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April 21, 2017
Veiled Conclave
Notes from the Nails: Our gunslinger got me thinking. What if you want to be a sniper in a pre-gunpowder campaign? That's what the ranger is for, right?
Veiled Conclave
The Veiled Conclave began as a band of elite elven archers, well-versed in stealth, tracking and of course, marksmanship. The tactics and techniques they developed were revolutionary at the time, but efforts to keep them secret failed and the band eventually became a looser conclave that permitted anyone who could show the requisite abilities to join.
The conclave takes its name from the distinctive silken veils that its members wear over their faces - a visual reminder that these rangers value silence above all.
One Shot, One Kill
When you choose this conclave at 3rd level, you begin to practice a style of combat that promotes precision over volume of attacks. One per turn when you hit a creature with a weapon attack, you can deal an additional 1d8 damage to the target if you haven't moved since the beginning of your last turn.
Beginning at 5th level, if you are holding a ranged weapon and a hostile creature that you can see moves into or within the normal range of that weapon, you can use your reaction to make an opportunity attack against that creature using your ranged weapon.
Concealed Position
At 7th level, given enough time, you can prepare hidden sniper nests. A nest takes 10 minutes to construct and occupies a 10-foot square of ground. While inside the nest, you have three-quarter cover and can see out unhindered. Neither you nor the nest can be seen by any creature or sensor more than 30 feet away, even if you make an attack from inside, though you can still be heard and detected by divination spells that penetrate more than one inch of wood.
Once you leave a nest, you can't benefit from it again.
Beso Tóxico
At 11th level, you have learned special techniques for poisoning your arrows. You gain proficiency in the poisoner's kit, if you didn't have it already, and you can now use a bonus action on your turn to coat a melee weapon or up to ten pieces of ammunition with poison. Additionally, whenever you deal damage with a poisoned weapon, you deal one additional die of poison damage, ignore resistance to poison damage, and treat immunity to poison damage as if it were only resistance.
By 15th level, you are a true master of stealth, able to fade into thin air. When you take damage, you can use this ability to become invisible until the beginning of your next turn and move 5 feet without provoking opportunity attacks.
You can use this ability a number of times equal to your Wisdom modifier (minimum 1), and regain all uses when you finish a long rest.
Changelog: 4/21/17: One-Shot/One-Kill: changed to add 1d8 to the damage roll if you have not moved.
Concealed Position: changed from full to 3/4 cover.
Beso Tóxico: changed from double poison damage to +1 die and ignore resistance.
Disappear: no longer requires reaction, and can be used Wis mod times.
30 comments:
I'm not sure I like One Shot, One Kill being restricted to Max HP targets. It feels like past the first round, you might not see the ability used again unless you're 100% alone that combat. Maybe change it so that it's 1/turn so long as the character hasn't moved since the beginning of their last turn? It gives that feeling that the character has since taken their still moment to aim appropriately and take a lethal shot, rather than running around and taking less accurate shots at the enemy; or regaining their bearings after having been thrown back and knocked off their balance from a forceful push (i.e. Eldritch Blast).ReplyDeleteReplies
I agree and that sounds like a good solution as well. Alternatively there could be some kind of accuracy buff you receive from not moving.Delete
But yeah, if you go later in initiative with the way it currently works it is likely that the damage buff would not be applied.
That... might actually be better. I'll probably downgrade it to 1d8, however.Delete
I would probably have kept it the same, due to the Hunter's damage being the same, but theoretically having much less restriction to its use, plus its extra choices.Delete
Comparing it to Hunter as a base, level 3 is pretty weak. To maximize your damage output, you have to attack a new target every round which means you're more likely to leave enemies walking about. Good at low levels against minions, but otherwise low. Level 5 is okay, but almost always worse than extra attack. A guaranteed 2 attacks vs 1 and an okay chance at another, meh. Flavorful, and works okay with One Shot, One Kill against people entering combat late but otherwise, I'd rather have extra attack. Level 7 is huge. Pretty much unattackable and attacking with advantage against everything that is more than thirty feet away. Which in a lot of situations is an I-Win button. Combine with Sharpshooter(feat) or Spell Sniper(Eldritch Blast) to kill anything in range. Most level 7 features are fully defensive. This is not. Level 11 is pretty good, especially with access to better poisons from the DMG. Maybe too good? 5e lacks a lot of good uses for gold so in a lot of cases its an extra 42(or 21) points of damage on any attack that matters with Purple Worm poison or 24(or 12) points of damage from Wyvern's Stinger. Situationally busted, otherwise still very strong. Level fifteen is another level for defensive abilities and this one is very meh. My biggest problem is that it takes away your second attack from Overwatch. Or if you already used overwatch you can't use it. otherwise it's probably on par with Hunter abilities. Except it's limited use so not really.ReplyDeleteReplies
I think there are more game breaking things you can do at level 7 than setting up a sniper's nest. Look at Leomund's Tiny Hut.Delete
Hmm. You're right that Disappear clashes with Overwatch. I honestly missed that one and we'll have to revise it.Delete
As to the damage features, if One Shot, One Kill is a little weak and Beso Tóxico is a little strong, doesn't that even out in the long term? :P
Concealed Position is strong when you can use it, but how often do you have 10 minutes to prepare a defensive position? It'd be quite rare in the games I've run. Would you be happier if I reduced it to three-quarter cover? That'd make it easier to blast the nest with AoE once its location is known.
You should consider that one shot one kill is per turn, not round. Making overwatch less consistent but more damaging than extra attack.Delete
I love how you took the 5th level feature and instead of just giving the ranger and extra attack like most other conclaves, you gave him something that was different that should still work. It is unfortunately slightly circumstantial in that it requires the opponent to move, but I really like level 5 features that do more than just do an extra attack.ReplyDeleteReplies
Yeah, coming up with alternatives to Extra Attack is the heart of my design philosophy with the revised ranger. The concept of 'sniper + extra attack via reaction' was my starting point with this one - though the other features fell into place pretty quickly.Delete
Suggestion: Maybe 5th lvl ability should be Multiattack, and Overwatch should be at a different level. The way Overwatch is written makes it like multi attack, but worse, because it relies on movementDelete
The counter argument is that you can get One Shot, One Kill on both your regular and reaction attacks because it's once per *turn*, whereas you wouldn't get that with multi/extra attack. Also, if the *threat* of your overwatch is keeping enemies from moving when they want to, that's a benefit in its own right. It's like your opportunity attacks threaten a 150-foot radius!Delete
So for me, it's a balanced replacement for extra attack.
Something else, perhaps Beso Toxico should only increase the damage by a die, and then also allow you to overcome poison resist/immunity, given the large amount of poison resist/immunity amongst many creatures.ReplyDeleteReplies
That's how I had it originally, but it felt fiddly and underwhelming. Having the commonness of poison immunity offset the potentially massive damage boost is not ideal, but I find it an acceptable compromise.Delete
I agree with jester here, dealing a boatload of damage to some creatures and none to others seems less balanced than dealing a fair amount in each case. Also, most campaigns would have a general type of enemies, which would make this feature usually either incredibly strong or almost useless.Delete
Yeah. This feels a lot better in terms of overall damage output, since it dill makes the basic poison potent enough to consider its use, but otherwise doesn't make the other poisons an essential requirementDelete
That's a really cool ranger, I like the 5th level feature especially.ReplyDelete
One worry though: the nest gives full cover, making you essentially indestructible. Maybe offer some means of destroying it, or have it give 3/4 cover?
you took a little inspiration from final fantasy tactics advance I see, I like it!ReplyDelete
Was it made with a Revised Ranger in mind, or is it for standart 5e Ranger? What about Extra Attack, if one want to try it with Revised Ranger?ReplyDeleteReplies
All my stuff is and will be for revised ranger. That's why I used the word 'conclave' and talked about "coming up with alternatives to Extra Attack" in the comments above.Delete
We also put a sidebar about it in the pdf; if you want to use this with the PHB ranger, just delete the Overwatch feature.
"One per turn" spelling error to "once per turn"?ReplyDelete
Eleven Archer- One Shot, One kill? I'm picking up what you're putting down. Another good one is Argenport Instigator from Eternal, "A single shot is all it takes!"ReplyDelete
- AnonymousJune 16, 2017 at 7:14 AM
This comment has been removed by the author.ReplyDelete
For Beso Tóxico, do bolts/darts/bullets also count or is it just arrows and melee weapons?ReplyDeleteReplies
Good catch -- I've gone ahead and edited it to be all ammunition types.Delete
Overwatch wording as an Opportunity Attack: It's meant to work with things like Tunnel Fighter and or Sentinel as a result, yes?ReplyDeleteReplies
Well, hm. I *did* mean it to work with Sentinel, that's fine. Allowing it work with Tunnel Fighter would be ludicrously broken though... I hadn't actually read that UA before, so I wasn't aware of the interaction.Delete
I guess I'll have to hope that DMs have the good sense not to allow this archetype and Tunnel Fighter in the same game, since I'm otherwise completely happy with it.


