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By Victor Hugo
The church of Notre-Dame at Paris is doubtless still a sublime and majestic building. But, much beauty as it may retain in its old age, it is not easy to repress a sigh, to restrain our anger, when we mark the countless defacements and mutilations to which men and time have subjected that venerable monument, without respect for Charlemagne, who laid its first stone, or Philip Augustus, who laid its last….
Upon the face of this aged queen of French cathedrals, beside every wrinkle we find a scar. "Tempus edax, homo edacior;" which I would fain translate thus: "Time is blind, but man is stupid." Had we leisure to study with the reader, one by one, the various marks of destruction graven upon the ancient church, the work of Time would be the lesser, the worse that of Men, especially of "men of art," since there are persons who have styled themselves architects during the last two centuries.
And first of all, to cite but a few glaring instances, there are assuredly few finer pages in the history of architecture than that facade where the three receding portals with their pointed arches, the carved and denticulated plinth with its twenty-eight royal niches, the huge central rose-window flanked by its two lateral windows as is the priest by his deacon and subdeacon, the lofty airy gallery of trifoliated arcades supporting a heavy platform upon its slender columns, and lastly the two dark and massive towers with their pent-house roofs of slate, harmonious parts of a magnificent whole, one above the other, five gigantic stages, unfold themselves to the eye, clearly and as a whole, with their countless details of sculpture, statuary, and carving, powerfully contributing to the calm grandeur of the whole; as it were, a vast symphony in stone; the colossal work of one man and one nation, one and yet complex, like the Iliad and the old Romance epics, to which it is akin; the tremendous sum of the joint contributions of all the force of an entire epoch, in which every stone reveals, in a hundred forms, the fancy of the workman disciplined by the genius of the artist--a sort of human creation, in brief, powerful and prolific as the Divine creation, whose double characteristics, variety and eternity, it seems to have acquired.
And what we say of the facades, we must also say of the whole church; and what we say of the cathedral church of Paris must be said of all the Christian churches of the Middle Ages. Everything is harmonious which springs from spontaneous, logical, and well-proportioned art. To measure a toe, is to measure the giant.
Let us return to the facade of Notre-Dame as we see it at the present day, when we make a pious pilgrimage to admire the solemn and mighty cathedral, which, as its chroniclers declare, inspires terror. This facade now lacks three important things: first, the eleven steps which formerly raised it above the level of the ground; next, the lower series of statues which filled the niches over the doors; and lastly, the upper row of the twenty- eight most ancient kings of France, which adorned the gallery of the first story, from Childebert down to Philip Augustus, each holding in his hand "the imperial globe."
The stairs were destroyed by Time, which, with slow and irresistible progress, raised the level of the city's soil; but while this flood-tide of the pavements of Paris swallowed one by one the eleven steps which added to the majestic height of the edifice, Time has perhaps given to the church more than it took away, for it is Time which has painted the front with that sober hue of centuries which makes the antiquity of churches their greatest beauty.
But who pulled down the two rows of statues? Who left those empty niches? Who carved that new and bastard pointed arch in the very center of the middle door? Who dared to insert that clumsy, tasteless, wooden door, carved in the style of Louis XV., side by side with the arabesques of Biscornette? Who but men, architects, the artists of our day?
And if we step into the interior of the edifice, who overthrew that colossal figure of Saint Christopher, proverbial among statues by the same right as the great hall of the palace among halls, as the spire of Strasburg among steeples? And those myriad statues which peopled every space between the columns of the choir and the nave, kneeling, standing, on horseback, men, women, children, kings, bishops, men-at-arms--of stone, of marble, of gold, of silver, of copper, nay even of wax--who brutally swept them away? It was not the hand of Time.
And who replaced the old Gothic altar, with its splendid burden of shrines and reliquaries, by that heavy marble sarcophagus adorned with clouds and cherubs, looking like a poor copy of the Val-de-Grace or the Hotel des Invalides? Who was stupid enough to fasten that clumsy stone anachronism into the Carlovingian pavement of Hercandus? Was it not Louis XIV., fulfilling the vow of Louis XIII.?
And who set cold white panes in place of that stained glass of gorgeous hue, which led the wondering gaze of our fathers to roam uncertain 'twixt the rose-window of the great door and the ogives of the chancel? And what would a precentor of the sixteenth century say if he could see the fine coat of yellow wash with which our Vandal archbishops have smeared their cathedral? He would remember that this was the color with which the executioner formerly painted those buildings judged "infamous;" he would recall the hotel of the Petit-Bourbon, bedaubed with yellow in memory of the Constable's treason; "a yellow of so fine a temper," says Sauval, "and so well laid on, that more than a hundred years have failed to wash out its color." He would fancy that the sacred spot had become accursed, and would turn and flee.
And if we climb higher in the cathedral, without pausing to note a thousand barbarous acts of every kind, what has become of that delightful little steeple which rested upon the point of intersection of the transept, and which, no less fragile and no less daring than its neighbor, the spire of the Sainte-Chapelle, (also destroyed), rose yet nearer heaven than the towers, slender, sharp, sonorous, and daintily wrought?
An architect of good taste (1787) amputated it, and thought it quite enough to cover the wound with that large leaden plaster which looks like the lid of a stewpan. Thus was the marvelous art of the Middle Ages treated in almost every land, but particularly in France. We find three sorts of injury upon its ruins, these three marring it to different depths; first, Time, which has made insensible breaches here and there, mildewed and rusted the surface everywhere; then, political and religious revolutions, which, blind and fierce by nature, fell furiously upon it, rent its rich array of sculpture and carving, shivered its rose-windows, shattered its necklaces of arabesques and quaint figures, tore down its statues--sometimes because of their crown; lastly, changing fashion, even more grotesque and absurd, from the anarchic and splendid deviations of the Renaissance down to the necessary decline of architecture.
Fashion did more than revolutions. Fashion cut into the living flesh, attacked the very skeleton and framework of art; it chopped and hewed, dismembered, slew the edifice, in its form as well as in its symbolism, in its logic no less than in its beauty. But fashion restored, a thing which neither time nor revolution ever pretended to do. Fashion, on the plea of "good taste," impudently adapted to the wounds of Gothic architecture the paltry gewgaws of a day,--marble ribbons, metallic plumes, a veritable leprosy of egg-shaped moldings, of volutes, wreaths, draperies, spirals, fringes, stone flames, bronze clouds, lusty cupids, and bloated cherubs, which began to ravage the face of art in the oratory of Catherine de Medici, and destroyed it, two centuries later, tortured and distorted, in the Dubarry's boudoir.
There are thus, to sum up the points to which we have alluded, three sorts of scars now disfiguring Gothic architecture; wrinkles and warts upon the epidermis--these are the work of time; wounds, brutal injuries, bruises, and fractures--these are the work of revolution, from Luther to Mirabeau; mutilations, amputations, dislocations of the frame, "restorations,"-- these are the Greek, Roman barbaric work of professors according to Vitruvius and Vignole. Academies have murdered the magnificent art which the Vandals produced. To centuries, to revolutions which at least laid waste with impartiality and grandeur, are conjoined the host of scholastic architects, licensed and sworn, degrading all they touch with the discernment and selection of bad taste, substituting the tinsel of Louis XV. for Gothic lace-work, for the greater glory of the Parthenon. This is the donkey's kick at the dying lion. It is the old oak, decaying at the crown, pierced, bitten and devoured by caterpillars.
How different from the time when Robert Cenalis, comparing Notre Dame at Paris to the famous temple of Diana at Ephesus; "so loudly boasted by the ancient pagans," which immortalized Herostratus, held the cathedral of the Gauls to be "more excellent in length, breadth, height, and structure!"
Notre Dame at Paris is not, however, what can be called a complete, definite monument, belonging to a class. It is neither a Roman nor a Gothic church. The edifice is not a typical one. It has not, like the abbey at Tournus, the sober massive breadth, the round expansive arch, the icy bareness, the majestic simplicity of those buildings based on the semicircular arch. It is not, like the cathedral at Bourges, the magnificent, airy, multiform, bushy, sturdy, efflorescent product of the pointed arch.
It is impossible to class it with that antique order of dark, mysterious, low-studded churches, apparently crusht by the semicircular arch--almost Egyptian, save for the ceiling; all hieroglyphic, all sacerdotal, all symbolic, more loaded in their ornamentation with lozenges and zigzags than with flowers, with flowers than with animals, with animals than with men; less the work of the architect than of the bishop; the first transformation of the art, bearing the deep impress of theocratic and military discipline, taking root in the Lower Empire, and ceasing with William the Conqueror. It is impossible to place our cathedral in that other family of lofty, aerial churches, rich in stained glass and sculpture; of pointed forms and daring attitudes; belonging to the commoners and plain, citizens, as political symbols; free, capricious, lawless, as works of art; the second transformation of architecture, no longer hieroglyphic, unchangeable, sacerdotal, but artistic, progressive, and popular, beginning with the close of the Crusades and ending with Louis XI. Notre Dame at Paris is not of purely Roman race like the former, nor of purely Arab breed like the latter.
It is a building of the transition period. The Saxon architect had just reared the pillars of the nave, when the pointed arch, brought back from the Crusades, planted itself as conqueror upon those broad Roman capitals which were never meant to support anything but semicircular arches. The pointed arch, thenceforth supreme, built the rest of the church. And still, inexperienced and shy at first, it swelled, it widened, it restrained itself, and dared not yet shoot up into spires and lancets, as it did later on in so many marvelous cathedrals. It seemed sensible of the close vicinity of the heavy Roman columns.
Moreover, these buildings of the transition from Roman to Gothic are no less valuable studies than the pure types. They express a gradation of the art which would otherwise be lost. They represent the ingrafting of the pointed arch upon the semicircular.
Notre Dame at Paris, in particular, is a curious example of this variety. Every face, every stone of the venerable monument is a page not only of the history of the country, but also of the history of science and art. Thus, to allude only to leading details, while the little Porte Rouge attains the almost extreme limit of the Gothic refinement of the fifteenth century, the pillars of the nave, in their size and gravity of style, go back to the Carlovingian Abbey of Saint-Germain des Pres. One would say that there was an interval of six centuries between that door and those pillars. Even the Hermetics find among the symbols of the great door a satisfactory epitome of their science, of which the Church of St. Jacques de la Boucherie formed so complete a hieroglyph.
Thus, the Roman abbey, the philosopher's church, Gothic art, Saxon art, the clumsy round pillar, which recalls Gregory VII., the hermetic symbolism by which Nicholas Flamel paved the way for Luther, papal unity, schism, Saint-Germain des Pres, Saint-Jacques de la Boucherie, are all confounded, combined and blended in Notre Dame. This central and generative church is a kind of chimera among the old churches of Paris; it has the head of one, the limbs of another, the trunk of a third, something of all.
Considering here Christian European architecture only, that younger sister of the grand piles of the Orient, we may say that it strikes the eye as a vast formation divided into three very distinct zones or layers, one resting upon the other; the Roman zone, (the same which is also known according to place, climate, and species, as Lombard, Saxon, and Byzantine. There are the four sister forms of architecture, each having its peculiar character, but all springing from the same principle, the semicircular arch,) the Gothic zone, the zone of the Renaissance, which may be called the Greco-Roman. The Roman stratum, which is the oldest and the lowest, is occupied by the semicircular arch, which reappears, together with the Greek column, in the modern and uppermost stratum of the Renaissance. The painted arch is between the two. The buildings belonging to any one of these three strata are perfectly distinct, uniform, and complete. Such are the Abbey of Jumieges, the Cathedral of Rheims, the Church of the Holy Cross at Orleans. But the three zones are blended and mingled at the edges, like the colors in the solar spectrum.
Hence, we have certain complex structures, buildings of gradation and transition, which may be Roman at the base, Gothic in the middle, and Greco-Roman at the top. This is caused by the fact that it took six hundred years to build such a fabric. This variety is rare. The donjon- keep at Etampes is a specimen. But monuments of two formations are more frequent. Such is Notre-Dame at Paris, a structure of the pointed arch, its earliest columns leading directly to that Roman zone, of which the portals of Saint-Denis and the nave of Saint-Germain des Pres are perfect specimens. Such is the charming semi-Gothic chapter-house of Boucherville, where the Roman layer reaches midway. Such is the cathedral of Rouen, which would be wholly Gothic if the tip of its central spire did not dip into the zone of the Renaissance. [3]
However, all these gradations and differences affect the surface only of an edifice. Art has but changed its skin. The construction itself of the Christian church is not affected by them. The interior arrangement, the logical order of the parts, is still the same. Whatever may be the carved and nicely-wrought exterior of a cathedral, we always find beneath it, if only in a rudimentary and dormant state, the Roman basilica. It rises forever from the ground in harmony with the same law.
There are invariably two naves intersecting each other in the form of a cross, the upper end being rounded into a chancel or choir; there are always side aisles, for the processions and for chapels, a sort of lateral galleries or walks, into which the principal nave opens by means of the spaces between the columns. This settled, the number of chapels, doors, steeples, and spires may be modified indefinitely, according to the fancy of the century, the people, and the art. The performance of divine service once provided for and assured, architecture acts its own pleasure. Statues, stained glass, rose-windows, arabesques, denticulations, capitals, and bas-reliefs,--it combines all these flowers of the fancy according to the logarithm that suits it best. Hence the immense variety in the exteriors of those structures within which dwell such unity and order. The trunk of the tree is fixt; the foliage is variable.


