text:
by Josh Funk
Yesterday, Tara told us to be mindful and also to daydream. Mindfulness and daydreaming may seem like opposites; pay close attention to the world…and pay attention to only what's in your head. And just to prove that ideas come from anywhere and everywhere, today I'm going to suggest you do a third thing—something right in between.
Only half concentrate on what you're doing. Space out…a little. Don't pay too close attention. You know you're gonna anyway. You're probably multi-tasking while you read this post; maybe you're exercising (good for you!) or driving (please pull over before continuing. Seriously.), or in the bathroom (hey, that's where I'm writing this!).
Today I'm going to tell you why I love otter car wrecks. Sorry, I meant autocrrects. Bah! I mean autocorrects. And typlos. Seriously? AUTOCORRECTS AND TYPOS! And how they can inspire goofy, absurd, and sometimes preposterous creativity.
Do you want a robust hobbit dude?
Why wasn't I invited, poo-head?
I solved your evil baristas.
I said or wrote all those things over the past few years…sort of.
I like to think that I have pretty good hearing. But if you ask my wife, she'll tell you I'm not the best listener. I clearly wasn't paying close attention when I thought I texted my wife, "Do you want to go out for food?" but ended up asking her about a chubby cowboy creature from middle earth. While a book about a hobbit is probably copyright protected, I'll be there's a market for LOTR fan-fiction.
When Anna Staniszewski told me in gchat that she was having a book launch, I responded with what I thought was, "Why wasn't I invited, though?" I can't say that I didn't not not start working on a manuscript about a birthday party for an anthropomorphic piece of—wait, never mind. As Tara always says, don't give away your ideas.
And I honestly have no idea what I said when Siri searched for those evil baristas. My best guess is that I wanted a burrito. But I made sure to write it down because a villainous coffee artisan sounds like a perfect future foil for Inspector Croissant!
So use those absurd auto-corrects to your advantage. If you mishear someone speak, maybe what you think you heard will bear a brainstorm. It may seem nonsensical now. But definitely write it all down. For all you know, a typo isn't just a typo—it's your subconscious genius giving you an inspirational kick in the barista.
Josh Funk writes silly stories and somehow tricks people into publishing them as picture books, such as Lady Pancake & Sir French Toast and its upcoming sequel The Case of the Stinky Stench along with Pirasaurs!, Dear Dragon, It's Not Jack and the Beanstalk and more! This morning he started drafting a book about otters getting into car wrecks.
Josh is a board member of The Writers' Loft in Sherborn, MA and the co-coordinator of the 2017 New England Regional SCBWI Conference. He has a 12 Step Guide to Writing Picture Books in the 'Resources for Writers' section of his website. Josh grew up in New England and studied Computer Science in school. Today, he still lives in New England and when not writing Java code or Python scripts, he drinks Java coffee and writes picture book manuscripts.
Josh is terrible at writing bios, so please help fill in the blanks. Josh enjoys _______ during ________ and has always loved __________. He has played ____________ since age __ and his biggest fear in life is being eaten by a __________.
Find out more about Josh at joshfunkbooks.com and on Twitter @joshfunkbooks.
Josh is giving away one signed & personalized copy of each of his three books: Lady Pancake & Sir French Toast, Dear Dragon, and Pirasaurs!—one each to three lucky winners.
Leave ONE COMMENT below to enter. You are eligible to win if you are a registered Storystorm participant and you have commented once on this blog post. Prizes will be given away at the conclusion of the event.
Good luck!


text:
Kaplan Higher Education Academy (KHEA) offers full time programmes to international and domestic students who wish to study in Singapore. All of our programmes are offered through prestigious international universities.
Full time programmes are an excellent way for students with time available during the day to dedicate their time and efforts to studying and completing their programme in as short a time as possible.
KHEA offers programmes to students through the following prestigious institutions:

subset: commoncrawl


text:
So many Super Bowl ads, so little attention to go around. I've always been saying these ads are a total waste of time. Do you really care if the Clysedales didn't appear in a spot? (Apparently we do. They polled that question -and created a Wikipedia entry for them. Really!)
So, speaking of polling, I have to say that the $130 million Census campaign –never mind the cost of making the Bowl ad– is worth a second look. Especially with the cost of running the ad being in the neighborhood of $2.5 million.
"We're advertising again," the Census chaps say, observing what we all know that the Bowl is "rare, in that viewers are just as tuned in to see the commercials as the program itself."
And yes, there's the media-relations effect: Run the ad, get editorial comment. The famous carrot that says viewers will rush online once they watch the ad, because it that's how TV –practically on life-support, tethered to the Net –works today.
But after they dispense with the popular wisdom about buzz and multiplier effects (perhaps after so many meetings with its agency, DDB) they note in true Census-boys style that "If just one percent of the folks watching the Super Bowl had their minds changed to mail back a census form they would have otherwise ignored, it helps save the taxpayers between $25-30 million in expensive follow up costs to collect these forms later."
Translation: Watch ads, adjust your attitude toward being asked personal questions, save the country a boatload of cash, help us pay our agency.
I get that, Department of Census. No need to repeat this point about 3 times in your blog and press releases.
Yes, I mentioned a blog. This is where this campaign gets interesting because the obscenely expensive ad is supported with richer slices of content, some of which is embedded in social media channels. I like the fact that the Director of the Census is blogging, that there's a Road Tour Blog and lots of space devoted to answering the questions people ask that make of break a census. The Flash site may be a tad too addy, but it documents stories, a la Story Corps, of ordinary people. The YouTube channel has plenty of video outtakes. The Flickr site has snapshots of an America few of us see every day. This one on left is supposedly at a Lutheran Church in Richmond, California. Thai dancers! The 5,000 fans on Facebook must mean something. and there's Twitter just in case you miss all other channels.
So with all of this content so well thought out, is the cost of a Super Bowl ad really worth it? I liked the ad, but the greatest ad is not worth being tossed into a space filled with products and services that only seem to lust for eyeballs and water-cooler talk.
There are plenty of other ways to get buzzy, even if that was the objective. As Erik Qualman observes, why not use Facebook and Twitter to GET people to answer those darned 10 simple census questions, and not be entangled in "a $340 million boondoggle"? Because that not feasible, why not use social media to incentivize people to fill out their forms. If the media-as-a-repeater argument is important, why not let 300 million people start something that the media will talk about. (Rather than feed this controversy.)
Why not start with those 2,035 followers on Twitter!
As the character in the ad says at the end (somewhat perplexed) "Absolutely!"


text:
This is a public service announcement (PSA) from EMWD regarding a serious security incident which may impact some of our clients. On May 4, 2020, GoDaddy, a large website hosting provider, has disclosed that the SSH credentials of approximately 28,000 GoDaddy hosting accounts were compromised by an unauthorized attacker. Here is GoDaddy's public ... Read More »
We are ending support for PHP 5.6 and PHP 7.0. Over the next several weeks, we will be manually switching sites over to PHP 7.1. If you are running an outdated PHP application then this will most likely break your site. Please don't blame us. We require every PHP application installed on our servers to be kept up to date. If your site does not run ... Read More »
EMWD is committed to maintaining a high standard of communications with our clients. In the past, email has been the primary means in which we communicated with our clients through our billing portal. Invoices, receipts, support ticket replies, etc., all were sent out by email. However some of these important communications are missed by our ... Read More »
Google's new age of a Secure Internet is set to take another giant leap forward this coming July with the launch of Chrome 68. For the past several years, Google has been increasingly advocating the use of HTTPS by gradually introducing not secure warnings to more and more HTTP pages. But soon, with the release of Chrome 68 due out on July 1st, ... Read More »
What is GDPR?The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is Europe's big new data privacy law. It comes into effect on 25th May 2018 and is intended to strengthen and unify data protection for all individuals within the European Union (EU).GDPR has been introduced to give control back to citizens and residents over their personal data and to ... Read More »
SSL connections are the new standard for connecting to a website. As an incentive for encouraging site owners to provide a safe browsing experiencing, Google is notifying site visitors whether a website is secure or not. It is most likely other browsers will be following suit. With this change, website owners will need to address this as having a ... Read More »
Two very serious security vulnerabilities have been discovered. They impact modern day CPUs which virtually run almost everything from smart phones to enterprise servers. Patches for CentOS 7 has been released and we are in the process of applying them. This will require a server reboot. We apologize for the inconvenience this might cause. With ... Read More »
EMWD is now enabling HTTP/2 on our new cloud platform. HTTP/2 is a major revision of the HTTP protocol which is used by the Internet for serving up web content. HTTP is considered a pretty old protocol so there was a need for an update that would allow the HTTP protocol to take advantage of new applications. The main holdback of HTTP/2 ... Read More »
EMWD is making client area logins easier for our clients by introducing new social media sign-in integrations. You can now use your Facebook, Google, or Twitter account to automatically log you into your EMWD client area.In order to take advantage of this, a client will need to do the following:1. Log into your client area normally at ... Read More »
Over 100 billion emails get sent per day. Everything from simple out-of-office alerts to account and billing summaries gets transferred across servers, across the web, from person to person. We all have an expectation that the email we send and deliver are protected and secured. However we all know that that isn't always the case. There are ... Read More »


