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Have you ever wondered where the universe came from? And why it's here at all?
If you're like most people, you've probably thought a lot about it.
That's why we created this site.
Briefly, we'll answer:
- What is the universe?
- What exists beyond the universe?
- What created the universe?
- Why is the universe here? (Is there a "purpose?")
Big questions! But first:
What is "supermetaphysics?"
Fancy word. Simple concept.
First, there's no point in creating a fancy word if it doesn't describe something for which there is no word already. I think we can all agree on that.
So first, let's review why this word is helpful.
- Physics (Latin "physica"), simply put, is our universe. That big thing with stars and dust, made up of particles and vibrations, forces like gravitation, even multiple dimensions. No matter how outlandish or exotic, all of these forces fall under the realm of physics.
- Metaphysics (Latin "metaphysica": beyond or after physics) is an accepted term for anything that theoretically may exist outside of this physical realm. (Which is why it's often used to describe the world of the spiritual, encompassing ideas of "god," or anything that can't be measured or understood by science.)
- "Supermetaphysics" combines two Latin words, "super" (above) and "meta" (beyond), to give a name to everything: i.e., the physical and metaphysical universes, combined. Being "above" both physical realms, it is what we might also call "whole reality." The ultimate big picture.
Supermetaphysics, simply put, is EVERYTHING.
The following is an attempt to come to some conclusions about the ultimate nature and purpose the universe.
It attempts to explain:
- Why the purpose of the universe remains so inscrutable
- Why our lives follow measurable (i.e., empirically observable) patterns based on the quality of our actions, and
- Why the universe we perceive looks the way it does
Let's go!
Tenet one.
Impossibility of full knowledge of "whole reality" is "by design."
Although the origin of the universe may one day be discovered, the origins of "whole reality" (or what we call "supermetaphysics") can never be known. This is by design, as knowing an answer would interfere with free will. However, some aspects of "whole reality" may be deduced. (More below.)
Tenet two.
The universe was created as a breeding ground for consciousness.
The universe was created with a purpose: as a breeding ground for consciousness imbued with free will. Consciousness and free will are inextricably linked: one cannot exist without the other. (More below.)
Tenet three.
"Evil" (the undesirable) is necessary for consciousness.
"Evil," at root, is anything we do not wish. ("Evil" is simply the most extreme form of the undesirable.)
"Evil" (bad stuff) is therefore a necessary component of the universe if we are to have free will.
Because without things we do not want, no decisions could be made.
Choice is informed by desire (or preference). Desire is, of course, governed wholly by pleasure and pain. We desire the pleasurable.
Given ANY two choices, ONE of the two must always be slightly preferable.
Without pleasure or pain, there would be no desire, and thus no preference. Do I look left, or do I look right? With no preference, there would be no choice: just a mindless, randomized movement.
No evil (undesirable circumstances) = No preference = No choice to make = No consciousness
And as every thought also involves choice, without preference, thought itself would ground to a halt.
No pain, no consciousness. (Thought experiment.)
II. Suppositions
Supposition 1. Solar systems are nests.
- The structure of the universe was specifically designed to create a breeding ground for organisms with free will. The key structure of the universe, the solar system, is merely an incubator. Stars are heat lamps. Planets are nests. This flows from the intentional nature of the universe. If the universe was created for the sake of consciousness, then it reasons solar systems were "purpose built," to create the circumstances for that consciousness.
Supposition 2. The universe is governed by spiritual laws.
- The universe follows spiritual laws. All creatures of free will are hurt or rewarded accordingly. The main spiritual guideline is to nurture others. Our degree of happiness is linked directly and inextricably to how well we achieve this one task. This flows from the solution to the "problem of evil." (Since we must make choices to be conscious, and the universe was purpose built, it would reasonably follow our choices also follow a contour of larger purpose.)
Supposition 3. Biology follows an evolutionary pattern toward greater consciousness and empathy over time.
- Life evolves naturally in the direction of greater consciousness (greater awareness of — and ability to interact with — an environment) and empathy and nurturing toward others, because all non-nurturing strategies impede life's evolutionary development. Not only is this a readily observable trend from study of the 600 million-year history of life, but also flows from the above.
Supposition 4. The afterlife.
- Exactly as the origin of "whole reality" can never be ascertained — because it would interfere immediately with our free will — what happens after our lives also must remain inscrutable, or it would interfere with our free will. This is also by design. This also flows from Tenet 1.
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Residential Movers Marco Island, Florida
Moving can be time consuming and stressful!
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Whatever your relocation requirements, Frank and Sons Moving and Storage has the solution to fit your needs. Contact us today.

subset: commoncrawl


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10mm Light Aqua Picasso 2-Cut Teardrop Beads [15]
Beads per lot: 15
Cost per bead: 26 cents
Bead material: Glass
Country of origin: Czech Republic
Size/shape: 10mm (long) x 7mm (wide) faceted teardrops with 2 sides or "windows".
Colors/description: Translucent light aqua with a brown picasso coating over the entire bead; the overall effect is olive green.
Hole size: 1mm (estimated).
Defects: I haven't noticed any significant defects. However, fire-polished beads always have some imperfect facets.
How photographed: At the window in natural daylight.
Comments: Although the word "aqua" is in the title, the beads look mostly topaz or, perhaps, olive green. That's because the picasso coating is relatively heavy and overwhelms the aqua color of the glass. Regarding the price, the supplier is charging a bundle for these beads. I doubt the beads are worth what I paid. However, they do seem to be well made, with cleaner facets than most. It is possible that the "windows" are hand-polished, but the supplier didn't say that they were. An examination of the windows shows that they are much smoother than most fire-polished facets are.
Date first posted: May 22, 2010
Supplier: B
Caleb's notes:


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anaprox genentech
Eddie Hall might currently be recovering from surgery after suffering a detached bicep during a boxing workout, but he is still putting out content on his YouTube channel. In a recently released video, shot before his injury, the strongman-turned-boxer invites British-Australian celeb Peter Andre to join him for some sparring.
A singer and TV personality, Andre is a household name in the United Kingdom; some might even call him a national treasure. His shredded six-pack abs helped him become a pop heartthrob in the mid-'90s with songs like "Mysterious Girl" and "Flava," and he remains in great shape now, at the age of 48—to the extent that he is confident he can take Hall in the ring.
"I did used to box when I was younger," he says, "and I also did Wing Chun for a while, and also, lipitor medicine I don't know if you saw one of our previous videos, but I did do krav maga."
Hall starts off by challenging his opponent to punch him, and Andre does exactly that, repeatedly, working up until he is hitting Hall square in the chest and stomach as hard as he can. "I do this day in, day out," says Hall. "That's how you train your core."
Once it's time to reverse the roles, Andre dons some pretty huge protective gear before taking his first couple of shots from Hall, which send him staggering back across the ring. Then Hall instructs him to brace himself as he ups the power of each punch, until he finally hits him just shy of maximum force.
"Wow, OK," says a dazed Andre when he is finally able to pull himself back up from the matt. "That was hard."
Source: Read Full Article


