with appropriate caution, but if you can bring a lost animal in to the hospital, we are always happy to scan it for a microchip or look up a tag number at no charge. These are the easiest ways to identify them and find their rightful home. If we cannot identify them, we recommend placing posters near the location the animal was found. You should also contact our local animal shelters, Greenhill Humane Society and Lane County Animal Services to report a found animal. Please understand that we do not have the ability to accept animals that are lost, but we’ll help you in any other way that we can. How can I tell if my pet is sick? This is where you, as the pet owner, have the upper hand. You know your pet better than anyone else, so when they are not acting right, that is your first clue. If their normal food or water consumption is different, either more or less, it may be significant. Also watch their ‘bathroom’ habits. Frequent urination or defecation are symptoms you should not ignore. What brands of pet food do you recommend? Some pets have medical conditions that involve specific dietary requirements. Most of us, however, simply want a food we can trust, and there are hundreds to choose from these days. We recommend a pet food that is easily available locally, that your pet enjoys, that your wallet can handle, but comes from a company with a good reputation in pet nutrition. Notice I did not give a specific brand? That is because there are many good brands out there and we have no objective means of comparing them. Every salesman believes they have the best food on the market. I’m considering a new puppy/kitten. Do you have any advice for a first-time owner? Good nutrition and consistent training start from day one and will reward you for the rest of their life. Choose your breed carefully. We see dogs and cats of every breed and they are all wonderful in their own way. Finding the type of ‘wonderful’ that fits your lifestyle can be the most important decision you make. Vaccination really does save lives. Sadly, we still lose dogs and cats to preventable infectious diseases every year. How often should my pet come in for a checkup? Every pet is unique, with different concerns and problems. An annual exam, though, is the foundation of preventative veterinary care. Our doctors and staff are trained to see and hear what may not be obvious to everyone. Do you know what your dog’s lymph nodes should feel like? Have you ever felt your cat’s thyroid glands? Do you examine your pet’s mouth for dental disease? Is that lump something to worry about? A thorough physical exam by an experienced veterinarian includes these things and many others that are important in the health of your pet. What are the fees for your procedures/exams? We can estimate fees for routine procedures, such as spays and neuters, much easier than for more complicated problems. The fee for your first visit is $62. This will allow our doctors to perform a thorough physical exam and discuss the findings and recommended course of treatment. At this point we can be much more accurate when we discuss fees for your specific concerns. People sometimes come to us looking for a second opinion on a recommended treatment plan. As a courtesy, we can often waive our exam fee if you can bring your pet’s medical records for us to review at your appointment. We want you to feel like your pet is in good hands and that you are getting good value for the money you spend, whether that be at our hospital or elsewhere. Do you take insurance? Yes, but be aware that pet insurance operates a little differently than most human health insurance plans. The main difference is that pet insurance companies reimburse the pet owner after their pet has been to the veterinarian. Each insurance plan has details regarding limits of coverage for certain problems and deductibles that need to be met. We recommend that you investigate and compare the policies to decide if pet insurance meets your needs, and if so, which company fits your expectations. We will aid in the paperwork wherever possible, but understand that we still request payment at the time of services. Monday – Friday: 8:00am – 6:00pm Saturday: 8:00am – 2:00pm We offer a wide range of quality pet health products that can aid your pet. From special diets to medicines, ordering is simple, and your order is delivered right to your door. Click here to find out more about the products we approve and recommend.	6,859
At the Liquor Distribution Branch (LDB) our vision of 'Service. Relationships. Results.' is all about providing a valued service, building strong relationships with our stakeholders, and achieving greater results for the province. The LDB is one of two branches of government responsible for the cannabis and liquor industry of B.C. We operate the wholesale distribution of beverage alcohol within the province, as well as the household retail brand of BC Liquor Stores. We employ nearly 5,000 people in over 200 communities and have been named one of BC's Top Employers 14 times over for offering exceptional places to work rooted in values of fairness and respect, work-life balance, and inclusion and diversity. We believe that our people are our greatest asset. Being a reputable employer with programs of skills training and professional development are what attract candidates to BC Liquor Stores, while our progressive, forward-thinking culture is why employees with a growth mindset thrive. Auxiliary positions are on-call, meaning hours of work are not guaranteed and subject to availability. Some auxiliary employees may not initially work a full 35-hour week, but with more hours worked and more seniority gained, more opportunities for more hours of work will follow. Auxiliary positions are not permanent full-time, but can lead to permanent full-time opportunities with a very competitive total compensation package; including a comprehensive pension plan, medical and dental coverage (including massage and physiotherapy), tuition reimbursement and scholarship programs, and access to public service employee benefits including career support services, financial and legal services, and employee and family counselling. We are dedicated to the highest quality of customer service, delivered with friendliness, individual pride, initiative, and retail passion! If you fit this description and you are prepared to work in a fast-paced environment, we encourage you to apply to become a part of BC Liquor Stores. To be eligible, applicants must meet the following qualification requirements: Be at least 19 years of age Be able to legally work in Canada Be able to provide excellent customer service Be able to communicate effectively and professionally with the public Be able to demonstrate aptitude for cashier and related duties, including calculations Be able to perform physically demanding work, including lifting 20-25 kg boxes BC Liquor Store Sales Associates may be required to operate a variety of mechanical and hand-operated equipment, in addition to handling large volumes of bottles as part of the LDB's recycling program. Rate of Pay as of April 10, 2022: Auxiliary Sales Associate - $20.33 per hour. A Criminal Record Check is required. On November 1, 2021 the BC Public Service announced the COVID-19 Vaccination Policy that defines the conditions and expectations for BC Public Service employees regarding vaccination against COVID-19. Among other possible measures, proof of vaccination will be required. It is a term of acceptance of employment that you agree to comply with all vaccination requirements that apply to the public service. More information can be found here: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/careers-myhr/all-employees/safety-health-well-being/health/covid-19/covid-19-vaccination-policy-for-bc-public-service-employees	3,411
