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STARKVILLE, Miss. – In-state rivals meet on the hardwood once again Thursday as Mississippi State travels to Oxford for a 6 p.m. showdown against Ole Miss at Tad Smith Coliseum.
The contest will be broadcast in the Golden Triangle and surrounding areas on WKBB-FM 100.9, and in Tupelo on WXWX-FM 96.3. HailStateTV subscribers can get the live audio stream at www.hailstate.com/hstvlive.
The Bulldogs enter the contest 14-5 overall and 1-4 in SEC play after falling 73-35 at No. 21 Texas A&M on Sunday. Senior Katia May, who is averaging 9.0 points and 4.8 assists in SEC play, led MSU with eight points and four assists.
May and the Bulldogs will look to avenge a 65-51 setback to the Rebels in Oxford last season that snapped a six-game MSU win streak in the series.
Ole Miss leads the overall series 62-23, but the Bulldogs have won 20 of the 30 meetings since 2000, including nine wins in Oxford. MSU won last season’s first meeting 72-57 in Starkville before the Rebels claimed the rematch.
Junior Martha Alwal averaged 18.0 points in the two games against Ole Miss last season, and she paces Vic Schaefer’s squad this year with 15.6 points per game, good for ninth in the league. The junior also ranks fifth in the conference with 8.3 rebounds an outing.
Kendra Grant, who scored 16 points last season in Oxford after netting 20 in the home win against the Rebels, is second on the team with 12.5 points per game. Freshman Dominique Dillingham also averages double figures for the Bulldogs, averaging 10.2 points per game.
McFarland rates second in the conference in assists with 6.2 per game and seventh in points with a 16.2 scoring clip. Tia Faleru averages 15.6 points an outing and ranks second in the league with 9.4 rebounds per game.
Thursday’s game is the first of two meetings between the squads this year, as UM will visit Humphrey Coliseum on Feb. 23.
The Bulldogs will return to the Hump Sunday to host Missouri in the team’s “We Back Pat” game. SportSouth will televise the tilt, which is set to tip at 2 p.m.
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The proposal, from the New York-based developer Extell, was approved under a city program meant to incentivize affordable housing, the New York Post reported Sunday. New York’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development was reportedly the city agency that gave the go-ahead.
The 33-story building, now under construction at 40 Riverside Boulevard on the Upper West Side, will contain 219 luxury units facing the Hudson River. There will also be a segment on floors two through six that will contain 55 street-facing units for the building’s poorer residents. This segment will have its own entrance.
The more affordable units will be given to families of four whose annual income is $51,540 or less — about 60 percent of the area’s median income.
Residents living in the lower-income part of 40 Riverside will be prohibited from using the attractive amenities commonly found in Extell properties, including a gym and a swimming pool.
Extell’s proposal, which has been widely described as a “poor door” policy, was approved under the city’s Inclusionary Housing program, which allows developers to use more square footage than they’d ordinarily be allowed to — provided they set aside some units in their building for affordable housing. For doing so, developers also receive millions in tax breaks.
Gothamist reports that arrangements like the one planned for 40 Riverside are not uncommon in New York.
Still, ever since plans for the separate entrance were revealed last August, city officials and community members have been demanding that Extell officials jettison the policy for a more inclusive one.
“This ‘separate but equal’ arrangement is abominable and has no place in the 21st century, let alone on the Upper West Side,” Assemblywoman Linda B. Rosenthal told the blog West Side Rag last year. “A mandatory affordable housing plan is not license to segregate lower-income tenants from those who are well-off.”
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Was once a podcast with Elwood D. Pennypacker (@oldtimeelwood on the Twitter) that went by the old expression "Punk Isn't Dead, It Just Goes to Bed at a More Reasonable Hour".
Thursday, December 31, 2009
The Decade in Music, Part 1: Let There Be Rock (2000-2001)
It's been a decade in which I have gone back and forth over what to write and how to write it. Reflective of my personality at a given time, I wrote about music (or politics, or society, or anything for that matter) with an air of definitive, universal authority or with an exclusively personal perspective. It would be complete with absolutist hyperbole of the highest order or a mere observational series of notes. As the decade has come to a close, I still don't know what skin I am most comfortable writing in - I am torn with doubt over even writing any of this in first person voice. It appears however that a personal perspective is winning the day, though let it be said that my opinion-as-god voice may come roaring back at any given time (including in this very piece) so Pitchfork better watch its back if it knows what is good for it.
Part 1: Let There Be Rock, 2000-2001
When the 21st Century dawned, I was in the middle of my freshman year of college and the middle of my Classic Rock Period, a labeling indicative of the radio-reliant source of the music I was listening to. Q104 in New York and 102.9 and 93.3 in Philadelphia were my main source for an education in late 60's, 70's, and early 80's rock music. My high school friends had been the enablers for my Bob Dylan, Pink Floyd, and Led Zeppelin addictions - perhaps all inevitable and all necessary for any listener worth their salt - but the radio had me buying the definitive records of Boston, the Steve Miller Band, Santana, Tom Petty, Dire Straits, Eric Clapton and the like as well. There were also some foreshadowings of things to come, namely in the form of Warren Zevon, who I then only thought of as "The 'Werewolves of London' Guy who helped out on Letterman".
Then a couple of things happened. First, my freshman year of college happened to be the year Napster came into the public conciousness. So began the great revolution in the acquiring of music, a development that magnified my ability to absorb new (and old) music by exponential proportions. Second, my freshman year of college was the year I met John, Jack, and Ed, three fellas who had very similar and yet very different tastes in music and each went down different paths, all contributing to my own musical mess. John, the Classic Rock Classicist, taught me Jethro Tull and Blue Oyster Cult and the album tracks on the Jimi Hendrix records that you never hear on the radio. And more so than my Phish-following roommate at the time, John made me appreciate that band's immense studio ability. Besides Phish, the only band post-70’s that John eventually championed was Ween. On their own merits, Ween became a real force – both as back catalog catch-up and a new-sounds band. White Pepper came out in 2000, and while every critic still drools over Radiohead’s Kid A, I’m with Ween, who backed it up later with Quebec and La Cucaracha. Jack, meanwhile, taught me all the various sounds he was trying - from Miles Davis to Dreamtheatre to Pantera to Frank Zappa to the Ramones and the Clash. At the same time, he and I fell back on our old reliables from childhood - Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen - though the decade proved to be more kind to the Boss than the Piano Man as Springsteen's back catalog (and chunks of his material this decade) got me hooked over and over again, culminating in finally seeing the man live towards the end of 2009 (something Jack also experienced). And then there was Ed, who was perhaps the least likely Motley Crue fanatic in the world. What that led to was a musical journey that seemed at first to dwell on some of the cheesiest but most fun periods in rock but soon gave way to some of the most intense and exciting periods in music period. We went from Def Leppard and Poison (and Ratt and Whitesnake...shudders) to Sweet, Living Colour, Faith No More, the Stooges, and the MC5. And by the time it had all peaked, it turned out that Motley Crue wasn't a joke - Too Fast For Love certainly proved that. And don't get me started on my love for Billy Idol. But I can probably do without hearing "Pour Some Sugar On Me" ever again. Not because it was playing during my first rejection by a girl so much as because Ed played it 15 times in a row.
Concurrent with these streams of music, I expanded my interest in the blues. CD compilations and the mp3 explosion ushered in a period of heavy listening to Delta folk blues, Chicago electric blues, and later blues-soul renderings. Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, BB King, and Stevie Ray Vaughn were my early interests. They were later joined by Blind Willie Johnson, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter, and Kenny Wayne Shepherd.
So it made sense when my love for classic rock and blues - and a slight burgeoning interest in harder forms of rock - came together in the form of AC/DC. By no means deep or even thoughtful but also by no means hackneyed or insincere - AC/DC may be the silliest band to ever earn so much deserved respect. It is easy when trying to adopt the aura of a young learned intellectual to try and find resonance in anything but that all went out the window for me when I got into AC/DC. By the very nature of their well-tuned repetitiveness, I got into all the Bon Scott albums with equal aplomb and would have felt the same about the Brian Johnson records if they hadn't been poorly produced starting in the mid-80's. Memories I will carry forever include: going apeshit to Back in Black the first time in Ed's dorm room, thinking listening to AC/DC Live would help me go to sleep one summer night, and having my jokey "request" for Norah Jones to play an AC/DC song at a concert on my birthday in June 2003 ridiculously answered when she played "Ride On". Oh yeah and seeing the actual band live in 2001 when they went on tour in support of Stiff Upper Lip, that sort of mattered too.
Contemporary music was not very hot for me during this period. The aforementioned Kenny Wayne Shepherd was as close to a new sounding artist as I was regularly listening to in 2000 and 2001. Seeing him live in 2001 led to listening regularly to his opening act from that show, Mark Selby. Buckcherry's "Lit Up" was one of the few current rock songs I played regularly and that was well before they opened for AC/DC at the show I went to. I probably would never willingly listen to that song or that band ever again mind you. There were occasional songs by Rage Against the Machine ("Sleep Now in the Fire") and some dopey one-offs like that Vertical Horizon song that I listened to. But nothing new stuck. Kid Rock didn't count. Kid Rock never counts (except when I listened to "Only God Knows Why"). Then one random night in the sophomore year dorm room, John and I caught an appearance on Late Night with Conan O'Brien by Flogging Molly. Flogging Molly - despite being lobbed in with emo-ish Warped tour bands and bad suburban-based neo-punk - were the first salvo in a musical counter-revolution. New, well-crafted, earnest bands that harked back to just about anything and everything. Flogging Molly cornered the market on Celtic sounds. I would say their biggest legacy was my eventual discovery of the Pogues but that would do this band a disservice. Swagger, Drunken Lullabies, and Within a Mile From Home are three achievements the vast majority of non-Celtic sounding bands could never equal. And with the grand exception of "Shipping Up To Boston", Dropkick Murphys could never hold a candle to Dave King and company. In a sort of funny tie-in, Dave King earned his chops not in a Chieftains-type outfit but in Fastway, an 80's hair-metal band that had the very decent single "Say You Will".
By the end of 2001, classic rock and its related arena-size ilk were still my dominant cup of tea, concurrent with old blues though there may have already been signs of things afoot (by the end of the year I was aware of a bloke named Ryan Adams). After September 11th, I took refuge in a live Aerosmith concert - a band who had stopped exciting me but whose pervasive sound proved inescapable when you were trying to learn your way musically (I remember they were upstaged live and on record in 2003 by Cheap Trick whose “Scent of a Woman” remains one of my favorites of this decade). I saw U2 in November 2001 - an emotional experience that ran the gamut from utter excitement (Bono singled me out and penalty-kicked a cup at me) to heartfelt sadness. U2 is a band that I can almost get caught up in the backlash against, but for nearly a decade running now I can stop and pause for "Where the Streest Have No Name" and "All I Want Is You". Select songs from All That You Can't Leave Behind and How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb did them favors. And by sheer force of "Ultra Violet (Light My Way)", I finally just decided to give Achtung Baby a complete listen. Between their ability to emotionally be there for the USA at its lowest (9/11) and at its highest (Obama), and my friend Robyn's complete and utterly tasteful obsession, there will always be a spot at my table for U2.
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International News
LHASA, March 5 (Xinhua) — Two prefectures in southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region have been recognized for their conservation of dark skies. The China Conservation for Dark and Starry Sky in Ngari and The China Conservation for Dark and Starry Sky in Nagqu have been included in a world list …
LHASA, Feb. 17 (Xinhua) — From a beggars’ conclave to a boomtown, Paryu Village in Nagqu Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region, has undergone a complete facelift over the past ten years. Located in northern Tibet, at 4,800 meters above sea level, Paryu has a harsh natural environment. In 1994, 73 people …
LHASA, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) — Southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region received about 216,400 tourists from home and abroad from Feb. 15 to Feb. 18, the first four days of the week-long Chinese Lunar New Year holiday, up 30.7 percent compared to the same period last year, the regional tourism development …
LHASA, Feb. 5 (Xinhua) –– With a population of only 32 in nine households, Yumai, China’s smallest township, now has a stable power supply, local township authority said. Located in the foothills of the Himalayas near the border with India, Yumai township is some 200 kilometers from the county seat …
LHASA, Feb. 4 (Xinhua) –– Southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region saw its foreign trade rebound in 2017. The total value of imports and exports in the region rose 13.9 percent to 5.885 billion yuan (934.4 million U.S. dollars) last year. Tibet’s foreign trade fell for two consecutive years following the …
BY SYED BEIJING’S resonating OBOR’s global connect- which makes US and India worrisome- faces a strong resistance by them. Both Washington and New Delhi are fearful of China’s growing influence via OBOR—connecting the soft power’s intercontinental or globalised dots. The Chinese Foreign Ministry has dismissed United States (US) criticism that …
SHANGHAI, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) — Shanghai will send 1.1 million tourists to Tibet in the next three years as part of an action plan to aid the development of the remote southwestern region. The plan was signed by the Shanghai and Tibet tourism authorities on Friday. Shanghai has been supporting …
The year 2018 has come. What shall we expect? Let’s start with international affairs. First of all, we hope China’s international neighborhood and the Taiwan Straits can remain peaceful. It will also be a crucial year for the Korean Peninsula as we may find some clues to solve the nuclear …
LHASA, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) — Archeologists in Tibet Autonomous Region believe the ninth century Purang stele to be the oldest in the region. Shargan Wangdue, of Tibet Cultural Relics Protection Institute, said the stele was discovered in Ngari prefecture in northern part of the Tibet Autonomous Region. The stele is …
LHASA, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) — Tibet Autonomous Region saw a record 4.51 million air passengers in 2017, up 11.9 percent from the previous year, the regional civil aviation administration said. Tibet’s civil aviation industry has been growing rapidly, becoming an important driver for the regional economy. The plateau region has …
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“On June 23rd, Mighty Con will be bringing the show to the Saint Charles Convention Center in St. Charles, MO. The St. Louis Comic Con will feature over 100 artist tables, vendor booths, and special guests. But we’re also bringing cash prize cosplay contests, video and table top gaming tournaments, and a whole weekend of fun! St. Louis’ largest comic book and pop culture event!”
Stop by Vince Churchill’s table and say hi, grab a book and enjoy the con!
“InConJunction tries to have something for everyone– with panels on writing, movies and television, comic books, artwork, science, technology, culture, fandom, and many other things. At most times, there will be two to four panels going at the same time, giving you plenty of choices. If there’s not a panel you’re interested in, we also have an Anime Room, Gaming Room, Art Show, Dealers’ Room, and various special interest group rooms and tables. If none of that appeals, the ConSuite makes a great place to hang out, meet people, and have interesting conversations. In the evenings, there’s the dance and many attendees throw their own room parties. So, it’s much more than a few panels with the media guests, autograph sessions, and a Dealers Room.”
Dark Recesses Press is proud to be a vendor at the SCARES THAT CARE Charity Weekend event. You will be able to find us, and copies of all our books in the first floor vendors room. Bailey Hunter will be on hand to chat you up, and give out hugs! We’re hoping that a couple of the Dark Recesses author family will also be on hand to sign books. We will update as soon as this is confirmed.
” “Scares That Care!” Inc., is an IRS approved, 501(c)(3) charity. Founded in 2006, “Scares That Care!” to date has raised and donated over $120,000 to organizations that treat sick children and families with a child affected by illness, burns or women fighting breast cancer. “Scares That Care!” is also proud of the fact that we are an all volunteer organization, with no salaries or paychecks issued to any staff member involved with the charity. If you’d like more information, please visit our home website scaresthatcare.org
The Scares That Care Charity Weekend was originally a horror event designed to delight horror fans while benefiting those in need. Now, because of the increasing attendance from fan bases outside of horror, we are starting to transition to a genre event and will continue to morph as feedback points in the direction to continue positive growth.”
Stop by the vendors’ room and say hi to Vince Churchill who will be on hand with his many books for purchase and signing.
“The Saluki Comic Con is the second-year, continuation of the Eclipse Comic Con and will take place Saturday – Sunday, Sept. 29 – 30, 2018 in the Student Center Ballrooms, located at SIU in Carbondale, IL. It will feature special guests, a wide array of vendors and artists, gaming and a costume contest.”
Come meet author, David Day at the Imaginarium Convention where he will be a guest. You can be sure he will have books available to purchase and sign.
“Now in its fifth year, Imaginarium Convention is an annual event founded and developed by Seventh Star Press that takes place in Louisville, Kentucky. Imaginarium Convention is centered around the world of creative writing and creatives of all kinds; including writers, filmmakers, artists, game designers, musicians, and other creatives. A three-day event featuring over 140 panels and workshops, plus a book fair and expo, film festival, gaming, costume contests and live entertainment, Imaginarium Convention provides attendees with a wealth of educational, developmental and networking opportunities within an inclusive, positive environment.”
Stop by and say hello to author Vince Churchill who will be on Bookseller’s Row with a table full of tales.
“Archon, an internationally known, highly regarded and well attended science fiction and fantasy convention. The Archon convention is a locally organized and locally staffed event, presented each year by St. Louis area science fiction and fantasy fans. It includes internationally known media guests, scientist, writers, artists, merchandise dealers and performers and a world recognized Masquerade; its goal is to bring to Saint Louis and science fiction fandom everywhere, a celebration of your imagination.”
RUN! is a tale of one little boy's adventure and the BIG imagination that turns his travels into a frightening race for home.
Colourful, fun, and with a happy conclusion, RUN! is perfect for the little ones. More info →
The dead walk the earth. Monsters — human or otherwise — hunt in the night. The night itself stalks its prey. Men grapple with the demons in the darkest recesses of their own souls. Love is twisted into something murderous. The familiar is alien and the alien is the enemy.
This is where light crosses into darkness.
This is where madness begins. More info →
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Lorna Vanderhaeghe ENERGY-T Double Ginger Herbal Tea
Increase your energy and metabolism with Lorna Vanderhaeges blend of herbs and roots, in a delicious tea that you can enjoy any time of the day.
Benefits:
Improves digestion
Delicious and refreshing
Supports a healthy thyroid
Directions: For hot herbal tea use 1 tea bag per cup. Add boiling water and steep for 3 minutes or until you obtain desired flavour. Remove tea bag and enjoy! For iced herbal tea pour 2 cups of boiling water over 4 tea bags. Steep for 5 minutes. Remove bags. Add two cups of cold water and chill.
For hot herbal tea use 1 tea bag per cup. Add boiling water and steep for 3 minutes or until you obtain desired flavour. Remove tea bag and enjoy! For iced herbal tea pour 2 cups of boiling water over 4 tea bags. Steep for 5 minutes. Remove bags. Add two cups of cold water and chill.
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ABOUT VITASAVE.CA
Vitasave.ca is Canada's largest and fastest growing ecommerce company in the natural product industry. Our mission is to make healthy living easy and affordable for everyone. We provide an unparalleled level of customer service and proudly offer free shipping and a hassle-free return policy on every order.
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Lilly is very nice.She gave us clear instruction to get to her house.The rooms are clean and fancy.We stay two nights and have very great time.Thanks to the SBB and perfect public traffic in Switzerland,we can get to Lilly's place without too much walk,very convenient. The house have everything,the kitchen is very great with all the kitchenware.
The contact with the staff was very nice in advance. I answered all questions promptly and correctly. The accommodation was as described and all the rooms comfortable and very clean. The price-performance ratio is super. I would have been happy if I had come to know also the host personally.
perfect trip. The house: very nice house, nice room(s) and amenities. Great breakfast. Coffee fruits etc available 24/7. The guest space is private and cozy and comfortable. Super clean. The location: nicely located in quite residential area a short bus ride from city center. Very close to bus stop. Many nice walks/hikes from the house. Up the hill, old castle, walk by the river etc. Very nice location to relax and wind down (which is what I did). The hosts: nicest most welcoming most easy going and flexible people you can meet.Very responsive from first contact till the end. Apart from being good hosts, very nice people to meet and get to know. obviously I would recommend this place to anyone.
The information for the check-in was very detailed and it was easy to find the airbnb. The airbnb apartment was very neat and clean. Bathrobes are provided in the rooms. You sleep very well on the comfortable mattress. Highly recommended!
The property is highly recommended by Verena: Good location near the train station but quiet, nice well equipped rooms, in addition, the whole apartment was very clean. Very easy communication and nice welcome! We would come back :)
This was already our second time and the third is already organized. Everything Perfect. Judith is very helpful, room, kitchen, bathroom, etc. are very well maintained and tastefully decorated. Thank you very much.
Susanne2016-05-14T00:00:00Z
We had a great time at the apartment. Everything was just wonderful. The house had been newly refurbished a short time ago and it is beautifully done. There are shared areas for the apartments such as the kitchen, living room and bathrooms. Everything is well-organized and it is easy to come and go when needed. The house is located in a quiet residential area but close to the house there is a bus stop. From there a bus can take you to Aarau city and the train station in a few minutes. Michael was a great host and we would come back anytime!
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It's a beautiful apartment with 3 bedrooms. There is a spacious living room and also extra bed and sofa in the living room.
Our neighborhood is very children friendly and there is a football ground as well as kids playground in the vicinity.
If you are looking for "halal" food, halal restaurants and halal meat shops are located just 5 minutes walking distance from our apartment. There are enough shopping centres within 5 minutes drive.
A fantastic room. ..and a fantastic human being. .ismail bhai. .a very good house for big families ..though didn't met Mahifira. .but her husband ismail bhai took utmost care and was always their to (URL HIDDEN) was so kind of him that he dropped us to the station early morning. ..Ismail bhai have left some home made snacks for you and ur family as token love. .. Strongly recommend this house
shailesh2015-11-23T00:00:00Z
Although I didn't meet Mahifira, We were welcomed by her son Rushdie. The amazing guy. He received us from Aarou stn and dropped to the apartment. Home is spacious and very clean. Bus station is very nearby and super market is within 15 mins walk. Only problem was, u need to take inter region train to reach Aarou and the trains are super expensive. But if u need to spend time in peace this is definitely the right place.
The place was located at a pure residential neighbourhood. So the location gave us a safe and homely feel. We were a family of 7 and felt very comfortable at this house. We had enough space to stay in. Felt like a Home away from home. For tourist whose priority is a typical Swiss style locality and background, this may not fulfill your expectation. Nevertheless this house and service is worth the money you spend. The host was very helpful and flexible with the short delay from our side during check-in and check-out. They were available nearby for any assistance. Will gladly select this place for future visits.
We made a call as we reached and Mr Rahim was very nicely introduced himself and explained about parking . This place is not scenic but practical as kind of in centre of major cities (Lucerne , Zurich, bern etc) also suhr has a nice old type area and riverside to sit by to relax plenty of shops and cafe to look at . I would recommend the place as we had a car no idea about public transport . There is supermarket about 7 min walk but the food place big bite we felt was over price so do look for other options as plenty food place in town or before even . Thx
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For 6 months (July- December 2016): Nice garden with football field for children
Large windows allowing natural lighting all year
Within 40 minutes to Zurich, Bern, Basel or Luzern
July- December 2016: Nice garden with football field for children
Large windows allowing natural lighting all year
Within 40 minutes to Zurich, Bern, Basel or Luzern
Suhr is a small town in Switzerland, rather quiet but very well connected in the center of Switzerland, so using bike, car or train there is no destination you cannot reach within a few hours within Switzerland.
I had a very nice stay in the apartment of Raphael. Being a wheelchair user, I had to ask him some extra information (barriers, entrance widths, etc.) in advance - Raphael answered very fast and correct. Andreas also provided a chair I could use to shower and helped me with my luggage. The apartment itself is very clean and tidy - nothing to complain about at all. Infos for wheelchair users: The apartment is suitable only for users of manuel wheelchairs. The complex over all is perfectly accessible. The apartment itself is also mostly very accessible. The only thing that might be a bit tricky is the bathroom as the door to the shower (even with the ground) is only 60cm wide and afterwards you have to get around a 90° corner. This might not work for all wheelchairs. I myself would come any time. Thank you Raphael.
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A nice room (76 qm) with sauna, jacuzzi, billiard, table soccer, small kitchen corner with microwave, nespresso, fridge.
Pool in garden can be used if weather suitable.
With Swiss breakfast at the family dinning room.
Very big room with daylight situated in the basement of a modern villa. Own toilet, shower, Jacuzzi, sauna and small kitchen corner is integrated in the room for your private use. You can enjoy billiard and table soccer in the room, too. Free Wifi. You have access to the backyard with pool.
Very quiet family friendly neighborhood, close to ice-stadium, close to the forest (ideal for biking and jogging).
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Pokój prywatny
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Our old-town house is in the pedestrian area of Aarau. We offer two beautiful rooms for single travellers, couples, friends or families.
We offer a beautiful room in an old town house in the middle of Aarau. The house was built in 1631 and completely renovated in 2012. The room shares bath and toilet with our second guest room.
We have a cozy lounge and a nice terrace and there are lot's of nice bars, shops and restaurants close by.
Our guests can get nice, big breakfast for an extra CHF 15 at the café bar Tuchlaube just next door. In the room price included is Coffee and Tea 24/7.
We are 3 people living permanently in the house. We all work so we will not be around all the time. Staying with us you can come and go as you wish. There is a little fridge in our Lounge and a coffee machine, tea cooker etc.
Please do not smoke in the house. You can smoke on the terrace if you like.
2 friendly cats also live in the house.
Aarau is a small town about 25 minutes by train from Zurich or Basel. 10 minutes walk from our place to the train station. Swim in the River or just stroll through the old town. Go to see a movie or to a concert.
Accommodation is located in a VERY small square, in a beautiful setting in Aarau old town. Lots of charm and character. Practically easy access to on foot to local shops, bars, cafes and public transport. The room and facilities are as pictured. I would definitely stay here again and recommend it to friends/families - thank you Simone and Tomas.
The Bed & Breakfast is tucked away on a small farm in the picturesque town of Aarau. Inside, all the rooms are very nicely decorated, my room was very pretty. Breakfast can be (reasonably priced for Switzerland) provided in the neighboring café from 8:00, the essentials but is otherwise provided so. Warning, not suitable for cat hair allergy sufferers, the two cute cats the owner romp throughout the house rum! I had to fight for slight allergy something with a blocked nose. Parking is by the way quite simple overnight in a parking lot at 200 meters, from 8:00 1,50SFr it costs per hour if you losmöchte early, no problem.
We spent a great time at André's place! The apartment probably fits better to three people, but we perfectly managed to stay and spleep well in four adults. Following the instructions you can easily check-in by yourself, so you can arrive anytime (which is great!) The communication with André was absolutely great, he always answered in a short time to our questions and needs. From André's place you can easily go on foot to the centre of Aarau. We found coffee and cornflakes, fresh water and everything you need for your first needs. We also appreciated the shower! The house offers everything you need for a short and simple stay and I really recommend it.
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Thieves rob couple under financial help guise
Two men entered a Newton home Wednesday offering financial assistance. Less than 10 minutes later, the men left with the homeowner’s wallet.
The homeowner’s female relative was visiting the man’s residence about 1:15 p.m., and when she opened the door to enter the house, the suspects came in behind her.
“It was an uninvited and illegal entry,” said Newton Police Capt. Kevin Yarborough. “But it was more of a rush-in situation. They went in and were trying to get (the man and woman) off their guard.”
Yarborough said the female didn’t see the men when she entered the house, and it’s possible they were hiding nearby.
Once the men were inside the house, they offered the man and woman financial assistance with bill paying, credit cards and medical payments.
“It was a ploy of trying to find out information and trying to get the gentleman’s wallet,” Yarborough said. “They kept asking for the gentleman’s ID.”
The suspects are described as white males between the ages of 40 and 50. One suspect was 5-foot-8-inches tall and weighed about 200 pounds. He was wearing a beige and orange-striped shirt and beige pants. The other suspect has a medium build and was possibly wearing a hat.
Yarborough declined comment on the exact location of the incident or the ages of the victims, citing the victims’ safety.
When the homeowner didn’t give the suspects his wallet, one of the suspects attempted to take the man’s wallet from his person.
The homeowner removed his wallet from his pocket, and one of the suspects grabbed it. The two men ran from the home with the man’s wallet, and a neighbor saw the men leaving the residential area in a truck.
The truck is described as a mid-1990s model white Chevrolet truck with a regular cab and a long bed.
Yarborough said the neighbor who described the truck is familiar with vehicles, and he feels confident in his description of the truck.
The vehicle had a South Carolina license plate, but the license plate number is unknown.
The neighbor, who lives adjacent to the victim’s house, was the only other witness to the incident.
The suspects were never violent during the incident, but they successfully stole an undisclosed amount of cash in the homeowner’s wallet, which was the only item stolen.
“It wasn’t a home robbery in the sense that people think of, where robbers go in there with their guns blazing,” Yarborough said.
It is unknown if the suspects knew of the victims or if the crime was random.
Securing your house is the first step in preventing home invasions and thefts, like the incident that happened Wednesday.
“Keep your doors locked, and don’t leave your doors open,” Yarborough said. “Most people feel comfortable in their homes, but you should always be cautious.”
Residents should also be alert to anyone who looks suspicious or out of the ordinary.
“Always be aware of your surroundings,” Yarborough said.
Anyone who sees suspects or a vehicle matching the description is asked to call Newton Police Department at (828) 695-4278.
The investigation is ongoing.
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Bust: California named worst-run state in the nation
posted at 4:21 pm on November 29, 2012 by Mary Katharine Ham
First the best-run, according to Wall Street 24/7′s annual ranking: North Dakota, Wyoming, Nebraska, and Utah, with Iowa rounding out the Top 5.
They have in common low amounts of debt per capita, low unemployment rates, business-friendly tax structures, and several of them are home to hydraulic fracturing and other energy booms. There’s also a high correlation between a well-run state and a high percentage of residents with high-school diplomas. And one more thing. What is it? Ah, yes, they all have Republican governors. I’m sure it’s just a coincidence. What does a governor have to do with running a state’s affairs, after all?
The worst-run: California, Rhode Island, Illinois, Arizona and New Jersey, making the bottom five home to two Democratic governors, two Republicans, and one Lincoln Chafee.
California is 24/7 Wall St.’s “Worst Run State” for the second year in a row. Due to high levels of debt, the state’s S&P credit rating is the worst of all states, while its Moody’s credit rating is the second-worst. Much of California’s fiscal woes involve the economic downturn. Home prices plunged by 33.6% between 2006 and 2011, worse than all states except for three. The state’s foreclosure rate and unemployment rate were the third- and second-highest in the country, respectively. But efforts to get finances on track are moving forward. State voters passed a ballot initiative to raise sales taxes as well as income taxes for people who make at least $250,000 a year. While median income is the 10th-highest in the country, the state also has one of the highest tax burdens on income. According to the Tax Foundation, the state also has the third-worst business tax climate in the country.
Despite its sunny shores and mountain heights, glorious vineyards and gloriouser weather, Hollywood and Silicon Valley, the Golden state has become—how you say?— kind of a crapfest. Since California’s is the righteous path our liberal betters so long for us to take as a nation, let’s do check in and see how it’s working out for them.
The state passed a ballot amendment hiking taxes on the rich in November. California already had the most progressive state tax system in the nation and has been deficit spending out the wazoo throughout the recession. By my Keynesian calculations, the California economy should be booming, its unemployment rate low, its deficit and debt problems solved, and all of its “investments” should be yielding great results for those in need and in public schools.
The task force estimated that the burden of debt totaled at least $167 billion and as much as $335 billion. Its members warned that the off-the-books debts tended to grow over time, so that even if Mr. Brown should succeed in pushing through his tax increase, gaining an additional $50 billion over the next seven years, the wall of debt would still be there, casting its shadow over the state.
General Fund debt service expenditures will increase by a net of $24.6 million (0.46 percent), to a total of $5.4 billion, as compared to the revised current year estimate…
While General Fund debt service is estimated to increase only slightly in the budget year, General Fund debt service has been a fast‐growing area of the Budget. In 2002‐03 General Fund debt service was $2.1 billion, or 2.9 percent of revenues, versus $5.4 billion, or 5.6 percent of estimated revenues, in 2012‐13. This trend is expected to continue through the end of this decade, with debt service projected to peak at $7.5 billion in 2019‐20
The election wasn’t even over Tuesday when state Treasurer Bill Lockyer’s phone started ringing. Activists of all stripes had the same message for him: With voters apparently poised to approve billions of dollars in tax hikes, it was time to spend more money.
“They had to be reminded the money has already been spent,” Lockyer said.
As for the economy, California has the second-highest unemployment rate in the nation, well above 10 percent. Texas— bizarro California, being close in size and population and nearly opposite in political disposition— is a little over 6 percent. As Conn Carroll noted in the Washington Examiner:
There are fewer private-sector jobs in the state (California) today, 11.9 million, then there were in 2000, 12.2 million.
And thanks to liberal welfare requirements, a third of all the nation’s welfare recipients live in California despite the state only containing one-eighth of the national population.
Contrast those numbers with Republican-controlled Texas, where private-sector jobs have grown from 7.8 million in 2000 to 9 million today.
Carroll also notes California poverty is high as is that most important of liberal priorities— income inequality (higher than in Texas)—while test scores remain low:
Meanwhile, California eighth-graders finished ahead of only Mississippi and District of Columbia students on reading and math test scores in 2011.
Texas, on the other hand, showed test scores for eight-graders above California and often above the national average across its white, black, and Hispanic populations in mathematics, reading, and science.
Since 1990, domestic migration to California has flipped to a deficit. In the last two decades, the state lost nearly 3.4 million residents through migration to other states. In other words, it lost about four-fifths of what it had gained through domestic migration in the previous 30 years. Foreign immigration filled the gap only partially. Inflows from overseas peaked at 291,191 in 2002 and sank to just 164,445 in 2011. Meanwhile, net domestic out-migration has averaged 225,000 a year over the past ten years.
Breaking on Hot Air
Blowback
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Healthy Lifestyles MembershipA lifetime of health benefits
Benefits of Membership
Healthy Lifestyles offers a packed calendar of options that includes everything from health assessments and nutritional classes to outdoor recreation, weekend excursions, and get-togethers at great local venues. All year long, our members have countless opportunities to meet and mingle with other like-minded people—people who are inquisitive, dynamic and engaged. In addition, Healthy Lifestyles members receive the latest information on medical breakthroughs and pro-active lifestyle choices designed to help them live longer, healthier, more fulfilled lives.
Membership Costs
The Healthy Lifestyles program is not currently accepting new members. Existing members will still enjoy their established member benefits. For more information, call (504) 503-4066. Our office hours are Monday through Friday, 8am to 4:30pm.
Member BenefitsBoth In & Out of Our Hospital
Membership in healthy lifestyles means access to a wide array of programs and benefits designed to enhance your life. Here are just a few of the perks membership entitles you to:
Merchant discounts at restaurants, retailers and service businesses throughout our region
Personal medical alert system (installation fee waived for members)
Discounted one-on-one nutritional counseling
Social activities including happy hours and outings
Lifestyle and health education programs
Physician-lead and other health-related seminars
Free and discounted health screenings
Access to Medicare insurance counseling
AARP affiliations for members over 55
Complimentary local fax and copying services
Discounts at Rudiger’s Boutique and Gift Shop
Discounts in the Woman and Child Boutique
Free 7-day pass to the EJGH Wellness Center for you and a guest
Travel discounts
Hospital Inpatient Benefits
Private room upgrade at no extra charge if available at time of admission (patient is responsible for covering the cost of a semi-private room)
Visit from a Healthy Lifestyles representative upon request
Note: These benefits do not apply to outpatient services or same-day surgery.
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JAXA plans to perform "Kounotori Integrated Tether Experiment'' (KITE) on HTV-6. In this experiment, we deploy 700m tether from HTV. In order to make an electrical circuit between ambient plasma and tether, we use the field emission cathode. The rendesvous sensors on the HTV allow us to monitor the relative motion of tether after releasing from HTV. By the experiment, we plan to investigate the dynamics of tether, characteristics of the tether current and voltage and its electrical influence on HTV due to EDT operation.JAXAはHTV-6号機にて導電性テザー実証実験（Kounotori Integrated Tether Experiment，以下、KITE）を実施予定である。本発表では、KITEの実験システムと実験の概要について報告する。KITEではHTVから700mのテザーを伸ばし、電流を流す。テザーに電流を流すためには、周辺プラズマと電気的に結合させる必要がある。KITEでは電子源モジュールから電子を放出させることにより、テザーに電流を流す。伸展後のテザーの挙動計測には、HTVが装備しているランデブーセンサを使用する。その他、HTVの機体電位状態を把握するための帯電電位モニタや、実験中の磁場環境を測定するための磁気センサ、及びテザーの挙動を撮影するためのカメラが装備されている。実験では、テザーの動的特性の取得、電流駆動原理の確認を行うほか、HTV機体への影響を調べる。Meeting Information: The 7th Space Debris Workshop (October 18-20, 2016. Chofu Aerospace Center, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)(CAC)), Chofu, Tokyo, JapanPhysical characteristics: Original contains color illustrations会議情報: 第7回スペースデブリワークショップ (2016年10月18-20日. 宇宙航空研究開発機構調布航空宇宙センター(JAXA)(CAC)), 調布市, 東京形態: カラー図版あり
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Women's Cross Country
Bulldog Men 13th, Women 22nd At D2 Cross Country Championships
Nov 17, 2012
Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's and women's cross country teams wrapped up the 2012 campaign by competing in the NCAA Division II National Championships on Saturday (Nov. 17) in Joplin, Mo.
The Bulldog men's squad, which was making its first appearance at the national championships since 1985, finished 13th overall in a competitive field. Meanwhile, the Bulldog women's team placed 22nd overall in its fifth consecutive trip to the national championships.
FSU totaled 370 points in the men's division, which was won by Adams State with 34 points on the Missouri Southern State Cross Country Course in Joplin.
Junior Brandon Cushman led the men's team as he came in 55th overall on the 10K course in a time of 30:46.3 on the day. Sophomore Andrew Harper was next in line as he placed 85th in a time fo 31:10.6 overall.
Bulldog senior Tyler Crossman captured 89th place at 31:19.0 followed by Alex Bladecki, who came in 99th overall at 31:30.3 for the Bulldogs. Senior Ryan Chute took 113th place (31:38.1) with junior David Silversmith taking 162nd place (32:10.3). Sophomore Spencer Gerber was 188th (32:36.5).
The Bulldog women totaled 534 points in the 32-team field that was won by Grand Valley State with 101 total points.
The Ferris State men's and women's cross country teams both qualified for the NCAA Division II National Championships as both squads ran to third-place performances at the 2012 NCAA-II Midwest Regional Championships on Nov. 3 in Kenosha, Wis.
This year represented only the seventh time in history the Bulldog women's cross country team has qualified as a team for the national championships as their appearances the last four years (2008-11) were the program's first since 1987.
Meanwhile, the men's squad advanced for the first time since 1985 and it was FSU's eighth all-time Division II national berth. They also twice took part in the NCAA Division III Championships in the mid-1970's.
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Desks should not be a one-size-fits-all type of furniture. People of different heights have different needs, and in some instances, someone working at a desk might want the flexibility to switch from sitting at a desk to standing up while working. Adjustable height desks make it easy for individuals to adjust their work space to the height they need in a matter of seconds.
Benefits of Adjustable Height Desks
Recent studies have praised the benefits of standing while working, which has led to an increased demand for electric adjustable height desks. By choosing to stand rather than sit, employees may be able to enjoy increased productivity as well as long-term health benefits. However, having the ability to sit down when necessary is also beneficial, which makes height adjustable desks the ideal choice for many work spaces.
For most of us, long hours at a work station are unavoidable, so it is important that individuals are able adjust their desks to the perfect height in order to maximize comfort and maintain a healthy and safe posture. Adjustable height desks are right for anyone who spends a considerable amount of time at a desk. Writing, drafting, editing, programming, and other computer-related tasks may require this type of time commitment, and it is important that you find the best solution for your workspace needs. AdjustableHeightDesk.com is an online retailer of ergonomic office furniture. We offer high quality products for the home and business office and encourage our customers to research products that can benefit both their bodies and their business. For more information about our products, visit our website.
The Benefits Of An Adjustable Standing Desk
A large number of Americans have jobs that require them to be at a desk for many hours a day. Although this type of sedentary work station is not unusual, it may be a source of both health problems and physical pain. By making simple changes to your working environment, you may be able to minimize physical pain and long-term problems associated with this stationary position. One way to do this is by using a standing desk. Standing computer desks are an option for offices that have recently increased in popularity. Recent studies into the health benefits of standing while working have increased the desire for this type of work station and helped many to understand why they too should invest in a standing desk at adjustableheightdesk.com. Standing desks are built to accommodate the height of any person while they stand rather than sit. These can be built to suit writing, drawing, drafting, or computer work. Because the user spends the majority of their time on their feet rather than in a chair, they may experience considerable improvements to their health, which often include:
Better blood circulation
More energy throughout the day
Less back and shoulder pain
Increased alertness
Studies have shown that people who use stand up computer desks can improve their long-term health and also experience increased productivity at work. By investing in an affordable standing desk, you can benefit not only your health but also your business. Adjustableheightdesk.com is an online provider of office furniture that focuses on design as well as function. To discuss your office needs or request assistance from one of our qualified team members, please visit our website today.
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Fintech action plan to boost innovation in financial services
(BRUSSELS) - Europe should become a global hub for FinTech innovation, the Commission said Thursday as it unveiled a plan to harness opportunities offered by technology-enabled innovation in financial services.
The first major deliverable of the plan to help EU businesses and investors make the most of the advantages offered by the Single Market in a fast-moving sector is a new set of new rules to help the growth of crowdfunding platforms.
The plan looks to enable the financial sector to make use of the rapid advances in new technologies, such as blockchain, artificial intelligence and cloud services.
At the same time, it seeks to make markets safer and easier to access for new players - with benefits for consumers, investors, banks and new market players.
In addition, the Commission is proposing a pan-European label for platforms, so that a platform licensed in one country can operate across the EU.
"An EU crowdfunding licence would help crowdfunding platforms scale up in Europe," said the EC's vice-president for financial services Valdis Dombrovskis: "It will help them match investors and companies from all over the EU, giving more opportunities for firms and entrepreneurs to pitch their ideas to a wider base of funders."
"Technologies like blockchain can be game changers for financial services and beyond," said Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for the Digital Economy and Society: "We need to build an enabling framework to let innovation flourish, while managing risks and protecting consumers."
FinTech Action Plan:
The financial sector is the largest user of digital technologies and a major driver in the digital transformation of the economy. Today's Action Plan sets out 23 steps to enable innovative business models to scale up, support the uptake of new technologies, increase cybersecurity and the integrity of the financial system, including:
The Commission will host an EU FinTech Laboratory where European and national authorities will engage with tech providers in a neutral, non-commercial space;
The Commission has already created an EU Blockchain Observatory and Forum. It will report on the challenges and opportunities of crypto assets later in 2018 and is working on a comprehensive strategy on distributed ledger technology and blockchain addressing all sectors of the economy. A distributed ledger is an information database that is shared across a network. The best-known type of distributed ledger is blockchain.
The Commission will consult on how best to promote the digitisation of information published by listed companies in Europe, including by using innovative technologies to interconnect national databases. This will give investors far easier access to key information to inform their investment decisions.
The Commission will run workshops to improve information-sharing when it comes to cybersecurity;
The Commission will present a blueprint with best practices on regulatory sandboxes, based on guidance from European Supervisory Authorities. A regulatory sandbox is a framework set up by regulators that allows FinTech startups and other innovators to conduct live experiments in a controlled environment, under a regulator's supervision. Regulatory sandboxes are gaining popularity, mostly in developed financial markets.
Regulation on Crowdfunding:
Crowdfunding improves access to funding especially for start-ups and other small businesses. A start-up can present its project on an online platform and call for support in the form of a loan ('peer-to-peer lending') or equity. Investors receive a financial return for their investment. It is currently difficult for many platforms to expand into other EU countries. This is why crowdfunding in the EU is underdeveloped as compared to other major world economies, and the EU market is fragmented. One of the biggest hurdles is the lack of common rules across the EU. This considerably raises compliance and operational costs and prevents crowdfunding platforms from expanding across borders.
Today's proposal will make it easier for these platforms to offer their services EU-wide and improve access to this innovative form of finance for businesses in need of funding. Once adopted by the European Parliament and the Council, the proposed Regulation will allow platforms to apply for an EU label based on a single set of rules. This will enable them to offer their services across the EU. Investors on crowdfunding platforms will be protected by clear rules on information disclosures, rules on governance and risk management and a coherent approach to supervision.
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Subcribe Here!
Morneau says federal government willing to back Trans Mountain project
Finance Minister Bill Morneau has announced that the federal government is willing, and prepared to financially back the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, whether or not Kinder Morgan is the company that ends up building it.
In Ottawa Wednesday morning, Morneau laid out the Liberalsâ three guiding principles as talks are ongoing with Kinder Morgan about the fate of the cross-provincial project.
Specifically, the federal government is:
Prepared to indemnify the project from any financial loss;
Is willing to offer this financial security to any company who wants to build the pipeline, should Kinder Morgan back out;
and, the financial backing must be fair, and beneficial to Canadians.
"We believe in this project," Morneau said.
The federal government is continuing talks with Kinder Morgan, th e developers of the Trans Mountain project, after the Texas-based company put the project on pause, demanding reassurance that the $7.4-billion pipeline can go ahead, despite B.C. opposition.
Morneau took aim at B.C. NDP Premier John Horgan during his remarks to media, placing the blame for the current situation on his shoulders, and calling the delay "politically motivated."
This is a breaking news update, previous story by the Canadian Press follows.
---------
OTTAWA -- Finance Minister Bill Morneau will provide an update Wednesday on the status of his talks with Kinder Morgan to expedite the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion -- but he is not expected to announce a deal.
Rather, Morneau is expected to articulate the broad strokes of how Ottawa sees a deal coming together -- setting forth the federal Liberal government's principles, values and goals that could form the basis of an eventual agreement.
Mo rneau had been engaged in intensive talks with Kinder Morgan officials up until Tuesday, but the two sides have yet to declare any common ground on the amount of federal money involved.
The finance minister's very public display, which comes the same day as the company's annual meeting in Calgary, is likely to put additional pressure on the company.
Amid mounting opposition from the B.C. government, environmental groups and protesters, not to mention skittish investors, Kinder Morgan halted all non-essential spending on its $7.4-billion plan to double an existing pipeline between Edmonton and Burnaby, B.C., and gave Ottawa until the end of May to broker some calm.
Earlier Tuesday, before Morneau's news conference -- scheduled for 9 a.m. ET -- was announced, Trudeau was in Calgary, trying to convince skeptical Albertans to believe his latest mantra: that the pipeline will be built.
"Let's be honest about these things. I don 't think there is anything that I can say that would reassure some of my critics who have such little faith in my government getting anything done for Alberta," he said.
"I don't think there's any magic phrase I can say that will have critics and skeptics put down their criticism and say, 'You know what? The prime minister reassured me today."'
As Trudeau spoke, a small group of protesters were heard shouting, "Build KM" and "Build that pipe."
Morneau's talks with Kinder Morgan had their genesis a month ago, when Trudeau promised to deploy both financial and legislative tools to ensure the disputed expansion is able to proceed.
During a remarkable eight-hour stopover in the national capital, an unscheduled break from a busy overseas travel itinerary, Trudeau convened a summit in Ottawa with B.C.'s John Horgan, who has staked his government's survival on opposing the pipelin e, and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, whose province's economic health depends on it.
Trudeau instructed Morneau to sit down with Kinder Morgan to find a financial solution that would soothe their investors. He also promised legislation that would reaffirm Ottawa's authority to press ahead with a development deemed to be in Canada's national interest.
The Liberal government position is that it approved the project in 2016 after a rejigged environmental assessment and Indigenous consultation process, and in concert with the its climate change and oceans protection plan. Approval came in consultation with the previous B.C. Liberal government, which gave its consent to the project after its own conditions were met.
Horgan's election last year changed that. His minority government exists at the pleasure of the Green party, and on condition of his continued opposition to the project.
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Thursday, March 22, 2012
Hunger Games
Well, everyone's weighing in on The Hunger Games, and since I hadn't heard a thing about it until a few weeks ago, I girded my loins and ventured into Barnes & Noble for a copy of Volume 1.
This was an intensely dismaying book for me.
Dystopian fiction always bothers me (I couldn't even read 1984 the whole way through; it was too unnerving). This one bothered me too, because some teenagers growing up on this sort of fare will find it appealing for re-enactment -- not a good thing by any stretch.
Last night I was reading some comments from Appalachian bloggers about the book, since the heroine is clearly, explicitly, from a region that was at least once called Appalachia. As a protagonist she fulfills most of the stereotypes of "good" Appalachians, in that she can fend for herself off the woodlands, she's athletic, smart, compassionate, and a good shot with bow and arrow. The bored deities are satisfied with her self-sacrifice and underdog status.
It's not this part of the story that riled me. The part that riled me was the depiction of the society as a whole.
There is a strong tendency in literature to paint the future in the grim grays of failure. Truth is, the human race is an up-and-down species. The excesses of Ancient Rome became so vile to its citizenry and its nearby neighbors that it was overthrown by invasion and religion. As far as I'm concerned, the Nazis and their Holocaust, and America and its atom bomb, represented a new low in human affairs from which we have rebounded.
Will we descend into Nazi hell again? Of course! Will other human beings resist that? Of course! It's never so easy as novels make it look.
And Hunger Games went a bit too far. I simply cannot fathom a country where the entertainment consists of a yearly pageant of teenagers slaughtering each other. There are twelve Districts in the book. A Thirteenth was destroyed because it resisted.
So, when the Thirteenth got its back up, what did the others do?
If the only colony that had rebelled against England was Massachusetts, we'd all be God Saving the Queen. But Massachusetts called on the other colonies, and together this bunch of poorly-fed, poorly-armed, non-soldiers faced down the best military might of the era.
Does anyone remember why the Americans won the war? Heck, they lost almost every pitched battle.
They won because France provided soldiers, guns, money, and a navy. France. "Lafayette, we are here."
As I was reading Hunger Games, I found myself asking, "Where's Lafayette? Where are the Chinese?" Oh yes, and even, "Where's Che?" although the author sort of indicates that Che's type of army would be no match.
I'm predicting that this trilogy will end with a destruction of this evil dystopia from within. It would make more sense if Air France came to the rescue.
But what do I know? I couldn't get a publisher for my book, and this author is raking it in. Call me sour grapes if you will. Guilty as charged. Stomp me into wine.
I dislike dystopian fiction as a whole, but at same time I do think that it's a case of people working out their fears through fiction. Better through words than through actions- people do the same thing with horror movies. I may be biased though, my acadamic concentrate is in conflict theory based sociology.
I also picked up The Hunger Games because of the Appalachian connection but I couldn't finish it...too dark, too dystopian, and yes, I was wondering why there wasn't a China or European Union mentioned. The people in the Capitol have some advanced technology but they also came across as superficial and stupid. And I couldn't buy that the 12 Districts would simply give up their kids like that--for years!--without another desperate fight. The implication is fear and technology are stronger than human love and courage? Ugh, that is REALLY depressing.
Read in an old anthropology book that I found in a library about a tribe that killed any infant whose teeth were coming in in the wrong order. what stopped it was a young mother who rebelled. I have no idea if it's true.
If you decide to read Catching Fire and Mockingjay, they answer a lot of questions about District Thirteen.
You brought up a good historical parallel. As I imagine Hunger Games, though, the districts are quite spread out. Do I remember right that the Capital is in the Rocky Mountains? So if they don't have the technology that the Capital has, distance would be an obstacle to their banding together.
I also wondered what condition the rest of the world was in. Whereas some dystopian books let you know blow by blow how society transitioned, Hunger Games doesn't give you those details. For me, that was okay, because:
I found the premise of the story distressingly believable. I find some of the reality tv shows we have already very disturbing. Fear Factor, for example. I can imagine our society going the way of Rome and watching people die for fun. I wish I didn't find this believable, but I do.
I think the concept of tributes in Hunger Games was inspired by the myth of the Minotaur. It's amazing what atrocities people will accept in order to avoid losing everything.
While the book is violent, I appreciate that the violence *is* disturbing (it should be, after all - but many books and films gloss over violence). I also felt that, in the end, the book affirms that even in the most abhorrent of circumstances, a person can choose whether to give in to 'the game' or to make her own rules.
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This content is part # of # in the series: Java programming dynamics, Part 4
This content is part of the series:Java programming dynamics, Part 4
Stay tuned for additional content in this series.
After covering the basics of the Java class format and runtime access through reflection, it's time to move this series on to more advanced topics. This month I'll start in on the second part of the series, where the Java class information becomes just another form of data structure to be manipulated by applications. I'll call this whole topic area classworking.
I'll start classworking coverage with the Javassist bytecode manipulation library. Javassist isn't the only library for working with bytecode, but it does have one feature in particular that makes it a great starting point for experimenting with classworking: you can use Javassist to alter the bytecode of a Java class without actually needing to learn anything about bytecode or the Java virtual machine (JVM) architecture. This is a mixed blessing in some respects -- I don't generally advocate messing with technology you don't understand -- but it certainly makes bytecode manipulation much more accessible than with frameworks where you work at the level of individual instructions.
Javassist basics
Javassist lets you inspect, edit, and create Java binary classes. The inspection aspect mainly duplicates what's available directly in Java through the Reflection API, but having an alternative way to access this information is useful when you're actually modifying classes rather than just executing them. This is because the JVM design doesn't provide you any access to the raw class data after it's been loaded into the JVM. If you're going to work with classes as data, you need to do so outside of the JVM.
Javassist uses the javassist.ClassPool class to track and control the classes you're manipulating. This class works a lot like a JVM classloader, but with the important difference that rather than linking loaded classes for execution as part of your application, the class pool makes loaded classes usable as data through the Javassist API. You can use a default class pool that loads from the JVM search path, or define one that searches your own list of paths. You can even load binary classes directly from byte arrays or streams, and create new classes from scratch.
Classes loaded in a class pool are represented by javassist.CtClass instances. As with the standard Java java.lang.Class class, CtClass provides methods for inspecting class data such as fields and methods. That's just the start for CtClass, though, which also defines methods for adding new fields, methods, and constructors to the class, and for altering the class name, superclass, and interfaces. Oddly, Javassist does not provide any way of deleting fields, methods, or constructors from a class.
Fields, methods, and constructors are represented by javassist.CtField, javassist.CtMethod, and javassist.CtConstructor instances, respectively. These classes define methods for modifying all aspects of the item represented by the class, including the actual bytecode body of a method or constructor.
The source of all bytecode
Javassist lets you completely replace the bytecode body of a method or constructor, or selectively add bytecode at the beginning or end of the existing body (along with a couple of other variations for constructors). Either way, the new bytecode is passed as a Java-like source code statement or block in a String. The Javassist methods effectively compile the source code you provide into Java bytecode, which they then insert into the body of the target method or constructor.
The source code accepted by Javassist doesn't exactly match the Java language, but the main difference is just the addition of some special identifiers used to represent the method or constructor parameters, method return value, and other items you may want to use in your inserted code. These special identifiers all start with the $ symbol, so they're not going to interfere with anything you'd otherwise do in your code.
There are also some restrictions on what you can do in the source code you pass to Javassist. The first restriction is the actual format, which must be a single statement or block. This isn't much of a restriction for most purposes, because you can put any sequence of statements you want in a block. Here's an example using the special Javassist identifiers for the first two method parameter values to show how this works:
A more substantial limitation on the source code is that there's no way to refer to local variables declared outside the statement or block being added. This means that if you're adding code at both the start and end of a method, for instance, you generally won't be able to pass information from the code added at the start to the code added at the end. There are ways around this limitation, but the workarounds are messy -- you generally need to find a way to merge the separate code inserts into a single block.
Classworking with Javassist
For an example of applying Javassist, I'll use a task I've often handled directly in source code: measuring the time taken to execute a method. This is easy enough to do in the source; you just record the current time at the start of the method, then check the current time again at the end of the method and find the difference between the two values. If you don't have source code, it's normally much more difficult to get this type of timing information. That's where classworking comes in handy -- it lets you make changes like this for any method, without needing source code.
Ask the expert: Dennis Sosnoski on JVM and bytecode issues
For comments or questions about the material covered in this article series, as well as anything else that pertains to Java bytecode, the Java binary class format, or general JVM issues, visit the JVM and Bytecode discussion forum, moderated by Dennis Sosnoski.
Listing 1 shows a (bad) example method that I'll use as a guinea pig for my timing experiments: the buildString method of the StringBuilder class. This method constructs a String of any requested length by doing exactly what any Java performance guru will tell you not to do -- it repeatedly appends a single character to the end of a string in order to create a longer string. Because strings are immutable, this approach means a new string will be constructed each time through the loop, with the data copied from the old string and a single character added at the end. The net effect is that this method will run into more and more overhead as it's used to create longer strings.
Adding method timing
Because I have the source code available for this method, I'll show you how I would add the timing information directly. This will also serve as the model for what I want to do using Javassist. Listing 2 shows just the buildString() method, with timing added. This doesn't amount to much of a change. The added code just saves the start time to a local variable, then computes the elapsed time at the end of the method and prints it to the console.
Doing it with Javassist
Getting the same effect by using Javassist to manipulate the class bytecode seems like it should be easy. Javassist provides ways to add code at the beginning and end of methods, after all, which is exactly what I did in the source code to add timing information for the method.
There's a hitch, though. When I described how Javassist lets you add code, I mentioned that the added code could not reference local variables defined elsewhere in the method. This limitation blocks me from implementing the timing code in Javassist the same way I did in the source code; in that case, I defined a new local variable in the code added at the start and referenced that variable in the code added at the end.
So what other approach can I use to get the same effect? Well, I could add a new member field to the class and use that instead of a local variable. That's a smelly kind of solution, though, and suffers from some limitations for general use. Consider what would happen with a recursive method, for instance. Each time the method called itself, the saved start time value from the last call would be overwritten and lost.
Fortunately there's a cleaner solution. I can keep the original method code unchanged and just change the method name, then add a new method using the original name. This interceptor method can use the same signature as the original method, including returning the same value. Listing 3 shows what a source code version of this approach would look like:
This approach of using an interceptor method works well with Javassist. Because the entire body of the method is a single block, I can define and use local variables within the body without any problems. Generating the source code for the interception method is also easy -- it only needs a few substitutions to work for any possible method.
Running the interception
Implementing the code to add method timing uses some of the Javassist APIs described in Javassist basics. Listing 4 shows this code, in the form of an application that takes a pair of command-line arguments giving the class name and method name to be timed. The main() method body just finds the class information and then passes it to the addTiming() method to handle the actual modifications. The addTiming() method first renames the existing method by appending "$impl" to the end of the name, then creates a copy of the method using the original name. It then replaces the body of the copied method with timing code wrapping a call to the renamed original method.
The construction of the interceptor method body uses a java.lang.StringBuffer to accumulate the body text (showing the proper way to handle String construction, as opposed to the approach used in StringBuilder). This varies depending on whether the original method returns a value or not. If it does return a value, the constructed code saves that value in a local variable so it can be returned at the end of the interceptor method. If the original method is of type void, there's nothing to be saved and nothing to be returned from the interceptor method.
The actual body text looks just like standard Java code except for the call to the (renamed) original method. This is the body.append(nname + "($$);\n"); line in the code, where nname is the modified name for the original method. The $$ identifier used in the call is the way Javassist represents the list of parameters to the method under construction. By using this identifier in the call to the original method, all the arguments supplied in the call to the interceptor method are passed on to the original method.
Listing 5 shows the results of first running the StringBuilder program in unmodified form, then running the JassistTiming program to add timing information, and finally running the StringBuilder program after it's been modified. You can see how the StringBuilder run after modification reports execution times, and how the times increase much faster than the length of the constructed string because of the inefficient string construction code.
Trust in the source, Luke?
Javassist does a great job of making classworking easy by letting you work with source code rather than actual bytecode instruction lists. But this ease of use comes with some drawbacks. As I mentioned back in The source of all bytecode, the source code used by Javassist is not exactly the Java language. Besides recognizing special identifiers in the code, Javassist implements much looser compile-time checks on the code than required by the Java language specification. Because of this, it will generate bytecode from the source in ways that may have surprising results if you're not careful.
As an example, Listing 6 shows what happens when I change the type of the local variable used for the method start time in the interceptor code from long to int. Javassist accepts the source code and converts it into valid bytecode, but the resulting times are garbage. If you tried compiling this assignment directly in a Java program, you'd get a compile error because it violates one of the rules of the Java language: a narrowing assignment requires a cast.
Depending on what you do in the source code, you can even get Javassist to generate invalid bytecode. Listing 7 shows an example of this, where I've patched the JassistTiming code to always treat the timed method as returning an int value. Javassist again accepts the source code without complaint, but the resulting bytecode fails verification when I try to execute it.
This type of issue isn't a problem as long as you're careful with the source code you supply to Javassist. It's important to realize that Javassist won't necessarily catch any errors in the code, though, and that the results of an error may be difficult to predict.
Looking ahead
There's a lot more to Javassist than what we've covered in this article. Next month, we'll delve a little deeper with a look at some of the special hooks Javassist provides for bulk modification of classes and for on-the-fly modification as classes are loaded at runtime. These are the features that make Javassist a great tool for implementing aspects in your applications, so make sure you catch the follow-up for the full story on this powerful tool.
Downloadable resources
Related topics
Javassist was originated by Shigeru Chiba of the Department of Mathematics and Computing Sciences, Tokyo Institute of Technology. It's recently joined the open source JBoss application server project where it's the basis for the addition of new aspect-oriented programming features. Javassist is distributed under the Mozilla Public License (MPL) and the GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL) open source licenses.
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Job Description:- Working with IT planning & design team technology to further translate the business requirements into technical requirements.- Working with end-users to understand the from perspective of effective and efficient system development.- Translating end-user requirements into proper Business Requirements Documents- Collaborate with technical teams to resolve system issues, making sure all issues are addressed effectively and timely- Participate throughout the system design, communication with users, user acceptance test, troubleshooting and ensuring that the system is built and implemented in accordance with the end user’s requirements.- Work with other divisions to create a seamless end-to-end process covering all aspects of each banking process life cycle- Regular communications with stakeholders- Process documentation- Very tight deadlines and schedules
Job Requirements:- Degree in Business, Finance, Computational Finance or Computer Science- Minimum of 5 years’ work experience in Banking Industry with vast knowledge of banking processes, e.g., treasury, equity, etc.- Vast understanding of Banking IT systems- End-user focused and high responsibility- Strong communication skills for presentation & reporting- Able to translate end-user’s requirements to system requirements- Able to build strong relationship with people- Strong analytical and problem solving skills- Project & time management skills- Japanese language capability might be a bonus as you may need to liaise with Japanese head office
Career Level
Yr(s) of Exp
Qualification
Company Industry
Job Function
Salary negotiable
S$3,000 - 5,000 /month
Employment Type
Contract
About
Joint Recruiting
Joint Recruiting is a Singapore-based recruitment division of Nijibox Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Recruit Holdings.Established since 1963, Recruit Holdings is proud to be one of the HR industry leaders with an annual turnover of 13 billion in annual sales. Extending our holding company's strong foothold in the recruitment industry, Joint Recruiting was founded to help job seekers to get a right job fast through our proprietary technology innovation.
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For those of you who follow me on Facebook or Instagram, you likely have already seen me rave about my new Trinity leggings from Critical Pump. For the rest of you beauties out there, who might be looking for inspiration, look no further! I have discovered and fallen in love with a brand that strives to add excitement to your life. By creating the highest quality fitness apparel available, Critical Pump provides maximum …
It’s that time of year again! Sipping on egg nog lattes, socializing at holiday soirées, and of course we can’t forget that dreaded gift exchange! With so many people to buy for, it can be a constant struggle to find that perfect gift for each and every person on your list.
Well, fret no more because I have done the work for you! I have put together a list of gift ideas to help you …
We all want to look good this summer, so why not sweat in style! There’s no reason why we can’t look and feel sexy while we sweat. So no more ugly, boring bras. Time to invest in some new support, I have put together a few of my favourite sports bras that will not only provide support for your breasts to help prevent sagging but provide extreme comfort, style and help to showcase your inner …
Varley is a contemporary brand founded by London Natives Ben & Lara Mead. Based in Los Angeles and London, the collections combine Californian ease with elegant London style.
As an avid lover of all things health and fitness, I am always in search of a new pair of crops or a super stylish sports bra. Fitness attire is a part of my everyday life and Varley has what I need! They have a wide …
Strong Lift Wear is an Australian based and owned business created by Andrew Coleman. This brand was officially launched and running in the market on October 16th 2012.
Today Strong Lift Wear is one of the fitness industries leading apparel companies, providing us with a wide selection of both men’s and women’s fitness gear. Andrew Coleman created this company with all of us in mind! He has created a premier brand that provides breathability, …
ABOUT ME
Hey Beauties, my name is Saundra. Welcome to this space I have created where I can connect with all of you and share the things I am most passionate about, such as health, fitness, and beauty. But most importantly lets inspire each other. Join me on a journey to getting fit, being fabulous and feeling beautiful.
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Your Guide to the Best Island Breaks this Summer
For those who lead hectic, busy lives throughout the rest of the year, the thought of escaping to an island when on holiday has to be a thoroughly appealing one. Island breaks offer the promise of sunshine and seclusion and this is a guide to some of the best such places to pick for your holiday this summer.
Skiathos, GreeceThe Greek island of Skiathos can be found in the Aegean Sea, where it is the smallest Sporades Island. However, despite this it offers wonderful beaches for lazing on and gorgeous landscapes to wander through. If you want to stay somewhere with more amenities, stick to the south coast, where Koukounaries and capital Skiathos town offer towns with shops and restaurants – as well as boat trips and monasteries or churches to explore. If you want uninhabited, the north will offer freedom and seclusion.
Mallorca, Spain
Mallorca is the biggest Balearic Island and offers guaranteed blue skies, oceans and warm sunshine. It was colonised in the 8th century BC and became a hotspot for tourists during the 1950s, with significant redevelopment since then. However you can still visit beautiful sights like the Catedral, which offers stunning Gothic architecture and interiors by Gaudi and Barcelo. The Ca’n Prunera gallery is another Mallorca standout, with works by artists like Cezanne, Man Ray, Klimt and Joan Miro, which is why it’s featured on Ladbrokes online travel roulette wheel of places worth visiting.
Madeira, Portugal
This island has won awards for its brilliance as a holiday destination and offers plenty besides sun, sea and sand. Those travelling there in late summer could take in the Madeira Wine Festival at the end of August or visit the Story Centre – located in the lovely Old Town – to learn more about the island’s fascinating history. Madeira has been an autonomous region of the country since the mid-1970s and you can learn about this here through interactive exhibits. Alternatively you could just explore Madeira’s wonderful flora and fauna.
Malta, Malta
Malta is a dream for anyone who loves beautiful architecture, and even has a National Museum of Archaeology dedicated to it. This features everything from the Sleeping Lady sculpture to the Ta Hagrat temple model. Alternatively you could stroll through the backstreets of the picturesque Vittoriosa, with its charm and beauty. Malta has a remarkable history, including a pivotal role in World War Two that saw the island awarded the George Cross for the collective bravery of its inhabitants.
Corsica, France
Located in the Mediterranean Sea, this is one French island where warm weather is guaranteed. Calvi in the west attracts a lot of visitors, with its spectacular beach, glorious citadelle and Scandola nature reserve. Another option is Ajaccio, where Napoleon was born and which offers boulevards lined with trees and cafes where you can sit outside on the pavement. Corsica may sometimes have a somewhat fraught history with mainland France, but it remains part of the country and has a distinctly Gallic feel.
Any one of these islands will be a great place to spend a few weeks this summer.
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Hi, I'm The Geek.
If you’re looking for a geeky twist on traveling with a touch of wit and a heavy dose of sarcasm, you’ve come to the right place. I have opinions on everything and I’m not afraid to complain!Readmore...
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NH's energy future is now!
