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2,153 Billionaires Are Richer Than 4.6 Billion People
The world's richest 2,153 people controlled more money than the poorest 4.6 billion combined in 2019, while unpaid or underpaid work by women and girls adds three times more to the global economy each year than the technology industry, Oxfam said on Monday. Reuters reports:
The Nairobi-headquartered charity said in a report released ahead of the annual World Economic Forum of political and business leaders in Davos, Switzerland, that women around the world work 12.5 billion hours combined each day without pay or recognition.
In its "Time to Care" report, Oxfam said it estimated that unpaid care work by women added at least $10.8 trillion a year in value to the world economy – three times more than the tech industry.
Americans Are Retiring to Vietnam, for Cheap Healthcare And a Decent Living Standard
Rapid growth in Vietnam and its Southeast Asian neighbors has created a situation that would have been unthinkable in the past: Aging American boomers are living a lifestyle reminiscent of Florida, Nevada and Arizona, but in Vietnam. Monthly expenses here rarely exceed $2,000. Los Angeles Times reports:
Vietnam has relaxed visa rules to lure American retirees like Rockhold, along with their savings. Geopolitics are a factor; Vietnam has seen spillover benefits from the economic boom in China but also has an ambivalent relationship with its far larger and more powerful neighbor, with which it fought a brief war in 1979. Expatriates tend to consider Vietnam more hospitable than China; Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, retains a cosmopolitan character.
The government won't say precisely how many American retirees live in Vietnam. Interviews with about a dozen such retirees suggest that some are here on one-year tourist visas; others are here just for a season or two; and still others have qualified for long residence by marrying Vietnamese citizens, as Rockhold did.
Any Amount Of Running Linked To Significantly Lower Risk Of Death From Any Cause
The joggers and runners of the world certainly have reason to smile, according to a new international study. Researchers from Australia, Austria, Finland, and Thailand performed a comprehensive analysis on available evidence, and concluded that any amount of running significantly lowers one's risk of death from any cause. Study Finds reports:
All in all, 14 studies were included, encompassing 232,149 people who had had their health tracked for periods of time between 5.5 and 35 years. Within that long time frame, 25,951 of the included study participants passed away.
Upon pooling and analyzing all of that data, researchers determined that any amount of running was associated with a 27% lower risk of death from all causes, in comparison to participants who reported never running. This held true among both genders. Any amount of running was also associated with a 30% lower chance of dying due to cardiovascular disease, and a 23% lower risk of cancer-related death.
Even "small" doses of running, defined as going out for a jog just once every one to two weeks for less than 50 minutes, at a slow average speed of less than 6 miles per hour, were still found to induce significant health and longevity perks. In summation, the research team say their findings point to some light running as a great fitness option for people who may not have enough time most days to get in a full workout.
Iowa Man Used His Life Savings to Send 33 Strangers to College
An Iowa man, Dale Schroeder, used his life savings to send 33 students to college. Dale Schroeder was a simple, humble man from Iowa, who ended up changing the lives of 33 people forever. Schroeder worked as a carpenter at the same company for 67 years. He grew up poor and had no wife or children of his own. CBS News reports:
Schroeder had saved up a fortune over the years. He had no living descendants, so before he died, he went to his lawyer with a plan for his money.
"He said, 'I never got the opportunity to go to college. So, I'd like to help kids go to college,'" Nielsen said. Not only did Schroeder have enough money to send a few kids to college, he had enough saved to send dozens.
"Finally, I was curious and I said, 'How much are we talking about, Dale?' And he said, 'Oh, just shy of $3 million.' I nearly fell out of my chair," Nielsen remembered.
Schroeder's friend was shocked by his secret fortune. So were the strangers who received pieces of it.
48 Million Americans Are Still Paying Off Credit Card Debt From Last Holiday Season
Overspending, however, is too easy. In fact, about 48 million Americans are still paying off credit card debt from last holiday season, according to a NerdWallet survey conducted by The Harris Poll. USA Today shows how to avoid financial regrets in 2020 by shop intentionally. Here's how:
Understand why overspending is easy: Pressures and emotions run high. Ideally, your holidays are full of joy. But they may be loaded in other ways, like the pressure to buy everyone presents …
Learn to shop intentionally: Acknowledge emotions and triggers. Recognize feelings, like sadness, and that they may lead to overspending. Plan to cope in another way, like calling a friend …
Study: Quality Of Friendships, Not Quantity, Linked to Well-Being
Everyone knows that having friends boosts well-being. In fact previous research has even suggested that having numerous friends reduces the risk of medical conditions like heart disease. However, a new study finds that not all friendships are created equal. Researchers from the University of Leeds conclude that well-being is more closely related to how people feel about their friends than their overall number of friends. Study Finds reports:
According to the survey results, older adults had fewer friends on average than younger adults, but the number of acquaintances participants called "close friends" wasn't related to age. Younger adults did, however, report more general acquaintances because of social media networking sites. These sites, like Facebook, facilitate larger and more impersonal friend groups, the researchers theorize.
Only the reported number of close friendships was found to be significantly associated with social satisfaction and well-being. This finding even stayed consistent after accounting for the number of family members, neighbors, or acquaintances each participant reported.
America's Middle Class Is Addicted to a New Kind of Credit
It's called the online installment loan, a form of debt with much longer maturities but often the same sort of crippling, triple-digit interest rates. Bloomberg reports:
If the payday loan's target audience is the nation's poor, then the installment loan is geared to all those working-class Americans who have seen their wages stagnate and unpaid bills pile up in the years since the Great Recession.
In just a span of five years, online installment loans have gone from being a relatively niche offering to a red-hot industry. Non-prime borrowers now collectively owe about $50 billion on installment products, according to credit reporting firm TransUnion. In the process, they're helping transform the way that a large swathe of the country accesses debt. And they have done so without attracting the kind of public and regulatory backlash that hounded the payday loan.
"Installment loans are a cash cow for creditors, but a devastating cost to borrowers," said Margot Saunders, senior counsel for the National Consumer Law Center, a nonprofit advocacy group.
For many families struggling with rising costs and stagnant wages, it's a cost they're increasingly willing to bear.
Apple Pay Overtakes Starbucks as Most Popular Mobile Payment Platform in the US
Apple Pay has overtaken the Starbucks mobile app to become the most popular mobile payment system in the United States, claims a new report out today. MacRumors reports:
According to eMarketer, Apple Pay became the market leader last year, when 27.7 million Americans used the app to make a purchase. Since then, however, Apple Pay has grown even faster than expected.
In 2019, Apple Pay will have 30.3 million users, or 47.3 percent of mobile payment users. That compares with Starbucks' 25.2 million customers via its mobile app in the same year, representing 39.4 percent of mobile payment users.
"Apple Pay has benefited from the spread of new point-of-sale (POS) systems that work with the NFC signals Apple Pay runs on," said eMarketer principal analyst Yory Wurmser. "The same trend should also help Google Pay and Samsung Pay, but they will continue to split the Android market."