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Many of those alternate alternatives are made from artificial materials that replicate the appear and feel of down. Primaloft Comforters, for instance, are produced from a hypoallergenic artificial material that has verified being a close to match to along in warmth and comfort. Primaloft Comforters are readily offered On the Company Shop, Eddie Bauer and Property's Stop.

subset: commoncrawl


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Well, America, it's that time again — vacation time! But don't worry. President Obama's not gonna stop being presidential:
WH posts Pres Obama's vacation sked: Aug 9-Aug 24. He'll interrupt his Martha's Vineyard stay for 3 days Aug 17-19 to return to WH for mtgs.
— Mark Knoller (@markknoller) August 7, 2014
See? He'll be back for meetings. So he'll totes be around to take care of important business. Or at least whine about Congress.
@markknoller Sorry to hear that. After all his fundraising/golf he needs a full 15 days off. 🙁 @IngrahamAngle @marthamaccallum @BillHemmer
— Marc Hoover (@MarcHoover1) August 7, 2014
Hey, who said anything about needing a break from golf?
@markknoller is "mtgs" shorthand for "Fort Belvoir golf"
— Razor (@hale_razor) August 7, 2014
Let's just say we wouldn't be surprised if the answer is yes.
Seqhatevwr: Politico reports that Obamas are planning Martha's Vineyard vacay
President Obama rallies troops for #ActionAugust, plans Martha's Vineyard getaway
It's a 'treat!' Journos squee over Obama's Vineyard golf outing (Plus mock-worthy pic)
With boss on vacation, White House solicits questions about Obama's agenda
President Obama socks it to the rich on Martha's Vineyard [pics]
White House: Serious You Guys, we have proof Obama is on the Egypt situation [photo]
Leading from behind? Obama brings up the rear on bike ride after Egypt briefing [pics]
'Yeah, right': Dana Loesch reminds Obama what there's still time to do before vacation starts


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Topped by a gorgeous Romanesque-Gothic cathedral – the most sacred in Wales – and surrounded by the undulating hills and wild bays of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, it's hard to imagine a more enticing spot for culture-loving outdoorsy types than Saint David's. The cosy cottages and traditional Saint David's holiday rentals that dot the town offer a step-up to wind-blasted paths and wave-washed beaches, where dolphins swim just off the shore. But they are also a ticket to half-ruined medieval sights, like the Bishop's Palace, to local fudge stores and enchanting Welsh tearooms.
Saint David's is the most sacred city in Wales. It's the burial place of the national patron – St. David – a fact that still inspires pilgrims to flock to the handsome Saint David's Cathedral throughout the year. That's surely the top sight in town, oozing 1,500 years of history from its Romanesque towers and crumbling Bishop's Palace. Once you're done getting a fix of heritage, the green hills of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park promise a whole load of other treats – think windblown long-distance hiking routes and the rolling surf swells of Whitesands Beach.
If you're looking for Saint David's holiday rentals close to the coast, then a whole wonderland of wild Welsh landscapes awaits. Lace the walking boots up tight – it can get blustery on the Wales Coastal Path, which wiggles around the clifftops by Ramsey Island. Also, be sure to bring the waterproofs – it's likely you'll find yourself riding the whitecaps out to see dolphins and seals and porpoises on one of the famous local marine safaris. Birdwatching and visits to nearby farms are also on the menu.
All the elemental forces of classic Welsh weather come to bear on Saint David's. Set just a stone's throw from the wild swells of the Celtic Sea, it takes its fair share of lashing storms and rain in the winter months between November and March. Spring is often considered the best time to visit, when the daffodils are in bloom and national St. David's Day celebrations erupt on the streets. Summer is gorgeous, too. It goes from June through to August, ushering in the best beach weather and temperatures that sit in the 20s – an umbrella will still be needed, though.
You might not think it as you stare out at the verdant hills of farms and forests from the bedroom of Saint David's holiday rentals, but this small city is encompassed on 3 sides by the sea. You only have to trundle over the ridges to the north, south or west and you come to the courses of the Wales Coast Path. That wriggles atop wave-blasted cliffs and cuts through hardy meadows of seagrasses, revealing glimpses of dolphins, seals and more in the Celtic Sea, below. Wide bays, like Whitesands Beach, and the birding haven of Ramsey Island, are nearby nature hotspots.
Our 2020 accommodation listings offer a large selection of 280 holiday lettings around St Davids. From 123 cottages to 242 houses, find unique self catering accommodation for you to enjoy a memorable stay with your family and friends for a long holiday or a weekend break.
Vrbo UK offers a large selection of holiday accommodations near great places in St Davids. From Vrbo UK travellers, the most popular points of interest to stay near are:
But there are many other points of interest around St Davids listed on Vrbo UK where you can find your place to stay. Please use our search bar to access the selection of holiday rentals available near the point of interest of your choice.
Yes, of course. Vrbo UK offers 123 Cottages in St Davids. Our other popular types of St Davids holiday rentals include:
But you can also enjoy a great stay in one of our other holiday rentals including Barns and more.
Yes, you can select your preferred holiday accommodation with pool among our 4 holiday homes with pool available in St Davids. Please use our search bar to access the selection of holiday rentals available.


