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What to Do When You Get a Purchase Offer
In the process of selling your home, you will (hopefully) receive purchase offers. Are you prepared to evaluate offers?
In this article, we look at how to evaluate offers that occur in two different scenarios:
- when you sell your home the traditional way through a realtor
- when you abbreviate the sale process and sell your home fast to an investor.
Offers When You Sell Your Home Through a Realtor
When you hire a real estate agent, you are securing the services of a sales professional. The realtor is managing the elements of the sale process, with your input and approval.
Your agent educates you on current market conditions. For example, he or she will know if there is a high demand for homes like yours or if there is a glut of similar homes for sale. This information is important when it comes time to evaluate an offer. You may choose to consider a low offer because it's a competitive market or you may hold out for a higher offer if the market is lean on similar homes.
This is the type of background information your realtor will apprise you of that will help you as you consider an offer.
Offer Details to Look at When You Sell Your House
Read through the whole offer and look at it carefully with your realtor.
The Pre-Approval Letter
If a buyer cannot come up with the funds to purchase your home, there will be no sale. So, the first thing to look at is whether or not the buyer has provided confirmation of ability to purchase. Most buyers must finance a home purchase, so you want to see a bank pre-approval letter attached to the offer.
Are There Contingencies?
Is the buyer's offer contingent on the sale of their own home? This is a common scenario. If so, in what stage is the buyer in their own sale process? Is their house also on the market? How close are they to a signed contract?
Is the offer contingent on the home passing inspections? If so, which inspections? A buyer can stipulate multiple inspections, including home, structural, septic, well water, chimney, pest, and radon.
Requests for Credits and Allowances
Offers often come with deals—i.e., you pay half of the closing costs—or with a request for credits if the condition of something in the house is not optimum. This could be carpet that is worn or a roof that is getting old. The buyer knows that the carpet or roof will need to be replaced soon, so they request a credit to compensate for the impending expense.
Offer Numbers and Dates
How close is the buyer's offer to your asking price? How much earnest money is the buyer willing to put down?
Look at all the dates in the offer and make sure they work for you before you accept it.
What Next?
If you love the offer, you can accept it. If it's almost there but not quite, make a counteroffer. Your realtor will craft it. If nothing about the offer is acceptable, decline it and wait for the next one. Or sell your property to a home buying business.
Evaluating Offers When You Sell Your House to an Investor
If you decide to bail out of the traditional route to a home sale, you can sell your house to a home-buying company.
Sell My House Houston Pros is one such house buying company in Houston, TX. We buy properties in Houston and across the state.
Like many other investors, we buy properties as-is. This results in a quick and easy sale for the homeowner. Sell My House Houston Pros is a reputable company (rated A+ with the Better Business Bureau) with longevity in the industry (ten years). Our offers are solid and fair.
Questions to Ask When Evaluating a Home Buying Company's Offer
Whether you're considering an offer from Sell My House Houston Pros or any other investor, ask yourself these important questions:
- Will accepting this offer enable me to sell my house fast?
- By selling my home quickly, what headaches will I avoid?
- Does this offer free me from the need to make potentially expensive repairs?
- What costs does this offer enable me to avoid? (Realtor fees, inspections, etc.)
- Does selling my property to an investor alleviate a stressful situation?
Summing it Up: Evaluating Offers When Selling Property
Getting an offer on your home can be exciting and overwhelming both. A realtor can help you decipher an offer, but when you sell your property to an investor, you're usually on your own in evaluating the offer. However, when you consider our suggested questions and factors to consider, you should be able to successfully evaluate an offer whether it comes through your realtor or from a home-buying company.


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American Artist Professional League
89th Grand National Exhibit.
Accepted juried Entry Nov. 2017
"Morning at the Pond"
Ringwood Manor Art Association
Annual Fall Open Juried Exhibition
Sept. 28 - Oct. 26 2017
Honerable Mention for
"Along the Tidal Marsh"
The Emerson Inn by the Sea
One Cathedral Ave.
Rockport, Mass.
The Berkshire Bank
Rte 17m & Church Street
Harriman, NY
Ongoing exhibit in the lobby
Stop in during business hours
The American Artists Professional League
Landscape, Seascape, Streetscape
Theme Show 2017
Online :
Wednesday, April 19, 2017 to Sunday April 30, 2017
Awards Announcement Tuesday, April 25, 2017
The American Artist Professional League
88th Grand National Exhibition
Salmagundi Club
47 Fifth Ave.
Nov.7th -Nov.18th, 2016
Awards Reception, Sunday, Nov.13th, 2016
Wallkill River School Wallkill River School of Art
232 Ward St. in the historic Patchett House corner of Factory St. & 17K
Montgomery, NY
Represented Artist Wallkill River School
232 Ward St
Montgomery. NY
Email : firstname.lastname@example.com
My phone # 845-238-2860
Please Note:
All rights reserved. All reproduction rights are retained by the artist. Unauthorized reproduction in any form is strictly prohibited. All artwork and images are copyrighted to Marylyn Vanderpool.

subset: commoncrawl


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There are infinite numbers between 0 and 1. There's .1 and .12 and .112 and an infinite collection of others. Of course, there is a bigger infinite set of numbers between 0 and 2, or between 0 and a million. Some infinities are bigger than other infinities. A writer we used to like taught us that. There are days, many of them, when I resent the size of my unbounded set. I want more numbers than I'm likely to get, and God, I want more numbers for Augustus Waters than he got. But, Gus, my love, I cannot tell you how thankful I am for our little infinity. I wouldn't trade it for the world. You gave me a forever within the numbered days, and I'm grateful. – The Fault In Our Stars by John Green
Recently I've been thinking about the way in which people can come in and out of our lives. I, for unexplainable reasons, choose a life that is very transient. I move home, job, even country on a regular basis, rarely staying still for very long – but throwing myself wholeheartedly and headfirst into whatever place I find myself.
I make friends and have relationships. I make them my home. But, very soon, it is time to say goodbye. Sometimes it's myself who is leaving…and sometimes it's the friends or 'more-thans' who leave.
By choosing a life like this, I find myself losing little parts of myself wherever I go and to whoever I love. Each one takes a little piece of me with them – whether they realise it or not.
And so, there are pieces of me scattered across this world.
Every so often someone will come into your life who your logical brain knows is another one who will be only there for a short time but your heart knows that they give something much more lasting. Someone who will give you a "little infinity in your numbered days".
Without this transience, we would never have met. Yet, the fact the transience takes you away from them (or vice versa) has the potential to make you angry or resentful.
It's a weird juxtaposition.
But some infinities are bigger than other infinities…and some people are only meant to be there in your life for a brief time.
These little infinities have brought me precious memories of love, hope and joy. They've often brought me back to who I am when I have maybe felt a little lost, restored my confidence, made me believe in myself and in my worth. And I am grateful.


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|Place of Birth > Place of Death
|Publication Date
|STEINMANN, Robert W
|St Louis MO
|CarlyleUB (IL)
|27 Aug 2003
Robert W. Steinmann, 78
Robert W. Steinmann, 78, of Carlyle, died Wednesday, Aug. 20th, 2003, at Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, MO.
He was born on May 9th, 1925, in St. Louis, Mo., the son of Joseph and Mabel Beckemeyer Steinmann. On Oct. 31st, 1945, in Lincoln, Neb., he married Evelyn Wuebbels; and she survives in Carlyle.
In addition to his wife, he is survived by two sons, James J. Steinmann of Damiansville and Kenneth Steinmann of Missoula, MT; and three grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his father, Joseph Steinmann and mother and step father, Leonard and Mabel Simms.
Mr. Steinmann lived in Carlyle all his life. He was a veteran of WWII, serving in England with the Eighth Air Force in the Army Air Corps. After his service, Robert worked in the Civil Engineering division at Scott Air Force Base until his retirement in 1982.
After his retirement, Mr. Steinmann was a representative for Metropolitan Insurance in Carlyle and enjoyed wintering in the Rio Grande Valley. Robert was a member of St. Mary's Church in Carlyle.
A Mass of Resurrection was celebrated on Monday. Aug. 25th. at 10 a.m. at St. Mary's Church in Carlyle, with Fr. George Mauck officiating.
Interment followed with military honors at St. Mary's Cemetery.
Visitation was at Zieren Day Funeral Home in Carlyle.
Click on the letters below to see an index of obituaries starting with that letter
Clinton County ILGenWeb Home > Obituary Index > STEINMANN, Robert W Obituary
|Database table Obit_Index modified:
|14 Jul 2015
|Page modified:
|15 Nov 2011


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HOUSTON – During sunrise and sunset, grackles are gathering at a shopping center in the Galleria area.
In the early evening, the birds start to appear in sheets. They fill up trees, line business roofs and power lines, and make pit stops on cars in the parking lots.
The big question is, why are these birds clustering around busy businesses?
"In the winter they gather in these huge congregations for predator protection," explained Mary Anne Weber, an educator for the Houston Audubon Society.
Weber says these birds actually live in Houston year round. They just gather in big volumes for the winter because their eggs have hatched and they don't need to be with their nests anymore; therefore, they can go be social with other birds.
"Being in those big groups you have all your friends looking out," said Weber, "more eyes to look for dangers."
They gather during dawn and dusk when their predators, like hawks, are on the hunt.
Weber added they like the openness of shopping centers, and the power lines give them a 360-degree view of their surroundings.
"They also like to eat french fries and garbage that people leave behind, so shopping centers are really popular," she said.
Weber says they aren't going to hurt you. Still, workers say the images can be unsettling.
"It's kind of surreal," described Andrew Hoskins, an employee at a Post Oak Shopping Center business. "It is kind of like that movie "The Birds". They are all plotting up on the edges of the buildings."
To shoppers they may look intimating but the birds usually leave them alone.
"Most of the time when you are walking to your car they will just fly away," said shopper Juanita Peters.
Some people even try to have a little fun.
"I saw one guy he had his jacket pulled over him to protect himself like he was being terrorized by the birds and his friends are taking pictures of him," said Michael Kronke, an employee at a Post Oak Shopping Center business.
The birds only stick around for about 30 to 45 minutes.
Businesses have to get creative on how they get rid of the birds since they cannot be harmed because they are a protected species.
Some have tried to scare off the birds with loud noises.
Weber said one Kroger in Houston sprayed grape seed oil on their trees because apparently they don't like the smell of it on their feet.