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Hi everyone,
Long time no hear I know. I've been meaning to update the blog for a long time but time has run away with me and I never quite knew where to start. However, it's the end of OCD Awareness week today and I have a new laptop (woo hoo) so today seemed an apt today to let you all know what has been happening on this crazy journey we call life.
Logging back into the blog was quite a revelation, old blog posts reminding me of my suffering, comments from lovely readers and one lady who just posted very directly "are you happy?" See the short answer on my reply to her comment if you're in a rush but for my longer musings make yourself comfortable.
Overall, what I think people really want to know is did I get better from OCD? In a nutshell the answer is yes. I had long and intensive months of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) with Exposure Response Prevention (ERP). I had to record myself saying my worst fears aloud and listen to them on repeat until my anxiety died down, I had to write scripts featuring my worst case scenarios and I had to change a nappy with no one else in the room. I've tried homeopathic remedies (and vomited them straight back up again because my anxiety was too high to keep them down), I've taken mindfulness courses and sat in fear on meditation retreats. I've done yoga, tai chi, gardening and had shiatsu (if you tell me it's relaxing I'll probably try it).
Slowly but surely things began to change. These things are gradual and recovery certainly doesn't announce itself with a showy, jazzy entrance but slowly the shell of me began to be filled in again. I laughed more freely, made eye contact with those I love, and saw friends again. My jaw didn't hurt so much from gritting my teeth, I ate food and kept it down. Days came and went and I realised that I wasn't just counting the hours for another long day to be over. Sometimes a new day didn't seem so terrible to consider.
Months turned into years and suddenly I felt able to quit my job and go travelling. I travelled for a year in South East Asia doing things that once would have felt hard to consider. My days are no longer filled with endless seeking for answers and so paradoxically I notice my thoughts less. I tell people I have fewer intrusive thoughts whereas I suspect the reality is I have just as many but they do not hold the same significance for me anymore.
So am I happy? None of us are happy all the time. I have happy days and sad days, I have calm days and grumpy days. My life is full of the grey; no longer just the black and white and it turns out grey isn't such a bleak colour after all. I still get intrusive thoughts (because we all do) but now I can observe them and sometimes even laugh at them. In Singapore, in a launderette, whilst I watched my clothes flying around and around a thought planted its roots in my mind. A visual image of me stripping in front of all the local people and being arrested by the strict Singaporean police for some kind of gross indecency. There was no wave of nausea, no fretting about what it meant just guffawing that my OCD had brought to the table such a bizarre offering. Our OCD is nothing if not creative.
I still do my exposures and I have accepted that recovery is not linear but it's a voice that I no longer listen to quite so fervently.
It became a whisper when I began to roar.

subset: commoncrawl


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Newark native named Queen Mother of Ghanaian community
NEWARK - Newark High School graduate Myrtle Deanna Choice was named Queen Mother of Agyanoa Aburi, Ghana, at a coronation installment ceremony Saturday at Newark High School.
Now, Nana Choice will be responsible for, and begin working toward, development within this community.
About four or five years ago, Choice spent time traveling in Ghana, and it was during this time that she was asked to take on the position of queen mother, but she said she wasn't sure if she was ready until now.
"I accept the honor whole-heartedly because I don't really have to change to have the honor," Choice said. "I get to be exactly who I am and I get to do exactly what I've been doing all these years."
Agyanoa is a small, rural farming community in southern Ghana with a population of about 15,000.
The community has no good source of drinking water, low literacy rates, and lacks social amenities and infrastructure development.
Through her work, Choice will attempt to bring water wells, school buses, a clinic, a community center, and school buildings to the community.
She said it takes a few hours for these children to walk to school, and some are killed while walking along narrow roads.
"So we're losing kids every year just wanting to be educated," Choice said. "When I look at that, and I look at what I've been given, and what they have, to say I couldn't do something?"
Choice said in the future, she will most likely be going to Ghana about once a year.
"Ghana has a history that's longer than our history and to be asked to come and be a part of that and learn is real exciting," Choice said.
Nana Agyare Agyei said Choice's education, character, and attitude all made her a right fit for this position.
He spoke of when she visited Ghana. "She was very kind to the people and the children, the school children," Agyei said. "She brought some gifts and other things to them."
Friends, family, and local leaders were all a part of the audience gathered at the high school to honor Choice.
The ceremony included musical performances and a reading of Choice's long list of accomplishments, which span both academics and athletics.
Mayor Jeff Hall also proclaimed July 1 Myrtle Choice Day.
"We are extremely proud of what Myrtle has done, as an alum both of this high school and of the city of Newark," Hall said.
He said he couldn't imagine anyone being more deserving of this honor.
"Myrtle's surely not done with what she'd like to accomplish in her life," Hall said.
Benjamin Okley-Anyanume said often people who receive this honor come from a certain family or lineage, but said the honor bestowed upon Choice is kind of like an honorary degree, in that the person did not necessarily go to that school, but you are honoring them anyway.
"She did maybe something outstanding, they saw her heart...her heart for the people," Okley-Anyanu said. "That is why maybe that area decided to bestow on her the queen mother."


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The Tuck Shop closed its location for good on St. Mark's Place near Avenue A last night. The locations on East First Street and in the Chelsea Market remain open.
According to the sign on the door, "we decided to close this location for myriad reasons" ... which include:
Surf's Up!
Real-Estate Taxes (my personal fav)
The booze
Sandy (of course)
Rent is too damn high!
Gluten-free people
The Australian restaurant opened this location in the summer of 2009.
From April...
[Andrew Adam Newman on Ave C.]


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English Language Arts 7th and 9th
Haworth High School – 2006
Southeastern Oklahoma State University – 2010
Bachelors in Elementary Education
Also certified for Early Childhood Education
Hello! Thanks for taking the time to visit my page! My name is Kayla McGee. I have been teaching for nine years and have enjoied every moment of it! I have been married to my husband, Michael McGee, for 9 years. He has been in the education field for 12 years as an Agriculture Education Advisor but just recently accepted a job as one of the High School Principals at Broken Bow Public Schools. We have one daughter, Caraline, who will be starting her journey as a Haworth Lion this school year. We are a Christian Family. We attend an Assembly of God church in New Boston, Texas, where I sing on the worship team. Singing is one of my favorite hobbies along with photography. We are a proud resident of the Redland community, right outside Haworth. We love our little horse ranch where my husband trains Reining Horses while Caraline and I spend time with our furry friends! I look forward to meeting you in person! In the meantime, please feel free to reach out to me through email with any questions you might have!
Mrs. McGee
When not teaching, you will find me spending time with my husband and daughter. I enjoy photography and singing gospel music.


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Yohan and Bhavya are young Indians in their twenties, preparing to launch an Internet platform to wake the Indian people up! They have been researching the global agenda for several years, and I invited them to discuss and explain the rapid implementation of this agenda in India, unbeknownst to most Indians. Modern India is ready to go cashless, with a national ID program that has collected biometric data on most of its 1.3 billion citizens.
Listen here and see the links provided below:
UIDAI and the Globalist Agenda
Bill Gates: Digitizing India
Untouchability: India's Castes
Globalist Genocide in India
Modi & Rothschild's Failed Financial Coup
Is India Becoming a GMO Trash Can
Countercurrents: India Archives


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#HBD: You can add your birthday dates to your Twitter Bio
I am not a birthday celebrations fun because I don't remember the last time I celebrated my birthday but hopefully Twitter will light up my birthday this year. Twitter has played a huge role in recognizing important days and events. Last month BET fans went on twitter to follow their favorite celebrities. In addition to that Fathers were highly appreciated on Twitter on the Father's day. Currently Twitter is recognizing birthdays and showering people with animated balloons and better target you with ads.
Twitter introduced the option for users to set their birthdate in its settings menu and have it appear on their profile. Twitter says the new feature will allow people to celebrate your birthday more effectively, sending you all-important #HBD tweets to commemorate the anniversary of your existence, but its introduction also has a less altruistic side — it will help the social network work out which ads it thinks you want to see.
Every day, millions of people celebrate the important event in their lives on Twitter — from public events to more personal ones like a friend's birthday. Twitter is excited to make sharing these personal celebrations even easier. Kicking off the festivities is the one and only Kevin Hart (@KevinHart4real), who happened to be celebrate his birthday yesterday. Take a look at his profile to see what yours will look like on your day.
Twitter introduced insights for brands that allowed them to choose groups of users — including millennials, seniors, college grads — at which to target their ads. To work out which categories users fall into, Twitter could either do careful analysis, trying to work out what they tweet about, who they interact with, and their topics of interest. Or it could simply ask them when they are born reports The Verge.
Users who do fill out their birthdays can choose who sees the information, making the date either public, open to followers, or restricted to themselves only. But no matter the privacy level you set, Twitter will use the information for marketing purposes: a note in its support database confirms that the social network will use your birthday to show you more relevant content, including ads. By filling out your date of birth, you're not only getting a screen full of balloons and more timely congratulatory tweets, but you're making yourself an easier target for marketing.
To add your birth date to your Twitter profile, choose the edit profile option on Twitter. Your birth date is a completely optional part of your profile and you have full control over who can see it. The visibility setting for your birth year is separate from the setting for your birth month and day, giving you the flexibility to share as much as you want.


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Stanley Cup playoffs primer
Playoffs begin:
Tuesday. Schedule will be announced tonight.
Four rounds with 16 teams. Each round is best-of-seven.
In first round, No. 1 vs. No. 8, No. 2 vs. No. 4, No. 3 vs. No. 6, No. 4 vs. No. 5. Teams are reseeded after first round.
Games 1 and 2 at higher seed, 3 and 4 at lower seed, 5 at higher seed, 6 at lower seed, 7 at higher seed. In Stanley Cup Finals, team with better regular-season record is the higher seed.
Eastern Conference
Teams with seeds determined
1. Pittsburgh
3. Washington
5. Toronto
6. N.Y. Rangers
Teams that have clinched spots
N.Y. Islanders
** - Ottawa plays at Boston tonight.
Western Conference
Teams with seeds determined
1. Chicago
2. Anaheim
3. Vancouver
4. St. Louis
7. Detroit
8. Minnesota
Teams that have clinched spots
Los Angeles*
San Jose*
* - San Jose played at Los Angeles in a late game last night.