The most important science policy issue in every state
October 31, 2018
New Hampshire: Maintaining renewable-energy growth
New Hampshire is at a crossroads in its efforts to produce more renewable energy. Under a 2007 state rule, utilities must include more green power in their mix of sources. The 2018 target is 18.7 percent; by 2025, that target will be 25.2 percent. Granite State lawmakers recently passed bills to goose both the solar- and timber-based biomass industries, but only one survived the governor’s veto pen. The failed measure would have quintupled the allowable size of solar projects that qualify for net metering (the practice of selling excess power back to the grid). But incumbent Gov. Chris Sununu, who faces renewable-energy advocate Molly Kelly, nixed the measure, saying it would drive up electricity prices—already some of the highest in the nation. Lawmakers did, however, override his veto for a law requiring utilities to buy more power from six faltering biomass plants in the state. But the Energy Justice Network and other critics question whether biomass should qualify as a clean renewable: Burning wood emits sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and particulates, as well as heat. Still, proponents point out, biomass produces far fewer greenhouse gases than fossil fuels: 18 grams of CO2 (equivalent) per kilowatt hour, compared to 840 for oil and 1,001 for coal.
NH’s Energy Future is Now!
New Hampshire needs sensible, consistent, long term energy policies that will continue to strengthen our State’s economy and support the growing use of clean energy technologies and efficiencies. No one organization or sector has all the answers. This effort will promote approaches that help ratepayers lower their bills; ensure more reliable and affordable energy; and secure the ability of homeowners, businesses of all size, and municipalities to make the energy choices that are right for them.
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NASVI assures implementation of Street Vendors Act in 100 cities
NASVI assures implementation of Street Vendors Act in 100 cities
Mangalore Today News Network
Mangalore, Oct 21, 2014: Addressing a programme on “Street vendors in India: Issues, struggles, best practices and way forward,” organised by Roshni Nilaya School of Social Work at college premises on Sunday October 19, New Delhi based National Assocoation of Street Vendors of India (NASVI) Co-Ordinator Arbind Singh who represents NASVI that was instrumental in the government formulating Street Vendors Act 2014, said that developing vending zones in secluded an inconvenient places may not be accepted by street vendors as well as customers, thus hampering the business.
Therefore, while rehabilitating the street vendors, a natural market has to be provided to them and they should be constantly surveyed, he stressed. The Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street vending Act 2014, will be imlimented in at least 100 cities in the country.
He requested public sector companies like banks to financially help in developing vending zones in cities.
Taking an example of Bhuvaneshwar city corporation, where the banks have developed vending zones in the absence of financial support from the corporation, Singh said that more such models have to come up. “Several innovations can be introduced in street vending like model market for vendors, women markets, night markets, food streets, weekly markets, historical markets etc, which will draw more number of customers and helps vendors to earn their livelihood. Night market on the lines of Taiwan, could be a good idea as a customer can go for shopping when there is no traffic congestion.” “Special focus has to be given to women vendors as they are largely marginalised,” he advocated.
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detailed process of manufacturing robo sand
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Request a quotation. WEFTEC EXHIBITOR PRODUCTS - WaterWorld. Sauereisen recently introduced the latest variation of its SewerGard family. SewerGard Glaze No. 210G is a polymer coating that complements the rest of a line that ...
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The problem for many dynamic sites
is that the long URLs and multiple parameters often will cause a spider
to give up on indexing a page or session ids will cause a page to get
indexed multiple times causing a duplicate content penalty. The result
is underexposure in the first case and a penalty in the second. Either
way, the site will suffer.
The
goal of SEO is to improve your keyword ranking. One of the ways to
achieve this goal is to incorporate silos into your site structure.
There are two types of silos that we will discuss: directory based silos and virtual silos.
Both silos create theme through linking but they do so in different
ways. Virtual silos create content and subject relationships through
cross-linking to create theme while directory based siloing creates
relationships by utilizing directories to group like-content.
Yahoo welcomed aboard a
former Amazon exec. They also announced a new partnership with
Dex to provide US Local results.
It was a rock and roll good time at Google but now it's time to part. Google's famed
CFO (Chief Food Officer) is leaving to open a new restaurant. But he wasn't he only Googler to step away this month.
Still Google has new friends to fill the gap, buying the SMS social network Dodgeball as well as annexing the entire Earth.
Google
invited everyone up to their Headquarters for a look inside. Those who
couldn't make it in person could catch the live webcast. Here's a recap or two.
Search Engine Strategies hops across the pond to London on June 1 and 2. Watch SEW Forums for coverage.
Webmaster World heads to New Orleans next month. Laissez les bons temps rouler!
Attaboys
Well,
I was going to tell you about Larry Page and Sergey Brin being elected
to the the American Academy of Arts and Sciences but the Google Blog post
seems to have disappeared and just redirects to the main page. So
instead, I'll give them a round of applause for their decision to send 10 engineers to speak at the upcoming Webmaster World conference. Could they be learning that transparency is a good thing?
Speaking of transparency, Jim Lanzone of Ask Jeeves knows its value. He stepped up to answer questions from the gang over at Cre8asite forums.
In the biggest not really rumor of the month, Barry Diller of IAC casually mentioned
that they would be looking to rebrand Ask Jeeves. The most likely
candidates are Ask or Jeeves but does anyone really think that the poor
butler stands a chance?
Tempest in a teapot. Google Toolbar PageRank was grayed out for days. Barry "RustyBrick" asks if this could be the end of toolbar PageRank?
If
you have any questions or comments on any of the articles above or if
you would like to suggest topics for future articles, please email us at SEOToolSet.
HQ Hours of Operation:
8:30am to 5:30 pm Pacific timeDays of Operation:
Monday through Friday — email works other times in many casesSupport Operations:
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A Michigan astronomer looks at space in a whole new way: BTN LiveBIG
A Michigan astronomer looks at space in a whole new way: BTN LiveBIG
By BTN.com LiveBIG Staff, 6 months ago
Astronomy and symphonic music aren’t the likeliest of pairs at first glance; that is, unless you’re José Francisco Salgado.
Salgado, who received his Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of Michigan, combines his passions for astronomic photography and love of music to create science-symphony films to expose people from all over the world to the wonders of science.
“Astronomy is a very visual science,” he said. “I visit schools and orchestras all over the world and teach [it] using music films as a basis to get people interested. The films are visually appealing and the music gets people’s attention.”
Salgado’s work takes him to some rather cold climes to capture stunning images of celestial phenomenon. (Courtesy of José Francisco Salgado)
Salgado’s love of astronomy was kindled when, in the third grade, he read a book on the Apollo space program. Growing up in Puerto Rico, he was also afforded the opportunity to visit the Arecibo Observatory, the island’s famous (and enormous) radio telescope. However, it was during his youth that Salgado was given a gift that would alter the course of his life.
“My parents gave me my first DSLR camera when I was in the eighth grade,” Salgado noted, “and the first thing I did was point it at the night sky.” It wasn’t until graduate school that he realized he could combine astronomy and photography into so much more.
He was drawn to Michigan to pursue his PhD because of the innovative extra-galactic research astronomers were conducting. While at Michigan, Salgado discovered the exciting ways astronomy can be taught through the department’s Education and Public Outreach Initiative, which provides educational programs tailored for schools and community centers. Through this program, he learned he could pursue a career in astronomy education and fulfill his passion for both science and art in a meaningful way.
After graduation, Salgado took a job at Chicago’s famed Adler Planetarium. While working at the planetarium, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra asked him to produce a visual backdrop to their performance of “The Planets”, a seven-movement orchestral suite by renowned composer Gustav Holst. The project required fitting the film around the music, a process to which Salgado likens creating a “soundtrack in reverse.” But, he was ready for just such a challenge.
“This project gave me the motivation to move from still photography to motion graphics,” Salgado said. He quickly taught himself video editing, and his first symphonic-science film “The Planets” was born.
Salgado has continued to combine astronomy with music in his “Science and Symphony” film series. He also founded the nonprofit KV 265 in 2010 to teach science through unconventional mediums, such as music, film, and photography. KV 265 has partnered with numerous symphony orchestras, composers, and musicians from around the world to create multimedia pieces that convey an understanding of astronomy for all people to enjoy.
“To me, the key word in scientific education is inspiration,” he stated. “By presenting science in a non-intimidating format, people will be inspired to learn more about what they see on their own. When you show things you shot yourself, it removes degrees of separation so they will ask more about what they’re seeing.”
Salgado’s films have been shown all over the world, including the Frank Gehry-designed bandshell in Chicago’s Millenium Park. (Photo courtesy of José Francisco Salgado)
Today, Salgado juggles a multitude of tasks as the executive director of KV 265. He gives lectures, presents his symphonic-science films around the world and continues to produce new films. He is currently working on two different films titled Nocturnes and Tidal Forces.
“Nocturnes demonstrates the difference between artificial and natural light,” he explained, “by contrasting night in the city and night in the darkest locations in the world, used with the piece of music with the same name by Chopin. Tidal Forces is about the power of lunar tides and how the gravitational force of the moon controls them. I’m taking time lapses of places all over the world like the Bay of Fundy, [Le Mont] Saint-Michel in France, and Cornwall in England.” For the latter piece, the music was actually commissioned to support the film instead of the other way around, something Salgado said would not have been possible without the success of his previous projects.
Despite his busy schedule, he still makes time to go back to his alma mater to give lectures and show his films. Notably, he made an appearance on the University of Michigan’s Saturday Morning Physics show last November to talk about the science behind the Northern Lights. In addition to academia, Salgado maintains a personal connection to the university through his daughter, a rising freshman at Michigan.
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It’s time for another #rtwsoon interview, this time with the lovely Heather of Heather’s Harmony. And guess what? She’s leaving for her big adventure this Sunday!
If our summer travel plans to Europe didn’t fall through, we’d probably be crossing paths with Heather somewhere along the way. Instead we’ll have to settle for following her adventures through her blog instead and there should be some really good ones ahead. Have fun, Heather! And you know where to look if you need some ideas of how to spend your day in Iceland.
Who are you?
My name is Heather & I am from the desert lands of the Western US but I’ve got a gypsy heart that has taken over my life. My passion for change and travel has led me to the northern lights of Saint Petersburg, swimming with sea turtles in Hawaii, pruning olive trees in Palestine, kissing under the Eiffel tower, pondering in the midst of Stonehenge, getting sea-sick in Jamaica and getting lost almost everywhere I go.
Want to know what I love and find most unique about myself though? My intuition.
While being prepared & having a general direction in life is a must for anyone with drive & passion, the ability to admit that the universe has something even better in mind for you is downright gutsy & brave. Several years ago I was tied to a weak and weary existence, lacking in passion and gumption. It didn’t take long before I knew I needed to change and re-discover what cultivated happiness in my life… travel. Since then I’ve always had goals and stepping stones to achieve personal harmony but in large I’ve let the universe be my compass and leave myself open to the opportunities that I encounter.
Where are you going on your RTW?
That is a fantastic question! As of right now I will be leaving to explore Europe for three months and in October I’ll be moving to South Korea to teach English for a year. Beyond that your guess is probably better than mine! One thing is for sure, it’s going to be a grand adventure full of surprise!
Along with being an intuitive traveler I am also very budget conscious so while I purse a life of travel I will also be sure to find work along the way to sustain myself & my student loans.
After the very steep climb to Masada where it is believed Jewish extremists committed a mass suicide rather than be captured by the Romans in 73 AD
When are you leaving?
I leave the afternoon of July 15th, 2012 with a day investigate Iceland before backpacking in Europe and then moving to South Korea in the late fall.
Why did you decide to go on this trip?
At some point in my life I realized I wasn’t happy and through a lot of self-reflection and discovery the single thing I knew that had made me happy was traveling, so I’m running with it!
I’ve spent the past 4 years in college, working full-time and living a simple life with as many trips both abroad and around the corner as I could possibly manage. It just wasn’t enough, I knew I needed to build a life that fit into travel rather than fitting travel into my life. It’s certainly a unique life path and even though at the time I didn’t know a single person with the same ambitions I dedicated myself to pursuing those dreams. There isn’t anything quite like living what once seemed like a pipe dream.
Snorkeling with Sea Turtles & Fish in Kauai, HI- One of my favorite experiences while traveling!
What will you be doing to pass the time before your travels?
I am writing to you from my work desk awaiting my final day since my department was laid off. I will enjoy a month of Utah’s beautiful summer season, attend a travel blogging convention in the Colorado Rockies, spend a lot of time outdoors camping & hiking and take advantage of every possible minute with my friends and family before I leave without knowing if/when I will return.
If you could give just one piece of advice to a fellow #rtwsoon traveler, what would it be?
I know you said only one piece of advice but I have two equally important nuggets of knowledge.
Firstly, Let’s be friends! Find others who have the same ambitions as you, surround yourself with happy, inspiring and passionate people even if it’s over facebook, twitter or blogging. Your similar drive, experiences and curiosities will form relationships & benefits that will change your life!
Secondly, don’t give up. That sounds cliché but it’s the most common advice others have given me. It’s dedication and perseverance that set successful people apart from those who choose to give up and therefore choose to fail. “Where there is a will there is a way.” So my advice is to find what you’re passionate about, commit and dedicate yourself to it and never give up!
2 Comments
Awesome to hear you’re off on a backpacking adventure to Europe (and then South Korea which is still super high on my to-do list!). I currently live as an expat in Europe, it’s a lot of fun 😀 It’s so crazy how every country can be so DIFFERENT yet so close together.Tom recently posted..Mundial Music Festival In Tilburg: A Photo Adventure
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You can tell I love travel!! My Bali boarding pass as a bookmark 👌✈️. If you love travel read this book! @gadventures what a great inspirational story and company. #travel #look #book #inspo #inspirational
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Also per today's call, I'd consider a. as ruled out. b. is pretty much the status quo, and c. is the possibility that we're canvassing.
As Mr Goodner suggested, everyone whose organisation has implemented Addressing - please ask about the impact of removing UsingAddressing, especially in light of our having already removed wsaw:Anonymous.
Tony Rogers
________________________________
From: [email protected] on behalf of Anish Karmarkar
Sent: Tue 12-Dec-06 9:31
To: [email protected]
Subject: New issue do we still need wsaw:UsingAddressing?
Per Bob's request on today's call, I'm raising a new issue that came out
of the resolution of CR33:
Since we have decided to add wsm:Addressing as a policy assertion and
rev the namespace and decided that ws-p is the way forward rather than
WSDL extensibility, what do we do with UsingAddressing?
I see three options: a) keep it as wsdl marker and policy assertion, b)
keep it only as a wsdl marker, c) remove it completely
-Anish
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These results are sorted by most relevant first (ranked search). You may also sort these by color rating
or essay length.
Title
Length
Color Rating
God is Not Complex
- The sky crystallized royal blue colors propose a beautiful announcement on how perfect the day is. When glancing in the direction of the sun, it appears as if the sun is smiling with joy and excitement. The garden is filled with multiple colored dandelions, roses, and tulips. The aged oak trees stand in strength displaying a picture perfect scene of fruitfulness. The river flows in sync and rhythm to the wind. The birds of the air soar high in formation and precise sequence to the leader. This day and its splendor grace the followers with perfection and expectation.... [tags: God, Religious]
It Isn't What God is, But What God is Not
- Let's play a game; I will give you an example of my rule, and your objective is to guess what my rule is. You may propose other examples to test your hypothetical rule and I will confirm if it agrees with my rule or not. Let's begin; my one and only example of my rule is this: 2, 4, 6. Now, if this question was asked to a sample population, the average answer would be a multiplet of 2 (e.g. 8, 10, 12 or 5, 10, 15). Although, these answers fit my rule, “multiplet of 2” is not the rule. The correct answer ( or rule, in my game) is that the numbers are in ascending order.... [tags: confirmational bias, Maimonides, God]:: 4 Works Cited
The Attributes of God
- Characteristics of God - The Significance "What comes into our heads when we think about God is the main idea about us." So says A.W. Tozer in his timeless novel in the characteristics of God, The familiarity with the Sacred. Why would he make this kind of extreme pronouncement. In our hearts we understand the preceding is accurate. It's not sufficient to follow "God." Then we're simply creating an idol in our heads, if we all simply make up our own thoughts concerning what He's like. Characteristics of God - The Foundation Jesus came to show the God of the Bible.... [tags: Charactestics of God, Significance]:: 5 Works Cited
The Existence Of God
- Truth, what is truth. This question itself has a thousand answers, no person can ever be sure of what truth is rather, truth can be justified, it can checked for reliability with strong evidences and logic. If the evidence proves to be accurate then it can be established that a certain answer is the truth. However, have we ever tried to think about what intrigues us to seek the truth. To think about a question and set foot firmly on the path of knowledge. Definitely it has. That was the very cause itself which is why this world has witnessed some of the greatest philosophers like Aristotle, Plato and Socrates etc.... [tags: Does God Exist?]:: 7 Works Cited
The Word of God
- The bible was written as an account of what many viewed that God had accomplished so his actions and words could be passed on for generations. Some believe it is a literary account and some believe it is a historical account. The word of God in the bible comes in many forms and is left up to interpretation by the reader. Some believe that the word of God should be the only word and should be strictly followed. Some believe that the words are meant as a guideline to help us through life. Whatever your belief is you can always seem to find the meaning behind your belief through the word of God in the Bible.... [tags: Bible, God, Religion, Jesus Christ]:: 6 Works Cited
The Trial of God
- Elie Wiesel’s the Trial of God represents the age-old question: how can a righteous God allow evil and suffering. Written as a play based on a real event, Wiesel tries to capture the myriad of emotions and theological arguments that were present. Though the trial, in Wiesel’s play, takes place during the seventeenth-century many cultural aspects overlap with twentieth-century Europe and World War II. Similarities between Wiesel’s fictional world and his life experience involve events such as violent actions against the Jewish community.... [tags: War, World History, Religion, God]
God As Sovereign
- Many people state that they do not believe in any kind of god, that the world simply came into existence. However, this belief cannot hold true. Simply by examining nature and all of its intricate details, people stand unable to deny the presence of a Creator. Deep down, people cannot help but to feel that something greater than themselves exists. A Supreme Being- a god, but what kind of god exists. A god similar to Ares, the war-god of the Greeks. One who lusts for blood and destruction. Or a placid god, one parallel to Eirene, the Greek goddess of peace.... [tags: God remains all-powerful]
Prove the Existence of God Using Who Has the Idea of God
- In this paper, I will explain how Descartes uses the existence of himself to prove the existence of God. The “idea of God is in my mind” is based on “I think, therefore I am”, so there is a question arises: “do I derive my existence. Why, from myself, or from my parents, or from whatever other things there are that are less perfect than God. For nothing more perfect than God, or even as perfect as God, can be thought or imagined.” (Descartes 32, 48) Descartes investigates his reasons to show that he, his parents and other causes cannot cause the existence of himself.... [tags: descartes, god's existence, idea of god]:: 1 Works Cited
The Church of God in Name Only
- I must first begin by saying I do believe that God has one, universal church, the church of God. “The Church of God in Name Only,” is an effort to criticize those who profess a high claim, yet fall very short in living to that claim. In my estimation many who profess to be God's holy people are not, because the scripture deems such individuals unholy. Such people are not the Church of God. In order to comprehend the reasoning behind such a subject one must already have a general idea of the Church of God's standard.... [tags: Church, God, Religion]
Debate Over the Existence of God
- ... Why His existence makes a difference” If there is not a God .. what will be the importance of our life . what will be the difference between life and death also if God is not Existing .. we will not have hope .. we will not have hope for deliverance after death . We have to believe God, because he gave a faith he gave us hope to live, he sacrifices his life for us “even if the evidence for and against the existence of God were absolutely equal, the rational thing to do, I think, is to believe in Him” W.L.C Can we experience the presence of Almighty God on a daily basis.... [tags: god, bible, lord, faith]:: 4 Works Cited
Augustine's Treatment on God in the Confessions
- CONDIMENT OR INGREDIENT: AUGUSTINE’S TREATMENT ON GOD IN THE CONFESSIONS “The desire for God is written in the human heart”, the Catechism states (n.27). In one way or another, human beings try to pinpoint out the ultimate reality of things, i.e. the composition of the universe, its, purpose, its goal, etc. At some point, their painstaking search somehow leads them out to a reality which, or Who, can possibly be the definitive, decisive, relational, communicatory factor of everything “under the sun”.... [tags: God, Religion, Divine Revelation]:: 5 Works Cited
Perspective of Evil and the Existence of God
- A man wakes up to his family; a wife and two kids. They have a nice breakfast together and he leaves for work, starting his day off in a great mood. As the day passes, he gets swarmed with office work, not even going on his usual hour-long lunch break. As time slips into night, he finally gets off work and his work buddies ask him out for a quick beer. He already missed dinner, so he figures what is the harm in taking the load off and hanging out to relax with his co-workers. He does not anticipate to drink four beers, laughing and eating with his buddies until eleven.... [tags: free will, religion, god]:: 3 Works Cited
The covenants between God and man
- The covenants between God and man constitute one of the principal keys to the interpretation of the Old Testament, denoting the dividing lines between the different dispensations and indicating the several changes of procedure in God’s dealings with the earth. There are arguably eight covenants made by God referred to in Scripture. Much could be written concerning these different covenants, but we will only deal with the covenants in Genesis. At various times God condescended to enter into a compact with man, and failure to observe the terms and scope of these compacts leads to the utmost confusion.... [tags: Old Testament, God, Genesis]
Controversy Between the Existence of God
- In “The Brothers Karamazov” by Fyodor Dostoevsky made a famous claim that establishes the link between the existence of God and morality. Apart from the controversy related to the scope of the quotation, the discussion on the proper translation and interpretation of the words of Ivan Karamazov. For instance, in his article “Dostoevsky did not say it” D.Cortesi claims that Dostoevsky did not make such claim (Cortesi 1). However, the research by Russian-speaking authors shows that the original text of “The Brothers Karamazov” contains the statement under study (Volkov 1).... [tags: god commandments, religion, morality]:: 3 Works Cited
Essay on Fate in Weatherhead’s The Will of God
- Understanding Fate in Weatherhead’s The Will of God As I continued to chat with my pastor that day, I really sensed the hurt in his eyes – the anger that comes from an unsolvable injustice, the tiredness of a problem. “What’s wrong?” I finally asked, “Having a bad day?” Sensing that I was truly concerned, he let the truth be told. “I talked with a woman today whose baby died suddenly of unknown causes. As we worked through her grief, she talked about how numerous friends and family, even a religious leader had patted her on the back, shook their heads and said, ‘It was God’s will.’ I find few things worse to say to a grieving parent. Saying nothing at all would be of more help.” It... [tags: Will of God]
God is Merciful and Just
- We all know God is love and it is shown everywhere in the Bible. To be merciful means to have broad grace. To be just means to be respectably good and fair. These two attributes seem to contradict each other because how can a merciful God judge a person for their wrongdoing or how can someone who hates sin have mercy on the people who do evil. Many atheists question how could a merciful God be just. The answer to this question is Gods mercy is expressed to us through His love. God is a perfect God meaning his justice and mercifulness is also faultless.... [tags: religion, bible, god]:: 6 Works Cited
The Divine Attributes of God
- The argument to side with in this paper is that of Anselm’s “Proslogian” where he argues for the existence of God in a less complex way as compared to the Monologian. Inevitably, the Proslogian received criticism from other notable philosophers, some of which will be addressed in this paper as well. Once the fool understands that than which nothing greater can be thought, he will comprehend the existence of God. The divine attributes of God will also be discussed to aid in the fool’s understanding of God’s existence.... [tags: philosophy, god's existance, proslogian]:: 10 Works Cited
Created in God's Image
- In the beginning of the Bible in the Book of Genesis, it is revealed to use in 1:26-27 that God has created man in his image. The text verbatim states “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” From this distinct text we can clearly conclude that when ad created man and woman, they were destined to be in God’s image and carry his image throughout his creation. Today we can see that many of us do not live in God’s image due to society becoming more secularized as it progresses through the years, however as Christians we can verse this by living in God’s image in ou... [tags: christianity, god, bible]:: 4 Works Cited
Proof for God's Existence
- Proofing God’s existence Although a person may claim that it is rational or justifiable not to believe in God, the apostle Paul tells us otherwise. In Romans 1:20 he writes that no one has an excuse for not believing in God because all creation declares His person. As well, King David expressed a similar statement in Psalm 19:1 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and God-head; so that they are without excuse….... [tags: Relligion, God, Creation]
The Humanity of God by Karl Barth
- For this paper, I read and analyzed the Humanity of God, a series of three writings by Karl Barth. I focused specifically on his writing Evangelical Theology in the 19th Century. Barth begins by defining theology broadly and then evangelical theology specifically, he then expounds on its history, the theologians who represented it and the groundwork it was built on. He also discusses issues brought up by problems in the initial groundwork. This paper will explore the nature of theology drawing from the examples of the 19th century set by Barth and compare and contrast it with personal perspective on and experience with 21st century theology.... [tags: Christianity, Faith, Beliefs, Religion, God]:: 2 Works Cited
God Has the Cure
- Throughout the ages great thinkers and men with revolutionary ideas have been changing the world of understanding. During the Renaissance men like Vesalius, William Hervey, and Paracelsus revolutionize the understanding of medicine through the use of dissection and constant studying. However these men did not find change easy, the Christian Church was set in their ways and was reluctant to change. People where dying from unknown causes and the church had no answers. The Renaissance was a time for enlightenment and rebirth of new ideas, but the church inability to adapt and adopt the new discoveries and knowledge of medicine left society in the dark ages.... [tags: Religion, God, The Church]
Descartes to Kant: The Existence of God – A Very Brief History
- The subsequent essay will cover a short history of the existence of God from René Descartes through Immanuel Kant. First, section (1), covers Descartes’ view on the existence of God. Following this, in (2), I consider G.W. Leibniz’s view and George Berkeley’s view is explored in (3). These first three philosophers undeniably believe God exists. The remainder of the essay covers three additional philosophers whose views on the existence of God are less certain. These philosophers include John Locke covered in section (4), David Hume in (5) and, lastly, Immanuel Kant in (6).... [tags: Philosophy, God]
Five Proofs That God Exists
- Instinctually, humans know that there is a greater power in the universe. However, there are a few who doubt such instinct, citing that logically we cannot prove such an existence. St. Thomas Aquinas, in his Summa Theologica, wrote of five proofs for the existence of God. The Summa Theologica deals with pure concepts; these proofs rely on the world of experience - what one can see around themselves. In these proofs, God will logically be proven to exist through reason, despite the refutes against them.... [tags: thomas aquinas, summa theologica, God]:: 1 Works Cited
Spirit and Matter, God and Chaos, or infinitude Finite
- The Kingdom of Union and Joy can only be attained through the elevation and expansion of spirit which is influenced by its intricate relationship with matter. They reflect, inverse and alter one another depending on the nature of their alliance; and challenge the pervading intuition that one entertains concerning hierarchy, the superior and the inferior, rising and falling. Throughout the poem, the prophetic persona enlightens the reader on the manner to ascend to the spiritual realm via tales on base spirits, on praising and praised bodies -- thus, purveying a dynamic dramatisation of the fall.... [tags: Philosophy, God]
The God of Small Things
- Velutha of Small Things The small, more trivial things in life are more often than not eschewed, and because of this they are left to find a safe haven in furtive localities similar to “History House” or the river. Being the watch keeper of these small things can be good as well as bad, as shown through Velutha’s ultimate fate. In the novel “The God of Small Things”, Arundhati Roy shows the minute details that fill her characters' lives and furnish the dwellings that cannot protect them. Not only does Roy address the importance of small things, but she also does this through giving the title of “The God of Small Things” to Velutha.... [tags: The God of Small Things, Arundhati Roy]:: 1 Works Cited
The view of God from the Bible's Perspective
- The biblical standpoint on the view of God may be summed up in two verses, “The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.” (Exodus 34:6-7) This clearly indicates the attributes of God as merciful and just, forgiving and stern.... [tags: Religion, Bible, God]
Belief in God is Not Made Unreasonable by Science
- I will argue against the ability of science to demonstrate that belief in God is unreasonable. I will do this by showing that science cannot even answer the simple question of where do its laws come from and how did they come into being. If science cannot even answer this simple question how it hope to answer the much more difficult question of is there a God. As science cannot answer the question of whether or not God exists it cannot make belief in God unreasonable. Science is limited in its scope therefor there are questions it cannot answer.... [tags: God, Science, Beliefs, Religion]:: 4 Works Cited
Discussion of God's Ultimate Creation: Man
- When God created heaven and earth, he wanted to also create those that would be a reflection to his image. He wanted to create more and something that could be good to what he created in the beginning. Earth was created by him and with doing that, he thought to create humankind that could be good to the earth and be superior to everything around them. In Genesis 1:26-27, God talked about how he created humankind within his image so that they would be like God. In Genesis 2:18, the Bible speaks about God’s creation of woman.... [tags: God, the bible, genesis, mankind]:: 4 Works Cited
God is Active and Present in His Creation
- Introduction Fundamental to the Christian faith is the concept that the God of the Bible is a personal and active deity. Empirical and biblical evidence specifically directs the diligent researcher to the irrefutable verification that the Bible portrays God as dynamically involved with His creation. Scripture expresses His love and desire is that all humanity comes to know Him (2 Pet. 3:9 [KJV]). Furthermore, the Bible teaches that the Christian believer has a vigorous and personal relationship with God through the Holy Spirit (Rom 5:5, 8:26-28).... [tags: bible, god, christianity, faith]:: 3 Works Cited
What for Nietzsche is the Meaning of the Death of God?
- Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) has born as a philologist and not as a philosopher, even though his innovating way of thinking, influenced remarkably the view on the meaning of life within the whole modern Europe. It is considered one of those great minds, as Marx and Freud, which have been able to create a new ideology to rely on, to create a new perspective both socially and psychologically, to give human kind a chance to open to the true consciousness, to revaluate the ethics of life and the true moral values.... [tags: friederich nietzsche, god, christianity]:: 7 Works Cited
Attempting to Prove God Through Reason
- A sixteen year old girl with red hair and soft porcelain skin was sitting on a bench in the park reading an old, very used, book. The girl’s name was Meggy, and she was reading her bible. As she read she heard the clicking of bicycle spokes come near her from down the path. The bike stopped in front of her and she herd the familiar voice of Harry, a boy from her class, call out to her. “What are you reading, Carrot?” He said to her in a teasingly. “My bible” she replied as she looked up at him smiling.... [tags: christian, bible, God]:: 1 Works Cited
In God We Rest
- George Herbert’s “The Pulley” describes how God first created man. Herbert writes with first hand experience to the glory of God and the expectation that God has for humanity. He shows the reader that God has blessed man with all the world’s riches, but has decided to withhold his final blessings of rest to ensure man’s return to him for peace and comfort. Humanity is not the ready for all of God’s gifts because overindulgence can lead to a lack of appreciation for the many gifts that they already possess.... [tags: Literary Analysis, Herbert, God, Philosophy]
The Christian Representation of God in Poetry
- The voice of passion and intelligent mystery is a natural mixture used when projecting an image of God by both Milton in When I consider how my light is spent and Donne in Holy Sonnet XIV. Religion plays a huge part in the sonnets and how they make the reader perceive God. The two authors’ religious practices are so important that their troubles all stem from what they believe is an inability to serve. This is why even when the writers’ immediate demands are not met they still continue to love God.... [tags: Christianity, God, religion, John Donne, Milton, ]
Review of Business for the Glory of God
- Review of Business for the Glory of God Author Wayne Grudem wrote the book “Business for the Glory of God”, which relies strongly on biblical teachings. The book discusses issues like possession, productivity, employment, industrial transactions, profit, money, difference of possessions, competition, borrowing and disposal, attitudes of heart, and impact on world financial condition from a biblical stand, every area unit “fundamentally smart and provides several opportunities for glorifying God however additionally several temptations to sin.” (Grudem, 2003, p.... [tags: Wayne Grudem, biblical teachings, property, God]:: 1 Works Cited
God’s Divine Creation of the World
- Did God create the world. Genesis 1:1 states, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” I do believe that God did create the world and listed below are a few of my contentions: There is evidence in the Bible that proves God created the world. Science even proves that there was a divine creator present when the world was first designed and when life first appeared on earth. There is evidence in the human body and in nature that proves God created the world. First off, the Bible does state that the world and everything that is of the world was created by God.... [tags: Bible, God, Beliefs, Science, Creation]:: 10 Works Cited
Almighty God Driving People from Their Homes
- Biologically speaking, humans have a natural tendency to desire and create homes. This fostered the creation of many different types of home-like environments, including places, kingdoms and religious and non-religious indigenous customs. However, the wickedness of human indiscretion and the propagation of God’s prophecy, provide compelling reasons for human’s removal from their homes. Thus, I agree that humans are consistently trying construct homes, but God does not continually remove people from their homes.... [tags: bible, god, genesis]:: 1 Works Cited
Reader Response to Chapter One of The God of Small Things
- The approach employed in the present article is binarism. Theoretically, in my opinion, binarism seems to operate at cognitive level. It pertains to value orientation in the subjective world of human beings and thereby to the world orientation. In order to define the place of a thing in the world and an individual’s association and desirability, we are forced to rely on binary approach of studying the world. Coming to literature, I discuss the binary terms of (historical) fact and fiction. Here, I have tried to apply the binary approach and have tried to analyze the binary value orientation in Arundhati Roy’s novel ‘The God of Small Things.... [tags: The God of Small Things]:: 4 Works Cited
Their Eyes Were Watching God: The Undying Power of Will
- The traditional human existence encounters immense and miniscule transformations in predominant viewpoints directly affecting subsequent proceedings as individuals embark upon an expedition of lucid self-expression to explore personal identity. Literary pieces produced during times of revolution to gain equality and flourishing cultural advancement as artistic innovations, primarily in the Harlem Renaissance, communicates deliberately the liberation of the individuals frequently portrayed as characters.... [tags: Their Eyes Were Watching God]:: 1 Works Cited
Arthur Machen’s The Great God Pan
- In “The Great God Pan” (1894) Machen uses ancient Greek god Pan to serve as a symbol of spiritual reality that lies beyond human perception and knowledge. Machen’s use of this divine entity and his success in rediscovering a minor figure of the classical pantheon, yet “mostly neglected by earlier authors of English literature” (Pasi 69), provide what Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari argue to be the significant value of a minor author, “…by using a number of minority elements, by connecting, conjugating them, one invents a specific, unforeseen, autonomous becoming” (106).... [tags: The Great God Pan Essays]:: 10 Works Cited
Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things
- Some believe that boundaries are made to be broken, that lines are meant to be crossed while others believe that we should “ not move an ancient boundary stone set up by [our] forefathers” (Proverbs 22:28). Everywhere we look, we come across a moral boundary that we at least think we should not cross, but cross nonetheless. “As ye sow, ye shall reap” is a familiar proverb we have all heard at one point in our lives (Roy 31). But is it true. Do we really get what we deserve. And if so, who then decides what is right and wrong.... [tags: The God of Small Things]
If God Does Not Exist, Then Everything Is Permitted
- Many of us have wondered about the role of a Deity, in defining our moral code, and this has been a subject of discourse among scholars and philosophers since centuries. Many define morality as the innate ability of the human conscience to draw input for decisions which they believe is present there by itself. While some say that the (belief on the) presence of God gives them strength and inspiration to overcome their inability to follow moral standards (which are already defined) especially when they conflict with their self-interests.... [tags: God's existence, divine judgement,moral code]:: 4 Works Cited
To Fear, Or Not To Fear: How Yeats and Hardy Envision God
- Within both Thomas Hardy’s “The Convergence of the Twain” and W. B. Yeats’ “The Second Coming”, the actions of God are extremely prevalent, though the timing of His intervention varies greatly. Though, both poems were published within a five year period (1914 and 1919 respectively), they convey significantly different perspectives on the actions of God, in relation to our actions as human beings. These poems were written less than a decade apart, but are separated by one significant event that changed the world: the First World War.... [tags: second coming, thomas hardy, god's will]:: 3 Works Cited
Is there a God?
- Bertrand Russell, a renowned analytic philosopher, argues about the existence of God in his article “Is there a God?” (1952). For most of his life Russell held the opinion that religions are meant to instill distress and helplessness into people’s minds and belief in religion is the major cause for all the deadly conflicts that have occurred in the past. In his article “Is there a God?” Russell discusses how theologians have been presenting their arguments to prove God’s existence and then gives his own reflection on their thoughts.... [tags: Bertrand Russell, Analytic Philosopher]:: 1 Works Cited
Ku War God: Hawaii after the Kona period
- On the big island of Hawaii lays many secrets of traditional Hawaii that have long been forgotten by the republic that took over Hawaii after the Kona period. But many people still live up to these traditions in their homes and not wanting to overlook where their original family had come from. These traditions are based on stories and prayers that respect the primary four gods that make up the world. These gods help the people of Hawaii in succeeding the best out of life and honor them in returning them appraisal.... [tags: Kuka-ili-moku, islands, god]:: 4 Works Cited
Is There a God?
- A renowned logician, mathematician and a philosopher, Bertrand Arthur William Russell considered religion merely a bunch of superstitions devoid of any rationality. He always maintained that religion is primarily based on fear (Bertrand). Russell’s liberalistic and rationalistic approach may come as a surprise when one considers the conservative environment he was brought up in. ‘The atmosphere was one of frequent prayer, emotional repression, and formality’. So Russell used his writing as a medium to vent out.... [tags: Bertrand Arthur William Russell, Religion]:: 1 Works Cited
Why God Doesn't Exist: An Atheist's Argument
- The belief in Gods has always existed throughout human’s recored history. Whether it be the Greek Gods: Apollo, and Zeus, or the Judeo-Christian God, believed by Christians in modern day society. The belief of God has always existed among humans, however, assuming God does not exist, what explains the cultural evolution of such a false belief, namely religion. I shall argue that the reason this false belief is successful is because it manipulates human nature better than any other belief by these three points: an avoidance of death (the soul), a sense of worth (knowledge), and a sense, or need of belief (faith).... [tags: atheism, ontology, religion, god is dead]:: 4 Works Cited
Finding Her Voice in Their Eyes Were Watching God
- Janie Crawford, the main character of Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, strives to find her own voice throughout the novel and, in my opinion, she succeeds even though it takes her over thirty years to do it. Each one of her husband’s has a different effect on her ability to find that voice. The first time Janie had noticed this was when he was appointed mayor by the town’s people and she was asked to give a few words on his behalf, but she did not answer, because before she could even accept or decline he had promptly cut her off, “ ‘Thank yuh fuh yo’ compliments, but mah wife don’t know nothin’ ’bout no speech-makin’/Janie made her face laugh after a short pause, but it w... [tags: Their Eyes Were Watching God Essays]:: 6 Works Cited
The Relationship Between God and Evil
- Evil exists. This bizarre conundrum has perplexed philosophers since the dawn of civilization, and remains in hot debate today because of the theological implications inherent in the statement. To many on this planet, the source of life is an all-loving, all-powerful, omniscient god who created the universe – and all the laws therein – in seven days, as described in the Bible. And yet still, evil exists. How can these two premises be simultaneously true. Surely, an all-loving god would want to do something about this problem, and an all-powerful god could absolutely remedy a situation if it so desired.... [tags: Christian God and Evil]:: 4 Works Cited
Explanation for the Existence of God, by Using Aquina's Second Way: Efficient Causation
- Does God exist. Since the appearance of mankind on the earth and up until today--would probably continue in the future--this question brought people to think, reason, and come up with the evidence, to present the best satisfactory answer. Back in 1200s, St. Thomas Aquinas has provided "five ways" to prove for the existence of God, which I am persuaded by, and hopefully others would see the same 'light' in this argument--unfortunately, it does not provide sufficient answers regarding the 'nature of God' (Bailey and Martin, 2011, 37).... [tags: god, bible, christianity]:: 4 Works Cited
Use of Rhetoric in Jonathan Edwards' Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God
- On July 8th 1741, Jonathan Edwards preached the sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” in Enfield, Connecticut. Edwards states to his listeners that God does not lack in power, and that people have yet not fallen to destruction because his mercy. God is so forgiving that he gives his people an opportunity to repent and change their ways before it was too late. Edwards urges that the possibility of damnation is immanent. Also that it urgently requires the considerations of the sinner before time runs out.... [tags: Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God]
The Victims in McCarthy's Child of God
- The Victims in McCarthy's Child of God In Cormac McCarthy's Child of God, Lester Ballard is a recluse who is shunned by the people of his community. Because of his morose nature and his bizarre habits, he stands out among the small rural community. The rejected Ballard turns from being a harmless recluse to a murderer. While he is clearly a victimizer, he is also a victim himself. He is the victim of his own ostracization from the community that he was a part of. While the victimization that he suffers cannot justify his violent actions, it provides some explanation of how Ballard has reached the point of being a victimizer himself.... [tags: McCarthy Child of God]
The Controversial Subject of God
- The Controversial Subject of God The topic of god is a very controversial subject that has been argued about ever since the beginning of mankind. Because God is so controversial, many battles have been fought to preserve one’s own beliefs. I myself, have my own beliefs on what I think god is and how god was created. Many theologians have different beliefs of who god is and why he exists. But the most common answer you will receive is, “God exists because he has to exist.” They would argue that without God, nothing would exist, no us, no earth, no galaxy, no universe, nothing.... [tags: God Religion Theology Essays]
Belief in Freedom in Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston
- In the novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston, discussed the existence of freedom in life and overcoming the challenges that comes with it. Firstly, she used the differentiation between the two races. Secondly gender sexuality between the males and females. Thirdly, slavery of African- American suffered while and after the civil war from the whites. After is the history of Eatonville, Florida and the changes it had on the world. Next, is the culture and tradition the African-American had and practiced and its effect on the world.... [tags: Their Eyes Were Watching God]:: 6 Works Cited
Why I Believe In God
- Why I believe in God For my adult Catholic trying to lead the Christ-life, it is useful to recall the reasons for believing. It is helpful to review why we know that God is exists. Is there a God. Is there a God above and beyond us all. Above our life and death, above our joys and sorrows, above our world and space program. For thinking people, this is really the important question. Is there a God. People have been asking this questions for as long as people have been thinking, but now so much more is known about this world and about us.... [tags: Religion God Religious Theology]
Chinua Achebe's Arrow of God
- Chinua Achebe's Arrow of God Chinua Achebe's Arrow of God is set in the 1920's, before secularism became dominant. It begins with the image of a mask, when he tells his son not to carve the mask of a god for the white man. The mask is a symbol of change. The whole world is changing, and the people who do not change will not survive. The old priest, Ezeulu, desires change, but he cannot do it. He cannot force himself to leave the old ways behind and adopt the new ways. Thus, he sends one of his sons to learn from the white man.... [tags: Chinua Achebe Arrow of God]:: 1 Works Cited
The Ontological Argument for the Existence of God
- The Ontological Argument for the Existence of God The ontological argument is an a priori argument. The arguments attempt to prove God's existence from the meaning of the word God. The ontological argument was introduced by Anselm of Canterbury in his book Proslogion. Anselm's classical argument was based on two principals and the two most involved in this is St Anselm of Canterbury as previously mentioned and Rene Descartes. The ontological argument argues that if you understand what it means to talk about God, you will see His existence is necessarily true.... [tags: Theology Religion God Essays Papers]
Comparing Allah and God
- Pakistan, 1986. Zahid was a Muslim priest who had been brought up to hate and kill those with conflicting beliefs, especially Christians. He often persecuted Christians in town, feeling that by doing so, he would please Allah (the Muslim god). One day when Zahid was persecuting Christians, someone dropped a Bible. Rather than disposing of it, as he normally would have, Zahid hung onto it because he felt compelled to read it and expose its errors. In short, Zahid converted to Christianity and shared the Bible’s teachings with everyone.... [tags: Comparison of Allah and God]:: 10 Works Cited
The Existence of God: According to Descartes
- Once Descartes has "proved" his existence by way of the Cogito argument, and has determined what it is that belongs to his essence of being a thinking thing, he must move to examining questions about the world around him. However, before doing this, he thinks it better to examine the question of the existence of God. If he can prove that he was created by a perfectly benevolent creator, then his innate ideas must carry some semblance of truth, as God is not a deceiver and has placed these ideas in Descartes.... [tags: Religion God Descartes Philosophy Essays]
God. Creator or Poet?
- God. Creator or Poet. The Latin word “poet” means “creator”. Humans, realizing they are different from animals in the world, have been trying to rationalize things and themselves to the world ever since. Poets and writers used to come up with these far off imaginative ways of how to answer questions of life almost to explain it in a philosophical way. Who were the first humans. How did they come to be. What made the sun and the moon and the stars. Why the animals were made the way they were. What caused night and day, the seasons, the cycle of life itself.... [tags: Religion Religious God Essays]
God And The Problem Of Evil
- God And The Problem Of Evil Everyday it is possible to read a newspaper, or turn on TV or radio news and learn about evil going on in our world. Banks are robbed, cars are stolen, violent murders and rapes are committed. Somewhere in the world the aftershock of an earthquake is being felt. Cancer is killing millions of people each year, while other debilitating conditions continue to affect many with no cure to end their suffering. President Bush said that our country is fighting a war against evil.... [tags: Religion Evil God religious Essays]:: 2 Works Cited
The Battle Between Science and Religion: The God of the Gaps Theory by Neil DeGrasse Tyson
- Imagine a world where many people are not born the way they are just by chance, but by design. Not a design by a god but by men. What is one of the most common science fiction topics. Well thanks to scientific advancement people can start moving cloning more into science and less into fiction. Thanks to the impeccable work of many scientists across the world the world is moving forward in many ways. But it begs the question, what limits do politicians have to place on science. Is best to let them have free reign over their domain, as politicians have on their own, or do they need to be tethered.... [tags: god, scientific ignorance, bias, media]:: 5 Works Cited
God and the Caducity of Being: Jean-Luc Marion and Edith Stein on Thinking God
- God and the Caducity of Being: Jean-Luc Marion and Edith Stein on Thinking God ABSTRACT: Jean-Luc Marion claims that God must no longer be thought of in terms of the traditional metaphysical category of Being, for that reduces God to an all too human concept which he calls "Dieu." God must be conceived outside of the ontological difference and outside of the question of Being itself. Marion urges us to think of God as love. We wish to challenge Marion’s claim of the necessity to move au-delà de l’être by arguing that Marion presents a very limited understanding of Being: he interprets the Being of God as causa sui.... [tags: Philosophical Philosophy God Papers]:: 2 Works Cited
Use of Metaphors in Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Hurston
- Zora Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God follows protagonist Janie Mae Crawford’s journey into womanhood and her ultimate quest for self-discovery. Having to abruptly transition from childhood to adulthood at the age of sixteen, the story demonstrates Janie’s eternal struggle to find her own voice and realize her dreams through three marriages and a lifetime of hardships that come about from being a black woman in America in the early 20th century. Throughout the novel, Hurston uses powerful metaphors helping to “unify” (as Henry Louis Gates Jr.... [tags: Their Eyes Were Watching God Essays]:: 6 Works Cited
A Philoshpical Approach to Proving the Existence of God
- The question of God’s existence has been debated through the history of man, with every philosopher from Socrates to Immanuel Kant weighing in on the debate. So great has this topic become that numerous proofs have been invented and utilized to prove or disprove God’s existence. Yet no answer still has been reached, leaving me to wonder if any answer at all is possible. So I will try in this paper to see if it is possible to philosophically prove God’s existence. Before I start the paper there are a few points that must be established.... [tags: God's Existence Cannot be Proven]
Reader Response Criticism to God's Determinations
- Reader Response Criticism to God's Determinations For the reader demanding either rational sense or aesthetic pleasure from poetry, reading the preface to Edward Taylor's "God's Determinations" is humbling in ways unintended by the 17th century Puritan minister and poet. "Rationality" per se seems rejected at the start, where we are asked first to comprehend "Infinity," and then to envision it (everything) "beholding" "all things"(also everything). "Things" get no clearer as we progress, as we find whatever "infinity" "beholds" in not everything but "nothing," and that "nothing" itself to become the building material for "all." Identifying the paradox, perhaps, as that which begins t... [tags: God's Determinations Essays]
A Jungian Analysis of How Like a God
- A Jungian Analysis of How Like a God Isaac Asimov was certainly correct when he stated that the writer of a story doesn't necessarily know everything about it. The author, Brenda W. Clough, claims not to have had an acquaintance with Carl Jung's work when writing How Like a God. However, the architecture of the book is strikingly Jungian. In the beginning of the novel, the main character, Rob has very little interest in his appearance. Many computer people are like that, and he has his devoted wife Julianne to make all the sartorial decisions for him.... [tags: How Like a God Essays]
René Descartes' Argument on the Existence of God
- René Descartes' Argument on the Existence of God The problem with René Descartes' argument about the existence of God has to do with his rationalist deductive reasoning. Descartes deduces that truth about the existence of God lies within his idea of a perfect God and God's essence (as a perfect being who must exist in order to be perfect). A rationalist philosopher, Descartes discounts human knowledge as a product of our sensory data (our senses) but supports the epistemological stance that our knowledge is obtained through the reasoning processes of our own minds.... [tags: Philosophy God Existence Religion Essays]:: 1 Works Cited
Edwards' Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God
- Edwards' "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God" The passages given from the Edwards' 'Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God'; and the opening sentence of the Declaration both include many points such as the tone, diction, and syntax. The points shown throughout each sentence aims for the intent of obtaining the attention of the audience. The way each sentence is arranged with its own syntax can very well appeal to listeners, depending on its structure and imagery. Within the given sentence excerpt from Edwards' 'Sinners in the Hand of an Angry God'; you may perceive that the speaker is undoubtedly reaching for the audiences attention without sustaining his harsh yet fearful manner.... [tags: Edwards Sinners Angry God Essays]
Universal Themes of Womanhood Nora Zeale Hurston's "Their Eyes Were Watching God"
- In 1937, Nora Zeale Hurston published Their Eyes Were Watching God, a novel that forever changed societies view on women. Zora Neale Hurston’s character, Janie, portrays a black, southern woman, although she is black, universal positions of women play a key role in her development. Universal themes of women are reiterated and reinforced through the series of three marriages with three men. These three men play a role in Janie’s life long search for independence and soul renewal. Janie’s grandmother, Nanny, sparks the beginning of the journey through the search of her inner self.... [tags: Nora Zeale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God, ]
Love in Their Eyes Were Watching God
- Love in Their Eyes Were Watching God Love plays a very important role in Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes were watching God. Janie spent her days looking for love. She thought of love just as she thought of the elements of springtime: Sunny days, bright skies, a bee pollinating pear tree blossoms. She searched far and wide for this kind of perfect love. Logan Killicks couldn't give this kind of love to Janie. He may not have loved her at all. To him, Janie was just another working set of hands.... [tags: Their Eyes Were Watching God Essays]
Analysis of God's Grandeur
- As a Jesuit priest who had converted to Catholicism in the summer of 1866, Gerard Manley Hopkins’s mind was no doubt saturated with the Bible (Bergonzi 34). Although in "God’s Grandeur" Hopkins does not use any specific quotations from the Bible, he does employ images that evoke a variety of biblical verses and scenes, all of which lend meaning to his poem. Hopkins "creates a powerful form of typological allusion by abstracting the essence--the defining conceit, idea, or structure--from individual scriptural types" (Landow, "Typological" 1).... [tags: God's Grandeur Religion Gerard Hopkins Essays]
Shadowlands: Why Does God Allow Pain and Suffering?
- If God loves us, why does He allow us to suffer. The central question in Shadowlands challenges traditional religious and moral conventions. It is a question asked by many, with few satisfactory answers. Before attempting to answer the question, and explore its relationship to Shadowlands, let us first define the question, so its implications may be more clearly understood. At the heart of the question is a doubt in the goodness of God, "If God loves us". From the beginning it is clear that God is being judged and criticized by the question.... [tags: God, Tragedy, Suffering]
Comparison of the Gods in Homer’s Epics with the God of the Hebrews
- There are many similarities and differences between the Greek gods and the Hebrew God. These similarities and differences are revealed in the character and functionality of the gods. The revelation of similarities and differences can also be seen in man’s relationship to his god or gods. Homer was instrumental in documenting the oral traditions of the Greek gods in his poetry. Moses, the Hebrew leader, is attributed with documenting what he witnessed from God in the Torah. The Greek and Hebrew belief systems were established for the purposes of explaining the world we live in, the phenomenon in nature, and the existence and purpose of man.... [tags: Greek Gods, Hebrew God]:: 8 Works Cited
Ezeulu's Defeat in Chinua Achebe's Arrow of God
- Ezeulu's Defeat in Chinua Achebe's Arrow of God When the Umuaro people began to encounter the spreading European colonialists, most realized that the colonialists were not like their other enemies and that they could not be defeated in the same way. So, even those most fiercely opposed to the colonial presence at first eventually conformed to its power. However, Ezeulu, the tragic hero of Chinua Achebe's Arrow of God, was not the typical Umuaro villager. As the chief priest of the powerful deity Ulu, Ezeulu felt that he could be subordinate to no one and accordingly rose up in direct confrontation with both the colonialists and his own community.... [tags: Achebe Arrow of God Essays]:: 1 Works Cited
The Mother Daughter Relationship in The Kitchen God's Wife
- The Mother Daughter Relationship in The Kitchen God's Wife Relationships mold people's thoughts and the way they live their lives. One very important relationship is the relationship between parents and their children. Parents are the first teachers of children. The most significant lesson one learns from them is love. When a baby is first born it instantly will feel love from the mother. A mother loves and nurtures her baby while it is still in her womb making the relationship between a mother and her child stronger than any other relationship.... [tags: Kitchen God's Wife]:: 5 Works Cited
Poem Structure of God's Grandeur by Hopkins
- Poem Structure of "God's Grandeur" by Hopkins "God's Grandeur" is one of the few poems written by Hopkins during his service as a Roman Catholic priest. The poem shows Hopkins' love towards God and his love of sound. "God's Grandeur" is a sonnet that contains three quatrains and a couplet. This sonnet is reminiscent of the Italian sonnet in that it contains one octave and one sestet. In "God's Grandeur", the octet describes the way in which humans are destroying the world by not attending to the greatness that surrounds them.... [tags: Poetry God's Grandeur Hopkins Essays Poet]
The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
- The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy In The God of Small Things the twin’s mother, Ammu, breaks the laws that lay down ‘who should be loved, and how and how much’ when she has an affair with Velutha (an Untouchable). A relationship with an Untouchable is inconceivable in India, even today, as a woman would be expelled from her Caste if she were to carry out such an undignified act. Before this occurs Ammu is already frowned upon for being a divorced woman, a common view in Indian society, and returns home with her children.... [tags: The God of Small Things Arundhati Roy Essays]
The God Of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
- The God Of Small Things by Arundhati Roy Before going into the theatre “to see The Sound of Music for the third time” (35), Estha “[completes] his first adult assignment” (93). He goes to the bathroom on his own, while Ammu, Baby and Rahel accompany each other to the ladies room. This little detail about going to use the restroom foreshadows another instance where Estha will be forced from being a child into manhood. Ammu tells Estha to “shut UP!!” (96) because he was singing along to the words of the movies.... [tags: God Small Things Arundhati Roy Essays]
Saint Thomas Aquinas' Five Proofs for the Existence of God
- Saint Thomas Aquinas' Five Proofs for the Existence of God Scientific reasoning has brought humanity to incredibly high levels of sophistication in all realms of knowledge. For Saint Thomas Aquinas, his passion involved the scientific reasoning of God. The existence, simplicity and will of God are simply a few topics which Aquinas explores in the Summa Theologica. Through arguments entailing these particular topics, Aquinas forms an argument that God has the ability of knowing and willing this particular world of contingent beings.... [tags: Religion Religious God Aquinas Essays]
A Response to Nilofar Shidmehr's God Existed or Exists
- A Response to Nilofar Shidmehr's God Existed or Exists Introduction In recent years, scientists have come to the amazing discovery that the existence of carbon-based life in our universe is dependent upon a set of extremely improbable initial conditions. In their article, “The Anthropic Teleological Argument,”[1] Betty and Cordell lay out some of these conditions in cosmology and biochemistry. Had various initial conditions of the universe been slightly altered, life would have been impossible.... [tags: Nilofar Shidmehr God Existence Essays]:: 2 Works Cited
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The Fierce Wisdom Holiday Manifesto: Share it With Those You Love...
This is a bonus download for Cate's program members, but you can get the free version here -- hope it works for ya -- (p.s. she has a great 'Best Thanksgiving Ever Guide' you can grab there).
My vision here is you download the manifesto and email it to some close friends and family -- maybe print up 5-10 15-20 copies and distribute them at a couple gatherings this holiday -- just use recycled paper por favor! Could be something to talk about.
(Hey maybe even keep one for yourself -- I'll probably keep it folded on me -- and add your own to the list in the blank spaces. I've got a few more I'd like to add myself already... :))
Share this with your gang, and while you're here would you mind Tweeting this now?
;)
The Fierce Wisdom Holiday Manifesto:
1. There’s nothing in this world more valuable than your precious time; share it freely with the ones you love.
2. OCCUPY LOVE.
3. The greatest gift you can give us all
is to be Awake to who you really are
(and live your truth).
4. Each time you support an independent artist or creator,
an angel gets her wings and the world gets a little better
for everyone....
5. IF LAUGHTER IS THE BEST MEDICINE, A GOOD
SENSE OF HUMOR CAN HEAL THE WORLD.
6. “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” -Leonardo da Vinci
7. NO, YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU.
8. Since your heart is basically pure gold, you might as well give a little more of that and enrich us all...every piece you share brings infinite returns.
9. Every once in a while check in and inquire, ‘Am I walking in beauty?’ (it works).
10. It’s up to us to shape the new reality we seek
for the world. Instead of planning your holiday
shopping, take the time out for some deep reflection....
(How best might you express your appreciation for those
you love, without just buying more stuff?)
11. CONSIDER IT’S YOUR LAST MONTH ON EARTH.
WHAT WILL YOU DO DIFFERENT THIS TIME AROUND?
12. Sometimes the best possible thing you can do is just let go and enjoy -
you’re only human after all... (and, yes, quite divine).
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So, here’s the deal. Things are simply too crazy here at Drink of the Week for us to be experimenting with new cocktails over the next couple of weeks. I’ll spare you the details but they involve a cold virus with Dracula-like survival skills, a new and hopefully far more permanent location for Drink of the Week Central, plus the usual pre-holiday folderol.
So, how do you ring in the yuletide when it’s time for a bit of liquid refreshment? Well, the picture above may be a clue that I’m thinking nog. Eggnog might be a bit of holiday cliche but, you know what, cliches become cliches because they actually work and, if you make it fresh, eggnog really, really works. Yes, drink even a few of these ultra-rich, ultra-sweet concoctions and you’ll find yourself looking just a bit more like Santa in the weight department, but also in the area of cheerfulness. In other words, you’ve got to try this once. For me, there’s no better dessert drink.
If you’ve been reading DOTW for a while, you can probably guess how this goes. We start with what the pros these days call a dry shake. You combine the sugar, the egg, and all the liquid ingredients, in a cocktail shaker without ice. Shake vigorously, but be careful of the top of your shaker. Egg whites provide some extra chemical fun that can make the top of your shaker pop off.
Next, add plenty of ice and shake again. Strain into a rocks glass and top off with some ground nutmeg. The fancy people use fresh nutmeg and grind it themselves. I use the store-bought kind.
While some might be fearful of the raw egg, for the large majority of unpregnant healthy adults, the risks are next to zilch if you’re egg is fresh, refrigerated, and uncracked. You took a far bigger chance driving to the store to buy the eggs. Also, contrary to the assumptions of many, there is nothing slimy about a properly made egg or egg-white infused cocktail. It’s also a gazillion X gazillion better than the nog you buy in the grocery store, and I used to love that stuff. This is, however, a health risk in that it is both megadelicious and, as you know, megafattening. You’ve been warned!
If you want to lighten it up fairly significantly and still have a delicious libation, consider a recent favorite of mine, and a true but still obscure cocktail classic, the Flip. You can read my prior post or simply remove the dairy products, the vanilla extract, and some of the sugar from the above recipe. It’s less fattening and makes a lighter and more refreshing Chrismas treat. Also, if you’re getting over a cold like me, you won’t have to deal with the wonders of diary-related phlegm. Yum!
If you’d like something lighter still and more on the tangy side, consider creating your own tried and true variation on the egg-white infused whiskey sour, say the Chicago Sour, maybe substituting a port or sherry for the red wine float, or the Clover Leaf.
If you read up on your truly classic cocktails, you’ll find that, like sours and highballs, a flip is not just one drink but an entire category of drinks. The Egg Sour, for example, is actually a delicious hybrid of a sour and a flip. A sour, you see, always contains fresh lemon or lime juice. A flip always contains a raw egg.
Even if you’re a reasonably sophisticated cocktail sipper, odds are, the closest you’ve gotten to a flip is freshly made Eggnog, which is actually closer to a flip than you might think. Usually called a Gin Flip, Whiskey Flip, Port Flip, etc. the recipe really doesn’t change a whole lot, because it doesn’t really have to. I’ve gone on and on here about the wonders of egg white in cocktails; it’s no surprise, then, that a whole egg is no less delicious. Imagine a lighter, fluffier, more refreshing and somewhat less fattening version of Eggnog and you’ll be on the right track.
Combine the egg, booze and sweetener in a cocktail shaker. Use less sugar/simple syrup — one teaspoon or 1/4 ounce of syrup –if you’re booze is something sweet, like port or sherry. You can also use less sugar if you’re simply allergic to sweet drinks. (Cocktail guru Robert Hess, whose taste sometimes leans towards the austere, calls for just one teaspoon of sugar, even when your base liquor is gin; I think that’s going overboard, or underboard, as the case may be.)
Shake vigorously without ice to properly emulsify the egg. Add lots of ice and shake again, even more vigorously. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass, smallish rocks glass, or a wine glass. Top with nutmeg and toast our fine, feathered egg producing friends.
****
I’m giving you a fair amount of range on how to make this, but you’ll have to use just a little bit of your own common sense about your taste buds to make the very best of this. Since I have an admitted sweet tooth, the most surefire version of this for me involved only 1 1/2 ounces of a spirit and an entire tablespoon (three teaspoons) of sugar or the liquid near equivalent of 1/2 ounce of simple syrup.
In the case of port, however, I found that one teaspoon of sugar was plenty of additional sweetness. Flips have also been made using ordinary wine which presumably is less sweet than port, so I’d suggest using maybe two or three teaspoons with all but the sweetest wines.
I did find that using the full 2 ounces of whiskey with a tablespoon of sugar did result in a wonderfully balanced drink that was a bit less of a dessert, but that using the same amount of gin wasn’t as much fun as it should have been. At least when I tried it with some Plymouth Gin I’d just purchased, the boozy, tangier aspects of the gin overwhelmed the sweeter, very refreshing aspects of the concoction.
I had a similar problem when I tried a flip with just 1 1/2 ounces of 100 proof Knob Creek bourbon, which was simply overpowering where even 2 full ounces of 80 proof Basil Hayden had been just about perfect. On the other hand, the 94 proof Redemption Rye I tried, which is maybe a bit sweeter than other ryes, was also pretty perfect. I’m sure less expensive brands like Jim Beam, Evan Williams, or my old pal, Canadian Club, would also be pretty awesome.
Leaving aside the booze and getting to the real nitty gritty, I used a large supermarket egg in all of my adventures. While I have to note that all the usual raw egg provisos apply (if you’re immune compromised in some way, please use pasteurized eggs), I should also add that some of the older recipes call for a small egg, which are pretty hard to find these days. For me, however, while an extra large and certainly a jumbo egg would probably be too much of a good thing for a drink this size, a large egg is about perfect.
Also, a lot of recipes insist on using freshly grated nutmeg for the garnish. I have no doubt that any flip would be better that way, but I’m too lazy/busy to bother with that and I suspect you are too.
It’s perfectly fine to use regular grocery store nutmeg, which is what I did. I’d hate to think of anyone being intimidated into not making this drink, which is for the most part not much harder to make than a Martini or a Manhattan. Touches like fresh nutmeg are why we spend borderline absurd amounts of money for a drink in a great craft cocktail bar; they aren’t a requirement at home.
Finally, readers who read a lot cocktail recipes will notice I haven’t made any mention of adding cream to a flip. I contemplated trying this drink that way, despite the calories, because I’m sure it would be delicious. I decided not to, because I’m even more certain it would have been Eggnog.
I have a confession to make. Despite my enormous love of all things sweet and milk fatty, I was fully prepared to bale on what has to be the ultimate seasonal drink. I have to admit there were concerns for my waistline — you guys have no idea how much weight I gained as a child knocking back the carton based non-alcoholic stuff. Also, as I grew older, I usually was disappointed by the spiked nog I’d had at parties. Somehow, the booze always seemed to destroy the cheap and creamy charm of the store bought nog. It was like putting vodka in chocolate milk. (I’d rather have a shot and choco-moo chaser, thank you.)
Still, the real reason I was going to go AWOL on eggnog was that I was simply intimidated. I imagined fresh eggnog to be a very complicated drink to make; a drink that might even force me to break my no-blenders rule, classic drink though it be. The online recipes telling me that I had to start with a 6 or more eggs, separate the yolks from the whites and perform various operations on them only reinforced that assumption.
Then, however, I started Googling “eggnog for one” and a great revelation came to me. Really, all this drink is a raw egg — provisos and disclaimers to come — milk, sugar, vanilla flavor, and booze. I have to say that, even if I have a sentimental attachment for the gooey store bought stuff, this shockingly easy, if slightly messy, home made version beats that all to heck.
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The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability recently announced a new Funding Opportunity Announcement for joint research on smart grid and energy storage under the U.S.-India Partnership to Advance Clean Energy Research (PACE-R).
The DOE and the Indian Ministry of Science and Technology (MST) are each committing $1.5 million a year for five years to the expanded research effort–focused on smart grid and energy storage for grid applications. The U.S. and Indian private sectors will match the government commitments, resulting in a combined $30 million public-private research investment over the next five years.
“Smart grid and storage technology will transform how we produce and consume electricity, which has the potential to decrease carbon pollution by scaling up renewable energy deployment,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz. “Working collaboratively with India will accelerate solutions to drive down technology costs and improve grid resilience and reliability in both countries.”
The United States and India launched the Partnership to Advance Clean Energy (PACE) in 2009, aiming to accelerate inclusive, low carbon growth by supporting research and deployment of clean energy technologies. Efforts expanded in 2012 when DOE and MST jointly funded PACE-R with a combined $50 million research commitment focusing on solar energy, energy efficiency in buildings, and next-generation biofuels.
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Outliers (#50)
We live in a time that is not post-truth but anti-truth. The growth of alternative media and global communication presents a challenge to the hegemony of the Cathedral over our view of the world, and this is best reflected in the fumbling manner in which the Cathedral attempts to plug the holes in its leaking ship. Of course, half of the plugs spring a new leak ten minutes later, and two new holes appear for each one plugged. We live in a time of deception. But the energy that sustains that deception is petering out, bit by bit.
Red Ice on altright.com: The Stockholm Terrorist Attack is Only the Beginning: Here we see the strange doublespeak of the Cathedral. People are unlikely to believe outright falsehoods, so a number of deceptions are used. Obedient and devout Cathedralites will tell you that there are no attacks in Sweden; if you bring up a specific attack, they will claim that it has nothing to do with immigration or just doesn’t matter. The key is not to deny the existence of such attacks or say that they did not happen, but to keep from discussing or thinking about them at all.
Hunter Wallace on altright.com: “The Alt-Right doesn’t believe in the concept of the ‘Free World.’â€: we see here a confusion on the part of the alt-right. Trump was never the alt-right candidate, as the author of this article seems to think, and claiming that Trump was the alt-right candidate is, paradoxically a result of swallowing leftist propaganda about Trump! Notice how even this piece of Cathedral agitprop results in confusion on the alt-right when it gets past our radar. We wanted to believe that Trump was our man, so we believed that he was alt-right when the mainstream media told us so. Swallowing that belief has the consequence of creating division on the alt-right. What we need is to see Trump as a first step. And we can’t deny the realities of geopolitics, and the necessity of empire at the present time.