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The ultrasound and the doctors confirmed today that I do not have a viable pregnancy–that, in fact, I was barely ever pregnant at all. If you can believe it, what I feel most is relief to finally have some certainty, and be able to move on with my life.
But before I leave you, here's an anecdote (into which I have chosen, probably unwisely, to channel all of my anger and hurt at once): as my husband and I made our way to the medical center today, we passed a couple that I can only describe as Female Dewey Crowe and Dewey Crowe Junior. Just a couple of total dipshits. Both smoking, the woman (who was little more than a girl) barely able to manage her multiple bags, cigarette, and of course the eighteen-month-old baby she was carrying. Mr. Dewey Crowe, holding only a fast-food bag and his smoke, yelled at her: "Did you even BRING THE NEW BABY WIPES? DID YOU EVEN BRING THEM? ARE YOU AN IDIOT?"
This, people, is why I do not believe in God, or if He does exist, I assume He is an asshole. These two idiots get a baby. Shit, they've probably got another one on the way already, that they conceived between whippets. And I do not. I get an embryo that false-starts. Yes, I realize that Female Dewey Crowe is probably 21 and I'm 37, and by the time she's my age she'll be a great-grandmother and that's how you're supposed to do things. But seriously fuck a species in which she's doing things right and I'm doing them wrong.
And all I can hope is that Nature proceeds to do its goddamned business naturally, so that I don't have to pay $1500 and go back to the hospital again for a painful, expensive procedure, while the Dewey Crowes of Missouri happily continue to shit out offspring between White Power rallies.
I appreciate everyone's concern and patience as I made the decision to go completely public with all (well, not ALL but MOST) aspects of this shit-show. I do not apologize for offending Missouri white supremacists, or white idiots of any kind, or any idiots of any kind.
I would now like to be left alone.


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I am so excited to do a Southern Style Spotlight feature on this fabulous designer who hails from Fairhope: Kara Strope Warr of Kara Strope Designs. I fell in love with this jewelry brand 14 years ago during a trunk show at the Tri-Delt house at The University of Alabama during my freshman year of college and KSD has been my go-to for jewelry ever since.
Kara is not only a talented jewelry designer – she is also beautiful person, both inside and out. Over the years she has been a friend that I have come to count on during my darkest moments. She is someone that has prayed with me, prayed for me and always has the perfect Bible verse to share to lend some perspective on my situation. Kara possesses wisdom far beyond her years, she innately has a very high level of emotional intelligence and her strong faith in God gives her an aura of peaceful grace that makes people gravitate towards her.
Besides being with me during the dark times, Kara has always been one of the first people to celebrate the beautiful blessings this life has given me. Her infectiously positive personality and her talent for creating beautiful jewelry make me so excited to shine a light on her line of jewelry and feature KSD on The Southern Atelier.
Kara Strope Warr has worked in fashion since her teen years and her love for the industry drove her to begin designing jewelry while attending the University of Alabama. She began selling her pieces at sorority houses on campus and trunk shows. Soon, it was a thriving business and her designs were being sold in boutiques all over the South.
The KSD Fine Jewelry Collection combines pave and rose cut diamonds with oxidized sterling silver, precious gemstones and pearls. The collection features necklaces with interchangeable pendants as well as earrings, bangles and gold bead bracelets with pave diamond accents.
Her designs are all created in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where she lives with her husband, Michael, and four children, Macon, Hill, Michael, jr. and Jude. While the collection in itself has many beautiful pieces to offer, Kara also offers custom pieces as an exciting design option for her clients.
Want to shop KSD? Click here for her newly launched website – or follow her on Instagram by clicking this link.
KSD has been one of our favorite clients to work with for styled shoots and editorial marketing campaigns. You can view the dreamy beach video from our campaign for KSD by clicking this link as well as photos from the same campaign by clicking here. This is some of my favorite editorial work that we have done!
Photography Credits
Kara Strope Warr: Mary-Keeley McAllister Photography
Model: Lily Rowe || Photographer: Kelsey Justice
Loving all things Southern Style,


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Located about a mile west of the main public beach area in Gulf Shores at the intersection of Ala. Highways 182 and 59 is Crystal Shores, one of the more recently constructed condominium complexes in the city.
With just over 1,000 square of living space, these Gulf-front condos sleep anywhere from four to six guests in one or two bedrooms layouts.
Living areas are comfortable at these bright, sunny condos. And, living space is extended outdoors onto spacious balconies that overlook the Gulf…perfect for watching the sunrise in the morning as you sip your coffee or gazing at the sunset and watching children chase the surf in the day's last light. Balconies are situated off the living room and also the master bedroom. Corner units feature larger wraparound balconies.
There are numerous on-site amenities offered at Crystal Shores, including a swim-through indoor pool that leads outdoors to a medium-sized pool.
A hot tub, exercise room, sauna, game room and business center are also on site. In addition, all units feature wireless Internet service.
A boardwalk leads to the wide expanse of beach fronting this complex. And numerous attractions and restaurants are found nearby, including Bahama Bob's. Bahama Bob's is a fun eatery offering seating both indoors and out. There's not much parking, but, thankfully, it's an easy walk from Crystal Shores.
This place is famous for its yummy appetizers (seafood gumbo, anyone?), its coconut fried shrimp and the Bahama Bob's Burger, topped with grilled pineapple, bacon and double Swiss cheese.
Within a mile is all the fun of the main area of Gulf Shores Public Beach, where you'll find The Hangout of Hangout Music Fest fame, Pink Pony Pub, and restaurants like Gulf Island Grill. Beach shops Surf Style and others are perfect spots to replenish last-minute beach supplies and pick up the latest in coastal fashions – or even a surfboard or skim board!
Next time you want to be right in the middle of all the Gulf Shores fun, Crystal Shores is a perfect place for a vacation rental.
Check availability at Crystal Shores.


