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Nearly 100,000 meals for the hungry were made possible during June Dairy Month, thanks to a nationwide effort by Dairy Farmers of America, Inc. (DFA). Throughout the month, DFA members and staff worked to deliver on the Cooperative's core value of community by helping fight hunger across the U.S.
The Cooperative initially set out to provide 50,000 meals to those in need through a series of fundraisers, volunteer events and local food drives, the majority of which benefitted affiliates of Feeding America, the nation's largest network of food banks.
Ultimately, DFA members and staff doubled that goal, giving nearly 700 hours of volunteer time, donating more than 7,700 pounds of food, sorting and packaging another 65,000 pounds of food during volunteer events, and contributing more than $5,000 in cash and grocery gift cards.
The campaign was part of a larger DFA hunger and nutrition effort, which encompasses policy advocacy and legislative outreach, as well as collaboration with federal and local hunger and nutritional programs.
"Hunger is a serious problem affecting a growing number of Americans," said Jackie Klippenstein, vice president of legislative and industry affairs. "We believe that dairy products can play an important role in reversing the trend, and this national campaign reflects DFA's commitment to the issue."
Examples of contributions to the June Dairy Month campaign include:
• Members and staff in DFA's Mountain Area organized Dairy Cares Day – a simultaneous event spanning three cities: Broomfield, Colorado; Twin Falls, Idaho; and Salt Lake City, Utah. Volunteers in each city spent the morning sorting and packaging food, as well as delivering meals to those in need. In addition, in each location area DFA members had the opportunity to fill reusable grocery bags with nonperishable food items, which their milk haulers assisted in collecting. Thanks in part to a contribution by Western Dairy Association, more than 7,000 pounds of food items and dairy products were donated.
• In Kansas City, where DFA is headquartered, DFA employees logged more than 125 hours of volunteer time at Harvesters Community Food Network, where they processed more than 42,000 pounds of food for distribution to area food banks.
• Staff at DFA's Mideast Area office spent more than 50 hours packaging 2,000 pounds of food. Employees also hosted a food drive in support of the Akron-Canton Regional Food Bank.
• Western Area employees donated time at the Second Harvest Food Bank of San Joaquin and Stanislaus Counties and Second Harvest Food Bank Serving Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, where they spent more than 40 hours sorting 5,800 pounds of produce and dry grocery items.
• Friendly competitions at DFA's Northeast and Southwest Area offices raised more than 400 pounds of food for donation to the Food Bank of Central New York in Syracuse, New York, and Tarrant Area Food Bank in Fort Worth, Texas, respectively.
• The DFA Cares Virtual Food Drive, an online fundraising campaign benefitting Feeding America, generated $5,000 in donations – the equivalent of 35,000 meals. PD
—From DFA news release


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Flappy Witch
Flappy Witch is a game based on the flappy bird mechanics. Help the purple witch to go through challenges with two different levels of difficulty! The game has fantasy setting with good old pixel art. Everything is random here! Even the decorations – you'll get four different backgrounds. Developed with Construct 2, must have program license to export to Android, iOS and others. But you can easily edit even with free version of Construct 2 – Free .capx file included.

subset: commoncrawl


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Shown by Appointment Only!
Contact us today to reserve the earliest appointment time available and secure your chance to own property in this beautiful community.
Prefer Texts?
Text TXLAND to 313131 for text notifications!
1 acre waterfront lot on private lake with pier & covered boat slip on Lake Bob Sandlin
originally priced at $59,900
Want to live or vacation on the cleanest nearby lake to Dallas? Take advantage of these huge savings on this beautiful waterfront acreage, new roads are going in to maximize the beauty of the lake, views and provide low density privacy.
These properties boast huge trees, gated entrances for privacy, underground utilities and are located directly on the lake. The property is very user friendly, no time frame to build, dockable, so leave your boat, enjoy the lake and your property even before you build. Previous phases sold out in hours and days call today to schedule your private tour.
Click Here to See Available Lots
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Text TXLAND to 313131 for text notifications!