The Boomer Generation is Becoming One of Haves and Have-Nots
Four recent studies reveal that wealth inequality among boomers specifically has been growing, turning this massive generation into one of haves and have nots. The nonpartisan reports, which analyzed boomers' retirement security, financial assets and housing status, come from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO); the National Institute on Retirement Security think tank; the St. Louis Fed's Center for Household Financial Stability and the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies.
MarketWatch reports:
Wealth disparities continue as we age. The GAO reviewed the Federal Reserve's Survey of Consumer Finances data for households with people 55 or older and said that although disparities in income decreased as older Americans aged from their 50s into their 70s, "disparities in wealth persisted." The continued wealth disparities among older Americans, the GAO noted, "may be due to significant differences in the median value of retirement accounts and home equity between higher- and lower-earning households."
This finding echoes what the St. Louis Fed determined looking at wealth inequality overall in America. It determined that "wealth inequality has grown tremendously from 1989 to 2016, to the point where the top 10% of families ranked by household wealth own 77% of the wealth 'pie.' The bottom half of families ranked by household wealth own only 1% of the pie."
Changing Your Diet Can Help Tamp Down Depression, Boost Mood
There's fresh evidence that eating a healthy diet, one that includes plenty of fruits and vegetables and limits highly processed foods, can help reduce symptoms of depression. NPR reports:
A randomized controlled trial published in the journal PLOS ONE finds that symptoms of depression dropped significantly among a group of young adults after they followed a Mediterranean-style pattern of eating for three weeks. Participants saw their depression "score" fall from the "moderate" range down to the "normal" range, and they reported lower levels of anxiety and stress too.
Alternatively, the depression scores among the control group of participants — who didn't change their diets — didn't budge. These participants continued to eat a diet higher in refined carbohydrates, processed foods and sugary foods and beverages. Their depression scores remained in the "moderate severity" range…
In this study, participants in the "healthy eating" arm of the study ate about six more servings of fruits and vegetables per week, compared with the control group. Participants "who had a greater increase in fruit and vegetable intake showed the greatest improvement in depression symptoms," Francis said.
Participants were also instructed to increase consumption of whole grains to a recommended three servings per day, as well as three servings per day of protein from lean meats, poultry, eggs, tofu and beans. In addition, they were told to get three servings of fish per week. As for dairy, the recommendation was three servings per day, unsweetened. Participants were also instructed to consume three tablespoons of nuts and seeds per day, as well as two tablespoons of olive oil per day, and were advised to add in spices, including turmeric and cinnamon.
Young People Are Quitting Their Jobs in Droves
About half of millennials and 75 percent of Gen Zers have quit their jobs for mental health reasons, according to a new study conducted by Mind Shares Partners, SAP and Quatrics. It was published in Harvard Business Review. Fox Business reports:
That's compared to just 20 percent of respondents overall who said they've voluntarily left a job in order to prioritize their mental health — emblematic of a "shift in generational awareness," the authors of the report, Kelly Greenwood, Vivek Bapat and Mike Maughan, wrote. For baby boomers, the number was the lowest, with less than 10 percent quitting a job for mental-health purposes.
It should come as no surprise that younger generations are paving the way for the de-stigmatization of mental health. A Wall Street Journal article published in March labeled millennials the "therapy generation," as todays 20- and 30-somethings are more likely to turn to therapy, and with fewer reservations, than young people in previous eras did.
A 2017 report from the Center for Collegiate Mental Health at Penn State University found that, based on data from 147 colleges and universities, the number of students seeking mental-health help increased at five times the rate of new students starting college from 2011 to 2016. And a Blue Cross Blue Shield study published in 2018 revealed that major depression diagnoses surged by 44 percent among millennials from 2013 to 2016.
Poll: Young Americans Are More Likely to Resent the Rich
The Cato 2019 Welfare, Work, and Wealth National Survey finds that Americans under 30 stand out from their parents and grandparents' in their attitudes toward socialism, capitalism, and resentment toward the rich. These results may help explain the striking success of self-described democratic socialist Bernie Sanders in capturing the support of the young. Young Americans feel more resentment toward the rich. Emily Ekins writes on Cato Institute:
Young Americans are the only cohort in which a majority believe the wealthy didn't earn their wealth. A slim majority (52%) of Americans under 30 say that "most" rich people in the United States got rich "by taking advantage of other people." In contrast, a strong majority (72%) of seniors (65+) say that most wealthy people in America "earned their wealth" without exploiting people.
Across the board, younger people are more likely than older people to hold negative attitudes toward the rich. Americans under 30 are about 20–35 points more likely than Americans age 65 and older to feel "angry" when they read or hear about rich people (44% vs. 11%), to feel more "resentment" than "admiration" of rich people (39% vs. 16%), to believe it's "immoral" for society to allow people to become billionaires (39% vs. 13%), and to believe that citizens taking violent action against the rich is sometimes justified (35% vs. 10%). Young people are also about 10–25 points more likely than older people to believe billionaires are a threat to democracy (51% vs. 26%), to disagree that billionaires earned their wealth by creating value for others (39% vs. 26%), and to disagree that rich people make society better off by investing in new businesses that create jobs and invent technology (38% vs. 21%).
Gap Between Haves and Have-Nots Highest in 50 years
The gap between the haves and have-nots in the United States grew last year to its highest level in more than 50 years of tracking income inequality, according to Census Bureau figures. AP News reports:
Income inequality in the United States expanded from 2017 to 2018, with several heartland states among the leaders of the increase, even though several wealthy coastal states still had the most inequality overall, according to figures released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau.
The nation's Gini Index, which measures income inequality, has been rising steadily over the past five decades.
The Gini Index grew from 0.482 in 2017 to 0.485 last year, according to the bureau's 1-year American Community Survey data. The Gini Index is on a scale of 0 to 1; a score of "0″ indicates perfect equality, while a score of "1″ indicates perfect inequality, where one household has all the income…
The inequality expansion last year took place at the same time median household income nationwide increased to almost $62,000 last year, the highest ever measured by the American Community Survey. But the 0.8% income increase from 2017 to 2018 was much smaller compared to increases in the previous three years, according to the bureau.
9% of Americans Are Considered 'Upper Class'—Here's How Much They Earn
According to a 2018 report from the Pew Research Center, 19% of American adults live in "upper-income households." The median income of that group was $187,872 in 2016. CNBC reports:
Pew defines the upper class as adults whose annual household income is more than double the national median. That's after incomes have been adjusted for household size, since smaller households require less money to support the same lifestyle as larger ones.
About half of American households, 52%, were considered middle-class, while 29% were lower-class. The median income of middle-class households was $78,442 in 2016. For lower-income households, it was $25,624. These numbers are in 2016 dollars and scaled to reflect a three-person household.