The Atlantic: The Rise of the Christian Left in America: one thing that evil does when it senses that it is being found out is to put on some incidental, skin-deep trappings of good. The Left will co-opt traditional things like religion in order to provide some semblance of order and meaning, as a desperate bid to maintain its power over those who are beginning to see through it. Again, this is a sin of omission, with religion being a simple lifestyle choice like driving a Mini Cooper, and with everything significant about religion being removed.
Jihad Watch: [Swedish] Truck jihadi had been in Swedish Security Service files: while we don’t want to scapegoat symptoms while ignoring the disease, it is useful to gather information that supports our claims, e.g. that diversity causes conflict. Sites like Jihad Watch, whatever their motive, can act as aggregators for ammunition of this kind. And the story here linked is a good study in more sins of omission, caused by social pressure. Why investigate a possible criminal if doing so will get you fired and blacklisted for “racism?â€
Jew Among You: “A group of youthsâ€: the media uses codewords to commit their sins of omission. We can reverse this, both by openly pointing it out, and by mocking it. “Should we let in more ‘youths’ from the Middle East?†By forcing an association between their codewords and the real deal, we can force them to change the language they’re using. When they are forced to change often enough, constantly creating new codephrases, their deception becomes impossible to maintain. People begin to sense that something is up.
RamzPaul: You Can’t Kill Or Censor An Idea: what ultimately brings down the Cathedral is the fact that, sorry guys, but the genie is out of the bottle. No amount of censorship, however subtle and sophisticated, can save the Cathedral from collapsing, because its foundations are rotten and crumbling.
Neocolonial: Deciphering Wormtongue: the phrase, “political correctness,†is wonderful because it gives a name to our enemy, thereby giving us a target. “Wormtongue,†for those speech codes that operate specifically by inversion, is another such word. These terms need not compete. Rather, they ought to proliferate. The more varied our terminology, the better.
Cernovich: Why the Fake News Is Losing: in case I haven’t driven home the point enough already, I’ll say it again: the Cathedral cannot maintain its control over thought and information against new technologies. The technologies in themselves do not save us, however, so it’s up to us to deliver the push.
Kid Strangelove on Mattforney.com: How Gamergate Leaked Into My Real Life: the time has long passed when deriding the alt-right as an “internet movement†had any merit. While it is important to do real-world activism, we must never forget that deriding something as an “internet phenomenon†is a cheap rhetorical trick that ignores the power that the internet has to shape the thoughtscape of our society.
Stuart Schneiderman: America Is Back in the Game: “For Russia, the Syria move may represent a rude discovery that the new American president won’t be the pliant partner that the Kremlin had hoped for. The biggest change in Syria since President Barack Obama declined to take a similar military step there was a dramatic escalation in Russia’s presence on behalf of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.†Remember, the libertarian dream of isolationism is not possible at the moment. Trump won’t make it happen, and Trump himself is only a small step on the way back to health, sanity, and an organic civilization.
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Friday, July 8, 2011
Law and Foreign Affairs History: A SHAFR Roundtable, part 4
My approach was a bit different from others on the panel since I come at the subject from the perspective of a legal historian who has stumbled upon foreign relations history in the course of my work, rather than a foreign relations historian newly interested in legal history. I began my talk by summarizing some of my research on law in the U.S./Mexico borderlands. I've been particularly intrigued by the changes in legal culture that we can see in the west Texas borderlands of the nineteenth century. What I have found is that there was a hybrid legal regime in place, where American law was present but practiced in Spanish, and where those of diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds served together on juries and in town and county governance. It all changed quite dramatically in the 1880s and 1890s, with the coming of the railroads. The hybrid legal regime was replaced by a segregated and stratified legal system, with Mexican-Americans pushed out of the administration of justice (a change that I chronicle in my articleLawyers and Legal Borderlands).
I am working now on a book manuscript which looks not just at this regime, but also at the broader nature of southwestern legal history in the nineteenth century. I want to trace what is distinctive about that legal culture; what were its influences and its contributions; what makes it distinct from other regions in the U.S. The foreign relations angle is an essential part of this larger story. A large part of what makes this region's legal history so distinctive is its proximity to a neighboring foreign sovereign. Here in my talk I proceeded to share three observations about the intersection of foreign relations, legal history, and borderlands, in the interest of opening up the general discussion. First, I have found that international politics permeate legal life along the border, not just political life. This makes the border a particularly fruitful place for studying the legal history of international relations. Along the border, foreign relations become not just a matter of conversations between distant elites but a matter of daily life, and they are interwoven in the local legal system. We see this in the regular practice of law: in the types of controversies that arise, the options available, and the ways that they are resolved. Importantly, we see it also in the perceptions of those who are not legal professionals. Ordinary residents have a surprising fluency with international law and foreign politics.
A second, and related, point has to do with the causal relationships between the local legal context and international relations. There is rich ground to explore here. In the late nineteenth century, the United States government struggled to control a fluid and resistant borderline. I would argue that part of what made this enterprise so difficult was the presence of diverse and distinctive legal cultures all along the border. In this sense, we have what I like to call the "many borders of the borderlands." The border was defined, for the most part, not by boundary markers and maps but instead by whether and how local officials did or did not recognize and enforce it. The third and final observation I shared during my talk deals with the distinctive interplay between international relations and borders. What I have found in my own work as well as in the work of others is a contradiction. Borderlands are often misunderstood, ignored, or marginalized by the sovereign power in the center. We certainly see this in the U.S/Mexico borderlands of the nineteenth century. I have found that during the 1850s in El Paso, for example, local residents had to step in to attempt to enforce the law and handle diplomacy, since the state was largely absent (see discussion of this in my chapter in this book). Contrast this characterization to another one: the border as a highly sensitive diplomatic space, where one misstep could lead to war and loss of territory. In this sense borders are overdetermined spaces, treated as vital instruments of the nation state. We see both of these narratives in the borderlands of the nineteenth century: sovereign powers in Washington, D.C., and Mexico City both ignored and obsessed over their shared boundary line. How and why could both of these approaches hold true? We continue to see these contradictory impulses along the border today, with the border fence being but the most recent example.
1 comment:
"It all changed quite dramatically in the 1880s and 1890s, with the coming of the railroads. The hybrid legal regime was replaced by a segregated and stratified legal system, with Mexican-Americans pushed out of the administration of justice...."
That's interesting. It reminds me of the transition described in Altina Waller, Feud: Hatfields, McCoys and Social Change in Appalachia, 1860-1900, in which the local population lost the ability to successfully resolve disputes once commercial interests began moving into the region to operate coal mines. In Waller's account, it was the court system's increasing reliance on the primacy of written documents, combined with the illiteracy of many of the original residents, that resulted in this shift (and led to the tensions that ultimately exploded in the famous feud).
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Interpretive Summary: Pear psylla is a major pest of commercial pears in North America and Europe. Scientists at the USDA-ARS in Yakima studied male attraction to female-produced chemicals. Male pear psylla of the winterform stage were attracted to odors from live females in the absence of the host plant, and also to freshly killed females, and female whole-body solvent washes. This study demonstrates that volatile chemicals isolated from the female insect are attractive to males. These results also provide the first evidence that pear psylla males avoid odors of conspecific males. The isolation and identification of the chemicals involved in male attraction represent the first steps towards the development of a lure for eventual use in monitoring and pest management.
Technical Abstract:
Pear psylla, Cacopsylla pyricola (Förster) (Hemiptera: Psyllidae), is a major pest of commercial pears in North America and Europe. Olfactometer trials have shown that males of both the summerform and winterform morphotype are attracted to female-infested host material. Additional work with the summerform morphotype has also shown that males are attracted to females even in the absence of the host plant, which is evidence that female C. pyricola produce a volatile sex attractant. Here, we describe similar results with the winterform, confirming for this morphotype that the female psylla rather than the infested host material is the source of the attractant. Male winterforms displayed attraction to odors from live females in the absence of the host plant, freshly killed females, and female cuticular extracts. The female cuticular extracts were as attractive as a comparable number of live females, suggesting that we were successful at extracting the components of the attractant with this procedure. All previous olfactometer trials with C. pyricola used the insect as the attractant source; the current study is the first to demonstrate that volatile chemicals isolated from the female insect were attractive to male conspecifics. Winterform males were also assayed to odors produced by conspecific males. We found that male psylla avoided volatile odors from live males, freshly killed males, or cuticular extracts of males. To our knowledge, these results are the first indication that males of any Psyllidae avoid odors associated with conspecific males.
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While technically a spoiler for those who have not seen lase week’s episode of Game of Thrones, there was little doubt that Jon Snow would return in some form. While he has returned to life, so far all we have seen is his eyes open and beyond that he might not be entirely the same. Vulture looks at some of the possibilities, including that his wounds might never heal or that he might not have his memories. They also speculate that his death might have terminated his vow to to the Night’s Watch which “shall not end until my death.” If so, this would allow him to take other roles, such as leading the North and/or returning to aide the surviving Starks.
Regardless of what happens to him, Kit Harrington is happy that he no longer has to lie to everyone.
Orphan Black started out the season with a bit of a reboot and simplification of all the various conspiracies. The show is always at its best in dealing with the characters as opposed to overly complex conspiracies. While Tatiana Maslany is generally the show, supporting characters do have a lot to add, such as seeing Donny and Felix posing as a gay couple as part of the investigation of one of those conspiracies. It got even better when Donnie called Alison to help him provide a sperm specimen with phone sex in yet another classic scene in this series.
Person of Interest returned for its final season on CBS. A sneak peak from Comic-Con is above. The AV Club spoke with executive produces Jonathan Nolan and Greg Plageman. Here is a portion:
The A.V. Club:Since the beginning, this show that’s ostensibly been about artificial intelligence is really about human connection. What’s it like to thread that needle and how has it evolved over time?
Jonathan Nolan: It’s a great question. And it’s a big challenge. I remember Greg and I talking from the beginning about the collision between the more esoteric ideas in the pilot and how we were going to draw emotions and humanism and a recurring interest from the audience out of all those ideas. There are a lot of ideas in the show, and it’s something I’m very proud of. It’s funny, it’s not a normal show for CBS, but people kind of found it, which is exciting.
That link between the big ideas of the show and the characters—we’ve concentrated on it so hard from the beginning, because we wanted to explore all these crazy ideas about the surveillance state, big data, and AI—and the collision of all of that on a personal level. And from the beginning, I’ve felt like there was a great connection there between big data and the kind of “normal” violent crimes that you find in a major city like New York. I’m just kind of fascinated by the idea of the collision of all of those things. But the thing that people keep tuning in for is the characters. Week in, week out, you’re looking not for ideas, necessarily, although it’s great when your shows have ideas in them, but for the characters to become extended family. Especially in broadcast TV, that’s what happens on that level: When you’re on weekly, your characters come back and you connect with them every week. So, as you said, threading that needle becomes the challenge throughout all five seasons.
AVC:One of the great things is how you were able to connect to The Machine, even on a very personal level. The Machine was gendered female, whereas Samaritan has stayed relatively genderless. Can you expand on that?
JN: I think the gender question, you know, they’re obviously connected. If you want to understand the impact that any SI, or super intelligence, will have—and it’s pat, but it’s accurate—but it’s as if there were no gods and we made them, right? God has often been gendered in the West in a masculine light, which is absurd, but it evolved sort of organically, talking about The Machine as a person. Finch always referred to The Machine as “it” or a thing, but for Root there’s always been more of a personal connection there, a belief in The Machine as a being. So her personification of it—sadly, in the West, we have to gender things to personify them—it seemed most apt that she would think of it in those terms. There’s also something else we’re doing with that: If you’ve paid close attention to the show and where we’re going, there’s a little bit of foreshadowing there as well.
AVC:It seems as though The Machine went through a rebellion phase when it really started to only speak through Root. Will this season be about The Machine becoming more mature in that sense and answering to everybody?
JN: I’m picturing a hormonal artificial super intelligence.
Greg, what are you thinking?
Greg Plageman: I think the interesting relationship for me is Harold Finch and his creation. And there’s always been a troubling conundrum for Finch, building this thing that’s so powerful yet that could overtake us. He’s never been quite comfortable with the idea of an ASI—building something that’s more intelligent than us and us expecting that we could still actually control it. So he’s always had that dilemma that he’s been grappling with, and that caused him to put a limiter on The Machine. What Root has always implored Harold Finch to do is take the gloves off the thing because we’re losing—we’re losing to a much more diabolical creation.
So I think the evolution of that relationship of Harold Finch and his machine this season, in terms of reconstituting it, and how it’s going to be different this time, it’s almost like, what’s the point? What’s the point, Harold, if you’re going to put a limiter on this thing all over again, as Root has always told him in terms of her wanting to let this thing go and to see what it can do. It becomes an exploration of Harold Finch’s character that I think the audience is going to find very fascinating.
AVC:Do you think that if we had been watching the team behind Samaritan from the beginning, rather than the team behind The Machine, that we would be pro-Samaritan?
JN: I think that’s one of the delicious things about what we’ve been doing with this storyline and where we’ve gone with it in this last season. I’m always most excited about and drawn to villains who have a point of view and have a plan. One of the most exciting things about The Joker in The Dark Knight is, he may be a villain in your eyes, but he’s the only person who hasn’t broken his own rules. Everyone else has, everyone else has corrupted themselves, but he’s in many ways one of the most ethical people in the film in terms of their own ideas. He had an idea, and it drives the story forward. We applied a similar approach here, but even more rationally. A lot of things that Samaritan espouses are believed by the people who work for Samaritan, the same way that I’m sure people who work for Facebook don’t believe that they’re working for the company that will destroy the world. But, you know, they are. And everyone gets through the day rationalizing their own existence.
GP: It’s sort of fascinating right now what’s happening in Russia with Putin’s control of the media and the way the everyday Russian views the West now or the United States. It just depends on who’s telling the story. There was a moment where Root met Greer and he sort of said these things to her: “You and I are not all that unalike.”
CBS has not decided yet about renewing Supergirl, with cost being an issue. Ideas being considered include moving the show to Vancouver and airing fewer episodes. It might also move to CW with the other Berlantiverse shows. (If necessary to make room for all the superhero shows, I’d suggest cancelling Legends of Tomorrow and airing Supergirl instead).
At ABC, it has not been decided whether to return Agent Carter or go ahead with Marvel’s Most Wanted. If they don’t air the second, I wonder if they would write Adrianne Palicki and Nick Blood back into Agents of SHIELD. With the way they were written out, it wouldn’t be hard for Coulson to decide he doesn’t care what the Russians think and bring them back–especially as they are operating secretly. We should have news on May 17 from ABC.
Needless to say, there has been a lot out in the past week on the Marvel Cinematic Universe with the release of Captain America: Civil War. To avoid spoilers I will postpone discussing this until a later date. Here is one link of interest–the backstory from the comics of the history of fights between Captain American and Iron-Man.
CBS All Access remains on track to begin the new Star Trek series in January, 2017. They will be releasing one episode per week.
Hulu will be showing a ten-episode miniseries based upon Margaret Atwood’s novel The Handmaid’s Tale in 2017. It will star Elizabeth Moss (Mad Men) had will be written by Bruce Miller of The 100. Miller will c0-executive produce the series along with Daniel Wilson (who worked on the movie version of the book), Fran Sears (The Sophisticated Gents) and Warren Littlefield (Fargo). I suspect they will also be releasing an episode a week as they did with the adaptation of 11.22.63.
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Video Nasties Uproar of the 80's Still Alive for the Wrong Reasons?
The days of censoring films for being too scary have gone, are filmmakers compensating with effects opposed to storytelling with regurgitated classics
Nightmare City: A Video Nasties Celebration - cinefamily.org
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It has been some time since the ‘#Video-#Nasties’ uproar of the early 80’s where a list of films that were banned for overly explicit, violent content. News reporters and commentators such as Mary Whitehouse who fueled the flames of moral panic that swept across the UK helped coin the term used to reference these films in 1982.
BBFC
In 1984 the video censorship act was implemented via legislation courtesy of the Video Recordings Act. The British Board of Film Censor (BBFC) enforced classification of all released film, spawning the age of “mum, can I have this” and “the ‘18’ rating refers to difficulty” that children such as myself used to tiptoe around these laws. Infringing laws stipulated with this act carries a hefty fine, the law being that it is illegal to supply, distribute or otherwise provide an unclassified video or similarly for classifications given unto anyone below the age of the certificate.
Disposition
The years that followed this act saw several major productions banned from distribution, deemed too obscenely violent for distribution. In recent years; productions such as 1975 Deep River Savages have been rereleased with alterations made to any form of animal abuse, depiction of real death in a none-educational context and rape scenes. These cut variations of these classic films can be seen as a positive result of the act, or indeed a negative if one is so inclined to believe that these films have no solid evidence against them to categorize them as a cause of a murder or rape. I personally believe individuals who feel compelled to do so use such notions as an escape goat, they have a predisposition to commit such an offence and do so on their own accord.
Predictability
So the BBFC continue to control what is deemed appropriate for our entertainment, nothing has changed here. I have however come to a recent epiphany while watching Stephan Kings IT. It seems to me that the days of screaming during screenings have passed, be it we are overly desensitized to the violence or what I am debating could be the real cause for our lack of interest. I believe we have gotten to the stage of technological advancements in film, with flashy CGI in films that the producers boast as a selling point, that it has taken away the essence of storytelling. We have come to expect fast-passed, CGI filled, adrenalin fueled rollercoaster rides where we follow a protagonists journey of making friends to seeing each of their inevitable demise until it is the lead character alone at the end which defeats the following evil to the point of which it is so predictable they practically write themselves. I am a firm believer in the use of practical effects as seen on 'The Thing' and n the recent 'Evil Dead'.
Imagination
It seems as though the list of banned films have been thinning out. The most recent examples have been banned for depicting scenes of sexual violence or animal abuse, and so they should. The days of ‘too violent’ seem to be passing, but is that due to our expectation of seeing violence; but what happened to the days of being afraid of the death and mutilation we didn’t see? As an audience we expect to see everything because filmmakers believe they have the technology available to make it so realistic that we are stunned by their computer-generated ‘wizardry’. This, even today, is not the case. Films such as Alien relied upon a solid buildup towards the reveal of the creature, the anticipation of which was only skyrocketed by piece-by-piece reveals of the creature that sparks our imagination. It is as though they assume today’s audiences do not posses the attention span to continue to watch a film without these aforementioned effects that they use to generate and show the antagonist within the first few minutes of watching. It is as though they have forgotten the power of the human mind and our fear of the unknown, perhaps hiding the villain once again would reignite our imaginations and produce a horror that would truly scare us again. #Reason
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Home:8 Bedroom, 5 Bathroom, Sleeps 16Location:Davenport, Florida, United StatesDescription:This 8 bedroom, 5 bathroom vacation home, located in Champions Gate is a great choice for your next trip to Orlando. The home is on a corner lot an...
Villa:4 Bedroom, 2 Bathroom, Sleeps 8Location:Davenport, Florida, United StatesDescription:Located on the golfing community of Highlands Reserve, this pretty one level villa is beautifully decorated and furnished and has plenty of space f...
Home:5 Bedroom, 4.5 Bathroom, Sleeps 10Location:Davenport, Florida, United StatesDescription:The Wilder Villa in the community of Calabay Parc, features two large master bedrooms both with en-suite bathrooms. The master bedroom is located o...
Villa:4 Bedroom, 3 Bathroom, Sleeps 10Location:Davenport, Florida, United StatesDescription:Looking for the perfect home for your family vacation? This is it! This beautifully decorated 4 bedroom, 3 bath home is located in the gated commun...
Villa:5 Bedroom, 4 Bathroom, Sleeps 10Location:Davenport, Florida, United StatesDescription:Enchanted Nights(Enchanted936Nto) - Details Await You In This Beautiful Home Enchanted Nights is a large five bedroom villa with its own private p...
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Villa:4 Bedroom, 2 Bathroom, Sleeps 8Location:Davenport, Florida, United StatesDescription:This lovely home sits on the golf course in the community of Esprit at Polo Park East. The home has 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 2 living rooms, 6 TV'...
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I'm an avid traveller and (non-judgemental) environmentalist based in Canada. I love meeting new people, sharing ideas, and have to been across the Americas, Asia, and even down to Antarctica.
If you're thinking of hosting me, just a few things to consider. Beside being a great conversationalist interested in a great many topics, I'm also a, shall we say, sensitive guy — in that I have some pretty strong allergies to furry pets, which sucks since I really love both cats and dogs.
Howie was an excellent guest, and our first guest with airbnb. It was really nice to have him during his first stay, and it's really special to have him back for a second stay right now. Howie is pleasant, respectful, and easy to be with. It's delightful to have a conversation with him!
Howie was a terrific guest and his stay was marked with great conversations and good feelings. He was very respectful of my space and needs, and his cheery energy was very welcome in my home. Don't hesitate to book Howie in your home, he is a charming and thoughtful guest. 5 stars.
Howie was a great guest - very courteous and lots of great conversations about life, politics, and relationships. Best of luck with all your adventures Howie! To any other potential airbnb host, Howie comes well recommended.
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Costco Is Banning Some People Who Take Advantage of Its Returns Policy. Here's What Will Get You in Trouble
One of the biggest perks of having a Costco membership is its generous return policy. The warehouse chain allows members to return almost any item at any time if they’re not satisfied with it.
“We guarantee your satisfaction on every product we sell and will refund your purchase price, with the following exceptions,” the company states on its website.
The exceptions are straightforward. Select electronics must be returned within 90 days. Diamonds must be returned within 48 hours with the original paperwork. Cigarettes, alcohol, and custom items are not accepted for return, and products with a limited life expectancy might have specific warranties.
While this generous policy might be a way to entice new customers to spend $60 on an annual membership, it has also left the retailer wide open to abuse. Stories on Reddit and Facebook describe shoppers returning things like a Christmas tree in January, an already-eaten steak, and an empty bottle of wine.
It’s up to the discretion of each store manager to make a decision on whether to process a return, which is why the occasional poorly timed Christmas-tree return can slip through the gaps. Costco does not specify on its website what would constitute a violation of the return policy and whether, ultimately, too many returns could put your membership in jeopardy.
But in a statement emailed to Business Insider, a spokesperson from the management team at Costco confirmed that there are instances where a membership could be canceled.
“In the event a member is not satisfied with Costco merchandise, the membership fees may be refunded and the membership canceled. This decision is made on a case-by-case basis and is at the discretion of each location manager. Additionally, memberships may be canceled due to abuse of the Member Privileges and Conditions,” a spokesperson for Costco told Business Insider.
Putting your membership at risk
Maryam Nicksolat, who had been a member of Costco since 2006, told Business Insider that she lost her membership earlier this year after she tried to return a printer she had bought in 2010.
Nicksolat said that the printer had issues shortly after she first bought it, but she didn’t get around to returning it until eight years later. Costco does not have a time limit on its return policy for most items.
As printers are outside of Costco’s exclusions for electronics returns, Nicksolat said she assumed she was within her rights to make a return at that point. But when she attempted to do so at a Costco store in Fairfax, Virginia, the cashier told her that she would not be able to, she said. A manager holding a list in his hand then told her that the return could not be processed because she had made too many returns, Nicksolat said.
According to Nicksolat, when she protested, the manager said that it was his decision and that he wouldn’t budge.
Nicksolat said she then called customer service and was connected with Jeff Long, Costco’s senior vice president of Northeast operations. According to Nicksolat, Long said Costco would be ending her membership and that he would be following up with a letter. The letter, which was viewed by Business Insider, informed Nicksolat that she would be losing her membership but would be refunded for the year’s annual cost, the printer, and the ink she had purchased.
“It is apparent from a review of your membership account that you are not happy with the products you have purchased from Costco, and we are unable to satisfy you as a member,” Long wrote in the letter.
Long did not return multiple requests for comment.
There seems to be a lot of confusion around Costco’s policy regarding returns and memberships.
In a call with two Costco locations in Virginia where Nicksolat had attempted to return two different printers, customer-service assistants told Business Insider that there are no limits on returns and that making frequent returns would not lead to memberships being revoked.
But Business Insider also called Costco locations in New York and Texas, where customer-service representatives said that the company does monitor the number of returns that customers make, and those who are making frequent returns of high-dollar items are likely to be flagged.
Nicksolat said she believes that over the course of her 12-year membership, she has returned one item a year on average, ranging from an unused TV and printer to various smaller food items.
The main issue for Nicksolat now, she says, is that she has items that she purchased before her membership was canceled and that she can no longer return.
“We went with Costco because we purchase a lot of home goods stuff. We have spent thousands of dollars in Costco. We are not talking about salad dressing in bulk or tomato soup in bulk, we are talking thousands of dollars,” she said.
Abusing the system
Generous return policies are a valuable perk for customers — but they don’t always work out.
In February, L.L. Bean announced it would be ending its legendary lifetime returns policy after some customers abused it. Now, items will only be covered for one year.
“Increasingly, a small, but growing number of customers have been interpreting our guarantee well beyond its original intent. Some view it as a lifetime product replacement program, expecting refunds for heavily worn products used over many years,” Shawn O. Gorman, the company’s executive chairman and great-grandson of founder L.L. Bean, wrote in an email to customers.
And earlier this year, some shoppers at stores such as Best Buy and Home Depot were surprised to find out that their returns were being tracked by a third-party company called Appriss Retail, formerly known as The Retail Equation. Appriss Retail has an algorithm in place to flag customers who are making frequent returns within a certain time period or without receipts. These shoppers then risk being banned from making additional returns.
These-third party companies are enlisted to help prevent fraudulent returns, which reportedly cost retailers up to $17 billion annually in the United States.
Several Costco employees told Business Insider’s Áine Cain that the store’s lenient return policy is the source of many tricky situations in the store.
“A woman came in and returned two dirty toilets that she had purchased online over five years ago,” a Costco worker who has been with the chain for three years told Cain in June.
“She ‘didn’t need them anymore.’ She didn’t even clean them! I’m embarrassed that we ended up taking them back, but we did make her take them outside and clean them before we did,” she said.
While some customers are clearly out to abuse the system, it’s undoubtedly confusing.
In one Reddit thread, a commenter who said they are a Costco member wrote that they tried to return a router they bought from the warehouse store seven years prior. The store manager told the customer that she couldn’t accept the return because it was too old, the commenter wrote.
Another Reddit user replied: “Are you kidding me 7 years? You were the reason why things cost ridiculously too much. The only way that anybody could make any call is if they charged triple what something actually needs to cost to cover returns for the rest of their lives.”
“You won’t find any sympathy here at all,” another wrote. “By far, the most blatant abuse of the return policy we’ve heard of in a while. Seven years? The nerve of some people.”
The comments continued: “Costco isn’t a rental service. Seven years is a reasonable lifespan for a router. This is a clear-cut abuse of the return policy.”
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Strong Words about Bacon Show
Remember the furor when Dale Peck anointed Rick Moody “the worst writer of his generation” in the New Republic a few years back? Or when James Wood said, also in TNR, that John Updike was so solipsistic that he might, at times, not even qualify as a novelist?
This month, it’s the art critic Jed Perl who’s hopping aboard the magazine’s trademark negative-superlative train. Perl returns from a Francis Bacon exhibition in New York to pronounce the artist “The Worst Painter of the 20th-century.”
Many critics, including the Globe’s Sebastian Smee, have mixed feelings about Bacon (although others consider him Britain’s finest post-war painter). But there is zero ambivalence in Perl’s take:
What Bacon produced are not paintings … They are little more than rectangles of canvas inscribed with nouirish graffiti: angst for dummies. Bacon turned his clever little quotations from the masters, old or modern, into the twentieth century’s most august visual claptrap.
Bacon’s essential problem, to Perl: he subordinated artisanal craft to “attitudinizing” and the fashioning of a renegade-artist persona. (In 1962, Vogue ran a photo of Bacon posing shirtless beside two animal carcasses; carcasses had appeared in some of his paintings.) Viewing an artist’s temperament, or the events of his life, as the source of an artist’s power is a fatal mistake, Perl suggests. It renders the work itself an afterthought. It can’t stand on its own. This is notably the case, Perl argues, with a painting that shows one of Bacon’s former lovers sprawling on a toilet, dying of an overdose (as actually happened): it relies on “tabloid frisson” for its limited power.
Bacon’s error of elevating biography and identity over craft is hardly his alone, Perl contends. It is, rather, a besetting artistic sin of our time.
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Faces of HR
VP of Employee Success at Reflektive Explains How HR Should Define and Defend Their Role
The Faces of HR column aims to acquaint our readers with various types of HR professionals and the many hats they wear. Meet Rachel Ernst, the VP of Employee Success at Reflektive and a member of Forbes HR Council. Along with several direct reports, Ernst is responsible for all 200 employees at her organization. Her 13 years of HR experience have shown her the importance of defining her role with leadership, drawing boundaries with managers and employees, and leveraging allies in order to succeed as an HR manager.
Rachel Ernst, VP of Employee Success, Reflektive
What got you into HR?
“When I was in business school and trying to decide what my career choice was, I thought I’d ultimately become a consultant. I did some reflecting about what gives me the most fulfillment. I realized it was in bringing a diverse group of people together. Even back in high school extracurricular activities, a lot of my time was spent leading a youth leadership group for the youth temple. I started it myself and brought a lot of people together in the process.
“In college, I was the founding member of a sorority. While that might have negative connotations, ours started a non-profit and we ended up becoming a 501(c)(3). I spent a considerable amount of time in college building this group; it was something that Jewish and non-Jewish women alike could come to, together. I served in a number of different leadership positions for that. Then we formed a board of directors.
“As a board member, my responsibilities included starting up organizations across the United States at different colleges. This entailed listening to people and helping them grow their leadership skills, establish themselves professionally, and practice conflict resolution. I understood that if you get a lot of diverse people together and try to grow something, there’s inevitably going to be conflict. Helping them prepare for and solve for that was a critical pillar of my job.
“When I was on the student leadership council in business school, I noticed that people would complain about the administration and what they weren’t getting instead of contributing. I would try to reframe the issue by asking, ‘What can we do about your complaints?’ and saying ‘Let’s create a forum for you to constructively share your concerns and try to address them.’ I was already naturally gravitating toward HR-related tasks by doing these things. While at business school, I talked to a career advisor who pointed out that a career in HR could be great for me.
“I hadn’t thought of that before; I didn’t know what working in HR entailed. I thought it was just payroll and benefits. It was that conversation with this career advisor that helped me reflect on my strengths and how to best use my experience.”
How do you work within the framework of leadership restrictions? If leadership is not on board with a lot of your ideas, for example, but you are still tasked with fixing company culture and employee engagement, what do you do?
“There are a few different things that you can do. I would begin by talking with other executives on the team. There are usually a few that are aligned on the importance of these initiatives. You can almost create your own committee of people to help you influence the highest leader. For example, someone could strategically talk to the CEO one day about the matter and another person could do so the following week. You build your group of allies that believe in the cause at your peer level—that’s the most important one.
“I’ve also brought in various experts to help influence leadership. For example, an expert in employment law to help explain that piece or someone who is well versed in executive coaching.
“And then, I also recommend having some form of management council. In one of my jobs, I put together a manager learning council, for which my task was to train managers. By forming a manager learning council, we could make more of a difference influencing leadership than if it was just myself. Build your allies and have your committees.”
Has there been anything during your time in HR that has given you lessons for outside of work?
“There are a lot. One of them is: don’t assume. Assumptions create a lot of the problems we encounter at work—problems such as not being curious or not asking questions to learn more about someone’s point of view and instead, just reacting. If someone says something that upsets you, you might come back at them because of your emotions in the moment. Instead of saying, ‘That’s interesting…can you tell me more about that?’ you’ll respond immediately. I see a lot of that happening at work. In my own personal life, if I’m frustrated with a friend, I’ll pause and ask them if they’ll tell me a bit more about that so I can better understand and not jump to conclusions. It’s a lot harder in your personal life than at work. Either way, you have to train yourself.
“The other one is setting boundaries. HR professionals probably have to do this more at work than in their personal lives. HR can be a catch all for so many things, so boundaries around how you define your job are critical. When Reflektive got a new CEO, I sat down with him and we talked openly about what my job is/how it might shift under his direction, as well as what the function means to the company. Setting expectations is a good way to set important boundaries.
“If you don’t set boundaries, people will come to you right away when they’re angry. You have to have and communicate a boundary about when it’s okay to show emotion and when to say, ‘You need to go and process that before we talk.’ I would translate that to my personal life, whether it’s parents or friends or significant others; having boundaries around your time and what is/is not okay. I think most HR professionals are very empathetic, so it can be hard to set and communicate boundaries…but it is essential to our wellbeing and our ability to do our jobs.
What is something that HR should get a lot better at?
“Being clear about the value they can add to an organization. Many people say, ‘HR has a more strategic role; they should have a seat at the table.’ You have to frequently reinforce why. I sometimes have to push to be included in strategic meetings around articulating vision and mission. As an example, if I’m early to a meeting, some people walk in and ask, ‘Am I in the right meeting?’ What they’re really asking is, ‘Why would HR need to have a seat here?’
“There was one instance in which someone asked, ‘Why would HR be in a meeting where I’m going through engagement survey results in my department?’ I thought that was intuitive, but I had to explain: ‘Here is why I am here and here’s the value I’m bringing.’ Sometimes it’s confounding that you have to do it, but you do, regularly, at all levels. We have to define what being part of a strategic role is every day.”
What is something that happened during your time in HR that you’ll never forget?
“When I was more of an HR generalist, there were two groups that were at odds with one another. One of the groups wanted to do a RACI chart (who is Responsible, Accountable, Consulted and Informed) because there were a lot of people stepping on a lot of toes. I worked with a partner to put together a RACI session between these two groups. I talked to both groups, conducted interviews, prepared diligently, scheduled the RACI session, got in the room…and one or two people showed up. There should have been 15.
“I was pretty frustrated, but the learning is that this was so far beyond a RACI conversation and indicated a much larger issue. It happened because one of the heads of the group said they couldn’t come to the session. And when the head isn’t going to come, their people aren’t going to come. Attendance is a communication of how much of a priority something is to you. Looking back, there was a huge lesson learned on the importance of spending more time with them, as well as submitting to the fact that the RACI session wasn’t what the group needed at that point in time. First and foremost, the two leaders of the separate groups needed to align. I didn’t want to move away from the original plan, but I needed the flexibility to understand that the more you dig in, you may find your original solution may not be the right thing.
“I learned another lesson when I first became an HR business partner. I was so excited to coach the executives; I had formed my client groups and was going to set up coaching sessions with them. I remember my manager saying to me, ‘Coaching doesn’t happen in coaching sessions. It happens every day.’ You have to go into every day thinking, ‘Wow, this is a coaching moment for me.’ Coaching happens in the moment. I think about that a lot, and I often have to switch my mindset to ‘I’m a coach, I’m an advisor, I’m an advice giver, I’m a sounding board.’ You have to think about what role you’re going to choose in any given situation.”
Would you like to be profiled in a future Faces of HR and share your experiences, challenges, etc.? Or, do you know anyone else in HR you think has an interesting story to tell? Write us at [email protected], and include your name and contact information; be sure to put “Faces of HR” in the subject line.
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“The Witch” The World’s Oldest Original Working Digital Computer Rebooted
An historic computer weighing 2 tonnes and built in the 1950’s called “The Witch”, has this month been rebooted after a three year restoration program to bring it back to life.
The Witch computer is now on display at The National Museum of Computing in Buckinghamshire, UK, but was originally designed an used at the UK’s Atomic Energy Research Establishment at Harwell in Oxfordshire.
The BBC website explains: “The machine first ran in 1951 and was known as the Harwell Dekatron – so named for the valves it used as a memory store. Although slow – the machine took up to 10 seconds to multiply two numbers – it proved very reliable and often cranked up 80 hours of running time in a week.”
The restoration effort was led by conservationist Delwyn Holroyd who said it was “pretty dirty” when the machine first arrived at Bletchley. Remarkably, he said, it had not suffered too much physical damage and the restoration team has been at pains to replace as little as possible. The vast majority of the parts on the machine, including its 480 relays and 828 Dekatron tubes, are entirely original, he said.
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Friday, 13 February 2015
Train Set Features
I thought I'd post a few more pictures of my Son's train set, last seen when I'd just finished the track-laying and wiring. The few buildings so far are Hornby, most of which came from my childhood train-set, they are nice and robust which is ideal for this situation. They are stuck to the board with impact adhesive for when the board is folded up.
A busy view with some favourite trains on view! Lots of brick walling will be needed.
I found my old car transporter wagon and loading ramp, which adds a bit of fun.
Joshua got given a PECO turntable for his Birthday, so we spent a little time putting the kit together. I'd left enough space for it, so it was simply a case of mark out the circle and cut out with a jig-saw.
The kit is easy enough to assemble, so soon it was in place and having the tracks laid. The turn-table track takes it's power from the approach track, but I have yet to power the spur tracks - I'm sure there is a clever way to power them from the turntable position but I'll probably use a rotary switch.
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Welcome to my Blog
If you are interested in model railways, particularly in narrow gauge, or small (micro) layouts, then I hope you will find this site interesting. I try to update it periodically with news of my current models and layouts, and anything else model-railway related (and sometimes not!). I usually model in 009 scale (1:76 or 4mm/ft using 9mm gauge track), although I have recently dabbled in 014 (1:43 or 7mm/ft on 14mm gauge track) as well. For more on my current and past layouts click the the links to the pages below. If you have any comments or feedback, do let me know!
About Me
I have been building model railways since I was a teenager, mostly in 009 scale though I have also worked in 00, and more recently 014.
I am a member of the 009 society (which is highly reccommended if you model in 009 or similar) and of the local area group of the society in Sussex, the Sussex Downs group.
Away from model railways, I am a chartered engineer working in the automotive industry, I am married with two small children to occupy most of my free time, and I am involved in the PA and technical things at my church. So I don't get a lot of time for model railway building!
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An SEO Company with Results that Work
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Pints & Curries
Is there a finer gastronomic combination than Indian or Thai curry with an ice-cold pint of lager? Pints & Curries from the chaps behind Bar Bar Black Sheep don’t think so! Clarke Quay is one of Singapore’s hippest, up-and-coming areas and Pints & Curries is a standout joint in an area full of cool bars and eateries.
The menu is packed-full of your favourite curries and their signatures include the delicious butter chicken, Chicken 65 (no-one’s sure why it’s called that), the tender Malai kebab and the Palak Paneer but whatever you choose, you’re virtually guaranteed a fine meal.
Are you a craft beer fan or do you prefer bottled lagers? Whatever your pleasure, there’s something for everyone including Brewdog Punk IPA and Little Creatures Pale Ale as well as buckets of beers for the boys and while you’re eating and drinking, you can’ fail to miss the massive screens showing live Premier League football.
First Stop Singapore is the ultimate guide to the Garden City. Brought to you by Singapore Airlines, First Stop Singapore brings you everything you need to make the most of your trip, as well as serving up a wealth of inspirational top ten articles, hidden wonders, expert guides and exclusive offers. With fresh new features from leading travel experts and brands every month, First Stop Singapore will open your eyes to the very best of this incredible city. So whether you're planning a South East Asia tour, a dedicated Singapore holiday or a Stopover on your way to far flung destinations, First Stop Singapore will ensure you get the ultimate Singapore experience.
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Author: TheRealLucasMangum
Violence against eyeballs! Death by acid! The Book of Eibon! Fabio Fucking Frizzi! Hear about all this and more as author and publisher Sam Richard joins Lucas to discuss Lucio Fulci’s legendary splatter flick The Beyond.
This collaboration between Ford and Hayward is a spooky Twilight Zone worthy tale gleefully infused with a heavy dose of dark humor. I fell in love from the first line and finished the book happy. The authors perfectly captured the nuances of a father-son relationship, laid the atmosphere on thick, and crafted some truly memorable scenes.
I will try to be better about putting my reviews here on my blog from now on. In the meantime you can View all my reviews on Goodreads.
I’m about to make what will likely be one of my final passes on Extinction Peak, my dinosaur horror novel. Some of my work comes from my subconscious and flows rather easily. This book was not one of them. I wrote the first draft almost five years ago. The version that exists today has only the title in common with that old draft.
Weirdly, this book will likely be more fun to read than some of my other titles. It relies heavily on world-building and action, not symbology and style. That’s not to say it lacks depth. If you’re looking for it, my thesis will present itself. That’s all I’ll say about that for now.
Jeff Burk made it official the Monday after Killer Con, so I’ll announce it here: Extinction Peak is set for publication in 2020 by his new press Section 31 Productions.
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Dedication: "This first issue of Kessel Run is dedicated to the end of hypocrisy, backstabbing and censorship in the world of fannish publishing in general and to the Princess Leia Organa in specific."
From the editorial:
You are now holding in your hot little hands, claws, tentacles, pseudopodia issue one, volume one, number one, Obi-Wan (sorry, I have a tendency to get carried away) of Kessel Run, a Star Wars fanzine scheduled to debut at MediaWestCon, May, 1981 (did we make it, huh? Did we?!) Henceforth, Kessel Run is sceduled to appear on a regular schedule of your guess is as good as mine....
Kessel Run is an all Star Wars fanzine (you mean, you couldn't tell?!) that will not center around any one character or type of writing. I'd
like for this zine to be as diverse as possible. I am looking for material of all lengths from one page vignettes to 100 page long stories (double-spaced, please. Pretty please. My eyes have a tendency to fall out at the sight of a long single-spaced story. ) I am especially seeking stories and series with fully developed cultural, political and philosophical back grounds with fully developed characters. Articles dealing with any aspect of the SW universe will also be welcome, as will humorous pieces and poetry,
There will be a letter column in Kessel Run #2, so please write and let me know your opinions on this first issue both pro and con. (Any typos in this issue are my fault and not to be blamed on my proofreader. As far as I'm concerned, Bev deserves a medal for staying up until 4 a.m. to proofread most of the zine.)
inside page from issue #1, Wanda Lybarger for "Soliloquy on a String of Beads"
inside page from issue #1, uncredited art, page 88
inside page from issue #1, Linda Yamashiro for "Departures"
inside page from issue #1, Yvonne Zan for "The Start of Something Big"
inside page from issue #1, Stefanie Hawks for "Dust in the Wind"
Reactions and Reviews: Issue 1
From LoCs in "Kessel Run" #2
Note: there are a lot of misspellings in the letters below, the ones printed in Kessel Run #2, and are by way of the authors or the editor.
The editor also notes in the zine that she received many letters of comment that she did not print due to lack of space.
For my part, as an artist, I was very pleased. The print was clear, neat and the reduction careful. Hats off to your printer for a job well done.
I don't believe I have any comments on "Old Comrade's Children." The only note that I do have to make concerns the changes Christine did make. Some of them were description changes, and the illos weren't- correct anymore.
Overall, I mist say, as I move on to "The Question," that I found rest of the Leia material to be quite on the note and full of insight. It's quite a surprise to see all the Leia material after all the stuff you see on Han and Luke. I really like the illo that g>es with it.
Skipping merrily along, I think I'm going to comment on the story I enjoyed most in the zine - "Toward A Corellian Conquest." It was fantastic!!! I loved it!! Of all the things I've read, this seems to be the one that has their characters right on the nose!!! I'm so impressed!! The banter, cynicism and attitudes that exist between Han and Leia are recreated beautifully and in character. The way the writer raised Rieekan from a one dimesional general to a three dimensional human being was great. I could even see him getting a bit of amusement out of baiting the Princess. His whole set of thoughts had me laughing. Hers concerning Han had me laughing even harder. It just seems to me to be the right mixture of authority, confusion and sarcasm. Bravo, Pat! Gee's illos are amazing. I am constantly flabergasted by the amount of detail she manages to pack into one picture. Astounding! Her collage for "Past Tense" is fantastic. There is something that's changed in her style since the last set of pictures I saw her do. There seems to be something much softer to the work, both in ink and pencil. It's beautiful...
"Soliloquy On A String Of Beads" is quite a little thought to go with. They're quite bitter, those thoughts, but very appropriate.
I really don't know quite what to say about Marcia Brin's "Start Of Something Big." For quite a while, I was confused as to where it fit in the SW universe, and it took me quite awhile to realize that she was just using SW as a basis. I think the next time Marcia might consider a preface to the story to explain this to the readers who may not be acquainted with her universe. I enjoyed "Dust In The Wind" a lot. Many people seem to have latched onto the idea of Han Solo being an Imp originally, and your story coherently puts some reasons behind it. What it doesn't show entirely is his development into such a biting sarcastic character. I hope we can look forward to seeing more of his development. Also hope to see more of Stefanie Hawks' works, too!! [1]
Congradulations on a very fine zine! Kessel Run I is a child to be proud of. "Corellian Haze" is the best of the 'after the Rebellion is over' Han stories. I'm glad Samantha doesn't have the Corellian totally monogamous with Leia. I don't think he is a 'one woman' man. although it's a nice thought, Leia running with Han after the war, I'm' afraid it will never happen. More than likely., Han will leave and she will stay. Also, I don't think Chewbacca will ever be seperated from Han,' no matter what.
"Delayed Reaction"... what can I say? Irene Shafer's story was incredibly funny, especially the part with Luke spreading jelly all over himself. This should be ranked with "Imperial Soliloquy." (Warped Space #44)
"Toward A Corellian Conquest" was a well-done story of the Ord Mantell tale. I like the way Pat has Han and Leia slowly gravitating toward each other or, rather, Leia gravitating toward Han, since he's been pretty much willing all along. TESB never shows us the growth of their relationship, only the final outcome. Something had to have been happening all those months prior to the attack on Hoth.
G. Moaven's illos are gorgeous.
"Past Tense" almost made me cry. I enjoy pieces that have other characters 'thinking' about Han, and this one puts into words all of our Corellian's memorable and much missed qualities. Again, G. Moaven's illo is simply luscious. It has to be. my favorite Han illo of the year.
"Soliloquy On A String Of Beads" by Wanda Lybarger again has one character, Leia, reflecting on Han's loss. How could I help but enjoy a story like that? I imagine Princess Leia would be thinking those very thoughts about now.
The thing I like about "Battle For Bespin" by Susan Matthews was Han's intervention with Veers, giving his old Imperial commander an honorable way out. I also liked Lando's reaction - kicking Han off Bespin. The poem was a bit long, but it was intrcately woven and leads up to the final action well.
"Wanderer" is the first poem I've seen about Han's military past. My only criticism is the use of 'Corelli' instead of 'Corell,' but since Lucas has never specified the spelling of Han's home planet, I guess it's up to the individual author. (Ed's note: I vote for Corell. Reader opinions welcome.)
Finally, "Dust In The Wind" is an extremely plausible story about Han's court-martial. You've taken all those little clues Daley's thrown out and woven them into a highly believeable tale. (Ed's note: I hope to interrupt letters as little as possible,since this is really the readers' page, but I do have to make one comment on this particular story. There has been a rumor floating around parts of fandom about George Lucas having seperate outlines about the backgrounds of the important characters in the SW saga. One of the rumors about Han's past is that he was court-martialed from the service. No reason, as far as I know, was ever given for this court-martial. The fact that Brian Daley's novel used this idea only strengthened my own determination to write my own version
of this court-martial.) It was so entertaining and stands alone so well, I hate to interject comments... Oh well, you've forced me... Daley's books, to me, seem to indicate that Han didn't become a smuggler until after the court-martial. In "Han Solo's Revenge," it says, "It had been Roa who had taken Han on his first, exhilerating Kessel Run -- very nearly his last." Earlier it says, "...Seeing them brought back a surge of memory of the fast, furious time he had spent working for Roa, when he had tired of trying to be just one more honest, unassuming spacer a few credits away from poverty, like uncounted others wandering the stars, having abandoned a planet and a life." Obviously, Han became 'dishonest' after the court-martial, after he'd left Corell. There are references in "Stars' End" to Han being a fighter pilot, and "Lost Legacy" talks about the Academy. Personally, I get the feeling that Han was at the Academy for two years, then in the military for several more years after ward, perhaps six or seven years in all. However, I don't mean to nitpick. That's one problem with the SW universe"- we're fed details so slowly. Fan writers set up their own universes, then are thrown some new info that changes everything. The "Aerie Cycle" stories are wonderful; I'm not suggesting that you change a thing. You've really captured the feeling of Chewbacca's love for Han and how Han would turn to Chewie in times of extreme distress as the only one who would truly care for him.
There are a lot of stories I haven't commented on, not because they were'nt well done, but they just didn't come off as favorites. All-in-all, Kessel Run I is a fine zine, and I'm looking forward to #2. [2]
Well, your Kessel Run #1 was great. I hope KR#2 will be out soon, this fall or winter.
Loved "To Kill a Corellian" -- a nice how done it. "Toward A Corellian Conquest," "Soliloquy on A String Of Beads" and "The Start Of Something Big" were all very nice, but then I am a Han/Leia fan, and I like to see them together. Just hope that GL will not break them up
in ROTJ.
Thank you for "Interpretations." I get so tired of people being out for Leia's blood all the time. They are getting as bad as the Han haters. I think some of it may stem from Han and Leia becoming closer (lovers?) I read the same reviews in Against The Sith #9 and could not believe someone could have so much dislike for a character they had only a few months before thought of as near angelic. If it is the Han problem, boy, can he ruin your rep, but, man, is he worth it! If it had gone the other way, Leia and Luke, I would have put it down to 'no accounting for poor taste,' and left it at that.
"Dust In The Wind" was the best in your zine. I always felt Han had to have some formal training some where, and that most likely would have been with the Empire. Being put out that way would tie in with his actions very well. But, I feel he was a fighter pilot. Why else would he know the real side of war? [3]
What can I say except... there was a suitably stunned silence. Congradulations on a fine zine. I'm sure you're very proud and, if you're not, you should be. It's hard to know where to begin, but I'll try. Cover art is excellent, especially inside back.., chuckle, chuckle. Good dedication....hear, hear. Living away from concentrated SW fandom [4], I don't come into contact with the problem. But, I am in other organizations, and why people can't be nice to one another and put personal differences aside and agree to disagree is totally beyond me. I thought that fandom was supposed to promote friendship. How about we cut out all the bitching wherever we are and concentrate on being nice?
The art in this zine is terrific. I would like to give Gee Moaven a big hug and kiss for the illo she did for my poem... but I can't, so I hope you'll settle for eternal and undying gratitude. All of Gee's work is wonderful, and I think fandom is priviledged to have her working within it. Dot Sasscer's work is also very pleasing, as is Cathye Faraci's — love the illos for "Delayed Reaction"— and I'm also fond of Wanda Lybarger's illo for her extremely involving piece. All the art is of a very high standard.
The fiction is also very good. There wasn't one piece I didn't like, although some is better than others. Chris Jefford's work continues to improve and improve. I rank her as one of the top three writers in fandom. Being primarily a Hanatic, I wasn't all that interested in early Luke stories,
but now I am, thanks to Chris' skill. Bravo. Irene Shafer's satire "Delayed Reaction" is wonderful. Very funny. "Toward A Corellian Conquest" is the first piece by Pat Nussman that I've read, and I'm impressed. (Ed; It's her first SW story, and I'm very impressed.) I think she shows a lot of promise. "The Last Dream" I found very disconcerting, since the first narrator who is talking in the past tense is killed and the story is taken up by another. I didn't like that. Kay Crist's "To Kill A Corellian" was pleasant, but too contrived, and the storyline is one that is too familiar for my liking. I don't like "Corellian Haze" very much. I think that Samantha Blackley could be very good, but it was all a bit rushed and a bit jumpy for me. And i don't think that would have been Han's reaction, either — lying around in bed, indeed! I'm very fond of Marcia Brin's work — the more I see it, the more I like it — and "The Start Of Something Big" I liked a lot. Marcia has a good imagination and command of the language, as well as the necessary feel for the characters. Michelle Malkin's "Dust In The Wind" created a mixed reaction. I like the ideas very much and I like the characterizations very much, but I think that the mechanics could have been handled better. I thought that there wasn't enough concentration on Han's reactions to his brother and girlfriend deserting him, and I'm a little skeptical of the drummed up charges. If so many people knew that it was a false trial, etc., I think someone would have said something, instead of being quiet. Still, the story reads well and there are some scenes that are very nice.
The poetry is good. I especially like Shafer's "It Can't Stay Winter Forever." Very touching piece of work. [5]
As a whole, I think the money I spent on Kessel Run well worth it. (I'm the one who bought the torn-cover copy, rather than wait. I'm glad I didn't wait.)
What I liked, to begin with: there was only one piece of fluff in the zine; everything else was well- written, coherent and well-plotted. Overall, the artwork was good — I am delighted to see that you have Gee Moaven artwork! I have missed her art very much. I used to buy zines solely because they had her art in them. "Toward A Corellian Conquest" was very well-written fill-in. Nice to see people who have Leia doing something other than sitting around looking ornamental. For the same reason, I enjoyed the "Interpretations" section and the letters in defense of Leia. After all, if Leia was sweet-tempered, super- intelligent and consistently right, we'd all be complaining that she was only a Mary Sue (forgive me, but I loathe that term. It makes me nauseated.)
Christine Jeffords seems to be improving as she writes, getting more technically proficient in her fiction.
"Battle For Bespin" — Susan hasn't written anything yet that I don't like, and everything she writes I love, so what else can I say?
"Dust In The Wind" — you did a nice job on the idea of Han having been kicked out of Fleet. I've read a couple interpretations of that, so far — they all seem to be similar in plot, but you handle character and the technical points with — well, ingenuity and competence.
The second category shouldn't be things I didn't like but things that didn't connect with me: Except for Susan's long poem, most of the poetry left me cold. It simply didn't make me feel anything — which is not necessarily the fault of the poet, only of my not liking that particular style. The artwork with the poems was universally good.
"The Start Of Something Big" was well-written, but something in the beginning of it did not get past my suspension of disbelief. I think it was Leia's simply wandering off like that.
"Corellian Haze" failed — for me — for that same reason. I don't think it's any denigration of Leia to let her be a Princess. There are a lot of men out there who feel their jobs are the most important things in their lives, and there are a lot of women now who feel the same way. I don't think Leia would give up her position for Han. Love and sex is nice, but the job's not going to get done that easily, and love and sex ain't gonna finish it. So shoot me.
"To Kill A Corellian" was, again, well-written as a murder mystery, except that I would have preferred a little more characterization on the murderer and an ending that was a little less easy and quick.
It read fine up until you got to the 'and then he turned himself off — and I felt like I had come in on the end of a joke.
The only thing I really did not like — again, this has nothing to do with the author's ability, only my tastes and reactions — was "Delayed Reaction." I don't like parody. I don't like Mary Sue parody. I don't expect everything written about the SW universe to be heavy-handed and solemn, but I prefer gentle nudges to outright slapstick. Uncomfortable as they make me, I prefer Paula Smith's sharp satires (not the burlesque ones, but the rather rapierlike ones she turns out) to parody. I don't have a sense of humor. I keep telling people this. (What does Lando Calrissian tell you when you tell him there's been an earthquake in California? "It's not my fault!" See? No sense of humor.)
The last thing, and this is neither pro or con: as mood piece, Wanda Lybarger's "Soliloquy" was superb. It also made me annoyed, vaguely angry on some grounds. I tried to draft a LOC about it. The enclosed four pages is the LOC that came out. (Ed: See "Superscription" by Deborah in this issue.) [6]
Congradulations on a fine first issue. You've set a high standard for Kessel Run. Good-luck on maintaining that standard. A minor complaint: the staples were set too close to the inside margins (which did seem a bit narrow) and it was difficult to hold the zine open comfortably for reading. I took it apart, punched holes closer to the edge and put it back together with paper fasteners — much easier to handle now.
On to the contents: I've never been a fan of Gee Moaven's — her usual style has been too ornate for my taste. But, this issue has turned me around. The illos in usual style are simple and lovely, and the Lando and Han pictures in a new style — WOW! Absolutely the best Lando I've seen anywhere, and the Han is nothing short of superb.
Cathye Faraci's inside back cover is delightful. I have to admit I missed Vader's fingers on flipping through the zine when it first arrived, and the second, closer look gave me a pleasant surprise. I also like her Yoda-biting-Vader cartoon on page 30.
Wanda Lybarger's Leia on page 86 is by far the best I've seen by her. Leia's expression is well-done— even without the text opposite, the feeling comes through.
Chris Jefford's "Old Comrade's Children" is a good leadoff story. I especially like her descriptive passages and the filling in of the characters' backgrounds.
Kay Crist's "To Kill A Corellian" is a good story with a good basic idea, but I can't accept her characterizations of Han, Luke and Leia. I especially can't imagine Leia turning to jello at the mere sight of Han or his manhandling her a la Rhett and Scarlett (or her putting up with it for more than a milisecond!)
M.H. Loughlin's "The Last Dream" is interesting in both idea and treatment. Samantha Blackley's "Corellian Haze" is, in my opinion, the weakest fiction in the issue. The idea is good, but I think it's poorly handled, and the Rhett-Scarlett ending is totally unbelievable.
"Toward A Corellian Conquest" by Pat Nussman, on the other hand, is excellent. I especially like her characterization of Leia (though I think there's too much repetition of how much alike she and Han are — a stylistic matter.) The description of Ord Mantell is interesting — not the sort of place I'd care to live! And I do like the idea of definitely less-than desirable types as allies in the Rebellion. Nussman shows a better grasp of political realities than most fan writers touching on this particular aspect (the various members of the Alliance.)
Lynne Terry's "New Beginnings" is just so-so.
Wanda Lybarger's "Soliloquy On A String Of Beads" is an interesting and sympathetic study.
Marcia Brin's "The Start Of Something Big" is most impressive! I like her matriarchalist switch on the patriarchal Lucas universe, and the explanation of Bail Organa's title. Her characterizations are fine and the writing excellent. After this and her "The Other Woman" in Hydrospanner Zero, I'm really looking forward to seeing more of her work. And, I do think this particular story is the best 'alternate universe' story yet. Hope she can keep up the high quality she's shown so far.
On to "Interpretations" and the rebuttals to the Against The Sith anti-Leia-ism. Rebuttals first. Thank you very much, all of you who contributed! I loved Leia from thefirst time I saw SW — my ghod, a strong, active (and still attractive!) female who doesn't go all Total Woman at the end! My
reaction to anti-Leia comments (a reaction printed in Alderaan) was and is basically the same as Marcia Brin's - if it were Prince Leo, no one would have blinked. She is a very complicated character, as Pat Nussman brings out and as Wanda Lybarger showed so well in her vignette, and is well worth the attention of fan writers who can appreciate a woman who is her own person, independent, intelligent, talented, and not inclined to swoon at the flicker of a male eyelash. I was sure she and Luke would be paired — she and Han would surely kill each other in a week! — but after TESB, I can see her and Han getting along — especially since he toned down a bit from the arrogant SOB of SW. Both of them changed and grew from the first movie to the second, and all for the better. Thanks for providing a multiple antidote to the poison of the Schlaflys and Marabel Morgans of fandom. I hope this section represents an ongoing editorial attitude (Ed: It definitely does!)~it's long overdue and desperately needed!
As for the interpretations of the three main characters' actions and words— all the variations are interesting, and I personally tend toward the last listed for each. The famous (or infamous) "I know" is really only open to one interpretation, if you are able to pay attention to his face and voice in spite of the usual audience reaction of giggles and loud laughter — he's acknowleging her feelings and letting her know that he feels the same way. But, he can't express himself anymore explicitely under the circumstances, with Vader, Fett, troopers, ex-friend Lando standing around, himself facing possible death, and fear for Leia and Chewie's safety (not to mention Luke, who's headed straight for trouble.) He's already shown himself capable of strong feelings of affection for a selected few, but he won't parade his feelings, especially in front of the enemy. Leia would understand what he was saying, even if the viewers think he's being snooty. And, that simple "I know" in that tone of voice and with that expression is so much more effective and in character than the original lines that Harrison Ford jettisoned.
This is a very interesting feature. Are you planning to continue it, possibly including reader feed back? Here's one reader who'd like very much to see it continued, and I'll try to contribute if that will encourage you.[7]
"Circle" by Marcia Brin: I loved it. Very logical and, I think, in character. Lando deserves more exposure and understanding than he's gotten so far. The Gee Moaven illo is breathtaking - the illo and poem together make a formidable combination!
"Delayed Reaction" was precious! The accompanying illos were perfect!
I'm a big fan of Pat Nussman's writing. Her handling of Han and Leia and the events of Ord Mantell was beautiful. Perfectly in character and the dialogue is right on the mark! I admire Pat's ability to handle Leia so well and to play the two of them off each other. I liked the use of Boba Fett in the story - another character deserving of attention!) Logically crafted, the story progresses to a solid conclusion. I'm looking forward to more of her series. Again, Gee's artwork Is the crowning touch - Gee has to be the best artist in fandom.
Karen Miller's "Past Tense" captures the poignancy, the pain that Leia must feel extremely well. Again, a Moaven illo graces the poem beautifully.
"A Friend's Hymn": Bev Lorenstein, as Karen captured Leia's pain, illustrates Chewbacca's grief. There's a sense of 'quiet violence' lurking in the background that captures Chewbacca's essence quite well. Yvonne Zan's illo illuminates the poem nicely.
Bless you for "Interpretations" (Ed: The original idea was Bev Lorenstein's.), a laudable exploration of motivations behind some of TESB's more controversial scenes and situations. You both did an excellent job of stating possibilities without trying to give the 'last word' on any of them. Too often, only the extremes are given attention in this sort of forum, and I'm tired of both impassioned defense and derisive dissection. How rare for the reader to be prompted to his or her own decision and how long overdue! More!
Likewise, thank you for giving Leia equal time in your zine. About time someone tried to balance AtS's fanaticism.
"The Start Of Something Big" - it certainly is Alterniverse. Interesting...Marcia never fails to give her readers fresh and innovative approaches. It's nice to see!
I think I could die for the Moaven illo on page 133! "Wanderer" does a nice job of exploring the Daley version of Han's past.[8]
I just got finished reading Kessel Run, and it was really excellent. I have a lot to say.... I do have some comments on "Interpretation." In regards to Luke taking the plunge to escape Vader, I agree with his decision 100%. It would have been so easy for him to just give in, to have his problems solved for him. I don't notice that Vader has to devote any of his precious time to resisting the lighter side of the Force. It required great courage for Luke to be willing to give up his life in order to deny Vader his victory. That Luke was able to make such a decision, even in his extremity, is evidence of tremendous bravery and moral courage. As to Han's "I know," since you were kind enough to number the possible answers, //3 is the one that fits my own feelings. There is no doubt in my mind whatsoever that he is deeply in love with her and she with him. Often such feelings don't have to be literally expressed to be evident. One can tell just by the way he says these words and the expression on his face that he is completely serious. Han would not make light of Leia's feelings at such a time, knowing the courage it took for her to make such a declaration. Lastly, on the subject of Leia, I'm a great fan of hers, and always have been. Those who point at her as being cold and unfeeling are being totally unfair. I think they are lovers (Leia and Han) by the time they reach Bespin, but you can see evidence of her softening attitude toward Han as they are preparing to drift off the back of the Imperial cruiser - lines that before might have been sharp are much softer, having lost their sting. I interpret Leia's looks at Han in the control room on the rebel base differently. I think I see fear there, fear for him, because she knows he is heading into danger, and fear for herself because she doesn't want to lose him. I must mention here that too much has been made of Leia's position as a princess. Of what? I just don't see her as a person who stands on ceremony or rank.
On the sickbay scene, Leia's kiss always elicits a lot of laughter from audiences here. I think she did it out of desperation, because Han had her dead to rights and she knew it. This was a defensive move, and she did succeed in leaving Han Solo speechless, which is no small thing! Yes, I do believe that Leia does truly love Han, and her telling him right in front of Vader and the rest is proof of this. I would not exactly call her tone of voice 'a monotone.' Again, since you were kind enough to number the alternatives, I go with #6. She does not stand there like a bump on a log; neither does she go completely to pieces, neither of which would have been appropriate at that time. It's obvious that Leia is on the verge of breaking down, but she knows that this will do neither Han nor herself any good. If she wants to get off Bespin in one piece, she must keep her wits about her. There will be time for tears later - maybe too much time. I agree with Lisa, Han has excellent taste. He has most certainly been around and has known a lot of women in his time. If he did not consider her worth the effort, he wouldn't bother. The love and courage that both Han and Leia show in TESB is one of the brightest aspects of the film.
The poetry was lovely. "The Question" was beautiful and very touching. Let us hope that something beautiful will come out of Leia's present despair. "It Can't Stay Winter Forever" - I know that Han isn't going to take this whole thing.lying down,if you'll pardon the pun. He's too much of a fighter for that. I also think that he'll be much calmer than I've seen in some other pieces. I particularly like the line about having friends you can 'trust' - I can't imagine to whom he's referring! Also the line "We could make everything happen" - absolutely, they are magic, both of them. "Circle" - I've always liked Marcia Brin's writings, and this was an excellent example. It actually made me feel sorry for Lando, which is no mean feat. I generally think of him as a hole in the ground that should be filled in and paved over. This poem does express my thoughts as to Lando's true motivations in doing what he did and how he must be feeling right now. I see him as being burdened with guilt, and if he does not do something to expiate it, it will certainly destroy him. At first, I thought that Han might never forgive him, but who knows? In any case,the question is can he forgive himself? "Past Tense" was also lovely. Karen Miller is another excellent writer. I know what she means about 'bursting with pride' in Han. I was, too. I should be so "brave.
All of the fiction was enjoyable, but I particularly enjoyed "To Kill A Corellian," "Soliloquy On A String Of Beads (this was a heart-tugger, and it had me in tears.) "The Start Of Something Big" (this is a very good alternative story, and I hope there will be more.) Last but not least, "Dust In The Wind" - all I can say is (expletive deleted (by Barbara)) those dirty names! It's a tribute to Han that he turned out to be a fine, decent human being in spite of everything; he managed to retain a core of idealism and a strong sense of right and wrong. More power to him. It was a good thing, too, that he had such good friends as Chewie and Vecra to turn to.
The artwork was great! I particularly like the cover, Han on pages 32, 76 (a special favorite - just beautiful) and 133; Lando on page 47 and Leia on page 86; as well as Gee Moaven's beautiful illos for "Toward A Corellian Conquest." There were two cartoons I got real kicks out of - Yoda biting Vader or page 30 and Harrison being dragged across the table (with Carrie in tow) because he forgot to let go of his blaster. Marvelous! [9]
I'm not one for LoC's, even if I enjoy work, which is unfortunate, and I'm trying to change that, as I feel that good writing and art should be appreciated vocably. We all need to know that our work is enjoyed. If people ask my comments, I do tend to give them (it's the editor in me) and I do try to make suggestions for improvements. So, here goes.
The cover is lovely.
Christine Jefford's story "Old Comrades' Children" was excellent. I presume she'll do more.
Marcia Brin's work: "The Question" was superb, as was "Circle." "The Start Of Something Big" is also very well done, and I hope that she has another chapter in the cycle ready.
Kay Crist - "To Kill A Corellian" - concepts fine, but there are a few inconsistencies that bother me, minor ones, though - like calling pants 'Jeans' - she'd do better to stay away from terms that so specifically connotate modern America. I realize that we need to couch things in terms we relate to, but jeans bothers me because the referent is so specific. Also, I cringe when people, especially other women, call Leia a girl - she is not a girl, despite age. Given the way of her life, I think that she is more than qualified to be called a woman. The use of the tern 'girl' in referring to women is_ something we women have to stop. It's a very subtle form of discrimination. This may be out of line, but it's a point that concerns me.
Irene Shafer's work - very nice, though I liked the poem better. Loughlin's "The Last Dream" was quite interesting. Nicely done.
