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Nourison Jubilant 4' x 6' Ivory Blue Transitional Area Rug
Smart and sophisticated, the Jubilant Collection presents contemporary rugs with fresh new looks and modern color palettes. Beautifully appealing in pastel shades of pink, blue, and grey, each rug features a durable low-pile construction from low-maintenance, easy-care fibers that will blend perfectly into any casual boho setting.
One of the most popular textiles for furniture this year, our showroom boasts a large variety of velvet seating.
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text: I was invited to talk about my work at Creative Pro Show on the 17th of November 2012 to explain the creative process for each of my series: "Pencil Vs Camera", "Digital Circlism" and "Flesh and Acrylic". Among different things, I talked about ways to market and promote art. Click here to see the full report on Facebook with more pictures and information. Many thanks to Martin Benes for his invitation and to Emiliano Rampazzi for the translations during the conference.

subset: commoncrawl


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The commercial real estate market is finally recovering in West Michigan.
Office, warehouse and industrial space is moving, and commercial development has picked up. All this has prompted an increase in new construction, which is being met with enthusiasm from architects, contractors, developers, realtors and owners.
As always, owners must carefully consider the financial aspects of each construction project — and the legal ramifications of the construction agreement — before commencing construction. Following are eight issues on which owners should focus:
Scope of work: The agreement must provide clarity on the nature and scope of the work. Ideally, the agreement should attach or reference detailed architectural plans and specifications to avoid any confusion or misunderstanding. Owners should be wary of lists of vaguely described items that create a lot of ambiguity — and room for disputes — later on. Depending on the type of agreement, owners should also carefully consider any limitations, alternatives or allowances associated with any portion of the work.
Standard of care: It's very important the agreement identify the quality of the work to be completed. Owners should insist the work be completed in a good and workmanlike manner, free of defective materials and in compliance with applicable laws. In addition, owners should insist the work be completed in accordance with the standards and with the care typically employed by a contractor of similar experience and reputation as the contactor in question. Owners take great care in selecting a contractor and have the right to expect that performance standards are met.
Construction schedule: The agreement should specify a construction schedule, including crucial completion dates for specific portions of the work. Since time is money on a construction site, the agreement should clarify the consequences of missing target dates, including the possible inclusion of liquidated damage provisions or termination rights. Owners must understand the implications of timing delays and must also be realistic about the possibility of delays associated with unforeseen circumstances.
Definition of completion: Owners should be certain the agreement properly defines the concept of completion. Before the project is deemed "complete," the owner should insist that: a certificate of occupancy for the project has been issued; all punch list items are resolved; all applicable warranties and manuals are delivered; and appropriate sworn statements and lien waivers have been obtained.
Punch list: At the time the contractor believes the project is complete, the owner should have the right to inspect the project and identify any incomplete or defective work, which results in the creation of a "punch list." The agreement should require the contractor to correct or complete the items on the punch list within a specified length of time — and allow the owner to hold back funds sufficient until the punch list is properly completed.
Price and payments: It's essential that the agreement contain a detailed and thoughtful protocol for making contract payments as they become due. The agreement should provide that any draw request must be approved by the owner or architect to confirm that the work has been done properly. Before any disbursements are made under the agreement, the contractor should provide the owner appropriate sworn statements and lien waivers to confirm that subcontractors and suppliers are being properly paid.
Insurance and indemnity: Owners need to make sure that the contractor maintains appropriate levels of insurance, including workers' comp, employer's liability, commercial general liability, commercial auto liability, umbrella liability and appropriate special form and — if applicable — builder's risk insurance. Owners should insist that the agreement requires the contractor to indemnify and hold the owner harmless from any liability arising from any act or omission of the contactor and any construction liens associated with the project unless arising from the owner's failure to pay.
Warranties: Owners must be certain that the agreement contains a strong construction warranty, including a duty on behalf of the contractor to repair or replace defective work for a minimum of one year. Owners should require that any warranty work also be guaranteed for at least a one-year period.
James J. Rabaut is a partner at the law firm Warner Norcross & Judd LLP and practices in all areas of real estate law. He can be reached at email@example.com.


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What I've learned is a hard question to answer. Learning is ongoing.
When you're a kid, you don't really know the difference between magic and spirituality.
At one time, science said the world was flat, and everybody believed it. The fact is, we don't know anything for sure.
Making art is a mystical process — a lot of people who are artists don't understand it themselves. Especially the young ones. They feel different, but they don't know what it is. They feel more. Everything hurts. Everything. They're supersensitive. They see things that other people don't see. It can be crippling. For someone like Kurt Cobain, it can kill you.
What I've learned about beards is that people like to touch them; it's almost like you've got a dog with you.
My job is to look for balance. I have a theory: What seems in balance to us, whether aurally or visually, comes from a distant, primal memory of something in nature. When something rings true, it's because it harkens back to some truth in the universe. You just know it when it happens. With artists, you can see it happen. A band will be playing and something starts happening and everyone starts looking at each other in a certain way. It's by no means an exact science. It's just a feeling that is.
If I were to make only rap records, or make only heavy-metal records, it would really get old fast. I would end up falling into patterns.
I was talking to Leonard Cohen, and he was saying it takes him typically three years to write a song. And he said that once he was having a conversation with Bob Dylan, comparing songs of each other's that they liked. And Bob said, "Well, how long did it take to write 'Hallelujah'?" And Leonard said, "Three years." And then he asked Bob, "How long did it take you to write 'I and I'?" And Bob said, "Fifteen minutes."
So much of my work is trying to be critical without being judgmental. I try to make criticisms in a very, very specific way. The more specific it is — if someone can really understand where you're coming from and what you're suggesting — the more it will actually help them.
With many artists, no one around them tells them the truth, so hearing the truth can be actually refreshing.
I don't know anything about music. My job has very little to do with music. It has more to do with taste and culture and balance.
It's not fun to be with people who are famous but not talented. The talent is the fun part.
I was with this group of friends. We were having dinner at Mr. Chow's in Beverly Hills. When we got there, you almost couldn't get in the door because there were so many paparazzi outside — so many that there were fire trucks out there, you know, trying to manage the crowd. We're sitting at dinner, and the red lights from the fire trucks are lighting up the whole restaurant. It felt like a scene from a war movie. It was insane. I was with these three other people. And we started trying to figure out who was creating this scene. We'd all been to Mr. Chow's a lot of times, but we'd never seen anything like this. It was about the time of the Coachella music festival. Madonna had played Coachella, so we're thinking, Maybe it's Madonna. I mean, she doesn't live here, so she's not around that much. Maybe it could be her causing so much attention. From there, we just kept throwing out names, trying to figure out who it could be. Finally, I got up from the table and I went to find out. And then I came back and I asked my friends, "Do you want me to tell you who it is, or do you want to try to guess?" And someone said, "Okay, let's play twenty questions." So the first question was, "Is this person famous for being a musical artist?" And I had to think about it. I didn't know how to answer that question. I think she's made music. She's made albums. But is she famous for that? I don't think so. So I decided the answer was no. And then someone asked, "Is this person famous for being a film star?" Hmm. I didn't know how to answer that question, either. Yes, she's been in films. But is that what she's famous for? I didn't think so, so I decided that answer was also no. And this went on for twenty questions. And the answers were all no. Everybody lost the game — no one could say who it was. Here we were in Mr. Chow's, and literally, it was like World War III had broken out. And when I really thought about it, this person causing it wasn't famous for anything that you could really put your finger on. It was an interesting comment on our society.*
Put it this way: I'm open to the truth, whatever it is.
*It was Jessica Simpson.
Mike Sager is a bestselling author and award-winning reporter who's been a contributor to Esquire for thirty years.


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Design submitted by Peter from the UK.
Peter says: Since my participation in the blog I have had a few ideas for watch design inspired by cube like forms. 3D Unlimited is one of my favourite TF designs and I love the simple but cryptic looking geometry. I have often thought it would be great if it was possible to create an analogue version. "Anacube" was the result. This design also takes a few cues form the internationally recognised puzzle "Rubik" cube.
Anacube tells the time in an analogue format using two (could be three) faces of a digital cube.
The top face displays the hours in a ring of squares, the centre of the face contains an extra four squares which could be used for mode icons (PM, Alarm, Chime, Date etc).
One of the front two faces displays the minutes, the outer ring of squares of the face displays 5 minute groups, the middle four squares displays single minutes.
If the third face was utilised this could display seconds.
The faces can be illuminated using multi-coloured backlighting. These colours change intermittently to add to the "Rubik" cube look.
This design has a simple and easily recognisable analogue format which should give the watch mass appeal. The clean and clutter free geometry gives the watch a stylish and unisex appeal. This design should be suitable with old school TF fans as well as people who are new to the brand.
The cube like form combined with an intuitive analogue format displayed by a LCD with multi-coloured backlighting sets this design from others.