text:
X-Men: Apocalypse Coming in 2016
X-Men: Days of Future Past hasn't even opened yet, but director Bryan Singer is already planning the next film in the mutant franchise.
#Xmen #Apocalypse 2016!- Bryan Singer (@BryanSinger) December 5, 2013
Entertainment Weekly confirmed that X-Men: Apocalypse will open onMay 27, 2016, but no other details - including whether it would star theFirst Class cast or the original trilogy's cast - about the film were released.
In the X-Men universe, Apocalypse is one of the franchise's most beloved super-villains and the world's first mutant. Born more than 5,000 years ago and basically immortal, Apocalypse uses his assortment of powers - telepathy, telekinesis, molecular manipulation, etc. - to further his plan for mutant supremacy.
Apocalypse's most famous story line comes from Age of Apocalypse, in which the mutant is the ruler of an alternate reality Earth where mutants enslave their human counterparts. This arc featured alternative versions of the X-Men as well, including a one-handed Wolverine.
View original X-Men: Apocalypse Coming in 2016 at TVGuide.com
Other Links From TVGuide.com


text:
Please support the campaign to BOYCOTT Fifty Shades of Grey and to donate to domestic violence shelters instead! ~~~ #50dollarsnot50shades !!
You can out more about this campaign at the Facebook page for "50 Dollars not 50 Shades" below, which we encourage you to LIKE and support!
Here is a directory of domestic violence shelters and help organizations around the world that people can contribute to:
To learn more about the harms of "Fifty Shades of Grey", please visit our page on this topic and The National Center on Sexual Exploitation's page on it:
To learn more about the harms of sadomasochism in general, please see our page below, as well as our SayNOtoSadomasochism YouTube channel:
For our own ongoing updates about the campaign, please follow our SayNOtoSadomasochism Twitter account!
Many thanks and well done to Stop Porn Culture, the London Abused Women's Centre and the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (formerly Pornography Harms) for their important efforts in creating, running or sponsoring this vital effort! Please like and support their Facebook pages, Twitter accounts and their other social media accounts and efforts as well!
~ Special thanks to the National Center on Sexual Exploitation for creating the graphics in this post and many other great ones like it for this campaign. You can find ALL the helpful graphics at the 50 Dollars not 50 Shades Facebook page, or at the page below by NCSE. We encourage you to share all of them!
Please support the cause by following us here at this blog, liking us at Facebook, subscribing to our YouTube channels, and following our Twitter accounts. Thanks! ~~
FACEBOOK PAGE: AntiPornography.org – Nonreligious, Pro Free Speech, Pro Healthy Sex & Love ~~ http://www.facebook.com/ENDSexploitation ~~
YOUTUBE CHANNELS: AntiPornographyBlog ~~ AntiPornographyOrg ~~ SayNOtoProstitution ~~ ENDSexTrafficDEMAND ~~ PornAddictionHelp ~~ SayNOtoSadomasochism ~~
TWITTER ACCOUNTS: @AntiPornography ~~ @ENDSexTraffic ~~ @ENDProstitution ~~ @NoSadomasochism ~~ @PornAddictHelp1 ~~ @HealthySexNLove ~~
Post created by AntiPornography.org Nonprofit Organization ~ Preventing and combating the devastating harms of pornography, prostitution, sex trafficking and sexual slavery, while supporting safe, healthy, equality-based sex, love, and relationships ~


text:
April 22nd, 2011
Jesus on trial: What would a modern jury do?
By Eric Marrapodi, CNN Belief Blog Co-Editor
Richmond, Virginia (CNN) - If Jesus were tried in Richmond, Virginia, today, would he have been sentenced to death? Or would he have faced life behind bars with no chance for parole?
That's the choice given to jurors here recently.
During Lent, the Church of the Holy Comforter used Virginia law to retry the sentencing phase of the blasphemy case against Jesus of Nazareth. Church members and guests played the role of the jury.
The trial was the brainchild of Mark Osler, a former U.S. Attorney in Detroit who teaches at the University of St. Thomas Law School in Minneapolis and is friends with a member of the Richmond church.
Osler wanted to hold the trial in part to call attention to the state's use of capital punishment. Virginia is second only to Texas in the number of executions per state since the mid-1970s, when the U.S. Supreme Court reinstituted the death penalty, according to federal statistics. He held a similar event in Texas a few years ago.
"For many of us our faith, as it relates to policy especially, is often unexamined," Osler said "We're surrounded by people who feel the same way, and what we need to do is have it be troubled at least and see if that takes us someplace different."
The mock sentencing phase was held the night before Palm Sunday.
Osler played the part of Caiaphas, the Jewish high priest in the biblical narrative of the trial. In that account, Jesus had no defense council. But on this night, Osler faced off against Jeanne Bishop, a real-life public defender from Chicago.
"Jesus was indigent," Bishop said. "And so I think [Osler] wanted a public defender to underscore the point that this is a man with no money, no resources, no position in society.
"Most of the people that I represent fit that description."
"He also wanted to have a young African-American man play Jesus, and that's what we have tonight. Most of clients look exactly like this young man who will be sitting beside me," she said.
The night was bittersweet for Bishop. "My younger sister, her husband and their unborn baby were murdered 21 years ago today, the day before palm Sunday."
In 1990, Nancy Bishop Langert was killed during a home invasion in Winnetka, Illinois. Her death was part of the reason Jeanne Bishop became a defense attorney and an outspoken opponent of the death penalty.
Even before her sister's murder, Bishop said, she was against the death penalty. "When my sister and her husband and their baby were killed, my immediate response was, 'No more killing, no more bloodshed, please let it stop right here.'"
Osler is also against the death penalty. It was a decision he said he reached as a prosecutor while sitting in church one Sunday.
"They read John 8, about stoning the adulteress, and I'm like everyone else - when I hear a story like that, I put myself in the role of Jesus. A lot of prosecutors who are Christians who talk about that will say, 'Jesus said go and sin no more.' And what I came to eventually is, 'I'm not Jesus. I'm part of the mob. I'm somebody with a stone in my hand.'
"I think that story is very direct that we don't have the moral authority" to execute prisoners, Osler said.
Playing the role of prosecutor and asking jurors to condemn Jesus to death was difficult for Osler.
"It's very dark to have the prosecutor in me go to war with the faith [in me]. There's a cynicism you need to be a good prosecutor," he said. "It's been in some ways a troubling enterprise, and I didn't see that coming."
"We don't have a script," Osler said shortly before taking the stage at the Church of the Holy Comforter. "We're approaching this the way trial lawyers would. I haven't known what her theory of the case is or what her arguments will be, and she doesn't know mine. That's the way it really works. It's not a play. It really is a trial in that sense."
As the audience took their seats, Bishop leaned over and whispered to her client, a teenager from the church who sat beside her in a dark blazer and khaki pants.
William G. Broaddus played the role of the judge. He was Virginia's attorney general for six months after his predecessor stepped down to run for governor. During that time, five defendants were executed in Virginia.
"We will now call the case of the Commonwealth of Virginia versus Jesus of Nazareth," Broaddus bellowed from the pulpit. "I will remind you this man has already been found guilty of the criminal charge of blasphemy.
"Tonight it is your duty to determine the proper punishment," he told the jurors.
The attorneys each called two witnesses. The prosecution called Peter, one of Jesus closest disciples, and a rich young ruler whom Jesus urged to sell all of his possessions and give the money to the poor, here though the witness was played by a woman from the congregation. The defense called a centurion whose slave Jesus had healed, as well as Malchus, a high priest's slave whose ear was cut off by Peter then reattached by Jesus.
The sentencing trial followed the rhythms of a standard criminal case. Bishop spoke gently yet firmly as she questioned the witnesses, her line of questioning seeking to emphasize Jesus' acts of compassion and mercy.
Osler was forceful and tried to paint Jesus as a rebel who sought to rend the fabric of society. He also played heavily on the issue of slavery in his questioning.
Richmond was an international slave port prior to the Civil War - a fact not lost on members of the audience, who quietly bristled or frowned when Osler brought it up. He repeatedly reminded them that while Jesus healed the centurion and high priest's slaves, he did not set them free.
In her closing argument, Bishop told the jury that Jesus loved his enemies. "A man who showed such compassion is at least deserving of your compassion at this moment," she said.
Osler rebutted that Jesus had "poked a hole in the fabric of society. Are you going to let it tear or are your going to keep it a small hole?" he asked as he tore a hole in his own pressed, white button-down shirt to gasps in the crowd.
After the closing arguments, the audience broke into several juries of 12. Following the Virginia state statutes, they had two votes to consider. First: "Do you find that there is a probability that, if not executed, the defendant would commit criminal acts that would constitute a continuing serious threat to society?"
If they answered yes to that question, they were instructed to move on to the second: "In the light of all mitigation, is a death sentence warranted?" Both questions required a unanimous vote.
In one of the juries, 11 members quickly agreed the answer to the first question was yes, but there was one holdout. The other jury members began to press her in favor of the prosecution. Eventually they were successful.
"I think he's convincing," an older woman on the panel said of Osler, adding, "I didn't like myself for thinking that."
As the judge told the crowd they had just five minutes left to deliberate, the noise in the sanctuary grew louder and more heated.
The votes were taken and the jury forms passed forward.
The judge stepped forward and read the verdict.
"Jesus please stand," he said.
He read the first question aloud and said, "The majority of the juries have found that should be answered in the affirmative."
It meant the juries thought Jesus would blaspheme again if not executed.
"Turning then to the next question," he said. "The majority of the juries voting on that issue found that the death sentence is not warranted."
There was applause from the audience.
"The defendant is remanded to the jailer for the rest of your natural life."
And with that the trial ended.
soundoff (1,632 Responses)
About this blog
The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.