Blackley's "Corellian Haze" - this story is okay, but it contains a pet peeve of mine in regard to SVi stuff. I read some early zines and abandoned them because writers, in an attempt to make Han seem like a lowlife, gave him terrible speech habits. There is an art to it, if people insist on putting slangy words in his mouth, I wish they'd read "Huckleberry Finn" to see how a master does it without making the character seem totally stupid. There is a difference between using coarse language because it is part of a role and using slang. If anything, Han would seem to be into coarse and not slangy teen-age type speech. Again, I may be going overboard, but it bothers me to see Han portrayed as if he was stupid and unable to form intelligible sentences.
Pat Nussman's "Toward A Corellian Conquest" - excellent, one of the best pieces in the zine. Bev Lorenstein's poem was quite nice. Lovely sentiment.
Wanda Lybarger's art and story - "Soliloquy On A String Of Beads - were superb. The story was probably my favorite, because it packed so much into such a short piece. I find the characterization of Leia to be one I'm quite in agreement with. Very nice. Hope she does more.
Your story - "Dust In The Wind" was really quite good, also. You accomplish the task of making Han young, inexperienced, etc., without resorting to every other word being "ain't" or some other form of slang. I felt quite comfortable with the blend of the youthful ignore-advice-because-you-have-to- try-it-on-your-own and the worldly Han who knew how things really worked and was wise enough to avoid trouble. He was a well-drawn character, I felt, as.-were most of the characters. I was a bit uncomfortable with Tarlo, because I am not sure that I understand his motivations for taking a liking to Han. I might add, though, that I am currently trying figure out for myself what makes people adopt others as proteges, and so I would be quite interested in seeing more of the why of this process. I guess what this all boils down to is that you did such a lovely job drawing the character of Han, I'd have liked to have seen more about what moved Tarlo to like Han. In the future I hope we see more of the things that led to the Chewie-Han relationship. Since we are all builders of our own universes, I think it's fun to create the -reasons why beings are drawn to each other. Plot-wise, I liked "Dust" and, of course, expect in the future to learn why the other two - Dav and Deryn - weren't around. I think it's important to add that as a reader your visual/word images of people and places were well-drawn and easy to see in the mind's eye - something I think is vital in a good story. Keep up the work on it. (Ed: At first I was going to leave comments on any of my own stories that I printed in KR out of the letter pages. Then I thought, why should I? I'm just as entitled to pro and con criticism as any other fan writer. Besides, if I didn't print these comments, people might stop commenting on my stuff altogether! Can't let that happen.)
Art - most of it nice, though I'm very choosey about art. I liked Dot Sasscer's, Wanda Lybarger's and of course, Gee Moaven's work best. I also like the small print, because it allows so much more to go[10]
I can truthfully say that Kessel Run is one of the best zines I have ever seen. I didn't like all of the stories, but none of them are glaringly bad. Favorite of the zine this time goes to Irene Shafer's "Delayed Reaction." I'm a sucker for any good comedy (technically, it isn't a satire, as you list it - not according to my anyway. Not that it matters.) (Ed: Terri is right. "Delayed Reaction" is a parody, not a satire.) And I love the "Frog Prince" twist at the end. I think Anthony Daniels would like it, too!
My two serious favorites are "Soliloquy On A String Of Beads" by Wanda Lybarger and your "Dust In The Wind." Somehow "Soliloquy" seems to capture the essence of Princess Leia, the human being. It can be very difficult to look behind the celluloid facade sometimes. Even more difficult is to portray clearly what is there, and Wanda did it.
I think what I liked best about "Dust in the Wind" is the feeling that you really thought about the plot and setting. Oftentimes a long explanation in a story is the author trying to explain to herself what she's doing. There's none of that sort of thing here. Enough details are dropped here and there about Imperial military life that I feel like I know what it's like.
Oops - forgot "Battle For Bespin." It's a marvelous piece.The language is casual but elegant, like the contrast between Han and General Veers.
I liked all the poems, as a matter of fact. Usually I don't care for free verse - too many use it as the easiest way to write poetry. But all the poets here seem to know what they're doing.
Now, I want to move on to "Interpretations." I tend to believe that Luke was not suiciding at all when he jumped from Vader. I base my belief on the look on Luke's face just before he jumped and the way he looked around himself. Even that could be interpreted in two ways, so let's look at both.
First, maybe he was suiciding. He looked about, saw certain death on all sides save one, where Darth Vader held out a hand to him. He knew what he had to do. His triumphant glance at Vader says that even here, where Vader thinks that Luke has only one way to go, Luke knows the right thing to do, even if it's dying for the sake of the Galaxy. Luke's jump is, therefore, a noble sacrifice. (And since, like Abraham, he was willing to make the sacrifice, he is spared the necessity of going through with it.)
Yes, that makes sense. But, let's try the other view. It seemed to me that Luke looked down - and saw a possible exit. That he felt he could control his fall sufficiently to survive. The Luke of "A New Hope" and TESB is, however, reckless - as Yoda will tell you with great feeling. He always seems to take the most daring route - straight into the detention area, across a chasm on a quarter-inch rope, into the trench full-throttle, up under the belly of a Walker - well, you know what I mean. I think he would have the derring-do to try a jump to freedom. When he looks up at Vader, it is as if to say, "Thanks for the vote of confidence. Pop (remember Vader saying, "You can destroy the Emperor. He has forseen this. It is your destfny.") — I'll be going now. And, I will destroy the Emperor, but not your way." The choice you see him making is still there - whether to keep his promise and somehow escape to get back to Dagobah, or to "choose the quick and easy path" by taking the black-gloved hand extended to him.
"I know" - My reaction to this line, the first time I saw Empire, was not anger. As I fought back tears at Han's fate, I thought, "You poor sap, you still can't express your feelings in words?" It is. hard, when all your life you've had to hide your feelings. Actually, one look into Han's eyes gives the answer, especially since the line was Harrison Ford's idea - he was, therefore, acting in synch with it, expressing what he meant the line to express. He loves her. The only way he doesn't express it is in words.
I don't feel quite prepared to deal with the question of Leia. I've read far too many negative opinions, and I feel tainted. I'm only just beginning to see beyond that - your zine has helped me immensely in that area. Please don't stop running positive opinions. I'm tired of being on the defensive. Besides, negative opinions are more illogical, I've found. If you're writing in fanzines, be a fan, not a critic (in the derogatory sense of the word.) Well, enough of that. Thank you, thank you again for the good words.[11]
I have so much to write about that I divided the list into categories. That way I'll be able to cover everything. Okay, onward. I have truly enjoyed Kessel Run. For a premier issue, it is fantastic, in fact. The only complaint I have is that, somehow, I ended up with two copies of page 22. At least the picture is interesting!
First Category: Stories - All were written with good plot, good character development and interesting ideas. I've seen SW and TESB enough times to have the character development down pat. When I read a fan-written story and I actually hear the characters saying the words in my mind as I read, I know the story to have good development and I enjoy it all the more. Among my favorites, "Toward A Corellian Conquest" ranks first. Pat certainly gives a plausible reason for Leia's glare at Han when he informs the General that he is leaving in TESB. "Old Comrade's Children" and "Departures" were both nice,plausible pre-SW stories. I enjoy reading fan fie dealing with Obi-wan. So much has already been written about the Kenobi-Vader confrontation that it is refreshing to read of what Obi-wan did afterward. He had to have visited Luke or seen him at least a few times before the fateful encounter.
Second Category: Artwork - Where have you found all of these talented and creative people? Don't lose them! Give them all my highest praise. I just love all the cartoons, too. The want-ad page was a scream. But my favorite cartoon was "Judge me by my size, will you?" Hilarious!
Third Category: The 'let's all stand up and be counted for Leia column.' A good idea and desperately needed. I love the SW saga; everything about it pleases me. I couldn't believe that Leia has been so maligned by some parts of fandom. I suppose everyone has their own opinions, but there is a right way and a wrong way to say them. What is so devastating about having a strong, heroine? Leia is greatly underestimated. She puts more work into the Rebellion than any of the others. It is her life now. And if she seems standoffish or cold, it's because she was raised that way. Persons of royal birth are taught from earliest age to be leaders and how to lead. To be effective, one's emotions have to take a backseat. Leia must make quick decisions, and taking time to question her emotions would be disastrous. Leia is highly intelligent. During the two SW movies, we've seen her program droids, fire blasters with the best of them, work at various stations in the Rebel Command Center, work on and even fly the Falcon. What else can she do? Everything, I'm beginning to think. So, let's hear it for Leia. Give her some credit for being an equal among the heroes. End of statement.
Fourth Category: The Interpretations column. It gave me some new ideas and food for thought. I admit that I actually never thought about the three topics chosen to the extent that you and Beverly did. I admit that I did think a lot about Luke and what he did. If I may offer a few words: I personally feel that Luke jumped to escape Vader, whether he intended to do it permanantly or temporarily. Either way, Vader embodies everything that Luke detests. Luke would never, ever let himself be taken by the Dark Side. If death was the only way out, Luke would take it. Even Vader's claim of fatherhood (which I personally do not believe) could not draw Luke to the Dark Side. I like the idea of the self-sacrifice, which Luke was doing anyway. Didn't Luke go to Cloud City with that idea in mind? He knew it was a trap, but he wanted to save Han and Leia. Well, at least that's how I feel about this topic. Fifth Category: Poetry - Of all the poems, "Circle" touched me the deepest. I believe that it clearly stated Lando's inner feelings and thoughts. Granted, Lando was an ass for not warning Han of the surprise awaiting him. And yet, he should have known better than to trust Vader, of all people. But, regardless of how people react his evident betrayal, I feel he truly regrets having done it. I don't think he'll betray the Rebellion; certainly not with Chewie constantly watching him. I feel that Lando won't dare rest until he has found Han alive and safely returns him to Leia. In fact, he may even want Han to beat the shit out of him! He knows he deserves it! Whether or not their friendship will be restored is another story. But after Lando's blatant betrayal of Vader, his life is forfeit. Lando has nowhere to go except the Rebellion, even if his being there is cooly received, and Lando knows his position. I doubt that he'll endanger if further. By the way, what was Lando doing to those controls that he didn't want Vader to see? (Ed: starting the thaw cycle? Maybe Boba Fett will be in for a big surprise.) He definitely had a sneaky look on his face while doing it.
Speaking of inner thoughts, "Soliloquy On A String Of Beads" was terrific. I've read it over and over. It helps me to understand Leia's complex personality, the one she keeps hidden. She is suffering, too, perhaps more than the other characters.
Well, I could go on and on heaping praise here and there. Kessel Run is just all around fantastic. And thanks for letting my ramble on and on like this. Frankly, I think GL knew exactly what he was doing when he gave us Empire full of questions and controversies. We have to have something to do until Revenge, don't we?[12]
Thanks for getting Kessel Run to me so quickly. I was really pleased, and I am glad to say that it was every bit as good as I had been led to believe. The simple quality of the zine strikes me first. I always notice that before I notice anything else, and I admit that it is hard for me to like a zine that is put together poorly and is quite apparently second rate material. I never found a flaw that got in the way of the reading and enjoyment of this zine.
"Old Comrades' Children" is well done. The only problem I had with the story is that the description and the technological information got in the way of the story at times. The description of the scene in the second paragraph of the first page being a prime example. Well done, yes, but you lose track of what she is talking about. I had to read the paragraph twice to get all the detail, and then realized that I didn't know what the story was doing. A little less of this might ha.ve_still accomplished her purpose and wouldn't have gotten in the way of the plot.
"To Kill A Corellian" - a story I thought a bit cliche'd at first. It was - or looked - so predictable. The Leia/Han scenes were extremely well vwritten, and I felt that Kay had captured the essence of that relationship better than anyone else I had been reading lately. The end, of course, makes the story, and while some may be tempted to cry 'Deus es machina' (no pun intended), I still liked it... primarily because she didn't allow herself to fall into the predictable ending.
"It Can't Stay Winter Forever" - Great! I have read the poem a dozen times and like it better each time.
The Last Dream" is a very well handled prequel. If a little predictable, it is still well handled, and I did find myself wondering who the character was in the first page. I know that was part of the mystery of the story, trying to figure out whose head you were in, and it was well done.
I didn't like "Corellian Haze" ... personal, I suppose. The story was well written and the scene where Leia discovers Han is injured is well handled; I could literally hear Leia saying those words. However, I just didn't buy the ending. I couldn't imagine Leia like that. And, while Han is the type to pick up and carry off what he wants, I just couldn't force myself to believe this one.
Pat Nussman's "Toward A Corellian Conquest" was fun. I enjoyed the action of the story and, again, liked the Leia/Han interplay. Basically enjoying action stories more than really deep thoughtful stories, I enjoyed this one a lot.
"Soliloquy On A String Of Beads" - Wanda has done something that no one else has ever done before; she has made me feel something for Leia. I have never been able to 'get into' the character before, as I had nothing to compare it to. I had no one in my life even slightly like Leia and couldn't understand her. This story gave me that understanding. Such emotion and such understanding in one simple page of print ... very, very well done.
"The Start Of Something Big" - I have not read any of Marcia's work before and, perhaps if I had, I would have liked the story better. I did enjoy the places where she worked our favorite lines into new scenes and how she clearly was relating the two universes. Not my favorite of the stories in the zine, but good reading at any rate.
"Dust In The Wind" - I enjoyed the relationship between Han and Chewbacca, feeling that it was the way the Wookiee would have started, and also enjoyed the fact that it inferred a life for Chewie before he met up with Han and became his partner. I know that Chewbacca is hard to write about and that there isn't a great deal of call for those stories, but I enjoyed the 'history' hinted at in the story.
I read the zine very slowly, it was the only one I had -- and would be -- the only one for a long time. I avoided the urge to sit down and read it all in one afternoon, as I am in the habit of doing.
This way, the zine lasted me a long time, and I believe that I enjoyed the stories more. But, Kessel Run isn't the type of zine that you can read in one afternoon. It isn't the action-based, thoughtless stories I have seen in most of the zines I have read. Instead, most of the stories left me with the feeling that I would have liked to know these people, and it also left me feeling that I wanted to know more about them, about their lives, about what lay ahead of them.
I think that is what I liked about SW when I finally became a fan. You almost KNOW what Kirk/Spock/McCoy will do after the stories all run out. There isn't a lot of doubt in anyone's mind what will happen in the end, and an alternate universe is nice, but it isn't Trek. In SW we don't have that problem. Yes, it is hard to imagine our heroes in some situations and, as I have pointed out, there are times when I can't see Han or Leia or Luke in a particular circumstance. But there are thousands of situations we can see them in and, especially after TESB, any number of ways that the main characters could go. We have the freedom to develop new characters, new lives without having to tie them to a Starship. Kessel Run points out all the best in the new SW universe and the diversity of its potential. [13]
From Other Zines
I could tell I had a good zine in my hands when I pulled Kessel Run out of the envelope. It has a crisp, professional appearance, generally good artwork, a compact layout, and no typos! At least none that I noticed, and that's the real trick. Most of the stories and poems in KR fall under two categories -- pre-Star Wars, and Han/Leia relationship... The Han/Leia stories and poems are all very good. My favorites were 'Soliloquy on a String of Beads' and 'The Start of Something Big,' with 'Toward a Corellian Conquest' running a close third. 'Soliloquy,' a one-page vignette with a lovely illustration by the author, is a poignant view of Leia examining herself as she tries to 'grow up.' The style and the mood of this piece are exquisite. 'Something Big' is an Alterniverse tale which goes into how Han and Leia meet in that universe, where the Republic escaped becoming the Empire and Leia is engaged in trying to thwart those who still want to overthrow the Republic. Its only real fault is that Han and Leia seem to fall in love too quickly. Otherwise the action is believable and exciting, and the background is described well enough to explain what's going on without getting boring. 'Toward a Corellian Conquest' deals with Han and Leia's developing relationship in the context of their Rebel activities on Ord Mantell. The politics are difficult to understand, but the characterization of Han and Leia are careful and excellent. Pat extrapolates their relationship backwards from the beginning of Empire and shows it developing in a credible way. The three Han/Leia poems, two by Marcia Brin and one by Karen Miller, are touching and lyrical, two from Leia's point of view and one from Lando's at the end of Empire. The story 'Corellian Haze' is a nice story with nothing wrong with it, but I didn't particularly enjoy it -- except for the end. Next came the pre-SW stories. 'Old Comrad's Children' has Ben Kenobi just after the fall of the Republic meeting young Luke, Han, and Leia. This story doesn't have much too it. 'The Last Dream' starts off with a long first-person soliloquy so that it takes a page and a half to find out the protagonist is Luke's father. It deals with his death, somewhat unconvincingly. 'New Beginnings' is a pleasant piece about Luke's first few moths before leaving Tatooine. It's nicely written, but one thing jangles -- [the author] gives him a lover on a nearby homestead and one wonders how he could just forget her such a a short time later to go off with Ben. The last two stories are decidedly better. 'Departures' is the story of a final expedition on Tatooine for Luke and his friends before Biggs' and Tanks' departure for the Academy. It has a good mixture of humor, adventure, and sadness and has good characterizations, especially of Biggs and teenage Luke. 'Dust in the Wind' is about Han's military service and the reason he left it to become a smuggler. The military background is sketched in well, and the characterizations are very good, especially Han, Chewie, and Han's turncoat superior officer. Immediately before this story is a poem called 'Wanderer' -- it seems to go hand-in-hand with this story. There are two stories and several poems that fall under neither category. First is 'To Kill a Corellian,' a somewhat boring murder mystery with sloppy characterizations and an unconvincing baddie. The zine's one comedy piece (besides the cartoons and the terrific inside back cover) is 'Delayed Reaction,' a hilarious parody of MarySues, the situation at the end of Empire, and -- believe it -- 'The Frog Prince.' 'The Battle for Bespin' with an illustration by the author, is an epic-style poem about the honor of an Imperial. It's short but also [the author] doesn't waste a line, so the characters and the central idea come across clearly and flawlessly. We even have some non-fiction in this zine. 'Interpretations' is a set of very well-thought-out questions in which the editor postulates some possible answers and calls for readers' responses on three of the burning questions in Empire -- why Luke jumped, why Han said 'I know,' and whether Leia is a 'bitch' or a 'feeling human being.' These issues are stated in a positive manner, quite the opposite from the attacks I've seen on the movie in some areas. Along the same positive vein are the pro-Leia responses, letters from assorted fen in response to Leia as a character and a person. I was very glad to see these -- I was beginning to think no one liked Leia, but it seems that this is because her attackers have been so loud and raucous... The artwork, as I have said, is mostly very good and it's reproduced nicely. The most significant contributions are Dot Sasscer's cover and Gee Moaven's several illustrations. The best thing about Kessel Run is its variety. The editor has made the most of her resources, and I think her zine has an illustrious future ahead. [14]
Kessel Run is a first effort disguised as a third or even fourth time around! There are enough stories of differing subjects to keep most fans happy and, although the zine is dedicated to Leia, it doesn't leave out the other major characters.
"To Kill a Corelllan," by Kay Crist, is a murder mystery set on the rebel base. It seems someone has been murdering male Corelllans, aged 25-43. Sound familiar? Hell, Han Solo Is a prime candidate for extermination and It's up to Lela, Luke and a rebel general to protect him. I liked this story, not so much for the plot, but because Han and Leia are well along In their relationship and are able to admit their feelings for each other. The murder mystery offers no real surprise or twist, but it's enough of a plot to show off the new loving relationship.
Samantha Blackley's "Corelllan Haze" has the Empire just being overthrown, and briefly focuses on the adjustments that must be made by Han, Lela and Luke. It's an Interesting subject that could be explored more extensively but this story does give us a brief look at Han's feelings at suddenly being out of place among the ex-rebels.
Pat Nussman's "Toward a Corelllan Conquest" Is a solid action-adventure yarn that has escapes, good character treatment, and a bit of romance. It deals with that fabled trip to Ord Mantell. I liked it In spite of the fact that I'm a Luke fan primarily and young Skywalker contributes little to the story. It was engrossing enough to make me forget this fact.
"New Beginnings" by Lynne Terry is a young Luke (age 19) story that deals with an entity rarely treated in fandom — Luke's girlfriend on Tatooine. I liked the romance here. Luke is mature and seems older than 19 when he's with Jessie and she's a nice match for him — loving, understanding and appreciative of his attributes.
Marcia Brin's "The Start of Something Big" Is an "Alterniverse Cycle" story, which means it offers us a different version of how Han and Leia met. This meeting takes place on a seedy planet; Leia is trying to hide from enemies. She runs into a cantina, sees a secluded corner table and slides in across form a certain Corelllan. What follows is an action filled story that pits Han and Leia against an evil Guild. There are escapes, bickering, romance ... well, you get the idea, something for everyone.
"Delayed Reaction" by Irene Shafer Is a spoof of a laughable entity — the Mary Sue disease — and the lampoon arrow hits the mark. It's quite hilarious.
"Dust In the Wind" by Michelle Malkin is a Han Solo court-martial story. I liked the story mainly because it presented a 21-year-old Solo and it was interesting to see what events shaped his personality into the Solo we meet in Star Wars, ten years later.
These are most of the major stories, and the others are equal to the quality of the ones I've mentioned.
Graphics are fine and the artwork is much more than fine. Artists like Gee Moaven, Dot Sasscer, M.R.O. Ludwig, Stephanie Hawks and others have made this zine a rare item — good stories and good art. The cartoonies (their word, folks) by Cathye Faraci are absolute gems.
I recommend Kessel Run wholeheartedly, be you a Luke fan, Leia fan, or Han fan but especially if you're just a fan of a good zine. [15]
Love's Mysteries, story by Pat Nussman, art by Wanda Lybarger (Han and Leia realize their feelings for each other on the ill-fated trip to Bespin. A definitive Han and Leia story and a classic of Star Wars fanzine fandom. PG13, contains some adult situations. Reprinted in Alliance & Empire) (194)
The Huckster Room, ads (79, 216)
There is a massive amount of art in this issue, a sample is below.
inside page from issue #2, June E. Edwards for "Quisling"
inside page from issue #2, Anne Davenport for "So Much for Reality, Right?"
Reactions and Reviews: Issue 2
This issue of Kessel Run is probably one of the better of this year's Media West Con crop. I have some nitpicking to do with many of the stories, mostly dealing with my own opinion and tastes, rather than anything objectively wrong with the writing. I recommend that everyone buy this zine and make his/her own judgments. First, though, let's touch upon artwork and layout. I often regret that I don't say more in my reviews about art; I have no training whatever in this area, I only know what I like and dislike. And I do l ike nearly every bit of art in KR 2 -- front cover by Wanda Lybarger, back cover by Cathye Faraci, story illos, portra1ts and cartoons by June Edwards, Anne Davenport, Carol McPherson, J.R. Dunster, MRO Ludwig, Stephanie Hawks, Judith Low, Dot Sasscer, and other good SW artists too numerous to name here, unfortunately. As for layout, it's clean and readable -- the variations in typeface don't bother me, though it will bother perfectionists. I simply wish that all editors who reduce print in an 8 X 11" zine would make products even more readable by using a double column format. Admittedly, this does take more time to lay-out. After the LoC column, the first story is "Quisling" by Deborah Laymon and Deborah Goldstein, another version of how Darth Vader was seduced by the Dark Side of the Force. It' s a well-done version, and there are some interesting speculations here about what the political situation in the Republic was, what the Sith were, how the Jedi were organized, and so on. Darth is portrayed as an idealist who became more and more disgusted by the corruption he saw in the Republic and among the Jedi, and was seduced by the Dark Side because it could heal his mortal injuries. This doesn't seem consistent, to me, with the real SW Vader -- an evil scion of an even more corrupt Empire. The first few pages of Jane Sibley's "So Much For Reality, Right?" made me think that someone had finally written SW fanfic's answer to One Way Mirror. A SW fan is transported onto the Millenium Falcon, and is subject to all the fears, insecurities and bumbling mistakes anyone suffering culture shock would have. It's written humorously, and I was enjoying it and then all of a sudden, she's in bed with Han and the story ends. I guess I'm odd, but to me this is, uh, anticlimatic -- I wanted more of the girl's adventures in accustoming herself to her new world. (Sigh. No One Way Mirror.) "The Life Day Peril" by Chris Jeffords is a story which takes the reader back to Kazhyyyk Chewbacca: s home planet. I enJoy Chris's depiction of the jungle planet and the Wookiee cultureand the stories she sets against this backdrop. This one shows Han and Chewie going to Kazhyyyk to avoid a ruthless smuggler boss whom Han has offended, only to end up needing to prevent several Wookiee cubs from being taken as slaves by this same smuggler. My only criticism of this story concerns writing style. Chris has Han going through long monologues, and Chewie doing a lot of mental soliloquy, to explain plot rationalizations which I'd already assumed or figured out for myself from what had come before in the story. Over-explanation is something I've noted in other of Chris's otherwise-fine stories; I wish she'd give her readers a little more credit for intelligence. I have no nits to pick with Wanda Lybarger's "Visitor's Day," a short-short which is an interesting variation on the "Owen and Beru adopt Baby Luke" theme. Now I'd just like to see Wanda do another one, showing how young Luke was taken by slavers in the first place! Sheila Paulson's "Mission to Garin" concerns Han's and Chewie's early partnership. Han saves Chewie from a dangerous situation, and comes to realize how much his new co-pilot means to him. This type of story has been done before, of course, and isn't all that memorable ... but it's done well enough and should be enjoyable to those interested in character and relationship development. Next comes Marcia Brin's "Close Encounters of the First Kind," one of her "Alterniverse Cycle" stories. The main story is a flashback, set within the framework of Lei a bring Han home to Alderaan, so that she can introduce him to The Folks and make him her Prince Consort. The flashback concerns the first time Bail Organa dealt with Han, as Space Corps Officer vs. Crafty Young Smuggler. Both aspects of this story strained my sense of credibility. (1) I can't see Alderaan's government allowing its Prince Regent (which Bail is for young Leia) to run away from his duties to become an intergalactic policeman. No matter how distraught said Regent is over his wife's death. (2) I tend to doubt that Alderaan's government would allow Leia to take a common smuggler as her Prince Consort. Seems to me she'd be forced to step down from her throne instead, similar to what happened in Britain earlier this century. Same inability to suspend disbelief extends to Marcia' s other story in KR2, "New Kid on the Block, where Han, now Prince Consort, runs rings around experienced politicians during a Battle of the Budget. In both of these stories, Han seems to be portrayed as too competent. He's very smart, yes-- but he's not perfect. Kay Crist's "Blind Man's Bluff" gets my applause mainly for being a story in which Lando Calrissian has dignity, instead of continually cringing and apologizing to Rebels who consider him the scum of the earth, so to speak. The story shows Lando and Chewbacca releasing Han from carbon freeze, and Han' s (understandable) trauma at finding that he' s lost his eyesight. Naturally, he tries to blame Lando, but Calrissian stands up for himself and, through a few well-aimed caustic remarks, breaks Han out of his self-pity. There is also an action-adventure element in this story. A problem with the plot resolution, which is perhaps a little too convenient, is minor compared to the interesting interplay of personalities in this story. "The Albatross' Blood" by L.A. Adolf concerns a Lando who is trying to cope with his guilt feelings over his mistake on Bespin. He does a lot of apologizing in this story, but it's mostly to Chewie's son Lumpy, who loves Han and at first hates Lando for his role in Han's capture. They eventually learn to understand each other -- it's a personality growth for both -- and the emotional tone feels deep and real, rather than being maudlin sentimentality. If you like cross-universe stories, you'll probably love "The Rest Is History" by Irene Shafer. It's "The Frisco Kid" translated into SW terms, with Han Solo and Avram Bulin instead of Tommy Lillard and Avram Belinsky. Although I found this mildly amusing in spots, I don't really have too much to say about it -- uniess extremely well-done, cross-universe isn't my bag. Sorry. "Reflections In Starlight" by Sharon F starts out with an "epic" feel -- it purports to be from The History of the Rebellion by Luke Skywalker. It ends up being one long, static scene, in which Luke and Leia sit and listen to a tape from Chewbacca, after Chewie and Lando have left to look for Han. The idea -- that Chewie has a more significant role in The Scheme Of Things than we think -- is interesting, but I would have rather been shown it in a story. I also probably would not have felt disappointment with this piece if it hadn't been given such a huge build up in the introduction. The last major story of the zine, Pat Mussman's "Love's Mysteries" ... uh, perhaps I'm not the right person to review this one, not being a fan of blatant romanticism. The story is sort of a retelling of TESB, filling in scenes we didn't see on-screen concerning Han's and Leia's budding love affair. My main problem with this one is that the author hits the reader over the head with the Great Love between the Smuggler and the Princess, instead of showing it mainly through dialog, character development, and the course of their lives. Their mutual affection seems to be the only thing they can think about, even after Han's torture by Vader -- when I, for one, would have been contemplating possible means of escape, ways of heading Luke off, punching out Lando, and other such mundane things. In general, I think this story would have been much better if it had been considerably tightened cut to half its length (at least). There are many other pieces which make this zine a good one, by Bev Lorenstein, Eluki bes Shahar, Judith Gran, Susan Matthews, Cynthia Shannon, Anne Zeek and Barbara Wenk, which and space does not permit me to here. Despite my criticisms which, again, are mostly personal opinion, I think KESSEL RUN 2 is a fine zine, and it should be part of every SW fan's zine library. [16]
Issue 3
cover of issue #3
Kessel Run 3 was published in 1983 and contains 295 pages.
R&R --story-- Martie Benedict ---10 pgs (Set before Star Wars: A New Hope. While taking a much-needed vacation, Han meets the mysterious Oracle of Keth and discovers she needs some help only he can provide.)
Act III , Scene1--story--Chris Callahan--9 pgs (A half-trained Leia Organa is called on to save Luke Skywalker when he is ambushed by Darth Vader. (written after The Empire Strikes Back, before Return of the Jedi)
At First Sight ---story---Pat Nussman---15 pgs (Han and Leia have an encounter long before the Death Star is built. What do child slavers and militant pacifists want with 6-year old Leia Organa and how did 18-year old Han Solo get involved?) (reprinted in Who's Scruffy-Lookin'?)
Skyfall---story--Anne Zeek---44 pgs (Will Luke fall to the Dark Side? Will the Vader defeat the Emperor? What is the secret of Han's past?)
Reactions and Reviews: Issue 3
All in all, I find Kessel Run #3 one of the best SW fanzines I have ever seen. Period. To me, it is basically a model of what zines should look like, of the variety a zine should contain, and of the tolerance for all sides which a zine should demonstrate. Bravo.,, its a real pleasure to read and reread this zine, and Kessel #3 is a must for any fan reader's collection. Listen--even if you don't generally get many zines, get this one.
Let's see--first, how it looks. A very striking Stefanle Hawks shadow composition on the cover—very handsome and gritty, A complete, concise and straightforward ToC (don't laugh -- ever noticed how sadly many zines leave out this consideration?) Very simple and eminently readable double-column reduced type. Saddle stapled spine. A dearth of borders (a sigh of relief here). Illos few and to the point, and always handsome with particularly nice work from Cathye Faraci, Wanda Lybarger, Nancy Stasulis, Judith Low and J.R. Dunster.
The most immediately surprising and delightful piece is by Fern Marder: "Han Solo and The Amazing Technicolor Lightsaber", a musical play pastiched from you-know-what. "How he loved his sword of many colors:/ In a class above the rest/It even went well with his vest." An absolute delight; one aches to see a full big-time production of this. Particularly Yoda singing the "Jedi Calypso" with a full steel-drum band back there. A sprightly rendering of a fun musical into SW usage—AND IT SCANS. Such lyrics, and all of them scan beautifully and singably. A real classic.
Pat Nussman has a couple of pieces in the zine which are also worth particular attention. "At First Sight" is about Leia as a small Princess on Alderaan who gets kidnapped by some vicious nasties due to internecine madness. Leia is very small, but is soon the terror of her abductors due to her sharp wit and mean bite. During the abduction, she happens to meet up with this really nifty Corellian boy... The characterizations are a delight; Nussman is particularly adept a deft point-of-viewing; she gets into the thoughts of Leia, Han, Rieekan et al, with great dexterity. In fact, I've decided to hate Nussman; she's one of those writers who make me wonder why I'm alive and making a pretense of scribbling. She has a aood future; if she doesn't go on soon to pro-writing, I'll really hate her. The Nussman piece herein which really makes me jealous is the vignette "Pavane", which follows somewhat upon "love's Mysteries' Exquisite. It has sentiment, but it is not sentimental slosh; it presents Han's and Eela's love as something truly believable—the love of a real woman for a real man—and yet has a real enchantment to it; all of which is handled with great restraint.
Pat Nolan presents a very wise and gentle story, "A Search for Truth", which deals with Luke's (pre-ROTJ) training by Obi-Wan and Yoda, where Luke eventually learns of the truth—and necessity—of his own darkness, which Is his triumph. Good work; this is one of the best handled Lukes I've yet seen.
Speaking of "wiser" Lukes, I was pleased with-Marcia Brin's poem "Dichotomy", with Luke's thoughts on dreams that Inspire vs. reality; a small war between optimism and pessimism. It's a pleasure to see Luke
grow up in fan fiction. It affords many of us to mature with him.
I have a quibble or two with Jean Stevenson's vignette, "Protector". Jean's technical ability is excellent; she has great flair with imagery. She needs a slightly tighter hand on the editing. At times, passages which could have been strikingly effective with sparer treatment are a little too melodramatic. Also, I think It would make part of a marvelous alternate-universe scenario; however eloquently Leia is presented, I have never felt that Leia was a woman who needed any protection.
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Patricia D'Orazio has a pair of stories in the zine, and both are excellent. My favorite of the two was "High Stakes", dealing with tough dame Sybelle Solo rescuing this little orphan punk from a tight situation...and ending up having to adopt him. A charming and tightly crafted piece; yet not so tight that Patricia doesn't have fun with the characters. Sybelle, in particular, is a plum character. The story has some of the happy-go-lucky feel of ANH. "The Ultimate Right" suffers a bit from too much tightness; also, Leia always seems to be a bit tight-lipped and nattery, and then steps In Han Solo who is always right, always wise and common senslcal. Why must Leia suffer in character whenever Han Solo steps in? She always, in the films, seemed to have eminent wisdom and sense. Still, Patricia worked very hard on the story, and it shows. Her ambition, her care for story structure and for stylistic spareness shows, and care always tells. She has a terrific future, I think.
There are several fan writers whose stories eventually develop greater thematic depth and richness of treatment than the films upon which their work is based. Anne Elizabeth Zeek certainly does this with "Skyfall". Some fan readers won't like it; it is ambitious and symbolically complex. However, Zeek can be especially proud of this effort. It works in legend, mythology, and symbolism in an almost Tolkienesque vein. It is simply a slam-bang story. It has a few flaws, which may be due to Its ambitious scope: the final battle of psyches either goes on too long, or else needs some sort of break in POV to provide relief and pacing: and Luke's soul-mate the Lady Kiara is only sketchily dealt with. However, while reading this story, I was filled with jealousy and went into a two-day sulk, which seems to be my ultimate sign of approval.
In fact, if that is my ultimate sign of approval, then there's much for me to be irritated with and jealous over in Kessel Run #3. Fine, fine writers, excellent artwork, judicious editing, design with an extremely steady hand, handsome yet not ostentatious or pretentious...God, I'm furious. This is worth a really good sulk.
All I ask is that Michelle hurry up and infuriate me some more with Kessel Run #4; such delight I've rarely known. [17]
This review is basically to "review" or comment on the artwork. As an artist myself, I feel most eloquent on this subject at times.
What amazes me most about KR3 is that almost everything was marvelous! Those pieces that fell short always had some strong point to redeem them.
Cathye Faraci's illos for "Beloved Enemy" were elegant, wonderfully posed and the ink work was clean and impeccable. Lukas' face on page 39 looked a bit odd, but drawing that angle of face is difficult, I know.
I love MRO Ludwig's artwork. Though she doesn't try for exact likenesses, the structure of the faces and their overall look "feels" right.
Her inkwork is also excellent.
Carol Walske's work for "Han Solo and the Amazing Technicolor Lightsaber" is amazing! Her lights and darks are placed well. They tell so much without using any detail. For those of you unfamiliar with the ways and techniques of artists, it is very difficult to imply an image only using strong blacks and whites. Carol has mastered this technique.
Her Han on page 58 is especially powerful.
I love Mary Stacy-McDonald's illo on page 71 for the mood it creates, but I feel she over works the ink technique. (I've noticed this in other illos she does - pity - I really like the way she draws faces.)
Ah yes - good ol' Ikeguchi! Forgive me - Wendy and I go back a few years and I like to razz her a bit. The illos she did for KR3 were done whilst at work at Universal Studios. She and I help each other out on our art, and I remember her showing me the illos for "Dialogue On A Starry Night," "The Solo-Wise Woman," and "Decision." The thing I like most about Wendy's work is that she pretty much makes everything up. Those Hans she draws are purely Ikeguchi, no photographs were relied on. (This is bloody hard to do!)
And now we come to Wanda. I am one of her biggest fans. Her composition is wonderful, as are her placement of lights and darks. But, best of all is her feeling and knowledge of the human figure. No, she doesn't always get every muscle correct, but it always feels right...the gesture, expression of the subject she is drawing is always on the money. This talent isn't something you learn by studying muscles and anatomy (not to cut down learning anatomy - I feel it is an integral part to understanding the figure.) To draw people the way Wanda does takes a special magic that comes with time and sensitivity. (I'm still waiting for it to come to me!)
Bev Swan's illos for "Thoughts In An Asteroid Cave" were anatomically incorrect, and did not capture the likeness of Han and Leia. You'd think with these negative remarks to make that I did not like her art. Emphatically not so! They are beautiful. The inkwork is so sensi tive and graceful that they far outshadow the flaws. I look forward to seeing more of her work.
I have never heard of Nancy Stasulis, but I'm mighty impressed. Her composition and inkwork are great. Is this lady a pro?
Stafanie Hawk's illo on page 129 is very dramatic and I like it very much. The only complaint I have about her style is that I think her technique (especially her inkwork) is a little sloppy. However, I think this is just me. She certainly draws well.
Joni Wagner's Leia on page 140 is beautiful. The only problem I see is in the areas where she crosshatches. This technique is not one of her strengths. However, this flaw is not any big deal and would only be noticed by a fuss-budget like me.
Cheree Cargill's Han on page 171 is drawn well and retains the likeness, but the ink- work is purely overkill. The hair is very good, though. (This sounds like a an odd compliment, but many otherwise good artists do dreadful hair!)
Love Judith Low's stuff. She has great concepts and I like her ise of pattern. She draws good heads, also.
Kathi Spivey, however, does not do so well on faces, but I like her concepts and com position and think her illos are basically successful because of this.
Debra Drake. I am really crazy for her art. I love the way she draws faces. I think she truly understands portraiture. She captures the soul behind the person. Ink- work and understanding of lights and darks are good, too.
The next artist in line is me. I generally liked my illos for "Skyfall," but I tend to get paranoid about my own work. I didn't rely on photos so much on these illos, so the faces turned out to be more "JR Luke" than "Hamill Luke." I worried that people would not like this, but those I talked to did, which warms my little artist-heart.
I left out a few artists in this LoC. Please forgive me for this. It's just that this LoC is getting too long. Those name I omitted also did fine work.
Well, to wrap it up, Great Job, folks! Congrats especially to Mickey who had to put everything together, and also deal with us flakey artists (I put myself at the top of the "flakey artist" list!) [18]
I just finished Kessel Run #3 and "Skyfall" really has me excited! It was wonder ful! And so was JR's work,
as usual. She's one artist who knows how to capture people and keep them in proportion - something I know is difficult.
Laymon can sure write, and Callahan, too. I liked "Beloved Enemy." In "Act III, Scene One," I didn't like how Luke was so weak, but at the same time I did like how human he was. I'm a Luke fan, but I do appreciate Han, and I really got a kick out of Fern Marder's "Han Solo and the Amazing Technicolor Lightsaber." Though I'm happy with ROTJ, I had sort of hoped Han would have the Force. I really liked Wendy Ikeguchi's Han on page 74 and her illos on 68 and 77. I enjoyed "R & R." "The Ultimate Right" was well written. "Witness For the Defense" was good and I'm not particularly a Vader fan. "A Search For Truth was interest ing and I liked the illos of Luke's parents. I liked the ideas about Han's past, but I'm curious to see what stories will be written after everyone reads Skywalkinq. "Moonflower Secrets" had a neat twist. I don't believe it for a second, but it's fun to see the diffi- rent possibilities. I loved Debra Drake's illo on 226.From here on gets into the interesting agreement on Han's past. First, I want to
admit I may be prejudiced because Luke's my first love. Even so, I had hoped for more about Han in TESB, but he did do a lot of growing. I also tried to remember that I had already seen TESB several times before I read any of KR3. But, I just couldn't swallow any of "Luke's Prologue." I've never seen Luke worship Han - he argued with him right away in ANH. I see a true friendship with mutual respect and it bugs me when some play Luke down so much. If you don't want him, have a reason for him to be gone. I love that scoundrel Han, too, but the SW saga is from "the adventures of Luke Skywalker." Now that I got my pet peeve out of the way, I did like "Han's Con" and Drake's illos for it were wonderful, as was the end of the story. I personally don't believe Han would be quite so powerful, but it's a credit to Zeek's wonderful writing that I loved every bit of "Skyfall." There's a lot of good stories and artwork in KR3, but you certainly saved the best for last. And if Zeek isn't writing original and getting paid big bucks for it, then I'm surprised. T loved the visual images of the Force, the threads and birds. Her use of words is what some do for music. [19]
Well! Kessel Run #3 was a giant book to be savored, its stories to be read one by one and thought about. It had a nice mixture of art, poems, stories and an outstanding example of writing I'll come to later; no actual stinkers, though there were some less favored pieces. The first story, "Beloved Enemy," has an interesting cast of well-drawn characters surrounding Vader, especially d'Loren and Ashtarre. Their devotion to the Dark Lord was well-portrayed and their personalities more vivid than the two lovers, Lukas and Jeheyn, with their atmosphere of "doomed love." It may be because I am unfamiliar with the "Black Saber" background that this story impressed me less than the simple mood piece "That's Your Uncle Speaking" which evoked sympathy for Owen Lars' love of the land's endurance. "Act III, Scene One" offered a Luke and Leia story showing them as friends and partners, something nice to see in place of romantic interest. Their contrast came with Leia being very much the wiser, older sister which is natural given her greater wordly experience. (Maybe that should be 'wordsly' in view of the number of planets she's undoubtedly been on.) "Speculation" and "Reassessment" rhymed just fine and Cathye Faraci's illos gave a good hint as to the two gentlemen's characters.
"R & R" seemed to be a funny droid story that was welcome as a change of pace from heavily dramatic pieces; of course Wanda Lybarger's artwork was pleasing in its strong, sure strokes. Eluki's art, too, has a fine, clean style and the funny storm-lawyers are a standout. Linda Knight's "Next Time" showed Luke's torn-in-two feelings and also his growing awareness that the Force isn't so simple to understand as he thought, and that shades of gray exist along with black and white. Pat Nussman's little spitfire Leia showed just how early that character's bravery and intelligence showed itself. Little Leia's thoughts sound ed just like any six-year-old's, while the "Mourners For Peace" idea was food for thought and grimly prophetic. The young woman of Pat's "Listener In Hell" showed the same courage and this short piece was graced by a lovely illustration by Joni V.'agner whose Leia looked like a determined idealistic 16 year old. "Witness For The Defense" did have an arrogant Vader matched by a woman who was fascinated by him but managed to handle their situation without getting burned. Courts-martial are something of marginal interest though, and I found myself wondering about the results of a Yoda-Vader confrontation after seeing Yoda use the Force for attack in the Faraci cartoon on page on page 167. "The Solo-Wise Woman" showed Debra Drake's grasp of worldly wisdom with a lilting poem. Pat Nussman's "Pavane" again displays her ways with a phrase, especially the image of a butterfly soaring free after its release from a cocoon. Like I said, KR3 is a longie, so I'll skip comment on the rest of the issue's offerings except to say that I was entertained. The one outstanding piece of work was Patricai D'Orazio's "The Ultimate Right." A thought-provoking theme, recurring motifs of Corellian princes and "never enough time," not to mention the emphasis on the Daughter of the Royal House's creed made
this an undeniable delight to read. The character's reacted as if their creator himself pulled their 'strings,' but the logically developed, engrossing plot was all Patricia's. Clans seem to fit right in with the Star Wars galaxy. The Solos are a right handy bunch of people to have on your side in a fight, yesiree. Nancy Stasulis' symbolism and clean style fitted well in this exceptional story. [20]
Just finished reading KR3 and now I know why Kessel Run is my favorite zine. Everything in #3 was excellently written, but three stories were exceptional. excellently written, but three stories were exceptional.
"Skyfall" by Anne Elizabeth Zeek (the author of my all-time favorite story "Honor Binds Me") was phenomenal. I have always felt that since Lucas created Dark Lords, there must be Light (or Bright) Lords, too. It was great to read that someone else also had that idea. Too bad that Lucas is into simple stories, because "Skyfall" would have made a fantastic end to the triloqy.
"Witness For The Defense" showed me that some one else out there does not believe that Vader is a machine. I was fascinated by the depth
of characterization that Carol Hines-Stroede gave the Dark Lord. Bravo} hope that she continues writing stories about him.
Again, too bad that Lucas opts for simple stories because "Moonflower Secrets" would have added an excellent twist to TESB, espe cially done as a flashback. [21]
This was a real big zine, so I will just go over what I liked best. Far and away my favorite was "The Ultimate Right." I really like Pat's style and her characterizations. The only thing I dis agree with in this story was the fact that I think Leia, in all likelihood, would have learned this lesson a long time ago. After all, assassination goes against the basic principles the Alliance is fighting for. I can't imagine Leia compromising herself in this way. I know she was fighting an inner battle all the way up till the assassination attempt, but that only makes her look wishy-washy. Without it, though, you wouldn't have a story. And, other than that, I loved it. If she could indeed have that sort of a dilemma, she couldn't have handled it any other way. The other part of the story, the smaller part, outlines her changing feelings for Han Solo and shows the beginnings of her affection. That was handled exceedingly well. Another item I really loved was "Han Solo and the Amazing..." You will probably think that I live in a closet, but what play was that based upon? (Ed's note: "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat") The play by Fern Marder was excellent. It was funny all the way through. I can almost picture the droids singing! It made me want to hunt up a soundtrack, so that I could put the worlds to their music. "High Stakes," too, was very good. Again, Pat's background on Han Solo is very good. I would rather read about Sybelle than that other mother. (What's her name?) If I seem rather vague, it's due to sensory overload from all the zines I bought a MediaWest. I do wonder, though, if Pat ever wrote a story which explained the reasons why Clan Solo hates Wookiees? Or a story telling how Han met Chewie and how the Solos reacted. I would like to read them!
Now, "Moonflower Secrets" was a great farce. I can't say honestly that I liked the idea of Leia not being Leia or that her relation ship with Han was a purposely arranged facade, but MS did have a real nice sex scene. I get a rush just remembering it. Thanks, Sharon.
"Apology" and "Han's Con" were both enjoyable, also. I like the way Jeanine comes right out with what she wants to say. You know, Jeanine, you don't hold back. Poor Lando!
I hope that you get a chance to read the novel "Lando Calrissian and the Mindharp of Sharu." The book really appealed to me. It makes Lando out to be quite a card! His struggle to overcome his inadequate pilot ing skills and his sarcastic cheerfulness endeared him to me. (Ed's note: PLease excuse the change of typeface. My typewriter is in the repair shop and I'm working with a loner with a tendency toward tangled keys.) After what Han had been through on Bespin, I couldn't believe that Lando would've acted that way in "Han's Con." I wish that Sharon had gone on to resolve matters
between Han and Lando.
And "Skyfall" - that was wonderful!!! It looks like Anne couldn't make up her mind who the Other was. What a nice story, though! Everything fell into place nicely. I guess from this story that you could be a Dark Lord and still not be evil, right?
"R&R" was also enjoyable. Everything that I've read by Martie Benedict has such light-hearted tones to it. I wonder if she ever considered writing Conan stories. She seems to like to get Han into 'pulp' type crises and then get him out again. Han rescuing a 'temple priestess' really sounds like something Conan would do.
If I went on and told you what else I liked in the zine, I might as well send you a copy of the Cargo Manifest, as you so cunningly call your Table of Contents. I do have to mention one other piece, though. "Wintersoul" - that was truly a wonderful poem. I especially loved the way Han recognized his own ice in the reserve of the Princess. That was touching. [22]
KR3 is a terrific zine and contains something for everyone. I think my favorite is "The Ultimate Right." At last a story that shows what being with the Rebellion is not all pomp and medals and heroics. There is a lot of hard work involved and some things are done that are not quite likable. Patricia D'Orazio has given us a Princess Leia who is more than just someone for Han to argue with or Luke to moon over. Patricia's princess is a real human being with feelings and emotions that some other writers would deny her. I thought 1 the story was well written, the situations
and characters quite believable. Leia went through all the mental gymnastics anyone else in such a situation would have, trying to justify murder with a variety of excuses and finally facing the harsh reality of that act. I also liked Patricia's background for Han Solo. Starsword, huh? Corellian prince, perhaps? I'd like to see more of her work concerning Han's past. Perhaps my only complaint is that "High Stakes" should have preceded "Ultimate Right," as it explained some of his references to his mother.
As for "High Stakes," I enjoyed it immensely. If Sybelle is any example, those Solos must be quite a clan. I'd sure hate to tangle with one of them in a dark alley. No wonder Han's managed to stay alive in a very high risk business.
I thought all the poetry was quite good, though I'm not much for it myself. I also liked the artwork, especially Wanda Lybar- ger's. Cathye Faraci's cartoons are always funny, especially her Vader ones - even an old groaner like the one about fall.
I was surprised about the several different ideas about the Other. Most of them favored Han to varying degrees (he was my choice, too) They were all logical, too, well thought out and put forward a good case for every one's favorite Corellian to be a potential Jedi.
Having seen the movie now at least half a dozen times, I can't say I'm disappointed, although making Luke and Leia twins was kind of a cop-out. We'll never know now if the Princess might have chosen Luke over Han - although any princess who turned Han down would have to be out of her mind! ROTJ is sure to provide a wealth of material for further fannish excursions into Lucas' universe. It will be interesting to see what comes of it all. I'm sure that the stories will be as excellent as they always have been.[23]
My goodness, KR is getting as big as Pegasus, and good withal. I'm so glad you printed LOC•s in #2 and #3, which are illuminating. Having received both those issues, I'll be including comments on both, since I don't think I ever LoCed #2. The layout in general is clear, and the only criticism I might give is that the gothic- style lettering in a few of the titles is horrible to read. Somehow SW accords poorly with medieval overdecorated script, even when when the setting is quasi-medieval in spirit.
"Beloved Enemy" by Laymon and Goldstein, shows definite improvement over "Quisling" in #2. The latter had Theme but was incurably episodic. I admit this was unavoidable, given the period of time covered.) The appearance of Sheresca D'Loren brings out the strong characterization and firm writing which are Laymon & Goldstein's recognizable style. The time sequence was still a bit shakey in "Beloved Enemy," but there was a good coherent story, with the author's usual unflinching acceptance of the universe's less pleasant aspects.
"Act III,Scene One" by Chris Callahan is nice, and unusually perceptive in assigning Leia's role, though for me it lacks the extra spark — humor? depravity? — that makes a story truly memorable. "R&R" by Martie Benedict, on the other hand, has the humor and depravity down pat, but is otherwise a trifle overwritten and definite ly overestimates either Han's charms (diffi cult as that may be) or Liramin's talent for idiocy. Not that I don't love Patannng's contribution to galactic religion, you under stand... and in Callahan's piece, I can really appreciate the picture of Leia acting both directly and sensibly for once in fanlit, I didn't really like "Moonflower Secrets" by [Sharon F], mainly for the overtalky style which kept the characters from sounding like themselves. The interesting premise of Leia being a substitute for for the younger Organa princess never quite developed, either. "Han's Con" shares the talkiness, though it does illustrate why Han had to stay with the Rebels, and I'm glad to see some atten tion on Chewie's feelings as an intelligent, aware being. [Sharon F]'s piece from mostly Chewbacca's point of view in #2 underlined this, too, and the Wookiee-as-Force-guardian theme, which is often neglected. Marcia Brin's "Run That By Me One More Time" is delicious, if a little stiff — but the image of a far-away galaxy's Professor Indiana Jones is simply irresistible! Her Alterniverse stories in KR#1 and #2 were good, too, and seemed part of the SW uni verse without forcing despite the altered history. I liked Cathye Faraci's de ightful Vader cartoons in both issues and the hotcha pic ture on page 110 of #2 - now why couldn't that have illo'd Nussman's "Sweet Revenge"I "Tete-a- tete" Karen Miller in KR#2, one of the most delightful pieces in that issue, manages to outshine any of its sequels in #3. Now that I stop to survey the issue as a whole, nearly every story in #3 that includes Han at all, seems to assume that he's (a) the 'other' or (b) of a strongly Force-talented clan or line, i.e., a very obvious candidate for the 'other.' A few stories, such as Anne Zeek's "Skyfall" are so definite about incorporating this premise that it works in terms of the story even if Lucas has shot the possibility out from under us in ROTJ. Many stories, however, seem to have stuck it in as a side issue to show how all-around important and great Han Solo is. Now, I have no objections to Han being shown as trusty, lusty, steel-sinewed, great in bed, and fond of Wookiee cubs, but unless it's integral to the writer's vision of How The SW Universe Is, Han as extravagantly Force-talented isn't really justified, even from ANH and TESB. Suggesting him as the 'other' just because he's there has all the conviction of suggesting that Sith are Wookiees in dis guise because both Chewbacca and Vader are tall. I know this is now a moot point (and I
Kessel Run 3 is a delight and a treasure. My very favorites were Patricia D'Orazio's twin stories, "The Ultimate Right" and "High Stakes." And I consider it extremely clever of you to have put "Ultimate Right" first, simply for the puzzle of Han's mother that the story presents to the reader as an added bonus. Then after the reader has enjoyed D'Orazio's skillful treatment of a very serious subject, and the reader has had a chance to decide for herself exactly what all the contradictory comment about Han's mother really mean, you give the reader the second story to either confirm or deny those conclusions. I especially like Sybelle Solo. She is truly a 'feisty Corellian' with more than enough redeeming faults to make her interesting. I particularly like the one about frequenting cantinas to pick up young cadets... This woman is exactly the kind of woman to have raised up the kind of son our Han has turned out to be. Great Lady!
"Run That By Me One More Time" by Marci Brin is also a treat. I have long wondered about exactly the thing she brings out so enter tainingly. What do you suppose future research- ersof our own universe are going to think of all the tiny fetish figures, oh, about four inches or so, to be found in so many of the dwelling ruins of that (this?) ancient time? Especially the ominous one masked and dressed in black... At any rate, the canonizing of
our heroes was great fun.
Pat Nussjnan's "Pavane" was one of the saddest most touching things I have ever read, as lovely a gem as the little holo in the story.
My favorite poem was Debra R. Drake's "The Solo-Wise Woman." Smart lady, one with whom I agree entirely. As for the artwork, I especially liked Nancy Stasulis' illos for "High Stakes, though I do have to admit an especial prejudice for the subject of said illos. And Debra Drake's picture for Pat Nussman's "Winter- soul" is beautiful, to say the least. Eluki's cartoons of the Legal Eagles From- LucasFilms are hysterical! The only two stories I had any trouble with were "Act III, Scene One" by Chris Callahan and "Hyperspace Interlude" by Joan Shumsky, ROTJ notwithstanding. Especially the latter. I just can't see Han as a Force-sensitive Jedi. Never could, even before ol' George told us that he wasn't the Other. Perhaps, I will admit, it is merely wishful thinking on my part. I think something of what makes Han the delight he is would be irrevocably lost if he were 'goodied up' in the Force.
I like scoundrels! The former story is less difficult to deal with, since Leia does, indeed, turn out to be Yoda's Other. But even if Yoda had not died in ROTJ, I think Leia would be more involved, more interested in, the political development of the situation than in settling down to a concentrated and deliberate study of the Force. She will, I suspect, leave that bit of Family Business to her brother.
It's a good zine, Michelle. Easily and quickly one of the best there is. I am proud that my name has, and will, appear in it. [24]
Kessel Run #3 was excellent! I especially liked Carol Hines-Stroede's story, as she captures Vader's personality with an insight no other fan writer has accomplished. Also, her style carries one along, continually interested in the tale she is weaving. It seems to me she could/should go pro.
Anne Elizabeth Zeek also weaves an excellent medieval sword & sorcery type tale of the SW sage which I very much enjoy. I do hope she has a submission for KR4.
[Sharon F]'s portrayal of Han and Leia's relationship in "Moonflower Secrets" was enjoyable and realistic. I think Han is more 'romantic' and caring than he likes to let on - and this story shows that part of him. Pat Nussman's "Wintersoul" finally let's us see a bit of Han's history and background. She also writes an excellent short story.
Laymon and Goldstein present a bittersweet tale which, in the end, captures one's heart - and the stylized art by Faraci definitely enhances
this.
As far as art, Wendy Ikeguchi definitely has Han down pat and I enjoyed Stefanie Hawk's illo of Vader/ Luke in "Next Time." And Joni Wagner - what can one say?
Actually, I enjoyed all the art in KR3 with the exception of Wanda Lybarger's illo for "The Falconer." The composition is good, but the head is too large, You claim that KR4 will not be as thick as #3. I hope you are wrong. It was delightful to be presented with such a wealth of "Star Wars", as I, for one, cannot get enough of it! [25]
Well, having plowed my way through KR3, it's time for a LoC -- my last for a while, thank goodness. This is like reviewing "War and Peace" in 25 words or less, but I'll do my best. Allow me to comment on the binding: did you consider doing it another way? The two outside staples are tending to pop out. Also, there is only one holding together the inside and if it goes, it could literally come apart. (Ed's note: A look at this issue's binding should give you an idea of what I think of last issue's binding. Plus, a number of copies got stuck together during last summer's heatwave, so no more shiney cover, either.)
Fiction: "The Ultimate Right" - I liked the way the author handled Leia's feelings on Alderaan, the whole question of the one or the few versus the many is such a sticky thing: it's a difficult decision to make. Still, you have to draw the line somewhere as to what you are or are not willing to do. I liked the glimpses into Han's past, his concern for Leia and his final decision not to stoop to any level to achieve her ends. One little thing I thought was amusing - Leia throwing the sword at Dorisoma's palace because "when Corellians were angry, they threw things."
Just when I was starting to wonder about the glimpses of Han's past, along came "High Stakes." Still can't figure out why Solo's don't like Wookiees so much. Maybe they have a complex because they're so short? Anyway, no one seems to remember what started it, as with all such feuds.Again, the little things impressed me - Han hitting it off right away with the Wookiees - the way Sybelle wears her hair - the idea of the starswords - and Han's translation of the Wookiee's remark on page 212: that Sybelle was the person who was going to save the person (Han) who was going to save the person (Luke) who was going to save everyone."
"At First Sight" was quite amusing. The relationship between Rieekan and Leia was sweet; he seemed like more of a father than her real one. Also worthy of note: Leia seeing through Han's bluff after they are captured - the way he comforts her when she cries, telling her it's all right to do so
- their touching parting - the 'revelation' at the end and Leia's reaction - and I was so surprised to see that homely adolescent surface at the end. It took a minute for that to register. "Moonflower Secrets" - Interesting back grounds for Han and Leia. However, I don't see Han as one of those people who feel that the end justifies the means. I almost expected him to say, "It's a dirty job, but someone has to do it." Personally, I feel
he has a rather high moral code and that he does draw the line, as in "The Ultimate Right." You have to ask yourself whether any ends are worth any means to achieve them.
"Han's Con" - well, I'm sure Han has moments of self-doubt just like everyone else, but this story carried this too far. There is no reason why he should feel like a failure after Bespin; he is resistent enough to bounce back without sinking into such depression. Also, while Lando is a charmer, I don't think he would go so low as to try to steal Leia. Where does the idea come from that Han is or has been a heavy drinker?
Poetry: "Han Solo and the Amazing Technicolor Lightsaber" - this was a lot of fun; I only wish that I knew more about the original play. I liked the humor - "We don't need a captain wearing day-glo," "Obi-wan had very few cares - That's because his body wasn't there - So to make an entrance with a flare- He forced it." The last verse was actually quite lovely. I liked the illustrations, especially the black and white contrast, and Han and Leia's outfits with the final verse - very Indian-like.
"Rieekan: Reborn" was beautiful, with some very lovely images. I think it was my favo rite poem. The last stanza was worth the whole poem. "Free Advice" - Han isn't getting any younger, maybe that's an impetus to settle down. And maybe he's found one of the dreams he lost along the way as well. Both of Pat Nussman's poems (or stories) "Pavane" and Wintersoul" were excellent. Maybe Leia was not the only one whose walls were being breeched, maybe she saw through someone's defenses as well. They both asked where spring was; as it turns out, it was just around the corner.
Artwork - Wanda Lybarger's work was great, as usual. I am also partial to Mary Stacy- McDonald's illustrations. Maybe they aren't quite accurate as to resemblance, but they have a lot of vitality and brightness, the people in them look alive. My other favorites: Joni Wagner's Leia on page 140 (how she has changed since SW!) Cheree Cargill's Han on page 170, Debra Drake's Leia and Han on page 247. The illustrations for "Skyfall" were also quite good, particularly the opening one. Speaking of "Skyfall," I don't know how I could have forgotten it, because it's close to being my favorite story. I got so caught up in it, the Lords and Ladies, trying to figure out what was going to happen next, what Han was up to, when people were dreaming and when they were not. I could even live with the notion of Luke's jealousy, because everything turned out so well in the end. It would have been nice to see more of Kiara. Anyway, a nicely done, suspenseful story, and very elegant in its way.
Guess that about covers it (gasp, gasp!) This zine just keeps getting better and better.[26]
It's rather hard to comment on Kessel Run 3 - there's so much of it. First off, the front cover is marvelous. Sure wish I could see the orig inal. And I just flipped over the little cartoon of Odie-wan Kenobi on page 13 - what a riot! Even my mundane friends found that one funny. The cartoons on pages 139 and 167 were a scream, too. You really had some lovely artwork for this issue. I could rave all day about said art, so I'll just mention my favo rites - Stefanie Hawks' drawing on page 120 and Eluki's drawing on page 91. Debra Drake's illo accompanying "Wintersoul" was especially moving (as was Pat Nussman's poem) and Mary Stacy-McDonald's Han and Leia on page 71
was just lovely.
Which brings me to the poetry in KR3. I don't usually comment on poetry unless it's really memorable. There were a number of memorable poems in KR3. [Sharon F]'s "Rieekan: Reborn" is a good example. I found it touching an very memorable. Marcia Brin's "Dichotomy" is another poem I really, really liked. It was certainly right on the mark in following Luke's possible thoughts. I also enjoyed "Free Advice" and "We Need!...What About You Need?" I liked "Questions In The Dark"- but I'm afraid my perceptions have already become clouded by ROTJ - Luke is Leia's brother, after all! But, ah, the stories of KR3 - what wonderful flights of fancy! Chris Callahan's "Act III, Scene One" was an inter esting premise considering what has come to light in ROTJ. The story seemed a bit rushed, though. "Han Solo and the Amazing Technicolor Lightsaber" was a little, uh, bizarre - but different (to say the least.) Joan Shumsky has writ ten a beautiful conversation in "Dialogue On A Starry Night," and Wendy Ikeguchi's artwork was nice, too. I've read this dialogue over and over and I still enjoy reading it.
It really rings true. "R&R" by Martie Benedict was a lot of fun to read and I always enjoy seeing Wanda Lybarger's bold art. Her art fits Martie's style of writing - bold and clear! "The Ultimate Right" ranks as one of my very favorite Han stories, and I liked "High Stakes" too. I sure hope Patricia writes more of these Han stories - they're great fun to read. And marvelously well- written, too.
I sure was glad to see another of Pat Nussman's Rieekan and Leia stories - "At First Sight." I especially liked her ending to this tale.. Her characterization of Rieekan was just brilliant. On the other hand, I found "Listener In Hell" a bit difficult to grasp. It just didn't sweep me up like most of Pat's writing does. "Pavane" is a good example of what I mean; it sort of reaches out and makes you 'feel' for the characters.
Speaking of feeling for the characters, "Witness For The Defense" is one of the best Vader character studies I've seen. Not to mention being one of the best dramatic pieces of fan fiction to come along. And I am not a Vader fan! Congradulations [sic] to Carol Hines- Stroede.
I found "Moonflower Secrets" very enjoyable up until the part where Han and Leia reveal their secrets - they are just too implausible to be believed. The ending also seemed rushed. I had the same problem reading "Han's Con" - I liked the story, but the ending was too rushed! (I really like the picture on 247, incidentally.)
Well, after you've waded through this 'short' letter, I bet you can't guess which story was my absolute favorite!
"Skyfall"! I love Anne Elizabeth Zeek's writing! I believed every word of this story - and I'd already seen ROTJ before I read it. The characters seemed real and alive and the action kept me on the edge of my seat. A lovely story to end a lovely zine. Congradulations on your continued success with Kessel Run. Sorry I forced you to read my messy writing just so you could know my likes and dislikes - just be glad I printed.[27]
When I pulled KR3 from the envelope and got my first look at the marvelous cover, I knew the contents would be just as marvelous. KR3 is just jam- packed full of goodies.
I enjoy reading most of Deborah Laymon's Empire stories. She always comes up with the most interesting, just slightly evil new characters. But, "Beloved Enemy" showed she could see the other side (i.e., the Alliance) as well. I think she carefully crafted Darth's doubts and hidden unwillingness to find Lukas. Lukas, on the other hand, showed his courage and love for Darth in a quiet but commanding way. In the end, all of these traits came to the surface. I was deeply moved. And how Cathye Faraci could make Vader's mask appear to show sorrow and grief over Lukas' body is amazing to me.
"Thoughts In An Asteroid Cave" is one of the best Han-Leia introspectives I've read yet. But the kicker is that after all their deep soul-searching, which I'm sure was a first for each of them, they came up with the wrong conclusions! A nice twist.
The two short stories by Patricia D'Orazio I'd say are two of my favorite stories in the zine. I liked "The Ultimate Right" be cause it is a very, very good Leia dominated story. Patricia has captured Leia at her diplomatic best, as well as showing her self- determination and how her upbringing on Al- deraan affects how she behaves as a woman.
If this isn't enough, she nicely works in how deeply scarred she is by Alderaan's destruction and her role in it. It was a let down knowing as I read that Leia would never assassinate Barragas. In fact, I would have been totally flabbergasted if she had killed him. However, Ermoan's explanation
of 'human mating habits' just blew me away! I roared with laughter. Mating habits indeed!
"High Stakes" introduces us to one Sybelle Solo, Corellian and free captain. What a character! I'd hate to get on her bad side. Obviously, Han has picked up several...er... habits from his adopted mom.
"Next Time" is an excellent conversation between Luke and his father. Luke's uncertainty about how to deal with his father is still very evident, and remained so into ROTJ. I wondered how Luke was supposed to kill Vader without falling to the Dark Side in the process. Yoda and Obi-wan kept hinting at this confrontation. But isn't vengeance a part of the Dark Side? Compare Luke's uncertainty to Vader's certainty about the outcome is nicely woven into the conversation. And, as ROTJ proved, Vader was right. Stefanie Hawks' beautiful picture on page 120 nicely compliments the story.
"At First Sight" by Pat Nussman lives up to her usual good standards. I have yet to read a story of Pat's that I didn't like. The basic idea for the story just tickled my fancy. Leia as a six year old was believable. So was a teenage Han who, with one look, could just melt a female heart. Even back then they made a good pair. Pat just loves Rieekan and gives his character further development in this story. I'm beginning to like him, too. What a pity he didn't appear in ROTJ. I suppose how Leia eventu ally 'fixed' Han is better left to our own imaginings. "Dichotomy" - I'm so glad that Marcia wrote this showing a very matured, wise young Luke finally getting a grasp on his life, the events that had led up to that point and the realities of life. Dreams are wonderful to have, but eventually they must be re placed by reality. Well done, Marcia.