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A phone call from Barack Obama to Joseph Kabila saying, "It's over; you lost; time to step down," could probably stop a bloodbath in the heart of Africa.
Congo deserves a leader who cares about the Congolese people
by Eric Kamba, with research and editing assistance from Ann Garrison
Police club Tshisikedi supporters as they attempt to march to meet him at the airport in Kinshasa, where Tshisikedi had been detained by police, on Nov. 27. – Photo: Reuters
The international community and the secretary general of the U.N. must explain why they are not calling out irregularities in the elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), instead of just saying that things are going relatively well – or pretending to ignore this election in the world's most resource rich nation, with the world's lowest standard of living and the highest death toll due to armed conflict since World War II.
This is what happened at the polls on Nov. 28 and 29, as it has been reported to me by friends and family on the ground in the DRC:
1) There were fictitious polling stations, polling stations with no ballots, polling stations stuffed with advance ballots previously checked with the name of incumbent President Joseph Kabila.
2) Ballots were stored by private individuals in their houses, instead of guarded official sites. This meant they could be filled out before they were delivered to the polls.
3) The names of many registered voters were not included on the lists.
4) State security forces attacked, wounded and killed civilians.
Riot police advance on demonstrators marching to meet opposition presidential candidate Étienne Tshisikedi at the airport in Congo's capital and largest city Kinshasa, on Nov. 27. – Photo: Reuters
Kabila's police have been filmed by AFP and photographed by Reuters beating Tshisikedi supporters and firing tear gas and live rounds as they marched to meet him at the airport. Those wounded by gunfire were also visible in the AFP news report. Death, consequent to shooting by police, has been reported to me, with pictures, but not yet documented by a coroner, news outlet or election observer team.
Many of the polling irregularities have been reported by election observers and reporters, but of course there will be no official reports until after the election. European Union observers report irregularities at 79 percent of the polls but say they will not issue an official report until after the election.
However, with such blatant violence and fraud, no one needs to wait for an official report to see that Congo's election is badly tainted by violence and fraud. These are deliberate efforts to maintain the system for plundering Congo's wealth instead of using it to improve the lives of Congolese people.
These are deliberate efforts to maintain the system for plundering Congo's wealth instead of using it to improve the lives of Congolese people.
What is the real mandate of MONUSCO, the U.N. mission in Congo?
This system for plundering Congo was described in detail in the U.N. Report of the Panel of Experts on the Illegal Exploitation of Natural Resources and Other Forms of Wealth of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2008. However, MONUSCO, the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, remains in Congo, with U.N. troops but without disrupting, much less eliminating, the system of plunder.
Indeed, this year, a North Kivu judge sentenced a MONUSCO driver and his accomplice to three years in prison and a $25,000 fine after they were arrested attempting to cross the Congolese border into Rwanda with 1,200 kilograms of the mineral cassiterite.
MONUSCO spokesman Madnodje Mounoubai insisted that this was a singular incident and denied allegations that the U.N. mission is involved in the very plunder they're supposed to be there to prevent. However, Congo Planet pointed out that this is not the first time MONUSCO peacekeeping troops have been caught smuggling minerals and that they have even been accused of dealing weapons to militias smuggling minerals. Congo Planet called for MONUSCO to subject its own vehicles to inspection at Congolese border crossings.
This is not the first time MONUSCO peacekeeping troops have been caught smuggling minerals and that they have even been accused of dealing weapons to militias smuggling minerals.
Human Rights Watch, in a press release regarding a letter that it sent to the United Nations under-secretary-general for U.N. peacekeeping operations, titled "U.N.: Hold Peacekeepers Accountable for Congo Smuggling," wrote, in 2007:
"Human Rights Watch first brought information about gold smuggling by peacekeepers to the attention of the United Nations in December 2005, and an investigation was begun. The BBC conducted its own investigation, broadcast on May 23, 2007, which quoted a U.N. official as saying that there was a desire to 'bury the result' for political reasons."
Why would anyone now expect the same MONUSCO to be working to support a free and fair election in Congo, especially if a candidate chosen by the people might finally mount a real effort to end the plunder and restore Congolese resources to the Congolese people?
Ending the plunder would be a daunting task, given the well established criminal networks described in the U.N. reports and given the huge markets for smuggled minerals. But is there any reason to think that MONUSCO would want the Congolese to elect a president committed to stopping the plunder or that MONUSCO would help such a president?
There is a clear parallel between the 2006 and 2011 presidential elections.
In 2006, the U.N. Mission in Congo was called MONUC, the United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, before its name was changed to MONUSCO, in 2010. MONUC was led by former U.S. Ambassador to the DRC William Lacey Swing, who had a very controversial record. And the 2006 election was not free and not fair, though that was not the story sold to the world.
In 2011, MONUSCO is headed by another former U.S. ambassador to the DRC, Roger Meece. And, once again, the country is confronted with election chaos, including shootings, beatings and tear gas of an opposition candidate's political supporters. Can anyone explain this?
Opposition presidential candidate Étienne Tshisikedi speaks to the press while detained at the Kinshasa airport on Sunday, Nov. 27, two days before the polls. While he was detained, military police beat, tear gassed and fired on supporters marching to the airport to meet him. – Photo: Reuters
Opposition candidate Étienne Tshisikedi has called on U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to appoint someone "less corrupt and more credible" than Roger Meece to head MONUSCO. It is imperative that the secretary general answer the following questions honestly:
Why are former U.S. diplomats appointed to head the U.N. Mission in Congo? Is it a coincidence or a rule?
How does he, Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, explain the electoral chaos in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, despite nearly $9 billion U.N. dollars spent on MONUC and then MONUSCO since 1999?
How does he explain the ballots so obviously transported and distributed by CENI (Independent National Congolese Electoral Commission) and, in some cases, by MONUSCO, that ended up in private rather than official hands?
How much credibility can the U.N. have when its staff is involved in plundering the country with the lowest standard of living in the world?
The Congolese population is overwhelmingly rejecting President Joseph Kabila, not only because he failed to repair or build new Congolese infrastructure or improve their standard of living in 10 years' time, but also because he failed to stop the plunder.
Nevertheless, Kabila is enjoying the support of foreign heads of state and the international business community. They are expected to make every effort to keep him in power, even though there can be no credibility to an announcement that he has won.
The determination of the Congolese people has taken the world by surprise
The Carter Center's election monitoring mission wrote, "It was evident to observers that large numbers of Congolese voters were determined to exercise their fundamental political rights." That determination has been far beyond anything the world expected.
Congolese-born Congolese-American Eric Kamba, the author, says that he cannot safely return home so long as Joseph Kabila is in power.
On Nov. 30, the New York Times reported that initial results were showing opposition candidate Étienne Tshisikedi leading 3 to 1 in the country's capital and largest city, Kinshasa, but that the national electoral commission, headed by a friend of President Joseph Kabila, is threatening to disqualify tens of thousands of opposition votes.
Courageous and determined Congolese people are saying, "No, enough is enough. Change has come to Congo. We want President Tshisikedi," and the rest of the world should stand with them.
A phone call from Barack Obama to Joseph Kabila saying, "It's over; you lost; time to step down," could probably stop a bloodbath in the heart of Africa.
Eric Kamba is an activist and editorial writer and a social worker with the Boston-based Congolese Development Center. He says he cannot safely return to his home in Congo so long as Joseph Kabila remains in power. Eric can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com. President Obama can be reached at (202) 456-1111 to leave a comment or (202) 456-1414 for the switchboard.
alimasi #
le gouverneur de bukavu est inplique dans la violation de drait de l'homme Mr ETIENNE BABUNGA. vole les parcelle des personne a bukavu il es en colabotation avec le procureur de bukavu. il a jete une famille dehor a LABOTE chase cette famille pour vendre leur parcelle. ETIENNE BABUGA tu mange le sang de congalais les l'arme de congolais. la vie c'est une rose tu peut mange mais demain una disparaitre. ETIENNE BABGUNGA ETIENNE BABUNGA
J'aimeJ'aime21 mars 2012
very informative post! Thank you for sharing with us.
J'aimeJ'aime10 décembre 2011
Ann Garrison here; I worked on this piece with Eric Kamba. Glad you republished it from the Bay View, but there's one error we need to correct and I can't seem to find a way to contact the editor of « DC-NEWS – Vérité et Justice pour la R.D. Congo. » We accidentally said « MUSEVENI'S police have been filmed by AFP and photographed by Reuters beating Tshisekedi supporters and firing tear gas and live rounds as they marched to meet him at the airport. » That should be KABILA's police. Hope someone her can make this correction, already made in the Bay View.
J'aimeJ'aime7 décembre 2011
Franck #
Mr Kabila,whatever is your nationality, the time to step down is there. It isover for you. The next step for you is to hand in the presidential palace keys to Etienne who is the congolese president from now.
To Ngoy Mulunda, you have been a pastor for Satan, not for God. the next step you should be waiting for is your trial in frontof a fair and honest justice.
To the international community, please continious to educate the going president that in every game there is a winner and a looser. The refery(congolese people) has given Kabila a red card, he should live the stadium. Living the stadium means the juridictinal process should start to see whether he has infractions while leading or not. Ido notbelieve for his case there is no infractions, the way he led the Congo to the bottom line of the world economy.
It is over, it is over, it is over!!! Kabila go in peace and wait for your trial somewhere on the earth!
Franck Kit.
J'aimeJ'aime5 décembre 2011
J'aimeJ'aime4 décembre 2011
Rétroliens & Pings
- UNacceptable - Roy's rantRoy's rant
- A phone call from Barack Obama to Joseph Kabila saying, "It's over; you lost; time to step down," could probably stop a bloodbath in the heart of Africa. « OPPOSITION POLITIQUE CONGOLAISE
- A phone call from Barack Obama to Joseph Kabila saying, "It's over; you lost; time to step down," could probably stop a bloodbath in the heart of Africa. « EUGENE DIOMI NDONGALA


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The Killers – "Just Another Girl" Video (Feat. Dianna Agron)
The Killers just released their career-spanning best-of Direct Hits, and they included two new songs on the album. One of those songs, the M83 collab "Shot At The Night," already had a glitzy music video with a kinda-famous actress in it. And now the second new one, the surging "Just Another Girl," has Glee actress Dianna Agron starring as different incarnations of Killers frontman Brandon Flowers throughout the band's history. But then the actual Flowers is in it, too. It's confusing. Watch it below.
Direct Hits is out now on Island.


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My fiancé is amazing; over the last few weeks, she has taken an interest in learning photography. Whenever the two of us have had the time, we go out and shoot whatever we can. Tonight, we went down by a frozen lake and I showed her how to shoot at night.
Mostly you just need to set the camera on a tripod, give yourself a high enough aperture to get the detail in the farther parts of the setting, slow down your shutter speed to capture what stray light you can gather, (this was shot at 8 seconds) and finally set your camera on a delay to remove any shake from triggering the shutter release.


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Even professional carpenters have fits when it comes to boring a straight hole, so the DIY-happy layman shouldn't be shy about using a drill guide to help them hit the mark. The BullseyeBore is meant to do just that using a simple transparent disc that mounts on your drill and gives your favorite hole-maker dead-eye accuracy.
Using lasers, triple concentric circles are thrown onto your drilling surface. So long as they all look like circles, you're fine. The second you start going sideways, the outer circle will go wonky to let you know it's time to get your stallion back in the corral. As you go deeper, the outer circle contracts while the others stay steady on, keeping you true to the course. Multiple versions are projected, so whatever the job, whatever the material, there's going to be a BullseyeBore to suit your purposes. [Purchase]


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Seems I created a little confusion with my post about the Nebulas. Here are the formal definitions, quoted from the Nebula® Rules:
- Short Story: less than 7,500 words.
- Novelette: at least 7,500 words but less than 17,500 words.
- Novella: at least 17,500 words but less than 40,000 words.
- Novel: 40,000 words or more. At the author's request, a novella-length work published individually, rather than as part of a collection or an anthology, shall appear in the novel category.
I believe the Hugo Award uses the same (or very similar) definitions.
The Nebula, by the way, is awarded yearly by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) and is a peer award voted on by the active membership of SFWA, or at least those who have time to read.
The Hugo is awarded yearly by the membership of the annual World Science Fiction Convention (worldcon), and is a fan award. (Some of those fans are also members of SFWA, but most are simply avid readers and, well, fans.)
If you'd like to know more about the Nebula Awards, browse the many entries on SFWA's Nebula Awards page.


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COMP 480: Computer Graphics
Course Information
Introduction to concepts and methods for managing production and service operations.
Topics include demand forecasting, aggregate and capacity planning, inventory management, facility layout and location, just-in-time, managing quality, project planning, resource allocation, and logistics. Emphasis on models to support decision making.
Understanding of the role of operations management in organizations, and the ability to use the modeling tools and techniques for problem-solving in operations management.
See the Current Course Syllabi.