Religious institutions and worship spaces are wonderful places to use creative art glass. Etched and carved glass, stained glass, leaded glass, painted and fired glass, and stained glass overlay are ideal mediums in the hands of our designers and craftsmen to tell a story or create a mood. Religious and spiritual art often offers unique design challenges. Restoring or reproducing original works in stained glass is an art that requires patience and experience, and is a challenge that we relish at Custom Glass & Door Studios. Custom Religious Works of Art Dramatic entrances, chapel and sanctuary windows, libraries, offices, and donor walls are wonderful spaces to employ our craft. We often work with an architect, designer, or committee to create unique design solutions in religious spaces. Check out what’s possible in our Gallery, Request a Quote, or call us to make an appointment to visit our showroom and studio to see our craftsmanship “up close and personal”! See what our clients have to say about us Working together with the Manager Pinto, the Artist Jordan, and the Craftsmen Wallace in creating our folk art quilt traditional stained glass design was a highly satisfying experience. The end result is a brilliant, magnificent, and spectacular one-of-a-kind piece of art that transformed our ordinary Primary Bathroom into an extraordinary peaceful retreat. The joy it brings us every day is priceless. I highly recommend C G & D Studios for your custom stained glass creations. They are worth it! [The art glass] is absolutely gorgeous! You guys were fabulous to work with. The “WOW” factor. Our home, that we had moved into 2 years ago, had a very dark family room which we wanted to lighten up with natural light. Explored several window options and eventually we were led to CG&D Studios. What a great experience. Great, caring people that are eager to help with designs, suggestions and ideas. The finished product is just incredible and has completely transformed the room. On time, on budget and perfectly made. Don’t waste your time looking elsewhere. I contacted CG&D for two sets of shower doors in guest bathrooms. Since these were guest baths, I wanted something that looked nice but wasn’t too expensive. The owner, Trip Cathcart, was very knowledgeable, professional, and responsive. He clearly laid out my options with pricing for each, and I appreciate the fact that he did not try to oversell me on something more expensive. The installer, Rocco, was great – very efficient and didn’t leave any mess. I’m very happy with my entire experience with CG&D and highly recommend them. We have been in our home 21 years. Our beautiful stained glass flower design bedroom window still looks as beautiful as it did the day installed. We are so thankful. Excellent install, and still looks great! The folks at CG & D did and excellent job. I recommend to anyone wanting to make their home look warmer and more appealing. I am an artist and a business executive — so design that is well managed is critical. CG&D worked so closely with me to design not only beautiful but structurally sound glass for my home. Patience and excitement and fun! Thank you for my lovely windows and doors. Lynda Chamber, CEO, Chambers Concepts LLC What a terrific company to do business with. The staff was so helpful and anxious to do it right! Many thanks Trip and staff for great customer service and equally great workmanship. Bravo! I am very pleased with both of the contemporary artglass windows created for my home – they are beautiful! The team was easy to work with and were responsive to the needs of the project. I visited CG&D Studios, Inc. on the recommendation from a friend to repair my beveled glass front door. With Trip Cathcart’s knowledge and expertise, we came up with a more economical plan to install a new door but retain the current side lights. It is absolutely beautiful with excellent installation by Ron Logan. They were a pleasure to do business with! Great experience! Professional, prompt and matched a very difficult and old piece of stained glass. Very impressed and pleased with the service we received. My wife and I experienced a great challenge when we worked long distance with a craftsman at CG&D on a customized project of designing our colorfully stained glass bi-fold doors. But, when the finished doors arrived safe and sound very well packed in a tractor-trailer at our condo, we were so pleased when we opened the boxes. Immediately, a local craftsman installed the doors at the wide entrance to my office. We were positively thrilled to finally see our functional art piece in place. Our joy was so great that we felt we needed to share the experience, so we planned a “Grande Reveale” party for the other condo owners in our complex so they could also enjoy the beauty of our stained-glass folding doors. Prior to the party, the doors were covered over with sheets, like the veiling of a great art piece. At the beginning of the party, the room was lit only with a few candles and all the guests were quietly brought into the room to view the unveiling. We played American Indian drum music to a crescendo. At the proper moment, bright lights on the other side of the closed doors came on and the drape covering was quickly lowered. Everyone gasped with delight at the same time! The light showed up the marvelous colors and the Native American design. It was an awesome experience! The folding stained glass doors by CG&D are our pride and joy and add so much richness and colors to our condo. …Trip and his design team did a superb job of helping us arrive at our perfect design. I love coming home and seeing the light through this door… We had such a pleasant experience with Trip and his team; we would strongly recommend anyone considering a custom door contact his team to discuss ideas. I want to thank you for the beautiful window. It turned out exactly as I pictured it. It was a pleasure working with you; you listened to what I wanted and presented me with various options. Thank you for your quality service. Our home was brick ranch built in the 50′s that had many doors that cut-off the light or blocked entries into the kitchen or hallway. CG&D Studios provided us with a beautiful solution. They made custom, french doors with beautiful floral stained glass designs that gave us privacy, but still allowed plenty of light through. Installation was easy and the doors were a great selling point for our home which was on the market only 2 days! We look forward to working with them again soon on windows and doors for our new home. Thanks CG&D! Had a new shower installed and the process was great! Installers were professional and did a great job. Highly recommend! Thanks! We had a wonderful experience with CG&D from start to finish! Trip worked one-on-one with me to make sure I selected a pocket door and transom that would be personal, functional and beautiful. Our hand carved glass transom is exquisite and the carpentry for our pocket door is excellent. We would definitely work with them again in the future. A work of art! We love the beautiful privacy glass window that Trip and his team created for our new home. It provides just enough privacy for our master bath without blocking the daylight. Our project was completed before it was due and the installation was perfect! We have received so many compliments on our CG&D window and it adds a very special custom element to the space. Trip was a pleasure to work with! I am blown away by CGD, they made me a piece of art for my bathroom window. Wonderful to work with. I wish I had more things to hire them for. There staff is wonderful, polite and very talented. If there is anything they could do for me again, they are on speed dial. We count on CG&D for all our cabinetry glass needs. They are reliable, do excellent work and are great to deal with. We highly recommend! We were very happy with the work we submitted and had installed several weeks ago … the actual art work we requested was executed very well … we would give Custom Glass & Door Studios the highest kudos. Rick W. CG&D has worked with the NC Bar Assoc Foundation for several years producing recognition glass panels at our Hqs Bar Center in Cary, NC. They are top notch and do quality work. They will make sure you are a happy customer. All the people were WONDERFUL to work with. Very knowledgeable, friendly and enjoyable to interact with. Excellent customer service and great advice. They created a beautiful one of a kind piece that was perfect for our space. The whole process was seamless and their professionalism and skill was top notch. We had some hard match colors and they worked really hard to create the exact look we were going for. Best stained glass folks we’ve ever worked with. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!! …The total “picture” is exactly what I had in mind. You took my feelings and magnificently expressed them with this piece. Thank you for being so in tune and for being such a fluent artist! It was quite honestly the best customer service I have ever beheld. Then you sent me a “thank you”! No, no, Thank YOU. Just a note to thank you so much for our beautiful kitchen window. It is a joy to look at and is serving it’s purpose well. I don’t even know the house next door is there anymore. Thank you again for an absolutely gorgeous piece of art. These folks do really nice work with Glass. We had them replace the glass in the doors of two antique bookcases. They made great recommendations on some beautiful designer glass. The final product looked fantastic! They are fast and efficient and very friendly folks. Talk with Lisa, she’s a hoot. I would highly recommend C G & D to all my friends and family for any glass work needed for a home. Amazing. Trip’s guidance regarding the best design and style for my new door was spot on! The installers did a perfect job and our entryway is transformed beautifully. Can’t wait to use CG&D again for my stained glass windows project. Very reasonably priced! Our kitchen cabinets now look like brand new cabinets thanks to Trip and his staff. Have questions or ready to get started? We are here to answer any of your questions and consult with you about your project.	10,585