"Hyperspace Interlude" - just from this brief short, I know that Han was a difficult stu dent for Yoda. And Yoda thought that Luke was difficult to teach! Anyway, I still feel there is something about Han we don't know about. After all, his background is less explored than Luke and Leia's. Back to the story, I think that Joan got Yoda's irritation with his former student down just right.
"Run That By Me One More Time" I just chuckled through. It was such a pleasant little story with just the right touch of humor. The funniest line was that stating that Leia Organa was a very tall woman. Tall in power, maybe. Anyway, I just plain enjoyed the story. And Yvonne's picture on page 233 is just full of little goodies (the staff of Ra symbol and all the interesting artifacts in the case.)
"Skyfall" by Anne Elizabeth Zeek is a real juicy story. Anne always comes up with such interesting mystic ideas. Opposites attract, and four components are needed to complete the whole, and this nicely uses Luke, Leia and Han as the fulcrum of the new order. The idea appealed to me. Once again Luke is the one who must overcome the most obstacles to achieve his goals. The The conflict between Vader and Han was well done, mostly with the help of Vader's insecurity. Finally, at the end, Luke gets the girl. It's about time! Good story.
Cathye Faraci's back cover was interesting, as was the one she did for KR2. Also, I have to add that Yvonne Zan's cartoon on the inside back cover was great. All those little Yoda's look so cute (Ed's note: and they all have their mother's nose, too.)
Once again, I know I haven't covered everything in KR3. If I did, I'd be writing till next week! Good luck on KR4.[28]
Issue 4
back cover of issue #4, Debra R. Drake
front cover of issue #4, Debra R. Drake
inside back cover, Yvonne Zan
Kessel Run 4 was published in 1984 and is 337 pages long. Wide black plastic comb (spiral binding).
From the frontispiece: "This last issue of Kessel Run is, like the first issue dedicated to the end of hypocrisy, backstabbing, and censorship in the world of fannish publishing. It is also dedicated to the hope that fewer fen will allow their dreamworld to become their only reality."
The Readers Blast Off (LoCs) (4)
The Legend of the Starbird, vignette by Kathryn Agel, art by Debra R. Drake (12)
The Dark Path, story by Pat Molitar, art by Carol Selemi (15)
There Have Always Been Leias in the House of Organa by Martie Benedict, art by Judith Low (28)
Reactions and Reviews: Issue 4
Speaking as as a delighted reader of KR4, Mickey, I'd say that you should clear off a place on your wall for another Fan Q award. This is simply far and away the absolute best SW zine this year! After reading it, I was reminded of the year Secretariat won the Belmont Stakes.... 36 lengths ahead of the pack. KR4 is in a class all by itself! [29]
How can you review coherently, and thoroughly, a 336 page zine with 15 vignettes, 9 long stories, 7 short ones, 4 articles, 18 poems, other assorted items of humor and filk, plus 116 pages of art excluding the covers? You can't, period.
Past issues of KR have been dominated by Han, or Han and Leia, and while they are certainly well represented in this last issue, there is greater variety of canon and fan characters. The level of quality among the longer stories is remarkably high with only one being comparably clumsy and lacking in coherence and characters "The Dark Path" by Pat Molitar). And, this issue has a story by Martie Benedict where I FINALLY see Han Solo swear a real, live, human curse word (not some fan-invented Corellian curse)! On to the major pieces. "Born to the Breed" by Deborahs Laymon and Goldstein is yet another installment in their "Black Sabre" series, set before ANH. The focus is Leia's education in interrogation endurance. Her teacher is a former Imperial interrogator named Rennie. There are other overlapping storylines running thru the piece which concentrates on the series' main character, a "Sanestrii" gypsy woman and former operative of Vader's called Perja. The story starts slowly, is definitely not self-contained (a common feature in SW fan series) and virtually plotless. Never mind. It's well worth the effort of staying on. The story is mainly about powerful, distinctive, intricate, beautiful relationships. There is the budding and poignant relationship between Perja and her underworld errant father, the sisterly love between Perja and Leia (who is 16 here, and sensitively portrayed), the powerful teacher-pupil experience between Rennie and Leia, the free, buoying intimacy between Perja and her Corellian co-pilot Jesren, and the rediscovered, unrestricting, equal love between Perja and Rennie. Plus there's the fact that Rennie is based on the wonderful and entrancing actor, Michael Rennie. MRO Ludwig's illos to this blend in strongly with the story and the scenes ate well-chosen, if sparsely.
"Novitiate" by Jeanine Hennig is very refreshing, in that it is purely a Luke story, and a damned good one. Set a month before ROTJ, and written in remarkably convincing first person, it takes place on Tatooine with Luke taking a soul-searching desert retreat before he rescues Han, knowing that his emotionally and mentally crippled self needs to learn a few things before facing Jabba as a Jedi. He is taken by Tusken Raiders and befriended by their female leader, a strong if undeveloped character. Later, he departs to live for a few weeks in Ben's abandoned stone hit ("Kenobi's adobe" as Luke calls it) where he learns to cope with his parentage, his mentor's deceit, and his love for Leia. Hennig confronts the latter very movingly, and Luke's pain comes fully alive in her memorable words. She doesn't cop-out by describing his love for Leia as "sisterly." The only complaint I have is the portrayal of Leia. While I feel that both she and Han were insensitive to Luke in TESB, Leia's reaction to Luke as he returns to the Falcon—chiding him for "wasting time" out on the desert—is too extreme and too cruel, and not at all a fair depiction of a character who has often shown deep understanding towards others in times of pain and stress (the predominating prejudices about her notwithstanding). Jenni's illos capture the story's brooding, solitary mood. Her illo of Luke and Leia on p. 206 is painful for any Luke fan to look at."Sword of Darkness, Sword of Light" by Patricia D'Orazio is set just after ROTJ, with the rebels still celebrating on Endor and the Emperor still very much alive. D'Orazio's Corellian "starswords" (Force-talented protectors of the Jedi) are probably one of the most fascinating fannish creations, and is the one presentation of Han-as-powerful-Force-wielder I can believe in. He is a Force protector of Luke, possessing a powerful bond with the young Jedi, and works with Luke. He is not a Jedi himself, weaker in Force-talent, yet extremely crucial to his Jedi's well-being. The bond between them is even stronger than brother-to-brother, and this compelling link is borne out by D'Orazio's hearkening to instances in the canon when Han risked his neck to save Luke. A rather contrived and hurried wedding between Han and Leia takes place on Endor, followed by a surprise Imperial attack. But the main action centers on the battle between the Emperor and Luke, with their respective starswords at their side. The scenes of this battle are richly described, particularly the animal and sword manifestations which the two starswords transform into. Nancy Stasulis' illos could have been chosen better. The Force battle noted above is not illoed. But what Stasulis does illo is strong, bold, and highly expressive. And her Ewoks are charming. "Life-Line" by Anne E. Zeek is a reprint from the first issue of T'Kuhtian PressDRACULA zine, presenting us with a Langella-esque vampire character called Alain Durlac who forms a strong bond of friendship with Han. "Blood-Line" is a short sequel to this and immediately follows. Finely written and engrossing, the two pieces are, however, unfair to Leia. She is an obsessed, devourer of lives for her "lover Revolution". She doesn't do anything except gripe, and Han only bosses her around, refusing to take her on a mission because she might get raped. And Leia agrees! A trained woman rebel can't function if she backs away from every mission that might incur that risk. Han, however, is portrayed without the common gushiness found in so much of Hanfic. Martynn's illos to this are rich in expressions and attitude, though I wish they had more background. "Old Friends and Acquaintances" by Carol Hines-Stroede offers an unlikely yet engrossing tale about a temporary truce between Lando and Vader at a neutral space station which has been captured by a group of "terrorists." Lando and Vader work together to destroy them and regain the station. It's unlikely that the Empire would ever tolerate a "neutral zone" since they have the power to just take it over. And the use of the popular cliche "terrorists" as glassy-eyed, frothing-at-the-mouth lunatics, along with Vader's line about "both sides frown upon the killing of innocent civilians' makes the story politically naive. I don't think Vader would ever say this. Still, the scenes with Lando and Vader make for excellent reading, although Lando is too wimpy in his attitude toward Vader, The writing is enviable on all counts. "Best Laid Plans" by Janice Bratton is yet another atory where Han is right about everything and Leia gets put in her place. Her very sensitive line in ANH about Han having to find his own way in life is reduced to a mere diplomatic ploy to get Luke to battle the Death Star with a clear mind and purpose. Immediately following this is Janet MacLellan's "Resolutions of a STAR Wars Mary Sue" which should be framed and put on every SW fan writer's wall. After the preceding story, I especially appreciated her "I will refrain from describing Princess Leia as being 'jealous,' 'cold,' or "hiding her feelings."
Four very complex articles are included, all finely written. "Aspects of Evil in the STAR WARS Saga" by [Liz S.] is a thoughtful, comprehensive analysis of the various characters and their place in the good-vs.-evil conflict. "Climbing the Tree of Life From a STAR WARS Point of View" by Rebecca Kaplowitz makes some fine observations, but generally fails because the author doesn't define her terms and concepts. Nor does she provide enough background information. If you know zilch about Kabbalistic mysticism, you'll be lost. "Evolution of a Jedi" by Angela M. varesano is a wonderful, all too short analysis of Luke's complex development, his emotional dilemma, and Anakin's own Force conflicts. Bev Lorenstein's "Buddhism in STAR WARS' weaves historical background and application to SW quite convincingly. It presents an intelligent, sensitive, and probable view of the Force, which is strongly borne out in SOU with Ana-kin/Vader's conflict. The Force is a balance between the Dark and the Light, and the cause of the galaxy's evil is an imbalance of those two impulses. Yet Lorenstein makes a slight contradiction when she suggests that the Dark and the Light are two separate practices, prefer to view them as two sides of the same coin.
"Scenes We'd Like to Have Seen in the STAR WARS Saga" is a stunning and desperately needed portfolio that could have taken up the entire zine! Fourteen of fandom's best have presented us with a truly memorable and lovely compilation of well chosen scenes that GL was too short-sighted to dramatize. Someone should compile one thick zine with more of these, including prose/poetry interpretations. The most complete and most striking are Martynn's Han and Leia embracing on the sail barge; Yvonne Zan's Boba Fett in front of his ship, ready to do battle; Wanda Lybarger's Han and Leia embracing with the Ewoks watching; Leia'; Force sense aboard the rebel ship in ANH by Stephanie Hawks; Cathye Faraci's insane view of Vader, the Emperor and Luke aboard the Death Star; and June Edwards' triad view of Anakin/Vader.
Among the vignettes, the most memorable are Jane Sibley's "There Have Always Been Leias in the House of Organa" written in the point of view of Leia's foster mother, Bail's wife (with an incredible life-like illo by Judith Low); Ann Huizenga's "The Ultimate Alternate" which uses an old science fiction cliche quite successfully; "Mea Culpa" by Lisa Adolf and Jacqueline Taero where the elder Luke counsels the daughter of Han and Leia in a dilemma that is painfully like his own at her age; and "The Many Worlds Interpretation" of Quantum Physics, or Heeeeeere's Biggs!" by Susan Matthews, Bev Clark, and Pam Kowalski, a bizarre but very likely view of ROTJ's last scene.
A wonderful inclusion herein is a group of LoCs collectively titled "And Now Luke's Side" that replies to the virulent attacks against Luke, and finally Leah Rosenthal's cartoon on p. 301 is a delicious jibe on Han fanfic.
Typos abound here. The articles, particularly, have a plethora of confusing parentheses. As for the covers, I nominate Deborah Drake's front cover as the year's best in capturing the essence of the SW characters: quadrangle of love.
I do wish the editor had found a cheaper printer because $18 for any zine, no matter how good, is just too much for many fans. It's a zine that everyone will want in their collection and deservedly so. I leave it to the (potential) buyer. [30]
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27.8.13
The Alcock Internationals- game 1.
From the Secretary of the Football Association
A match between the leading representatives of the Scotch and English sections will be played at The Oval on Saturday the 19th February next, under the auspices of the Association. Players duly qualified and desirous of assisting either party must communicate with Mr AF Kinnaird of 2 Pall Mall East, SW or Mr J Kirkpatrick, Admiralty, Somerset House, WC on behalf of the Scotch, or with Mr Charles W Alcock, Boy Court, Ludgate Hill, EC or Mr RG Graham, 7 Finch Lane, EC on the part of the English.The Field 22nd January 1870
Crawford- 17 year old scores fluky long range goal
Charles Alcock's deeds speak of a missionary zeal for promoting Association Football. He was, of course, the founder of the FA Cup tournament. Additionally Alcock was also a prime mover in the development of international football.Prior to the first officially recognized international in 1872 Alcock arranged a series of matches between 'England' and 'Scotland'.These matches were far from the formal occasions that international matches became within a few years. They were played at The Oval, the headquarters of English football at the time, on account of Alcock's ease of access to the facilities as secretary of Surrey County Cricket Club, but watched by small crowds ( ranging from 500 to just under 1000- football was not a great draw as a spectator sport in the early days-cricket was still very much the national game- 2,000 watched the 1872 Cup Final at The Oval and between 2,500 and 4,000 were at the 1873 international at the same ground).The main barrier to these games being considered true internationals is the absence of Scotsmen! They were, effectively, between scratch teams drawn from Alcock's Old Boys' associates- the class of men who at the time made up the players, administrators and enthusiasts of the game. The Morning Post described the team for the 5th match as 'the Scotchmen of the metropolis'.The first match featured only one man who was actually born in Scotland- Kenneth Muir Mackenzie. His teammates were 6 English born, and 1 each born in Wales, Jersey, Canada and India. The excellent historian Andy Mitchell has established that 10 of the Scotland team did in fact have bona fide Scottish heritage. For good measure 3 of the England team were born oversea (2 in India and 1 in Ireland).There were only 2 non public schoolboys involved-Alfred J. Baker and Alexander Nash. The old man of the England XI was Edward E. Bowen (32) whilst Morten in opposition was about 38. England featured 3 teenagers (Vidal-16, Thornton-17, Crake-18 ) and 'Scotland' 2 (Crawford -17, Gordon-19).The rather casual approach might be reflected in the fact that for the first match there were no officials , and that Crawford scored Scotland's goal from long range when the English decided to play with 11 outfielders and no goalkeeper. The teams for the first match lined up as follows. Note that many of the players were associated with multiple clubs (such was the nature of the clubs- metropolitan institutions and old boys clubs). Here I have recorded the player affiliation as it was represented in the press at the time. All 5 matches were played at The Oval.Game 1:
‘England’ 1-1 ‘Scotland’ 05.03.70
‘England’
‘Scotland’
Alfred H. Thornton
Harrow Chequers
Alexander Morton
Crystal Palace
Born in India, he later became a banker.
Morton later represented England in an official international.
Charles Alcock (c)
Harrow Chequers
Robert Crawford
Harrow School
Arguably the most influential figure in the history of football.
Served in the Afghan War with distinction but later found infamy having beaten his manservant to death in Africa
Edward E. Bowen
Wanderers
William Gladstone
Old Etonians
A master at Harrow School
Son of the Prime Minister WE Gladstone and himself an MP
Alfred J. Baker
NNs
George Gordon
NNs
A Civil servant who emigrated to Australia
William C. Butler
Barnes
Charles Baillie Hamilton
Civil Service FC
The only member of the England XI who was not a member of the Wanderers club, he later became a captain in the army.
William P. Crake
Harrow School
William Baillie
Hamilton
Harrow Chequers
Crake was born in India and came to England to attend Harrow school. He later returned to India as a merchant. In 1872 he won the FA Cup with Wanderers.
The Baillie Hamilton brothers were both Harrow boys who went on to become prominent Civil Servants
Evelyn Freeth
Civil Service
Arthur Kinnaird
Crusaders
Went on to become a prominent Civil Servant, for which he was knighted.
He was orphaned during the Indian Mutiny. 3 times Cup winner with Wanderers (1876,77& 78). Later capped by England in an official international (1877)
Giulio Cowley Smith
Crusaders
J Wingfield Malcolm
London Scottish Rifles
Another MP
Robert W. Vidal
Westminster School
Kenneth
Muir Mackenzie
Old Carthusians
'The prince of dribblers', Robert Walpole Sealy Vidal was later known as Robert Walpole Sealy. He playd in 3 FA Cup Finals, winning in 1872 (Wanderers) and 1874 (Oxford University). Served on the FA Committee 1872 and 1874. 1 cap for England in official internationals (1873).
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Trump blames Democrats for looming government shutdown
President Donald Trump pre-emptively blamed Democrats for the prospect of a government shutdown, pointing to party leaders’ demands regarding an immigration deal just four days before funding is set to run out.
“The Democrats want to shut down the Government over Amnesty for all and Border Security,” Trump tweeted Tuesday. “The biggest loser will be our rapidly rebuilding Military, at a time we need it more than ever. We need a merit based system of immigration, and we need it now! No more dangerous Lottery.”
In an earlier tweet, Trump wrote, “We must have Security at our VERY DANGEROUS SOUTHERN BORDER, and we must have a great WALL to help protect us, and to help stop the massive inflow of drugs pouring into our country!”
The tweets come as Congress faces a deadline to fund the government by Saturday, when funding for the federal government is slated to expire.
Prospects for a funding deal have been complicated by ongoing negotiations between the White House and Democratic lawmakers over an agreement on DACA.
Democrats, as well as former Homeland Security secretaries, believe that Congress must pass a deal on DACA by this month to begin processing applications before the Trump administration’s self-imposed March 5 end date for the program.
Talks over such an agreement were derailed last week after Trump’s alleged controversial remarks over Haiti and African nations.
Meanwhile, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Tuesday morning that Trump wasn’t concerned that those comments could result in a shutdown and that he wanted to keep budget talks separate from DACA negotiations.
“No, I think he’s worried that Democrats’ unwillingness to put country ahead of their party is what’s stalling things from moving forward, whether it’s the budget or a deal for DACA,” she told reporters on the White House lawn.
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White House: Dems. using Trump immigration’as an excuse’
She also blamed Democrats for using Trump’s remarks “as an excuse not to help the president get something accomplished, which I think is a sad day for our country.”
In an interview with Fox News, she added that “we have to keep these two items separate,” referring to a funding measure and DACA.
“The budget needs to be a separate item, we want a clean budget bill, we’re still hopeful that can happen,” she said. “We’re still hopeful that we can get a budget deal done, a clean budget by the end of this week, and certainly hope that we can make a deal on DACA and our immigration system.”
However, Democratic lawmakers pounced on Trump’s claims, saying a bipartisan immigration bill was presented to the president last week and if a shutdown happens the blame lies with the president and his party.
“I can tell you the president challenged us in his Cabinet meeting to come up with a bipartisan agreement to solve the problem and to hit four major elements in it,” said Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill.
“Remember at one point when he said, ‘Whatever you send me I’ll sign, I’ll take the political heat on this.’ Well, we showed up Thursday with a bipartisan bill and presented it to him and it was a much different story.”
Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., said a shutdown would “humiliate” the country, the president and the GOP, which controls Congress.
“The only one that can allow a government shutdown is Donald Trump. And I don’t know why he would humiliate the United States, humiliate himself and humiliate his party by having a government shutdown,” he said.
“Republicans control the House, they control the Senate, and they control the presidency,” Leahy said. “The government stays open if they want it to stay open. It shuts down if they want it to shut down.”
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What is the normal operating temp on the Dana 35 rearend?? I changed the pinion seal and diff cover gasket and put new gear oil in.
I marked the pinion nut, yoke and 3rd member, and when I went to tighten down the nut after seal replacement I couldnt get the mark on the nut back in its original placement maybe around 5-6mm off.
After a 20 min test drive, I put my hand on the diff cover and coulnt keep my hand on it for more than a second.......
there arent any leaks, but that hi temp is scary!!!! I plan on rolling out to New Jersey this friday!!! So obviuosly this concerns me!
I wouldn't think it would heat up that much in a 20 minute drive. If you just had a gear job done, then yes, I've seen them get that warm that quick.
I've shot my D44 with an IR thermometer when I've been out rock crawling. After a hard day on the trail in hot weather, mine was about 140~150 F. Quite a few others in the group were 20 F higher. I run synthetic fluid, they were running dino oil. Not real scientific but that is how it was.
Stu, that sucker was HOT!!!! there wasnt a gear job involved, I think I shouldve marked the pinion shaft and the nut, not the yoke and 3rd member. I did use plain jane gear oil too....I think I will be driving the wifes Kia Sorrento to N.J just for the comfort factor.....
I think you have succeded in overcrushing the crush sleeve. it'll need to be replaced. Do not drive it like this, if you have overtorqued the pinion preload, you WILL destroy the bearings.
Too many folks seem to think that you can get the same torque by 'aligning' the nut again... wrong. You must reproduce the exact rotational torque to have the same preload on the bearings. (Accounting for drag of new seal, add about 3 inch pounds.) Yes, that requires the axles be pulled out of the diff.
Yup... gear stuff is more exacting than almost anything else on a Jeep.
I think you have succeded in overcrushing the crush sleeve. it'll need to be replaced. Do not drive it like this, if you have overtorqued the pinion preload, you WILL destroy the bearings.
Too many folks seem to think that you can get the same torque by 'aligning' the nut again... wrong. You must reproduce the exact rotational torque to have the same preload on the bearings. (Accounting for drag of new seal, add about 3 inch pounds.) Yes, that requires the axles be pulled out of the diff.
Yup... gear stuff is more exacting than almost anything else on a Jeep.
I'm pretty sure I over crushed the sleeve... after I get back from vacation I am going to remove the carrier and check the bearings for any discoloring and if every thing seems fine I will just use a new crush sleeve retorq it down to spec..... I did drive it already I just hope I didnnt eff anything up (yet)
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The Rusty Bolt – David Allen Akins
Menu
Look Closely and Learn
When you live in a small barrio of a large metro area, as I do at the moment, you can go to the plaza a couple of blocks away and see micro businesses clearly supporting each other. The little lady with her cheese table sells to the food cart vendor, the vendor buys from the butcher downstairs a few steps away, they all have cool drinks of juice or cold water from a roaming little cart, and that guy buys from the food cart. The circle is endless. Now, go into a chain store, small or large, and the workers don’t have time to come outside. They’re out of the loop, busy, then exhausted and off straight to home. Maybe it’s not the same as the USA “shop local” movements, but it is visible lesson in basic micro capitalism that can be viewed from the comfort of a park bench.
Casas
One might see little homes in various states of completion, but nonetheless occupied. You can view these little casas in two ways, a ramshackle mess or a paid for home that is being completed a few bricks at a time without a mortgage. I absolutely love the “few bricks at a time” idea of a mortgage free lifestyle. Today, compared to a decade ago, I see more and more “fast cash” credit shops. My hope and belief is that there are still for too many “few bricks at a time” folks to ever have a credit crisis. Life is much simpler when you work for food, small power and water bills, and savings. My advice is to look closely and not judge the ramshackle for other than what it is: A well thought out plan for a debt free home and life style.
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Dark cool warm soft relaxing. Get a good night sleep. This is a rual home it is not in Las Vegas. To get here you must have a vehicle. Any kind. It is to far away from town. It's Ideal for a get away from the main stream of life. Isolated and quite. Room for horses. Safe.
This single bed is clean. And relaxing the room is carpeted and air conditioned. The living quarters is light and kitchen is clean easy to use. Plenty of privacy. And this house will support three people easily. Non tobacco smoking. No Marijuana smoking. Clean.
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Experience living in Las Vegas at its finest! Over 5,300 sq/ft home on nearly an acre! Close to the Las Vegas Strip (0.4 mi to Las Vegas Blvd.) This Estate has it all! Resort-like pool with a waterfall and an entertainment area. Two master suites!
The PERFECT getaway location for your your trip to Las Vegas... With business associates, family or friends.
Welcome to Las Vegas Resort Style Estate Home!!!
•5 Bedrooms, 7 Bathrooms, Sleeps up to 10.
•Every rooms are very spacious, huge living, family rooms, kitchen, dining area, bar, entertainment area, and huge laundry room with built in cabinets.
•Own 2 Private Gates, Driveway can fit about 15 cars.
You will be amazed by the backyard with a custom built in waterfall, huge pool and lounge chairs, lot of trees, benches, walkway to enjoy the singing birds.
"We wanted comfortable environment and perfection for everyone in this house."
This one acre Resort Style Estate Home is located close to the strip and set in a ranch zoning area where minimum lots are half acres.
We love our neighbors, and try never to impede on their right to a quiet home. Please quiet down by 9 pm, and this is especially important when using the backyard!!! Neighbor complaints or police visit will be handled as follows:
-1st complaint or police visit: $500 fine and call to Air Bnb
-2nd complaints or police visit: $1,000 fine and call to Air Bnb
**Spring and Summer is termite, fly, and cockroach season in Las Vegas. Please note that we have our homes regularly sprayed, but there is not a 100% guarantee you won't see a critter.
**Please keep all doors and windows secure during your stay with us.
**Please turn off all heat/AC when leaving for the day.
**This is a strict non-smoking house. There are ashtrays outside for your convenience.
**No Shoes indoor / No Pet indoor
**No illegal substances, weapons, firework
**Propane will not be provided for grill
**No litter in/outside of property
**Upon departure, please take the trash to the master bins, located on the patio/parking area.
**If you have a package delivered please note we are not responsible for the well being of your package, nor are we available to help you track it down.
Thank you very much for your understanding and cooperation in these matter!!!
Christiane is an outstanding host, she was very quick to respond and was very accommodating. We rented her place when my colleagues and I were in Vegas for a mining convention and the location was great if you intend to use Uber or a car in groups, but it is a 15 minute drive from the center of everything. The house is absolutely beautiful, like something out of a movie. If you want to feel like a superstar during your stay, this place is it! We unfortunately accidentally broke water pipes when a colleague stumbled on them in the backyard, but Christine was very kind and understanding about this and we ended up having a fair settlement to make sure everything ran smoothly. Thanks again Christine!
What a GEM! The house is beautiful and was perfect for our group while staying in Las Vegas. We felt right at home and even when the weather got a little bananas Christine checked in on us right away. The house is incredibly spacious and worked perfectly for entertaining and hanging out when we weren't on the strip. With 7 bathrooms, everyone was always on time and ready to go when we headed out! We would come back in a heartbeat and quite frankly, wouldn't stay anywhere else. Christine was by far and away the sweetest and most responsive host we've ever had. She even made us all dumplings on the day of our departure. In the world of Airbnb she is a total rockstar.
Christine was such a wonderful host. She welcome my family and friends to stay at her place. Our trip was 2x times better staying at Christine place. The place was very safe. If your looking for a place to stay in Vegas I definitely recommend y'all to stay at Christine place. Definitely will love to stay at her place again when I get the chance to come back to Vegas. Thank you for being a super host Christine
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Come stay in our cozy guest room in a very beautiful neighborhood in the Southwest part of Las Vegas. We're only 20 minutes away from The Strip, McCarran airport, and Red Rock National Park! Guests will have their own bedroom with a king-size memory foam mattress with a 55" 4K TV, private and brand new remodeled, zero-entry rainfall shower. Guests will also have access to the kitchen and entertainment living space as well. We have one son who is 3 years old, and a small (20 pound) rescue dog.
This newer home features plenty of space downstairs. Guests can enjoy a king-sized memory foam mattress bedroom with a 55" 4K TV, and their own private rainfall shower bathroom. Make yourself at home with access to the kitchen, massive entertainment living room and backyard.
Neighborhood is very quiet and safe, you wouldn't even know you were in Las Vegas! There is also a shopping center within 3 miles which include a grocery store, restaurants, and other small businesses for any necessary or forgotten needs.
Our stay was awesome!!!! Like seriously my family and I needed a nice,clean, safe and friendly place to stay as we moved from California to Nevada to look for a home and this family was so welcoming we even stayed a week longer!! It was our first real Air B and B experience and it was a great one. The bed was comfy and the shower was amazing!!!!!!
Awesome stay with wonderful hosts! House is fabulous, impeccably clean, room is super comfy and the shower is amazing. We highly recommend and would stay again in a heartbeat! Quiet, safe neighborhood with nearby parks, easy access to the highway and anything you want to do in Vegas.
Zac and Tarah have a beautiful home! Awesome shower, unfortunately we really only had time to sleep there so I didn't get a chance to use it! Check-in was super easy, the room was adorable and Tarah was really nice. Seemed like a great neighborhood also! I would definitely stay again!
Railey2017-05-20T00:00:00Z
Very clean and cute house! Had all the amenities I needed. I only stayed for a night but it's worth the price! Highly recommend!
Jienelle2017-05-21T00:00:00Z
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Our home is located at Mountain’s Edge, a beautiful community located in Southwest Vegas. This area is a master planned community with quick access to local shops, grocery stores, and parks. It is 16 min from McCarran Int'l Airport & 25 minutes from the Strip. We offer a comfortable & spacious private room with a brand new queen size bed and a shared bathroom stocked with basic toiletries. If you are looking for a nice & quiet place but within a close distance to the busy Strip, we are it!
The private, spacious rooms are located on the second floor of the house equipped with:
Bedroom 1: Brand new queen size bed
-Fresh sheets, pillows, blanket & comforter
-Desk & chair
-Walk-in closet
-38” LED TV connected to a Roku Streaming stick
Bedroom 2: Queen size Futon/Floor mattress with fresh sheets, pillow,(URL HIDDEN)blanket and a walk-in closet
The well-stocked, clean, private/shared bathroom (depending if we have guests from our other listing) located just adjacent to the rooms is equipped with:
-Shower and Tub
-Fresh towels
-Toiletries (soap, shampoo, body wash, toothpaste & lotion)
50 Mbps high-speed internet (WIFI connection) is available throughout the entire house.
Please note that when you book for 2 guests, only one room will be given to you (Bedroom 1). For 2 pax wanting two rooms there will be an additional charge.
If you are bringing your pet dog, we have a doggy door that leads to the backyard. We also have a large crate for those who are crate-trained. But please contact us first about having a furry friend with you before you book. A $10/night Pet Fee applies.
Our place is on the quiet side, with amazing views of the beautiful desert landscape that runs parallel to Las Vegas. It is ideal for business people and travelers who don’t like the bright lights and the noise, but would want the convenience of easy access to The Strip and Downtown for a night or weekend out, if you so choose. The Strip is 25 minutes away, The Silverton, Southpoint and M Casino in 15 minutes, the Interstate 15 that goes to Los Angeles in about 10 min, and McCarran International airport in 16 minutes. For a dose of nature, there are hiking and jogging trails on the desert just right next door to the house. You can also reach Red Rock Canyon in 17 min, Lake Mead in 40 min. and Hoover Dam in 50 min.
Secluded but a great breakfast spot nearby and good value on a clean and private room + bathroom.
Keith2017-01-01T00:00:00Z
罗莎琳是非常愉快的处理和房间是完美的,很宽敞!我会强烈建议住在这里。该位置是有点出入,但我们有我们自己的车和使用尤伯杯也。
Philip2016-11-04T00:00:00Z
This was the best welcoming experience we had on airbnb so far. Rosalyn is an amazing host. Everything is better than described! The house is beautiful and it is located in a great and quiet neighborhood. The room and bathroom were perfectly clean and tidy. If you are looking for a quiet stay in Vegas, this is the perfect location and host!
Lubomir2016-10-08T00:00:00Z
This is the one of the best places we have stayed. The place is very clean, cozy and comfortable, bathroom is really clean and bright, people are really friendly. We left our dog at the place for one whole day, they take care of our dog and take our dog for walk when we are out for business. We really appreciate them and will go again if we visit las vegas in the future. We really recommend their place.
Tia2017-01-08T00:00:00Z
好的地方尼加家伙
SHI XIA2017-03-26T00:00:00Z
房間裡很舒服,一切,包括衛生間,成立了像酒店。因為我們的日程安排非常繁忙,主機都足以容納讓我們後來檢查出了幾個小時。
Kate2016-09-25T00:00:00Z
我们只住了一夜,但房间很干净,舒适。我们睡得很好。这是一个非常准确的描述。这是通过拉斯维加斯旅行时住上一晚的好地方。
Claudia2017-04-02T00:00:00Z
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You will feel like you are home when you stay at the Britton's. It is cozy, quiet, clean and very comfortable. It is the perfect area to take a early morning walk or late night walk and get to enjoy the outdoor. You will actually have many views of some other awesome home. It is the suburban Las Vegas Home :D
Space is unique because of the size, comfort, cleanliness, quietness and is very cozy.
My neighborhood is the Sutter's which is located in Mountain Edge, SouthWest Las Vegas. My neighborhood is surrounded by Mountains, with beautiful homes. The landscaping make it very pretty and absolutely stunning to the eye. It is very quiet. There are three parks.
Our home is located at Mountain’s Edge, a beautiful community located in Southwest Vegas. This area is a master planned community with quick access to local shops, grocery stores, and parks. It is 16 min from McCarran Int'l Airport & 25 minutes from the Strip. If you are looking for a nice & quiet place but within a close distance to the busy Strip, we are it!
Our place is on the quiet side, with amazing views of the beautiful desert landscape that runs parallel to Las Vegas. It is ideal for business people and travelers who don’t like the bright lights and the noise, but would want the convenience of easy access to The Strip and Downtown for a night or weekend out, if you so choose. The Strip is 25 minutes away, The Silverton, Southpoint and M Casino in 15 minutes, the Interstate 15 that goes to Los Angeles in about 10 min, and McCarran International airport in 16 minutes. For a dose of nature, there are hiking and jogging trails on the desert just right next door to the house. You can also reach Red Rock Canyon in 17 min, Lake Mead in 40 min. and Hoover Dam in 50 min.
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My roommate and I have an open room with a shared bath in our two-story 3 br/2.5 bath home located in SW Las Vegas.
We have a pool, hot tub, grill, pool table and other common areas that you will have access to during your stay.
We're fairly easy-going and happy to spend time with you or leave you to your own devices as you prefer.
Our neighborhood is quiet and safe. There isn't much traffic on our street. It is not within a gated community. There are several parks within a 5 minute drive of our house. We also have a walking path within a block of our house.
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House in Mountains Edge. Upstairs bedroom, and private big bathroom. I am single male with no pets. I work on the strip nights Friday - Tuesday. Nice, Safe neighborhood. It is about a 20 min drive to the strip.
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Private room with a full size bed. Has amazon fire stick in the room with shared bathroom across the hall. Full access to kitchen and laundry room. Community pool is open from March to October.
Cute and cozy house with all the amenities. Full access to everything, street parking and a great safe neighborhood not too far from the strip
Quiet neighborhood with many trails for walking and sports park are just down the street. Beautiful mountain landscape. Community pool, new grocery store about 1 mile away. Country cafe (family owned resturant) and Bounty bar are less then 1/2 mile away. Fall of 2017 Wal-Mart will be about 2 miles away.
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Clean, quiet, & convenient.
Located in a gated community just 15 minutes from the outdoor activities of Red Rock Canyon and 15 min to the Las Vegas Strip.
The home is equipped with a potassium salt water purification & softener system. Las Vegas is known for summer heat and hard water, so no worries!
I have a friendly 6 lb chihuahua who gets along with people and other dogs / cats.
If you have any questions feel free to ask! Hope to see you soon!
Clean, quiet, & convenient.
Our home is 3 stories with a rooftop deck that has panoramic views of Las Vegas.
Located in a gated community just 15 minutes from the outdoor activities of Red Rock Canyon and 15 min to the Las Vegas Strip.
The home is equipped with a potassium salt water purification & softener system. Las Vegas is known for summer heat and hard water, so no worries!
If you have any questions feel free to ask. Hope to see you soon!
We are located in a quiet, private, and gated community. Conveniently located away from the hustle of the Las Vegas strip (15-20 min drive) and near the beautiful scenery of Red Rock conservation park (15-20 min drive). If you have any questions feel free to ask!
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Kamar tidur
Really nice 3 bedroom home available in the master planned community of Mountain's Edge. Home is located approx. 15-20 mins away from the strip in a quiet, comfortable suburb on a premium lot.
Home will be fully furnished including in the main living room, a dining room set, in the master bedroom (queen sized bed, large dresser, etc), and furniture for an upstairs loft. A secondary bedroom is also useable/accessible containing an air mattress, closet, and chest of drawers for clothes.
The home is located in a quiet, comfortable neighborhood of Stonehurst which is part of Mountain's Edge, a master planned community.
Overall we had an extremely positive experience with the house. Everything worked as it should... dishwasher, washer drier, AC etc. One of the best aspects of the experience was Anne Marie's through and quick communication.
Jamie2015-07-16T00:00:00Z
Tipe kamar
Seluruh rumah/apartemen
Tipe Properti
Rumah
Mengakomodasi
3
Kamar tidur
Great for those who want to skip the hustle and bustle of the Strip. Classy home, kept nice and clean. A friendly and quiet neighborhood, located in a gated community in the beautiful Southwest of Las Vegas, only 20 minutes from the Strip, and 15 minutes to the airport. The owner and his elderly mother would love to welcome you into their home! Perfect for business travelers and those that appreciate a well maintained and peaceful home away from home.
If your looking for clean, while comfy and quiet, then look no further. You found it!
Just a day, or want to stay all week? Make your self at home!
Our neighborhood is quiet and away from any traffic, while still only few miles away from shopping centers, stores, and restaurants. The nearby Silverton Casino as well as the Southpoint Casino offer Vegas style entertainment. And for those that like to take a walk in the park or even take a light hike up a hill should check out the nearby Exploration Peak Park (2 mi, 5 min drive) where you will be mesmerized by the panoramic view all across the valley and at distance the skyline of the Strip.
The Home and room were great and exactly as we had expected. Kathy and Lester (and Keno) are friendly and accommodating. I would recommend this listing to any future Vegas visitors who seek the best.
Our home is located in Mountains Edge about 12 miles (20 km) from "The Strip" and 13 miles (20 km) from McCarran airport, in a quiet residential area.
The 15 & 215 freeways are both within 5 miles (8 km)
There is a grocery store less than 3 miles from the home as well as many local places to dine and local bars to indulge in.
BabyStacks - Breakfast
Japanero - Asain Fusion, Japanese, French
SkinnyFats - Juice Bar, Breakfast, Brunch
BAR (Born And Raised) - My Favorite 24 hour Bar with Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner & Gaming.
The Sparklings - Bar, American, Italian (open till 2am)
Black Sheep - Cocktail Bar, Wine Bar
SoHo - Sushi Burrito
Distill - 24 hour bar with food & gaming
PT's - 24 hours bar with food & gaming
Oyshi - Sushi
If you're interested in hiking Red Rock Canyon the drive is less than 20 minutes to the National Conservation via Blue Diamond Blvd.
Should you feel the urge to gamble whilst avoiding "The Strip" many 24 hour bars offer gaming ( BAR, Montana Meat Company, PT's) but there is also South Point Casino just 6 miles away (9km)
For The Kids:
Wet 'n Wild - Water Park
Exploration Park - you will most likely pass this park upon entering Mountains edge.
Ask me for more details on parks in the area!
The Lion Habitat - ONLY Giraffe in the State! (oh and some lions)
Our neighborhood is quiet and safe. Cars are expected to be parked in the driveway or directly in front of the house per HOA (Home Owners Association) regulations.
Independent private entrance separate from main house. Very comfortable and quiet space for two. Parking available on property.
2nd time staying here and still amazing. A very nice quite place to retreat from the hustle and bustle.
Nathan2016-01-27T00:00:00Z
Unfortunately we did not get to meet Heather due to conflicting schedules but her communication was outstanding and we really enjoyed our stay. The place was really nice and clean just like the pictures, we would definitely recommend it to our friends and family.
Aaron2016-05-23T00:00:00Z
Heather and Christopher are a great host, very welcoming. Place was very clean, quite and reasonably priced. around 15 minutes to Vegas strip which also very convenience. i would recommend this place if you're going sight seeing/travelling/visiting not partying (you would want to be in hotel around the strip)
Yudi2016-05-10T00:00:00Z
So happy to post a second thumbs-up for my extended stay at the Casita Suite. I had all the privacy and comfort I needed. My only regret is that once everyone discovers this gem it will probably be all booked up next time I visit Vegas :)
Teri2015-10-29T00:00:00Z
What a great find! I appreciated having space to hang my clothes and a comfortable bed with plenty of nice quality pillows. The hosts are very good communicators and I was thankful they were able and willing to accommodate my request to extend my stay. I am fragrance-sensitive and Heather willingly de-scented the casita before my arrival. I had plenty of privacy and my own designated parking spot in the driveway. I would love to stay here every time I go to Vegas.
Teri2015-10-26T00:00:00Z
Ótimo lugar
Steven 2017-01-11T00:00:00Z
This place is a must stay and the pictures are beyond accurate!! Heather and her husband are awesome and so it the place. Didn't mind the 15 min drive to strip. Well worth it!! Will be back.
Tipe kamar
Tipe Properti
Mengakomodasi
Kamar tidur
Clean, quiet, & convenient.
Located in a gated community just 15 minutes from the outdoor activities of Red Rock Canyon and 15 min to the Las Vegas Strip.
The home is equipped with a potassium salt water purification & softener system. Las Vegas is known for summer heat and hard water, so no worries!
I have a friendly 6 lb chihuahua who gets along with people and other dogs / cats.
If you have any questions feel free to ask! Hope to see you soon!
Our home is 3 stories including a rooftop deck with panoramic views of Las Vegas. With two separate living rooms you are sure to have your own private space!
We are located in a quiet, private, and gated community. Conveniently located away from the hustle of the Las Vegas strip (15-20 min drive) and near the beautiful scenery of Red Rock conservation park (15-20 min drive). If you have any questions feel free to ask!
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OK, I will deal with why RAID10 (and by extention RAID1) is not as much at risk. Remember that the problem is not the partial media failure trashing the data on the one drive that is in the process of progressively failing over time but the problem that good data will be read from another stripe member (call it drive #1) for the stripe block containing damaged data on the failing drive (call it drive #2) and modified causing a read of the remaining stripe members and the calculation of new parity after which the modified block will be written back to drive 1 and the parity back to that stripe's parity drive (perhaps drive#3). Now since the data from drive 2 was not needed by the application (here IDS) the fact that it was damaged was not detected and so the new parity was calculated using garbage resulting in a parity that can ONLY be used accurately to recreate the trashed block on drive 2. Now suppose that drive #4 suffers from a catastrophic failure and has to be replaced. The damaged drive has continued to fail and now returns a different pattern of bits than was used to calculate the trashed parity block on drive 3. Now when the missing block data on the drive 4 replacement is calculated it too will become garbage and two disk blocks are now unusable, the damage has propagated. Now that dealt with what happens if the bad block was NOT read directly and detected by IDS. If it was IDS will mark the chunk OFFLINE and refuse to use it until you repair the damage. The only way you can do that is if you restore from backup or remove the partially damaged drive and try to rebuild it from the parity as if it had completely failed. HOWEVER, if all, or even several, of the drives in that array are from the same manufacturing lot or are even of similar age, there is a good chance that the previous problem has already trashed the parity of other blocks so that you will possibly be reconstructing a new drive that will have more bad data blocks than the one it replaces.
With RAID10, each drive in each mirrored pair is written independently. If a block on drive a is trashed the data on drive 1b (its mirror) is fine. If the bad data is read from the drive that is failing (say 1a) the engine will recognize it and mark the chunk down. All you have to do is remove drive 1a and mark the chunk back online rebuilding the mirror online. No problems and less chance that there are other damaged blocks on the one remaining mirror than on any of the 5 or more drives in a RAID5 stripe. If the data is NOT read from 1a but from 1b and modified it will be rewritten to BOTH drives improving the chances that it will be correctly readable if read from the failing 1a next time just because the flux changes will have been renewed, if the platter is too far gone we are just back to the possibility that the bad block will be read and flagged by IDS later. In no case can the data on 2a/2b, 3a/3b, 4a/4b, etc be damaged. Yes, if we were talking about ANY old data file on RAID10 the damage might propagate but since IDS has its own methods for detecting bad data reads this probability is vanishingly small (the damage to the block would have to NOT alter the contents of the first 28 bytes or the last 4 to 1020 bytes thus not damaging the page header, page trailer, or the slot table to not be detected by IDS)
Hardware mirroring is usually best, as it's faster. Next is Operating System. Last comes IDS mirroring. IDS mirroring contains a little bit of logic regarding how to handle chunks that are down, but with any luck the Operating System or hardware mirroring will never let IDS see that situation anyway. If you are not using Informix mirroring then turn it off in the ONCONFIG file, [MIRRORING 0] you can always it back at a later date.
I simply haven't yet heard a convincing explanation of why our software can do it better
than the O/S can.
It does, of course, depend on the mirroring support from the O/S, and especially on a
multi-CPU machine where the O/S I/O's are handled by a single CPU under the native
mirroring system, DSA could have an advantage if it has multiple threads handling the writes
in parallel. But I'm not convinced that O/S mirroring is that bad. It also depends on the
intelligence or otherwise of the disk controllers. Etc.
Unless the O/S has screwed up badly, I don't think that the Informix mirroring provides
much (if any) advantage.
I don't have any concrete evidence either way, and it is very difficult to determine
experimentally. I know that there were once plans at one time to spend a day or two
assessing the effect of LVMs (logical volume managers) on the performance of OnLine. I
also know that it didn't happen -- I hope it was in part because I pointed out to the
person who was asked to do the test that controlling the parameters of the test was going
to be difficult, and was going to need considerably more than a day or two simply to work
out what to test and how, independently of the time taken to create and load suitable data
sets (mainly large ones) under multiple different configurations with differing amounts of
RAID-ness, different numbers of controllers, different places where the mirroring occurs,
different numbers of CPUs, different numbers of AIO threads, striping, etc.
So, yes, I think maybe you are being lead astray by listening to Informix marketing talk.
One of the claimed advantages for DSA disk handling is that it can selectively read from
either the primary or the secondary of a mirrored pair -- so can the O/S mirrored systems,
and here is evidence that at least one does precisely that:
From: [email protected] (John Bria)
HP's Logical Volume Manager will allow you to "stripe" non-array disks by creating
extents on a rotating basis across multiple drives. This may/may not be advantageous
as you develop a fragmentation strategy.
If you use HP-UX mirroring, reads will be routed to the mirror copy if the primary is
busy. Under heavy disk loads, this is very advantageous.
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Monday, December 22, 2008
Limits of Emulating Real Life
In the making of any game, the developers have to ask themselves how much some things have to be emulated, or how much they have to be real. Be it physics, lighting, spawning or AI, everything is important, and often a middle ground must be found, because usually no single concept offers the whole answer.
Take monster spawning, for example. The traditional way of handling respawns is to have creatures pop out of thin air, with no explanation as to why or how they do it; and the harder it is to explain something, the harder it is to suspend one's disbelief. At the opposite end of the scale, however, every spawn is explained in details (and education videos), which takes more hardware to run than all the players together; not really a position in which you want to find yourself, unless you consider the players to be a background upon which the NPCs play their carefully-orchestrated masterpiece.
Finding a middle ground, you want to spawn creatures within growing groups, away from a player's eyes. The circumstances surrounding the addition to a member - or more - to that group should be good enough that the birth of that creature should be obvious and predictable, so that total immersion into the game world can be achieved. You also want the nature of the spawned creature to fit with the game world; should it spawn a member of a species which starts young, then it should be young. Should it spawn within a species with castes, it should belong to a caste, such that the group will be better off with it. And, of course, you should apply a generous amount of randomness in the new creature's abilities, so it can be differentiated from other members of its group, within the capacities of the species and group, of course.
However, there's still plenty of room for deciding how to do things. Do creatures age at a continuous rate, such that you can observe it changing slowly over time, or they they hit stages of life and pop to their new form? Are the capacities of a member decided randomly, or are they affected by its environment? And, of course, do its belonging appear upon birth, or does your creature acquire them through hard, virtual work?
You might also want to compare with the current games on market. People are used to enemies popping into existence, and would probably not look twice if creatures appeared to change before them, without visible reason. The idealism of a realistic virtual world is laudable, but it serves little purpose if it takes you a month to create something the players will never see. Balance in all things also applies to game creation, it seems.
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A Home Decorating Tip to Keep Travel Memories Alive
You’re back from traveling around the world. Your blog has over 400 articles documenting every single day of the journey. Now what?
There’s one tip for sure: print out those photos and plaster the walls of your new home with them to remember the loveliness of distant countries each and every day!
Now here’s the awesome part: it is CRAZY cheap to order and print digital photos with a click of your mouse! At the websites for both CVS and Walgreens, you can upload as many photos as you want (in my case, 450 photos of the 3,540 on this site), and order them printed within one hour to the CVS or Walgreens closest to your house (in my case, 1.5 blocks away).
Amazing! What’s even more amazing, however, is that there are so many online coupons floating around online for both of these stores’ photo services that the price you will pay for this printing service is likely to be less than a fancy sandwich. For example, by using the “New User” promotion code I saw on an ad banner, plus the “Fall Sale” code on the CVS homepage, I literally paid $8.53 (!) to print, I kid you not, a batch of 150 glossy 4×6 photos. What a bargain!
Photos of Spain, Portugal, and Ghana on magnetic fridge frames.
Now we get to the issue of framing. The woman whose lease I took over at this Boston apartment left behind a whole bunch of large frames with cardboard backings, into which I pasted country-specific photo collages pictured here!
It was a super-fun project that brought back wonderful memories. It was also messy and full of trial and error.
My resulting tips: Don’t use single sided tape for a photo collage because it looks bad. Don’t use rubber cement because it will make your photos crinkle, even though it says it won’t. DO use thin double-sided tape, because thin double-sided tape is awesome.
The collage I made of Vietnam Central Highland photos!
Following this arts and crafts bonanza, my mother kindly contributed a set of 12 cheap but fabulous magnetic fridge frames, which you can see in the photo above, brightening up my otherwise mundane kitchen.
I also got a bunch of cheap wooden IKEA frames which stink. Don’t get them; they’re too small for 4×6 photos, even though they’re supposedly made for them, and the wooden overlay not only splinters your tender fingers, but, even worse, it cuts off a good half-inch of your photo on all 4 sides!
At this point, I ran out of frames. What next? I had 310 photos left! On to Amazon.com I leapt and ordered a snazzy-looking wall hanging of photo sleeves which holds 20 photos like an open photo album on your wall. To be frank: it looked a lot classier on my computer screen than in person, which isn’t saying much. But for now it will do the trick, and it’s feather light, which is ideal for not damaging the walls.
Now this is where this gets really good. In my lust for additional frames, I moseyed to Craigslist to post that I was “Wanting to Buy” picture frames of all sizes, shapes, and types for my googobs of homeless photos.
The cheap Amazon.com photo sleeve wall hanging.
Hoo man did I get some interesting responses!
My favorite exchange came from from an eccentric elderly man who essentially inadvertently wrote creepy avant garde poetry for all his emails. In bright blue.
Check out our correspondence:
Hello.
I have a bunch of brand new frames.
$25 for the entire lot.
Here is a Google Map of where I live and you will see where I am.
I am here all the time.
So.
Time is not important.
– Hank
My Laos and Bangkok photo collages above my wilting plant!
Dear Hank,
Thanks for your response to my Craigslist ad!
Unfortunately, Roslindale is tough for me to get to without a car. Do you ever come into the city?
– Lillie
Hello.
I try to avoid downtown.
Parking and all that you know.
How does this sound??
You take the bus or train to Forest Hills.
(That is five minutes away from me.)
The framed Bangkok, Thailand Grand Palace photo collage. Pretty!
I can pick you up there and bring you back there.
Or if you buy enough stuff I could drive you all the way back to Dudley. So you would not be burdened on the public transportation.
Oh well. We can figure something out. Take your time.
Regards,
Hank
Hello Hank,
That is a very kind offer, but in fact that arrangement won’t work for me. Thanks anyway, and I hope you find a buyer for your frames!
– Lillie
Hello.
I guess you are not coming today then.
Are you still interested??
Those frames are all new. You know.
My Japan photo collage hanging jauntily on the wall.
Did you receive the pictures of them I sent??
Sincerely,
Hank.
Dear Hank,
Thanks, but I’m going to pass!
– Lillie
Hello.
Hey.
Teacher???
Can you use
Loose leaf filler paper??
The inherited TV I've never turned on under 2 collages!
I sell that too.
– Hank
And that is where I politely yet firmly stopped writing back.
Awesome, huh?
Part of the joy of being an English teacher is you particularly relish encountering accidental poetry and literature-sized personalities.
So to summarize:
First, when you come back from extended travel, plaster your walls with your printed photos!
Second, it’s crazy cheap to print those photos using online services and coupons.
Third, get creative with frames, and experiment with arts and crafts-y ways of putting the photos out there. Embrace thin double-sided tape and avoid rubber cement… no matter how fun and squishy it may be!
Mmm... Thailand and Vietnam beach photos.
And fourth… it’s probably not a good idea to get in a car with a stranger who writes bright blue accidental poetry about his piles and piles of $25 picture frames and secret stashes of loose leaf paper.
So happy decorating, fellow travelers and return home-ers!
May our apartments be beautiful, may our guests be inspired to converse about the scenes they see, and may our fantastic memories live long and inspire us to create many more!
Reader Interactions
Comments
Love this idea and am definitely going to do this myself when I return to Australia. Have to say, am dreading a little bit the process of choosing the best photos from my last 2 years of travel through Latin America! Will just have to grab a bottle of wine and re-live all those crazy travel experiences 🙂
This might make picking easier: I just did a second round of this and ordered hundreds more pics for dollars using online coupons. Then you don’t have to whittle down — just use them ALL in lots of collages!
Lovely Idea, hv been searching for good ideas to enjoy my pictures and not make them sit only on some hard disk! Aldo thought of putting them up together as a collage on a big canvas for wall in my study and smaller ones in the working rooms! Thanx for Sharing!!
Hey Ms. Marshall. This article reminded me of my room, because my room is COVERED in posters. Posters of who you might ask? Posters of Justin Bieber, Taylor Lautner and the Jonas Brothers. (: Yes, I do love them. But I also have a wall on my wall of pictures of me and friends. I liked this article, because it’s very interesting and I like the pictures you posted. (:
What a great idea! I was looking for ways to decorate our office with some of our very own travel photos, to add a bit of personal touch to the commercial photos (not that those are not beautiful, but they are not personal). Apologising but have to admit to having a good laugh about your encounter with Hank…
I do that with my photos too. It really makes the room seem more lively. Your photos of the Vietnam beaches are gorgeous! They’re so colorful, I bet they’re the photos that stand out the most on your walls. I love the layout of the four picture frames.
I do agree with you that decorating does keep the memories alive. My mom has so many pictures of Vietnam, of family members. Some I do not even know, but I have the pictures hanging in my living room to know them. I like your creativity of how you put the pictures of Vietnam and Thailand together in those frames. The way you put them are gorgeous!
I did the same thing ! When i got home from Greece, I printed all the pictures and put them in frames around my house and room. I think that if you only keep your pictures on Facebook, that one day they are going to get deleted or not be there anymore.That is why printing pictures is a great idea. Everytime I walk by those frames, I always have a story in my head to share about it! 🙂
I did the exact same thing as you with my pictures from my study abroad trip to Spain! Another creative idea for your large quantities of pictures is to make a scrapbook! Definitely time consuming but so worth it once its done. Not only did I put pictures in my scrapbook, I put little ticket stubs or hotel keys in it. My favorite page is my Tour De France page because I used the material of a Tour De France rag as my background for the page. So maybe for your next trip you can plan out a scrapbook for your creativity 😉
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Lillie’s Welcome
Lovely to meet you! I’m Lillie Marshall, a 6-foot tall Teacher, Traveler, and Boston mama who’s created over 700 articles on Around the World “L” Travel and Life Blog since 2009. Do explore, share, and enjoy! [Learn More…]
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Live Commentary
93mins
Full Time: Portsmouth 0-0 Blackburn. Portsmouth hold out for half an hour with ten men to earn a hard fought point against Blackburn.
92mins
Pedersen delivers a corner from the right and the ball drops for Jones, he strikes it towards goal but it is blocked and eventually Portsmouth scramble the ball clear.
90mins
Three minutes of stoppage time to be played.
86mins
O'Hara has been kept out of the game in the second half as Portsmouth struggle to work the ball to him but he gets the chance to get to the byline and cut back for Kanu but he fires well over.
84mins
Portsmouth are fighting hard to keep this at level. The team and the fans can be proud of the levels of effort from a side that are all but doomed to relegation.
81mins
A dangerous cross is fizzed across the Portsmouth goal and with Roberts and Kalinic bearing down on it Ashdown gets a crucial fingertip touch to the cross to divert it away from the strikers.
79mins
Kalinic replaces David Dunn as Allardyce looks for a winning goal.
77mins
David Dunn rises to meet a cross from Pedersen to head the ball towards goal but he skews it well wide of the mark.
75mins
Hoilett is on for Diouf.
72mins
Michael Brown makes an unceremonious challenge on Olsson and is duly cautioned by Mr Bennett.
72mins
Utaka is replaced by Piquionne as Grant looks to provide some fresh legs upfront.
69mins
El Hadj Diouf picks up the ball on the right hand side and crosses towards Roberts who turns smartly and strikes at goal but only finds the arms of Ashdown.
66mins
Blackburn look to take control and work a neat passing move in midfield before a threaded pass sets Olsson into the channel but his effort is saved by the legs of Ashdown.
64mins
Pompey youngster Sowah enters the game as Hughes makes way.
64mins
Nzonzi is replaced by Grella.
62mins
The sending off could change the game and swing it in Blackburn's favor however we have seen several times in the past that the side with ten men can emerge victorious.
60mins
VANDEN BORRE is off! A deliberate handball earns Vanden Borre a second booking and a very cheap red card.
55mins
Kanu and Utaka link up on the left hand side and create a crossing opportunity for the latter but Samba uses his enormous frame to block.
52mins
Blackburn are perhaps dominating play at the moment but the service to Roberts so far has been poor. The conditions are somewhat accountable as they are providing difficult passing conditions for the two sets of midfielders.
50mins
David Dunn picks up the first booking of the game for a Blackburn player after he brings down Hughes.
49mins
The second half makes somewhat of a false start as play is delayed for treatment to Jason Roberts. The striker appeared to take a blow to the knee but seems to be okay now.
46mins
Blackburn make a strong start to the second half as Pedersen and Olsson both cross from the left hand side but Rocha and Vanden Borre are on hand to clear their lines.
46mins
The second period is underway, and yes, its still raining on the sunny South Coast.
45mins
Halftime: Portsmouth 0-0 Blackburn. The first half draws to a close on a miserable afternoon. Both sides have created chances and are playing with the freedom of a team all but down and a team all but safe.
44mins
Pedersen breaks down the left hand side and crosses from wide but this time Ashdown handles the ball with confidence.
43mins
Vanden Borre is booked following a trip on Steven Nzonzi.
41mins
The weather has again worsened but the teams are trying to continue to play attractive football. Kanu nods the ball down into the path of Mokoena who strikes it first time but the effort flies over the top.
36mins
The wet conditions are causing problems for Ashdown as another cross is unconvincingly dealt with by the Portsmouth stopper.
32mins
Van den Borre comes forward from defence and looks to take advantage of the slippery surface with a skimming drive but it is well blocked.
30mins
Blackburn respond with an attack of their own as the game opens up. The ball is tossed into the Pompey area and the ball takes a couple of ricochets before falling for Dunn but his shot clips the outside of the post and goes behind.
28mins
Portsmouth keep the ball well in midfield and work it right to Utaka who beats two players before crossing and finding O'Hara. O'Hara rises to head the ball towards the corner but Givet clears off the line.
26mins
Blackburn continue to look threatening from set plays. This time Samba rises at the back post to head the ball back across goal but Mokoena makes a crucial interception with Roberts lurking.
22mins
Mullins thunders a shot goalbound after a positive Portsmouth move but the effort is blocked by a Rovers defender and the attack comes to nothing.
19mins
More last ditch stuff from Pompey. Blackburn's Pedersen whips in a corner and Phil Jones heads it goalbound but it is somehow hacked away from the line.
18mins
Ashdown has started in unconvincing fashion. He ends up in no mans land as he comes for a cross from Dunn and leaves Roberts with an unguarded goal to aim at but his header is cleared by Rocha on the line.
13mins
Pedersen has the opportunity to test the Portsmouth defence with a free-kick from the right hand side. The ball in is weakly punched away by Ashdown and Samba is almost there to convert the rebound.
11mins
Jamie O'Hara picks the ball up and cuts inside before sliding a beautiful pass into Utaka in behind the defence. The Nigerian races through before rolling a tame effort straight at Robinson in a way that much sums up the winger's season.
8mins
Mokoena appears to be okay. There is very little happening in the game as of yet as both sides struggle to settle into the game with the rain really coming down in Portsmouth.
6mins
Avram Grant will have his heart in his mouth once again as Aaron Mokoena goes down in some discomfort. Surely not another Portsmouth player will be on the injury table.
5mins
The early moments are a little scrappy and neither side are able to keep the ball and possession is changing hands frequently.
2mins
Kanu's early effort takes a slight deflection wide of the post and wins the home side an early corner. Basinas delivers it from the left hand side but Pedersen heads it clear from the near post.
0mins
Steve Bennett takes charge of this encounter and let's hope he doesn't become the key talking point come the end of the game.
0mins
Sam Allardyce opts to start Jason Roberts alone in attack with support from wide coming in the form of Diouf and Pedersen. David Dunn will provide the craft in midfield and the young Phil Jones partners Samba in defence with Salgado at right back.
0mins
Jamie O'Hara is inelidgible to feature against his parent club Spurs next week and will probably start in a free role today. Kanu will lead the line supported by Utaka with Brown, Hughes and Basinas holding the midfield. Rocha returns in defence.
0mins
0mins
Hello and welcome to Fratton Park where Portsmouth, no doubt with one eye on next week's trip to Wembley, take on a Blackburn side that could condemn their opponents to relegation this afternoon.
Match Preview
Portsmouth play host to Blackburn Rovers at Fratton Park with the home side all but relegated already.
This season has been catastrophic for the Solent side, both on and off the field, but manager Avram Grant will be hoping his charges can finish the campaign off with a number of good performances, for the faithful Fratton Park fans if nothing else.
Blackburn, on the other hand, are enjoying mid-table security and will travel south in the knowledge that the home side continue to struggle on their own ground.
Indeed, having won just one of their last seven Premier League games, Portsmouth do have their work cut out against Sam Allardyce's side.
Pompey have now failed to keep a clean sheet in their last 14 Premier League games - a spell that has seen a less than water-tight Pompey defence leak 34 goals.
However, Rovers' own patchy away form may prove reassuring for Portsmouth fans, with Blackburn failing to win two successive away games since March 2009.
Veteran attacker Nwankwo Kanu may prove to be Portsmouth's best hope of breaking through Rovers' rearguard, with the veteran Nigerian enjoying a fruitful last few weeks and netting two in the last three home games.
With an FA Cup semi-final still to play, Pompey can still finish the season on some kind of high, however that cup game may well mean that a number of first team players will be rested by Grant for the Blackburn game.
Portsmouth also have an ever growing injury list which now features Nadir Belhadj, Tal Ben Haim, Ricardo Rocha, Hermann Hreidarsson, John Utaka and Papa Bouba Diop.
Match Report
Portsmouth clung onto their Premier League status for at least another 24 hours as they held Blackburn Rovers to a goalless draw despite having to play for 30 minutes with ten men.
Anthony Vanden Borre was dismissed on the hour-mark for a second bookable offence following a deliberate handball and the Belgian will now miss nest weekend's FA Cup semi-final with Tottenham.
Blackburn, comfortable in mid-table, should have emerged victorious but for some slack finishing from Chris Samba and some decent goalkeeping by Jamie Ashdown.
A patchwork Pompey team began with some confidence as the fit-again John Utaka burst into space but his finish was straight at Paul Robinson.
Blackburn though battled back as Ashdown's weak punch landed at the feet of Samba but, in the first of two poor first-half attempts for the big Congolese defender, his shot on the turn was kept out by the recovering goalkeeper.
Four minutes later and David Dunn's deep cross had Ashdown back-peddling across his goal only to see Jason Roberts' looping far post header cleared of the line by Ricardo Rocha.
Jamie O'Hara then cleared off the line from Phil Jones' header as Blackburn piled on the pressure.
The hosts were continuing to struggle to play on an increasingly poor surface which was suiting more to Blackburn's direct style and Dunn went close as his 18-year-strike clipped the outside of the post.
Moments before the break, Samba wasted the best opportunity of the half when he found himself a yard ahead of the home defence and from Morten Gamst Pedersen's free-kick placed his header against the post.
As the rain teemed down the football began to wash away as neither side seemed capable of breaking the tedious stalemate in a dreadful second half.
Vanden Borre needlessly earned his marching orders as following a lunge on Martin Olsson in the first half he then collected his second yellow by sticking a limb out to stop a pass getting to the Swede.
With the hosts reduced to ten there was only likely to be one winner but Ashdown was equal to first Olsson's burst and strike and then Roberts' attempt on the turn in a truly substandard Premier League encounter.
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More from Rugby League
Kevin Sinfield has been named England rugby league captain, replacing his Leeds team-mate Jamie Peacock in the role.
Last Updated: 12/10/12 1:13pm
Kevin Sinfield: 'proudest moment of my career'
Sinfield's appointment was announced to the squad during their first night on African soil as they start a 10-day high-altitude training camp in Potchefstroom ahead of this year's Autumn International Series against France and Wales.
Sinfield, who skippered Leeds Rhinos to their sixth Super League crown last season when they defeated Warrington Wolves at Old Trafford, said: "I am immensely honoured to captain England Rugby League.
"Representing your country is always special, but to captain England will be the proudest moment of my career to date."
Sinfield will lead England for the first time in the Autumn International Series opener against Wales in Wrexham on October 27.
A clash with France follows a week later, on November 3 at Hull KR's Craven Park ground, before the series final in Salford on November 11.
England coach Steve McNamara said: "Kevin is an outstanding leader and was my number one choice when selecting a successor to Jamie Peacock.
"The standards he sets both on and off the field are exemplary. He commands the ultimate respect from his fellow professionals and will take this group of players forward in what promises to be a demanding yet rewarding year for England Rugby League."
Talent
The vacancy arose after Peacock retired from international duty in June.
Sinfield, 32, added: "There could have been a number of candidates for the job, when you look at the number of leaders we have in the squad, but (England coach) Steve McNamara has asked me take up the role and I will do it to the best of my ability.
"When you look at the talent we have in the squad, we are in great shape. We have a big 12 months ahead with the Rugby League World Cup at the end of it and we have to give ourselves every chance of creating history.
"Steve McNamara is leaving nothing to chance and our preparation continues to be planned in fine detail and I will relish being part of that process."
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Merchandise
In an effort to make 2019 the most inclusive IGLA ever, please consider donating to the scholarship fund that will assist athletes with financial need.Please click Add to Cart and enter your donation amount under Unit Price on the next page.
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Olympian Q&A
Friday, June 28, 5:00pm–7:00pm
Come hear some of the greatest LGBTQ Olympic swimmers share their stories.
Tickets are $10 and are limited to the first 400 guests.
IGLA 2019 Pink Flamingo Poster
This 24" x 36" (61cm x 91cm) limited edition, high-quality art print, perfect for framing, pays homage to 1969 comic book covers and commemorates both Stonewall50 and the 2019 Pink Flamingo theme: Superhero Fabulous. Comes with a cardboard poster tube for safe transport and must be picked up at the meet.
(Click on image for larger view.)
$30.00
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Sunset Boat Cruise
Saturday, June 29, 6:00pm–9:00pm
Don’t miss our private charter on board the Circle Line Cruises, spectacular views of the Statue of Liberty at sunset, DJ, dancing, and OPEN BAR! This Circle Line Cruises boat departs from Pier 83 at West 42nd Street on the Hudson River in Manhattan.
