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The Last Stand of the Shower Pervert
December 23, 10:30 at night…
Jag was revived a short while later. All we had to do was waft the smell of hot chocolate and cinnamon underneath his nose and he jumped up, randomly yelling and swinging his fist at the first head he saw ―which happened to be mine, unfortunately. He then proceeded to swear at Zelda for a good five minutes, and then finally dashed up to the attic. Moments later, we heard the pounding rush of water.
"It sounds like a flood." I looked up at the ceiling. The water was so loud, I was almost worried that it would cave in. "How many showers does that boy have turned on?"
"Fifteen," Al replied promptly. "Well, fifteen showerheads. He only has one shower."
Zelda, Xander and I turned to stare at him.
"What? What're you looking at me like that for?"
"Did you go in and count the number of showerheads in his bathroom?" I asked him incredulously. "Shower pervert!"
"Shower pervert? Da fuck is that?"
"Those creepers who sneak around behind the shower curtains when other people are showering."
"Look, cos, I don't fancy watching Jag shower naked. It's Zelda who—"
"Finish that sentence and you fucking die!"
"Then why do you know how many showerheads are in Jag's bathroom?" Xander poked him hard in the chest. "Speak up or forever hold your silence!"
Al rolled his eyes. "Remember how Jag and I played in the local Quidditch league during the summer? Well, sometimes we used Jag's backyard to play a game, 'cos it's so large, and we end up showering upstairs in his room—since his mum didn't want us dirtying all the other bathrooms."
"Yeah, right," Xander sniffed. "You're still a shower perv —showering with all those smexalicious guys from the Junior Quidditch League."
"Do you know Tom? And Brad? And Johnny?"
"Um, yeah. They're my mates…"
"I'm soo jealous!" she cried, bouncing around on the spot. "You get to see them naked! I would do anything to be you! Can I pay you to take videos of them next summer? Please? Please? PLEASE?"
"While they're showering in the shower?"
"No!" Al was flabbergasted. "And you're calling me a shower perv? I don't swing for that side, lady!"
"You don't have to swing for that side," Xander said, lowering her voice persuasively. "All I'm asking you is to supply me with some nice, hardcore videos of abdomens and pe—"
"Whoa there!" Al yelped. "First of all, we don't see each other naked! We wear swim trunks!"
"But why?" I asked in bewilderment. "You're all males. Right?"
"Can't you guess why?" Al deadpanned at us when we shook our heads. "Well, sometimes when we're showering, Irene opens the door and walks right into the bathroom. Then she ogles at us and makes some bullshit excuse like 'Oops! I thought this was the kitchen pantry!'"
"Nice." Xander nodded appreciatively. "That lady's totally got the right idea."
"Good luck shower-perving on your future son's friends," I told her, clapping her on the shoulder.
Upstairs, the thunderous roar of water suddenly ceased.
"He's done, you guys," Zelda said, looking less-than-happy. "Let's go up."
"She's soo gonna get it from him," Xander giggled in my ear.
The four of us ascended the ladder to the Man Cave. We sat on the beanbags outside the bathroom door and quietly waited for Jag to finish blow-drying his hair or whatever boys did after showering.
A minute later, the door opened and Jag walked out. He wore gray sweatpants and was topless, with a white towel slung around his neck. His brown hair was wet and stuck up in awkward spikes, pretty much like a porcupine. There was a second of silence as his eyes surveyed us sitting on the beanbags, and then he strode forward and kicked Zelda in the side.
"OW! FUCK YOU! What was that for?"
"You cooked me in a pot of shit! You fucking cooked me in it! You—little— BITCH!" He drew his leg back to kick her again.
"Whoa, dude! That's not cool!" I quickly reached forward and grabbed his ankle. "No hitting girls!"
"Let go, Rose! I'm not hitting her, I'm kicking her!"
"That's the same thing!"
Jag shot Zelda an angry look, then turned and threw himself down onto the bean bag next to Al. "I mean, she cooked me in a pot of shit. Like, real shit! Don't tell me that she doesn't deserve to be kicked!"
"Look, Jag," Zelda said, sounding sort of whiny. "Your exact words were 'Make it shitty-tasting', so I made it shitty-tasting—"
"Then how else was I supposed to make it shitty-tasting?"
"Oh, I don't know!" Jag said sarcastically. "Hmmm, ever heard of salt and fucking vinegar?"
"But I had chicken and human feces available, so why not—"
"Well, Jag, feces aren't technically bad for your face," Xander said matter-of-factly. "When it's pureed, dragon dung's pretty good for your complexion."
"No thanks," Jag grumbled. "I never want to hear the words feces, shit, poop, or dung ever again."
"SHIT!" Al shouted.
"POOP!" I screamed.
"SHITPOOPDUUUUUNG!" we sang together.
"Go to fucking hell," he snapped at us.
"Awwww, chillax, mate!" Al said, slinging an arm around his friend's shoulder. He leaned forward and stuck his nose in Jag's hair. "You don't even smell that bad. Actually, you smell"—Al sniffed again, then again—"sorta nice. Like pomegranates and—"
"Eurgh! Get your nose out of my hair!"
"Are you sure you don't swing for that side, Al?" Xander asked, watching them with wide-eyes.
"No! He just smells good!"
"My cousin has his gay moments, if you haven't noticed," I said dryly.
"I am not gay, thank you very much!" Al huffed, folding his arms. "I'm a very honest person. If a bloke's hair smells nice, then I'm going to tell him it smells nice!"
"Then do us all a favor and tell Kai that his hair smells nice," Zelda told him.
"Um, why? I've never smelled his hair before."
"Well, he's a better candidate than Jag over there," I put in, shooting a wink at Zelda.
Al looked completely befuddled. "Uh, why?"
"Because he'll appreciate it more," Zelda said, and then we broke into peals of laughter.
Jag frowned at us for a moment, and then his eyes widened when he got the joke. "You guys! Oh, Merlin, c'mon you guys!"
"I don't get it," Xander said blankly.
"What?" I protested, giggling at Jag. "Wouldn't he appreciate getting his haired sniffed by Al? If I were him, I would! After all, my darling cousin is a pretty hot commodity—"
Zelda broke into hysterical laughter again, and Jag made a face like he was about to throw all over the carpet.
"What the hell are you guys talking about?" Al asked us. He was starting to sound rather irritated. "If you guys are talking about me behind my back—"
"Jesus, trust me, you don't want to know want to know what they were talking about." Jag leaned forward and gagged over my cousin's shoulder. "I think I want to Obliviate myself after hearing that, mon Dieu. Blah! Gross! Give me all the Stuff you have, A-Man! I need to immerse myself in a drug-induced stupor to cleanse my mind of it!"
"Um, okay, then." Al reached into his pocket and tossed him a very suspicious brown baggy. "Here ya go. Have fun."
I pointed at it. "Do I want to know what that is?"
Jag quickly stuffed it into his pocket. "It's nothing."
"It has to be something," Zelda argued. Then a knowing look appeared in her eyes. "You dumbasses! Don't tell me— hybrid Floo leaves?"
Al got a really shifty-looking expression on his face. "No… of course not."
"Yep, they're eating Floo leaves," I told the girls grimly. I felt grossed out just thinking about it.
"You don't eat them! You smoke them!" Al protested.
"And smoking them is so much better," I said sarcastically.
"You should try it, Rose," Jag advised me. "One whiff and you go straight to heaven."
"Are you an idiot?" Xander snapped at him. Zelda and I shared a surprised look, because Xander standing up for any cause against the boys was unheard of. "Do you know how dangerous those leaves are for the health? My older brother did it. He sprouted tentacles and started to call himself Nemo."
"You mean he got a split personality?" Zelda asked curiously.
"No, I mean he literally thought that he was a guy named Nemo. Like, we were at the dinner table one night and he goes, 'Dad, Nemo wants more lasagna' and my dad goes 'who the fuck's Nemo?' and my brother points at himself and goes, 'Your son, old man!' and then my dad grabbed him by the ponytail and dunked his face in the soup bowl."
"Your brother has a ponytail? That's gross."
"I know, but that's not the point."
"Yeah, Al," I told my cousin. "Do you want to grow a ponytail and be brainwashed into a mindless drone called Nemo? No, you don't. So stop smoking those leaves!"
"But, Rose, don't you know?" Al leaned forward eagerly. "Native Americans knocked themselves out by smoking Floo powder and if they came out of it alive, they were made into warriors."
"But you're not a fucking Native American warrior."
"If Floo leaves are so lethal," Zelda said slowly to Jag, "why can't we just make your grandmum eat a whole bushel of them? Forget about becoming a mindless Native American warrior-drone, she's so old she'll die overnight!"
"But she can't die," Jag responded. Then he frowned. "Well, not yet, at least. My mum doesn't want her to die until she writes me back into her will."
"I thought Irene didn't care about the hag's money," Al said, sounding perplexed.
"HEY!" Jag whirled around and jabbed a finger in Al's face. "Don't call my mum by her first name!"
"But they do!" Al protested, waving his hand toward me, Zelda, and Xander.
"They don't have the potential to end up as my mother's next husband!"
Al deadpanned. "Me, your mum's next husband? Don't joke."
"I'm not!" Jag said earnestly. "If you start calling her by her first name, she's gonna take it as an invitation to jump you!"
Al didn't reply for a moment.
"Whoaa, dude! I won't! Really!"
"I know you think she's cute," Jag added, sulkily folding his arms.
"Dude, this is your MOTHER we're talking about. She's like twenty-five years older!"
"No, she's not. She's only sixteen years older."
"I'm not dating a woman who's sixteen years older!"
"You're totally her type!"
"I don't get it! Do you want me to date her?"
"No! Just don't use her first name, okay?!"
"Okay! Fine! Bloody Jesus!" Al shook his head. "Let me ask that question again. Why does your mum care about the hag's money?"
"She doesn't." Jag scuffed his heels against the carpet, looking extremely disgruntled. "All of my other cousins are getting a couple thousand Galleons of inheritance, but I'm getting nothing. My mum doesn't think that's fair. It's not about the money, it's about the fact that the hag doesn't see me as one of her grandkids."
Well, this was a complication that none of us had foreseen. I shared a testy look with Zelda. How were we going to get her to write him into her will? That was next to impossible! And the fact that Jag hadn't told us about this earlier also bugged me. "Couldn't you have mentioned this to us before?" I asked him irritably. "What if she'd eaten the monster soup and died? Then what? You wouldn't have gotten any inheritance!"