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A snarl rumbled somewhere near Singer's flank as she led her pack forwards, and she turned to answer it even though she was a mere shadow of herself. Her hips and spine protruded from underneath a dulled coat as she met the eyes of a pack-member – one of the normal members. He glared at her, his golden eyes sparkling in the dim light."Why do we even follow her? She'd only led us from trouble to starvation! If Blade were here, then he would have had us fight. She's just a worthless half-breed runt; any of us could kill her in a fight." His voice was harsh on her ears, made her wrinkle her lips back into a slow snarl that only ended when a winged wolf as white as the snow around them landed in between her and the male."How dare you talk to my sister like that? She saved your worthless hide and the more precious skins of your pack from being torn apart. Rabid bears aren't something any wolf can fight. They tear through us like dry leaves – is that what you wanted for those of you who have mates who are pregnant?" Her voice was cold as she spoke, her wings beating the air and forcing him backwards. "I'm not the Beta for nothing. I'm not letting my sister fight you when she's weak herself from letting you all have what food she can even find." The other members of the pack looked at each other and muttered. They weren't going to argue with the enraged she-wolf – especially not with her wings raised back. At one time or another they'd felt the lash of her sharp tongue, but normally she buffeted the one she disliked. They dropped their heads and no longer snarled, leaving Kamduis free to nuzzle at her sister's bony shoulder with a low whine. She drooped one of those white wings down over her side before taking smaller steps. She was worried about her sister, worried about just how slender she was getting and how little she argued lately."Sis, you can't keep doing this to yourself. You're meant to be an Alpha and yet you let them eat before you while you starve to death trying to rescue them. You've got to put yourself in front of them, and eat first. I don't care if one of the pregnant she-wolves looks as though she's about to give birth, you can't give her food over yourself. You are dying and you are the only one I care about here now. All our friends have left here, they left long ago, and that was so you wouldn't worry about them. They can look after themselves; they expected you to do the same."Singer frowned, but still didn't speak. All she had the energy to do was lower her head back down and trudge on through the blizzard which had started disguising the land around them in over three foot of snow just two nights ago. It was mainly then that the pack had started to see the she-wolf they saw as invincible lagging, beginning to struggle against the emaciation which had taken hold of her already slender body. She was slowly dying in front of their eyes, and that was why the pack had taken to challenging her…though they were losing hope as they saw the spark of light slowly die within her eyes with every awakening.Kamduis shook her head with a low whine, her ears flattened back as she sighed. She didn't know what to do, but as she turned to look at the pack, she frowned. Maybe they needed to be split apart for a time, so the pregnant wolves could have their pups and her sister could have a break from her duties – a break she so sorely needed. She chewed her lip as they walked; shielding her sister from the wind even when it looked like she would be broken in two by a particularly savage blast of wind and rain. Singer didn't even shiver when the wind hit her, parting her fur and making the melted ice and snow really pummel into her skin."I'm sorry, sis. But you'll thank me one day." The winged she-wolf straightened up and turned from her duty helping her Alpha and sister. Singer hadn't noticed the words, her mind locked back inside her own personal torment, her own world which had consumed her. She hated failing her pack so much that it damaged something vital inside her – she alone could have not just survived a blizzard…but she could have thrived in it. The only two reasons she hadn't were the fact that Blade had disappeared again and she had a pack to put before herself on the scale of vital things.She didn't even notice when Kamduis beat her wings and took off into the air, struggling lightly against the wind which threatened to ground her time and time again. She needed to find somewhere safe for the pack, and somewhere where she could leave her sister to wander to where she was safe. She even had a plan for getting the pack away without her sister knowing, and she knew that she had to ignore the pain that it would cause her sister to be suddenly abandoned.She sighed softly as she beat her wings, praying silently to Luna to help her. It was as if her mother had heard her, despite the fact that she hadn't spoken the plea – the snow and wind eased and then there was a bolt of sunlight that hit the ground just a few feet in front of her. She continued to beat her wings to get to where the sunlight had hit the ground and gasped in amazement.Her prayers had been answered, but now it was time to fully break her sister's heart so that the she-wolf could heal. She needed to eat, hunt and be a wolf. She struggled when landing, the wind threatening to blow her away, backwards and tumbling head over tail. She whimpered softly, limping to the wolves at the back and leading them away – but Singer didn't even notice as her pack were taken away from her, a pair at a time. It saddened Kamduis – her sister would have noticed before if even one of the pack-mates had wandered away.Before long, Singer was left traipsing through the snow alone, the wind barely affecting her forwards momentum – she was so skinny that she cut through the wind like a knife. Her tail curled down from her back, submissive and unbidden, unable to take command in the way that she could where she was so malnourished. She only stopped when her sister landed in front of her, blinking those dull mismatched eyes at the commanding blue ones.A buffet of a wing crashed against her face, making her whimper. It was only shock that dragged that noise, and then the following yelp from her lips. Her ears flattened and she growled – and Kamduis sighed in relief. Maybe she could survive better without the pack…but for now – harsh words were needed for this split to happen and succeed."You are blind sis. You didn't even notice that the pack left you because guess what? You. Are. Useless. You can't rely on a mate to keep you straight – and Blade leaves often. He always has. And now you've lost your territory, your pack, your mate AND your sister. I can't watch you do this to yourself. You go off alone, and if you find him – then you can try to find everyone who once backed you." Singer hadn't said one word while Kamduis ranted, merely swaying upon her feet until the winged wolf had finished. Her voice became poisonous – more like her mother's than the black and white husky-looking wolf would ever see fit to admit."And you are just a betrayer. The one I knew would betray me. I know that you always wanted to be the Alpha, and I know that you hated being stuck as my Beta because you aren't dominant enough. Well go, and I hope that when you find my dead body you realise what I left for you. I kept you safer than any other, more than you realised!" She snarled in her sister's face, the anger burning in her body.They were transformed, hunger making monsters of the pair of them. It took Kamduis's eyes looking away from her for Singer to fly for her sister – and they were a twisting ball of snapping, snarling wolves. How easy it was for the love between two sisters to sour. Teeth snapped at each other, and blood spilled against the ground as nature watched the small wolf attack the larger, winged wolf. Their ears were flattened against their heads, the blood from multiple small wounds where teeth had slashed and torn, even with their covering of winter-thick fur.Both Singer and Kamduis had patches where blood seeped through within moments – as Singer, being the smaller wolf, clamped her teeth shut upon her sister's shoulder…Kamduis had snapped shut a tight grip on her scruff and shook her head violently. The skin tore on Singer's scruff, blood spilling like a necklace over her white neck and down onto her chest. She reacted with a squeal of pain, turning her head and snapping at her sister's muzzle. These rough, violent bites continued for almost an hour, neither hesitating for familiar ties of love and family. It was hard at times, especially whenever their eyes met, but they both dropped them guiltily. These glances only happened three times in the fight – but each time the fighting grew more and more violent until they had to break apart, before they killed each other.They were both panting, plumes of hot breath rising from where their tongues protruded from their lips, cradled by sharp teeth that were stained pink. Without a further word, Singer limped past her sister, ducking underneath the wing that was outstretched. She'd damaged some of the feathers, and one had caught in the blood-matted fur on the back of her throat.She didn't say anything, and neither did her winged sister. The pain of her wounds paled in comparison to the betrayal in her heart – broken again, but this time with her sister unable to help salve the wounds, to help remake her heart into a patched, dim echo of what it had been. As Kamduis flapped her wings and gradually gained height – she heard the soft sound of heartbreak in the brief howl of her sister. How she could recover, how either of them would recover was beyond Kamduis's knowledge at the moment – but as she flew slowly – her blood mixed with the tears spilling down her cheeks and into the snow.*****Singer had grown used to being alone. It was almost nice not to have to worry about anyone else – but still she pined for the company her pack had given her. Her wounds from the fight with her sister had healed, were now scars that she wore with pride. The wolf who had given them to her had been much older, much more experienced and much bigger – and yet she'd survived. She was certainly looking more in command of herself. Her body was no longer bones covered with skin and thick fur – but a skeletal structure which had filled out with muscle and even enough fat to give her still lean, but now toned, frame much needed curves. She straightened up from the woods she had found, and now lived in; uncurling from the den she'd hidden inside during the wind and snowstorms the night before.She knew that she wasn't alone here – there were bears, lynx and she could have sworn that she'd even caught whiff of a mountain lion. The thought of those other predators made the fur along her spine quiver, rising into place when she heard the rumbling hiss above her head. She bolted from the snow-hole, not even daring to look back until she felt the hot breath on her heels fade away.As she turned her head over her shoulder, she cringed a little – oh yes, that was a mountain lion there. A tawny tail trailed behind the slinking feline frame, but she hadn't been dumb enough to remain within reach – but the attack forced pangs of loneliness to rumble through her body. She didn't enjoy being alone as much as she'd hoped she had…especially after the unforgivable fight.She still regretted that. Some of the things her sister had said had hurt her more than she'd let on, even at the time. A sigh rippled her svelte frame before she stretched and twitched her nose…then paused. One slender paw lifted in a parody of a tracking dog. She quivered, her ears perking and her eyes becoming more focused, intent on the prey she could smell ahead. Her ears flattened as she crouched lower, hiding in amidst the dips and rises of the snow. She mostly blended in – where her fur was black, she appeared to be a moving shadow and where it was white – she blended into the snow almost perfectly. She flicked an ear and growled softly, her paws shifting upon the snow as she fixed her eyes upon the small deer in the distance. She was so hungry that her stomach rippled almost visibly – but she ignored it. She ignored everything except that rumble of hunger that had her instincts on a knifepoint edge.She was the perfect winter huntress – taking her time with every step, not forced to watch out for the more impatient pack-mates. She managed to get within twenty metres of the deer before springing for it – the young creature quickly falling to her teeth and spilling its blood upon the snow and melting it. She threw her head back in a joyous celebration for her kill.*****Kamduis flicked an ear, growling as she heard the howling coming from the snowdrifts in the valley below. She'd been trying to rest in between flying sweeps to hunt for her sister. She'd not forgiven herself for the way in which she'd talked to her sister – hell she'd even bitten her, not just the Alpha but the one wolf who gave her a connection with the earth that she'd since lost. For the last month she'd been flying, trying to hunt her sister by scent and instinct – but she only ever gained the barest hint of that familiar scent – guiding her miles and miles up and down the forests, plains and valleys that made up the bordering areas to where the Dark Moon Rising Pack had once made their home.Her stomach gave a growl and her ears flattened slightly as she uttered a soft snarl. She may have been exhausted, but she could chase almost anything from a kill when she was this hungry. She extended her wings and winced, the muscles powering the immense feathered limbs aching and bruised. She shuddered before pushing the pain out of her mind, sighing as she extended those mighty wings further and then waited until she caught a welcome gust of wind beneath them. She swooped, feeling free as the wind almost washed the pain from her muscles – there was something about being in the air, and able to see miles around that made her love the wings which set her apart. She soon had to set herself down though, and the agony that screamed through her joints meant that she landed with an uncharacteristic lack of grace, stumbling when she hit the ground.*****The wolves stared at each other across the carcass, Singer's maw coated in a layer of blood and gore, Kamduis's drooling with the scent of the meat that was laid out in front of her…but those ice-blue eyes were fixed onto Singer's as she uttered the briefest whine and then scrambled towards her sister, her wings folded back against her back, her head lowering and her tail flitting about so fast it was as though she were about to fly.Singer met her sister with a slightly wary nuzzle – that soon faded into an over-excited greeting that needed no words to show just how genuine it was. Both wolves nuzzled and sniffed their way down the other, licking wherever they found a scar from wounds they had inflicted. They soon settled near the deer to groom each other, soft touches of tongue wiping away smudges of dirt, dust and old blood. Once the wolves were clean, they walked to the carcass and bent their heads, side by side as sisters, as Alpha and Beta should be – and feasted, their hips resting against each other.They were together again, but they had yet to find the pack and see how they had weathered their time without either Alpha or Beta to guide them – but that was the story for a different day, a different time when old wounds had been fully talked through and forgiven by each of them.
Each week authors will be given a new question to answer which will lend additional insight into their story and writing process. Do you have a question you'd like to see the authors answer? Tweet it to @aNextAuthor!


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Too many Aussies have a fear of taking leave | OPINION
As I reflected on "the month that was" on Friday evening, I suddenly realised that I'd missed a fairly important milestone.
While I was busy working with some incredible people – undertaking some professional development around business branding and marketing and farewelling my intern as she started a new (paid) job – I had completely overlooked the fact that August this year marked my 10-year anniversary of stepping out into the world of business and taking the plunge into self-employment as a career practitioner.
Ten. Whole. Years. In many ways it feels like only yesterday that I embarked on this roller coaster ride.
And yet, it somehow feels like I've been doing this since the dawn of time.
I consider myself to be an accidental entrepreneur, as this path wasn't one I'd dreamed of growing up.
I can't claim to have been selling lemonade in a makeshift stand on the nature strip outside my house.
I can't say that I started a friendship bracelet business, plaiting my way through my teens as a budding business leader.
I can't even say that I considered the possibility of building a business of my own through my "self-discovery" years at university.
I sort of fell into my business. Much like one falls in love, I think. I wasn't looking for it, but when I found it, it well and truly swept me off my feet.
It all started on a dark and stormy night … OK, well, I can't vouch for the stormy factor, but it was definitely after hours (after my boss had gone home) when I was working in recruitment that I started bringing clients back into the office to show them how to do their resume, as the documents that crossed my desk were never going to get them anywhere.
One of them was actually handwritten chicken scratch on a piece of foolscap paper that looked like it had come from 1986.
When I went on maternity leave, it was a natural progression to begin writing resumes to keep my hand in the industry while changing nappies and playing peekaboo with my baby boy.
This was never meant to be a permanent thing. It was only ever a stop-gap, an exercise in keeping my braincells functioning, but I found that my client base was growing.
And when we moved back to my home town, Albury, I completed a Graduate Diploma in Careers Education and Development, became a fully qualified careers practitioner and the rest, as they say is history. It was perhaps the best "accident" of my life.
However, as I sat with a glass of wine on Friday night, contemplating the career path I'd paved for myself, it occurred to me that the only thing I really missed about employment (apart from the Friday pub lunches!) was the security of knowing when I'd be paid and knowing I could step away without financial sacrifice.
So, I went and did some research to find out how secure employment really is in this day and age.
I discovered that one in four Australians are casual, so 25 per cent of the workforce have no paid leave entitlements.
I found out that out of the 75 per cent remaining, 11 per cent took no annual leave at all.
While not a clinical diagnosis, fear of taking annual leave is actually a thing for us.
A recent survey by the Australian Psychological Society tells us that 35 per cent of Australians are reporting significant stress levels (no kidding).
As a nation, we feel nervous about stepping away from our jobs for a number of reasons.
Some of us worry that our absence will highlight our expendability.
Others worry that their colleagues will feel frustrated at covering the extra work and office relationships will suffer.
And then there are those of us that stress about the build up of work that will accrue in anticipation of our return.
A recent survey by the Australian Psychological Society tells us that 35 per cent of Australians are reporting significant stress levels (no kidding).
The irony, of course, being that stress decreases productivity and performance and increases susceptibility to illness, thus increasing the number of sick days taken. Not to mention the risk to our reputation of poor performance.
I can't help but feel that maybe job security is an illusion. At the very least, I'm unlikely to fire myself for taking a sickie!
Zoë Wundenberg is a careers writer, counsellor and coach at impressability.com.au