text:
BitFenix Colossus Micro -ATX Case (Black) | BFC-CLM-300-KKLS1-RP
Styled after the legendary BitFenix Colossus, Colossus Mini-ITX brings a futuristic yet refined design to the mini-ITX form factor. The top and sides feature our signature SofTouch™ Surface Treatment for an undeniably quality finish, and exclusive LiteTrak™ Technology forms a virtually unbroken line of light across the front and sides of the case that can not only switch color, but also pulsate at the touch of a button. On the inside, users will be treated to an epically flexible interior that can accommodate multiple expansion cards and storage options. Two USB 3.0 ports enable lightning-quick file transfers, while small refinements such as rolled-edge cable pass-throughs, magnetic heat shield, and a powder-coated interior make Colossus Micro-ATX a joy to build in. Delivering aggressive looks with the flexibility to match, the small yet powerful Colossus Micro-ATX is the next big thing.
Futuristic Form
Taking design cues from the legendary Colossus full tower, Colossus Micro-ATX brings a modern, futuristic design without being garish or gaudy. The bold lines and angles give an aggressive look that's tempered by our luxuriously matte SofTouch™ Surface Treatment, making it an ideal choice for the gaming room, living room, or LAN party.
BitFenix LiteTrak™ Technology
Featured along the front and sides, BitFenix LiteTrak™ enables a continuous unbroken line of light around the case for an incredibly futuristic look. This multimode lighting system can be changed to red, blue, or green at a touch of a button, and even comes with a rotating pulse mode that pulses light and automatically cycles through each color.
MATX Compatibility
With five PCI-express slots, Colossus Micro-ATX not only enables dual graphic builds such as SLI or Crossfire, but also multiple expansion cards including sound, network, and more.
Colossal Flexibility
Don't let the small size fool you – Colossus Micro-ATX packs quite a punch. Dual graphics cards up to 320mm in length can be installed along with tower coolers up to 160mm in height. Alternatively, users can opt for a slim 240mm water cooling radiator with a single graphics card installed. Along with a fully flexible storage system that allows for up to four 3.5″ hard drives or three 2.5″ SSDs, Colossus Micro-ATX brings colossal flexibility to the micro-ATX form factor.
High-Speed USB 3.0 Connectivity
Equipped with two SuperSpeed USB 3.0 ports, Colossus Micro-ATX can handle the ever growing size of today's high-definition media files with up to ten times the speed of USB 2.0.
DIY Friendly
There's building a system, and there's wrestling with one. Colossus Micro-ITX offers a plethora of features designed to get your rig up and running quickly. A single-screw PCI lock design makes it easy to install your expansion cards, while a large CPU cooler cutout means quick swapping of CPU coolers without having to remove the motherboard. If you're installing hard drives on the bottom of the case rather than fans, you can even use the included magnetic heat shield to prevent hot exhaust from the PSU from rising back up into your case.
BitFenix Quality
Colossus Micro-ATX comes with a bevy of features that make using and owing a BitFenix product an experience. Rolled-edge cable pass-throughs help prevent damage to cables, while quick release dust filters help make clean up a snap. Along with the luxurious powder-coated interior and signature BitFenix logo, Colossus Micro-ATX comes with the kind of legendary quality that BitFenix users have come to know and love.
Steel, Plastic, SofTouch
Dimensions (WxHxD)
250 x 330 x 374mm
Motherboard Sizes
Micro-ATX, Mini-ITX
5.25″ Drive Bays
x 1
3.5" Drive Bays
x 4
2.5" Drive Bays
x 3
Cooling Top
120mm x 2 (optional)
Cooling Bottom
120mm x 2 (1 included) or 200mm x 1(optional) or 230mm x 1 (optional)
120mm x 1 (included) or 140mm x 1 (optional)
PCI Slots
x 5
USB 3.0 x 2, HD Audio
Power Supply
PS2 ATX (bottom, multi direction)
LiteTrak lighting system, SofTouch surface treatment, magnetic heat shield
10 in stock
Additional information
|7.9 kg
|150 × 150 × 10 cm
|Model No.
7.90 Kg
There are no reviews yet.
Only logged in customers who have purchased this product may leave a review.


text:
220 Mitchelle Dr.Hendersonville, NC 28792
(828) 693-4101
This is not an offer for credit and should be used for estimation purposes only based on the information you provided. You should not base your decision on this estimate alone. Title, registration, tax and other fees, and personal circumstances such as employment status and personal credit history, were not considered in the calculations.
Don't even think about underestimating the Honda CRF110F. Sure, it's one of our smaller off-road bikes, but it's a giant in terms of features and especially Honda quality. With its competition-inspired styling and a durable, air-cooled single-cylinder engine, this is one machine they won't be able to get enough of. Fuel injection means easier starts and less pollution. The unique combination of a proven four-speed transmission and automatic clutch means riders can shift when they want, but never have to worry about stalling. A comfortably padded seat, generous suspension travel and a tough steel frame complete the package. It's a lot of bike that just happens to come in a very small package.
Be A Responsible Rider: All parents need to consider their youngsters' age, size, ability and maturity before allowing them to ride. Obtain a copy of "Off-Road Safety Tips" from your local Honda Dealer.
Front - 70 / 100-14
Rear - 80 / 100-12
MSRP excludes destination charge. Visit powersports.honda.com to view applicable destination charge amount.
CRF / Fs ARE INTENDED FOR OFF-ROAD OPERATION ONLY. PARENTS NEED TO CONSIDER A RIDER'S AGE, SIZE, ABILITY AND MATURITY BEFORE ALLOWING THEM TO RIDE. ALWAYS WEAR A HELMET, EYE PROTECTION, AND PROTECTIVE CLOTHING, AND PLEASE RESPECT THE ENVIRONMENT. OBEY THE LAW AND READ THE OWNER'S MANUAL THOROUGHLY. Always stay on established trails in approved riding areas. CRF is a registered trademark of Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
Due to continued challenges across supplier networks as well as increasing logistics costs, product pricing, freight charges, specifications, and features are subject to change at any time without prior notice. Please confirm all information with your local dealership.
Images, where available, are presented as reasonable facsimiles of the offered unit and/or manufacturer stock images. Non-standard options or features may be represented. No guarantee of availability or inclusion of displayed options should be inferred; contact the dealer for more details.


text:
Do you often forget current date? Then our printable calendars will help you, definetely. Moreover, you can make calendars from your own photos. I suppose it's needless to mention that our calendar maker is a free tool.
Okay, let's summarize! With Calendarika.com you can easy and free make personal printable calendars for any month.
Be sure, we propose you easy and elegant decision that is handy and looks pretty good.


text:
SAN JOSE– It took nearly three hours for firefighters to gain control of a two-alarm fire in a large family home in unincorporated San Jose, officials said.
Crews responded to reports of a fire near Higuera Road and Quail Canyon Road about 3:20 p.m., and upgraded to a two-alarm response about five minutes later, San Jose Fire Captain Rob Brown said.
Firefighters arrived to find heavy smoke coming from the two-story, single family home, which is estimated to be about 3,600 square feet, Brown said. All six residents made it out of the home safely, along with the family dog.
The fire likely started on the wood-shingled roof, which has burned off entirely, Brown said.
The blaze was difficult to contain due to risk of collapse in certain parts of the house.
The fire was knocked down at about 7:10 p.m., though crews will remain on scene throughout the evening to extinguish any remaining hot spots, Brown said.
Contact Erin Ivie at email@example.com. Follow her at Twitter.com/erin_ivie.