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At the beginning of July I posted on my tumblr about a situation that arose due to a photo of me that was photoshopped and published in a local magazine.
This article was published in a local magazine this month and it took me a minute to realize that the photo had been photoshopped to hide the fact that I'm wearing a crop top. While I was at the shoot the photographer kept asking me to pull the shirt down because they thought the 1 inch of skin showing would distract people from my face.
Fat crop tops are not necessary but I think it's important to note how the prevalence of fat phobia made the writer of the article, who I think was fantastic, not even notice or think about checking to make sure the photo wasn't photoshopped.
Bottom photo was taken the same day. Clearly my stomach is going to ruin the world.
I called it #croptopgate and tweeted along with the tag #mybeautifulbody, which was created by a follower on twitter who wanted to respond to what happened to me in their own way. There was some push back against the use of the second tag but I'm also very aware of how people are at different stages in their own deconstructing of fat stigma and self hatred. Being able to call yourself beautiful when you have spent your whole life thinking you aren't can be revolutionary.
Below is the letter to the editor I finally sent today. I've been taking a break from writing and that meant not getting this out when I wanted to.
In the July 2014 issue of WestEnd Magazine I was featured in the "Faces" section to highlight the work I do to deconstruct fat discrimination and body ideals. While I know for many the issues fat people are forced to navigate in their daily lives is a new concept, I incorrectly believed that the magazine would be more thoughtful in how my photographs were used. My experience being interviewed was incredibly positive but I cannot say the same about the photo shoot or the final image that was used in the magazine.
From the beginning of the shoot the photographer made it very clear they were uncomfortable with the outfit I was wearing. I highly doubt that their discomfort would have been the same if I wasn't a fat woman whose outfit drastically challenged the "rules" assigned as appropriate clothing for fat people. Most fat women are taught from a very early age that we are suppose to hide out bodies and be ashamed of them, thus wearing clothing that covers or diverts attention in an attempt to pretend our bodies simply don't exist. I thoroughly reject the idea that I need to hide my body and wear clothing that I love regardless of how other people feel. Due to this, I wore an outfit that I made myself – a matching skirt and crop top with a lace upper – for the shoot.
On the day of the shoot one of the first things they asked was if I could pull my top down, saying they believed the top would "distract from my face." Their comment may seem to be harmless but it is one that I have heard most of my life in other forms. Often fat women are told we have "such a pretty face" making a distinction between what is considered to be beautiful and not. Our bodies are considered to be distractions and my outfit didn't hide that distraction but instead forced the photographer to look at it. It forced them to be distracted and actually see my fat body.
The photo shoot continued without any more comments but when the article was published I wasn't surprised that the photo they chose not only was taken from an angle to make me look thinner but the outfit I was wearing was photoshopped to look like a dress. This experience has reminded me that while I can control the way I dress and present my body to the world I cannot control the way it is consumed and presented by others. This experience that ended the final photo is a complete disregard of my work and myself as a person.
I hope this experience makes the magazine think more thoroughly about the photographers they use and how they communicate with them about the subjects they are profiling. The bodies of marginalized people shouldn't be presented in a way that makes other people feel comfortable nor should the magazine be completely unaware that a photo was digitally altered as was done in my case. We should have the autonomy to decide how our bodies exist in and out of print.


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By Roger Parloff, senior editor
FORTUNE — If the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the nation's preeminent digital rights nonprofit, had disclosed last year that it received a cool $1 million gift from Google — about 17% of its total revenue — some eyebrows might have been raised. The group typically describes itself as "member-supported" and, like most nonprofits, it treasures its above-the-commercial-fray, public-interest-group aura and reputation for independence.
In fact, Google (GOOG) did transfer $1 million to the EFF last year, but the money did not have to be, and wasn't, reported as a corporate donation. And if, as currently planned, the EFF receives another $1 million this year from Facebook (FB), it won't have to report that as a donation either. That's because both transfers are formally court-ordered outlays being paid by those companies to settle class-action suits.
"Well, of course those aren't donations!" the reader might interject. "They're the diametric opposite: involuntary, judicially mandated payments forced upon them by an adversary!" That's not the whole story either. These payments to the EFF are being made in suits the EFF played no role in bringing, and the defendants themselves — Google and Facebook, in these instances — helped select EFF to be their beneficiary.
These weird, hybridized outlays — part punitive fine, part voluntary donation — are called cy pres awards, meaning "as close as possible" (from the old Norman, cy pres comme possible). The theory behind them goes like this: In settling, the plaintiffs lawyers and the defendants agreed that awarding damages to actual class members would be impractical, because the sums owed each would be so tiny as to not warrant the expense of distribution. Accordingly, the parties agreed to pay the class nothing, but to pay a sum instead to charities that would serve as the next best thing, because the charities would theoretically promote the interests of class members in some indirect fashion pertinent to the lawsuit.
MORE: Megaupload and the twilight of copyright
These two awards to the EFF, for instance, stem from suits that alleged that Google and Facebook each violated their customers' privacy rights — in Google's case, by exposing users' email contacts during its botched launch of its Google Buzz social network in February 2010 and, in Facebook's, by exploiting users' (including minors') identities and likenesses without express permission in its so-called "Sponsored Stories" ads in January 2011. In these two cases 21 other nonprofits also received, or stand to receive, money, though the EFF would be the biggest winner, taking in about 12% of the total $16.1 million doled out. (While the Google Buzz settlement was approved in May 2011, the Sponsored Stories settlement was just proposed in June, and is still being challenged by dissenters.)
Giving cy pres money to the EFF makes sense, the parties in each case have argued, because digital privacy issues are one of the subjects the EFF monitors. It has not infrequently scolded (though never sued) Google and Facebook for privacy glitches and intrusions, and has advocated privacy legislation and policies that those companies oppose.
At the same time, the EFF is often an ally of Google and Facebook when it comes to staving off liability to rights holders over user-generated infringing content, like pirated movies, photos, or music. Perhaps for these reasons, for instance, Google gave EFF about $25,000 in conventional, purely voluntary donations in 2010, and about $18,000 more in 2011.
In fact, at least half of the cy pres recipients in these cases would very likely be getting at least some donations from Google or Facebook this year, whether or not any suit had ever been lodged against them. For instance, the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT), which got $500,000 from the Google Buzz cy pres award in 2011, received $340,000 in voluntary contributions from Google the year before. It's now slated to receive $1 million from the proposed Facebook award, though Facebook has been listed as one of CDT's leading e-commerce benefactors since at least 2009. Similarly, the Center for Internet and Society at Stanford (CIS), which received $500,000 from the Google Buzz award, had collected $400,000 in voluntary contributions from Google the year before (which amounted to 51% of CIS's total revenue that year). This year CIS will collect $600,000 from Facebook's Sponsored Stories settlement, if approved.
MORE: One filmmaker's fight against the cyberlockers
The EFF, CDT, and Stanford's CIS all reliably line up on the tech sector side in scrimmages with copyright holders. All three supported, for instance, the January Internet blackout protest against the Stop Online Piracy Act — legislation opposed by both Google and Facebook. EFF and CDT also each submitted amicus briefs supporting Google in its two most important recent litigations: Viacom's suit against Google's YouTube unit for copyright infringement, and a suit by Rosetta Stone, the language course company, challenging Google's practices of auctioning off other companies' trademarks for use as paid-search keywords and allowing them to be used in ad text as well.
Now if some neutral individual had been tasked with awarding money to a charity that was single mindedly devoted to fighting precisely the sorts of wrongs alleged in the Google Buzz and Sponsored Stories class actions, his first choice would probably have been one that the settling parties in each case passed over entirely: the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC).
Unlike any of the 22 cy pres recipients jointly proposed by the parties in the two cases, EPIC actually filed complaints against Google and Facebook with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission over the Google Buzz launch and Facebook's use of members' identities and likenesses in ad campaigns without permission. Prompted by EPIC's complaints, the FTC brought enforcement actions against each company which culminated in consent decrees.
How, then, could the parties — again and again — have overlooked EPIC when doling out the cash? How, indeed, when so many of the groups that the parties did select—like the YMCA of Greater Long Beach, Youth Radio of Oakland, the Brookings Institute (a regular Google beneficiary), and the MacArthur Foundation (a regular Facebook beneficiary) — are hardly thought of as digital privacy watchdogs?
MORE: The quiet scandal of the HIV home test kit
Could it be that the defendants in each case blackballed EPIC precisely because it was too aggressively devoted to combatting the wrongs that allegedly harmed the class? Lead Google Buzz plaintiffs attorney Gary Mason declined to comment, explaining that settlement negotiations are confidential. Two lead plaintiffs attorneys in the Sponsored Stories case did not return calls.
In the Google Buzz case in March 2011, EPIC and seven other privacy-focused nonprofits objected to their exclusion from the cy pres funds, protesting that the plaintiffs lawyers and Google had, in effect, arranged to give the majority of those funds "to organizations that are currently paid by Google to lobby for or to consult for the company." (The EFF, CDT, and CIS all reject that characterization of their relationship to Google. They aver, rather, their complete independence, and stress that any corporate donations they accept are "unrestricted" in nature—meaning that they come with no strings attached.)
In May 2011, Chief Judge James Ware of the federal district court in San Jose granted EPIC's request, carving out a $500,000 tranche for it. (At the same time he spontaneously—without prompting from anyone—sliced off another $500,000 piece for an ethics center at Santa Clara University, a school where Judge Ware serves on the law school faculty.)
Tech companies did not invent cy pres awards. The doctrine is ancient, having arisen to address a recurring problem in trusts law. For instance, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt set up the March of Dimes Foundation in 1938, he specified that it would fight polio. But once that disease was tamed, the foundation sought permission to fight other diseases. Invoking the cy pres doctrine, courts granted its request, finding that doing so would carry out Roosevelt's original intent as closely as possible.
MORE: The constitutional right to a free lunch
In the 1980s the cy pres doctrine—"or rather something parading in its name," as federal appeals court judge Richard Posner archly put it in a 2004 ruling—burrowed its way into the realm of class-action settlements. Critics have referred to cy pres awards as judicial "slush funds," since judges, plaintiffs lawyers, and—as the Google Buzz and Sponsored Stories cases suggest—even defendants can use them to further their own agendas. In the past ten months three federal appeals courts have struck down cy pres awards after concluding that they funded charities that had virtually nothing to do with the class members for whom the cases were ostensibly filed.
The key recurring concern with any class action settlement is that plaintiffs attorneys, desiring to maximize their fees, and defendant corporations, eager to minimize total payout, will collude to achieve their goals at the expense of class members. Cy pres awards can be enlisted in that abusive process, attorney Theodore H. Frank of the Center for Class Action Fairness, has written, by "disguising the true cost of a settlement to the defendant to maximize the share of the actual recovery received by the plaintiffs attorneys."
For instance, in the Google Buzz case, on the face of things the plaintiffs attorneys were receiving about one-quarter of the total award — $2.1 million of an $8.1 million fund — which sounds well within the normal range. Yet a critic might protest that none of this particular award went to the actual class members, while much of it went to charities the defendant probably would have funded to some degree anyway. If so, then the attorneys fees may have been excessive given how little the lawyers actually won for the class.
In the Facebook class action, the potential for fee inflation is even more palpable. If the deal is approved, the plaintiffs attorneys get $10 million, the nonprofits get $10 million, and the class members get zilch, which does not look great even on its face. To the extent that some of the nonprofits are also regular beneficiaries of Facebook's largesse, and would likely have gotten at least some of their cy pres money even without any lawsuit, the attorneys would be getting more than half the cash generated by the settlement, which looks even worse.
MORE: In defense of John Roberts
In court papers supporting the deal, the plaintiffs stress that the Facebook settlement also includes injunctive relief from which class members may benefit in the future, because Facebook has agreed to fiddle with some of the fine print in its terms-of-service agreements and to give its users opportunities to "opt-out" of the Sponsored Stories program. The plaintiffs then claim that these structural changes are effectively worth –are you sitting down? — $103 million to the class, because class members will "now have the opportunity to control the use of what is essentially a [redacted]/month advertising asset." (The redacted figure remains under seal.)
In July, EPIC and attorneys representing other objecting class members each challenged the adequacy of the Facebook settlement. Alternatively, EPIC and three other privacy groups have asked the court to redetermine cy pres recipients using transparent, open-application procedures. These objections have not yet been ruled upon, in part because, as soon as they were lodged, U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh recused herself from the case. Though she did not state her reasons, she and her husband had ties to some of the charities that stood to gain from the settlement, according to published reports
Since other cy pres awards have been upheld despite similar or worse apparent conflicts, Judge Koh's sensitivity was at least progress of a sort.


