text: Home Vision World News A CHAT WITH PAOLA GIANOTTI A CHAT WITH DAVIDE VIGANÒ Bozzone Third at IM Asia Pacific Championships Paola Gianotti, the woman of cycling records 7 Jun 2018 A CHAT WITH PAOLA GIANOTTI The Italian ultra-cyclist, Paola Gianotti, was the fastest woman to ride around the world by bike, with many more goals yet to be accomplished. In her latest adventure, which has just wrapped up, she covered the entire route of the 2018 Giro d'Italia a day earlier than the passage of pros. The entire route consisted of more than 3,000 kilometers of riding! The motivation of her trip was very special: To raise awareness on the issue of road safety for cyclists.Paola, how did it go?It was a great journey during which I had the opportunity to meet extraordinary people such as Marco Scarponi (Michele Scarponi's brother) and Marco Pantani's parents. I met many people along the way and many who accompanied me during the route. I was never alone during my adventure and it was fantastic!For such a long journey like this, being 3,000+ kilometers on the various routes of the Giro d'Italia, you needed reliable components. Tell us about the components of your bicycle.First of all, my VISION TRIMAX 30 KB wheels were fundamental. The first thing that I noticed was how comfortable the wheels rode. They proved to be light and flowing on the flat roads, while they also gave me safety through the downhills. In a nutshell, they proved to be ideal for any kind of route that I was on. I also used them through a variety of temperatures and weather conditions, even with so much rain! Despite the rough conditions, I didn't need maintenance for the full 3,000 kilometers.For such a long journey, you needed to "manage" your energy. How did you plan this out?Thanks to my FSA Alloy PowerBox crankset, I managed to ride mile after mile without making "trips". Additionally, I always had very precise data on my cycle computer in order to judge where my energy levels were. It was a basic travel mate! Related News 16 Jun 2020 Lachlan Morton Everesting Title! EF Pro Cycling Team member and FSA/Vision 6 May 2020 A DAY WITH EF SERVICE COURSE EF Pro Cycl 10 Mar 2020 Cameron Brown Grabs 6th at Ironman New Zealand "My 23rd New Zealand Ironman ended in a 6th place finish.


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Gifts for the trail rider and rig
Gifts for the mountain biker in your life
For wearing on the trails
The Garneau Mid-Season hoodie ($130) is a versatile and stylish piece. Throw it on for fall rides or even a jaunt on cross-country skis. The hood can be worn under a helmet. It has slots for slipping through helmet straps. You could also rock the hoodie after a ride. Wear the Garneau Off-Season shorts ($140) over tights and take advantage of their windproof, water- and abrasion-resistant fabric. If you heat up on the trail, zippers at the bottom of each leg can open things up.
The Pearl Izumi Versa shorts ($140) are at home on the trail or around the town. They feature a water resistant coating. Zipper pockets make sure your keys don't eject as you're riding. Subtle reflective parts won't remain subtle when light from a passing car catches them.
The small, unassuming Quarq ShockWiz ($541) can help you ride better on the trails. It takes measurements from your airsprung suspension to help you tune it just right.
The Syncros Matchbox Tailor integrated bottle cage ($90) carries a bottle and multi-tool with 14 items that will help with trailside repairs.
For your bike
Named for DH rider Steve Peat, the Lizard Skins Lock-On Peaty grips ($42) each get flanked by two rings, which affix the grips securely to your handlebars. The grips are neither too hard nor too soft.
The FSA Afterburner Modular X1 direct mount ($170) is a versatile mountain bike crank. By moving the placement of a 3-mm spacer, you can set up the crank for 142 hub spacing or Boost 148.

subset: commoncrawl


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Houston Rockets star Chris Paul may have just started the #LeBronJamesBenchChallenge.
Paul, a member of the banana boat gang, took to his Instagram Wednesday night to poke a little fun at good friend LeBron James after a photo surfaced the other night of James sitting three seats away from his teammates in a 42-point loss to the depleted Indiana Pacers.
LeBron James was alone at the end of the Lakers' bench and NBA fans had plenty of jokes about it: https://t.co/iMUpA4BsG3 pic.twitter.com/MU6E489fMP— Sporting News (@sportingnews) February 6, 2019
Fans had plenty of fun reading into this, especially with the entirety of the Lakers young core being involved in Anthony Davis trade rumors over the past couple weeks, and Paul and his Rockets teammates didn't mind getting in on the action.
The best part is you can see every player trying to hide their laughter.
With the NBA trade deadline just hours away, it remains to be seen if the Lakers will be able to lock down a trade for Davis. You can tell the trade rumors are getting to the team's young guys, especially with the effort they put forth in Indiana last game.
This is no different than when trade talks swirled around LeBron's Cavs this time a year ago. Cleveland suffered two blowout losses to teams they were obviously superior than, but most players had an idea they were being moved and didn't put forth any winning effort. As we know, the trades went down and the Cavaliers ended up making their fourth straight NBA Finals appearance.
But let's be real...that's not going to stop the trolling.


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Hold on to your flower crowns — Instagram just announced a game-changing addition to its video experience, and Coachella is involved in big way. Starting now, the latest version of Instagram's Explore tab will feature video channels, so you can watch content from across the globe as a "seamless viewing experience," according to the announcement on their blog. Though most of the clips will still last less than 15 seconds, themed channels will play a constant stream of videos, so you can tune in for however long you want. And because the clips will each contain their creators' handles, you can tap through to like or follow new accounts without leaving the Explore tab.
To start, you'll find a featured channel called "Videos You Might Like," a personalized collection of curated clips based on your activity on the app. And starting Friday night, there will be a Coachella-specific channel where you can experience the California festival's signature style, music, and overall chill from the comfort of your phone. Earlier this year, Instagram experimented with Explore channels at awards shows like the Grammys, the Oscars, and the Golden Globes, but this is the first time the feature will be available for a three-day event. "What we've seen is that people love to come together on Instagram around big moments like Coachella," Lauren Wirtzer-Seawood, Instagram's head of music partnerships, tells Teen Vogue. "So we wanted to try capture the sights and happenings of the festival in a way that feels really immersive, through the eyes of the people and music artists who are there."
It makes sense that Coachella is the venue for the update's debut, because Instagram and the festival are pretty interwoven. Even though Coachella-style fashion dates back to the '70s and the actual event made its debut in 1999, there's something distinctly modern about it because it's meticulously documented on social media, as most attendees are armed with their mobile devices.
While Instagram launched in 2010 as a photo-sharing platform, video has become increasingly important to the brand. In the past six months, watch time has spiked by 40%, and to respond to users' appetite for content, the platform has made a real commitment to better integrating video within the app. Back in February, the view counter appeared, and just a few weeks ago, celebs and influencers like Teen Vogue could start posting 60-second clips.
However, the Explore redesign is a new way to view video content altogether, and thanks to this new update, we can all transport ourselves to Coachella for the weekend, which is more than the original Woodstock-era festival-goers could ever say.


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by Tafi Stober
Come Together was released as the opening track of The Beatles album, Abbey Road, on October 6, 1969 in the US and was on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for 16 weeks. John Lennon wrote the lyrics of "Come Together" with a knowledge that the ambiguous lyrics would mean something vividly different to many different types of people. To refresh the memory of the lyrics to this iconic song, here's an indulgence:
Here come old flat top
He come groovin' up slowly
He got joo joo eyeballs
He one holy roller
He got hair down to his knee
Got to be a joker
He just do what he please
He wear no shoeshine
He got toe jam football
He got monkey finger
He shoot Coca-Cola
He say I know you, you know me
One thing I can tell you is
You got to be free
Come together, right now
Over me
He bad production
He got walrus gumboot
He got Ono sideboard
He one spinal cracker
He got feet down below his knee
Hold you in his armchair
You can feel his disease
Come together, right now
Over me
He roller coaster
He got early warning
He got muddy water
He one Mojo filter
He say one and one and one is three
Got to be good looking
'Cause he's so hard to see
Come together right now
Over me
The lyrics at first read, and without the popular musical track to support them, are quite an abstract departure from the story-telling songs that made the Beatles famous. However, the song gained a strong community around it as it hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Friday nights in Fountain Park have a similar response. Community is defined as a body of persons having a common social interest. In this case, that common social interest is music. No matter if Van Wert County is home or not, once in Fountain Park, it is one big family and we become one big community soaking in the sights and sounds that have become a hallmark of our historic downtown.
No doubt the artists this summer on the Fountain Park stage and their musical style will change from week to week - some of them sharing songs of great popular appeal and others presenting musical talents that may be lesser known or "abstract." But because our Friday nights are about community, all people from different walks, background, and beliefs - in and out of Van Wert County - will Come Together, brought into harmony by a song.
'"Let's slow it down with a swampy bass-and-drums vibe'. I came up with a bass line, and it all flowed from there," quipped John Lennon of the song Come Together.