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Everyone once and a while the internet offers up a new bastion, a bold new frontier, in which a lone bounty hunter can survive, prosper, and build an ever-growing fan base. The biggest thing since Wikipedia has arrived and it is YouTube. Just like internet encyclopedias, Boba Fett is not left out. Here are 18 of the best finds on YouTube.com.
YouTube has an array of videos that you can watch which include our favorite character in the Star Wars universe. You can see people lip sync to MC Chris' "Fett's Vette," and catch several of his cameos on popular television series such as Comedy Central's Drawn Together and the vintage classic Holiday Special cartoon.
For the "Fett's Vette" fanatics, we nod our collective heads:
Fett's Vette 0:19 by WishingToBe
" Me reciting fett's vett for jives cus that way he will think i am cool. yeah. dont ask."
- Fett's Vette - Stop Motion Animation 2:31 by CRojas
"CRRAMMstudios: Carlo Rojas co-directs with Rachel Mariscal a student stop-motion music video production of MC Chris' song "Fett's Vette". Carlo and Rachel animated for over 48 hours straight while listening to the song on a loop the entire time. Representing the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York these two are big fans of the mc."
- Fett's Vette - Lip Sync w/ Helmet 0:52 by fettyvetty
"me in a boba fett helmet lip syncing fettes vette"
- MC Chris - Fett's Vette Live 3:26 by turkeyandbacon
"MC Chris live in Chicago, "Fett's Vette""
- Fett's Vette 3:29 by lollipopdvl
"I thought it would be funny to do this... but I think I just look really dumb."
For those looking for creative genius:
TDH Drawn Together Boba Fett Clip 1:34 by Renga
- Welcome to Eltingville - Bring me the Head of Boba Fett 22:38 by smundo
"An Adult Swim one-shot by comic creator Evan Dorkin. It's a shame this never made it, I think it's kinda funny."
- Predator vs. Boba Fett 1:39 by frak
"a little fan film shot all in camera on a super8, then trimmed and effected a bit in final cut"
For those who like to keep the camcorders rollin' for some universally funny moments:
Boba and Jango Comedy Skit 2:44 by NovusOrdoAus
"Jango Fett wants Boba to make em some Eggs! The Novus Ordo Star Wars Costuming Club of Australia does a comedy skit about Boba and Jango Fett and some Eggs at the SupaNova Brisbane 2006 Cosplay Competition. Watch "Once Were Warriors" - http://www.imdb.com/title/t... staring Temuera Morrison and you'll understand what the "Eggs" are all about."
- Boba and Jango Comedy Skit - Better Angle 3:00 by cbstudios
"the galaxys second father and son, on stage and having a heart to heart at Supanova 2006..."
- Boba Fett cardboard tube fight 0:25 by Eikiji
"Daniel Logan (young Boba Fett) fighting with a little boy at the Pittsburgh Comicon '06"
- Jango Fett Song and Dance 0:23 by JamieCoville
"From the 2006 Paradise Comics Toronto Comicon. There was a costume contest, this guy won first place in the Expert category."
To the purist fans:
Boba Fett (Old-School) 0:28 by ETAndElliot
"Boba Fett's voice was originally provided by Jason Wingreen. For the DVD release of The Empire Strikes Back, all of his lines were re-recorded by Temuera Morrison. This is the original Boba Fett dialogue."
- Star Wars Holiday Special 9:43 by dewolfe001
"This is the only shining light from the Star Wars Christmas Special (okay: this and Harvey Korman in drag). The first appearance of Boba Fett."
- Star Wars Holiday Special - Same as Above 9:40 by mystah
" cartoon from the 1978 christmas special"
- The Legacy of Boba Fett 3:35 by kainrath
"the origin, the legacy, the legend"
- Kenner Ad: Han Solo figure gets frozen in carbonite
0:19 by HellCat86
"Corellians and kitchen appliances don't mix"
For the real home movies, where YouTube.com really does justice:
- Death of Boba Fett 0:03 by chucknasty
Lego Boba Fett dies by the mysterious screw!
- Many, many more available at your own leisure, searching YouTube.com.


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Monday, December 11, 2006
Another Acorn Falling Near the Tree
So this patient, who already had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and pre-adolescent obesity, got what his mom wanted. I gave in. I was too busy and I actually didn't think it was unreasonable to try a short course of antibiotics on this child as he had been sick with cough and cold for two weeks. Many doctors believe that after 6 days of upper respiratory symptoms that the viral illness has probably paved the way for a bacterial superinfection. Anyway, that's not the point.
This mom was barely controllable. When I told her that I would prescribe zithromax she told me that her son's unique and fragile constitution responded only to non-generic zithromax and to be sure not to write for generic. Fine! Crazy bitch.
Fast forward one hour. The local pharmacist called me. This same woman was now at the CVS and was not happy. Turns out she thought that the only way to get brand name zithromax was in what has come to be known as a "Zpak". The pharmacy did not have any "Zpak"s, but did have the brand drug in individual tablets. This banshee was convinced that the pharmacist was trying to pawn-off generic zithromax on her and was calling me to complain.
If I had the ability to reach my hand through the phone line I would have strangled her. This would have had three benefits: First, the pharmacist would have felt better. Second, I would have felt better. Third, her tub-o-lard kid would, after a short period of pseudo-grief, have felt better.
2 comments:
- Anonymous9:25 AM, May 20, 2008
I know this is an old post but I wanted to say something after observing at the "Free Clinic" the other day. I sat and listened as the doc explained to the um..."lady" that genital warts are a virus and nothing will work on them except freeze drying or burning the bastards off. He explains that it might be a little uncomfortable and damned if you know the first thing out of her mouth was, "Don't you gots some pill that you can give me?" It's like their brain turns off once they come in the clinic, if they have one on arrival.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous11:16 PM, December 08, 2008
I also know this is an old post but believe me. I speak for all clinicians here when I say that we have ALL treated persons who defy all manner of natural laws. Patients with no lungs, kidneys, funtioning heart or indeed BRAINs routinely walk into the hospital. It's mind boggling. I think we have to rewrite some human physiology books.ReplyDelete