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Photos: Image above courtesy of Tim Dax. Taken last year before the current media attention. Image below taken at the 2005 Heritage of Pride march by Andrés Duque.
As violence erupts across the Middle East once again there has been particular focus this week on a YouTube clip titled "Innocence of Muslims" and its role in inciting religious-based hate throughout the region. Like many, I heard about the clip in the news but didn't necessarily plan to watch it -- that is, until Joe Jervis of Joe.My.God. sent me a message two nights ago to ask me if I recognized Tim Dax as one of the actors in the video and if I had his contact information (Joe remembered I had interviewed the actor last year).
Tim declined an interview with Joe but did provide him a written statement in which he denied he was in any way anti-Muslim, alluded to his lines being dubbed with somebody else's voice in post-production and said the role he was asked to play was different as the one portrayed in the film.
Yesterday CNN reported that 80 members of the cast and crew had released a statement denouncing the clip and saying they were duped by the producers.
Tim got on Joe's radar because some of his readers recognized him from being featured in photographer Michael Alago's 2008 homoerotic book "Rough Gods" and for a solo scene he shot for a gay porn film that same year.
I actually met Tim briefly during the 2005 Heritage of Pride march before he even had started to work on his unique facial tattoo work. Even then, he cut a striking figure and not only because he marched all the way down 5th Avenue wearing nothing but a pair of sandals and a black stocking cap wrapped around his privates.
He would walk a few meters and turn to the crowd. He'd make a couple of body building poses and hold them while the crowd went wild. I took a few photos and posted them on this blog. It still remains the top viewed blog post in the seven years since I started blogging.
Then there was one electrifying impromtu moment which made it that more memorable. As we approached St. Patrick's Cathedral we ran into a number of homophobic fundamentalist protesters camped out across the street.
On the one hand there were a number of men dressed like conservative Orthodox Jews carrying signs that said "Judaism prohibits homosexuality" while another clearly distinguishable group was made up of fundamentalist Muslims carrying signs that read "Allah will destroy nations that allow homosexuality".
To their discomfort, Tim did exactly what he'd been doing all day. He turned around and gave them ample view of his back, took his time to flex and pose and hold still for each of the poses and then turned around to face them while he posed again. Finally, as he walked away, he simply held up both hands ans flashed them both middle fingers.
When Interviewed him last year I asked him about that specific moment and he said something that surprised me:
My attitude probably would be a little bit different now. I might not have thrown them the finger. I might just actually have thrown them the peace sign. But I go with the flow and at the moment that's what it said and I think I did it with a smile, so that balanced it out.Looking back at his actions he seemed to regret he'd responded to their hate with hate.
I bring this up not only because it resonates now in light of the religious-based violence that has erupted this week but because under the glare of the international scrutiny some people have questioned his motives for participating in the film as well as his tolerance for other religions and cultures. I also bring it up because 90% of the traffic hitting this blog right now is from people seeking additional information about Tim.
Tim himself is now speaking to press, including Los Angeles Times ("'Innocence of Muslims' puts spotlight on low-budget films") and Time magazine ("Actor Tim Dax on Sam Bacile and 'Innocence of Muslims'").
He also spoke to the local NBC affiliate in Los Angeles.
Mr. Bricks" and "Slaughter Daughter") and spoke honestly about the difficulties of breaking into the scene:
I've touched base with Tim a couple of times since the story broke and wished him the best. Initially he was a bit reluctant to reply to press but I am glad he has done so.As an actor you have to take everything and at the very beginning it's a lot of free work and you do anything and everything and I don't believe in restricting myself so I take advantage of these opportunities when it comes to being an actor. That's a music video, that's theater, that's acting in a haunted house if need be. Anything and everything to get to the bigger picture, the bigger goal, which is movie acting. I see a very successful future as a movie actor and I can see eventually getting into creating, writing – I do a little bit of writing now – and directing film as well. I see a huge happy future in Hollywood. No Doubt.
All things Tim Dax:
Related: Inside the Islamophobic-Religious Right Alliance Whose Film Sparked a Crisis in the Middle East (AlterNet)


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When it comes to comfort food, I don't think much compares to a bowl of tomato soup (especially when it's paired with a grilled cheese sandwich).
My favorite way to make tomato soup is to use roasted tomatoes. Roasting really intensifies the tomato flavor; if you've previously only had tomato soup from a can, you're going to be blown away when you try this.
I didn't really follow a recipe when I made this tomato soup recently.
I took a bunch of San Marzano tomatoes from my garden, sliced enough to fill a baking pan, added cherry tomatoes, peeled whole garlic cloves, minced shallots, herbs, and olive oil…
and roasted it all for an hour.
I didn't remove my tomato skins, but you might want to: it's pretty easy to lift them off the roasted tomatoes. To finish, I smashed everything up with a little more olive oil, some homemade stock and a bit of raw cream and voilà…I had healthy and delicious tomato soup.
[cft format=0]
Add a grilled cheese sandwich (on your favorite all-natural or gluten-free bread) and you're all set. My favorite way to make grilled cheese is with raw cheddar, avocado, and arugula on sourdough. How about you?
More lovely tomato soups:
Roasted Tomato Soup from 101 Cookbooks
Roasted Tomato Soup from Bunky Cooks
Roasted Tomato and Garlic Soup from Mrs. Wheelbarrow
This post is linked to Slightly Indulgent Tuesday.
Roasted Tomato Soup
Serves 4
- *sliced fresh tomatoes to fill a baking pan I used about 20 heirloom San Marzanos and another cup or two of heirloom cherry-sized tomatoes
- * 6 cloves garlic peeled
- * 2 shallots peeled and chopped
- * fresh basil leaves and/or fresh rosemary, thyme, oregano leaves
- * approximately 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil divided
- *1 cup of vegetable or chicken stock preferably homemade, plus more if needed
- *heavy cream preferably raw and organic
- *sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
- 2. Line a baking sheet with foil and spread the tomatoes (cut side down), garlic cloves, shallots and herbs onto the foil. Drizzle with 1/4 cup of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for about 45 minutes, or until very soft and caramelized.
- 3. Remove baking pan from the oven and transfer contents to a pot on the stove. Add 1 cup stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for a few more minutes.
- 4. Use a potato masher to crush the tomatoes (or an immersion blender if you'd like it very smooth) until it reaches the consistency you desire. Taste and add additional stock, if necessary.
- 5. Turn off heat and add a few tablespoons of cream. Stir well and taste. Add a little more cream, if desired. Season to taste with course salt and freshly ground black pepper before serving.


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Today's News: Our Take - Lindsey Vonn Posts Photo of Her Legs After Skiing Accident
Lindsey Vonn is on the road to recovery after her Feb. 5 skiing accident, but the road looks like it's going to be a long one.
The Olympic gold medalist, 28, shared a photo of her bruised and bandaged legs on Feb. 15, just days after undergoing surgery. "My knee looks...um...not very good....," Vonn tweeted alongside the the picture before joking about wearing long skirts this summer.
Ever confuse Amy Adams and Isla Fisher? Check out more celebrity doppelgangers
In addition to keeping her sense of humor during this difficult time, Vonn is also staying optimistic. In a Feb. 11 message, she called her surgery a "success" and promised that she would be back. "Surgery went very well yesterday and I'm recovering at home in Vail with my family. I want to sincerely thank everyone for their well wishes these last few days," she wrote in a post accompanied by a photo of her in a hospital bed with her family members by her side.
View original Lindsey Vonn Posts Photo of Her Legs After Skiing Accident at TVGuide.com
Other Links From TVGuide.com