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and family counseling can be very beneficial for many types of families. In
fact, some families seek marriage counseling advice, in the absence of
difficulties between spouses. In some cases, children present parents with
unique difficulties and parents may attend marriage and family counseling in
order to be sure that they can handle those problems effectively.
a child that has learning difficulties, may require special care and attention
from their parents and those parents may seek marriage counseling advice to be
sure that their marriage is not adversely effected by that difficulty.
most marriage and family counseling results when spouses are having
difficulties in their relationship, which adversely effect the family as a
whole. Even in that case, other family members may attend counseling sessions
in order to ensure that the entire family unit becomes more effective at
handling every day issues and serious difficulties.
Marriage and family counseling can be utilized by couples in many different
circumstances. In fact, marriage counseling advice if often beneficial to many
families, as each family is likely to encounter unique difficulties.
First, couples can decide if their family unit is better served by them staying
together or by them separating.
communicate with their children, in a manner that serves the interests of all
family members. Usually, marriage and family counseling can help families
achieve stronger bonds, no matter what the outcome is. Many couples do not
realize the way that their relationships is effecting their children. In fact,
children that attend family counseling, often find increased self esteem and a
better ability of resolving conflicts.
they are not the cause of marriage problems. This can be vital to the
psychological health of every family member. In addition, extended family can
benefit form marriage and family counseling, due to increase communication and
mutual respect, over all. In some cases, the major benefit of marriage counseling
advice is that couples realize that the family is better off if spouses
marriages often prolong any difficulties that could be avoided by divorce.
However, the couples that divorce after marriage counseling advice, are more
likely to have an amicable divorce in which both spouses work to provide for
the best interests of the family unit.
Marriage and family counseling, can have benefits for the entire family unit,
as well as individual family members. First, it helps couples to decide if they
should stay together or not. In addition, family members learn effective
conflict resolution, which will be carried over into other aspects of their
that all family members care very deeply for each other, even when they are
disagreeing or unable to resolve conflict. In any case, family members
generally leave marriage and family counseling with a better understanding
of other family members and of themselves.


text:
Early Tuesday morning, as the newly inaugurated Dallas City Council started feeling its way through its first real meeting, South Oak Cliff representative Casey Thomas recited the obligatory post-election refrain.
"Campaign season is over," Thomas said. "We're here to govern now."
Whether that's true — a handful of his colleagues will see their reelection fights get rolling about a year from now, whether they like it or not — it was clear Tuesday that the biggest point of contention for the new council is going to be the same as the biggest issue of Dallas' municipal election this spring.
The first term for this council, and the budget battle they'll have this fall, is all going to be about police — how many Dallas should have, how the city should keep the ones it's got and how the city should hire as many new ones as it can, as quickly as possible.
The basics, city staff and Dallas police Chief U. Renee Hall revealed Tuesday, remain largely the same as this time last year.
Dallas Police Department staffing is still hovering around 3,000 officers, down about 700 from its peak in 2011. Despite an across-the-board pay increase that guarantees every officer in the department at least a $60,000 salary, DPD is up only a net of 29 officers in the current fiscal year. The department's long-awaited staffing study, Hall said, should be ready for public release in early August.
Several members of the council seemed confused Tuesday, despite the study having been in the works for almost two years, about what exactly it's supposed to tell the city. The study is about telling DPD brass how many officers the department needs and how to use them, not how much those officers should be paid.
"We want to make sure we address not only hiring and retention by addressing the pay structure, but also to address the correct number of officers" with the staffing study, Assistant City Manager Jon Fortune said.
Fault lines over the best way to take on the city's public safety issues formed quickly among the new members of the council. Cara Mendelsohn, Sandy Greyson's replacement in Far North Dallas' District 12, said she isn't sure the amount Dallas spends on public safety — more than 60% of its annual budget — is enough.
"When you're showing that the community says only 30% on public safety, the question was not asked properly," Mendelsohn said, referring to a community survey that showed Dallas residents believed about 30% of the budget should go to public safety. "You didn't know that for 30 cents, you wouldn't be getting the services you expected, you wouldn't be getting full public safety."
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The 60% number, she said, is misleading because it also includes non-police spending like Dallas' community prosecution program. In total, the Dallas police and fire departments' budgets eat up about 57% of the city budget overall.
Adam Bazaldua, newly elected to represent parts of Fair Park, Far East Dallas and South Dallas, said the city should focus more on the root causes of crime when it makes its budget.
"I want to make sure that we identify the concentration of poverty that we have and its role in public safety," Bazaldua said. "With 60% of our budget going to public safety and only 21% being identified for quality of life and human and social needs, I'd like to see us kind of balance that out a little bit better, so that we can address the core problem ... addressing the core issue rather than going to what we all think of as public safety when we hear that term."
Tuesday was just a preview of what's sure to be months of debate. Dallas City Manager T.C. Broadnax will present his budget to the City Council in August, with the council expected to vote on it sometime in the next month.


text:
Academic journal article Comparative Drama
Michele Marrapodi, Ed.: Shakespeare and the Italian Renaissance: Appropriation, Transformation, Opposition
Article excerpt
Michele Marrapodi, ed. Shakespeare and the Italian Renaissance: Appropriation, Transformation, Opposition. Farnham: Ashgate, 2014. Pp. xiii + 373. $129.95.
This volume begins with a list of figures (vii-viii), notes on contributors (ix-xii), acknowledgments (xiii), and an introduction, "Shakespearean Subversions," by the editor (1-20). The primary text includes essays in three parts. Part 1, "Appropriations of Poetry and Prose," includes: Harry Berger, Jr., "Sprezzatura and Embarrassment in The Merchant of Venice" (21-38); John Roe, "A Niggle of Doubt: Courtliness and Chastity in Shakespeare and Castiglione" (39-56); Thomas Kullman, "Dramatic Appropriations of Italian Courtliness" (57-72); Maria Del Sapio Garbero, "Disowning the Bond: Coriolanus's Forgetful Humanism" (73-92); Melissa Walter, "Matteo Bandello's Social Authorship and Paulina as Patroness in The Winter's Tale" (93-106); Karen Zych Galbraith, "Tracing a Villain: Typological Intertexuality in the Works of Pinter, Webster, Cinthio, and Shakespeare" (107-22). Part 2, "Transformations of Topoi and Theatregrams," includes: Keir Elam, '"Wanton pictures': The Baffling of Christopher Sly and the Visual-Verbal Intercourse of Early Modern Erotic Arts" (123-46); Sergio Costola and Michael Saenger, "Shylock's Venice and the Grammar of the Modern City" (147-62); Eric Nicholson, "Helen, the Italianate Theatrical Wayfarer of All's Well That Ends Well" (163-80); Bruce W. …