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Martin Collins, observing a systematic denigrating (on the part of the 'intellectuals' in the Smithsonian Museum) of evidence of pre-Columbian migration from the Old World to the western hemisphere, examines the case of the Bat Creek Tennessee stone, an ar. . .
Many members of the archeological community suppress evidence of any Western Hemispheric explorations before Columbus, especially evidence of Semitic settlement.
Martin Collins, resuming his exposé of American academics who have deliberately sought to suppress evidence of pre-Columbian migrations of Old World civilizations, including Hebrew, Phoenician, Roman, Arabic, Basque, and Viking cultures, identifies settlem. . .
Martin Collins, asserting the presence of Semitic peoples on what was to be called the American Continent (named after Amerigo Vespucci) over 2,000 years before Columbus set foot in the western hemisphere, explains that this presents a nightmare to evoluti. . .
I have a pet peeve: I hate it when people flatly discount the Bible. ...
Martin Collins continues his expose of the deliberate and shameless suppression of pre-Columbian archaeology on the part of some members of the scientific community in order to preserve a pre-conceived 'party-line' narrative that Columbus was the first rep. . .
Martin Collins, reflecting on the old limerick about Columbus sailing the ocean blue, focusing upon the second almost-forgotten line, "to learn if the old maps were true," indicates that many explorations may have taken place to the western north. . .
Historical dating is not as easy as it may sound. Currently, several chronological systems are vying for predominance among scholars. What impact might this have on our biblical understanding of prophecy?
The insular world of biblical archaeology always seems to be waiting with the proverbial "bated breath" for the next big find that will stun the world. More than a hundred years ago, the great archaeologists of the day ...
The discovery of a clay bulla substantiates the account of II Chronicles 34:8, which avers that Josiah appointed Ma-aseiah to serve as Governor of Jerusalem.
John Ritenbaugh takes issue with certain misguided biblical scholars who claim Abraham was a primitive, backward donkey caravaneer or perhaps a mythical or composite figure. Abraham came from a highly advanced civilization located in Mesopotamia, highly ad. . .
This past Sunday, March 4, the Discovery Channel aired Titanic-producer/director James Cameron's controversial documentary, The Lost Tomb of Jesus. ...
Taking issue with misguided notions of the primitiveness of Abraham, John Ritenbaugh contends that the patriarch was an extremely learned man, a product of a highly advanced civilization. Far from being "an ignorant donkey caravaneer," Abraham wa. . .
Many institutions that have Christian or Jewish roots and links but are actually humanist and scientific in their approaches to their fields of endeavor.
John Ritenbaugh torpedoes some popular misconceptions about the father of the faithful, revealing that Abraham did not come from a primitive, but a highly advanced civilization, having huge multi-storied dwellings with running water and indoor lavatories. . . .
Secular scientists opt for political correctness, denying anything which would establish the historicity of the Bible, even the location of Joseph's tomb.
Because Abraham trusted God, his descendants have received unprecedented blessings. If the Israelites would have kept God's law, they would have served as a model.
Receive Biblical truth in your inbox—spam-free! This daily newsletter provides a starting point for personal study, and gives valuable insight into the verses that make up the Word of God. See what over 145,000 subscribers are already receiving.


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Danielle Earring
Regular price $150.00
Shipping calculated at checkout.
Translucent turquoise and gold plated glass beads with with one of a kind super rare small heart beads, turquoise square ceramic tile beads and shimmering moonstone.
Approximately 1 " w x 4 1/2" l
Each earring is made to order, please allow 3 - 7 days for item to ship


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I know, I know, I've been a very bad blogger – and for that I can only apologise. After a hectic second year at uni, concentrating on assignment after assignment, I've failed to give my blog the TLC it deserves. But summer is well and truly upon us, and with the next four months uni free, I intend on dedicating a whole lot of time to the blogging world!
Being a lover of all things fashion and beauty, I thought what better way to get the ball rolling than a beauty post. So here it comes..
If you've been a follower of my blog in the past, you'll be well aware that I have a slight addiction to all things nail varnish, eyeing up all the pretty colours and products whenever I visit a beauty store without fail. With the weather, *fingers crossed*, starting to get warmer, I've started to decorate my hands with brighter, more summery shades, and my favourite colour of the moment is by far this bright green from SEVENTEEN called Mint Bon Bon.
When purchasing this product, it felt like a bit of a risk as I've never really been one to wear many blue/green shades. But I thought I'd give it a go and after applying it for the first time it's safe to say I was a little bit in love. Not only does the colour look great, it applies really well and being a gel varnish, doesn't necessarily require a top coat (which, given mine is running stupidly low, is also a bonus!)
SEVENTEEN state that the product lasts 8 days without chipping, which I think is slightly ambitious. I found that it has a staying power of around 5 days, which for me is a lot better than other nail polishes considering I didn't apply a top coat. Overall, I'm just completely loving this shade, something which is starting to stress out my flatmates as I don't seem to be able to stop talking about (sad I know!) I will definitely look into buying more colours from the Gel collection.
What are your favourite nail varnishes of the moment?


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- This event has passed.
Celebrate The Girls with Lauren Ace and Jenny Lovlie!
August 14, 2018 @ 11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Come and enjoy story time with Lauren Ace and Jenny Lovlie, author and illustrator of The Girls. This is a lovely picture book that will immediately enchant young readers.
All Book Fringe events are free and unticketed – so just come along! Children will need to be accompanied throughout this event.
Four little girls meet under an apple tree and form a bond that grows as they share secrets, dreams, worries and schemes. This beautifully illustrated tale charts the girls' lives through ups and downs and laughter and tears. Find out how their friendship flourishes as the years pass by and the girls become women.
Lauren Ace is from south Wales, studied Drama at the University of Exeter and now lives in London, where she has worked in publishing for ten years. An award-winning publicist, Lauren looked after Julia Donaldson during her tenure as Children's Laureate and has managed campaigns for World Book Day and the announcement of Chris Riddell as Children's Laureate. The Girls is her first picture book.


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Herrera remains a favourite among United fans and has thrived since being bought back into the team by interim manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. But the Spaniard's contract expires at the end of the season and no extension has yet been agreed.
It means that Herrera is able to leave United on a free transfer and has been permitted to negotiate with overseas clubs since entering the final six months of his deal in January.
According to The Sun, PSG are willing to pay Herrera around £150,000-per-week over a three-year contract. The tabloid newspaper claims that despite contract talks having been progressing with United, the 29-year-old is now 'expected' to take the offer from France.
Having seen the initial English story, Marca claims to have also independently verified it. The Spanish publication alleges that Herrera is 'close to agreeing terms' with PSG.
Would be a great shame for #MUFC to lose Ander Herrera.— Jamie Spencer (@jamiespencer155) March 22, 2019
But if the stories on the €173,000pw PSG offer are true, you can understand why he would take it. At the age of 29 this is his last big pay day and sure fire way to win trophies before, one assumes, heading back to Bilbao.
If there is truth to the stories and Herrera does leave United it would come as a bitter blow to the club and fans, with the player once tipped to become the next captain.
Herrera first impressed United when he played against them for Athletic Bilbao in the Europa League in 2012. He eventually arrived for around £29m in 2014 and has played close to 200 games for the club in all competitions, winning the FA Cup, League Cup and Europa League.
Herrera, who played his way into the Spain national team in 2016 and 2017, is the only person other than David de Gea to be named Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year in the last five seasons.
Popular fellow countryman Juan Mata is also due to be out of contract this summer.


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Animation category
by Naddya Adhiambo Oluoch-Olunya | Sunflower Pictures | Kenya
Uzi is a 3 minute long 2d animated short about a perfectionist seamstress and her precocious daughter Kpokpo. The two of them are on a quest to make the world's most beautiful dress, so they travel all over Kenya looking for finest materials for the garment. They hunt for raw silks, bargain for rare beads and gather fresh cotton until one day, Kpokpo notices a single thread dangling from her mother 's dress. She gestures to her mother to fix it, and her mother impatiently grabs it, snips it, and they are on their way again. The pair don't notice, but as their journey unfolds, the thread unravels longer and longer…


text: SUGARCREEK -- Jacob J. Barkman, 74, of 3109 County Road 114, Sugarcreek, died Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2010, at his residence at 8:30 a.m.He was born Oct. 5, 1936, in Holmes County to the late Jacob P. and Lizzie Ann (Beachy) Barkman. He was a retired farmer and a member of the Old Order Amish Church.He is survived by his wife, Sarah (Miller) Barkman; five daughters and three sons, Barbara (Nelson) Beachy of Sugarcreek, Alma Barkman, Anna Mae Barkman, Ada Barkman and Miriam Barkman, all of the home, Monroe (Barbara) Barkman of the home, Eli (Esther) Barkman of Baltic, and Ivan (Susan) Barkman of Millersburg; 25 grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; and two brothers, Eli (Mattie) Barkman of Sugarcreek and Sam (Lizzie Ann) Barkman of Brinkhaven.In addition to his parents, he is preceded by his son, Alvin Barkman; two granddaughters, Sara and Eva Barkman; and two sisters, Susie (Eli) Mast and Esther (Sam) Miller.Services will be held Thursday at 9 a.m. at the Barkman residence with Bishop Mose E. Hershberger officiating. Burial will be in the Schlabach Cemetery, Clark Township, Holmes County. Friends may call anytime at the Barkman residence.Arrangements are being handled by Smith-Varns Funeral Home at Sugarcreek.