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Seward Whale Watching
Seward Alaska is the place to view hundreds of Humpback, Gray, Fin and Killer whales every spring. In April and May Whales return to Resurrection Bay and the Gulf of Alaska, from their winter calving grounds in Hawaii and Mexico. As the Whales congregate and transit through the Gulf of Alaska waters near Seward Alaska, and the nearby Fjords there is no better place to begin your whale watching adventure than Seward Alaska, and no better place to stay while in Seward than Hotel Seward. Contact the staff at Hotel Seward to book your Hotel and Whale watching package today. 907-224-8001
Humpback Whale (Book your Whale Watching trip)
Common names: Humpback Whale
Scientific Name: Megaptera novaeangliae
Length: 40.5 feet for males and 42 feet for females but can reach up to 55 feet at times.
Weight: 25 to 40 tons and grayish in color.
Average life expectancy for adults: 45-50 years with the oldest humpback whales reported to live up to 95 years of age.
Travel speeds: up to 16 miles per hour with and average speed of 2-9 miles per hour.
Typical submersion times: as long as 30 minutes although most dives do not last longer than 15 minutes.
Habitat: Humpback whales live throughout the world's oceans with the exception of the extreme northern arctic waters.
Diet: Humpbacks are baleen Whales and feeds on herring, other small fish, and krill.
Prince William Sound: approximately 100 whales.
Southeast Alaska, Inside Passage: Approximately 500 whales in the summer.
Conservation Status: Protected, The International Whaling Commission gave them worldwide protection status in 1966.
The Humpback is characterized by it's tapered head and unusually long pectoral fins. They have the largest scalloped, winglike flippers of any whale species. The Humpback whales mates during the summer in Alaskan Waters. The Best time for Whale Watching and to view Humpback Whales out of Seward Alaska is May-September peaking in Mid June and August. Humpback whales can often be seen breeching, characterized by throwing themselves completely out of the water. You may also see Humpbacks swimming on their back with both flippers in the air or raising their huge fluke out of the water and slapping them on the water surface, also known as lobbing.
Humpback whales give birth during the winter months in Mexico, Hawaii, and the Western Pacific. Humpback Whales have a 11 to 12 month gestation period and a newborn calves at birth average roughly 2 tons in weight and approximately 12 feet in length.
Humpbacks can be found in matrilineal family groups of four to five called pods but generally travel and feed individually. While in Alaskan waters they eat one to one and a half tons of food a day. In winter months, the whales survive off of their fat supplies. A Humpback migrates about 14,000 nautical miles a year.
Gray Whale (Book your Whale Watching trip)
Common names: Gray Whale
Scientific Name: Eschrichtius robustus
Length: Adult Gray whales are about 36 to 50 feet long.
Weight: Adult Gray whales weigh 16 to 45 tons and Newborn calves are about 16 feet long and weigh about 1,500 pounds at birth.
Average life expectancy: Over 40 years and some may live as long as 70 years.
Travel speeds: up to 10 to 11 miles per hour with and average speed of 2-6 miles per hour.
Typical submersion times: 3 or 4 minutes but can last up to 15 minutes and dive to depths of 550 feet.
Habitat: Gray Whales range from Baja California to the Bering Sea.
Main Diet: amphipod crustaceans.
Conservation Status: Protected, In 1948 the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling banned all hunting of Gray whales except by aboriginal people. Today there are estimated to be some 26,000 eastern North Pacific Gray whales. However the Western North Pacific Gray whales are not doing as well with only about 100 animals left. All are now protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act while in the oceans surrounding the United States.
The name for the Gray whales comes from its mottled gray body color. They have robust bodies that are mottled gray, marked with orange patches that are caused by parasitic whale lice. Their heads often have areas encrusted by barnacles. To spot this animal, look for a tall and bushy blow near shore as they feed in shallow water. Gray whales are the only baleen whales that are mainly bottom feeders and the most coastal of the baleen whales. To feed, Gray whales fill their large mouths with mud from the sea bottom and filter it through their baleen to capture tube worms, plankton, mollusks, and other small crustaceans. These whales lack a dorsal fin and show their tails when diving.
Gray whales are similar to Humpback whales with their migrating habits. Gray whales migrate between Baja California and the Bering and Chukchi seas each year, a distance of over 10,000 miles round-trip. They will deliver their calves in the warm, protected lagoons off the coast of Baja Gray The Best time for Whale Watching and to View Gray whales out of Seward Alaska is: Spring & Fall . Peak Viewing Time: April & May. Gray whales are usually alone or in small groups, called pods, however during feeding and mating season they form together in larger pods.
Fin Whale (Book your Whale Watching trip)
Common names: Fin Whale
Scientific Name: Balaenoptera phusalus
Length: 69 feet for males and 74 feet for female.
Weight: 40 to 80 tons.
Average life expectancy for adults: 80 years
Travel speeds: up to 23 miles per hour with average speeds of 5-6 knots.
Typical submersion times: as long as 15 minutes although most dives average 6-15 minutes.
Habitat: Fin whales live throughout the world's oceans.
Diet: herring, other small fish, and krill.
Conservation Status: There are estimates that between 14-18 thousand fin whales are in the north pacific. The International Whaling Commission gave Fin whales worldwide protection status in 1966 and they are listed as endangered under the U.S. Endangered Species Act in 1973.
Fin whales, also known as Finback whales, are the second largest mammals and among the fastest of all whales. The fin whale received its name due to the prominent fin on its back, near the tail. These streamlined whales have long, sleek bodies with small flippers and a v-shaped head that is flat on top. Each side of the whale is different in color. The underside, right lip and baleen plate are yellow-white. The main body, left lip and baleen plate are light gray. Other names for this whale are Finback, and Razorback. They can be found in all the oceans, migrating from the warm waters during the winter to the colder waters during the summers. The Best time for Whale Watching and to view Fin whales out of Seward Alaska is: May – September. Like all baleen whales, they feed on krill and other small fish. A fin whale may eat two tons of food every day. Fin whales prefer the open ocean, and generally travel alone, although pods of 5-6 have been seen together. These great whales prefer temperate and arctic waters. Whale watchers can see Fin whales along the Alaska coastlines near Seward Alaska, the Aleutians, the Inside Passage and Prince William Sound. Most migrate from their arctic summer feeding areas to more temperate winter breeding grounds. Fin whales are loners or sometimes are found in small groups.
The Minke Whale (Book your Whale Watching trip)
Common names: Minke Whale
Scientific Name: Balaenoptera acutorostrata
Length: 26 feet for males and 27 feet for female with a maximum length of 31 & 33 feet.
Weight: 5 – 10 tons.
Average life expectancy for adults: 50 years
Travel speeds: up to 16-21 miles per hour.
Typical submersion times: as long as 25 minutes although most dives average 10-12 minutes.
Habitat: Minke whales live throughout the North Pacific
Diet: Small schooling fish like capelin, cod, herring, Pollock and krill.
Conservation Status: Current populations are about 100,000 Minke whales in the North Pacific. Minke whales are the most heavily harvested baleen whale today. Scientists note that the populations have actually increased as they have started eating food previously eaten by the depleted larger whale species.
Minke whales are the second smallest baleen whale, about half the size of a Humpback whale. Another name for the Minke whale is the Little Piked Whale. Minke whales fall into two different species, the Northern and Southern or Antarctic variety. They are the most abundant baleen whale and can be found in all oceans and seas across the world. In the northern oceans, Minke whales primarily eat plankton, herring, cod and mackerel. Minke whales are dark grey to black with a white underside and a white patch on both front flippers. They often have a pale chevron behind their heads, a small dorsal fin, and a series of small ridges along the back near the tail. Minke whales are stocky, having a layer of blubber several inches thick.
The Minke are usually solitary but may be seen in pods of up to three whales. They are normally quite shy and difficult to approach but some are curious and will come close to boats for a better look. The Best time for Whale Watching and to Viewing Minke whales out of Seward Alaska is: May – September. To spot Minke whales look for a low, bushy blow at the water line as well as watching for the broad black back and small dorsal fin. When the animal dives, the dorsal fin is visible well above the water but the tail rarely breaks the surface. Minke whales are distributed through out the pacific from Baja California in the winter months and in the summer months from the Gulf of Alaska coastal areas near Seward Alaska, Glacier Bay, the Bering Sea region north of the Aleutian chain, and right up to the edge of the icepack in Polar Regions, sometimes becoming trapped in the ice fields.
Killer Whales (Book your Whale Watching trip)
Common names: Orcas, aka Killer Whale
Scientific Name: Orcinus orca
Length: adult female up to 23-feet, adult male up to 27-ft, newborn calf up to 7-9 feet.
Weight: adult female over 8,000lbs., adult male over 11,000lbs., newborn calf up to 800 lbs.
Height of dorsal fin: adult female up to 2.5 feet, adult male up to 5-ft.
Average life expectancy for adults: female 50 years (80 to 90 years maximum life expectancy), male 30 years (50 to 60 years).
Travel speeds: max – 35 mph for short durations though they typical average 4 to 6 mph.
Typical submersion times: Averages 10-30 seconds.
Habitat: Found worldwide with largest populations living near coastal areas with cooler water temperatures.
Prince William Sound: approximately 250 animals in 15 pods.
Southeast Alaska, Inside Passage: Approximately 160 animals.
Kodiak to the Shumagin Islands: approximately 100 animals.
Bering Sea: approximately 100 animals.
Diet: Consists of fish, squid, seals, sea lions, birds, dolphins, porpoises and other large whales. An adult orca consumes on average of 100-300 pounds of food per day, depending on size and energy needs. Nursing females will consume 2 to 4 times this amount.
Conservation Status: Being monitored but currently listed as stable.
Killer Whales, Orcas are the largest and most powerful member of the dolphin family and are not really a whale at all. Orcas are black in color with white undersides as well as white markings located behind the eyes and dorsal fin. To spot Orcas, look for their black dorsal fins rising through the water. It is easier to spot adult males as their dorsal fins are tall and distinct. Also, scan the horizon for a rising puffs of steam known as a blow. Orcas are social animals and live and travel in matrilineal family-related groups known as pods. Pods may have of up to 40 members, made up of both males and females. Orcas unlike Humpbacks, do not display any regular migration patterns. There are three main classifications of Orcas, offshore, resident and transient. Resident pods that live in primarily in one area, seem to prefer fish whereas pods that are more transient prefer a variety of marine animals. They are successful hunters because the whole pod participates and works together while hunting. The Best time for Whale Watching and to view Killer whales out of Seward Alaska is: May 5 – June 5 during this period several pods of orcas are found feed on a small salmon run that congregates south of Seward. During the summer months, from June to September, the northern resident whales can generally be seen from northern Vancouver Island to Alaska. They prefer to live in coastal waters in cooler regions. One thousand have been identified and photographed in Alaskan waters. Transient whale pods can be seen all along the western coast of North America, from Glacier Bay in Alaska to the southern California coast. They are also prevalent off the Aleutians. Some killer whales ride cold currents south in the winter months.
Dall's Porpoise (Book your Wildlife viewing trip)
Common name: Dall's Porpoise.
Scientific Name: Phocoenoides dalliLength: 6-7 feet for males and females with a maximum length of 8 feet.
Weight: Average 270 pounds for both males and females.
Average life expectancy for adults: 20 years.Travel speeds: up 30 knots.
Habitat: Found only in the North Pacific, ranging from Baja California to Alaska and the Bering Sea and over to Japanese waters.
Diet: Squid, herring, sardines, capelin, deep-sea smelt and lantern fish. The Dall's porpoise feeds mostly at night eating about 30 pounds of food each day.
The Dall's porpoise is named for the naturalist who first discovered them, William. Dall, member or the elite 1899 crew of scientists aboard the S.S. George W. Elder, during the Harriman Alaska Expedition, credited with the discovery Harriman Fjord in the Prince William Sound. The Dall's porpoise coloration is rather like that of an Orca. The main body is very dark grey to black with very demarcated white patches on the flank that begin some way behind the flippers, which are small and close to the head. The dorsal fin is set just back from the middle of the back and sits up erect. The upper part of the dorsal fin has a white to light grey "frosting". The fluke has a similar frosting. The adult fluke curves back towards the body of the animal, which is another distinguishing feature The head is rounded and small while the body is muscular and powerfully built. Dall's porpoise are attracted by fast moving vessels and love to swim at high speeds and are often seen bow riding alongside Sightseeing boat in Resurrection Bay. Dall's porpoise are seen year round in Seward Alaska and nearby waters. They prefer cooler water temperatures between 36 and 60 degrees. Dall's porpoise congregate in pods of as many as 200 during feeding times but usually travel in smaller groups of 10 to 20.