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Journal staff report
The Islands' Sounder and the Journal of the San Juans both took home general excellence awards and individual recognition during the 2015 Washington Better Newspaper Contest.
The awards were presented Oct. 9 at an awards dinner during the 128th annual Washington Newspaper Publishers Association Convention in Everett.
The Sounder, circulation 2,000, competed against other newspapers in Group I. The newspapers were judged on work produced from April 1, 2014 to May 31, 2015. The contest drew 2,034 entries from 58 community newspapers; entries were judged by members of the Kansas Press Association.
The Islands' Sounder brought home second place in general excellence.
The Journal won first place for general excellence and won for the following in news, editorial, arts, page design, special sections.
Best special sections
First place, Wellness Guide – Sounder and Journal staff
Third Place, Holiday Guide – Sounder and Journal staff
Second Place, Weddings in the San Juan Islands – Sounder and Journal staff
First Place, Springtide – Sounder and Journal staff
First Place, San Juan County Fair Guide – Sounder and Journal staff
Second place, Women in Business – Sounder staff
Editorial and design awards
First place, best Environmental story, "Born under a bad sign?" – Scott Rasmussen
First place, best sports feature, "One for the record books" – Scott Rasmussen
First place, best short profile "Century of honor, sacrifice" –Scott Rasmussen
Second place, best lifestyle feature "Big dreams, little boat, portly dog" – Emily Greenberg
Second place, best editorial, "Ill at ease over EMS" – Scott Rasmussen
Second place, best front page design, "San Juan 'Whisperer'" – Scott Rasmussen, Kathryn Sherman, Emily Greenberg
Second place, best Education story, "Food for Thought program builds chef skills" – Emily Greenberg
Third place, most effective use of small space for an ad (black and white or spot color, "Bunny Origami Workshop' – Scott Herning
Third place, best sports news story, "Travel-tested Breakers rally for win over Friday Harbor" – Scott Rasmussen


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Learning Opportunities | B.A. in History
American Studies Program
Founded in 1976, the American Studies Program has served hundreds of students as a "Washington, D.C., campus." ASP uses the District of Columbia as a stimulating educational laboratory where collegians gain hands-on experience with an internship in their chosen field and explore pressing national and international issues in public policy seminars that are issue-oriented, interdisciplinary and led by ASP faculty and D.C. professionals.
Middle East Studies Program
The Middle East Studies Program based in Cairo, Egypt, allows students to explore and interact with the complex and strategic world of the modern Middle East. The interdisciplinary seminars give students the opportunity to explore the diverse religious, social, cultural and political traditions of Middle Eastern people. In addition to seminars, students study the Arabic language and work as volunteers with various organizations in Cairo. Through travel to Jordan, Syria and Turkey, students are exposed to the diversity and dynamism of the region. MESP encourages and equips students to relate to the Muslim world in an informed, constructive and Christ-centered manner at a time of tension and change.
Uganda Studies Program
The Uganda Studies Program offers an invaluable opportunity for studies in and about Africa, for authentic cross-cultural exposure, and for participation in the lively faith and worship of Global South Christianity. Studying at Uganda Christian University is a unique experience in the British lecture and tutorial style of learning. Students take courses on the history and culture of East Africa, the religions and traditions of Africa and African literature, as well as an elective of their choosing.
The Scholars' Semester in Oxford
This study abroad trip is designed for students interested in completing intensive scholarship. Working with academic tutors, students advance their academic writing and research skills and explore the disciplines and interests of their choice. As visiting students of Oxford University and members of Wycliffe Hall, students have the privilege to study and learn in one of the university's historic halls. SSO students enroll in a Primary and Secondary Tutorial, an Integrative Seminar and the course Christianity and Cultures. The SSO is designed for students interested in the fields of Classics, English & Literature, Theology & Religious Studies, Philosophy and History. Applicants are generally honors and other very high-achieving students and must have a 3.7 GPA to be considered for the program.
The American Historical Association
The American Historical Association (AHA) is the largest professional organization in the United States devoted to the study and promotion of history and historical thinking. Only the AHA brings together historians from all specializations and professions, embracing their breadth, variety and ever-changing activity. Its website includes helpful information for undergraduates about the study of history and possible careers in history. Please note in particular the article entitled "What Can You Do with That History Degree?"
The National Council on Public History
If you are interested in a career in public history, check out the National Council on Public History and follow them on Facebook or Twitter. NCPH advances the field of public history, promoting professionalism among history practitioners and encouraging historians' engagement with the public. It has a great list of master's and even Ph.D. programs in public history across the United States.
Conference on Faith & History
During your years at Biola, you will have the opportunity to be involved in The Conference on Faith & History. We hope as a member of our small community of Christian historians, you will take advantage of this opportunity. The conference's primary goal is to encourage excellence in the theory and practice of history from the perspective of historic Christianity, and is held to give scholars, like you, a chance to explore the relationship between Christian faith and history. As part of a university that seeks to integrate our faith into our studies and our lives, the history, government and social science department finds a natural partner in this conference, and seeks to be involved in its future growth development. Involvement includes:
- Attending biennial conferences
- Attending student research conferences
- Attending a bi-annual one-day student conference; attendance for all students is highly encouraged
- Seeking publication in the conference's journal, Fides et Historia


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Fritz Belisle gave Twin City a 6-5 (OT) victory over Minnesota when he scored 2:25 into the extra period.
Twin City came back from a two-goal deficit to capture the victory. Twin City trailed 4-2 after a power play goal by Minnesota\'s Jesse Brown at 5:55 in the third period. Twin City knotted things up at 5-5 on a goal by Jared Erickson at 19:56 in the third period.
Twin City managed to stay out of the box better than usual, registering one minor for two minutes in penalty time. Twin City ended up below its season average of 14.0 penalty minutes per game. Minnesota was unable to stop Twin City from sending pucks towards the net, and Twin City eventually piled up 59 shots on goal.
Twin City was led by Alex Egle, who grabbed two goals. Egle scored the first of his two goals at 17:29 into the second period to make the score 3-2 Minnesota. Tom Reilly picked up the assist. Egle\'s next tally made the score 4-3 Minnesota with 13:24 left in the third period. Reilly provided the assist. Others who scored for Twin City included Ryan Hartzell and Joe Costello, who each put in one. More assists for Twin City came via Tristan Mayer, who had two and Ben Hersman, Cory Martinez, Kyle Wagner, Adam Vannelli, James Hale, and Bennett Witta, who each chipped in one.
Minnesota was helped by Jacob Aberwald, who registered two goals. Aberwald scored the first of his two goals at 11:47 into the first period to make the score 1-1. Tyler Leverty picked up the assist. Aberwald\'s next tally made the score 5-4 Minnesota with 4:14 left in the third period. Talon Medure provided the assist. Minnesota additionally got points from Jace Cseter, who also had one goal and one assist. In addition, Minnesota received assists from Kyle Wendorf, who had one and Alec Skar and Ty Ennis, who each chipped in two.
Twin City\'s Jon Albers stopped 20 shots out of the 25 that he faced. Twin City registered zero goals on two power play opportunities. Dakota McDonald rejected 53 shots on goal for Minnesota. Minnesota incurred four minutes in penalty time with two minors.


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6 must-see country concerts in Hershey
Hey, country music fans!
It's just about May, which means those summer "amarillo skies" and "barefoot, blue-jean nights" will be here before you know it.
And with them come a lineup of great country music acts to see throughout the summer and fall in Hershey.
From Luke Bryan's summer-concert-season kickoff in June to Keith Urban's "RipCORD"-release show in November, Hershey has an exciting lineup planned for Central Pa. country music lovers.
Here are a few concerts to put on your must-see list.
Luke Bryan
Luke Bryan's "Kill The Lights" tour will kick off a summer full of great outdoor concerts at Hersheypark Stadium. The show, slated for 7 p.m. Saturday, June 4, will include performances from Little Big Town and Dustin Lynch, known for No. 1 hits "Hell of a Night" and "Where It's At." Tickets range from $32.35 to $81.35.
Click here for tickets.
Dixie Chicks
The all-girl country music group is making their return to the stage this summer with their DCX MMXVI World Tour, which includes a stop at Hersheypark Stadium at 7 p.m. Friday, June 24. For as low as $44.10 or as high as $138.10, fans can sing and dance along to live performances of their favorite Dixie Chicks hits from the band's seven studio albums, which span from 1990 to 2006.
Click here for tickets.
Zac Brown Band
The Zac Brown Band can't get enough of Hershey. After closing out Hershey's summer concert season in 2015, the country group is back July 23 for their "Black Out The Sun" tour at Hersheypark Stadium. They'll be joined by Drake White & The Big Fire. Tickets range from $34.10 to $79.
Click here for tickets.
Jason Aldean
Jason Aldean is the latest country music star to announce a headlining show in Hershey this year. The singer – known for hits including "Big Green Tractor," "Burnin' It Down" and "Tonight Looks Good on You" – will bring his Six String Circus Tour to Hersheypark Stadium at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 15. He'll be joined by A Thousand Horses, who performed at the York Fair in 2015, and Thomas Rhett. Tickets range from $28.35 to $77.35 and will go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, May 6 at the Giant Center Box Office, by phone at 717-534-3911 or 800-745-3000 and online.
Click here for tickets.
Carrie Underwood
You can see this seven-time Grammy winning country superstar in Hershey for as low as $46 when she brings The Storyteller Tour to the Giant Center. The show is slated for 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 1. Easton Corbin and The Swon Brothers will also perform.
One dollar from each ticket will be donated to the Checotah Animal, Town, and School Foundation to support services in Underwood's hometown of Checotah, Okla., such as education and literacy programs.
Click here for tickets.
Keith Urban
Your favorite Aussie country crooner will take the Giant Center stage Thursday, Nov. 17, just after the release of his eighth studio album, "RipCORD." "Don't Ya" singer Brett Eldredge and SiriusXM Artist to Watch in 2016 Maren Morris will join Urban on the road. Tickets range from $32.60 to $72.60.
Click here for tickets.


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The overnight release of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement's draft intellectual property chapter has exceeded Pirate Party Australia's worst fears. While the Party is yet to undertake a thorough analysis of the draft, there are already some provisions that are glaringly ill-considered.
Despite numerous assurances from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) the TPP would not require changes to domestic intellectual property legislation, the draft text indicates that substantial legislative changes would be required if the United States and Australia got its way. These changes may include the criminalisation of "significant willful copyright […] infringements that have no direct […] motivation of financial gain."
"This corporate wishlist masquerading as a trade agreement is bad for access to knowledge, access to medicine, and access to innovation. It re-enforces the worst parts of our intellectual property enforcement regime on a regional level, making the necessary positive reforms for the digital era much more difficult, if not impossible," said Brendan Molloy, Councillor of Pirate Party Australia.
"It is absolutely appalling that we are still relying on leaked texts to determine just what we're getting ourselves into with these trade agreements. Even Parliament is being kept in the dark. It's time to release the text, and all future texts, so that transparency and oversight can result in texts that help, not hinder, legitimate Australian interests. There is no economic justification for the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement's intellectual property provisions. DFAT must immediately hold public briefings to explain their now public negotiating positions. It's time for some accountability."
The Australian delegation is attributed with the minority in many cases, often siding with the US. The current text would require the accession of all parties to several other intellectual property agreements in order to be a member of this agreement, endangering any future positive reform efforts due to layering of treaties. The US is pushing for pharmaceutical provisions that the Australian delegation is standing against.
The text sees copyright terms being reaffirmed, with Mexico pushing for life plus 100 years, and Australia pushing for life plus 70. Pirate Party Australia does not believe it is necessary to include such provisions in a trade agreement. Limitations and exceptions are significantly overlooked, with very minimal content provided in any section, while provisions for penalties are detailed, onerous, and go beyond our current legislative framework.
The text requires the implementation of policies that would require an ISP to hand over subscriber information on the mere allegation of infringement, without requiring evidence. The text also attempts to introduce regional enforcement of country-code top-level domains (ccTLD) such that domain name registrations would be required to be public and the introduction of dispute settlement processes, to solve what is coined "trademark cyber-piracy" in the text.
The United States is also pushing for provisions that would ban the rebroadcasting of TV over the Internet.
For a detailed analysis of the content of the text, please see James Love's article on KEI: http://www.keionline.org/node/1825
The leaked text can be found here: http://wikileaks.org/tpp


