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On Monday night, I headed down US 101 to attend a lecture at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View on industrial design at Apple over the years. My original plan was to post this write-up Tuesday morning, but that quickly got scuttled by MacBook Pro Update Madness. So let's take another stab at this, with the hope that Apple won't release another round of product updates by the time it takes me to type out a few paragraphs.
The featured speakers for this industrial design lecture were Jerry Manock and Robert Brunner. Manock's name should be familiar to anyone well-versed in their early Apple folklore —he was employee No. 246 at Apple, involved in the design of the Apple II, Apple III, and original Macintosh. Brunner's time at Apple came during a comparatively less publicized era—he was the company's Director of Industrial Design from 1989 to 1996. His design work during his Apple tenure included the Mac Color Classic, the Macintosh LC 520, and the original PowerBook—the very first Mac I bought with my own money, a PowerBook 145B, is sitting right here on my desk and bears some of Brunner's handiwork.
Of course, Brunner is responsible for something else that's still having an impact at Apple more than a decade after he left the company. "When I die, what's going on my tombstone is, 'This is the guy who hired Jonathan Ive at Apple,'" Brunner told the several hundred attendees at Monday's lecture. "And when I left [Apple], I recommended him to run the Industrial Design Group, which is probably the best recommendation I ever made."
As befits an event held at a museum, there were plenty of old Mac materials on display. Brunner, in particular, had an assortment of PowerBooks from the 100 series, a 20th Anniversary Mac, and some other examples of his time at Apple. When putting together this collection of artifacts, he said, his 20-something receptionist stared at these 10- to 15-year-old pieces of hardware "like they were a '57 Chevy… it shows you how quickly things age, how quickly things age."
It also illustrates, from my point of view, how critical design has been to what Apple has produced over the last 30 years. Manock designed products in the '70s and '80s, Brunner primarily in the early '90s, and Ive today, but, even accounting for different eras and styles, you can see some common themes emerging over the decades to how Apple's designers go about their business.
• Apple designers do things differently: Manock told a story about the early days of Apple when it came time for the engineering labs to test the heat flow on hardware. They would take machines back into a windowless room in the lab and light some incense sticks to see how the air would flow off the product. "You can imagine two to three hours of doing this in a closed room… [people] would open the door and be all, 'What are they doing in there?" Manock said. "But it was a really cheap way to see how the air flow was going."
• Apple designers consider the little things: Here's another story from Manock that he told to illustrate the open-door atmosphere on the original Mac team—one day, Manock visits the software programming team and notices that Andy Hertzfeld is working on a version of the desktop with square corners. Wouldn't it be nice, Manock wondered aloud, if those corners were rounded so that they matched the rounded-corner bezel that the design team was working on? The desktop corners were changed. "Two seconds, it was done," Manock said. "Little details like that made the Mac a success."
• Apple designers take risks: Brunner talked about the birth of the PowerBook, which came in the wake of the monstrous Macintosh Portable —a 16-pound "laptop" that was so unwieldy, Brunner recalled, you needed an aisle seat in the first-class section of an airplane just to be able to use it without jostling anyone. At about the same time, Compaq came out with the Compaq LTE, which weighed in at a little less than 7 pounds. "That was the best thing to happen," Brunner said, "because the aversion to risk went way down." That freed up Brunner and his team to introduce design elements in the PowerBook that were unusual at the time—moving the battery and the drive up front and creating a handrest area in front of the keyboard—but wound up informing laptop design over the next decade. (To hear more about PowerBook 100 series, listen to my interview with Robert Brunner in the latest Macworld Podcast.)
• Apple designers see the big picture: Manock talked about the lessons he had taken away from his time in the Stanford Design Program, one of which was to consider what he called "the profundity factor: Is what you're doing going to make any difference in the world?"
That question may have been specific to Manock's education, but it seems to be one that gets asked a lot at Apple. Consider the list Macworld put together last year to recognize the 30 most significant products in Apple's history. Several of the products we included—the Apple II, the PowerBook 100 series, the 20th Anniversary Mac, and, of course, the Macintosh 128k —were discussed in detail Monday night. And some of the credit for why these products made such an impact rightly belongs to the designers at Apple and the decisions that they made.
It was an interesting talk, and one that a mere blog entry can't really do justice to. Fortunately, the Past Events page on the Computer History Museum's Web site includes a link to a Windows Media file of the lecture, so you can watch and listen for yourself, if you're so inclined.


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Well over 100 people enjoyed an evening of networking in the sunshine at the 7th annual "Curchod & Co Hog Roast" which was held at The Lightbox in Woking recently.
The popular event brought together Curchod & Co's staff clients, suppliers, real estate professionals and other guests from the property market, with attendees travelling to the event from London and across Surrey, Hampshire, Berkshire and Sussex.
Curchod & Co Partner, Ian Oswin, said: "Our annual Hog Roast event has become a fixture in the market's social calendar and it is a great pleasure for us to be able to bring together so many friends and clients, old and new, in this way."
Nick Reeve of Curchod & Co's Farnham office added: "It was a tremendous event, made even better by the fantastic weather!
"The Lightbox is an excellent venue for such a party and it was great to see so many people coming together and making new business contacts and we are looking forward to the 2019 Hog Roast already."
Any time we start something new it is exciting and we are very motivated and committed. As time goes by, however, the burst of enthusiasm can wane as the reality of how much work is going to be involved kicks in. When you find yourself slacking a little and not being as enthused about the new change or goal you are working towards, that isn't a sign to quit. It is a sign that it is time to re-commit.Meet the team