text:
Gamer faces court accused of live-streaming alleged assault
Gamer faces court accused of live-streaming alleged assault
The pregnant partner of Sydney gamer Luke James Munday and mum to his two daughters has broken her silence saying she's willing to give the 26-year-old a second chance — despite him allegedly assaulting her on camera.
Mr Munday appeared in Camden Local Court yesterday charged with one count of common assault days after people watching his Fortnite livestream called the police, terrified for his partner Grace Campbell's safety.
Ms Campbell, 21, is living in the couple's Oran Park home with their two children after one of Munday's bail conditions required him to stay at least 100m away from his pregnant partner.
Speaking to the Daily Mailyesterday, Ms Campbell said despite the alleged assault in front of their two children, she would be willing to give the gamer a second chance if he went through an anger management course.
"I'll give him another chance for our kids, but only if he makes the effort and shows real improvement," she told the publication.
"He also needs to address his addiction to the game."
Despite that admission, Ms Campbell later said the altercation meant their five-year relationship was over.
"After this, I've had enough. I don't want him near me or the children," she said.
Ms Campbell's mother, who said she "despises" Mr Munday, supported her daughter's decision to end the relationship.
"I despise him for what he's done to my daughter. I will never forgive him and I don't trust him," she said.
"I don't care how sorry he is, I've heard it all before and I'm too old to fall for it. She's a great mum, a loving mum and she's distraught over what this is doing to the kids."
In the Twitch video, Mr Munday is seen leaving his computer as the couple's children are heard screaming and crying "Daddy" in the background while his wife sobs off-camera.
Police confirmed two girls aged three and 20 months were home at the time of the livestream.
Ms Campbell claims her partner's addiction to the game led to him to develop a toxic habit of coming home from work before falling asleep playing the game and then waking up and doing it all over again.
The 21-year-old, who started dating Mr Munday when she was just 16, said she became fed up with his addiction on Sunday night when he failed to eat dinner with the family.
In the livestream video, Mr Munday can be heard repeatedly telling Ms Campbell he'll be "out soon".
"No computer, I'm sick of this sh*t," Ms Campbell responded.
Munday was then seen stepping away from his camera — leaving the livestream to keep recording — before a noise that sounds like a slap rings out.
His partner can be heard crying off camera as he says, "How many times do I have to tell you? I said I'd be out soon."
Their altercation allegedly escalated into violence, ending in Mr Munday being arrested at their family home in western Sydney before being charged with common assault.
Ms Campbell claimed her partner's addiction escalated when he started to gain fans on Twitch, a streaming site where users can watch others play games. Mr Munday had thousands of followers on Twitch and YouTube but his accounts have now been deleted.
"He got famous and started playing six to eight hours a day for his fans," Ms Campbell said.
"As he got more addicted he changed, he became an angry person. He wasn't spending enough time with the kids and it was a struggle every day to get him to leave the computer for anything."
Mr Munday faced Camden Local Court yesterday, managing to get his common assault charge and an AVO issued for Ms Campbell adjourned to January 10.
Representing Mr Munday at Camden Local Court, Steven Mercael from the Australian Criminal Law Group sought an adjournment for the 26-year-old and asked for him to be excused from his next court date.
"There is a lot of attention around this case," Mr Mercael said. "On the alleged victim, and the client."
Court documents relevant to Mr Munday's bail revealed his 2018 common assault charge wasn't the first time the 26-year-old has been in court for "matters involving violence".
Mr Munday was convicted of the offences.
"The accused has been charged on two previous occasions in 2011 for malicious damage and common assault, both of which were not domestic related," the document read.
"The accused showed remorse for his actions during the interview stating that he was aware that his actions were inappropriate and that he should not have done what he did."
The document also stated the prosecution had a strong case because "there are numerous independent witnesses to the offence as a portion of the incident was livestreamed".
The court heard Ms Campbell had written a letter trying to change a condition of the AVO however the prosecution denied her request.
Ms Campbell told the Daily Mailshe wanted Mr Munday to be able to call her so they could sort out money issues.
The AVO and bail conditions prohibit the 26-year-old from making any contact with his partner however it has left the young family in a difficult situation as Mr Munday is the sole provider of the family.
Before the livestream went viral, Mr Munday was working for Telstra as a network engineer earning just over $1000 a week.
After the assault charge, a spokesman for Telstra confirmed he had been suspended pending an investigation.
"We have suspended Luke's employment pending a full investigation and will co-operate with any police investigation," Telstra general manager of media Steve Carey said in a statement.
"Domestic violence has no place in our community. It is totally unacceptable and needs to be eradicated."
Should you be worried about Fortnite?
Should you be worried about Fortnite?


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This Rotating Cutting Mat is also available in pink, green or blue. It is an essential item for any textiles work room as it makes life so much easier.
Peg Bags
Handmade Pom-Pom Pencils
Mugs and Coaster with Artist Anita O'Neill designs on.
Small diamond shaped purses with key ring attached
Quilted Christmas stockings
Colourful Cushions
Child's Christmas Skirts
Boot Pin Cushions 3D Castle Pin Cushions Powertex
If you haven't had a chance to go to either Eau Brink Studio or the Long Sutton Emporium they are really worth a visit.
Eau Brink Studio is set in a lovely rural situation just off the A47 and you can join Anita there and she will teach you to make all kinds of textile art.
The studio is light and airy and there are all sorts of hand and machine stitch workshops, Powertex and Eco dying.
Experimental Wednesdays takes place on the 3rd Wednesday of every month. Anything involving textile art could be going on with friendly people and Anita to give you ideas and help.
Anita will make you welcome and sometimes members of her groups will be there to chat with as well. Good company. Cake and hot and cold drinks are available and you will find lots of other items for sale.
EBS Retail is the name of Anita's shop at Long Sutton Emporium where you will find the red and gold Christmas Stockings amongst many other items that Anita makes.
The Long Sutton Emporium is full of lots of different kinds of mini shops. These sell things ranging from crafts, antiques, home ware, children's items and diamond Art including the Christmas Stockings and you can buy gifts for your friends and family as well all the lovely items from Anita's shop as well.
There is a lovely tearoom with a warm log fire with good food drinks and scrummy cakes and everyone is welcome.


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Sony has revealed the selection of games which will be hard-wired into its forthcoming PlayStation Classic retro-console.
The miniature reimaging of the original PlayStation will include stone-cold classics including Final Fantasy VII, Metal Gear Solid, the original Grand Theft Auto and Resident Evil: Director's Cut. It will come with 20 games, although some of the games which defined the PlayStation are conspicuous by their absence, such as Parappa the Rapper, WipeOut and Tomb Raider.
The full list of PlayStation classic games (in alphabetical order) is: Battle Arena Toshinden, Cool Boarders 2. Destruction Derby, Final Fantasy VII, Grand Theft Auto, Intelligent Qube, Jumping Flash, Metal Gear Solid, Mr Driller, Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee, Rayman, Resident Evil Director's Cut, Revelations: Persona, Ridge Racer Type 4, Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo, Syphon Filter, Tekken 3, Tom Clancy's Rainbow 6, Twisted Metal and Wild Arms.
The PlayStation Classic is due to be released on 3 December, priced at £89.99. To find out more, check out its website.


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Pre-requisite: Successful completion of Basic Good Manners (or Basic Obedience equivalence at any training school). Proof of completion is required. Your dog must not exhibit fearful or reactive behaviours towards people and dogs. Reactive Rover graduates with your instructor's approval are welcome. If you are unsure if your dog would be a good fit for this class, check out our popular Reactive Rover class or contact us with your questions.
Age Requirements: At least 6 months old
Course Length: 6 lessons (6 consecutive weeks; 1 hour each lesson)
Price: $150 + HST for 6 lessons
Max. Class Size: 6 dogs
Vaccination Requirements: Up-to-date in required vaccines (titer test results accepted).
What is Rally-Obedience? Affectionately called Rally-O, it is part agility, part obedience, part race, and a whole lot of FUN.
Just like in Agility, there is a course with 10-20 different stations. Your dog must do something at each station. Each canine-handler team starts with 100 points. Your goal is to keep those points.
What to bring to class:
- Plenty of small training treats that your dog loves
- A regular 6-foot leash (non-retractable)
- A dog training food reward pouch, bag, or holder so that you can retrieve your food reward easily
- A regular collar or harness
- Indoor shoes (for the humans) if it is wet or mucky out