Pew looked at various household sizes. Here's the minimum amount you'd have to earn each year to be considered upper-class, depending on the size of your family:
Household of one: Minimum of $78,281 to be upper-class
Household of two: Minimum of $110,706 to be upper-class
Household of three: Minimum of $135,586 to be upper-class
Household of four: Minimum of $156,561 to be upper-class
Household of five: Minimum of $175,041 to be upper-class
Financial Stress Literally Making 2 In 5 Young Americans Sick
According to a survey of 1,000 Americans aged 25-45, financial stress and worries are quite literally making people sick. Respondents listed health care as the main financial worry of their lives, and three in four admitted to having a "negative experience" due to financial stress. John Anderer writes on Study Finds:
Ironically, 39% said that financial stress has had a negative impact on their health; indicating a troubling cycle of financial stress brought on by health care costs, which in turn leads to more health problems.
Additionally, 35% of respondents said financial stress has harmed their relationship with a spouse or significant other, and 26% said financial worries had harmed close friendships. Another 26% said it had affected their performance at work, and 21% said it had hurt their attendance at work.
A running theme throughout the survey's responses was that young Americans aren't addressing their health needs due to the cost. Many respondents reported that this strategy only allows the illness to worsen, resulting in higher medical bills by the time they make it to the doctor's office. In fact, three in four surveyed young adults reported taking "risky" actions to save money on medical expenses. More specifically, 33% delayed seeking medical help in the hope that their condition would just go away, 27% considered avoiding medical attention due to high deductibles, and 22% scheduled a medical appointment but never showed after considering the bill.
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Sexy, Flirty, Handsome Rob In New Dior Pics & Gifs
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Dior/via
Labels: Adorable Rob, Dior, Sexiest
Guy Pearce Mentions Rob, 'The Rover' In Australian TV
Labels: All About Rob, costars, The Rover
First Look At Sexy Dior Ad (LQ For Now) + Official Teasers
Official teasers
Via @Dior:
Discover on September 1st Dior Homme Fragrance film starring Robert Pattinson, directed by Romain Gavras.
Discover more exclusive contents on www.diorhommeparfum.com and on Twitter #DiorRob.
LQ partial ad.
More to come! (September 1st).
Labels: All About Rob, Dior, Sexiest
Elle's Exclusive Interviews With Rob + New Dior Behind The Scenes
Click to watch
Translation/scans via
Robert Pattinson, The Phoenix
Is there a life after Twilight? That's the question the actor is trying to answer to, filming in art-house cinema and working with Dior.
"The most important thing is to be cool". After 5 years spent in the eye of the Hollywood cyclone, Robert Pattinson finally got it. It did not appear to him like this while walking his dog in Los Angeles. We always sensed a sort of uneasiness when talking to him. And even Robert himslef had some trouble hiding (maybe he's not really trying) that he wasn't really fit for the movies he was idolized for. "Playing in movies that you would never go see, it complicates things, it's hard to talk about it, hard to promote it, hard to connect with the public. Until I met David Cronenberg who hired me to play in Cosmopolis, I always felt like I just fell into roles, that I didn't really get to choose. I was trying not to sink. For the first time, I felt like I had been chosen for my talent. David gave me confidence. It changed how I see myself as an actor."
Not the best moment to become the face of an important perfume brand, lend his face (for a lot of money) to Dior Homme and see his image on every billboards around the world? Well, not really. Of course, Dior is not the first to solicit Rob Patz. Before, others certainly thought about making money off of the huge popularity of the Twilight actor. But it seems like the honorable French house found the right words to convince him. Well, more like the right word : freedom. Pattinson used it to realize his dream : shooting with Romain Gravas, a French underground and talented director who alternated between the super cool (the music video "Bad Girls" with M.I.A) and the super controversial (the music video "Stress" with Justice). "It's been a while since I have been trying to contact him and he wasn't answering my calls. When Dior approached me, I told myself "I'm sure he would like to work with me if I was offering a Dior commercial"". Bingo! Gavras accepted the challenge and restored the actor's image looking for an artistic legitimacy while helping Dior building a successful campaign.
The movie he directed is indeed a champagne bobble, a concentrate of coolness with sixties influence in which Rob and model Camille Rowe are being playful, smoke cigarettes, drive carelessly an old BMW convertible on the beach... A very New Wave atmosphere, seductive and fresh. Like a groupie, the actor expresses his admiration for Gravas the anarchist : "He sees the world in a complete different way. he's very confident. I am more neurotic, it's irritating but at the same time, my insecurity is the only thing I find interesting about myself".
Let it be clear, with Robert Pattinson, there's a significant misunderstanding. His love-affair with Kristen Stewart, all the highs and lows of this relationship and the break-up a few months ago didn't help matters. And he knows it : "People saw me in a couple of movies and think this is who I am. It's natural. Now it's my responsibility to look for directors who I want to work with. I try to do it but I have to overcome my timidity. It happened to me a few days ago, I met one of my heroes at a diner party. I texted him the next day saying I wanted to work with him. After 3 hours without hearing anything from him, I was on the verge of sending him another text like "I'm sorry, I'm sorry that was so presumptuous of me ". But he finally texted me back!".
Fragile like a young girl in love, Pattinson has that combination of passion and extreme lucidity that make his professional day to day life difficult. Once again, Cosmopolis and his first appearance at the Cannes Festival were a turn in his career: "I promised myself to only do what I wanted to do". Not really easy in the country of super-productions where the professionals were telling him to build himself an masculine public. "I don't even know what it means "building a masculine public!" I can't force guys to go see my movies!" he says laughing. But the young actor he's not that naive and understood that being cool was the condition in order for the independent filmmakers to take a interest in him. "In fact, it's marketing, and what's important in marketing is to be coherent. It means saying no to a lot of propositions. Of course, the risk in this business that is always evolving is to say no to projects until the moment when projects aren't sent your way anymore. "When that happens, I'll just go and do Dancing with the Stars".
For the time being, he is said to be playing in the next Werner Herzog movie with James Franco and Naomi Watts (he's not confirming anything) and he just finished filming The Rover, the first movie directed by David Michôd who wrote "Hesher" and "Animal Kingdom", a close friend of the Edgerton brothers. The gang it's good to be seen with to be accepted by the aficionados of independent movies in the US. He then will be reunited with his fairy godmother Cronenberg in "Maps to the Stars" written by Bruce Wagner, a flagship figure of the new generation of American writers.
So, even if he likes to hide behind his geeky and tortured persona, Pattinson is not lacking determination and he's valiantly building a career that is beginning to look like him. After all, DiCaprio was also subjected to young girls shouting their admiration and Brad Pitt showed some abs in "Thelma & Louise" and even in several episodes of Dallas before David Finche, Neil Jordan or Terry Gilliam gave him more substantial roles. Nobody blamed them for it. And we will forgive Rob Pattz for playing in not so great movies. Especially since, laughing, he promises, under the gaze of his new Dior female colleagues to make an effort on the fashion side : "I like fashion but I'm not really comfortable with the idea of being judged by what I'm wearing so I'm always wearing the same clothes. But look, I have this Dior jacket that I was given and I wear it everyday!". It's never too late Rob. Let's hope that even with a impeccable look he will never lose his frankness. "A few months ago I started designing women dresses, couture dresses...". He burst out laughing. "I was certainly having a nervous breakdown!". Fragile, touching and irresistibly sexy despite himself. Pattinson, the teen idol, has become a man.