subset: commoncrawl


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Green PolkaDot Holdings
CEO Rod Smith
Podcast: Play in new window
WSA: Good day from Wall Street. This is Juan Costello, Senior Analyst with the Wall Street Analyzer. Joining us today is Rod Smith CEO of Green PolkaDot Holdings. The company trades over the counter, ticker symbol GPDB. Thanks for joining us today, Rod.
Rod Smith: Thank you. Glad to be here.
WSA: Great, anytime. Now, starting off, please give us a history and overview there of the company for some of our listeners that are new to your story.
Rod Smith: Well, Green PolkaDot Box was founded at the end of the 2011. We've been operating for approximately three years. We saw a niche opportunity to become an online wholesaler of organic and non-GMO foods in the United States marketplace. It's currently about — there are about 16 million adult consumers who consider themselves to be health-minded but also consume on an occasional or frequent basis, organic and non-GMO foods. And that market segment is growing at a compounded rate of about 11% per year, but what's exciting to us is we see a much bigger market potential beyond that where there are actually 65 million adults who claim to be health-minded. Many of them however don't really understand the health benefits of consuming non-GMO foods in particular organic foods in general.
And so, we're staking a claim in that market. We believe that over the next ten years, there will be a gigantic market expansion into what we call clean foods. These are foods that do not have any pesticides, or herbicides, toxins, synthetics, and especially genetically-modified organisms. We think that public awareness is growing about the harmful effects of consuming GMO foods and that over time, the vast majority of the US consuming public will make a shift from conventionally grown foods to foods that contain no GMO.
So, the last three years we've been developing our business, we've been building our foundation, acquiring customers. We've attracted over 25,000 customers over the last three years, but we're really at a point now where our product line is in place. We've acquired thousands of products. We are really making great strides and we're preparing to launch what we call a Health Merchant Program that I can describe in some detail if you're interested.
WSA: Yeah, that would be great. Can you talk about that and then follow it up by taking about your agreement with LinkTrust that you have through your affiliate program?
Rod Smith: Yes. I will. We have–we've essentially as I mentioned perfected our business operations and improved our marketing concept. We have the ability to attract and convert customers. In fact, we're among the leaders in our segment of online retailers. We are gaining about 274% higher conversion rates on first time visitors and on repeat customer visits than the rest of our competitors in our segment. The reason for that is we've become experts at marketing and converting costumers with the product offerings that we do.
So, regarding the Health Merchant Program, we are essentially offering a turnkey business solution to other entrepreneurs and individuals with broad influence in the healthy or health conscious marketplace. In a way, it's kind of like a franchise opportunity though it's more purely a licensing right to create a replication of the Green PolkaDots Box store but under their own private label or private brand. And our goal over the next three to five years is to establish 30,000 health merchants who each have the capability to reach anywhere from 1,000 to 5,000 consumers directly within their influence.
So and through the expansion of the Health Merchant Program we anticipate ramping up and selling to millions of customers who have become educated and concerned about eating non-GMO foods. So, this is a very exciting program. We're still in beta, we're in prelaunch mode. Our heath merchant stores are going to go live at the end of this month, but we've already got health merchants signing up and referring customers. In fact, last month we had one customer or one health merchant along that referred 798 new customers to Green PolkaDot Box, our store, knowing that they would eventually transfer over to his store.
So that's the microcosm of the greater business models that we have. We think that through the Health Merchant Program, we can expand our reaching influence to millions of customers through trusted sources, individuals that the customer knows and trust. Examples of health merchants would be alternative medicine, healthcare practitioners, osteopath, homeopath, chiropractors, health food store owners, bloggers, and the list goes on and on. There are probably a million potential candidates for Health Merchant Program in the US, and we anticipate our ability to really exploit that opportunity to be the first and only opportunity of its kind empowering many people tens of thousands of people to replicate what we're doing in the market. And we're very excited about that.
Our deal with LinkTrust is very comparable to a couple of other affiliate network relationships we've established with ShareASale, Performance-Based, LinkShare as well in an effort to promote our brand and make consumers aware of our product offering which by the way we are the only online store in America including retail operations that I'm aware off that has drawn a line and will not carry any products that contains GMO.
And so, we're utilizing and leveraging our marketing efforts through our partners like LinkShare, and LinkTrust, and the others I mentioned to be able to reach a broader segment of the marketplace. You know, you have to recognize that today, as the percentage of the total food market, health-minded consumers that eat organic or non-GMO foods are relatively a small percentage, approximately 7% of the adult market today.
So through the affiliate program, we are able to reach not just organic and non-GMO consumers but a much broader market, and educate them about the benefits of eating clean food, and also about the links between the diet they currently eat and disease that occurs later in life because of that diet.
So the affiliate program, working with affiliate network partners, developing the health merchant network that I referred to, these are our main marketing strategies in 2015 and we anticipate that we'll see dramatic gains in both membership and revenue sales this year.
WSA: Great. And what are some of the other factors that you feel make the company unique from some of the other players in the sector?
Rod Smith: Well, I think I mentioned one already that we're the only non-GMO food supplier and we intend to make hay with that, but another significant difference is our low price guarantee. We are the low price leader in the market for organic and non-GMO foods. So, as customers that don't like to pay retail tend to migrate towards membership organizations like ours, you know, we're patterned after the Costco model and Walmart model, Sam's Club, but in the specific niche of organic and non-GMO foods. So, that's one differentiator.
We have a very powerful online marketing system and I think another unique feature of our company is our ability to custom pick and pack orders that don't have case slot minimum or club pack sizes. Somebody can go to our website or our store and they can order one item of this and one item of that, and we custom pack to their ordering and ship to them FedEx.
So giving the consumer a lot of flexibility and telling them what they order, when they order. And also providing that flexibility with a low price guarantee really, really puts us ahead in the marketplace and we think we have a chance to maintain our leadership position and be the dominant player in the online space for organic and non-GMO foods.
WSA: Good. And what are some of the key goals and milestones that you're hoping to accomplish over the course of the next 6 to 12 months?
Rod Smith: Well, this year — this next 6 to 12 months, we want to establish a minimum of 5,000 health merchants, each doing approximately $1,000 a month in sales minimum. So we believe that product sales in addition to the monthly service fees paid by the health merchants will generate somewhere between $5 and $6 million in monthly sales. So, by the end of the year we expect to be on an 80 to $100 million run rate. We're currently on about a $5 million run rate, but as I said the Health Merchant Program is just launching and we're already seeing the fruits of that. We know we've got a winning concept here and there are thousands and thousands of people who will embrace the idea and begin co-marketing with us.
So this is something really that's never been done before and I'm very excited about the potential of it. It's going to be the way that we educate consumers about the problems associated with GMO foods, which now completely pervade the food marketplace. Over 70% of the items you find in your grocery store contain GMO. The public has been kept in the dark about this vital issue, and we think that through the Health Merchant Program we can establish a grassroots movement or a bottom-up movement to educate and inform the public about GMO–Something that the government is not doing today, and something that the major food companies, and agro businesses, and farmers are not disclosing to the public–They're not providing labeling information about GMO.
So, we think there's a big opportunity for a dramatic consumer shift from conventional groceries to non-GMO groceries and we intend to be the leader in that. I think this year, as I said, we expect our growth to increased by tenfold over current levels by year-end.
WSA: Good. So, as far as investors and the financial community are concerned—as you recently had some good sales results in December compared to the previous month–do you believe that your message and story and upside are starting to become better understood by them?
Rod Smith: Yes. I think they'll be able to watch and see what happens. It will become much more clear what we're doing in the market with the Health Merchant Program and through affiliate networks. So, I see nothing but upside for us in the days ahead.
WSA: Is there anything that you wish investors better understood about the company?
Rod Smith: Yeah, I do. I wish they understood what's going to happen in the United States. You know, back in the mid-60s, 50% of the adult population was smoking until the surgeon general came out and required —
WSA: Right.
WSA: — warning labels that cigarette smoking was hazardous to health. For 20 years prior to that, even the American Medical Association kept their mouth shut about the harmful effects of tobacco. We're seeing the same thing happen right now, with institutions like our medical institutions or higher education institutions, the FDA, they're all keeping very hush-hush about GMO because the entire food industry is built on it right now, but it won't take long. Maybe over the next 10 to 20 years just like with tobacco when the public will recognize that GMO's are the leading cause for the rapid escalation in so many diseases we're seeing today.
Autism, for example, has gone from one in 5,000 in 1991 to one in 50 births today, and that correlation corresponds exactly with the introduction and proliferation of Glyphosate or Roundup Ready by Monsanto and all of the genetically engineered foods now that have taken over our food supply.
So, as the public becomes aware of these links between genetically modified foods and GMO and the correlation in escalating disease and the introduction of 35 to 40 new diseases that have become chronic illnesses in America and how they correspond to the increase in genetically modified organisms, the public is going to become more and more concerned about that and we're going to see a dramatic shift.
So, if I really have my wish list of what I would want, I would want Americans to understand that faster, I'd want investors to realize that there's going to be a major change in the public's awareness about these issues and that we're going to play a leadership role in making that happen.
WSA: Well, good. And so, once again joining us today is Rod Smith CEO of Green PolkaDot Holdings which trades over the counter, ticker symbol GPDB, currently trading at 1.01 a share and market cap is about — is going to 12 million. And before we conclude to recap some of your key points, why do you believe investors should consider the company as a good investment opportunity today?
Rod Smith: Well, anytime you have an opportunity to get in at the early stages of what could potentially be one of the largest markets in the world I think that represents a tremendous upside in investment. And I believe that we're going to see expansion of the healthy food or clean food marketplace from where it is today approximately 120 billion annually to over $1.5 trillion over the next ten years as consumers shift their purchasing from conventionally grown GMO foods to clean non-GMO foods.
So with that kind of a market expansion you can imagine the potential growth that we will see at Green PolkaDot Box. Even if we got 10% of that market expansion we'd be doing $150 billion annually in sales. So, we have built the foundation. The consumer marketplace is more and more in tune to online purchasing. The convenience of internet shopping with home delivery, you know, we're positioned in front of these mega trends that I'm mentioning here and we're the leader in the market right now. We're the only online provider that has dedicated itself exclusively to the acquisition and delivery of non-GMO foods.
So I think if people looked at the fundamentals of what we're doing and they see that we're principle-based and committed to this mission of providing organic and non-GMO foods at the lowest price in the marketplace, to eradicating the distribution of GMOs, to educating and informing people about the links between diet and disease, I think we're just positioned right in the sweet spot and that makes for a great investment opportunity.
WSA: Well, we certainly look forward to continuing to track the company's growth and report on your upcoming progress and we like to thank you for taking the time to join us today, Rod, and update our investors on GPDB. It was — it was great to have you on.
Rod Smith: Thank you. We sure appreciate your invitation and welcome your investors to take a look at us.


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Our Dear Leader's trip to Europe this past week and into this week has been a wealth of stories for the MSM……and one of the biggest that few have let go by without comment is the fact that he, Trump, thinks that Europe is the US chief foe in the world……
President Trump has raised eyebrows ahead of his meeting with Vladimir Putin regarding who he feels are the enemies of the United States. In an interview from Scotland with CBS News, the president told anchor Jeff Glor that the EU with its 28 members, many of which are longstanding US allies, qualifies. "I think the European Union is a foe, what they do to us in trade," he said. "Now, you wouldn't think of the European Union, but they're a foe." While the interview made headlines mostly for this line on Sunday, just a day before Trump is slated to meet face-to-face with Putin, Trump also said he believes the same about Russia and others. "Russia is foe in certain respects. China is a foe economically, certainly they are a foe. But that doesn't mean they are bad. It doesn't mean anything. It means that they are competitive," Trump said.
Trump also sat with former CNN news show host Piers Morgan for the Daily Mail. As USA Today notes, the interview touched on some of today's most hot-button issues, including the US Supreme Court's potential to revisit Roe vs. Wade, Trump's meeting with Queen Elizabeth II, and child separation at the southern border. The interview took place aboard Air Force One, where Trump told Morgan he believes there's a "very good chance" the high court won't address the landmark 1973 decision to legalize abortion. Trump also told Morgan he "had a great feeling" during his meeting with the queen and discussed with her the complexities of the Brexit issue. He added that Putin was "probably" ruthless, "but I could name others also."
I am sorry if this statement insults any of my more Right leaning visitors…..but Our Dear Leader is an idiot…I do not care how many times one tells me that he is a genius and attended Wharton…..then maybe he should have stayed awake during class…..his words are mindless crap to generate and get headlines and to focus all attention on him……a mental midget that will use his mouth to destroy this nation's reputation in the world.
Just a thought here……If there is one thing the president and his aides should be working on between rounds of golf at his club in Scotland, it is exactly how the president will look and what he will say on the first handshake with Putin in Helsinki. This is not a reunion of frat buddies or old friends. This is a meeting of two powerful, competitive leaders at a time of great tension in the relationship between their nations, caused by one seeking to undermine the very foundation of the other's form of government. (FoxNews.com)(Boy did Trump piss that meeting up)
Trying to make sense of the mindless words of Our Dear Leader is so exhausting….but someone needs to let the people know what he is doing to this country.
"I really think the world wants to see us get along," Trump told reporters….
What world would that be? The real world or the slimy world in Dear Leader's mind?


