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Live updates

Government support 'remains on table' for steel industry

First Minister Carwyn Jones has spoken to David Cameron over the phone regarding the steel industry in Wales, Downing Street has said.

A spokesperson said the two discussed ongoing efforts to support the steel industry in Wales, and agreed that offers of support from the UK and Welsh Governments remain on the table.

Credit: Barry Batchelor/PA Wire

The spokesperson added: "They agreed on the importance of both governments continuing to work very closely in partnership to support the steel industry in Wales and across the whole of the UK".

Stephen Kinnock: Tata reports pose more questions than answers

Reports of a possible pause in the sale of Tata Strip Products UK poses more questions than it answers, according to Aberavon MP Stephen Kinnock.

Credit: PA

If reports that Tata Steel intend to pause the sale of most of its UK business, including Port Talbot, prove to be correct, then this would clearly pose more questions than it answers.

Steel workers and their families have been put through hell over the last weeks and months, and they will be forgiven for greeting these reports with a degree of scepticism, and perhaps even an element of anger.

We all understand the massive impact of the referendum result, and we appreciate that Tata Steel, like so many other businesses, need time to review and evaluate the implications of Brexit. However, It is now absolutely critical that Tata Steel and the UK Government come forward with a specific timetable.

– Stephen Kinnock, Labour MP for Aberavon

Chris Bryant shares resignation letter to Jeremy Corbyn

Credit: PA

Rhondda MP Chris Bryant has resigned from his role as Shadow Leader of the House of Commons amid protest over Jeremy Corbyn's leadership.

He shared the news on his Twitter profile as well as sharing the resignation letter.

In it, he said he was grateful for the opportunity but criticised Corbyn for his stance during the party's campaign to remain in the EU.

Since taking up the post of Shadow Leader of the House I have worked as constructively as possible with you and your office.

Last week changed everything. A major plank of Labour's longstanding economic and foreign policy was defeated in the referendum and we effectively handed the right in this country their biggest victory in a century.

The Prime Minister must take the lion's share of the blame for that defeat and he has honourably resigned, but your inability to give a clear, unambiguous message to Labour voters significantly contributed to the result. You left many Labour voters uncertain as to our party's position.

With Brexit and a prolonged period of instability and uncertainty on the horizon, our country urgently needs inspiring leadership as it charts its way through very difficult waters. My constituents rightly look to Labour to provide that leadership but at the moment it is sadly lacking.

– Chris Bryant MP

Welsh MPs among those calling for Corbyn resignation

A Welsh MP has added his name to the list of senior labour figures calling on Jeremy Corbyn to step down.

Aberavon MP Stephen Kinnock has said the party would suffer heavy losses at a general election unless the leadership changes in the wake of the referendum vote to leave Europe.

Read more: Labour in turmoil after shadow cabinet exodus

He's also voiced concern over the impact the Brexit result may have on the steel industry.

Kathryn Tresilian reports:

Liberty interest in Tata unaffected after EU vote

Britain's decision to leave the European Union has not affected Liberty's interest in bidding for Tata Steel, ITV Wales understands.

Liberty say their position on Tata Steel remains unchanged. Credit: PA

It's believed the Newport based steel group have always been confident in their "robust model", regardless of whether the UK voted in or out.

They also say there is now a "stronger case" for a strong, independent, UK owned steel business, following Thursday's vote.

However, Labour MP for Aberavon, Stephen Kinnock, has said the result left "serious concerns" over the future of the steel industry and could affect potential bidders coming forward.

Aberavon MP Stephen Kinnock has expressed concerns for the steel industry following the vote. Credit: PA

I'm deeply concerned about this result about the future of the steel industry. Uncertainty is the enemy of business and we're looking at an industry which is already battling for survival hanging by a thread in many ways. I'm terribly worried that this vote could be the one that cuts that thread we must now hear from the bidders whether they're staying in and there's rumours that they're not going to be.

– Stephen Kinnock MP, Labour, Aberavon

Kinnock: 'I believe Corbyn should go'

Aberavon MP Stephen Kinnock has said he believes Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn should resign in the wake of the Brexit vote.

Credit: PA

It comes after Mr Corbyn sacked Hilary Benn as shadow foreign secretary after reports he was co-ordinating a movement to unseat the party leader.

Jeremy Corbyn said has no intention of stepping down as leader of the Labour party, a spokesman said today.

Mr Kinnock told Sky News' Dermot Murnaghan that the party needs a 'hard-headed negotiator'.

I think that what we need now is a hard-headed negotiator. Jeremy is a man of enormous integrity and decency and he has been very effective as a campaigner on issues that he has got a real interest in campaigning on for many, many years.

The job description has changed, these Brexit negotiations are going to dominate British politics for the next three, five, ten years and we need a Leader of the Opposition who really understands that in terms of how the EU is going to work and also ensuring that we’ve got a co-ordinated approach

– Stephen Kinnock MP, Aberavon

He added that the job to lead the opposition party following the EU referendum has 'changed completely'.

"These are extraordinary times, unique and unprecedented and the leader of the Labour party has to reflect that".

Mr Kinnock also added he did not consider himself as a candidate for the role.

There are lots of very, very talented people in very senior positions. I’ve only been an MP for one year, the key thing now is to look at what the candidates have got to say, set their stall out and what I think is very important is that they frame that in the context of Brexit."

– Stephen Kinnock MP, Aberavon
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UK Govt's Welsh powers views

The UK Government publishes its evidence to the Silk Commission - which looks at the potential for further Welsh powers. It makes no specific proposals for change, but highlights potential problems with devolving policing and non-nuclear energy.

View all 5 updates ›
  1. Nick Powell

UK Government highlights problems with more devolution

The UK Government has released its evidence to the Silk Commission that's looking at the potential for further devolution to the Welsh Government and Assembly. It's provided a very detailed description of the current devolution settlement but makes no specific proposals for change.

However it does make frequent reference to the advantages of the current settlement and the potential problems of going further. This is particularly noticeable in the case of two major areas where the Welsh Government has asked for a transfer of power, non-nuclear energy and policing.

Given the nature of energy policy, which involves matters of national importance reaching across Great Britain and the UK, ... the management and strategic direction of energy policy is determined by the UK Government. Our domestic goals require major investment in energy infrastructure - much of that investment will be sourced internationally - and a consistent framework for energy policy attracts potential investors to our energy industry.

Overall, the current [policing] arrangements work well. There are four key points to bear in mind in considering the devolution boundary for policing. They are:

A. Policing is inextricably linked with the criminal justice system.

B. Existing governance and partnership arrangements provide a significant level of integration and autonomy.

C. There are cost and complexity issues with separating out national structures and arrangements.

D: The Strategic Policing Requirement and the management of national threats.

– UK Government evidence to the Silk Commission

The Commission will report in early 2014. The Welsh Secretary, David Jones, argues that having set up the Silk Commission, the UK Government should not tell it what its findings should be. Eventually ministers will have to decide whether to accept its recommendations.

The next stage of the Silk Commission has the potential to make an important contribution to ensuring a firm foundation for the longer-term governance of Wales within the United Kingdom.The UK Government’s evidence provides the Silk Commission with a thorough and objective analysis of the Welsh devolution settlement which, I hope, the Commission will find useful as it undertakes its work. I look forward to the Commission’s findings early next year.”

– Welsh Secretary David Jones MP

More top news

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Military Capabilities

Belgium to deploy NH90 helicopters to Mali

29 November 2017

The Belgium cabinet has approved the deployment of two Belgium Air Force NH90 helicopters to Mali to support the United Nations mission in that country.

The Belgium government announced on 23 November that the helicopters would be deployed along with approximately 50 personnel to a “secured UN compound” in Gao from February 2018, and would likely be operational the following month. The deployment will last at least four months and could be extended for up to two months.

“The tasks of this detachment will include air transport, medical evacuations, and reconnaissance flights,” it said.

The German military already operates four NH90s from the UN base in Gao.

Want to read more? For analysis on this article and access to all our insight content, please enquire about our subscription options at

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The Last Post Intro   Contents
Adolphus Riley: 1925-2002
Adolphus Riley

Born: 1925 in Washington, DC
Died: May 3, 2002 in Washington, DC

Trombonist Snooks Riley

by W. Royal Stokes
Copyright © 2002 W. Royal Stokes

Adolphus "Snooks" Riley played trombone at Washington jazz clubs and backed blues singers, including Ruth Brown and Nap Turner, died at home in Washington. He had hypertension.

W Royal Stokes remembers the trombonist:

I interviewed Adolphus (Snooks) Riley almost two decades ago for a profile in the Washington Post and got him talking about his frequently interrupted musical career, which dated from the early 1950s and included work in a number of Washington jazz clubs, tours with Sonny Til and the Orioles, and nearly a year on the road with rhythm-and-blues singer Ruth Brown. It also included membership in two Washington, D.C.-area orchestras, the Howard Theater House Band and the D.C. Band and Choral Group of the Lorton Reformatory.