Enough of vampires, werewolves and sugary romances. The british actor Robert Pattinson, who earned worldwide fame and millions of dollars to star in the five instalments of The Twilight Saga is completely redirecting his career to more dense and original projects. His most recent choices have been critically acclaimed, as are his performances.
The starting point of this transition was the movie Cosmopolis, by David Cronenberg, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2012. In this talkie film, he plays Eric Packer, an expert in the world of finances, who spends his time inside a limo, receiving unusual visitors, whilst a major crisis erupts outside the car.
Bel Ami (which premiered in Brazil in 2012), based on the work of Guy de Maupassant, starring Uma Thruman; Mission: Blacklist (in pre-production), where he plays a soldier who helps in the hunt of Saddam Hussein; and The Rover (shot this year), where he portrays a mentally disturbed man, are other great examples of the actor's current phase. Last july he started filming a new movie with Cronenberg, Maps To The Stars, a mixture of drama and black humor, inspired by society's obsession with the celebrity industry.
And the news don't stop there: The boy who started doing theater at 15 years old, in Barnes Theatre Company, and had a brief modelling career is the new face of the fragranceDior Homme. To represent such an important brand and be able to work with partners he admire (the photographer Nan Goldin and filmmaker Romain Gavras) were the necessary fuel he needed to jump on this "wild" adventure, in his own words, inspired by James Dean's quote: "Dream as you'll live forever. Live as you'll die today." Check out the interview:
After Twilight, your career has been going through lots of transformations. How's this transition going?
I just turned 27 and only now I'm realizing no one looks at me like I'm a kid anymore. Being an actor is weird, and the idea of success changes through the years. But there's the good side of fame as well: I don't have to work just for the money. So now I'm trying to use my time, my energy and my influences to make interesting choices no one else is making. Indeed, there's something about Dior's work that is very similar to my current state of being: an almost agressive independence!
The partnership with Cronenberg seems to be going really well.
I had such a good experience in Cosmopolis! David is an incredible person, and the most fun, intriguing man to work with I've ever met. He has been making movies for the last 40 years, and every film he makes shows just how unusual he is. We started shooting his new movie recently. It's called Maps To The Stars, with Julianne Moore and John Cusack. The scripts of these two films are amongst the most original ones I've ever read, that's why I hope to continue working with him forever.
You just closed the partnership with Dior. Was the invite for the campaign a surprise?
When Dior contacted me, I was truly shocked at first because their name alone is almost mythical. It's a very sofisticated fashion house, that never compromises their image. They approached me in the right way and at the right time because Twilight was coming to an end. I remember I was impressed when I met with the creative team and saw that they had an extremely open mind. Their interest was in an artistic collaboration, more than the commercial itself.
Why did you choose Romain Gavras to direct Dior's film?
I've wanted to work with him for a long time. To be honest, I tried to get in contact with him for about a year. He used to be like: "I'm not going to talk to you". Until I told him that I wanted him to direct Dior's commercial. That's when he finally met me! (laughs) He has a visual language completely different from everything I've seen before.
And how was the job?
Romain made it happen! We were driving along a beach in a tiny BMW and there were 6 meters of sand. If I slowed down, the car was going to sink, so, we were going at 90 miles/hour with a camera in the car. The car was skidding a lot and there were three models inside of it, for whom I was responsible. All I know is that after about 2 hours the car got in the water and the bumper fell off. It was wild!
Do you think that perfume is essencial to all men?
When I was 12 and started talking more to girls, I used to think that wearing perfume was the right thing to do. I remember being on vacation in Portugal and watching teenagers going inside bars. I used to think that if I smelled like perfume I was going to convince everyone that I was an adult. And the worst thing is that it worked! Perfume and hair gel were my best friends that summer! (laughs)
I'm so boring! I spend all day on the Internet looking at what young directors are doing. Right now, I'm also trying to develop a script with a friend.
We know that you are a musician and plays guitar. Do you have any musical project?
I still play guitar and I really have been rehearsing a lot more now than I used to. But I really don't play on a concert or anything like that for years.
Labels: Dior, Promo
Hoodied Rob Makes An Appearance In Fan Picture
Labels: All About Rob, Fangirl Moment, LA Sighting
Rob Talks To Le Figaro (France), Gala (Germany) + New Dior Pics
Translation by @enamoramiento1 via
Actor Robert Pattinson on scents and the game of men and women
Recently snapshots surfaced of Robert Pattinson making out with beautiful model Camille Rowe. In some she´s fused to his lips while he cradles her head, in other her naked legs lean against the bathtub he´s sitting in. Ok, those scenes are taken from the new "Dior Homme" campaign, but you realize: those two get along well [it´s actually a German wordplay with smell meaning they get along well]. We spoke to the new Mr. Dior about women, his penchant for argueing and being a man.
Q: Now you´re not only an actor, but also a model. How do you feel at this point in your life?
A: Well, I´m 27 and for the first time in my life I don´t feel like a child anymore and like others don´t treat me as one. It´s strange, feeling like an adult. People treat me differently. For many people my age the last ten years were like a transition of sorts and some are still trying to figure out what they want to do with their life. At least that´s what I do!
Q: What exactly do you mean?
A: Right now I´m trying to write a script, together with a friend of mine. I love to compare notes with others, to pore over a script. And I love arguing!
Q: Lately you often mentioned how you appreciate people who live by their own rules. Is that something you´d want for yourself?
A: Definetly! Being successful makes you wary... you spend a lot of time guarding your private life. Whenever I meet people who don´t give a shit about what others think of them, I´m instantly fascinated.
Q: So you love freedom...
A: Yes. The more established I am, the more it restricts my privacy. An the quicker people are to judge me. They mistake you for the role you´re playing, the character the want to identify themselves with. When I shot "The Rover" in Australia I didn´t have any teeth, I was constantly dirty but I didn´t care. I was running around without a shirt all the time and did things I never get to do.
Q: What does masculinity mean to you?
A: The well-trodden image of manliness has changed a lot in recent years and doesn´t really work anymore. These are strange times to be a man... I used to have a very pragmatic approach, but masculinity today means so many different things. Especially in the world of arts men have to be everything at once: neat and wild, a provider and a player!
Q: Do men have a different idea of women today as well?
A: I just don´t get why so many guys feel threatened by strong women. I always felt at ease with women around, I grew up with two older sisters and a very dominant mother.
Q: Memories are often connected to scents. How about you?
A: When I was 12, on vacation and starting to get interested in girls, I thought that perfume would help me appear grown up and mature. I used to drench myself and felt so adult! Eau de cologne and hair gel were my best buddies that summer.