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DVA Launches Sri Lanka Project
The island nation of Sri Lanka has the longest, uninterrupted history of Buddhism of any county in the world. Today about 15 million Buddhists live in Sri Lanka out of a total population of 21 million. For the past two years, Dharma Voices for Animals (DVA) has been engaged in a project throughout the country to encourage compassionate diets.
DVA's 2nd Annual Asian Buddhist Animal Rights Conference
Sri Lanka, October 26, 2017: About 700 people filled the large auditorium in the Buddhist Cultural Center in Colombo, Sri Lanka, for DVA's second annual Asian Buddhist Animal Rights Conference. The Conference officially launched our Sri Lanka Project which is going strong almost two years later. Speakers, panel discussions, and outstanding plant-based food highlighted our event. The photo on the left shows DVA President/CEO Bob Isaacson giving the keynote address, while the photo on the right shows the Honorable Karu Jayasuriya, the Speaker of the Sri Lanka Parliament, telling the 700 people in attendance and a national audience via television and newspaper coverage that he doesn't eat animals and fully supports DVA's Sri Lanka Project. Bob's keynote address can be seen and heard on our Facebook page.
DVA has been working with the leaders in the country to pass the Animal Rights/Welfare bill, which has been languishing in the system for many years and to pass a resolution that Parliament officially observe Meatless Mondays to set as shining example for all Sri Lankans and the rest of the world to adopt Meatless Mondays.
UPDATE: Bob Isaacson again met with the Honorable Speaker on October 2, 2019 to urge passage of both the bill and a Meatless Monday resolution.
Bhante Sathi: Co-Director of Dva's Sri Lanka Project
Bhante Sathi is a Sri Lankan-American monk, who along with being the co-director of our Sri Lanka Project, is also the Minnesota Chapter Leader, and a member of DVA's Board of Directors. Bhante has been instrumental in getting our message out to Sri Lankans in the newspapers and on television.
Shanika Gamage: Dhamma School Coordinator
Shanika Gamage, DVA's Sri Lanka Project National Event Supervisor.
Dhamma (Sunday) School Program
For the past two years DVA has been making presentations at Dhamma (Sunday) schools where approximately 80% of Sri Lankan Buddhist children attend. Our presentations are made under the supervision of Shanika Gamage, our Project's Dhamma School Coordinator.
UPDATE: We just expanded by adding three Regional Dhamma School Coordinators, Chathuri Windyani, Vieshnavy Balakrishnan, who will allow us to make presentations at schools far from the capital, Colombo.
The live programs include a Powerpoint presentation and a showing of our short film: Dharma Voices for Animals Sri Lanka Project: Heart or Tongue? We include the history of how Sri Lanka was largely a vegetarian island before the invasion and occupation by European powers and a call to Sri Lankans to return to their culture of non-harming and compassion. Our team also hands out six-page brochures in Sinhala introducing DVA and explaining why Sri Lankans should adopt a plant-based diet:
- to practice the Buddha's teachings of compassion and non-harming
- to improve the health of children, families, and individuals
- to lessen the impact of environmental disasters such as global warming.
Our team presentations have also focused on medical doctors, soldiers, and farmers. Earlier this year DVA's Sri Lanka Project team, along with our senior consultant Ananda Mahinkanda, presented at an army post. More than 1,200 soldiers attended with almost all expressing, after our presentation, their intention to switch to a compassionate diet.
UPDATE: On October 10, 2019, DVA held a large event at the Nelum Pokuna Mahinda Rajapaksa Theatre in central Colombo Sri Lanka for soldiers in the Sri Lankan army. For over three hours, 1200 soldiers listened to DVA presenters, including Ananda Mahinkanda, the Senior Consultant to our Sri Lanka Project, who made a presentation on the value of a plant-based diet. The response by the audience was beyond even our high expectations.
We have also made presentations to farmers, to the GMOA (Government Medical Officer's Association), a prestigious organization of physicians, which resulted in assurances of support for our Sri Lanka Project; and to employees of various companies.
[ps2id id='chamith' target="/]DVA's Sri Lanka Project team also includes a group of veterinarians led by Dr. Chamith Nanayakkara, who are treating at no cost, the animals that live at the temples and monasteries, making presentations to the Dhamma schools, and organizing vegetarian groups at each school.
[crellyslider alias="Chamith_Vet_Photos_Sri_lanka_Project_Page"]
DVA also has a very active Sri Lankan Facebook page Follow Your Heart Go Vegan, moving Sri Lankans to a plant-based diet as we reach well over one million people. You can like us on our Facebook page and get updates on nutrition, great food, and DVA activities throughout Sri Lanka.
We have also been busy getting our message on television. Our team recently recorded a number of television programs, focusing on health, the environment, and Buddhist compassion/non-harming. DVA's Sri Lanka Project Senior Consultant, Ananda Mahinkanda appeared live on the Buddhist Channel television speaking about the benefits of a plant-based diet.
DVA events, such as our May 5, 2018 vegan ice cream social on the streets of Columbo and our October 26, 2017 Animal Rights Conference have received front page coverage in the major newspapers and on national television. Articles and editorials supported DVA and our message have appeared in national newspapers.
Update: A press conference was held on Tuesday, October 8, 2019, with members of DVA's Sri Lanka team.
Special Events
We hold special events to bring attention to animal suffering caused by the Buddhist community. On May 5, 2018, DVA's team of volunteers handed out 2,500 vegan ice cream cones on the streets of Colombo.
If you would like to volunteer to help DVA help animals and/or you have questions or suggestions, please contact DVA's Sri Lanka Project Dhamma School Coordinator Shanika Gamage: [email protected]


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Spirited Away Review: Are you Spirited Away?
Spirited away has a way of keeping you hooked with its unique concept. From the characters we've never seen and cannot forget, to the whole different world which makes us curious of what might be next.
As a kid, we've always been taught to be scared of spirits but this anime shows a totally different side of them. They are very artistically made which attracts us and keeps us interested.
Spirited Away is heavily influenced by Japanese Shinto-Buddhist folklore. The movie starts with a young girl Chihiro Ogino moving to a new place with her parents but mistakenly ends up in an abandoned theme park. The theme park is actually a world of spirits. Her parents are spirited away with the curiosity and excitement about the park and end up eating foods prepared for the customers of the spirits. The spirit gets angry and turns them into a pig.
I believe turning them into a pig is brilliant since it symbolizes their nature of acting as animals once they see the food.
Now Chihiro is the only human all alone in the world of spirits, and she is trying to save her parents and get back home. Along with Chihiro, this anime takes our spirit away to the world they have created as we act the same as the main character, we get surprised, shocked, curious and excited. We are spirited away and thus we set a journey to the world we know nothing about but we want to know everything about.
I believe the main character, Chihiro is brilliantly created as we feel so attached to her. She's not a mere character anymore. We see a part of ourselves in her, the part which is struggling hard in a whole different world, peoples, and environment. We cannot help but feel attached to her. We feel panicked, sad, happy and proud of her as she never breaks down even in intense situations.
Another reason why this anime has a long-lasting effect is because of its characters, the characters like Haku, No face, Yubaba, Zeniba, Kamaji are unforgettable and they leave a very deep impression in our heart.
Not only this but the anime also shows the harsh truth of greed in humans, pollution caused by humans, corruption, jealousy through its characters which is very relatable and we can almost link some of the characters with peoples we know in our day to day life.
But the main beauty of this anime is its simplicity. Although the anime shows a totally different world from ours we don't find it chaotic and we almost feel like we've always been there.
The title fits the anime perfectly as while watching it our body might be here but our mind-spirits away to the world of spirits and not only Chihiro but we too set off on a truly beautiful adventure.
Also, the anime ends with a beautiful song that covers up the anime artistically with very touching lyrics. The anime is totally worth watching. It's almost like stepping to an adventure to a whole new world and we get spirited away with its beauty.
Final Thoughts
Overall the anime engraves a beautiful long-lasting feeling in our hearts and send off a sweet message that if we are honest, caring and hardworking no matter what situation, sooner or later people around us will surely appreciate it. Did you enjoy this Spirited Away review? Let us know in the comments.


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Chris Jamison puts a light reverb on his vocals in "Carousel," the opening track of five-song EP Sleeping with the T.V. On. That effect gives his voice a nostalgic, romantic air reminiscent of Gregory Alan Isakov's vocal performances. Jamison's contemporary-folk has a bit more of a concrete feel to it than Isakov's ethereal constructions: stand-up bass, shuffling snare, and acoustic guitar strum anchor the sound tightly to this mortal coil. Still, Jamison's beautiful voice is the feature in "Carousel" and throughout the EP.
Even in tracks where the instruments are more in the fore, they play second fiddle to Jamison's arresting voice. The subtle pedal steel of "Summer Comes Tomorrow" and the engaging acoustic work of "Joseph" can't steal the focus from the evocative tone and timbre of the leading tenor. In that way, it's a bit like Death Cab for Cutie–although their instrumental sounds are completely different, the focus on instruments supporting the vocal melody and performance is present in both artists. If you're into folk-singin' troubadours that can tell a song with the tone of their voice alone, you should check out Sleeping with the T.V. On. You'll very much enjoy yourself.
Martin Van Ruin's Every Man a King has a much more muscular take on folk music. "Gold and Love and Gin" starts out with a sludgy distorted guitar reminiscent of ISIS (for real) before transitioning into a dry, clanging acoustic strum. Lead guitar, slide guitar, harmonica, background vocals and shaker-heavy drums give the song a very Western, wide-open, frontier feel. When lead vocalist Derek Nelson hollers "she's got something strange always coming out her mouth" near the climax of the tune, it's a genuine shiver-inducer in the adrenaline-pounding sort of way, not the romantic sort of way.
Part of their energy-creating powers come from backgrounds in genres other than folk; MVR is a new group from a bunch of Chicago music vets that have a wide range of sounds in their past (and present). "Easy Answer" is a perky power-pop tune led by neat male/female vocal interactions and bouncy bass work. "This Time Around" has similar power-pop vibes, but with a bit of Southern-rock crunch; "Wilderness" has a lot of guitar crunch going on. "Sayanora" has a '50s ballad sort of feel to it. The drums are powerful and prominent throughout; never becoming overwhelming, but definitely giving a bit of pep to the sound in almost every tune they appear. This ain't Bon Iver over here, just in case anyone was still wondering.
But no matter where they dally, Every Man a King is held together by an underlying folk sentiment. "American Moon" employs a fiddle and a droll vocal line to tell a heartfelt tale of woe. Sure, it's noisier than your average folk tune, but it's got a songwriter's soul. And they're the sort of people that took the time to list the lyrics to every song on their Bandcamp page. Maybe that doesn't count for purists, but it counts for me. There's always the acoustic Americana of "Storm Coming" and the traditional "Give Me Flowers (While I'm Living)" to settle those anxieties.
If you're up for some folk-inspired music that steals from southern rock, indie-pop, and more, Martin Van Ruin will scratch that itch. Every Man a King is a strong, varied release that never loses its way.


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Walk with a Doc in West End!
Walk with a Doc in West End!
Wednesday, June 5th, 2019 @ 5:30pm
ACAC Fitness & Wellness Short Pump
2201 Old Brick Road | Glen Allen, VA 23060
Featured physicians: Andrew Vorenberg, M.D., Colon and Rectal Surgeon & Bimaljit Sandhu, M.D., Gastroenterologist
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Legal Alert: Contractors - Get Ready for a Money Tsunami
It appears that President Obama's stimulus package is on the fast track to being signed into law. Based on the Senate passing its stimulus bill yesterday and the House of Representatives passing its version two weeks ago, those associated with the construction industry should expect to see a significant increase in work opportunities. There are differences between the bills, but there are more similarities than differences. In fact, this afternoon it was announced that a consensus bill has been reached, but the details are still sparse. Critically, both bills and presumably the consensus bill will set forth strict schedules on how and when the funds must be spent. Therefore, in order to take advantage of the expected opportunities, companies should be ready and qualified to prepare bids and begin working on the public projects to be funded. This article provides a brief summary, based on the draft bills and the anticipated consensus bill, of the estimated amounts of funding and types of projects that should result from the new law and what you can do to be ready.