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Have had time to put together a little collage this week using some of my left over bits of woad dyed fabric from Chateau Dumas last summer. I am returning in 2017 to run a slightly different course so why not spoil yourself and join me in the south of France? Full details are HERE. I don't have anything to do with the booking procedure as that is for Selvedge and Lizzie at Chateau Dumas to do so please don't contact me but go straight through the link above.
Friday, 30 December 2016
Wednesday, 21 December 2016
Another lovely bag
I have had a lot of comments about my last post so here is another example of an embroidered bag from the Sami people. My absolute essential viewing this Christmas will be "All Aboard! The Sleigh Ride" on BBC 4 at 7pm. A two hour sleigh journey from the point of view of the reindeer travelling across part of the Arctic Circle. There are no words but he is being herded by a couple of interestingly dressed Sami women. I have seen it before but can't wait! GB readers go and set your recording devices up now!
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Tuesday, 20 December 2016
Reindeers and Christmas
At Christmas time I feel I can freely admit to loving reindeer and in fact all deers! Some of the best textiles I have seen this year were in the Nordiska Museet in Stockholm.
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Tuesday, 13 December 2016
Worn Out
The last and smallest room of my current solo exhibition at The Customs House contains my most intimate and personal work which mixes up my love of working on to the surface of old quilts and my love for my grandmother. It brings together embroidered quotes from her diaries, some of her household possessions and my beloved old quilt fragments. I still use the fork on my allotment.
Worn Out
Worn Out
In the year that Mandy Pattullo became a grandmother she has been thinking a lot about her own grandmother who died more than 30 years ago. She was a poor farmer's wife and was worn out through trying to make ends meet. To supplement the income from the farm she sold eggs, raised piglets for sale and looked after the calves. In the lead up to Christmas she would sit in a cold barn and pluck ducks and turkeys for the local butcher. Looking through her diaries Mandy could see that she had many livestock and money worries, but her own good memories are of her working in the farmhouse garden, making clothes on the old Singer and her cooking for legendary parties at the farm. Reading the diaries and slowly sewing her words brings Mandy closer to her life and helps her reflect on her own role as a grandmother to Bobby.
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Sunday, 11 December 2016
Worn Through
So to the second room of my exhibition "Worn" at the Customs House till 29 Jan 2017. This second room focused on show casing some really big pieces of work which have been constructed from taking apart old quilts, unpicking surfaces and then reconstructing. I made some of the work for a gallery exhibition at Knit and Stitch a few years ago but have not had a gallery space big enough to exhibit it in the north east so it has been lovely to bring it home and also have the opportunity to hang some of the old quilts in their original state that I will be taking apart in the future. Here's what the wall info said
Worn Through
Mandy Pattullo treasures the old and worn and in particular the utility patchworks and quilts made in domestic settings which relate to the thrift and 'make do and mend' culture of past times. She collects quilts which are past their best and uses parts of these and other old textiles to create new patchworks. The precious fragments of disintergrating textiles and unpicked surfaces form evocative compositions which force the viewer to re-examine fabrics that have become flawed through wear and tear, to find in them a new beauty.
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Friday, 9 December 2016
My book "Textile Collage" has been reviewed in many magazines but I really like UKHandmade who are the latest to feature it in their online edition Winter 2016 so am creating a link not just so you can read the review of the book on page 82 but also so you can support them if you don't know about their excellent mag.
Here is the link
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Wednesday, 7 December 2016
Worn By
I am aware that many of you will not be able to see my solo show "Worn" at the Customs House over the next 7 weeks and as a few of you have asked me to share photos and info I am going to do three blog posts that reflect the three gallery spaces and stories.
In this first one the interpretative text said
In this first one the interpretative text said
Worn By
Clothes that have been worn reveal more when they are examined from within, particularly those from the Edwardian period used here. Turning the garment inside out you might find sweat stains and dirt from the wearer's body, tears and rips from repeated wear and strain on the seams. There is also something to admire in the care with which seams and hems have been hand stitched and fastenings attached. Darning and mending was used to revitalize and keep the garment going. New shapes emerge as sleeves are removed from bodices and lace is cut away. A pile of unpicked, discoloured and worn out fabrics is a delight for the textile artist giving her the opportunity to refigure and mix elements of the garments into new collages on to which she makes her own marks with tiny stitches.
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Thursday, 1 December 2016
2 more doll samples to tempt someone to join the workshop on Monday 5th in my studio to take the place of last minute cancellation. Course costs £40 and to book please contact me through my website. All materials included.
Posted by Mandy Pattullo at 07:12 No comments:
Tuesday, 29 November 2016
Spare place on doll course
Somebody has withdrawn from a course so if you are interested I now have a spare place on my doll course next MONDAY 5th December. This is for 4 people only and will take place in my studio so rather special!. Full details on my web site and contact me there too to book the place.
Posted by Mandy Pattullo at 09:48 No comments:
Feeling cold
The chill is starting to hit the north and it has inspired me to create a new line for Etsy so this is the first polar bear that I have just put on. I plan to put on more before Christmas but everything is hand sewn and they just in the end take time… Find hime HERE
Posted by Mandy Pattullo at 01:41 No comments:
Thursday, 24 November 2016
Drawing Support
Today my daughter Alice has been at Yorkshire Sculpture Park in a meeting about her show there next year and I have been at Customs House South Shields unpacking work for my solo exhibition which opens next week. Textile Artist .Org have done a wonderful feature on us together - how I encouraged my children to be creative, how Alice has forged her own identity, things we do together, our work processes and studio environments. It really captures what we, mother and daughter , are all about. You can read it HERE
Posted by Mandy Pattullo at 09:52 No comments:
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The Geotab Africa Training Center it is where we train our customers, dealers and staff. Customers are trained on Geotab hardware and software which ensures they get the most out of our system and its features. In the same respect, our dealers are trained to have a great understanding on Geotab's hardware and software, in order to be able to use and sell it. Dealers receive a certificate after completing training.
Furthermore, Geotab Africa is now accredited with MICT Seta. MICT Seta accreditation provides an accepted benchmark of knowledge and skills, ensuring specified levels of competency and ability in terms of industry standards. This provides our clients with an accredited certificate for which they can claim money paid for the course from their BEE. We are able to assist their SDF with the latter, in order to claim back course fees. This pertains to completing our accredited courses offered below:
Unit Standard 116936 – R 1050
This unit standard is intended for people who need to create and edit simple databases using a Graphical User Interface (GUI)-based database application, either as a user of computers or as basic knowledge for a career needing this competency, like the ICT industry.
Unit Standard 115391 – R 700
People accredited with this unit standard are able to explain the principles of the internet and the world-wide-web and explain how the world-wide-web incorporates the various internet applications.
MICT ETQA is the skills and development authority that ensures that skills development takes place within companies. When using an accredited training facility, a company is able to claim up to 60% of the initial fund outlay when doing your company's financial year-end. Our training facility is available to rent and as an accredited training center, costs can be claimed back, as mentioned above.
Author: Nosipho Hadebe, Assessor and Moderator – GEOTAB AFRICA


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The heat is oppressive and storms are brewing in Brighton in the summer of 1982. Little Gold, a boyish girl on the brink of adolescence, is struggling with the reality of her broken family and a home descending into chaos. Her only refuge is the tree at the end of her garden.
Into her fractured life steps elderly neighbour, Peggy Baxter. The connection between the two is instant, but just when it seems that Little Gold has found solace, outsiders appear who seek to take advantage of her frail family in the worst way possible. In an era when so much is hard to speak aloud, can Little Gold share enough of her life to avert disaster? And can Peggy Baxter, a woman running out of time and with her own secrets to bear, recognise the danger before it's too late?
Buy your copy here ~ Amazon UK
The Real You Q&A with Allie Rogers
Please tell my readers a little bit about yourself and your publishing journey.
I was born and raised in Brighton. My short fiction has been published in several magazines and anthologies including Bare Fiction, Queer in Brighton and The Salt Anthology of New Writing. I've performed at several live literature events, including the Charleston Small Wonder Flash Fiction Slam, which I won in 2014.
My first novel, Little Gold is published by Legend Press.
Describe yourself using three words. Inquisitive, bookish, focused.
What inspired you to write your first novel? Little Gold is a book that came tumbling out of me in 2014. The two main characters first appeared in a flash fiction I wrote and I found that they had a longer story to tell. That story turned out to be the novel, Little Gold. I drew a lot on my memories of growing up in Brighton in the 1980s but the events in the book are all pure fiction.
What time of day do you like to write? I fit my writing around my part-time job in a university library and so I can't afford to be choosy. If I'm on a roll with something then I might fit in some writing at any time of the day or night. Sometimes I finish work at 8pm and then put in a few hours writing before I go home.
What is your favourite book and why? Hotel World by Ali Smith. It's a sort of secular prayer to life. I love the way Smith uses different voices in the book and the central idea of a dead person fading slowly out of the world.
How did you pick the title of your book? Little Gold is the name of the central character of the book. She's a twelve-year-old girl.
Are the characters in your book based on real people? Not directly. I think that most writers build characters by exploring aspects of themselves and combining those with the characteristics of people they have known. That said, Little Gold is a character very close to my heart who learns some emotional truths that I learned as an adolescent.
What's your favourite word? Right at this moment? Murmuration. I think I'd probably give you a different word every day, if not every hour!
If you were a colour what would it be? Green/grey – the colour of a winter sea.
Do you plan your story beforehand or go with the flow? That varies depending on what I'm writing. Little Gold was not planned because the first draft came out very fast but that did mean considerable structural work later on. I think a basic plan is usually a good thing but I'd never let it stop me taking the story in a different direction if that seemed to be needed.
Who is your favourite Author? Ali Smith.
You are attending a dinner party with four fictitious book characters who would they be and why?
Harriet Vane from the books of Dorothy L. Sayers, Shug Avery from Alice Walker's 'The Colour Purple', the nameless character in Ali Smith's short's story 'May' (this person falls in love with a tree) and Nan Astley from Sarah Waters' 'Tipping the Velvet.'
What book are you reading at the moment? 'Mr Oliver's Object of Desire' by VG Lee.
Where in the world is your happy place? St Ives in Cornwall. I stay there in a tiny holiday flat in winter, drink lots of coffee, go for walks on the beaches and cliff-top paths and write late into the night.
If you had one superpower what would it be? To be invisible – think what you'd see and hear if people didn't know you were there!
If you could give any literary villain a happy ending who would you chose? Hmmm… Well, I'm not sure I want to create a happy ending for an actual villain! I'd like a happy ending for the flawed character, Miss Amelia in Carson McCullers' 'Ballad of the Sad Café.' I don't like to think of her holed up in the derelict café. I'd like it opened up again and a new love in her life.
Are you working on a new project? I have recently finished a new novel told in the voice of a four-year-old boy. It's been extremely absorbing.
Do you have any upcoming events our members can attend? I am reading from Little Gold at Polari Literary Salon, on the South Bank, on 6th June – tickets are available online.
If you would like to know more, you can contact Allie on
Huge thanks to Allie Rogers and Lucy Chamberlain @Legend_Press for giving me the honour of being on the tour.