text:
When you were a baby Dad would wake up in the middle of the night and run down the street to the church and pray and pray and pray. All we wanted was hope but we could not find another child with similar circumstances to give us that hope.
When you were born you appeared to be a normal healthy baby, except you had a broken collarbone because at nine pounds three ounces you were a very large baby. After two days in the hospital, they took you to get an x-ray. That's when you began having seizures and ultimately a stroke. A priest came and read you your last rites because he thought you might not make it.
For some reason, my intuition told me that you would be OK, not just in terms of surviving but also in regards to your future. However, your dad worked in the medical field and saw the struggles children who had strokes as infants often faced throughout their lives. He was scared for you. It was very rough for him.
Doctors told your dad and me that the left side of your brain was pretty much gone. They said you wouldn't develop normally. You would have cognitive issues, memory problems, you would drag your right leg and have no use of your right arm. Sports didn't even seem like a possibility as far as the professionals were concerned.
For some reason, my intuition told me that you would be OK, not just in terms of surviving but also in regards to your future.
When you came home I started massaging you daily. As you grew into a toddler we had physical therapists and occupational therapists come to the house to work with you. You seemingly attempted to follow in the footsteps of your big brother. Physically, you were developing quite well. You were not dragging your leg as the experts predicted.
In school, you did struggle at times. I was nervous kids would be mean to you. Your dad and I thought if you played sports it might help. So one day we gave you a ball and told you to go play.
Baseball was clearly in your blood. Your dad played in college and your uncle played in the minors. You took to sports so naturally. When you were four, your brother, who was six, started playing on a baseball team. We got you a uniform but you weren't truly on the team. In one of the last games, the coach decided to put you in. You hit the ball farther than any other child. It was amazing.
From that point on your Dad committed to working with you. I am sure you remember all the times you walked home from the field because he was frustrated. He was tough on you but he was dedicated to developing you into not only a pitcher in baseball but a basketball player too.
You still do not have feeling on the right side of your body. If you drew a line down the center of your body everything to the right is numb to the touch. Still, you found a way to excel in both sports, even pitching a no-hitter at Marlington High School. You received a baseball scholarship from Tri-C, not too far from our home in Ohio, where you became an All-American.
I have never been the mom to take a lot of pictures or say a lot about my kids. I always just sit back and enjoy the games. With you, I have always had a quiet confidence, knowing you would do well. While your success never surprises me, this past spring there was a moment where I thought I was dreaming.
Your dad was at work where he was following the MLB draft. It was the 11th round and your name popped up on your dad's phone. At work, he screamed, "Oh shit!" He then stepped aside to call me to tell me that you, Brock, just became a Brewer. Milwaukee drafted you with the 343rd pick. I was just like somebody needs to pinch me and wake me up.
All of our hard work as a family finally paid off.
Brock, I am so proud of you. You are a man of few words but I try my best to let you know how wonderful it is to be your mom and witness all that you have achieved. But this is just the beginning. You are playing for the Rocky Mountain Vibes, the rookie affiliate for the Brewers.
You are a role model. You are a miracle. Not even doctors can explain your success. I still keep in touch with one of your doctors who says he talks about you every single day, telling his patients and/or their families about your life.
Also, since you have been in the spotlight two families have reached out to you, as they too have children who had strokes as infants. You allow these families to see what is possible. Your story tells them that their children's future has limitless possibilities. You never let any lingering effects of the stroke stop you. You never gave up. We never gave up. We just kept working and praying and that's why you are living your dream. So, while your father and I never found the hope we were looking for from someone else, what's so incredible is that now other people can find that hope in you.
I always believed in you.
I love you and you are going to do great!
About the author:
Annette Begue is the mother of minor league pitcher, Brock Begue. Brock was chosen in the 11th round of the 2019 draft by the Milwaukee Brewers.
About the sponsor and the charity:
Annette chose Mikey's Way because it is childhood cancer awareness month. Mikey's Way is a non-profit that provides electronics to children battling cancer. Uche Osadabe is donating $25 to Mikey's Way in honor of the first 25 shares of Annette's letter.
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While your environment may have led you to make bad choices, you still have the power to make good choices going forward. It is never too late to change the narrative of your life. Let today be the first day of a new chapter or an inspiring plot twist ;) I'm rooting for you! - ps and thanks to The Unsealed you too now have a "Lauren" in your life ;)
Wow Lauren I was the teenage boy who made the bad choices in life. It would be easy for me to place the blame on my parents who failed in their roles in raising me but in the end, it still was my own fault. I made the choice to use the drugs, I made the choice to treat others poorly, and I made the choices to do the wrong things. In the end, the only person I really hurt was me as when the smoke cleared, I had no "real" friends, there was no "Lauren" in my life and all I had was myself and my anger at the world. And that anger led me to more and more poor choices that did nothing but hurt me. In the end, I blame myself for where I am today
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amazing read Lauren
Thank you Reggie this is an amazing story and even though I know the knowledge of growing up in Alabama without my father around was a gift to prepair me in my mission to become a driving force in Change. See I grew up not only without my father but my mother as well for a lot of what was supposed to be my childhood. My mother, Deanne Meeks, was in a terrible accident during my teenage years were I witnessed her being ran over by a black S10 at around 60 mph before church one Sunday morning. Her and I where in mid conversation, she just so happen to find a button on the side walk as we were getting loaded in the vehicle and had walked around to my side to give this button to me because it had come off my brothers paints and she wanted me to keep up with it and remind her to sew it back on after church. The vehicle, parked on the side of the road as most who lived on East Lake Blvd. In Tarrent, AL. did. Although you would think no one could have survived such a violent collision my mother miraculously lived and woke from a medicated coma after 4 months but unfortunately had to have 24/7 care from there on as she had lost much of her memory and was confused about who my brothers and I were. I knew if I too left Alabama I would not Graduate high school if I too made this trip so I was granted the choice to stay after promising my Mother and Grandmother to Graduate a high school if I stayed. I did just that, on my own, after changing schools by myself without any custodial representation. Graduating from Ashville High School in Alabama in 2005 with perfect attendance Senior year, inducted and published within the National Honor Roll book of 2005, taught three elementary school classes through "First Achievement", assisting in resolving issues that were the result from a racial riot that took place in our school parking lot, discovering $73,000 in embezzled funds that our school Administration, particularly the county's School Superintendent, was utilizing to fund his Affair inwhich he was having with our school's Office secretary. The Superintendent before his time at this level in his Career was the Principal of Ashville High School which included a couple of years inwhich I attended. I was also awarded the highest grade in three classes, a scholarship gifted by the Retired Teacher's Association for an essay wrote describing the knowledge I had learned from the hardships inwhich I had been subject too in the few years I had been alive, and the Principal's Honor Award from Coach Whaley our principal at that time. I did this on my own but it would not have been possible without the lessons my Mother and Father had previously taught me and am thankful for every bit of it because I am the person I am today, a man of God, because I was Alone and out of the Darkness I gained a unconditional love for the Lord and now utilize my story of that Sunday morning to describe to others of the faith of a mustard seed. See, no matter what, even the day of this terrible accident, I kept my faith. A kid, who's mother was not only his Rock but his bestfriend as well, kept his faith after witnessing this hardship before church. I did because I knew this was all for a reason and held on through the toughest of times as this was only the beginning of the lesson that was taught. I later asked God in prayer to assure me that I was on the right path since I had kept this faith through everything and He did. I want you to know as good as faith is there is nothing on the intrinsic reward of knowing He is truly real. Have a Blessed evening and always remember to utilize these stories for teaching others and not pity as the hardest of hardships are the best of gifts. Thank you again Reggie for your lesson.
This is Beautiful! Through Unification of Adversity we shall become the closest to the perfection man will ever know. It takes every aspect of a situation to truly understand any situation, quite literally. This is what drives the meaning behind the statement "Knowledge is power". We as humans know power as the light we see. The Bible states. "He is the light". Through Enlightenment of the aspects of each situation we shall reach a level of glory under God inwhich we have never known. Always stand for what you believe because God gave us the gift of knowing Right from Wrong and man's law should reflect this gift in all aspects. Thank you for your message Lauren and have a Blessed day.
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Thank you Lauren. Yes, we all have to start with the person in the mirror. Your reflections are received with mindfulness and appreciation. I've shared your article on my network. Stay safe and well. IyaSokoya Karade CEO/Owner Athletic Arts Academy NJ LLC Orange, New Jersey
May I encourage everyone of every color or shade, every ethnicity, and every faith (or no faith) to read the book Benjamin Watson wrote after he made such powerful and welcomed comments following the Ferguson, Missouri, killing and riots? Under Our Skin. Read the reviews, search and find the Under Our Skin Forum, it was in 2016, the video can be purchased and it is well worth the time and few dollars to watch. But read the book then give the book to a friend of another color or the same color as you! https://smile.amazon.com/Under-Our-Skin-Getting-Frustrations/dp/149641330X/ref=sr_1_1? When shopping on Smile.Amazon.Com you pay the same but Amazon contributes to your charity of choice (and ParentsUSA hopes you select it, the National Association of Parents, Inc.) David DeLugas, Executive Director, ParentsUSA
Nothing like maintaining a positive outlook! When i need to fight off despair i set goals. It is a great way to fight off negative thoughts and feeling!
Very interesting! Opinion at a later date!
Crazy that this still goes on. I fear for my safety almost all the time. Black or brown males are subject to arrest and violent behavior. I just read a article where a former New York cops claims they had to arrest more people of color to get a promotion. This is sick and I'm tired of living in fear. People are going to start fighting back.
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I think me and your grandpa would have been friends. I been a type 1 diabetic since three years old. I would have said the same thing waking up and seeing two nurses. Do I get to choose. I'm pretty sure I've done that before.