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In 1900, my uncle Sherman graduated at the age of 15 from what was then called a common school.
The whole family traveled five miles by horse and buggy to the county park, where the ceremony was to be held.
Graduations were a big event in those days. All the one-room schools combined their graduating classes into one ceremony.
For the first time, a valedictorian was being selected, and my uncle was the one who received the honor.
Uncle Sherman had no idea he was supposed to give a speech until the audience began to chant, "Speech. Speech." So, he reluctantly approached the podium and began to recite the Gettysburg Address – the only speech he had ever learned. When he was finished, he received a standing ovation.
Uncle Sherman was grateful to Abraham Lincoln for coming to his rescue that day.
Monrovia, Ind.


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on the down low(redirected from on the lowdown)
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on the down low
1. In a state of secrecy or minimal public knowledge; being known only by a select few people. Keep this on the down low, but Janet is planning to break up with Kevin next week. My parents know about the pregnancy, but I'd like it to stay on the down low otherwise.
2. In a state of secrecy or minimal public knowledge pertaining to the activities of a man who has sex with other men but considers himself to be heterosexual. I never thought he was gay, but then I started to hear rumors that he's on the down low.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2022 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.


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The latest installment in the monthly series looking back at the songs which were #1 in the indie charts on the first day of the month 30, 20 and 10 years ago.
We begin with a genuine classic.
1 August 1987 : mp3 : New Order – True Faith
FAC 183. Recorded, along with its equally wonderful b-side 1963 as two new songs for inclusion on the Substance compilation album, it reached #4 in the proper singles chart. It was helped along by an innovative and groundbreaking video from the mind of French choreographer, dancer and mime artist Philippe Decouflé.
1 August 1997 : mp3 : Oasis – D' You Know What I Mean
Last time round in this series, Blur were holding down the #1 spot with the rather excellent On Your Own. One month later and you get further proof that while their archrivals may have won the original Britpop battle in 1995, the Essex boys were a much more coherent and innovative lot than the Mancs whose lumpen and dreary guitar-rock was alienating many original fans, albeit attracting almost as many others along for the football-terrace type gigs they now specialised in. This near 8-minute opus is fairly unbearable.
1 August 2007 : mp3 : Arctic Monkeys – Fluroescent Adolescent
Completing the hat-trick of well-known indie bands holding down the top spot at the height of summer. This was one of those songs that convinced me Alex Turner was a very worthy addition to the list of witty and clever English pop-songwriters that includes the likes of Ray Davies, Billy Bragg and Andy Partridge. This ditty, co-written with his then girlfriend Johanna Bennett, tells the tale of an unfulfilled middle-aged woman who is looking back with some sadness of how her life has turned out. Alex Turner had barely turned 21 years of age at the time.


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Pity the poor macOS Print dialog: it's been around so long, and we don't really look at it much. This is likely why Mac 911 receives regular (though not constant) questions about print settings. The Print dialog not just reflects Apple's own notion of how printing should work, it also includes functionality from third-party print drivers, the software that tells macOS all of the parameters and special settings of particular output devices.
A recent question arose from a Macworld reader who, after upgrading to macOS 10.13 High Sierra, had their usually persistent print preferences change after each printing session. This was new for them, but you can generally avoid this by creating a preset.
- Set all the parameters you want for a printer, such as color, two-sided (if an option), Apple's four sections (Media & Quality, Layout, Paper Handling, and Cover Page). You should also be able to set any printer-specific options that appear.
- From the Presets menu, select Save Current Settings as Preset.
- Choose a name and, if available, pick between Only This Printer and All Printers.
- Click OK.
The reader's problem could have arisen from new default settings created in High Sierra coupled with a hidden setting in the Presets menu. After selecting Show Presets from the Presets menu, see if the Reset Presets Menu to "Default Settings" After Printing is checked. If it is, you can uncheck that box, and the last preset you used remain in place.
If Default Settings appears when you bring up the Print dialog, you can select Last Settings Used from the Presets menu to revert to those previous settings, too.
You can also review all the settings associated with each preset, including defaults, by selecting Show Presets from the Presets menu and then selecting presets at left and clicking expansion triangles in the associated categories at right.
To reduce toner and ink, I have presets that rely on draft, black and white, and two-sided as available on my printers. I switch those to other presets or manually choose settings for higher-quality output as required.
Ask Mac 911
We've compiled a list of the questions we get asked most frequently along with answers and links to columns: read our super FAQ to see if your question is covered. If not, we're always looking for new problems to solve! Email yours to email@example.com including screen captures as appropriate, and whether you want your full name used. Every question won't be answered, we don't reply to email, and we cannot provide direct troubleshooting advice.


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You belong @ your library® this National Library Week, April 8-14
Whether you are a job seeker looking for resources to land a new job, a parent looking for free activities for children or a student searching for your next favorite book, you belong @ your library.
Libraries have historically served as our nation's great equalizers of knowledge. Today's libraries help level the playing field by making both print and digital information affordable, available and accessible to all people. The strength of libraries has always been the diversity of their collections and commitment to serving all people. This National Library Week, join our nation's libraries and librarians by celebrating the place where we all belong.
First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and libraries across the country each April.
Celebrate National Library Week by visiting your library this week!


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CERN Raps It Up…Updated
I was in the middle of posting about BBC's report that the Large Hadron Collider at the CERN lab in Geneva will be shutting down for a year, due to building flaws and safety concerns according to CERN officials, when I came across the pure awesomeness above. What a great way to bring everybody closer to the most complex of scientific experiments. The scientifically accurate, CERN-sponsored jamming rap session was written and rapped by the then-press office-employee Kate McAlpine or "alpinekat" and tuned by Will Barras. The footage features dancers who plead anonymity and a few of the lab's own bewildered engineers. I beg you not to miss it, and read on for the updated news blip and photos.
The largest particle accelerator in the world–a.k.a atom smasher–aims to collide particles at near-light speed in order to observe the elusive Higgs particle and recreate the conditions of the Big Bang to gain insights into how the universe came into being billions of years ago.
Buried 100 meters below ground, the machine will close at the end of 2011 for up to a year to make the 27km tunnel safe for proton collisions planned at twice the current level, and to avoid another breakdown like the one suffered in 2008 in which the protective copper sheaths were damaged. The director, Dr Myers said: "It's something that, with a lot more resources and with a lot more manpower and quality control, possibly could have been avoided but I have difficulty in thinking that this is something that was a design error. With a machine like the LHC, you only build one and you only build it once." -BBC report
Brian Cox: BBC's LHC story is "a pile of merde, as we say at CERN"
The Times Online spoke to CERN physicist Professor Brian Cox (from the BBC series Wonders of the Solar System) who criticised BBC for its innacurate report:
"The story is true enough (though "design faults" is a bit strong), but it isn't really news. CERN has long been planning an engineering refit to the Big Bang machine before ramping it up to 7 TeV, but this was originally scheduled for the coming winter rather than the one after. At the beginning of February, it announced that it would actually extend the physics run through until December 2011, before shutting the accelerator down for a year. The only real delay here has been to the reporting of the story."
Exasperated by the spread of the misleading story, he tweeted: "For the very last time – the #lhc story is a pile of merde, as we say at CERN. Scheduled maintenance stops are not bloody news !"
As the article closes, "Particle accelerators are regularly shut down for re-engineering. They are huge, complex instruments, and it's just impossible to run them full-time like a domestic boiler. It's operating perfectly well right now, and it should continue to do so for almost two years — a very long period of time for an atom-smasher of any sort, let alone the most powerful ever built."
Definitely good news.
Here's a few images from the CERN archive:
View of CASTOR/TOTEM mounted inside CMS detector and view of the beam pipe.
This computer-generated image shows the location of the 27-km LHC tunnel (in blue) on the Swiss-France border. The four main experiments (ALICE, ATLAS, CMS, and LHCb) are located in underground caverns connected to the surface by 50 m to 150 m pits. Part of the pre-acceleration chain is shown in grey.
Installation of the CMS silicon tracking detector was successfully completed on 18 December 2007
CERN's Globe of Science and Innovation exhibition centre and the nearby Meyrin site are seen from the air. The surface buildings which provide access and support for the ATLAS experiment, one of four experiments on the LHC, can also be seen on the right. The dome was designed by Thomas Büchi and Hervé Dessimoz.
All photos ©CERN Geneva