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Between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries, women's role in the Swedish economy was renegotiated and reconceptualized. Maria Ågren chronicles changes in married women's property rights, revealing the story of Swedish women's property as not just a simple narrative of the erosion of legal rights, but a more complex tale of unintended consequences.Blurbs Hendrik Hartog, Princeton University: "Ågren covers an immense time period with an adept eye for the illuminating case record, and she tells her local and particular stories well. This is an important book, a model for how the social histories of family law and inheritance should be written."
A public sphere of influence--including the wife's family and the local community--held sway over spousal property rights throughout most of the seventeenth century, Ågren argues. Around 1700, a campaign to codify spousal property rights as an arcanum domesticum, or domestic secret, aimed to increase efficiency in legal decision making. New regulatory changes indeed reduced familial interference, but they also made families less likely to give land to women.
The advent of the print medium ushered property issues back into the public sphere, this time on a national scale, Ågren explains. Mass politicization increased sympathy for women, and public debate popularized more progressive ideas about the economic contributions of women to marriage, leading to mid-nineteenth-century legal reforms that were more favorable to women. Ågren's work enhances our understanding of how societies have conceived of women's contributions to the fundamental institutions of marriage and the family, using as an example a country with far-reaching influence during and after the Enlightenment.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Ågren's "Domestic Secrets"
Recently published in Studies in Legal History by the University of North Carolina Press is Domestic Secrets: Women and Property in Sweden, 1600-1857, by Maria Ågren, a professor of history at Uppsala University. The press describes the book thus:
Labels: Family law, Property, Scholarship -- Books, Women
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need help to get started HS my two girls
Having problems figuring out where to start? Let other homeschoolers offer you some advice!
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need help to get started HS my two girls
I am canadian living overseas in St. Lucia. W.I ( caribbean) and want to start HS my daughters. I am trying to get a program out of canada but so far , no go. Can anyone help put me in touch with a HS program out of Canada, Vancouver prefferably? Are there any HS's out there in SLU? Thanks Pls. reply to firstname.lastname@example.com.
What do you mean by program, exactly?
What do you mean by program, exactly? A curriculum? A homeschool group? Some sort of state-approved school?
Hi, thanks for responding, I think I need a whole program with the curriculum and books etc. all combined so i can teach my daughter at home, send work in etc. If there is a web site that offers this great or an actual school that has programs ofr overseas students so much the better. I am all new to this so am really unsure of what I need to be searchign for. It just seems very difficult out of Canada and there seems ot be so much in the way of this and sites for text books out of the US. I just know from a few friends one Australian an done American that they have a package of their specific grade level sent to them and they do the work, have the books and other materials required, send in the work and tests back and get graded and one had an actual school it was based out of and could get on line help and e-mail a teacher. When they were back in Australia they could go to the school and catch up and get help. Hope this clarifies my dilemma a bit Caroline
Re: need help to get started HS my two girls
I'm not sure what school that would be, but Christian Liberty Academy and Calvert School both offer distance learning programs along with their curriculum. You could also check and see if there are homeschool groups in your area that offer co-op classes, and there are a number of online schools you could look into for supplementary courses, such as Apex Learning.
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Idea: Do it yourself?
Unless your laws are against it, you might wish to plan your own style of homeschooling. In a few words, you decide what you want your children to learn and then gather materials from various sources. Many of us do this and it is not as difficult as it might seem.
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Mikki Sage + Ashley Walsh
Sunday, November 18, 2012 from 11:30 AM to 7:00 PM (PST)
Chocolate Invitational Presents: Fall Festival.
Spend the day with us....
THEO CHOCOlATE FOUNDATIONS
NON PROFIT: 501C3s
The Chocolate Invitational is a series of events sincerely dedicated to sharing the love of all things Chocolate. We have partnered with Intentional Chocolate, helmed by Ashley Walsh, who will be giving us delightful and meditational tastings … elevating our senses with the purest notes of Chocolate. Intentional Chocolate begins with simple gestures, offerings of joy, and a recipe that has been crafted with positive intentions.
We will incorporate a fresh stylish approach, with special themes, culinary bites, art + photography, music, and a variety of samples, to enhance the experience. We believe your enjoyment of Chocolate is heavily influenced by the atmosphere around you. Our events will be sophisticated, tasteful, and secluded. We like the idea of "private, intimate gathering"... Try a few chocolate tastings.... then relax, chatting with friends or meeting someone new who'd like to share a Chocolate story with you. It's a way to enjoy Chocolate the way it should be... amongst friends, old and new.
MIkki Sage and Ashley Walsh first bonded over their great passion and altruistic awareness of Chocolate, and thus was born the idea of The Chocolate Invitational. Their successful launch of the first Chocolate Invitational, sponsored by Intentional Chocolate in June 2012, showcased the entrance of this concept into the festival circuit in a delicious way with a sold out event in Venice. This was the first of many tastemaker events for The Chocolate Invitational
In order to purchase these tickets in installments, you'll need an Eventbrite account. Log in or sign up for a free account to continue.


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Adam Roelle has probably forgotten more about booze than most of us will ever know. He became infatuated with craft beer at an early age and has always been drawn to the finer stuff.
Adam Roelle has probably forgotten more about booze than most of us will ever know. He became infatuated with craft beer at an early age and has always been drawn to the finer stuff.
Roelle honed his knowledge and cocktail techniques while working as a bartender in Chicago, and he became the beer and spirits manager at Weiland's Gourmet Market about two years ago. He immediately started to work with the Ohio Department of Commerce's Division of Liquor Control to make more craft liquors available in the state.
Instead of starting out with the macro beers, I started out drinking really good beers. Except for Olde English. In the summertime, going to a party or something I love to bring a 40-ounce.
When I first got here, I gave the superintendent of liquor control, Bruce Stevenson, a pretty long list of stuff that our customers want. That was over a year ago, and I think we've gotten four things in. It feels like constant work. I've got to be the squeaky wheel to bring people what they want. People just end up getting it across the borders anyway.
When it comes to high-proof - anything over 21 percent - it's just sales-based. If it sells enough, it can come to the market and stay. A lot of the craft stuff doesn't even get accepted into the state at all.
We need all the bartenders and craft drinkers of Ohio unite and liberate our libations. Please have your readers email their requests to email@example.com. Tell me what you'd like to get on a regular basis and say that you want your taxes to go to our state rather than somewhere else. I forward those on to the superintendent of liquor control so that there's a constant reminder to them that it's not just me.
The thing I'm most proud of getting into Ohio is Ransom Old Tom Gin.
What we need in this state is a good smoky mezcal. There are a lot of things that are missing, but that's the main one. I'm also trying really hard to getRowan's Creek, Noah's Mill - basically the Kentucky bourbon distillers' portfolio. I've gotten so many requests for that.
Everyone needs a quality vermouth in their bar. It can change a drink more than making a Manhattan with a high-end whiskey. If you're using not the best vermouth, it's just going to cover up the best parts of that whiskey. Go through your vermouth often too, because it goes bad. That and fresh fruit.


text: 650b bikes are all about fun and nimble handling, and the Stout XC 650b wheelset delivers on this in spades—no matter if you're just getting started or you're a seasoned trail rider. It's been built tough to meet the rigors of mountain biking head-on, while the nimble wheel size guarantees a good time. It features a durable, double-wall alloy rim construction that adds strength without stacking on the weight. And to ensure that you'll be able to stop once you get motoring, the wheels are both disc-compatible. High value just met high performance.


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The last time Oscar presenters had to rattle off 10 names in the Best Picture category was in 1943, when "Casablanca" sealed its beautiful friendship with moviegoers.
History has proven the Academy Award voters correct in choosing "Casablanca" from a formidable group of contenders that included "For Whom the Bell Tolls" and "Heaven Can Wait."
On Sunday, we'll again be treated to scenes from 10 Best Picture hopefuls – a move spurred by last year's outrage over the snubbing of "The Dark Knight," a fan and critic favorite that didn't even make the longtime standard list of five nominees.
But with this year's mix ranging from box office behemoths like "Avatar" to more subtle fare like "An Education," we're in for a game of Oscar roulette. There's a chance that a split vote could yield a top flick that will please just about no one – save, of course, for the winner.
While "Casablanca" has done well with posterity, not every pre-1943 winner from fields that raged from five to 12 stands up to subjective scrutiny all these years later. "The Great Ziegfeld" topped nine competitors in 1936, beating the more enduring "Mr. Deeds Goes to Town" and "A Tale of Two Cities." The next year, "The Life of Emile Zola" somehow bested "Captains Courageous," "The Awful Truth," "Lost Horizon," "A Star is Born" and five others.
Perhaps the biggest upset of the long-list nominee era came in 1941 when the very good "How Green Was My Valley" won out over nine films that included "The Maltese Falcon" and "Citizen Kane."
The visually innovative and psychologically aware "Citizen Kane" was an industry game-changer – much like "Avatar," whose enveloping 3-D performance-capture technology already is exercising an influence. "Avatar," not incidentally, also is the biggest moneymaker of all-time (though when you adjust for inflation 1939 Best Picture winner "Gone With the Wind" is still the champ).
More than just the denizens of Pandora will be blue if "Avatar" loses the top prize. But "The Hurt Locker" and "Precious" are strong contenders, both with themes and backstories that appeal to Oscar voters. If "The Hurt Locker" wins, it would become the first Oscar winner directed by a woman (Kathryn Bigelow). If "Precious" wins, it would be the first Best Picture directed by an African-American (Lee Daniels).
There's also added drama here, the kind Academy voters love: "Avatar" director James Cameron and Bigelow used to be married, also raising the tension for the Best Director contest, which includes Daniels.
While those three movies have gotten the most pre-Oscar buzz, it's possible that this year's revised ballot – in which Academy voters ranked their favorites in order – could yield a surprise winner.
We could live with a victory by the excellent "Up," "Inglourious Basterds" or "District 9." The Hollywood honchos are just hoping to avoid a situation like last year when the worthy, but below-the-radar "Slumdog Millionaire" took the Oscar home.
The truth is that many viewers probably will shut off the TV in disgust if "Avatar" doesn't win.
So here's some advice to "Avatar" fans: focus on the years Oscar got it right, such as in 1943 with "Casablanca."
And remember, no matter what happens, we'll always have Pandora.
Hester is founding director of the award-winning, multi-media NYCity News Service at the City University of New York Graduate School of Journalism. He is the former City Editor of the New York Daily News, where he started as a reporter in 1992. Follow him on Twitter.