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A little over a week before Christmas I ordered the most gorgeous kits from the most wonderfully talented girls Maxine and Audrey from Wednesday Wishes The door kits arrived a week before Christmas and I scrounged to find the time to do them.
Maxine and Audrey displayed their beautiful doors in the most beautiful canvas I think I have seen, and I had to do it just like theirs. It turned out so lovely I am so pleased with it. I dont buy kits often but Wednesday Wishes beautiful creations, easy to follow instructions will defiently have me going back for some more beautiful, well detailed kits. If your after something that bit different and beautiful I highly recommend Wednesday Wishes..
Monday, December 28, 2009
Wednesday Wishes beautiful christmas doors.
Posted by Sarah at 12:19 AM 7 comments
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
The panic button.
Hello again, here is a little pin broach I made for a dear friend of mine. I knew she would get a good laugh out the quote that goes with it. Anyway Merry Christmas to you and will see you in the new year,
Love Sarah
Posted by Sarah at 11:31 PM 7 comments
Thursday, December 03, 2009
Tag 2
Here is my tag for day 2 of the 12 tags of Christmas that Tim Holtz is doing.
Love Sarah
Posted by Sarah at 6:55 PM 5 comments
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
Tags for christmas
After a dry spell of creativity, I have decided to try my luck at following Tim Holtz's 12 tags of christmas to see if I can get some mojo back. As you can see I got a wee bit carried away and did my own thing for my tag. You can see Tim's tags here.
Love Sarah
Posted by Sarah at 4:42 PM 3 comments
Thursday, September 03, 2009
Finally some creativity
Finally after moving from chilly Ballarat to the tropics of Darwin, I have managed to finally finish off a book I have been working on.
The frames are chipboard that my dear clever friend Jen Crossley has had made up for us all who love the antique album look without the hefty price tag of a real one (if you can get one) and shipping them from the states. This is the largest of her wonderful frames, and has other sizes and shapes available. Check out her blog for more.
Heres what I did with some of her frames. An album names "Beth".
Posted by Sarah at 9:27 PM 11 comments
Part 2
Posted by Sarah at 9:24 PM 7 comments
Tuesday, June 02, 2009
The last 3 houses
Here are the last 3 houses for the house swap that I am in. The Music house for Linda, Mother's house for Glenda and The dragons den for Evelyn. Again girls sorry it has taken me this long to complete them for you..
Ok now that they are done, I am off to pack up the junk/craft room ready for the big move north..
Love Sarah
Posted by Sarah at 11:59 AM 6 comments
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Asian House and finally some creativity.
Finally I have been creative. I almost forgot how to use glue and paper. LOL Sorry girls for taking so long on creating the houses for the swap. I am 3 down, 3 more to go which I am hoping to have done by the weekend. Thank you for being so patient with me. This Asian house is for the lovely Kylie Mell who organised and co-ordinated this wonderful swap. Thank you very much Kylie.
Posted by Sarah at 6:17 PM 4 comments
Fabric House
This is my fabric house for my internet chat buddy Ness that makes me laugh with her koala jokes..LOL
Posted by Sarah at 6:15 PM 5 comments
Bird House
Posted by Sarah at 6:14 PM 4 comments
Beautiful locks
Are these not the most stunning padlocks you have ever seen. My man sent them to me along with this traditional Afganistan necklace. I adore these sorts of treasures from far away places. Thank you Mr Hansome.
Posted by Sarah at 6:09 PM 6 comments
Friday, April 03, 2009
Suaunter is one of Imogen's Imogenism's.(you know kids coming up with their own ideas of things). I think she hit the nail on the head today with this one. **SUAUNTER**. She says to me whilst I was driving. "Mum today is very much like Suaunter." Ok I say, what is Suaunter?? She says, the weather today, its a bit of summer, a bit of autumn and a bit of winter all in one... And yes she was right, it was 3 seasons in one day here today, so today was very Sauauntereous!!!
Had to share this!!LOL
Love Sarah
Posted by Sarah at 11:50 PM 4 comments
Wednesday, April 01, 2009
I'm still around
Just letting you all know that I am still around, though not creating anything at the moment as my motivation has taken flight and gone on what looks like a long hoilday. Unfortunately because of a whole heap of stuff that is happening around here, and lack of above, I have resigned from Aussies Dares as I just cant give my all at the moment. Thank you Rebecca for letting me play along with all the dares, I enjoyed the challenges greatly.
I also had to cancel a few other commitments that were due later in the year, and to a certain lady, and a bunch of girls (you all know who you are..LOL) I am so sorry and know that you understand with whats going on here. (nothing serious people) so dont think anything bad..LOL
No doubt the inspiration to create again will return, when I dont know, soon I hope. But for now I have nothing to share other than this photo of my motivation being flown off to a warmer climate no doubt...
Perhaps a new blog look will be the start of some creativity at least for now.
Love Sarah
Posted by Sarah at 11:57 PM 5 comments
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
In Loving memory of Coco
Unfortunatly we had to make a decision yesterday to put to rest one of our beautiful dogs Coco. He has been ageing for quite some time, but over the weekend he went down hill far too fast. We are so saddened, but happy that he wont suffer anymore. Thank you Coco for the last 14 years of joy, protection, happiness, laughter and companionship to us. We miss you..
Posted by Sarah at 10:15 PM 9 comments
Friday, February 06, 2009
Coastal adventures
We spent most of this week down at wonderful Warrnambool. Just the 3 of us, relaxing, sight seeing, meeting great friends and having the best adventures possible.
Posted by Sarah at 7:30 PM 3 comments
***HOT HOT HOT*** Aussie Dares
I used an old book. Burnt a big hole using a butane torch and concentrated the flame just in the centre of the paper pages to make if you like a niche.. I inserted an old tin type photo of a young girl, a few dried jasmine flowers and used Utee that had been cooked for approx 10 hours until it went an amber colour. I poured the melted Utee in until it was all covered. Then I embellished the book with aged brass mesh, a few parts from an old type writer and dictionary paper quote.
I love the look of all these burn pages all stacked upon another.
Aged fine copper mesh was used here on the left, it almost looks as if its still on fire with its coppery hues.
Jump on over to Aussie Dares to see more wonderful artwork created by the girls.
Posted by Sarah at 6:09 PM 15 comments
Friday, January 30, 2009
Melting Pot goodness..
Posted by Sarah at 12:26 PM 9 comments
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Collections 1 for 1 swap
This is my Collection for 1 for 1 swap that I am participating in. You had to make something using the majority of Collections goodies.
Posted by Sarah at 12:21 AM 9 comments
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Aussie Dares-Jan**WET**
This months theme for Aussie Dares is "Wet."
For my piece I wanted to create something that had the look that it had been weathered and damp over a period of time.
I started with an old cabinet card photo album page (or did I???) aged the paper with inks, water and a bit of distressing.
Added bark covered in Lichen, hand dyed muslin, added some embellisments like these gorgeous tiny watch makers glass vials with a pic of a tiny little boy inside.
I love this Lichen, it grows so freely here in the colder months, it has so much texture and muted colours. And lastly it hangs with chain that I have been making over the last couple of weeks..
Posted by Sarah at 12:14 AM 16 comments