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In at least some of the recent tragedies, the pedestrian, if not also the driver, seems to have behaved irresponsibly. And as a frequent, cautious jaywalker with at least 20 years' experience, I know that in a battle between car and human, the car wins every time. But I've also learned to balance safety and efficiency and jaywalk only when there is no risk that I will injure or even inconvenience myself or others. My travels are so smooth and satisfying that I wonder why others cannot follow this paradigm of common sense and personal responsibility. It's worked for the East Coast.
Both Clague and Arakawa instilled pace, power, discipline and not a little skill into all their teams as evidenced by the championship thriller that Punahou edged 3-2.
Farewell, Coach Clague, and good luck to Coach Arakawa and Kalani in the future.
The sadness of all this is that because of her position, Burns' comments might seem to reflect her organization's views.
The police can't figure out a hate crime when it's reported, and the young kids are getting away with bad behavior. Hawaii has not enacted appropriate hate-crime laws to protect all who come to the island as well as those who live here.
As an outsider, it doesn't make sense to me that so many violent hate crimes go unrecognized here. Everyone should get their head out of the sand and realize there is a problem.
I'm sorry that I feel this way since coming here.
Letter form: Online form, click here
E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
Fax: (808) 529-4750
Mail: Letters to the Editor, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 7 Waterfront Plaza, 500 Ala Moana, Suite 210, Honolulu, HI 96813


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$ 570
Antique French Art Nouveau Cameo Glass Coupe Vase by Gallé, Circa 1900. The vase finely carved in relief and depicting an anemone plant and flower cut to a rich apricot orange on a frosted glass background. The vase signed "Gallé" lower right and having a ground pontil mark to the base.
3" tall X 3" wide X 2" deep
7.5 cm X 7.5 cm X 5 cm
SHIPPINGDisplayed rates are for shipping in the Continental U.S. and Canada. For other locations, kindly contact us and we will provide the most competitive shipping price available. All shipments are professionally packed and shipped insured with full tracking capabilities. Customers are also welcome to collect their items from our warehouses or arrange their own shipping.
$ 2,600
$ 795
$ 4,500
$ 625


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If you're in the northern hemisphere like most of you who read this site, then you're no doubt enjoying the benefits of natural seasonal changes as the nightmare that was winter 2015 has given way to a beautiful spring. And if you're in the southern hemisphere — particularly if you're in Australia, as many of our readers are — you're almost certainly feeling the relief of more tolerable temperatures as your summer has given way to fall and is quickly approaching winter. Either way, all over the world we're entering the magical time of year known as Festival Season. Many of the biggest and best bands in the world (and leagues of smaller ones as well) are preparing to set out for various tours and huge outdoor festivals that will attract thousands upon thousands of individuals. The global festival circuit has become so huge and varied though that it can be nearly impossible to know where even to start if you're looking to travel to one.
We're here to help! Obviously there are far too many metal festivals around the world for us to provide anywhere near a comprehensive list, but we asked our staff to highlight a few festivals on 3 continents — North America, Europe, and Australia (apologies to the rest of the world as we only have so many staff members from different places). Check them all out below!
North America
Psycho California
Location/Date: Orange County, CA / May 15th – 17th
Bands Featured: Sleep, Pentagram, Eyehategod, Earth, Bedemon, Russian Circles, Kylesa, Conan, Municipal Waste, Om, Bongzilla, Old Man Gloom, Pallbearer, and a ton more
Selling Point: You get three solid days of what is possibly the greatest collection of doom/sludge/stoner bands ever assembled. Not only that, but part of the proceeds will go directly towards helping feed local schoolkids in the Anaheim area and improving the health of Orange County and its citizens. So you can feel extra good when being blissed out your mind.
Things to Know: Josh Graham (A Storm of Light, ex-Neurosis) will be conducting the visuals and general atmosphere for all three days of the festival, so be adequately prepared for a psychedelic nightmare.
– Kit Brown
Maryland Deathfest
Location/Dates: Baltimore, Maryland / May 21st – 24th
Bands Featured: Bloodbath, Amorphis, Napalm Death, Neurosis, Agoraphobic Nosebleed, and about thirty others
Selling Point: If you consider that Maryland Deathfest is the biggest "legitimate" metal festival in the United States a selling point, then that. The massive four-day fest is notorious for offering exclusive or rare performances you won't find anywhere else. For instance, Agoraphobic Nosebleed will take the stage in 2015, something that's only happened a handful of times since their formation. There are also a number of exclusive US performances from bands such as Arcturus.
Things to Know: Fortunately, the MDF organizers have loaded up all of the important info in one place. But in addition to all of this, just know that you will be lost in a sea of denim jackets and the food carts will be expensive and the lines/wait times will be long. Load up on Pit Beef (look it up) at some point during your stay in Baltimore if you're looking for the best roast beef sandwich you could ever experience, and don't let its shack-like appearance and shared parking with a strip club deter you. Also, if you're open minded, Mobb Deep will be performing after the fest closes at Baltimore Soundstage (completely unrelated) and the venue will be allowing MDF attendees in for free.
– Jimmy Rowe
Bay Area Death Fest
Location/Dates: Oakland, CA / July 10th and 11th.
Bands Featured: Cattle Decapitation, Psycroptic, Origin, Fallujah, Disentomb, The Zenith Passage, Ovid's Withering
Selling Point: This is the place to be if you're anywhere near the west coast and simply want to be aurally bludgeoned for two days by some of the top death metal groups in the world. By virtue of location and genre of focus, Bay Area Death Fest is undoubtedly the North American festival that our late contributor Brian Shields would have attended and represented, and not surprisingly, the festival will be held specifically in his honor. So if you want to give the Dabmaster one final sendoff, you couldn't pick a better festival to go to.
Things to Know: There's a killer shirt available for the fest that features Drake in corpsepaint with the words "Runnin' through the 666 with my woes." If you don't think that's cool as hell, you can go have no fun somewhere else.
– JR & Nick Cusworth
Heavy Montreal
Location/dates: Montreal, Canada / August 7th – 9th
Bands Featured: Mastodon, Meshuggah, Faith No More, Gojira, Slipknot, NOFX, Devin Townsend, Lamb of God, Andrew W.K., Deafheaven, Periphery, Alexisonfire, and a whole whack more.
Selling Point: While in its infancy, Heavy Montreal's primary focus was on showcasing international acts of the metal variety, in its seven years of existence it has evolved to include a number of punk and hard rock acts in addition to the big names in metal through which the festival originally made a name for itself. As heavy music festivals are not exactly abundant in the Great White North, this variety makes Heavy Montreal a one-stop festival for Canadian (and ambitious international) heavy music fans of all denominations.
Things to Know: Maybe it's just me, but tend to think with my stomach, even (or maybe especially?) at festival events, and after sweating it out in the pit, I'm not opposed to splurging a little bit. Luckily, Heavy Montreal features "delicious and diverse food and drink choices" from a number of on-site kiosks and some of the city's finest food trucks. According to the official website, festival-goers can enjoy everything from typical fast food staples to sushi, and beyond! Also worth mentioning are the various official Heavy Montreal after parties. The festival officially finishes up at 11:00 pm every night, but the city boasts a lively night life and is most definitely worth exploring!
– Elizabeth Wood
The Gwar-BQ
Location/Date: Richmond, VA / August 15th
Bands Featured: Gwar, Descendents, Down, Goatwhore, Dead Earth Politics, and many more to be announced
Selling Point: You get to hang out at a waterpark with a gaggle of freaks, engage in vicious circle pits under a park pavilion, and see one of the most legendary and theatrical bands in metal close out the day.
Things to Know: Gwar makes their own beer each and every year which is always plentiful and consistently improving. Last year's "Killsner" was awesome! You'll probably want to stock up on beer tickets early though, because the line gets long as hell really quickly.
California Deathfest
Location/Dates: Oakland, CA. / October 9th – 11th
Bands Featured: Infest, Autopsy, Immolation, Xibalba, Despise You, Nader Sadek, Disma, Ghoul
Selling Point: While much smaller than its older brother Maryland Deathfest, this newcomer to the festival circuit hopes to eventually bring the power of MDF to the West Coast. This is only the beginning for California Deathfest, but expect great things to come as the fest grows, with label vendors and expert curation. And while this is technically a post highlighting Summer festivals, it's good to know that this particular festival is in California in October, so you're not as likely to be standing around in sweltering heat and smelly concert-goers. Maybe if you're into playing it low-key for your first legit metal festival and want to be comfortable, CDF will be a good option for you.
Things to Know: As far as the festival itself goes, it takes place at Oakland Metro, and the festival promises similar vendor tables/booths that people have come to expect at MDF, but obviously scaled back. It's hard telling how things will go with the fest being in its infancy, but it's in good hands. As for locale, there's no shortage of things to get into in Oakland, and since you'll be hanging out in October, you're more likely to find some decent amenities by coming in after the Summer tourist rush fades away.
Death to False Metal Festival
Location / Dates: Hamden, CT / August 15th & 16th
Bands Featured: Whiplash, Krieg, Secrets of the Sky, Valkyrie, Godhunter, Destroyer of Light, and more.
Selling Point: This inaugural fest is catered to folks seeking the cutting edge in extreme metal. While nowhere near the size of MDF, the general audience and spirit are very much the same. Be it death, grind, black metal, or doom, you can find it here. This festival is founded by Metal Insider contributor Chip McCabe and is being sponsored by our favorite public relations group Earsplit PR, who have aided this site in bringing you countless coverage in the realm of extreme metal. Anyone with knowledge of either will appreciate the kind of music that will be on display here at DTFMF.
Things to Know: Don't worry, the name of the festival is actually tongue in cheek, admits McCabe: "The metal scene is littered with way too many people who carry an 'I'm more underground than you' attitude, which I find amusing, so the title is dedicated to them. However, the name does reflect that we are looking for a certain aesthetic for the bands that play this festival. Our lineup is fairly eclectic, with thrash, death metal, black metal, doom, grindcore, traditional metal, etc. But we will not stand for generic, cookie-cutter garbage; we want the best of the best, every year."
CrucialFest 5
Location / Dates: Salt Lake City, UT / June 18 – 20
Bands Featured: Rosetta, Subrosa, Cult Leader, Lesbian, Giant Squid, Ides of Gemini, Royal Thunder, Wild Throne
Selling point: Salt Lake City's nationally recognized metal scene is seemingly skewed towards sludge, doom, and post metal. CrucialFest is a reflection of that and celebrates the monumental riffs of locals and internationally touring acts alike. Just one look at the above featured acts should be enough to conjure the atmosphere you can expect to be involved in at CrucialFest. Now if you can just make it out to SLC…
Things to Know: There's a free event the day after CrucialFest called "CrucialRest", which is family and pet friendly. Bands and venue for this event are TBA, but if you're a West Coast metal lifer with a family, here's a potential add-on that will further help you justify the trip out.