Jag shrugged in defeat. "Yeah, I know I should've told you guys. I wasn't banking on getting the money, but if we can secure it and kill her at the same time, it'd be really nice."
"The only way to do this is the Imperius Curse, and that ain't gonna work on a lady like her," Al said dispassionately. "She'll fight against so hard she'll drop dead of heart failure."
"Well, in that case," I said to Jag, "You need to sit down and talk with her. Be like 'Hey, Grammy, I know you're a bitch an' all, but can you please, pretty please give me some inheritance before you die? I'm going to be a homeless vagabond one of these days, so I'm going to need it!'"
"Thanks for the input, Rose," Jag snorted. "That's not going to work because number one: talking with my grandmother just doesn't work, and number two: I've heard her tell my mum that she wants me to end up being a homeless vagabond."
"We need to guilt her into it," Xander said. "We need to make her feel remorse for something she's done, so that she gives you the inheritance."
"Remorse? That's a fair idea, but…" Jag meditatively tapped his chin with a finger. "I don't think it's possible. Her emotional range doesn't stretch that far."
"Isn't there anyone in the whole world who can make her feel sorry?" Zelda asked him in a pressing tone. "Anyone?"
Jag frowned. "Well… there was someone. He's not in this world anymore."
"Her husband."
Zelda squealed in delight. "You mean Bo!"
"Not the damn chicken! I mean, my real, living, human grandfather who died of dragonpox— according to the hag, at any rate."
"I thought she did away with him."
"She did," he said grimly. "We just need to prove it."
"Is he the only person who can make her feel remorse?" I asked. There was a plan formulating in my mind. And you know when I have a Plan Formulating In My Mind… It was never good…
"Rose," Jag said, cautiously watching my expression. "I'm pretty sure I've clarified this before, but my grandfather is dead. Please tell me you're not planning necromancy."
Necromancy? I giggled. God, I absolutely loved Jag. "How do you know I'm planning something?"
"We're your friends, Rose. We can tell." Jag narrowed his eyes at me. "Does it involve bringing my grandfather back from the dead?"
"Well…" I paused for a second, not knowing what to say.
"We're not technically bringing him back from the dead, but we sort of are at the same time." I looked at him. "Does that make sense?"
I sighed. "What did your grandfather sound like?"
"What do you mean 'what did he sound like'"?
"What was his voice like? Was it high-pitched, nasally, deep—"
"Deep," Jag said immediately. "And sort of… gorilla-ish. He sounded like a gorilla that could talk. But why?"
I ignored him. "Al, say something."
"Why?" my cousin asked cluelessly. The timbre of his voice was a perfect, deep bass.
I turned to the girls. "Does he sound gorilla-ish to you?"
"Perfect," I said in satisfaction. "Al, you're the man for the job."
"Wait, what am I doing?" Al looked frantic. "Oh Merlin, Rose, am I the one who has to carry the prank out? No! No! No! I did it last time!"
"But you're the only guy here except for Jag!"
"Use Zelda! She's manly enough!"
"No way," Jag said in a hushed voice. His pixie-blue eyes were on me. "No way, Rose. You can't be thinking of doing that!"
Oh, so Jag figured it out, did he?
"Wait! What's going on?" Al frantically looked from me to his best mate. "What? You guuuuys!"
"You'll survive, Al," I said, grinning at my cousin devilishly, and then I gestured for us to come into a tight huddle. "Listen closely, mates. This is what we have to do…"
11:15 at night, after the powwow, in my room…
"You're a nutcase. You know that, right?"
I was sprawled on the bed, staring at the ceiling. Xander was sitting on top of the dressing table and giving me a pointed look. I decided to ignore her. She had no confidence whatsoever in my brilliant plan. I mean, only a genius such as myself could think up something like that!
"Al's never going to pull it off. His French sucks!"
"He said he was fluent." I got up on one elbow and glared at her. "Jag and Zelda are helping him right now, and we have three more hours to kill. I'm sure they'll figure it out."
"I sure hope so," she sighed. "So… Rose. Do you have anything to tell me?"
I raised my eyebrows. "I don't. Why?"
Xander smirked and slid off the edge of the dresser. She dragged a chair from in front of the desk, pulled it up in front of the bed to where I was lying, and sat in it— psychiatrist-to-patient style.
"Rose, I'll ask again. Is there anything you want to talk about?"
I thought about the episode in the shower with Malfoy and I inwardly groaned. There was a part of me that wanted to tell Xander, because girls just need to tell each other these sort of things, and plus, she was really good at figuring out what was going through boys' heads. I really wanted to know what Malfoy had been thinking.
"It's okay, Rose, you can tell me." The smile on her face broadened. "What happened in the shower?"
"Noth—" I started to say, then I stopped and stared at her.
How did she know?
"How?" I cried, staring at her. I sat straight up on the bed. "HOW do you know about that?!"
"I'm right, aren't I? I knew it!" Xander said excitedly, bouncing up and down on her seat. "It was a simple deduction. Both of you got splashed by the shit soup, so you had to wash yourselves off, right? And both of you ran out of the dinner in the same direction, so you were definitely heading toward the same bathroom—the one that's next to the parlor. I'm right, aren't I?"
"How do you know I didn't go to the bathroom upstairs?" I asked her stiffly. I was already mentally summarizing the details of the shower scene, since I knew that was going to be her next question.
"Because you won't ever give anything up to Malfoy, lease of all a shower! And plus, we could hear only one shower going." She winked at me. "Soo… you going to tell me what happened? Did it get steamy?"
"I wouldn't call it steamy," I said, feeling rather uncomfortable. There was a heat crawling up the side of my neck, and I knew that I was blushing. Oh great. Quickly, I told her everything—and I tried not to linger too much on the fact that Malfoy had an absolutely-gobsmacking-fucking-awesome body or on the fact that he pinned me against the shower wall and threatened to kiss me.
"Oh, my Merlin," Xander said breathlessly. Her eyes had been shining like stars throughout my whole story. "He tried to kiss you. Oh god! Oh god! HE LIKES YOU!"
"Xander, wait—"
"He fancies you, Rosie! Scorpius fancies youuuuu!"
"NO!" I said loudly, slapping my hands down her shoulders. "Listen to me, Xander! He didn't try to kiss me, he threatened to kiss me."
"What's the difference?"
"There's a huge difference!" I felt indignant. "First of all, he was doing it to make me feel scared— you know, how a lion pounces on its prey and then slobbers down on it? Like that."
"But," Xander said pointedly, "if he wanted to make you feel scared, he could've threatened to break your arm—"
"That doesn't scare me," I said gruffly. "I'll break his arm right back!"
"What I mean is that if he threatened to kiss you, then he obviously doesn't mind kissing you. He must find you attractive!"
I thought back to how I had been shirtless in the shower. "Nope. He definitely doesn't find me attractive."
"How do you know?"
I gestured at my own chest. "Helllooo! I was shirtless in the shower and he didn't look downwards at my boobs at all! Why? Because I don't HAVE any boobage! AT ALL!"
Xander rolled her eyes. "You're beautiful, Rose! And not all boys care just about the boobs—"
"For a second I thought you were going to say that boys don't care about boobs, which is so not true. Have you heard Jag going on and on and on—"
"I walk out of the room when they start talking about that," Xander said, sounding disgruntled. "But not all boys are obsessed with boobs! Look at Kai, for example! He doesn't like talking about boobs!"
That's because he's gay, honey.
"What?" Xander protested, looking at my face. "Why are you giggling?"
Oh, was I giggling? Oops.
"Honey," I said in a very, very, very patient voice. "Alexandrina, honey. Listen."
"There's a reason why Kai doesn't like boobs, and it's the same reason why he doesn't want to date you." I blinked at her hopefully. Would she get the hint.
"Wait," Xander muttered. She frowned. "Are you saying that he doesn't like my boobs? What's wrong with my boobs?"
I face-palmed. " Just forget it."
Two hours later… 1:30 AM…
By the time Zelda came to fetch us out of the room, it was pitch-black. She held a candleholder in one hand, the flames from the candle giving her face a flickering, reddish glow. "C'mon, you guys, it's time," she whispered, then put a finger to her lips as we ventured down the hallway. It would be bad if other people woke up.
"Guess what, Zelda?" Xander whispered to her excitedly, and I winced because I knew what she was going to say. "Scorpius tried to kiss Rose while they were naked in the shower!"
"WHAT THE FU— MMM!" I slapped a hand over Zelda's mouth before she could scream. She ripped my hand off and hissed, "YOU! You were naked in the shower with him? HOLYMOTHER—"
"I was not naked!" I hissed, and looked around in the dark corridor in mortification. Did someone hear that? There were bedrooms all around! Hell, Astoria's bedroom was just a couple broom-lengths away! "Look, Zelda, I was just half-naked—"
"NO!" I mentally slapped myself and lowered my voice. "I mean, yes, I was, but no—I mean I had my bra on, but—"
I slapped Zelda across the face, effectively shutting her up. "Lower your fucking voice! I had my jeans on, too!"
"But why?" Zelda hissed in a thankfully quieter, but no less frantic voice. "Was he half-naked, too?"
"He didn't have a shirt on," I muttered, and I miserably lowered my face so that she couldn't see the flush on my cheeks. Then I snapped my head up and glared at Xander, who giggling hysterically. "Thanks a-fucking-lot for telling her, Xander!"
"What, why didn't you want me to know, Rose?" Zelda asked in a whiney tone. "Why'd you only tell Xander?"
"You're gonna, like, make up some weird conclusion that Malfoy likes me or something!" I threw up my hands. "I don't know!"
"Weeelll, he did try to kiss you after all," Xander said, before I could punch her in the mouth.
"He tried to kiss you? HOLY FU—"
"Shhhh!" I shot her a death-glare. "It wasn't like that, goddammit! He doesn't like me, he was just trying to make me feel bad and —"
"But he tried to kiss you," Zelda repeated, waving around the candleholder frantically. The candle wobbled precariously and I suddenly wondered what would happen if we burned the house down. "Rose, listen to me! Malfoy wouldn't try to kiss you if he didn't feel attracted to you!"
"That's exactly what I told her!" Xander said in agreement.
"But—but—" I looked around in the darkness, totally at loss at how to make my friends understand the situation. "He threatened to do it. Like, he threatened it. He was trying to make me feel vulnerable and defenseless, because I know that he knew that I would hate to kiss him—"
"But did you really not want to kiss him?" Zelda asked me seriously. "And don't lie!"