Launched by North Hills resident Wendy Gilch, Selling Later is a new online community that allows future home sellers and prospective home buyers to connect — before the house is listed. August 12, 2019 photo courtesy selling later When Wendy Gilch and her husband began building a home in the North Hills seven years ago, they found themselves without a place to live. To their surprise, their old home sold within three months, but they could not move into their new place for another four months. The couple wound up renting a temporary space — and having to twice move their belongings. “As the years went on, every single one of my friends had the same problem," Gilch says. "If their home sold too early, they didn’t have somewhere to live. If it sold too late, they were stuck with two mortgages to pay." So Gilch decided to do something about it. In July, the Upper St. Clair native launched Selling Later, an online community that allows future home sellers and prospective home buyers to communicate with each other. Gilch says the company’s goal is to give future home sellers and buyers the time and resources to take control of the real estate process. "You should only have to move once," she says. The new service allows soon-to-be home sellers to post photos, information and an estimated time frame of when the house is expected to be on the market for up to a year in advance. Future buyers log on and send inquiries to homes they would be interested in buying. The seller can use those inquiries and notes to make informed decisions about selling their home, Gilch says. “It is a new concept that isn’t really developed anywhere else,” she says. As for why future home sellers and buyers could benefit from the process, Gilch says the home buying process — typically the largest investment in most peoples' lives — shouldn't be rushed. “Most sellers know they want to sell their home four to six months in advance," she says. "With Selling Later, future home sellers can start the process now, instead of waiting to list and then potentially having only 30 to 60 days to close and find a new home.” Selling Later has a one-time fee — ranging from $15 to $30 depending on the user’s time frame — from four months up to a year before the house goes on the market. A portion of the proceeds benefit local nonprofits, including Outreached Arms, GilFillan Farm and The Education Partnership. “I’ve tried to keep everything as local as possible," Gilch says. Gilch, who previously spent more than a decade working as a marketing director in Pittsburgh’s hospitality industry, says she never planned to launch her own business, but the timing was right. “If you had told me last year that I would end up here, I wouldn’t have believed it," she says. "I wanted to act on a solution. I realized that you are your biggest obstacle— you are capable of doing everything.” This article appears in the August 2019 issue of Nest. Reddit Stay connected to the latest home, design and real estate news by signing up for the NEST newsletter⇓	3,117
Alex’s photography makes the San Juan Mountains come to life, for even those who have never touched foot in southern Colorado. His photos have brought new life to our website. www.mountainstudies.org Marcie Bidwell Executive Director, Mountain Studies Institute November 14, 2015 Alex was absolutely terrific as our main man to build our website and webstore. He was great with the tricky technical details and also awesome with the big-picture concept, and helping us convey that often elusive “just right” look and feel that truly expressed who and what Solay Superfood is. Derek Van Atta Founder and Owner, Solay Superfood Graphic Design, Product Photography, Website Design/Maintenance November 14, 2015 The services provided were professional, punctual and personable! An all around great experience. James Mirabal Freelance Audio Engineer December 17, 2015 Alex is the web designer my growing law firm needed. He provided us a great website that strikes just the right tone for our professional services—on time, and on budget. And he went the extra mile for us again and again. Working with Alex was a real pleasure. I recommend his services whole heartedly. Mad Dudley Attorney Website Design May 17, 2019 Alex is a professional, creative and efficient website designer. We are currently on our second "evolution" of our site. Every step has been a pleasure. cafedurango.com Aaron Seitz Owner College Drive Cafe May 8, 2019 Alex and I have worked on many projects together, he's thoughtful, talented, and a great problem solver. He's always a pleasure to work with. j-3media.com Harrison M. J-3 Media Website Design March 16, 2020 We use Alex for his website services. He is very knowledgable and such a good help when we need additional help figuring things out that we try and do on our own. He also has knowledge in tricks of the trade and marketing, which he shares with us. We needed some revamping on our website, Diana & Autumn Owners - Diana's Sprouted Website Design & Ecommerce March 16, 2020 Alex built our site from the ground up. It was evident from the very first meeting that we were in more than capable hands. Throughout the entire process, he was responsive, patient, and incredibly effective at keeping the project moving forward. There wasn't a question he didn't answer, and his comprehensive knowledge of contemporary web Alex is a great person to work with! He goes the extra mile and helps ensure everything is done correctly and is always there to fix something quickly when needed. 4cornerscannabis.com Alex helped me trouble shoot a back up theme, a product form and an email issue we were having. He was on time and very personable. Easy to work with by all means. formatmoto.com/ Zack P. Owner - Format Moto Website Design & Ecommerce March 16, 2020 I hired Alex on a last-minute project to photograph a large event with high-level invitees including U.S. Congressmen and U.S. Senators as well as local elected officials and community VIPs. Alex was timely in his responses, easy to collaborate with, and very professional. His photographs came out very well, and he sent them to me Micha Rosenoer SW Field Organizer, Conservation Colorado December 17, 2015 Alex is incredible to work with. He's professional and well presented and easily makes any interviewee comfortable. I had the opportunity to work with Alex on a video and he seamlessly worked my ideas and his together in a way that enhanced the piece. He graciously accepts constructive criticism and new ideas for the work Emily Bowie San Juan Citizens Alliance December 21, 2015 Alex is easy to work with, very professional, and most importantly takes amazing photos! I have no hesitation in recommending his services if you are interested in giving your property a competitive edge. Our Airbnb listing looks amazing - Alex really did our place justice! I was invited to participate in the Wild Women 2017 Calendar photo shoot in Oregon. Not really knowing what to expect, I was both nervous and excited. The moment I met Alex I felt comfortable and once we began shooting I was completely at ease. Alex wasted no time setting up the perfect locations and Marla Schmidt "Wild