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Predictions for the 2018 Economic Year
February 6, 2018
America's economy has long been an indicator for the health of the international economy, often influencing markets around the globe. Depressions and recessions have done more to shape culture, politics, and the future of large groups of people than almost any other events in history. The 2018 calendar year is under much scrutiny from many analysts, all eager to determine what the outcome will be. Predictions for the year, overall, are positive and healthy: The gross domestic product is estimated to grow 2.5 percent, well within the range for healthy growth and the same rate at which the GDP increased in 2017, and more than 2016. A healthy rate of growth for one year is between 2 and 3 percent. Mr. Taylor, Coronado's Economics teacher, said that "most economists think that it's going to be somewhere between two and three percent for 2018, and certainly it would seem to be a good thing. So I think that we're going to sustain growth." He added that "a lot of the economists think that the tax cuts are going to be kind of like a sugar high and it'll get us a half percent bump in GDP, so I think that we're going to get GDP growth somewhere between 2.8 to 3.5 percent." Unemployment is planned to decline, dropping to 3.9 percent within the next two years. In 2016, the unemployment rate was 4.7 percent.
Many people are saying, however, that the growth is not all-encompassing, and may not be enough. In many parts of the world, the economic gap between people is desperately wide. It is so bad that, according to the charity Oxfam, the 42 wealthiest people in the world possess as much money as the 3.7 billion poorest people in the world. A bull market, like the constant state of growth seen since the 2008 financial crisis, does little, in the long run, to lessen that gap or help people rise out of poverty.
In addition to this, it is a well-known fact that constant growth is unsustainable. In the past, periods of strong economic growth have been an indicator of possible periods of stagnation, leading to crashes. The most dramatic example of this is the 1920's when a bull market led to the worst economic crash America has ever seen. Similarly, the Great Recession of 2008 was brought on by rapid, unchecked growth of the housing market. Mr. Taylor says that "the concern in one of the numbers that have come out in the last week was there are too many drivers to GDP growth and that's labor force coupled with productivity. Productivity, I think from World War II to 2000 were running about 3 percent. Recently it dropped, and in the last ten years, it's been down about 1.8 percent… and nobody's quite sure why that was. With productivity being relatively flat, I'm not sure that we're going to be able to sustain growth above three percent."
Other concerns spring from the international economy, specifically in China. If the economy in China crashes, so will the global economy. China's GDP is rapidly growing, and will likely grow more in the next few months. Assuming that means that the economy also has to crash, the effects could hit America's economy hard.
The most important thing to do is to stay informed about what could happen in the economy and to be aware of the possibilities.


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This week on The Good The Bad The Ugly Film Show Adam, Dave, Greg and Nick take a look at new release films 'Indignation,' 'A Hologram For The King,' 'Free State of Jones,' 'David Brent: Life On The Road,' 'The Shallows,' 'Kubo And The Two Strings,' 'Red Billabong,' 'Motorkite Dreaming,' 'Ben-Hur,' 'Ticked,' 'High-Rise' and 'War Dogs'. This episode also contains interviews with Matthew McConaughey, Gugu Mbatha, Gary Ross, Blake Lively, Jack Huston, David Farrier, Charlie Hill-Smith, John Cherry, Samuel Douek (Hola Mexican Film Festival) and Rosemary Myers ('Girl Asleep').
Also make sure you listen to this week's show for your chance to win a copy of 'Fifty Shades Of Black' on DVD thanks to our good friends at EOne Entertainment. For your chance to win simple listen to the show and then send your answer to this week's question via private message to either our Facebook or Twitter pages.
You can listen to The Good The Bad The Ugly Film Show or download it for free from our Podcast Channel – Listen/Download here.


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CITYWIDE — At 11:52 a.m. on June 7, the first call of shots fired rang into the police dispatch office. It would be the beginning of a 13-minute shooting rampage in which John Zawahri, 23, shot and killed five people before police took him out.
In those minutes, first responders ran toward fire and bullets to put a stop to the mentally disturbed young man ripping his way trough the town, and for days after, investigators scoured the remnants of clues to piece together what happened.
And, from those early moments and carrying through to the present, another set of heroes sprang into action, providing shelter for scared children, relief to law enforcement agents in need of coffee and food and counseling for those impacted by events.
School officials, employees of various city departments and nonprofit employees all stepped up to lend aid to prevent a bad situation from becoming worse, City Manager Rod Gould told the City Council Tuesday night.
"There is an honor and duty in public service. It's those times I would like to think bring out the best in all of us," Gould said.
When the bullets were fired, the response began.
Emergency operations centers were set up at the school district headquarters on 16th Street and at the Public Safety Facility on Olympic Drive to coordinate volunteers, teachers, officials and others spread across schools and parks.
"At the point this unfolded, it was like any day in the city," said Julie Rusk, assistant director of the Community & Cultural Services Department.
Kids from a local elementary school were on a field trip to Virginia Avenue Park, which sits near the murderous path cut by Zawahri, who killed his brother and father, set fire to the family home and then carjacked a woman and forced her to drive him to the college.
City employees at the Swim Center, located at Santa Monica College, were caught in the lockdown. Students at Edison Language Academy, just blocks from the Yorkshire Avenue home in which the violence erupted, could hear the gunfire.
Laura Ornales, director of Family Service of Santa Monica, was on the McKinley Elementary School campus assisting with a school barbecue when the word came: Lockdown.
"The kids said, 'A drill? Why would you do this in the middle of our barbecue. That's so mean of them!'" she said. "The kids actually knew what to do. I don't know how long it took, but it felt like 60 seconds."
Ornales led a group of children into the library, the nearest open door, as she had been trained. After the shootings in Sandy Hook, Conn. that left 20 children and six adults dead, schools across the country had taken another look at their emergency response plans and made sure everyone knew what to do.
In the library, Ornales tried to keep things light.
"We're stuck in here, but when are you going to get to eat in the library, or play soccer in the library?" she said. Rainy day games were organized, and fifth grade boys began telling each other stories to pass the time.
All the while, Ornales could only trust that her two children, also on school grounds, were safe.
"I trusted that my children's teachers were doing what they should be doing," she said.
Ornales' organization, Family Service of Santa Monica, puts trained social workers on campuses to provide counseling and mental health care. She and her team played a role keeping children calm during the event, but the rest of their job would pick up on Monday, when the students came back to school, some terrified that the experience would repeat.
In the meantime, life at the Public Safety Facility emergency center was gearing up.
The response was similar to that of the Farmers' Market disaster in July 2003 when a man plowed through shoppers, killing 10 people and injury over 60 others, said Paul Weinberg, emergency services coordinator with City Hall.
After the initial devastation, law enforcement began working around the clock at SMC to figure out what had happened, and the Office of Emergency Management in conjunction with the Red Cross coordinated the creation of a mini city to support them.
Food, coffee, snacks and portable toilets were brought in to handle basic necessities, and large lights so that they could work as the sun sank from the sky.
They broke down their perimeter Saturday afternoon, Weinberg said.
At the same time, the Big Blue Bus did what it could to keep service rolling, as well as provide an unorthodox use of the municipal buses.
One driver — who could not be identified because of the ongoing investigation — was caught in the shooting, when Zawahri strafed the bus, injuring some passengers.
"All I can share with you is that she did everything she potentially could have to minimize the injuries on that bus, get out of harm's way and drive away from the scene," said Ed King, director of Transit Services at City Hall. "She was phenomenal."
Others hunkered down, providing places for people to stay safe from any potential threat. Still more were used at the scene, providing law enforcement officials near SMC places to interview victims and witnesses.
"I'm very proud of every single Big Blue Bus employee that did what needed to be done that day in assisting the community through a horrific event," King said.
Even a week after the fact, the response from City Hall and community organizations is still unfurling.
City officials set up a center at Virginia Avenue Park to provide formal and informal counseling, as well as coffee and cookies to anyone impacted by the shootings. Counselors, clergy and other professionals will be available from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday at the site, Rusk said.
Services will also be provided in Spanish.
Pacific Crossroads Church, which uses Santa Monica High School for its Sunday services, will also open its doors to victims and families caught up in the violence. Counseling and meals will be available at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m., according to a flyer posted in the community.
The continuing support and caring rippling throughout the community is just another sign of how strong Santa Monica is as a community, said Mayor Pam O'Connor.
"As we mourn and as we comfort one another, let's be especially grateful for the relationships we have with one another," she said. "Lean on those connections and lean on each other to truly heal."


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All Posts For: General
The Community College as Entrepreneurial Catalyst
Posted by Dale Nesbary on 04.08.15 in Community, General, Uncategorized, Vision
I was recently asked by the journal Perspectives: Community College Leadership for the 21st Century to draft a paper focusing on community college entrepreneurship. The editors were impressed with the many impacts MCC has on its students and community and felt that our story needed to be shared among a broader audience, including college and […]
MCC Receives $4.1 Million MEDC Equipment Grant!
Posted by Dale Nesbary on 02.24.15 in Construction Projects, General
I am very pleased to share with you that Michigan Governor Rick Snyder's office announced today that Muskegon Community College is the recipient of a $4.1 million grant from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) to support the purchase of equipment required for educational programs in high-wage, high-skill, and high-demand occupations. MCC's application requested funding […]
Welcome Back Students – MCC Summer Highlights
Posted by webmaster on 09.11.13 in College Experience, Community, General, Students
Hello Colleagues, Students, and Community: For returning colleagues and students, Welcome Back! For new colleagues and students, welcome to a wonderful institution of higher education! I am very much looking forward to the launch of another successful academic year and will share my thoughts on the past summer and upcoming activities this fall semester. The Big News: […]


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We've previously discussed a mysterious HTC device a couple of times in the past, and now as the rumours continue, we've decided to stay with the story.
The rumours have circled around a HTC smartphone with a 5″ display running at a 1080p resolution (1920 by 1080 pixels) and carrying Qualcomm's new Snapdragon S4 Pro SoC (one that packages together a 1.5 GHz quad-core Krait processor alongside an Adreno 320 GPU). Such a device could be the best solution for the Taiwanese manufacturer to recover from its current financial position.
This is just a little bit of a big deal — the Snapdragon S4 Pro main processor is a behemoth in benchmarking terms, and the Adreno 320 GPU could be as fast as the GPU inside the new iPad (and let me tell you, that thing is a monster).
According to HTC Source (as reported by Android Authority) this device is real, and carries the internal product name HTC 6435LW. Even more exciting is the claim that this device will have a pixel density of 480 ppi (pixels per inch), which is incredibly high. There is some discussion about whether this pixel density is correct – it could be lower, depending on how the screen resolution is used by any soft-keys.
However, the insider also reports that the mysterious HTC phablet will use 1.5 GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal storage, with no SD card slot, and a non-removable battery. Sounds a lot like the HTC One X(L) line, but with a bigger screen. Could be a bit of a winner for HTC.
What do you think? Let us know below.