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Sandee Johns shares her penguin Fiesta Medal in honor of her late son, Preston Mewhinney, who was killed by a drunk driver.
Sign up for the SA Flavor Newsletter for all the best of SA without the spam! And be sure to shop the SA Flavor Store for the best Fiesta Medals, stickers, shirts and more!


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I started working out again on a semi-consistent basis back in May 2014.
Since then I fell off the bandwagon twice and changed gyms once.
Mid September I hurt my lower back (because I just overdid it at work) but ignored it which is never a good plan.
By mid October, I was in so much pain. I could barely walk for two days, and I missed several days at work.
I am not a wimp when it comes to pain, but it was SO BAD. I cried as I tried to get off the sofa.
After about 5 weeks of therapy I am pretty much back to normal. (Thank you, Dr. Shride!)
But it was a huge wake up call. I need to take better care of myself.
And at this point it's not really about losing weight, I just want to feel healthy again.
So since December I have been working out 4x to 5x a week (usually only 30 min). I mix yoga, Pilates, cardio, and weight machines so I don't get bored during the week.
And eating wise I am not on any sort of "diet."
I am simply watching my calorie intake, increasing plant based foods, and reducing animal fats in my diet (dairy and meat).
Some days I do really well and other days we go out to eat for dinner and all the calorie counting goes out the window.
But for the first time in my life I am not stressing about it.
And the reason why is because I am using FitBit.
It has been life changing.
I have used pedometers in the past, but I was never really happy with the ones I owned.
Tracking food/water consumption and exercise has never been easier. All the info downloads to my phone.
And it makes me SUPER aware of how much (or how little) I am moving which I have found is really important when you sit at a desk all day.
I am actually excited to to grocery shopping because I know I will be able to get more steps in:)
It even tracks my sleep habits.
If you are looking for assistance at getting healthier this year, I highly recommend it.
Kudos to my husband for gifting it to me for Christmas!
I will try to give a monthly update for at least a couple months to let you know how I am doing.


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EcoAir®– air- powered spray can products. Spray cans powered by compressed air that completely replace expensive chemical propellants. This technology is innovative because a four-layer EcoPouch is inserted into a can then the can pressurized. Finally, the EcoPouch is filled with the liquid. As the valve is depressed the surrounding pressure expels the bag's internal fluids until the product is used up.
VpCI®-377 is a water-based rust preventative for temporary corrosion prevention. Does not require removal before painting or further processing. Non-flammable.
Application: Replaces oil based rust preventatives for indoor use.
Package: 12 oz. (340 g)


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|"Atte Peltomaki" <koston@xxxxxx>
|Wed, 23 Mar 2005 09:07:18 +0200
> :Every once in a while, when application crashes and leaves an open TCP > :connection, data starts flowing full speed back and forth the boxes. > :Here's tcpdump output from one occasion where Opera crashed: > : > :=06:56:33.123424 IP webserverip.80 > myboxip.1632: . ack 1 win 33580 <nop,nop,timestamp 859 139667162> > :06:56:33.123461 IP myboxip.1632 > webserverip.80: F 838440838:838440838(0) ack 3219133104 win 65535 <nop,nop,timest > > Could you send more of the tcpdump so we can see the characteristics of > the flooding? I only pasted two lines becuse that was the only tcpdump output I got. (Just many many more lines like that). I can easily reproduce the problem at least by having an open ssh connection (via F-Secure SSH) and then disabling packet filter. I can also try OpenSSH if you think it's worth the time. Last time this happened yesterday, after the flooding stopped my whole box turned numb, all old connections worked but no new ones could be made. I also compiled world yesterday to see if it helps. -- Atte Peltomäki http://kameli.org


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As I decided not to post as much as I did when I started this blog, I thought I'd wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving now, rather than on the big day.
Here is a preview of what I might be serving up this year. It's a slice of my Rustic Raw Butterbella Lasagna. The details of how I made it can be found in my latest Natural Zing blog post (while you're there, don't forget to nominate them for Best of Raw 2010).
So, what do you have planned for your Thanksgiving feast?
If you're looking for some inspiration, I posted some pics from past raw Thanksgivings below. Enjoy!
A Turkfruity
Happy Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving!


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Soccer Match
Sports Practice
Young Woman in the Gym
Soccer Match
Sport competitions, training camps organization
Our company undertakes the whole process of all sports connected investments and researching business partners.
Our company located in the Emirates undertakes the organization of training camps in the Emirates area, as well as various sport related conferences, presentations with the assistance of our partners.
We undertake all market research and market analysis related to the launch of all new sport related products.


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A smattering of updates from around Africa:
- Burundi: Conflicting judicial mechanisms for land reallocation and titling after the civil war are keeping the potential for renewed tensions alive.
- Central African Republic: An update on the Seleka rebellion and the potential collapse of Bozize's regime from African Arguments.
- Ghana: People who are institutionalized for mental illness were able to vote in presidential elections for the first time in December.
- Guinea: The Economist writes about business as usual under reformist president Alpha Conde.
- Kenya: An openly gay political candidate dropped out of a senate race over a lack of funding in December, and anti-corruption campaigner John Githongo spoke to the Economist back in November.
- Nigeria: Striking photos from an illegal oil refinery in the Niger Delta.


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Euroload limited has developed a range of in house battery operated handsets. A cabled handset and a telemetry handset.
Both can be fitted to any style of load cell.
We can offer mains display panels housing a range of DATATRACK indicators. These indicators can have functions like alarms, relays, analogue outputs, digital outputs and many more.
Euroload supply large 4" or 6" bright LED displays to display load on dockyards or overhead cranes.
Systems can be designed to incorporate multi display panels showing multiple loads and total loads.
Euroload has a standard 4 point weighing system display for working out the centre of gravity on large structures.
For specialized systems please call for a quotation.


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Miami Dolphins' Jay Cutler, Jay Ajayi could be perfect fit
PHILADELPHIA–Here's an idea that might work out well for the Miami Dolphins: Jay Ajayi believes the next step of his development is to become a top-level pass catcher out of the backfield, and his new quarterback has a propensity to use them.
One of the things that has Ajayi excited about the arrival of Jay Cutler is how much he threw to running backs in Chicago. Over the seven seasons in which he was mostly healthy for the Bears, Cutler made great use of running back Matt Forte.
Forte, now with the Jets, led Chicago in receptions in three of those aforementioned Cutler seasons and finished second or third the other years. He caught a career-high 74 passes in 2013, when Cutler played 11 games, and topped it the next season with 102. That's the all-time NFL record for catches by a running back, and it enabled Cutler to post a personal-best in passer rating at 66 percent.
Ajayi, meanwhile, has yet to tap into that facet of his potential. He was targeted on just 35 of Miami's 477 pass attempts last year and put up 151 yards on 27 catches. That's one big way in which the offense can improve this year.
"I pride myself on being able to do everything and be on the field for the whole game," he said this summer. "I believe I have that skillset (as a receiver). It's really about developing it even more now at this level and trying to push myself to become elite."
The Dolphins' record for catches by a running back belongs to Terry Kirby, who had 75 in 1993.
[ Five things to know about new Miami Dolphin LB Rey Maualuga]
[ Did the Miami Dolphins address their offseason priorities?]
[ DeVante Parker is making believers. This might finally be his breakout year.]
Check out The Palm Beach Post's Miami Dolphins page on Facebook