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On Sunday 16th March 2014 11am-3pm I will be teaching an open seminar for the Lee Taylor Karate group. The seminar will cover two advanced flow drills for Pinan (Heian) Yodan and Godan that will cover the majority of Yodan and the whole of Godan. We will then move on to cover core applications for Niseishi / Nijushiho kata. The seminar will cost £30 (cheques payable to "Lee Taylor") can be sent to 9 Kings Court, Presteigne, Powys. LD8 2AJ. The seminar will run from 11am to 3pm and will be held at East Radnor Leisure Centre, Broad Axe Lane, Presteigne, Powys, LD8 2YT. Lee can be contacted via: 07976914617 / email@example.com Website: www.leetaylorkarate.co.uk
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Posts Tagged 'courts'
Judges as Agents of Cruelty: Policy Learning and Official Actors
[C]ourts play a key role in sustaining and even creating the cruel conditions currently found in American prisons and jails. In this sense, judges, too, become agents of cruelty. Just as prison officials learn cruelty through repeated exposure to prisoners in a context that denies their shared humanity, judges develop a cruel disposition towards prisoners through the repeated demand that they validate as not cruel conditions that are clearly at odds with the state's carceral burden. Existing constitutional standards require courts to find for the state even when prisoners face obvious risks of serious physical or psychological harm. To do so, judges must learn to suppress any instinctual sympathy they may have for follow human beings who have experiences gratuitous suffering. Indeed, if they are to enforce prevailing standards, judges must learn to cease altogether to recognize prisoners' shared humanity–a lesson, it bears remarking, that once learned only makes it easier for courts to satisfy the imperative of judicial deference to prison officials.
Sharon Dolovich, "Cruelty, Prison Conditions, and the Eighth Amendment" (pdf)


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Asked by Charles, California
How can nutrition affect your health, as far as risk of Alzheimer's disease? I have a strong family history and want to do everything that I can to avoid getting Alzheimer's.
Diet and Fitness Expert
Dr. Melina Jampolis
Physician Nutrition Specialist
Since November is Alzheimer's disease awareness month, I thought this was a great time to answer this question.
According to the Alzheimer's Association, 5.4 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's disease, and it is the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States and the fifth-leading cause of death in those aged 65 and older.
Age and family history/genetics are major risk factors, but emerging research is suggesting that lifestyle factors including diet and exercise can also plan an important role in prevention.
Eating a heart healthy diet like the DASH diet or the Mediterranean diet is essential, as brain health and heart health are very closely related.
Here are a few other things you should consider.
Up your E. Vitamin E is a very potent anti-oxidant and appears to play a role in staving off Alzheimer's. Research shows that those with the highest amounts in their diet (from food, not supplements), have a significantly lower risk of Alzheimer's disease.
Top food sources include sunflower and safflower oil, nuts and seeds (almonds, sunflower seeds, peanuts, hazelnuts) and green vegetables including broccoli and spinach. Make sure to consume green vegetables with a little healthy fat to maximize the absorption of vitamin E.
Go for fish. Getting adequate amounts of poly-unsaturated omega 3 fatty acids found in fish is associated with a lower risk of Alzheimer's disease. DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), which is present in larger amounts in the brain, appears to be particularly important.
Low levels of DHA in the blood have been associated with worsening mental function. Try to eat at least two 4-ounce servings of fish per week. Fatty fish like salmon, tuna, lake trout and sardines are highest in omega 3s. If you don't have access to fresh fish, canned is a good alternative, just look for low sodium options whenever possible.
If you don't eat fish, take a fish oil capsule daily or try out some of the new foods fortified with DHA including soy milk, yogurt and nutrition bars.
Move more. Moderate to heavy exercise can decrease your risk of Alzheimer's by up to 45%. Moderate exercise includes house and yard work, climbing stairs, and sports like bowling and golf. And start early -- exercising in your teens can protect you later in life.
Being fit has been show to decrease brain shrinkage, a common finding in dementia, and may help fight depression, which also commonly occurs in Alzheimer's disease patients. Aim for an hour per day, but every little bit adds up.
Spice things up. India has a much lower incidence of Alzheimer's disease, and many researchers believe it may be due in part to their extensive use of turmeric (a component of curry) in their cooking.
Turmeric contains a powerful phytonutrient called curcumin which may help protect the brain from Alzheimer's disease in several ways. Research is currently underway to determine the optimal intake (very little taken by mouth actually gets to the brain) but consuming curry regularly along with a little healthy fat may help and certainly can't hurt.
Make changes to your lifestyle today, and be consistent, to decrease your risk of Alzheimer's disease. All of the things that I mentioned work much better for prevention than for slowing of progression or treatment.
Next question:
Does diet really matter in breast cancer?
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[Beneath The Spin]
It is indeed interesting to see how all of a sudden the corporate media and the GOP have come together to praise the president's Arizona speech -- even FOX News. After two years of calling him a "communist," a "friend to terrorists," a "fraud," and a "liar," the GOP has finally found a reason to praise him. The reason they're praising him, however, is because, yet again, he's allowed GOP criminals off the hook.
Now the GOP says this is no time for partisan politics--but when have we ever known any situation in the past, regardless of its gravity, that the GOP considered beyond partisan politics? They didn't consider the threatened collapse of the world's financial system above partisan politics; neither do they consider the loss of homes and the unemployment of millions of American citizens above partisan politics - and we still have Republicans riding 9-11 for political gain nine years after the fact.
So the true reason that Republicans want to hold the Arizona shooting up as being above partisan politics is because they know full well that they're guilty of creating the inflamed political environment that led directly to it taking place. Thus, what there's actually no time for is flowery sentimental speeches in lieu of decisive action.
This tragedy should be used to weed out a national cancer. That would be the greatest tribute that we could pay to it's victims. President Obama's speech - as touching as it was - was an attempt to treat that cancer with an over-the-counter antiseptic, when what we need is radical surgery.
The president needs to recognize that the GOP is run by corporatists. These very same people are responsible for killing over a million Iraqi citizens, so they could care less about flowery speeches, nor, the life of one nine-year-old little girl. They have a corporate and political agenda to promote; so the life of one little girl is meaningless to them. They look upon her death as merely collateral damage. So the minute this uproar subsides it will be business as usual.
President Obama doesn't seem to recognize that. He insists on adding sugar to strychnine so it won't taste so bad going down, then bringing us together in a rousing chorus of Kumbaya to ensure it's administered in a civil manner. He seems to be completely oblivious to the fact that the poison is still going to kill us in the end.
It's beginning to look like President Obama's not going to see the light until these people are goosestepping through Times Square - and I'm saying that as a moderate progressive. Recently elected GOP local chairman, Anthony Miller, on the other hand, could see the writing on the wall. He saw it so clearly, in fact, that he resigned his post - and he was in the GOP inner circle. So why can't the president see the light?
According to The Arizona Republic, Miller, "a 43-year-old Ahwatukee Foothills resident and former campaign worker for U.S. Sen. John McCain, was re-elected to a second one-year term last month. He said constant verbal attacks after that election and internet blog posts by some local members with Tea Party ties made him worry about his family's safety." The article goes on to say, "Miller told state Republican Party Chairman Randy Pullen he was quitting: 'Today my wife of 20 yrs ask (sic) me do I think that my PCs (Precinct Committee members) will shoot at our home? So with this being said I am stepping down from LD20GOP Chairman...I will make a full statement on Monday.'" Three other party officials also resigned.
In addition, The Telegraph reported as far back as November 2008 that "The Secret Service warned the Obama family in mid October that they had seen a dramatic increase in the number of threats against the Democratic candidate, coinciding with Mrs Palin's attacks. Michelle Obama, the future First Lady, was so upset that she turned to her friend and campaign adviser Valerie Jarrett and said: 'Why would they try to make people hate us?"' The article indicated that, Palin's "attacks provoked a near lynch mob atmosphere at her rallies, with supporters yelling 'terrorist' and 'kill him' until the McCain campaign ordered her to tone down the rhetoric."
Sarah Palin blamed by the US Secret Service over death threats against Barack Obama.
So wake up, Mr. President. Part of being an effective leader is knowing when the time for talking is over, and when it's time to take decisive action - and being an apologists for domestic enemies of the state doesn't meet that test. This nation needs to confront the issue of inflammatory and insurrectionist rhetoric head on.
This kind of behavior simply cannot be tolerated in a free society. While the United States Constitution guarantees the freedom of speech, along with freedom comes responsibility. So for exactly that reason, nowhere in the Constitution does it guarantee the right to be criminally negligent.
At times like this I wish you'd spent more time in the 'hood. Then you would have immediately recognized these people as classic bullies, and understand that appeasement is not going to work. The more you give a bully, the more emboldened they become - ask Neville Chamberland. So stop making excuses for these people and step up to the plate, because the very last thing we need in this recklessly hostile environment is a president trying to be a nice guy - and you can ask Jimmy Carter about that one.
For more commentary by Eric L. Wattree please see www.wattree.blogspot.com
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text: It's hard to deny a love for a fine full butt, and Melrose Foxxx has that and more. Born in 1983, Melrose was raised in Paramount California. It wasn't until she turned 24 that Melrose decided to start fucking on screen, and we're happy she made that decision. With a large collection of scenes shot for Evil Angel, Jules Jordan Video, and Hustler Video; Melrose isn't slowing down anytime soon. In 2010, her hard work paid off with being awarded with "Best Group Sex Scene" from the Urban X Awards. That same year she debuted on Brazzers with the hot scene "Barn House Slut." This star is going places, and we're going to be there every step of the way.