Riley, one of the D.C. area's finest be-bop-style trombonists, was born in the District, attended the old Armstrong High School and hung out with youngsters whose names are familiar to jazz fans the world over: tenor saxophonists Buck Hill and Charlie Rouse, trombonist Bill Hughes and drummer Jimmy Cobb. Then, in the mid-'50s when he was barely halfway through his 20s, he "ran into some slick cats in Texas who introduced me to heroin." It was then, he told me, that his "decline" started. "After that it was, you know, in and out," he said of the "habit" he finally rid himself of in the late 1970s. It was also "in and out" of Lorton Prison, where Riley served 2 1/2 years of a seven-year sentence for larceny in the early '60s and where he began an 8- to 24-year sentence in '77 on a similar charge. By 1983 he was on a work-training program that allowed him to work days and play gigs at night, although he had to return to Lorton each night. In 1984 he became eligible for a work-release program, which placed him in a halfway house.

"All of my offenses were property offenses," Riley said. "I took these people's merchandise and a stolen automobile to move it in," he said of the '77 incident, "and I think what happened was they got tired of seeing my face and tired of hearing my name in the criminal justice system and they knocked me out of the box." In prison again, this time without his instrument, Riley went to work composing children's songs on an electric keyboard, a loan from Lorton. Eventually he was provided a trombone through the efforts of friends on the outside who told him, "Hey, man, we ain't going to let you go because we know that you can do better things."

In the '80s and '90s Riley played with such D.C.-area groups and musicians as the Ron Sutton Jr. Quartet, the Elsworth Gibson Trio, Maurice Robertson, Larry Scott, Dave Jernigan, and Hugh Walker. He played during the millennium celebration on the Mall with the Nap Turner Blues Band.

Riley got hooked on jazz at the age of nine or 10 when his mother granted him the privilege of staying up until 9 o'clock to listen to the big bands of Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Harry James, and others. He recalled standing in the alley a few years later to hear the combos that played the Seventh and T Cocktail Lounge and going to Howard Theater matinees of the Earl Hines and Louis Prima orchestras. He took piano lessons for a while and "was doing pretty good until I started taking the money and going to the movies. That stopped me from doing anything musical until my last year of high school. After Charlie Parker came through here and everybody was talking about playing instruments, I attacked the trombone."

Musician friends helped Riley toward an understanding of musical notation, and when he was on the road several years later he received sporadic coaching by fellow trombonist Benny Powell and Bennie Green, both of whom he consided major influences on his style. "All these people, at this particular stage of my musical life, were helping me to really get into the music and formulate some idea of what direction I wanted to take."

Riley's "habit" was broken intermittently by prison or, when he was on the outside, "cold turkey--no therapy, no program." In 1970 he went to work for the Narcotics Treatment Administration Youth Program. He was assigned to Fort Belvoir as a drug abuse counselor and until 1976 worked with alcoholics, marijuana smokers and pill users. He would drop around to rehearsals of the service band there and sit in. From that association came gigs off the base.

"And that leads pretty much into right now," Riley observed. Asked how the story of his life began to repeat itself in 1977, he was silent for a moment. "I want to remember that because that's a good question. I mean, that's a question that I should always want to remember. I was at a party one night and it was being passed around and instead of my leaving I stayed--that's exactly what happened. It was an 'H' party, but I didn't know this before I got there. The party was given by a big dealer, and I was there."

[This piece orinally appeared, in a slightly different form, in The Washington Post on January 14, 1983.]

W. Royal Stokes
W. Royal Stokes was editor of Jazz Notes, the quarterly journal of the Jazz Journalists Association, from 1992 to 2001 and has been editor of JazzTimes and the Washington Post's jazz critic. He is the author of The Jazz Scene: An Informal History from New Orleans to 1990 (Oxford University Press, 1991), Swing Era New York: The Jazz Photographs of Charles Peterson (Temple University Press, 1994), Living the Jazz Life: Conversations with Forty Musicians about Their Careers in Jazz (Oxford University Press, 2000), and Growing Up With Jazz: Twenty-Four Musicians Talk About Their Lives and Careers (Oxford University Press, 2005). He is currently at work on a memoir and his fourth collection of profiles of jazz and blues musicians.

E-mail: wrswing@aol.com

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Brake Pad Set

When shopping for a new Brake Pad Set for your repairs, you can always trust JC Whitney to deliver what you need. We have one of the widest selections of high-quality parts from no less than the best brands in the industry. Shop now and get the right Brake Pad Set with the perfect fit for your ride!

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Brake Inspection: How Will You Know if You Need a New Brake Pad Set?

Even if you dread brake inspection because of the tedious process you have to go through, it is that one part of auto maintenance that should not be overlooked. Not only are the brakes important in extending the life of your vehicle, but they can also be your savior should you encounter any road mishap.

Among the parts of your vehicle's braking system, the brake pads call for regular maintenance. Thankfully, these pads are designed to tell drivers when they need replacement. They usually have a wear indicator that comes in contact with the rotor and creates certain noise once the pad material has worn down to a certain level.

How will you know if it's now time to get a new brake pad set?

Here are some ways to inspect your pads:

Listen to brake noise.

This is the easiest way to determine if your brake pads have worn out. You need not take the wheels off-all you need to do is to take your car out for a drive. When the vehicle is running, the noise that worn-out pads produce is like the sound of a metal being scraped against the wheels. This squealing noise gets louder as you apply the brakes. If your brakes produce such sound, then it's an early sign that you need a replacement brake pad set.

Feel the brake pedal and the steering wheel for vibration.

To do this, you have to depress your pedal to a halt from about 30 mph. The brake pedal should work and feel smoothly with no pulsation at all. Also try driving and braking at highway speed. If you notice pulsation in any of the two or during both instances, that means your brake pads are worn out and you should outfit your ride with a new brake pad set soon. Vibration felt on the steering wheel also indicates brake pad issues.

Do a visual inspection.

Look at the wheels. Do you notice brake dust? As the brake system works, it normally produces brake dust. If you notice a decrease in the amount of dust produced, that is a clear sign of worn-out brake pads.

Another reason for doing a visual inspection is to determine the thickness of the brake pads. But what should be the brake pad thickness? The minimum thickness of the pads is usually engraved or stamped on the outer edge of the disc. You're lucky if your vehicle allows you to clearly see the brake pads through the wheel. If you think the pad is now very thin and has reached the minimum allowed thickness indicated on the disc, then you shouldn't think twice in getting a replacement brake pad set and having your stock replaced.

How long do brake pads last?

The lifespan of your brake pads usually depends on a wide range of variables, including your personal driving style and the type and composition of the pads installed in your ride. If you're a frequent driver, you should inspect your brakes every 3 months. Average driver should do this every 6-12 months while infrequent drivers must perform brake inspection every 8-12 months.

If you use your vehicles for track and competition, you need to inspect all brake components before and in between sessions. The rotors and the brake pad set must be replaced before they reach their wear limits.

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Parsing the New Plant Panoply

Every year the garden industry tries to wow homeowners with shiny new plants. And as with new car models, some become classics while others turn out to be lemons.

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For those who like to get a sneak preview of my work without actually wanting to pay for anything, I have created this specific page for you. In order to give you this option I have taken snippets of my books or complete chapters for you to download for free. So enjoy my Freebie section.

Books of Jeandre GerberTHE FALLING

“The Falling” is one story you can find in a book I wrote called While Waiting about a guy named Joseph Walsh who is experiencing his last moments on earth as he plummets to his death from a tall building. As his velocity increases, time slows down and he receives the greatest revelation of all life.


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Texas Tea, or German Glühwein?

I knew gas taxes in Germany were high, but not this high.

Out of whack exchange rates are partially responsible for the high numbers of course, but one thing worth keeping in mind is that even at the comparatively low American level of taxation, federal and state governments collect more tax revenue from gasoline than oil companies collect in profits. In fact, taxes have outpaced profits in the oil industry since 1977 according to The Tax Foundation.

Think about that the next time you hear a politician talk without irony about the greed of oil companies.


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Comments & Announcements
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Devastator2008: Joanna "JoJo" Levesque as Kimber? Interesting!
MikeM: I think Christina Aguilera as Jem/Jerrica - Christina Milian as Raya - Kelly Rowland as Shana - Lindsay Lohan or JoJo as Kimber - Kelly Hu as Aja - Gwen Stefani as Pizzazz - Fergie as Roxy - Taryn Manning as Stormer - Kate Beckinsale as Jetta
Devastator2008: Me, I say that Laura Vandervoort should play Jem/Jerrica.
Dr. Thinker: Nice Jem Player, Bob.
KJC: I say Hilary Duff as Jem/Jerrica. :)
DiDi Holiday: I absolutely ADORE this site! This boy has been a Jem girl since 1986, and I have always felt a special connection to the deep characters and the messages that each of them present. They don't make 'em like this anymore!
Bob (WebMaster): Ooh, let me think. I would cast Kristin Kreuk[/url] as Aja, Hayden Panettiere[/url] as Kimber and Meagan Good[/url] as Shana. Not sure about Jem/Jerrica though.
Devastator2008: Yo! If there was a Jem movie being made (live action, mind you), who would play each of the Holograms?
Bob (WebMaster): eBay is best for all Jem stuff (Dolls=common. Comics/ catalogues=rare) Special mp3 ringtones are in the JemWap[/url] page but converting to decent midis requires costly software and/or composition from scratch and unfortunatly I am no musician. Sorry :(
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Do you love baking and decorating? Do you want to surprise your little boy with something new to eat when he arrives from school? Are you thinking of baking something unique for your younger siblings come Christmas? Do you want to bake and create something that your kids will enjoy eating aside from the usual cookies?