text:
KIEV, Ukraine — Ukraine's acting president ordered security forces to resume "anti-terror" operations in the country's east Tuesday after the bodies of two people allegedly abducted by pro-Russia insurgents were found and a military aircraft was reported to be hit by gunfire.
The twin developments — which came just hours after U.S. Vice President Joe Biden left Kiev, the Ukrainian capital — raised fears that last week's international agreement on easing Ukraine's crisis was failing.
The agreement calls for all sides to refrain from violence and for demonstrators to vacate public buildings. It does not specifically prohibit security operations, but Ukraine suspended its so-called "anti-terrorist operation" after the accord.
Pro-Russia insurgents who have seized police stations and other public buildings in eastern Ukraine are defying the call to vacate, saying they were not party to the agreement by Ukraine, Russia, the United States and the European Union.
In a statement, acting President Oleksandr Turchynov said the two bodies found Tuesday in Slovyansk bore signs of torture. One of them was a member of the city council and a member of Turchynov's party, he said.
Terrorists "are beginning to torture and kill Ukrainian patriots. They are impudently rejecting the calls of not only our country but of all the world's society when they demonstratively mock the decisions taken in Geneva," he said.
"These crimes are being done with the full support and connivance of Russia," Turchynov added.
The acting government, which took over after President Viktor Yanukovych fled to Russia in February, says Russia is behind the outbreak of unrest in eastern Ukraine with the possible aim of provoking violence that could be used as a pretext to invade. Last month, Russia annexed Crimea several weeks after seizing control of the peninsula.
The Defense Ministry said gunfire hit an observation plane over Slovyansk but the aircraft landed safely without injuries.
Standing alongside Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Biden called on Moscow to encourage pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine to vacate government buildings and checkpoints, accept amnesty and "address their grievances politically."
Biden said Russia needs to act "without delay," adding, "We will not allow this to become an open-ended process."
Yatsenyuk was harsher in his characterization of Russia.
"No country should be able to behave like an armed bandit," he said. "Russia should stick to its international commitments and obligations. They should not behave as gangsters in the modern century."
The U.S. has warned that it will quickly order new economic sanctions on Russian officials and entities if Moscow doesn't follow through on the provisions in last week's accord.
Moscow has rejected charges that it was behind the troubles in eastern Ukraine and that it has failed to live up to the Geneva agreement. Officials there have decried "ultimatums" from the West.
"Before putting forth ultimatums to us, demanding fulfillment of something within two-three days or otherwise be threatened with sanctions, we would urgently call on our American partners to fully recognize responsibility for those whom they brought to power and whom they are trying to shield, closing their eyes to the outrages created by this regime and by the fighters on whom this regime leans," Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.
Biden also announced the United States will provide an additional $50 million to help Ukraine's beleaguered government with political and economic reforms.
The money includes $11 million to help conduct the May 25 presidential election, including voter education, administration and oversight. It also will help fund expert teams from U.S. government agencies to help Ukraine to reduce its reliance on energy supplies from Russia. Other technical advisers will help fight corruption.
The White House also announced $8 million in nonlethal military assistance for the Ukrainian armed forces, including bomb-disposal equipment, communications gear and vehicles.
In the most high-level visit of a U.S. official to Ukraine since the crisis erupted, Biden met privately with Yatsenyuk and Turchynov, as well as with democracy activists.
"I know the men and women who hide behind masks and unmarked uniforms, they do not speak for you," Biden said. "All are welcome as equals in shaping a new Ukraine. We count on you to be the voice for rights and freedoms."
Biden paid tribute to the protest movement by visiting St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery, perched on a hill a few blocks from Kiev's Independence Square that was the site of massive demonstrations against then-President Viktor Yanukovych. The monks provided refuge to protesters fleeing riot police and served as a field hospital to treat demonstrators who were shot in the square. Some died from their wounds beneath the monastery's high, blue bell tower.
"These heroes remind us of the true cost of a better future and the nobility of those who reach for it," Biden said.
Earlier, he told leaders from various political parties that he brings a message of support from President Barack Obama as they face a historic opportunity to usher in reforms.
"The opportunity to generate a united Ukraine, getting it right, is within your grasp," Biden said. "And we want to be your partner, your friend in the project. And we're ready to assist."
Biden spoke to nine Ukrainians in a room with gilded moldings at the parliament, or Rada, as the media looked on. The group included three candidates running for president in the May 25 election — most notably billionaire chocolate magnate and front-runner Petro Poroshenko. Biden told them he hopes that they have more luck than he did in two presidential runs.
Follow Nedra Pickler on Twitter at https://twitter.com/nedrapickler