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A stunning day tour of the Highlands, a land of forests, mountains, rivers and glens. Visit a local whisky distillery and sample a warming dram of single malt whisky. The day concludes with our return to Edinburgh in time for an evening at the world-famous Edinburgh Military Tattoo.
As of January 1st 2022, this tour will be carbon neutral. To help protect Scotland's nature, wildlife and community, we have developed a five-point Climate Action Plan to reduce our carbon emissions and support the transition towards a low carbon future. You can find out more about our carbon neutral tours here.
The Famous Grouse Experience
The optional guided tour gives you an insight into how 'uisge beatha' (the 'water of life') is made and takes you on a journey to discover the history behind one of Scotland's most iconic exports. Enjoy our exclusive partnership with the Famous Grouse Experience by receiving a discounted entry fee and a free whisky miniature. Only available if reserved in advance.
Available Full Limited Seats
"Our tour guide Duncan was very knowledgeable and friendly. Our day was amazing…everything went very smoothly and we had a most enjoyable day. The Edinburgh Tattoo was breathtaking and it was also lovely to catch up and have a chat with people whom we had met during the day trip."
We leave Edinburgh at 08.45am and pass Stirling with views of its impressive Castle and the Wallace Monument. Then it's into the Highlands through the scenic beauty, once home to the infamous cattle thief and rogue, Rob Roy MacGregor. We visit a local whisky distillery where you will learn how our national drink, the 'water of life' is made and sample a wee dram.
Nicely warmed by the whisky, we then explore a stretch of magical Perthshire forest; the peaceful Hermitage. Take a short woodland walk to see the Black Linn Falls on the River Braan and don't forget to look up! You can spot here the giant Douglas firs which are among the tallest trees in Britain. Travelling further south, we take in Dunkeld with its spectacular cathedral on the banks of the River Tay before returning to the Capital past the inspiring Forth Bridges.
We're back in Edinburgh for approximately 05.30pm with enough time to relax and explore the city before making your own way to the evening performance of the Military Tattoo at Edinburgh Castle.
(Routes are subject to change)
Available Full Limited Seats
Upgrade your whisky experience to include an exclusive visit to Warehouse No 9. Enter the bonded warehouse to sample four premium whisky tastes from the exceptional Glenturret single malt range. Select at the time of booking.
60 High Street (The Royal Mile)
Please check in at 08.30am for tour departure at 08.45am.
Tour returns at 05.30 pm.


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The convenience afforded by online shopping has endeared it to many people. Ecommerce websites enable shoppers to buy a wide variety of goods and services from the comfort of their homes and offices. The process is quite simple. All you need to do is find an item you need, click on it, provide credit card details and voila! Thereafter, you wait for the product to be shipped to the address you specified. As an owner of one or several ecommerce websites, you are aware of the potential this has towards increasing your business revenue. However, the risk of someone hacking into your site and stealing customer data is always imminent.
Online shoppers trust web-based merchants with their debit or credit card information. If this falls into the wrong hands, it could highly jeopardize your business. Someone could wipe out a customer's funds from their bank account. It also puts your ecommerce business into disrepute not forgetting the legal implications involved. At best, you should take measures to protect client information. At this juncture, take a moment and ask yourself whether you have taken enough precautions to secure your website. If you are worried that your site could fall into the hands of hackers, here's what you must do:-
Purge customer data
Normally, ecommerce websites keep a lot of data. This includes credit card numbers, dates of expiry, customer names and card-verification value (CVV2) codes among others. Check your database on a regular basis and remove such old records. Keep only what is necessary especially if you anticipate refunds and charge backs. This way, in the event that your website is hacked into, the exposure will be minimal.
Prohibit use of emails
Always advise your customers not to use emails to share transaction information. There are customers who believe, wrongly so, that emails are secure for transmission of personal information. In any case, this is not secure in the first place and no business should encourage it. Bring this to the knowledge of prospective clients. You can emphasize this through a data security page or indicate it on the frequently asked questions (FAQ) section.
Use card verification systems
As a matter of practice, ecommerce web owners should have an address and card verification system (AVS) in place. Speak to your webmaster about it. Have the latest AVS software installed. Insist on a system that also does card verification value (CVV) before processing a transaction. This will eliminate any attempts at fraud.
What about passwords? Every customer knows that they must create a password in order to access your site. Unfortunately, what some do not know is that there are clever people out there who can hack into simple passwords. Help your customers get out of this ignorance by requiring them to create passwords in a specific way. For instance, you could make it mandatory to have a mix of alphanumeric characters. Complex passwords make it difficult for criminals to crack them.
These security tips are not exhaustive. Nonetheless, always keep abreast of security threats to your ecommerce site.


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GAZA: The Islamic Jihad movement Monday rejected Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf`s offer to help resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
"All sorts of relations with the Israeli government are rejected under any condition," said Mohammed al-Harazin, a Gaza-based Islamic Jihad leader.
Al-Harazin urged Musharraf to retreat his remarks over Israel, saying "anyone who wants to help the Palestinian people should exert efforts to lift the siege," referring to a one-year-old embargo imposed on the Palestinians since Hamas took power last March.
According to a report aired by Al-Arabiya television station late Friday, Musharraf said he could start talks with the Palestinians in an effort to mediate the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, or "maybe in some third country ... going to Israel is also a possibility."
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Sunday turned down the offer. He said in an interview with local radio stations that he would maintain direct contacts with Palestinian National Authority(PNA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas rather than depending on a mediator.
"We don`t need someone to come from afar in order for me and Abu Mazen (Abbas) to meet," Olmert was quoted as saying.


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Iraq's Anti-Christian Pogroms
The world is consumed by fears that Iraq is degenerating into a civil war between Shiites, Sunnis, and Kurds. But in this looming war of all against all, it is Iraq's small community of Assyrian Christians that is at risk of annihilation.
Iraq's Christian communities are among the world's most ancient, practicing their faith in Mesopotamia almost since the time of Christ. The Assyrian Apostolic Church, for instance, traces its foundation back to 34 A.D. and St. Peter. Likewise, the Assyrian Church of the East dates to 33 A.D. and St. Thomas. The Aramaic that many of Iraq's Christians still speak is the language of those apostles – and of Christ.
When tolerated by their Muslim rulers, Assyrian Christians contributed much to the societies in which they lived. Their scholars helped usher in the "Golden Age" of the Arab world by translating important works into Arabic from Greek and Syriac. But in recent times, toleration has scarcely existed. In the Armenian Genocide of 1914-1918, 750,000 Assyrians – roughly two-thirds of their number at the time – were massacred by the Ottoman Turks with the help of the Kurds.