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WASHINGTON, Jan. 31, 2007 — -- Senator Joe Biden, D-Del., the loquacious chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee who launched his presidential campaign today, may be experiencing an ailment not entirely unknown to him: foot in mouth disease.
Biden is taking some heat for comments he made to the New York Observer, in which he said of Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., a rival for the nomination: "I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy. I mean, that's a storybook, man."
Immediately the conservative media establishment -- Rush Limbaugh, the Drudge Report, bloggers -- publicly pounced. At Townhall.com, Mary Katherine Ham wrote: "A clean black man? The first black guy on the American political scene who can both shower regularly and speak properly? Is that really what Biden thinks? If a Republican had said this, we'd have a national outpouring of grief over the residual ignorance and racial insensitivity in our country, and the guy would be in sensitivity training until around about the time John Kerry is elected president."
"'He is a clean African-American'?" Limbaugh asked. "If Biden thinks that Obama is clean then he has to think that others are not clean. Does he mean that he knows that Jesse Jackson is not clean? Does he mean that he knows that Reverend Sharpton is not clean? ... See, folks, this is the problem for the libs. Once they get off script they expose their idiocy, they expose their prejudice."
But it wasn't just conservatives.
"When I heard his comments I thought Joe Biden was referring to a bygone era," said Donna Brazile, the former campaign manager for Al Gore's 2000 presidential campaign and a prominent African-American political consultant. "Years ago when white folks referred to black people with education they often used words like articulate. To suggest they were different, they were acceptable. That they were OK as compared to rest of African-Americans. So I think it came across that Joe Biden was referring to Sen. Obama as if he was a candidate running in the 1960s, not in the 21st century."
"They are loaded words," Rev. Jesse Jackson told ABC News. "And that's why he should interpret what he meant by those loaded words. It was an attempt I thought to diminish Barack's attributes and dismissive of our previous campaigns that made Barack's candidacy possible."
Jackson said Biden's remarks "could be divisive."
And notably, Obama himself didn't do much to knock the story down.
Asked about the comments at a press conference this afternoon, Obama said, "you'd have to ask Senator Clinton, uh, Senator Biden what he was thinking," initially stumbling by mentioning the name of the Democratic front-runner for the nomination, Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York. "I don't spend too much time worrying about what folks are talking about during a campaign season."
Asked if Biden meant to be complimentary, Obama said, "I'm not going to parse his words that carefully."
Late today, Obama's office issued a written statement on the subject in which the senator declared, "I didn't take Senator Biden's comments personally, but obviously they were historically inaccurate. African-American presidential candidates like Jesse Jackson, Shirley Chisholm, Carol Moseley Braun and Al Sharpton gave a voice to many important issues through their campaigns, and no one would call them inarticulate."
Shortly after Obama's office released this statement, Biden followed suit with a short written statement of his own, reading simply, "I deeply regret any offense my remark in the New York Observer might have caused anyone. That was not my intent and I expressed that to Senator Obama."
But, in an earlier conference call with reporters about his presidential campaign, Biden acknowledged that he "was quoted accurately" in the New York Observer, but insists his comments are being misunderstood.
"Barack Obama is probably the most exciting candidate that either the Democratic or Republican party has produced at least since I've been around," Biden said. "He's fresh, he's new, he's insightful."
Biden said he regretted that "some have taken totally out of context my use of the word 'clean.'"
"My mother has an expression 'clean as a whistle, sharp as a tack,'" Biden said. "Look, the idea is, this guy is something brand new no one has seen before."
Biden reminded those on the call that he has a long record of support within the African-American community in Delaware and claimed he had spoken with Obama personally about the remark.
According to Biden, Obama told his colleague, "'Joe, you don't have to explain anything to me.'" Biden said he felt Obama "knew what I meant by it."
When asked why, if he feels so strongly about Obama, he is running against him for the Democratic nomination, Biden responded: "I think he's great, I think they're all great. I think I'm better. I think I'm more prepared."
Democratic observers shook their heads at the latest example of how Biden's garrulousness often gets him into trouble.
In the book "What It Takes," which chronicles the campaigns of six presidential hopefuls running in 1988, including Biden, Richard Ben Cramer wrote: "Biden is 'speech-driven' his guys would explain. But that was just guru-talk for the fact that Joe often didn't know what he thought until he had to say it. Then, too, there was the sorry corollary: sometimes Biden spoke before he thought."
Biden's campaign insists he is being misunderstood.
"Clean is a synonym for fresh and new," Biden campaign spokesman Larry Rasky told ABC News. "And if you look at the context of the quote it's obvious that's what he meant. And certainly anybody who knows Sen. Biden wouldn't question that."
The Biden campaign also pointed out that on "Good Morning America" today, the senator disputed the notion that Obama is too inexperienced to be president.
"Look, this guy's incredible," Biden said on the program. "He is really bright. He's fresh. He's new. He has great ideas. And the question will be whether or not on the campaign trail he fleshes out his ideas. I think experience does matter, but you'd expect me to say that. But, you know, this also relates to judgment, as he says. And so the folks are going to look at all of us. But he is a real star. This is a really incredible person."
And late in the day Wednesday, Biden issued a statement saying: "I deeply regret any offense my remark in the New York Observer might have caused anyone. That was not my intent and I expressed that to Sen. Obama.?
This is not the first accusation of racial insensitivity Biden has faced. In June 2006, C-SPAN caught him speaking to an Indian-American man, saying: "In Delaware, the largest growth in population is Indian-Americans moving from India. You cannot go to a 7-11 or a Dunkin Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I'm not joking." (You can see the Youtube video of that here.)
Last November at a Rotary Club meeting in Columbia, S.C., Biden joked about the state's Confederate history, saying that his home state of Delaware was "a slave state that fought beside the North." He added, "that's only because we couldn't figure out how to get to the South, there were a couple of other states in the way."
But Biden has been a consistent liberal voice on civil rights issues, and Jackson called him "a decent man and a smart man" today. This month he joined an NAACP rally against the presence of the Confederate flag at the South Carolina statehouse, and said, "if I were a state legislator, I'd vote for it to move off the grounds, out of the state."
Getting less attention were Biden's comments to the Observer in which he described previous Democratic presidential nominees Gore and Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., as "blow-dried candidates" who "couldn't connect" and went after other rivals for the 2008 nomination.
"Everyone in the world knows her," he told the Observer about Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y. "Her husband has used every single legitimate tool in his behalf to lock people in, shut people down. Legitimate. And she can't break out of 30 percent for a choice for Democrats? Where do you want to be? Do you want to be in a place where 100 percent of the Democrats know you? They've looked at you for the last three years. And four out of 10 is the max you can get?"
And of the proposal by Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., to remove 40,000 UL.S. troops from Iraq, Biden said, "I don't think John Edwards knows what the heck he is talking about."
Asked if his talkative nature might hinder his presidential hopes, Rasky earlier told ABC News that "it's a double-edged sword."
"It's chatter for the grist in Washington, D.C., but when you walk into a living room in Cedar Rapids [Iowa], or spend time as he recently did with college students in Manchester [N.H.] and give them a 20-minute answer on Iraq or North Korea, they know the answers to these problems are not simple and they want to be respected. We have seen this repeatedly."
"Yes, he does sometimes talk more than is politically correct," Rasky added. "But he always has something meaningful to say."
Biden ran for president 20 years ago and saw his campaign consumed by scandal after senior aides to campaign rival Mike Dukakis, the former governor of Massachusetts, made sure reporters saw that Biden had plagiarized a campaign speech from Neil Kinnock, then the leader of the British Labor Party. Biden had mentioned Kinnock in previous deliveries of that speech, though not in the one distributed to the press.
Other similar revelations -- news of "borrowing" from speeches by former Democratic icons Robert Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey, the story that he'd received a failing grade in a Syracuse Law School course for plagiarizing a legal article, a C-SPAN video of him telling New Hampshire voters that he'd graduated in the "top half" of his law school class (actual standing: 76 out of 85) -- combined to drive him from the race. The Delaware Supreme Court's board on professional responsibility later ruled that Biden had not violated any rules in the law school incident.
On today's conference call, Biden concluded: "I have no doubt that Jesse Jackson and every other black leader -- Al Sharpton and the rest -- will know exactly what I meant. I have a long, long relationship with these folks, they all know what I was saying?(Obama) is a very special guy, this is a guy that's like catching lightning in a jar."
As to whether Biden's penchant for "straight talk" might eventually hurt his campaign, the senator demurred.
"That will be something for the voters to decide," he said. "I don't see it as the problem you apparently see it. The voters will decide that."