Then why not try the Tasty Top Cake Pops? Now instead of the usual boring cake, you can start baking your own cake pops with Tasty Top Cake Pops. You can design your cake pops with whatever you can think of like animals (lions, tigers etc.), Halloween characters, or anything unique. With Tasty Top Cake Pops, you can create the sweetest, coolest, prettiest, or even the meanest cake pop designs.

Baking cake pops using Tasty Top Cake Pops is easy and quick. You pour them in the Tasty Top Bakeware and you pop them once baked. The Tasty Pop Bakeware is made of flexible food grade quality silicon so you can easily bend it to take out the baked pops. Using the sticks that come with the Tasty Top Cake Pops package, you can poke the cake pops and you can start decorating them any way you like. The base of the bakeware can be used to hold the pops for decorating and cooling. This allows you to use both hands when decorating the pops, which is more convenient.

Tasty Top Cake Pops is great for all occasions. Whether it’s a birthday party for your kids, a Halloween party, or a special Tasty Pop party you have decided to host, you can use Tasty Top Cake Pops to make the party more fun and enjoyable.

The kids will surely love the uniquely-designed cake pops using Tasty Top Cake Pops. Creating cake pops can also be a great bonding activity with your children. You will be able to spend quality time with them and have fun throughout the day enjoying the activity and enjoying each other’s company.

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If you’re looking for an ideal product to use for party activity then Tasty Top Cake Pops is the answer. With Tasty Top Cake Pops you can enjoy a fast and easy way to enjoy cake pops.

Have fun creating cake pops with Tasty Top Cake Pops.


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Friends, potential friends, kindred spirits,

It’s a great day to explore the world.

Welcome to my chill space. I am an economist by training, consultant by trade, and philosopher by birth. I travel the world, sometimes far and sometimes near, to learn and help when I can. When I’m working, it is as a consultant, helping people and businesses accomplish more. In this site I hope to capture stories of adventures as well as thoughts and ideas. I’m always looking for collaborators.

My traveling has taken me to 32 countries and I’ve written about my experiences in many of them. Please check out my blog and subscribe if interested. Not spammy, I promise.

My intention is not to brag but to inspire.


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Latest Entertainment News Headlines

Kurt Russell steps in for Kevin Costner in Tarantino's Django Unchained

It was exciting to learn that Kevin Costner would be getting in touch with his dark side to play ruthless slave trainer Ace Woody, henchman to Leonardo DiCaprio's villain Calvin Candie, in Quentin Tarantino's "Southern" DJANGO UNCHAINED. Alas, Costner's return to the time period wasn't meant to be.

But how's this for a fair trade? Kurt Russell will reportedly take on the role instead (interestingly, one former Wyatt Earp going outlaw instead of another). The iconic genre actor was last seen on screen as vehicular murderer Stuntman Mike in QT's DEATH PROOF.

In addition, Tarantino is bringing back another previous collaborator in actress Laura Cayouette. She made a brief appearance in KILL BILL Vol. 2, but is getting a bump for DJANGO -- she'll play Lara Lee, widowed sister of Candie and co-owner of his plantation.

The pre-Civil War story will star Jamie Foxx as a slave named Django, who is freed by a German bounty hunter named Schultz (played by Christoph Waltz, who recently sustained a painful-sounding injury in the crotch area while training for the role). Schultz takes the free man under his wing and trains him in weapons and deception, assisting his violent quest to be reunited with still-enslaved love Broomhilda.

Aside from Foxx, Waltz and DiCaprio, the movie will also feature Gerald McRaney, Samuel L. Jackson, Dennis Christopher and (possibly) Michael K. Williams.

Extra Tidbit: Russell makes a fine replacement for QT -- Mickey Rourke was initially cast as Stuntman Mike. Tarantino announced Russell taking over the role during the GRINDHOUSE panel at Comic Con.
Source: The WrapTHR

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Homeless Issue #20

Greetings with smiles 🙂

Many have asked what has happened since our last homeless Issue that was “one big downer.” Job’s Shelters of the Sierra, JSS, is continuing to serve our brothers and sisters who find themselves homeless as a result of conditions that are innumerable to comprehend. The reasons are unimportant. JSS is here to make existence more tolerable regardless of the reasons. We love all of God’s children and are honored to be in God’s service. We do not discriminate, we are accepting, loving, and pray that when we give of our time, our labors, our heart, we are doing what our inner love for others demands.

So we continue. One of our vans has totally died. It was annualized resulting in a diagnosis that nothing could be done to it to save it and continue delivering the necessities that our homeless citizens need to survive in today’s El Dorado County. The van died in the street. At the same time our crew of three were made to leave the house that they were staying in, putting them in a tent with no transportation. Scattered with the rest of the homeless citizen population.

After our Board met and discussed our options, we chose to save the money needed to rent new space and just start at the beginning of JSS. We moved out of our location on Tuesday during the heavy rains and relocated back to where we began, our garage. Thanks to Dr. Deb for the shelving she provided as well a moral support during this time.

We could not take everything we had from that location so we are asking for the much needed items that our brethren and sisters need to live homelessly. Socks, “TP” (toilet paper), wipes, candles, work pants, summer shirts, deodorant, razors, and again, “Wipes.” These “Wipes” take the place of the showers we expected to be able to provide to the homeless. And our collection of books that were even set up in author alphabetical order is not available now so please don’t forget the books that you have read and are now cluttering up your shelves. Our homeless friends are better off reading something then the alternative that life on the street affords.

All of you have been most generous. Foothill UMC, Shepherd of the Hills, Faith Episcopal, Church of the Foothills, Green Valley CC, Hands for Hope, United Outreach, Cold Springs CC, Only Kindness, Tom/Janis Carney, Glloria Tingley who tried to mediate the misunderstandings, and so many others who have in the past contributed to our efforts.

Remember, the Bible tells us that Job had everything thrown at him and things looked so very dim. But our name sake, kept the faith and prevail against all odds. JSS, and the other providers will help to provide for the “least of these our brethren” with the help from you.

We ask you to again step up and help.

Ron Sachs

Job’s Shelters of the Sierra.

Drop-Off @ Foothill UMC, 3301 Green Valley Rd. Cameron Park/Rescue.

Financial contributions. And we do need those donations.

P.O. Box 1839

Shingle Springs, Ca. 95682-9998


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Top Ten Legal Profession Stories of 2012

Monday, February 18th, 2013

A short post to give a heads up to an excellent post by Laurel Terry on the Top Ten Legal Profession Stories of 2012 over at Legal Ethics Forum.

The stories are:

  1. ABS go live in the UK
  2. The influence of the Troika
  3. Market liberalization in countries such as South Korea, Singapore and Malaysia
  4. Market access contraction in Brazil and Vietnam
  5. Developments in India’s ongoing UPL saga
  6. FATF and Gatekeeper developments
  7. US action (or not) on accreditation of foreign law schools
  8. New resources regarding admission and legal practice outside the US
  9. Formation of an international network of legal regulators
  10. National developments

This is a comprehensive collection and should be essential reading.

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5 Responses to “Top Ten Legal Profession Stories of 2012”

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lotmoshr last won the day on July 27

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About lotmoshr

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  • Birthday 07/07/98

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  1. What's your favorite video game?

    minecraft is the only answer to this question otherwise you're a goof
  2. leaving sg

    goodbye mom, I will never forget you

    happy birthday, hope you have a good year!
  4. Staff Changes 9/17/17

    dream team congrats guys
  5. Custom TTT Feedback

    First of all, GOOD WORK RIGHT HERE. Really, endless thanks for bringing this server back. Ditto on the return of the media player. Though maybe with something like an auto message in chat that, whenever a song starts playing, tells people how to use stopsound or mute the media player altogether. The chorus of people complaining on mic about the music being ear rape can be worse than the actual ear rape. I have no idea how that could be rigged up though. !trainfuck and !ach (at least I think it was !ach) would complete the nostalgia circle but aren't necessary (ie don't rush). Also, body bombs yo. Also #2, jw is kakariko village in the list of maps?
  6. sG Vanilla Minecraft Server! 7PM CST Monday!