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Somewhat lost in the shuffle with Thursday's announcement of NBA 2K12's "Legends Showcase" DLC is the unique visual style the extension will carry.
People seem to be fixated so much on the backstory of this and 2K's motivations, and rightly so. This is the first paid post-release DLC extension for a 2K Sports title; it offers online play for a "My Player" created character, a kind of partial replacement for the loss of the "My Crew" feature. And it's also $10.
But "Legends Showcase," due out by the holidays, also does something I haven't seen before in a sports simulation title, and that is present its stars in a stylized, cel-shaded presentation suitable for immediate posterizing. I'm going to want to see it in action but, for now, it does make for some great screenshots.
You can contact Owen Good, the author of this post, at firstname.lastname@example.com. You can also find him on Twitter, Facebook, and lurking around our #tips page.


text:
Fuel Line Plastic T
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Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update – We are now processing and dispatching orders again on a daily basis. Due to reduced staff and restrictions that are in place in the UK and worldwide, there may be some delay in receiving your order. We will try our best to get your items sent as fast and safe as possible. If you have any questions please get in touch via email, thank you.
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PARK CITY, Utah — From crowd-funding to the visual language of online video, internet culture is slowly but surely seeping into independent film.
[bug id="sundance"] Nothing illustrates the web's growing influence on filmmakers more effectively than Me @the Zoo, a feature-length documentary that premiered at this year's Sundance Film Festival. The movie offers an "all access" look at the life of internet celebrity Chris Crocker, the 24-year-old Tennessee vlogger who — despite a long history as a YouTube personality — is known primarily as the teary young man whose "Leave Britney Alone!" video went viral in 2007.
Tackling a subject who's a prolific DIY filmmaker — and someone who's perhaps a bit of an internet-enabled oversharer to boot — proved interesting to Me @the Zoo's newcomer directors, Valerie Veatch and Chris Moukarbel.
"A challenge that we had coming into this was, 'How do you make a documentary about someone who's making a living documentary?'" Moukarbel told Wired.com during an interview at Sundance. "You know, he's always going to be making videos. He's always going to be documenting his life, and [our film is just] one little cross-section of that."
Compiled from hundreds of Crocker's homemade videos, old-school YouTube clips and the directors' own footage, Me @the Zoo delivers a compelling look at this expanding era of internet fame — the odd paths people take to achieving it, and the ways it consumes lives much like traditional celebrity.
The film follows Crocker as he rises to online fame (or, as Crocker calls it, being "famous for not being famous"), then traces what Crocker goes through during the fallout after his infamous Britney Spears video — including his stint in Los Angeles for an ill-fated reality show. It also traces Crocker's family history and takes a look at his mother's struggles with drug addiction, something that influenced his defense of Spears.
Despite the uniqueness of Crocker's story, there's a point at which many people can identify with him. "I see it not just about me," Crocker said. "Even though it's my personal story, there's so many things that hit home, with the drug abuse, and the bullying and stuff. So that's how I try to look at it."
Wired.com caught up with Crocker and Me @the Zoo's directors at Sundance to talk about the film, which got picked up by HBO Documentary Films and should hit the air this year, and also to discuss internet fame, funding movies through Kickstarter, and YouTube reaction videos finding their way to the big screen. (This interview has been edited for clarity and length.)
Wired.com: Me @the Zoo started out with a much broader theme. How did it end up as a film that focused on Chris Crocker?
Valerie Veatch: Initially, our project was to examine people performing themselves on television and online and how changes in technology and cable laws and all of these things created an atmosphere where cheap, immediate content was what everybody wanted, and people began to deliver their own stories as that content. So the initial project was a timeline from like the late-1980s to early-'90s. And then, you know, kind of spinning into an internet story.
Chris Crocker: They were originally filming for a different documentary entirely, sort of how the rise of reality TV and cellphone cameras affected pop culture. And then when they started interviewing me, they realized that my personal story touched on all those themes. So it wasn't originally supposed to be The Chris Crocker Story or anything. It just happened.
Wired.com: What was it about Chris that drew you to him? I mean, everybody knows the Britney Spears video, but he really had a presence online before that.
Chris Moukarbel: It was like, "What is it about this one person that he's able to get so many eyes on him?" Through this process I've kind of learned a lot about the YouTube partnership program and the idea of views as currency. And in that sense, in that paradigm, he's very wealthy. This is a person that's managed to achieve a really wide audience — cast a wide net — and a lot of people follow him regularly. He's kind of a social media genius.
Veatch: Another thing about Chris's story is that his fact set is so interesting. So many unique things happened to him with Britney Spears and his mother and all of these things that his story really is unique. And although it is so totally emblematic of a more general social phenomenon, it is totally unique and really fascinating, and the further we got into that rabbit hole, the more interesting all the media is.
Wired.com: That's true. He has a lot of inroads, I think, to his personality. There are a lot of ways you can identify with him.
Moukarbel: He's part of this first wave of young people that are putting their entire lives up online and filming themselves all the time. And so, you know, he's already like a granddad within that … context.
Wired.com: How did you all find each other? Despite his internet celebrity, Chris has managed to be pretty hidden in the real world.
Crocker: It's so hard [to explain], it sounds so made-up because it's like it was so meant to happen. [Moukarbel]'s boyfriend, we found out that his mom lived five minutes away from me. I was friends with his boyfriend long-distance online. And when we found out his parents lived five minutes away from me, he was like, "Well, my boyfriend's actually doing a film on pop culture and he'd love to interview you for it."
Moukarbel: We were trying to reach out to him just to interview him. And he was at that time coming off of that whole thing in L.A. with a lot of crazy relationships and I think at first he would have had a hard time trusting us to tell the story. Because my boyfriend's family is there, just down the road, we were able to spend time with him and become friends.
Veatch: It was very much this kind of organic, freaky coincidence that really made the film possible.
Wired.com: Chris eventually entrusted all of his videos to this documentary. How important was that to the film?
Moukarbel: It was like Christmas; like unwrapping presents.
Veatch: It was so thrilling. We got videos from 2006. I almost died. And we watched all of them.
Crocker: It was literally my entire [library]. I have three different hard drives. One from like 2005-2006. It was just filled with, like, 4,000 videos. So, they definitely got all-access…. It just felt like the right time to tell my story because after years and years of just being known as a crying lunatic, you at some point want people to see you on a bigger scale. So, for me, it took a little bit of just trusting them and giving them the benefit of the doubt. I'm really happy I did.
Wired.com: About how much of the final movie comes from his archives?
Veatch: It's a third his media and probably a third archival and a third stuff we shot.
Wired.com: Chris also got involved with the production of the film in other ways. For example, he put a call on YouTube for people to donate to the Kickstarter. Can you talk a little bit about that?
Crocker: Well, when we were getting closer to wrapping up the film, we knew that we were going to need additional funds to pay for music rights and things like that. So we just posted a Kickstarter thing to see if the fans would donate, if they wanted to see the film. And it exceeded what we needed by $10,000.
Wired.com: It seems as though a lot of filmmakers with movies at Sundance got Kickstarter funds as well. Do you think it's kind of a coming of age for that kind of financing for indie films?
Veatch: Kickstarter provides the scale of financing that is typical for finishing a documentary. And so for us, it allowed us to keep working in that final homestretch when your production money runs out, but you're not quite ready for the festival.
Moukarbel: So It helped us complete the film, but crowdsourcing for the film was also a big part of it, because Chris has so many fans that really wanted to see the movie happen. So it was a way for them to engage it directly and participate in the funding of it.
Veatch: In terms of Kickstarter's effect on the industry, I think that models like this could only make for more diverse, more interesting films, because you know you can sidestep the typical, more patriarchal environment.
Wired.com: What was it like watching it on the big screen at the premiere?
Crocker: Well, I had watched the film privately on the computer when they wrapped it, and I watched it alone by myself. But watching it in a theater with people and like hearing them laugh, or like shriek … looking around at their reactions was so different for me, because I'm so used to reading their reactions and comments on the videos on YouTube.
Wired.com: When I was watching the film, I noticed that it actually kind of looks like a long-form internet video. Was that intentional?
Veatch: Our film is a response video. It's a fan-response video.
Moukarbel: It's like long-form fan art, in a way…. It's kind of an alternative history of something that maybe a lot of people have a preconceived idea about…. It's like, "Well, what does it look on the ground? After that celebrity goes away, you know, what does a meme look like as a person?"
Wired.com: I'm curious what you think about the It Gets Better project. It seems like Chris was making those videos long before they had a name.
Crocker: I wouldn't say that I influenced it. I just think that I maybe was the first wave of people that, you know, was comfortable with themselves on camera. I've had teenagers for years and years reach out to me and say, "I see the comments, and I see how you get harassed. How do you stay so confident?" And to me that means more than anything. I do videos for my own personal, therapeutic reason — my own silliness or whatever. But when they're just happy to see someone confident that's getting bullied, they want that same confidence, too. And that's why I'm glad there are things like It Gets Better because there's a whole community.
It's crazy how much just the internet world has progressed in the last few years. Because when I was younger — growing up there wasn't that. Before it seemed like you had to just sort of put out a video and hope that the people who were looking for what you were saying would find you.
Wired.com: Since Chris is so famous for the "Leave Britney Alone!" video, I'm wondering are there parallels between Spears' fame and his online fame?
Crocker: Well, I thought it was really interesting, and the film showed how I went from defending Britney and standing up for her to like me needing — not needing people to defend me but cause I can defend myself… It does kind of show that parallel where, it goes from me defending her to my supporters defending me. Yeah, I definitely see the parallel.
Wired.com: In the film, there's this allusion that the reason Crocker got so defensive of Spears might have had something to do with his relationship with his mother and desire to look out for her when she was struggling with addiction and other issues.
Crocker: I know people are like, "Oh that's so …" It seems a little contrived. You know, if I weren't me I would probably assume that. But I, honest to God, it never even dawned on me that all those things were happening to my mom. And the reason I'm defensive over women going through a hard time, is because in my family, I have a history of a lot of bad things happening to women. But, that definitely dawned on me during the interviews. There's a lot of footage they didn't put in the film that was really emotional. There is one interview in particular that they didn't put in, where like it just hit me. I broke down, and I was like, "Wow." It's so crazy.
You realize things when you are being interviewed. It's just a vulnerable, different experience introspectively when other people are asking you questions. Because when I'm recording myself it's like autopilot. I'm not thinking about why I'm doing it, I'm just doing it and expressing myself. But this process really did make me realize that video came from a deeper place than just loving Britney.Go Back to Top. Skip To: Start of Article.