text:
Last updated:
May 01, 2008
Years published: 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2006
Williams syndrome, also known as Williams-Beuren syndrome, is a rare genetic disorder characterized by growth delays before and after birth (prenatal and postnatal growth retardation), short stature, a varying degree of mental deficiency, and distinctive facial features that typically become more pronounced with age. Such characteristic facial features may include a round face, full cheeks, thick lips, a large mouth that is usually held open, and a broad nasal bridge with nostrils that flare forward (anteverted nares). Affected individuals may also have unusually short eyelid folds (palpebral fissures), flared eyebrows, a small lower jaw (mandible), and prominent ears. Dental abnormalities may also occur including abnormally small, underdeveloped teeth (hypodontia) with small, slender roots.
Williams syndrome may also be associated with heart (cardiac) defects, abnormally increased levels of calcium in the blood during infancy (infantile hypercalcemia), musculoskeletal defects, and/or other abnormalities. Cardiac defects may include obstruction of proper blood flow from the lower right chamber (ventricle) of the heart to the lungs (pulmonary stenosis) or abnormal narrowing above the valve in the heart between the left ventricle and the main artery of the body (supravalvular aortic stenosis). Musculoskeletal abnormalities associated with Williams syndrome may include depression of the breastbone (pectus excavatum), abnormal side-to-side or front-to-back curvature of the spine (scoliosis or kyphosis), or an awkward gait. In addition, most affected individuals have mild to moderate mental retardation; poor visual-motor integration skills; a friendly, outgoing, talkative manner of speech; a short attention span; and are easily distracted.
In most individuals with Williams syndrome, the disorder appears to occur spontaneously for unknown reasons (sporadically). However, familial cases have also been reported. Sporadic and familial cases are thought to result from deletion of genetic material from adjacent genes (contiguous genes) within a specific region of chromosome 7 (7q11.23).
Williams syndrome is characterized by a wide spectrum of symptoms and physical features that vary greatly in range and severity, even among affected family members. Individuals with Williams syndrome will not have all the symptoms listed below. Some affected individuals do not have heart (cardiac) abnormalities; others may not have elevated levels of calcium in the body (hypercalcemia). In addition, the severity of these symptoms often varies greatly from case to case.
Some children with Williams syndrome may have a low birth weight, feed poorly, and fail to gain weight and grow at the expected rate (failure to thrive). Symptoms such as vomiting, gagging, diarrhea, and constipation are common during infancy. Some affected infants may have elevated levels of calcium in their blood (hypercalcemia), leading to loss of appetite, irritability, confusion, weakness, easy fatigability, and/or abdominal and muscle pain. Calcium levels usually return to normal around the age of 12 months. However, in some cases, hypercalcemia may last into adulthood. Linear growth may be delayed during the first four years of life. However, growth spurts usually occur between the age of five and 10 years. Most people with Williams syndrome are less than average height during their adult years.
Newborns with Williams syndrome have characteristic "elfin-like" facial features including an unusually small head (microcephaly), full cheeks, an abnormally broad forehead, puffiness around the eyes and lips, a depressed nasal bridge, broad nose, and/or an unusually wide and prominent open mouth. Additional features may include a vertical skin fold on the inner corners of the eyes (epicanthal folds), a small pointed chin, prominent ears, and/or an unusually long vertical groove in the center of the upper lip (philtrum). Some infants with Williams Syndrome may have dental abnormalities including malformed teeth (i.e., hypoplastic enamel), small teeth (microdontia), and upper and lower teeth that do not meet properly (malocclusion).
A star-like (stellate) pattern in the iris of the eye may be apparent in about 50 percent of children with this disorder. It is most pronounced in those infants with blue or green eyes. This pattern may be harder to see in those children with darker eyes or it may not be present. Affected infants may also experience inward deviation of the eyes (esotropia) and farsightedness (hyperopia).
Children with Williams syndrome are extremely sensitive to sound and may overreact to unusually loud or high-pitched sounds (hyperacusis). Chronic middle ear infections (otitis media) are often present.
Motor development, (e.g., sitting and walking) and/or gross and fine motor skills (e.g., picking up an object) may be delayed. The development of secondary sexual characteristics (e.g., pubic hair and underarm hair) may occur prematurely (precocious puberty) in children with this disorder. Breast development and menstruation may occur earlier than expected in females with Williams syndrome. Individuals with this disorder may also have an unusually hoarse voice.
Congenital heart defects (CHD) occur in approximately 75 percent of children with Williams syndrome. The most frequent defect is supravalvar aortic stenosis, a condition characterized by the narrowing of the aorta above the aortic valve. The aorta is the main artery of the vascular system. Blood passes from the left ventricle of the heart, through the aortic valve, and into the aorta. In supravalvar aortic stenosis, the area above the aortic valve becomes unusually narrow. Symptoms may include fatigue, pain in the chest, dizziness, unusual heart sounds (murmurs) and/or temporary loss of consciousness (syncope). The amount of narrowing of the aorta may vary among affected individuals.
Additional congenital heart defects associated with Williams syndrome may include pulmonary artery stenosis, and/or septal defects. (For more information on these heart defects, see the Related Disorders section of this report.) Abnormally high blood pressure (hypertension) is also common in adults with this disorder.
Children with Williams syndrome typically have a personality that is friendly, outgoing, and/or talkative. The appropriate use of language and vocabulary range may be unusually enhanced in some children with this disorder. Mild to moderate mental retardation may occur. However, some children are of average intelligence with severe learning disabilities. Hyperactivity and attention deficit disorder are also common, although most affected individuals have good long-term memory. Some affected individuals may have visual difficulties; they may tend to view a picture in parts as opposed to seeing it as a whole.
Older children and adults with Williams syndrome may develop progressive joint problems that limit their range of motion. Skeletal abnormalities such as backward (lordosis), front-to-back (kyphosis), and side-to-side (scoliosis) curvature of the spine may also be present. Some affected individuals may have a sunken breastbone (pectus excavatum) and inward turning of the great toe toward the other toes (hallux valgus). Skeletal and joint abnormalities may result in an abnormal manner of walking (awkward gait). Skeletal abnormalities may become worse as affected individuals age.
Additional abnormalities may occur in some individuals with Williams syndrome including kidney (renal) abnormalities, chronic urinary tract infections, an underdeveloped (hypoplastic) thyroid gland, and umbilical or inguinal hernias.
Most cases of Williams syndrome appear to occur spontaneously (sporadically) for unknown reasons. However, some familial cases of the disorder have also been reported. Ongoing research indicates that sporadic and familial Williams syndrome result from deletions of genetic material from adjacent genes (contiguous genes) located on the long arm (q) of chromosome 7 (7q11.23). This chromosomal region has been designated "Williams-Beuren Syndrome chromosome region 1" (WBSCR1).
Chromosomes, which are present in the nucleus of human cells, carry the genetic information for each individual. Pairs of human chromosomes are numbered from 1 through 22, and an additional 23rd pair of sex chromosomes which include one X and one Y chromosome in males and two X chromosomes in females. Each chromosome has a short arm designated "p" and a long arm designated "q". Chromosomes are further sub-divided into many bands that are numbered. For example, "chromosome 11p13" refers to band 13 on the short arm of chromosome 11. The numbered bands specify the location of the thousands of genes that are present on each chromosome.
According to investigators, 28 genes within the 7q11.23 chromosomal region may play a causative role in Williams syndrome including those known as the ELN (elastin) gene, the LIMK1 (or LIM kinase-1) gene, and the RFC2 (replication factor C, subunit 2) gene. The LIMK1 gene is believed to be involved with visual-spatial problems associated with Williams syndrome.
In familial cases, Williams syndrome is inherited as an autosomal dominant trait. Genetic diseases are determined by two genes, one received from the father and one from the mother. Dominant genetic disorders occur when only a single copy of an abnormal gene is necessary for the appearance of the disease. The abnormal gene can be inherited from either parent, or can be the result of a new mutation (gene change) in the affected individual. The risk of passing the abnormal gene from affected parent to offspring is 50% for each pregnancy regardless of the sex of the resulting child.
Hypercalcemia, which is associated with some cases of Williams syndrome, may occur because of an abnormal sensitivity to vitamin D.
Williams syndrome is a rare disorder that affects males and females in equal numbers and infants of any race may be affected. The prevalence of this disorder is approximately one in 10,000-20,000 births in the United States.
The diagnosis of Williams syndrome may be confirmed by a thorough clinical evaluation that includes a detailed patient history and specialized blood tests that may detect elevated levels of calcium in the blood. Another test, known as fluorescent in situ hybridization [FISH], may be used to determine whether a deletion of one elastin gene on chromosome 7 is present. This deletion is believed to occur in the majority of individuals with Williams Syndrome.
Infants with Williams syndrome who have elevated levels of calcium in their blood may be placed on a diet that restricts the intake of vitamin D. Calcium intake may also be restricted. For those children with severe hypercalcemia, treatment with a corticosteroid drug (e.g., prednisone) may be considered on a temporary basis. After the age of about 12 months, calcium levels typically return to normal, even in untreated infants. It is recommended that children with Williams Syndrome also be evaluated by a physician who specializes in endocrine disorders (endocrinologist).
Affected children, who have symptoms related to heart defects, should receive a comprehensive evaluation at a hospital that is familiar with these rare congenital heart conditions. Specialized tests may be performed to determine the severity and exact location of congenital heart defects (i.e., EKG, echocardiogram, or cardiac catheterization). Some children with Williams Syndrome who have severe heart defects may require surgical treatment to repair the defect.
Centers for developmentally disabled children and special education services in schools may be beneficial for children with Williams syndrome to reach their personal potential. A supportive team approach may also be helpful including speech and language therapy, occupational and physical therapy, social services, and/or vocational training. Music therapy has been advocated, thought not proven, as providing enhanced learning and relief from anxiety in individuals with Williams syndrome.
Genetic counseling may be of benefit for people with Williams syndrome and their families. Other treatment is symptomatic and supportive.
The American Academy of Pediatrics released a policy statement in May 2001 on the topic, Health Care Supervision for Children with Williams Syndrome (RE0034).
Information on current clinical trials is posted on the Internet at www.clinicaltrials.gov. All studies receiving U.S. government funding, and some supported by private industry, are posted on this government web site.
For information about clinical trials being conducted at the NIH Clinical Center in Bethesda, MD, contact the NIH Patient Recruitment Office:
Tollfree: (800) 411-1222
Email: [email protected]
For information about clinical trials sponsored by private sources, contact:
Researchers at the University of Nevada School of Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine, and Utah School of Medicine are studying DNA taken from blood samples of children with Williams syndrome. This is a collaborative effort that seeks to locate the genes responsible for Williams syndrome and supravalvar aortic stenosis. Researchers hope to describe the possible genetic relationship between these two closely linked diseases. For more information, contact:
Colleen A. Morris, M.D.
2040 W. Charleston Blvd., Suite 401
Las Vegas, NV 89102
(702) 385-5011
The following is a list of Williams syndrome clinics. For more information please contact the center nearest to you:
The Children's Hospital, Boston
300 Longwood Ave
Boston, MA 02115
(617) 355-6501
Cincinnati Center for Developmental Disorders
Elland & Bethesda Ave
Cincinnati, OH 45229-2899
(513) 559-4688
Lutheran General Hospital
1875 Dempster, Suite 325
Park Ridge, IL 60068
(708) 696-7705
National Children's Medical Center
111 Michigan Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20010
(202) 884-2187
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia
34the Street & Civic Center Blvd
Philadelphia, PA 19104
(215) 590-2920
National Birth Defects Center
40 Second Ave, Suite 460
Boston, MA 02154
(617) 466-9555
Children's Hospital & Health Center
Outpatient Department
Children's Way
San Diego, CA 92123
(619) 453-4100, Ext 1224
Children's Hospital of Buffalo
219 Bryant Street
Buffalo, NY 14222
(716) 878-7530
Pober BR. Williams Syndrome. In: NORD Guide to Rare Disorders. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. Philadelphia, PA. 2003:270.
Jones KL. Smith's Recognizable Patterns of Human Malformation. 5th ed. Philadelphia, PA; W.B. Saunders Company; 1997:118-9.
Buyse ML. Birth Defects Encyclopedia. Dover, MA; Blackwell Scientific Publications, Inc.; 1990:1779-80.
Behrman RE, et al., eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 15th ed. Philadelphia, PA; W.B. Saunders Company; 1996:475-6, 1989.
Bennett JC, Plum F., eds. Cecil Textbook of Medicine. 20th ed. Philadelphia, PA: W.B. Saunders Co; 1996: 160.
Fauci AS, et al., eds. Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 14th Ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, Inc; 1998:2235.
Gorlin RJ, et al., eds. Syndromes of the Head and Neck, 3rd ed. New York, NY: Oxford University Press; 1990:143-7.
Meyer-Lindenberg A, Mervis CB, Faith Berman K. Neural mechanisms in Williams syndrome: a unique window to genetic influences on cognition and behavior. Nat Rev Neurosci. 2006;7:380-93.
Selicorni, et al., Thyroid abnormalities in Williams syndrome: investigation of 95 patients. Am J Med Genet A. 2006;140:1098-101.
Gothelf D, et al., Hyperacusis in Williams syndrome: characteristics and associated neuroaudiologic abnormalities. Neurology. 2006;66:390-5.
Mervis CB, Williams syndrome: 15 years of psychological research. Dev Neuropsychol. 2003;23:1-12.
Brown JW, et al., Sugical repair of congenital supravalvular aortic stenosis in children. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg. 2002;21:50-6.
Johnson LB, et al., Hyperacusis in Williams syndrome. J Otolaryngol. 2001;30:90-2.
Donnai D, et al., Williams syndrome: from genotype through to the cognitive phenotype. Am J Med Genet. 2000;97:164-71.
Pankau R, et al., Familial Williams-Beuren syndrome showing varying clinical expression. Am J Med Genet. 2000;98:324-9.
Paterson SJ, et al., Cognitive modularity and genetic disorders. Science. 1999;286:2355-8.
Rossen ML, et al. Why should neurologists be interested in Williams syndrome? Neuro. 1998;52:8-9.
Rae C, et al. Brain biochemistry in Williams syndrome. Neuro. 1998;52:33-40.
Kruse K, et al. Calcium metabolism in Williams-Beuren syndrome. J Pediatr. 1992;121: 902-907.
Jones KL. Williams syndrome: an historical perspective of its evolution, natural history, and etiology. Am J Med Genet Suppl. 1990;6:89-96.
Holmstrom G, et al. The iris in Williams syndrome. Arch Dis Child. 1990;65:987-989.
Giddins NG, et al. The natural course of supravalvar aortic stenosis and peripheral pulmonary artery stenosis in Williams syndrome. Br Heart J. 1989;62:315-319.
Hallidie-Smith KA, et al. Cardiac anomalies in Williams-Beuren syndrome. Arch Dis Child. 1988;63:809-813.
Morris CA, et al. Natural history of Williams syndrome: physical characteristics. J Pediatr. 1988;113:318-326.
Pagon RA, et al. Williams syndrome: features in late childhood and adolescence. Pediatrics. 1987;80:85-91.
NORD strives to open new assistance programs as funding allows. If we don't have a program for you now, please continue to check back with us.
NORD and MedicAlert Foundation have teamed up on a new program to provide protection to rare disease patients in emergency situations.Learn more http://rarediseases.org/patient-assistance-programs/medicalert-assistance-program/
Ensuring that patients and caregivers are armed with the tools they need to live their best lives while managing their rare condition is a vital part of NORD's mission.Learn more http://rarediseases.org/patient-assistance-programs/rare-disease-educational-support/
This first-of-its-kind assistance program is designed for caregivers of a child or adult diagnosed with a rare disorder.Learn more http://rarediseases.org/patient-assistance-programs/caregiver-respite/
Powered by NORD, the IAMRARE Registry Platform® is driving transformative change in the study of rare disease. With input from doctors, researchers, and the US Food & Drug Administration, NORD has created IAMRARE to facilitate patient-powered natural history studies to shape rare disease research and treatments. The ultimate goal of IAMRARE is to unite patients and research communities in the improvement of care and drug development.