    There are mods to do it (not very great ones) but it's not in vanilla Minecraft. Discord/Teamspeak is the way to go. Good shit, probably going to get back into Minecraft now. Are there any rules for the size of builds? How big is too big? I have a thing for underground railway systems.
  7. lot's mc applicator[Approved]

    In-game Name: lotmoshr How did you find sG?: the garry's mod servers Have you read, and do you understand the rules? yes
  8. Idea to bring back Custom

    would be willing to quit my job, drop out of school and just devote my life to being a TTT SO 24/7 if this were to happen. No but seriously I would play the fuck out of custom. It was always a fun time, we have lots of regulars on vanilla who have asked about custom and are always disappointed when we don't have one. I'm sure they'd be willing to figure out how to get the textures to work, so even without the old sG custom players we have a playerbase ready to go. It would be nice if when someone is upset there's no dm, if I could just tell them to type !servers and join the other one. Due to the whole CSS and downloads thing custom tended to attract a lot less RDMers/trolls so it's the perfect escape for people who are getting RDMed sixty seven times in a row with no admins on.
  9. can someone give me a walkthrough of how the tester on ttt_drybonesvillage works? specifically how to activate it? every time I try to test someone nothing happens and whenever I ask nobody online seems to know how lol
  10. sG official YouTube channel

  11. Tell them to cut the shit yourself, be that guy, that's what I did in highschool. They'll probably yell at you but it's only because they're embarassed. Usually they'll stop or at least tone it down after that. Another option, especially if it's really affecting your ability to focus, is to talk to the teacher yourself, remember she's been dealing with this for years so she's probably been desensitized to it. But as everyone else said, this is really just highschool lol. Even if the guys in your class were to be expelled there'd be another group to replace them within a day. You will learn to ignore it.
  12. Official Complaint Department Discussion Thread

    Thanks for the apology at least.
  13. BAN on a MASS RDMer

    For once in my life I have a day off and can get on before 8:30pm so I'll come keep the peace. If he's still on and still rdming I'll ban, but *repeats Krony's post*. Also just so you know for next time, you'll get assistance much faster if you post in the subforum "Complaint Department", though I can see why you'd think this would be the right place.
  14. Official Complaint Department Discussion Thread

    Sorry man. All I can say is I was already in a bad mood and she decided to start calling me names for no reason. She claims the whole bitchass etc thing was a joke but her tone didn't suggest that. I've done my best to be polite to her, but she always responds to everything in a rude tone and with hostility. When she complains about every little rule or custom on the server I try my best to be civil and explain but she always just replies with more rudeness and "that's fucking stupid". I'm pretty much known at this point for tolerating too much shit from trolls and yesterday I just wasn't in the mood of having it, so yeah I went off in that thread, it's not something I do often but when it does come out it comes out hard.
  15. rip my sleeping schedule


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Historical Panels

The schedule is currently being tested with previous year panels. Please stay tuned for this year's schedule.

Friday 1pm - 2pm

Let's see if I can make something here

What about line carriage?

Saturday 1:30pm

Big fan of Bob? Bigger fan of the Za Lord? Come chat about what's up in Chicago! About what you ask? Come join us and you'll find out!

Saturday 4:30pm - 5:30pm

The Force Awakened last year and now we're mourning the loss of Rogue 1. The Teaser Trailer dropped last week, too! How do these "fit" and what's coming next?

Saturday 10pm - 11pm

Our friends at E&D Games will run a pre-release just for us! Seating is limited, get to the game pavilion to sign up!

Sunday 1:30pm - 2:30pm

A discussion about the diferences in how our main boys and girls coped with life in a female-dominated world.

Sunday 3pm - 4pm

Readings by Author Guests Milton Davis and Jana Oliver


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In My Own Write: Games people play

December 4, 2012 21:50

What separates the winners from the losers? It comes down to navigation.

Lee Korzits at London Games

Lee Korzits 370 (R). (photo credit: REUTERS)

I remember my father relating a piece of advice given him by his father: “If you want a clue to the character of the girl you’re courting, call on her, unannounced, early in the morning, before she’s had time to put on her makeup.”

In other words: See what she’s like without warning, without artifice, without pretense, when she’s put on the spot, and you’ll learn a lot.

Be the first to know - Join our Facebook page.

This may be sound dating counsel – even a few generations on – though I’m not sure how women might apply it to the guys they’re seeing since most men still don’t go in for makeup.

Luckily for both sexes, though, there are other ways to suss out someone’s true nature. We may smile and act pleasantly and do our best to ingratiate ourselves with those around us, but there are situations in which our most basic traits – good and bad – will out, despite ourselves.

And one of them is when we play games.

I’VE LEARNED from my years as a member of the Sam Orbaum Jerusalem Scrabble Club that facing someone over a game-board can tell you a lot about that person, well beyond the extent of his or her vocabulary and playing tactics. It can tell you, for starters, whether he or she is open and expansive, or tending to be uptight and self-absorbed.

Even the manner in which players pick their tiles or lay them down on the Scrabble board affords a peek into their psyches.

“Angry people, whiners, spoiled brats, followers, leaders, cunning as opposed to creative – you name it, and their traits come out in a good game,” wrote one blogger about games in general.

“You wouldn’t believe the screaming that can go on between partners during a game of bridge,” a friend commented.

“Once, we were playing Scrabble in an adjoining room and couldn’t concentrate on what we were doing.”

I should state, for the record, that you won’t find a nicer bunch of people than those who attend the Jerusalem Scrabble club; most of them, despite the inevitable competitiveness, are good sports addicted, above all, to the enjoyment of the game.

That said, I still haven’t forgotten the moment during a Scrabble tournament at the Dead Sea when I was new to the club and in awe of the proceedings. I took a seat at the appointed hour opposite an inoffensive- looking older lady, who suddenly fixed me with a pair of gimlet eyes and intoned: “Now we play for blood!” Totally unnerved, I barely survived the game.

IMAGINE, WROTE that innovative blogger, how companies could benefit if a psychologist played a game of Scrabble with prospective employees.

I must admit that the idea – and mental picture it conjured up – tickled me.

Scrabble board in place of questionnaire could be revealing as well as injecting some fun into boring job interviews.

Taking the notion deeper into human interaction, the blogger suggested that “playing games on a regular basis should be a requirement before any relationship goes to the next level.”

Now there’s a thoughtful recommendation for dating couples, whereby character flaws emerging during the course of play could cause a relationship to go by the board, so to speak.

IF ONLY games between people could be limited to the kind played on a board or court, where the rules are out in the open and known to all parties. Unfortunately, that is often not the case, as Eric Berne made clear in his classic Games People Play, which has proved its enduring relevance by the over five million copies sold since it first appeared in the 1960s.

In the book, Berne gives names such as “Look How Hard I’ve Tried,” “See What You Made Me Do,” “I’m Only Trying To Help You” and “If It Weren’t For You” to manipulative psychological games played between people on a subconscious level.

Operating out of insecurity and old, rooted childhood fears of hurt and terror of rejection, these mind-gamers “play it safe” by trying to control their relationship environment through controlling the other person. It’s an ultimately futile goal pursued at the expense of openness, spontaneity, mutual legitimacy and trust; and, consequently, any lasting and meaningful bond.

The quicker anyone involved in this kind of coercive association realizes its barrenness, the better. They can break the mold by declaring they have no interest in mind games – or, in some cases, by simply walking away. As they say, it takes two to tango.

An intriguing biographical note: For all his understanding and psychological insight, Eric Berne was wed and divorced three times up to his death in 1970 – proving that even for the “experts,” happiness in marriage can be a complex and elusive thing.

AND YET, there is a kind of game-playing that can enhance a romantic relationship in all its stages: a little mild flirting to pique and engage the senses; a touch of humor to shade the sometimes glaring light of unvarnished honesty; a bit of role-playing that is enjoyed by both partners. Variety is indeed the spice of life, and games can be a positive element in a relationship, provided each player is on board and neither is being taken advantage of.

STEPPING BACK to take a broader view, it strikes me that living one’s life well has something essential in common with excelling at a game or sport.

Have you ever watched professional windsurfers and marveled at the sure but delicate way in which they negotiate the waves? According to former British windsurfing champion Peter Hart, the most desirable physical attributes for success in the sport are not what you would imagine – not those of a body builder “with supreme physical fitness and the arms of Popeye,” but those of a dancer – suppleness, agility and light, fast feet.

Good windsurfers “are constantly and subtly shifting position so they provide a perfect counterbalance to the rig; constantly adjusting the angle of the sail so it provides power when they need it and plays dead when they don’t.”

In other words, they “smell the wind” and sense the flow of the water and go with it, staying cool, keeping their balance, moving with elegance and grace.

As we surf through life with its inevitable ups and downs, we need to try and sense which way the wind is blowing at any given moment – in our careers, in our relationships with our partners, children and friends, in everything that touches us.

Thus sensitized to the flow, we may learn to subtly alter course when that is what’s needed, moving lightly but with determination, seeing setbacks for what they are – just setbacks – and not as obstacles that cannot be got around, or over; leaving us primed to meet the next challenge.

This sounds like a tall order, especially in our fast-moving, often confusing modern world – and it is. Yet it has long seemed to me that those people whose existence seems most successful manage to navigate gracefully through the sea of their lives as if they are riding its waves, staying afloat and not allowing themselves to get dragged under.

You could call it excelling at the game of life – and it isn’t necessarily the smartest, richest or most talented of us who can do it. As Peter Hart points out, the delicate moves of a dancer can get you farther than the muscles of Popeye.

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Print Edition
Syrian refugees in Turkey 370.(Photo by: REUTERS/Osman Orsal)
UN to convene pledging conference for Syria aid
United Nations will attempt to secure over $1.5 billion to help save the lives of millions of Syrians in the line of fire.
UNITED NATIONS - The United Nations will convene a pledging conference in Kuwait next month to try to secure more than $1.5 billion to help save the lives of millions of Syrians facing a "rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation," the world body said on Friday.

The conference will take place on January 30 in Kuwait City and will be chaired by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the UN press office said in a statement.

"The secretary-general is extremely concerned about the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation in Syria, where more than 5 million people urgently need help," it said.

"As a consequence of this situation, over 2 million people have been displaced inside the country and more than 540,000 Syrians have fled to neighboring countries," the statement added.

Click for full JPost coverage

Last week the United Nations appealed for $519.6 million to help 4 million people within Syria and $1 billion to meet the needs of up to 1 million Syrian refugees in five other countries until July 2013.