Q: What about today?
A: I still love scents, especially people´s individual scent. This pheromone-thing is really crazy. We´re subconsciously drawn to people we like to smell.
Q: Do you wear perfume to feel better or in order to seduce?
A: See, now that's an adult-thing: someone who applies a nice scent in the evening is up to something. At least that's how I do it!
Partial translation by @littleone_chloe // Scans via LePattzClub.
The Hollywood actor, new face of the perfume Dior Homme this fall, has fallen under the spell of the Parisian women.
If his next love story is as the sexy ad campaign of which he is the muse - a tribute of the New Wave cinema, broadcast for the first time on TV on Sunday night September 1st - it would be as intense. On screen, Robert Pattinson seems he would like to devour the beautiful Franco-American Camille Rowe Pourcheresse. "When everybody was watching the footage of the kissing scene, I was already embarrassed. Suddenly, Camille said 'Oh la la!' I glared at her and told her 'Are you kidding me?' I thought that the British would say 'Oh la la!' as a way to make fun of French. I didn't think that French women would say it for real. Then I realized that I would like to have a French girlfriend with all her clichés." said Pattinson over a coffee at the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles.
This new campaign is primary for Christian Dior Parfums whose goal is the international success - that is annual sales reaching at least €300 millions - of the Dior Homme perfume. "This perfume can be interpreted of multiple ways, it can have thousands of faces." emphasized François Demachy, creator of this manly and sensual harmony, a manly iris mixed with leather, wood, amber and spices.
In this very fast black and white clip, however intimate, Pattinson, the chilled British, named several times "Sexiest man in the world", seems to be enamoured of Pourcheresse. He is in a deteriorate house in the Bronx neighborhood, in NY, languid in a cast iron bathtub, he holds out a cigarette to Camille, who puts on a tank top on top of her underwear. They are two lovers on the run. He represents the fantasy of the sensual guy and she personifies the French beauty with a sullen charm.
French icons
From one end to an other, the video spreads an an exhilarating atmosphere: the couple introduces itself in a wedding at the last story of a building, drives a convertible BMW on a vast beach… "The first day of the shooting was tricky. I drove a BMW at 100km/h, because the sand was unstable. Eventually, I found myself in the water… with a camera inside the car," explained Pattinson with a laugh. "the people from Dior were very understanding." Even if Robert is a multi-millionnaire, he keeps being thrifty especially when it comes to buy his own cars. "The first that I bought myself was a BMW 325i, when I first started to learn to drive in California. It was a the time of the release of Twilight. I bought it on internet, from an actor. Of course, I tried to bargain. So, he showed me the screen of a laptop and told me 'You are third on IMDb!' But I insisted to pay $1,000 instead of $1,200." confirmed the sensitive ex-vampire.
Since then, the man did not become a big spender. Despite his three big hits at the box office, who made the studios earn $1,17 billion these last three years, he drove in Hollywood a Silverado truck that cost $1,500, bought also on the internet. "I love the second-hand truck, you can drive many people and nobody dares to come close to me. Sometimes, paparazzi chase me. With a beautiful car, they could block me. But when they see my Silverado, they know that I can bump into them!" he laughed and continued. "It may seem curious but I don't like being taken in pictures and being followed. So I only go where I know it won't happen even if it comes to only five places in LA." explained Pattinson who, at the night of the presentation of the ad, was at Chateau Marmont where twenty beautiful girl paced the place to try to capture his attention.
A very rock'n'roll idea
After some digressions, Pattinson comes back on his passions at the time: French women. "They are amazing. When you come in Paris, it is the first thing you see. I think Paris and New York are the two cities where the women are more beautiful than anywhere else. They are more confident of themselves, of their personalities but also of their looks. They are elegant and have a natural grace." said Pattinson. His masculine icons are also French:"Belmondo was very important to me when I was a child and I love the way Jean-Luc Godart dress and how he wore his sunglasses." he said before to confess that he just had torn off a picture of the Swiss movie director in a magazine to ask to a stylist to found him the same.
Pattinson had refused many big ad campaigns. If he has accepted the one for Dior Homme which could make him earn more than $10 millions, this is on condition he could choose the director, Romain Gavras famous for his controversial videos for bans as M.I.A. Otherwise, he is grateful to the brand for choosing him (..) and admits that this collaboration with Dior is part of a strategy aimed at redefine his image of actor.
In every scene, Robert Pattinson is dressed and perfumed, of course, with Dior Homme. "The perfume alone doesn't exist. It comes alive on the skin of a person. It is the same for the clothes." said François Demarchy. The whole shooting took place in New York, from Far Rockaway Beach to the rooftops of the Tudor, through the kitchens and the ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria. As soundtrack, the famous Whole Lotta Love by Led Zeppelin, the band had met to attend a special screening of the ad before to give their authorization to use the song. "We are extremely proud that Led Zeppelin had given us the right to use their music. They have never made an ad before." Pointed out Claude Martinez, CEO of Parfums Christian Dior. "The result is at the same time powerful and intimate, very different from the normal ad. The script has no beginning and no end, it is more about the feelings at the moment, a very rock'n'roll idea. It will give a new life to Dior Homme." Knowing that Christian Dior Parfums represents one third of the turnover of the division Beauty and Perfumes, it is a key ad campaign for the brand.
If some abroad countries see France as the last bastion of chauvinism, this video imposes itself as a brilliant display of international savoir-faire: a British movie star and a Parisian model filmed by a director born in Greece, behind the wheel of a German convertible who dive in the Atlantic ocean in Brooklyn, while British legends of rock fire away their biggest hit, all of these to put on the front the perfume of this fall, which carries the name of a French designer.
The Dior Tumblr has also been posting new stuff. We'll keep adding them as we get them!
Labels: All About Rob, Dior
Rob in InStyle UK - Dior Pictures & Interview
Rob was featured in InStyle UK. Here are the scans and transcript.
Transcript after the jump
Labels: Dior, DiorRob, Instyle, Interview, Robert Pattinson
Sexy, Flirty, Handsome Rob In New Dior Pics & Gifs...
Guy Pearce Mentions Rob, 'The Rover' In Australian...
First Look At Sexy Dior Ad (LQ For Now) + Official...
Elle's Exclusive Interviews With Rob + New Dior Be...
Rob Talks To Le Figaro (France), Gala (Germany) + ...
Dior Homme Ad Playing At Sephora In Paris
Behind The Scenes Of The Dior Ad: Plenty Of Sexy R...
Rob Visits Patients At L.A. Hospital: New Fan & HQ...
Fan Picture From ''Foxy Merkins' Premiere In L.A. ...
Rob In GQ Spain + More Hot Shots From The Dior Ad
More L.A. Filming On 'Maps To The Stars'
More Dior Pictures From Press Pack & Older Ones In...
Pictures of Rob Looking Casual on the MTTS Set Tod...
Rob in Interview Magazine (Germany) and New Dior P...
Another New Dior Still: Rob Talks To Glamour Spain...
Rob Looking Hot In His Suit As He Filmed 'Maps To ...
New Dior Pics Keep Coming! + Watch The Creative Te...
Rob On The Beverly Hills Sets Of 'Map To The Stars...
Rob On The Downtown L.A. Set Of 'Map To The Stars'...
More of Rob & Dior In El Pais (Spain)
InStyle Germany Talks To Rob, Shares New Dior Ad I...
Red Beanie Alert! - Rob Shows Up To Support Bobby ...
New Dior Images In GQ Germany Interview With Rob
Mark Your Calendar! - Twilight Forever: The Comple...
Rob & 'Twilight' Win Big At The Teen Choice Awards...
Dior, You're Killing Us Here..
Flashback: New Pic Of Rob During 'Cosmopolis' Prom...
New Hot Teaser For Rob's Dior Homme Campaign