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The newest and most advanced multipurpose venue in France is now controlled by Colosseo Single Media Platform technology
November 29, 2017 - Paris, France
U Arena – is an unconditionally unique, state-of-the-art indoor venue of the 21st century, is the only one in the world with U-shape stands and offers an enormous capacity of 40.000 seats, doubling the size of standard European indoor arenas!
Located in the heart of the modern Parisian "La Defence" district, the arena is easily accessible and can be transformed into 3 different configurations – either as a venue for international shows, a concert venue, or a sports venue with movable stands.
Colosseo is proud of equipping this timeless venue with its leading Single Media Platform (SMP) technology which creates and delivers content to a multitude of LED displays, mobile devices and also 3D mapping projection!
In closer observation, the large-scale installation of Colosseo SMP controls all giant outdoor and indoor LED displays along with the ribbon board, delivering various multimedia content in up to 4K resolution. Also, 200 professional TV panels with the Colosseo Interactive IPTV app along with a multitude of TV channels, and lastly, content such as live feeds or highlights/instant replays is also supplied to the arena's custom smartphone apps by the Colosseo SMP.
The U-Arena also introduced a unique feature, the so called "L'EMOTION STUDIO", a special 3D mapping in combination with mirrors which reflects the broadcast to a desired arena location while the content for all 48 projection nests is being delivered by Colosseo SMP.
The very first event held in the arena was a Rolling Stones concert a the end of October and the arena has also become the new home venue for the local rugby club Racing92.
U-Arena now becomes the second major venue in Paris, along with the AccorHotels Arena, that runs on the cutting-edge Colosseo Single Media Platform technology, proving its leading position on the market with multiple multimedia content creation and distribution in the most advanced venues worldwide!
ColosseoEAS, Inc. is the producer of the first completely integrated software platform for digital content creation and distribution for venues. With custom designed LED display systems, timekeeping/scoring systems, mobile applications and interactive IPTV, Colosseo has developed the most complete turnkey solution for sports venues, convention centers, shopping malls and transportation available on the market today. With over 60 installations in North America, Europe and Asia in the past 7 years, Colosseo is taking multimedia management, interactivity, entertainment and infotainment to the next level.


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Preparing the management side of ministry for growth
Every church wants to grow. Isn't that the point of it all? Unfortunately, some leaders do not consider the many areas necessary to sustain growth. In this post for the Church Network, I give church leaders key areas to consider when preparing for growth.


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JumpStart® CEO David Lord to Present at Needham's Annual Internet and Digital Media Conference
Torrance, CA – May 31, 2013JumpStart® President and CEO, David Lord, will be presenting at the 8th Annual Internet and Digital Media Conference by Needham & Company, LLC in New York on June 4, 2013. Mr. Lord will be giving a private presentation at the conference where he will be showcasing JumpStart's latest products, including those developed through its strategic alliance with DreamWorks Animation. In addition, he will be speaking on a panel regarding Online Gaming during the conference.
During his presentation, Mr. Lord will be sharing the highly innovative technology and design behind the upcoming massively multiplayer online role-playing game based on DreamWorks Animation's critically-acclaimed How to Train Your Dragon franchise. Mr. Lord will also be presenting various JumpStart and Math Blaster products, along with Madagascar Math Ops™, a recently released math learning mobile game based on DreamWorks' beloved Madagascar franchise.
Needham's Internet & Digital Media Conference is a one-day conference that showcases public and private companies in the internet and digital media field. The conference will be taking place on June 4, 2013 at the Westin New York Grand Central Hotel in New York, New York.
Please contact your Needham representative or JumpStart directly to schedule a one-on-one meeting during the conference.
For more information about JumpStart and the latest news: Visit us: www.jumpstart.com Like us: Facebook +1 us: Google+ Follow us: Twitter Subscribe: YouTube Channel Connect: LinkedIn
About JumpStart
Since 1991, JumpStart has been dedicated to enhancing children's lives through engaging educational games. Today, JumpStart designs games under its two flagship brands JumpStart® and Math Blaster®. These games immerse children in magical 3D worlds filled with adventure, exploration, and most importantly, learning. JumpStart's products are available online and through various platforms such as Nintendo Wii™, iOS® and Android®. JumpStart has become a prominent force in children's educational gaming and is trusted and tested by teachers and parents alike, helping millions of children learn. A subsidiary of Knowledge Holdings, Inc., the company is privately held and based in Torrance, California. For more information, go to www.jumpstart.com.
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When trying to update the databases, you may encounter an error with checking the databases and application modules. In this case, in the Database Update window in the Last update field you will see the status "Failed". Click this status. In the Reports window you will see a line with the databases and application modules check error.
There are several possible reasons for the issue:
Try launching the database update again. If you encounter the same error, reinstall the application. To do so:
For instructions on how to find out what application is installed on your computer, see this article.
The application will be reinstalled and work-ready.
If the solution did not work, contact Kaspersky technical support by choosing the topic and filling out the form.
Please let us know what you think about the site design, improvements we could add and any errors we need to eliminate
Thank you for submitting your feedback.
We will review your feedback shortly.
Your feedback will be used for content improvement purposes only. If you need assistance, please contact technical support.
Your suggestions will help improve this article.


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Canoe Journey Message: Protect Our Fragile Environment
En route to the territory of the Heiltsuk First Nation, pullers in the 2014 Canoe Journey traveled through territory so beautiful it will be impossible to forget: Rugged, forested coastlines; island-dotted straits and narrow, glacier-carved passages; through Johnstone Strait, home of the largest resident pod of orcas in the world, and along the shores of the Great Bear Rainforest, one of the largest remaining tracts of unspoiled temperate rainforest left in the world.
They also traveled waters that are increasingly polluted and under threat.
Pullers traveled the marine highways of their ancestors, past Victoria, British Columbia, which dumps filtered, untreated sewage into the Salish Sea. They traveled the routes that U.S. energy company Kinder Morgan plans to use to ship 400 tanker loads of heavy crude oil each year.
Canoes traveling from the north passed the inlets leading to Kitimat, where heavy crude from Enbridge Inc.'s Northern Gateway pipeline would be loaded onto tankers bound for Asia, a project that Canada approved on June 17.
RELATED: First Nations Challenge Enbridge's Northern Gateway Pipeline in Court
Canoes from the Lummi Nation near Bellingham passed Cherry Point, a sacred and environmentally sensitive area where Gateway Pacific proposes a coal train terminal; early site preparation was done without permits and desecrated ancestral burials.
RELATED: Lummi Nation Officially Opposes Coal Export Terminal in Letter to Army Corps of Engineers
Young activist Ta'kaiya Blaney of the Sliammon First Nation sang of her fears of potential environmental damage to come in her song, "Shallow Waters":
"Come with me to the emerald sea / Where black gold spills into my ocean dreams.
"Nothing to be found, no life is around / It's just the sound of mourning in the air."
RELATED: Young Sliammon Actor/Singer Campaigns Against Pipeline
Canoes from Northwest indigenous nations arrived in Bella Bella, British Columbia on July 13; the gathering continues until July 19 with cultural celebrations, a rally against Enbridge's Northern Gateway pipeline, and an indigenous economic summit. The ceremonies are being livestreamed online at Tribal Canoe Journeys 2014 :: Qatuwas Bella Bella.
Mike Williams Sr., chief of the Yupiit Nation and member of the board of First Stewards, noted that the Canoe Journey route calls attention to the fragile environment that's at stake. First Stewards, an indigenous environmental advocacy group, will host a symposium on "Sustainability, Climate Change & Traditional Places" from July 21–23 in Washington, D.C.
"The Canoe Journey is a really big statement to us to hang onto our culture and our way of life, and to bind people together," said Williams, who is also a well-known musher. "In the Iditarod, there are pristine places but there are also old mining towns [on the route] where we're told not to drink the water."
The parallels between the water issues encountered on the Iditarod and the Canoe Journey are unmistakable, he added.
"In the Canoe Journey, there are pristine waters and there are waters that contains toxic substances," Williams said. "There's oil and the continuous leaking of pipelines. It happens."
Not only does it happen, but it does not go away. Prince William Sound has never totally recovered from the Exxon Valdez oil spill, Williams said. Likewise, he added, if the Northern Gateway pipeline, the coal trains and increased shipping come to fruition, an environmental disaster is inevitable.
"It's going to happen," Williams said. "There has to be total, thoughtful conversation for everyone—consider all the possible impacts. And there has to be meaningful consultation with the tribes. They have to weigh in on that. We've got to make it 100 percent fail-safe or don't do it."
Photo: Tracy Rector/Longhouse Media
Read More
The Heiltsuk First Nation's hosting of the 2014 Canoe Journey included a rally against the Enbridge pipeline. Canoes arrived in Bella Bella, B.C., on July 13; the week of cultural celebration continues through July 19.
State Senator John McCoy, D-Tulalip, is a citizen of the Tulalip Tribes. He is the ranking member of the Senate Energy, Environment & Telecommunications Committee, which focuses on such issues as climate change, water quality, toxic chemical use reduction and cleanup, and management of storm water and wastewater.
"I think the message is, pollution is occurring everywhere," McCoy said of the takeaway from the Canoe Journey. "It's a worldwide problem, and it needs to be addressed. If we keep polluting our water, we're going to be in big trouble. Water is the essence of life."
Canoes were underway for Bella Bella on July 9 as Governor Jay Inslee announced that he wants to increase the recommended fish-consumption rate in the state from 6.5 grams to 175 grams a day—that's good news for indigenous peoples, for whom fish is important culturally, spiritually and as a food. But for 175 grams of fish to be considered safe to eat, businesses that pollute will have to conform to tougher pollution control standards.
RELATED: New Fish Consumption Guidelines More Political Than Scientific, Northwest Tribes Say
Inslee's plan for how toxic substances will be controlled in expected in December. It will require legislation, McCoy said.
Jewell James is coordinator of the Lummi Treaty Protection Task Force and a leader in the effort to prevent a coal train terminal from being built at Cherry Point, a sacred area for the Lummi people and an important spawning ground for herring, an important food for salmon.
James said environmental degradation is just part of a series of historical traumas set upon Indigenous Peoples: First, the diseases that came after contact; then the treaty era and the relocation to reservations; then the cultural and spiritual oppression of the boarding school era, and then the termination era.
"Yet we continue to exist," James said. And the Canoe Journey, now in its 23rd year, has helped "revitalize and breathe new life into our cultural knowledge" given that journey gatherings are venues for the passing down of stories about how the ancestors lived in and cared for the environment that sustained them.
RELATED: 10 Traditional Foods You Might Enjoy During a Canoe Journey
James hopes people on the Canoe Journey connect with and carry on those stories and values.
"There are messages in those stories," he said. "And within those stories there are sacred symbols that mean something—that you have to be careful with what you do, and others have to be careful with what they do, to Mother Earth."
Indeed, the current climate crisis indicates a loss of connection with those stories and the realities they represent, said Fawn Sharp, president of the Quinault Nation and the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians. Outspoken on issues related to climate change and environmental protection, she said catastrophes like Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Sandy and the wildfires in California and Washington may be headline stories today, but the ancestors would have viewed them as a symptom of a larger problem—a disconnect between humanity and nature. She expressed the hope the Canoe Journey will restore that connection.
"That generation on the water right now—they are keys to success in the future," Sharp said. "They will be the ones that will carry on the message that we can't do those things we know are harmful to our fragile ecosystem."
The Canoe Journey is itself a tool to monitor the health of the sea. In each Canoe Journey since 2008, in partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), several canoes carry probes that collect water data and feed the data into a recorder aboard the canoe. The data measures water temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, pH and turbidity. The USGS is using the data to track water quality and its effects on ecosystem dynamics and has posted results from 2008-2013 at Coast Salish Tribal Journey Water Quality Project - A Blending of Science and Tradition.
It's the Canoe Journey's first return to Bella Bella since 1993, when canoes made the long journey north to fulfill a vision of Canoe Journey founders Emmett Oliver and Frank Brown after the 1989 Paddle to Seattle, which took place as part of Washington's centennial celebration. The 1993 journey sparked a revival in indigenous travel on the marine highways of the ancestors.
En route to the final destination, canoes visit indigenous nations along the way, each stop filled with sharing: traditional foods, languages, songs, dances and teachings. Pulling great distances can test the puller's physical readiness and mental discipline. Traveling the way of the ancestors can be a spiritual experience, and songs often come to pullers on the water.
This journey was as challenging as the 1993 journey; pullers pulled through passages and channels and had to time each transit right so that they weren't toiling against the tide.
More than 100 canoes participated in last year's journey to the Quinault Nation. The distance and isolated destination in this year's voyage requires as much as a month off for many pullers and support crews; Heiltsuk First Nation is hosting 31 canoes this year, according to the 2014 Paddle to Bella Bella Facebook page.