text:
Today I call for decisive action by the skateboard community: end varial flip discrimination.
We need to let go of these prejudices. Skateboarding will never be more ready: infamously opinionated magazines write "there are no rules in skateboarding," Lance Mountain said skateboarding is about more than "being good," boneless ones and no-complies are back en vogue. If there's any time to declare varial flip amnesty, it's right now.
Let's get the ugly part out of the way: Varial flips can be the worst. We all agree there. But they aren't the only trick with high "suck" potential.
Remember hardflips? People don't hate on that trick unless you do it a certain way. I don't know about everybody else, but I'm not really able to decide, "Oh, I want my tricks to look like…" whenever the skate punditry make their weird decisions about what's cool. But that's the point: skateboarding isn't about looking like everybody else.
Perhaps it's due to increased numbers of skateboarders taking cues from sports. But skateboarding isn't like football, where you do drills and follow a specific routine in order to out-drill and out-routine another, symmetrical group of players. It's not like ice-skating, where certain moves executed in a certain way are worth more points than other moves performed other ways. It's not a game you can be the best at, or win the most.
Skateboarding has always been subjective: if Paul Rodriguez put a hand down after landing a trick, it would look sloppy and weird. If Tony Trujillo puts a hand down after landing a trick, it would look the best.
"Forgive the varial flip, and let it into your heart."
In fact, some of the tricks we love the most have serious, serious potential for awfulness. Weird mobbed kickflips that look the worst when some park rat tries, look a lot like the best weird kickflips when it's the Gonz. Nobody can 360 flip like Jason Lee, but that hasn't stopped anyone, for better or worse. That's the whole point, right?
Look at it this way: Rodney Mullen says isolation was key to his learning and inventing basically every trick you're still trying to learn today. It makes sense, considering how awful skateboarders can be to each other when it comes to trick selection. And it explains why skateboarding got so boring for a while – as skate media started hitting YouTube, skate culture transformed from small pockets of people around the world learning how to redefine the world around them into a sporty toy lifestyle marketing gimmick.
Most of us turned to skateboarding because there was some freedom, even lawlessness, in it. So stop trying to make rules about what's cool and what isn't. Don't get mad. Learn new tricks.
Forgive the varial flip, and let it into your heart.
Related Posts
I back it. I love v-flips
in my town, varial flips are strictly referred to as "fresh flips"
whoop WHOOP!!!!!!!!
I call them "shove-it flips"
I like it.
Go away Tony
people who hate on varial flips but always get a letter on them in a game of skate are not american
chain wallets
whoop whoop!
Wallets made of chains? Weird.


text:
Leonardo da Vinci always assumed that his first way of looking at a problem was too biased toward his usual way of thinking. He would always look at a problem from at least three different perspectives to get a better understanding. It has been my observation that people who pride themselves on their ability to think logically and analytically ignore his advice and trust their usual way of thinking
Peter Cathcart Wason was a cognitive psychologist at University College, London who pioneered the Psychology of Reasoning. He progressed explanations as to why people make certain consistent mistakes in logical reasoning. The problem described below is a variation on the Wason selection task that was devised by Peter Wason. The Wason selection task was originally developed as a test of logical reasoning, but it has increasingly been used by psychologists to analyze the structure of human reasoning mechanisms.
Consider the following problem. Four cards are laid out with their faces displaying respectively, an E, a K, a 4 and a 7.
You are told that each card has a letter on one side and a number on the other. You are then given a rule, whose truth you are expected to evaluate. The rule is: "If a card has a vowel on one side, then it has an even number on the other." You are then allowed to turn over two, but only two, cards in order to determine whether the rule is correct as stated.
Which two cards do you turn over?
If you worked this problem silently, you will almost certainly miss it, as have the large percentage of subjects to whom it has been presented. Most subjects realize that there is no need to select the card bearing the consonant, since it is irrelevant to the rule; they also appreciate that it is essential to turn over the card with the vowel, for an odd number opposite would prove the rule incorrect.
The wording of the problem determines the perspective most people mentally default to almost immediately. Most people assume that the object is to examine the cards to ascertain that if a card has a vowel on one side, then it has an even number on the other; and if a card has an even number on one side, then it has a vowel on the other side. This assumption leads them to make the fatal error of picking the card with the even number, because the even number is mentioned in the rule. But, in fact, it is irrelevant whether there is a vowel or a consonant on the other side, since the rule does not take a stand on what must be opposite to even numbers.
On the other hand, it is essential to pick the card with the odd number on it. If that card has a consonant on it, the result is irrelevant. If, however, the card has a vowel on it, the rule in question has been proved incorrect, for the card must (according to the rule) have an even (and not an odd) number on it.
The content of this specific problem influenced the way we constructed our perception of the problem. This perception created the assumption that leads to error. This should give one pause about mentally defaulting to first impressions.
"If a card has a vowel on one side, then it has an even number on the other." Here we are working with letters and numbers. Transposing the words to read "If a card has an even number on one side, then………." Clarifies the problem and gives us a different perspective on even numbered cards. It becomes apparent that what even numbered cards have on the other side has no significance. The rule is only concerned with cards that have vowels on one side.
Sigmund Freud would "reframe" something to transform its meaning by putting it into a different framework or context than it has previously been perceived. For example, by reframing the "unconscious" as a part of him that was "infantile," Freud began to help his patients change the way they thought and reacted to their own behavior.
The important thing is not to persist with one way of looking at the problem. Consider the following interesting twist, again using four cards. This time, however, we reframe the problem by substituting journeys and modes of transportation for letters and numbers. Each card has a city on one side and a mode of transportation on the other.
This time, the cards have printed on them the legends, respectively, Los Angeles, New York, airplane, and car; and the rule is reframed to read: "Every time I go to Los Angeles, I travel by airplane. While this rule is identical to the number-letter version, it poses little difficulty for individuals. In fact, now 80 percent of subjects immediately realize the need to turn over the card with "car" on it.
Apparently, one realizes that if the card with "car" on it has the name "Los Angeles" on the back, the rule has been proved incorrect; whereas it is immaterial what it says on the back of the airplane since, as far as the rule is concerned, one can go to New York any way one wants.
Why is it that 80 percent of subjects get this problem right, whereas only 10 percent know which cards to turn over in the vowel-number version? By changing the content (cities and modes of transportation substituted for letters and numbers), we restructured the problem, which dramatically changed our reasoning. The structure of a problem colors our perspective and the way we think.
The significant point about this test is that we are incredibly bad at it. And it doesn't make much difference what the level of education is of the person taking the test. Moreover, even training in formal logic seems to make little difference to a person's performance. The mistake that we tend to make is fairly standard. People almost always recognize that they have to pick up the card with the vowel, but they fail to see that they also have to pick up the card with the odd number. They think instead that they have to pick up the card with the even number.
One of the most interesting things about this phenomenon is that even when the correct answer is pointed out, people feel resistance to it. It apparently feels "right" that the card with the even number should be picked up. It feels right because your initial perspective is biased toward the usual way of thinking. It is only when you look at it from different perspectives that you get a deeper understanding of the problem.