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OK Go is catchy, often irresistible, with new album
"Of The Blue Colour Of The Sk"y
Grade: ★★★★
OK Go's third studio album in nine years (besides six EPs and a live album) is all jangled edges and syncopated surprises.
Using Prince as a diving board for its pool of eccentricities (think Pixies or Cars on funk steroids), it's a heady brew — catchy, often irresistible, with vocals coming from somewhere out in space, or over the telephone or out from the end of a long cylindrical tube, altered, confused and synthed-up.
On "Skyscrapers," lead singer Damian Kulash gets all James Brown on us, yet at the height of his passion, he shuts up quick, leaving guitarist Andrew Duncan to take the tune home with some nifty noodling over a fractured stilted beat. Fans of early Talking Heads might go gaga for this pastiche of oddball sound, angular fuzz-tone awkwardness and wah-wah weirdness.
— Mike Greenblatt


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This video from the USA says about itself:
1 May 2007 — Eva Rowe, daughter of two workers killed in the BP-Texas City disaster, testified about the disaster and worker safety before the U.S. House Education and Labor Committee on March 22, 2007.
From the October 12 Sydney Morning Herald in Australia:
BP abolishes safety ombudsman
BP is disbanding the external safety ombudsman it set up after a fatal explosion at a company refinery in Texas in 2005 despite a growing number of concerns raised by the oil company's employees.
More than half the issues raised since the office was established in 2006 relate to BP's operations in Alaska.
BP said it would not extend the office's tenure beyond June.
The move comes less than a fortnight after the company announced it was setting up a new internal safety function, led by its head of safety and operations, Mark Bly.
But the decision, which follows the company's involvement in the world's biggest offshore oil spill, has been criticised … The number of concerns received by the ombudsman have risen almost fourfold between its inception and last year.
Scientists say oil still endangers birds in Gulf: here.
The Gulf of Mexico oil spill couldn't have occurred at a worse time for bluefin tuna: they had come to the area – a major spawning ground – to produce offspring. Satellites are helping assess the damage from the disaster on the fish's spawning habitat: here.
USA: Here we are, poised to go back into the deepwater, doing the same thing we were doing before the disaster on the Deepwater Horizon, with the same equipment, same rigs, and same systems: here.


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World Oceans Day, declared by the United Nations as a day to recognize the major role that oceans play in everyday life, passed us quietly on June 8 this year. More immediate needs have dominated activists' attention, and rightfully so.
But protecting the ocean doesn't take place on a single day and it need not detract from our equity and justice efforts. Environmental quality and social and economic equity intersect and support each other in significant ways.
World Oceans Day
Nowadays it seems like there is a holiday for everything from doughnuts to kazoos. But not all observance days are trivial.
The United Nations creates international days of observance for important global issues as tools to educate people and accelerate activism. Canada first proposed World Oceans Day at the Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit in 1992. Environmentalists began observing the unofficial holiday in 2002. The UN finally made the day official in 2008 when it designated June 8 as World Oceans Day.
The purpose of World Oceans Day is to draw attention to the shared resource that are the world's ocean, to highlight our personal connections to the sea whether one lives near the coast or not, and to inform people of the important ways individuals can help protect our world's oceans.
What the Ocean Does for Us
We talk about the seven seas, but really, one vast ocean covers 70% percent of the Earth's surface. Only 7% of that ocean is protected.
As on land, the ocean contains myriad ecosystems, from shallow ocean pastures to coral reefs to deep ocean trenches and the seabed. Within those ecosystems, scientists have identified more than 400,000 species, but estimate that those species make up less than 10% of the total. Unfortunately, at current extinction rates, many of those species will likely go extinct before they are even discovered.
Oceans serve as the world's largest food source, with more than 3 billion people depending on the ocean as their primary source of protein. As a result, one-third of global fish stocks are overfished. About 150 marine species are listed as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. Overharvesting is a significant factor threatening nearly all of them.
Aside from nutrition, a healthy ocean is critical to human life. Although we often hear rainforests called the planet's lungs, oceans produce half of the world's oxygen. The ocean also plays a huge role in climate stabilization, storing 50 times as much carbon as the atmosphere does. Oceanic carbon storage buffers up to a third of the carbon released by human activity.
Warming ocean temperatures caused by global climate change can release that captured carbon, increasing the pace of climate change and leading to more severe storms. Warmer waters are also a threat to coral reefs through bleaching, disease, and predators. Reefs protect coastal communities from beach erosion and storm effects and provide economic benefits.
Roughly three billion people depend on the ocean for their livelihood through fishing, tourism, or a combination of both. Without protection, 70% to 90% of tropical coral reefs could be lost by 2100. The impact of these extinctions, as well as ocean-level increases, will fall hardest on the poorest and most marginalized communities. Protecting the oceans protects these populations.
World Oceans Day 2020
The United Nations' conservation goal is to maintain at least 30% of the planet in its natural state. This number was scientifically established as the minimum necessary to arrest climate change, prevent extinctions, and continue to reap the environmental services of a healthy global ecosystem.
During 2020, the focus of World Oceans Day is the global movement to create a network of marine protected areas (MPAs). The goal is to protect 30% of the world's ocean by 2030. Called 30×30, the campaign to create marine protected areas on the model of terrestrial national parks did not end on June 8.
What We Can Do for the Ocean
It is not too late to sign the 30×30 petition that is collecting signatures from around the world for presentation at the Convention on Biodiversity COP15 Summit. Originally scheduled for October 2020, the summit has been postponed due to the pandemic.
The virtual events celebrating World Oceans Day on June 8 are still available for streaming online for anyone who wants to learn more. Going forward, we can continue to support the establishment of MPAs like the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument, which have proven effective in restoring ocean life.
The threat of pollution from oil and plastics does not stop at the boundaries of MPAs. But it is a threat that individuals can help prevent by eliminating plastic waste and cleaning up beaches and waterways. These everyday actions are important for protecting the environmental quality of the ocean. In return, a healthy ocean benefits people everywhere in the world.
You Might Also Like…
Make Every Day World Oceans Day
June 29, 2020
Sustainable Meat Production: The Blue Goat
June 29, 2020
Earth911 Podcast: ISRI Chief Economist Joe Pickard Discusses COVID's Impact on Recycling
June 29, 2020
The post Make Every Day World Oceans Day appeared first on Earth911.com.


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Special to Palmetto Counseling's Blog | October 6, 2020 12:00 PM EDT
This issue features an article by Rich Schlauch
Palmetto Counseling & Consulting Services is proud to announce our decision to sponsor this year's NAMI Piedmont Tri-County NAMIWalk to occur on October 10, 2020, the National Day of Hope!
What Is NAMIWalks?
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) is a national, non-profit organization that raises awareness and provides essential education, advocacy, and support group programs at no cost for people living with mental illness and their loved ones in local communities.
In 2002, NAMIWalks was created. It is the nation's largest mental health awareness and fundraising event for local friends, family, and those who may know someone or be someone affected by mental illness. We invite you to join us for NAMIWalk Charlotte. Proceeds from the national walk will go toward free NAMI educational programs.
What Is National Day of Hope?
The National Day of Hope is the day when many of our NAMIWalks locations hold their event simultaneously across the country when participants raise funds and provide a stepping stone to helping more people with mental health needs. During the fall this day also coincides with World Mental Health Day an international day for global mental health education, awareness, and advocacy against social stigma.
How Can You Get Involved?
There are many ways to support NAMI. And you can also support the organization all year long!
Find your local NAMIWalks organization, and register for an event near you. There is no fee to register as a walker or team captain for the NAMIWalks events.
You can always donate to your local NAMIWalks, even if you don't participate in the walk.
This year, you can join a virtual experience! Learn how you can participate virtually by visiting your local NAMIWalks website.
You can commit to completing the walk on your own! Each step is a step in the right direction. Participants commit to walking 3,500 steps for a 5K your way.
Join us for the Piedmont Tri-County NAMIWalks this Saturday, October 10 at Cherry Park,1466 Cherry Road Rock Hill, SC.
Let's take the STEPS we need to take together to address the mental health needs of our community, replace stigma with understanding and help thousands of families and individuals!
To learn how you can support the NAMIWalks Piedmont Tri-County, visit this website. Registration is still open!