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Several years ago I was fortunate enough to connect with another indie author, Mike Reeves-McMillan, who wrote a lovely review of The King's Sword, which he described, tongue-in-cheek, as "cheerybright." He meant that the world wasn't perfect, but good characters exist and can make a difference in their world and society through actions defined by honesty, integrity, and self-sacrifice. While the term cheerybright certainly made me smile (and was a lovely counterpoint to grimdark), we eventually discovered the term "noblebright."
The term noblebright was originally something of a joke from the gaming community. The quintessential grimdark game Warhammer 40k (which I have not played, being neither a gamer nor a fan of grimdark) was rewritten as Brighthammer 40k. Some brilliant unknown person (thank you, whoever you are!) described the rewrite as "noblebright", which we liked because it focused on the motivations of the characters rather than a perceived cheerfulness which wasn't reflected in all the books we meant when we talked about this previously-unnamed subgenre of fantasy.
So what is noblebright fantasy?
Noblebright fantasy has at least one important character with noble, idealistic motives who does the right thing out of principle. The character is flawed, but his or her actions are generally defined by honesty, integrity, sacrifice, love, and kindness. The story upholds the goodness of the character; the character's good qualities are not held up as naiveté, cluelessness, or stupidity, but rather shown to be worthwhile. Good characters can make a difference. Noblebright characters can learn and grow. They can deliberately choose to be kind when tempted to be unkind, they can choose generosity when it hurts, and they can influence their world and other characters for the better. In a noblebright story, even villains are not without hope; their stories may have a redemptive ending, or they may have some kind of conversion experience (religious or not). It's not guaranteed, of course, but in a noblebright story, it's a possibility.
Noblebright fantasy is not utopian fiction. The world of a noblebright story is not perfect, and indeed can sometimes be quite dark. Actions have consequences, and even good characters can make terrible mistakes. But a noblebright story is generally hopeful in tone, even if there are plenty of bad, grim, dark things going on in the world.
Noblebright Fantasy: Intersections with Other Fantasy Subgenres
First, a few definitions:
Clean fantasy – Clean fantasy is fantasy that does not include sex or graphic violence. Clean fantasy is very often noblebright, but not always. It is often written for young adults, but not always. It is "young-adult appropriate" even when written for adults. Not all noblebright fantasy is clean, but much is.
Young adult (YA) fantasy – Young adult is an age range, not a genre, so young adult books of any genre have the age range (13-17 years old) in common. Young adult books are typically written with slightly simpler vocabulary, grammar, and syntax than books written for adult readers. They often, but not always, have a coming of age element to the story, and almost always have a young adult protagonist or main character.
Not all coming of age books are young adult books. "Coming of age" is a theme in the story, while young adult defines the intended audience. A coming of age story might be written from an adult perspective looking back and intended for adult readers rather than young adult readers.
As an amusing aside, I've found a number of definitions that define "young adult" as ages 20-39, but in literary terms, "young adult" means basically middle school and high school age, so 13-17 years old. 18-24ish tends to fall under "new adult" which is a recent term for books with college age protagonists (whether or not they're enrolled in college).
Christian fantasy – Christian fantasy is written with a clear Christian perspective, with either allegorical or direct reference to Christian theology. Most Christian fantasy books will be fairly clean, but that's not an absolute guarantee (I believe some of Ted Dekker's darker stories may be more graphically violent than would fall under the "clean fantasy" descriptor.). Most Christian fantasies will be noblebright in character even if the world is dark, but not all noblebright fantasies will be Christian fantasies.
To use my own books as examples (because I know them best):
The King's Sword and the rest of the Erdemen Honor series are noblebright, clean fantasy, but not Christian fantasy. You can easily identify themes of integrity and sacrificial love, but there is no religious component to the story. They are not YA, although both The King's Sword and Honor's Heir have a coming of age thread within the story, because the stories are written for adults from an adult perspective.
Things Unseen and the rest of the A Long-Forgotten Song series are clean Christian fantasy. I've described them as "darkish" at times because they're more violent and scary than Erdemen Honor. However, it's the world that is darkish; most of the characters you spend the most time with are very noblebright. Is it clean? Well, some of the violence is a little graphic, but I think most parents would probably be ok with even younger teenage readers reading it, so it's clean or at least cleanish. It's the polar opposite of grimdark… there is hope and redemption and grace in a very dark world. The darkness is there not for the reader to wallow in but to highlight the magnificence of grace.
We're starting a movement.
I want to make noblebright fantasy a thing the way grimdark is a thing. I want you to be able to search for noblebright fantasy on Amazon and find it. I want to bring noblebright into the spotlight the way grimdark has held the spotlight for years.
We need your help.
I'm assembling a series of boxed sets of noblebright fantasy books. They're great books with a noblebright perspective, at a great price. We want to hit the bestsellers lists.
I'd love to be a bestseller, of course. But more than that, I want to get noblebright fantasy out to the world. I want to let people know that fantasy doesn't have to be grim and dark and cruel and hopeless. There is hope and light and kindness and joy in fantasy! I want to give devoted fantasy readers a new perspective, and I want to attract readers who might have been turned off of fantasy by the recent trend toward grimdark.
How you can help:
Do you believe in noblebright fantasy? Here's what you can do:
- Buy the books! You can check out the boxed sets or seek out the individual books you're interested in. I will post reviews of all the books in sets that I organize on my blog.* The first boxed set is available here! Amazon | Barnes & Noble Nook | Kobo | iBooks
- Search for noblebright! I'm working with other authors to make noblebright more widely known, and we're using noblebright as a keyword on Amazon and other retailers. So you can search to find other noblebright books by using it as a search term. Like this (click here!).*
- Write reviews for the books you enjoy! Using the noblebright term in your review will help that book come up more easily in searches by readers searching for noblebright fantasy. Not sure how to write a review? I wrote some tips here.
- Spread the word! If you're a blogger, blog about noblebright as a new subgenre or about the noblebright books you've enjoyed. Do you tweet? Tweet about it! Tell your friends!
- Sign up for my mailing list! I don't have (and don't want) ownership over the noblebright term. But I do have a leadership role in this movement, and I am organizing these first noblebright boxed sets. As a Christian reader and author, I plan to let you know where noblebright fantasy, clean fantasy, and Christian fantasy intersect and overlap in the books I'm reading and the boxed sets I'm organizing, to help you select books you will love.
*At one point I was advised to trademark the term noblebright in order to ensure that the definition remained relatively static and that it was not applied to books which included material that was problematic in some way. I chose not to do this. I believe authors who write noblebright understand the point of noblebright and the limits of the term. I'd rather have noblebright spread than keep ownership of it. I understand, and I want to make you aware, that not all noblebright fantasy will be completely consistent with a conservative Christian worldview. Noblebright is a term that describes a general attitude of hope and goodness and nobility in the work, but does not necessarily mean that the author is a Christian or that the work is completely devoid of content that you personally may find problematic or challenging in some way. If you're a Christian reader, this is a new way to find books you might enjoy. If you are not a Christian but are looking for books that are more hopeful than what has been in vogue recently, noblebright is your new favorite search term.


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The previous record for concurrent users on Fornite was 8.3M.
Who is Marshmello? Marshmello is an American born electronic music producer. You have probably heard several of his songs including Happier which is a recent collaboration with Bastille.
Video: Marshmello Holds First Ever Fortnite Concert Live at Pleasant Park
WTF is going on??? Don't worry. Matthew Ball clears all of this up with his latest deep dive on the metaverse.
WTF is the metaverse??? Wikipedia defines the metaverse as a collective virtual shared space, created by the convergence of virtually enhanced physical reality and physically persistent virtual space, including the sum of all virtual worlds, augmented reality, and the internet.
Ok, now you may be totally freaked out
Flashback: Fortnite tops SuperData's 2018 chart with $2.4 billion digital revenue
Top 5 free-to-play games by revenue:
1) Fortnite (Epic Games) — $2.4B
2) Dungeon Fighter Online (Nexon) — $1.5B
3) League of Legends (Riot Games/Tencent) — $1.4B
4) Pokemon GO (Niantic) — $1.3B
5) Crossfire (Neowiz Games) — $1.3B
More #1: EA's 'Apex Legends' tops 'Fortnite' record with 25 million signups in a week
More #2: Americans Spent More Than $43 Billion on Video Games in 2018
More #3: Sources Say Apple Planning Subscription Gaming Service


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Vodka Pie Dough
Why I Love This Recipe
What? Vodka?! Yes - it's becoming more and more well-known, adding spirits to pie/tart dough - and it's not just for flavor (obviously not, in vodka's case). This is one of my go-to recipes when I need a basic pie dough - it can double as a tart crust, too. It comes together quickly and easily, and I'll often make up a double batch, and freeze half so I'm always prepared to make a pie at a moment's notice. The recipe's not exactly foolproof, but it is fool-resistant.
Ingredients You'll Need
2 1/1 cups (12 1/2 oz) unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar
12 tbsp (1 1/2 sticks or 6 oz) cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
1/2 cup (4 oz) cold vegetable shortening or lard, cut into small pieces
1/2 cup vodka
1/2 cup water
1. Process 1 1/2 cups flour, salt and sugar in a food processor until everything is evenly combined, a couple of pulses. Scatter the butter and lard pieces around on top of the flour mixture. Process in pulses until the mixture is thoroughly and evenly blended (about 15 seconds). The dough at this point will look like wet sand, or dry cottage cheese. You're looking to thoroughly coat all the flour with the fat. Scrape the bowl down with a spatula, making sure there are no clumps and that everything is evenly distributed around the processor blades. Add the remaining flour and pulse until the mixture is fully incorporated, and the mass of dough starts to clump and break up - maybe 5-6 more pulses. At this point, the dough will look more like wet sand than cottage cheese. Turn the mix out into a large mixing bowl.
2.Sprinkle vodka and water over mixture. Using a rubber spatula (or your hands, if you're adventurous), scoop and fold the dough over on itself several times, pressing down, until the dough comes together in a ball and is slightly tacky. Split the dough in half; roll each half into a ball, then flatten it into a disk, roughly 4 inches thick. Wrap each half tightly in plastic wrap, then refrigerate for at least 45 minutes. Use as you wish after that point.
NOTES: What's with the vodka? Well, vodka is around 80 proof - meaning it's about 40% alcohol, and 60% water. Flour does not react with alcohol to form gluten, and too much gluten makes a pie dough tough - not tender. So when you add the water and vodka to this recipe, you're adding one cup of LIQUID (which helps you bring the dough together easier), but only about 3/4 cup of WATER (which will limit the gluten formation). This makes the dough a snap to bring together and roll out - you'll find there's less cracking when working with this dough. Vodka's flavorless, so it won't affect the taste of the crust, and it burns off at a very low temperature, so once the crust is in the oven, most all that alcohol will vaporize away.
And why are we processing the flour in two batches? Well, you want a majority of flour to be completely coated with fat. This will make all that fat get evenly distributed in layers once the dough has come together, and layered fat in the dough means lots of flakiness in the final crust. But you don't want ALL the flour coated, because that would prevent the water from mixing with the flour. We need SOME gluten to form, otherwise the dough would never hold together. By processing in batches, you're ensuring a good ratio of coated-to-uncoated flour.
Can you use other alcohol? Sure. This is a very good all-purpose pie dough (and can fill in as a tart dough, too) because vodka is flavorless. But if you were going to make, say, an apple pie, you might try swapping out the vodka for some Apple Jack or Calvados. If you're going to start playing around with the alcohol, though, make sure you match the proof - keep it at 80 proof, and it should be interchangeable.
Questions, Comments & Reviews
'CHEF' the Film Cookbook: Recipes from El JefeBy CHEF the Film
7 Recipes11875 Downloads