I imagined Malfoy—him with all of his shirtless, slicked-back-blond-hair, dripping-in-water-with- sexy-shining-rock-hard-abs glory, and I have to admit, it was really, really, really tempting. Because, frankly, you don't get a guy as hot as him pinning you up in a shower every day, but…
I hate him. I just fucking hate him so much.
"No, I didn't want to kiss him. And I never will." I said simply, and I made my voice calm, honest and not flustered, so my friends couldn't say anything against it. They turned away, grumbling.
"But, Rose, he's sooo attractive…"
"Be careful," Zelda told me carefully. "I wouldn't put it past Malfoy to jump your bones or something…"
I almost laughed at that. "Ha. Like that's ever gonna happen." I motioned to them to follow me up the stairs. "C'mon you guys, the boys are waiting for us."
Okay, so for the next thirty minutes, we—meaning Jag, Xander, Zelda and I—helped Al get ready for what I called Operation Get Jag's Inheritance From Bitch. Basically the plan was this:
Al was going to put on his Invisibility Cloak and he was going into Jag's grandmum's room pretending to be the ghost of her dead husband. (Thank Merlin he knew how to speak French or it wouldn't have worked.) He was going to sweet-talk her, blackmail her, threaten her, yada yada yada, until she agreed to write Jag back into her will.
See? Aren't I so clever at coming up with these plans?
"But, um, Rose, you know… I really can't speak French that well."
"WHAT?" We were outside the hag's bedroom door and I nearly hit the wall. I jabbed my finger into my cousin's chest. "But you said you could!"
"Well, I can, but—"
"He sucks ass at it," Jag said with a grimace. "Sorry, mate."
I exhaled heavily. "And you're telling me now?"
"I've been prepping him, but—"
"The French isn't what I'm worried about, Jag! I don't know a single thing about your grandpa's life history!" Al said to Jag furiously. "What happens if she asks me if I remember what they did during their twenty-fifth marriage anniversary?"
"Just make it up."
"What the fuck? I can't just make it up—"
"This is going to be fucking hilarious," Zelda said wryly to me and Xander.
So, in the end, with a lot of swearing, Al threw the Invisibility Cloak over his head, and gently easing open the door of the bedroom, he slipped in—or we presumed that he slipped in, because we couldn't exactly see him. I got out my Extendable Ears (the ones that translated any language spoken automatically back to English) and passed them to the girls. We put the fleshy strings in our ears and I stuffed the large Ear into the door crack. We huddled by the door, clutching our knees, waiting for someone to say something.
"Umm…er…. Hey, Giselle… Wake up!"
"That fucktard," Jag said to us, swearing suddenly. "He's using the formal! You're not supposed to be using the formal with your own wife!"
"Giselle, c'mon, wake up!"
There was a silence, and then a shifting of bed covers….
"W-Who is there?" This was Jag's grandma talking now. Her translated voice sounded sleepy annoyed.
There was a deep cough. "It is I, Giselle."
"Who are you? And why can I not see you?" There was a short silence, then Jag's grandma gasped. "I cannot believe it… your voice… Is it you, my husband?"
"Yes, my wife," Al replied. "I have come back from the dead to—to ask a favor of you."
"A favor?" Jag's grandma sounded confused. "Why would you ask a favor of me? Do you still not hate me?"
"Um, yes, I do hate you." Al paused. "Actually, no, I do not hate you any longer. Why did I hate you in the first place?"
"How do you not remember?" she cried in astonishment. "Are you truly Beaumont?"
"Yes, yes, of course I am!" Al sounded panicked. "I just—um, well, once I got to Heaven, the angels sort of brainwashed me and—"
"You went to Heaven?" Giselle began to laugh in a high-pitched voice. "You, went to Heaven? How was it there?"
"Pretty spiffy. Lots of clouds, and um, cherubs. They made me forgive you for whatever reason I hated you in the first place."
"I see." Jag's grandmother paused for a moment. "Well, I suppose that you do not fancy that livestock farmer any longer?"
"What the fu—" Al stopped himself in time, then I could hear him making choked sounds, trying to regain his composure. "What… what are you talking about?"
"Oh, yes!" the grandmother screeched happily. "You've forgotten about him! Fantastic!"
"Forget about who? Tell me, Giselle, tell me!"
"Andre, the chicken boy!" Then she gasped. "Oh, I should not have said his name. Your memories might be jolted!"
"My memories are not jolted, dear Giselle," Al said in a straight voice. "Will you please tell me more about him?"
"You saw him when we were traveling by coach down the side of Dijon, by the Saone River during our twenty-fifth marriage anniversary. Do you remember? I wore my very best, red-lace robes for you. I thought that if, maybe, I could make you fall for me that night—we could be blessed with a third child!"
Al made faint gagging noise. "Um, yes, I remember. Then what? Did the romantic night not happen?"
"Of course not! We had our third child ten years later, you bastard!" Giselle's breathing became erratic, almost as if she was going to have a heart attack. "You went and tried to court that goddamn chicken boy!"
"What the fuck?" Al squawked in alarm, and the girls and I simultaneously fell to the floor in silent laughter. Jag turned to us, his mouth open and eyes wide in pure horror.
"I am glad you see how sinful it was," Giselle said haughtily. "You were so very angry at me, because I would not let you meet him… I mean, for goodness sake's, Beaumont, you were a thirty-five year old man with a wife and two children!"
"A… chicken boy?" Al said weakly. "I fell in love with a chicken boy?"
"I suppose that is why my daughter claims that your soul resides in the chicken in the coop outside," Giselle sniffed.
Al was silent for a long moment. Then: "W-Was this boy— uh, I mean the chicken one— was he, er, h-handsome at least?"
Jag choked on his own spit. Zelda pounded him on the back, and he turned to us and weakly mouthed, Why the fuck is he asking her that?
"I was much prettier, I can assure you," Giselle replied coldly.
"Oh, um, okay," Al said weakly. "I, uh… Wow, I'm just a little… shocked right now." He cleared his throat. "I can assure you, Giselle, there was no other prettier woman—or man— out there than you. I loved you."
There was a silence, then Giselle said: "If you loved me, Beaumont, why did I catch you in the chicken coop with—"
"THAT WAS AN ACCIDENT!" Al screamed. "I was, um, taken in by that chicken boy's charms and I— Urgh! Goddammit! Listen to me, Giselle, I loved you! I still love you!"
"I'm glad to hear that," the grandmother said softly. "Will you forgive me for one last thing?"
"Yeah, sure. Anything."
"The poison… I didn't mean to put it in your glass…"
The four of us sitting outside the door perked up. Jag's eyes widened and he pressed a finger to his lips, forbidding us to make a noise.
"Well, whose glass did you mean to put it in?"
Giselle gave a sigh. "The man who had been sitting next to you at the party, Daemon Nyx—"
"That's my grandfather!" Zelda cried out loud, and Xander immediately slapped a hand over her mouth.
"Shhhh!" Jag widened his eyes ar her, pressing a finger to his lips.
There was a silence in the Extendable Ears. Then: "Was there a noise out there just now, Beaumont?"
"I did not hear anything," Al said in his deep voice. "Please, continue. Why did you want to assassinate Daemon Nyx?"
"Because I was afraid that he was going to tell everyone at the party about our affair!" Giselle sobbed. "I am so sorry, Beaumont! I had never meant things between us to turn out that way!"
"Yeah, your life sucked," Al said dispassionately. "You had an affair with another man behind my back, you tried to kill the other man because you thought he was going to tell me about your affair, but you ended up killing me instead. Wow. You know what, Giselle? I think that you owe me one helluva favor."
"Yes," Giselle responded in a shuddering voice. "Anything you ask, Beaumont."
"I would like three things," Al commanded in his deep bass voice. The girls and I shot each other questioning looks. Three things? "Number one: I would like you to write my grandson, Irene's son, back into your will. And you will triple the amount of his inheritance."
"Yes, most definitely," Giselle said quietly. Next to us, Jag leapt up into the air and started to dance around like a crazed chimp.
"Number two: I want you to treat Irene with respect. You will listen to all of her wishes and you will not intrude in her house when she does not want you. In other words, just leave her alone."
"Very well," the grandmother scoffed. "I always knew she was your favorite daughter."
"And number three: I presume that you know of Zelda Nyx? She is some relative of Daemon Nyx, I believe?" Al asked. Beside me, Zelda stiffened in alarm.
"Yes, the dark-haired girl. She is his granddaughter." Giselle was silent for a moment. "She has his eyes."
"Yes. I would like you to fix her marriage with Irene's son."
"HO—" Zelda started to shout, but Xander and I pounced on her, sitting on her and nearly squishing her against the floor. I eagerly gripped my Extendable Ear, straining to listen to Giselle's response.
"Are…" her voice was croaky. "My grandson and her, are they in love?"
"Yes," Al replied promptly. I could almost hear the grin in his voice. "Will you swear to get them married?"
"Yes, I will," Giselle said with a sigh.
Even though Xander and I were sitting on her back and holding her arms down, Zelda somehow managed to pound her fists on the floors. Her eyes were wide and horrified.
"That's all I wanted to say," Al said. "Goodbye, Giselle." And we heard the floor creak a little as he walked out of the room.
Ten minutes later… in Jag's Man Cave…
"HOLY FUCK, I'M GONNA KILL YOU!" Zelda screamed, charging at Al for the fifth time.
For the fifth time, I quickly cried a spell and ropes appeared out of the end of my wand, zooming forward to entangle my friend around the middle, so she fell on the floor with her hands pinned to her side like a giant cocoon.
"But—that—was—so—awesome!" Al laughed, bent double on the sofa. He was wiping tears away from his eyes. "Aren't I awesome, Rose? Look at what I accomplished!"
I was going to chime in something along the lines of Yes, you're the bestest cousin in the entire world!, but Zelda cut me off before I could say anything:
"YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP!" Jag shouted at her, sitting up straight on his bed. He had spent the last ten minutes lying on it like a brain-dead zombie.
"WHAT, YOU WANT TO GET FUCKING MARRIED?" Zelda screamed back at him from the floor, where she was wriggling around like a worm.
"NO, I DON'T! I'M IN FUCKING SHOCK HERE!" Jag fell back onto his pillow with a groan. "My grandfather had an affair with a chicken boy—a fucking chicken boy!"
I snorted with laughter. "That's pretty hilarious, you know."
"No, it's not!" Jag screamed in anguish. "How would you like it if you knew that your grandpa had fucked a chicken boy when he was thirty-five?"