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Toronto's latest star is our bride, Ashlee B. She's not only a star in this blog but she is one of our brides that gave Valencienne a tremendous testimony on our video. ''The Making of a wedding gown'' Shot by Andrew and Emily of Honey and Dear. Ashlee is outgoing, gregarious and full of life. When we met it was like we had known each other forever – her easy going style and personality was infectious and we became fast friends. When she first arrived we sat down to discuss the theme of the wedding, where it was, what the colors would be, formal or not formal and it was then that the discovery was made that Ashlee was a very renowned horse trainer. She spent six months of the year in Florida and the other six months between woodbine racetrack and her family farm, Colebrook, where she trained her beloved horses. I also learned that she had two huge passions in life, her fiancé Jack and her horses (not sure which order this should be in LOL). As the meeting progressed she said, with a big smile, we are getting married at the farm beside the paddocks so my horses can watch the ceremony. The reception is going to be in the center of the training ring and it will be stunning!!!!!! I looked at this smiling, bright-eyed girl and thought, 'that's quite a contradiction' but I would certainly take that bet. Getting excited, I was eager to hear about about the wedding gown plan because by now I know this girl definitely had a plan but needed a designer to make the gown come to life. One of the ideas was that she wanted the back to tie up to mimicked a braid – somewhat like when a show horses mane is braided for big event . The sketch evolved and Ashlee throw her hands up and screamed that's it!
Her sister Amy said, 'I told you Kim would understand you'. Ashlee's Mom sat quietly observing our exchange and then asked if I could make her a gown. She said that she too had her own ideas of her perfect mother of the bride dress and I soon realized that I was in the company of three very strong women with definitive ideas. This was going to be a winning combination and a very special relationship, one that would hopefully go beyond Valencienne.
It's a word that means different things to different people and on this day, the 10th of September 2011, it meant many things to Ashlee – she was Marrying the man of her dreams – Jack.
She had trained her horse ''Reconnect'' throughout the year while she planned her wedding and entered it into the stakes race at Woodbine the very same day of her wedding. With the stars aligned for Colebrook farms her horse came in first to win the Stakes race. What a rush to be getting a bride ready for her wedding, only moments away, while the bride and bridesmaids are tuning in to the TV, hoping to get a glimpse of there prize horse. Her father, 'Mr B' was driving around nervously in his golf cart making sure everything was perfect. He had been preparing the farm for months previously and it was clear that this whole family seeks perfection. I could not wait to see what the stables and training arenas looked like after they had been transformed by the Decor company 'To suit your fancy'.
The grounds of Colebrook farms is set amongst a magnificent country side. They house a few hundred horses, many training facilities, and lots of land for the horses to roam. Its a magical place and no wonder why Ashlee told her dad as a little girl that when she gets married it would be here. What she probably did not mention to Daddy was that the farm would need hundreds of hours of work to make it Country Elegant. Looking at the pictures below I think we can agree Ashlee got her dream wedding.
Well weddings are all about the show, the beauty is in the details like the dress, the decor or the flowers. A wedding day is a production in many cases – they can take over a year to plan. Ashlee's wedding gown had 18 meters of silk peau du soie that was from Italy and it took a number of months to arrive. The embellishment was designed by Valencienne and it was created in Dubai. The silver thread embroidery is actually silver bullion and took four months to create. The crystal work was all Swarovski and was ordered from Austria. Ashlee's wedding dress actually took ten months from start to finish however 'Mrs B's mother of the bride gown only took five months.
It was a beautiful, double faced Aubergine colored peau du soie. The top neckline and cap sleeves where encrusted by hand with Swarovski crystals, seed and bugle beads which took over two weeks.
Each year I have a chance to design many extraordinary wedding gowns for clientele from Toronto and for people who fly in from different parts of the world. My brides always ask, ' how do you continually come up with new ideas?' and I say 'I really cannot explain it'. The ideas just keep coming (thank God) …however as I write this blog I realize that my answer is too simplistic of a comment, it is not about THE WEDDING DRESS for me, Its all about the people involved, they inspire me to strive for perfection.
I love to tell stories to my brides – appointments are usually one hour but very often go longer.Its so important to create special relationships – I like to hear my brides talk about their jobs, holidays, home renovations, pets, etc. I like to hear about their taste in fashion, what books their reading and what really makes them 'tick' as a person. During that conversation, the dress is born. It is at that moment that the magic happens, that moment that every bride longs for. When they see the dress come to life right before their eyes because a creation has been designed especially for them and their individual personality.
Ashlee is a dramatic person – when she talks she is so animated it just makes you smile. The video honey and dear made for Valencienne was not rehearsed, that was pure Ashlee doing what Ashlee does best – she engages people with her vivacious personality. She is strong yet she is feminine and has an inner strength that is very powerful and I felt that I had captured Ashlee's unique personality in this gown. 'Mrs B' told me, the other day that it was the absolute most perfect wedding gown for Ashlee and it could not have been better. That type of complement fills me with such pride because, although I design the gowns, it makes me proud of my incredible staff that take such pride in making our bespoke gowns. I feel so blessed to have these special relationships. So in closing Thank you Ashlee and 'Mrs B' for helping me realize what makes me tick and in essence, what keeps me in the race.
The beautiful wedding photography was shot by Zack of Mango Studios
Video by Andrew and Emily of Honey and Dear
The wedding coordinator was Stephanie Gareri of Do this do that
The Decor and Flowers was by To suit your fancy
Wedding location Colebrook farms
Wedding dress and Mother of the bride gown Valencienne Bridal


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Dr. Sinclair Ferguson is a Scottish theologian known in Reformed circles for his teaching, writing, and editorial work. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Aberdeen and has been an ordained minister in the Church of Scotland since 1971. He has served as an editor of the Banner of Truth Trust and worked as a minister at St George's-Tron Church in Glasgow, Scotland. Most recently he served as the Senior Minister of the First Presbyterian Church in Columbia, SC.
Ferguson previously held the Charles Krahe Chair for Systematic Theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA. He has also taught at other seminaries, including Reformed Theological Seminary.
He was a keynote speaker at the Basics Conference hosted by Parkside Church and Truth for Life in Chagrin Falls, OH where he preached on Christ-Centered Worship.
His sermon text was Hebrews 2:10-18:
10 For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. 11 For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, 12 saying,
"I will tell of your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise."
13 And again,
"I will put my trust in him."
And again,
"Behold, I and the children God has given me."
14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted, (ESV).
He also preached from Hebrews 8:1-2:
Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, 2 a minister in the holy places, in the true tent that the Lord set up, not man, (ESV).
Watch below:


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People of MDOT Archaeologist - Jim Turner
MDOT Archaeologist Jim Turner performs cultural resource surveys for MDOT's Environmental Division. As an Archaeologist, Turner works to ensure MDOT's footprint does not impact any archaeological or cultural resources, including remains and historical structures, while working with engineers to design a footprint that is sensitive to Mississippi's natural and human environment. Learn more about how MDOT's Environmental Division helps preserve the state's cultural resources at http://ow.ly/OP8S30g66mB.


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Reasons Businesses should use social media
Social media is growing in stature every single day, and a large number of people have been looking for ways to use social media in promoting their businesses. The odd question that typically crops up is the amount of time an entrepreneur should be investing on social media. The other issue that most people have been asking is, is social media worth it? Social media, when used correctly, can easily be one of the best ways a business can use to grow its brand. With that being said, what are the reasons that any entrepreneur be it one who is starting or one that is already established should use social media?
Better customer service
If a brand wants its customers to see how well they are organised and how well they can offer excellent customers service, all they have to do is provide answers on social networking sites. This is because they can reply to a significant number of comments or complaints simultaneously. Nowadays the first place that anyone will go to voice his or her concerns or comments is on social media making it the easiest way a franchise can bridge the gap with his or her customers. When the client's care answers the questions well, other clients will also get to see the kind of customer care service that is being offered.
Being visible is imperative in any form of business venture. Social media can provide visibility quickly and therefore make the customers notice that the brand does exist. In business, if customers forget that a brand exists they suddenly start flooding to competitors that are visible. In today's world, if a company is not active on various social media platforms they may end up losing much business.
Reduce overall marketing costs
No one pays to advertise on social media, and that is a huge step in keeping running expenses of the business manageable. Social media helps a business to a large number of people in the shortest time possible. The individuals who are using the platform are the marketing team, and they do not get to be paid for it, unlike T.V and radio. One only needs to share and the advertisement once and by the click of a button many more people will also be able to view the ad.
Creating a Voice
Social media is probably the best way for anyone to display their business personality. The entrepreneur can share behind the scene information about themselves as well as that of their employees. When a business is humanised, it helps the customers connect with the brand and also develop a level of loyalty since they can see whom they are dealing with. Also to be noted is that the clients do not like the sales tone all the time.
Building Loyalty and Trust
Social media allows customers to share their personal stories on the experience they have had with the services being offered. This works the same way as the word-of-mouth marketing that can be effective. When a consumer is satisfied and gives rave reviews on social media, countless others will see the comments and therefore add more business to the brand. This also builds an excellent reputation for the business and that comes with no additional cost.
Social media is certainly the way to go if one is looking to brand their venture and save cost on advertising. However, as effective as social media can be to any business it can also be harmful. This is because, when a person gives the bad business press, the same number of individuals who will have seen the great reviews will also see it and can make some of them doubt the business and the services they provide. All in all, one needs to start slowly, and giving it a few hours every week and them most likely will see a big difference.
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Tonight at our monthly planning meeting, we made the sad and difficult decision to cancel MOWS. Safety is our top concern, and with all that is going on with Covid-19, we knew we could not bring you a safe event.
For questions or more information on MOWS, please email email@example.com.


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Foro is a humanist slab serif typeface designed in 2012 by Dieter Hofrichter of German foundry Hoftype. It has a very warm and inviting feel for a slab serif with some distinctive characters such as the curvy leg on the k. I think it would make a great alternative to more commonly used slabs such as Adelle. Foro is available in eight weights, ranging from thin to black.
Purchase through this link to help support Typewolf.
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Happy Holidays!
I hope that everyone celebrating Christmas had a very merry one! Here are a few pictures from our dessert table and setup.
I wrapped the artwork in the room in purple wrapping paper and tied with a ribbon to create the perfect backdrop for the dessert table! Easy!
Custom Fondant Cupcake Toppers by So Sweet Favors!
Mini Donuts by Dough A Deer!
(Served in snowflake tea light holders)
Cotton Kandy Kones by the fab…. Celebrate TODAY…The Superchick Way!
Even made a pom chandelier!
These colors would be great for a Valentine's Celebration as well!
Styling and Printables – Sparkling Events & Designs, LLC.
Fondant Cupcake Toppers – So Sweet Favors
Kandy Kones – Celebrate TODAY…The Superchick Way!
Mini Donuts – Dough A Deer
Table and Chairs – Capital Party Rentals
Linens – Personal Stash
Roses – Costco!