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Self-proclaimed "cosmic American" band Wilder Maker are set to release their new record, Zion, July 13th via Northern Spy Records. The latest single "Impossible Summer" is swirling and soothing, like the cool breeze that cuts the oppressive feeling of an August afternoon in New York City. Frontman Gabriel Birnbaum wrote the song about a time when he was losing touch with reality. Though written by Birnbaum, "Impossible Summer" is sung by longtime collaborator Katie Von Schleicher, who breathes a poignant softness into the track. "I cannot explain that summer," she sings. Their "Impossible Summer" will leave you scrambling to find any words at all. How often do you encounter a tune so inventive it sounds like Radiohead took a road trip with Joni Mitchell?
Wilder Maker once again defy genre stereotypes on their newest single. The Brooklyn-based indie outfit skirt the confines of the typical "folk" sound, so it's not fair to apply that label without tacking on some hyphenated sub-genre qualifiers. Their previous track was well praised, the engrossing "Drunk Driver" also from their upcoming Zion album.
Then in March we reveled in the more psychedelic "Closer to God" that evoked both Tom Petty and Kurt Vile. Whether you call their sound "neo-folk" or "experimental folk-pop,"
Of the many thousands of bands within the indie folk scene, few (if any) display the creative brilliance of Wilder Maker. These musical chameleons offer plenty for all music fans to love.
Wilder Maker is comprised of: Gabriel Birnbaum (lyrics/instrumentation/vocals), Katie Von Schleicher (keys/vocals), Adam Brisbin (guitar/vocals), Nick Jost (bass/vocals), and Sean Mullins (drums/vocals)


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Apartment Investment and Management Company (Aimco) (NYSE: AIV) today announced the results of the stockholders elections relating to the special dividend of $2.02 per share of common stock announced on February 4, 2019, which is payable on March 22, 2019.
Apartment Investment and Management Company ("Aimco") (NYSE: AIV) today
announced the results of the stockholders' elections relating to the
special dividend of $2.02 per share of common stock announced on
February 4, 2019, which is payable on March 22, 2019.
Until March 8, 2019, stockholders of record as of February 22, 2019
could elect to receive payment of the special dividend in cash or in
shares of common stock. Stockholders who made a cash election were
placed in a lottery that entitled the selected stockholders to receive
the entire amount of the special dividend in cash without being subject
to the proration described below. Stockholders who failed to make an
election by the deadline were deemed to have made a cash election but
were not entitled to participate in the lottery.
The aggregate amount payable in the special dividend consists of $67.1
million in cash and 4.5 million shares of common stock. For purposes of
determining the value of the shares issued in the special dividend,
Aimco used a price of $49.93 per share, which is the volume-weighted
average price of Aimco's common stock on the New York Stock Exchange on
March 11 and 12, 2019.
Summarized results of the dividend elections are as follows:
Holders of 5.4 million shares who elected to receive the dividend in
cash were selected in the lottery and will receive $2.02 per share in
Holders of 127.8 million shares who made no election, or elected to
receive the dividend in cash but were not selected in the lottery,
will receive $0.44 per share in cash and $1.58 per share in common
Holders of 11 million shares who elected to receive the dividend in
shares of common stock will receive $2.02 per share in common stock.
Cash will be paid in lieu of fractional shares so that stockholders
receive a whole number of shares of common stock. Following the special
dividend, Aimco will have approximately 148.8 million shares of common
stock outstanding, the same number that was outstanding immediately
prior to the reverse stock split effected February 20, 2019. Aimco
expects that the entire special dividend will be taxable as dividends to
its stockholders, whether paid in common stock, cash or a combination of
cash and common stock. For purposes of computing the amount of the
taxable dividend, any stock received by a stockholder will be valued at
the closing price of the Aimco common stock on March 22, 2019 ($49.98
per share).
About Aimco
Aimco is a real estate investment trust focused on the ownership and
management of quality apartment communities located in select markets in
the United States. Aimco is one of the country's largest owners and
operators of apartments, with ownership interests in 132 communities in
17 states and the District of Columbia. Aimco common shares are traded
on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol AIV, and are
included in the S&P 500. For more information about Aimco, please visit
our website at www.aimco.com.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190322005457/en/


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A travel-themed wedding day in Gloucestershire
Every so often we get a wedding that we just have to share with you and this is just such a one, because it illustrates beautifully how a travel theme can work. Lauren and Rachel married in June in Cripps Barn in Gloucestershire. Lauren's mother, Tina, is an Ambience stylist in Suffolk and styled the day for the couple. Read on, enjoy and get some inspiration for your big day!
Over to Lauren's stylist mother Tina, who describes to us how the day unfolded…
First thing
The day started with us getting the wedding cake, centrepieces and other décor safely to Cripps barn.
The brides had chosen a travel theme, as they have travelled extensively with their roles in the RAF and special holidays together. But they also wanted rustic touches to work with the feel of the venue.
They had chosen lots of little touches like the globe to sign as their guest book, the welcome sign on rustic wooden easel and the vintage suitcase for guests to leave their cards and gifts. There were even little packs of tissues on each chair "for our happy tears" and they were used by many!
The aisle was lined with silver lanterns and candles, but chairs were left bare, as they wanted the focus to be on the beautiful foliage and candles in the stone barn. The iron wheel hanging from the ceiling was stunning. The flowers were by Beth Cox a recommended florist at Cripps barn.
During the ceremony the harpist Jemima Phillips played softly in the background, but then changed the tempo whilst guest chatted and photos were being taken. She was amazing! And her repertoire was so diverse, everyone commented on her playlist.
The page boy Luca (Rachel's nephew) gave the brides the rings and was a star!
After the ceremony the guests went outside for Pimms, canapés and confetti throwing with lots of photos. The confetti of fresh petals in pretty paper cones was in a lovely wooden box tray.
Once everyone had found their table on the framed world map seating plan at the entrance to the room the master of ceremonies, Lottie, announced the brides to a huge cheer and every phone and camera came out!
The table centrepieces were jars trimmed with hessian and lace (the lace was from my wedding dress and covered the something old angle) containing flowers, tea lights and twinkly lights. All of which were sitting on a log slice along with mini wooden easels, with the table name being a map of a country that had a special memory to them and a Polaroid of that memory.
Each place setting had a folded napkin trimmed with a hessian band tied with string and a brown card name tag attached along with a mini parcel box with chocolate heart favours inside. We had prepared these together in advance.
There was also an easel with a hessian covered board, with photos of family members that sadly weren't there to celebrate with us, with tea lights burning to remember them.
The top table again was simply dressed, a hessian and lace runner, jars and foliage and another lovely sign "Mrs & Mrs Griffiths"
There were lots of laughter and a few tears during the speeches and as it was Father's Day, it was very emotional for Ian and David seeing their daughters marry.
After the meal, guests from both families spent time chatting and getting to know one another. The children loved playing outside with the giant garden games we had set up.
I had made the cake which was travel themed with 4 tiers lemon, fruit, chocolate and vanilla. It had a three and a half hour journey in our car the day before! I was so relieved once I had assembled it that morning.
I had covered the LOVE letters with a paper version of the iced map and edible bunting of the cake.
Once the cake was cut the Brides had their first dance and then everyone hit the dance floor!!
Later when it was dark outside we went out with sparklers, which everyone loved. Then there were bowls of marshmallows and skewers and we headed for the fire pits to toast them. The children were in their element, and there were lots of sticky faces.
We had the most amazing day and it all went so fast!
I wanted to do so much on the morning to help set everything up, but I had had strict instruction from Lauren and Rachel, that I was to enjoy the day and not be stressing about décor!!
It appears on the Hitched top 10 rustic venues and I can see how it earned that accolade! I only wish it were in Suffolk and I could go back and style weddings there!
Thank you to Adam Drake photography


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(503) 238-5510
2011 BMW 328i
2011 BMW 328iVin# :WBAPH5G52BNM72841
2011 BMW 328I, ONLY 65,000 miles! Finished in blue water metallic with gray leather. Loaded with a cold weather package, premium package, moon roof, and a staggered set of 19" TSW 5 spoke wheels and nearly new tires. Never before has it been involved in any accident as seen by its clean and clear Carfax vehicle history report. A simply terrific car with great miles in even better condition!


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Center of the Universe
Nobody cares about you. They don't want you to succeed because you're not worth it. You have nothing to offer them because you are not unique in any way, shape, or form. All your positive qualities and skills add up to zilch in their eyes. Unless you are a tool they can use to better…Read More
Cheaters Always Win
"This game cheats for people who are good at it!" my sister screamed as she threw her controller at my face. I ducked quickly, narrowly avoiding disaster as it smashed against the wall, denting the plaster. She was only thinking one thing, "Why is the world out to get me?!" as she got up off…Read More
Chautauqua UK & Self-awareness
Chautauqua UK is a magical place where people at all stages of the journey to financial independence meet to discuss ideas, validate numbers, play football in the pool, and fly drones (check out the video below). I just spent the last 2 weeks in bloody England. I started out at the first ever Chautauqua UK…Read More


text: Andre Rison was a star receiver with the Atlanta Falcons back in 1994 when he and his girlfriend, hip-hop singer Lisa "Left-Eye" Lopes, had a little tiff. It ended with the their breaking up, after Lopes set fire to Rison's $1.3 million mansion. Despite the melodramatic gesture, Rison later forgave her and they got back together. Now comes word that the happy couple will make it official, tying the knot in a July 5 wedding at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. You might say Rison's been carrying a torch for Lopes all these years.