I have learned over my Fifty-Eight years of life, and more specifically over the last 10 that FDR's words about fearing only fear itself ring true; to me, they do, anyway. And, at the same time, how the words of the 23rd Psalm comfort me and my abundant faith in G-d allows me to fear only fear, knowing full well that He is always with me. Growing up in a Non-Orthodox, yet Observant Jewish family nicely brings both together and not only makes me feel more protected but commands me to believe so. You see, I have lived a different kind of life, as we all have to some degree, but mine changes daily. Not that I am ANY BETTER than anyone else, in fact, probably less so... I stray from my stories often. I shouldn't, but since my Stroke in 2012, I have somehow developed some sort of ADD, so please bear with me, the end will justify the means and I will *try* to stick with my story; for you, my readers. I moved my family of the ex-wife and four children Cross-Country in 2002 to be closer to my dad who was turning 75 that year, and while I could not afford both financially as well as mentally to move back to Southern California (where he and my mother lived), I chose the Midbar (Hebrew for Desert) of Arizona. Within just a few short weeks of moving here, I woke up one day with some of the most severe abdominal pain I had ever experienced. I found a local doctor and made an appointment to see him that day. I arrived at the appointment and was ushered into an examination room by their PA (Physician's Assistant), who is supposed to be the same as a Doctor, but not really (?). I was examined and Prescriptions for a Pain Medication and an Antibiotic. They continued to treat me in a like manner for almost six months when I ended up in an Emergency Room, where a CT Scan was performed and Colonoscopy was scheduled. I was then diagnosed with a grapefruit-sized obstruction and abscess in my colon that would require surgical intervention. Surgery was scheduled for two days later, on a Friday in Mid-March 2003. I arrived at the hospital at the designated time, 5:45 am; was admitted to the hospital; told them about ALL my allergies (including a BIG ONE, an allergy to a particular anesthetic agent), and taken to a room where I was put into one of those awful gowns and told that they'd be "right back" to take me to surgery. They promptly came back at 10:30 in the morning and took me to yet another room... to wait some more. At 11:45 the Anesthesiologist came in to talk with me. He informed me that he was going to use Propofol for my induction and that he was planning on using the EXACT ANESTHESIA TO WHICH I AM ALLERGIC to maintain me through surgery! "NOT ON ME, YOU'RE NOT", I exclaimed! "I'M ALLERGIC!!!" On my wrist sat a red band that clearly said ALLERGIES: CEVOFLURAINE. I then proceeded to give him a list of anesthetic agents that I knew to be safe. He tapped me on the knee and said: Okay, Smart guy, put yourself to sleep and quickly left the room. I awoke from the anesthesia on the following Wednesday evening. In addition to the NINE small incisions from various attempts to perform the procedure of removing 18" of my diseased colon through a scope, I also had one 6" cut in my belly that began around my navel and continued to just above my groin. I also began experiencing severe shortness of breath. The staples were ripped out of my skin by the Butcher Surgeon two weeks later, but my breathing difficulties continued. After being examined by one doctor after another, I finally decided to be examined by The Mayo Clinic. Over a ten-day to 2 week period, I was examined by multiple physicians, underwent numerous tests and procedures and was finally ready for my Report Appointment. I would learn the results of all of the tests and procedures and hopefully have a clear diagnosis and prognosis. The verdict had come in. Diagnosis: Terminal COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Causation: Bacterial Pneumonia due to Malignant Hyperthermia caused by induction of Detrimental Anesthesia Prognosis: 5% chance of Five-Year Survival I then took my report to a highly regarded Pulmonologist for Follow-Up Care, but not before enrolling in Rabbinical School in New York City. I had, (since age ten) always wanted to be a Rabbi. It was now or never. On the advice of the Pulmonologist, I began taking Prednisone (a Steroid) that would open up my Bronchioles and make it easier to breathe. The normal dosage for a man who is 5'9" and weighs 150 pounds (before I got sick, I weighed 174 pounds, all muscle, by the way) is <100mg per day. My STARTING dose was 100mg THREE TIMES a DAY. the dosage was increased every few months for the following THREE YEARS, when, on Sunday, September 9, 2007, at the weight of 340 Pounds (the Steroids had been increased to 250mg Four Times a day), I collapsed and at Mayo Hospital, was intubated where my organs began failing. Two nights later, on the First Night of Rosh haShana, the Jewish New Year, and while being mechanically ventilated, I went into Full Blown Total System Failure, and suffered a Cardiac Arrest for 14 minutes, followed by a Coma of several weeks duration. During my Coma, I felt as if I was in a box. The box had four dirt walls and smelled like the Morning Dew. In the upper right corner of the box sat a red square with a white X inside of it. "If only I could click on that X, I might stop this program", I thought to myself, but I could not move; I could not stand; could not reach, and could not scream for help. I lay in this place crying out in fear for what seemed like days and weeks and months. Suddenly, my cries were replaced by Psalms. I was reciting Psalms, some of which I had never even read before! And the Psalms turned into Prayers; The Kol Nidre, chanted at the beginning of our Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur; every other prayer recited on this Holy of all Holy Days; the Prayers for the Sukkot Holidays that follow the next week and the Readings for every single Torah Portion of the year. I somehow knew them all. By heart. Without hesitation of memory and obviously without any text to look at. I kept reading and chanting day and night; night and day and resting in between. Really resting. Sleeping... until one day, I opened up my eyes to see my beautiful son Zac sitting at my side on my bed. Covering the holes in my throat and on the side of my neck, I managed to spit out "C'était le rêve de dix minutes le plus étrange que j'aie jamais eu"! I told my son that was the weirdest ten-minute dream that I have ever had in FRENCH, my first language and native tongue. He then told me that it had been over two months, and I was in a Hospice Facility. The night before, I had begun to breathe on my own a minute or so after being disconnected from the machines that had sustained my organs since September. A few days later I was wheeled to an ambulance outside to be transported to the truly amazing HealthSouth Rehabilitation Hospital in Scottsdale. The sun kissed my face as I felt like I was pulled up into a body of love. It spoke. In Hebrew: Don't worry, it said. "You and I are going to be okay". I spent the next six weeks learning to do things like eating and holding a pencil; how to shower and dress. I learned how to return to life. Six weeks after leaving HealthSouth, my dad died. In July 2018, my mom joined him. I have had many trials and tribulations over these last twelve years. A Stroke in 2012 took my ability to project my voice loudly; I've been hospitalized many times and know how very precious time is. I do not live for today, rather, I live for tomorrow. I do everything I can do today to help others, and pray that I am again awakened tomorrow to do more good. And if so, great! And if not; if G-d decides to take me tonight, I will hang out with my parents and loved ones forever. I win either way. President Roosevelt was right to believe in only fearing fear. Psalm 23 is even more so, as Faith follows all of us.
Funny my mom passed in 1991 as a 13 year old it was hard but she was much more then beauty. She was a fighter from the beginning and I will never be able to explain her impact. It shows you came from a strong famiy and I'm glad you had both a mom and dad because a lot of people don't. I pray your truth can make a difference
This is trying to scare us with more misinformation then actual information but thank you for giving us your reality. I like it a lot.and people just wash your hand like you should be doing anyway 😂
Great discussion, as well as some interesting numbers which I'm not sure are meant to calm us, or install even more fear. I have many of your same concerns. Just yesterday I scheduled a work trip to Miami for late next week, but am unsure if it will happen or not. And while i say or act like i'm not concerned, sub-consciously, i am quite sure it is weighing on my mind each time i cough, or sneeze, or feel "a little warm", or if someone around me does. One of the biggest fears i have is that with all of the media coverage and the additional testing becoming available, the numbers are sure to skyrocket, and this is going to really set some people off. Our country is going to go absolutely bonkers . We are all guilty of taking limited amounts of information and either talking about it like an expert, or completely overreacting. Here's hoping that the number stat to level out, and then drop. Lets hope that the American people can follow simple suggestions. Lets hope that countries from around the world can work together to come up with a viable plan to slow this train down. And last but not least, lets hope our politicians can come together to provide our country guidance as we all try to get through this. Lets hope they can forget about the presidential race for just a minute to remember what their job really is; to serve the American people. And now is their time to really step up and lead by example.
Lauren, like you I have to balance my fear and confusion. I work directly with the public and I have an immune system that is partially suppressed as a by product of treatment for Rheumatoid Arthritis. I fear for my Father the most as his body is much weaker than even mine. I visited the Cleveland Museum of Art on Sunday just to learn three people were positively diagnosed on Monday in Cuyahoga county. You aren't alone in that fear. I think that we must turn to hope to keep us in this trying time. We have to...
Terry, As a man who has lived and breathed baseball, your letter was an absolute joy for me to read. What young boy wouldn't want to be in the clubhouse with his Dad? During your time as manager I've been to quite a few games in Cleveland. None though were as special as July 12th 2014. That was the day I celebrated my 30th birthday. Though the day centered around my birthday it saw me doing something for someone else. It was the day I took my Father to the very first professional sports game in his 59 years of life at the time. It was so touching the certificate that he got from the wonderful folks at Guest Services. And although the home team lost to the White Sox that day, it will always remain one of the best days in my heart. Letters like yours only serve to renew my love for the game of baseball. Thanks for sharing it with the little boy still inside of me wanting to throw that 0-2 curveball to the best hitter in the league.
[…] enough, in the email was your letter to your late father, former NBA basketball star Anthony Mason, talking about your struggles after his death. You wrote […]
Sweet Lauren, I agree completely with the promise that Brian asked you to make. Frankly, it is the only way that I know to love; totally, completely, wholly and unconditionally. You deserve nothing less, nor does your future love.
Wow. What a truly moving and powerful story. We often take for granted the small gifts we give each other just by being present. I'm sad for the heartache. I'm glad you stayed and became. Who knows what little girl or boy will be attributing their life's purpose to some kindness you shared. Peace and Sunshine
You're welcome Lauren looking forward to all the future stories :)
Thank you Tony. I appreciate all your support.
Thank you Tony. I appreciate all your support.
I'm sorry to hear about Brian but he was right you are too beautiful to not receive roses Lauren:)
[…] Here is why you need to stop being nice and start being loud […]
Thanks for this! So what movie set did you get on?
So nice Roger <3
Pat, Your letter touched me in a very profound way. It left me in tears in the middle of my work day. It made me want to share something with you. On a July morning in 2007 a police officer answered a 911 call I had made when my Mother went into cardiac arrest. Between that officer, my best friend and the fire fighters who showed up minutes later they were able to restart her heart, however at the hospital she passed away an hour later. At the end of his shift that officer stopped by my home to check on the situation and cried when I told him the unfortunate news I received only 4 hours prior. He tried to apologize to me. I looked at the anguish in his eyes and asked him directly what for? He described the ways he felt sorry. What I want to leave you with was my reply to him. I told him he had nothing to be sorry for because he answered the call in what was the darkest moment in my life. I told him that he was a hero regardless because it takes a special person to answer calls like that. You are a hero to people Pat. No one can ever take that away from you. I understand the process you're going through as I've been there myself and like you I still struggle with it when no one is looking. You aren't alone in this. I hope your healing process continues on and you can regain the happiness in this beautiful life. You'll always be a hero to those people, because you were there when the call came Best wishes Roger Chamberlain
Ruth, your letter moved me to tears. Once upon a time I was very closed off about the LGBT community but over a course of several years, I turned my fear into understanding and I actively stand with the community for their equal rights because it is the right thing to do.