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Europe remained on high alert as soldiers were deployed alongside police in Belgium to protect Jewish buildings and the head of Europol warned that further terrorist attacks could not be ruled out in the wake of the murder of 17 people in Paris by Islamist gunmen last week.
The move to guard potential targets in Antwerp's Jewish quarter on Saturday was the first time in three decades that Belgian troops have been used to bolster police ranks. It follows the deployment of French soldiers following the attacks in Paris.
Thirteen jihadi suspects were arrested in Belgium on Thursday night in an operation that foiled a sophisticated plot to murder police, authorities said.
Belgium has increased its terror warning to three, the second highest, following the raids in which two suspects were killed.
Rob Wainwright, director of Europol, said that fully containing the threat posed by terrorism in Europe was challenging, adding there was no guarantee further attacks could be prevented.
He told Sky News: "No, there can't be, otherwise what happened in Paris wouldn't have happened. I think there is a realisation across the police and security community in Europe.
"But at the same time we have a very strong determination to maximise our capability to keep our citizens safe."
Authorities in Yemen said on Saturday that two Frenchmen suspected of links to al-Qaida have been detained.
"During the past two days, two French nationals accused of belonging to al-Qaida have been arrested," the country's national security service chief, Gen Mohammed al-Ahmadi, told the AFP news agency.
Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (Aqap) claimed responsibility for the 7 January attacks at the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in which 12 people were murdered by French brothers Saïd and Chérif Kouachi.
The pair are known to have trained with al-Qaida in Yemen, which was formed in 2009 after a merger between militants there and Saudi Arabia.
"There are around 1,000 Al-Qaida militants in Yemen from 11 Arab and non-Arab countries," Ahmadi said.
The terror threat against British police has been raised to severe, the highest level yet, with police chiefs considering the more widespread deployment of Taser stun guns as an additional security measure.
Police patrols of Jewish communities in Britain are also to be stepped up amid heightened concern about the risk of an attack following the Paris atrocity, Britain's top counter-terror officer said. Extra security measures will be taken at Jewish schools.
The scale of the jihadi threat has increased over the past decade, Wainwright said, because terrorists no longer had a coherent, identifiable command and control structure. "But over those 10 years, the sophistication of the police response has also increased."
It emerged on Saturday that Saïd Kouachi, who was killed by security forces in a siege, has been buried in secret.
His funeral happened on Friday in Reims, eastern France, where he lived for about two years, under heavy police protection, according to a source.
His grave was unmarked and the name of the cemetery was not released. His wife did not to attend the burial to keep it secret, said her lawyer Antoine Flasaquier. His brother Chérif was expected to be buried soon in the Paris suburb of Gennevilliers.
Plans to bury Amédy Coulibaly, who murdered five people at a kosher supermarket in Paris before being killed by police, remained unclear.
Meanwhile, the French president, François Hollande, said on Saturday that France was committed to freedom of expression after violence erupted for the second day in Niger at a rally protesting against Charlie Hebdo. The magazine's first issue since last week's attacks features a drawing of the prophet Muhammad on the cover, in a decision that has angered Muslims around the world.
"I'm thinking of countries where sometimes they don't understand what freedom of expression is because they have been deprived of it. But also, we have supported these countries in their fight against terrorism," Hollande said during a visit to a market in Tulle, central France.
Asked about protesters who burned the French flag, the president added: "They have to be punished because when it happens in France, it's intolerable but also abroad."
Around 15,000 people also gathered in the town of Magas in Russia's Muslim north Caucasus region of Ingushetia on Saturday, protesting against western publications that insult the prophet, authorities said.


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I've been trying to write a post for a few months now. Every year I say something to the lines of, "Well this year was super hard…" or "I had to grow up a lot this year…" or "God has stretched me more than I thought possible…" To be completely honest those are truths about life and truths about everyday. I left school in tears today as I just can't seem to figure out how to be a good teacher, counselor, mom, doctor, nurse, friend, and the list goes on! I just don't know what to do! I just don't know how to do my job the right way. Sure I spent four years in college studying and got a degree but when the rubber meets the road and life spins into chaos what do you do?
This year my student lost her father, right now another student is worried about his missing brother, and the list goes on with dads traveling or separating. What in the world? God called me to be a light in the darkness and right now this little light of mine is surely struggling to shine.
I feel like every blog post needs to be filled with an epic coming to Jesus moment or about how much I love God and what He's doing here…. But that's not reality. Missions is hard. There is loss, there is brokenness, six year olds lose their dads, six year olds have trauma happen to them… So I can't sit here tonight and tell you that it's been a beautiful year. No, no, it's been a broken year watching child after child suffer in my classroom. It's been an embittering year as I've had to explain to 15 children about loss and expect them to process. On the one hand I've struggled with being mad at God about this. I've questioned the goodness of God. How can God be good and take away a father or brother or allow a child to not be cared for properly? How is that good? Yet on the other hand I've seen God's goodness to those kiddos. God brought me here for them. God brought me here because they needed to see His love in moments like this.
God made Esther, a Jew, the queen. God chose her and when the rubber met the road and life spun into chaos, her cousin said to her:
For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?" – Esther 4:14
The day I heard about my student's father's death, those words rang in my heart. "For such a time as this." This year has been one of the hardest in my life and sometimes I've hated it and many times I've thought, "I just am too exhausted for this." But I just have to trust in God's plan. I just have to claim the truth that God brought me here to Ecuador; that God gave me this class full of broken children. I just have to trust Him. I have to trust that He is good when the brokenness of sin makes me doubt that.
I have five more weeks, give or take, with my students. On the one hand I'm just ready to crawl into my mom's arms but on the other hand I'm not ready to let go of my broken children. I'm not ready to release them into a broken world where I'm just their old kindergarten teacher. I'm not ready to let them go… but I guess it's just about trusting that God brought me here for these moments, the here and now. It's about trusting that God's timing is right and perfect. Loving people hurts a lot. I love these kiddos with my entire heart but I guess I need to trust that God loves them more! I guess I just need to trust that God is faithful in a terribly broken world.