Tickets are $75 and are limited to the first 600 guests.
Saturday, June 29, 6:00pm – 9:00pm; doors open at 5:30pm and close promptly at 6:00pm..
$75.00
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FIT Dorm - Single
accommodations (June 23-30)
Dormitory-style accommodations are available at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), conveniently located in Chelsea on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in Manhattan. Single rooms are private and include a lounge area, kitchen, and bathroom that are shared with one other person in an adjacent single room. Full details are at https://www.igla2019.org/helpful-hints/. Guests can stay less than the full week but the full rate will apply; discounts for shorter stays are not available.
$635.00
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FIT Dorm - Double
accommodations (June 23-30)
Dormitory-style accommodations are available at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), conveniently located in Chelsea on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in Manhattan. Double rooms are shared with one other person, who must be specified when booking the room, and include a lounge area, kitchen, and bathroom that are shared with two other people in an adjacent double room. The person booking the double must pay for the room in full ($830). See https://www.igla2019.org/helpful-hints/ for full details. Guests can stay less than the full week but the full rate will apply; discounts for shorter stays are not available.
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Ausgrid plugs in new electric vehicles
Published at
01/03/2018 04:00 PM
Ausgrid has taken delivery of two brand new Renault Zoe electric vehicles as part of a trial to reduce operational and maintenance costs and explore carbon emission reductions.
CEO Richard Gross was on hand to receive the keys to the vehicles which will join the company’s pool fleet.
“This is a small but important step. We are excited about the benefits electric vehicles could provide our business in terms of financial savings and environmental sustainability.
“This is all about preparing for the future and spending responsibly while also lessening our impact on the environment and customers have told us in recent surveys that they want to see more investment in this area,’ Mr Gross said.
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) forecasts 17.7% of all vehicles on the road in Australia will be electric powered by 2036.
“With the technology continuing to improve and demand for these vehicles expected to grow we are committed to exploring how we can better support customers to connect electric vehicles to the electricity network.
“This trial will give us a better understanding of our customer requirements in this area,” he said.
Ausgrid has selected two Renault Zoe’s, the most popular battery-powered car in Europe. It features a 41kWh lithium-ion battery and has a range of 400 kilometres before needing to be recharged.
Fast-charging facilities have been installed in our Sydney, Homebush and Newcastle sites which can recharge 80% of the car battery in an hour.
Ausgrid will also purchase green energy to power the vehicles and offset any emissions.
“The vehicles aren’t just good for the environment they will also deliver financial savings as their ongoing running and maintenance costs are significantly lower than our current petrol vehicles.
“Affordability is one of the leading concerns for our customers and any savings we are able to deliver will help us put downward pressure on power prices,” he said.
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Most Read
Most Read
China welcomes US invitation for high-level trade talks
13 September 2018 - 10:20
Steve Holland and Michael Martina
Picture: 123RF/Jenny Lipets
Washington/Beijing — China has welcomed a US invitation to hold a new round of trade talks, as Washington prepares to further escalate the US-China trade war with tariffs on $200bn worth of Chinese goods.
The Trump administration had invited Chinese officials to restart trade talks, the White House’s top economic adviser said on Wednesday, news that gave a lift to Asian stocks, including Chinese shares and the yuan.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang told reporters on Thursday that China had received the invitation and welcomed it. The two countries were discussing the details.
"China has always held that an escalation of the trade conflict is not in anyone’s interests. In fact, from last month’s preliminary talks in Washington, the two sides’ trade talk teams have maintained various forms of contact, and held discussions on the concerns of each side," he said.
Larry Kudlow, who heads the White House Economic Council, told Fox Business Network that US treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin had sent an invitation to senior Chinese officials, but he declined to provide further details.
"There’s some discussions and information that we received that the Chinese government — the top of the Chinese government wished to pursue talks," Kudlow said. "And so, secretary Mnuchin, who is the team leader with China, has apparently issued an invitation."
Two people familiar with the effort said Mnuchin’s invitation was sent to his Chinese counterparts, including Vice-Premier Liu He, the top economic adviser to Chinese President Xi Jinping, for talks in coming weeks.
The invitation comes amid a swelling chorus of opposition to tariffs from Western business circles.
On Thursday, the US business lobbies AmCham China and AmCham Shanghai published a joint survey showing that the negative impact on US companies in China of tit-for-tat tariffs Washington and Beijing have imposed on one another was "clear and far reaching".
More than 60% of US companies polled said the US tariffs were already affecting their business operations, while a similar percentage said Chinese duties on US goods were having an impact on business.
AmCham China and AmCham Shanghai urged the Trump administration to re-think its approach.
The European Union Chamber of Commerce in China released its own survey on Thursday saying the tariffs were causing "significant disruptions" to global supply chains and "seriously" affecting non-Chinese and non-American companies.
A day earlier, more than 60 US industry groups launched a coalition — Americans for Free Trade — to take the fight against the tariffs public.
The Trump administration is preparing to activate tariffs on $200bn worth of Chinese goods, hitting a broad array of internet technology products and consumer goods from handbags to bicycles to furniture.
It was unclear whether any US-China talks would delay those duties.
No guarantees
Kudlow earlier told reporters outside the White House that communications with Beijing had "picked up a notch", and said: "I think most of us think it’s better to talk than not to talk, and I think the Chinese government is willing to talk."
Asked whether the Trump administration would like to have additional trade talks with China, Kudlow said: "If they come to the table in a serious way to generate some positive results, yes, of course. That’s what we’ve been asking for months and months." But he cautioned: "I guarantee nothing."
The timing and location of the proposed meeting were unclear, the sources familiar with the matter said.
Mid-level US and Chinese officials held inconclusive talks on August 22 and 23.
A US treasury spokesman did not respond to requests for comment.
Scott Kennedy, deputy director of China studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said he suspected the invitation to talks would be viewed sceptically in Beijing.
"My guess is that they won’t receive an enthusiastic response from the Chinese, because the Chinese probably just don’t think that the Trump administration itself necessarily wants a deal or is willing to offer anything," Kennedy said during a research trip to China.
"China’s economy has slowed a tiny amount, and it certainly has financial anxieties, but it is nowhere near any kind of tipping point. I don’t see the Chinese running to the table to up their offer in any appreciable way."
The invitation was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. A meeting among Cabinet-level officials could ease market worries over the escalating tariff war that threatens to engulf all trade between the world’s two largest economies and raise costs for companies and consumers.
So far, the US and China have hit $50bn worth of each other’s goods with tariffs in a dispute over US demands that China make sweeping economic policy changes, including ending joint venture and technology transfer policies, rolling back industrial subsidy programs and better protecting American intellectual property.
US President Donald Trump said last week that in addition to preparing tariffs on the further $200bn worth of goods, he had tariffs on an additional $267bn worth of goods ready "on short notice if I want".
China has threatened retaliation, which could include action against US companies operating there.
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long distance movers reviews Anasco 00610
Moving to a New City to Begin a Career Moving Companies Near Me Anasco Puerto Rico Relocating to a brand-new city to begin a career can be as frightening as it is exciting. One part of you is most likely ready to enter feet first and also start verifying yourself to go up the corporate … Read more
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Transferring to a New City to Begin a Profession Long Distance Moving Companies Anasco Puerto Rico Moving to a new city to start a career can be as scary as it is interesting. One part of you is most likely all set to enter feet first as well as start proving yourself to move up … Read more
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Here is a super clean, PEARL/TAN, FULLY SERVICED '09 Lexus GX470!! 1-Texas Owner, FULLY LOADED, with NAVIGATION!! MATCHING like-new NITTO tires! With only 49K miles on this SUV, this car is barely broken in! All service is up to date...This one NEEDS NOTHING and is totally ready for the next lucky owner. Clean CARFAX/AUTOCHECK, so buy with confidence!!
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Hummus: check, Brazilian: check, next stop Italian
Falafel place coming soon to the nabe. Franklin is becoming a one stop shop for everything. Keep the exciting news coming. Looks like its shaping up to be a great summer with all these businesses popping up.
Just a thought but I'm holding out for a pet store and a really nice bookstore on the ave and I would be even happier!
Hummus Station is being opened by the owners of MySpaceNYC Realty. It's not MySpaceNYC renting the space to the restaurant, it is MySpaceNYC opening the restaurant on their own. Their greed knows no bounds.
If you do ever consider eating there, please realize you would be fueling MySpaceNYC's efforts as they continue to exorbitantly raise rents in this neighborhood.
Surely you can satisfy your hunger elsewhere - somewhere that wouldn't require you to swallow your own conscience with every bite.
At the very least, you should know the hand that feeds you. If you want to know more about Hummus Station and the people who will own/run it, stop into MySpaceNYC realty and talk with Guy or Rob. See what you think.
I find it weird that a MySpace employee (or a few of them) will actually operate a Hummus restaurant for any length of time.
It seems more logical that MySpace would buy a commercial property and then rent it out, OR launch a business that it would then sell or rent to a proprieter for a profit.
My sense is that prospective proprieters would be willing to pay a premium for a soon-to-open business with an approved kitchen and alc lic.
If it has recently opened and can show an expanding customer base, that sounds even better.
Hell, if I was a real estate employee, I would be willing to run a Falafel place for a couple of months just for variety ...I wouldn't "demand" a large portion of the profit that would be earned my employer from flipping it to a new owner.
It was actually open tonight when I walked by at 7pm, probably a soft opening then? But it was packed! The menu was posted by the front door, traditional Mediterranean fare, and it looked nice and cozy inside.
Contrary to the speculation above, they are not vegetarian: There are some fish entrees.
Fez Hummus Bar features cuisine with a variety of influences stretching from Israel and Morocco to America. It's new Mediterranean food with a twist – adventurous, healthy and delicious.
Our food will bring you an unexpected fusion of flavors and experiences. Try our authentic hummus on its own or choose a topping or two from the many options available. Pair savory falafel with wine from our unique selection or treat yourself to our Mediterranean version of fish and chips with a beer.
Fez Hummus Bar is a place where everyone can feel comfortable. Come on your own, with a date, or share our communal table with your friends and family. We are eager to serve you – come and visit us soon!
When I have the chance, I'll ask if they are Kosher. (One can serve fish and be Kosher).
So excited to see that they are open! And the menu looks just about perfect to me--affordable and healthy and delicious! As far as being kosher, it seems to me that they are, in the sense that all the ingredients they use are acceptable to those who keep kosher, and most, if not all, of the wines are kosher as well. However, they do not seem to have rabbinic certification, at least as far as a I saw, so some kosher-observant people in the neighborhood will not necessarily feel comfortable eating there unless they personally know and trust the owner.
Agreed that Zaytoons is great. If Fez has already gone under though, I feel bad that I haven't at least tried it out. There are so many new places and places that I haven't checked out in a long time, it's hard to make it to the top of my list on the occasion that I have time to go out..
Those were my exact thoughts last night too. I remember how excited I was just hearing there'll be a falafel place. Then more excited when I saw the quality of the build-out. So its a bummer that they havent figured out the model, and hopefully just reconfiguring. I gave them a mediocre review, and advice, which hopefully theyre hearing from others and making the proper changes.
The Yelp reviews seem mixed:http://www.yelp.com/biz/fez-hummus-bar-brooklynIt also didn't seem like it was "instantly packed", like some of the recent openings.This could be because people aren't that excited about their menu, and/or could mean that we are finally getting enough restaurants to meet the area's desires and means.
I ate there once and the food was incredibly bland. Asked for some chili sauce or something to make all the bland pastes on my plate have some zing. Too bad. I was looking forward to it. Even a cheap falafel place would have been preferable.
And, here's when the CB8 SLA mtg will occur, in case you are interested in hearing more about it before it opens: Please be advised that the SLA & Sidewalk Café Review Committee willmeet on Monday, April 7, 2014 at 6:30 PM at CNR-Center Light Health Care Center, which is located at 727 Classon Avenue, Brooklyn, NY (between Park and Prospect Places).
"sold their stakes when the business did not instantly fill and begin to make money"
Not being in the restaurant biz, is that really the right/best approach? I figured after all the cost of the buildout etc, you'd refine your model, do some marketing, SOMETHING in order to get the place filled. Or maybe some places just take time to catch on. Throwing in the towel so quickly seems odd, or if you have no faith in your biz, best to cut your losses I guess.
One can definitely tell the experienced restaurant operators with lots of capital (i.e. Cent'Anni), FROM the newbies who have unrealistic expectations of instant $ and very little ongoing capital (i.e. Fez).
I'd second that proposal. Love centanni, but its just not set up for families with those darned high tables/stools. Barboncino and the Classon are nicely set for families....now just for Classon to start doing brunch.
Although i wish the new testaurany much luck and success, and i absolutely love brazilian food, I agree about the name not being very appealing in terms of a restaurant...makes me think "blood and guts"...Insta-turn-off...Please re-think to something more appealing and/or "Brazilian"...I honestly think it would be a good idea...Bemvindo e Bom Sorte!!!!
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How dangerous is Vladimir Putin?
Territorial acquisition is a dangerous game to start playing. The world has moved on from the age of annexation and invasion.
Clinton has compared this to Germany in 1930s. There are some parallels. Being sore about having lost territories in the break-up of the soviet union. Annexing neighbouring territory on the grounds of protecting your ethnic clan. Promising that you are finished when there are many other Russian ethnic groups in other neighbouring territories.
The psychology of Putin is a worry. He has a bit of a narcissistic personality cult about him which is a warning sign for a leader who has the potential to cause a lot of misery through ego driven confrontation.
I hope the world can show a united front when it comes to sanctions to see if we are able to control bad behaviour without military force.
I don't consider Vladimir Putin as dangerous at all, and frankly given the events and circumstances his 'land grab' in Crimea was largely common sense. It is inane spluttering from our side that risks worsening the issue, I get the idea that is exactly what the foreign policy hawks want actually. Maybe they feel their war budget is under threat, or Nato's raison d'etre fading.
Ukraine & the west are just gonna have to get used to the fact Ukraine does not include Crimea- and I think the main result of stoking the issue will be that the chorus calling for eastern Ukraine to secede too, will just get louder. Putin seems to be content not to stoke this issue- for now.
What if Obama or any other western leader annexed a chunk of a neighbouring country on some flimsy protectionist pretence?
If the country voted 90% in favour of it then it would probably be OK. Say New Zealand voted 90% to be integrated to Australia, I don't see a problem with that. Annex is a pretty harsh word in this context. You could say Russia has liberated Crimea.
Invading a neighbouring nation by force and declaring part of their territory as now belonging to you is 19th century nonsense. It is not the way civilised nations conduct themselves in the 21st century.
Putin should be made to pay a heavy price as an example to the rest of the world.
looper they never invaded they have troops stationed there no direct access to the crimea from russia.
Originally Posted by Looper
Invading a neighbouring nation by force and declaring part of their territory as now belonging to you is 19th century nonsense. It is not the way civilised nations conduct themselves in the 21st century.
Putin should be made to pay a heavy price as an example to the rest of the world.
Perhaps if the West hadn't got involved in helping overthrow the democratically elected government in Ukraine just because they had decided to look East instead of West then Putin wouldn't have had to take the steps he did. The West has broken so many deals they signed with Russia just what did they expect.....
Invading a neighbouring nation by force and declaring part of their territory as now belonging to you is 19th century nonsense. It is not the way civilised nations conduct themselves in the 21st century.
Ok, but we have to burn Bush, Cheyney and Rumsfeld at the stake first.
If you can agree - we have a deal
Well they have diplomatic ways of conducting their claim on the territory. Massing tanks on the border and railroading a land-snatch is not good enough by 21st century standards.
Fair point, but I hardly see Ukraine handing over land through diplomatic means. Ukraine went into turmoil, the Russians came in to save Crimea from the shit fight.
The massing of forces on the Ukraine border is a seperate issue (which I do have a problem with), and the Crimea thing I'll concede is not a good precedent, but still, Crimea wants to be part of Russia, I don't see the problem.
Can't believe in this day and age, with all the illegal activity and atrocities the west has committed on various countries, not to mention the theft of land and resources, people still fall for the west's propaganda bullshit!
Invading a neighbouring nation by force and declaring part of their territory as now belonging to you is 19th century nonsense. It is not the way civilised nations conduct themselves in the 21st century.
Ok, but we have to burn Bush, Cheyney and Rumsfeld at the stake first.
If you can agree - we have a deal
I know a lot of people have problems with USA's world policeman role and foreign policies but Putin orchestrating a land-snatch on a neighbouring country is barbarian and thuggish and I don't see a direct comparison really.
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Things may have been quiet here on the Ariel site, but they’ve been humming – then lulling – then humming again over on my Morgan 30 site. If you haven’t checked it out, you may want to cruise on over to the Morgan 30 refit site. She’s for sale, by the way. Here’s the listing: Morgan 30 listing
I have an attractive and functional classic brass Fynspray Galley Pump for sale with a recent “rebuild” with a genuine Fynspray Service Kit. The pump works as new. It is a used pump and shows some exterior wear marks – some of which may polish out. See the pictures below. Defender seems to have the best price on these pumps at 299.99. I’m asking $175.00 + shipping.
Buying a boat is a potentially stressful affair, usually with a significant amount of money on the line – not to mention a whole lot of hope and expectations, too. Several resources are out there for buyers of Cape Dory yachts thanks to a healthy and active Cape Dory Sailboat Owners Association, which maintains an online forum, organizes events and rendezvous via local fleet captains, hosts online information about boat specs and technical manuals, and provides links to owner websites. If you’re in the market for a Cape Dory, it would be wise to spend some time searching the site, reading the posts, and gathering as much information as you can. I spent numerous hours gleaning what I could from other CD owners via the forum in the months after acquiring Ariel.
In addition to a manufacturer-specific site like the CDSOA, knowledgeable and thorough guys like Don Casey and Nigel Calder have authored absolutely fantastic resources for any sailor who actually desires to know and learn more about boats. Read them. Multiple times. Refer to them as you inspect your potential boat. They even include lists of what to look for if you decide to conduct your own survey. (Always hire a qualified marine surveyor to verify your findings ;).
By the way, owning and maintaining an older boat is neither easy nor cheap. If you’re cheap, don’t buy one. If you’re motivated and eager to learn, go for it. If you have loads of money and you’re willing to pay someone else to maintain it, go for it. If you lack natural curiosity and a desire to learn new skills, skip the boat and watch sailing videos on YouTube. 😉 If you’re still reading, good; maybe a Cape Dory is the right boat for you (or another classic).
Now that I’ve spent 13 years owning and maintaining a 1979 Cape Dory 36, I’ll share what I know and what I’ve learned for anyone interested in owning a Cape Dory.
First, since I just got off the phone with a gentlemen who is interested in buying a CD36, let me start with a couple of his questions.
Well, I guess the first one is a statement that raises what I see as an important question/consideration: “I’ve heard that the Cape Dory is a wet boat.” The implication is, as I understood it, that she’s not as high and dry as a more modern design and, thus, maybe not the “best” boat for going to sea.
Let’s clarify a few things.
First, a “wet” boat is not a bad boat anymore than a “dry” boat is a good boat. We’re talking about design differences, and like almost everything related to sailboats/sailing, the word is…COMPROMISE.
Cape Dorys, like other boats of their design and era, were designed along much more traditional lines and influenced by old racing rules. What does that mean? Simply put, she’s narrower and has pointier ends. It also means that she heels more easily and tends to roll more than a modern flat-bottomed, fin-keeled boat that carries her beam all the way to her transom. She also likes to sail heeled a bit. Modern boats, by contrast, prefer to be sailed upright. The wineglass shape of the Cape Dory hull makes the boat “tender,” a term that describes her tendency to heel quite easily. That wineglass shape also means, however, that once she heels over a few degrees she tends to “harden up” – i.e., resist heeling farther. It also means that her deep hull tends to slice through seas, not pound into them, giving her a more sea kindly motion than many modern boats. The design also has fairly long overhangs. The idea was that as the boat heeled, her waterline length increased, giving her more speed and beating the rules (back then), so overhangs were advantageous, not just attractive. She also has about three feet of freeboard amidship, whereas a Hunter or Beneteau or Catalina, or just about any other modern boat, will have four or five feet of freeboard to maximize space below.
It’s those differences between the Cape Dory and more modern designs that contribute to the reputation of Cape Dory as a “wet” boat versus a “dry” boat, but again, “wet” isn’t bad any more than “dry” is good; it’s about compromises that relate to other factors that pertain to a particular boat’s additional characteristics.
So what are some of those “additional characteristics”?
Cape Dorys have a modified full keel with a cutaway forefoot, and it looks like this:
The area in black is the keel. Unlike a true full-keel boat (such as the Westsail 32), the forward part of the keel has been “cut away,” which gives her the advantages of a full keel and removes some of the disadvantages (but not all). Advantages include better tracking and less leeway (sideways “slipping”); a finer entry which provides a smoother motion in a seaway as the keel and the area of the hull forward of it cuts through waves (rather than slamming) and displaces more water, preventing the boat from rolling side to side as dramatically as a fin-keeled boat might – especially when lying ahull and not making way; the ability to hold a steady course more easily (and even sail herself once the sails are balanced); internal, encapsulated ballast, so no keel bolts to maintain or worry about; a keel-hung rudder with the propellor protected in an aperture; and a shape that is less likely to result in serious damage during a grounding.
What are the disadvantages? She doesn’t back very well, so controlling her in reverse is challenging in tight quarters; the increased wetted area of the full keel adds drag; full-keelers generally don’t point as high as a fin-keeled sailboat.
For cruising, however, the full keel is a proven, seaworthy design. There are certainly other options – such as the Pacific Seacraft with a molded stub, bolted-on ballast, and a skeg-mounted rudder (pictured below). Again, compromise is the word. And choosing a boat that’s best for your intended use is critical – e.g., coastal vs blue water cruising, daysailing, floating house, entertaining guests, etc. Add aesthetics into the mix, and sometimes compromise comes in the form of beautifully traditional and attractive lines vs lousy backing. We compromise and put up with her quirks in reverse.
“Is a Cape Dory 36 a good boat for someone who has sailing experience and is looking to take that experience farther via coastal and blue water cruising?”
Yes. She’s a good sailer. She’s predictable. She’s easy to manage single-handed. She’s stable and has nice wide sidedecks and good handholds. Her cutter rig is simple and easy to control. She’ll steer herself if she’s balanced properly. She’s designed and built well. But there are other similar boats that would be good candidates, too. The most important consideration here, to my thinking, is the boat’s condition. Any boat with questionable rigging or other issues is a liability. Condition matters … a lot.
“What issues are there to look out for on the Cape Dory 36?”
These boats are approaching 40. There are several things to look for, but a few are specific to Cape Dory. Chainplates are anchored under the sidedecks at the hull to deck joint with (in the early years) mild steel plates glassed to the hull. Water intrusion over the years can turn them into rusty messes. Later years had aluminum chainplate anchors, which still need inspection. There’s also a steel backing plate located under the bowsprit in the anchor locker. They, too, can rust. Inspect it.
The engine beds were also built of steel and glassed into the hull. Check them.
Although most fittings – such as chainplates and stanchions – penetrate solid glass, there are bits of hardware fastened in cored areas. My experience has revealed that Cape Dory did not properly seal the core in these areas. I’ve found damp core on the foredeck at the chain pipe and in the cockpit at the emergency tiller access. Check the deck for moisture.
The rudder pin and shoe wear over time, necessitating removal and repair.
Those are, to my knowledge, the only Cape Dory-specific issues. Wiring was typical of the era and likely in need of updating. Rigging is likely long overdue for replacement, depending upon previous owners’ efforts. Auxiliaries are potentially nearing the end of their lives or at least approaching the rebuild stage – same goes for gearboxes. Hardware and ports will probably need rebedding. Steering cables might be in need of replacement. Sails are potentially old and bagged out. Electronics may be dated. All of that assuming that the previous owners didn’t stay atop the maintenance. The same items will be an issue on any boat of the CD’s vintage, but maybe worse due to inferior parts and construction methods.
Comparing the CD to other similar designs such as Allied, Alberg, Morgan, etc, the CD is built to a higher degree of refinement. As stout as some of those older designs are, the CD is just as stout and of better construction/engineering, in my opinion.
“Is the Cape Dory slow?” “Does she point well?”
Ariel has consistently out sailed other boats on the water. Most recently, she pointed higher and sailed faster than a Jeanneau 37 on a light-air day with her standard working sails – yankee, staysail, and main. She out sailed an Island Packet 38 – cutter rigged – even while she was towing an inflatable dinghy with a soft bottom (translated: a lot of drag). These experiences and others are, of course, anecdotal, but she’s proven to be no slouch. She’ll easily approach hull speed in moderate air, and in light air – with the right sails, a drifter in our case – she’ll squeeze at least 3 knots of boat speed out of 5 knots of wind.
With a newer staysail and yankee, she’ll sail around 45 apparent. Trimmed properly, she points reasonably well, especially for a cutter. Tired out, bagged out sails won’t point, though. If you’re looking at a boat with old sails, you’ll likely be disappointed with her performance.
“Is she cramped below because she’s an older design?”
Ariel is perfect for two adults. She starts to feel crowded (down below) with four adults, but she’s fine with two adults and two kids. Of course, that’s coming from a cruising perspective. If you’re daysailing, well, we were just out with six adults and five kids – and none of us lost our sanity. She’ll sleep six, but you’ll be constantly shifting people and gear around as you make and make up beds and stow gear.
“I’ve heard that she has a tendency to hobby-horse.”
In light air without a decent sail for the conditions, she can be aggravating in any kind of swell or sea. Her fine ends make her more likely to hobby-horse than a flat-bottomed, bluff-bowed boat, but she’s not bad. Get her going and she’s happy.
“How does she sail off the wind?”
She’s great – on all points of sail, really. The only thing she doesn’t like is a quartering sea; she tends to yaw and roll a bit in those conditions. Lake Michigan waves are steeper and of a much shorter period than ocean waves, however, so perhaps she’d behave better on open water.
All in all, she’s a good-sailing, well-behaved yacht that exudes class and elegance. Her traditional lines turn heads in every port, and her ability on the water makes her a joy to sail.
I suspect there are some things I may have overlooked. If so, let me know.
When my wife, boys, and I departed St. Joseph back in June, we were hoping to make Beaver Island within about 10 days or so. I had talked up the beauty and solitude of the harbor quite a bit, and both of my boys, I’m pretty sure, had some wild imaginings of a place along the lines of Robinson Crusoe or Treasure Island. We’ve spent cold winter evenings tracing our fingers over chart book pages of the Beaver Island archipelago, dreaming of dropping anchor in remote harbors and going ashore to explore uninhabited islands, so it’s easy to imagine my family’s disappointment when our trip was interrupted by mechanical issues.
Two weeks later my youngest could barely contain his excitement as we departed Charlevoix and headed for Beaver Island. Ever cheerful, Josh did his best to contain his anxiety about wind and waves during our passage and toughed it out by focusing on the expectation of a sweet anchorage in Beaver Island’s St. James Harbor later that day. As we motored into the harbor, he chatted away excitedly and couldn’t wait to go ashore to explore. What a joy to see through the enthusiastic and unfettered eyes of a child.
With evening upon us, however, we enjoyed the island from Ariel’s deck, watched the sun set, ate a good supper, and went to bed.
Josh awoke the next morning ready to explore, so we pumped up the dinghy and headed ashore. Prior to this leg of the trip we’d been rowing our Trinka dinghy ashore, so Josh was jazzed to try something new: the inflatable and a 4hp outboard. Not quite as classy or clean as a rowing dink, the inflatable certainly stows (and travels) much better when not in use, so we put up with its gasoline, heavy outboard, and unattractive appearance. But Josh loves it.
Josh wanted to get the lay of the land, so we beached the dinghy at the north end of the harbor and walked south through town, stopping along the way to read historical markers and peek into a few shops (there aren’t many). Again, Josh was chattering with questions and excitement, and I loved every minute of it.
Like most sailors, I suspect, we had to walk the docks at the municipal marina, a prospect Josh approached with a hint of trepidation due to my story from several years ago about a run-in with the harbormaster. If he’s still there, we didn’t run into him this time.
At the south end of town we visited the historical society and read all about the Irish and Mormon history on the island before heading back to the north end. Although I’ve been to Beaver Island a few times, I was surprised to discover at the northeast end of the harbor the Beaver Island Marine Museum. And imagine my joy when Josh begged to stop in. A kind lady greeted us and handed Josh a scavenger hunt sheet, telling him that he could win a prize if he found all of the artifacts listed therein. Away he went!
The museum preserves the island’s fishing heritage with numerous artifacts and pictures. Perhaps the coolest exhibit is the Bob S., an historic fishing tug.
Captain Josh at the wheel of the Bob S. fishing tug.
Josh’s scavenger hunt diligence earned him a free postcard, while I had the joy of watching this kid’s enthusiasm and wonder.
We left the museum and walked south along the east side of the harbor to check out the entrance light and the view out over the north end of Lake Michigan.
After exploring the island, we ate lunch at Dalwhinnie’s and stocked up on groceries at McDonough’s before heading back to Ariel, our bellies full and our wonder satisfied.
We (or rather Josh) hauled anchor the next morning and set a course through Gray’s Reef Passage and on to the Mackinac Bridge, another landmark Josh was eager to see – this time from below. (I greased the bow roller after this, by the way. She’s quiet now!). Josh had hauled anchor in Charlevoix as well, so with this haul we decided to promote him from “barnacle” to “swab.” He was thrilled.
With a new ZF Marine 12M gear from Trans Atlantic Diesels, Inc., my boys and I made the 5-hour drive back to Northport and Ariel on a Sunday. Installation was simple and the transmission slid right into place as it should. I knew that was the easy part. After all the jockeying/shifting of the engine to get the TMC gear to “fit,” I figured I was in for a tough time of aligning the engine and prop shaft. As it turned out, it wasn’t as bad as I’d expected. A few shifts and tweaks of the motor mounts had alignment looking good, and I had the transmission in and the shaft aligned within .004″ in three hours.
Really, the only major frustration was the original shift cable bracket – mounted on the back of the transmission – which was too short to position the shift cable properly so that the shift lever could travel equal distances forward and aft. I set the cable to ensure positive engagement in forward and reverse, and the next morning we hauled anchor and sea-trialed the new gear. With the transmission running smoothly – no vibrations or shifting issues – we motored into Northport marina and picked up a slip for the night to charge batteries, fill water tanks, and otherwise ready Ariel for cruising again. The plan was for the boys to sail together, but Jake was running a fever and feeling lousy, so he headed back home with my mom, leaving Josh and me to sail with grandpa. I was bummed to “lose” one of my boys, but being sick is never fun, especially on a boat away from home.
Hurth HBW 10 2 R in blue. ZF Marine 12M in the raw. For those wondering, a new ZF 12M from TAD runs $1700.
ZF 12M
Clearance was so tight I had to use the shift lever from the old Hurth. Ridiculous.
Gear in, aligned, filled with oil, and ready for action. Let’s hear it for another 37 years of service. (Fingers crossed).
We departed Northport Tuesday morning bound for Charlevoix and quickly found a nice breeze that allowed us the sail the entire way. We arrived in Charlevoix in a squall and just in time to catch the bridge opening into Round Lake.
Emerald Isle ferry departing Charlevoix for Beaver Island.
Channel from Round Lake into Lake Charlevoix.
Up North cruising is beautiful, and this little cut into Lake Charlevoix is no exception.
Lake Charlevoix ahead.
During the trip from Northport to Charlevoix a familiar creak from the steering system was noticeably worse. After losing a transmission this summer, I wasn’t about to risk another interruption, so once into Charlevoix we headed to Irish Boat Works and tied up at their courtesy dock. Cramming myself into the engine compartment once again, I loosened the steering cable and removed the suspect sheave pin.
Clearly the bronze pin had been rotating in the SS sheave mount. All of the other pins have anti-rotation locks to keep the sheave spinning on the pin, not the pin spinning on the mounting flanges. I talked with Edson, the maker of our steering system, and they said that replacement pins are now SS and $23.00 a pop. I sourced a SS clevis pin of the appropriate size for $5.00 and the system is silent and silky smooth once again. If you have an Edson system, ensure that your pins aren’t rotating. If they are, pull and inspect them.
We spent a couple nights anchored in Oyster Bay, one of our favorite spots, swimming and relaxing. It was nice to be cruising again and to have the transmission issue behind us. Sort of.
During our passage from Northport, I was troubled by a slight thrumming coming from the prop shaft as it freewheeled, so…once again I squeezed myself behind the engine, undid the coupling (and Drive Saver), and checked alignment, figuring that maybe the engine bouncing around on its mounts might have shifted alignment ever so slightly. At the end of this round of alignment, I couldn’t fit the .003″ feeler gauge between the output flange and the coupling. The pilot on the coupling slid smoothly into the output flange and the faces mated up about as perfectly as one could hope. I put everything back together and was immensely pleased to hear…nothing…during our boisterous passage from Charlevoix to Beaver Island.
We made a fast trip to Beaver Island under double-reefed main and staysail on a WSW wind blowing 25 kts and gusting to 30. Sailors unfamiliar with Lake Michigan sailing might be surprised by the waves the wind kicks up when it has sufficient fetch. Unlike the ocean, with a steady swell, Lake Michigan kicks up steep waves that are packed together, making the experience much like sailing an inlet or channel. Multiple wave patterns make things even more boisterous. I was glad I’d replaced the sheave pin. Pictures rarely convey wave height, but the pics below are of about 6′ waves.
Even though we’d had a beautiful, clear day, a storm hit us just as we were approaching Beaver Island’s St. James Harbor. We anchored in a rain and enjoyed a beautiful sunset as the storm cleared – even witnessing a spectacular full rainbow.
Beaver Island has long been a favorite anchorage – we even hosted a Cape Dory Rendezvous there in 2010. It was nice to be back.
Just over a week into our summer cruise from St. Joseph to points north (we were hoping to make Mackinaw City) the transmission packed it in during our departure from Leland. With a dinghy in tow and a forecast for increasing winds and waves, I was motorsailing in the early-morning light winds when my wife and I heard a noise from below the cockpit that sounded a bit like cavitation. As the boat speed suddenly dropped off significantly, I began going through a mental checklist of possibilities. After confirming that the shaft and propeller were still where they should be, that the prop wasn’t fouled, and that the shift cable and lever were moving/engaging, I concluded that we’d “lost” the transmission.
Transmission packed it in just after leaving Leland. Fortunately, it didn’t quit a couple days before as we were entering in moderate seas, or the day of our departure. All in all, a good time for a transmission failure.
Although it clouded up as the day wore on, we had a beautiful sail up and over the Leelanau Peninsula and dropped anchor in Northport, a familiar harbor where we’ve spent some time on the hook. I immediately began making calls to figure out which was the better option: replace or rebuild. With a new transmission running about $1700 and a rebuild close to the same, the decision was obvious.
We enjoyed a beautiful sunrise and a pleasant sail north.
Preparing to round Cathead Point.
After a little sleuthing online, I came across the TMC60, a better, more reliable gear that should fit. I had several conversations with a very helpful and knowledgeable gentleman from BetaMarine USA and decided to order the trans, which I received two days later. In the meantime, I pulled the old Hurth HBW 10 2 R and made way for the new trans. Unfortunately, these things never go as smoothly as they should; one of the five cap head screws that secure the damper plate to the flywheel stripped. Rather than make things worse while working upside-down and on my head, I reinstalled the other fasteners and planned to continue running the original damper, which appears to be in decent shape.
Incidentally, the fact that it was even possible to pull the old transmission without heroics was due to our stuffing box arrangement. Ariel’s stuffing box screws onto her stern tube, as opposed to other CD’s with a stuffing box that is connected to the stern tube via a short length of hose. Thanks to our shorter, simpler stuffing box, I was able to unbolt the coupler and slide the prop shaft aft until the coupling met the stuffing box. It did take a little maneuvering to get the transmission and adapter plate out, but it wasn’t difficult.
Removing the transmission required unbolting the coupling from the DriveSaver, sliding the shaft aft to the stuffing box, and removing the water lift muffler and bracket.
Cramped quarters, but thank goodness I fit!
Stubborn cap screw in the damper plate. (And a leaky, oily Perkins).
The culprit. Hurth HBW 10 2 R. Pretty decent service for being 37 years old.
Sunday, July 3, with the new transmission – and after driving 5 hours back to Northport – I spent hours jockeying the heavy Perkins 4.108 around, trying to get enough room for the new trans. Cape Dory shoehorned the engine and trans so far aft that there was no way I could get the new trans shift lever – which exits the case on the port side of the box – to clear the hull without raising the rear of the engine 5/8″ and sliding the whole engine forward over an inch. It was clear that I would have to re-engineer the engine foundations in order to accommodate the required position. Summer is just too short for that so, admitting defeat, I pulled the gear out and moved the engine back to its original location (not an easy task, especially in such a confined space).
Back home in St. Joseph, I reluctantly returned the TMC60 and ordered a ZF 12M, which has the same dimensions as the old Hurth and should be a direct fit. Why didn’t I just go with the Hurth in the first place? Two reasons: First, the TMC is a better (less expensive) gear and I was confident it would fit; Second, ZF transmissions have a less-than-stellar reliability record. If you’re interested in researching issues with the ZF, simply Google “Hurth/ZF transmission thrust washer” or “Hurth/ZF transmission slipping” or “Hurth Transmission Problem.” Perhaps the post of most interest is this one on the Cape Dory Board: Hurth Failure
At any rate, the new ZF will be here Friday, and I’ll head back to Northport to install it and get Ariel back to cruising.
Eventually I’ll open the case on the old Hurth and look into the possibility of rebuilding it to keep as a spare. I did drain the ATF and it has a metallic sheen/glitter to it. Word is it’s probably a failed thrust washer, but perhaps more is going on. I can spin the input shaft with one hand and prevent the output flange from spinning with the other, so clearly something is slipping.
I attended my first North Sails U sail trim seminar back in February at the invitation of a couple sailing buddies, which seemed like a good opportunity to do something different in the midst of winter, learn some new skills, and spend some time with a few crew members from last summer’s Mac race. Indeed, the best part of the event was spending the day in Chicago and hanging out with the guys. For the most part, the seminar bordered on a grand disappointment.
North Sails is one of the largest sail lofts in the world, so naturally I figured that any presenter endorsed by the North name would likely blow my mind with insight into sail management and trim. Not so. The presentation certainly had some interesting nuggets, but focused primarily on basic sail trim and lacked the depth, organization, and polish I expected from the North name. Too bad, especially when you do a little math and figure out that approximately 60 attendees paid (at least) $99 each for the seminar, which amounts to a cool six grand for less than 8 hours of instruction. Yes, a complimentary North Sails U CD-ROM is included for the price, but it has all the pizzaz of an outdated PowerPoint presentation – you know, the one with lousy graphics, monotonous narration, and uninspiring presentation. It’s way past time for North to invest some of the 6k per seminar in an update. (If the sport of sailing is dying – as our presenter suggested during the seminar – part of it could be blamed on such outdated presentation materials).
So, if you’re thinking you might drop $99+ on a North Sails U seminar, I say spend that money on a lesson that keeps on giving: buy a book! I’ve learned far more from a few good books on the subject of sail trim. Take a gander at these if you’re interested:
I’d nearly forgotten about a Lake Michigan Cape Dory site I created a few years ago. Digging through the posts, I thought this one was worthy of sharing here because of the handsome boats.
Slideshow
There could be no greater testimony to the high caliber of Cape Dory owners than a loosely planned event – hosted by a couple of newbies, no less – turning out to be a great time. And such was the case for the Lake Michigan rendezvous held Aug. 2-6 at St. James Harbor, Beaver Island, the relaxed island atmosphere and its natural beauty providing the perfect backdrop. Even without a carefully planned schedule, tours, or activities, there was plenty of good conversation, a congenial spirit, and a lot of enthusiasm for the event – and even excited talk about planning one for next year.
Thanks in large part to the efforts of Cathy Monaghan and Great Lakes Fleet Captain Ed Haley, who regularly posted registration reminders to the CD Board, 10 people registered for the event and four boats made the trip. Now this number might be small in comparison to some of our other fleets, but as our Dear Mr. Dunn pointed out in a recent issue of Masthead, the vastness of the Great Lakes shoreline tends to complicate things. (Some quick math indicates that the one-way mileage average of the four boats is roughly 160nm)
When Ariel and her crew, Dave and David VanDenburgh, arrived Sunday evening, August 1, we were greeted with a pretty harbor made more attractive by the presence of two Cape Dorys, SISU (CD28) and Spindrift (CD300MS). After anchoring and settling in, we dinghied over to SISU and met Guy Leslie and Jan Jones. Guy is a long-time Cape Dory owner (first a Typhoon Weekender, then a CD25) and the proud new owner of a beautiful CD28, SISU, which he purchased in Holland, MI, in September 2009 and brought to her new port in Traverse City. When he heard about the rendezvous, Guy was eager to meet up with other CD owners and said he “just had to make it.” And make it he did, taking SISU on their first extended trip together. Little did he know he’d have a few more opportunities to “get acquainted” with her as the week progressed. In the true spirit of a rendezvous, however, he found that he had plenty of support as he dealt with tough anchoring conditions and some transmission issues. Much to his credit, Guy remained optimistic and unflappable through it all.
Guy Leslie descending into the engine compartment to ferret out the cause of his transmission woes.
Guy Leslie aboard SISU.
Monday morning dawned rainy and windy, a 15-20 kt southwesterly setting in for much of the week. The gusts proved too much for SISU’s anchor and she began creeping downwind through the anchorage, her anchor fouled with weeds. Once SISU was safely re-anchored, we went ashore to meet Bill and Mary Kay Movalson, new owners of Spindrift, a very clean CD 300 Motorsailer out of Gladstone, MI, just north of Escanaba.
A weedy bottom made for tough anchoring.
Bill and Mary Kay Movalson’s CD 300 Motorsailer, Spindrift
Bill and Mary Kay purchased Spindrift in May and, like Guy, they were excited to hear about the Beaver Island rendezvous. Bill is quite the gadget/innovation guy and has already made a number of upgrades to the boat, including custom dinghy davits and pilothouse doors. Mary Kay is a gracious host and loves the comfortable ride and versatility afforded by the Motorsailer. Bill and Mary Kay had obligations in Mackinac and needed to get an early start in the morning, so the group enjoyed drinks and conversation aboard Spindrift before heading to Shamrock, a local restaurant. Just as we were leaving the dock, Mike Ritenour and Sue arrived aboard La Vida, a CD33. Rit and Sue, exhausted from their 60+ nm trip from Cheboygan (not to mention their earlier travels through Lake Superior and the Soo locks), opted to settle in for the night and anchored in the harbor.
La Vida anchored in St. James Harbor.
The group met in the morning for coffee and breakfast (and yet more great conversation), and then walked over the St. James Boat Shop to check on Bill, a skilled woodworker and old friend of Rit’s. Bill and his apprentice make fine cherry buckets and strip canoes. Sawdust covers the floor of the shop and partially completed boats hang from the ceiling or rest on sawhorses. After taking a bit of joshing from Bill, whose 80-something mind is as sharp as ever, Rit added another cherry bucket memento to his collection.
Old Bill splicing a handle for his cherry bucket.
After some exploring and stocking up on groceries, the group migrated to La Vida for drinks and conversation. Rit gave a tour of La Vida, which is absolutely decked out with gear, while Sue listened graciously. For those who don’t know, La Vida was a victim of hurricane Hugo and rescued by Rit, who has put some 60,000 miles under her keel since then. To say that she is equipped is an understatement. By Rit’s own account, even the Coast Guard during a courtesy inspection finally gave up trying to find fault when they realized they weren’t in the presence of your typical Weekend Warrior. Rit’s good nature and wonderful companion, combined with his considerable experience, made the time aboard La Vida a real privilege.
l-r: Michael “Rit” Ritenour, Guy Leslie, Sue
Two members came in by ferry: Kevin LeMans and Great Lakes Fleet Captain Ed Haley. Kevin had originally planned to sail Raconteur, his CD30, but crew plans fell through and he ended up camping on the island with his family and joining the group for breakfast. We hope to meet Raconteur in person at the next rendezvous! Ed Haley traveled and then traveled some more to make an appearance, and we are grateful for his dedication. After completing a 500-mile bike ride through Iowa with his son, Ed drove to Charlevoix and caught the ferry to Beaver Island, arriving just in time to sort out some transmission issues on SISU. Not surprisingly, Ed once owned a CD28, so his experience came in handy.
Dinner with the crew the night before departure.
Friday morning brought with it a shift in wind, giving everyone a fair wind home. We said our goodbyes over breakfast, courtesy of the GLF, and set a course for home. Rit, Sue and La Vida set out through Gray’s Reef Passage and on to Mackinac; Ariel headed south for South Manitou Island (and St. Joseph); and Ed and Guy messed about with SISU before Ed took the ferry back to Charlevoix. Despite his earlier transmission troubles, Guy made it home safely to Traverse City without a glitch.
Rit and Ed Haley say goodbye.
Although the newbies might like to take credit for a successful rendezvous, there’s no doubt that it was due to the unequaled character of your typical Cape Dory owner. After all, great boats pick great people. Perhaps there will be more great boats and great people next year?! We’ll keep you posted.
Last summer, while getting ready for the Mac Race, I decided to test my life vest before replacing the expired inflation pack, per race regulations. Nothing too exciting, but if you’ve never seen one of these things in action, here you go. You’ll notice in the video that I discovered a strobe already attached to the vest – after I bought two others specifically for the race. Oh well.
It turns out that the recharge kits for this particular vest runs around $75. Ouch! I suspect the charge was perfectly fine, but it had expired about four years prior.
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October 09, 2015
Lily why and when did you decide to self-publish your book?
Today I answer with absolute certainty and without any hesitation: Why not?I wish I had this opinion earlier. Then I wouldn’t have wasted so much of my time and energy for nothing.
During the last decade I’ve tried everything to get published by a traditional Publishing company in Germany and in United Kingdom. I put allot of effort in finding the right Literary Agent and Publisher across the world. I spend hours, days, months and years on the Internet and on the official Agent Listings. Visited each single one of their websites to find out whether they represent my book genre or not.
Honestly I have no idea how many people I’ve contacted. I think without exaggeration it must have been around 600 people and companies. Maybe, even more. Not only did I spend allot of time, hope and energy, but also allot of money for printing the cover letter and the synopsis, the mail cost etc. Only God knows how much I have spent. I rather don’t think about it. And the result was as you can imagine nothing but disappointment!
Why? Because I only got either a standard rejection mail or nothing. And if I actually got a publishing offer, it was everything but serious. I will share an example with you next time!
I’m a nominated Multi-Genre Author, Blogger, Artist and Publisher. I’m the Author of “Destination: Freedom” and eleven more titles. With my honest memoir I have enjoyed strong media exposure and public interest during the refugee crises in summer 2015. Placements included two features with national newspaper the Daily Mirror as well as interviews with popular British lifestyle websites Female First and Frost Magazine. I had to fight against injustice, prejudice, discrimination and social isolation for almost three decades to become who I am today. An Independent Publisher and Author with the goal to entertain and educate readers about important and eye-opening topics in our society. Check out my seasonal Free blogger magazine “Read My Mind” on my website! Social media contacts: Website: www.lilyamis.com – www.nasSima-design.com, LilyAmis.blogspot.com, nasSimadesign.blogspot.com, Twitter: @nassimadesign and @ReadMyMindMag, Youtube: sndesign2011, Facebook: @LilyAmisAuthor and @ReadMyMindMagazine. Visit my store: www.society6.com/nassimadesign.
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The European Court of Human Rights ruled that some aspects of British surveillance regimes violated provisions in the European Convention on Human Rights that are meant to safeguard Europeans' rights to privacy.
Specifically, the court said there wasn't enough independent scrutiny of processes used by British intelligence services to sift through data and communications intercepted in bulk.
The ruling cited a 'lack of oversight of the entire selection process' and 'the absence of any real safeguards.'
The court's seven judges also voted 6-1 that Britain's regime for getting data from communications service providers also violated the human rights convention, including its provisions on privacy and on freedom of expression.
But the ruling wasn't all bad for British spies. The court said it is 'satisfied' that British intelligence services take their human rights convention obligations seriously 'and are not abusing their powers.'
The court also gave a green light to procedures British security services use to get intelligence from foreign spy agencies, saying the intelligence-sharing regime doesn't violate the convention's privacy provisions.
The ruling is not final and could be appealed.
Civil liberties campaigners who brought the case hailed the judgment as a landmark victory against the mass surveillance that governments have defended as an important tool in fighting terrorism.
'Under the guise of counterterrorism, the U.K. has adopted the most authoritarian surveillance regime of any Western state, corroding democracy itself and the rights of the British public,' Carlo said in a statement. 'This judgment is a vital step towards protecting millions of law-abiding citizens from unjustified intrusion.'
Dan Carey, a lawyer for the complainants, said: 'There needs to be much greater control over the search terms that the government is using to sift our communications.'
Caroline Wilson Palow, another of the plaintiffs' lawyers, said the ruling 'confirms that just because it is technically feasible to intercept all of our personal communications, it does not mean that it is lawful to do so.'
The British government said it would give 'careful consideration' to the court's findings.
It noted that the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act, which was the subject of the challenge, had been replaced by new legislation in 2016.
'This includes the introduction of a `double lock' which requires warrants for the use of these powers to be authorized by a Secretary of State and approved by a judge,' the government said in a statement.
'An Investigatory Powers Commissioner has also been created to ensure robust independent oversight of how these powers are used.'
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Overall, students will take part in competitions for 99 skill sets. Many of the students said they plan to carry those skills into a career.
Competitors in the culinary arts events were preparing to cook four-course meals. Plumbing students were working to set up hot, cold and sanitary water lines. Bakery students were making cakes, bread, muffins and cookies. Welders were, in their words, arcing and sparking.
The young people worked to perfect and show off their skills, knowing that some of the people who are judging and overseeing the competition may be some of the same people who will eventually hire them for jobs.
"It gives them that early start. Networking is very important when you're looking for a career. They get that here at the college and high school level," said Isabel Soto of Skills USA. "They are not, at that point, just interacting with their teachers, but future bosses and future competitors they may be competing with in the work force later on."
After this year, the Skills USA competition will leave Kansas City for Louisville.
MONTH. LEADERS DO INSIST THE RIDE WILL OPEN TO THE PUBLIC ON SUNDAY. 6-THOUSAND STUDENTS SHOW OFF WHAT THEY CAN DO IN HEALTH CARE, GRAPHIC ARTS, AUTO BODY REPAIR AND COSMETOLOGY -- JUST TO NAME A FEW. THEY'RE PARTICIPATING IN THE SKILLS U-S-A COMPETITION AT BARTLE HALL. KMBC-9'S MARTIN AUGUSTINE SHOWS US HOW THEY'LL CARRY THESE SKILLS IN TO A CAREER. A WIDE VARIETY OF COMPETITIONS FOR A WIDE VARIETY OF SKILL SETS HERE AT SKILLS USA. RIGHT HERE THE CULINARY ARTS PROGRAM HAVE THE STOVES SET UP FOR PREPARING A FOUR COURSE MEAL. IF WE LOOK ACROSS THE WAY THEY'RE LINES, SANITARY LINES--- THERE'S ALSO BAKING---WHERE THEY'RE WORKING ON CAKES AND BREAD AND MUFFINS AND COOKIES. AND THEN YOU'VE GOT WELDERS THAT ARE ARCING AND SPARKING--AS THEY LIKE TO SAY-- SHOWING OFF THEIR SKILL SETS THERE. ALL OF THESE YOUNG PEOPLE, AND IN SOME CASES NOT-SO- YOUNG-PEOPLE, ARE WORKING ON THESE VERY MARKETBLE SKILLS---AND HAVE PERFECTED THESE SKILLS---BECAUSE THE JUDGES AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS THERE ARE WORKING WITH MAY VERY WELL BE THE PEOPLE THAT HIRE THEM BEFORE TOO LONG. "IT GIVES THEM THAT EARLY START. NETWORKING IS VERY IMPORTANT WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING FOR A CAREER. THEY GET THAT HERE AT THE COLLEGE AND HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL." "THEY ARE NOT AT THAT POINT JUST INTERACTING WITH THEIR TEACHERS. BUT FUTURE BOSSES AND FUTURE COMPETITORS THEY MAY BE COMPETING WITH IN THE WORK FORCE LATER ON." WE ARE ONLY SCRATCHING THE SURFACE HERE. THERE ARE 99 SKILL SETS THAT WILL HAVE COMPETITIONS HERE AT SKILLS USA, INCLUDING MASONRY, CRIME SCENE TECHNOLOGY AND BASIC HEALTH CARE, JUST TO NAME A FEW. REPORTING FROM BARTLE HALL, MARTIN AUGUSTINE, KMBC 9 NEWS. THE SKILLS U-S-A COMPETITION IS
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3. Maurice's first U.S. match in 1940 in the U.S. at Boston Gardens against Luigi Bacigalupi.
Maurice Tillet - age 13
A GREAT picture of Maurice Tillet, The Angel.
Maurice Tillet, Karl Pojello, and Rudy LaDitzi
Maurice Tillet, Karl Pojello, and unknown
Maurice Tillet, Karl Pojello, and some very familiar looking gentlemen.
Maurice Tillet, Karl Pojello, and some very familiar looking gentlemen.
Maurice Tillet and Wild Bill ZimThis picture was sent to me by Mike Zim, son of Wild Bill Zim from his fathers collection. What I want you to notice is how perfect in height they are. Wild Bill was 5ft 9inches, Maurice was 5ft 8.5inches. Many of the stories and pictures of Maurice focus on how different he was proportionately to others, but it is not until you see him next to another man of equal height do you really see how different he was. Mike noted that his father said that Maurice was a very kind and decent man, who gave away much of his money to children in need.
This picture is truly wonderful and comes from the daughter of those two around Maurice. Credit should go to"A. Prencipe Collection".
"My parents were proud to have
met Maurice Tillet, the French Angel, while on their way to Ireland,
May 1948. Mom would have politely acknowledged her career as a fencer
and Dad would have told a story about some Irishman who wrestled. This
was a very special and fondly remembered moment for them both."
This photo came out of the scrapbook of William P. Spangler, Ward 8, of Pennsylvania, and was sold on Ebay. William is husband to Private R. Spangler / Dussinger, and father of Patricia R. Spangler. Patricia died December 13, 1999. This is presumed to be William. For the record, the seller had no idea who this was, and searched google for Angel with head like Shrek. Again this tells you how, even people who have NO IDEA his Shrek connection see how much he looks like Shrek.
The man here with Maurice is Dr. John Bonica, the father of all modern pain management. I was overjoyed to understand from John's nephew that Dr. John cared for Maurice. You want to be impressed - research Dr. John. A huge portion of the worlds population owe their relative comfort in this lifetime to Dr. John and how he approached pain management. That includes every woman that ever got an epidural during childbirth. He administered the very first to his wife, who almost died during her first child's birth.
Maurice Tillet, The French Angel and Frank Sexton.
Maurice Tillet, The French Angel and Frank Sexton.
Maurice Tillet with Gormley in a press photo - notice the genuine expression on Maurice's face. Look closely and you will see how the newspaper erased Gormley's hand so they could detail / highlight Maurice's face.
The above article clipping also came from her. I love
this picture. Now although I focus on Maurice here, this is one cute
kid with Maurice. Something about Maurice's big warm smile and the
unamused child is just too perfect.
Absolutely love this picture. Had to pay real money for it, so please use and enjoy it. Maurice with the original Tarzan, Johnny Weissmuller. The picture was taken at Treasure Island's Aquacade in SanFrancisco in 1940. Such a great picture:
Below From Weekly Sporting Review in the UK, Oct 21st 1938 -
The following are all pictures taken by Irving Pen. They are of Maurice Tillet with the original super model Dorian Leigh:
This one was also of Maurice and Dorian, and was apparently sold in 2013 - why didn't anyone tell me?
This guy with Maurice is Jack Dhempsy. There is a picture above of Wild Bill Zim with Maurice and his son, Mike Zim said the following about Jack -
"Dempsey smacked my dad, Wild Bill Zim, when he refereed one of his
matches."
The following five pictures were shared by Wrestling historian Dave Cameron. The first is my favorite. Dave said that Bulldog Clayton took this picture of Maurice next to their match board. Bulldog said that Maurice and he were friends. Dave and Bulldog were friends and he was given this photo. This is before 1940 while still in Europe.
This above picture was taken in England sometime between 1937-9. The picture was provided by Dave Cameron.
Dave
said, "(Bulldog Clayton) knew him and Carl (Karl Pojello) very
well.... The bout (was) at the Tower New Brighton Wed May 25th...
...He told me 'The Angel' was a lovely guy and they became good friends.
Bulldog Clayton would have taken that photo."
Canada's Sports HALL of FAME is where the following three pictures reside:
http://www.sportshall.ca/
The below taken from here:
http://mapleleafwrestling.blogspot.com/2010/12/some-pics-from-1981-mlg-book.html
The below picture was taken from : WRESTLER MAURICE TILLET as LOU NOVIKOFF - January 20, 1944 MILITARY SERVICE EDITION of THE SPORTING NEWS.
Hey! Here you can find a photo of Maurice Tillet when he came to Barcelona, to wrest in the Price theater: http://www.elpuntavui.cat/imatge.php?i=aHR0cDovL2VzdGF0aWMuZWxwdW50Lm5ldC9pbWF0Z2VzLzQ3LzQ4L2FsdGEvNzgwXzAwOF80NzQ4MzI0XzhiNjU2MzI2ZDdmNjdmYzBiMGFkYzA5MGM1MzFkNmUxLmpwZw==&j=2
Update - Just by chance, I recently obtained copy of a postcard that Maurice sent to his manager Karl back in Chicago from Barcelona. Apparently he was with someone called FRED. If interested give me a write back and I will show it to you.
I think your right. I know this picture well AND I know he was doing a spoof on King Kong. I actually had a copy of this one in my collection. Steve Yohe was kind enough to provide me a copy of "AN IHC PRESENTATION - THE RING RECORD of MAURICE TILLET - "THE FRENCH ANGEL", and if I am not mistaken it was in the back of the book. Steve, Jim Melby, J Michael Kenyon, Fred Hornby, Matt Buziak, Libnan Ayoub, Don Luce, Normal Kietzer, Jim Melby all contributed to this book and I feel it appropriate to thank all of them for their effort, as I likely would have little to nothing when I started this mission. Special thanks for Steve Yohe finding and sending me a copy he had in his possession. I will add a copy of this picture from my collection.
I have a picture of the French Angel wrestling my grandfather. His name was Edward DeNoewer and he wrestled under the name of King Edward, Monarch of the Mat. I will scan and send picture to this site. What a great era this must have been!
I have a picture of the French Angel wrestling my grandfather. His name was Edward DeNoewer and he wrestled under the name of King Edward, Monarch of the Mat. I will scan and send picture to this site. What a great era this must have been!
Don, Thank you SO much - I absolutely love new pictures of Maurice, and anything you would like posted with the picture, meaning details of your grandfather, and anything that you may know about Maurice, etc. I checked Maurice's Ring Record, and I am not seeing your grandfather. His record is missing much, so if you have any details when/where they wrestled, that would be ideal. If you could send me the details / picture at the following: [email protected]. Also my name is Tom and Thank you again!!
You said you wanted everyone to know this man. I never heard of him, but wish I was alive then to have known him. He seems so strong, gentle, kind, compassionate, and intelligent. It's horrible the way some of what was written of him, but I guess he was intelligent enough to take it in stride and to his advantage. Thanks for this!
It is my pleasure to share what I know about him. I find that the most truly balanced persons in this world can put aside what others say and think, and do what is right for themselves and others. Maurice would absolutely have to have come to terms with how different he really was. He said something to the affect that he long time ago realized that he was not an ugly man, just a different man. He became a truly beloved person, to all those that knew him. He really was that example of how one transcends life's, sometimes cruel challenged, to create a truly admirable life. In the wrestling world, he seems to have turned from "Heel" to "Face". He became more of a hero type, in the ring, as time progressed. Personally, I suspect he could not keep up that "Heel" persona for too long.
I am so, so glad I surfed into your site. My dad and I watched the wrestling every Saturday afternoon together and we felt we knew all the characters by watching them so much. Unfortunately this was in the 50s and early 60s so after this wonderful man's time. He has such a gentle gentleman's face and I would not have been frightened to meet him in real life, but in the ring? Thank you for introducing me to such a nice person and his life. I miss the old style wrestling. Do you have film of him in action in your collection? You probably do. Great piece of work and well done.
One of the pages highlighted in green at the top of this page is dedicated to all the clips and video I have found on Maurice. You can see them all here - http://deathmaskofmauricetillet-theangel.blogspot.com/p/blog-page_23.html. I was hoping it would hyperlink, but it did not. You can also pull to the top of this page and look for "Maurice Tillet Video and Film" It's in green at the very top. REGARDS
Thanks for the comments. I caught the comment slamming me for being obsessed with an ogre. It made me chuckle. I love reading those strings and the comments people leave, as it's all over the board what people think / feel. At least their interested enough to chime in.
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Why David Ayer Doesn’t Regret His Work On Suicide Squad
The DC Extended Universe is a funny place. While each film is hotly debated and highly anticipated before its release, the quality hasn't been quite as consistent as the films at Marvel studios. One such movie is David Ayer's Suicide Squad, which came out in the summer of 2016. With a brilliant cast and a bonkers first trailer, many thought the villain-centric romp would be the DCEU's first critical success. But extensive reshoot and edits (plus an awful villain) resulted in a film that was a bit disjointed in its final product (sounds a bit like Justice League, no?). But Ayer recently revealed why he doesn't have any regrets about the project. When asked on Twitter if he regretted working on Suicide Squad, Ayer said:
Not for a second. Not for one second. I got to work with amazing people. It won an Oscar, did incredible business. Launched a franchise and spinoff. And like it or not it's halfway to cult status. I grew as a person, grew creatively. Warners took a chance on me. I'm grateful.
This statement comes to us from David Ayer's person Twitter, and he certainly makes a point. While critics weren't fond of Suicide Squad's final cut, the film did a great bit of world building for the DCEU, and the shared universe is greatly expanded because of it.
While it wasn't going to be nominated for any awards in regards to acting or directing, Suicide Squad did end up winning an Academy Award after its release. It's sole nomination Best Makeup and Hairstyling earned the flick a coveted trophy. And much like other critically divisive DCEU films like Batman v Superman, it was still able to make a ton of money in both domestic and international markets.
The success of Suicide Squad was also enough to warrant a sequel, although the DCEU hasn't announced when we should expect the project to actually hit theaters. Additionally, Margot Robbie's performance as Harley Quinn has been universally applauded, and she's set to reprise in a few films in the future. Robbie just revealed that a solo film was being developed, in addition to Gotham City Sirens and a film with Jared Leto's Joker. None of this would have been possible without David Ayer's work in the first movie, regardless of whether or not it's becoming the butt of certain jokes.
Suicide Squad was a major opportunity for David Ayer, and he'll continue working with the DC Extended Universe in the future. While Suicide Squad 2 is being written and directed by Gavin O'Connor, Ayer will be helmingGotham City Sirens. This will one again pair him with Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn, and he'll also be able to introduce Poison Ivy and Catwoman to the shared universe.
David Ayer's Netflix movie Bright starring Will Smith will arrive on December 22, 2017. In the meantime, be sure to check our 2018 release list to plan your trips to the movies in the New Year.
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Bringing the best medicine
to the under-circused everywhere.
Spreading circus joy from Syrian refugee camps in Jordan, to the West Bank of Palestine, to the curfewed streets of Cairo, the Emergency Circus brings laughs and love where health and happiness struggle.
Our Troup Manifesto
Composed of superhuman circus performers from around the globe, Emergency Circus administers inspirational circus shows and workshops to the hospitalized, the homeless, the imprisoned, & the under-circused everywhere.
This non-profit seeks to inspire, entertain, and enliven humanity in peril. Through spectacle, performance and the power of the human spirit, the Emergency Circus are out to achieve the seemingly impossible. To replace fear and grief with laughter and joy, if only for a little while.
Follow us on our continuing Adventures!
Name *
Name
First Name
Last Name
Email Address *
Thank you for keeping up with us! We're an energetic troup.
Puerto Rico Needs US, Please Donate today
Send us to Hurricane-Torn Puerto Rico! They need us. Visit www.youcaring.com/emergencycircus for more info and to donate now.
The Project
On September 20th 2017, Hurricane Maria devastated the US island of Puerto Rico. Months later, citizens remain without shelter, power, or clean water. Recovery efforts from the US government have been minimal compared to other disasters of similar magnitude in the US. The New York Times reports, "Public health officials warn that Puerto Rico is teetering on the edge of a full fledged mental health crisis." Even as access to necessities like electricity and clean water slowly return to the island, the trauma remains.
After bringing circus joy and spectacle to victims of Hurricane Harvey in Houston and fire shelters in Northern California, the Emergency Circus has been called upon once again to bring our unique brand of healing through laughter and inspiration to the situation in Puerto Rico. During the month of January, the Emergency Circus will circumnavigate the entire island with a three-tiered plan of action.
Perform We will team up with local artists to visit hospitals, shelters, and public spaces to perform interactive and inspirational circus shows. We will teach workshops to build community and share laughter to elevate and enliven.
Activate We are partnering with local group, Taller Liberta, to establish and sustain a creative community space on the west side of the island in Mayagüez. This center will host workshops and gatherings of all kinds for years to come.
Document We will release episodic adventures highlighting the hopes and frustrations of the Puerto Rican people in their own words. We will strive to share an unfiltered observation of what's really happening.
The People
Over the past 5 years the Emergency Circus has been delivering joy to hospitals, homeless shelters, refugee camps, disaster areas, and other under-circused places in over 30 countries. We know first hand the positive impact this kind of interactive spectacle can create. This project will be comprised of 5 main performers including some Puerto Rican artists.
Chicle: Circus artist and humanitarian clown from and currently living in Puerto Rico.
The Proceeds
This project simply cannot occur without the generous support of people like you who believe in the healing power of laughter and empathy. All tax-deductible donations we raise will benefit people on the island. Travel to, from, and around the island will be our main expense. Every effort will be made to support the local economies we visit. Money for our food, transportation, and accommodations will go directly into the communities we visit. Every mosquito net, water filtration system, and generator we use will be remain on the island to be used by those in need. Any funds we raise beyond our initial needs will go directly to the creative community space we will establish on the west side of the island. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to this cause.
“We all laugh in the same language.”
Clay Mazing | Founder
The Emergency Circus were recently selected as the beneficiary at a Northern California festival called The Soup, who were able to raise a large donation for the Circus. Our new sponsor Many Mouths, One Stomach have been incredibly supportive and we have working with our lawyers and partners toward becoming our own non-profit.
We are currently performing multiple shows a day in Houston and east Texas for communities affected by Hurricane Harvey. This Hurricane Healing tour will continue through mid October. Next we plan on visiting people affected by fires in Northern California. In January, we plan to head to Puerto Rico for more Hurricane Healing!
Death and conflict surround the tiny country of Lebanon. With its north and west bordering Syria and its south bordering “the occupied land” as they say (Israel according to official US policy), the Mediterranean is their only peaceful neighbor. Five years ago, the horrors began next door and a river of refugees flooded the country.
Around one million Syrians have joined the half million Palestinian refugees to make up about one third of the countries population. They were all accepted because Lebanon knows the horrors of war and the bliss of peace.
The refugees who choose to live here say at least they can still see Syria and they can still hear the bombs so they know what’s going on. They keep hoping for those explosions to stop so they can go back and rebuild.
Lebanon may not have much to share, but they have some kind of a heart. And they have a few clowns. Emergency Circus joined Clown Me In at the beginning of both our tours for a party that neither we nor these smiling kids will soon forget.
You can help!
When you donate, you are bringing joy and relief to children and adults who have not had a chance to laugh in a long time.
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Artist's Description
About Pol Ledent
Pol Ledent was born in 1952 in Belgium. He came to painting in 1989. He started with watercolor but felt rapidly that oil painting
would match his way of being.