The statement said Ban believes the world "must do more to alleviate the suffering of millions of people in Syria and the neighboring countries."

"The Secretary-General urges all member states to be generous in their pledges and is thankful to those who continue to support the humanitarian efforts," it said.

The 21-month-old conflict in Syria has claimed more than 44,000 lives.

Rights group: At least 121 people killed across Syria in past day

Also Friday, Syrian rebels attacked a key army base in the northwest province of Idlib Friday, AFP news agency reported, citing The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The group also said that warplanes belonging to the Syrian regime launched air raids in a Damascus province.

Two rebels were killed, according to the British-based watchdog.

Meanwhile, rebels and fighters from the jihadist group the Al-Nusra Front, attacked regime troops guarding Aleppo airport, according to the Observatory, as reported by AFP.

According to the group, at least 121 people were killed across Syria on Friday.

In a separate report, CNN cited two US military officials as saying that the Syrian government has used Iranian-made Fateh A-110 missiles against rebels in the country on at least two occasions this week.

The Iranian missile has a shorter range, but is more accurate than the Scud-type missiles employed by the Syrian government in recent weeks.
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Print Edition
Candlelight vigil, protest of prisoner release 1.(Photo by: Marc Israel Sellem/The Jerusalem Post)
Bennett: Bill curbing pardons for terrorists will stop 'lawlessness'
Proposal meant to limit prisoner releases moves forward in Knesset; legislature passes preliminary reading 36-20.
A bill seeking to limit presidential pardons for terrorists and murderers moved toward becoming law Wednesday, passing a preliminary reading in the Knesset.

The legislation, which has Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s support, is meant to prevent large-scale releases of Palestinian terrorists by giving courts the option to sentence terrorists and murderers to life in prison with a clause denying the president’s right to commute the sentence.

“Today, the Knesset said: Enough lawlessness,” Economy Minister Naftali Bennett said after the vote. “If the State of Israel couldn’t follow basic morality, which says murderers need to die in prison, then now it will have to do so.”

According to Bennett, if this law had passed earlier, many murderers may have understood that “it doesn’t pay to kill Jews.”

Since last August, 78 Palestinian terrorists were released in three instances as part of eight months of negotiations with the PLO .

Should the proposal by Bayit Yehudi faction chairwoman Ayelet Shaked and MK David Tsur (Hatnua) become law, it will only apply to those who are convicted in the future, but not current prisoners.

Earlier this week, the cabinet decided that the defense minister will apply the law to military courts in Judea and Samaria.

“There is a consensus in this house that murderers, like of the Fogel family [five members were killed by two Palestinian men], should rot in jail for the rest of their lives,” Shaked said.

Shaked pointed out that there is a death penalty in Israeli military courts, which hasn’t been used since 1994. The judges in that case said Israel must defend its citizens and the courts play a part in doing so.

“In the end, another court lightened the sentence and two years ago, that murderer was released in exchange for [captive soldier Gilad] Schalit. In Israel today, a court decision isn’t worth the paper it’s written on. In special cases of horrible murders, judges should give a verdict that the government will respect,” she said.

Deputy Minister for Liaison with the Knesset Ophir Akunis said the government learned that releasing terrorists is immoral and unwise from a defense perspective.

“I think that parties that wave the flag of human rights should be fair,” he said. “It would be moral and just to support this important law. We hear the massive public opinion in the US against releasing terrorists and murderers in exchange for prisoners. Doing so doesn’t bring peace, it distances it and increases terror.”

Meretz leader Zehava Gal-On spoke out against the bill, saying that she doesn’t expect anything from the “right-wing extremist” Bayit Yehudi, but that Netanyahu shouldn’t punish the Palestinians for forming a unity government. “You are limiting yourself in diplomatic negotiations. Does anyone really think that we wouldn’t release terrorists if another soldier is captured? You, prime minister, released thousands of soldiers instead of freezing settlements.”

According to Gal-On, this bill is part of the extreme Right’s efforts to prevent a peace agreement.

The bill passed its preliminary reading with 36 in favor and 20 opposed, and will be sent to the Knesset Law, Constitution and Justice Committee for preparation for the next vote.
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May 10, 2007

It is my lucky day!

Guess what showed up on my doorstep this morning. An issue of Radar Magazine. Now to some of you, you're probably thinking... "Wow, Julie getting a magazine what else is new." But to Jaclyn and myself, this is HUGE. Back in December of '05 when I was working at Fiorie & Co, I ordered this Radar magazine subscription. Actually, just read the blog I wrote about this whole ordeal: CLICK HERE. [after you've read it] So apparently they are back in action, and I'm now getting this subscription for free because they totally reimbursed me..

And with this free $15 gift, I now feel better about buying my spray tan gun tomorrow!!!

No comments:


text:
June 4, 2007

Summer Shows

Now that The Office, The Hills, Sopranos (tear drop) and all my other favorite shows are on hiatus for the summer and in Sopranos case, forever ( another tear drop)- the nights just aren't the same. Have no fear, theres a few good shows coming our way.

Rescue Me: Those funny sexy firemen are back for Season 3.
Starts June 13 (wed) on FX @ 10pm

Last Comic Standing: I never watch Comedy Central when they have stand up routines, but for some reason, this show on NBC is GREAT, because they mix the stand up with some good ole american reality tv!
Starts June 13 (wed) on NBC @ 9pm

Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia: If you haven't seen this show- go grab Season 1 on dvd. Critics describe this show as "Seinfeld on crack" and I totally agree! You have time to catch up on the first 2 seasons- because Season 3 doesn't start til late summer.

America's Got Talent: Starts up Tuesday- but you won't be seeing Brandy as a judge. Due to her legal matters, they replaced her with Sharon Osbourne. I can't stand Mrs Ozzy's voice- but will definitely tune in to see if David Hasselhoff gets wasted and starts eating pizza.
Starts June 5 (tues) on NBC @ 9pm

HBO: Big Love is coming back - Never really formed an opinion on that show. Some episodes I like it, other times I think its weird and silly. John from Cincinnati is a new series, based at the beach about a semi dysfunctional surfer family. I haven't seen enough previews but hey its HBO, at least it'll be fun to hear people swear :)
Big Love starts June 11 (mon) on HBO @ 9pm
John from Cincinnati starts June 10 (sun) on HBO after the Sopranos.

Am I missing any shows?

So Sioux Me said...

Thanks for the meme tag. Can I tag you back as one of my seven people? When you say I list your name do I then add the blogs to my list of blogs to read or do I do a blog with the list of the seven people in a seperate blog or what? Great fun game! Lots of networking too. Did I see this on emom or blogher?

So Sioux Me said...

Also can I tag my other blog So Sioux Me as one of my peeps?

Julie Q said...

Hey Tracee- i left the info on your blog in a comment. You can definitely tag your other blog.. Have fun!


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November 15, 2009

How fast can you pack for Milan?

Dear Huge Apparel & Fashion Department Store,

Remember when I interviewed for the Buyer Program at your Headquarters 3.5 years ago? And I was crushed when I got that rejection email? BTW, it popped up in my inbox 2 days in a row--really hoping you did that by accident!

No hard feelings because I ended up at an awesome company. Also, I could never hold a grudge because I'm obsessed with shopping at Home Goods. xoxo. kisses.

Plus, I've finally been given the chance to start my own boutique and become a buyer!

Thanks to Style Savvy, my new favorite Nintendo DSi game that Brand About Town sent over! At first, I was too blinded by the gor-jas Lorac makeup gift that accompanied the game, but when I finally sat down and gave it a shot, I was completely hooked. To the point that I found myself playing it until about 11:45pm on a Saturday night (I'm not a total nerd- it was pouring out in Boston and I was recuperating from Miami)

So far, I've sold about $5,400 worth of clothes... won a fashion contest... ordered the spring line 3 months in advance...gotten my hair styled with the latest trends... been featured in a magazine, and this is only one day in. At first I thought the game was going to be for 4 year olds, but seriously... its amazing and smart and entertaining.

To all the ladies who came to my faboolooos Girls Guide to Gaming party this summer, I highly suggest you pick it up! And Katelin- we can play via WiFi and put our boutiques next to each other! You game?

I gotta go.. there's a 30% sale going on at the JQLounge.. my clients need my fashion advice.

Ciao bellas.

post signature

Susan said...

I got it too! I am hooked.

Katelin said...

okay just going back and looking at this again as i write my review and we can play via wifi!!!! that's amazing. must discuss because i am certifiably obsessed with this game and played it nonstop over the weekend, matt most definitely made fun of me, haha.

but yes! let's play! woo!


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World’s Fair, Julian Lage’s first solo guitar album, is so spontaneous and intimate in feel that it’s as if this prodigious guitarist had just arrived in your living room, picked up his vintage Martin, and simply started to play. It’s very much a project created in the moment, a dozen acoustic guitar tracks recorded over the course of a mere two days, at Sear Sound in New York City. In concept, however, World’s Fair was more than a year in the making, as Lage gradually came to embrace the rich musical and emotive possibilities within the austere format of one musician and one acoustic guitar.