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Organizers hope to bring in a more diverse crowd Monday after last year's doomed event
A year after squabbles among organizers of the downtown New Year's bash doomed the event, the glowing pineapple is returning to make its traditional New Year's Eve drop and welcome 2013 for thousands of expected visitors.
This time, expect a little more noise.
Yes, even in quiet Sarasota.
With the help of local restaurants and business leaders who winced at the loss of one of downtown's biggest draws last year, Monday night's event will include four stages for live music — two of them DJs expected to reel in young people seldom drawn to downtown en masse.
"It's going to bring a different crowd and a lot of people that wouldn't normally come to this," says Rich Swier Jr., founder of The HuB business incubator, which joined the effort to resurrect the party this year.
"We're bringing a diverse set of music," he added. "I feel like it's going to be more of a festival atmosphere. In the past it felt like just some bands outside and a restaurant."
The HuB — the same group responsible for the "Saratopia" video shorts that poke at the city's reputation as a dull retirement haven — joined the effort this year when the event's longtime organizer reached out for help.
The two saw it as a rare opportunity for this city's young professionals and groups of older residents to work together to promote downtown, which has struggled to draw crowds and business in the post-recession lull.
Ernie Ritz, who has organized the event since 2000, said he tapped Swier to help with online marketing, social media promotions and "a whole bunch of things that I don't know a clue about."
"He was having challenges getting the word out," Swier quipped. "He's old school. It's an interesting generational gap."
The end result is a more ambitious event that caters to family crowds with carnival rides and popcorn in the afternoon, musical acts for teenagers in the evening and adults in the evening, Ritz said.
"It's the first time ever we're going to have a DJ and light show," Ritz said.
It takes a half-year of planning, booking musical acts and hiring vendors to bring the pineapple drop downtown. This year required a community effort among downtown groups unlike years past.
Last year's event was cancelled because of internal conflicts in the Downtown Sarasota Alliance, the influential group of merchants and business owners that previously sponsored the event.
Ritz said the group showed lukewarm support for the event and placed too many roadblocks as he tried to raise money. After the alliance and Ritz parted ways and abandoned the effort, a splinter group emerged to represent merchants on myriad issues that affect downtown, among them downtown festivals.
That new group, The Sarasota Downtown Merchants Association, will receive any profits from the event, Ritz said. In the past, the event cost about $50,000 and brought in an excess of $20,000 in profits.
Further stymieing last year's event was the issue of police resources. Because a competing fireworks show at Marina Jack had already booked city officers for the event, there were concerns with permitting and safety, organizers said last year.
All of those kinks have smoothed out, organizers said.
The family carnival includes a fun house and rides for adults and children. It starts at 1 p.m. Monday and will stay open until 1:30 a.m.
At 7 p.m., Main Street will open for entertainment on all stages. Drinks will be served from vendors on the street and in local restaurants and bars.
At midnight, the Pineapple will drop on Main Street.
For more information, visit http://pineappledrop.com.


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We are proud to announce our truly raw Premium cocoa powder. This cocoa powder is 22-24% cocoa butter by weight, a truly raw cocoa powder. Hence, this is a little grainier then traditional cocoa powder. Natural Zing's cocoa powder is made by cold-pressing our highest quality organic raw cacao beans into a cake, making a dark brown paste called chocolate liquor. The temperature is never allowed to exceed 120 degrees Fahrenheit but usually only reaches 104 degrees. A high accuracy thermometer monitors this process. Other cocoa powders can be exposed to temperatures as high as 300 degrees Fahrenheit. Next, the fat is slowly separated into cacao butter and what remains is a cake. This cake or cocoa solid id then cold-milled to become a truly raw organic unsweetened cocoa powder. Compare yourself with store brands and see the difference.
Once the fat has been removed, there are no extra ingredients added, such as sugar. It is one of the nicest forms of chocolate you will enjoy.
Storage: Refrigeration or storage in a cool, dry place (out of direct sunlight) is recommended, yet not required.
Here are some suggestions of how to enjoy your cocoa powder:
Add it to your favorite smoothies, teas, coffee mixes, protein drinks, desserts or even sprinkle it on your salad!
Cool off with a frozen non-milk shake!
2 T. Almond Butter
2 heaping T. Cocoa Powder
1/4c . Agave Nectar
2 c. water
1/4 t. Salt
1. Blend all ingredients except ice.
2. Blend ice.
Net Wt.: 2.5 lb
Copyright © 2020 Natural Zing's Raw Food StorePowered by osCommerce


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1. A Craft Table First things first. You want to make sure you have good space to craft your items, like the craft table here. It should have plenty of storage, a good size + functional. Ideas2live4.com 2. A Shipping Station Unless you have a big crafting table ...Read More »
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Credit Hour Calculation
Statement of Policy
A credit hour (based on the Carnegie Unit) is defined as a minimum of 3 hours of student engagement per week for a 15 week course or a minimum of 6 hours for an 8 week course.
Engagement includes student activities such as discussion, reading, study time, and assignments.
Therefore, a student is expected to spend approximately 9 hours or more per week on a 3-credit, 15 week course (18 hours for per week or more for a 3-credit, 8 week course).
Students preparing for 3-credit exams are expected to spend approximately 135 hours or more in preparation.
To earn credit, students must demonstrate competency in the defined learning outcomes.
When designing examinations and courses faculty should use the above definition as a guideline to the minimum number of hours of student engagement.


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Punjab Mandi Board chairman Ajmer Singh Lakhowal, president the Bharti Kisan Union (BKU), has demanded a relief fund for providing compensation to farmers whose crops are damaged because of natural calamities.
Accompanied by Avtar Singh, vice-president, BKU state Unit, and Parduman Kumar Beganwali, president, district Unit, Lakhowal visited flood-affected areas of Fazilka yesterday.
He demanded relief at Rs 25,000 per acre to the affected farmers. He suggested that the Centre and the state government could contribute in the 60:40 ratio. Lakhowal demanded that the Centre introduce minimum support price (MSP) for basmati to save farmers from being exploited at the hands of private traders, who were bulk purchasers. "The government should set up a procurement agency for basmati on the pattern of Cotton Corporation of India as a large number of farmers had diversified to growing the cash crop, he said. Lakhowal said the Mandi Board would appoint chairmen of market committees soon.


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Each Tuesday throughout the month of October, this blog will explore the idea of raising the bar, of getting better at something. We will look at raising the bar as:
an entrepreneur
by continuing education
in relationships - personal and private
discipline at home and work
performance on the job
It is my hope that by working together, we will raise the bar, increase our standards and become better personally and professionally. I will be writing and doing what I write about. At the same time, it is my hope that you will the steps necessary to raise your own bar as well.
|From Susan Rogers on Pinterest
In your work as an entrepreneur, you must always look for ways to raise the bar, do a better job, to increase job performance and customer satisfaction. This is a well known fact. What should become equally well known is the fact that every entrepreneur who chooses, can become better. As a business owner, it is important to continue to read and learn about your chosen industry. One extremely easy way of keeping up with the daily news in your industry is to do a specialized Google Alert search. This will harness the power of Google to gather news articles from all over the internet about your specialized area of interest and deliver the information to your email inbox. Once you set up the Google Alert search, you will be able to keep up with industry updates and happenings by reviewing your email box each day.
As an entrepreneur, you can raise the bar by taking steps to improve customers service. I have never believed the old adage, "The customer is always right." However, I do believe that customers should be treated with courtesy, respect and permitted to retain their dignity whenever possible. Good customer service does not have to mean, bending over backwards to satisfy every customer demand. Instead, it could mean that when mistakes are made, the customer is given an apology, an explanation of what went wrong and a statement of what will keep the mistake from happening in the future. As a customer, I have always appreciated it when a company treated me according to this formula. It has made me give companies who do repeat business, even it I could get a product or service at a lower price elsewhere.
Another quick and easy way for an entrepreneur to raise the bar is to start thinking that being on time means being 15 minutes early to every meeting. I have a friend who is an entrepreneur and he is late to every meeting. It does not matter if the meeting is in someone else's office or his own office. He is always late. Being late to an important meeting is often seen as a sign of disrespect. If you do not show up in a timely manner to get a customer's business, why would a customer believe you will keep deadlines once the customer relationship is established. Timeliness may not be next to godliness, but is next to profitability.
So there you have it, three quick and easy ways to raise the bar as an entrepreneur: continue to learn about your industry, work to improve customer service and be on time. Any entrepreneur who chooses, can be a better entrepreneur. So the question for you this terrific Tuesday is what are you going to do to raise the bar as an entrepreneur?
Submit a link to your favorite article on raising the bar as an entrepreneur.