He is a self-taught painter . Nevertheless he took some drawing lessons in a Belgian academy.
After taking part into numerous group exhibitions , some galleries in Belgium proposed to him to exhibit his works.
Dinant, Bouillon, Brussels , Paris and Moscow in October 2006.
He is also a permanent artist in the Voshan Gallery in Palo Alto (CA)
He has already sent many paintings to various countries USA ( New-York Buffalo Broadway ) , Santa Cruz,San Diego, San Jose,Los Angeles,
Florida,Miami Baton-Rouge),Seattle, grand blanc (MI), to France,
to China, to Scotland, to...
Shop with Confidence
Our return policy is very simple:
If you're not happy with a purchase that you made on FineArtAmerica.com, for any reason, you can return it to us within 30 days of the order date. As soon as it arrives, we'll issue a full refund for the entire purchase price. Please note - Fine Art America does not reimburse the outgoing or return shipping charges unless the return is due to a defect in quality.
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Monday, January 25, 2010
Obama Tries to Stop Political Slide
WASHINGTON, Jan 24: President Barack Obama has appointed a new senior adviser to the White House to help avoid further election losses to his Democratic Party, aides said on Sunday.
David Plouffe, Mr Obama’s presidential campaign manager, will advise the president and his team on the 2010 midterm elections.
Last week, the Democrats lost a Senate seat in Massachusetts, a predominantly Democratic state, to the Republicans, although the late Edward Kennedy had held this seat for almost 40 years.
In November, Republican candidates won back the office of governor from the Democrats in two key states of Virginia and New Jersey.
The defeats have triggered fears that the Democrats can also lose the midterm elections on Nov 2 this year, polls for all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and for 36 of the 100 seats in the Senate will be held.
A defeat in November can cause the Democrats to lose their control over both chambers of the US Congress, further weakening the chances of Mr Obama’s re-election in 2012.
Mr Plouffe is a senior adviser at the Chicago-based political firm AKPD Message and Media, the company founded by David Axelrod, now a White House Senior Adviser.
In an opinion piece in Sunday’s Washington Post, Mr Plouffe warned Democrats that “now is not the time for bed-wetting” after the party lost the Massachusetts Senate election.
“This will be a tough election for our party and for many Republican incumbents as well,” he wrote. “Instead of fearing what may happen, let’s prove that we have more than just the brains to govern — that we have the guts to govern.”
Mr Plouffe acknowledged the challenge won’t be easy because the governing party typically loses in midterm elections, but he urged courage, writing, “We may not have perfect results, but November will be nothing like the nightmare that talking heads have forecast.”
And, Mr Plouffe added, “Let’s fight like hell, not because we want to preserve our status, but because we sincerely believe too many everyday Americans will continue to lose if Republicans and special interests win.”
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You are here
Tikkun/Healing
Collecting food for the North Fulton Food Bank
Through a combination of activities that support our own congregation and the Atlanta community at large, Temple Beth Tikvah offers much needed support through social action and Tikkun Olam (repairing the world.)
Kehillat Chesed
This committee allows Temple Beth Tikvah congregants to provide support, solace, and hope to each other during times of illness, suffering, loss, and grief. Outreach efforts include preparing shiva meals and providing assistance to grieving families, identifying resources in the community for special needs, and celebrating life’s simchas such as births, adoptions, and marriages.
Social Action
The Social Action Committee provides congregants with opportunities to carry out mitzvahs (good deeds) by supporting the broader Atlanta community through partnerships with other organizations such as Jewish Family and Career Services, Family Promise, The Drake House, and Blessings in a Backpack. By collecting donations throughout the year of food, clothing, and other much need supplies, Temple Beth Tikvah is able to give back to the parts of our community in need while inspiring a sense of Tikkun Olam in our own community.
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iPhone 4S and iOS 9: Is It Possible?
Apple released a version of iOS for the iPhone 4S, and I'm sure there are plenty of people who are nervous about installing it. This device is four years old, and four new models have come out since its release, so it's possible the iPhone 4S just isn't up to a new operating system.
Fortunately, that's not the case. I loaded iOS 9 onto a 4S on the day this new version was introduced and have been using it ever since, and have had no problems.
In fact, it's possible the device runs better with this upgrade than it did with iOS 8, which was poorly written from Day 1. Don't get me wrong, this is still an elderly phone and a new OS isn't going to turn it into a speed demon, but it's certainly no slower or more unstable than it was before... except possible the Camera app, which can take a few seconds to open.
I also installed iOS 9.0.1 when it came out a few days ago and have continued to have no significant problems.
My useful BH links"Friends: the Fambly we choose" ~Shared pain is diminished, shared joy is increased
inanimate objects are smarter than we give them credit for~our lives are too short to not help others~when you find a big kettle of crazy, it's best not to stir it Dilbert 9/22/09~ making no decision is really making the choice to do nothing, about something~organic spell-checker is nearly perfect, but sometimes, it just doesn't care.Lord, let me be the kind of person my cat (or dog) thinks I am.
Our recommendation for iPhone 4S users is pretty much the same one we gave to iPad 2 users earlier today: if you're running iOS 8, go ahead and upgrade.
If you're still running iOS 7, at this point we'd say you should probably upgrade, not because you won't take a small performance hit, but because developers will increasingly abandon that older OS version if they haven't already.
The Sydney Morning Herald said:
A series of videos from YouTube channel iAppleBytes compare the performance of the latest iOS against iOS 8.4.1 across several iPhones, and show that in booting up and opening apps the latest software is often a fraction of a second behind.
In the videos the issue is seen to be most pronounced on the oldest model iPhone 4s. However keeping in mind iOS 9 packs a lot of new features (and, more importantly, serious security fixes), and the 4s was released a full four years ago, a split second of lag is not unexpected.
I'm quite willing to believe that an iPhone 4s running iOS 9 is a split second slower than iOS 8, but I don't consider that significant, especially when compared to the advantages of the new version.
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29 January 2008
Florida flop spells the end for Giuliani
Rudy Giuliani put all of his money on Florida – and lost.
The former New York City mayor’s presidential aspirations suffered a mortal wound with his disappointing finish in Florida’s GOP primary contest Tuesday, and Giuliani is widely reported to be on the verge of dropping out of the race and endorsing Tuesday night’s winner, Arizona Sen. John McCain.
With their votes, Florida Republicans likely ended Giuliani’s hopes for the nomination, severely damaged former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee’s chances and left McCain in a fierce battle for the nomination with former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, who finished a solid second in the Florida contest.
With 90% of the precincts counted, McCain led Romney 36% to 31%. Giuliani was in third place at 15%, just ahead of Huckabee at 14%.
For now, Giuliani remains in the race. But in addressing his supporters in Florida Tuesday night, he spoke in the past tense about his campaign.
“The responsibility of leadership doesn’t end with a single campaign. If you believe in a cause you continue to fight for it, and we will,” Giuliani told the cheering crowd.
Huckabee, like Giuliani, did not pull out of the race Tuesday despite being bereft of cash and without a victory since the Iowa caucuses at the beginning of the month. But, unlike Giuliani, he made it clear he intends to remain in the hunt.
“We’re in this game for all nine innings,” Huckabee told a subdued crowd of Florida supporters, as he headed off for California for another GOP debate tomorrow night.
Meanwhile Giuliani’s campaign manager Mike DuHaime, in an interview on MSNBC, said the plan is for his candidate to head to California as well.
However, several news outlets reported late Tuesday night that Giuliani is expected to drop out of the race and endorse McCain Wednesday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, Calif., the sight of Wednesday night’s debate.
If Giuliani does pull out of the race, it will mark the end of a once high-flying campaign that crumbled in the space of one month.
The former mayor led the national polls for virtually all of last year. As late as Dec. 17, Giuliani was atop a USA Today/Gallup national poll by 11 points over Huckabee, his closest competitor at the time.
In Florida, opinion polls were portending a four-man scrum as late as mid-January.
But, as Giuliani turned in one poor performance after another in the primaries and caucuses earlier in the month – all single-digit finishes – his Florida campaign began to come apart.
Giuliani eschewed campaigning in the early-voting states and spent nearly all of January in Florida, which he hoped to use a springboard to Tsunami Tuesday, next week’s 22-state delegate bonanza.
Dr. Chris Malone, a political science professor at Pace University, said Giuliani is a victim of his own strategy.
“He thought he’d do well in Florida, which is winner-take all, and then move on to other big states like New York, New Jersey and California on Feb. 5,” Malone said. “It doesn’t seem to have worked out that way.”
In the SunshineState’s Democratic primary, Sen. Hillary Clinton handily defeated Sen. Barack Obama in a race that offered no delegates.
Florida’s delegates will not be seated at the party’s national convention, a sanction imposed by the Democratic National Committee to punish state party officials for moving up the date of Florida’s primary in violation of party rules.
The Democratic candidates all pledged not to campaign in the state. Clinton did stop in Davie, Fla. after the polls closed for a victory rally. She also made two fundraising appearances in the state Sunday night, which were not in violation of the pledge signed by the candidates.
EDITOR'S NOTE: This story was initially written for purposes other than this blog, purposes which required me to focus on the Giuliani angle of the story rather than McCain's win.
While we'll probably be on to tomorrow's endorsement and debate by the next time I get behind the keyboard, I will also try to find time to focus more on the results and exit polls from tonight.
With one job, one graduate school class, two blogs a wife and three kids, time may be a difficult commodity to come by, but I'll do my best.
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Quotable...
"She did not sit in on national security meetings. She did not have a security clearance. She did not attend meetings in the situation room. She conducted no negotiations. She did not manage any part of the national security bureaucracy."
Former Clinton White House aide Greg Craig, in an interview with the National Journal
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You must enable javascript to view this page. This is a requirement of our licensing agreement with music Gracenote.
Remembering me, discover and seeAll over the world, she's known as a girlTo those who are free, their minds shall be keepForgotten as the past, 'cause history will last
God is a girl, wherever you areDo you believe it, can you receive itGod is a girl, whatever you sayDo you believe it, can you receive itGod is a girl, however you liveDo you believe it, can you receive itGod is a girl, she's only a girlDo you believe it, can you receive it?
She wants to shine, forever in timeShe is so driven, she's always mineClearly and free, she wanted to beA part of the future, a girl like meThere is a sky, illuminating usSomeone is out there that we truly trustThere is a rainbow for you and meA beautiful sunrise, eternally
God is a girl, wherever you areDo you believe it, can you receive itGod is a girl, whatever you sayDo you believe it, can you receive itGod is a girl, however you liveDo you believe it, can you receive itGod is a girl, she's only a girlDo you believe it, can you receive it?
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"Today I am making the difficult decision to end my season and leave the World Cup circuit due to an injury I suffered last Saturday. Because I am currently leading the Overall World Cup standings, this is one of the toughest decisions of my career.
"When I crashed on Saturday in Andorra, I fractured my tibial plateau. The traditional X-rays that were taken that afternoon showed a hairline fracture, but the tibial plateau appeared to be stable and did not pose significant risk to competing. So I raced on Sunday. After the Super Combined on Sunday, I went to Barcelona where more precise MRI and CT equipment was available and scans were performed on Tuesday morning. Those images showed that there was not just 1 hairline fracture, but in fact 3. And the fractures are not hairline, but instead they are significant enough that they are not sufficiently stable to permit me to safely continue skiing. Further damage any of the fragments could result in a serious surgery that would risk my future in ski racing. With the World Championships in St. Moritz next year and the Winter Olympics in South Korea the following year, I cannot take that risk.
"So I have made the decision to end my season. I am very proud of what I have been able to accomplish this year: 9 World Cup victories, breaking the World Cup downhill win record, breaking the World Cup Super G podium record, and winning the most World Cup discipline titles--20--of any skier, male or female. While I am confident that I'm making the right decision, it still doesn't make this decision any easier. Thanks to everyone who supported me and stood by me through it all. Best of luck to all the World Cup competitors. I'll see you again next year. Xo LV"
(PHOTO: Vonn was carted down the slopes after crashing out during the Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup Women's Super-G on February 27, 2016 in Soldeu, Andorra.)
Vonn, who calls Vail home, has been keeping fans updated on the injury on her Instagram account.
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Dance Act SBTRKT Makes Shaky U.S. Live Debut
Accolades have been adding up for SBTRKT, the recording moniker of London-based DJ/producer Aaron Jerome. SBTRKT's self-titled debut album, out last month, could be the 2011 equivalent of the xx's 2009 breakout effort, a sexy but dark, beat driven collection that permeates late-night parties all summer long. Chart-topping rapper Drake has touted the project's brilliance, and even popped up onstage to rap during Jerome's DJ set in Toronto last week. But as with loads of electronic acts, the transition from studio wizardry and DJ nights to some form of "live" performance isn't an easy one, and that was the case for SBTRKT in New York City this weekend.
It was SBTRKT's first such gig in the States, and lines stretched around the block in both directions outside the jam-packed courtyard of PS1, the Museum of Modern Art's outer-borough outpost in Queens. And while the venue's long-running weekly Saturday party called the Warm Up has a big built-in following, the buzz for SBTRKT's debut made it an even hotter ticket.
But when Jerome and his vocalist-keyboardist pal Sampha emerged onstage, each hiding behind cannibal-esque tribal masks, things got off to a rough start. Jerome chose to spend about half the set behind a drum kit, and while his pounding was enthusiastic, he's clearly got no training on the instrument. He frequently lost track of his own laptop-driven backing beats, undermining the punch of songs like "Hold On," a silky, slow-building gem whose minimalist beats work just fine underneath Sampha's catchy hooks without needless, out of time cymbal bashing. Same with "Something Goes Right," whose staccato breakbeats were ruined by Jerome's attempts to bash the skins.
In stark contrast was "Living Like I Do," a skippy burst of dubstep-lite, which found Jerome ditching the live percussion to fiddle with samplers and twiddle knobs, which finally got the crowd moving, with whistles popping and hands raising when he dropped the beat.
Impossible to tarnish: "Wildfire," SBTRKT's best known song to date, whose album version features Little Dragon's Yukimi Nagano on lead vocals, and which received a remix treatment by Drake. Club kids already knew the words, and by summer's end, it's likely you will too, as it'll be the soundtrack to innumerable bump n' grind sessions on dancefloors worldwide. Its throbbing bassline and warbly synth tones would make Missy Elliott proud.
Yet despite its pre-recorded vocals and beats, "Wildfire" was the show's most lively moment, with the warmest reception, proof positive that you don't have to play an instrument to rock a party. Sometimes, the best addition is SBTRKT-shun.
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What are trade and Market confirmations?
Trade confirmations are the final step in the trade process where you verify trades before they are completed. Market confirmations are the same as trade confirmations, the final step in the process of listing an item on the Market that ensures your items cannot be listed or sold without your approval. If you're using a Mobile Authenticator through the Steam Mobile App on your smartphone, you'll receive confirmations via the app, otherwise you'll receive them by email.
How do confirmations work?
When you send a trade offer, accept a trade, or create a Market listing you'll need to confirm that action through email or the mobile app before it will be sent or posted. If you don't confirm it, the trade will not be made (or the Market listing will not be posted.)
Why are confirmations necessary?
Confirmations give you better control over items moving in and out of your account. You have the opportunity to review the items in a trade or make sure you've entered the right price for a Market listing before it is final. If your account or computer becomes compromised, confirmations make it very difficult for an attacker to steal your items.
How do I opt out?
To ensure that you are in control of items moving out of your account, trades and Market listings must be confirmed. There is no longer a way to opt out.
What do I do if I receive a confirmation request for a trade or listing I didn't create?
Open the confirmation request and cancel the trade or listing. It's possible that your account or computer has been compromised. Use https://help.steampowered.com to change your Steam account password and consider changing your email account password as well. If you're unable to log in to Steam with your account credentials you should contact Steam Support to regain access.
How do I get confirmation requests via phone?
You can get confirmation requests through the Steam Mobile App on your smartphone if you're using it to protect your account. Set up the app to act as a Mobile Authenticator and you'll automatically receive confirmations in the app.
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Thursday, February 24, 2011
First one is a 'nobody wants to be in charge when they pieces fall' type of thing, the second makes more sense for you foreigner savages if you look at a geographical map of Greece. The person doing the hacking is the esteemed mr. Papakonstantinou, featured once before.
As usual, if any of these strike a chord with the reader, feel free to link them around and whatnot. This is the purpose of political commentary.
Strangely, streamlining my process (to make increasingly hard deadlines) called for a return to digital inking, and a more watercolor type of soft wash. In any case, I'm getting faster/(better?). I regret how the second image is a photo trace, but deadline ridiculous called for 'anything that works' measures.
On other news! I've finally inked half of the missing chapter of ZX. Four out of the eight pages are done right now. The two first are introductory vignettes (seriously ten minutes to draw each), the middle two are heavy duty proper inking proper pages of proper artistry, then there's two sparser Eisner-ian pages that won't take too long to do. And then there's the final page, a comic strip I have in the past been torn on whether to do or not, to give a 'full circle' feel to the comic. I'd say I'm almost halfway with my final obligations towards this comic. Here's a teaser image of one of the more challenging inked pages.
I'm proud of how this one in particular turned out. Hopefully next week, at the most the week after that, I'll be putting my final ink stains on ZX. And not a moment too soon, as we'll be going to the printers right after, and on the 8th of April it'll be for sale at Comicdom con. (I'll be posting more about this as the time approaches).
On other other news, one-coining ESP Galuda must have given me extra strength, because this week I managed to defeat an old foe of mine, Dodonpachi. Here's how this old devil plays, to give you an idea.
Actually it wasn't the second wind from finishing Galuda that pushed this one over the edge after years and years of playing. It was Ptoing (fellow shooter aficionado) telling me in conversation that I should switch from the red - laser ship to blue - shot ship, if I want to survive the first loop. So I did, and after a few days of re-training (blue ship is slower and its laser is much, much weaker than I have been used to) I one-coined this one as well! I bombed the hell out of the last boss. Let's just say that if DDP had auto-bomb on bullet proximity, I'd have finished the first loop years ago.
This is meaningless to the reader not familiar with the joys and frustrations of really hard video-games (or really hard hobbies in general, I'd expect) but it's a significant event in the lives of those given to such vices. I've been playing DDP off and on for what feels like at least six years, but it could be seven or eight too. To finally achieve some closure on such an endeavor has surprising psychological benefits. I feel like I can beat up a mountain right now. It's no wonder I inked for twelve hours in the span of two days. When I finished ESP Galuda I was somewhat "meh" about it, but here, after I got the Game Over screen there was straight-up primal hollering and sweaty adrenaline airfists and everything. Yes I realize that saying such things to the internet drastically increases my chances of sleeping alone for a long, long time to come, but hey. I'm Helm, I'm (trying to feel) fine with myself, how are you doing?
My fucking credentials, son
May the long-beaked stoic one reside in the pantheon forever!
Reality check: This is a small victory, as veteran arcade shooter players know. There's of course, a full second loop of Dodonpachi after the first one, which one is granted access too only on specialized conditions (scoring over 50,000,0000 points, only dying once or twice, getting all the hidden score items in at least four stages, that sort of thing). This second loop is somewhat harder than the first and at the end of it you face the true boss of the game, Hibachi.
Here's however that I draw a line. I'm not an obsessive achiever, I played DDP for all this time because it's a fun game to me, it seems perfectly balanced at the exact edge where my skill runs out and just before frustration sets in. I probably will still play it on and off, perhaps improve my score a bit here and there, but I'm completely resigned to that defeating the boss above is beyond my projected skill even years down the line. I have better things to do than train DDP every day concentrated for months (or possibly years) to achieve an one-coin two loop clear. So be happy for me for getting halfway there while still retaining some semblance of a social existence.
Let's see, what else did I do in the days between this and my last post? Did I post this?
There I read the article on L.R.Hubbard again (I have read a biography of his also which I felt was too sensationalized. The slow motion rape was quite interesting, though). There's a link there to Hubbard's connection to black magic. This isn't the article, but it's close enough. Couldn't find the real thing. Sometimes tracing the internet back is a dangerous proposition.
Somewhere in that article about Hubbard and black magic, there's the connection with Nazi Occultry. This book is namedropped and quoted:
Which of course I promptly found and read the first fifty pages of, which is frankly, as much as I want to know about Nazi Occult history. But it did fill in some gaps in my understanding of why and how the Nazi regime could hold such sway over the German populous (and no, it doesn't involve any mass castings of spells).
In that book, there is a quote of another book, the Black Arts
Which I found and read 50 pages of as well. Besides the very Heavy Metal-esque cover, the recounting here is more general and I didn't feel as if I were learning anything new. Somewhere in the middle of all this, I managed to one-coin ESP Galuda. "You managed to what, what?" You might cry. Well, to one-coin something means to play an arcade coin-operated video-game all the way through on one credit. This is a mean feat usually (sometimes not to video game aficionados because some arcade games are generally considered easier than others), especially to the eyes of laymen. I am partial to a type of shooter game called "Bullet Hell". I've been playing DoDonpachi for years and I was at one time close to one-coining the first loop of the game (after which you replay the whole game at an increased difficulty, something I never viewed as an accomplishment for my fragile reflexes). ESP Galuda is a far easier game to DoDonpachi, and after only a few weeks of casual playing, I managed to finish it. My final score was 16 million something something. From such statements you may glean into how little I'm interested in score-based achievement in arcade games. But I finished the damn thing. To give you an impression of what that entails, here, watch this:
That's the last half-stage and final boss rush.
So, eight hours later I am much informed on issues Scientologist, somewhat on Nazi Occultry, barely further on the dark arts at large. I also carved a completely useless notch in my gamer belt and extensively corresponded with a few people on the internet over various common interests. And soon I'm off to watch "Black Swan" in the theater. No work has been achieved, no wisdom gained.
My life is half like this, half a mad dash to complete artistic projects at the nick of time. What did you do today?
Sunday, February 13, 2011
This is topical to a specific situation where representatives of Troika went to have a luxurious dinner in a Greece ravaged by severe economic legislation. But in a way, quite universal as well.
Ex-president Hosni Mubarak. This is a couple of weeks old, it was drawn while he was still in power. Good riddance.
Below the jump, ink and airbrush versions because I like to show steps.
I quite enjoy airbrush work of this type.
I generally prefer my black and white linework to the colored versions I do for work, but for this one I tried a few more soft-color techniques that I think worked out pretty well and look quite hand-made, so I guess I'm getting the hang of it.
... but all this is just a diversion. What you should be really reading is the post below. What I need to know is about the strength of your love.Read more...
Thursday, February 10, 2011
I can live with myself insofar that I not only realize I have destructive & insensible tendencies but I embrace them and channel them away from the people around me. Usually they manifest as art or other such narcissistic mirrors, or they just become (the playing of) video-games and wasted time. I sleep relatively alright at night because the moral values I've adopted from peers and family (and which I do not recognize as an ideology or basis of an ideology) dictate that one recalls whom they have hurt before they go to sleep. This is so ingrained in me that I'm actively distraught when I realize I've stood as a detriment to people's feelings and I try to make amends as soon as possible.
This is however, a more pleasant way to say I am confrontational and abrupt often in my social communication. I see problem - can we fix problem right now? - problem fixed - let's move on. More life experience, especially in the last couple of years, has shown me that this over-conscious method isn't exactly how people get over past issues. I come from a family of tough cookies who find it difficult to say the words "I'm sorry" at all (and even take pride in this in some warped fashion), so I've used to take inverse pride in at least being able to say these words when I felt I was in the wrong. It's a difficult realization that saying sorry isn't enough some of the time, though. It takes follow-up and careful consideration of distance to make amends. I write these things down so I can remember them.
All that said, sometimes seeming like a bad guy is a risk of communication in itself, and I accept this, because I desire things from this world too. Where the other person draws the line in what they're accepting to hear me tell them is something I can't know before I prod the space between us. And although I'm conscious of not appearing like a total jackass, I'm very curious about other people. I think existentially what I wish is to be reminded, often, that I am not the only person in this world (that other people aren't emotional and psycho-intellectual clones of me). We tend to congregate with our similars, so this is easier than it seems to forget.
Other people are fascinating. I remind myself of this by putting them on the spot with difficult questions and earnestly awaiting their answer. This post is about one such question I've put to the test many times and the range of responses I've gotten.
When I meet people I often grow impatient with small-talk. More in the past than now, but still. I think this is a common experience to introverts, they feel as if they're being manipulated when they extend the will for honest communication and what they get instead are safe pleasantries and bare-level social stroking. This is because honest communication is hard for introverts. It's the mark of a person without much social skill, it seems, to not pick up on the signals that the other person is just not willing to share any more than that at that moment, and to continue to prod. I have a lot of experience in this.
So often I meet people and I venture theoretical discussions to see what the other person can take. If we get to talking about interpersonal relationships, I recount, in even tone and without any telling emotional colorization, this hypothetical of a couple who are very much in love. Their love is perfect, they feel completely content together, their mind doesn't wander to other people's genitalia, they are absolutely content to be together for the rest of their lives. One supports the other in their life endeavors, yet allows space for them to grow individually. They enjoy a fulfilling sexual life, they're intimate on a deep level, they do not misrepresent each other to the outside world, it's all roses. I suggest that the person I am talking with is in such a relationship at the end of the flavour text.
I let that scene settle in in the mind of my conversational partner, which is a small cruelty, because it is a beautiful hypothetical and what I do with it later is disconcerting. I allow myself this small cruelty (for many reasons but also) because what I describe above is dangerously close to some Hollywood movie cliche , and although - honestly - I do believe that such couplings can exist in life, it can't be clear from my retelling to this point that this is so, so it sounds like a comfortable but distant fairytale where the other party to this conversation can swim about in for a time and then that's that, thanks, weird longhair I met! No, no. We're not done.
Then I introduce the issue: let's say the other party to this relationship approaches you (from third person to second person) reticently and lets you know that although your relationship is so great and so fulfilling... they have a want, a secret desire, a sexual hangup, something that could be considered aberrant behaviour. They've had this desire before they met you and they have it still, it's part of their emotional makeover and it's not going to go away just because your love is strong. This much is clear.
They're willing to live without their desire because what they get from the rest of your relationship is that potent. They know a good thing when they see it and they're not stupid enough to risk everything just because of such a small thing, so harshly judged in the eyes of society too. Yet, it is exactly because they feel so at ease with you that they're compelled to tell you what it is, to feel accepted and to fully belong in the relationship. They like to be defecated upon.
Now, the implication is clear that although this person will remain in the relationship with you (or so they profess at least) regardless of whether this aberrant desire of them is fulfilled, there is a reason they shared it with you. They word it in such a way that it seems as if the reason is sharing, but anyone with half an heart knows human beings aren't so simple. The first step in accepting oneself is saying the words that describe oneself to the world. There are more steps. Wouldn't you, dear co-conversationalist, who have been so gradually ensnared in this theoretical situation, have to consider their desires in this light? Wouldn't you have to, in your full and blooming love, calculate on whether you will concede to their desire or not?
I've gotten a range of responses to this querry from a range of people. To (some?) credit, I've chosen targets at least adeptly enough that outright abandonment of the construct once fecal matter is introduced, is not a common retort, although whether they keep with it because I seem like a person who genuinely wants to know or because they want to 'show me their guts', I do not know. Now, before I present the range of response I've had to this, I urge you, reader and human, to consider where you stand yourself on this. Although the construct might appear cartoony (perhaps) or grotesque (certainly) at first, anyone that has been in a relationship can see the implications of the dysfunction described here. I may not be into coprolagnia, for one, but I am into other things... aren't you?
How strong is your love?
So you've considered your options (I'd appreciate reading them, by the way. Even if you feel the range I describe below captures your position as well... please don't shy away from putting it in your own words.) and you have internalized the issue. You have a position on this matter, most probably not colored by actual life experience with something as strongly aberrant as fecal play, but instead approximating it via more pleasant & civil vices. Perhaps you've allowed for worse, perhaps you've been horrified with much, much less. However, you have altered yourself to get to this, to an opinion. You are not what you where before this theory was presented to you, out of the blue, in some social function where you met some longhair and his friends who, more used to his bad manners, might look at you as some ancient Greek chorus, waiting your considered reply. Here's what I've got so far:
Negative:
* Absolutely out of the question. I know what I like and I don't like this. Not only will I not do it, I will break up with that individual, though it's no skin off my back: people are different and they eventually realize. He might find what he needs elsewhere, I certainly will.
* Not only will I not do this horrid thing, I never want to see them again. I feel completely betrayed in my love and trust. How long have they wanted this? Do they imagine me in such-- I can't even consider it.
* No way. This person is clearly emotionally unstable and I will try to get them into psychotherapy or even more drastic assistance. For them to have these desires something must be very wrong with them and although your relationship is over, my last offer of good will is to help them on the road to recovery.
Bargaining:
* Can't we meet in the middle somehow? Fake it? Chocolate's close enough, isn't it? I don't hate this person for their kink nor do I think it upsets the basis of our whole relationship, but I can't see myself committing to this completely and utterly. Can't we work through this somehow? Wouldn't they understand if I explained my incapacity to them?
* Let's say I do this... what's in it for me? Relationships are a transaction anyway, and this probably comes at a high cost. Does it mean I get to explore real and invented lusts as well.
* Well alright, let's say I do this, she'd have to stand still and I'd take a dump on her and not touch any of the shit myself, so everybody's happy.
Accepting:
* (usually a long pause to think, often after some of the bargaining positions were initially tested and discarded) If I love them so much, I guess I'd try to make them happy in this way as well. I can't make any promises on how it'd impact how I feel for them, though.
That's usually the range. Most people aren't ready to adopt one stance seconds after the hypothetical is presented to them. Often they try to work through them to see what reflects most favorably on them, with me being the reflection. I do not offer judgement in return, I just work through the common arguments for/against more stances. Most people who start out in the negative range stay there though. Often people who negotiate end up accepting the situation. Only very rarely have I met people who were accepting relatively early in their consideration of the issue. I do not think it was because I just stumbled on their hidden sexual fantasy at all.
Now, most of these positions have merit to them. It's easy to criticize those that are negative with empty claims of intolerance. However, it seems to me all three negative stances have to them a basis in real life experience, not the airs of untested ideology. The first one one is very practical, for example. Instead of trying to fix every problem that may come up in a relationship, it knows when to cut its losses and start searching anew. It doesn't romanticize a relationship as some sort of Godly coupling that happens once in a lifetime and knows that although relationships take hard work to function, there's some things that cannot be fixed with just hard work. It seems to demean the power of 'True Love' but ... some people actively live like this and are happy with their choices, so who am I to say they're going about it wrong.
The second negative position seems reflexive and prideful, but then again, love can be said to be as much about the love of love itself than it is about the love of the internal representation of one's partner. It's relatively easy for the feelings between a couple to be damaged once doubts enter the picture. Once the innocence of love is lost, it is difficult to regain. Although the person with the sexual desire might be able to see "the other being covered in excrement" as a profoundly innocent and beautiful mental picture, this is a big chasm to bridge, perhaps too big to try.
The third negative stance is super-judgmental and uses pop-psychology in an ugly way: to marginalize the Other and condemn them to a lesser life for their issues, perceived or real. However at its core it has a real insight. A person who has a very strong sexual fetish such as coprolagnia might often be unable to function sexually without it, and to the degree that they've managed so far they've been "faking it", inwardly imagining their fetish even in the course of regular sexuality. How would you feel if you were the subject to the worst thing in the mind of the person you loved and trusted? Not all sexual deviance suggests emotional troubles, but all mental troubles seem to come hand in hand with sexual deviance of some sort. People are trained to keep away from others with mental or psychological issues for a reason. It's a risky life to stand next to such a person, and love might not be enough.
From the bargaining positions:
The first one seems wishy-washy. Anyone how has a strong imagination as to what true love must be will rebel to such a position. Compromise isn't something that comes to mind when they think of true love, instead they expect everything to click immediately and completely, effectively all the hard work with being with somebody else is nullified. For those people, true love mostly means 'comfortable love'. The person trying to compromise isn't actually taking the most comfortable route in this case because they'd have to meet somewhere in the middle in the end. They'd have to do at least half of something really unpleasant to save their relationship, and the results might not be enough after all. It's a risk and an ongoing burden.
The second seems crass and inhuman, but I think what's mostly crass about it is that some people would admit to feeling this way (though as I say they are usually circumspect about how they phrase this). In reality, most people consider the pros and cons of a relationship in such a fashion, at least at some point. So this person has this and that annoying trait, but they do that and this for me, so I'll stick around. Although we do not like to subject our romantic notions of true love to such measuring, the person who expresses this position is more likely to achieve a fair transaction with the other person. However transactions, as fair as they may be, are no longer innocent, and this will come to the forefront as a much bigger problem than any pile of poop could ever be, eventually.
The third bargaining position to me seems the most misogynistic (because it was a man, and a very beautiful man at that who expressed it) and inhuman of them all really. They say they're willing to treat their true love as a toilet, as long as they don't get any shit on them. It is implicit in the original scenario that whomever is willing to entertain the notion of remaining in this relationship would have to not only talk the talk but dance the dance. Only the most dim of hearts would consider such a solution, I think. From the whole range of responses I've gotten to this question, this is the only one I cannot find any merit in.
As to the accepting position. It is beautiful, is it not? I am glad such people exist, as I'm sure you are also. However... it should be telling that the people who have replied so were either young or of little life experience in matters sexual. The imagination of the aberrant act itself comes easier to those that have perhaps strayed closer to some variants than none of them, and the imagination is a powerful thing. As they imagine strongly the beauty of what True Love could be and say 'I'd do anything for it', others imagine strongly the stench of excrement and know what they would do to avoid it.
As to my own position, I fluctuate between a negative position, a bargaining position, and sometimes the accepting position. Whenever in my mind through over-thinking I have pacified this example, I try to switch it around. What if a person wanted to molest children along with me? What if the other person was very into getting cut with knives during sex? What if the other person wanted to be beat up? The examples are rotated to regain distance: the issue is the cost of intimacy and one's preconceptions about how similar other people are to themselves. We are a solipsist species, the result of sentience is undoubtedly profound loneliness. We seek the intimacy of our mother and father when we were infants, we seek to return to genesis, to a time before self-knowing. We might have to crawl through glass and excrement to get there.
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"Wire Frame Mattress"
You could be forgiven for thinking this was a Pitchfork page from 2004 that you happened upon via the Wayback Machine. In long-haired look, scruffy sound, and definitely-articled band name, the Wytches of Brighton, U.K. bear a surface resemblance to the sort of garage-rock revivalists lining up for NME cover shoots 10 years ago. But the sluggish yet swaggering “Wire-Framed Mattress” would indicate they’re not holding their breath for a phone call from "Top of the Pops" bookers.
Over a primordial blues-ooze that suggests Jack White if his music were actually as goth as his haircuts, frontman Kristian Bell gasps out a chorus line—“You sit there and laugh will my dignity collapses”—that sounds like the dying-breath epitaph of a young man who’s already given up on the world. But just when you expect them to channel all that anguish into a tortured guitar solo, the Wytches inject their misery with a little “Miserlou” and ride an ocean wave awash with oil spills and blackened birds. Surf’s down, dude.
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Abstract
Background
Recently, the potential role of gut microbiome in metabolic diseases has been revealed, especially in cardiovascular diseases. Hypertension is one of the most prevalent cardiovascular diseases worldwide, yet whether gut microbiota dysbiosis participates in the development of hypertension remains largely unknown. To investigate this issue, we carried out comprehensive metagenomic and metabolomic analyses in a cohort of 41 healthy controls, 56 subjects with pre-hypertension, 99 individuals with primary hypertension, and performed fecal microbiota transplantation from patients to germ-free mice.
Results
Compared to the healthy controls, we found dramatically decreased microbial richness and diversity, Prevotella-dominated gut enterotype, distinct metagenomic composition with reduced bacteria associated with healthy status and overgrowth of bacteria such as Prevotella and Klebsiella, and disease-linked microbial function in both pre-hypertensive and hypertensive populations. Unexpectedly, the microbiome characteristic in pre-hypertension group was quite similar to that in hypertension. The metabolism changes of host with pre-hypertension or hypertension were identified to be closely linked to gut microbiome dysbiosis. And a disease classifier based on microbiota and metabolites was constructed to discriminate pre-hypertensive and hypertensive individuals from controls accurately. Furthermore, by fecal transplantation from hypertensive human donors to germ-free mice, elevated blood pressure was observed to be transferrable through microbiota, and the direct influence of gut microbiota on blood pressure of the host was demonstrated.
Conclusions
Overall, our results describe a novel causal role of aberrant gut microbiota in contributing to the pathogenesis of hypertension. And the significance of early intervention for pre-hypertension was emphasized.
Keywords
HypertensionPre-hypertensionGut microbiotaMetabolismFecal transplant
Background
In recent decades, the potential role of the gut microbiome in altering health status of the hosts has drawn considerable attention. Emerging evidence suggests a link between gut microbiome and various diseases, including colorectal cancer, liver cirrhosis, arthritis, type 2 diabetes, and atherosclerosis [1–5]. A number of microbial biomarkers specific to these diseases have been discovered, and fecal microbiome-targeted strategies are recommended to be a powerful tool for early diagnosis and treatment of different diseases.
More importantly, by fecal transfer experiment and gut microbiota (GM) remodeling, intestinal microbiome has been further indicated to conduce to the pathogenesis of multiple diseases such as obesity, depressive disorder, chronic ileal inflammation, liver diseases, and atherosclerosis [6–12]. Specific mechanisms underlying the causal function of GM have been revealed. For example, the metabolism by intestinal microbiota of dietary L-carnitine, a nutrient in red meat, was demonstrated to promote atherosclerosis and lead to cardiovascular disease risk via producing trimethylamine and trimethylamine-N-oxide [12]. Targeting gut microbial production of trimethylamine specifically and non-lethal microbial inhibitors were confirmed to relieve diet-induced atherosclerotic lesion development [13]. Thus GM may serve as a potential therapeutic approach for the treatment of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.
Hypertension (HTN) has become a global public health concern and a major risk factor for cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and kidney diseases [14, 15]. It is believed that the etiology of HTN depends on the complex interplay of both genetic and environmental factors [16, 17], and the precise cause of this morbidity has not been elucidated to date. It has been suggested that the germ-free (GF) mice, in which the intestinal bacteria is completely absent, present relatively lower blood pressure (BP) when compared to conventional mice [18]. And therefore we suspected that GM might have the potential to regulate BP.
Most recently, many lines of seminal evidence, which for the first time demonstrate that aberrant gut microbial community are linked to BP changes of the host, support this hypothesis. For example, disordered GM as a result of decreased microbial richness, diversity, evenness, and increased Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio was reported in hypertensive animals and seven HTN patients, as sequenced by 16S ribosomal RNA [19]. In Dahl rats, distinct metagenomic composition have been revealed between salt-sensitive and salt-resistant strains, and the GM of salt-sensitive rats was suggested to be in a symbiotic relationship with the host [20]. In addition, by rat models of HTN and meta-analyses in randomized human clinical trials, investigators have revealed that administration of probiotics can reduce BP [21, 22]. This drove us to speculate that the alteration in GM by probiotic use may lead to BP changes. Furthermore, it has been proved that transplantation of cecal contents from hypertensive obstructive sleep apnea rats on high-fat diet into recipient rats on normal chow diet lead to higher BP levels, and a major contributor to the gut dysbiosis of obstructive sleep apnea-induced HTN is high-fat diet [23]. These studies have emphasized a strong correlation between gut dysbiosis and HTN, and further implied the significance of GM in BP regulation, yet animal models could not perfectly substitute human disease, and the sample size of human participants for microbial analysis was quite limited.
In consideration of the BP levels being classified into optimal, pre-hypertension (pHTN), and HTN according to the most recent clinical guidelines [24], it remains obscure how exactly the composition of gut microbes and the products of microbial fermentation change in human patients with HTN, especially in pHTN populations. In addition, decisive evidence is still needed to determine whether gut dysbiosis is a consequence or an important causal factor for the pathogenesis of HTN. Fecal transplantation from human samples into GF mice is required to uncover the involvement of GM dysbiosis in pathophysiology of HTN. Collectively, these key issues are the major goal of the present study.
To address the questions above, we performed deep metagenomic sequencing of stool samples from 196 participants of healthy control, pHTN, and HTN; took metabolomic analyses of their metabolic profiles, further constructed a disease classifier for pHTN and HTN based on GM and metabolites; and demonstrated the crucial role of disordered GM in triggering thigh BP by human fecal microbiota transplantation into GF mice.
Results
GM diversity and enterotype in pHTN and HTN
To identify whether gut microbial changes are associated with HTN, we performed shotgun metagenomic sequencing of fecal samples from a cohort of 196 Chinese individuals. The cohort consisted of 41 healthy controls, 56 subjects with pHTN, and 99 patients with primary HTN. All the participants were from a cohort study among employees of the Kailuan Group Corporation. The Kailuan study is a prospective cohort study focusing on the Kailuan community in Tangshan, a large modern city in northern China. All the subjects in the hypertension group were newly diagnosed hypertensive patients prior to antihypertensive treatment. Patients suffering from cancer, heart failure, renal failure, smoking, stroke, peripheral artery disease, and chronic inflammatory disease were all excluded. Drugs including statins, aspirin, insulin, metformin, nifedipine, and metoprolol were not used on the patients, and other drug consumption was not compared because the sample size was quite small. Individuals were also excluded if they had received antibiotics or probiotics within the last 8 weeks. Other than SBP and DBP, there was no significant difference in other clinical parameters among groups, except for fasting blood glucose level (FBG) (P = 0.026, C vs H; Kruskal-Wallis test, Additional file 1: Table S1). Bacterial DNA was extracted from stool samples, sequenced on the Illumina platform, and a total of 1211 Gb 125-bp paired-end reads were generated, with an average of 6.18 ± 1.43 (s.d.) million reads per sample (Additional file 2: Table S2). For each sample, a majority of high-quality sequencing reads (83.74–97.24%) were de novo assembled into long contigs or scaffolds, which were used for gene prediction, taxonomic classification, and functional annotation.
To characterize the bacterial richness, rarefaction analysis was performed by randomly sampling 100 times with replacement and estimating the total number of genes that could be identified from these samples. The curve in each group was near saturation, which suggested the sequencing data were great enough with very few new genes undetected. The rate of acquisition of new genes in control samples rapidly outpaced new gene acquisition in disease samples, suggesting lower levels of gene richness in the pHTN and HTN groups (Fig. 1a). The number of genes in both pHTN and HTN groups were significantly decreased as compared to the controls (P = 0.024, C vs P; P = 0.04, C vs H; Kruskal-Wallis test, Fig. 1b). Shannon index based on the genera profile was calculated to estimate the within-sample (α) diversity. Consistently, the α diversity at the genus level was much lower in pHTN and HTN groups (P = 0.023, C vs P; P = 0.016, C vs H; Kruskal-Wallis test, Fig. 1c). The reduced richness of genes and genera in the GM of pHTN and HTN groups is consistent with previous findings [19], suggesting possible deficiency of healthy microflora in hypertensive patients.
Fig. 1
Decreased diversity and shift of gut enterotypes in human adults with pHTN and HTN. a Rarefaction curves for gene number in control (n = 41), pHTN (n = 56), and HTN (n = 99) after 100 random sampling. The curve in each group is near smooth when the sequencing data are great enough with few new genes undetected. b, c Comparison of the microbial gene count and α diversity (as accessed by Shannon index) based on the genera profile in the three groups. C, control; P, pHTN; H, HTN. P = 0.024, C vs P; P = 0.04, C vs H; for gene count. P = 0.023, C vs P; P = 0.016, C vs H; for α diversity. P values are from Kruskal-Wallis test. d A total of 196 samples are clustered into enterotype 1 (blue) and enterotype 2 (red) by PCA of Jensen-Shannon divergence values at the genus level. The major contributor in the two enterotypes is Prevotella and Bacteroides, respectively. e Relative abundances of the top genera (Prevotella and Bacteroides) in each enterotype. P = 6.31e−31 and P = 2.09e−15, respectively; Wilcoxon rank sum test. f The percentage of control, pHTN and HTN samples distributed in two enterotypes. 26.83% normotensive controls, 48.21% pHTN, and 45.45% HTN are found in enterotype 1. P = 0.02, C vs P; P = 0.03, C vs H; Fisher’s exact test. Boxes represent the inter quartile ranges, the inside line or points represent the median, and circles are outliers
To explore the difference between the microbial communities at different stages of HTN, enterotypes were identified based on the abundance of genera using Partitioning Around Medoid (PAM) clustering method. The optimal number of enterotypes was two as indicated by Calinski-Harabasz (CH) index (Additional file 3: Figure S1). Then Principal Coordinate Analysis (PCoA) using Jensen-Shannon distance was performed to cluster the 196 samples into two distinct enterotypes (Fig. 1d). Prevotella was the most enriched genus in enterotype 1; Bacteroides was the most enriched genus in enterotype 2 (P = 6.31e−31 and P = 2.09e−15, respectively; Wilcoxon rank sum test, Fig. 1e). Both contributors in the two enterotypes have been reported in European and Chinese populations before [2, 3]. There was a higher percentage of pre-hypertensive and hypertensive patients distributed in enterotype 1 (48.21% for pHTN, and 45.45% for HTN), while more healthy controls (73.17%) were found in enterotype 2 (P = 0.02, C vs P; P = 0.03, C vs H; Fisher’s exact test; Fig. 1f). These findings suggest that enterotype 2 may represent a GM community structure associated with healthy control, while enterotype 1 may be associated with pHTN and HTN.
Considering the higher percentage of HTN patients in enterotype 1, we clustered the genera in this enterotype and further explored the microbial co-occurrence network by Spearman’s correlation. There was a positively interacted network constituted by 12 genera, which were negatively correlated with Prevotella, the core genus in this enterotype (Additional file 4: Figure S2a). All these genera were decreased in enterotype 1 as compared with enterotype 2 (Additional file 4: Figure S2b). Eight out of them were directly linked to Prevotella, while the other four, including Oscillibacter, Faecalibacterium, Butyrivibrio, and Roseburia, were indirectly linked to Prevotella. These findings highlighted the possibility of Prevotella as a key genus associated with pHTN and HTN. The difference in gut enterotype distribution revealed profound changes of the intestinal microbiome structure in both pHTN and HTN, implying the significance of gut microbes in the development of HTN.
pHTN and HTN-associated genera in GM
Genes were aligned to the NR database and annotated to taxonomic groups. The relative abundance of gut microbes was calculated by summing the abundance of genes as listed in Additional file 2: Table S3–S4. P values were tested by Wilcoxon rank sum test and corrected for multiple testing with Benjamin & Hochberg method as others previously did [4, 25]. It is worth mentioning that 44 genera were differentially enriched in control, pHTN, and HTN (P < 0.1, Wilcoxon rank sum test, Fig. 2a and Additional file 2: Table S5). Fifteen of them were further shown in Fig. 2b. Genera such as Prevotella and Klebsiella were overrepresented in individuals with pHTN or HTN (Fig. 2b). Prevotella, originated from mouth and vagina, was abundant in the microbiome of our study cohort. The pathogenesis of periodontal diseases and rheumatoid arthritis are thought to be attributed to Prevotella [3, 26]. A wide range of infectious diseases are known to be attributed to Klebsiella [27, 28]. Porphyromonas and Actinomyces, which were also elevated in the HTN group, are morbific oral bacteria that cause infections and periodontal diseases [29].
Fig. 2
Genera strikingly different across groups. a Relative abundance of the top 44 most different genera across groups at the criteria of P value <0.1 by Wilcoxon rank sum test. C, control; P, pHTN; H, HTN. The abundance profiles are transformed into Z scores by subtracting the average abundance and dividing the standard deviation of all samples. Z score is negative (shown in blue) when the row abundance is lower than the mean. Genera at P value <0.01 are marked with dark green star, P value <0.05 with light green star, and P value ≥0.05 with gray circle. b The box plot shows the relative abundance of four genera enriched in pHTN and HTN patients, and 11 genera abundant in control. Genera are colored according to the phylum. Boxes represent the inter quartile ranges, lines inside the boxes denote medians, and circles are outliers
By contrast, Faecalibacterium, Oscillibacter, Roseburia, Bifidobacterium, Coprococcus, and Butyrivibrio, which were enriched in healthy controls, declined in pHTN and HTN patients (Fig. 2b). Our observations were consistent with the genera negatively correlated with Prevotella in the network of enterotype 1 (Additional file 4: Figure S2), and these bacteria are known to be essential for healthy status. For example, reduced levels of Faecalibacterium and Roseburia in the intestines are associated with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis [30, 31]. Both bacteria are crucial for butyric acid production [30, 32]. Moreover, Bifidobacterium is an important probiotic necessary to intestinal microbial homeostasis, gut barrier, and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) reduction [33].
The divergence of GM composition in each sample was assessed to explore the correlation of microbial abundance with body mass index (BMI), age, and gender (Additional file 5: Figure S3). Although the gender ratio is discrepant among groups (Additional file 1: Table S1), we found no remarkable regularity of bacterial abundance based on BMI, age or gender.
To further validate the bacterial alterations in HTN, an independent metagenomic analysis was performed using the sequencing data generated from a previous study of type 2 diabetes [2]. From a total of 174 non-diabetic controls in the study, normotensive controls with SBP ≤125 mmHg or DBP ≤80 mmHg were enrolled, and HTN were elected with the inclusion criteria of SBP ≥150 mmHg or DBP ≥100 mmHg. The FBG levels between normotensive controls and HTN were similar. Finally, six subjects (HTNs, n = 3; normotensive controls, n = 3) were included in our analysis (Additional file 2: Table S6). As expected, the microbial diversity was decreased in HTN (Additional file 6: Figure S4a), and there were at least 20 genera showing consistent trends with our findings, including decreased Butyrivibrio, Clostridium, Faecalibacterium, Enterococcus, Roseburia, Blautia, Oscillbacter, and elevated Klebsiella, Prevotella, and Desulfovibrio (Additional file 6: Figure S4b, Additional file 2: Table S7).
Collectively, these results supported our hypothesis that bacteria associated with healthy status were reduced in patients with HTN. This phenomenon together with the overgrowth of bacteria such as Prevotella and Klebsiella may play important role in the pathology of HTN.
Co-abundance groups enriched in pHTN and HTN
Firstly, for each gene, an OR score was calculated according to the abundance of each gene. Then, for the comparative analysis between control and HTN samples, the HTN-associated genes were classified as HTN-enriched (OR >2) or HTN-depleted (OR <0.5) as previously described [34]. When calculating HTN-associated ORs, samples of pHTN were excluded, and samples labeled as HTN were excluded as well when calculating pHTN-associated ORs. A total of 1,120,526 genes significantly different in relative abundance across groups were identified (Additional file 7: Table S8). Secondly, we clustered genes by a rather high threshold (Spearman’s correlation coefficient ≥0.7) according to previous methods [4, 35]. Spearman’s correlation coefficient was analyzed by R. The cluster groups with at least 50 genes were defined as co-abundance groups (CAGs) [4], and used for further analysis [35]. One thousand ninety-nine distinct CAGs were obtained (Additional file 2: Table S9–S11 and Additional file 8: Figure S5a). Seven hundred fourteen CAGs were assigned to known bacterial genera based on the tracer genes, with at least 80% of the genes mapped to the reference genome at an identity higher than 85% (Additional file 8: Figure S5b).
CAGs were further clustered by Spearman’s correlation based on the abundance. Compared with the controls, there were 316 CAGs and 372 CAGs enriched in pHTN and HTN, respectively (Additional file 2: Table S12). In the control group, Firmicutes and Roseburia were more abundant (Fig. 3a, b). Most CAGs enriched in pre-hypertensive samples were originated from Enterobacter, a disease-causing bacteria linked to obesity. Klebsiella, causally implicated in various infections, was also overrepresented in pre-hypertensive and hypertensive patients [27]. Additionally, most recent studies revealed that Fusobacterium was enriched in the fecal samples of patients with liver cirrhosis, colorectal carcinoma, or ulcerative colitis [4, 36, 37]. We also detected several clusters of CAGs assigned to Fusobacterium enriched in pHTN and HTN groups. About 200 CAGs were different in pHTN and HTN. Most of them in pHTN were from Enterobacter and Klebsiella, while Prevotella and Fusobacterium were more abundant in HTN.
Fig. 3
Comparative analysis of GM enrichment across groups based on CAGs. a CAGs are defined as a minimum of 50 linked genes, and the correlation network of CAGs differentially enriched in pHTN and the control group is performed by Spearman’s correlation based on the abundance. b The network of CAGs enriched in HTN is compared to controls. CAGs are colored according to the taxonomic assignment as labeled, and the node size is scaled with the number of genes within the CAG. Edges between nodes denote Spearman correlation >0.8 (red) or between 0.7 and 0.8 (gray)
To further examine the relationship between clinical indices and CAGs of GM, physiological parameters of SBP, DBP, BMI, FBG, total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) were included in a Spearman’s correlation analysis. We observed that SBP and DBP could negatively influence the CAGs enriched in the control group, such as Firmicutes and Roseburia, and positively interacted with Prevotella and Desulfovibrio, which were abundant in pHTN and HTN (Additional file 9: Figure S6). Whereas, both TC and TG were negatively correlated with Enterobacter, that was enriched in pHTN and HTN groups. Altogether, these results indicated that the bacterial communities in individuals with pHTN and HTN are similar, and the collective effect of these bacteria may account for intestinal dysbiosis in HTN.
Functional alteration in GM of pHTN and HTN
Using the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) and Carbohydrate-Active EnZymes (CAZy) [38] database, we evaluated gut microbial functions across groups in our study cohort. All the genes were aligned to the KEGG database and CAZy database, and proteins were assigned to the KEGG orthology and CAZy families (Additional file 2: Table S13–S15). Principal component analysis (PCA) based on KEGG orthology revealed striking differences in microbial functions at the first principal component (PC1) between controls and patients (P < 0.001, Wilcoxon rank sum test, Fig. 4a). Nearly all the KEGG modules and CAZy families displayed a similar discrepancy in pHTN and HTN when compared with the controls (Fig. 4b, c), illustrating the common functional features in pHTN and HTN. Sixty-five (n = 65) KEGG modules were differentially enriched among the three groups (adjusted P value <0.05, Wilcoxon rank sum test, Additional file 2: Table S12). The thirty-nine (n = 39) modules decreased in pHTN and HTN groups were involved in branched-chain amino acid biosynthesis and transport, ketone body biosynthesis, two-component regulatory system, and degradation of methionine and purine (Fig. 4b). These metabolic functions are essential for the host and have been observed in healthy populations [4, 5, 39, 40]. Although previous studies have found that iron, phosphate, and amino acid transport system, GABA biosynthesis, and methanogenesis were enriched in the patients subjected to colorectal cancer or liver cirrhosis [4, 39], these metabolic functions were not enriched in our patient cohort. We observed seventeen (n = 17) modules elevated in pHTN and HTN, including LPS biosynthesis and export, phospholipid transport, phosphotransferase system (PTS), biosynthesis of phenylalanine and phosphatidylethanolamine, and secretion system (Fig. 4b). The capacity to synthesize and export LPS of the gut microbiome in patients with colorectal carcinoma has been suggested to represent an important mechanism whereby inflammation contributes to tumor progression [5, 41, 42]. PTS system, phosphatidylethanolamine biosynthesis, secretion system, and transport of phospholipid, which were overrepresented in pHTN and HTN, are also linked to diabetes, liver cirrhosis, and rheumatoid arthritis [2, 4]. Additionally, the metagenome of patients were enriched in genes associated with cellulose-binding domains but depleted in host glycan-utilizing enzymes (Fig. 4c). These gut microbial functions in hypertensive patients are commonly associated with other diseases. Although the functional annotation analyses are predictive, it indicated that impairment of GM may evoke a disease-linked state through interference of physiological metabolic functions.
Fig. 4
Microbial gene functions annotation in pHTN and HTN. a PCA based on the relative abundance of KEGG orthology groups in 196 samples. Significant differences across groups are established at the first principal component (PC1) values, and shown in the box plots above. **P value <0.001, Wilcoxon rank sum test. b The average abundance of KEGG modules differentially enriched in control, pHTN, and HTN gut microbiome. Twenty nine modules enriched in control, and 11 modules overrepresented in both pHTN and HTN are shown in green and pink, respectively. The functional potential of KEGG modules are demonstrated on the right. c Heat map showing the abundance of 11 most significantly altered CAZy family in pHTN or HTN as compared to control
Metabolic profiling of GM in pHTN and HTN
Considering the aberrant function profiles of gut microbes in disease subjects, we wondered the microbe-host interactions in HTN. As some end products of fermentation by the GM could enter the bloodstream and exert important influences on the physiology of the hosts, we explored the host metabolic profiling in fasting serum of a subset of 124 subjects by high-throughput liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS) and examined the relationship between GM and metabolites in the circulation. Thirty healthy controls, 31 pHTNs, and 63 patients of HTN from our previous cohort were randomly enrolled. The serum samples were subjected to LC/MS analysis in both positive ion mode (ES+) and negative ion mode (ES−). After eliminating the impurity peaks and duplicate identifications, we identified a total of 1290 chromatographic peaks in ES+ and 2289 variables in ES− for further analyses. To discriminate the metabolic profiles across groups, we performed clustering analyses based on partial least-squares discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) and orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA). The serum samples from distinct groups were largely separated according to the PLS-DA plots (Fig. 5a). The scatter plots in pHTN group were closer to those in HTN, suggesting a similar metabolic mode. Furthermore, individuals in either pHTN or HTN groups were separated from the controls as further evidenced by the OPLS-DA score scatter plots (Fig. 5b).
Fig. 5
Aberrant metabolic patterns in pHTN and HTN. a PLS-DA score plots based on the metabolic profiles in serum samples from control, pHTN, and HTN group in ES+ and ES−. n = 30 for control, n = 31 for pHTN, and n = 63 for HTN. b Score scatter plots of OPLS-DA comparing the metabolic differences identify the separation between pHTN and control, HTN and control, respectively. c Metabolites significantly changed in pHTN or HTN as compared to control at VIP >1.5 and P value (t test) <0.05 are identified. Venn diagrams demonstrate the number of altered metabolites shared between pHTN (green) and HTN (red) by the overlap. d The relative amount of 26 endogenous compounds concurrently varied in both pHTN and HTN groups is transformed into Z scores in the heat map. There are six metabolites failed to be identified. e The relationship between 26 endogenous metabolites and the 44 top altered genera (Fig. 2a) in pHTN and HTN is estimated by Spearman’s correlation analysis. And those with low correlated (|r| <0.4) are not shown. Genera and metabolites are distinguished as abundant in control (green) or HTN (pink)
The compositional changes in patients involved 167 analytes that were significantly different between pHTN and control, and 215 analytes altered in HTN (Fig. 5c). There were 26 metabolites which were obviously different in both pHTN and HTN groups as compared to the control (Additional file 2: Table S16). Notably, these metabolites exhibited statistically analogous profiles of alterations in pHTN and HTN, which was consistent with our findings based on gut microbiome (Fig. 5d). Endogenous compounds whose levels significantly decreased in pHTN and HTN include phosphatidylserine (PS), 3,4,5-trimethoxycinnamic acid, lysophosphatidylcholine (LysoPC), S-carboxymethyl-l-cysteine, and lysophosphatidylethanolamine (LysoPE). 3,4,5-Trimethoxycinnamic acid is capable to protect against inflammatory diseases through suppressing cell adhesion molecules in vascular endothelial cells [43]. Also S-Carboxymethyl-l-cysteine exerts anti-inflammatory properties [44]. These observed downregulations could promote the inflammatory environment associated with HTN. On the other hand, endogenous compounds whose levels significantly increased in pHTN and HTN include metabolites such as Nα-acetyl-l-arginine, stearic acid, phosphatidic acid (PA), and glucoside. Elevated levels of Nα-acetyl-l-arginine and stearic acid have been previously observed in uremia and spontaneously hypertensive rats [45, 46]. These compounds may represent possible markers for the development of HTN and might be derived from gut microflora or their fermented products. To explore this idea, the relationship between 26 representative metabolites and the 44 most different genera was examined by correlation analysis (Fig. 5e). Control-enriched trichloroethanol glucuronide was positively correlated with Bifidobacterium and Akkermansia, but negatively linked to Prevotella. Conversely, there was a positive association between 9,10-dichloro-octadecanoic acid (stearic acid) and microflora including Klebsiella, Prevotella, and Enterbacter, which were all overrepresented in HTN. It was accordant that both Bifidobacterium and Roseburia negatively interacted with 9,10-dichloro-octadecanoic acid, which was hence considered as an important GM-influenced metabolic product in HTN. Thus the distinguished metabolic profiling in HTN was closely connected to intestinal microflora variation, although whether these metabolic products were directly metabolized by the intestinal microorganisms remained to be explored.
Identification of pHTN and HTN basing on gut microbiome
To illustrate the microbial and metabolic signature of pHTN and HTN, and further exploit the potential of gut microbiome and metabolites in HTN identification, random forest disease classifier using explanatory variables of CAGs, metabolites, and species abundances were performed. Tenfold cross-validation was repeated for five times and the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves for classifying pHTN and HTN patients from controls were developed.
We could detect HTN individuals accurately based on the gut CAGs + metabolites, as indicated by the area under the receiver operating curve (AUC) of up to 0.91, and 95% confidence interval (CI) of 0.75–1 (Fig. 6a). Similarly, comparing to the other variables, the variable of CAGs + metabolites was more effective to classify pHTN samples from controls, showing an AUC of 0.89, and 95% CI of 0.65–1 (Fig. 6b). Thus, we conducted a testing set consisted of 13 randomly chosen subjects based on CAGs + metabolites. In this assessment analysis, both pHTN and HTN patients possess remarkable features in gut microbiome and metabolites as compared to the controls (Fig. 6c). However, we observed poor performance on the test set when discriminating between pHTN and HTN by lower specificity and sensitivity (AUC, 0.57; 95% CI, 0.21–0.93; Fig. 6c). This further validated the similarity of pHTN and HTN in our previous findings. Among the most discriminatory CAGs to distinguish pHTN or HTN from control, there were some CAGs similarly enriched in both pHTN and HTN subjects, including CAG-172 (Prevotella), CAG-197 (Prevotella), CAG-759 (Faecalibacterium), CAG-765 (Faecalibacterium), and CAG-793 (Faecalibacterium) (Fig. 6d). These CAG markers were the common microbial characteristics of pHTN and HTN and contributed a lot to the identification of pHTN and HTN.
Fig. 6
A classification to identify pHTN and HTN patients from controls. a, b Random forest models are constructed using explanatory variables of CAGs + species (red curve), CAGs + metabolites (green curve), metabolites (yellow curve), CAGs (blue curve), and species (purple curve). The AUC shows the classification of control versus HTN, or control versus pHTN as the numbers of variables increase. The CAGs + metabolites-based classification is more efficient as indicated by a higher AUC. c ROC of the random forest classifier using CAGs + metabolites based on the 1000 most important variables by ranking the variables by importance. AUC = 0.91 for control versus pHTN (n = 12, red curve), AUC = 0.89 for control versus HTN (n = 12, green curve), and AUC = 0.57 for pHTN versus HTN (n = 13, blue curve). d The top 50 different CAGs distinguish HTN from control based on the random forest model using explanatory variables of CAGs + metabolites. e The top 50 CAGs discriminate between pHTN and control using explanatory variables of CAGs + metabolites. The lengths of bar in the histogram represent mean decrease accuracy, which indicates the importance of the CAG for classification. The color denote the enrichment of CAG in control (blue), in HTN or pHTN (red) according to OR score
We also investigated the utility of the classifier based on microbial CAGs + species. Consistently, the AUC for identifying pHTN and HTN from the controls was 0.67 (95% CI, 0.39–0.95) and 0.81 (95% CI, 0.53–1), respectively, and the performance on pHTN and HTN individuals was not as satisfactory (AUC, 0.47; 95% CI, 0.19–0.75; Additional file 10: Figure S7a). For HTN classification, CAGs and species taxonomic annotated to Prevotella, including Prevotella sp. CAG:5226.CAG-377, Prevotella bivia, and CAG-184 were typically important (Additional file 10: Figure S7b). Overall, the pHTN- and HTN-associated microbial and metabolic features captured by the classifier offered further evidence for dysbiotic gut microbiome and highlighted great potential ability for detection of pHTN and HTN populations by GM and metabolites.
High BP is transferrable by fecal transplant
Previous studies have revealed that antibiotics and probiotics are potential treatment modalities for BP in both animal models and clinical trials [19, 21, 22, 47]. We speculated that the alterations in GM under pro/antibiotic use may be associated with BP changes. There is evidence that Dahl salt-sensitive rats transplanted with salt-resistant rat microbiota have further exacerbated BP, which indicate that the microbiota resident within the cecum of the Dahl salt-sensitive rat, but not the salt-resistant rat, are in a symbiotic relationship with the host [20]. Thus the differences between Dahl salt-sensitive rats and the salt-resistant rats are highlighted. Investigators have also proved that transplantation of cecal contents from hypertensive obstructive sleep apnea rats on high-fat diet into the same obstructive sleep apnea recipient rats on normal chow diet lead to higher BP similar to the donors [23]. In this study, it seems that a major contributor to the gut dysbiosis of HTN is a high-fat diet. Therefore, direct studies testing if microbial transplantation can transmit changes in BP from hypertensive donors to recipients are still lacking. To further demonstrate whether alterations of GM are a causal factor for the progression of HTN in vivo, fecal bacteria from hypertensive patients were transplanted to GF mice in the present work.
The donors for microbiota transplantation consisted of two patients of HTN and one normotensive control (Additional file 11: Table S17). They were strictly selected, and fresh fecal samples from donors were inoculated to recipient mice as soon as possible. Male GF mice at 8–10 weeks were divided into groups and orally inoculated with stool samples two times at 1-day interval (Fig. 7a). The fecal samples of recipient mice post-transplantation were investigated by 16S V4 region amplicon sequencing (Additional file 2: Table S18). The sequences were de novo clustered at 97% sequence identity and annotated to genera. From HTN patients, 128 genera were successfully colonized in the intestine of HTN mice, and 110 genera were transferred to control-mice from the control donor (Fig. 7b). Shannon index based on the genera profile showed reduced bacterial diversity in HTN mice (P = 0.048; t test, Fig. 7c). As expected, PCoA at the genus level clustered HTN patients and mice colonized with hypertensive GM into one group, but control and control mice into a separated group (Fig. 7d). Moreover, at the genus level, Anaerotruncus, Coprococcus, Ruminococcus, Clostridium, Roseburia, Blautia, and Bifidobasterium were confirmed to be deficient, while Coprobacillus and Prevotella were shown to be more abundant in HTN mice, which was in agreement with our previous observations in the metagenomic analyses (Additional file 2: Table S19, Fig. 7e).
At 10 weeks post-transplantation, BP of recipient mice in HTN and control group was measured by the tail-cuff method. Notably, the HTN mice exhibited significantly higher SBP, DBP, and mean blood pressure (MBP) as compared to controls (P < 0.05), as well as elevated heart rate (P = 0.11) (Fig. 7f). Early studies have shown that when compared to conventional controls, GF rats possess significantly lower cardiac output, relatively diminished regional blood flow, lower level of systemic BP response after blood loss, and hypotonic microvasculature [48], which might lead to a low systolic BP in the recipient mice. These findings provided novel and direct evidence that GM could influence the BP of host directly. Therefore, changes in the GM might be the mechanism underlying the effect of antibiotics and probiotics on BP control. As the number of donors for transplantation is limited, larger number of fecal transplants from hypertensive, pre-hypertensive, and normotensive control participants should be carried out in the future to further establish the magnitude of BP changes.