“I always had a fantasy about doing a solo guitar project," Lage explains, “especially one that highlighted various orchestrational aspects of guitar playing and guitar techniques, drawing from the structure of the three to four minute song, pieces that did not depend as much on improvisation but on moods, or musical attitudes. At first, when I was writing this music, I kind of overlooked the sonic and emotional impact of one guitar, trying to find ways to make it sound more robust or like a full ensemble. But then I started recording and I discovered what a rare opportunity this was for me to recalibrate my senses to one instrument and within that recalibration learn to savor the vast world of intimacy and nuance, both qualities so inherent to the guitar.”

The album title is a clue to Lage’s intentions, the phrase conjuring up a bygone hopeful vision of the future, a “tragic optimism,” in Lage’s words, since the future never quite turned out as the presenters at those grand expositions had predicted. The understated beauty of these tracks is laced with a certain melancholy, especially on the ruminative opening cut “40s” or when Lage gently delivers a spare rendition of Rogers and Hart’s “Where Or When.” World’s Fair seems suspended in time, using the past as a reference, yet seeming somehow daring and contemporary in its unadorned arrangements and unabashed melodicism. The mood is often contemplative but, on tracks like “Peru” and “Red Prairie Dawn,” he kicks the tempo up a notch, with his fingers scampering quickly across the strings.

While conceiving of and recording World’s Fair, Lage was inspired by the orchestral approach to the guitar of the great Andres Segovia and by the music of the early 20th Century, of “jazz before be-bop”: “There is this era that is like the wild west, when there were jazz songs that were popular tunes and virtuosic, that had incredible lyrics, from writers like Willard Robison or Hoagy Carmichael.” He found a similarly unbound spirit in the early seventies work of singer-songwriters like Randy Newman, who managed to incorporate a sophisticated range of ideas into the concise pop-song format: “It was hard to pin down what it was, but the music felt so true to itself, completely fresh and yet you couldn’t imagine a time when it didn’t exist.” He was drawn, in other words, to sounds that were both challenging and pleasing — work, much like his own, that defies easy categorization.

Though still in his twenties, Lage has already enjoyed a remarkable, genre-crossing career. As the New York Times has put it, Lage is an artist whose roots are “tangled in jazz, folk, classical and country music.” A child guitar prodigy, he was the subject of the 1997 Oscar-nominated documentary short, Jules at 8. He made his first recording, with David Grisman, at the age of 11 and subsequently caught the notice of the world at large when he appeared alongside Gary Burton at the 2000 Grammy Awards. His first recording as a leader, 2009’s Sounding Point, garnered a Grammy nomination for Best Contemporary Jazz Album. Up to now, collaboration has been essential to Lage’s process; he has toured and/or recorded with such artists as Burton, Nels Cline, Fred Hersch, and Jim Hall, who was a major influence on the young Lage. His most recent project is Room, a live-in-the-studio exchange with experimental guitarist Cline. Earlier this year, he released Avalon, a duo recording with fellow guitarist Chris “Critter” Eldridge (of Punch Brothers) that surveyed the American Songbook with an easygoing virtuosity. After seeing that pair in concert performing songs from Avalon, New Yorker writer Alec Wilkinson noted that Lage’s playing “is cerebral, and sometimes playful, but because his vocabulary is so expansive, it is also riveting… he is in the highest category of improvising musicians, those who can enact thoughts and impulses as they receive them.”

Though Lage alone performs on Worlds Fair, the project is also, in a sense, a collaboration: he enlisted two long-time musician colleagues, the jazz guitarist Matt Munisteri and the multi-instrumentalist Armand Hirsch, as, respectively, his co-producer and engineer-mixer. Munisteri offered extensive knowledge of the early 2oth Century music that was captivating Lage, and served as a discerning ear throughout. Hirsch brought technical innovation and an adventurous soul to the recording itself.

“We had a year to figure out the sonic fingerprint of the album,” says Lage. “The whole aesthetic is derived from early Segovia. There is an upfront quality to the sound that is almost surreal, like you’re kneeling down in front of a guitar and listening to it. Most of the time when you hear an acoustic guitar it’s been saturated and diffused into the walls. With one recorded source, we wanted the image to be as wide as possible without being goofy. That immediacy and all encompassing quality was something they got so well with those early radio-style recordings.

Being in front of Hirsch’s mic set-up with just himself and his guitar was, says Lage, “like a psychological marathon. If I were doing something like Avalon with Critter or doing a trio session, I would be bouncing off of people in a certain way. You play, you let your mind wander, you listen to the other person, come back to yourself. But this was so focused on the role of the guitar that the quality that took precedence was a sense of losing yourself in the music. I had to forget where I was, to not worry if I was playing good or bad, fast or slow. None of it mattered. What seemed to transfer to tape was the degree to which I could lose myself — and sound like I was grateful for the opportunity. When I tried to nail it and get it right, I would inevitably be stuck in a paradigm I couldn’t get out of. We had two days to make this record so the takes we used are the ones in which I felt the most reckless, and kind of let the sound of guitar swallow me up."

- Michael Hill


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Syria Attacks Israel 20 1King Benhadad of Syria[U] called his army together. He was joined by 32 other kings with their horses and chariots, and together they marched to Samaria and attacked. 2Benhadad sent a messenger to tell King Ahab of Israel, 3“Ahab, give me your silver and gold, your wives,[V] and your strongest sons!” 4“Your Majesty,” Ahab replied, “everything I have is yours, including me.” 5Later, Benhadad sent another messenger to say to Ahab, “I already told you to give me your silver and gold, your wives, and your children. 6But tomorrow at this time, I will send my officials into your city to search your palace and the houses of your officials. They will take everything else that you[W] own.” 7Ahab called a meeting with the leaders of Israel and said, “Benhadad is causing real trouble. He told me to give him my wives and children, as well as my silver and gold. And I agreed.” 8“Don't listen to him!” they answered. “You don't have to do what he says.” 9So Ahab sent someone to tell Benhadad, “Your Majesty, I'll give you my silver and gold, and even my wives and children. But I won't let you have anything else.” When Benhadad got his answer, 10he replied, “I'll completely destroy Samaria! There won't even be enough of it left for my soldiers to carry back in their hands. If I don't do it, I pray that the gods will punish me terribly.” 11Ahab then answered, “Benhadad, don't brag before the fighting even begins. Wait and see if you live through it.” 12Meanwhile, Benhadad and the other kings had been drinking in their tents. But when Ahab's reply came, he ordered his soldiers to prepare to attack Samaria, and they all got ready. 13At that very moment, a prophet ran up to Ahab and said, “You can see that Benhadad's army is very strong. But the LORD has promised to help you defeat them today. Then you will know that the LORD is in control.” 14“Who will fight the battle?” Ahab asked. The prophet answered, “The young bodyguards who serve the district officials.” “But who will lead them into battle?” Ahab asked. “You will!” the prophet replied. 15So Ahab called together the 232 young soldiers and the 7,000 troops in Israel's army, and he got them ready to fight the Syrians. Israel Defeats the Syrians 161716-17At noon, King Ahab and his Israelite army marched out of Samaria, with the young soldiers in front. King Benhadad of Syria and the 32 kings with him were drunk when the scouts he had sent out ran up to his tent, shouting, “We just now saw soldiers marching out of Samaria!” 18“Take them alive!” Benhadad ordered. “I don't care if they have come out to fight or to surrender.” 19The young soldiers led Israel's troops into battle, 20and each of them attacked and killed an enemy soldier. The rest of the Syrian army turned and ran, and the Israelites went after them. Benhadad and some others escaped on horses, 21but Ahab and his soldiers followed them and captured[X] their horses and chariots. Ahab and Israel's army crushed the Syrians. 22Later, the prophet[Y] went back and warned Ahab, “Benhadad will attack you again next spring. Build up your troops and make sure you have some good plans.” Syria Attacks Israel Again 23Meanwhile, Benhadad's officials went to him and explained: Israel's gods are mountain gods. We fought Israel's army in the hills, and that's why they defeated us. But if we fight them on flat land, there's no way we can lose. 24Here's what you should do. First, get rid of those 32 kings and put army commanders in their places. 25Then get more soldiers, horses, and chariots, so your army will be as strong as it was before. We'll fight Israel's army on flat land and wipe them out. Benhadad agreed and did what they suggested. 26In the spring, Benhadad got his army together, and they marched to the town of Aphek to attack Israel. 27The Israelites also prepared to fight. They marched out to meet the Syrians, and the two armies camped across from each other. The Syrians covered the whole area, but the Israelites looked like two little flocks of goats. 28The prophet went to Ahab and said, “The Syrians think the LORD is a god of the hills and not of the valleys. So he has promised to help you defeat their powerful army. Then you will know that the LORD is in control.” 29For seven days the two armies stayed in their camps, facing each other. Then on the seventh day the fighting broke out, and before sunset the Israelites had killed 100,000 Syrian troops. 30The rest of the Syrian army ran back to Aphek, but the town wall fell and crushed 27,000 of them. Benhadad also escaped to Aphek and hid in the back room of a house. 31His officials said, “Your Majesty, we've heard that Israel's kings keep their agreements. We will wrap sackcloth around our waists, put ropes around our heads, and ask Ahab to let you live.” 32They dressed in sackcloth and put ropes on their heads, then they went to Ahab and said, “Your servant Benhadad asks you to let him live.” “Is he still alive?” Ahab asked. “Benhadad is like a brother to me.” 33Benhadad's officials were trying to figure out what Ahab was thinking, and when he said “brother,” they quickly replied, “You're right! You and Benhadad are like brothers.” “Go get him,” Ahab said. When Benhadad came out, Ahab had him climb up into his chariot. 34Benhadad said, “I'll give back the towns my father took from your father. And you can have shops in Damascus, just as my father had in Samaria.” Ahab replied, “If you do these things, I'll let you go free.” Then they signed a peace treaty, and Ahab let Benhadad go. A Prophet Condemns Ahab 35About this time the LORD commanded a prophet to say to a friend, “Hit me!” But the friend refused, 36 and the prophet told him, “You disobeyed the LORD, and as soon as you walk away, a lion will kill you.” The friend left, and suddenly a lion killed him. 37The prophet found someone else and said, “Hit me!” So this man beat him up. 38The prophet left and put a bandage over his face to disguise himself. Then he went and stood beside the road, waiting for Ahab to pass by. 39When Ahab went by, the prophet shouted, “Your Majesty, right in the heat of battle, someone brought a prisoner to me and told me to guard him. He said if the prisoner got away, I would either be killed or forced to pay 75 pounds of silver. 40But I got busy doing other things, and the prisoner escaped.” Ahab answered, “You will be punished just as you have said.” 41The man quickly tore the bandage off his face, and Ahab saw that he was one of the prophets. 42The prophet said, “The LORD told you to kill Benhadad, but you let him go. Now you will die in his place, and your people will die in place of his people.” 43Ahab went back to Samaria, angry and depressed.
Can i read the Bible on my phone/tablet?
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Hope found – hope lost