I thought of my grandpa, Arthur Weasley. "I don't know… I don't think my grandpa was into, um, chicken boys…"
"EXACTLY!" Jag yelled. He sat up again and jammed a thumb into his own chest. "ONLY MY FAMILY'S THAT FUCKED-UP!"
"And even more with the addition of Zelda," Xander added with a giggle-snort.
"When my grandma wants something to happen, it happens," Jag said darkly. He fell back onto his bed and glared at the ceiling. "I can't believe my grandmother had an affair with your grandfather."
"I can't believe your grandmother tried to kill my grandfather," Zelda muttered.
"I can't believe my grandmother ended up killing my grandfather by trying to kill your grandfather," Jag said. "I can't believe that my grandmother is going to get us married. I can't believe that my grandfather was in love with a chicken boy. I can't believe that he was—urgh, that he was—and Merlin, I need to apologize to Kai for being such a prick! My life is screwed up!"
"Wait," Xander said in a puzzled voice. "Why do you want to apologize to Kai?"
"No reason," Jag grumbled, turning on his side. "Zelda, come here. We need to talk about whether or not I'm really your long-lost half-cousin once removed—"
"What the fuck?"
"Our grandparents had had an affair!" Jag protested, waving his arms around in the air. "It's possible!"
"No, it's fucking not!" For some reason, Zelda looked extremely alarmed. "Trust me, you're not. Your mom looks exactly like your grandma, so don't even worry about it."
"Are you sure?"
"Oh, phooey," Jag grumbled. "I could have used it as an excuse not to get married."
"No, you couldn't have," Zelda retorted. "It's legal for half-cousins to get married."
"Oh my god," Xander snapped in exasperation. "You guys need to stop being so fucking pureblood!"
Yes, everyone, this is what I do during my free time. I make my characters' grandfathers have affairs with chicken boys. (And Jag and Zelda are getting marriiied!)
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Y Cycle with Lucia Hayman
Monday, 9:00 AM
An excellent workout focusing on endurance, strength, intervals, intensity and recovery to simulate a ride in real terrain. For all skill levels, studio cycling is an all-terrain adventure! Must sign in at the Member Service Desk in order to reserve a spot (available 30 min prior to class start time)
111 Edgartown-Vineyard Haven Rd, Oak Bluffs
(508) 696-7171
YMCA of Martha's Vineyard's web site
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subset: commoncrawl


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Food & Drink
6 ways to celebrate Shakespeare's 450th birthday in England
By Tracy You, for CNN • Published 14th April 2014
View Gallery
6 Pictures
Go to the theater?
Visit his hometown?
Drink like an Elizabethan?
What's the most appropriate way to toast the world's best-known writer?
This month marks 450 years since the birth of William Shakespeare.
Bard-o-philes argue over April 23 or April 26 -- the exact birth date is unclear, though historic documents show the date of his baptism as April 26, and newborns were usually baptized within three days of their birth in the 16th century.
Instead of getting into that argument, we prefer to propose six things Bill may have done himself to celebrate the day.
MORE: 50 reasons London is the world's greatest city
1. Stroll the streets of Stratford-upon-Avon
"God has given you one face, and you make yourself another." Especially at Bill's birthday procession in Stratford-upon-Avon.
John James Photography
was born in 1564 in Stratford-upon-Avon, an ancient market town in Warwickshire in the middle of England.
It's perfect for fans of the playwright and also lovers of gardens, cream tea, white swans and black-and-white Tudor buildings.
This quaint town screams England ... or rather, murmurs it politely.
Tea rooms serve cream-loaded scones as big as beef burgers and ale is pumped from 600-year-old pubs.
The playwright's influence is everywhere -- from Shakespeare's Hotel to Hathaway Tearoom to Othello's Restaurant.
But the town's biggest draws are the five houses linked to its most famous son, including Shakespeare's Birthplace and Anne Hathaway's Cottage.
MORE: 9 top cities for 'detective travel'
The former is a 15th-century house thought to be where the poet was born.
The latter is the family home of Shakespeare's wife, with beautiful gardens.
Stratford Town Walk is a great way to take in a thousand years of history in two hours.
Tour guide John Hogg, 69, says the walk takes place every day, come rain or shine, even when the River Avon bursts its banks.
2. Join the birthday bonanza
Visitors to Shakespeare's Birthplace on April 23 will be able to sign a guest book that's brought out only once a year.
The book was first signed in 1847 and contains signatures of literary legends such as Thomas Hardy and Charles Dickens.
On the same day, the Stratford-based
Royal Shakespeare Company
will stage a fireworks show, scheduled to start at 10:30 p.m. from the theater's 36-meter-tall tower.
The company is performing "Henry IV, Part I" and "Part II" during the birthday week.
The traditional birthday procession in Stratford-upon-Avon takes place on the morning of April 26.
Students from King Edward VI Grammar School, where Shakespeare studied as a boy, will parade from the Town Hall to the Holy Trinity Church then place quill pens on the writer's grave.
The procession will be followed by a people's pageant at 11 a.m.
Everyone can chip in to cheer, lament or act like the Bard.
The Elizabethan street party will be joined for the first time by a six-meter-tall mechanical Lady Godiva.
MORE: 'Dragon Tattoo travel': How to see Stockholm like Stieg Larsson
3. Walk the City of London
The Shakespeare statue in front of the remains of St. Mary Aldermanbury parish in the City of London.
Tracy You/CNN
After leaving his hometown, Shakespeare lived, wrote and acted extensively in an eastern part of London near the River Thames, known as the City of London.
Actor-turned-tour-guide Declan McHugh, 53, hosts a Shakespeare-themed walking tour each Friday -- the tour follows a thread through the cobblestone backstreets of London's financial district.
"There are lots of memorials of one kind or another, including sculptures and plaques," says McHugh. "But many aren't well known and are hidden away in odd nooks and crannies."
Highlights on the 105-minute tour include the sites of the only two documented London addresses where the playwright lived and reading Shakespeare's signature on his housing deeds.
To celebrate the writer's birthday, McHugh will lead two special Shakespeare walking tours in South London (starting at 11 a.m., April 22 and 23), as well as two City Walks (starting at 6 p.m., April 22 and 23).
The Shakespeare City Walk
; £9.50 ($16); every Friday from 11 a.m.
4. Explore the Globe Theatre
Although the reconstructed Elizabethan theater is no longer standing on its original site (the original Globe, completed in 1599, was about 250 meters to the southeast), it provides a lovely excuse to imagine yourself as an ale-wielding, garlic-chewing, Elizabethan fun seeker.
The theater tour is brilliant.
For a Tudor penny -- or £13.50 ($22.75) in today's money -- you're taken through a brief history of the Globe and Elizabethan theater.
You can watch a show at the Globe's new addition, the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse.
The four-month-old candle-lit playhouse is a reproduction of Blackfriars Theatre, another important Shakespearean theater that once existed north of the Thames.
The oak and thatched-roofed structure will open its doors for free on April 21 from noon to 5 p.m.
It will also stage its newest interpretation of "Hamlet" from April 23-26 before the show embarks on a world tour, visiting every country on the planet in the next two and half years.
Shakespeare's Globe
, 21 New Globe Walk, Bankside, London; +44 20 7902 1400; opening time varies from month to month, check the
official website
before your visit
MORE: 10 of London's oldest, greatest pubs
5. Watch fringe events at The Rose
Shakespeare is thought to have learned the ropes at The Rose, the first Elizabethan theater on London's Bankside.
Tracy You/CNN
Minutes from the Globe Theatre lay the ruins of The Rose, the first Elizabethan playhouse on Bankside, built in 1587.
They're the only surviving parts of an Elizabethan theater open to the public in London.
The foundations of The Rose were discovered in 1989 under a demolished office block.
Philip Henslowe, the playhouse's owner, kept a detailed diary, documenting everything from how plays were performed to how much had been spent on renovations.
Through this diary, "we know more about Elizabethan playgoing from The Rose than from any other source," says Suzanne Marie, an honorary artistic associate with the theater.
The Rose is now used as a fringe theater.
Plays written by Elizabethan masters are staged here almost every night.
The space also hosts an Open Day every Saturday.
Visitors can watch a 15-minute video about the playhouse's history, enjoy a few fringe-style theater scenes and learn about The Rose Revealed Project, a program aimed to convert the site into a permanent public display by 2016.
The Rose Theatre
, 56 Park St
, Bankside, Southwark, London; +44 20 7261 9565; Open Day takes place every Saturday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
6. Grab a pint at a
historic pub
It's hard to know how much or how often Shakespeare drank, but the playwright certainly gave the impression of enjoying a tipple.
Records suggest he rented out half of his old home in Stratford-upon-Avon to a pub called Swan & Maidenhead, which operated for another two centuries after Shakespeare's death in 1616.
The Garrick Inn in Stratford was likely a regular haunt for the bard.
The three-story half-timber building is the oldest pub in town.
It had already existed for about 150 years when Shakespeare was born and was once owned by David Garrick, a renowned 18th-century Shakespearean actor.
It boasts to have served ale since 1594.
In London, things are a bit tricky as the Great Fire in 1666 razed most of the buildings related to Shakespeare.
MORE: World's 12 best shopping cities
"The Hoops and Grapes in Aldgate is one of the few buildings in the City of London to have survived the Great Fire," says Matt Brown, managing editor of
"Its wonky timbers offer a rare glimpse into how much of London would have looked in Shakespeare's time."
The 37-year-old Londoner is a walking encyclopedia of the city's 7,000 or so registered pubs.
He also recommends the Horse and Groom, right next to The Curtain, where "Romeo and Juliet" is thought to have been first staged.
Remains of the early Shakespearean theater in Shoreditch were discovered in 2012.
The Hoops and Grapes
, 47 Aldgate High St., London; +44 20 7481 4583; opens 11 a.m.-11 p.m. on Monday-Friday
11 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday
Horse and Groom, 28 Curtain Road, London; +44 20 7503 9421; opens noon-midnight Monday-Wednesday; noon-1 a.m. Thursday; noon-4 a.m. Friday; 7.30 p.m.-4 a.m. Saturday
and 3 p.m.-midnight Sunday
The Garrick Inn, 25 High St., Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire; +44 1789 292 186; opens 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Monday-Saturday; 11 a.m.-10.30 p.m. Sunday
you commemorate Shakespeare's birthday? Leave a comment -- perhaps a sonnet -- in the comments section.