Discussion
To date, there are limited studies indicating a direct association between GM and HTN, especially in human disease. Several important gaps in knowledge of gut and BP remain unexplored, and critical issues should be addressed, such as the microbial profiles of HTN populations in clinical trials, the metabolites signature profiles, the microbial biomarkers for early detection of HTN, and fecal transplantation to make clear the causal relationship between gut dysbiosis and HTN. To make up for these blanks, we applied a strategy based on metagenomic and metabolomic analyses, coupled with GM transplantation. We sequenced the total bacteria DNA of stool samples from a cohort of 196 Chinese individuals and supplemented this analysis with an additional validation cohort. All the individuals in the present study are from a cohort study among employees of the Kailuan Group Corporation. The Kailuan study is a prospective cohort study focusing on the Kailuan community in Tangshan, a large modern city in northern China. As the subjects were from a relatively concentrated environment, the differences in the diets were relatively small. All the subjects in the hypertension group were newly diagnosed hypertensive patients prior to antihypertensive treatment. Patients suffering from cancer, heart failure, renal failure, smoking, stroke, peripheral artery disease, and chronic inflammatory disease were all excluded. Drugs including statins, aspirin, insulin, metformin, nifedipine, and metoprolol were not used on the patients, and other drug consumption was not compared because the sample size was quite small. Hence, it is not likely that the medication use directly influenced the gut metagenome and metabolites, as there was no significant difference in the drugs consumed by these subjects. Our results demonstrate that decreased diversity, altered enterotype distribution, and variation in bacteria populations were associated with both pHTN and HTN. The bacterial metabolic functions and GM-related metabolites in pre-hypertensive and hypertensive adults were closely linked to inflammatory state. Particularly, both pHTN and HTN individuals could be accurately distinguished from the controls by variables of CAGs and metabolites. And most importantly, the direct impact of GM composition on regulating BP was evaluated using an in vivo model of GF mice colonized with human intestinal microbiota. Bacteria such as Prevotella, Klebsiella, Enterobacter, and Fusobacterium are potential candidates for further bacteria transfer experiments to explore the precise mechanisms underlying the effect of GM in BP regulation. Our work provides the first direct evidence that highlights the pivotal role of dysbiotic gut microbiome as an important pathogenic factor for the high BP of the host. Thus GM modulation should be considered during antihypertensive treatment.
Researchers previously suggested that the intestinal bacterium Prevotella copri thrives in a pro-inflammatory environment of rheumatoid arthritis [3, 49]. The superoxide reductase and phosphoadenosine phosphosulphate reductase encoded by Prevotella copri may favor the development of inflammation. In their further demonstration, colonization with Prevotella copri enhances body weight loss and exacerbates epithelial inflammation in colitis mouse model [3]. Interestingly, as shown by our data, the enterotype dominated by Prevotella was enriched with pHTN and HTN populations. Moreover, Prevotella was overrepresented in individuals with pHTN and HTN. And stearic acid, an important metabolite in HTN, was positively linked to Prevotella. Furthermore, CAGs and species taxonomic annotated to Prevotella were the common microbial characteristics of pHTN and HTN, and contributed a lot to classification of HTN. Thus Prevotella may play an essential role in HTN, probably by triggering the inflammatory response. Our findings have consolidated the potential of Prevotella in the pathogenesis of diseases, and call for further exploring whether Prevotella is a causal conducer to inflammation and HTN.
Concomitant with the alteration of gut microbial composition, we observed a dysbiosis in bacterial gene functions. The metagenome of HTN patients were depleted in genes associated with biosynthesis and transport of amino acid, such as lysine, histidine, leucine, and serine, which are essential for human health. Functional annotation also indicated a decline of modules for fatty acid utilization and saccharide transport, suggesting an impaired capacity of energy production. In agreement with previous studies showing a dearth of microbial functions for purine metabolism in arthritis [3], a significant decrease in purine-metabolizing enzymes was identified to be related to HTN. Indeed, these metabolic functions are quite necessary for healthy populations [3–5, 39, 40]. In contrast, the enrichment of the modules for LPS biosynthesis and export in patients hints at a potential role of GM in causing low-grade inflammation. Inflammation due to immune response triggered by LPS is the cardinal feature of the pathogenesis of gram-negative bacteria, such as Prevotella and Klebsiella [50, 51], and has been identified as an important contributor to the pathogenesis of HTN. Our findings raise the possibility that the low-grade inflammation and increase of gram-negative bacteria, especially Prevotella and Klebsiella, are likely responsible for HTN pathology. Thus, our analysis of bacterial gene functions indicates that functional dysbiosis may contribute to the susceptibility to HTN, and overproduction of LPS by gut bacteria seems to be directly linked to HTN development, whereas amino acid biosynthesis, fatty acid utilization, and purine metabolism by bacteria might have a role in HTN prevention.
Actually, in GF mice, the tail-cuff method has been used for assessment of BP in a recent report, suggesting the methodology is acceptable [52]. In our study, the tail-cuff measurement was performed as the others did previously, and indicated a tendency for higher BP in recipient mice inoculated with stool samples from hypertensive donors as compared to controls. As such results were not obtained by fecal microbiota transplantation in conventionally raised mice, we speculate that the immune inflammatory system might play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of HTN. Further mechanism research to make clear whether gut bacterial metabolites show a contribution to the immune inflammatory system during the development of HTN is being performed.
In HTN studies, most work focused on patients with a clinical definition of HTN, who display a SBP higher than 140 mmHg or DBP ≥90 mmHg. However, population studies suggest that there is an intermediate stage of BP between control and HTN defined as pHTN, which should not be ignored. In our study, we considered subjects with pHTN as an independent group. Surprisingly, the bacterial diversity, enterotype, composition, and metabolic functions, as well as classified characteristics in pHTN highly coincided with those in HTN. As shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, there was a little difference in the structure of gut microbiome between pHTN and HTN, indicating that pHTN is not simply a transition stage between normotensive and hypertensive status upon BP levels but rather a state in which gut dysbiosis has already occurred. Moreover, our findings revealed indiscriminate metabolic profilings between pHTN and HTN, consistent with a previous report that the serum spectral profiles of the hosts were similar at a stage of SBP ≥130 mmHg and at SBP ≥150 mmHg [53]. The close correlation of metabolic products and GM further strengthened and highlighted the importance of pHTN. Therefore, early treatment of pHTN has strong clinical value. In agreement with our notion, high BP has become one of the three leading risk factors for death according to the Global Burden of Disease Study [54]. Moreover, our findings fully support the updated conclusion by the Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT) research group, that controlling one’s SBP to an optimal level lower than 120 mmHg rather than a pHTN level below 140 mmHg leads to significantly decreased occurrence of cardiovascular events and death [55]. Thus, more attention should be given to the previously neglected populations in pHTN, and early intervention for pHTN is strongly appealed.
Conclusions
Taken together, we have described clearly the disordered profiles of GM and microbial products in human patients with pHTN and HTN, established the relationship between gut dysbiosis and HTN, and provided important evidence for the novel role of GM dysbiosis as a key factor for BP changes. Our findings point towards a new strategy aimed at preventing the development of HTN and reducing cardiovascular risks through restoring the homeostasis of GM, by improving diet and lifestyle or early intervening with drugs or probiotics.
Methods
Study cohort and patient characteristics
All the individuals in the present study were from a cohort study among employees of the Kailuan Group Corporation. The Kailuan study is a prospective cohort study focusing on the Kailuan community in Tangshan, a large modern city in northern China, where 11 hospitals are responsible for the health care of the community, all of which participated in conducting physical examinations. All the subjects in the current work were strictly enrolled and none of them was under antihypertensive treatment. The participants were classified based on the Internal Guidelines for HTN as described in Additional file 1: Table S1. It was composed of 41 healthy controls (SBP ≤125 mmHg, or DBP ≤80 mmHg), 56 pHTNs (125 mmHg < SBP ≤ 139 mmHg, or 80 mmHg < DBP ≤ 89 mmHg), 99 patients of HTN (140 mmHg ≤ SBP, or 90 mmHg ≤ DBP). BP was measured in a sitting position by nurses or physicians. Three readings were recorded at 5-min intervals with a random-zero mercury column sphygmomanometer, and the average was taken as the final measurement.
All clinical information was collected according to standard procedures. Patients suffering from cancer, heart failure, renal failure, smoking, stroke, and peripheral artery disease were excluded, and none of the patients was under antihypertensive treatment. Healthy volunteers had no history of diabetes mellitus or hypercholesterolemia. Individuals were also excluded if they had received antibiotics or probiotics within the last 8 weeks. The study was approved by local ethics committees (Kailuan General Hospital, Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, and Beijing Fuwai Hospital) and informed consent was obtained from all subjects.
Stool sample collection and DNA extraction
Stool samples freshly collected from each participant were immediately frozen at −20 °C and transported to the laboratory with ice pack. Bacterial DNA was extracted at Novogene Bioinformatics Technology Co., Ltd using TIANGEN kit according to the manufacturer’s recommendations.
Metagenomic sequencing and gene catalogue construction
All samples were paired-end sequenced on the Illumina platform (insert size 300 bp, read length 125 bp) at the Novogene Bioinformatics Technology Co., Ltd. After quality control, the reads aligned to the human genome (alignment with SOAP2 [56], Version 2.21, parameters: -s 135, -l 30, -v 7,-m 200,-x 400) were removed. The remaining high-quality reads were used for further analysis.
The assembly of reads was executed using SOAP denovo (Version 2.04, parameters: -d 1 -M 3 -R -u -F) [57]. For each sample, we used a series of k-mer values (from 49 to 87) and chose the optimal one with the longest N50 value for the remaining scaffolds [4]. We mapped the clean data against scaffolds using SOAP2 (Version 2.21, parameters: -m 200 -x 400 -s 119). Unused reads from each sample were assembled using the same parameters. Genes (minimum length of 100 nucleotides) were predicted on scaftigs (i.e., continuous sequences within scaffolds) longer than 500 bp using MetaGeneMark (prokaryotic GeneMark.hmm version 2.10). Then, a non-redundant gene catalogue was constructed with CD-HIT (version 4.5.8, parameters: -G 0 -aS 0.9 -g 1 -d 0 -c 0.95) [58] using a sequence identity cut-off of 0.95, with a minimum coverage cut-off of 0.9 for the shorter sequences.
To determine the abundance of genes, reads were realigned to the gene catalogue with SOAP2 using parameters: -m 200 -x 400 -s 119. Only genes with ≥2 mapped reads were deemed to be present in a sample [59]. The abundance of genes was calculated by counting the number of reads and normalizing by gene length.
α diversity and rarefaction curve
To estimate the genera richness of the sample, we calculated the within-sample (α) diversity using Shannon index based on the genera profiles. A high α diversity indicates a high richness of genera within the sample.
Rarefaction analysis was performed to assess the gene richness in the controls, pHTN, and HTN. For a given number of samples, we performed random sampling 100 times in the cohort with replacement and estimated the total number of genes that could be identified from these samples by R (Version 2.15.3, vegan package).
Microbial community types (enterotypes)
The community types of each sample were analyzed by the PAM method using relative abundance of genera. The optimal number of clusters was estimated using the CH index, as previously described [60]. Only genera with an average relative abundance ≥10−4 and existed in at least six samples were considered in the analysis. According to Spearman’s correlation between genera abundances, the genera in enterotype 1 were clustered, and the co-occurrence network of them was visualized by Cytoscape (Version 3.2.1).
Taxonomic annotation and abundance profiling
To assess the taxonomic assignment, genes were aligned to the integrated NR database using DIAMOND (Version 0.7.9.58, default parameter except that -k 50 -sensitive -e 0.00001) [61]. As previously described [59], for each gene, the significant matches, which were defined by e-values ≤10 × e-value of the top hit, and these retained matches were used to distinguish taxonomic groups. The taxonomical level of each gene was determined by the lowest common ancestor-based algorithm and implemented in MEGAN [62]. The abundance of a taxonomic group was calculated by summing the abundance of genes annotated to a feature.
Metagenomic analysis in the verification phase
All phenotype information of participants were listed in the supplementary tables of Qin J et. al [2]. Subjects with diabetes were excluded. Three HTN patients with SBP ≥150 mmHg or DBP ≥100 mmHg were enrolled, and three normotensive controls with SBP ≤125 mmHg and DBP ≤80 mmHg were included for the analysis.
Co-abundance gene groups
To identify the marker genes associated with pHTN and HTN, the abundance of each gene across groups was compared according to Greenblum S et al. [34]. As previously described [35], these marker genes were clustered into groups based on their abundance variation across groups. Clusters with more than 50 genes were defined as co-abundance gene groups (CAGs), and used for further analysis. CAG abundance profiles were calculated by the average gene depth signal and weighted by gene length.
Taxonomic assignment of the CAGs was performed according to the taxonomy of tracer genes, as previously described [2]. Briefly, assignment to species requires 90% of the genes in a CAG to align with the species’ genome with 95% identity and 70% overlap of query. Assigning CAG to a genus requires 80% of its genes to align to the genome with 85% identity in both DNA and protein sequences.
Co-occurrence network of CAGs
The enriched CAGs were identified according to Greenblum S et al.. These CAGs were clustered according to Spearman’s correlation. The co-occurrence network was visualized using Cytoscape (Version 3.2.1). The enriched CAGs/genes were identified according to Greenblum S et al. [34]. Briefly, for each CAG, an OR score was calculated according to the abundance in the set of compared samples. Then, for the comparative analysis between control and HTN samples, the HTN-associated CAGs were classified as HTN-enriched (OR >2) or HTN-depleted (OR <0.5). When calculating HTN-associated ORs, samples of pHTN were excluded from the analysis, and when calculating pHTN-associated ORs, samples labeled as HTN were excluded.
Association between CAGs and clinical indices
Based on the clinical indices and enriched CAG profiles, we calculated Spearman’s correlation in all samples. The P values were corrected for multiple testing with Holm method by R (Version 2.15.3, psychpackage). Only 162 samples were considered in the analysis because of the clinical data missing in 34 samples.
Functional annotation
All genes in our catalogue were aligned to the KEGG database (Release 73.1, with animal and plant genes removed) and CAZy database (http://www.cazy.org/) using DIAMOND (Version 0.7.9.58, default parameter except that -k 50 --sensitive -e 0.00001). Each protein was assigned to the KEGG orthology and CAZy families by the highest scoring annotated hits containing at least one HSP scoring over 60 bits [63]. The abundance of KEGG orthology/module was calculated by summing the abundance of genes annotated to the same feature.
Metabonomics analysis based on LC/MS
One-hundred twenty-four (n = 124) individuals from our study cohort were subjected to metabonomics analysis based on the LC/MS method. This cohort was composed of 30 healthy controls, 31 pHTNs, and 63 patients of HTN. The whole blood samples were collected and separated into serum by centrifugation. Each serum samples at 100 μL were mixed with 400 μL methanol, and the mixtures were centrifuged at 12,000 rpm for 15 min at 4 °C. For LC/MS analysis, 200 μL of the supernatant was harvested.
The serum metabolic profiles were performed on a Thermo Fisher Ultimate 3000 LC system. For chromatographic separation, C18 (2.1 mm × 100 mm × 1.9 μm) reversed-phase column (Thermo Scientific, USA) preheated at 40 °C was used. A prepared serum sample of 4 μL was injected and maintained at 4 °C for analysis. The gradient conditions for metabolite elution were at 5% B for 0–1 min, 5–40% B for 1–2 min of linear gradient, 40–80% B for 2–11 min of linear gradient, and 95% B for 11–15 min. The mobile phase for positive ion mode (ES+) and negative ion mode (ES−) was composed of water with 0.1% formic acid as solvent A, and acetonitrile with 0.1% formic acid as solvent B, and the flow rate was at 300 μL/min.
For mass spectrometric assay, Orbitrap Elite mass spectrometer (Thermo Scientific, USA) equipped with ESI source was used to analyze the metabolite ions. The spray voltage was set to 3.8 kV in ES+ and 3.2 kV in ES−, the flow rate of sheath gas, aux gas, and sweep gas was 45, 15, and 1 arb, respectively. The ion source temperature was 300 °C, and the capillary temperature was 350 °C. Masses ranging from 50 to 1000 ion mass (m/z) were acquired, and the resolving power was set to 60,000.
The raw ESI data of LC/MS was converted into m/z format and analyzed for non-linear retention time (RT) alignment, peak detection, and filtration. Maximal spectrum of continuous wavelet transform was used to correct baseline and detect peak positions. Impurity peaks and duplicate identifications were eliminated. Compounds significantly different between groups were obtained at a variable influence on projection (VIP) >1.5, and P value of t test statistics <0.05 based on the peak intensities. The m/z values of these compounds were used to identify the metabolites corresponding to the featured peak in the Metlin database.
From the metabolite profile and 44 top differential genera abundance profile, Spearman’s correlation was performed to eliminate multi-collinearity and only one factor will be randomly selected from high correlated clusters (|r| ≥ 0.9) for further analysis. A stepwise regression of linear models was used for modeling the relationship between metabolites and related genera, from the fitting value of individual metabolites, and Spearman’s correlation between metabolic and associated genera was calculated and scaled by coefficients of each respective linear model.
Animal experiments
GF C57BL/6L mice were obtained from Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences (SLAC Inc., Shanghai, China) and housed under a 12-h light–dark cycle in the gnotobiotic facilities. All mice were fed with sterile food and water ad libitum, and bacterial contamination was monitored by periodic examination of stools. For microbiota transplantation, the fresh fecal samples were collected from donors (Additional file 11: Table S17), resuspended with sterile saline, and centrifuged for supernatant. Male GF mice aged 8–10 weeks were randomly distributed into two groups and orally inoculated (200 μL for each mouse) twice at 1-day interval with prepared fecal contents from control or patients. Recipient mice transferred with microbiota were kept in different Trexler-type flexible film isolators, fed with sterile food and water, and bacterial contamination was strictly controlled. The gut microbial profiles of recipient mice were analyzed by 16S sequencing after 7 days. We chose a time point of 10 weeks post-transplantation for BP measurement. An assessment of BP was performed within 60 min after exporting the mice out of their gnotobiotic facilities, and we could not ensure prevention from bacterial contamination after the measurement; the BP at other time points during 10 weeks was not further examined. The BP was measured by the tail-cuff method and the BP-98A system (Softron, Tokyo, Japan), which was noninvasive and did not require surgery, since using direct invasive methods such as radiotelemetry techniques will immediately expose the mice to a non-sterile condition, which might impact the results. To acclimatize the mice undergoing the measurement procedures and improve measurement reliability, a heat-sterilized dark cover was transported into the germ-free mice isolator, where it was sterilized by spraying with a chlorine dioxide-based disinfectant in the isolator port. Before BP measurement, we have trained the mice by placing them in the dark cover in their sterile flexible film isolators without exporting them out at the same time for 14 days. To minimize contamination, the measurement was performed with UV-sterilized instruments under a sterile hood within 60 min after exporting the mice out of their sterile environment. All animal care and experiments were performed in accordance with the guidelines of Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of SLAC Inc.
16S ribosomal RNA sequencing
16S rRNA community profiles were characterized using Illumina HiSeq sequencing of the V4 region (insert size 300 bp, read length 250 bp). Sequences were de novo clustered at 97% sequence identity and chimeras were removed using UPARSE [64]. For each representative sequence, the GreenGene Database was used to annotate taxonomic information [65].
Statistical analysis
The Shannon index at the genera level was calculated with QIIME (Version 1.7.0). PCA was analyzed using the FactoMineR package in R software (Version 2.15.3). PCoA was performed and displayed by ade4 package, cluster packages, fpc packages, and clusterSim package in R software (Version 2.15.3). PLS-DA was performed using SIMCA-P software to cluster the sample plots across groups.
Differential abundance of genes, genera, and KO modules was tested by Wilcoxon rank sum test, and P values were corrected for multiple testing with the Benjamin & Hochberg method. Only genera with an average relative abundance ≥10−4 and existed in at least six subjects were considered in the analyses. Correlations between enriched CAGs and clinical indices were tested with Spearman’s correlation and visualized by Cytoscape (Version 3.2.1).
Using the profiles of species, CAGs, and metabolites, the samples were randomly divided into training set and test set. A random forest classifier was trained on 80% of the data and tested on the remaining 20% of our data using the random forest package in R. In order to evaluate the performance of the predictive model and get more precise curves, we used a 10-fold cross-validation within the training set. The cross-validational error curves (average of 10 test sets each) from five trials of the 10-fold cross-validation were averaged. Variable importance by mean decrease in accuracy was calculated for the random forest models using the full set of features. The number of variables was 1000 at the lowest cross-validational error. Thus, the predictive model was constructed using the 1000 most important variables, which were further applied for ROC analysis. The performance of the smaller models were measured as AUC when applied to the test set, and the confidence intervals for ROC curves were calculated using the pROC R package.
Declarations
Acknowledgements
Not applicable.
Funding
This work was supported by National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program,2014CB542302), CAMS Innovation Fund for Medical Science (CIFMS, 2016-I2M-1-006), National Natural Science Foundation of China (81470541, 81630014, 91531306, 81500383), National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program,2015CB554200), Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission (Z151100002115050, Z151100004015176), Beijing Municipal Commission of Education (KZ201610025028), the International S&T Cooperation Program of China (2013DFB30310), and the AHA Scientist Development Grant (L.C., 12SDG11680011).
Authors’ contributions
JC, XCY, BLZ, JL, and FQZ conceived the study, directed the project, designed the experiments, interpreted the results, and wrote the manuscript; JT, WLZ, TG, SLW, LY, and XYL obtained the samples and clinical details; YDW assisted with microbiome sample processing; JRC, WBL, and QHC performed the computational and metagenomic microbiota analysis; JL and JRC performed the metabonomics analysis; JL, JRC, YDW, and BG supervised the fecal microbiota transplantation and analyzed the data of animal experiments; WR, AK, and CL revised the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Competing interests
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Consent for publication
Not applicable.
Ethics approval
The study was approved by local ethics committees (Kailuan General Hospital, Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, and Beijing Fuwai Hospital) and informed consent was obtained from all subjects. All animal care and experiments were performed in accordance with the guidelines of Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of SLAC Inc.
Open AccessThis article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.
Additional files
Additional file 1: Table S1.Characteristics of the study cohort. A total of 196 participants consisted of 41 healthy controls, 56 subjects of pHTN, and 99 patients with HTN were enrolled. (DOC 42 kb)
Additional file 3: Figure S1.The number of enterotypes in our cohort is most rational at 2. Based on the PAM clustering method, a total of 196 stool samples are clustered into different numbers of community types with CH index, which shows the performance in recovering cluster numbers. The maximum CH index at two clusters (enterotypes) indicates the optimal enterotype number. (PDF 183 kb)
Additional file 5: Figure S3.The gut microbial abundances of genera enriched in groups do not correlated with BMI, age or gender. The relative abundances of genera overrepresented (above 4) or deficient (below 11) in subjects for each control (n = 41), pHTN (n = 56), and HTN (n = 99) sample are shown. The information for BMI, age and gender of each participant are included in the heat map. (PDF 669 kb)
Additional file 8: Figure S5.Size distribution and taxonomic assignment of CAGs. (a) The 1,120,526 genes significantly different across groups are clustered into linked gene groups, and the distribution of gene number within these clusters are shown in the histogram. Clusters with a gene number higher than 50 are defined as CAG. (b) Characterization of taxonomic assignment for CAGs based on the genes. The size of points denotes the gene number within the CAG, and the color of points indicates different phylum. The X-axis (coverage) represents the percentage of genes in the CAGs annotated to known bacterial phylum, and the Y-axis is the identity of genes to align with a genome in both DNA and protein sequences according to BLAST. (PDF 313 kb)
Additional file 9: Figure S6.The correlation between overrepresented CAGs and clinical indices of subjects including SBP, DBP, BMI, FBG, TC, TG and LDL. Spearman’s correlation analysis between CAGs and clinical factors is performed according to the relative abundance of CAGs and the data of clinical parameter. The color are scaled with the correlation coefficients, positive correlation is expressed in red, and negative correlation in blue.+, adjust P value <0.01; *, adjust P value <0.05. (PDF 826 kb)
Additional file 10: Figure S7.Random forest classification of pHTN, HTN and control using explanatory variables of CAGs + species. (a) ROC for the testing set consisted of controls, pHTN and HTN is performed based on the random forest model using the 1000 most important variables by ranking the variables by importance. The AUC is 0.67 for control versus pHTN (n = 12, red curve), AUC = 0.81 for control versus HTN (n = 12, green curve), and AUC is 0.47 for pHTN versus HTN (n = 13, blue curve). (b) The top 30 different CAGs or species distinguish HTN from control based on the random forest model. The bar lengths denote mean decrease accuracy, and the color represents CAGs or species enriched in control (blue), HTN (red), and neither (gray). (PDF 499 kb)
Additional file 11: Table S17.Characteristics of the donors for microbiota transplantation. The donors for microbiota transplantation consist of two patients of HTN and one normotensive control. (DOC 32 kb)
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Cosplay and Body Type – It Doesn\’t Matter!!
It seems like cosplayers these days just can never catch a break. If you\’ve been following my posts, you should remember one I wrote about the Cosplay =/= Consent movement started by the 16-Bit Sirens. They were trying to raise awareness of cosplayers who are the victim of unwanted sexual harassment because of how they are dressed up. While this movement has been gaining a lot of ground lately, which makes me very happy, we now seem to have returned to another problem that plagues the cosplay community, one that happens to be on the complete opposite side of the spectrum.
While I was just going through Tumblr, minding my own business, I came across this picture.
Let me ask you something. What exactly deems this cosplay as a failure? I see a girl who is dressing up as a character that she likes, in this case, Yuna from Final Fantasy X-2 (Gunner Dressphere.) Her cosplay as actually rather accurate and she even got the guns to boot. Seeing someone pull off a Final Fantasy character is always a pleasure to see, so what exactly is the problem here?
Here\’s the supposed problem: it\’s not the cosplay, it\’s the girl wearing it. This poor girl is being bashed because she doesn\’t have the skinny japanese idol figure that Yuna has. I\’m sorry, but that is a real dick thing to say. Saying that someone can\’t cosplay a certain character because they\’re too fat, too skinny, too tall, too short, is total nonsense. As I said in my post about cosplay =/= consent, people don\’t cosplay for your own entertainment, they\’re doing it for themselves, so you have no right at all to criticize.
I was at C2E2 a while back and I saw many different kinds of cosplay, all of them being worn by a multitude of people. 8 times out of 10, you\’re gonna see someone dressing up as a character and they themselves don\’t look anything like the actual character themselves. So what do you do about these people?
Here\’s the answer: NOTHING!!!
It really is that simple. Just let that person have fun on their own. Don\’t even think about walking up to them and trying to tell them that they are too fat for their cosplay or whatever. If body type was truly issue, then I shouldn\’t be allowed to cosplay as Link from Legend of Zelda since I don\’t have a perfect bone structure or any kind of muscle. Muscle that is severely needed to wield the Master Sword and a Hylian Shield at the same time. I tried that before one con and I was sore for a whole week!
Cosplay is always meant to be fun for everyone, no exceptions. Since when did it become so full of idiots and elitists? I try to figure out why people would say such hurtful things…..and I honestly can\’t figure it out. This tells me that there is a serious gap of logic, and that gap can only be filled with basic human decency.
All in all, people should cosplay whoever they want however they want. It doesn\’t matter if you white, black, green, blue, orange, fat, thin, square, round, IT DOESN\’T MATTER AT ALL!!! People cosplay because they love that character and they want to appreciate him or her. They don\’t do it to live out your own personal fantasy, so just leave them alone.
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Web Development – Desarrollo Para Internet Archive
I am trying to start an open source GPL project, in Lua or C++, with these main goals: speed/performance, security, ease of development, and being embeddable. It would provide a CMS, forum, and cloud solution.
I spent countless hours writing Velocity code and hacking up some Lucene queries in dotCMS for the website, but this was only a needle in the haystack of preparations needed to make an 1800-people, 40-country+ event go smoothly...
Widgets in dotCMS are nothing more than a special content structure. As a structure, everything in a widget, even the HTML and Velocity code, is stored in a field in the database, which means the code is in fact searchable.
This article is a compilation of common MIME types and their corresponding file extensions. Unlike MIME type lists commonly used in Apache and IIS, this list includes the now-popular Open Document Formats.
The river never stood still. That is when I saw it. I noticed that the concave sky, which was always so distant and so far above, was hereby being pulled into the Grand River and dragged to the same altitude as my mortal life.
Elgg, with its countless plug-ins is a very good fit. Functions like blogs, web pages and private groups, plus an easy infrastructure for widgets with family trees, video mail and photo sharing, make Elgg the ideal platform...
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Taxpayers benefit as well. In August, the Agriculture Department projected that the high prices will reduce the cost of a program that protects cotton farmers from cyclical downturns from $1.17 billion in 2009 to $243 million in 2010.
However, cotton farmers still will be eligible for direct payments, which do not vary with the business cycle.
On top of that, the Obama administration said in September that it will shower about $630 million in special aid on Southern agriculture, much of it destined for cotton growers.
Ostensibly, this is to make the farmers whole for losses they suffered during an unusually rainy 2009 harvest season.
But even the farmer-friendly Senate never accepted that dubious rationale.
As was abundantly clear to all concerned, the actual purpose is to help the political fortunes of the senator who crusaded for it, Democrat Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas.
Unable to get the money through the normal legislation, Lincoln held a separate bill hostage until she extracted a promise from the Obama administration to come up with the cash from an existing executive branch account.
Section 32
The source chosen was Section 32, a heretofore obscure Agriculture Department program whose usual purpose is to support child nutrition. If there is a saving grace here, it is that Lincoln originally demanded $1.5 billion, and the administration refused to go quite that far.
This lavish payout would have been wasteful under normal circumstances — it becomes that much more grotesque at a time when cotton is doing better than most other sectors of the economy.
Overseas market
What also is noteworthy here is the source of cotton’s explosive recent growth — foreign demand.
Buoyed by the cheap dollar, cotton exports are up 29 percent over last year. A third of the shipments go to China, where the fiber is turned into clothing for U.S. consumers.
Controlling interest
The United States controls 80 percent of the growing world market for cotton. Letting American farmers compete internationally without aid from Washington is fairer to our trading partners and better for the government’s already distressed finances.
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Vehicle Details
Vehicle Description
Coming soon!Our careful vehicle selection process means that we are able to bring you high-quality, pre-owned cars, trucks and SUVs from across the nation. We have just acquired this vehicle and it is currently being transported to our lot. Once it arrives, it will go through our extensive reconditioning process and will be available soon. We take care to make sure our vehicles are thoroughly inspected by a professional mechanic and are ready to be driven. Additionally, our extremely-high standards of cleanliness ensures that our vehicles receive a top-notch detail.
We will update this listing once this vehicle has arrived on our lot and is ready for sale (it is not currently on our lot and is not available for viewing or test drives).Contact us today at 913.387.4926 for more information.Oakes Auto strives to bring you the lowest prices possible, not just in the Kansas City area, but the entire United States. With our laid-back, quick and pain-free sales process, our high standard of customer service and our many financing options, we know you will find Oakes Auto to be a welcome change from your past experiences. All of our vehicles are reconditioned and we encourage third party inspections of your choice!
The new Focus is offered in 4-door sedan or 5-door hatchback forms, in S, SE, SEL and Titanium and ST trims--although hatchbacks aren't offered in base S form and the high performance ST is hatchback only. S and SE models can be had with either a 5-speed manual gearbox or 6-speed PowerShift dual-clutch automatic transmission. SEL and Titanium models only come with the automatic, while the ST is only available with a 6-speed manual.
All but the electric Focus and the Focus ST utilize Ford's 2.0L direct-injection 4-cylinder engine, making 160 horsepower and 146 pound-feet of torque. Ford's Ti-VCT variable valve timing system helps provide stronger response through the rev range while saving fuel at other times. Ford anticipates up to 40 mpg on the highway.
With a 4-wheel independent suspension--combining a semi-isolated front subframe and a control-blade multi-link rear suspension--along with 4-wheel disc brakes in all but the S and SE models, the Focus has stronger performance credentials than most small cars. The suspension is tuned to be quite firm yet has enough give to soak up heaves and potholes; Ford's electric power-steering system provides good steering weighting and responsiveness as well. In addition, a new torque vectoring system, included with the standard stability control system, balances torque delivery between the front wheels for better poise out of corners.
Front seats in the Focus are supportive buckets, with even better, firmer bolstered ones provided with the Sport Package. Both the sedan and hatchback have about the same back-seat space--just ample for most adults. Cargo space is quite generous in either model, with a relatively wide trunk opening in the sedan. In either model, the back seat folds forward nearly flat.
The Focus S model is quite basic, but includes air conditioning, a tilt/telescopic steering wheel and CD sound. SE models add fog lamps, larger wheels, cruise control, and Ford's MyKey system; SEL trims get SYNC, dual-zone climate control and upgraded trims. A Sport Package, including a stiffer suspension, larger 17-inch wheels, summer performance tires and sport seats, is included with the Titanium and available on the SEL.
All Focus models but the base S come with Sync, which provides voice-command-based connectivity with phones and media players and can perform other actions such as reading texts. A new feature called MyFord Touch is included in all Titanium models (optional on SEL) and brings a huge, colorful eight-inch touch-screen display, which can also be controlled through steering-wheel buttons. This system includes more advanced voice control for climate control, entertainment and other vehicle functions, and can also turn the vehicle into a wireless hotspot with a USB-based cellular data modem. It's also packaged with an upgraded Sony sound system, as well as satellite radio and HD Radio with an iTunes tagging function. Other available features in the Focus include multi-color interior ambient lighting, a rearview camera, push-button start, and an Active Park Assist system that steers the car into a parking spot while the driver only modulates the brakes.
The 2013 Focus ST is far more aggressive than its siblings. Its standout feature is a turbocharged 2.0 liter engine producing 252 horsepower and 270 foot-pounds of torque. The ST's suspension has been beefed up and unique 18-inch wheels help to greatly improve the handling of the car, while larger brakes help slow it down. The exterior has also been significantly revised with a unique grill, body kit and rear wing, giving the Focus ST a much lower stance and more aggressive look. Available only as a hatchback and with pricing similar to the Titanium model, the Focus ST offers a bit less luxury but a lot more speed.
The Ford Focus was completely redesigned in 2012. For 2013 Ford has added the sporty Focus ST to the lineup. Featuring a much more powerful turbocharged engine, the Focus ST goes, stops and turns like a sports car, but still offers all of the practicality of the standard Focus.
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Send To My Phone
2013 Ford Focus Titanium
Mileage:
18825
Exterior Color:
Red
Transmission:
6-Speed Automatic with Powershift
Engine:
2.0L 4-Cylinder DGI DOHC
Stock:
17370
Price:
$13,500
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Mobile Phone #: *
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The interior of Cinemug Cafe.
|Mike Fenn
|Getty Images
|Getty Images
The interior of Cinemug Cafe.
|Mike Fenn
The interior of Cinemug Cafe.
|Mike Fenn
Last week, movie fans around the world mourned the passing of the iconic actor Gene Wilder, who succumbed to Alzheimer’s disease at the age of 83 at his home in Connecticut. With a career that spanned over 50 years and included forays into television, books and of course film, it is difficult to find someone in any generation who was not entertained by his work. Notably, Wilder worked extensively with famed comedy director Mel Brooks in timeless classics like "Blazing Saddles," "Young Frankenstein," and "The Producers," and comedian Richard Pryor, with whom he made four movies.
But to many generations of children, Wilder will forever be associated with the role of Willy Wonka, that peculiar chocolatier who saw his confectionary genius brought to life inside a psychedelic fantasy land in "Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory." While the movie failed to impress audiences in its 1971 release, TV and the home video market ensured that it got the recognition that it so rightfully deserved in the subsequent decades. Forty-five years after the Candyman opened his doors to pure imagination, movie buffs are still paying homage, including right here in Philadelphia.
“This is a great way to honor Gene Wilder,” Cinemug manager Dan Creskoff said. “Willy Wonka was a favorite of mine growing up; I remember watching it every year on TV. Today, everyone knows the songs, so I hope that we have everyone singing along.”
Since its opening in 2015, Cinemug has made quite an impression in the surrounding neighborhood, not only with its offering of coffees, teas and assorted sweets, but also its 1,600-title strong video library. In addition to fueling its movie series every Thursday night, these titles are also available for rental. As the video rental market is what helped keep Gene Wilder’s musical classic in the hearts of kids for years and years, it is only fitting that one of the last bastions of video rental pays homage to the work with the honorary screening.
Tickets for "Willy Wonka and The Chocolate Factory," as well as all of Cinemug’s Thursday night movie screenings, are only $5 and available on Eventbrite. Creskoff urges fans to act fast, as this event will certainly sell out faster than the latest case of Wonka Bars.
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The Person You Will Be In The Future Is Based On Everything You Do Today.
12-year-old Indian Boy Has Two Noses As Another is Growing On His Forehead
Arun Patel couldn’t help that other children made fun of him. The 12-year-old had a collapsed hole in the center of his face.
Born into a poor family in the city of Indore, Madhya Pradesh, he developed an infection within days of his birth.Untrained doctors in the village sought to cure the infection, which developed in Arun’s nose, with medically unsound injections. You could call their efforts effective, albeit not in the intended fashion.
The infection disappeared, but so did the skin and tissue in the nose. In fact, the infant’s face dried up and flaked apart, with 75% of the nose disappearing.
For eleven years, Arun struggled to breathe. Fortunately, in 2015, his story reached the ears of someone who could help.
Dr. Ashwini Dash, a plastic surgeon, had heard of a rare surgery performed in China during which a new nose was grown on a patient’s forehead.
Dr. Dash had wanted to attempt a similar procedure and thought Arun’s situation the perfect opportunity. Dash assembled a team of surgeons to perform a ‘pre-fabricated forehead flap rhinoplasty.’
A regular nose job was out of the question because Arun’s nose tissue was almost all dead or missing.
The pre-fabricated surgery took a year to complete and consisted of fou stages. First, they placed a special silicon expander on Arun’s forehead.
A month later, a chemical injection expanded the tissue on his forehead. At this same time, the doctors took cartilage from Arun’s chest and shaped a new nose.
They inserted their creation into the expanding tissue sack on Arun’s forehead. The shaped cartilage stayed there for three months while growing with a steady supply of fresh blood.
The final step of the procedure involved removing the nose from the boy’s forehead and transplanting it to its rightful location in the center of his face.
A final surgery repaired the damage to his forehead. Unsurprisingly, after the miraculous procedure, Arun is quickly healing both emotionally and physically.
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To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, MARY P. JACOB, a citizen of the United States, residing at Mamaroneck, in the county of Westchester and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Brassieres, of which.
the following is a specification.
This invention relates to improvements in brassieres.
More particularly it relates to garments of the general type known as corset covers,
worn for the purpose of covering the top of the corset and holding the wearer in proper form. These garments, in order to serve their purpose with low corsets, require to be snug fitting in order to shapethe figure;
ust
properly above the waist, to confine the and conceal the corsettop. hitherto proposed for this purpose have required lacing or other fastening of parts across the back of the wearer or have been otherwise arranged so high as to interfere with the wearing of evening gowns out low in the back. The necessity of a snug fit has also made it necessary that the brassiere be made with special regard to the size and shape of the wearer in order proper fit.
It is among the objects of the present invention to provide a garment in which a number of features of novelty and utility are combined, among which are the provision of a garment which has no back and therefore does not interfere with any design ofevening gown that may be chosen; one whichis capable of universal fit to such an extent that for commercial handling it need be made in but few sizes, with reasonable certainty that the size and shape ofa single garment will be'suitable for a considerable variety of different customers; and to provide a garment which is characterized by.
extreme simplicity by freedom from bones so that it may be finished with laces or embroideries for wear beneath a sheer waist or diaphanous gown, and which when worn is both comfortable and cool and so etficient that it may be worn even by\ persons engaged in violent eziercise such as tennis; and which f has other advantages that are characteristic of the invention herein set forth, some of which may be summarized by saying that it does not confine the person anywhere except where it is needed.- These ob ects are attained by the very'simple construction of 1 Garments to obtain a garment hereinafter described, and especially by the features pointed out in the appended claim, the purpose ofwhich is to cover whatever features of atentable novelty exist in the invention disc o'sed.
In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 represents an embodiment of the invention, and Fig. 2 shows themanner of wearing the same.
Referring to the drawings, the garment is seen to consist-of a front composed of two pieces of cloth, 10, 10, joined to etherby a seam extending vertically. in e middle. These two vpieces are out on a slight'bias, not according to the usual cutting on the bias, whichordinarily means at an angle of 45 to the selvage, but at a less angle. The best form so far as I have discovered is substantially that illustrated in the drawings, where each piece 10 has top and bottom edges that are parallel to the selvage. Each of these pieces 10 has a relatively shorttop edge 11 and arelatively long bottom edge 12, the bottom edge being in fact about twice Patented Nov. 3, 1914;
mately equal in length; I he'se two pieces are ut together and joined by the seam 13 on t eir adjacent oblique sides. Their other oblique sides, remote from each'other, are each finished by hemmingby any ordinary or suitable method. 'As these edges'are on a bias, this forms a somewhat yielding binding 14. At the lowerend of the seam13 a tab 13' is provided. At the bottom of each binding 14 a tie 15, which, as illustrated, v
consists of a tape or string, is attached. A
suitable'ta'pe 16, which is (preferably e1astic,
is also attached to the bin mg of each piece 10, extending from the u per outer corner .to the lower outer corner 0 the piece. V When the garment is worn these tapes pass upward over the shoulders, down behind, under the arms of the wearer, one on each side. This substantially completes the description of the article, except that. it should be said that the width between the places where the two tapes 16 are'attached at the top may vary according to the width of the -shoulders'of the wearer, so that these ta es in, passing over the shoulder will con orm approximately to the lines or shoulder straps of an evening gowns The length of the bottom edges of the pieces 10 is such that when the 50 draft on the single pair of. strings 15- acts backward and downward upon the upper.
garment is=worn they will extend around the side under the arms, the particular location not being important except that-they stop short of going around the back.
When the garment is worn, it is put in place on the shoulders and, the tab at the bottom being tied or pinned down to other garments, the tapes 15 are drawn together around the waist of the wearer at the back.
Preferably they are crossed at the back and brought around tothe front where they are tied together. When these strings are drawn tight, the outer lower corners of the trapezoid shaped pieces 10 are drawn backward and downward, the line of draft passing diagonally through each trapezoid to its 11 per inner corner. Owing to the peculiar s ape of these pieces as above described, this line of draft is substantially on a true or v bias across the warp of the cloth while, simultaneously, draft applied by the strings 15 is transmitted along the side edge 14 to the upper corner, which is along a bias of less degree;' and along the'bottom edge of the iece 10 to the central fastening 13" arrow 0. The lower edge 12 cannot be elongated because it extends lengthwise of the .cloth, and therefore it draws tight around the waist. The center of the piece 10, however, can stretch in direction of the arrow d as much as the figure of the wearer requires, because the main draft of the string extends diagonally across the piece, which is on the bias, and because the draft along the outeredge 14 is also somewhat on the bias, though less so, so that that line also can stretch somewhat, thus enabling the garment to be drawn so tight as to fit snugly, and yet to accommodate itself to movements of the wearer without drawing or cutting too tightly into the flesh. The
part of the piece; and upward on the lower part. This will be understood by consideration of Fig. 2, noticing that the place where the tie 15is joined tothe otherpart of the garment, (behind the backcand shown in dotted lines, and being the same point to whichthe arrows c, a, b, point),-is below the line 14 and is above the line 12, so thatwhen' one pulls upon the string 15 it tends to draw thetupper part of garment toward'the'back and downward rather than upward; and it likewise tends to draw the lowerart of thegarment around toward the bac and upand arm.
ing a front form ward rather than downward because the ,as this draft of the string is the sole means behind the back for holding the garment: in place it is not particularly important how far around the side of the wearer the lower outer corners of the garment reach.
Conse uently the same garment ma; be worn y persons differing considerab y in size. This makes the arment well adapted for commercial handling, because an adequate stock may consist of only a few sizes. A double benefit results: First, if carried by -a shop the garment ordinarily will not recplire the careful individual fitting by a s flled corsetiere which has hitherto been necessary for obtaining the best results; and
second, the garments can be carried in stock "by dressmakers whose business is so small that they would not be justified incarrying a stock of the numerous sizes that ordinarily have to be'lgept on hand by any one who has garments for sale to the public in general.
It will be understood-that the dimensions of the different lines in the garment can be varied both to make the garment larger or smaller or to change its shape sli tly according to need of an individualwearer 1 and that any such. adjustment can be easily made.
A further feature-which contributes-to the ease and comfortof the garment when worm-especially when worn at tennis or 1 5 other violent exercise, is due to the fact that the piece 10 is stretchable in the direction of the arrow e,' which is at right angles to arrow (1 and is e ually on the bias. This, when coupled wit the shoulder stra s 16 'allows free play whether the latter 0 tape or elastic; it is to be-noted'that I if the latter beelastlc it makes, in combina- ,tion with the yieldin' edge '14 a complete ban flexibly yielding around the shoulder .115
- The garment as awhole is easy, comfortable and cool because while held down rigidly at the bottom tab, 13', and along the bottom edge it is held somewhat flexibly at its top and side edges, and does not cover the person of the wearer where it is not needed; This makes the, garment particularly suitable for use in tropical subtropical count'riesv" I claim as my invent1on:- V
' Abrassiere corelfrisin'g" a garment havof two portions joined vertically in the middle of the front on a line hav ng means at its lower end forholdaround the waist, and shoulder straps; t e
ing the garment doivn said joined portions said. tie being on the bias at right angles 10 extemlmg sidewise to the front of the shoulthereto. der, and to under arms, combined wlth tles, Signed b me at Mamaroneck, N. Y. this attached under the arms and adapted to 0 28th day 0 January, 1914. Y a line from the bottom ofsaid middle line to I A JACOB the shoulder strap being on the bias throu h Witnesses:
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Hudbay’s purchase of Augusta expected to close by end of July
Toronto-based Hudbay Mineral Resources is expected to complete the US$516 million purchase of Augusta Resource Corporation and take control of Augusta’s Rosemont Copper Company subsidiary by the end of July, according to regulatory filings.
After months of bitter exchanges between the two companies following Hudbay’s hostile takeover bid launched last February, the two companies announced on June 23 that they had reached a “friendly” agreement for Hudbay to acquire all of Augusta’s outstanding shares Hudbay doesn’t already control.
Hudbay owns 23 million shares of Augusta’s 145 million shares outstanding and is Augusta’s largest single shareholder with a 15.9% stake.
Augusta’s board of directors and several major shareholders controlling about 33 percent of Augusta’s outstanding shares support the sale of the company to Hudbay and are now encouraging shareholders to accept Hudbay’s proposal.
Hudbay has extended an initial deadline for Augusta shareholders to tender their shares to Hudbay to 5 p.m. on July 16. Upon acceptance of Augusta shares, Hudbay will provide a minimum of 10 additional days for remaining Augusta shareholders to accept the offer, pushing the closing date to no sooner than July 27.
The buyout agreement calls for Hudbay to provide .315 shares of Hudbay stock for each share of Augusta stock and to issue .17 of a Hudbay warrant for each share of Augusta stock. One warrant will allow the shareholder to purchase one share of Hudbay stock on June 20, 2018 at a strike price of $15.
Augusta states the revised Hudbay offer is worth approximately C$3.56 per share, consisting of $3.24 of Hudbay share consideration and $0.32 of Hudbay warrant consideration. The revised offer represents a premium of 10% to the original Hudbay offer and a 42% premium over the closing price of Augusta’s common shares on the Toronto Stock Exchange on Feb. 7, 2014, the last trading day prior to the announcement of the original Hudbay offer.
The terms are not much different than what Hudbay originally offered in February. Hudbay sweetened its bid by including the warrants. But whether the warrants will ever be worth anything remains to be seen. Hudbay is currently trading at $10.78 on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Hudbay will have to issue approximately 38 million shares to complete the acquisition of Augusta. Hudbay has 193 million shares outstanding.
“Obviously not the best upside we wanted today, but you can only control what you can control,” Warke told the Financial Post in a June 23 interview. “Going forward, the combined company offers a really nice exposure to the copper market for our shareholders.
Augusta had repeatedly stated in regulatory filings that it would receive the Final Record of Decision (ROD) approving the mine from the Forest Service and the required Section 404 Clean Water Act permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers by June 30.
But the permitting timetable was severely disrupted in April after an endangered ocelot was photographed by a remote camera operated by the University of Arizona near the Rosemont mine site in the Santa Rita Mountains on the Coronado National Forest southeast of Tucson.
Recent image of the ocelot taken in the vicinity of the proposed Rosemont mine.
The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) formally notified the U.S. Forest Service on May 15 that additional discussions over the Rosemont mine’s potential biological impact on the ocelot and seven other endangered species is required. The Forest Service announced a week later, on May 23, that it agreed with the FWS assessment and that a new endangered species review would be initiated.
Hudbay repeatedly issued a series of 10-day extensions to its buyout offer in the months following the ocelot discovery while it conducted its own review of the permitting issues facing the Rosemont project. Hudbay stated in its original offer in February that it expected Rosemont will receive all the necessary permits to begin construction on the $1.2 billion open pit mine that is projected to produce 240 million pounds of copper concentrate a year. The mine, if built, would be the third largest copper mine in the United States.
While Hudbay is confident that it will obtain its permits, a Canadian mining watchdog group is warning that Hudbay has “a profound disrespect for the environments and communities where it operates.”
MiningWatch Canada program coordinator Ramsey Hart says that U.S. regulatory agencies, local Arizona governments and the general public should not be “lulled into a false sense of security” by Hudbay’s corporate communications that emphasize the company’s environmental stewardship and commitment to human rights.
Augusta attempted to find a white knight to thwart Hudbay’s offer, which the company repeatedly derided as “opportunistic”. Augusta’s “Notice of Change to Directors Circular” dated July 2 describes the key events leading up to the Hudbay deal.
According to the circular, Augusta held formal acquisition discussions with an unidentified third party from May 2 through May 10, but negotiations regarding transaction terms did not occur. The third party was one of 11 entities that had signed confidentiality agreements with Augusta and one of the five parties that toured the proposed Rosemont mine site.
On May 7, Hudbay offered to provide financing to Augusta under certain undisclosed conditions. A week later, on May 14, Augusta contacted Hudbay to discuss the possibility of entering into a confidentiality agreement to hold discussions about Hudbay’s possible acquisition of Augusta and/or Hudbay providing financing to Augusta.
On June 6, Warke met with Hudbay’s CEO David Garofalo to discuss whether Hudbay would be prepared to increase its original offer of .315 shares of Hudbay stock for each Augusta share.
Hudbay CEO David Garolfalo
On the same day, Augusta states it received a “non-binding” proposal from the unidentified party with whom negotiations broke down in May, to discuss the possible acquisition of Augusta for $3.24 per share. Following discussions between the party and Augusta, the party on June 11 increased its “non-binding” offer to negotiate an agreement to purchase all of Augusta’s shares for $3.40 per share.
Augusta and the unidentified party also agreed that Augusta would not enter into discussions to sell the company with any other company who had not signed a confidentiality agreement until June 20. Negotiations regarding transaction terms to complete the purchase of Augusta, however, did not occur.
On June 18, Augusta received a non-binding proposal from Hudbay where Hudbay revised its bid to include not only .315 shares of Hudbay stock for each share of Augusta, but also to include .15 of a Hudbay warrant for each share of Augusta. One warrant would entitle an Augusta shareholder to purchase Hudbay stock for $15.00 a share within three years.
On the evening of June 20, Warke and Garofalo met to discuss Augusta’s request for an increase in Hudbay’s offer by increasing the exchange ratio for Hudbay stock and warrants and other terms. Garofalo, however, indicated Hudbay was unwilling to increase the amount of Hudbay stock it would offer for each share of Augusta stock, but stated that Hudbay may adjust the warrant ratio.
The next day, June 21, Hudbay and Augusta executives hammered out the final agreement calling for .315 shares of Hudbay stock for each Augusta share, increasing the ratio for the warrants to .17 and extending the execution date of the warrants to four years. The conversion price of the warrants for a Hudbay share remained at $15.00.
The companies reached final agreements early in the morning on June 23 and the deal was announced prior to the markets opening the same day.
2 Responses to Hudbay’s purchase of Augusta expected to close by end of July
Okay we get it! Agusta is being bought out by Hubday. At this point I believe the majority of us could care less what the shares are being bought out for. We want to know how we can prevent Hubday from having a mine in the Santa Rita Mountains, which would be devastating to our enviroment.
WOW , WOW , WOW AND YOU WANT TO BELIEVE ALL OF THIS ?
WHAT POOF IS THERE THAT AUGUSTA WAS NEGOTIATING WITH A THIRD PARTY OVER THE ROSEMONT PROPERTY ? AUGUSTA INVITED/COERCED/SOLICITED A NUMBER OF COMPANIES TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE ROSEMONT PROJECT . THIS LED TO A NUMBER OF VISITS TO THE PROPERTY FOLLOWED BY WHATEVER DISCUSSIONS . AT NO TIME WERE ANY OF THE COMPANIES SUPPOSEDLY INVOLVED IDENTIFIED BY AUGUSTA AND/OR ANYONE ELSE . EVEN AT THIS LATE DATE IN THE PROCESS , THE MYSTERY COMPANY HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED . WAS THIS PERHAPS A PLOY CREATED BY AUGUSTA TO PUT PRESSURE ON HUDBAY FOR A BETTER DEAL ?
HAVING FOLLOWED THE STRATEGY OF AUGUSTA WITH ITS SPECULATION AND SPIN IT APPEARS THAT THAT THEY CREATED THE MYSTERY THIRD PARTY INTEREST IN ORDER TO GET A BETTER DEAL WITH HUDBAY . HUDBAY DID RESPOND WITH THE WARRANTS OFFER WHICH , IN REALITY , OFFERS VERY LITTLE ADDITIONAL BENEFIT TO THE DEAL .
AUGUSTA HAS TRAPPED ITSELF IN A WEB OF ITS OWN MAKING . THEY HAVE FAILED TO GO IT ON THEIR OWN WHICH THEY NEVER INTENDED TO DO IN ANY CASE . THEY FAILED TO COME UP WITH THE FINANCING FROM A SYNDICATE OF BANKS AND INVESTMENT FACILITIES THAT THEY CLAIMED HAD EXPRESSED AN INTEREST. AUGUSTA IS ESSENTIALLY BROKE WITH OUTSTANDING DEBTS SOON TO COME DUE .
AUGUSTA’S BLUFF IN THIS HIGH STAKES POKER GAME OF WINNER TAKES ALL HAS BEEN CALLED BY HUDBAY . THE NEXT FEW DAYS WILL TELL THE TALE . THE AUGUSTA OFFICIALS MAY HAVE PULLED THE WOOL OVER THE EYES OF A BRAZILIAN ON A COLUMBIAN DEAL BUT WILL THIS SUCCESS CARRY OVER TO ROSEMONT AND ITS PROPOSED DEAL WITH HUBBAY ? WHAT IF HUDBAY SHOULD WALK AWAY FROM THE CURRENT DEAL WITH AUGUSTA . HUDBAY COULD SIMPLY SELL ITS SHARES AND MOVE ON . WHERE WOULD THAT LEAVE AUGUSTA ?
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WEBINARS
VIDEO TUTORIALS
HERMES ACADEMY
FOREX DICTIONARY
ONE ON ONE TRAINING
MetaTrader 4 Multi-Account Manager (MAM)
Attention Money Managers! Your life just got a whole lot easier.
Gone are the days of keeping 20 trading platforms open at the same time. When you’re trying to buy USD/JPY and you have to do it in 20 accounts, it takes several minutes to place the trade for all your clients. That kind of poor execution is terrible for you and your customers.
The MAM saves you time and effort by bringing all of your trading accounts under a single umbrella. You can manage all of customer orders from one charting platform. Your next big order will be done with 2 mouse clicks instead of 60.
Advantages of GDMFX MAM
Fully automated Service
Distinguished and Dedicated Support per Fund manager
All Allocation Methods known to man kind
Flexible profit Sharing and Trading Environment
Reliable Platform with Highly competitive Trading Costs
No Transaction costs
$1 000 USD/EUR/GBP/AUD minimal starting level
Fast Deposits and Withdrawals
No limit as per number of sub-accounts
Fast processing time and MAM Linkage
EA Trading is allowed
Micro lots available
Binary Options MAM available
Request More Information
How the GDMFX MAM works
You have a total of one million dollars under management.
Investor A has a balance of $500,000
Investor B has a balance of $400,000
Investor C has a balance of $100,000
The profits and losses of each trade are split between the investors based on their account’s equity as a percentage of the total under management.
Investor A gets 50%
Investor B gets 40%
Investor C get 10%
Example
You make a small trade that earns of profit of $10,000.
Investor A gets $5,000
Investor B gets $4,000
Investor C gets $1,000
Losing trades work in the same way. If there was a $10,000 loss, then each individual investor’s loss would be their pro-rata share $10,000.
Search form
Risk Warning: Trading Forex and Derivatives carries a high level of risk to your capital and you should only trade with money you can afford to lose.
Global Derivative Capital Markets NZ Limited (GDMFX) is a global broker providing online currency trading services.
GDMFX is a company registered in New Zealand and listed on the New Zealand Company’s Office site under Number 3945518. GDMFX’s regional headquarters have been based in Auckland New Zealand since August 2012.
*Please note GDMFX does not service US and New Zealand entities or residents of any kind. While we welcome clients from all over the globe, governmental restrictions along with our company policies prohibit GDMFX from opening accounts originated from the following restricted and/or OFAC sanctioned countries: Afghanistan, Botswana, Cote d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Cuba, Cyprus, Egypt , Gambia, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Guinea Conakry, Iraq, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya Mali, Niger, North Korea, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Syria, Tajikistan, Togo, Turkmenistan, The Democratic Republic of Congo The former Liberian Regime of Charles Taylor, Uzbekistan, Yemen, and Zimbabwe.
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Elizabeth Johnson
11 POSTS
0 COMMENTS
Elizabeth Johnson is editor of Manhasset Press and Manhasset Press Magazine. Growing up in nearby Garden City and attending New York University, she is well-versed in the locale and knowledgeable about the beat she covers. Her community involvement is extensive and includes the Manhasset SCA, Kiwanis International, Manhasset Chamber of Commerce, St. Mary’s Church, and various civic and local charitable organizations.
Curious by nature, her travels, community service, love of the arts as well as local sports give her the inside view to unique content. During her time at Anton, she has received several awards from the New York Press Association and the Press Club of LI, including the coveted "Best Community Newspaper" several years in a row.
Since 1877, The Roslyn News has served the communities of Roslyn, Roslyn Harbor, Roslyn Heights, Roslyn Estates, Flower Hill, East Hills, Greenvale and Albertson with diligent coverage of local news and community events.
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Silvertips think the future is bright
EVERETT -- The Silvertips found themselves in all too familiar territory during their 2012-13 WHL campaign, but despite another season of struggles, Everett believes it has taken the first step in breaking its cycle of mediocrity.For the third consecutive season, Everett had to try to find its balance while navigating through rough waters. A youthful Everett team experienced its share of growing pains, but progress made by rookies, combined with a stronger-than-expected showing in the playoffs, created some optimism despite the regular-season record and first-round postseason exit."It was crazy, lots of ups and downs for everyone," Everett winger Ryan Harrison said. "But I think it showed how hard we really worked. We were really young, and beating Portland twice (in the first round of the playoffs) when everyone counted us out, it was special for the guys."Everett's 10th anniversary season was a transitional one. It was Everett's first full season under general manager Garry Davidson and the Tips went all-in with the youth movement, ending the season with the youngest roster in the Western Conference. Everett also went through a coaching change when head coach Mark Ferner and assistant coach Chris Hartsburg were fired in January. Davidson took over behind the bench for the remainder of the season on an interim basis.Despite all the changes, Everett finished with eerily similar mediocre results for the third straight season. The Tips went 25-40-3-4 and placed eighth in the Western Conference. Everett won 22 games the previous season and 28 the season before that, and the Tips finished eighth all three years. Everett didn't secure a playoff berth until the final weekend of the regular season all three seasons, and the Tips were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs for the third consecutive year. All three years, Everett was among the three lowest-scoring teams in the league.But Everett, going through a complete rebuild, knew it would be a challenging campaign. It was made all the more challenging by a series of injuries that saw just three players reach the 70-game mark. The Tips then finished off the season by extending their first-round playoff series against the Portland Winterhawks to six games when most predicted a four-game sweep."It was an up and down year," center Kohl Bauml said. "We had our struggles, but we had our good times throughout the year. A lot of stuff happened, going through a new coach and everything. But I think we handled it really well and actually pulled together for a pretty successful little playoff run. Not a lot of people were giving us a chance to win one game. I think we proved to ourselves that we can compete with those top teams, and we're going to compete with those teams the next year or two."There were a number of positive developments for the Tips. Joshua Winquist became a dependable source of offense, leading the team in goals (24) and assists (27) despite missing 21 games because of injuries and illness. Landon Oslanski was a valuable offseason waiver-wire acquisition, adding 17 goals and 31 assists while playing both defense and forward. Mirco Mueller proved capable of handling the role as the team's top defenseman at the tender age of 17. Tyler Sandhu was one of the most productive 16-year-olds in the league, finishing with 19 goals and 14 assists. And Austin Lotz, in his first season as the No. 1 goaltender, turned in some spectacular performances, particularly during the playoffs."We made a decision to go young, and we did and they played," Davidson said. "They weren't just here, they were playing, killing penalties or on the power play. I think it will be good for that group of rookies."There were some guys who steadily got better," Davidson added about the players' development during the season. "There are some guys who made some small steps and kind of flatlined. But in the end I though there was good progress made by the majority of our players. It was a very good development and growing year for our whole group."Part of that development was changing the players' mindset. Davidson's primary motivation for making a coaching change was shifting the team's focus more toward offense. He spent his time behind the bench trying to begin that process in advance of hiring a new coach during the offseason. It didn't show up in the numbers as Everett still struggled to score goals after the change, but the thought process is slowly beginning to evolve."You could tell some guys weren't so scared to try and make plays," Bauml said. "We didn't score a lot of goals this year; we knew we weren't a goal-scoring team. But in the second half, we were definitely being a little more creative and you could see the offensive instincts of some of the players were coming out a little more."So, the Tips believe they're on the right track. Only time will tell whether the today's development turns into tomorrow's victories.Slap shotsEverett's season may be done, but two Silvertips will continue playing. Winger Reid Petryk departed Tuesday morning to sign a tryout contract with the American Hockey League's Lake Erie Monsters and will finish out the season in the professional ranks. Defenseman Mirco Mueller will join Switzerland's training camp for the U-18 World Championships, which take place April 18-28 in Sochi, Russia. Mueller is expected to make that team. ... Everett will not have the services of highly-touted forward Auston Matthews next season. Matthews, a third-round pick in the 2012 bantam draft who is entering his 16-year-old season, has committed to playing for the U.S. National Team Development Program the next two seasons. The Tips are hoping Matthews will come to Everett once he's completed his stint with the national team.Check out Nick Patterson's Silvertips blog at http://www.heraldnet.com/silvertipsblog, and follow him on Twitter at NickHPatterson.
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Timelines of computer history usually take us back to the early 20th century and no further. But believe it or not, a tinkerer named Charles Babbage got close enough to creating the world's first computer in 1837. Babbage called his machine the "analytical engine" and it would have been the size of a small locomotive, powered by steam. He wrote thousands of pages of notes and 250 drawings, but it never got close to being built -- until now.
Today a few of his modern-day contemporaries are raising money to work off Babbage's original plans and build his "analytical engine," using tools and processes from the time he was alive. That was a good century before Alan Turing kicked off what we now call the computer age.
John Graham-Cumming, director of the project known as Plan 28, wants to raise £250,000 (about $400,000) for the first two stages of the project, which will span over two to three years. Stage one will involve more fully researching Babbage's engine; stage two will see the researchers create a 3D computer simulation of the machine. Plan 28 had looked into using Kickstarter to raise funds, then balked at the 10% commission the fundraising site charged. Now it's relying on donations via the website JustGiving.com.
Researchers have already re-built another machine based off Babbage's plans, known as Difference Engine No. 2, which is currently at the Science Museum in London and works with the help of a hand crank. But the Analytical Engine was a later invention of Babbage's, and far more sophisticated.
Plan 28's technical director, Doron Swade, says it was the "first design to embody just about every logical principle of the modern digital computer, but using cogs and levers. We can't wait to see if it works."
Though the machine will probably need some de-bugging along the way, Graham Cumming says he's "quietly confident" that itwill work: "Babbage describes quite clearly all the major components of the machine. All those things are there. It's more a question of mechanically can this machine operate at this scale? Would it jam all the time? Would it be reliable?" Some of the machine's more critical parts include long chains and gears, and the researchers still don't know if they will work properly together when running some of the programs that had been prepared for it.
Building a machine this large would have been difficult in the early 19th Century -- but besides that, Babbage himself didn't get round to seeing the finished product for two big reasons:
1) He'd got most of his funding from the British government, but kept exasperating the paymasters by changing his mind all the time. "He spent a fortune," says Graham Cumming.
2) He kept getting into feuds with people. One of Babbage's biggest rivals was the astronomer and pragmatic government advisor George Biddell Airy, who called the machine "useless."
Babbage also became exasperated with the "British mentality" on creating and marketing inventions. "He thought, if you show a British person an invention like this they'd think up all the bad things about it," says Graham Cumming. "If you show an American they'd think, 'How can I make money from this?' He actually considered touring America to raise money for it."
A closeup of the London Science Museum's replica difference engine, built from Babbage's design (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Babbage's designs were borne out of his obsession with mathematics. He wanted the machine to calculate complicated sums, and act as an extension to the large logs that bookkeepers of his era were using. As such the finished product might not have ushered in some of the high-tech trappings you see in steam punk fiction, but the British government probably would have used it to help expand their then-Empire, by tracking trade.
"The only people who would have been able to afford it was the government," says Graham Cumming. "I don't think we would have seen people with a mini version."
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FreeLife church has a total of 12 trees planted in Israel! You can purchase one buy clicking here below…
More here about their mission
“Our mission is to create a partnership between the Evangelical community and the nation of Israel; this partnership will produce employment, income, and revenue for humanitarian aid projects in Israel.We envision the planting of one-million olive trees over the next seven years. This relationship was prophesied in the Bible centuries ago, that the foreigners and strangers (those not of Jewish descent) would help rebuild the walls of Israel and cause the desert to bloom (Isa 35:1).Among other things, this reforestation is an environmental blessing for the entire region. May all who participate in this project be blessed body, soul and spirit; it is time for you to take root in Israel!”
Curt and Christie Landry and their mission in the Holy Land.
FreeLife church supports SID ROTH & Project 77
Give to Project 77
“Help Us Send My Evangelistic Book to 2 Million Jewish People in North America! Thank you for helping us to reach the Jewish people of North America with the good news. In appreciation of your gift of $77, we will send you a copy of They Thought for Themselves and 7 copies to Jewish people. You will also receive a beautiful key chain replica of the High Priest’s Breastplate….”
With your donation, you receive from Sid Roth Ministry:
A copy of They thought for Themselves A beautiful key chain replica of the High Priest’s Breastplate The names of 7 Jewish people who will receive a copy of the book so you can pray for their salvation. (If you are donating more than $77 (i.e., $777), we will still send you only 7 names to pray for. The remaining names will be sent to a group of intercessors for them to hold up in prayer.
Click on Sid Roth’s image below and donate today!
Donate to Project 77 Today!
FreeLife church also supports Mike Evans Ministries and Jerusalem Prayer Team
Why Pray for Jerusalem?
He swore by his own name through Abraham and his seed, Jacob (Israel).
1. He hath remembered his covenant forever, the word which he commanded to a thousand generations. Which covenant he made with Abraham, and his oath unto Isaac; And confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law, and to Israel for an everlasting covenant saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan, the lot of your inheritance. Psalms 105:8-11
2. For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he swore by himself. Hebrews 6:13
3. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. And I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God. Genesis 17:7-8
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