Women of 2017" Model November 14, 2016 Alex photographed and made prints of one of my paintings for me. He nailed it on the colors! The subtle changes of tone in the blue water and the pinks in the sunset were perfectly replicated in the printed versions. Great artist, very timely, and most importantly, a pleasure to work with. Bridget Williams 7th Street Windows December 22, 2015 Alex snapped some excellent professional photos of me the other week in Chiang Mai. We did a few different sets, in a few different locations, and I was extremely satisfied with his work. He provides high-value photography work and is a pleasure to spend time with. Paul Austin TOEFL Speaking Teacher December 15, 2015 Alex has been invaluable to me and my work on The Enemies Project. Alex assisted me on a very logistically and emotionally challenging project in Kashmir on the border of India and Pakistan. For two and a half months we traveled in an area that was frequently closed down by military police. We met with Nelson Guda PhD Studio of Nelson Guda December 25, 2015 Alex is an amazing photographer. He captured so many beautiful moments of our wedding. Also he is wonderful to work with very personable and understanding of all family dynamics. I would recommend him for all events you can think of. Elizabeth Lurie February 12, 2016 Alex worked with me and provided a scientific graphic which depicts a relatively complicated experimental design and associated results. His service was effective in asking me questions to ensure he understood my desired product to his fullest potential and continued to submit drafts to me to ensure that he was on the right track. Alex Michael Remke PhD Student at NAU December 17, 2015 Advocacy and community organizing can be condensed into one simple word: storytelling. Not only does Alex understand the deep importance of story in creating our past, present, and future - he also possesses the unique skill of transforming the lens of his camera into a compelling voice, an incisive pen. Alex’s images help define, elaborate, Dan Olson Executive Director, San Juan Citizens Alliance November 14, 2015 Alex's video skills really impressed me. He did a great job listening to what I was going for and helped bring out the best of what I had to offer. He was professional, detailed and there was a timely turnaround. The video and audio quality was excellent and he was even helpful in the post Kyle Gray Conversion Cake December 18, 2015 Alex photographed our wedding in Forks, WA outside of Olympic National Park. He did an amazing job capturing the spontaneous beauty of the location and our wonderful small group. His relaxed, creative and personable vibe made it very easy to take a variety of eclectic group photos. We really appreciated having you as a part Andrew Payton December 15, 2015 Alex is a joy to work with! We were able to be ourselves for our engagement shoot because he made us feel comfortable. The best part of working with him was how he made the entire process easy and fun! We are so glad we found Alex to be our photographer. We love the photos Alex and I have worked together on several websites and marketing projects. He has always been professional, responsive and easy to work with. Highly recommended! Olympic Creative Copy & Editing Ecommerce Design May 20, 2020 We hired Alex to photograph our wedding. He was enthusiastic about our special day leading up to the big event. When it came to our rehearsal they day before our wedding, Alex took the time to get some photos of us practicing where we would be standing and my dad walking me down the isle. Sam Lindley December 21, 2015 Next >> We help businesses and entrepreneurs create and sustain their online presence without having to manage the details. Our team of professional designers, developers and copy writers is here to grow your business. Featured Articles Get Inspired Sign up for a regular dose of inspiration.	8,528
M: I really appreciate that. It takes one to know one, because you know you are that same kind of creature. Also, thank you for that reflection; I really appreciate that. R: I, I want to say that one, because it’s true, but two, in just thinking about having this moment with you, I couldn’t help but to think back, to the first time I met you in college and I think my immediate feeling then was also the same. College was strange and college was dark and I just remember meeting you and being like holy shit there is light. There are people who are doing the damn thing. I should say it was so exciting to take a step back and think through that time and the places where we’ve intersected and come back together. So to be able to sit across from you and just say that again and it remain just as true. That’s just incredible. M: We’re journeying. We are on a journey and it’s sweet, I think, when we get to see each other, partners on the journey. We’re each on our own journey, but it’s also a similar one that intertwines and for me it’s affirming when people who I really respect–when our paths do cross again. It’s like “Oh! Hey friend, you know, we’re still on this journey. Yup me too! Ok, great!” And it’s delightful because we can encourage each other, we can just give a smile. We already know each other, I there’s a sweetness there for me in acknowledging those memories and the continuation. R: If I’m speaking honestly I’ll say that sometimes it can be hard to remember what your core values are. And I think, there are totems, you know, sometimes people are totems, and I feel like there are some times that I get really caught up and I’m doing the most or doing this and then I’m like what am I doing this for and then I see these totems. I remember recently, I think it was very early pandemic actually and you were giving a talk on dance NYC, you were moderating, and it was just something about the way you were moderating this conversation which I had mixed feelings about, but there you were my totem. There was something about listening, just the process of communication which I think we lose from listening, taking a beat, responding, reflecting, offering opinion, like interjecting when necessary, just like literally holding space and doing that. and I was like, Y’all, Maria Bauman out here just literally holding space, M: Wow! Speaking of space, I’m infatuated with positive space and negative space, you know from that visual artist point of view. And my favorite form is the duet, my favorite dance form. That has, to me, so much to do with the space between us and obviously playing with that. When do we really compress it to build so much tension and when do we really expand it to intimate something about distance or expanse or possibility? And this idea of “holding space” resonates with me because it reminds me that we are tethered no matter how large the space is. When you say “holding space” it reminds me that we are all being held within the same space, elastic though it may be, and I love being connected. Honestly, that’s just part of my blueprint. I love being connected with other people. I sometimes feel like a baby that way, to be honest, like I don’t necessarily have the toughness that “individualism” asks for and I, I feel good about that actually because that’s not my lineage but…I think that space-holding you’re talking about is that I love being connected with other people. So for me, holding space is sort of like laying out a blanket in the park and saying “Okay! We can all sit on this and be together!” You know?! R: Right, right. Oh thats a beautiful image…well we sort of just jumped right in [laughs] M: I’m game! Raja Feather Kelly, anything that you invite me to do I wanna do that with you so I’m like you lead me I’m with you. R: I love that. So yeah that was for me. I just I wanted to share that with you because you know who knows when I can see you down again, but now that you’re saying anytime, I might invite you for tea all the time M: All the time, who are you telling, this is a duet already that we’re having right now and really I’m grateful. I mean I’m sitting in my living room right now by myself, but in a way I’m sitting with you so I’m happy about that. R: Me too. R: There’s a new emergence I think of wanting to get voices in the room, wanting to talk about covid, wanting to talk about disparities and I’m like y’all I’m just I’m not sure if I want to do that. I think it’s difficult for me to talk about being