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John Calvin (1509-1564) is mostly known for his theology, or for those who hate his theology, there is often an overemphasis on the execution of Servetus, as though Calvin should be the only fallen man who must be perfect. It is too often a cheap hypocritical excuse to not deal with the truth of Calvin's doctrine. It is on such matters where one sees the importance of taking an historical perspective. When one does so, it is remarkable that this is the only glaring example of inconsistency. No one knew more than Calvin that he was far from perfect, an attitude which he brought to the activity of prayer. Calvin's doctrine of total depravity stemmed as much from his own self-examination, as from what he observed, but most importantly how he understood the teaching of scripture. It has also been the goal of this writer to see Calvin's teaching on prayer in the historical context of his time, reflecting on his agreements and disagreements with those who came before him, and as a polemic against the supposed errors of Rome.
Historical Context
There are many who want to look upon prayer and the devotional disciplines in the same way they view religion from an historical perspective, namely to come up with a generic understanding of prayer that will reflect the activity of humans generally. This is not something that Calvin would espouse. Calvin often referred to mystics, philosophers, and theologians who came before him, whether in agreement with some point but more often as a polemic against. Prayer and devotion was in fact a common point of philosophical discussion. Calvin's first written work was a commentary on the stoic Seneca, who was not alone in criticizing prayer as the "babble that God's providence, standing guard over all things is vainly importuned with entreaties." (Inst. XX. 3. 853)
On the other hand, he often concurred with the church fathers, most notably Augustine, that prayer was simple conversation, albeit with reverence for the majesty of God Almighty, but also our Father. Jesus' example of prayer begins by addressing God as Father (Mt. 6 Lk. 12), because in union with Christ we enjoy a familial relationship. It is also why Christ drew a comparison to the mercy and goodness exercised by earthy fathers, and how much more so with the perfection of the Father (Ibid., 853 ft. 6) Contrary to Seneca, and some calling themselves 'Christian', Calvin believed that without the doctrine of sovereign providence prayer was futile. It was more biblical and logical to posit that God predestines the means of prayer as well as the end of fulfillment, than to argue that prayer is profitable if God is not able to fulfill our requests. Though this is not the only reason to pray, it is a part of it, and what the Lord commands us to do, with confidence and thanksgiving.
The Institutes
In his Institutes, Calvin's chapter on prayer is in fact the longest, eventually leading to a thorough exposition of the Lord's Prayer. The first thing that Calvin emphasizes is the need for biblical saving faith (Ibid., 850-851). He then listed six reasons why prayer is not superfluous, and which act as prerequisites to biblical prayer. Firstly, we need a holy zeal to seek him with our love and service. Secondly, that anything unholy or distracting must be removed. Thirdly, that we come with an attitude of gratitude. Fourthly, that we approach the Father with confidence because we seek only that which is conducive to his will, as we find it in his word. Fifthly, that we delight in the answers given. Finally, that we give thanks that he has chosen in this way to fulfill his promises to his people (852).
Calvin then posits four rules, or what Wendel rightly calls an 'attitude' expressed with four conditions for its propriety. Echoing the second prerequisite above, we must be vigilant to have our minds disengaged "from all carnal solicitudes and cogitations" (Ibid., III.20.5, Wendel, 254). Wendel suggests that since there may be a danger of one viewing Calvin's four rules in a purely human fashion, Calvin was mindful to turn to the necessary inspiration of the Spirit (Ibid., Inst. III.XX.855). Secondly, that "we must pray at all times" (Ibid., Wendel 254). "'The longing to see the coming of the Kingdom of God and his name glorified' are all reasons sufficient to justify continual prayers." (Wendel, 255) It is a mistake to only pray when one is in the mood. (Ibid., 857 Cf. Pss. 32:6; 94:19)
"Thirdly, "'that all those who present themselves before God in prayer divest themselves of all fantasies about their own glory." (Ibid.) Calvin also wrote of humbly seeking penance (Ibid., 859) Again, it is important to see this word in its historical context. As Luther and others also pointed out, penance, like faith, is not a work that we are then rewarded for exercising, but rather Calvin is quick to guard the biblical doctrine of repentance, so that all is of grace, with no merit if our own. Thus, seeking forgiveness is the most important part (Ibid., 860), with no pleading based on our own merit (861) Finally, trust in the fulfillment of the LORD's promises is needed. "To ask him for what we do not expect that he will wish or be able to give us is to provoke God to anger.
Another important emphasis in Calvin concerning prayer is his doctrine of the covenant. "As the covenant begins with a solemn article containing the promise of grace, faith and prayer are required above all things, to the proper keeping of it." (Lillback, 267). Lillback observed that Calvin saw the covenant motif in the Lord's Prayer. The two members of Jeremiah 31 are contained in the Prayer, with two graces in the final two petitions. In the plea for forgiveness (Mt. 6:12), we find the two members of the law in the heart, and mercy in forgiveness, coupled with the protection of the Spirit as our aid (Jer. 31:33). Remembering the covenant enables his people to enjoin and entreat the LORD with confidence. Only his covenantal people are able to appeal to the promises of the covenant, while apostates do so in vain (Ibid. 268 Cf. Inst.III.XX.7,14,25 at 631, 639, and 650-651).
Our prayer, then, as in Matthew 21:22, will have to take faith as its guide. For there is no prayer that is pleasing to God but that which proceeds from such an assumption of faith and is founded upon such a certitude of hope." (Ibid., Inst. III.20.4-12) In addition to his emphasis on the Spirit of God, and a teaching in close association with the doctrine of the covenant, is Calvin's emphasis upon our union with Christ. Furthermore, the context involved passing on an inheritance of faith to the next generation, so that the saints commonly refer back to their fathers with whom the LORD had covenanted with in the past, looking ahead to their time.
These all find their fulfillment in Jesus the Christ. "Now, since we have the Lord Jesus, in whose hand the everlasting covenant of mercy is not only made but confirmed to us, then whose name should we rather put forward in our prayers." (Ibid., 269) Again, it is important to note the historical context that Calvin is interacting with. Rome had posited the belief that we should appeal to Mary or the saints who are past, as though we needed their intermediary compassion to hold sway with the Lord. Calvin responded to this with the biblical teaching that the Lord bids us to come to him directly, that his mercy is offered to us in the same way as it was to the saints who are now in his presence.
One particular aspect of the covenant which Calvin wanted to emphasize, and one that emphasizes God's grace, is the importance of the promises contained therein. "And we ought carefully to observe the word covenant, by which the Prophet points out the greatness and excellence of this promises; for the promises are more extensive, and may be regarded as the stones of the building, while the foundation of it is the covenant, which upholds the whole mass." (Ibid., 269 Cf. Isa. 59:21, VIII, iv, 270; CO XXXVII, XV, 351-353) Furthermore, it is the promises of the covenant of grace that gives God's people their assurance" (Ibid., 269-270), for the promises are ratified and confirmed in Christ (2 Cor. 1:20), and sealed with his blood (Ibid. 270).
Inseparable from the covenant relationship and prayer in Calvin, as with Paul, is the doctrine of our union with Christ, through the Holy Spirit. John's record of the so called 'high priestly prayer' is grounded in this union. At the time this was a doctrine that had been buried every bit as much as justification by faith, but one that also figures prominently in Paul and other of the biblical writers. "Put in simple terms, the doctrine of union with Christ teaches that the Holy Spirit joins believers to Jesus by faith, and that by virtue of this spiritual bond we receive both Christ Himself and all his benefits." (Ryken in Ed. Parson, 191)
Catechal Instruction
In addition to the Institutes, the subject of prayer, and the Lord's Prayer in particular also figure prominently in Calvin's Geneva Catechism. Prayer is the third part of what Calvin deemed essential for every believer, following upon faith in Christ and the obedience consonant with the law. Again, he seeks to reject the place given by Rome to deceased saints as intermediaries, although he affirmed that the assistance of living saints was most valuable (235-238). At #239 Calvin affirms what is called 'The Regulative Principle of Worship' which holds that we are only permitted to include in our worship that which is specifically commanded, unlike Luther who believed that anything was allowed that was not specifically forbidden. To this end he stated that words may not be necessary, but that prayer does require understanding and the heart." (241) It is with sincerity of heart that we are to lay claim to his covenantal promises (241).
Words alone are not enough (242). Our disposition must be one of humility concerning our poverty, fully acknowledging that the Lord alone is able to provide. (243-244) Indeed, in the Lord's Prayer we are to pray daily for his forgiveness, and practice the same. Calvin saw six petitions, three focused on the Father, and three focused on our relationship with others, while all are of course to our benefit. There is no room to treat of the whole of Calvin's teaching on the Lord's Prayer, either in the Institutes or the Geneva Catechism, and much of it is not unique from a historically Reformed perspective. However, there are a couple of items that are unique to Calvin and those of us who follow with him in the apostolic tradition. The question is asked, "What do you understand by the Kingdom of God." (Cat. #268)
He answered that "It consists chiefly in two things that governs the elect, by his Spirit, and he destroys the reprobate, who obstinately refuse to give up themselves in obedience to him that it may be manifest to all that there is nothing able to resist his power." Despite the reality of the reprobate, Calvin taught that it is to be the primary focus of the LORD's people to pray "that the Lord would daily increase the number of believers, that he would enrich them constantly with fresh gifts of his Spirit until they shall be perfected. Moreover, that he would render his truth more luminous, and his righteousness more manifest, by scattering the darkness of Satan, and abolishing all iniquity." (270)
Furthermore, concerning his will he wrote "That all creatures may be in submission to him and so depend on his pleasure that nothing may be done but by his will." (271) Calvin was determined to go as far as scripture would lead him and no farther, and this is why he so clearly taught a biblical postmillennial vision of the power of the word to effect God's will on earth as it is in heaven, with the ministry of the Spirit. This must be a view of the extent of our work, and what it means to be a disciple of Jesus the Christ, not satisfied until the knowledge of the Lord covers the earth as the waters cover the sea (Ps. 57:5; Hab. 2:14).
It is also significant to note that Calvin rejected the idea that the gift of tongues or languages continued. He was emphatic that there was no place for supposed prayer in an unknown language that has no impact on the understanding. That is nothing else, then trifling with God. Therefore, such hypocrisy should be removed from Christians (Catechism, #247). Singularity of heart means praying with confidence, if we are asking according to his will (Ibid., 248-249)We are to pray for the fulfillment of his promises acknowledging the reality that he is our all- sufficient Father, and that we pray in Jesus name alone (250-252). For Calvin, prayer must be lawful, that is, praying according to God's will for us in his word, and this then leading to his treatment of the Lord's Prayer (253-256).
There is another emphasis in Calvin which in part was due to the hegemony of Rome and its teaching. Calvin taught that the whole church needs forgiveness, that none merit salvation, nor is there a purgatory that saints gone by can somehow aid those who follow in spending some of their merit for reduced time there (281). On the other hand, Calvin did see a place for living helpers in the church to aid us in our growth, including assisting us in the matter of prayer. The overarching point in the Lord's prayer, and indeed in all prayer, is that it be in accord with God's will as we find it in his word.
Other Writings
In his 'Truth For All Time' Calvin wrote what he had originally intended for the Institutes, namely "a brief outline of the Christian faith," to be followed by his catechism. However, since the Institutes became what it is today, this little booklet took its place. In his teaching on prayer, in this introduction, he stressed firstly, the necessity of prayer (49-50). Secondly the meaning of prayer, which he gave with two points from scripture – "invocation (or request) and thanksgiving." (51 Cf. Ps. 50:15), laying his greatest emphasis on the Lord's Prayer (52-59). Finally, he stressed the need to persevere in prayer. The main point to draw on is that prayer be according to God's word, and accepting of his sovereign providential will. "We let ourselves be governed by the good pleasure of divine providence. In fact, even if we have to go without everything, God will never abandon us." (60-61)
Calvin's Prayers Surrounding His Scriptural Exposition
Before moving on to Calvin's treatment of the Lord's Prayer, it is helpful to look at his prayers associated with his preaching of the word. The following was his common prayer which he uttered before his expositions. "May the Lord grant that we may engage in contemplating the mysteries of his heavenly wisdom with really increasing devotion, to his glory and to our edification." (Edwards, 9) One can see four parts to this prayer, which very much reflect Calvin's overall theology.
Firstly, Calvin's favourite introductory word was 'grant', no doubt because he firmly believed that we only have what we have because the Lord grants it. Secondly, the goal was to have a greater understanding of the mysteries which the Lord may choose to reveal. Furthermore, Calvin understood that the goal was more than intellectual apprehension, for he prayed thirdly, that such knowledge must lead one to greater devotion. Finally, the primary motive was God's glory and our accompanying edification. Calvin knew that for some the word would condemn them on the day of reckoning, but his goal was the former.
It is also important to note that Calvin had more specific criteria for his praying after his exposition, for he sought to pray for the application and fulfillment by the Lord's people, of the truths just expounded. In no way ought the concluding prayer be of a common or generic nature. Since the Lord deemed it necessary to give us the whole of the biblical canon, each passage must therefore have something unique to say, or important enough to repeat.
In Conclusion
Piper and Mathis note well the core of Calvin's perspective on prayer. "Calvin believed that the Scriptures, especially the Psalms, teach us to combine prayer with our meditations on the promises and providences of God. Calvin therefore linked the doctrine of providence to prayer, stating that prayer was the way to keep trusting in God even in the most bitter afflictions-be it physical or spiritual." (46) It may be fitting to conclude this brief study with a prayer of Calvin's, which he wrote in concluding his treatment of the imprecatory Psalm 10:11-18, for he firmly believed that these Psalms were every bit as consistent with the new covenant as are all the rest, as calling for judgment not on personal enemies per se, but God's enemies as pointed out in his word.
"It should always be observed, that the use of praying is, that God may be the witness of all our afflictions; not that they would otherwise be hidden from him, but when we pour our hearts before him, our cares are hereby greatly lightened, and our confidence of obtaining our requests increases. Since it is the peculiar province of God to take cognisance of all wrongs, David says that it is impossible for God to shut his eyes when the ungodly are wrecklessly and without restraint committing their outrages." (Heart Aflame, 22) Amen, so be it!
Works Consulted.
Calvin, John. Institutes, Vol. 1 Ed. McNeil Trans. Battles (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, MCMLX)
___________Geneva Catechism, Ed. Joshua Torrey (Bolton: Amazon.ca [Grace For Sinners Books] 2017).
___________Heart Aflame (Philipsburg, N.J.: P & R, 1999).
___________Truth For All Time, (Edinburgh: Banner Of Truth, Trans. Stuart Olyott 2020 [1998]).
Lillback, Peter A. The Binding of God (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2001).
McKim, Donald K. Everyday Prayer with John Calvin (Philipsburg, N.J.: P & R, 2019).
Parsons, Burk Ed. John Calvin, A Heart For Doctrine & Devotion, (Lake Mary, FL.: Reformation Trust, 2008).
Piper, John, Mathis, David. With Calvin in the Theatre Of God, (Wheaton: Crossway, 2010).
Wendel, Francois. Calvin, Origin and Development of His Religious Thought. Trans. Philip Mairet (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1997 [1950]).
Wileman, William. John Calvin: His Life, His Teaching, And His Influence, (Louisville: GLH Publishing, 2019 [1909]).