text:
Salaries continue their modest rise, while demand for workers with key tech skills coupled with business acumen keeps employers scrambling to find and keep talent.
It's poaching season at Truven Health Analytics. The Santa Barbara, Calif., company has been up to its eyeballs in new projects since the federal government's Medicaid business systems group enlisted Truven's help to improve its Web-enabled reporting systems.
With business booming, Randy Lum, director of Truven's software and database design group, needed two highly skilled developers -- fast. But the rules of supply and demand were not in his favor. Nearly half of all managers who are in the hiring mood are looking for developers, according to Computerworld's 2014 Salary Survey. So Lum took a tried-and-true course of action.
"I steal people," he says, "people that I've worked with in the past that I know are good. I'm not shy about that. If I can offer them something they're after, I won't hesitate."
In fact, five out of seven of his direct reports -- all senior-level computer scientists -- are former colleagues. Most of them are looking for job security, Lum says, but a competitive salary doesn't hurt either. Right now his staffers earn between $128,000 and $143,000 per year. Their unique skill sets make them well worth the price, he adds.
"It is difficult to find developers with the right mix of technology skills for what we do," he explains. "We're not a large group, and my development staff is expected to have a wide range of skills -- so they can work on any part of any project, ranging from database to the Web interface and everything in between."
IT employees who participated in Computerworld's annual salary survey share that view of the market. They say a shortage of IT workers with the right skills, an uptick in new projects and a shift in the way IT works with business units have given them renewed optimism about IT careers -- though salaries and bonuses are advancing slowly.
Read the full report: Computerworld IT Salary Survey 2014
Compensation and job security inch up
IT salaries continue to chug along, with pay increases averaging a modest 2.1%, according to the survey of 3,673 IT workers. Bonuses are up by an average of only 0.7%, slightly lower than the 0.9% increase seen in 2013.
On the bright side, companies are spreading pay increases among more IT workers. Some 60% of the respondents reported a raise, while only 8% reported a pay cut. That's slightly better than last year, when 57% reported raises and 9% reported pay cuts, but well above 2012, when less than half reported a raise.
As the economy has improved, the percentage of respondents who feel secure in their jobs has also inched up, from 57% in 2012 to 59% in 2013 and 61% this year. Workers are also more optimistic about IT as a career: In 2012, only 29% said they believed that a career path in IT and the potential for salary advancement was as promising as it was five years prior, but that percentage increased to 38% in 2013 and to 42% this year.
The rising optimism among IT pros coincides with an increase in the number of open positions and a shortage of workers with the skills to fill those jobs. But while some people are in high demand, others find themselves sitting on the sidelines.
Hot, hot, hot
For the third year in a row, application development was the most sought-after skill: 49% of all managers who expect to hire this year said it was on their wish list.
Help desk and IT support skills ranked second, with 44% of managers expecting to fill jobs in those areas this year. That's up from 37% in 2013 -- the biggest year-over-year increase in our survey.
Not surprisingly, some organizations are having a tough time meeting salary demands.
It took six months to find a do-it-all help desk staffer to meet the growing technology demands of the Monadnock Regional School District in Swanzey, N.H., says Neal Richardson, the district's director of technology.
"We had very highly qualified candidates; we just couldn't meet their salary requirements," which were $15,000 to $20,000 higher than the district could pay, he recalls. "We ended up going with [someone with] less experience."
Public school IT professionals once accepted lower salaries in return for perks such as low-cost insurance and summers off, Richardson says. But school boards are whittling those benefits away. For instance, IT jobs are now year-round positions, he says.
Third place on the list of the most in-demand skills saw a tie between business intelligence skills and database analysis and development expertise, with 29% of hiring managers saying they planned to increase staffing in those areas.
"All things data" are red hot, says David Foote, CEO at Foote Partners, an IT labor market analyst firm. Titles such as data administrator, database developer and database architect are grabbing recruiters' attention, especially for positions in larger companies.
Rounding out the top 10 in-demand skills among 2014 survey respondents were security, network administration, networking, cloud computing, Web design and development, and data management.
Headhunter calls, unfilled positions
With demand outpacing supply for many positions, more than half of our survey takers (54%) said a headhunter has contacted them in the past year.
"I get a lot of job offers from staffing companies and corporations that need a ton of DBAs and SQL administrators," says Erin Baker, CIO at payroll processing firm Fastpay Payroll in Lubbock, Texas. He says he receives five to 10 calls a year from recruiters, and "most often they're looking for SQL DBA or SQL programming skills."
Though some offers have been tempting, Baker says no company has been able to beat the perks of his current job, which include weekends off, flexible hours and the opportunity to work from home.
David Fitzgerald, network and security engineer at Ariad Pharmaceuticals in Boston, says he gets a call or an email from a recruiter "probably once a day." But like Baker, he doesn't see himself leaving his current employer anytime soon. "It's a small cancer-based pharma. They're doing good things for people," he says. "I have a great deal of autonomy. I can make a difference."
(Many survey respondents ranked intangible factors such as recognition for good work and a positive corporate culture as important aspects of their jobs. See " What Do IT Workers Want?")
All of those recruiter calls point to a growing challenge facing employers: It's taking them longer to fill open positions. Half of the managers surveyed by Computerworld said that it has taken at least three months to fill open IT positions in the last two years.
Story continues on next page >
The IT skills shortage is real
IT job watchers and HR consultants agree that there's a real skills shortage in the "hot" IT specialties because the number of projects that involve those types of work is exploding. And with many other IT positions, employers want the "perfect candidate" -- someone with a mix of tech expertise, problem-solving abilities and people skills. That's a tall order that keeps positions from being filled.
"Companies don't want the hard-core techie that sits off in the back room. They want the person that has those tech skills, but also someone they can put in the boardroom or in front of the business group," says John Reed, senior executive director at Robert Half Technology. "There aren't that many of those types of people."
Today, IT workers are "being thrust into a seat at the table," adds David Foote, CEO of Foote Partners. "The problem is, that seat requires a very different IT organization" -- one that can move with speed and agility -- and therefore a new hiring philosophy is also needed. For instance, Foote says, "the best companies are hiring software engineers who are also analysts because it's more efficient. You're doing it quicker, and it's strategic as well as tactical."
Lance Abla, principal systems engineer and specialist SE manager at EMC, spent more than six months finding the right candidates for three positions in EMC's presales consulting group. He says he's not seeking one specific skill but a wide range of knowledge in storage, networking, operating systems and "everything middleware and below."
"They have to be able to talk intelligently to C-level execs and customers, and make a case for why we should assist that customer in not only the services and software, but the hardware that they use to run their IT platforms. It's pretty hard to find people who have that breadth and depth of knowledge," not to mention the personality and professionalism that's required for the job, he says. "That quality where everyone perks up when they speak, or when they enter a room they have this presence -- I can't teach those things."
While positions remain unfilled, the projects are piling up for current IT employees. Some 26% of respondents said that in the past year their working conditions were significantly affected by unfilled open positions, compared to 20% in 2013. One-third of survey takers said they were affected by new understaffed projects.
Solutions architect senior manager Dane Bamburry received a 3% raise this year from his employer, Cox Enterprises, the same pay increase he had last year -- but he also got an 18% bonus for his efforts on two major internal cross-divisional projects that required him to work an extra five or six hours several days a week.
"In my immediate department we have a shortage of employees right now," says Bamburry. "I'm trying to procure funding to add additional staff."
Bamburry, who oversees a staff of five, says he fields eight to 10 phone calls a year from headhunters looking to poach employees with technology strategy skills -- especially people focused on mobility and cloud. "Those are the buzzwords of today," he says.
But he chooses to work the extra hours and stay with the company because he likes his team. "We have a good group of people, very collaborative, and a positive environment," he explains. "The career and growth potential so far have been good. If you have a good working environment with people you get along with, that's always a big plus."
Skills cooling off
Even as the need for some tech skills rises or stays steady, demand for others is cooling off. Staffing firm Robert Half Technology sees the biggest declines in mainframe and midrange computing skills like Cobol and AS/400 as the migration away from mainframe computing environments to Web and mobile systems continues, says John Reed, senior executive director at RHT.
Mainframes aren't disappearing, of course, but employers won't be paying top dollar for mainframe support. "I have mainframe guys on my team who clearly have not begun to recognize that they haven't maintained skills that are marketable outside of a small subset of the world," Abla says.
Story continues on next page >
Tips for keeping the talent you have
While many IT workers are choosing to stay with their current employers for now, the trend may not last much longer. "Recruiters are very active now," says David Foote, CEO of Foote Partners, "so companies that have never had retention problems are really having problems now."
John Reed, senior executive director at Robert Half Technology, says companies can encourage employees to stay by creating an environment where open communication is welcomed.
He advises managers to build career road maps for the key people on their teams and then offer them the training and experience they'll need to reach their goals.
"Managers also have to sit down with people on their teams and get a gauge on how satisfied they are with their jobs," he adds. "Pay attention to work-life balance. Most managers want to address concerns before [employees] come in and just resign."
And while quality assurance is still very important in the software development life cycle, demand for QA specialists has slumped a bit as organizations are asking software developers to do their own QA work. As a result, "we have seen a decrease in [demand for] black box testing skills to a degree," Reed says.
Demand is also declining for skills tied to other technologies that seem to be on the way out, such as Windows XP, BlackBerry OS and desktop publishing tools used by technical writers, Reed says.
Nonetheless, Abla says, many job seekers still tout outdated experience. "There are people saying, 'I'm Microsoft certified and a good Windows server admin.' That was interesting five years ago, but not now," he says.
The same goes for many IT professionals who specialize in networking and operating systems. "You see people that have 'camped' there and haven't noticed the changes in the industry. Their resumes and experience show they've sat around and are now asking to be picked up and moved forward," Abla says. "It's not likely that I'm going to do that for them."
Changes in the skills that are in demand are happening more rapidly than ever, Abla warns. "You don't get five years to figure it out," he says. "You get months to figure it out."


text:
Apple may be working on a product that uses flexible glass displays, as evidenced by a job listing that temporarily appeared on the company's site. The listing, seen by several sites and screengrabbed by 9to5Mac before its removal, showed Apple searching for a senior optical engineer to work in the Santa Clara Valley, further fueling rumors that Apple is planning to launch a wearable device that would make use of curved glass—like an "iWatch."
Apple said it's looking for someone to "lead the investigation on emerging display technologies such as high optical efficiency LCD, AMOLED, and flexible display to improve overall display optical performance." The key qualifications included in-depth understanding of optical design, viewing angles, color management, and other elements so the candidate could "[a]nalyze the trade-offs between design, process, optical performance, and implementation feasibility" of such displays.
Aside from the iWatch, it has also been rumored that Apple might include curved glass on a future version of the iPhone thanks to a recently published patent application. The application, published last month by the USPTO, described a device that makes use of a flexible display assembly with transparent housing; the attached drawings show examples of different shapes, though some are less likely to show up in an iPhone than others.
Neither patent applications nor job listings automatically translate to immediate product launches. Apple could very well be putting more manpower into researching flexible glass and other display technology before deciding whether to move forward with it in a consumer-facing product. Whatever the case, the now-removed listing at least hints at where Apple's attention is focused at the moment. But let's enter our fantasy worlds right now: if Apple were planning to put flexible/curved displays into its products, where would you most like to see them?