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HUNTINGTON — Despite rates declining nationally, the obesity rate among children ages 2 to 4 participating in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) in West Virginia increased from 14.4% in 2010 to 16.6% in 2016, according to the newest data published this month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In West Virginia, 30,504 infants, and children participate in WIC, and the state has the third-highest obesity rate in the country among children ages 2 to 4 participating in WIC. Nationally, 13.9% of children in this group have obesity, but that rate has declined both nationally and in 41 states and territories.
WIC is a federally funded program for low-income pregnant women, new mothers, infants and children under age 5. It provides healthy foods and nutrition education, promotes breastfeeding and supports nursing mothers, and offers health care and social-service referrals. WIC served approximately 6.3 million people in 2018, including nearly half of all infants born in the United States.
North Carolina and Alabama joined West Virginia in seeing significant increases in the obesity rate. Kentucky's rate rose almost 3% between 2014 and 2016, but at 15.9%, it is still lower than the 18.2% rate in 2010.
Ohio's rate declined from 13.1% in 2014 to 12.4% in 2016.
A study done by the Coronary Artery Risk Detection in Appalachian Communities (CARDIAC) Project in 17 West Virginia county schools during the 2018-19 school year found half of fifth-graders in those counties were considered overweight or obese, according to a story in The Register-Herald newspaper in Beckley.
The study included kindergarten, second- and fifth-grade students. Counties included Wayne, Mason, Lincoln, Boone, Mingo and Wyoming.
Researchers found 37% of kindergarten students and 43% of second-grade students were obese or overweight. In addition, nearly 1 in 10 of the sampled children showed warning signs of diabetes.
Any child found to be overweight or obese in the CARDIAC study became eligible for Health in a Snap, a program that offers dietary counseling, educational classes and additional resources at no cost to families. The program is a partnership of the WVU Extension Service's Family Nutrition Program, West Virginia University Medicine and CARDIAC.
Kristin McCartney, Snap-Ed director, said the goal is not to cause body image issues with children, but to encourage families to make a healthy difference.
"Obviously, this is no an individual problem, McCartney told The Register-Herald. "We need to work on increasing access to healthy foods and we need our kids to be more active."
Other data show it is not just youngsters in West Virginia dealing with obesity.
West Virginia has the highest adult obesity rate in the nation and second-highest rate for kids ages 10 to 17, according to the state Department of Health and Human Resources. The adult rate is currently 39.5%, up from 23% in 2000 and 13% in 1990.
West Virginia also ranked highest in the nation for the prevalence of poor physical health, poor mental health and activity limitations due to poor physical and mental health.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation said credits the progress in WIC obesity rates nationwide to positive federal and local changes.
The package of foods and beverages covered by WIC was updated in 2009 to include more fruits, vegetables, whole grains and lower-fat milk. Later studies show that, following those changes, stores started to stock healthier options and WIC participants had healthier diets. In addition, states have increasingly adopted improved child care nutrition standards.
To continue the nationwide progress, the foundation recommends Congress:
- Increase WIC funding to extend eligibility to postpartum mothers through the first two years after the birth of a baby, and to children through the age of 6 to align with participation in school meal programs.
- Fund the WIC Breastfeeding Peer Counseling Program at its full authorized amount of $90 million to ensure mothers have access to critical supports.
- Continue to support and fund efforts to streamline and modernize WIC services through technology, including achieving the congressional mandate for all states to achieve WIC Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) by 2020.


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Boise, ID USA – 27 June 2016: DigiTar, Inc. today announces Microsoft's Approval of DigiTar, Inc. for Microsoft's Tier-1 Cloud Solution Provider "CSP" program.
Starting today DigiTar owns the complete Microsoft customer lifecycle, allowing it to easily sell Office 365™ and Windows Intune™ subscriptions and help customers take advantage of cloud services by owning the entire billing process and directly managing support.
"To meet the growing demand of our cloud-based solutions, we're thrilled to expand the capabilities for cloud partners under the Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider Program," said Phil Sorgen, corporate vice president, Worldwide Partner Group at Microsoft Corp. " By joining the Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider Program, partners will deepen customer relationships and expand business opportunities in the cloud."
"DigiTar has innovated in cloud technologies for more than a decade and believes that joining the Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider program allows us to build stronger relationships with our customers and provide them with the best cloud solutions to propel their business." said DigiTar President, Dale Williams.
SEC Chair Mary Jo White
Cybersecurity is the biggest risk facing the financial system, says Mary Jo White, chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
White made the assessment of the cyberthreats faced by Wall Street in her response to questions at the Reuters Financial Regulation Summit May 17, Reuters reports.
The SEC has found some major exchanges, dark pools - private forums for trading securities - and clearinghouses did not have cyber policies in place to match the sort of risks they faced, White said, according to the Reuters report.
We've been hard at work on enhancing Safe Browser with new features, and a few important bug fixes (there's more goodies coming soon too!).


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There are some truly stellar holiday kits out right now and I urge you to run, don't walk to your nearest Sephora to indulge! Soon the holidays will be here and these sets will be no longer. This is one kit you don't want to have pass you by. The deal is out of this world. Make Up For Ever's Extravagant Glamour Set is a $63 value that retails for $38.
In this kit, you'll find:
– 0.12 oz Rouge Artist Intense in 43 Moulin Rouge
– 0.04 oz Aqua Eyes in Matte Black 0L
– 0.23 oz Smoky Extravagant Mascara in Black
The pointed edge of the Moulin Rouge lipstick allows for a precise application. This is an absolutely gorgeous red and I've been getting so many compliments when I wear it. It's a richly pigmented, blue toned red that I find to be so flattering. It lasted 6 hours on me before it started to fade, and when it did, it left a nice stain behind.
Smoky Extravagant is an amazing mascara for so many reasons. It creates curl, volume, definition, and length all at the same time. I love that the brush gets skinny at the tip. It allows me to get in the corners of my lashes and I can apply to my bottom lashes with ease! The formula doesn't flake at all which is a relief! I have itchy allergy eyes lately, and I'm constantly rubbing. I need something that doesn't leave behind the evidence of my eye rubbing!
Aqua Eyes in Matte Black is a wonderful, creamy formula that is also waterproof and budge proof. It stays all day and glides onto my waterline as well. It's really a true black, and very pigmented. This is one of my favorite eyeliners for staying power! You won't be disappointed, and this gift set is the perfect time to try it out if you haven't already.


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Certain characteristics of crumbling empires are historically recurring, and pattern recognition practitioners are thus informed and so forewarned. Their discourse is labeled contrarian, hysterical, strident or radical, depending on the source of criticism, who seldom survives the subsequent reality to be told, "I told you so." That's not the point anyway.
Napoleon in Russia, Rommel in North Africa, the Japanese at Pearl Harbor, the Romans, the Incas, Vikings, Mongolsall representative of empires whose downfall was precluded by geographic overextension of the armed forces, one of the aforementioned ubiquitous characteristics of regimes whose days are irrevocably numbered. And then currencies: the German mark, the Italian lira, the Zimbabwean dollardiluted and inflated to astronomic excessanother sign of a civilization on the brink of decline, and perhaps, collapse.
Literature assures us that a nation who refuses to learn from the mistakes of previous generations is bound to repeat them. That legacy is now before us.
The surest symptom of a country that has lost the ability to objectively and correctly assess its position in the global pecking order and thus act appropriately is when it begins to abandon allies because the allegiance is no longer convenient.
Does this sound like anyone we know?
In the news from Egypt, an American-originated declaration of Mubarek's impending resignation and departure is resoundingly refuted by that embattled leader. The United States Federal Reserve announces it will buy "back" $97 billion in debt, according to MarketWatch, which goes on to state the Fed has bought "$397 billion in U.S. debt since August." The world's most powerful nation in the 20th century has in the 21st passed its prime and is suffering horribly from dementia. It's like watching a faded starlet in Hollywood try to strut down Rodeo Drive, a laughingstock to passersby, but she convinces herself that she's still 'got it,'
How does the central bank of a nation $14 trillion in debt keep coming up with money to buy its own money? Is it not supremely revealing of the extreme depths of delusion to which this so-called bank and its governors have now descended? The fraud inherent in this perpetual shell game is obvious to all except the hucksters moving the shells around and the dupes naively trying to follow the pea shell in the hopes of winning a prize. The audience knows there is nothing under any of the shells.
The concentrated ownership of mainstream financial media among six major U.S. corporations is evident in the perpetual fact warping that now passes for news. Any measly percentile of fabricated statistic is seized upon as rosy evidence of a return to robust economic health, while the plethora of legitimate indications to the contrary is completely ignored.
The de facto collapse of American influence over the Middle East is ominous for Israel, gathering frigates and aircraft carriers of the U.K./American allied forces notwithstanding. If the solution in Egypt is to be democratic and moderate, it will be under the impetus of the Egyptian people forthwith, and no American proxy will be legitimized. Bu continuing to meddle in the politics of the region, the United States galvanizes new enemies among those formerly who only harbored a distaste.
Authoritarianism has come to an end in Egypt for the time being. The outcome of what looks like will be free and fair elections will determine who is in charge of the very large and entrenched system of violent domestic control. Mubarek might be gone, but the secret police apparatus is intact, and will pass in one form or another to the next government. Should fundamental Islam prevail, the might just be a step into darkness, as opposed to towards light.
Russia has an authoritarian regime and no democracy. The wall came down but state control is now back in force, stronger than ever, as evidenced by that nation's propensity for violence towards journalists and dissenters.
And what is the difference between the clashes with students in Beijing in Tiananmen Square and the protests in Tahir Square in Cairo? The main one is that whereas in Cairo, the army sided with the people, in Beijing the army is fanatically aligned with the leadership.
Gold Doesn't Care
The fact that gold's price performance in the last 40 days or so digresses thoroughly from its normal course during times of Mideast instability amid severe monetary and price inflation is evidence that either the price of gold is directly manipulated by banks, or that the coordinated campaign of disinformation by the Big 6 media division of the U.S. Treasury has finally become so finetuned as to hypnotize recipients of its message. In either case, $2 billion in redemptions of Gold ETF GLD makes one wonder what has changed fundamentally to justify such a selloff in a month where global instability and inflation are robust?
Or have those with a vested interest in the appearance of a stable dollar realized that they could use the billions of dollars in quantitative easing to directly influence demand for and thereby price of gold by incrementally building large holdings in gold ETFs, and then dumping them in compressed timelines to help generate severe price swings?
How very ingenuous to use the strength of gold's demand and price metrics to undermine those very same dynamics! Buy up ETF shares with dollars fabricated out of thin air, and then dump the built-up position in a single month to drive superficial dollar demand and coincident gold aversion. Whoever dreamed that up should get the Congressional Medal of Honor and go straight to jail.
These short-term machinations aren't relevant in the long run, however, and only provide buying opportunities for those building a store of value in precious metals. Pundits speculate on an impending day of default for the U.S. dollar, when to sovereign bondholders, that day has come and gone, and the big players are tiptoeing to the exits accumulating gold as they go. When we finally shine the light on them and acknowledge the default has already occurred, the gold and silver price explosion to the upside beyond $2,000 will begin in earnest.
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Fiat World: Uprising and Down Falling