an artist and its relationship to this pandemic without acknowledging just like I’m safe. In respect to what my journey has been as an artist and where I feel like it’s been fair and unfair, you know I think that’s it’s going to be for me a continued lifelong mission of trying to hold my integrity trying to build my community and knowing that things will come and go in waves and that like my job is to like die and know that like perhaps that needle was here when I started and that needle sort of shifted. M: My God you’ve done so much with being frank and transparent about funding in our field and I’ve really appreciated the ways that you have not felt—well I don’t know how you felt actually— but I’ll just say the ways that you have shown up, really clearly naming your experience, which is many of our experiences. And I know you’ve had shifts in your experience, but I have appreciated, when you talk about moving a needle, I have appreciated your transparency and what seems to me your unwillingness to internalize rejection but rather to externalize it and say this is happening and I feel a type of way and perhaps it’s founded perhaps it’s not, but what I’m not going to do is turn it inward on myself as a reflection of my worthiness. That’s what I’ve experienced or that’s what I imagined from you really sharing your voice and I think that has moved the needle quite a bit. R: Thank you. … R: What for you is the Impossible Future ? M: [Pauses] A lot resonates for me in that, I’m grabbing my pillow so I can cuddle. A lot resonates for me in that. I’ve got to say, to bring it home for me, this idea of an impossible future….. I don’t think it’s impossible but it feels improbable and I love leaning into that which is improbable and unreasonable. That’s an organizing strategy that I’ve really been appreciating, taking that on from MPD150 and Ricardo Levins Morales and other organizers…this idea of ‘let’s dream into the impossible and the unreasonable and the unprecedented as a real organizing strategy,’ and mine…mine really is Black wellness at this point. On all of the levels, and I’m thinking nitty gritty, just thinking about our statistics when it comes to health outcomes–whether we have healthcare not, whether we have PhDs or elementary school education–our statistics actually defy those categories. It seems to be the most weighty category in the U.S.: whether or not you are Black. Full Stop. And that has to do with infant mortality rates and blood pressure and fibroids and all different kinds of things, and that has really been drawn to fine a point in my own life recently and I’ve long seen it in the life of my family and so…. yeah I know it’s not impossible, but it feels unrealistic or unreasonable or improbable given that we have not yet eradicated racism, we’re on our way, but I’m really dreaming into Black Wellness and a time when all of my tissues are functioning perfectly. And I’m not talking Afro-futurism, I’m talking about now. I’m going: can we all be unfettered in our bodies now? And to be clear I do not mean a lack of disability. I’m using the word “wellness” rather than “health” on purpose, because I think wellness really encompasses a state of harmony and function that does not have an absolute. It is a state of being-ness I think that we determine you know. “Am I feeling well or am I not?” R: Right, It has an opportunity to shift. There no endpoint to wellness M: That’s what I mean, exactly, there’s not an absolute point that says ‘oh well you’ve reached it or not.’ So, yeah it’s really basic and I want to be thinking unicorns and rainbows, which in a way I am, but to be honest that IS rainbows and unicorns when we look at what’s actually happening now. So that’s a future that I am really excited about. I’m kind of going to compress time and think more Sankofa because it’s a ‘now’ that I want. I feel a real sense of insisting upon that now. And I agree with you that the Earth is fed up and I also feel that she’s recovering and that heartens me. I read something last night that said, I think in 2020 there was a 7% decrease in carbon monoxide emissions across the globe, I hope I’m getting that correct, I think the Earth has every reason to be angry and grieving, if she is, so… and I also feel that she’s putting us in timeout like ‘y’all sit down you don’t know how to act so y’all are in time out because mama needs…’ M: ‘Go lay down somewhere, go sit down somewhere.’ I feel that that’s what earth has said to us and there’s a way that I want to listen. Because capitalism, oohh, she’s rough. Capitalism seems insatiable and I know I’ve internalized it. I mean how could I not? I know I’ve internalized it; I feel it everyday. But I’m heartened by this idea of there’s possibility for repair. So that’s part of it as I think, ‘oh if I get off of this roller coaster or if I get on a small roller coaster,’ maybe I say ‘I want the wind in my hair but not this much…not you breaking my neck. Okay, let me get on a different ride…’ M: Right! ‘But don’t give me whiplash! Let me go on one that has some gentle exhilaration.’ R: Where does, where does Black Wellness begin? M: Hmm Well who am I to know first of all, but I want to say… R: Well, where does your Black Wellness begin? M: Thank you, that’s what I was going to say. For me, I’m learning that it begins with connection. I’m just learning that. I’m really learning a lot of lessons around how we are socialized to isolate and how I have gotten a whiff of a lesson along the way and really internalized this idea that my worthiness is attached to how cheerful and available I am for other people and so sometimes that has resulted in–when I’m not doing so well I just don’t…you don’t hear from me–and when I’m doing well I’m super available. I’m realizing ‘Oh, Maria, get a little smarter. Reach out no matter what.’ I’m just learning…I’m learning how amazingly generous people are and how we’re so fragile in our humanness and also so mighty. So when I feel a little bit like I’m crawling, or I’m on my knees, or I’m stumbling, lately I’ve been just taking a little risk and still reaching out. And I have just been blown away by encouragement, resources, knowledge, stuff that I need in order to be well. So, I think connection is the beginning point of wellness. And for me, connection feels very Black. That doesn’t say that we don’t need alone time or that there aren’t Black introverts; I’m not talking about that. But it means that we didn’t arrive wherever we are alone. I think that’s true for all of us, but I do think that in Black culture we really underlined that fact. M: I don’t want to act as if, or speak of this Blackness is a monolith, cuz we know it is not. M: Within Black culture, we are never showing up alone; we just aren’t. R: That’s where our work begins, and I think that’s the sort of behind that I think, as for me what I feel like a responsible artist is understanding that lineage, being like I’m not necessarily, like making something new, I might be revealing, I might be pulling something forward that started in 1999, or 40 years before that, or a hundred years before, that begot three hundred years before that when we arrived here, right you know, like this imagining of a future impossible. M: And that’s what I appreciate, is the both/and-ness. M: So in MBDance, I’m known for having said “rugged individualism is a boldface damn lie!” R: Yeeeeesss! M: It really is. I mean, it’s a damn boldface lie. I like what you said, “it’s a scam.” It simply has never been true, but certain populations have been socialized to wear that cloak and to kind of show up and go, “I made that!” or allow themselves to be propped up as a singular genius. It’s not true. M: I deeply believe that the best art, the best creation arises when it’s got the fingerprints of a lot of divine beings on it. So the collaborators who work with me–I know they’re sacred moonbeams and I know I’m a sacred moonbeam–we are different. We have different blueprints. We signed up, I believe we signed up, and came to this planet to experience different aspects of it. And that keeps me really affiliative, so whether I’m facilitating an experience of a workshop or whether I’m facilitating practice, dance rehearsal, for my own dance company, it’s going to start with a check-in about the whole person, it’s going to include questions about ‘how does this feel to you’. Yeah that’s part of it and I think the