text:
Export 3 results:Author Title [ Type] Year
Filters: Author is Beeton, A. M. [Clear All Filters]
Journal Article
Atmospheric loading of phosphorus and other chemicals to Lake Michigan. Journal of Great Lakes Research. 3(3-4):291-304.. 1977.
Distribution of glacial relic crustacea in some Michigan inland lakes. The Michigan Academician. 11:5-18.. 1978.


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Delivery Information
UK Deliveryopen
Update to UK Deliveries
To protect our valued customers and staff, we are supporting deliveries with reduced interaction. Our drivers will no longer be able to bring deliveries into your home, which means they will be delivering to doorstep only and we won't be asking you to sign for deliveries.
If you've recently placed an order, we are adopting "contact-free" delivery, if you'd like to know more about what this entails and how it'll affect your delivery or would prefer to arrange storage of your order instead please call us on +(44) (0) 20 7269 0700 or email [email protected]
If you're planning to place an order, you can enter any additional delivery information at check out which could include a safe place to leave your delivery.
Lastly, if you are self-isolating please do contact our customer services team in advance of your delivery so that we can make suitable arrangements.
Take care of yourselves and others.
Our current delivery charges (excluding VAT) for customers in the UK are listed below.
BI can deliver:
- Under bond to all UK bonded warehouses
- With our own van within the Greater London area [click here to view current duty and tax information], and
- To the rest of the UK via logistics partners and charged at cost [click here to view current duty and tax information].
- We are also pleased to offer free delivery to private customers on all orders over £1,000 (excluding duty and VAT) within mainland UK.
To enquire about delivery times, please contact your account manager or email your requirements to our UK Delivery Coordinator, Alistair Hobdell.
|London Postcodes (N, NW, W , SW, SE, E, WC & EC)
|1-15 cases
|16 cases or over
|£1 per case
|Other Mainland UK Addresses
|1 case
|2 cases
|3-14 cases
|15 cases or over
|£2.50 per case
EU Deliveryopen
BI can deliver all across Europe.
Due to the complexities of import taxes, regulations and variations in transport time, we quote for delivery on an individual basis depending on the size of your order and your specific requirements.
If you wish to obtain a delivery quote before placing your order, please contact our Export Department
Alternatively please go ahead and place your order and a member of our sales team will contact you to discuss your requirements and obtain a quote.
Hong Kong Deliveryopen
Please note charges have been changed as of 21st April, a temporary revision in light of increased costs and disruptions to freight forwarding owing to the Covid-19 pandemic. We hope that these increases and the disruptions to the scheduling of our shipments that we are experiencing is temporary, if you need any support for a current or new order please contact [email protected]
BI offers twice monthly consolidated air shipments from London to Hong Kong at a rate of GBP 85 per case of 12 bottles.
Air Freight Delivery: London to Hong Kong
BI guarantees the following services to all customers shipping wine from the UK to HK:
- A 2 week lead time for wine shipment from the UK to HK.
- Wine is insured throughout transportation.
- Before transport, BI employees seal all cargo in the UK warehouse, and the wrapping is not reopened until the wine has been landed in the HK warehouse for inspection.
- Once sealed, a forwarder collects and delivers the wine directly to Heathrow airport.
- Goods are then flown from London to Hong Kong on a direct, non-stop air flight in a pressurised aircraft cabin.
- From the plane, BI unloads the wine into an airport temperature-controlled storage facility.
- From the airport, a temperature-controlled truck transports from the airport to BI's HK warehouse.
- Once at BI's Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency (HKQAA) Certified warehouse, the wine is sorted, inspected, and placed in temperature-controlled storage (between 12°C to 16°C and 60% to 85% humidity).
- All wines are clearly labelled with unique rotation numbers, which are logged under the relevant customer's name and individual account code.
- Once at the warehouse, the wines are protected by a state-of-the-art fire system and 24/7 CCTV surveillance of the premises.
- Any wines undelivered or not collected from our HK warehouse after 30 days will be subject to storage charges of GBP 4.00 per case per month.
- Wine storage is available at our Hong Kong warehouse. Please contact your BI HK salesperson or email [email protected] for more information.
Delivery Truck Features
BI's fleet of temperature-controlled vans and trucks all include the following features:
- Temperature-controls set between 14°C and 18°C.
- An 'Insulated Goods' container for wine storage.
- Lockable side door.
Delivery Charges
BI offers twice monthly consolidated air shipment from the UK to HK at a rate of GBP 85 per case of 12 bottles. Further details to note include:
- The GBP 85 freight charge includes onward delivery in a temperature controlled vehicle to a single delivery address in Hong Kong.
- The minimum shipping charge is GBP 85 (regardless of the number of bottles).
- BI's minimum order value is GBP 100.
- Deliveries to areas such as Tung Chung, Ma Wan, Discovery Bay or outlaying islands will incur an extra toll. Please contact your BI HK salesperson or email [email protected] for more information.
Delivery Dates and Times
- BI HK delivers on Monday-Saturday (inclusive).
- BI HK does NOT deliver on Sundays or statutory holidays.
- A private address (home, office, warehouse, hotel, etc) is required for delivery. Deliveries cannot be made to public locations (such as car parks, ferry piers, train / airport terminals,etc)
- Standard deliveries should arrive at their destinations between 10:00 to 14:00 hrs OR 14:00 to18:00 hrs (HK time).
- Cut off times for next-day delivery requests are as follows:
- Monday deliveries must be requested by 13:00 hrs (HK time) on the previous Friday.
- Deliveries on Tuesday to Saturday must be requested by 13:00 hrs (HK time) on the day before delivery.
- BI HK designates the following specific days for warehouse deliveries:
|Delivery Day
|Crown Wine Cellar
|Other Warehouses (e.g. Metro Wine Cellar and JAS)
|HK Wine Vaults
Further Points to Note
- BI also run consolidated sea shipments. Please enquire with your account manager for a quotation.
- For further enquiries please contact our Hong Kong office, or email us on [email protected].
Singapore Deliveryopen
BI SG continues to provide a complete one-stop solution for shipping, storage and local delivery services. However, owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, please note that charges have been changed as of 21st April. This is a temporary revision in light of increased costs and disruptions to freight forwarding. We hope that these increases and the disruptions to the scheduling of our shipments that we are experiencing is temporary, if you need any support for a current or new order please contact Angelina Teh.
1. BI SG stores our dutiable and bonded wine with one of the few licensed warehouse operators in Singapore, Singapore Wine Vault.
- This facility uses state-of-the-art technology and the temperature is set at 12°C to maintain a constant temperature and humidity level in Singapore's climate.
- To ensure the wine is kept in perfect and secure conditions, there is a back-up generator should there be any power outage, including 24 hour CCTV with round the clock surveillance.
- On a monthly basis, BI SG provides an updated inventory of all stocks.
- The current monthly storage charge is S$ 4.50 per case of 12 bottles or equivalent. This includes additional coverage of our BI global marine insurance. You can be assured that all wines purchased from BI or other merchants in our reserves is insured to full replacement value as long as they are shipped on our regular shipments.
- Minimum storage fee is only S$ 4.50/month.
- For local delivery, please send us the request by 12:00 p.m. (excl. weekend & Public Holiday) the day before delivery is required.
- The wine will be transported in a temperature controlled vehicle to your doorstep.
- BI SG also offers bonded delivery to Airport / Port or anywhere in Singapore from our bonded premises. You can be rest assured that we will handle all documentation with Customs and other general services such as bubble wrapping, labelling and repacking. Please contact your account manager for more details.