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Group Booking Terms and Conditions
Because you are making a Group Booking, there are additional Terms and Conditions that apply. Please read them and click 'I Accept' below to continue with your booking
General Group Booking Terms
By making a group reservation through Hostelworld.com you agree to the following terms and conditions as set by Hostelworld.com and as set by the hostel in question.
- In order to make a group reservation on Hostelworld.com it is necessary to pay a deposit. The balance is due directly to the hostel according to their payment conditions.
- The booking deposit is non-refundable.
- Please note that any cancellations must be notified directly to the hostel at least 24 hours in advance of your scheduled arrival date, unless otherwise stated in the hostel's conditions.
- Hostelworld.com are not responsible for changes or amendments to your reservation once it has been processed. All correspondence with regard to changes to your booking need to be dealt with directly with the hostel.
- Cancellations for reservations must be made directly with the hostel and must conform with the individual hostels cancellation policy (see below)
- It is your responsibility to pay the balance of your accommodation cost to the hostel in accordance with their payment conditions (see below). Failure to do so may result in your reservation being cancelled by the hostel.
- Individual hostels may have special booking conditions relating to group stays, please read the hostel booking conditions carefully before making your reservation.
Hostel Specific Terms & Conditions
The remainder of the amount due will be charged to your credit card on arrival. Should numbers or room selection change, the per person deposit times the number of people who actually travelled will be deducted from the total accommodation charge levvied by the hostel.
The following group types are not accepted by this hostel: Junior / Primary School, High / Secondary School, Business Trip If you have misrepresented the type of group you are booking for, your booking may be cancelled by the hostel."
Any cancellations resulting from agreement to these terms and conditions under false pretences will result in loss of deposit.
숙소 정보
Lokal Bali Hostel offers dormitory style accommodations, and each room is equipped with air conditioning, private locker, shared bathrooms, hot and cold shower. Featuring a year-round outdoor pool, shared kitchen facilities, internet station, and a living area with comfortable sofa and flat screen TV with cable channels, guests also can enjoy a meal or drinks at the communal area or gazebo.
The Hostel also provides airport transfer, car/bike hire and shuttle services with an additional charge. 규정 보기
객실 현황 확인
- 무료 와이파이
- 무료 주차장
- 인터넷 사용가능
- 침대시트 제공
- 타월 포함
- 독서등
- 사물함
- 수영장
- 야외 수영장
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- 에어컨
- 온수 샤워
- 자전거 주차장
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- 휴게실
- 객실 청소
- 모닝콜
- 세탁 시설
- 안내 데스크(운영 시간 제한)
- 인터넷 사용
- 인터넷 카페
- 자전거 대여
- 짐 보관 가능
- 투어 / 여행 안내 데스크
- 티 / 커피 시설
- Wi-Fi
세션 만료
세션 만료
계정의 비밀번호를 입력해주세요 <% email %>


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That's destiny. I lost my blue bracelet a few days ago. Actually I didn't loose it, it was falling apart. Too much salt water. I wanted to cry, it was a special one. Since I bought it last October in Lisbon I never removed it. It was a symbol for an amazing time.
Today, just a few days later, someone gave me a new bracelet. A gift. And such a beautiful one. I still can't believe it. I really like the colors but the best thing is the blue eye pearl. The funny thing is I was seriously thinking about buying one. And now I have one. Lovely coincidence.
When I saw the blue eye pearl for the first time here in Southamerica I was kind of surprised. I actually thought it's a Turkish thing. I looked it up. The origins are indeed Arabic. They call it Nazar boncugu, what means something like sight pearl because it protects people from bad sights. It's an Arabic belief, that blue eyes relegate evil sights. I like that.
I have a new bracelet, which reminds me of a wonderful time in Panama AND I'm safe now. Noone can hurt me with evil sights anymore. That's definitely destiny, isn't it? We have to believe in the good things in life, friends.


text: The Society strives to promote good relations between the NYC Consular Corps and our hosts, New York City and the United States of America. We arrange useful forums and briefings with local, state and federal authorities and regular charitable and social events for members and guests. The Society has regularly held fund-raising events and we have a long and proud philanthropic record. Since November 1988 when the Society honored former US President Jimmy Carter and made a substantial contribution that year to Habitat For Humanity, other beneficiaries of the more than $850,000 raised in recent years have included Special Olympics, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Paul Newman's Hole In The Wall Gang Camp, the children's programs of CARE International and the American Cancer Society.


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Search results for author:"Amy Ewen"
Total records matched: 1 Search took: 0.078 secs
The Methodological Illumination of a Blind Spot: Information and Communication Technology and International Research Team Dynamics in a Higher Education Research Program
David M. Hoffman; Brigida Blasi; Bojana Culum; Žarko Dragšic; Amy Ewen; Hugo Horta; Terhi Nokkala; Cecilia Rios-Aguilar
Higher Education: The International Journal of Higher Education and Educational Planning Vol. 67, No. 4 (April 2014) pp. 473–495
This "self-ethnography" complements the other articles in this special issue by spotlighting a set of key challenges facing international research teams. The study is focused on the relationship between information and communication...


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2 cards for 2 meter and one for 6m (also PJ6D is in the mail but in here yet)
Filed under: Amateur Radio, DXCC, radio | Leave a comment »
2 cards for 2 meter and one for 6m (also PJ6D is in the mail but in here yet)
Filed under: Amateur Radio, DXCC, radio | Leave a comment »
It is a radio hobby but the use, better say the need for a good computer is necessary. For logging, RTTY, contesting. And SDR, which uses a lot of CPU.
I bought a Flexradio 1500, 5 Watt out and built-in soundcard. I had a (small) hope that the built-in soundcard would diminish the load on the laptop. But on average the CPU of the laptop was above 50%, to much to do proper keyboard CW.
I ordered the fastest PC, i7-quadcore. It is really a beast!
But now had to move all my stuff to the new PC. And Win7-64-bit-Pro is different than Win-XP on a lot of things, for instance the treatment of the soundcard-users.
But after a lot of tweaking, especially with RTTY (using MMTTY) I'm up and running. Installed PowerSDR (application for Flexradio) yesterday and the CPU load is below 5%. What a difference!
Last weekend I worked OM3KII on 2M for a new DXCC. After the split of OK into OL and OM I never worked that country, missed them on tropo. But in the contest conditions were fair to good (qsb), worked a lot of OK-OL's in JN79, SP in JO80. Heard some OM's but sundaymorning heard OM3KII and worked them in a qsb-up period. DXCC 56 including deleted (Y, OK).
As QSL-manager of (J3-J8)PE1IGM I want to say again (see also on qrz.com): Harm is working offshore, but inside the boundaries of the countries. So he is using his callsign correctly but not all managers will accept his qsl-card for awarding (ARRL-DXCC, IOTA).
Filed under: Amateur Radio, DXCC, equipment, radio | 1 Comment »


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Christmas in Stockholm means embracing tradition: meeting with friends for a julbord (Christmas table), celebrating Lucia, singing carols in church, and visiting the many Christmas markets that are scattered throughout the city during the holiday season. Here at View Stockholm we love a good Christmas Market and have gathered together the best of the best for you to visit in the city.
At Stockholm's open air museum Skansen they do a traditional Christmas Market, where you can find Swedish handicrafts and Christmas decorations, wonderful traditional food, and old-time sweets that will delight the whole family.
When: 26 November – 18 December
Where: Djurgårdsslätten 49-51
Old Town
Held in the heart of Stockholm's Old Town (Gamla Stan) this the city's oldest Christmas Market and among the 41 stalls you can find anything from sweets and Christmas sausages to crafts, ceramics, and handmade toys.
When: 25 November – 23 December
Where: Stortorget, Gamla Stan
Just a stone's throw from the Royal Palace and plenty of other major attractions Kungstradgården's Christmas Market is one of the biggest in Stockholm, selling clothing, woodcrafts, plenty of handmade items, and food to both try on the spot or take with you.
When: 27 November – 22 December
Where: Kunsträdgården
Held in the garden of Rosendal Palace quite near to Skansen on Djurgården, this is one of the most visually exciting markets in Stockholm. It's also very traditional, with plenty of Swedish Christmas items, as well as food and handicrafts. Be sure to catch the traditional nativity scene.
When: 21 November – 23 December
Where: Rosendalsvägen 38
If you're looking for something unique look no further than Beckmans Christmas Market, where students at this famed design school offer uncommon limited-edition items for sale. Trendy is the name of the game and it's worth taking the time to check out the final year exhibitions.
When: 10-11 December
Where: Brahegatan 10
Royal Stables
With high quality food and handicrafts the market at the Royal Stables has the usual Christmas fare but what makes it unique is it's location: just by the Royal Dramatic Theatre, this is where horses are stabled in the heart of the city – and once you've finished shopping you can take a tour through the Royal Stables themselves.
When: 25-27 November
Where: Väpnargatan 1
Steninge Slott
While this Christmas Market is a bit off the beaten path it's well worth making the effort to visit. It's one of the biggest in Sweden and sells food and handicrafts from around the country. You can also try your hand and creating your own gifts.
When: 12 November – 22 December
Where: Steninge Slottsväg 141, Märsta
Sergels Torg
Taking its inspiration from New York's Winter Village in Bryant Park, Stockholm's sprawling Sergels Torg, just by Central Station, is jam packed with stalls offering everything from traditional to modern. The mood at Stockholmsjul is festive, to say the least.
When: 21 November – 23 December.
Where: Sergels Torg, Central Stockholm
Konstfack is one of Sweden's top art and creative schools and this means visitors to this annual Christmas Market can expect to everything from prints and ceramics to jewellery and textiles. In addition to gifts, there is a hands-on workshop for kids and parents, as well as a Christmas café.
When: 26-27 November
Where: LM Ericssons väg 14
Vaxholm's traditional Christmas market is the perfect excuse to hop on a ferry and enjoy the wintery Baltic before heading into the cosy market in the Town Hall for gifts, a bite to eat, and traditional Swedish Christmas decorations. There's also a lottery, where you can win all sorts of unique items.
When: 3-4 December
Where: Vaxholm Town Hall
Drottningholm Slott
If you want to add a royal flavour to your Christmas Market shopping this is the place to do it. The emphasis is on Swedish handicrafts and locally produced food, as well as highlighting the best craftspeople around. After you've finished shopping take time to visit the palace and enjoy the hourly Christmas shows in the theatre.
When: 3-4 December
Where: Drottningholm
Have a great time exploring Stockholm's best Christmas markets. Happy Holidays from View Stockholm!


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Mopar warm-up
This bulletin applies to 2008-2010 Dodge Charger and Magnum vehicles, equipped with the 2.7L engine and 4-speed automatic transmission. A rough idle on startup with ambient temperatures below 50 degrees Fahrenheit may be experienced.
This condition may most likely happen during summer and fall seasons when summer blend fuels are in use. The condition is not noticeable after the engine warms up to operating temperature.
To correct this condition, the PCM software was changed to add additional fuel and increase spark advance during the warm-up cycle.
This bulletin involves flash reprogramming the powertrain control module with new software. Software release 10.04 or higher is required.
1. Reprogram the PCM with the latest software. Follow the detailed procedures available in DealerCONNECT/TechCONNECT. After PCM reprogramming, clear any DTCs that may have been set in other modules due to reprogramming. The wiTECH application will automatically present all DTCs after the flash and allow the tech to clear them.