undoing racism work that I’m really grateful to be a part of, is all up and through my artistic work as well. Mainly I think…there are a couple of ways, but mainly in that I’m centering us without translation. That feels really important to me, not to center Black queer folks in order to prove how wonderful we are, how brilliant we are, how worthy we are, not to prove–just to center us. Full Stop. That there is a world, and it’s a world that I’m co-creating and many other people are co-creating along with me in their own fields, where we are not tokenized, where we are not “included” and I put that in quotation marks, where we simply ARE. In my artworks, that is a world that I’m co-creating and adding to and I feel really good about that. R: Yeah that….it seems so simple, when I’m like [laughs] ….it seems so simple that it’s just it’s…I guess I think about who may read… Its typical for me in this moment as the person is like bringing these ideas together, where I’m like it’s all so clear and you know I asked you in the beginning like you know, where does black wellness start and then again in talking about you work there was something again that you said, you’re like you know when practice begins, I’m checking in about the whole being, everyone, and that…you know that to me I’m like oh that’s where it begins. Where does black wellness begin? It begins with checking-in making sure everybody, you know, how is everybody doing, and who is everybody. M: And, and I was just going to say ‘including me.’ And I think that’s the lesson. I turned forty during this pandemic and… M: Thank you, thank you! and on my personal journey on this plant planet, I think that’s one of my lessons that I clearly came here to learn, is that the “everybody” and I’m putting that in quotation marks. When you ask ‘who is everybody?’ it includes me. So I recently shared something pretty huge with the company members and I felt a little out on a limb about it. I thought, ‘Oh gosh, you know this might be kind of weird. Maria’s bringing in her personal stuff,’ or ‘I don’t want to make people feel worried’–because it was some stuff that was vulnerable about me–but I thought, ‘If I say that I’m trying to co-create community, but at night I have no community to go to, then I’m not doing a good job, then I’m not being authentic.’ So I’m trying. And that has been the case in past years: that I’ve held space for others but not had that space for me. So I think I’m reckoning now with saying to myself, ‘Okay you’ve done a good job, Maria…you’ve done a good job embodying your values, but you can do better. Let’s go deeper.’ And so I’m really endeavoring and taking risks to check that communities that I’m a part of co-creating can hold me as well. And what I’m learning is that they can! One of the dancers, the next day after I shared, sent me this beautiful text message and said “Hey, I sat with what you shared with us last night and it really meant a lot to me and therefore I want to share this with you and also here’s a playlist that has been really helping me through some difficult times.” And can I tell you, it brought me to tears when I clicked…I was already blown away by the generosity of that, and then I clicked on the playlist and it was called For Maria, and that just got me. I was like ‘Oh! I’m held. I’m valued.’ R: it’s so hard, so hard because I have just, I have I have… I felt like I spent so much time being like I’m just going to take care of myself as a way to like ground my being so that then, so like now that like I can walk on my two feet I’m like no, I don’t need anything because i might be weakened and then… you know, it’s been a process, that I am in now of like you know, allowing myself to be vulnerable you know it anywhere, anywhere and also allowing myself to not have to practice that power behind closed doors. I can send a nasty email and I can also just, I can do that compassionately, I can do that, you know there’s something about the power of truth that I’ve taken for granted up until this year of my my life where I’m like I don’t deserve to be treated this way, or I do deserve to be treated this way, or you know, I’m not going to compromise or like why does there have to be a compromise, you know things like that, and just being able to hold power in in the truth of like what my purpose is like, I am here to be a contributor to culture, I am here because… I don’t know how to always bring people together, but I know that I want to, and I want them to feel safe, and I want them to be beyond themselves as a daily practice, I know that’s what I want M: I appreciate this idea of the power of truth. You know the motto of my dance company MBDance is “Sweat your truth!” M: You know?! [Laughing] That’s the acknowledgement that we each have a specific, individual, different truth and a collective truth and that they’re all sacred. What you said reminds me of A Course in Miracles, which says that the truth is defenseless. I think about that a lot. That then means that we don’t have to stew in our juices as you said, and write the nastiest version of it behind closed doors, because that’s almost as if we’re trying to add power to the truth. But actually the truth is the truth and it doesn’t need any added power. And I think for me–so that’s your version, or has been in the past–my version that I’m trying to let go of is that I have sometimes secret-ed the truth between many many ‘please’s and niceties and ways of making people like me. I have sort of made a truth salad that has a lot of other stuff in it. I think your and my historical responses are two symptoms of the same malady, which is not being believed…not trusting that our truth stands and is honored. I think that what you and I are learning is that the truth is defenseless and so I can just bring my compassionate self, my assertive self, I don’t need to try to make it palatable. And I think what I hear you saying is that you don’t need to add the venom to it. It’s like ‘this is simply the truth, what it is. I do deserve this, we deserve this, what do you need?’ R: Yeah exactly, exactly, what do you need. That comes up alot because that’s what it feels, like if I take my own experience, it’s that it can be challenging to ask yourself that question, right and that’s what…for so long I didn’t ask myself what do I need, you know, maybe somebody else is in that position, where they need to be asked because they haven’t asked themselves, what do you need? And it can be a huge, it could be a powerful just like, you know, way of opening space: What do you need? M: And we are not even always prepared to answer. … R: Well it has been an absolute pleasure. An absolute pleasure M: Raja, I‘m really happy that you invited me. I’m just reminded that, I mean I knew I really liked you alot, but I’m just reminded that as a person I like you! So I feel happy that this was the occasion that I got to spend time with you today. R: Likewise and congratulations on your marriage. It wasn’t that long ago was it? M: It wasn’t. We’re only two years married R: Ok we are just a year. R: It is.I think marriage is really special M: It is. M: Thank you. Well I’ll stay tuned, but this has been a pleasure. R: Yes Ok, more soon. Maria Bauman-Morales is a Bessie-Award-winning, Brooklyn, NY-based, multi-disciplinary artist and community organizer from Jacksonville, FL. Bauman-Morales is also a sought-after facilitator and speaker on the topics of social justice practices within performing arts, embodied and arts-based leadership development, and racial equity in the arts. She creates bold and honest artworks for her company MBDance based on physical and emotional power, insistence on equity, and intimacy. In particular, Bauman’s site-responsive dance work centers the non-linear and linear stories and bodies of queer people of color in multiple ritual settings. She draws on her study of English literature, capoeira, improvisation, dancing in living rooms and nightclubs, as well as concert dance classes to embody interconnectedness, joy, and tenacity. Bauman-Morales brings the same tenets to organizing to undo racism in the arts and beyond with ACRE (Artists Co-creating Real Equity), the grassroots group she co-founded with Sarita Covington and Nathan Trice. Currently, she is an Urban Bush Women Choreographic Center Fellow and a BRIClab resident artist. She has also been Community Action Artist in Residence at Gibney, Artist in Residence at Brooklyn Arts Exchange, and DiP Artist Resident under the direction of Eva Yaa Asantewaa. As a cultural organizer, Bauman-Morales partners with various groups to lift up calls for justice via art. She was honored with the 2018 BAX Arts and Artists in Progress Award for “the work you do to undo racism in our daily lives while lifting up the work and lives of your membership.” Bauman-Morales has facilitated community engagement workshops for El Puente, Chorus America, Ramapo College, Rider University, and has helped create cultural campaigns with various locals of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). She’s been a keynote speaker and core facilitator for the 2018 Day of Learning on Equity & Inclusion, Camille A. Brown’s 2016 Black Girl Spectrum Convening and several Cultural Organizing for Community Change symposiums. She’s a Core Trainer with The People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond, working closely with them on Understanding & Undoing Racism training especially for artists.	22,809