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Response: Father
Editor Kirsten Larson, Editor's Choice, June 29th, 2015
"I...make pretend ashes out of burned photographs of him."
In our monthly Response Column, NAILED asks readers to respond to a particular word or topic. We are seeking raw, honest personal responses that aim less to answer questions and more to raise them. Responses in the form of art, photography, essay, story, poem, and rant will all be considered for publication. July's topic is BREAKUP, please email your responses to email@example.com by July 2oth, for publication at the end of the month. (Word count limit: 1,000 words.)
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Response: Father
Ashes and Afterthoughts, by Nicola Anaru
When my father died earlier this year, it was not a tragedy so much as a waste. They say that alcoholism is a battle, but my father didn't so much as mutter under his breath, let alone put up a fight.
Bottle to lips, cradle to grave; his addiction was a proxy for terminal anger, terminal sadness, terminal boredom. It must have been damn boring in the end; by then his athletic frame had swollen, his bruised, puffy legs no longer able to support his weight. He curled his anger inwards, refused visitors, and shrouded his condition in secrecy.
Each morning, his wife would set a six-pack on his bedside table. When night fell, she gingerly placed a bucket by the bed, to catch the spurts of blood that gushed from his mouth in the darkness.
My father did not want to be remembered. He left no inheritance, expressed no love, no regrets.
My name was tattooed on his arm, as if I was something that happened to him and left a scar. We regarded each other warily; he with a mild curiosity, and I with a simmering resentment for the negligence of his four children.
His fifth child was introduced to us at the funeral, who wanted nothing to do with the rest of us and left shortly afterwards. Like father, like son.
Bereavement had cracked me open by then anyway, taut fists wiping away salt water. None of us children were mentioned in the eulogy, we had been erased even as we diligently sat in the front pew. I keep learning and unlearning how very little I matter, how so much I am cared for comes from those in my circle.
How do you mourn the loss of someone you have never had? My own grief is unsteady, background noise at a frequency I cannot always hear.
I went to his house to beg for mementos to pass on, my sole effort to be useful as the eldest child. His wife gave me a few belongings in a plastic grocery bag. I examined each of these in turn – his wallet, wristwatch, and a couple of rugby jerseys. As thankful as I was to be able to present these treasures to my grandmother, they brought me no comfort.
No keepsakes were necessary to recall that in life, he had no child support, no time, and no warm embrace to offer me. I was less than an afterthought, he a small pile of ashes to be scattered in my absence.
Nicola Anaru is a writer and artist residing in the Pacific Northwest. Her work has appeared in Cirque, and she is an alumni of the Voices of Our Nations Arts Foundation (VONA) memoir workshop. She is learning to value her own voice.
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The Father Incident, by Bárbara Moura
Bárbara Moura graduated in Film at the National Film School of Portugal and then moved to London where she did her MA Applied Imagination in The Creative Industries at Central Saint Martins. The main connection between her subjects is herself, as she believes we are our own biggest case of study. Her illustrations focus on emotional experiences personalized by characters that are essentially self-portraits. She is currently working on the illustrations for a book of feminist poetry aimed to raise money for women's charities and women who were victims of sexual slavery.
To view her artist feature for NAILED and a gallery of her art, go here.
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Another Sunday, by Negesti Kaudo
Yesterday was Father's Day. I know I'm not the only young woman alive without a father to celebrate. I know that my sister and I are not the only ones sitting around in the house watching Netflix and pretending as if it's just another day. And I know we're not the only ones who have forgotten about the holiday for so long that each year it seems to be slammed into our faces harder than before.
This year it was more important than ever, but it's been thirteen years since the last time I celebrated. It was Father's Day in my email inboxes, on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, the radio and television. Everyone had barbecues and Sunday dinners and church picnics…I had my thoughts. I was accosted by photos of my friends and their fathers, their grandpas, their uncles, and while I scrolled through the photos and cliché captions on posts their fathers may never see, I wondered if I should post one. If I should get the stepladder and dig through the foyer closet and look for an old Polaroid of me, my sister and our daddy. I wondered if it would be appreciated, or if I'd just be the fatherless girl bringing down everyone's good vibes. I didn't post a photo.
What do we do on Father's Day for those of us who don't have the privilege to celebrate with them? I taught my sister how to deep-condition her hair and spent the day watching Scandal. It's just the two of us – the only full-blooded siblings in the family – and we don't talk about our dad too much. I wonder when we both grew out of the phase of calling him "Daddy" and began to refer to him as "Dad" or "my father" in my case. And I wonder if she thinks about him as much as I do, I think she does, but in different ways. She thinks about the man we never had the privilege to know and what he did before us and I think about the man we knew and try to piece together an image of him before he got sick, before the cancer, and before April 11th.
Thirteen years ago, a few days after his death, we visited my father's house on Leonard Avenue for the last time. Houses lined only one side of the street, each yard sloping upwards to meet its foundation. We walked up the stairs, and I noted the bean tree weighted down with ripe green beans and the piece of green siding on the house that was hanging after being stuck by lightening. The wrought-iron screen door welcomed us in and behind it hung the Ethiopian flag, the lion of Judah allowing us entry into an empty home, a cluttered home, one packed with memories. We were there to take some of the memories. My dad was an artist, so we took an oil painting and a wooden statue. I took two things. I ignored my yellow bucket of thrift store and vintage toys for a bound Lion King lyric book and from the fireplace, I took a framed photo of me and my dad and it was mine, not my mother's, not my sister's, mine.
In the photo, his dreadlocks are long and a combination of thick and thin, traveling down to his waist. The dreads on his beard hang low enough to cast a shadow on his bare chest. Dreadlocks hang in front of the Ethiopian cross hanging around his neck, silver on his sternum. He has light brown skin, like dark honey or black tea that hasn't steeped for too long and there is a tattoo on his arm. I'm sitting upright in his arms, carefully being held, and his ringed finger holds onto the front of my onesie. My dad is staring down at me in his arms, in my yellow onesie, but I am staring at the camera or behind it at my mother who is most likely behind it. This is the moment: father-daughter pride, father-daughter love, a moment that cannot be recreated or realized until too late.
And two months later, after we've left the house, and the funeral has happened, and we've finished out the school year, two months later, my sister and I sat at a half-day neighborhood summer program and made Father's Day cards with the rest of the children. We drew dreadlocked little girls and a dreadlocked man. We wrote "Happy Father's Day" and "I love you" and "I miss you" and we took the cards home. In a corner of the living room, my picture sat on the floor, leaning on the wall and sunshine streaked across its glass-less frame. We tucked the two cards in the back of the frame and never said a word and there they sat, for years, becoming discolored and remaining unread.
When I was eight years old, I stopped celebrating Father's Day.
Negesti Kaudo is a twenty-one-year-old, Midwestern girl who indulges in writing raw. A recent college graduate, she intends on pursuing her MFA in Creative Writing in the fall. For now, she's currently working on getting adulting "right" and writing down the stories that emerge from it.
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The Pilgrims, by Daniil Maksyukov
Daniil Maksyukov (1995) is an emerging street photographer living and working in Russia. Although photography is currently a hobby, he would one day like to make a life long career in documenting Russian life. He has achieved recognition and several awards for his work and is most passionate about candid shots, capturing the truth and pulse of life in the streets around him.
To view his photo essay "Junk and Gems" for NAILED, go here.
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Sunday in My Father's House, by Hollye Dexter
The thwack of the daily paper on the front porch announces the start of a new day in my father's house. Slivers of morning sun squeeze through the blinds, always shut tight. A caged bird screeches against the drip and hiss of morning coffee brewing, while a candy-apple cardinal feeds freely outside the window. The shuffling of slippers, TV news and gospel music is our cacophonous morning song. A fog of cigarettes and something frying in the kitchen settles over me like a blanket. Glenn Beck rants from car radio speakers as we head out for Sunday church services where my family, two gay and one ex-con, will all be Baptists for an hour and ten minutes.
At midday, the Texan sun overthrows the clouds, summoning youngsters outdoors to ride bikes and catch balls and tattle on each other while cicadas and jaybirds compete to be heard and dogs meander then curl around our feet. Dad and I sit in lawn chairs talking, as we always do, about God, politics and prison. Ru Pauls' Drag Race blasts from the TV inside where my brother gives haircuts on the kitchen linoleum.
Humidity rolls in from Galveston as the sun fades in a blood-orange sky. Phones ring, dogs bark, the back door swings opens and shut as kin stop by bearing Texas-sized pecan pies and Bluebell ice cream. Dad's Jambalaya simmers on the stove. We siblings sneak margaritas then hide the tequila from him. Harsh words and tender exchanges will take place in this kitchen before we hug goodnight, accepting the way it is, and who we are.
All is still but for the blare of five televisions tuned to different channels. I am lulled to sleep by the low hum of factories steadily pumping their toxins into the night sky. A low and mournful train whistle punctuates the stillness, reminding me that soon I, too, will be leaving. Jesus hangs solemnly on his cross over the kitchen sink, eyes closed, expressionless.
Hollye Dexter is author of the memoir Fire Season (She Writes Press, 2015) and co-editor of Dancing At The Shame Prom (Seal Press)– praised by bestselling author Gloria Feldt (former CEO of Planned Parenthood) as "…a brilliant book that just might change your life." Her essays and articles about women's issues, activism and parenting have been published in anthologies as well as in Maria Shriver's Architects of Change, Huffington Post, The Feminist Wire and more. In 2003, she founded the award-winning nonprofit Art and Soul, running arts workshops for teenagers in the foster care system. She currently teaches writing workshops and works as an activist for gun violence prevention in L.A., where she lives with her husband and a houseful of kids and pets. www.hollyedexter.net.
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Untitled Painting, by Shawn Huckins
Shawn Huckins (1984) was first introduced to painting after inheriting his grandmother's oil painting set at a young age. As an adult, it's taken a route through studies in architecture and film, plus a stint living on the other side of the world, for him to gravitate back towards art. Since graduating from Keene State with a major in Studio Arts, Huckins has taken inspiration from 18th Century American portraiture to 20th Century Pop Artists and preoccupied his work with a contemporary discourse on American culture. He currently lives and works in Denver, CO.
To view his gallery artist feature for NAILED, go here.
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Hoarding Halvah, by Rochelle Newman
I am your daughter. You taught me how to hold on to a newspaper clipping as if it held a secret piece of a puzzle. Every scrap of paper a clue. Precious evidence and supporting material stored for an investigation. I watched you file away our histories. The drawers in your desk and the dark moss green Pendoflex folders created hammocks of information. They were packed so tightly not another thing could make its way in.