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MIAMI – Here's the most telling indicator of how Brad Penny and the Marlins pitched through the first two-thirds of Tuesday's game: The Marlins scored six times on 10 hits – including a Giancarlo Stanton two-run homer – off Mets' lefty Jon Niese before he called it a night after six innings, and they never led.
The Marlins as they usually do kept it interesting, cutting a pair of four-run deficits and another three-run Mets' lead down to one and two (twice) before succumbing 8-6. The Mets in evening the series racked up 16 hits, the first seven of which came off Penny in a three-inning, 57-pitch bid to stick in the rotation.
Wednesday, the Marlins will play their fourth rubber game in as many series. They've lost each of the last three and are 15-24 in game threes this season. A fourth straight series loss would drop the Marlins back to four games under .500 and require a staunch final 25 games to upend the National League Wild Card race.
Down 4-0 after two, the Marlins strung together four two-out hits to trim the deficit to one. With a run in and man on, Stanton added to his MVP case swatting his second homer in as many games. He drilled Niese's 0-1 pitch off the base of the home run sculpture for his 35th, which yielded RBI 100 and 101.
The only other Marlin in club history to reach the 35-homer and 100-RBI plateaus in the same season was Gary Sheffield. In 1996, Sheffield hit 42 and knocked in 120. Stanton is on pace for 41 and 119.
The 100-RBI campaign is the first by a Marlin since Dan Uggla in 2010. Uggla a season earlier set the club record for most home runs at home (21). Stanton (23) now is atop that list.
Before Tuesday, the Marlins were 10-0 when scoring six or more runs against an opposing starter. The last starter to beat the Marlins while giving up as many as six runs on 10 hits was Esteban Loaiza on Sept. 28, 2005. Loaiza, like Niese, allowed six runs on 10 hits through six innings in an 11-7 Nationals' win.
Mets' leadoff hitter Juan Lagares and David Wright both wore out Penny and Anthony DeSclafani, going a combined 6-for-6 with three doubles, five runs and three RBI. Wright had gone 84 plate appearances without an extra-base hit before his second-inning, two-out, RBI-double off Penny. Two innings later, Wright followed it up with another run-scoring double in DeSclafani's lone inning of work.
Fresh off giving up three runs, the Mets got them all back off DeSclafani, who allowed hits to four of the seven batters he faced in the fourth.
That inning was worse than Penny's first two. The Mets had a 1-0 lead 10 pitches into his start. By Penny's 26th and final offering of the first, they'd doubled it.
For whatever reason, Penny traditionally pitches poorly against the Mets. His career ERA in 24 games (22 starts) against them swelled to 6.39 with 14 losses in 19 lifetime decisions.
Since re-joining the Marlins, Penny as a starter (three games) is 1-1 with a 6.23 ERA, eight walks and eight strikeouts in 13 innings. Opponents are 19-for-67 (.284) off him in that role.
Including a 6-9 record against the Mets (65-74), the Marlins now are 25-30 against National League East teams.
email@example.com or @JCRMarlinsbeat on Twitter.


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SECTION 1.Section 1A of Chapter 15D, as appearing in the 2014 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after the definition of "family foster care" the following definitions:
"Governmental mandate" shall mean a state or federal statutory requirement, administrative rule, regulation, assessment, executive order, judicial order or other governmental requirements that directly or indirectly imposes an obligation and associated compliance cost upon a subsidized child care provider to take any action or to refrain from taking any action in order to fulfill the subsidized child care provider's contractual duty to a procuring governmental unit.
''Governmental unit'', the commonwealth, any department, agency board, commission or political subdivision of the commonwealth.
SECTION 2.Section 1A of Chapter 15D, as so appearing, shall be amended by inserting after the definition of "services" the following definition:
"Subsidized Child Care Provider" shall mean a licensed or exempt child care center, or a licensed, family-child care home located within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts that provides subsidized early education and care programs and services to low-income and other at-risk children.
SECTION 3.Chapter 15D, as appearing in the 2014 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after Section 18, the following new sections:
Section 19. "Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special law or regulation to the contrary, the board in fulfilling its responsibility in section 2(e) of chapter 15D to establish and develop a schedule for revising a rate structure for voucher and contracted payments to subsidized child care providers shall have the sole responsibility for establishing rates of payment for subsidized child care providers which are reasonable and adequate to meet the costs which are incurred by subsidized child care providers in providing early education and care programs to low income and other at risk children in conformity with federal and state law, regulations, and quality and safety standards. In establishing rates of payment for early education and care programs that provide care and services to low income and other at-risk children, the board shall adjust rates to take into account factors, including, but not limited to: (i) the cost to subsidized child care provider of any existing or new governmental mandate that has been enacted, promulgated or imposed by any governmental unit or federal governmental authority since rates were last established by the board; (ii) inflation costs of subsidized child care providers; and (iii) other available cost and market data relating to subsidized child care providers including, but not limited to, workforce credentialing requirements under state and federal laws and the market cost associated with unsubsidized early education and child care programs including, but not limited to, salaries and benefits. The board shall not consider the resources specified in section 13G of chapter one hundred and eighteen E in establishing, reviewing or approving rates of payment for early education and care programs that provide care and services to low income and other at-risk children.
The board shall: (i) determine, after public hearing, at least annually, the rates to be paid by each governmental unit to subsidized child care providers, provided, that no less than two years from July 1, 2017, no subsidized child care provider shall receive an amount that is less than the amount paid to such provider in fiscal year 2017 by the department, including all rate reserve payments under chapter 133 of the acts of 2016 and all year-end budget allocations or payments made by such governmental units to providers in fiscal year 2017 subject to an inflation adjustment consistent with the annual Massachusetts consumer price index as determined by the federal bureau of statistics. In advance of the public hearing, the board shall hold a series of meetings with subsidized child care providers to discuss the establishment of rates pursuant to the methodology set forth herein. Said rates are to be filed with the state secretary and shall be deemed certified.
Section 20. "Any subsidized child care provider aggrieved by an interim rate or a final rate established by the board, or by failure of the board to set a rate or to take other action required by law and desiring a review thereof shall, within 30 days after said rate is filed with the state secretary or may, at any time, if there is a failure to determine a rate or take any action required by law, file an appeal with the division of administrative law appeals established by section 4H of chapter 7. Any appeal filed under this section shall be accompanied by a certified statement that said appeal is not interposed for delay. On appeal, the rate determined for any subsidized child care provider shall be adequate, fair and reasonable for such provider, based upon, the costs of such provider, but not limited thereto.
On an appeal from an interim rate or a final rate the division of administrative law appeals shall conduct an adjudicatory proceeding under chapter 30A, and said division shall file its decision with the board and the state secretary within 30 days after the conclusion of the hearing.
Said decision shall contain a statement of the reasons for such decision, including a determination of each issue of fact or law upon which such decision was based. If such decision results in a recommendation for a rate different from that certified, the board shall establish a new rate based upon such statement of reasons. If the board determines that the statement of reasons is inadequate to determine a fair, reasonable and adequate rate, it may remand the appeal to the hearing officer for further investigation. Any party aggrieved by a decision of the division may, within 30 days of the receipt of such decision, file a petition for review in superior court for the county of Suffolk, which shall have exclusive jurisdiction of such review.
A subsidized child care provider may appeal as an aggrieved party under the preceding sentence, in the event that a remand by the board to a hearing officer does not result in a final decision by the board within 21 days of the date of remand.
The petition shall set forth the grounds upon which the decision of the division should be set aside. The aggrieved party shall, within 7 days after the petition for review is filed, notify the board and all the parties to the appeal before said division that a petition for review has been filed by sending each a copy thereof. Within 40 days after the petition for review is filed, or within such further time as the court may allow, the division of administrative law appeals shall file in court the original or a certified copy of the record under review. The court may affirm, modify or set aside the decision of the board in whole or in part, remand the decision to the board for further proceedings or enter such other order as justice may require. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent the division from granting temporary relief if, in its discretion, such relief is justified nor, from informally adjusting or settling controversies with the consent of all parties.
Judicial review shall be governed by section 14 of chapter 30A to the extent not inconsistent with this section."
SECTION 4.This act shall take effect July 1 2017.
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The General Court provides this information as a public service and while we endeavor to keep the data accurate and current to the best of our ability, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.


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Categories: Unique Shops, Outdoor Outfitters, All Things Outdoors
Outdoor 76 is a specialty outdoor retailer and outfitter located on Main St. in Franklin, North Carolina - an official designated Appalachian Trail Community! We are committed to meeting your technical needs on the trail and your lifestyle off the trail. Our staff is exclusively made up of outdoor enthusiasts who have spent years hiking, paddling, climbing, cycling, camping and fishing the mountains of Western North Carolina. Choose your adventure within almost any budget - we have a wide range of products, services and expertise to optimize your outdoor experience. We are a full service stop for Appalachian Trail thru-hikers and Bartram Trail Hikers. We will be happy to provide anything from directions to the trail - to rental camping and backpacking gear, personalized outfitting for your specific adventure needs - to helping you get that old pair of hiking boots to fit right. Let us help you remember how much you love playing in the mountains of North Carolina!
Owners Cory McCall and Rob Gasbarro make shopping for your outdoor needs easier than ever. They provide top-notch service and advice on all of their footwear, clothing lines, camping gear and more. Expect friendly faces and a willingness to work with you on your specific outdoor needs. These guys know what they're doing.
Conveniently located in downtown Franklin NC