Thanks for popping in. Well, it’s certainly busy at Clarity Towers!! The Half Price Members Sale has kicked in – and yikes!!!! Just as well I took some time out on Saturday, to regroup and turn a few pots. Just 3. Nothing special. Just three pots. Three shapes. Three sizes. Paid attention to the bases this time. First one was just plain and simple. Second one I made a little foot with the trippy twirl. Third one I made flat, but with a swirly recess. Got a real kick out of doing these, because I have a plan for them! They are the first of our Summer Raku party Stash! The kids have been saying that when they come home they would love to try their hand at pottery. No problem! I’m no expert, but I can certainly show them the ropes! Then last week I had an idea! When they come home in the Summer (said the optimist), we can have a Raku Party! I will get a load of pots ready and bisque fired, so that they can carry on from there, take them and run with them through the raku process. Of course, they can throw some themselves, and turn them, and get them through to the fire too. But it all takes time. So if we have a load all ready to be raku glazed, then they will have something to take home which they had a hand in. It’s a plan! And in an instant I had a purpose for my 3 pots. In fact, I have lots more to make now – or the party will be over pretty quickly !! That’s it, my friends. We need a purpose, we need something to keep us occupied. My Mum and Dad, for example. They are busily packing up Blending nibs and Groovi Tabs! As soon as I told Mum this morning, that overnight we had had hundreds of orders for them, she went from feeling a little frustrated with cabin fever, to a woman with a mission. Couldn‘t get off the phone fast enough, to crack on! And now I know that I have at least twenty or thirty pots and bowls to make for the Raku Party, I can’t wait to get back in there and crack on! How ironic that the Pottery Throwdown yesterday evening was all around naked Raku. LOVE naked Raku!! I tried it a couple of summers ago… didn’t work out as well as I had hoped. Who knows why. Weeks of prep… and not too unlike their efforts last night – to this point. Then it went to pot – and a holy disaster! Gutted. Hahahahaha! Ah well. Mind you. A few more hours of polishing with Olive oil – and it was bearable…. You hate to bin something which took all that time and energy! But if we were burgled and the tea leaves took off with this antiquity – I think I would cope. Hahahahaa. I learned loads last night, so I am up for another attempt. And yes. The burnishing with a spoon takes hours!!! Lily. Lovely Lily 18 thoughts on “Making a Plan…” 1st February 2021 at 4:40 pm What fun you will all have in the summer! Glad your mum and dad have a project to occupy them. Why not get your application in for the next Pottery Throw Down Barbara? I think you would be fab! XOXO Gill W. says: 1st February 2021 at 5:03 pm I watched The Pottery Throwdown today and my heart was in my mouth! I thought the results were stunning! So beautiful. What a great idea to have a Raku party. We all need something to look forward to. I will be in the Groovi Shack tomorrow. Xx 1st February 2021 at 5:09 pm Wasn’t the Pottery Throwdown amazing ? My heart was in my mouth ! Loved the results, but the tension. Not sure if you can take anymore stress ATM Barbara 1st February 2021 at 5:22 pm Well, that certainly sounds like a plan. Enjoy the ride. Hx Cherry T says: 1st February 2021 at 6:15 pm Sounds like a plan. Stay safe and happy. 1st February 2021 at 6:38 pm You are getting really good at this and your pots are looking brilliant. What a fantastic idea for when the kids come over and such a great thing to do together. I loved the throw down last night and was pleased that no one left, as they all did so well. Changing the subject totally, thanks for the SHAC this morning. My Marge Simpson, sorry Nefertiti, needs some work, but I always have the download to fall back on if all else fails. I do enjoy it though. Have a good evening and tell Grace I hope she enjoyed her skiing weekend. Hugs. Annette X 1st February 2021 at 6:56 pm I managed to book time off work in September ,and have booked an apartment in Swanage everything crossed well be able to go Loved the trip to Egypt although missed the bus ,caught a later one ha ha 1st February 2021 at 7:02 pm what a fabulous plan! Have just booked tickets for the Chelsea Flower Show in Sept with a couple of friends – I’ve never been before so very excited! have been shopping in the sale and spent far too much – but then thought that I’ve saved the same amount again so it’s actually a bargain!! 1st February 2021 at 7:36 pm I loved the naked Raku pots last night. There was something magical about seeing the designs appear and the finished pots were lovely. I think your idea for a Raku party is brilliant. I would love to have a go at pottery but I think I have enough crafts on the go at the moment, well that’s what my husband says. Alison Ainger says: 1st February 2021 at 7:38 pm Sounds like a good plan Barbara. And I think the broken pot is great. I shall cherish my blending nibs knowing Mrs G packed them. Say thanks to her from me 1st February 2021 at 7:40 pm Oh Barbara your pots are gorgeous. I love your plan it is a good one. We all need a bit of purpose. I have put my order in. I just have to wait for it all to arrive. I am looking forward to tomorrow. I am a Groovi newbie. So much to learn. That is a good thing too. Have a good evening. Lets look forward to a lovely summer. Take care. Hugs xxx 1st February 2021 at 7:46 pm I just love your near disaster pot. Perfect and full of character 1st February 2021 at 9:34 pm What a great idea for the Raku party – the pots look fantastic. I think we will all benefit from being able to make a few plans to look forward to. I have booked an AirBnB in the village where my son & family are moving to in the hope that we will be able to visit them for the childrens birthdays – the baby will be 1 & we have only seen her for a few hours back in August. I reckon she will be walking & talking by then although it will be Welsh – but I got on fine with her big sister – making mud pies is the same in any language !! Looking forward to the Groovi SHAC Shack gathering tomorrow but will be ready on Wednesday for some more travels around Egypt. 1st February 2021 at 10:50 pm Watched the pottery throw down tonight and was amazed at the results. Loved the feathers. Something else you’ve got me interested in with your enthusiasm love the presenter she’s so much fun (just like you). I think you should enter Pat says: 2nd February 2021 at 12:46 am What a great idea to have a summer Raku party and good to think positively that Mark and Grace will be able to visit. I think you saved that pot excellently…it is so shiny..must have taken a lot of elbow grease. x 2nd February 2021 at 6:02 am Hi Barb, well I think you have a really great plan for the summer, what fun that would be, what fun it would be just to have a party with more than 2 attendees. By the way I actually love the earthy feel of your Raku pot, it is brilliant. Take care and stay safe everyone. Bx Lynda says: 2nd February 2021 at 8:00 am Love that last pot. I think you are being over critical because you know about the errors, or what didn’t turn out as planned. Anyone who doesn’t, just sees a beautiful piece of art. Take care. Lynne says: 2nd February 2021 at 3:10 pm Think we all need a mission at the moment. Something to focus on. A few house renovations for us, clear out all the clutter, Fred’s shed a good place to start 🤣 and also need to think about extending our drive a bit. New neighbour is trying to make life difficult for us parking our car so to avoid any disputes we will sort it ourselves. I reckon your Raku party will be great fun. I watched the Pottery throwdown attempts and some of them were lovely. Who will be cutting their hair to use. X 🤣	8,456