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You've probably all drooled over this image, but I can't help but share it here! The bright and beachy scene was captured by photographer Max Kim-Bee and made the cover of the recent holiday issue of Coastal Living. The retro-inspired palette of sea foam, pinks, and corals is so fun, and I love how the ornaments pop on the flocked tree. The flamingos are too cute! My favorite though?! Those gorgeous CR Laine spool chairs!! Read more about this space and see more sea-inspired Christmas trees over here!
And with that, I'm signing off to enjoy the holiday with my family! I hope yours is filled with lots of love and joy! Merry Christmas everyone!!!
Love turquoise? Visit my shopping blog Everything Turquoise…updated several times throughout the day! Check out Decor by Color for even more color-themed shopping!


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On 1/31/13 7:45 PM, ext SULLIVAN, BRYAN L wrote: > This is a draft research effort which is clearly incomplete ("so far"). Sure, understood (and as I said on the CoreMob list, this is a real nice document). > When we have a common place to document it, and automated process to collect such data, these discrepancies will hopefully not occur. What about using <http://www.w3.org/wiki/Testing/Profiles> or a new document in <http://www.w3.org/wiki/Testing/>? (Using a proprietary format can make it difficult for others to contribute.). -ABReceived on Friday, 1 February 2013 12:08:06 UTC
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.4.0 : Friday, 17 January 2020 17:34:08 UTC


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Coromandel Life Magazine
Article and paintings by Marie-Claire Colyer. Late spring 2018 edition.
When does water become a right?
Article written for the Abberfield Group, published in Utilities Magazine
I watch the crimson rosellas flocking,
strobe lights in the absence of the sun. The dark lingers with the impuissance of its warmth.
Lane Cove
Literary Awards
Poem 'Sleeping is How we Awaken'' Shortlisted for the Lane Cove Orthodontists Prize and Longlisted for the Residents Prize
Exhibition History
- Representing Gallery, Kiwi Art House Gallery, 288 Cuba St, Wellington, New Zealand
- Representing Gallery, Kapiti Coast - Artel Gallery, Waikanae, Kapiti Coast, New Zealand
- Representing Gallery, Auckland City - Next Door Gallery, Birkenhead, Auckland, New Zealand
- March 2019 – Sydney Royal Easter Show
- Nov 2014 – Taranaki National Art Awards, Taranaki
- Oct 2014 – The Kapiti Observer Rotary Art Show, Paraparaumu. Awarded 'BEST NATURAL FAUNA' in this national exhibition
- Sept 2014 – Frameworks, Paraparaumu Beach
- Aug - Sept 2014, Café Rosetta & Gallery, Raumati South, Kapiti Coast, Wellington
- Sept 2011, 'New Beginings' St Andrew's, Birkenhead, Auckland, New Zealand
- July 2011, New Zealand Art Show 2011, Queens Wharf, Wellington, New Zealand
- March 2011, 'Reflections' Exhibition, Estuary Arts Centre, Orewa, New Zealand
- August 2008, Mazda Artworks at the Hilton, Princes Wharf, Auckland, New Zealand. Opened by the Mayor of Auckland City, John Banks
- Oct 2008 - Gallery Q, Waimauku, New Zealand
- April 2008, Puhoi Art Exhibition, Centennial Hall, Puhoi, New Zealand
- June 2007, Hola Mexican Restaurant, Orewa, New Zealand
- May 2007, Whangaparaoa Library, Whangaparaoa, New Zealand
- March 2007, Opening Exhibition, Estuary Arts Centre, Orewa, New Zealand
- March 2007, 'New Zealand Collections' Exhibition, Whangaparaoa Library, Whangaparaoa, New Zealand
- Feb 2007, Puhoi Art Exhibition, Centennial Hall, Puhoi, New Zealand
- Aug 2006, 'Feathers, Birds of New Zealand' Exhibition, Orewa Library, Orewa, New Zealand. Attended by the Mayor of Rodney, John Law


text:
Cassandra is highly scalability and high availability without compromising performance NoSQL database. Cassandra's support for replicating across multiple datacenters and manage a large set of data.
There are following properties of Cassandra Database.
Properties of Cassandra Database
- Fault Tolerant: - Data is automatically replicated to multiple nodes for fault-tolerance. Replication across multiple data centers is supported. Failed nodes can be replaced with no downtime.
- Performer: - Cassandra consistently outperforms popular NoSQL alternatives in benchmarks and real applications, primarily because of fundamental architectural choices.
- Decentralized: - There are no single points of failure. There are no network bottlenecks. Every node in the cluster is identical.
- Scalable: - Some of the largest production deployments include Apple's, with over 75,000 nodes storing over 10 PB of data, Netflix (2,500 nodes, 420 TB, over 1 trillion requests per day), Chinese search engine Easou (270 nodes, 300 TB, over 800 million requests per day), and eBay (over 100 nodes, 250 TB).
- Durable: - Cassandra is suitable for applications that can't afford to lose data, even when an entire data center goes down.


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Using Twitter in Classrooms and for Professional Development
Date: November 8, 2011
Summary: Every day, more and more people are using well-known social media sites. How can these popular resources be used for good in the classroom? National Writing Project teachers share how they've used Twitter in their classrooms as a means of teaching writing.
As social media sites pop up with increasing frequency and play an even bigger role in our lives, the question running through teachers' minds is how these popular types of communication and information-sharing networks can be used for educational and professional purposes.
As Paul Oh provocatively asks in his Digital Is Collection The Short Form , "Status updates, tweets, text messages, 4Square checkins—our lives are awash in short form compositions. Are they "completely useless and meaningless," or do they derive their value from the social context within which they live? What is the impact of these brief bursts of words and characters on teens, on teaching and on writing itself?"
Writing project teachers have been exploring these questions in their classrooms, their learning, and their actions. Below are some explorations shared on NWP's Digital Is website .
In Classrooms
Re-presenting Through "Little Narratives" or Re-producing Meta-narratives" in 140 characters or Less
Tony Iannone, a teacher-consultant with the UNC Charlotte Writing Project, created a Twitter account for his incoming third graders to use so that they, like him, would use it as a real space to reflect and think, helping define what it means to write.
Empathy and Elaboration: Using 21st Century Tools to Enhance Creative Writing
Rebecca Itow, a PhD student at Indiana University's Learning Sciences program, has students take on the personality of a character in a novel and begin to converse in short tweets with other characters in the story. This encourages students to dig into their character and speak for him or her, thereby allowing the students to gain a better understanding of and to empathize with that character.
Teaching with Twitter in Higher Education
Skip Via made this video while he was the tech liaison for the Alaska State Writing Consortium to share some ideas about teaching with Twitter and reflect on using Twitter with both local and distance students at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks.
Professional Development and Networking
#PleaseHelp: Learning to Write (Again) on Twitter
Keri Franklin, director of the Ozarks Writing Project, revisits important lessons as a writer and as a teacher of writing. She says that whether writers write 140 characters, a five-paragraph essay, or a novel, they need the following: support, wide reading in the new genre, a sense of audience, and the new vocabulary of the publishing space.
My Social Media Year
Steve Moore, a teacher-consultant with the Greater Kansas City Writing Project, spent his first year as a teacher forming his identity as a professional in his field. He says that spending that year in public reflection on Twitter and blogs was the best professional decision he could have made.
Cross-Country Collaboration: It All Started with Twitter
Like a lot of people, Karen Chichester, a teacher-consultant with the Eastern Michigan Writing Project, didn't see the point of Twitter. But then, once she tried it, she had a series of revelations. Twitter is about the people you choose to follow. Twitter is about sharing your knowledge with others. Through her online conversations, she began to build professional relationships and friendships.
Cultivating 21st Century School Leaders
Melissa Shields, a school district technology director who has been a teacher-consultant and co-director of the Jacksonville State University Writing Project, says that social networking tools have become an integral part of students' lives and that it is paramount that educators experience these tools to fully understand their potential impact on students, both negative and positive.
Authority Without Power: Democracy, Classrooms, and #blog4nwp
Chad Sansing, a teacher-consultant with the Central Virginia Writing Project, says the pursuit of power as a common good changes it from a resource hoarded by few to a medium employable by everyone in the network that creates it. He asks, "How does this look in a classroom? How does this look in a network of classrooms or in a network of teachers? How does authority become a shared power for learning and change?" He reflects on the #blog4nwp campaign to answer those questions.


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USA Gymnastics CEO & President Kerry Perry finally met with members of the media for the first time in person–since being hired in December 2017–for a brief Q&A session. Perry debriefed the press in an opening statement before taking questions.
Listen to the full audio below.
Feature Photo via USA Gymnastics


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Greta Gerwig shifts from sincere to silly on disproportionately long legs that suggest those of a flamingo. Her wide-set, hazel eyes are focused, contradicted by flighty arms that say screwball and, sometimes, screw-loose. After about a dozen movies in half as many years, Gerwig is shaping up as the Jill Clayburgh of Generation Y. That is to say: offbeat, angsty, and endlessly watchable.
Sadly, the same cannot be said of Lola Versus, an unfinished portrait of an unfinished womanchild with fidgety poise nicely embodied by Gerwig. Lola, a graduate student in a long-term relationship, abruptly becomes unmoored by the approach of her 30th birthday, the defection of her fiance, and the existential panic of a future with more variables than she had bargained for. The breakup precipitates not a breakdown, but a meltdown.
From this not-unpromising starting point, screenwriters Daryl Wein and Zoe Lister Jones (who also costars) serve up a directionless identity comedy that fails to harness itself to Gerwig's delirious comic momentum. Lister Jones, a petite and brittle brunette, who looks as though she would be the ideal foil for Gerwig's rangy, sensitive blonde, is stridently unfunny as Lola's best friend, Alice.
Like its title character, Lola drifts from romantic storm to any-port-in-a-storm, almost perversely steering clear of the safe harbor represented by Henry (Hamish Linklater), the smitten best chum of Lola's ex, Luke (Joel Kinnaman). Lola, who is writing a doctoral dissertation, moonlights as a waitress at a bistro owned by her parents (Debra Winger and Bill Pullman). Much of the film is taken up with Lola's other nocturnal activities that include dating, clubbing, dancing, and drinking.
For Lola, random is not just a noun and adjective, it is a lifestyle. For Lola Versus, random is a compendium of bad dates, bad sex, self-pity without self-awareness, and Gerwig's captivating presence. Bottom line: She is a charming actress in a charmless picture.
At 24 minutes, Lola Versus might be a middling episode of a sitcom like New Girl. At 87 minutes, it is a gracefully aimed arrow shot in the air. Where it lands, Wein and Lister Jones know not where.EndText