July 18, 2012 by J-Wire Staff
Read on for article

Last year Gift of Life Australia invited the Jewish Community to help save Ezra and Ayelet’s lives by joining the Aussie Stem cell registry  ABMDR  in order to find miracle matches for two very young patients…for one a miracle can still happen, for the other it is too late.

Ezra still with us and Ayelet who has passed away

Three-yr-old bright eyed  Ezra Jordan Fineman has a rare hyper ImmunoGlobulin Syndrome and urgently needs a new immune system .
Over 100 potential donors were tested in Sydney and Melbourne, 200 in Israel and 1000 by Gift of Life in the USA.
Though 6 matches were found for others and led to transplants to save their lives, an almost perfect Cord Blood match has just been found for Ezra and at this very moment he is being transplanted with the cord blood cells at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City and awaits a better matching donor to be found.
But for adorable two-yr-old Ayelet Yakira Galina diagnosed with la rare bone marrow disorder, it is now too late. She has lost her battle and sadly passed away last month. In her eulogy, her mother thanked everyone for their help and kind support and was proud that some other lives were saved as a result of the search for her brave Ayelet’s , z”l match   !

The Australian Bone Marrow Donor Registry tells us that there are currently a number of Jewish Leukemia patients worldwide in need of a Bone Marrow/ Stem Cell transplant and that their likelihood of finding a match is highest within the Jewish community even then the probability is only 1 in 10 000 !

Joining the Registry consists of completing the Australian Stem Cell and Bone Marrow Donor Registry forms and the Red Cross medical questionnaire and giving a 2 teaspoon sample of blood or whilst donating blood at any Red Cross Centre , ask to join Registry at the very same time though an appointment is necessary.

An appointment for testing in Sydney on Sunday mornings at Wolper Jewish Hospital can be made by calling Shula 0414 780 444 ,info@giftoflifeaustralia.org.au.

A special testing session has been set up in East St Kilda on Tuesday 31 July 3.30-7.30pm ,also by appointment  [Yehuda 0425 724 314, info@giftoflifeaustralia.org.au].

You need to be healthy, 18-45 years old and willing to give hope and save a life .
For further information call Shula Endrey-Walder OAM, Founder Gift of Life Australia on 0414 780 444.

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Better than a Bloodhound for Your Bike

   With the rise of vehicle theft today, you may find yourself asking “What can you do to protect myself?” You could install an alarm on your vehicle, but with as desensitized as we have become to them, they often go ignored. What we really need is a location device that tells us where those dirty so and so’s have taken our stuff. K and G Cycles has searched high and low to bring you just what you are looking form and we have found it. The FIN (Find It Now) Security and Recovery System.

   Sure you are going FIN_Logo_GPS_2009to say, “What makes this any different from all the alarms out there?” Well to begin with it isn’t just an alarm. The FIN (Find It Now) Security System is designed exclusively for motorcycles and the power sports industry in general and uses exclusive GPS tracking to locate your vehicle if it is ever stolen. Made by riders for riders, these units are manufactured here in the U.S.A. by a company that is owned and operated by veterans. Because of its long list of features and benefits, it is the premiere security unit available for motorcycles.

• ALERT… If the Bike is moved, the Owner will receive a Text message and/or Email Alert

• LOCATE… In the event of a theft, the Owner and/or the FIN Tracking Center can immediately TRACK and LOCATE the Bike.

• RECOVER… After locating the Bike, the Owner and/or the FIN Tracking Center can interface with the Police to quickly RECOVER the Bike.

How It WShark-ART_faceleft_GPS.jpgorks Details:

• FIN Locate – You can locate the FIN equipped vehicle from any computer, smart phone or tablet that connects to the internet.

• Auto-Report – Once daily FIN will report it’s location if there has been no other activity.

• Boundary Notification – Settings allowing the Owner to position multiple perimeter notifications. If the boundary is entered or exited, the Owner will receive notification.

• Speedy Alert – will notify the owner if the Bike is going over the preset speed.

• FIN Virtual Odometer – will accumulate mileage and/or the run time of the vehicle and through our proprietary software will then send scheduled Service Notifications to the Owner, advising them to return to their dealer for service.

• Power Management – FIN draws less than 1 -mA in Sleep Mode

• Low Battery Alert – When the Bike battery drops below the prescribed safe level, Text and Email notification Alerts will be sent.

• Battery Tamper Alert – If the power is cut to the Bike or the FIN unit, a Text and Email alert will be sent.

• Battery Back-Up – In the event a thief cuts the main battery cable, FIN’s back-up battery will take over so you or the FIN Tracking Center can continue to locate your bike.

• Easy Installation – This small unit is a very easy do-it-yourself install or you can have any car alarm/stereo shop install it. Plus it is small and can be easily hidden on your motorcycle, is water resistant (also used on boats and PWCs) and can withstand extreme weather conditions.

• Coverage – FIN Coverage Area includes all of North America – U.S., Canada, Mexico, Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands!

   K and G Cycles doesn’t want your bike to become a statistic. Installation of The Fin Security System will aid you and Law Enforcement in the immediate return of your motorcycle should it ever be taken. Here is a list of frequently asked questions about The FIN, and below you will see feature comparisons with the highly popular “Lo-Jack” system. Take a look for yourself and see the advantages of The FIN Security System. Don’t forget, you can come talk to us about The FIN GPS Security System at K and G Cycles Thunder Alley during Bike Week.

*For Security Purposes, no product images shall be revealed as they would enable thieves.*

FIN® and LoJack® Comparison
FIN® LoJack®
Will it alert right away if my bike is moved? YES See Below*
Am I able to track my bike on the Internet in real time? YES NO
Will I be notified right away if my bike is stolen? YES See Below*
Can I track my bike as soon as it is stolen? YES NO
Is there early warning protection at install? YES NO
Is there nationwide coverage? YES NO
Can I view a history of where my bike has been? YES NO
Can I set a boundary alert (GEO Fence)? YES NO
Can I set a max speed notification? YES NO
Will I get an alert of my battery is low? YES NO
Will I be notified if the bike power has been disconnected? YES NO
Is it transferable to another bike? YES NO
Is it water resistant? YES YES
Do I need to file a police report to start the process? NO YES
Do police forces need special equipment for it to work? NO YES
Does my bike need to be registered? NO YES

* Obtained from LoJack® owners manual, 9/10/11:

“Typically, you are notified within 15-30 minutes after your motorcycle begins moving without the Key Pass. However, this time may vary depending on your coverage area, but should not exceed one hour.”


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For available positions, please visit : Kansan


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About the Artist

Katie Boatman (b. 1987) received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Belmont University and went on to earn a Master of Fine Arts degree at the University of South Carolina in Columbia. During her studies, she received grant and scholarship funding to study and exhibit in Italy at the International Center for the Arts in Montecastello di Vibio. In addition, she was awarded the SPARC Fellowship, which enabled SCUBA diving research in preparation for her culminating thesis project. Following her master studies, the Morris Graves Foundation in Loleta, CA selected her for an artist residency. Most recently, she was selected by the Confucius Institute at Western Kentucky University to participate in the 2016 Confucius China Studies Program focusing on the condition of Chinese Contemporary Art.

Katie has exhibition experience with various galleries and museums in Arkansas, California, Missouri, New York, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Italy. In response to the overarching concepts within her work, she states, “I am captivated by the spiritual realities that exist within nature. Since childhood, the natural world has inspired inner reflection and creativity. My work unites superficial perceptions with an otherworldly aesthetic to encourage consideration of deeper truths. Truths that are stifled by the immediacy provided from the ever-evolving technologies of today. Each piece aims to question our perceptions, particularly surrounding reality, origination, and the meaning of life.”