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text:
The book describes 200 years of Irish presence in the Lower St-Francis Valley, a section of Quebec's Eastern Townships that surrounds the Town of Richmond. Much of the information for the book was provided by local families. Part I deals with Irish rural settlements and Part II focuses on the Richmond's St-Patrick's Society.
Books are available at Townshippers' Association (819-566-5717), Black Cat Books in Lennoxville, and Papeterie 2000 or Loretta at 819-826-2658 in Richmond.
Visit www.richmondstpats.org for information on the society, and the book.
Canada Book Day
To mark Canada Book Day, the Library and Archives Canada takes a closer look at the collection of early 20th-century Canadian publications available in the Electronic Collection of Library and Archives Canada.
The website address is www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/electroniccollection/index-e.html


text:
Hotel giant Marriott International Inc. said Wednesday that second-quarter earnings rose as business and leisure travelers continued to book hotel rooms and paid slightly more for them.
Hotel giant Marriott International Inc. said Wednesday that second-quarter earnings rose as business and leisure travelers continued to book hotel rooms and paid slightly more for them.
Marriott, based in Bethesda, Md., earned $179 million, or 57 cents a share, in the three-month period ended June 30. That's up from $143 million, or 42 cents per share, a year ago.
A change in the company's fiscal year meant seven extra days in the quarter this year compared to last year.
Revenue rose 18 percent to $3.26 billion.
Analysts expected earnings of 57 cents per share and revenue of $3.20 billion, according to FactSet.
The company's revenue per available room � or REVPAR � was $129.59, up 4.4 percent from the prior year. That key figure increased thanks to slightly higher occupancies and a 3 percent gain in the rates charged to guests.
"Both business and leisure transient demand were strong in the quarter, more than offsetting weak short-term group business," Arne M. Sorenson, Marriott president and CEO, said in a statement.
"As occupancy rates reach 2007 peak levels for many brands, room rates are moving higher, improving hotel profitability and incentive fees," Sorenson said.
Marriott now expects its revenue per available room to increase 4 to 6 percent worldwide for the full year, down from its outlook last quarter for growth of 4 to 7 percent.
The company expects its annual earnings per share to be $1.92 to $2.03, slightly lower than Wall Street analysts' estimate of $2.04. Marriott's stock fell about 2.6 percent in after-hours
Marriott doesn't own most of the hotels in its system but makes money off either managing or franchising its 18 brands. Those include Ritz-Carlton, Fairfield Inn & Suites, Courtyard, SpringHill Suites and Renaissance.
Marriott added 43 new properties, with a total of 6,203 rooms, to its worldwide lodging portfolio in the quarter. Eighteen properties, with 3,225 rooms, exited the system. As of June 30, the company was responsible for 3,847 properties and timeshare resorts globally with more than 666,000 rooms.
The company's worldwide pipeline of hotels under construction, awaiting conversion or approved for development increased to nearly 850 properties with more 140,000 rooms.


text:
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Tissue Paper Flowers
56 comments:
I love love love these. I loved them when you pinned them, and I love that you've made them. They are on my to do list for sure.ReplyDelete
- Lisa P.May 4, 2012 at 8:39 AM
These are great! I love all of your tutorials!!ReplyDelete
Can I ask where you got your dress? I love the pattern!
Just in time! Our after school students have minimum days all next week because of State Testing. These flowers will make perfect Mother's Day presents. Thank you.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousMay 5, 2012 at 7:48 AM
This is so cool!!! I had to mention it on my facebook page :D http://www.facebook.com/artegraficalily#!/ReplyDelete
- AnonymousMay 9, 2012 at 3:42 PM
Vos fleurs sont magnifiques, merci !ReplyDelete
- AnonymousMay 10, 2012 at 6:30 PM
merci et bravo- thank you for the turorial!ReplyDelete
These are beautiful!ReplyDelete
- AndreaJune 5, 2012 at 8:45 AM
Love it. I would like to pin it, but since you don't have a pinterest button, was wondering if that was okay with you? My daughter will love doing these!ReplyDelete
I love these flowers! I put a link to your blog on my blog:ReplyDelete
www.ahrart.blogspot.com. You inspired me to make some out of newspaper.
This is such a cute tutorial. I would love for you to link it up to my party tomorrow, starting at 6:30pm. ADORABLE!ReplyDelete
- AnonymousJune 30, 2012 at 5:56 PM
I use 18 gauge wire (sewing or craft store has packages of 16 for about a dollar). One of these is light weight enough to use around the paper ti twist. Then I place the pipe cleaner up the paper area so it disappears when I pull the paper up around it , then entwine it around the wire stem. The wire is sturdy enough to act as a stem and the pipe cleaner gave it the green & thicker appearance. I also use pinking shears to trim all edges of my paper before folding it. Still round the tips. I twisted 4-5 of these (varying sizes and colors) into bouquets. Each went into an empty spaghetti sauce jar wrapped with scrapbook papers and tied with a raffia bow. Four went down the long tables for a family party with a couple scattered around the house for pops of color. I had some tumbled green aqua glass stones for flower arranging and I scattered a dozen in the bottom of each vase for weight & water effect. Family loved the simple & colorful decorations. I sent some home with people , and gave a few to some little neighbor girls. I folded and wired several dozen and then just worked the tissue a half dozen a night while watching tv each night. Fun!ReplyDelete
Genius! I always have leftover tissue and can't stand to throw it away. Will maybe iron it flat again or some biig dahlias.ReplyDelete
- KarinaJuly 10, 2012 at 9:39 AM
These look great! I have a question - in what order do you layer the different colours?ReplyDelete
Wonderful! I did this long ago, but some more different. I also made a small vase from a toiletpapertube and a piece of cardboard to put the flowers in. But this looks so easy, I want to try it again. Thank you for sharing.ReplyDelete
I really like it.
thank you for this lovely input, placed it on our facebook, https://www.facebook.com/wonenmetlefReplyDelete
These turned out really pretty! I am going to give it a try :)ReplyDelete
So so pretty. My daughter is going to love these!ReplyDelete
hi michelle,ReplyDelete
i just linked your adorable post:
i would be very happy if you check it out...
you can translate the german page with the google-translator gadget (in the right sidebar)
thank you so much for your inspiring tutorial!!!
greetings from germany...
ouhhh!! I LOVE this!! so cute. I will be trying this soon - maybe in some fall colors!ReplyDelete
it is really good.ReplyDelete
This is a great idea for making flowers, Little girls will want to try this, so cool, Thank you!ReplyDelete
Michelle, I pinned your tutorial on my pinterest board many, many, many moons ago. I decided to use my Pinterest boards for inspiration for my own craftinginstead of just having pretty things that other's have made, to look at.ReplyDelete
I've linked your post and credited your tutorial, and used it to make my very own Peony :) Beautiful might I add, and so easy to do.
Thank you for your inspiration!
Thank you for the lovely pictures of how to make these. Your post was a perfect resource to show what we did to help a friend. Thank you!ReplyDelete
This is an easy tutorial. Thanks!ReplyDelete
These are so pretty!! I've linked to this tut from my post today: http://thediymommy.com/9-favourite-diy-mothers-day-gifts/ReplyDelete
It looks so great! Thank you a lot :)ReplyDelete
Thanks for the great tutorial! I'm going also to feature it on my blog www.blumenfabrik.blogspot.comReplyDelete
Hi Michelle,ReplyDelete
I made giant tissue paper flowers for my son's 1st birthday. I made my flowers a bit differently (more sheets and used the entire sheet instead of cutting into a square) but I followed your instructions for the different cuts to make different types of flowers. I made a tutorial on how to make DIY Giant Tissue Paper Flowers on my blog and I lined to your post for how to cut the tissue paper for different flowers.
Here is a link:
I'd love for you to take a peek if you have a minute.
Best Wishes,
These are so lovely! I will make some for my place. <3ReplyDelete
these are so pretty ! thank you for sharing ! i share the link here : http://www.pinterest.com/lemondedis/diy-flowers-pom-poms-bows/ReplyDelete
Hi! I'm writing to let you know I included this project in my "Top DIYs of the Week" on my blog: http://www.wemakeapair.com/wordpress/2014/03/01/top-diys-of-the-week4/ReplyDelete
I hope you will like it!
Have a nice day,
Paola :-)
Thank you so much for this idea. I used it for teacher appreciation week.ReplyDelete
Creating some of these at the moment for Mothers Day. Thanks for pinning! I love that you included so many styles. They are turning out great~ReplyDelete
Wonderful and simple and fast idea for decorations. I am making some now for our upcoming party in July. I used two pipe cleaners instead of one. Flower still sits a bit wobbly on the stem, but less so than with one pipe cleaner. Thank you for sharing your ideas.ReplyDelete
fabulous!!!! thank u so much for sharing :)ReplyDelete
Hi, my name's Minh, and nice to meet you :xReplyDelete
This's my latest How-to video tutorial: Miniature rose paper flower :x
Lots of video tutorial how to make paper flower step by step here:
Please watch, like, comment and share if you like it :)
Thank you God bless u :x
Hola! Hemos añadido tus flores de papel de seda en un recopilatorio que hemos hecho en nuestro blog, puedes verlo en 15 Manualidades de Flores que tú puedes hacerReplyDelete
Muchas gracias por la idea, es genial!
Hi, Michelle! Was looking to add a pop of color to my living room, wanted flowers, and found you. Couldn't decide which one I wanted - so made them all!!!!!!! Now I can't decide which one I like the best - guess I'll have to use them all together! Thanks for all the fun - it's so nice to add pretty things to your home knowing that YOU made them yourself, and that it's so affordable! Am looking forward to more of your DIYs!ReplyDelete
Beautiful! Walmart carries a pack of 60 6" wired wooden floral picks for under $3. Sturdier than pipe cleaners.ReplyDelete
These are so pretty! I just love them. I'm going to try my hand at the daisies. My mom's birthday is coming up and they are her favorite flower. I think she will love them too! Thank you for the wonderful day.ReplyDelete
I love this post. It reminds me of my childhood. I had done this at my school time. This is amazing post just like renholdstavangerReplyDelete
This is the best ever! Thank you for the information. So easy and so pretty! I'm going to make some Hydrangea with shades of blue and purpleReplyDelete
really nice , perfect fore a babyshowerReplyDelete
thank you!


text:
Dust Kittyon July 25, 2012 at 11:22 pm
I just realized it may have been a while since I drew a comic about a cat so here, I fixed that for you. This comic goes out in memory to Henry, my friend Chris's rad cat who just passed away. I pour my Forty to you, Henry! We will miss you.