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I have been patiently (ok, not patiently) for the opening of Nantucket's newest boutique hotel Greydon House for months now. I'd seen sneak peeks and it looked to be right up my design alley. And now that it's open and the interior pictures have been circulating I'm delighted to say HOLY SH*T I'M FREAKING OUT.
This place is perfection. Total, complete perfection. Designed by the famous Roman & Williams (architecture by Emeritus Development– also fantastic), the interiors could not be more on target with the classically preppy look full of antiques and yet with modern touches. I think this is a magical project and I am counting the months until I can go spend a weekend here (I tried booking a room for Stroll a couple days ago and that was hilarious because of course every room on the island is already booked, especially these.)
Here's a peek at the fabulousness that is abound at Greydon House:
How charming- this was a doctor's office building in years past.
The logo and signage is so on point.
Adorable. Just adorable. I feel more relaxed already just looking at these rooms!
Oh, and there is a cocktail cart that roams the halls int eh evenings. A COCKTAIL CART YOU GUYS.
The bathrooms may be my favorite part….
The scenic delft tiles! I would have never thought to use something so traditional in a space like this but it is pure genius. With that bohemian striped shower curtain and the brass accents it's seriously brilliant design.
I love the color on the woodwork in the restaurant (which is apparently amazing)
I wish this was what my Thanksgiving was going to look like :)
The moody bar is incredible- from the scenis wallcovering (or perhaps mural?) to the modern/rustic wood stools and the rich woodwork. "Cozy" doesn't even begin to cover it.
The hotel also has a signature scent created just for them–it apparently has notes of "sunrise fog, ambergris, cedar, sunbaked canvas, fern, driftwood, iris root, coiled rope, violet, and midnight bonfire." Yup, that sounds about right, although I'm not sure how coiled rope smells….
An installation of what I can only assume is a collection of antique ship artwork.
The exterior is charming as well (worth mentioning- the location is PERFECT- right in town and walkable to all the fab shops and harbor)
So yes, as you can tell this is my jam. Has anyone been (I know it JUST opened recently off-season but please share if so!)
I want to also wish all of you a wonderful, happy, healthy Thanksgiving. I know this is a unique holiday in that tensions are high and people are feeling uneasy, so why not cut to the chase and post this sign outside your door tomorrow above a basket to let everyone know that this holiday is about gratitude and love and we should all focus on the blessings we do have and not our feelings of unease.
Download and print :)sign


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Health care rally takes to Williamstown Bridge
WILLIAMSTOWN — Carrying signs in support of "Obamacare" and chanting "Health Care is a Right" and "Trump Care is a lie, they don't care if people die," about 100 people from various groups braved the rain and marched on the Williamstown Bridge Thursday to ask U.S. Sens. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., and Rob Portman, R-Ohio, to stay with their stated opposition to what is now called the Better Care Reconciliation Act.
Organizers of the march said it was done at the bridge between West Virginia and Ohio to symbolically ask Capito and Portman to bridge the divide in Washington and reject the health care plan before the U.S. Senate.
Jeanne Peters, of Wood County Indivisible, said others represented in the protest were Next Wave Democrats, WBV Citizens Action Group and individuals.
"This is a great turnout in the rain," Peters said. "We wanted to span the bridge; we weren't able to but it was a great turnout. By our calculation it would take 250 people to do that."
Peters said there will be an interfaith service about the health care bill at 10 a.m. today at the First Christian Church in Parkersburg. For now, she said, she and others are waiting to see what will happen over the next few days after the Senate returns from its July 4th holiday.
While Capito and Portman have said they will not vote for the act in its current draft form, it does not mean they won't vote for it if certain adjustments are made, Peters said.
"We need to keep a strong message going to Portman and Capito there is no way to amend this bill to make it palatable for West Virginians and Ohioans," she said. "They say they won't vote for it in its current form but they can make some amendments and make some sweetener for them and put more money in opioid treatment among others."
Peters said in the view of the groups gathered Thursday the best-case scenario is to fix some of the problems in the ACA. "There are problems with it; it was never intended to be a finished product and it would have worked better if the Republicans had not been refusing to fund it properly all these years and refusing to make changes that would have improved it," she said.
"Our ultimate goal is to see all West Virginians, Ohioans and Americans have access to affordable health care."
Justin Glick, of Morgantown, vice president of programming for West Virginia Young Democrats, said the group is hoping to put pressure on senators to oppose the Better Care Reconciliation Act.
"We are hoping to put pressure on Senator Capito and maybe hopefully sway U.S. Reps. David McKinley, Alex Mooney and Evan Jenkins, all R-W.Va., to defend Medicaid and Planned Parenthood," he said. "We are here to put a young face on the protest."
Jennie Lee, of Parkersburg, said she wants to see Obamacare as it is or fixing it would satisfy her.
"We want everyone to be aware of the terrible health care plan they are trying to foist on the American people, that just 19 percent of the people support but they are determined to pass it anyway," she said. "Senator Capito is a very important weak link where we hope we can get enough GOP senators to vote against the bill."
Lee said she was able to buy health insurance for the first time in her adult life.
"I got insurance for the first time in my adult life three years ago thanks to Obamacare," she said. "I never made enough money to afford it and even my employer offered insurance, but I couldn't afford $80 a month on the pay I was getting."


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HONESTY is the BEST POLICY (Day 2 of Truth)
The following Post is for accomplishing Creative Challenge called 30 Days of Truth, given by Kellie Elmore. It is a unique exercise in self exploration and learning to be honest with yourself…
I won't consider to brag this thing as my Specialty. It's simply, Just the Way I am.
I really admire and believe in Honesty, Truth and Loyalty. And therefore, I like to be Honest,Truthful and Loyal to be with everybody. I neither like to be Fake nor tried to be Fake. Even I hate such phonies who are very Pretentious and Fake. For me, they are 'Big Time Losers' who really don't have any Identity of themselves. Get a Life, n00bs !! 😛
Well, so talking about my Honesty, this reminds me some instances of my Childhood Memories when we used to play Cricket in Streets. Whether I was batting, bowling, fielding or even just spectating the game, all the guys would treat me as an Umpire. Whenever there is a doubt in an "OUT" of the batsman, they all would appeal for it to me because they used to have a trust and belief that I would definitely give right and honest decision to them. Sometimes, Even I had also made mistakes by giving them some Wrong Decisions. But still, they would admit it happily without any argument.
This Honesty and Loyalty Acid Test is still being taken on me, even now being a Senior in my College. I honestly give suggestions to my Juniors when they ask my recommendations for Books and Study Materials. I don't tried my best not to misguide and confuse them from my views. What I've experienced so far, I just honestly tell them. I neither give Studious advices like "Study all time 24X7" nor Rebellious advices like "Study only at last minute". I simply just say to them," It really doesn't matter how much does it takes. The thing is, Study your Syllabus by taking some Interest on them and Learn it by Heart. Also, enjoy the College Life alongwith as well." 😉 8)
Moreover, I've many favorites of mine in every category of Sports Like – Cricket, Football, X-Games, WWE etc. and also in Entertainment Like- Movies, Music, Televisions Reality Shows etc. But I don't support Favoritism and Biasing while giving any opinions and reviews on them. I try to give my unbiased views right from the neutral as possible, so that people won't be having any doubt on later that I am giving my views on the basis of my own likings. Even my friend just appreciated for my reviews about Movies very recently by giving me "Best Critics Awards", just for FUN. 😛
But looking forward to The Real World, being Honest sometimes is like whipping your own ass. I'm not saying to be Fake every time with everybody. I would still say to be Honest, but with some Smartness. We all should know 'Where to say', 'When to Say', 'How to Say' and therefore, 'What to Say' to someone, because We can't be Honest with everybody around here. Moreover in these days, Some people won't be believing in you and your Honestly. The Fact is :- They really NEVER Trust you even if you are Honest and True all with them. This brings to another story, which I would reveal here later some another day. Anyways, Let's finally come to an conclusion :-
Be just the way you are. Don't Fake. Stay Honest and Loyal.
The above Post was for accomplishing Creative Challenge called 30 Days of Truth, given by Kellie Elmore. It is a unique exercise in self exploration and learning to be honest with yourself…


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The Russian LGBT Network today issued this call for international protests against the proposed national ban on "gay propaganda," which has already been adopted by St. Petersburg and many other Russian regions.
Dear colleagues, friends, and allies!
On Tuesday, January 22d, the Russian State Duma will consider in the first reading the federal ban of the so-called "homosexual propaganda" – Article 6.13.1, which would violate fundamental human rights to freedom of assembly and expression, as well as the right to seek and distribute information.
The law puts at risk not only activities of human rights defenders, but also well-being and lives of LGBT people in general, who will be exposed to even greater violence and discrimination due to institutionalized stigmatization.
On Tuesday, activists of the Russian LGBT Network are holding actions in several Russian cities to protest against Article 6.13.1 and to respond to the negative labeling of LGBT by the legislators.
Please support our action and join the protest by holding a demonstration in front of the Russian mission in your city on January 22d. Information about your plans for the action, as well as photos and videos, will be much appreciated. Please send them to [email protected] and [email protected].
Related articles
- Russia to decide on banning 'gay propaganda' (76crimes.com)
- LGBT world 2012: victories, setbacks, close calls (76crimes.com)
- Europe to Russia and Ukraine: Nix censorship laws (76crimes.com)
- Lady Gaga faces Russian 'gay propaganda' charge (76crimes.com)
- Russia LGBT propaganda bans — analysis brief 2012 (ILGA)