I yelled at you for not letting me get rid of your beyond-a-shadow-of-a-doubt junk mail; even mom's junk mail. A postcard from the drycleaner saying "We Miss You." Of course they missed her. We all missed her. She had been dead for twelve years. When you weren't looking, I scooped up envelopes by the pound, keeping an eye out for the ones with a life of their own. The ones you covered with your handwritten scrawl. A random letter, bill, or Publisher's Clearing House solicitation, covered with reminders, dates, reference information. Selected out of hundreds, you established a relationship with certain pieces. You made it virtually impossible to throw those away.
"The caregiver says I left the stove on. But I checked it with a match. I was a boy scout. I know how to check for gas. She is making things up. I have been using my stove for many many years. I use wooden matches to check for gas. She says that's dangerous. I was a boy scout."
The other side of the same envelope read:
"Helen came today at 6:45. We went to the Grove. We had a good time."
I look for clues. Ways of understanding who you were, what you were going through when I was little and when I wasn't. You were always a mystery. It would be too easy to point to the effects of aging, of memory loss, of early onset Alzheimer's. The loss of your wife, my mother, the loss of your independence. Too easy. The scribbling notations on scraps of paper, furious writings that captured your concerns; concerns you would articulate over and over again, draft after draft, until you thought you had stated it or supported the idea as clearly as you possibly could. That's always who you were. It just became more senseless as you aged.
Women are taught that they will become their mothers. They don't warn us that we become our father's too.
I named them time capsules. Purses stuffed with random papers, business cards, pens and receipts. These purses hold items of little use and growing piles of change. They hold a moment in time. I retire these purses with their contents intact. I save time by not sorting through the contents. I save time by not worrying about things I might need when and if I might need them. Things will be there.
Perhaps that's the logic you used when you left my mother's clothes and shoes frozen in time. Untouched. Unmoved. Perhaps your time capsule is stored in a closet instead of a purse. Or on the bureau? There was the wig my mother wore during the worst of her cancer years. Before her hair grew back. "Better than it had ever been," as she would say, always looking for a bright side. You wouldn't let any of us touch that wig and make it go away.
"It was your mother's," you warned us whenever anyone suggested it was time to throw the wig away.
"It's not hurting anyone there," you insisted, thinking only of yourself.
I judged you harshly as I piled my own piles and created my own time capsules without the scrutiny of a daughter to condemn me as old, forgetful and foolish. Perhaps that's why I never had children. They're quick to judge but not quick to look in the mirror.
I'm not sure what I thought I was going to find when I landed on the Bank of America checkbook box. The kind they use to mail checks to your home when you run out. I'm sure I must have been looking for secret treasure, a bar of gold, or a secret stash of wealth that only you knew about. I lifted the top of the box with care, pulling up ever so slowly, until the contents were revealed.
Halvah. You had taken a half eaten bar of halvah and made it fit quite comfortably in that cardboard Bank of America box. You stored it beneath your mattress, on what would have been your side of the bed if the other side had still been taken. Part of the red and white crinkly plastic wrap was still there, with the moustachioed, turban wearing Joya Candy man smiling knowingly, protecting the chocolate covering that clung to the chalky, oily bar of Halvah itself.
What power did you have over me in your death that would make it impossible for me to part with this hidden Halvah? I put it aside, certain that it would only last as long as the clean up did, certain that it would come to a respectful but ritualistic ending as I bid it farewell and with it you. Days of cleaning. Purging and keeping. The Halvah remained intact.
In that unattractive, bland, brick of tasteless texture I saw your smile, all of your teeth–flossed daily and cavity-free, as you loved to say. I felt your big hands with their rough, square fingers tightly holding my little girl hand; wanting to hold my young woman hand only to be ignored. In that Halvah was the justified paranoia of an aging aerospace engineer, terrified of losing memory and memories. Terrified of having some stranger steal his Halvah or deny him that Halvah, as one would punish a child.
I held on to that Halvah. In doing so I held on to you.
Rochelle Newman is an MFA student at Antioch University in Creative Non-Fiction. An award winning playwright and stand-up comic, who leads a dual life as a US Hispanic marketing specialist, Rochelle is a frequent contributor to Advertising Age. Her literary work and interviews have been featured in NAILED, Lunch Ticket and other magazines. She is based in Los Angeles but always proud of her Lower East Side NY roots.
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Tug of War, by Alyssa Monks
Alyssa Monks, born in 1977 in New Jersey, began oil painting as a child. She studied at The New School in New York and Montclair State University and earned her B.A. from Boston College in 1999. During this time she studied painting at Lorenzo de' Medici in Florence. She went on to earn her MFA from the New York Academy of Art, Graduate School of Figurative Art in 2001. Monks currently lives and paints in Brooklyn, New York.
To view a gallery and artist feature of Alyssa Monks, go here.
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Making Pretend Ashes, by Mo Daviau
My father was born in 1910; I in 1976. He died in 1992, when I was sixteen. A few years after he died, I found out that Antoinette, the star of many of the stories of his life, was still alive.
Antoinette was my father's first girlfriend. By all accounts, he was loyal and loving and devoted to her. After he graduated from college, he returned to their tiny French-speaking town in Maine to marry her, and when he saw her after his time away, he realized he couldn't. He'd changed, and she hadn't, so he went back to New Orleans and married someone else. The last time they ever saw each was sometime in the early 1960s, over dinner somewhere in New England, their respective spouses in tow.
It was 2001, Antoinette was in her nineties, lucid and limber, worried about the day she'd turn 100 and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts would take her drivers license away. Me, in my twenties, the human representative of my father's late life, on a mission to gather some crumbs of his life's story. Strangely, I was embarrassed to meet her. It seemed improper to show a nonagenarian New England lady the hunger I had to mine information from the last living person who knew him as a young man.
"It was a long time ago," she said of my father, because she knew I had traveled to her home in New Bedford to hear the stories. Her Boston Brahmin accent stretched those words into something more dramatic, like she was reciting a line from an old Bette Davis movie. I didn't ask her about the man who did marry her, who stayed with her for sixty years, or their daughter, or the grandkids whose photos stood in frames around her house. I asked her about the man who'd left her, and me too, though under different circumstances at different ends of his life. "There was a lot of love there. He loved me very much. The Daviaus were a nice family. I remember that."
She told me her stories. Some I remembered hearing from my father, some re-told by mother, others new to my ears. She took me into her bedroom, where the décor remained untouched since the 1950s, and opened the drawer to her nightstand. She took out the Tulane University bracelet my father had given her seventy years earlier, put it on her wrist one last time, and asked if I'd like to have it. I said yes.
Antoinette then pulled a small photograph from the drawer where she kept her treasures. "This was me back then. High school, when I was George's girl."
The round face, the hair that I assumed was brown, even though it was the black of a black and white photograph, the sweet smile of a French-Canadian girl in knee-high boots and a cotton dress. There was something familiar about young Antoinette. I had stumbled across one of my dad's secrets, or maybe caught a nip of something in his subconscious mind. Would he, had we known each other as adults, have confided in me what I saw, or what I thought I saw, in Antoinette's photo of her young self?
I didn't say to Antoinette what I was thinking, because it was conjecture on my part. But the secret that I had partially made up in my mind based on that photograph, that he fell in love with my mother not because she was young, cute and told him she was in love with him in an uncharacteristically bold move, or because they shared a magical connection that transcended explanation, but simply because she looked like young Antoinette, which tugged on his nostalgic heart. In this version of his life, written by the daughter who, by the stretch in our years, he made a time-traveler, a reminder of his youth walked into his office in 1968 and asked for a job, and then his love in return.
I know I can't know that for sure, but I've spent most of my life writing, if not about my father, then from the pain of his loss. Someone once recommended, since we never had a funeral for my father, that I hold a belated one now, and make pretend ashes out of burned photographs of him, to bury or spread in the sea. The stories about him that I make up based on faulty bits of information satisfy my desire for the real ones. I can't have the real ones, just as I can't have his real ashes. Even if what I imagine what drew my father to my mother isn't true, that he fell for my then-twenty-year-old mother because she reminded my father of his first love, I'm going to keep it.
In a moment of candor, Antoinette said what I'd been thinking. "I know you're here to talk about your father, dear, but remember, most of my life he was not part of."
I said yes, Antoinette, I know. Me, too. And for the rest of the afternoon, we talked about other things.
Mo Daviau is a writer and performer currently living in Portland, Oregon. Her debut novel, Every Anxious Wave, will be published in February by St. Martin's Press. Follow her, here.
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It started with SEO, otherwise known as Search Engine Optimization. This was the first internet marketing tool utilized by the masses. That has caught on so quickly that it is almost a dying resource at this point, but social media marketing has taken the reins. Social media is the center of the marketing world right now, and companies that don't get on board aren't going to see the success that their competition does. Every marketing blog, professional, and SEO company will tell you just how critical it is to utilize social media effectively in your marketing.
As of 2015, a new "S" word has arrived: S-Commerce. Also seen as s-commerce, S-commerce, and Scommerce, this new resource is going to change the way that companies do business. Social selling, essentially, is what S-commerce stands for. It is a way for social media networks to integrate buying features right on their platforms, engaging customers all the way through the purchase process. This will be great for social media brands and businesses alike, but it could also affect the traffic and sales occurring at the direct website of the business.
S-commerce is still being tested, for the most part, and has not become a full-fledged service just yet. Twitter and Facebook are gunning for the chance to offer their users a "buy now" option from their favorite companies and brands. Other social networks are getting on board, as well. Because the internet has become so heavily reliant on social media, it only makes sense to take the marketing to the people in the same way.
Social commerce is how marketers are going to leverage social media marketing to influence the shopping behavior of consumers. A collective definition has been compiled that offers a more detailed explanation of s-commerce:
● A subset of e-commerce that utilizes social media to assist in buying and selling products and services
● The act of consumers engaging in conversations related to products and services, which segue into recommendations, purchases, and more
● The marriage of social media and e-commerce
● Tapping into social media with a goal of increasing sales and purchases
● Technology that facilitates interactions resulting in the purchase of goods or services
● Shopping-oriented social media marketing
● Encourages sharing rather than private shopping and personal buying
● The ability of consumers to purchase products directly (within 2-5 clicks) from social media websites
How would you define social commerce? Is it having an influence on your brand yet? If not, these are tips to keep in mind that will help you prepare.