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SAVE THE DATE: BrooklynVegan returns to Public Assembly this CMJ (free unofficial Friday & Saturday day parties)
UPDATE: Friday lineup announced!
Like last year, and the year before, BrooklynVegan will be holding it down at Public Assembly in Williamsburg for two days on two stages. All free. Stay tuned for the lineups and more info coming soon!
UPDATE: Friday lineup announced! (Saturday coming soon)
You can also find us at CMJ Saturday night at Saint Vitus (metal) and Thursday night at Rebel NYC (Texas bands!). And maybe something else...


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Mercedes-Benz GLA45 AMG 2015 Reviews
MercedesAMG rigorously proceeds its merchandise initiative: using the fresh GLA45 AMG the operation brand of Mercedes Benz makes a dynamic declaration in the firmly growing part of the compact SUV. The mixture of strong-identifying layout, exclusive appointments also outstanding engine energy and driving operation is special: the most effective series production four-cylinder motor in the planet sets 265 kW (360 hp) of energy and 450 Newton-Metres of torsion traveling. The brand new Mercedes-Benz GLA45 AMG high performance SUV additionally polishes with regard to emissions and gas consumption amounts.
Having a gas consumption of 7.5 litres per 100 kilometres (NEDC joined; CO2: 175 grams/kilometers) and conformity with EU 6 discharges standards the mercedesbenz GLA45 AMG once again supplies evidence that at MercedesAMG optimum operation doesn't come at the cost of external compatibility.
Tobias Moers, Chairman of the Board of Direction of Mercedes-AMG GmbH: "The result to the Idea GLA45 AMG through the world premiere in the La International Auto-Show has re-affirmed our choice to start this new AMG version. Presently there isn't any section growing quicker than that of compact SUVs. For MercedesAMG it's thus a reasonable step to a dynamic declaration in this section with all the GLA45 Our new high performance-Sport Utility Vehicle not merely gives the world's most effective series production four-cylinder motor, but additionally impressively reduced fuel usage and emissions amounts.
Mercedes GLA45 AMG (2015)
2015 mercedes benz GLA45 AMG
Youthful target team: dynamics, styling and liberty
As well as the A45 CLA45 AMG and AMG, the GLA45 AMG is the next vehicle with four-cylinder turbo-engine to interest a youthful target group. The tendency-oriented customers place great shop in dynamics, styling and liberty - characteristics which are totally embodied in the newest high performance SUV from Satisfying wide array of consumer wants has ever been among the strengths of MercedesAMG. The mercedes benz GLA45 AMG now enlarges the substantial SUV line up (GLA45 versions to five AMG, ML63 AMG, GL63 AMG, G63 AMG and MercedesAMG therefore gives the widest array of sport utility vehicles among all high performance superior brands.
Hallmark AMG characteristics: the planet's most effective series-made four-cylinder engine
Greatest in group: the motor of the mercedes benz GLA45 AMG totally lives up for this claim, as a glance at the figures displays. The AMG 2.0-litre turbo-engine is the strongest series production four-cylinder turbo-engine on earth. An energy density of 133 kW (181 hp) sets the AMG high performance turbo motor on a level with all the planet's strongest superb sports cars.
Development of the high performance turbo motor, that's section of the BlueDIRECT family, put emphasis on a sustainable decrease in particulate discharges. The composite of several discharge ignition and various fuel injection enhances fuel economy and substantially raises the thermodynamic performance, resulting in low exhaust emissions. The injection program's remarkable flexibility additionally ensures a higher degree of freedom in regard to use. There are as many as five injections per combustion cycle in the cold start and warm up stage, which can be so vital for emissions. 1 of the major variables for in-motor particulate decrease is a diminution of the particular injection amounts.
Gravitation-die sandcast all-aluminium crankcase
NANOSLIDE cylinder lining technology
Airto-water intercooling system
Alternator direction
MercedesAMG addresses the fundamental challenge regarding the throttle reaction of a little-capability turbo motor by utilizing a dual-scroll turbocharger, optimum dethrottling of the exhaust program and an advanced injection strategy. Dual-scroll technologies provides to get a much more impulsive build-up of cost pressure: Utilisation the exhaust again-pressure, exhaust-gas temperature and exhaust-fuel heartbeat features an optimistic This leads to a quicker buildup of torsion already at reduced engine speeds. An optimistic side effect: gas consumption and exhaust discharges additionally reap the benefits of dual-scroll technologies.
The AMG sports exhaust method in the GLA45 AMG functions big conduit cross sections and a mechanically restricted exhaust flap: this engineering accommodates both contradictory aims of a dynamic driving expertise as well as hallmark Mercedes suitability for long distance driving. The flap in the back silencer is continuously fixed under map control based on the motorist's operation demands, load state and engine-speed. Both orthogonal chrome-plated twin tailpipes to the AMG sports exhaust method emit an amazing exhaust notice, that is especially striking during strong acceleration. An AMG Operation exhaust system, additionally supplied with the exhaust flap, can be obtained as an optional additional.
Engine generation - a convention of handbuilt superiority
The AMG 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-engine is assembled simply by hand in agreement against the standard AMG doctrine of "one-man, one motor". Aside from functioning as an AMG hallmark verifying superlative generation quality, the AMG motor badge bearing the motor fitter's signature also attests the peerless DNA of MercedesBenz's high performance brand.
Spontaneous gear shifts are included by the strengths of the dual-clutch transmission gear shifts without loss in tractive electricity, a tailormade management strategy in line with the AMG SPEEDSHIFT features, incredibly smooth gear shifts, and also a high
The change times in guide mode "M" as well as in sport-mode "S" are likewise sporty in nature toall those of the SLS AMG GT superb sports car. Right to the bodily limits the transmission administration entirely utilises the advantages of the direct-injection technology: the quicker engine reply ensures that injection is suppressed with much more precision. The consequence: the change speed and a mental sound encounter have powerful capacity to fascinate.
Another unique characteristic made to better dynamic efficiency and driving enjoyment is the so called "Fleeting M mode" - as observed in the SLS AMG Coupe Black String superb sports car.
In "C" mode (Manageded Efficacy), easy transmission and motor features support a gas-effective and relaxation-oriented driving fashion. In inclusion, the ECO start/stop function is effective in "C" mode.
Mercedes Benz GLA45 AMG Concept - 2013 L.A. Auto Show
The GLA45 AMG includes varying AMG 4MATIC all-wheel drive as typical. In creating this all-wheel-push system, the emphasis was firmly on dynamic nature and operation. The all-wheel-drive system supplies perfect grip - regardless of climate conditions and transfers the motor capacity to the route optimally. In addition, it elevates driving dynamics to the topmost degree.
The whole drive device boasts a fat-economy and streamlined layout: the ability take-off unit (PTU) is totally incorporated in the 7-speed sports transmission and manages the energy transfer to the back drivetrain. A 2-component propeller shaft sends the ability of the motor to the back axle also. In the pursuits of favourable fat distribution, an electro-hydraulically managed multiple-disk clutch is essential with all the back-axle differential. The numerous-disk clutch control finds slide in front axle. All of this takes place sans the driver seeing. Electricity distribution is totally varying: during regular driving the mercedes benz GLA45 AMG utilizes fwd for optimum efficacy. The varying all - wheel - drive system divides the torsion between the leading and back axles to a proportion of fifty percentage, when needed by the driving scenario.
Usually for AMG, the Electronic Stability System is configured as a three-phase ESP(registered company). During dynamic cornering, imperceptible braking intervention to the back inside wheel makes a precise yaw second concerning the perpendicular axis. The consequence: the GLA45 AMG turns in just and controllably constantly while unwanted understeer is prevented.
AMG sports suspension and AMG high performance braking system
One of many keys to agile managing is the engineering: for increased driving dynamics, the McPherson front-axle about the mercedes benz GLA45 AMG is knuckles and steering fitted with stiffer new The four-link rear axle has additionally been recently developed. Preciseness and solidity of handling are improved from the optimised elastokinematics as well as the connection involving the body as well as the subframe. The AMG sports suspension with particularly tuned spring/damper models and larger anti-roll-bars provides for large lateral acceleration and decreased body roll in rapid double curves.
The AMG high performance braking method with vented, cross-drilled brake discs all round and gray-painted brake callipers offers impulsive and dependable deceleration. Reddish brake callipers are offered as an optional additional.
Three enticing AMG light-alloy wheels to select from
As an optional added in the AMG Operation Studio, clients can select for bigger 10-spoke AMG light-alloy wheels with tyres of dimensions 235/40 Ep 20 - all these are accessible painted titanium gray with high-sheen end or painted matte-black with large-sheen rim flange.
Strong and identifying: animal clarity plus components exclusive to AMG
Fascination is exuded by the design of the GLA45 AMG due to its own identifying and strong nature. As the strong AMG top of the line version the GLA group, the high performance SUV joins the hallmark sexy clarity of MercedesBenz as a manifestation The AMG front apron with front splitter as well as the AMG "dual blade" radiator grille supply fit highlights - equally are painted matte titanium gray. Wholly new: the identifying AMG lettering in the side involving the louvres of the radiator grille. This will definitely make new AMG versions an easy task to recognise in time to come. Black flics (atmosphere deflector parts) above the substantial cooling air intakes in the sides are indicative of motor activity. Bi-xenon headlamps come as normal.
When seen from your side, the identifying AMG light-alloy wheels in three layout variations grab the attention. The aspect sill panels with matte titanium gray inserts, the "TURBO AMG" inscription to the front wings and also the aluminium roof railings add the mercedes benz GLA45 AMG a particular touch.
The exterior design can be optionally upgraded by the following AMG equipment features:
Aerodynamics bundle: bigger front splitter, added flics to the leading apron, back spoiler, Nighttime bundle
Carbonfibre outdoor mirror casings
Back spoiler
Nighttime bundle: solitude windows, black anodised waist line trim strip, silver-chrome radiator grille louvres; large-shine outdoor mirrors, black entrance splitter, side sill panel insert and back apron trimming, two tailpipes with black rectangular trimming
Interior decoration: high quality, sporty, exclusive
As in most AMG high performance cars, the inner part of the GLA45 AMG revels having its high quality with sporty dash together attractiveness, and Sports seats in ARTICO man made leather/DINAMICA micro-fibre with reddish comparing topstitching and reddish designo security belts are only as significantly on board as the AMG DRIVE UNIT. On opening the doorway, the motorist is greeted from the AMG start up display.
The inside might be updated by means of the following AMG discretionary extras:
Exclusive bundle
Operation seats upholstered in ARTICO man made leather/DINAMICA micro-fibre for driver and front-passenger, with increased powerfully contoured seat contour for increased lateral assistance and with built-in head restraints, reddish designo safety belts
Carbon fibre trimming
Black, crystal gray, nut brownish or black REDDISH CUT upholstery
The large-polish black Aerodynamics bundle with bigger front splitter, added flics in the leading apron, and back aerofoil produces an uncompromising racetrack sense. The silver-grey/reddish AMG racing stripes around the vehicle sides beneath the "falling line" make an enduring feeling. All these are complemented by reddish highlights on outdoor mirrors, radiator grille, diffuser insert and back aerofoil. The mild-alloy wheels function special AMG wheel-hub covers with principal-lock appearance, and therefore are mounted with tyres of dimensions 235/40 Ep 20 all round. The AMG Nighttime bundle can also be a part of the typical gear, as-is the "Edition 1" badge in the leading wing. The metallic paints cosmos mountain gray and black, polar silver are accessible alternatively to the cirrus white outside paintwork.
The inner part of the GLA45 AMG "Edition 1" is reigned by the colors black and reddish. Reddish comparing topstitching adorns the AMG Operation seats in ARTICO man-made leather/DINAMICA micro-fibre, the doorway middle panels, the top section of the ARTICO man made leather/DINAMICA micro-fibre instrument panel along with the nappa leather/DINAMICA micro-fibre AMG Operation steering wheel. Other visible highlights will be the E-PICK lever with embossed AMG symbol and also the "Edition 1" badge to the AMG DRIVE UNIT. The trimming on the instrument panel is a great match for the AMG racing stripes to the surfaces of the car. The high quality surface features a persuasive look and feel: glossy and matte components create a fascinating interaction together with the diamond design and AMG lettering to the right hand side.
The brand new Mercedes-Benz GLA45 AMG will observe its planet premiere on at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show in Detroit, United States. The revenue release begins in mid-March 2014, using the marketplace launching starting in July 2014.
Mercedes-Benz Concept GLA 45 AMG Driving Review
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Article Text
OBJECTIVE: To examine the relation between serum urate and the risk of major coronary heart disease events. DESIGN: A prospective study of a male cohort. SETTING: One general practice in each of 24 British towns. SUBJECTS: 7688 men aged 40-59 years at screening. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Fatal and non-fatal coronary heart disease events. RESULTS: There were 1085 major coronary heart disease events during the average follow up period of 16.8 years. Serum urate was significantly associated with a wide range of cardiovascular risk factors including body mass index, alcohol intake, antihypertensive treatment, pre-existing coronary heart disease, serum triglycerides, cholesterol, and diastolic blood pressure. There was a significant positive association between serum urate and risk of coronary heart disease after adjustment for lifestyle factors and disease indicators. This relation was attenuated to non-significance upon additional adjustment for diastolic blood pressure and serum total cholesterol: cholesterol appeared to be the critical factor in attenuating this relation. When the association between serum urate and risk of coronary heart disease was examined by presence and grade of pre-existing coronary heart disease, a positive association was seen only in men with previous definite myocardial infarction, even after full adjustment (P = 0.07). CONCLUSIONS: The relation between serum urate and the risk of coronary heart disease depends heavily upon the presence of pre-existing myocardial infarction and widespread underlying atherosclerosis as well as the clustering of risk factors. Thus serum urate is not a truly independent risk factor for coronary heart disease. Raised serum urate appears to be an integral part of the cluster of risk factors associated with the insulin resistance syndrome that include obesity, raised serum triglycerides, and serum cholesterol.
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Gus + Steel
Basic Tee in Free Range
$6.40 $32
Our basic tees have a semi-relaxed fit and are made from our super soft organic cotton fabric with a touch of spandex for stretch. The perfect mix!
Made in the USA
90% GOTS certified organic cotton and 10% spandex jersey
- Organic cotton is grown in a way to lessen the impact on our environment.
- Organic crops do not use pesticides, insecticides, and herbicides. These chemicals are harmful to farmers, workers, consumers, and the ecosystem.
- Organic cotton uses far less water than non-organically grown cotton.
Wash on a delicate cycle inside out with cool water using a phosphate free detergent. Hang dry or machine dry on a low temperature setting to avoid excess shrinkage and piling. Avoid washing with towels and jeans. Minimal piling is normal for french terry. Up to 10% shrinkage depending on washing and drying conditions.