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Recently K. Scott Oliphint of Westminster Seminary, Philadelphia has published a book which he has called Covenantal Apologetics. I reviewed the book here and recommend it. But I expressed reservations about the writer's agenda of rebranding Van Til's apologetic teaching in line with the book's title. Coming as it does from one of the foremost representatives of Van Til's presuppositional approach around the thesis deserves attention. As I said in my review, by "Covenantal" Oliphint means the 'covenants' of covenant theology.
Now nobody is going to disagree that Van Til often spoke about fallen man as a covenant-breaker. And no one will dispute that by that designation he had in mind the theological covenants of Reformed Covenant Theology. You cannot read Van Til very far before running into statements he makes about 'the Reformed apologetic.' For example,
All men are either in covenant with Satan or in covenant with God. – Cornelius Van Til, The Defense of the Faith, 4th edition, edited by K. Scott Oliphint, 300.
This is the kind of thing covenant theologians say (or used to say). Van Til did not refer to his approach as 'Covenantal Apologetics', but I think he might not have minded too much. Still, is it right?
Van Til's argument for allying his apologetics with the resources of covenant theology should be seen against the backdrop of his conflating covenant theology with Reformed Calvinistic theology. But any reader of the Jacob Arminius is well aware that he too was a covenant theologian. This needs to be noted because Van Til's point is mainly anthropological and soteriological. He memorably observes,
We should add that according to Scripture, God spoke to man at the outset of history. In addition to revealing himself in the facts of the created universe, God revealed himself in Words, telling man about what he should do with the facts of the universe. Since the fall, all men, as fallen in Adam (Rom. 5:12), continue to be responsible for this twofold revelation of God given to man at the beginning of history. – Cornelius Van Til, A Survey of Christian Epistemology, 19
This is a point which can be made from the Bible through exposition of Romans 1:18-32 or Psalm 19. Among his other contributions to theology Van Til stressed this revelatory nature of knowledge before and after the Fall:
For Adam in paradise God-consciousness could not come in at the end of a syllogistic process of reasoning. God-consciousness was for him the presupposition of the significance of his reasoning on anything. – The Defense of the Faith, 113
But he did not always appeal to the Bible for his authority. Like so many covenant theologians of the past and present he counted on the Westminster Standards to support his contentions. So right after the above statement we read this one:
To the doctrine of creation must be added the conception of the covenant. Man was created an historical being. God placed upon him from the outset of history the responsibility and task of reinterpreting the counsel of God as expressed in creation to himself individually and collectively. Man's creature consciousness may therefore be more particularly signalized as covenant consciousness. But the revelation of the covenant to man in paradise was supernaturally mediated…Thus, the sense of obedience or disobedience was immediately involved in Adam's consciousness of himself. Covenant consciousness envelops creature consciousness. In paradise Adam knew that as a creature of God it was natural and proper that he should keep the the covenant that God made with him. – Ibid.
Here, as Oliphint explains in a footnote in this edition, Van Til is appealing to the WCF 7.1. The "covenant" to which Van Til is referring in this quotation is not any covenant found in the description of paradise in the first chapters of Genesis. The "covenant" is the 'covenant of works' invented, along with the 'covenant of grace', by covenant theologians as a theological explanatory device to describe our relationship with our Creator. No Scripture is provided to show the presence of this covenant, and for good reason: there is none.
In arguing for the name covenantal apologetics, Oliphint uses the same method. In all his argumentation for the idea there is a noticeable dearth of scriptural appeal. For instance, for his definition and understanding of the term "covenant" he does not go to the Bible but to the Westminster Confession (See K. Scott Oliphint, Covenantal Apologetics, 39, 49, 61-62, 93). The Confession does indeed refer to God's condescension in relating to us as "covenantal." But is that the way the Bible itself uses the idea of covenant? I think not.
For one thing, it begs the question to have the Westminster Confession authorize the name-change from presuppositional apologetics to covenantal apologetics. Without reinventing the wheel, I have tried to show in other places (e.g. here), that covenant theologians have misread biblical covenants, like the New Covenant, in fitting them into their extra-biblical inferential scheme. Oliphint himself does this on page 59 of his book when confusingly quoting Hebrews 6:17-18, which refers back to the Abrahamic covenant (6:13), and forwards to the New covenant, of which Christ is the Mediator (Hebrews 8 and 9 go on to explain this). But Oliphint's quotation is not in reference to either of these biblical covenants, but (as we saw with Van Til) in service of a supposed covenantal relationship enacted at the outset of creation.
Covenant theology has often been criticized for making their theological covenants ride roughshod over the clear covenants of the Bible, effectively stripping them of any specifications not required by their approach. The example just given is quite typical.
Like Van Til Oliphint wants man's knowing to be covenantal (44, 82, 152). But this is neither necessary nor particularly relevant. It is not necessary because our relationship to God need not be viewed within the terms of covenant. We would do better and would stay within the boundaries of the biblical text to speak of "creaturely obligations" or "image-accountability" than introducing covenant language. Although covenants in the Bible do establish relationships and commitments, no one is free to read and then define the terms of a covenant for which there is scarcely any warrant. And interpreting our knowing as covenantal is not relevant for two reasons. First because Arminians have often been adherents of covenant theology and Van Til was often at pains to try to show that only Calvinism could support his position (see, e.g. A Survey of Christian Epistemology, 81ff.). Therefore, his real emphasis while using the Westminster Confession should more often than not be understood to be Calvinistic. Second, because nowhere in the Bible is our knowing depicted this way. While all assent that the new birth brings with it new outlooks (cf. Rom. 12:1-2; Eph. 4:17-5:17), such things were hardly necessary in Eden. Divine covenants obligate God to do something. But in paradise we read of no such Divine obligation; still less do we read of a covenant oath! In Scripture, all the covenants which are plainly discoverable come after the Fall: indeed, they come after the Flood! Covenants are not required where the relationship is not sundered and in need of reconciliation.
In truth, while the genius of covenant theology may be brought to bear on Van Til's apologetic, the real issue is whether his approach is supportable from the text of Holy Writ. And the answer to that question is certainly Yes! As Greg Bahnsen showed in his Always Ready, there is plenty of biblical justification for presuppositional apologetics, without the need to appeal to covenant theology. While Bahnsen was a proponent of covenant theology, he wisely sought to establish his apologetics on a different and firmer foundation. What we want to know is whether Van Til's apologetic is biblical, and indeed it is. Because that is so the question of nomenclature might be easily solved by calling it, as a recent fine exposition does, simply Biblical Apologetics.
The question of whether covenant theology is biblical is much harder to prove.
It is my opinion that even Van Til's insistence that his apologetics demands allegiance Calvinistic Reformed theology is also unpersuasive, and for many of the same reasons. Van Til was rightly concerned with the "absoluteness" of God to be the ultimate environment of thought. He did not think Arminianism allowed such a thing because of its idea of free choice. Although I am not an Arminian I do think that Arminius has a very strong conception of God's primacy in choosing. Not all Arminians do. But then again, many Calvinists have deferred to concepts akin to natural theology in their writings. This opens the door to viewing men and women as operating in a revelatory and so accountable realm, and a (functionally) non-revelatory realm where they are free to decide upon matters of truth independently of special revelation.
What it all comes down to in the end is not whether or not Van Til or Oliphint would prefer it if their apologetics was referred to as "covenantal," but whether it would be right to insist on the connection. If we base our apologetics on the clear statements of Scripture, including the covenants of the Bible, our base will never crumble. but if we seek to base our apologetics upon 'covenants' which we are unable to prove from the Bible, we expose that apologetic approach to the same heavy biblical criticism with which covenant theology has been assailed. Presuppositional Apologetics might not be the best label, but it is far more satisfactory than an attenuated name like Covenantal Apologetics; especially when 'covenantal' refers, not to the biblical concept of covenant, but to the strained idea of covenant within covenant theology.