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WORK EXPO Work Fair
Fall 2017
Ideą przewodnią targów jest stworzenie płaszczyzny, na której pracodawcy i osoby zainteresowane podjęciem pracy, stażu lub praktyk będą mogły skonfrontować wzajemne oczekiwania i wymagania.
Technical organization of events
We provide services in the implementation of the technical or complex service for trade fairs.Learn more
Individual booths creation
We provide exhibition booths tailored to individual customer needs.See ExpoCode offer
Upcoming events:
January 2019
WEDDING DAY Trade Fair
XII Wedding Fair
The event is addressed in particular to future young couples and people who are preparing for events such as a carnival or "prom" and ones that take care of their attractive appearance and following new trends.
6 - 8 April 2018
Construction, Interior Design and Garden Trade Fair EXPO DOM
The biggest trade fair organized by the MTR, the event which is known to be one of the biggest events of this industry in Poland, and by the opinion of the exhibitors is considered the best in Poland.
5-6 March 2019
EDU SALON Education Fair
XIV Education Fair
Education Fair is an important event in educational sector, they are propagated among students of all secondary schools and teachers from the are of Podkarpacie.


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Yes, I missed our county fair this year. Yes, I was sad to not see all my very talented friends' entries. Yes, I am such a fair junkie that even though I wasn't going to be in town during the fair, I still entered! This was due thanks to Lesley who dropped off and picked up my entries. Thanks Lesley! And congrats on your best of show, well done!
As I've said in the past, part of what I enjoy about entering the fair is to receive the judge's comments. So here's what the judge had to say this year! First, my two knit entries.
This was my first scarf and second knitting project ever. I used some of my rabbitbrush dyed yarn in a pattern called branching out. Judge's comments: strive for consistent width.
This was my second shawl, made with some of my blackberry dyed yarn. Judge's comments: beautiful delicate piece. Combination of stitch patterns appreciated. Scalloped edge noted. Strive for consistency in stitch.
So now for knitting I know I need to strive for consistency – a nice phrase!
And now my three quilt entries, two of which are from my recent infatuation with half square triangles.
My half square maze, a small wall hanging. Judge's comments: a subtle and pleasing asymmetrical design. Placement of lights and darks create good contrast. Very good machine quilting. Good binding technique.
And a larger half square quilt, crib size, in a chevron pattern. I don't think I've posted a picture of this one yet! Judge's comments: hole noted in fabric of center taupe block. Color placement well developed. Excellent piecing. Excellent echo quilting and quilting stitch. Very good binding technique.
And my playful mosaic quilt. Judge's comments: Graphically beautiful design. Originality appreciated. Faced seams noted. Some stitching problems noted on back. Strive to perfect binding corners. Machine applique well done.
There you have it, a nice blend of positive constructive criticism. I especially like the world strive. Next year, I'll not miss the fair, honeymoons only come one time around. I'll be posting pictures of my travel quilt soon!


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Look at what I've been doing...
Soaking (yup, it bled. A lot).
Forgetting to sit down while I am talking.
It took me a year, but I did it. I made a sweater for me.
- Top-down Raglan Cardigan by Cosmicpluto If I recall correctly, I started with 91 stitches, and then increased for longer than the pattern indicated, to cover my ginormous shoulders. I also made the pattern about four inches longer than indicated (not entirely on purpose, but I'm pleased anyway).
- Plymouth Galway, nearly seven balls, colour 1890.
- 4.5 mm needles.
- Started February, 2007, completed February, 2008.
This sweater spent a long time hibernating, because I wanted to work on other things. If I had worked on it exclusively, it probably would have taken me about three weeks. Since last August, it's needed a sleeve and a half. I finished that final bit in two days, spread over two weeks.
I am quite pleased that I will be able to wear it yet this winter. Hey, there has to be one advantage to this miserable weather.


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The image of a beautiful girl, half-naked, playful, elegant and sexy. Fine art, called pin-up. Reproductions of pictures in the style of pin-up in our online store in front of you. Choose, order and buy blonde girls pin-up art prints and learn all about the features of this style.
The word "pin-up" means a poster that is pinned to the wall. Motherland of pin-up art prints - America. As the term refers to the style of American graphics of the twentieth century with the image of a beautiful, often semi-naked blonde, dark-haired, or redhead girl.
Pin-up art prints were widely distributed in the second half of the twentieth century in America, these are bright jocular frivolous images of beautiful blonde girls considered to be the standards of beauty of that time.
The models of pin-up art prints were mannequins, celebrities, who later became sex symbols of the era. So, as a pin-up model, ideally an attractive woman should look respectively. Famous models of a pin-up woman were Ava Gardner, Brigitte Bardot, Betty Page. How were the pin-up pictures created? Most often, the image was painted by the artists from the photos.
Gil Evgren is an American illustrator, the heroines of the pin-up art prints of whom are not the famous mannequins, but the neighbor blonde girls, the author depicts the models in playful spicy situations, as if caught unaware. For example, the wind blew a skirt or the dress caught on fence;
Charles Dana Gibson - American illustrator artist, the creator of "Gibson's blonde girl" - the ideal of feminine beauty of the twentieth century;
George Petty is an American illustrator, his paintings with semi-naked playful blonde girls became very popular among American soldiers of the Second World War, images of beauties found their place on US bombers.
Over time, men models apperaed on pin-up art prints. American photographer Rion Sabean created a series of pin-up images with male models imprinted with wide-open eyes in sexual positions.
Modern pin-up images are photos processed in Photoshop.
Agree, what kind of blonde girl does not want to have her playful pin-up portrait art prints in the style of America of the 1930s: expressive arrows in front of her eyes, scarlet lips, lush skirts. This is a masterpiece whose beauty is your favorite.
In our online picture production shop, we will produce art prints and murals for your living room or bedroom qualitatively and quickly.


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Earlier, the small rivulets namely the Tarajan, the Borkhal, the Athubhonga Jan and Mohuwajan functioned as the outlets of the excess rainwater from inside the Jorhat town. The water immediately rush out through these 'Jan'(rivulet)s even after a heavy shower. But due to large-scale encroachment and construction works, the rivulets were narrowed down in several places. The Athubhonga Jan and Mohuwajan will become non-existent within a short span of time if the same situation goes on. The blocking of these outlets is the main reason behind the artificial flood inside the town.
Moreover, several pools in the AT Road inside the town are under construction which also prevented the water from passing through the earlier canals from the northern side of the AT Road to the Southern side. The drainage system in the town is not properly working to let the clogged water going out of the water-logged areas of the town.
The mushroom growth of new constructions in the town without a proper masterplan has turned the situation even worse. Now a single shower is enough to submerge the entire area under artificial flood. Like Guwahati, the capital city of the state, Jorhat too is gradually facing the dire consequences of unplanned construction during the rainy days.


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More than 200 international students will be formally welcomed to Hamilton on Wednesday at event hosted by Hamilton City Council and Study Waikato.
The event, to be held at Hamilton Gardens Pavilion, signifies the importance of international students to Hamilton's education providers and will involve students from countries across Europe, the Middle East and several Asian nations.
More than 3000 international students attend primary schools, intermediate schools and high schools and tertiary education providers across the Waikato.
The students will meet Hamilton Mayor Andrew King, who says he regards events like this as one of the privileges of his role as the city's elected leader.
"Often the students wouldn't meet the mayor or elected leader of their town, city or region, so there is a sense of excitement among them," Mayor King says.
"I find they're often keen to chat for a few minutes and there's usually the need to pose for plenty of photographs, too!"
Mayor King says international students are an important contributor to the economy of the city and New Zealand as a whole. In recent years, Education New Zealand and New Zealand Government reports have estimated international students contributed about $4B a year to the country's economy.
"Through international student enrollments at Waikato University and Wintec, Hamilton's getting a decent slice of that economic benefit," Mayor Andrew says.
Wednesday's event starts at 10.30am, runs for about two hours, and includes performances, a mihi for the international students, plus kiwiana food and treats.
Media are welcome to attend.
Comments are closed.