text:
Making an
Empowered by Paul G. Allen's vision for a better world, we take an unconventional approach to tackling hard problems. We fill gaps – in knowledge, research, and tools – to make an enduring impact and be catalysts for change.
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The possible is constantly being redefined, and I care deeply about helping humanity move forward.
- Paul Allen -


text:
Put up glamour to your bedroom with Montana Parchment Quilt Cover Set by Phase 2. This quilted cover set is soft and luxurious. The stunning design complements your bedroom decor to any settings. It is made from microfiber polyester.
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Under the Australian Consumer Law, you are entitled to your legal rights to return the goods purchased for a refund, replacement or credit if the good has a major problem. This is when the item is:-
If the problem is not major, we will repair the item within a reasonable time. If it is not repaired in a reasonable time, you can choose a refund or replacement. Please refer to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission website at http://www.accc.gov.au for more detailed information. For all change-of-mind returns, go to terms and conditions page for details.
Under the health act, pillows, quilts (also known as duvets or donnas), underlays (or underblankets), bed toppers (or mattress toppers), pillow protectors and mattress protectors are non-refundable unless faulty. As such, you cannot return these items even if they are unused under our change of mind policy. So it is your responsibility to choose carefully prior to your purchase.
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With a difficult salary situation and a hole at wide receiver opposite Santonio Holmes in their starting lineup, the New York Jets have reportedly reached a contract agreement with former Giant, Plaxico Burress.
The Jets lost backup receiver Brad Smith to division rival Buffalo and were apparently not willing to meet Braylon Edwards' contract demands to secure his return to New York. That led to the signing of Burress, who will likely assume Edwards' role as a red zone target and deep threat.
Burress returns to the league after a two-year absence stemming from a jail term related to shooting himself in the leg in a New York nightclub.
Although a significant market for his services seemed slim, there turned out to be remarkable interest, and the Jets were in the market for a veteran receiver. He was also recently linked to the Giants, Steelers, Eagles, Rams, and 49ers.
Fantasy Impact
Given his age and time away from football, Burress faces significant challenges in returning as the player he was when he left the league. He will get that opportunity with the Jets, but in New York's heavily run-based offense, his upside would appear be limited. In fact, it's basically what Edwards accomplished in 2010—53 receptions for 904 yards and seven touchdowns. And the odds of Burress getting there seem remote.
He is 34, he hasn't played in two years, and he has never had the reputation as a truly dedicated player. Not to mention that the Jets still have Jerricho Cotchery as their top backup receiver, a player who has 64 starts over the past five seasons.
For Burress to move up to WR3 status, he will need to find the end zone plenty because he's just not going to get close to 1,000 yards. He will likely become the team's top red zone target, so he could reach seven or eight touchdowns, but banking on touchdowns is never a smart thing.
If you're willing to gamble on those touchdowns and the inconsistency that comes with them, you could roll Burress as a WR3. But there are better options out there that possess far more upside.


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Compatible Products & Services / Re: Building a new rig - need system requirements.« on: September 30, 2007, 05:03:27 am »
this is a very interesting thread. I see by the 7000+ views that others find it helpful as well. I'd like to suggest to the mods or admins that perhaps this thread should be stickied, and maybe a dedicated hardware forum should be created. Just a thought.


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A prominent lawyer who received threats after handling high-profile cases is dead after being shot by two men riding on a motorcycle.
Interior Minister Mauricio Lopez Bonilla said lawyer Lea Marie de Leon was killed Thursday as she left her office, and he thinks a drug cartel was responsible.
But Hernandez said that a prosecutor's office employee could be behind the killing.
De Leon is married to Edin Hernandez, editor of the Prensa Libre newspaper.
The attorney represented Maria del Rosario Melgar, whom prosecutors had accused of involvement in the killing of former Interior Ministry adviser Victor Rivera.
She was also a defense lawyer for two men implicated in the 2009 killing of Rodrigo Rosenberg, a lawyer who accused the country's president in a video made before his death.


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Ancient DNA Unravels Europe's Genetic Diversity – "Ancient DNA recovered from a time series of skeletons in Germany spanning 4,000 years of prehistory has been used to reconstruct the first detailed genetic history of modern-day Europeans. The study, published today in 'Science', reveals dramatic population changes with waves of prehistoric migration, not only from the accepted path via the Near East, but also from Western and Eastern Europe." – orig. research article: Ancient DNA Reveals Key Stages in the Formation of Central European Mitochondrial Genetic Diversity. from dienekes: "Anyone adhering to a 'pots not people' paradigm will find difficult to explain the sharp discontinuities found in the genetic record." – and here's national geographic's take on the story – my head's dizzy from all the spin!: "So, just like parts of Europe today are melting pots from different living cultures across the world, Europe is also a melting pot of genetic lineages from different prehistoric cultures that lived there at different periods of time." – see also: Stone Age farmers, hunters kept their distance.
Genes Suggest European Women at Root of Ashkenazi Family Tree – "The women who founded the Ashkenazi Jewish community of Europe were not from the Near East, as previously supposed, and reinforces the idea that many Jewish communities outside Israel were founded by single men who married and converted local women." – see dienekes and greg cochran.
[Genetic] Link to Oetzi the Iceman found in living Austrians – AWESOME!
Child Behaviour: Not In Their Genes? – "Using a powerful approach called GCTA, King's College London researchers Maciej Trzaskowski and colleagues found no evidence that genetics can explain differences in children's behavioural and conduct difficulties." – @neuroskeptic.
"Were the First Artists Mostly Women? – "Three-quarters of handprints in ancient cave art were left by women, study finds." — afaics, there's no reason to conclude that the individuals who spray painted outlines of their hands (any idiot can do that — I could do that!) were the same individuals who painted the horses and lions, etc. duh. anyway, here's the interesting bit from the article: "[T]he hands in the caves were much more sexually dimorphic than modern hands, meaning that there was little overlap in the various hand measurements. 'They fall at the extreme ends, and even beyond the extreme ends,' Snow said. 'Twenty thousand years ago, men were men and women were women.'"
Glass always half-empty? Your genes may be to blame – "UBC researcher finds some people are genetically predisposed to seeing things in a negative light. Further research is also planned to explore the gene variant's occurrence across different ethnic groups. While it is believed more than half of Caucasians have ADRA2b, some studies suggest it is much less prominent in other ethnicities…."
Whites More Prone to Certain Heart Condition Than Other Ethnic Groups – "In a study to be published online October 8 and in the November 12 issue of 'Circulation', researchers discovered that self-described non-Hispanic whites are more likely to develop atrial fibrillation than people from other race or ethnic groups. 'We found that consistently, every other race had a statistically significant lower risk of atrial fibrillation compared to whites…. So this suggests that white race is itself a risk factor for atrial fibrillation.'" – h/t mr. mangan, esq!
Neurons Fire Backward in Sleep – "Unusual brain cell activity may underlie memory streng…" wait. NEURONS FIRE BACKWARD IN SLEEP! cool.
Changes in women's attractiveness perception of masculine men's dances across the ovulatory cycle: Preliminary data – "Women's preferences for putative cues of genetic quality in men's voices, faces, bodies, and behavioral displays are stronger during the fertile phase of the ovulatory cycle. Here we show that ovulatory cycle-related changes in women's attractiveness perceptions of male features are also found with dance movements, especially those perceived as highly masculine."
Similar chimpanzees form friendships – "'We found that, especially among unrelated friends, the most sociable and bold individuals preferred the company of other highly sociable and bold individuals, whereas shy and less sociable ones spent time with other similarly aloof and shy chimpanzees,' says the researcher. The researchers argue that such a strong preference for self-like individuals is probably adaptive, because frequent cooperation becomes more reliable when both partners have similar behavioural tendencies and emotional states. This finding strongly resembles the known 'similarity effect' in humans: We tend to make friends with people who are equally extraverted, friendly and bold as ourselves." — same in some birds, too, remember?
All you ever wanted to know about intelligence (but were too bright to ask) Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4 – from dr. james thompson.
Social Status and Anger Expression: The Cultural Moderation Hypothesis – "Individuals with lower social status have been reported to express more anger, but this evidence comes mostly from Western cultures…. Americans with lower social status expressed more anger…. Japanese with higher social status expressed more anger…." – maybe there's a biological explanation? – h/t neuroskeptic!
Life Purpose Buffers Negative Moods Triggered by Diversity – "Being in the minority in an ethnically diverse crowd is distressing, regardless of your ethnicity…." – h/t mr. mangan, esq!
Neandertals ate stomach goop, and you can too – mmmmm! chyme!
Study: Narcissists Only Think They're Especially Creative – "Narcissistic people do undertake more creative things, but their correlation with self-reported creativity is disproportionately strong." – h/t jayman! – speaking of narcissts: The Double-Edged Sword of Grandiose Narcissism: Implications for Successful and Unsuccessful Leadership Among U.S. Presidents.
The Whites of Their Eyes – "The subjects in [milgram's] experiments notoriously (and shockingly!) were willing to inflict great pain and possibly permanent harm or even death on victims. But they became less willing to do so as the victim was moved progressively closer to them."
Meritocracy and Its Discontents – @thosewhocansee.
The Paekchong of Korea – from peter frost.
Tribal feuds, local conflicts engulf Libya – "Ever since its revolution, Libya has been riddled with tribal conflict. The state remains powerless in the face of weapon proliferation and violence. Societal fragmentation seems inevitable." — huh. strange.
The Anglosphere miracle – by daniel hannan – "As for the idea that the individual should be as free as possible from state coercion, this is regarded as the ultimate Anglophone fetish. Whenever the E.U. extends its jurisdiction into a new field—decreeing what vitamins we can buy, how much capital banks must hold, what hours we may work, how herbal remedies are to be regulated—I ask what specific problem the new rules are needed to solve. The response is always the same: 'But the old system was unregulated!' The idea that absence of regulation might be a natural state of affairs is seen as preposterous."
A Second Great Depression? – from jayman.
Cheaters always prosper, to a point
Ancient Sundial Discovered In Bronze Age Ukrainian Grave Is Oldest Of Its Kind
Why a medieval peasant got more vacation time than you – d*mn them! h/t mike anissimov!