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The unseen technology powering our worldIt's not every day you can say that your work is responsible for almost every manufactured good; or that your career is vital to the success of most machines on Earth. But for one team at Siemens working all around the world, it's just another day at the 'office'.
The cranes lifting thousands of our newly-built laptops from factory trucks, to place them on container ships; the machines making up the assembly line turning wood into thousands of sheets of crisp, white paper – they all have the common ability to move. To spin, to cut, to push, to lift, to stretch, to catch: whatever the movement, the humble industrial drive hidden within the machine makes it all possible.
And there's a big team of people who make sure those industrial drives don't stop. Making sure they are cutting and spinning and lifting and pushing. Making sure our paper gets milled, our energy gets generated, our laptops are delivered. Making sure our world keeps moving.
Jürgen Gernhart is the Head of Service Engineers for Industry Drives at Siemens in Germany. His team looks after industrial drives across several industries, working on projects ranging from days to months to years.
"Every technology has its own challenges, from cranes to paper machines. You'll have smaller motors for things like newspapers, and larger drives for mining or powering the cooling pumps of big power plants. We can engineer and service drives as big as this room. They are in every industry because without them, nothing will happen."
With projects taking the team members to places such as Korea, Algeria, Brazil, Nigeria and Chile, they really are powering the global economy with their expertise. Björn Kredel, a Commissioning Engineer and Developer, travels for about 50% of his work: "At the start of a crane project, we'll travel to Shanghai. At the end, we might finish off in Saudi Arabia. We service machines that use industrial drives all over the world."
At the start of a crane project, we'll travel to Shanghai. At the end, we might finish off in Saudi Arabia. We service machines that use industrial drives all over the world.Björn Kredel, Commissioning Engineer & Developer
Keeping commerce moving
With machines from all across the globe being powered by industrial drives – from the huge levers that open Tower Bridge for passing boats, to the robots that meticulously fill your coffee machine pods – the team works closely with their thousands of customers. Iuliu Vlaic, Commissioning Engineer for Electrical Drives and Automation, works on call for a few weeks a year to ensure the smooth running of paper factories. "Think about a paper mill, for example: if the production stalls, the loss can be up to €5,000 per hour. So for 10 hours of standstill, that's €50,000 gone."
Global commerce relies heavily on the team's aptitude for thinking creatively while under pressure. Jacqueline Pramana works in Business Development and knows all too well the importance of her speedy problem-solving abilities. "You are the representative from Siemens, you are there to make it work."
Powering the future
But in a time of fast moving technological advancements and big changes in our planet's make-up, the team doesn't simply continue to engineer, commission and service our industrial machines. They have to develop new innovations for new technologies. Jacqueline explains:
"In the last few years, electrical drives have been used more and more to buffer energy, so you can capture and regenerate the movement created by the drives into energy. Years ago, they used to let the machines burn energy which was just wasted." For example, if you could capture the energy from the heat produced by your car brakes, that energy could be transferred back into powering the car itself.
Thomas Lehmeyer, a Commissioning Engineer, adds: "Nowadays you can install sensors everywhere so you can analyse the system and perform predictive maintenance. You can take a look and say 'in one month, this motor will fail', allowing time to be saved by preparing ahead. A small increase in efficiency has a huge impact on costs."
This team of people are keen on moving with the times and the freedom to choose between projects has kept their work fresh and tailored to their preferences. "You can develop into the direction you want," Jacqueline says. "I've decided all of the steps I've taken in the last six years. That's the good thing about a large company, you can change your activities without having to change organization."
Jürgen knows that to attract the best talent, the full breadth of Siemens must also be available to new recruits: "We have access to several technologies and departments right across the industry. For people coming out of university, it's a great opportunity to get broad experience and try out various different technologies."
We are in this phase of automation. We want things to be done faster and better, so this field is enhancing the living standards of people.Iuliu Vlaic, Commissioning Engineer, Electrical Drives & Automation
Hidden heroes
Despite the team's sizeable impact on the movement of the world, most of their work is done behind the scenes. At best, people take industrial drives for granted, but most won't even know they exist.
Björn Kredel, a Commissioning Engineer & Developer on the team, speaks about the hidden nature of the technology: "No one really recognizes the role that industrial drives play in the world. Nobody knows there are thousands of industrial drives involved in producing smartphones. With more drives, everything will become automated and it will get less expensive to make products like smartphones – but people will only see the price reduction, not the reason behind it."
Lots of people are worried that their jobs are at risk due to mechanical replacements. As a result, the work of the team is becoming a hot topic for discussion, and could be seen as both a blessing and a curse. As Iuliu laments: "We are in this phase of automation. We want things to be done faster and better, so this field is enhancing the living standards of people. Everyone is thinking that automation is killing jobs, but it's not true. You create other jobs by making things smarter."
What can be said for sure is that the team plays a huge role in crafting our future. Whether that's powering the cranes that carry our goods, or building the robots allowing us to eradicate dull work, these international problem-solvers aren't just keeping our world moving – they are powering the creation of what comes next.


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of current version (single spaced, formatted for double sided printing.
Some typo fixes and wording improvements)
of oral defense talk
When separately written programs are composed so that they may cooperate, they may instead destructively interfere in unanticipated ways. These hazards limit the scale and functionality of the software systems we can successfully compose. This dissertation presents a framework for enabling those interactions between components needed for the cooperation we intend, while minimizing the hazards of destructive interference.
Great progress on the composition problem has been made within the object paradigm, chiefly in the context of sequential, single-machine programming among benign components. We show how to extend this success to support robust composition of concurrent and potentially malicious components distributed over potentially malicious machines. We present E, a distributed, persistent, secure programming language, and CapDesk, a virus-safe desktop built in E, as embodiments of the techniques we explain.
Advisor: Jonathan S. Shapiro, Ph.D.
Unless stated otherwise, all text on this page which is either unattributed or by Mark S. Miller is hereby placed in the public domain.


text: Creating gorgeous sweets and pastries is surely an art form. People who have the skill sets can create a very good location in any cafe, small business, accommodation kitchen area, as well as other sociable places. For those who have always loved utilizing glucose, chocolates, fruit, along other treat items, transforming into a patisserie chef… Continue reading Patisserie Chef


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I'm in Houston this week and will be giving a lecture on Thursday evening at the Houston Center for Photography to honor the memory of my late friend John Cleary. HCP is currently exhibiting of selection of images from his collection, and will host an official naming ceremony for the John Cleary Library this coming Saturday.
To learn more about my lecture June 26th to benefit the John Cleary Library, click here.
To learn more about the John Cleary Library at HCP, click here.
To learn more about attending the Library's naming Ceremony on Saturday, June 28th, click here.
To learn more about the exhibition of images from John Cleary's collection, click here.
I hope to see many of you later this week in Houston!


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NEW ORLEANS — Randy Moss says he doesn't do many interviews because he doesn't care to participate in shaping his image. Because he prides himself on unfiltered honesty, I suspect he also believes more exposure increases the likelihood of words he'd regret.
But he was flat wrong, if not downright dishonest, Tuesday. He was wrong in front of hundreds of cameras and microphones, wrong before quite possibly the biggest audience he'll ever have here at Super Bowl XLVII media day.
Moss cleared his throat and pronounced himself as the best receiver in NFL history.
"Now that I'm older," said Moss, who turns 36 on Feb. 13, "I do think that I'm the greatest receiver to ever do it."
Now let that marinate for a moment.
Then consider this: Moss made this statement wearing a bright red 49ers uniform, same as he'll wear Sunday at the Superdome when he and his San Francisco teammates take the field to face the Baltimore Ravens.
Moss is now employed by the franchise made famous by the likes numerous Hall of Fame players and coaches, one of whom was Jerry Rice.
"I'm very surprised Randy Moss said that in those words, that he's the greatest," Rice said Tuesday on ESPN's "NFL Live." "You'd never hear me say I'm the greatest football player ever to play the game. I let my body of work speak for itself, and I think I was able to be very productive on the football field."
Rice is widely acknowledged as the best and most complete receiver in NFL history, because he is precisely that. He owns all-time NFL records for most catches, most touchdowns and most receiving yardage; no one is remotely close in any of the three categories.
Moss is No. 2 only in touchdown catches, 41 behind Rice.
"I don't really live on numbers," Moss said. "I really live on impact and what you're able to do out there on that field.
"So I really do think that I'm the greatest receiver ever to play this game."
Moss is entitled to his opinion. He wants to be honest. But he's wrong on this.
Blasphemously wrong.
Yet Moss makes an argument worth hearing, pointing out how his impact changed the way passes are defended in the NFL. Teams frightened of being burned deep by Moss routinely placed two safeties downfield. He in some ways forced teams to play "Cover-2" pass defense.
As explained by Randy's former coach in Minnesota, Dennis Green, this was a way for Moss to help the team even when he wasn't catching passes. Defenses had to react to his presence.
They still do.
That means not that Moss is the best receiver ever but perhaps the most dangerous deep threat ever.
Asked about Moss on ESPN radio, Rice responded by saying he thought Moss, with his tremendous physical gifts, could have been the best of all time — if not for so many lapses in effort.
"It was hard for me to swallow because I was not as talented and had to work harder," Rice said of Moss.
Once clocked at 4.3 in the 40, Moss is among the fastest receivers ever. At 6-foot-4, he's among the tallest receivers ever. With a vertical leap that once measured more than 36 inches, he's one of the most inviting targets in league history. His pure physical gifts may be unparalleled.
This is where Moss' argument falls apart. He conceded he could have been better. Asked what he might do differently with the advantage of age and wisdom, he essentially pleaded guilty to Rice's allegation.
"I would have been a little more focused on my preparation," Moss said. "Now that my focus is somewhere that I really haven't seen it … it seems weird now that my focus on whatever plays that I'm on the field, it wasn't like that earlier in my career. If I would have put that much effort (on preparation and focus) back in the day, it might have been different."
Bingo. Preparation and focus are what lifted Rice to the top. It's why he was the receiver — the football player — he was. Nobody worked harder, in season or out, 50 weeks a year.
That work ethic explains why Rice was such a willing and excellent blocker, and how he became a major component of 49ers teams that averaged 11 wins a season and won three Super Bowls.
Rice is to the history of catching passes as Rickey Henderson is to the history of stealing bases.
If Moss had compiled similar numbers and been a focal point of similarly successful teams, he likely would be in position to claim, without dispute, the mythical title of being No. 1. He would be the so-called "G.O.A.T."
Moss instead must settle for being the greatest receiver of his generation and easily deserving of being in the Hall of Fame.
That's not quite the same as being the best ever. But it's a lot more honest and a lot less wrong.
Contact Monte Poole at email@example.com. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/1montepoole.