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Mastering copywriting is something that every entrepreneur should do.
For those of you who aren't familiar, copywriting is the art and science of writing copy that sells your products or services. The purpose of copywriting is to convince prospective customers to take action.… [Read more...] about Mastering Copywriting: How To Turn Your Words Into Cash | Jon Benson


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The role of a communications intern is geared toward a student in their final two years of school who is studying in the field of journalism/mass communications, advertising, public relations, or marketing. For this internship, we are looking for an individual who is a stellar writer, great with words and enjoys creating engaging content. This PAID internship is 20 hours per week for 8-12 weeks, but may be modified to meet requirements based on school and specific credits.
Valuable internships require that you learn enough to be more competitive on the job market, and that the employer receive enough work for it to be worth their time to train you. If you can commit to this duration, and perform, then we believe we can make the experience worth your while.
We inspire industry leading businesses in the Manufacturing, Finance, and Healthcare fields to become optimistic about their website, marketing, and brand.
You will be introduced to a wide range communications-related projects and tasks, including writing copy, working within a content management system, creating social media content and advertisements, crafting email campaigns, planning digital marketing campaigns and more.
The goal of your work is to create content that doesn't feel like "selling," but instead feels like a story, a conversation, or a community. In order to do this, you'll need to have solid writing skills, but you'll also need to think creatively in terms of the target market you're writing for/about.
If you are an excellent writer and communicator who is passionate about digital marketing and can handle multi-tasking, we'd love to chat with you.
Email your cover letter and resume to email@example.com. If you would include your LinkedIn and writing samples, that would be great.
Business & Inquires (814) 461-1322
Splines Reticulatied by Werkbot Studios, LLC 2018
1001 State Street, Suite 800 - Erie PA, 16501


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Dr. Ken Canfield is a nationally known leader and scholar who has committed his life to strengthening fathers and families. He founded the National Center for Fathering – fathers.com – in 1990 and has been involved with many other organizations during his career.
Dr. Canfield has served as a consultant to media, national, state and community leaders—often in partnership with his wife, Dee. Ken has testified to the National Commission of Children (1990), served as a founding member of the Father to Father Initiative (1995-2000) and the National Fatherhood Leaders Group (2002-2006). He has been recognized for his leadership and was awarded the Father of the Year (1993) by the National Congress for Men and Children, the Most Outstanding Alumnus Award (2006) from his alma mater, Friends University, and the Polish Presidential Medal of Honor (2007).
Dr. Canfield has keynoted and presented at dozens of state and community conferences including Fatherhood Summits in California, Florida, Indiana and Kansas. In addition, he has taught his "7 Secrets of Effective Fathers" two-day conference to over 125,000 fathers in a variety of community centers as well as military and faith-based settings.
He is the author of numerous articles, both popular and scientific, and has written twelve books, including The 7 Secrets of Effective Fathers, The Heart of a Father, The Adventures of Fatherhood Series, They Call Me Dad, and most recently, The HEART of Grandparenting, as well as several book chapters in collaborative texts.
Besides publishing, Canfield was heard on a daily weekday radio commentary, Today's Father, which he began in 1993 and aired on over 600 stations nationwide. He has been interviewed on The Oprah Winfrey Show (twice), NBC's Today Show, ABC's World News Tonight, Focus on the Family, 700 Club, and numerous other radio and television programs.
Ken is also founder and president of the National Association for Grandparenting (grandkidsmatter.org), believing that grandparents are a missing and needed addition to strengthen the family system.
Ken and Dee have been married more than 40 years. They have 5 adult children (three daughters and two sons), three sons-in-law, one daughter in-law and eleven grandchildren. Currently they reside in the Midwest and are active members in their church.


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Wholesaler and manufacturer for earthing, surge & lightning protection and cable trays.
Flat Tape conductor hot dip galvanized steel (St/tZn),
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Bojangles vs. SWVA Wildlife Center
February 13, 2019
In a heated controversy are the local Bojangles franchise owners versus the Southwest Virginia Wildlife center of Roanoke. The disagreement stems from the Wildlife Center's hope for expansion, which include plans to build a bird sanctuary. This building would be a safe place for injured birds to go to recover and have ample space to fly around.
On the opposing side, there are several homeowners whom have objections to the amount of traffic. The road that leads to the center also happens to go through the properties of the objectors, allowed through an easement.
The current argument has so far consisted of several public hearings, votes, and a lawsuit. Landowners such as the Seymour family, who own the Bojangles on Brambleton in Roanoke County, have complained about the amount, speed, and noise of the traffic going to the Wildlife Center. Two other families, the Mavers and the Creasys, stand behind the Seymours as shared property owners. These three families argue that the land should not have been zoned for use by the Wildlife Center in the first place.
"I wish everyone could get along and I'm sorry for their being uncomfortable. I don't know what to do about the road," said Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center Executive Director Sabrina Garvin, according to WDBJ7 News.
The Southwest Virginia Wildlife Center is apologetic that the disagreement ever began, but currently fights for the ability to expand. This disagreement continues on with the hopes of reaching a conclusion sooner than later.
Hi, my name is Ava Wagner, and this is my fourth and final year with Titan Times. I have enjoyed being on the newspaper because of my continued interest...


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A part of me has gone to England- is that like a holiday? The Shore - Serpentine Shuswap Marble Contemporary Sculpture that swivels on a Vancouver Island Marble base and Fluid - Alabaster Sculpture now live in the U.K. It was a day of fun, reconnection, laughter and play in the studio. It was a great day.
A Holiday?
Leave a Reply.
Stephen Cole


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Cute animal characters in cartoon style: a white bunny, a siamese kitten, and a raccoon. These illustrations are great for kids books, children's clothes, invitations and greeting postcards, prints and apparel.
In the archive, you get both scalable and editable vector files (.AI, .EPS10) and high-resolution raster .PNG files on transparent background.


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Earlier this week I joined Secretary Sonny Perdue as he visited California to meet with citizens and see firsthand forested communities ravaged by recent wildfires. It was a fitting prologue to the Secretary's announcement yesterday of a new strategy that aims to improve the condition of America's forests—across all boundaries.
Expansive work is needed to reduce fuels and threats from insects and diseases on all forests. Poor conditions demand treatments at a scale that match the immensity of the problem. But we can't do it alone. We need to set priorities at a state-level scale. Secretary Perdue's announcement of a new strategy for "true shared stewardship" calls for stronger collaborative decision-making with states and partners, and it employs new technology we can share. Together they will help us to invest in high-priority lands that actually can make a difference in conditions across the entire landscape. It will take us beyond the successful, local preventive treatments that don't measure up to the scale needed for lasting impacts. My visits this week to communities in the Northwest gave sharp focus to the need for a strategy that lines up with the realities we see on the ground. "Toward Shared Stewardship Across Landscapes: An Outcome-Based Investment Strategy" sets us on a course to do just that.
Shared stewardship simply means we share decision space with states, partners and tribes. Together we choose the right tools, the right places and the appropriate scale to invest our resources. We jointly set priorities that incorporate each other's knowledge, skills and personnel.
Recently, I toured the Colville National Forest in Washington, where I saw work that embodied this strategy: the extraordinary and innovative cross-boundary active management our hard-working employees are doing with partners.
This week I headed to Redding, California, to join Secretary Perdue and Interior Secretary Zinke in touring the areas affected by the Carr Fire. This fire ignited July 23 and has burned 218,598 acres, including nearly 1,600 homes. More than 4,000 people have deployed to fight this fire as it continues to burn Shasta Trinity National Forest. The secretaries toured the wildland urban interface in Whiskeytown and learned about fire dangers resulting from the ongoing drought and over-vegetation. They also had the opportunity to meet with our employees and other firefighters serving on the front lines of the fires, as well as with members of the community who have suffered damage from lost homes and businesses.
The Carr Fire visit, along with the other fires and roundtable events in California, were a clear demonstration of the reason we need to join together, all hands across all lands, to address the situation we all face. Every day, we see news accounts that bear witness to what our scientists and land manages are telling us: We are experiencing a forest health crisis in this country. While we've stepped up our efforts through more treatments and regulatory reform efforts like the environmental analysis and decision-making, it's not enough.
Our agency must share its latest technical capabilities, including new advances in remote sensing, information science, fire simulation tools and mapping technologies. These tools will allow us to work with other forest landowners and partners to evaluate risks to communities, infrastructure, watersheds and wildlife. We will be able to prioritize projects and customize our approach to the needs of each landscape and community.
With all of this said, you might still be wondering what is really different about the shared stewardship strategy. That's a fair question. Let me share why I think it IS different:
We are doing the right work, but it needs to take place at the right scale so we deliver the results we want. To do that, we are going to work at the state level with all land managers. We are going to pool resources and decision-making and focus our investments to get big pay-offs in the way of reduced fire risk and more resilient forest conditions.
We will increase our success in reducing fire risk and creating more resilient forests using the following approaches:
I encourage you to read the report and share your reactions in our Leadership Corner forum.
I'll close with a heartfelt thank you to all our employees. Whether you are on the fire line, supporting our firefighting operations, or sitting at your home unit continuing to lean forward into the work at hand, I value you and the work you do every day. I look forward to working with you all as we move ahead with the shared stewardship strategy.
Editor's note: You must be logged into Facebook in order to watch the attached video.


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Reduce energy costs and improve profitability
Start to finish solutions focused on reducing costs and risks
We create and implement results driven energy efficiency strategies for our clients, saving them money and driving greater profitability.
Understanding technology is one thing, but understanding energy efficiency in electrical design is critical. It Means we can design and advise our clients to ensure they benefit in the short, medium and long term.
Increase profitability and reduce risk through the accurate measurement and management of your company and product carbon footprints.
Let us create an emissions reduction strategy for you that optimises your carbon assets and efficiency goals.
Our service does not end with the successful implementation of your company or organisation's Energy Efficiency strategy.
Going forward, we offer our clients comprehensive Service Level Agreements and support to ensure effective and ongoing energy savings.
Utilising our Energy Monitoring and Management software solution, COPPER, we manage our client sites ongoing.
Phone: +27 21 300 1620
Fax: +27 21 300 1621
Suite 1B, Ground Office Floor Level
Madison Place, Alphen Office Park
Constantia, Cape Town
Phone: +27 11 568 0768
Fax: +27 11 568 0767
Building 25, Woodlands Office Park
20 Woodlands Drive
Johannesburg 2191