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Master Bedroom
The message you want to convey here is sanctuary. The master bedroom is probably the second most important room to potential buyers, behind the kitchen. Your goal is for the master to appear as a retreat, a getaway from the stresses and cares of the world. Think luxury, comfort and ease.
Buy a new, plush comforter or bedspread in a neutral color and pattern. Good colors are beige, green, and blue. Beige goes with everything; blue & green are soothing. Patterns should be medium sized and gender neutral (no cabbage roses! no petunias!). Wash and iron the bed ruffle if you're using one.
Buy 2 new pillows if yours aren't fluffy and luxurious looking. Use the pillow shams if the set you have (or just bought) comes with those. Buy and place a selection of decorative pillows in varying shapes and sizes.
If the master bedroom is simply huge, you can stage a sitting area with two chairs and a small table between them.
Other Bedrooms
The message for these bedrooms is space. You want the potential buyers walking through to be amazed at how much room there is in your extra bedrooms - plenty of room for their stuff. All you really need to effectively stage a bedroom are
- a bed,
- two night tables,
- two lamps,
- and nothing else.
Unless the room is enormous, this is enough. If the room is very small, you can use only one nightstand. If you're living in the home while you're trying to sell, the closer you can get to this ideal, the better. I realize that sellers with children are going to struggle over this. Enlist the kids' help and try to make it an adventure. If you stage it right, and price it right, and your chosen listing agent markets it right, you'll only be living like this for a month or two. Besides, you're going to have to pack the stuff once you sell, so you might as well start now. Buy a new bed-in-a-bag set in a neutral color & pattern.
If you're painting the whole house anyway, use a pale bluish off-white in one bedroom and a pale pinkish off-white in another. Set it off with sparkling white trim and baseboards. Dunn Edwards' Coy and Romantic are great pale pinks; use Clear Skies or Distant Horizon for bluish off whites.
Staging Bedrooms in Vacant Homes
If you're trying to sell an empty house, it will pay to rent a bed set at least for the master bedroom. For the other bedrooms, let your budget guide you. Contact my favorite staging company, Staging Solutions LLC
Of course, if you've chosen the right Realtor, I'll be doing all this for you. Thinking about selling? Give me a call.
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Egypt: Belgian Diplomats Damaged Fossils
Mohamed Ibrahim, an official in the Ministry of Environment, said the diplomats in four-wheel-drive vehicles ran over the fossil in July after ignoring signs warning visitors not to drive in the Wadi el-Hitan, or Valley of the Whales, protected area and UNESCO World Heritage site located about 93 miles outside of Cairo.
The Belgian Foreign Ministry and its embassy in Cairo denied the vehicles caused any damage to the fossil. Foreign Ministry spokesman Marc Michielsen said the two diplomatic-plated all-terrain vehicles were in the area but "did not leave the road."
"They were not aware that the area was a protected area," Michielsen said. "It seems the area was not cordoned off, and no notice or guards were present."
Egyptian and Belgian authorities both said the incident took place in July. It was unclear why Egyptian officials waited until now to make the allegations.
Michielsen said Egyptian authorities sent a letter to Belgian authorities in mid-July, which Belgian authorities answered Aug. 5 by saying the diplomats did not damage any fossils.
"Since then we have not received any reaction," Michielsen said.
Ibrahim, who works in the Environmental Ministry's Natural Protected Zones office, said the Egyptian prosecutor's office has estimated the damage at $325,000 and has demanded Belgium pay that amount in compensation.
"The financial value doesn't really matter. What matters is the historical value," he said.
Wadi el-Hitan contains fossils of the extinct suborder of whales, the archaeoceti, that date back about 40 million years. UNESCO says the fossils show the evolution of the whale from a land-based mammal to an ocean-based one.
UNESCO declared the site, discovered in 1936, a World Heritage site in 2005.
Associated Press Writer Constant Brand in Brussels, Belgium, contributed to this report.