I tooke a bodkine – "'I tooke a bodkine,' he wrote in his notebook, '& put it betwixt my eye & bone as neare to [the] backside of my eye as I could: pressing my eye [with the] end of it…there appeared severall white & darke & coloured circles…which circles were plainest when I continued to rub my eye [with the] point of [the] bodkine.' After many months with his bodkins, notebooks and prisms he came to the conclusion that our eyes can deceive us even about something as obvious as daylight, which appears plain and simple to us, but is in fact composed of lights of many different colours. Appearances can conceal as much as they reveal." – great #longread about isaac newton.
Length of pregnancy can vary by up to five weeks, scientists discover
Preventing penile fractures and Peyronie's disease – DON'T try this at home!: "In some Middle East regions, men engage in a practice known as *taqaandan* ('to click' in Kurdish), explains Dr. Javaad Zargooshi, urology professor at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences in Iran. It's a painless process, similar to knuckle-cracking, in which the top half of an erect penis is bent forcefully while the rest of the shaft is held stationary. Usually this produces only a loss of erection and a satisfying popping noise, says Zargooshi, who published a report on the phenomenon in December in the Journal of Sexual Medicine. Other times, it will fracture the penis." – wait. what? – via ed west!
Aldeburgh dig unearths teenager's 'keepsakes' box – "An Anglo-Saxon teenage girl's box of trinkets is thought to have been uncovered by archaeologists during a three-week dig in Suffolk."
bonus: How the Western Banksta System Kills Millions (by accident)
bonus bonus: True scale of European immigration – "An EU study has found 600,000 unemployed migrants are living in Britain."
bonus bonus bonus: Does Some Deeper Level of Physics Underlie Quantum Mechanics? An Interview with Nobelist Gerard 't Hooft and You probably have no free will. But don't worry about it.
bonus bonus bonus bonus: Swifts stay airborne for six months at a time – whoa!
bonus bonus bonus bonus bonus: Southern Flying Squirrels Land in Canada – "Southern flying squirrels are moving into the habitat of Northern flying squirrels. Now people are debating what to call the hybrid offspring." — illegal infiltrators! (~_^)
(note: comments do not require an email. really sweet bronze anglo-saxon dolphin trinket!)


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See how Toyota vehicles compare against the competition. Start by choosing your Toyota vehicle and a competitor to learn more on how they stack up.
For decades, icons like the 2000GT, Sports 800 and AE86 Corolla have cemented Toyota's enthusiast cred, earning accolades on the racetrack and respect on the streets. We took this performance DNA and mixed it with modern-day, race-proven engineering to create our purest sports car yet — the 2018 Toyota 86.
See how the 2018 Toyota 86 GT 6AT compares against the 2018 Honda Civic SI Coupe. For starters, a rear bench seat and seatback storage are both standard on the Toyota 86, while neither are available on the Civic. An auxiliary input jack is also standard on the Toyota 86 GT 6AT but not available on Civic Si Coupe 6MT. Finally, a navigational system is optional on the 86 GT 6AT while not available on the Civic Si Coupe 6MT.


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Value Line is regarded as the best independent research available. More than just recommendations, Value Line provides the rationale behind its picks for greater understanding.
In the summer of 1923, Kansas City, Missouri native Walt Disney created a short pilot film, "Alice's Wonderland", about a girl in an animated world. October 16, 1923, marked the formal beginning of the Walt Disney Company (DIS – Free Disney Stock Report) when the film was picked up by distributor Margaret J. Winkler, who contracted a series of Alice's Comedies. Walt and his brother, Roy moved to Los Angeles and established the Disney Brother Cartoon Studio as equal partners (Roy handled most of the finances). At Roy's suggestion, the brothers changed the name of the company to the Walt Disney Studio.
Disney and his animators embarked on an all-cartoon series in 1927, and created 26 Oswald the Lucky Rabbit shorts. But, after a contract dispute with Winkler, Walt Disney lost the rights to that franchise and most of his staff.
Walt Disney and his chief animator, Ub Iwerks, developed a new character, Mickey Mouse. The imagineer poured resources into making the first sound cartoon. "Steamboat Willie" starring Mickey Mouse opened in November of 1928, and the Walt Disney Studios developed a series with the world-famous mouse at the helm. In the following years, Mickey became the company mascot, and his iconic ears soon branded everything from figurines to toothbrushes to office supplies.
The studio continued to gain steam, even during the Great Depression. It produced Silly Symphonies a collection of animated shorts. In 1932, Walt Disney Studios partnered with Technicolor on the first full-color cartoon "Flowers and Trees," paving the way for the 1937 release of the first full-length animated film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Disney's first fairy tale became the world's highest grossing film (it held this record until 1939), and the studio (which relocated to Burbank, California thanks to the film's profits) began production on other feature films.
But, the company lost access to its global audiences with the advent of World War II, and wasn't able to recoup production costs on its 1940 releases: Pinocchio and Fantasia. Even though the studio slowed their output during the war, it continued to innovate and released Dumbo and Bambi in the early 1940s.
By 1950, Disney released its first live-action film Treasure Island. And in the following decade the film studio ventured into television production, including the Davy Crockett mini-series, the long-running Disneyland anthology, and the Mickey Mouse Club. It also created Buena Vista Productions to control the distribution and marketing of its ventures.
As its motion pictures and televisions gained momentum, Walt Disney turned his attention to another entertainment venue. On July 17, 1955, the revolutionary amusement park, Disneyland, opened in Anaheim, California. The park has attracted millions of visitors from around the globe, and in the founder's words, it would "never be completed…as long as there is imagination left in the world."
On November 12, 1957, the family-owned company decided to go public, and opened on the New York Stock Exchange at $13.88.
In 1965, the company announced plans to open a much larger theme park and resort in Orlando, Florida. After Walt Disney died of lung cancer in 1966, his brother and co-founder Roy Disney renamed the project in his memory. Walt Disney World opened to the public in October, 1971, and Mr. Roy Disney passed away two months after he fulfilled his brother's vision. Donn Tatum, Card Walker, and Ron Miller (Walt's son-in-law), took over the leadership of the company.
Walt Disney Productions churned out animated classics and family-friendly films through the 1960s and 1970s. It also created a new brand Touchstone Pictures, which was geared for more mature audiences.
Prime-time show The Wonderful World of Disney helped the media conglomerate keep a foothold in television. And in 1980, Walt Disney Home Studio was created to focus on the new videocassette market.The Disney Channel was born in 1983, featuring its library of classic films, television series, and new original programming.
Inspired by Disney's dream of a futuristic model city, EPCOT Center it opened its second Walt Disney World theme park, a so called "permanent World's Fair, in 1982. The following year, the company partnered with the Oriental Land Company to build Tokyo Disneyland.
Even with the success of its theme parks, the Disney Channel, and its valuable film library, the production company had trouble keeping up with competing studios. In 1984, financier Saul Steinberg launched a hostile takeover, intending to sell Disney's various assets. Friendly investors fought the assault, and the company brought in Frank Wells from Time Warner (TWX) Warner Bros. and Michael Eisner and Jeffrey Katzenberg from Viacom (VIAB) subsidiary Paramount Pictures to head the corporation.
The company had a renaissance under its new leadership. Through the 1980s and 1990s it strengthened its own productions, entered into television animation, and revitalized its portfolio with several strategic acquisitions. In 1991, DIS was added to the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
In 1993, Katzenberg purchased Miramax Films, helping Disney capture older audiences. Three years later, Disney merged with Capital Cities/ABC. The $19 billion purchase added ABC television network (10 TV stations, 21 radio stations, seven daily papers), and an ownership position in A&E, Lifetime, History Channel, and ESPN. Today, it's estimated that the sports network, alone, is worth the acquisition price.
Under Eisner and his partners, the company expanded its parks (opening Disneyland Paris), strengthened its film division (Disney-MGM Studios became Hollywood Studios), and invested in new media. In the 1990s, the company also launched its first cruise line, and made its foray on the Great White Way, adapting its films to the Broadway stage. It expanded merchandising efforts and opened the first Disney Store.
But, not everyone saw eye to eye with Eisner. In the mid 1990s, after a disagreement, Katzenberg left to form Dreamworks SKG (DWA) with Steven Spielberg and David Geffen. In the early 2000s, following a series of box office flops, sentiment turned against the Chairman and CEO. Board members Roy Disney and Stanley Gold led 43% of DIS shareholders to withhold their proxies from re-electing Mr. Eisner to the board. Former U.S. Senator George Mitchell became chairman, and Eisner resigned as CEO in 2005. He was replaced by his longtime assistant Robert Iger.
Iger helped restructure the company and renew its focus on family-friendly films. Miramax co-founders (The Weinstein brothers) left the company, and DIS downsized its investment in Touchstone. Disney acquired Pixar Animation Studios in an all-stock transaction valued at $7.4 billion in 2006. And at the end of 2009, the company purchased Marvel Entertainment for $4.24 billion.
Today, the global entertainment conglomerate consists of five segments: Studio Entertainment, Consumer Products, Parks and Resorts, Media Networks, and Interactive Media.
Studio Entertainment, which made up 16% of fiscal 2011 revenues, includes Disney's production companies (Walt Disney Animation Studios, Pixar Animation Studios, DisneyToon Studios, Touchstone Pictures, and Hollywood Pictures); its international distribution arm; Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, which distributes titles for sale and rental; Disney Theatrical Productions (including its Broadway shows and Disney on Ice); and the Disney Music Group (Walt Disney and Hollywood Records).
Consumer Products, including Disney Toys, Disney Apparel, Accessories & Footwear, Disney Food, Health & Beauty, Disney Home and Disney Stationery, contributed 7% to the top line in fiscal 2011. The company's publishing segment and retail operations (The Disney store) are also included in this segment. Ongoing merchandising efforts help support the global Disney brand.
The lion's share of Disney's business last year, contributing 46% of revenues, was from its Media Networks segment – its vast array of broadcasting, cable, radio, publishing, and associated websites. The group includes Radio Disney, ABC Television Network, and cable channels ABC Family, SOAPnet, Disney Channel, and the ESPN networks.
Parks and Resorts continue to make up a healthy portion of its overall business, as well. Disneyland, Walt Disney World Resorts, and the Disney cruise lines contributed 29% to the top line in 2011. In addition, the company has overseas subsidiaries in Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Paris, owns eight Vacation Club resorts (with more than 100,000 members), and offers guided tours across the globe under Adventures by Disney.
Interactive Media Group is the company's smallest and newest segment. The unit responsible for the creation and delivery of Disney's branded interactive and multiplatform content only contributed a modest 2% to last year's revenues, we imagine that this segment will play a more active role in the coming years, given the active video game consoles and mobile gaming market, as well as the dynamic opportunities for content development for online, smartphone, and tablet use.