PrestoSports offers a superb tech solution for athletes, sports organizations, and programs. Its platform includes marketing and statistics tools. Tasks Upgrading the UX and Development Stack for a platform of over a decade PrestoSports offers a sport tech solutions for athletic organizations and sports programs. The company provides an expansive suite of software solutions to develop communities. Not only does the company work with over 1,400 clients in this field. Furthermore, it has many current and former athletes on its team. As a result, it has a deep and comprehensive understanding of the sports environment. PrestoSports and Capicua worked together on an upgraded version of the platform. A relevant highlight is its last upgrade was approximately 15 years ago, as of 2022. Goal The business’ goal is to present holistic solutions to elevating sports programs. The venture is a SaaS company that provides tech solutions to athletes and conference offices. Its most significant commitment is to helping sports parties nurture and grow communities. Since 2017, PrestSports has been part of Clubessential Holding and backed by Battery Ventures. Its robustness lies in its PrestoSports Super Suite. It’s a comprehensive, integrated sports tech platform. It allows joint work and command across media and channels. Further, it has specialized tools for digital success. Our team’s tech challenges were both related to its performance and appearance. Given the vast amount of time since its first version, we needed an advanced-guard version. This upgrade included a more modern look and feel, and a faster loading time. The original languages of this project were JPS and Java for the front-end and the back-end, respectively. When we took the lead, we developed the front end in React while using Node.JS for the back end. With this combination, we achieved a lighter, faster, and more adapted to the current times' platform. Our first step was to develop the Super Suite. With that, we could take easy care of its different modules. For instance, we were in touch with PrestoShots and PrestoStats. About PrestoStats, its focus was on providing relevant information during live events. Further, we took care of PrestoSports’ CMS to ensure a uniform central control of the platform.	2,442
I wrote this for my best friend who is now going off to college. I watched them grow and come out to me, and I watched them go through declaring a major that they hate so they wouldn’t be disowned by their family. I wrote this as a love letter to a best friend, and a goodbye, and a thank you, and so much more. I wrote it about their becoming, and I thought it might connect with others too. It’s your time to rest now. You’ve worked so hard, but now the night has fallen and the moon has risen. It’s alive, and so beautiful. Tilt your head back, take it all in. Watch the way the light trickles down, the way the night sky covers the earth in a blanket of quiet inky darkness, a living being around us, and the way stardust crumbles beneath fingertips, dissolving into seas. Look at the way starlight reflects in the eyes of every person you’ve ever loved, setting them alight with a gentle flame, illuminating what you love most about them. Exhale, because it’s been so hard but I have so much faith that you will do whatever you want to in this world. You will make a difference. You will make someone’s day, or week, or year, or life. You will change the world. And maybe you won’t change it in an everybody-will-know-your-name kind of way. Maybe you will! But perhaps you’ll change the world in a small way. Perhaps you’ll change the world by telling someone you love them, by convincing one person to continue on, by giving one person a smile when they need it most, or by inspiring someone with your work. Perhaps you’ll change the world in the kind of way that when you eventually leave it, someone, somewhere, was made better because of you. Exhale, for you’re at the end of the race. It’s not the kind of race that has winners or losers, but the pressure’s there nonetheless. It’s the kind of race where you can hear your blood pumping and the sound of your own lungs and realize how mortal you are, how short of a time you’ll have here at all. It’s the kind of race where you want to take breaks, but sometimes you can’t. Sometimes you forget to drink water, and sometimes you’re not certain the direction you’re going. But the important thing is that you kept going. Even when it was too dark to see your own hand in front of your face, you kept putting one foot in front of the other when it mattered most. And now, you’re here. You’ve made it. Exhale, for the time is here. The time is now. Slow down; listen to your own heart. Trust that while it may not always be right, it’s certainly the most well-intentioned of all your organs, never ceasing its beating, never doing anything but loyally continuing on. Your heart’s very existence is a miracle. Trust it. Exhale. Know that on your back lies the most beautiful pair of wings in the galaxy, and maybe you don’t know it yet, but they will grow. It may take time for you to trust them enough to leap off of the edge, and that’s OK, but when you do – You will fly. Exhale, because it doesn’t matter what name or pronouns you want me to refer to you by, as long as I can always call you my friend. Because you can trust that no matter what decisions you make in this life, no matter what steps you take or path you lead, if you trace every footstep you’ve taken so far on this earth, they will all lead you home. Exhale, because it’s time to trust yourself, to love yourself. Because we all change with life, and that’s part of the journey, but maybe some things stay the same. We are always the same person, we simply grow and are shaped by our experiences, by each moment and person we meet. But you’ll still be you; you will still be the same kind, loving, talented, creative person you always were. You will not lose what makes you, you. Don’t fear growth. Just remember to never stop looking into the mirror of your soul, and I know you’ll be OK. Exhale, because I promise that when you call me, I will always pick up. I promise that if the place you always called home closes its doors to you, I will open mine. I promise that if you ever need a place to stay, you don’t need to look any further than wherever I am. I promise that wherever I am, I will come to you if you need me. If you need me, I will be there. I love you. Exhale, because this life is only as meaningful as we make it. Because we only see beauty in the things we choose to, because I trust that if you take a walk and turn over rocks, you will find love beneath each of them. Because beauty is in the small things, like the shape of bowls, crafted and built by careful hands, and in the dim light of a phone screen, and the way your heart slows as you slip into sleep. Because you will find love at the bottom of dusty old boxes and tucked into outfits, nestled in between pages and intertwined into locks of your hair, love – Is all around you. If only you choose to see it. Exhale, because a wish is never wasted if it makes you happy. Life is never wasted if it makes you happy. Because pursuing joy is not a crime. It’s a privilege. Always chase your dreams, no matter how right-brained they may be. And never, no matter what you do, take them for granted, not even for a moment. Watch the sky as the colors melt from the darkness of night to the streaks of starburst pink and orange of a new day. Watch as tomorrow unfolds before you, infinite in its possibility, just waiting to be seized by two hands – two hands capable of building universes, of shaping the very foundation of the earth, if only they so wish.	5,555

Subsets and Splits

No community queries yet

The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.