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As you probably know by now, we are big fans of i-escape and their wonderful selection of hand-picked hotels from all over the world. What I love about the i-escape site is that you can be totally inspired to try out new destinations and visit places you didn't even have on your radar. I also love that you can enter your specific interests and requirements, and they'll come up with a selection of awesome places that meet your needs. The only problem is choosing!!
To make your holiday planning easier and to narrow down the choices a bit, we've asked the team at i-escape to send over a list of their favourite kid-friendly hotels in Europe. I love this list! I'm so inspired to travel now! Which one is your favourite? (I think mine is the one in Puglia. We keep hearing so many nice things about Puglia and this hotel sounds amazing!)
Anassa, near Polis, Cyprus
Cascading down to a long safe private beach, this luxury resort appeals to children and parents in equal measure: kids delight in the plentiful array of toys, games and watersports provided in the all-ages kids clubs with daily changing activity schedules, while their parents enjoy the award-winning Thalassotherapy spa. There are oodles of facilities including heated kids' pool, restaurants with kids' menus, baby equipment to borrow and a small playground. Superb.
Borgo Egnazia, Puglia, Italy
A flawless family-friendly resort which offers great design and decoration as well as a fantastic free kids club and teens' games room, all ages will rejoice staying here. There are tennis courts, English speaking babysitters, a creche with qualified child-minders, playground, kids restaurant (summer only) and a choice of cool pools – a worthy recipient of an i-escape Best for Kids Award.
Quinta Bouca d'Arques, Viano do Castelo, Portugal
Head north from Porto into the Minho coastal region which the Portuguese believe their most beautiful for its rolling forested hills, lush river valleys and long sandy beaches. Just 12km inland, this 300-year-old manor house has boutique B&B apartments in both traditional and modern designs. Kids will adore the big lawn, woods to explore, secret wooden house and saltwater pool. There are communal BBQs in the evening and all apartments bar one have kitchenettes.
Ekies All Senses Resort, Chalkidiki, Greece
With a funky playful design, a heated saltwater pool, playground and playhouse, this beach retreat set on a tranquil bay with shallow seas also has two restaurants and a spa. Kids will love the organic juice bar by the pool and going on boat trips. Paradise for families!
Liss Ard Estate, Co. Cork, Ireland
While the weather is famously unpredictable in Ireland, you're guaranteed a warm Irish welcome and a magical time for outdoorsy children at this comfy country house hotel. There are 80 hectares of woodland, lake, lawns, ancient and modern earthworks plus bike trail to explore and a kids club operational during school holidays. If the weather does prove inclement, there's a well-stocked kids' room to play in. Best of all kids under 12 are free!
Azur Hotel, near Antalya, Turkey
Families on a budget will love this wonderfully unpretentious and friendly beach hotel set in idyllic shady gardens. There's a large pool with a shallow end, you're five minutes' walk from the sandy beach, and there's a small playground. Older kids will like going on boat trips, younger ones can toddle safely on large lawns. Bliss.
Le Portetta, Courchevel, France
Chic and ski are becoming synonymous terms these days, and this chalet-style hotel delivers on being family-friendly as well. There's a children's ski school opposite the hotel, you're slap bang in the middle of Courchevel 1650 ski resort which is the most suited for beginners and small fry in the Trois Vallees, and there are Family Rooms with bunk beds or lofts with sofa beds to choose from.
Captain's Club Hotel, Dorset, UK
Dorset has some of the best beaches in the South of England, and this contemporary hotel with nautical detailing has super views over the River Stour, and is close to both picturesque Christchurch Harbour and these lovely beaches. Children under 14 stay for free, there are 2 & 3-bedroom suites with their own kitchens plus a tasty children's menu in the restaurant.
Portixol, Palma, Mallorca
This tranquil boutique hotel has simply uncluttered Scandinavian interiors and a lovely swimming pool, and is set right beside the coastal promenade in a cool barrio of Palma, and is just 15 minutes from the airport – a godsend for families. There's heaps of baby equipment, a games room for older kids and there's an outdoor playground and park close at hand.
Palmizana, Sveti Klement island, Croatia
This laid-back, friendly and bohemian 300-hectare retreat has fragrant botanical gardens and two pebbly beaches on a car-free island. There's a choice of bungalows and villas, some with kitchenettes, and two restaurants serving kid-friendly fare, plus lots of watersports and two playgrounds nearby. What a find!
thats gas, i'm from ireland and had never heard of the liss ard estate!!!
I love the islands of Croatia! Sometimes you find little churches next to the beach. It is very special. Only the wine is not that good…
This has given me some great ideas for a summer break, thanks!
Looking forward to the summer – especially now when it's freezing cold here in the UK. Some great holiday suggestions which I'll definitely look into – an overseas holiday will make a nice change from center parcs (usually geared around the kids) Nice article….
Wow! Great resource! We currently live in Europe and I am always looking for something to take the kids to.
I highly recommend Pine Beach Eco Resort in Pakostane, Croatia. AMAZING beach! http://www.pinebeach.hr


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One of Vanity Fair's 21 Best Books of 2020 (So Far)
A Vulture, LitHub, and PureWow Most Anticipated Book of 2020
"As precise as any scientific observation and far more tantalizing." --Vogue
"A sophisticated, surprising take on the campus novel (with a welcome dose of witchery). Knight's writing feels a little wild and charged, as if you're constantly on the edge of discovering something new with her."
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A breathtaking and hypnotic novel about poison, antidotes, and obsessive love
Nell Barber, an expelled PhD candidate in biological science, is exploring the fine line between poison and antidote, working alone to set a speed record for the detoxification of poisonous plants. Her mentor, Dr. Joan Kallas, is the hero of Nell's heart. Nell frequently finds herself standing in the doorway to Joan's office despite herself, mesmerized by Joan's elegance, success, and spiritual force.
Surrounded by Nell's ex, her best friend, her best friend's boyfriend, and Joan's buffoonish husband, the two scientists are tangled together at the center of a web of illicit relationships, grudges, and obsessions. All six are burdened by desire and ambition, and as they collide on the university campus, their attractions set in motion a domino effect of affairs and heartbreak.
Meanwhile, Nell slowly fills her empty apartment with poisonous plants to study, and she begins to keep a series of notebooks, all dedicated to Joan. She logs her research and how she spends her days, but the notebooks ultimately become a painstaking map of love. In a dazzling and unforgettable voice, Rebecca Dinerstein Knight has written a spellbinding novel of emotional and intellectual intensity.


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The QBZ-03 is the mysterious conventional-layout younger brother of the more well-known Chinese QBZ-95 rifle. While the QBZ-95 uses a novel hybrid mechanism, the 03 uses the mechanism of the older 7.62mm Type 81 and 5.8mm Type 87, but marries this to architecture similar to the QBZ-95. Kurtis sends along a whole whopping set of photos of the QBZ-03 in use with PLA troops, most of which I've never seen before (WARNING: PIC HEAVY):
Thanks, Kurtis!