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


toni morrison would say, he dragged that child by her hair. her hair!
in the head if jay jr. is sitting on the patio table.
just bikinis and bare feet, they flapped around—rage-afraid.
wound in the braid of tender feathers under authority's uniform sneer.
fledglings are not a species endangered.
in the background, miles davis blacks in blue.
for slugs. amen and amen. nothing to see. here.
Reblogged this on oceans and fire.


Like many of you, I'm a wife and mom—and, like many of you, I didn't know what I didn't know. As I applied sunscreen, lotion, and any number of beauty products on myself and my kids, I never thought for a second they might not be safe: After all, I thought, we live in a country that regulates everything. So imagine my surprise when I learned that when it comes to the personal care industry, that's simply not the case. Companies are allowed to use harmful ingredients and make their own judgments about safety.


As an aspiring filmmaker, I have started at Leeds Metropolitan University and am currently on my first year of a BA (Hons) degree in Film Making. I have moved here from all the way down south in West Sussex and I must say the change from working life in a small town to the big city at University is different to say the least.
My first point of call when I got here was to get involved in as many things I could possibly be a part of with the restrictions of five days of university a week. I joined a film society which has different film screenings and events during the year, and also joined our Universities Met Media which includes Met TV, where students can be a part of filming a short television piece for different events and we are also beginning to start live streaming, Met Online, where we can write reviews, news and articles on any subject and Met Radio, which is a fully functioning radio station where we can also deliver news and reviews and have started creating podcasts. I will be writing film reviews and film festival reviews for Met Online which I will link each week to this page.
I also started doing my research on cinemas that would be good for me to go to and also review films. The cinema that most interested me was The Hyde Park Picture House. Hyde Park Picture House, which is located in the Hyde Park area of Leeds funnily enough, was purpose built during the First World War in 1914. The pages of the Yorkshire Post were devoted to showing news of the war at the time, however it did dedicate a small article to its opening. It is one of the few surviving picture places in the United Kingdom and as a Grade 2 listed building, the Hyde Park still boasts many original features including gas lighting and a decorated Edwardian balcony. It is the only gas lit cinema remaining in use in the UK. The ornate gas lamp outside the entrance is also Grade II listed. With its classic façade and atmosphere, the Hyde Park Picture House has been through many changes in its long history. It is now home to a mix of art-house and mainstream films, backed up by screenings of classics.
I went to Hyde Park Picture House to let myself be known and let them know I am a journalist and would like to come here to see my films I will review. The cinema is a beautiful place to relax and get immersed in a film as it doesn't feel like a cinema, it has the original curtains that open to show the film and beautiful orchestral music playing beforehand. I would strongly recommend if anyone is visiting.
I contacted UK Screen four months ago and asked if there was anyway if I could be apart of the website, and soon enough I started sending some drafts and now write for them weekly and I am hopeful to write a lot more for them.
My next couple of articles will more in depth about film.
Look out for Lovelace Review and Goodfellas Vs Taxi Driver article.


Working On A Dream debuted in the Official New Zealand Top 40 Albums on 2 February 2009. It has been in the Top 40 Albums for nine weeks with a highest position of #1. There are 15 albums by Bruce Springsteen in the Top 40 Albums with three reaching Number One.