While maintaining her artistic practice, she is currently employed at Belmont University as the Director of Galleries and Full-Time Lecturer.

© 2016 Katie Boatman


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Good morning! The weather here in SLC, UT has been wild. Yesterday morning Kenny Dawn (@kennydawn) and I had plans to go shoot and I had thee cutest spring looks ready. I was in Birks and all. Then 9:30am rolls around and BAM. SNOW. We have been having 60 degree weather! What the... So we had quick change of plans and I thought it was the perfect opportunity for a sporty, laid back look with the CUTEST fitted sweats from Wish You Were Northwest. They are such a cool brand promoting all things adventure, wanderlust, coffee, and mountains. Pretty  much everything we love around here. Dress these sweats up or down they are sooooo comfy and the fit is so cute. You can check out the rest of their stuff HERE.

One quick thought I had this morning that I wanted to share. A compassionate mind is never an angry mind. We can recalibrate our brains to having our first reaction be that of compassion- the rest of which will fall into place. Your response will always be from a place of love and understanding. Even that person that cut you off last night when you were already running 10 minutes late. Have compassion to even those who criticize you. Every being is vibrating at their own rate and the development of their own consciousness. Have a MIND of compassion. The heart is always compassionate. Most of us let our minds do all the thinking, when really they are just thoughts. If our first thought is to get mad, we naturally create anger. Even if that person in the car who cut you off doesn't know it, you are still sending that energy out into the universe. Lets change that! The thoughts you create do matter. And the first step is just observing them. Don't judge them or get down on yourself if you do find yourself having these thoughts, they are only normal! Just observe them. Put down the beat up stick. Accept yourself and your thoughts. And that is the first step- awareness. Once you become aware of your thoughts and your reactions, you are able to see the bigger picture. And with time and intention you can change those initial thoughts and reactions. If you can train your brain's first reaction to be compassion, truly the rest of the cyle that follows will change. You will not only feel the change in your own sense of being but in the senses of all surrounds you. CHOOSE to live a more joyous life. The universe is more playful than you think;)


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Kicking the Tweets
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Batman Begins (2005)

The Dark(ish) Knight

Christopher Nolan deserves a lot of credit for revitalizing the Batman film franchise. But if you're revisiting the previous entries of his new-millennium trilogy ahead of this week's The Dark Knight Rises, you may be shocked, as I was, at Batman Begins' closer relationship to Tim Burton's pulpy 80s films than Nolan's own grim 'n gritty follow-up, The Dark Knight. That's my marble-mouthed way of saying it's more of a "comic book movie" than I remember.

The film opens in a South Asian prison, where billionaire orphan Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) has sought refuge from his philanthropist family's notoriety. In flashback, we learn that he tried to avenge the alleyway murder of his parents, only to run up against a criminal empire that infects every corner of his native Gotham City--from dope pushers to the slimy judiciary. After a run-in with the city's mob boss, Carmine Falcone (Tom Wilkinson, devouring scenery with a Cagney-esque New Yaw-ak accent), Bruce realizes he'll never defeat crime until he descends from his throne of privilege to experience the hard-scrabble life of a criminal. Hence, his globe-trotting trip of debasement, which landed him in his current home.

A stranger named Henri Ducard (Liam Neeson) pops up in his cell and offers him a life of training and vengeance against all kinds of evildoers--on the condition that Bruce retrieves a special flower and brings it to the fortress of Ra's Al Ghul (Ken Watanabe). He obliges and spends the next several months learning to become a ninja. On the day of his "graduation", Bruce realizes that his newfound friends are actually intent on destroying Gotham City, which they see as the foremost symbol of corruption in the world.

Bruce narrowly escapes, leaving Al Ghul dead and Ducard in the care of a local, following an attack that left him unconscious. He returns to Gotham to resume control of the family empire and, with the help of his butler, Alfred (Michael Caine), and a former friend of his father's, Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman), creates an off-hours, crime-fighting identity.

There's quite a bit more plot jammed into the film's nearly two-and-a-half-hours, including a tired, toxic-gas-driving-the-city-crazy scheme; Bruce's relationship with childhood friend/assistant district attorney Rachel (Katie Holmes); and an underused secondary villain named Scarecrow (Cillian Murphy). Not to mention the return of Ra's Al Ghul who--surprise, surprise--turns out not to be dead.

Any one of these would have made for a tidy "B" side to Batman Begins' central theme of Bruce Wayne overcoming his fear of bats and finding a way to forgive himself for his parents' murder.* Instead, Nolan and co-writer David Goyer betray their fascinating, leisurely paced first hour with second and third acts jammed with wannabe "A" stories duking it out for the prize.

For what starts as a wild character piece that challenges what audiences know about Batman's origins, Begins slips too comfortably into summer blockbuster cliches. The montage of Bruce and Alfred figuring out the logistics of his crime-fighting accessories is cute and engaging. The ten-minute police chase across Gotham's rooftops in an armored tank is an exhausting pre-climax that adds nothing to the story and sucks the pace dry. Sure, Batman is trying to get Rachel to the antidote for a deadly gas she's ingested. But does anyone believe she's in danger? In the middle of the movie? This fake drama is so far beneath Nolan it's sipping Pepsi in the Batcave.

The big problem is that Nolan and Goyer's lack of focus leave their myriad tangents wide open for nitpicking. From the inarguably fanboyish (any comic book fan worth their salt knows that Liam Neeson looks like Ra's Al Ghul and Ken Watanabe doesn't--meaning that when "Ducard" introduces his master as "Ra's Al Ghul", the two or three beats of his character arc have already been spelled out) to the head-scratchingly stupid (why did the Wayne family use the scummy-alley exit instead of walking out the front door--which, I imagine, faced a much nicer, less gunpoint-confrontation-y street?), the screenplay has more little issues than Arkham Asylum has faulty locks.

I understand wanting to reboot Batman as a thinking-man's comic-book movie after the Burton/Schumacher years. But an overabundance of story does not automatically equal quality entertainment. Compare Batman Begins to movies Nolan did before and after it (namely, Memento and The Prestige), and this almost feels like a glitch--or, worse yet, evidence of an impostor. All three films deal with similar themes of identity, memory, fear, and sleight of hand, but the middle one--the big studio picture--deceives through repetition rather than enlightening through exploration. You could make a great drinking game out of characters saying the word "fear" in this movie, but I challenge you to find any surprises or big ideas in all the yammering.

Nolan's greatest triumph is making this mess watchable. Batman Begins has an incredible cast (yes, even the widely and unjustifiably reviled Holmes), a handful of kooky visual gags, and a neat production design that crosses Burton's grandiose grime with Roaring 20s Chicago chic. It's too bad the panache dried up before reaching the new Batman costume's design phase. In early scenes, Bruce discovers crates of experimental military armor that are all sexy, textured, multi-plate affairs. He proceeds to paint them matte black, reducing Batman's appearance to that of an inkblot with a space cut out for Bale's underwhelming jaw line. There are close-ups here that make the outfit look downright cheap, and when the caped crusader barks in that now-infamously awful voice of his, it just makes every aspect of the character feel woefully ill-conceived.**

Contrast that with Scarecrow, who we often see through his victims' drug-crazed eyes, and you've got enough creep-factor for five of these movies (the fire-snorting horse hallucination at the end was a really nice touch). Had the filmmakers reserved their theatrics for the visuals instead of the screenplay, the movie might have stood farther apart from its predecessors. As it stands, Nolan and Goyer update the series with a pretty pedestrian action flick that wears a rubber mask of seriousness.

Note: It's unfair to judge Batman Begins against The Dark Knight, the film that defines how people think of big-screen Batman today. Had Begins been a stand-alone, or had its sequel followed the same stylistic formula, the franchise may be in the same reboot boat (reboat?) as Marvel is with Spider-Man. But for his sophomore effort, Nolan got serious about his masked hero and the insane world that masked heroes create simply by existing. When talking about Nolan's films, mention of Batman Begins is typically followed by, "Oh, yeah. He directed that one, too." Which is never a good sign.

*They were gunned down after leaving the opera early, due to Bruce's fear of the bat-costumed performers on stage.

**You could make a strong argument that Bruce Wayne wants Batman to look intimidating instead of cool. But audiences should be equally intimidated--or at least impressed, visually. They certainly shouldn't giggle or mouth "WTF?" when the hero appears.

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April 6, 2014 - Narcissism is Necessary

Archive | April 6, 2014

Celine’s off the market!

After months of anticipation, the day finally arrived!

Celine, one of my closest friends and her beau Jonathan have tied the knot!

The day started with the obligatory torturing of the groom’s entourage of course. All in good fun :)

# – Jonathan and bros about to face some challenges.

# – Veiling by Cel’s papa and mama :)

Not many pictures in my phone cause busy! After the games and after Jon successfully claimed Cel, some of us headed to church to prepare for the couple’s arrival.

# – Camho with bridesmaids before ceremony began.

What a beautiful ceremony :)

# – Man and wife!

After church, we headed to the beautiful roof-top restaurant where the lunch reception was held.

# – Love, love, love the cake table.

# – The large tv screen at the bar.

# – Pictures of the couple.

# – Pink & cream theme.

# – One of the wishing trees.

# – Cel and all the bridesmaids.

Wish these two lovebirds a lifetime of happiness and contentment!

# – Congratulations Cel and Jon!

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