Walt Disney claimed the he "never called my work an 'art' It's part of show business, the business of building entertainment." Over the past 80 years, the company has continued to innovate, strengthen its brand equity, and bolster its global position, and we believe that Disney is poised to grow nicely over the coming years.
The revenue and cost synergies afforded from the entertainment conglomerate's broad portfolio and cross-platform efforts, and good corporate partnerships augur well for top- and bottom-line advances. Further, we think that Disney will continue to eye accretive acquisitions to complement its asset roster.
Looking ahead, the studio will likely continue to invest in content creation. Disney has scaled back studio production over the past few years, to concentrate on releasing better quality films, rather than pursuing a heavier slate. This move has helped the company shave costs and bolster margins. Too, Disney has been leveraging its film library to derive more benefit from its former successes. It is remastering its classics for DVD and Blue Ray re-release, as well as redistributing its movies to theaters in 3D format. Likewise, its focus on younger audiences – and to that end, its 2009 Marvel acquisition – should be accretive in the near term and over the long haul.
As television viewership continues to evolve, Disney is taking measures to adapt its own media segment. It partnered with other media companies to create Hulu, to take advantage of the viewers who have migrated to the Internet. We believe that Disney will pursue other deals with cable distributors to help it carve out a space for its shows and programs on nontraditional platforms, such as mobile devices and handheld tablets. It recently formed an alliance with Comcast (CMCSA) to better distribute its shows and programming. In addition, it plans to widen its global footprint, and is acquiring India-based UTV Communications to strengthen its media assets overseas. Likewise, Disney's Interactive Media segment will likely play a greater role in the coming years, as the company adapts to the changing marketplace.
Parks and Resorts have also been a key investment in the past couple of years. The company owns fourteen theme parks across the globe, and has used its overseas properties to help support brand equity. Its cruise lines and other travel services have also gained steam, and the company has used increment price increases to help improve the returns on its investments in its vacation services.
The Dow-30 component has healthy finances, which should support its capital program, share buybacks, and its dividend program. Even though the media company is somewhat susceptible to consumer whims, we think that its well-diversified portfolio and management's strategic growth campaign will ensure healthy long-term gains. As such, these shares may appeal to a wide range of investors.
At the time of this article's writing, the author did not have positions in any of the companies mentioned.


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Berlin – a 15-stop tour of the world
With a population encompassing 190 different nations, Berlin is regarded as Germany's most international city.
Nearly as many guest countries are expected at this year's International Tourism Trade Fair ITB, which first opened its doors in 1996 in what was then a divided city and with only five nations represented. "Travel was largely pre-organized in the 1960s", says Messe Berlin CEO Dr. Christian Göke, "but today, we travel to every corner of the world as we please. And there's more change to come: Flying cabs and hyperloops are not far off." In Berlin, though, it's still possible to tour the world on the local S-Bahn train network.
New York Eggs
Good morning, Berlin! The Benedict café in Wilmersdorf is run by Israelis, but serves American breakfasts. Our tip: eggs Benedict, the classic poached egg specialty followed by a Morning Martini at the bar.
African Art
What do Congolese "power figures" have in common with sculptures of Italy's patron saints? Find out at in an exhibition at the Bode Museum entitled Beyond Compare: Art from Africa.
Korean Clothing
K-Fashion is big, also in Berlin. A concept store in Kreuzberg caries only Korean labels, such as Rocket X Lunch and In Silence – Asian avant-garde for every day.
Inspirational Shop
Print is very much alive and kicking – at the legendary mag and newspaper store in Berlin Mitte at least. It even stocks rare and intriguing titles, like Eaten and Little White Lies.
Indian Cuisine
Chef Manish Bahukhandi prepares delicious meals in a tandoor oven at Berlin's top address for Indian food, which you will find on the back of the Adlon hotel.
Mexican Kitsch
Who really needs a Frida Kahlo shrine or a Mexican voodoo set? No one, you would think, but at this colorful shop in Kreuzberg, they're impossible to resist. You'll end up redecorating the minute you get home.
Japanese Touch
This café in Mitte is like an urban greenhouse. After the obligatory Instagram photo of the spiral staircase, you walk up it to the café proper and the Japanese-inspired treats it holds in store.
Thai With A Twist
Whoever heard of replacing papaya with kohlrabi? In Berlin Tiergarten, former model Dalad Kambhu creates Thai food using ingredients from the local farmer's market. Artistic and delicious!
Danish Brews
The design of the cans and bottles from this Danish microbrewery in Mitte district is as experimental as the beer itself. Microbrews, such as Salty Surprise and Milk Stout, taste as good as they sound.
Argentine Tango
Did you know that Berlin had the world's second-biggest tango community after Buenos Aires? So why not dance the night away in this charming decorated old factory building in Wedding.
Asian Influence
Sino-German designer William Fan takes inspiration from Asia. The result is a feast for the eyes. Smartphones are frowned on his new store in Mitte, but customers are treated to a fresh brewed cup of tea.
Israeli Import
Shani Ahiel, the owner of this restaurant in Berlin Kreuzberg chose the name for a reason: "Shishi" is the Hebrew for Friday, and stands for Mediterranean hospitality – first food, then fun!
Brazilian Mood
At her cooking studio in Schöneberg, Sabine Hueck prepares specialties from her native Brazil to bossa nova sounds. The atmosphere is intimate since the colorfully decorated kitchen only holds 20 guests.
Parisian Boudoir
The design hotel near Ku'damm pays tribute to the Golden Twenties in Paris. Immerse yourself in the bygone glamour of red velvet and boudoir chic!
Balinese Retreat
Relax after your world tour at this 20 000-square-meter spa reminiscent of Balinese village. You'll soon forget Berlin's central train station is just around the corner.
Getting There
Lufthansa flies several times daily from Frankfurt (FRA) and Munich (MUC) to Berlin-Tegel (TXL) in March. lufthansa.com


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Marathon Fitness Fundamentals
If you're like 95 percent of runners out there, you simply can't fit all the training in. So there's no sense in sweating the micro-level details. Instead, understand the big-picture elements that matter: (1) your fitness and (2) your ability to execute.
Fitness is Your Engine
Built over months and years of training, your fitness is much more than last week's 20-miler, it's the total sum of the work you have done as an athlete. Sure "recent" training really matters, but the truth is the longer you have played the endurance game the better you get at it, and the less training you need to be able to do more. At some point, in other words, your "baseline" fitness is pretty darn fit.
Target Pacing
Inside Marathon Nation we train on a daily basis with paces as determined by a 5K test because we want every mile run to be as focused and effective as possible -- we strive for zero junk miles. The idea here is that even if you can't hit every run, the ones that you do get in are very specific to where your body is at right now. Running with others and doing track workouts are a great way to push yourself, but they aren't always specific to you.
Consistent Training
Since your fitness is the sum of all the running work you do, then the focus is on getting in more work than just "a" workout. Another reason for the specificity of the Marathon Nation training philosophy is the understanding that the long run in week 8 of your 12-week plan isn't the be-all, end-all of your training program. The true measure of a long run is whether you can recovery quickly enough to continue your training cycle in the following week (at the proper paces).
The Right Race Simulation
Fitness aside, we still need to be able to put the race together on the big day. In addition to our free race execution guidance for marathoners, we also use a single Race Simulation workout to align our training with our expectations and to prepare ourselves to execute.
Why Simulate?
Basically there are two main goals within a race simulation: paces and planning.
First to make sure the paces you have picked for race day are, in fact, attainable. Better to find this out now, with a few weeks to go (and on your own) than at mile 18 of race day with little other alternative than to slow down or walk.
Second, to allow you to put your equipment, nutrition, and mental focus to the test before the crucible of the big day itself. Despite the fact that we've trained all year for this single event, we'll often make crucial errors in judgment that lead to the unraveling of our day. By creating a race plan and testing it in the simulation, we accelerate this learning process and increase our chances of success on race day.
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Due to variances in monitors, the colors and patterns displayed may vary slightly from the actual product. Physical samples should be ordered prior to specifying.
MDC Natural Woods are created through a special process which permits one source of wood to realistically reproduce the wood grains and colors of numerous natural woods without using the authentic endangered or over-harvested species. This process minimizes waste, ensures maximum yield, and protects the natural forest woods from being depleted.


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August 15, 2013
LAWT News Service
U.S. Bank provided free backpacks and school supplies to 175 children who reside at Dolores McCoy Villa I ("McCoy Plaza") in Los Angeles' Watts neighborhood. Bank employee volunteers distributed the backpacks and school supplies to the children during a special event recently. McCoy Plaza is located at 9315 S. Firth Boulevard in Los Angeles' Watts neighborhood.
"The U.S. Bank employee volunteers had a great time meeting with children and their families, and distributing the backpacks and school supplies," said Sean Foley, president of U.S. Bank in Southern California. "We hope our donation helps these students get their school year off to a good start."
McCoy Plaza is a low-income housing development, built by Affordable Housing CDC, Inc. (AHCDC), and Watts Community Labor Action Committee (WCLAC). The 64 supportive housing units for large homeless families are fully furnished and offer a range of services, including case management, budget counseling, employment training and placement, academic counseling, access to health care and substance abuse services, and assistance focused on families and independent living skills. The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles has committed to provide rental subsidy through its Permanent Supportive Housing Program.
WLCAC and its development arm, GWDC, is the original developer of McCoy Plaza and a local experienced developer with hundreds of affordable units built in the Watts community. Additionally, WLCAC human services division provides social services to 30,000 residents per year including the developments it has been involved with.
AHCDC developments are known for their quality tenant services and providing much needed housing in under served areas.
U.S. Bank provided a $10 million construction loan for the construction of the housing units at McCoy Plaza. This is the bank's first loan for WCLAC. U.S. Bank has financed three affordable housing projects with AHCDC, totaling more than $25 million in loans.
"In the autumn of 2008, the nation's economy was in a recession and the lending industry was in distress," said Joe Stalzer, executive director of AHCDC. "McCoy Plaza was ready to close its construction and tax credit financing, and it was not clear that it would happen. U.S. Bank stepped up and backed us up by making -- and keeping -- a commitment to closing the construction loan and allowing AHCDC and WCLAC to begin building."
"WLCAC is proud to continue its tradition of 48 years of local affordable housing development with this project and more to come," said Timothy Watkins, president and chief executive officer for WCLAC.