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Badgers drop out of AP top 25
Syracuse takes over top spot
MADISON — Losses to Northwestern and Ohio State last week have dropped the Wisconsin Badger men's basketball team out of the Associated Press top 25 rankings released Monday.
Wisconsin was ranked as high as third in the nation just three weeks ago and 14th last week but the Badgers have lost five of their last six games to fall to 17-5 overall and 4-5 in the Big Ten.
The Badgers received votes to essentially be 26th in the poll.
Ohio State, despite the win over Wisconsin Saturday at the Kohl Center, also dropped out of the top 25. Ohio State also received votes and is one spot behind the Badgers.
Arizona lost its first game of the season at California last week and also fell out of the number one ranking. Undefeated Syracuse is now the unanimous number one in the AP Poll.
ASSOCIATED PRESS MEN'S BASKETBALL POLL (Monday, February 3, 2014)
1. Syracuse
2. Arizona
3. Florida
4. Wichita State
5. San Diego State
6. Villanova
7. Cincinnati
8. Kansas
9. Michigan State
10. Michigan
11. Duke
12. Creighton
13. St. Louis
14. Louisville
15. Texas
16. Iowa State
17. Iowa
18. Kentucky
19. Oklahoma State
20. Virginia
21. Oklahoma
22. Connecticut
23. Gonzaga
24. Memphis
25. Pittsburgh


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From 2010 through 2012:
- The number of uninsured people in Washington grew by more than 44,000.
- Four out of five people with individual insurance were underinsured, meaning they had plans that only paid for 25-40 percent of their medical costs.
- Employer-sponsored coverage grew increasingly scarce.
- Uncompensated care ballooned to nearly $1 billion per year.
"For many families who have struggled to get or keep health coverage, health reform couldn't come soon enough," said Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler. "Regardless of how you feel about 'Obamacare,' it's hard to argue that we're not making progress in stopping the growth of uninsured or that the status quo was sustainable. Before health reform, we had hundreds of thousands of people living one bad diagnosis away from bankruptcy."


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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 46-year-old Jacksonville man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for his involvement in an insurance fraud scheme.
In October, David Lopez was convicted on charges of schemes to defraud more than $50,000, false insurance claims more than $100,000, and knowingly participating in an intentional motor vehicle crash.
The investigation revealed that Lopez was the behind-the-scenes owner of Indian Rehabilitation Center Inc. IRCI was a licensed massage therapy clinic that operated at 3636 University Blvd. from March through October 2012.
The investigation discovered that IRCI bilked insurance companies in excess of $228,000. The clinic was the mechanism to provide bogus treatment to staged accident participants for non-existent injuries.
Lopez's henchmen recruited individuals to stage the accidents and then get treatment at the clinic, according to prosecutors. Lopez is one of more than 30 people whom the state attorney's office has prosecuted in this case. More prosecutions are pending.
On March 14, 2012, Lopez and four others were involved in a staged accident in Duval County, prosecutors said. Lopez later filed a personal injury protection claim through IRCI. The clinic received $35,000 for treatment allegedly provided to Lopez and the other vehicle occupants.
The investigation revealed that Lopez also arranged for a straw owner of the clinic, directed how to fraudulently operate the clinic, controlled IRCI's bank accounts, and directed others as to which insurance companies to target.
In October 2012, the state attorney's office and Florida's Division of Insurance Fraud shut down the clinic and obtained an arrest warrant for Lopez. After a nearly six-month search, investigators found Lopez hiding at a remote fish farm outside of Tampa.


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33Entry by mcgoverntt
32Entry by maluba
Movie titles don't tell you much. If all you had to go on was the name, you might think Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark was a blacksploitation sequel, American Graffiti was Exit Through the Gift Shop, and Exit Through the Gift Shop was a porn they had to shoot when the Radison Inn double booked.
In July, we asked you to show us what some Hollywood blockbusters might have been called if they really told you what you were getting, and more recently asked for honest Oscar movie titles. The winners are below, but first the runners up...


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Items where Person is "Krein, Andreas"
Group by: Item Type | No Grouping
Jump to: Article
Number of items: 1.
Hissler, Christophe and Stille, Peter and Krein, Andreas and Geagea, Majdi Lahd and Perrone, Thierry and Probst, Jean-Luc and Hoffmann, Lucien. Identifying the origins of local atmospheric deposition in the steel industry basin of Luxembourg using the chemical and isotopic composition of the lichen Xanthoria parietina. (2008) Science of the Total Environment, 4 (1-3). 338-344 . ISSN 0048-9697


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The World Bank warned that global temperatures could rise by four degrees this century without immediate action, with potentially devastating consequences for coastal cities and the poor. Issuing a call for action, the World Bank tied the future wealth of the planet — and especially developing regions — to immediate efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions from sources such as energy production.
"The time is very, very short. The world has to tackle the problem of climate change more aggressively," World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said on a conference call as he launched a report conducted for the global lender. "We will never end poverty if we don't tackle climate change. It is one of the single biggest challenges to social justice today."
The study said the planet could warm 4.0 degrees Celsius (7.2 Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels as early as the 2060s if governments' promises to fight climate change are not met. Even if nations fulfill current pledges, the study gave a 20 percent likelihood of a four-degree rise by 2100 and said that a three-degree rise appeared likely. UN-led climate negotiations have vowed to limit the rise of temperatures to no more than two degrees.
"A four-degree warmer world can and must be avoided. We need to hold warming below two degrees," Kim said. "Lack of ambitious action on climate change threatens to put prosperity out of reach of millions and roll back decades of development."
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement that the study showed the need to hold nations to their commitment, made last year in Durban, South Africa, to put in place a legally binding new climate agreement by 2015. The more than 190 nations in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change start their latest annual talks on November 26 in Qatar.
Global temperatures have already risen about 0.8 degrees Celsius. The planet has charted a slew of record-breaking temperatures over the past decade and experienced frequent disasters some experts blame on climate change, most recently superstorm Sandy, which ravaged Haiti and the US East Coast.
The report said that, if temperatures rise by four degrees, regions will feel different effects — recent heatwaves in Russia could become an annual norm and July in the Mediterranean could be nine degrees higher than the area's warmest level now.
Under that scenario, the acidity of the oceans could rise at a rate unprecedented in world history, threatening coral reefs that protect shorelines and provide a habitat for fish species. Rising sea levels could inundate coastal areas with the most vulnerable cities found in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Madagascar, Mexico, Mozambique, the Philippines, Venezuela and Vietnam, the study said.
"Many small islands may not be able to sustain the communities at all. There would be irreversible loss of biodiversity," Kim said. The study found that the most alarming impact may be on food production, with the world already expected to struggle to meet demand for a growing and increasingly wealthy population that is eating more meat.
Low-lying areas such as Bangladesh, Egypt, Vietnam and parts of Africa's coast could see major blows to food production, with drought severely hindering agriculture elsewhere, the study said. Flooding can also contaminate drinking water, increasing illnesses such as diarrhea. The dire warnings were designed to encourage bolder action, but the report did not focus on potential steps.


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American flags are out in full force this weekend – And thanks to Hurricane Earl passing off the coast, the red, white and blue, snapped proudly in the wind.
While I was taking photos, I noticed the juxtaposition of this flag and a sign that made me smile.
Okay, maybe I'm easily amused, but the way "NACHOS" is written up there, as if there is nothing more American than that, it made me happy.
Actually, if you're interested to know, nachos have a good story behind them.
From Wikipedia: Nachos originated in the city of Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico, just over the border from Eagle Pass, Texas, at a restaurant called the Victory Club, owned by Rodolfo De Los Santos. One day in 1943, the wives of ten to twelve U.S. soldiers stationed at Fort Duncan in nearby Eagle Pass were in Piedras Negras on a shopping trip, and arrived at the restaurant after it had closed for the day. The maître d', Ignacio "Nacho" Anaya, invented a new snack for them with what little he had available in the kitchen: tortillas and cheese. Anaya cut the tortillas into triangles, added longhorn cheddar cheese, quickly heated them, and added sliced jalapeño peppers. He served the dish, calling it Nacho's especiales – meaning something like "Nacho's special dish" in Spanish.
Anaya went on to work at the Moderno Restaurant in Piedras Negras, which still uses the original recipe. He also opened his own restaurant, "Nacho's Restaurant", in Piedras Negras. Anaya's original recipe was printed in the 1954 St. Anne's Cookbook.
The popularity of the dish swiftly spread throughout Texas. The first known appearance of the word "nachos" in English dates to 1949, from the book A Taste of Texas. Waitress Carmen Rocha is credited with introducing the dish to Los Angeles at El Cholo Mexican restaurant in 1959.
So there you have it. Nachos may not have been invented without some hungry gringas and an ingenious Mexican. You see, gente? This is what can happen when we all try to get along.


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Thousands of miles from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan, another side of America's fight against terrorism is unfolding in this remote corner of West Africa. American Green Berets are training African armies to guard their borders and patrol vast desolate expanses against infiltration by Al Qaeda's militants, so the United States does not have to.
By Eric Schmitt
The New York Times
A recent exercise by the United States military here was part of a wide-ranging plan, developed after the Sept. 11 attacks, to take counterterrorism training and assistance to places outside the Middle East, like the Philippines and Indonesia. In Africa, a five-year, $500 million partnership between the State and Defense Departments includes Algeria, Chad, Mauritania, Mali, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal and Tunisia, and Libya is on the verge of joining.
American efforts to fight terrorism in the region also include nonmilitary programs, like instruction for teachers and job training for young Muslim men who could be singled out by militants' recruiting campaigns.
One goal of the program is to act quickly in these countries before terrorism becomes as entrenched as it is in Somalia, an East African nation where there is a heightened militant threat. And unlike Somalia, Mali is willing and able to have dozens of American and European military trainers conduct exercises here, and its leaders are plainly worried about militants who have taken refuge in its vast Saharan north.
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