text: Is there a program I can use that will show me the pattern of a broadband folded dipole. I currently use on that due to s small property I have running along the south side and west side of my yard. it is folded at 90 degrees in the middle so it reassembles the letter l almost.


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Toughing it out.
WWE '12 is an uncomplicated title that deserves an uncomplicated review. THQ has knocked out the "Smackdown vs. RAW" bit for a simpler name, in a fitting sign that it has returned the series to its core gameplay. Apart from several tweaks and additions, WWE '12 doesn't revolutionize the series in any significant way, but instead focuses on tightening the combat, updating the graphics a touch, and making everything leaner and meaner. Though it sometimes takes the franchise back too much in the process, WWE '12 is a suitably strong title for any video game wrestling fan.
When it comes to annual sports and fighting franchises, controls are usually changed for the sake of having a talking point. Here, the intention is not as trivial, improving both the fluidity and maneuvability of the combat system. Initiating and transitioning between front and back grappling holds can be done with ease. The same goes for lifting an opponent laying flat on the mat into a front or back lock. If you have a finisher ready, after building enough energy and hopefully nailing a signature, you can perform a wake-up taunt where the opponent picks himself off the mat all dazed and confused.
Wrestlers still have access to the standard array of grappling maneuvers and basic strikes, with gut kicks now preset since they're essentially ubiquitous in addition to a four-hit strike combination. With some luck and the right timing, you can also land a strong strike that will usually knock an opponent right to the floor. Strong grapples require a little more luck as they require an opponent to be groggy, though having a solid grasp on irish whips, running grapples, and downed attacks is enough to swing any match in your favor.
In a bit of nostalgia, breaking point submissions return to the days of mashing buttons as furiously as possible. But if you attempt a submission without targeting the enemy's appropriate limbs, it won't hold for long. Most attacks already target a specific body part, revealed by viewing the attack in the moveset editor, but for further precision, you can activate the limb targeting system when the opponent is groggy, held in a grapple, or down on the mat. A body display, which will be familiar to veterans of the WWE series, will pop up showing the health of the opponent's limbs (head, body, arms, and legs). Any limb highlighted red means that the opponent has been severely weakened and is now more prone to groggy grapples and breaking point submissions if that limb is targeted.
Having limb health appear only when it's necessary is in an effort to make the screen HUD-less. The limb health display isn't even necessary either, since wrestlers will hold any damaged limb during combat. Beyond an indicator for reversals and a word that appears for a finisher or signature move, most of which can be turned off, the action can be shown with minimal interruption.
Overall, combat has been made more difficult mainly due to the reliance on the reversal system to fight off the relentless AI opponents. Getting players to learn how to reverse a move is a noble venture, and it encourages an online space where any competitive WWE veteran will not only thrive, but also face tougher opponents.
The trouble is that the combat has now become too narrowly focused on reversals to the point of frustration. Once an opponent starts wailing on you, the onslaught usually won't stop until you've successfully reversed an attack, which can be irritating when you swear you hit the right button at the right time. Since each opponent uses different moves with different timing, nailing a reversal boils down to a guessing game (an educated one, but a guessing game nonetheless). Even on the easiest difficulty setting with the easiest balance control options, the game will have its fair share of seemingly unfair moments. In fact, it would have been better if there was a mode or at least a detailed description dedicated to learning reversals more easily if they're going to be this important.
This year's Road to Wrestlemania follows a straightforward approach that seamlessly transitions between three linear stories based on a wrestler archetype: the Villian story featuring Shaemus, the Outsider story featuring Triple H, and the Hero story featuring a created wrestler of your choice named Jacob Cass. Each story runs through more than 20 weeks, where each week challenges you to beat an opponent or multiple opponents with varying conditions. It's nothing veterans of the series haven't seen before.
Unfortunately, that's the problem—there are no additional RPG elements, no options to start the Outsider or Hero story first as each story needs to be done in sequence, and no substantial improvement made to the Road to Wrestlemania modes from previous titles. Also, most objectives have you weaken or defeat an opponent… only for you to lose. It happens often in these games and in WWE (in real-life?), but here it happens about half of the time. Sometimes you'll face a series of five opponents in an elimination chamber match, restarting at checkpoints multiple times, and finally conquer your foes… only to get bamboozled at the end. By the fifteenth match, there's little reason to feel personally invested in the mode at all; instead of playing the story, you'll feel like it's the other way around.
I must also alert you that when you choose a created character to stand in for Jacob Cass in the Hero story, the character's name, scale values, and entire moveset is altered to fit the role. I tell you this now because this wan't made clear to me, which meant I had to spend four hours duplicating the character over to an empty slot and fixing everything from scratch. Thinking it over, there's little reason why the developers decided to have your created character roleplay as Jacob Cass and not, well, the created character. With all the voiced nicknames that can be made, it's hardly impossible to imagine using the created character's nickname instead of Jacob Cass or just to refer to the creater character in the third person. Players will understand—they have for years.
Beyond that, the number of minor improvements are commendable. The character modeling has been made even more realistic, the roster has been updated with plenty of new additions, and the loading times have been slightly reduced. Several scenes have been added to the story mode, allowing for more possibilities, and a new create an Arena mode has joined the other creation options with the limited ability to alter the colors of a ring and some of the objects surrounding it. The WWE Universe has also been updated with new scenarios and will allow you to interrupt and change pretty much everything you want.
Otherwise, every other mode, particularly the online multiplayer ranked matches and shareable created content, remains intact. This includes the character stat customizer and all unlockables code, both available for a dollar in the online store. If you need an Online Axxess code or want to get in on the Fan Axxess DLC program, they're available as well.
The largest misstep of WWE '12 has nothing to do with the game itself, but with the fact that it's been released near the tail end of the holiday rush. This hardly makes it a disappointing game in any way, just not as interesting or exciting compared to the incredible string of extraordinary titles circling around it. That said, WWE '12 is a decent offering that gets the job done without much fuss and deserves to be in any WWE fan's collection.
Review based on X360 version. Copy provided by publisher.