text:
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Money / Business
10 Successful Founders and Leaders To Graduate From HBCUs
Thurgood Marshall went to Howard University. Marian Wright Edelman attended Spelman College. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. went to Morehouse. America's Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) have always served as a pillar of education and prominence for the Black community. Some of the best and brightest young minds went to HBCUs for both education and the pedigree needed to ascend to positions of power and influence.
Find: There Are Only 4 Black Fortune 500 CEOs
Never has that legacy been more evident than now. A new guard of young and dynamic African-American political power brokers has emerged. They come from diverse backgrounds, but the ties that bind them are deep influence in the Black community's political grassroots and walls adorned with diplomas from HBCUs.
The following is a brief introduction to HBCU grads who are not just political changemakers, but business leaders, entrepreneurs, policymakers, movers and shakers. All trace their cultural and academic lineage to the same network of distinguished higher education institutions as Dr. King and the rest.
Make Your Money Work Better for You
Vice President Kamala Harris added a whole bunch of firsts to her resume on Inauguration Day 2021: first African-American vice president, first woman vice president, first American of South Asian descent vice president and first all of those at the same time. Despite Howard University's endlessly deep bench of distinguished alumni, Harris now holds a special place among the graduates of the HBCU known as "The Mecca."
A member of the Class of 1986, Harris was a sister of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority. The Undefeated quotes an acquaintance of the vice president as summing up her remarkable and unlikely journey this way: "Kamala is the culmination of our founders' wildest dreams."
See: Kamala Harris and 15 Other Super Successful People Who Were in a Sorority or Fraternity
Vice President Harris is the most prominent HBCU graduate to wield power at the highest levels of government, but she is only one part of a much larger movement. The historic election of Morehouse College alum Raphael Warnock to represent Georgia in the U.S. Senate gave the Democrats full control of the federal government, but it was also a symbolic victory in the Deep South. Not only did Warnock, a fellow clergyman, go to Martin Luther King's alma mater, but he was also chosen as senior pastor at Ebenezer Baptist, which was Dr. King's church in Atlanta. He is now the first African-American senator in Georgia history and only the 11th in any state in all of American history. Kamala Harris was the 10th.
Find Out: How the Democratic Senate Could Impact Your Wallet
Kamala Harris' job could be a whole lot harder — and Sen. Warnock might not have his — if it weren't for Stacey Abrams. She engineered her party's massive upset victories in not one but two Georgia special runoff elections in 2021. Her efforts threw the Senate to the Democrats and handed her state's Electoral College votes to Joe Biden. Abrams rose to national prominence in 2018 when she narrowly lost the governor's race. Had she won, she would have been the first Black woman ever to serve as governor, not only of Georgia but of any state in America.
A graduate of Spelman College in 1995, Abrams is the most visible face of the modern African-American grassroots political movement at the center of the Democratic Party.
Rihanna, Oprah and More of the Richest Black Women in the World
More: The Most Expensive College in Every State
Shawn Wilkinson
Shawn Wilkinson founded Storj when he was in his early 20s. He's only now just approaching 30 and he's already one of the most accomplished entrepreneurs to come out of Morehouse College, where he studied computer science on a full scholarship. Wilkinson discovered cryptocurrency like Bitcoin at Morehouse and went on to use the blockchain technology that it's based on to disrupt the cloud computing industry. Storj revolutionized decentralized cloud computing, which lowers costs and improves security by using blockchain technology and cryptography to securely transfer data between remotely located nodes. No one had ever done it before Wilkinson.
Read: Where 51 CEOs Went To College
During the pandemic, the Oprah Winfrey Charitable Foundation created a $12 million fund for pandemic relief in five cities that shaped the life and career of the foundation's famous namesake. Among them was Baltimore, where Oprah got her start; Chicago, where her show and empire were headquartered; and Nashville, Tennessee, where she went to Tennessee State University.
Oprah went to TSU on a full scholarship but missed graduating by a single credit when she left school in the early 1970s to start her first on-air job in Baltimore, according to The Undefeated. She finally graduated when she returned to Nashville in 1986 and turned in her final paper.
Related: Rihanna, Oprah and More of the Richest Black Women in the World
Sean Combs still earns money from his Bad Boy back catalog — but the pioneering hip-hop, media, fashion and business mogul is hardly resting on his laurels. He remains one of the highest-paid celebrities in the world — making $55 million in 2020, according to Forbes — mostly through his booze and beverage empire.
Combs is one of Howard University's favorite sons, quite an honor, considering its all-star list of distinguished alumni. He's given commencement addresses to graduates there, consistently cited his time at Howard as a primary foundational experience and has given generously to his alma mater. He donated $1 million to a Howard University business scholarship in his name and the school has paid tribute to Combs with several awards and an honorary degree — the future star originally dropped out to pursue his music career.
Find Out: Celebrities Who Got Richer After Career Changes
Filmmaker Will Packer's movies have grossed more than $1 billion, and he boasts a remarkable nine consecutive No. 1 films — but he's no ordinary producer. A graduate of Florida A&M University, he founded Will Packer Productions, but his journey started at his HBCU.
In 2018, he returned to his alma mater to join fellow Florida A&M grad and fellow Hollywood success story Rob Hardy for the 25-year anniversary of their very first movie. The duo — both of whom earned engineering degrees — filmed a low-budget indie flick in 1994 called "Chocolate City," which they distributed through the film company they founded, Rainforest Films. It was the start of both of their careers.
More: What It Really Costs To Attend America's Top 50 Colleges
Janice Bryant Howroyd is recognized as the first African-American woman in the United States to own and operate a billion-dollar business. With a few hundred bucks in her own savings and a $900 loan from her mother, Howroyd became an entrepreneur in 1978. That year, she founded a staffing agency called ActOne in the office of a rug shop with a single fax machine. She built it into a powerful, $2.8 billion company with 17,000 clients in 19 countries, according to Fox Business.
Howroyd is also a graduate of North Carolina A&T University. The fourth of 11 children, she won a full scholarship to study there and eventually went on to earn a master's degree and a doctorate.
Inspired?: Elon Musk's Essential Tips for Aspiring Entrepreneurs
Chris Latimer
If you ever see superstars like Will Smith, KRS-One, Mary J. Blige, Russell Simmons, Queen Latifah and Snoop decked out in brightly colored clothing from America's HBCUs, it's likely that they're wearing something from the African-American College Alliance. Howard grad Chris Latimer founded the company in 1991 and has used it to link the legacies of his two passions: HBCUs and hip-hop. He's used the brand to promote HBCUs by getting school logos on the hats and hoodies of celebrities. Thirty years later, the brand endures and the biggest stars in the world still go on stage draped in logos from schools like Cheyney, Lincoln, Tuskegee, Spelman, Howard and Morgan State.
See: Why Everyone Should Have a Small Business Idea Ready
Lonnie Johnson
You know Lonnie Johnson as the man who invented the Super Soaker, the No. 1 bestselling water toy of all time. But he's much more than just some basement inventor who got lucky tinkering with a water gun and a pump.
Johnson earned a bachelor's in mechanical engineering from Tuskegee University, as well as a master's in nuclear engineering and an honorary Ph.D. An Air Force veteran, Johnson was acting chief of the Space Nuclear Power Safety Section at the Air Force Weapons Laboratory. He later worked on the Galileo Jupiter mission, the Mars Observer project and the Saturn Cassini project as a senior systems engineer with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
A prolific entrepreneur, Johnson founded two advanced energy and battery companies, Excellatron Solid State and Johnson Battery Technologies, Inc. Johnson holds more than 100 patents, including for the Super Soaker, which did more than $200 million in sales and was the bestselling toy in America.
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Photo Disclaimer: Please note photos are for representational purposes only.
Andrew Lisa
Andrew Lisa has been writing professionally since 2001. An award-winning writer, Andrew was formerly one of the youngest nationally distributed columnists for the largest newspaper syndicate in the country, the Gannett News Service. He worked as the business section editor for amNewYork, the most widely distributed newspaper in Manhattan, and worked as a copy editor for TheStreet.com, a financial publication in the heart of Wall Street's investment community in New York City.
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It's a win-win for everybody.
> Money > Jobs > The Most Annoying Tipping Habits Waiters, Baristas and Bartenders Deal With