text:
Confirmed: The electric VW Microbus is coming in 2022
It's finally happening — and no, we can't believe it either!
For years, Volkswagen has teased retro microbus concepts with no intent to put them into production. But the teases are over. VW just announced that it's definitely going to put an all-electric microbus, the I.D. Buzz, into production in 2022.
The I.D. Buzz's concept form was shown earlier this year at the Detroit Auto Show, but we production were thin. Then media reports suggested that VW brand chief Herbert Diess was actually pushing to get the I.D. Buzz into production. Apparently, Diess got his way.
The I.D. Buzz will ride on Volkswagen's new modular electric-car platform (dubbed MEB), that made its debut at CES in January 2016. This platform, which is set to make its production-car debut in the I.D. hatchback in 2020, integrates its battery in the floorpan, just like a Tesla. The I.D. Buzz will also get optional all-wheel drive, with electric motors at the front and rear axles.
It's this clever packaging that allows the Buzz to exist at all. With all of its drivetrain components mounted low in the chassis, VW is free to make a vehicle with very short overhangs and an incredibly spacious interior, just like the original. And unlike the original, this one will meet modern crash safety standards — something VW couldn't do with a modern, internal-combustion powered Bus.
VW says the Buzz has the exterior dimensions of a compact cargo van on the outside while offering the interior space of a large SUV. And speaking of cargo, VW will make delivery van version of the I.D. Buzz.
When the I.D. Buzz reaches production, it should feature reconfigurable seating like the concept we saw earlier this year and it will offer Level 3 autonomous driving. That's not full autonomy as it requires the human behind the driver's seat to pay attention, but the I.D. Buzz will handling steering, braking, and acceleration on its own in certain scenarios.
Expect to see the I.D. Buzz in US dealers sometime in 2022, shortly after the I.D. hatchback hits the market.


text:
Brown County Judge Marc Hammer ruled against the Oneida Seven Generations Corporation in a lawsuit against the city of Green Bay over the rescinding of a conditional use permit for a waste-to-energy facility. In circuit court Wednesday, OSGC claimed that the city had no authority to pull the permit since they did not violate the permit. However the city argued, and the judge agreed, that OSGC made misrepresentations about the west-side plant in attaining the permit.
Oneida Seven Generations Corp. CEO Kevin Cornelius made several statements about no emissions and no smokestacks that Judge Walsh felt were wrong. The judge also took issue of a OSG's artist rendering of what the building could look like. The picture featured no smokestacks or exhaust pipes as OSG would later call them.
Attorneys with OSGC implied during court that if the city's actions were upheld, they would seek damages in a separate lawsuit. That figure is reported to be between $4 and $5 million. OSG lawyers also hinted at a possible appeal after the ruling.
Oneida Seven Generations is the economic development arm for the Oneida Tribe. Tribal Councilman Ed Delgado spoke briefly afterwards. "The Oneida Tribe values and will continues to value it's relationship with the city of Green Bay and people of Green Bay. We are obviously disappointed and we will consider our options as we go forward," said Delgado.


text:
The Philadelphia Church Project is a unique website that describes itself as a "wild and wacky guide to the best religious architecture the city has to offer." The site offers the following questions for readers to ponder:
What does a building mean to you? Is it just a thing, a purely physical being? Or is there substance beyond the bricks and mortar? Might there be something more there—something more than the sum of its parts?
The site author visits various churches in and around Philadelphia and provides a glimpse into the history, architecture, and current status of the parish. Most of the churches are Roman Catholic, but several Protestant churches have also been visited. While the primary focus is the wonderful architecture of these old churches, the site also offers a comical take on the neighborhood or history of the area.
In addition to the Philadelphia Church Project website, there is also a Philadelphia Church Project blog. The blog offers additional photos – sometimes of the vintage variety – and information. Sample the site with these posts:
Assumption, Inside Out – an eerie and amazing photograph of the now-defunct Assumption BVM
Time Warp: St. Bonaventure – vintage photographs of another closed gem
As a genealogist with solid Catholic roots in Philadelphia, these sites are wonderful in documenting some of the grand churches of my ancestors' neighborhoods. Take, for example, the Project's page on St. Adalbert's. The parish was founded in 1904 – and my great-grandfather was one of the founding parishoners. While you won't find out that sort of information on the Project's pages, they will help you "see" some of the churches of your ancestors!
Even if you are not from Philadelphia, if you have an interest in architecture I encourage you to browse the site and see what our city has to offer.


text:
Amazing! You rock for helping to spread the word about KidsClasses.com being a place to request classes in your area. Keep it up and it will become THE source for people to list their classes for you to find sooo much easier.
KIDS CLASSES and LESSONS REQUESTED / WANTED by subscribers and visitors:
SEND IN YOUR REQUESTED CLASS (updated as they come in)....
Wish to POST CLASSES and LESSONS you offer?
$5.00 a year per listing * You are allowed one change each year. If you need more than one change, it's $5 per change.
*Once payment is received, you'll be emailed within 24 hours to have your listing details requested.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
» Have questions? Need a website?
Contact Wendy Shepherd
Kids Classes is promoted online through multiple websites, including the very targeted family-friendly sites - ChartJungle.com and TipzTime.com
with over 50k newsletter subscribers run by homeschool teacher, Wendy Shepherd , who has 11 years internet experience.
Kids Classes full system will be built as needed. KidsClasses.com has the right to change the way classes are listed and the prices charged for listings.
Agriculture, anthropology, archaeology,
architecture, arts, astronomy, biology, botany, business, chemistry, civics,
communications, computer, conservation,
construction, economics, education, engineering, english, environment, finance, floral, geography, geology, health, history, home economics, language, law, literature,
management, manufacturing, marketing, math, music, performing arts, philosophy, physical education, physics, psychology, religion, science, sociology, sports,
statistics, technology, theology, transportation.
Arts include animation, architecture, bodyart,
ceramics, classicial, comedy, costumes, culinary, dance, fashion, floral,
graphic design, interior, movies, filmmaking, film, music, photography, storytelling, theater, theatre, video, visual arts.
Sports include archery, badminton, baseball,
basketball, bowling, boxing, cheerleading, cricket, croquet, cycling, darts,
equestrian, fencing, fishing, football, golf, gymnastics,
hockey, lacrosse, martial arts, racquetball, jump rope, double dutch, running, skateboarding, skating, soccer, softball, squash, tennis, track, volleyball, snowboard, skiing, wrestling.
Classes for Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas,
Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico,
New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia,
Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming. Classes also for Canada, England, UK, Scotland, New Zealand, Australia, Japan, and much much more!
2006-2008 © All Rights Reserved. | CEO / FOUNDER | Wendy Shepherd - Studio Matrix - Privacy


text:
Box Fort
Pee ess - Would you believe the pharmacy is out of one of the medicines Mom Paula needs and the other medication the insurance doesn't want to pay for? Mom Paula isn't too happy right now (in between coughing).
Would you like to comment?
Mom Paula putting the boxes on the bed just made the fort that much more funReplyDelete
Oh I hope things get sorted out so she can feel better! I love your boxes!ReplyDelete
Aw man, that is awful for your human! I hope that all gets worked out soon 'cause I want to see your human getting better!ReplyDelete
Yes, we have MANY boxes that the humans here can't throw out because we need them... heh heh hehReplyDelete
Box fortresses are super fun!!! Hope your Mum lets you keep them forever!ReplyDelete
~Slash & Bronzy
Kitties ignoring boxes? MOL! Putting them on the bed makes it even MORE fun! Jump up on the bed then jump in the boxes!ReplyDelete
It's time that your mom officially puts your names on your boxes so you each have your own fort. Then you can start decorating them.ReplyDelete
Well now you know, boxes on beds are like boxes on floors.ReplyDelete
We hope the pharmacy can get your medicine quickly, Mom Paula. And just when you thought the new medicines might be what you need to help you get all better. Guess we need to get out the purryers again.
We think those boxes could be the start of a fort like Pierro and Miles have (which is the best box fort on the planet). :-)ReplyDelete
You girls look as though you are having great fun in your box fort. Your Mom will have to collect more boxes on her travels.ReplyDelete
We hope you can get your meds sorted out Paula and start to get rid of that cough.
Luv Hannah and Lucy xx xx
Well of course you two would never ignore such a cool box fort! I sure hope your Mom gets better soon.ReplyDelete
We think a movable Box Fort is even more fun!!!ReplyDelete
We hope Mom Paula can get the meds she needs to get better!!!
The Florida Furkids
it is way more fun to make the mom think you are ignoring the boxes and see if they move.... :)ReplyDelete
stupid insurance companies... hope Mom Paula is feeling better soon
oh yeh, moving boxes to another location is like a brand new box altogethers !!!!! hehehe. you guys look SO adorable - squeeeeee!ReplyDelete
Insurants can be a pain, we agree. One of mommy's meds is not paid for by her insurants, either. Luckily it's not too too expensive. Less than what she pays for her insulin (but everything she takes doesn't add up to that!) So I am sending purrs and purrayers and (((hugs))) to help your mommy along.ReplyDelete
What amazing fort you have!!!!!!!!!ReplyDelete
Boxes are too much fun!ReplyDelete
Bummer on the scripts that your Mom needs!
Luf, Us
Well, we can see why you like those boxes so much! And we hope Mom Paula can find her medicines.ReplyDelete
Boxes are always the most fun.ReplyDelete
Aren't boxes the bestest of the best!!!!ReplyDelete
Wanted to let you know that I am going to participate in Sweet Praline's diva day. And in honor of that I changes my profile to honor her. How do you like it?
Gracie - thank you for participating in "Show Your Diva" day. We love your profile picture!ReplyDelete
Truffle and Brulee
Isn't that typical of things: the medicine that may help end the coughing is unavailable. How long until they get it in? Or can they?ReplyDelete
By leaving a comment you are consenting to your email being collected for communication purposes only.
Thank you for visiting us today!