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Almost every morning, Pizzaiolo (5008 Telegraph Ave., Oakland) open its doors early, not to sell pizzas or gin-and-tonics or frilly frisée salads, but instead to sling doughnuts, espresso drinks, and — most precious of all — the sweet, sweet nectar of a free wi-fi connection. The Temescal institution is one of a growing number of restaurants that are taking advantage of the morning hours, when their dining rooms would normally sit empty, to dabble in the coffee-shop business.
Pizzaiolo has been hosting its coffee-and-doughnut mornings since 2007. It has been called the best-kept secret in Oakland, but it might actually be the worst-kept — the place is always packed, with writers and work-from-home types, and even snagging a seat at the bar can be a challenging task.
In an effort to expand my wi-fi-leeching horizons, I checked out two new, equally worthy morning coffee-and-pastry programs — plus another that will launch in the coming month. Here's the lowdown:
Homestead (4029 Piedmont Ave., Oakland, 510-420-6962, HomesteadOakland.com):
Morning hours: Tues.-Sat. 8 a.m.-noon
Foodstuffs spotted: assorted doughnuts, savory strata, quiche, and more
Coffee situation: drip coffee and espresso drinks made with beans from San Francisco's Contraband
Wi-fi: Yes
Hard as it is to believe, this quaint Piedmont Avenue newcomer is even cozier during the daytime than it is at night. The food offerings — if an old-fashioned chocolate-glazed doughnut with the airy texture of a French cruller was representative — are notably great, and served with the kind of meticulousness you won't find at Starbucks. Thick slices of eggy, savory strata (a bacon version and another featuring beet greens) were warmed in a small skillet. I even saw one of the cooks assembling an elaborate yogurt parfait to order. But the best part about mornings at Homestead is that the place isn't MacBook Central as of yet — during my visit, the crowd was mostly bookworms and friends enjoying relaxed conversation.
Nick's Pizza (6211 Shattuck Ave., Oakland, 510-658-3903, OaklandStylePizza.com):
"Morning" hours: Mon.-Fri. 7:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. or sold out, Sat. 8 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. or sold out
Foodstuffs spotted: sweet and savory croissants, scones, house-baked sourdough bread
Coffee situation: McLaughlin's Organic Sumatra (self-serve)
Wi-fi: No
For "Mornings at Nick's," there's no wi-fi and only a handful of tables, so the main attraction is the extensive pastry program that Nick's Pizza chef-owner Nick Yapor-Cox and head baker Aron Ford have developed. The highlight is a wide selection of seasonally specific applications of flaky croissant dough — chocolatines, croissants topped with fruit, croissants stuffed with mushrooms, and more. I loved how dark and crunchy the bottom of each Nick's croissant was, yielding a deeply caramelized, buttery flavor that was an especially nice counterpoint for a woodsy roasted chanterelle, thyme, and ricotta filling. Unlike the other morning coffee programs I visited, "Mornings at Nick's" doesn't actually end in the mornings — pastries are usually sold through the start of dinner service, and the house-baked sourdough breads are available until the pizzeria closes each night.
Adesso (4395 Piedmont Ave., Oakland, 510-601-0305, DopoAdesso.com):
Morning hours: TBA, but probably Mon.-Sat. 8-11:30 a.m., starting in late January or early February
Foodstuffs planned: Sicilian-style cornetti, fresh ricotta, jams, salumi, bread
Coffee situation: TBA
Wi-fi: Yes
According to Adesso owner Jon Smulewitz, in Italy, the bar where you downed your last drink at night is often the same place you get your coffee in the morning. So, since the restaurant's primary identity is as a salumi and cocktail bar, it makes sense that Smulewitz plans to start doing coffee service in the mornings. Food-wise, the focus will be on traditional Italian treats: Sicilian-style cornetti (Italy's version of a croissant), fresh house-made ricotta, and, of course, a selection of salumi. Smulewitz said he expects to kick things off at the end of January or the beginning of February. The setup should offer something for everyone: morning commuters looking to pick up a grab-and-go pastry, laptop users, or people who want to catch the big soccer match on TV.
LIBA Falafel to Open Uptown Location
LIBA Falafel, one of the Bay Area's longest-established "new school" gourmet food trucks, has announced that it will open its first brick-and-mortar location in Uptown Oakland, at 380 17th Street. Owner Gail Lillian, who founded the business four years ago, said she's in the process of raising funds for the project but expects to open by the summer of 2014. The LIBA food truck will also continue to operate.
The defining feature of LIBA Falafel's food-truck setup is its "falafel bar," an impressive spread of some fifteen different salads, toppings, and condiments, many of them seasonally inspired — not just your standard hummus or cucumber salad, but also things like braised eggplant, fried onions, raw beet salad, and a veritable rainbow of crunchy pickled things.
Lillian told What the Fork that the restaurant will have the same basic setup, but with a bigger emphasis on seasonal fruits and vegetables. She's also not finished expanding her business: Once the Oakland shop is up and running, Lillian plans to start scouting locations for her next restaurant, this time in San Francisco.


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When we first heard Matt Smith was leaving Doctor Who, the BBC promised a special goodbye and thank you video, and it turns out Smith filmed it in Detroit, Michigan during a break on Ryan Gosling's How To Catch A Monster. Watch it below, but you may want to grab a tissue first.
Many actors have played Doctor Who. Fans will argue who portrayed him best, but most would agree that Matt Smith was certainly the most unique and special. He's been the perfect mix of all the best qualities of the Doctor that we've come to love so far. His nature has been light-hearted, despite the darker themes since Moffat took over as executive producer of the show. He's been chaotic, and child-like, but always managed to be clever and focused when needed.
A mad twinkle in his eye and all the whimsy and the genuine love for other beings. I, for one, think Matt Smith was genetically engineered from birth to play Doctor Who. I really, really liked him and am so sad to see him go.


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We've seen them in the movies, but now we can read the real-life history of America's nuclear warriors, the Nuclear Emergency Search Team, known as NEST. The story of NEST, which would protect the U.S. in the case of an attempt at nuclear extortion or terrorism, is told in declassified documents published Tuesday.
The 69 documents, released under the federal Freedom of Information Act, were published by the National Security Archive, a respected research organization at George Washington University. (More about the National Security Archive.)
The archive said the documents "offer the first detailed public look at the inner workings of the agencies, military units and other U.S. entities responsible for protecting the country from a terrorist nuclear attack."
And they reveal problems that can arise in coordinating the many organizations that would respond to such an attack: problems of bomb detection, interagency coordination, containment of contamination and general "confusion."
"While the MIGHTY DERRINGER exercise and resulting documents are over two decades old," the archive said, "the institutions participating in the exercise retain their roles today, and the issues confronting them in 1986 are similar to the ones that they would face in responding to a nuclear threat in 2012 (and beyond)."
You can read all 69 documents at this page from the National Security Archive.
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