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Roads in London are safer than they were twelve years ago, but they have become more dangerous since Boris was elected.
Jenny Jones AM is leader of the Green Party on the London Assembly and Green Party Mayoral candidate for 2012
Four out of the five cycling deaths in the last nine days are linked to either the Mayor's red buses, or to his blue paint.
After almost six years of inaction on cycle safety, the rise in the number of killed and seriously injured have to be placed at the Mayor's door. That is why this morning he started blaming the victims, rather than talking about real solutions.
It is the lowest form of politics to direct attention to the mistakes that people may or may not have made as they cycled to work, or rode home to their families, in order to draw attention away from yourself.
The whole point of being Mayor is that you take responsibility for creating safer roads, where individual mistakes by a cyclist, driver, motorcyclist or pedestrian do not get punished with death.
Boris Johnson has previous form on blaming the victims, and repeatedly refused to apologise for the wildly incorrect statistic he used to claim that the majority of deaths and injuries where down to cyclist infractions of the rules. Transport for London refused to back up his claim and the Mayor reluctantly agreed it wasn't true, but it was a resentful, grudging conversation.
The Mayor even returned to his favourite theme that London's roads were getting safer for cyclists and he wanted me to apologise for saying they were not. The reality is that they are safer than they were twelve years ago, but they have become more dangerous since he was elected.
My office have been trying to get TfL to make the post 2008 calculation on the ratio of cyclist death and serious injuries since July. We wanted them to do it so that we could avoid another spat between me and Boris over who had better statistics.
Instead TfL have told us that 'they do not regularly publish' such figures and directed us instead to the raw data. The calculation seems easy enough so here it is:
In 2008, on average a cyclists could make 401,910 trips before being killed or seriously injured.
In 2011, the average cyclist could make 364,361 trips before being killed or seriously injured.
The 2012 figures will show that this trend has accelerated; I have no idea what 2013 will finally bring, but I suspect it won't be good news.
I have repeatedly warned Boris Johnson that his policies would lead to more death and injury. Whether it was slashing over £35m off the road safety budget, abandoning the road hierarchy which had previously made cyclist and pedestrian safety the top priority, or stopping safety improvements at junctions because they might create a traffic jam.
The Mayor made mistakes and stayed firmly in denial about the consequences. He still is. For all the talk of a £900m cycle safety budget, he still believes in those comments about keeping 'your wits about you' and 'there is no amount of traffic engineering that we invest in that is going to save people's lives'.
The solutions are obvious and uncomplicated. Make 20mph the default speed limit across London. Give space for cycling by taking it away from cars and lorries. Ban HGVs during commuter hours. Get rid of the major gyratories and start from scratch with the redesign of places like Bow Roundabout and Old Street. Fast track all the safety measures on the top 100 most dangerous junctions.
While the Mayor is doing all of that, he could start to enforce the rules on our lawless roads, so we no longer have 62 hit and runs a week in London, or a situation where the majority of drivers with over 12 points on their licence are legally allowed to drive.
As you're here, we have something to ask you. What we do here to deliver real news is more important than ever. But there's a problem: we need readers like you to chip in to help us survive. We deliver progressive, independent media, that challenges the right's hateful rhetoric. Together we can find the stories that get lost.
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7 Responses to "I warned Boris that his policies would lead to more cycling deaths"
Carol Wilcox
I posted this on Facebook and got this comment from a boris-loving-cycling-tory-mayor: "2008
was about the time of the crash, following which cycling increased in
popularity enormously, as a cheaper way to get around. This means there
were many more inexperienced cyclists on the roads. Yo, yourself, will
probably have noticed that there are more and more idiot cyclists taking
stupid risks. It is not surprising that accident rates have risen." What do you say?
How about getting the police to do something about bad driving?
Ah yes, you would rather spend 5 million chasing after Assange than do anything about the deaths on the road.
The police had 1,600 complaints over a 7 month period from cyclist. 1 may have gone to the CPS, but the inspector running the service isn't sure.
You must be pleased with your prescience then.
Ivan D
Why stop at 20 mph? What about 10 or possibly 5 mph? The cyclists would then be the fastest things on the road.
My worst cycling injury was caused by a car driver pulling out of a junction. He was doing close to zero and I was doing about 25 mph.
CS2 – Bow
TfL's own survey figures counted 60% of cyclists travelling E-W riding over the Bow flyover, possibly more bikes than motor vehicles at certain times of day. Conversely the bulk of the motor traffic goes to & from roundabout, where it joins or leaves the A102, and with the exception of buses nearly 100% of the motor traffic on that roundabout will have been a potential threat where the drivers drive through the strip of blue paint that is CS2. The risk only managed by the hope that both drivers and cyclists comply with the traffic signals and signage, with no fail-to-safe condition if either delivers a wrong-side failure. The introduction of a more complex system of traffic signals and timings runs counter to the best practice in risk management, by creating more variables rather than a basic black & white position.
By contrast the risk of a driver turning left or otherwise driving through the path of a cyclist crossing over the flyover is for all practical purposes zero – nil – zilch! Not only that but the route is faster and cleaner to cycle than that around the roundabout, with its roulette of chance in avoiding the vehicles going on or off the slip roads. I'm presuming that TfL produced plans for CS2 to both use the flyover, and go round the roundabout, and I'm at a loss to figure out why the decision was taken to send CS2 via the route that most cyclists were demonstrating they did not want – my own spot counts when having breakfast at the Three Mills Cafe suggest that the morning peak figure is closer to 70% of cyclists riding over rather than the TfL figure. It seems inexplicable that when the original CS2 route was shown to be so fatally flawed that TfL persisted with the Mk 2 version being very little changed with regard to the hazardous zones where a direct conflict between cycle traffic and motor traffic (6 different crossing movements for 4 junctions) still exists. This question has to be asked – was there a plan to take CS2 over the flyover, and if so why was the inherently less safe route around the roundabout selected.
How the risk assessment for Bow could be so wrong, presses the call to have clear transparency in mapping the potential hazards on any road design and showing a how a risk management plan is to be applied.
Ideally any failure of a road user to observe the required change of speed or direction to minimise the risk of hitting another road user should result in a fail-to-safe condition rather than a shrug of shoulders and "stuff happens" acceptance.
Manage Don't Ban
Put bluntly you won't be able to ban LGV's during peak hours, especially the most prolific and notorious type – the 32T rigid 4-axle construction site vehicles. These are the currency of muck and demolition haulage, with many of the major sites having 50 or more of these running between 50 and 60 mile round trips through London, between the site and the place to tip or recycle the loads. There is no space on the site to stockpile and the expensive excavation machinery has to be kept working, and so a big site might be shifting 3000Tons per day – or 150 trucks with a 20T payload.
Of course there are other ways to move such massive amounts of material in bulk. On the river it would take 1.5 to 2 barge strings with a couple of tugs. By rail it would be 2-3 trains, and on the Regents Canal just under 40 barge-loads. However supporters of the work to move freight on the water – especially the Regents Canal have a major fight to stop mainly residential developments from blocking out all access to use the canal for freight, and there is just ONE working wharf in Central London, which can handle barges of up to 500T capacity, but only able to load and berth at high tide. The rail picture is similar it costs just a few £thousand/year to maintain a connection to the rail network but £millions and a 2-3 year delay to restore or install a rail loading facility. The very transient nature of the demand for individual developments means that no developer is going to set up and run such operations, and so it has to be lead by TfL and the Freight Unit, which showed its worth in managing freight movements for the Olympics in 2012.
Risk Management
Management of freight traffic, as a ban would never be workable, will have many beneficial effects. That 60 mile trip with a 20T payload is made by the type of LGV that DfT research shows to cause the greatest damage to roads, a 44T articulated vehicle, carries 50% more, does less damage per ton carried and costs less to run. So the footprint of the haulage operation for a site in pollution (noise & emissions) road damage and risk (fewer trucks fewer possible crashes) improves even if the material still moves by road. Reduce the road trips to a small fleet of trucks making very short trips to load a barge or train, and it might even be sensible to consider a temporary 'truck lane' specifically set out to deliver safe crossing points for other traffic, and close control of the LGV movements.
Trucks too DO NOT HAVE TO HAVE SUCH POOR DIRECT VISION. The units used for refuse collection have the driving position practically at eye level with the pedestrian & cyclist outside. From alongside the vehicle you can look in and see the driver – not just the top of their head but the full body – and they can see you. No need for a forest of mirrors, CCTV, radar detectors etc Plain, simple, direct eye contact. The most certain way to avoid having 2 people walk, ride or drive into each other is to have them clocking each other eye-to-eye. The message – Make Eye Contact the Only Contact you make with other road users
Concrete for example might be mixed on a large barge, supplied by river with aggregates and cement, and pumping the mixed concrete ashore to load the trucks, or even directly to the site if it was close enough. The ultimate in reducing truck trips has to go to the new London Gateway facility, who got 90,000T delivered in one boat-load removing potentially 9000 truck trips from the roads of Essex, if the boat had been unloaded at another port.
A vital place to ACT NOW is to plan a reduced truck-use regime for the work due to start demolishing the Heygate Estate adjacent to Elephant & Castle. With the tonnages involved this could put an extra 200 32T tipper trucks on to the Elephant & Castle Gyratory and surrounding roads. Plan to make those journeys either short and on a closely managed route or non existent by loading on to rail via the railway that runs along the Western boundary of the site.
Driver Quality
It does beggar belief that a driver like Denis Putz could rack up 20 driving bans and a stack of serious motoring offences and still hold a vocational driving licence. Part of the problem is that whilst the Traffic Commissioners regulate the issue of vocational driving licences and attempt to prevent harm arising from a driver or operator of poor repute continuing to drive or operate LGV's and PCV's, the run of the mill issue of fixed penalty fines for a number of offences does not seem to get back and ring the alarm bells in good time.
Well in Scotland we have a Memorandum of Understanding between the Traffic Commissioner and Police Scotland to ensure she gets notified of every vocational (Class C,D,E) driver stopped for using mobile devices, and gets the opportunity to call them in for interview. If Sir Bernard wants to put the Met seriously behind this campaign to deliver less risk from bad LGV driving, he can make sure that every vocational driver picking up any fine or charge from the Met Police for a traffic offence is logged for a report to the Traffic Area Office Metropolitan & South Eastern, so that the Commissioner can monitor and act appropriately on vocational licence holders, and even the operators who provide the vehicles, who show "poor repute", to curtail or terminate their ability to pose a threat to all other road users.
If the Commissioner considers that a person will cause harm if permitted to continue driving large vehicles they can call them in for interview with the sanction of revoking the vocational element, and even taking away the full driving licence, for a period in some cases. We have this sleeping giant, perhaps we should work with it?


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How To Enter Raids All By Yourself
Many of us like to farm old raid instances. The only problem is that you need to be in a raid group with another person in order to enter raid instances. for In this 5 minute video I go over how to use Blizzard's free "Starter Edition" accounts to enter the instances all by myself without help from others and without paying for a second account.
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11 comments :
Use /run SetAllowLowLevelRaid(1) to make a raid with a lv1 character. No need for a lv10!ReplyDeleteReplies
What a wonderful command to know! This will make farming on other servers much easier.Delete
Nice walkthrough. I just added my account under another email, I wasn't aware you could have multiple on one battlenet account. Good to know.ReplyDelete
Also, remember that for farming Molten Core, you do not need to be in group to convert to raid. Just walk right in...
MC does a soft reset every few hours on trash mobs, and it takes about 30 min to run through and mush em to a pulp. There are a few transmog pieces that drop there (I think blizz wants me to have Hero's- I get a piece per run) so it's a viable farm.
You might want to check your AH for Fiery and Lava Cores due to the change, it seems there are quite a few farmers and they are less than a gold each on most servers... If you are a crafter, thats' good news. Buy em cheap and craft your MC BoE's!
Alto's Goldish Advice
Can't watch videos... :-/ReplyDelete
You don't need to stay in a group once you're in the raid instance.ReplyDelete
yeah forget all that just do /run SetAllowLowLevelRaid(1) miraclesReplyDeleteReplies
That was what Daimyoh was saying above. Good to know. Will have me a bit of leveling time.Delete
Also you can log off the starter edition character and it will remain in the raid.ReplyDelete
An offline character won't leave a raid unless you make it.
Now it is MoP time, and neither the lvl 10 starter edition char nor the /run... work. do they for you?ReplyDeleteReplies
I don't have my starter edition anymore and haven't done this ins MoP so I can't say.Delete
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- The Power Word: Gold Podcast - Episode 027
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Just when you thought I was gone!
|Battle buddy Ebony and I!
We reported this morning at 0700. After getting to bed at 0015, the 0500 wake-up call was painful. Totally my fault, I was running around at the last minute making sure everything was finalized for today. We did paperwork for three hours, with lots of (surprise, surprise) waiting around. We filled out our direct deposit papers, made sure everything was good with SGLI (life insurance), separation pay, housing allowance, etc. We moved over to another building to do height/weight again and I came in at 167.2 pounds! That's the lowest I've been in a long time, even with all of the eating this week!
We came home for a bit, ran some errands, and we leave late this afternoon. Gotta run, I'll update when I can!
The Numbers


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