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Beginners: please read this post and this post before posting to the forum.
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The picture below shows the underside of the sensor board (its the smaller one on the left-hand side):http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=2333870On it you can see a bunch of SMT resistors and caps, and not much else - suggesting there's only some passive low-pass and high-pass filtering going on. I did some crude 'waggle' tests with the sensor boards directly wired to the Arduino's ADC inputs (with a 3.3v Vref into the sensor board, and the AVR micro), and got the following:GYRO Max Amplitude from the analogRead function whilst 'waggling' (shaking the board in my hand as hard as I could in all directions, whilst logging values to a PC)Roll: 25Pitch: 27Yaw: 54compared to the other sensor which gives a much better signal:ACCELEROMETER Max amplitude variance when the sensor board is turned upside, from side to side, back to front (calibrated to zero when board was flat, still & upright)X: 359Y: 369Z: 170I'd be good to see if (a) you get similar ranges from your board, and (b) it may well help you design the gain of your op-amp circuit (the gyros could probably do with a 5x gain as a reasonable starting point, 10x looks like it might saturate the yaw reading - even if very carefully biased)Pip


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July 8th, 2013
Editor's Note: Kelly English is the chef/owner of Restaurant Iris in Memphis, Tennessee. English was named one of Food & Wine magazine's Best New Chefs in 2009. In 2010, he was named a James Beard Award Semifinalist for Best Chef: Southeast.
At three o'clock on a Friday afternoon, like clockwork, my phone starts to ring. It is one of my friends from college; he forgot his anniversary and needs a table tonight. I am forced to tell him one of my least favorite things: No. It's not in a chef's DNA to tell people "no" - we hire front-of-house people for that.
"We have known each other for years, you must be able to put me somewhere," he said.
I really wish I could.
"Would backstage passes help?" he said.
I really wish they did.
My restaurant is located in a turn-of-the-century Victorian home in Memphis, Tennessee, and has thirteen tables. There is nary a string hanging from anywhere in the building that can be tugged. I have been fortunate to hire incredible people in every position, and that has translated into a table that is pretty hard to come by. I have disappointed my friends, parents and even my wife by being booked solid, but we choose to honor the reservations we have.
There are people who come through town that I would die to cook for, but having a certain stature will not magically make a table appear. That person will have to eat elsewhere, and we're happy to help direct them to one of the many other excellent choices in town.
I have heard nearly every type of criticism and suggestion regarding our seating capacity. People tell me to expand, but to me, that would change what we are and how we do it. People tell me to find a new location, but part of where we are is part of who we are. What many people see as an opportunity to change who we are, I see as a chance to reaffirm our commitment to our guests and locale. I love everything my restaurant has turned out to be, and I wouldn't change a damn thing about it.
Being in the business of fine dining isn't about the money; a few months' work in a fancy restaurant will tell you that. It is about the connections. The bonds with the people who grow the food and the people who consume it should be extremely meaningful to any good chef, and it is not something that should be jeopardized for a few extra seats.
As a chef, I would love to cook for everyone; as a business owner, I would love to seat them all too. However, owning a small restaurant in a town that isn't New York, Los Angeles, Boston, Chicago, New Orleans or San Francisco means that I simply cannot afford to keep a table in my back pocket in the off-chance that someone "important" comes to town and wants to come in.
My mission has never been to cook for celebrities anyway, but to cook for regular people as if they were celebrities.
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Kim in Baltimore watching The Closer instead of writing. [Don't tell!]
For twenty-five years the kitchen table served as my office. You could say I was a traveling writer. Every time my family ate a meal, all my writing – notebooks, pens, computer, thesaurus- was moved to an unoccupied chair or the seldom used dining room table. It was while shuffling my belongings to that very table that I came up with my idea.
I decided that day to claim the dining room as my own. My husband had the garage and my children each had their own bedroom. I deserved a room of my own, too. With the help of my family, I set out to change our neglected dining room into my writing studio.
Over the past three years this room has become my sanctuary. I come here to think, write, and read as well as meditate, do yoga and work on my collages and mosaics. The blush-colored walls and crystal chandelier lend an air of romance to the room. An old mantle piece and bamboo screens add charm. Mementos of trips and retreats along with candles line my desk.
I've created a happy place to work and dream. I am a firm believer that everyone needs a room of their own.
Dear readers, do you have a special place in your home where you can relax? Please share a comment below and you will have a chance to win Into The Woods, an anthology which includes my latest short story, In the Darkness of the Woods.


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Title 32.1. Health
Chapter 8. Postmortem Examinations and Services
§ 32.1-291.13. Delivery of document of gift not required; right to examine.
A. A document of gift need not be delivered during the donor's lifetime to be effective.
B. Upon or after an individual's death, a person in possession of a document of gift or a refusal to make an anatomical gift with respect to the individual shall allow examination and copying of the document of gift or refusal by a person authorized to make or object to the making of an anatomical gift with respect to the individual or by a person to which the gift could pass under § 32.1-291.11.


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Natural Beauty: Chemical Free Skin & Body Care - Lunchtime Talk
Jersey Library
Event Overview
Lunchtime Talk
Jersey Library is delighted to welcome Juanita Shield-Laignel MFHT in 2019 for a series of lunchtime talks entitled 'Practical Natural Health & Wholeness.'
An author, artist and trained aromatherapist for 27 years, Juanita's talks will be filled with information, ideas, demonstrations, tips and practical uses for essential oils and other natural products.
These lunchtime talks will take place in the Library on the second Friday of every months, starting 4 March and running until 8 November. come to one..or come to them all...


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Why Are You So Different?
Posted on November 6, 2013
Carol A. Hand
Years ago, I accepted a position at a university as an assistant professor. I did not know at the time that I was only the second Native American faculty member the department of social work had ever hired for a tenure track position. The first left 30 years before I came because of the anti-Native discrimination she experienced, a perception that the state district court affirmed in a decision that awarded damages. The anti-Native bias was still palpable and unrelenting during the 3 years I spent there. Unlike my predecessor, I chose not to pursue legal action. Doing so would have locked me in an angry, ugly battle for years. Instead, I turned to writing, grateful that I could escape from a toxic environment with such unhappy people. The following essay is drawn from the series of stories I wrote about my experiences and reflections during those years.
"Why are you so different?," my colleague asked. I suspect that, in part, my response to this question contributed to being ostracized and pathologized by faculty who were unable to hear the many ways this question could be asked and the many possible, legitimate, responses.
As I read this neutral question on a written page, there are so many possible meanings. There are so many ways tone of voice, spoken inflections, facial expression, and body language suggest intent. Meaning or intent is also nested within context. The individual histories of the person who asks and the person who is asked frame the meaning, the way the question is interpreted. The history of relationship between the asker and responder matters, as do differences in history and degree of belonging within the system where the question was asked. Power differentials, both in terms of hierarchical status and long-term relationships with the system, matter as well. And equally important is the congruence between how the question is asked and the publicly stated mission of the agency in which it is asked.
As a child, I asked this question many times. As I pondered the amazing diversity of the six-pointed shapes of snowflakes that fell on my dark mittens on a winter day, I asked, "Why are you so different?," with a sense of wonder and awe. As a child who grew up between two cultures yet not fitting neatly in either, I asked myself, "Why are you so different?," with a sense of genuine puzzlement. Embracing that sense of difference actually led me to engage in authentic efforts to learn to understand the world from as many diverse perspectives as possible. My favorite children's story was about the Churkendoose, a little bird that was a mixture of a chicken, turkey, duck, and goose (Ben Ross Berenberg, 1946). "Difference" in this story was simply that – difference. Ultimately, there were no values assigned to being one creature or another, and no interpretations of being superior or inferior as a result of difference.
As a teenager, the question was more emotion-laden. I wondered why I could not simply be a part of the cliques that reached out to include me, but not others whose difference was more visible and seen as inferior. (Those who were excluded were the most interesting to me.) Difference that meant inclusion or exclusion was based on family socioeconomics, religion, appearance, perceived intelligence (either too much or too little), or being "cool," whatever that meant. I respected peers who did not seem to care about their exclusion. Instead of joining cliques, I reached out to those who were excluded, not in an attempt to forge an anti-clique, but to understand the position of difference as a somewhat consciously chosen stance of resistance. I admired the courage of those who were willing to carry the responsibility of thinking critically, who were willing to challenge norms and social expectations in visible, creative ways.
As a young person searching for a place to belong, for a role and career that had meaning, difference had new connotations. It was time to believe in the message of the Churkendoose, a time to explore as wide a range of diversity as possible. I spent time in the hills of Appalachia and on Indian reservations, and worked in the inner city of Chicago while I attended an exclusive Catholic women's college. I survived the streets of Hollywood, and experienced the possibilities and disappointments by being part of a New Age commune. Among my friends, I have counted priests and prostitutes, artists and legislators, people who were poor and rich, blue collar workers and university professors. Difference enriches my life and my understanding of the world. Like the snowflakes on my mitten as a child, it is a source of never-ending wonder and engenders curiosity.
I did not hear this sense of wonder and curiosity in my colleague's question. It was intoned in a way that sounded more like an indictment. For more than a year, the indictment remained her preferred way of relating to me. It is at least honest to ask, accusatory or not, "Why are you so different?" "Perhaps," I wondered, "is there a possibility of building deeper understandings across our differing perspectives?" Unfortunately, it was not possible with this colleague or others in positions of power at this particular university.
I was reminded of a passage from Hyemeyohsts Storm's work, Seven Arrows (1972). If we place people in a circle, facing inward toward a multifaceted object in the center, each will see only one side, and each view will be incomplete. If each person can share their perspective with others in the circle, a fuller picture will be possible for all. Afraid of difference, we will see only what falls within our limited gaze. How can we teach this partial frame as the one truth? Why would one want to insist that this is the only true reality? And why would anyone be willing to believe such a ridiculous assertion? Difference is the rule, not the exception, and a wondrous gift promising the possibility of wider, deeper vision and understanding. The alternative is to live trapped in a small prison, much like the hell Sartre (1976) describes in Huis Clos (No Exit), surrounded only by people with whom we feel no affinity, consigned to a life that has little possibility for exploring the wonder that surrounds us every day.
Photo Credit: Free Images on Pixabay
Works Cited:
Berenberg, B. R. (1946). What am I? New York, NY: Wonder Books.
Sartre,J.-P. (1989). No exit and three other plays. New York, NY: Vintage International.
Storm, H. (1972) Seven arrows. New York, NY: Ballantine Books.