My band played for my 30 Year HS reunion recently. Usually we do all originals, but did late 70's and 80's songs for this gig. I HAVE NOT yet started the Ken Tamplin Vocal academy DVD's yet, but I do have them. I've never had lessons, so I hope to improve drastically after going through the course! We were fortunate enough to get a multi track recording of our gig so I could mix everything the way I wanted it later, so the sound quality is pretty good.
I'm sure I'm doing LOTS of things wrong, but like I said, I haven't started the course yet!
Nice recording, especially for live. Nice to be able to mixdown live performances.
Your voice sounds good, right out of the starting gate. That said, you have a lot of potential for great improvement!
Implementing Ken's vocal-building magic into your voice will grow your voice beyond your current capabilities and unlock your full potential. Fasten your seatbelt, and prepare for launch!!
You're going to like what's about to happen to your voice!


text:
Q: RxJava2 Group Objects by Id to HaspMap and sort them I have Observable that returns
List<Item>

Every Item has
long groupId
long dateMillis

I want to group that list to
HashMap<groupId, <List<Item>>

with sorted items in each map entry by dateMillis.
Could anyone help me to do it? Thanks in advance!

A: You could do something like this:
    Observable<List<Item>> listObservable;
    listObservable.flatMap(Observable::from)
            .toSortedList((item, item2) -> Long.compare(item.dateMillis, item2.dateMillis))
            .flatMap(Observable::from)
            .subscribe(item -> addToHashMap(item));

Sort list and later add items to map.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


We would like to reassure all our clients in the wake of an announcement by the Australian regulator ASIC, regarding a completely unrelated entity named Direct FX Trading Pty Ltd (directfx.com).
The Australian regulator, ASIC, has revoked the AFS licence of the CFD/margin trading operation Direct FX Trading Pty Ltd, www.directfx.com, and that company has subsequently gone into receivership.
We are completely independent from www.directfx.com and there is not, nor has there ever been, any connection between the companies in any way.
Our business is New Zealand registered and operates as www.directfx.co.nz. We specialize in offering services for physical currency remittance and inter-bank currency broking. We are a New Zealand owned business and do not offer CFD / margin trading products.
We are regulated by both the New Zealand Financial Markets Authority and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and we continue to meet all our responsibilities under our dual licence requirements, with no outstanding issues.
We fully appreciate it's a confusing situation for many customers and potential customers. We registered as Direct FX Ltd with the NZ companies office on the 23rd April 2001. Since then the world has become a much smaller place thanks to the internet. Unfortunately, it's also meant that an offshore registered company with a very similar name can easily be confused with us.
The regulator, ASIC, has tried to clarify this point at the very bottom of their press release, which you can view here.
This announcement from ASIC has nothing to do with our company Direct FX Ltd, www.directfx.co.nz. We applaud the Australian regulator for providing stringent oversite of the financial sector. We take pride in providing an extremely professional and efficient currency transfer service at very competitive rates and we have an unblemished record of providing exceptional customer service.
If you have any questions please don't hesitate to contact us so we can put your mind at ease.


text:
BPOW reports 34% decline in nine months net profits
BPOW for the nine months ended January 31, 2020 revenues declined by 10% to $342.46 million relative to $380.60 million recorded in 2019. For the third quarter, revenue marginally increased 1% from $110.20 million in 2019 to $111.03 million in 2020. Management highlighted, "Blue Power Group's revenue is now derived from manufacturing, rental of property and provision of management services to Lumber Depot Limited."
Additionally, BPOW noted "Export sales declined during the quarter from $27.6 million to $22.4 million but other income increased from zero to $6.8 million. The reason for the decline in exports is the ruling by Jamaica Customs that the tariff classification we have used for the last 19 years for our raw materials of noodles is not acceptable. This recent change reduced our price competitiveness in CARICOM which resulted in a loss of some sales"
Cost of Sales for the period decreased by 12% to $217.52 million (2019: $246.77 million). As such, gross profit declined by 7% to $124.94 million (2019: $133.83 million). For the third quarter, cost of sales marginally declined by 1% to $73.41 million (2019: $74.26 million); consequently gross profit for the quarter increased 5% to $37.62 million (2019: $35.94 million)
Administrative Expenses amounted to $111.39 million, a 65% increase relative to $67.69 million recorded in the last corresponding period. Consequently, Operating Profit totalled $13.55 million, 80% less than the $66.14 million booked for the prior year's period.
Notably, other income surged to $12.75 million versus $445,242 documented in the same period last year. For the quarter, other income closed at $6.83 million (2019: nil).
Finance Income amounted to $25.01 million (2019: $10.18 million) while Finance Cost totalled $662,230 (2019: $388,210) for the nine months period. As such, Profit before taxation decreased by 34% to $50.65 million relative to $76.37 million for the corresponding period last year.
The company reported a 32% decrease in taxes paid year-to-date to $6.33 million compared to the $9.28 million paid for the same period last year. Consequently, Net Profit declined by 34% to $44.31 million (2019: $67.09 million). Net loss for the quarter totalled $7.27 million relative to net profit of $13.85 million booked the prior year's quarter.
Profit attributable to members totalled $65.61 million for the period versus $119.97 million reported in the same period last year as a result of profit from discontinued business of $21.30 million (2019: $52.87 million).
The company noted, "Lower levels of soap sales in the third quarter coupled with substantial one-off costs of $27 million incurred in making redundant the non-supervisory staff of the Lumber Depot division is the explanation for the negative results in terms of profits."
Additionally, BPOW highlighted, "Management and the Board are exploring all avenues for restoring our exports to CARICOM which constitute about 20% of our sales."
Earnings-per-share for the period amounted to $0.12 (2019:$0.21), while loss-per-share for the quarter amounted to $0.01 (2019: EPS $0.06). The twelve month earnings-per-share amounted to $0.07.The amount of shares used in our calculation is 564,990,000. Notably, BPOW stock price closed the trading period on March 03, 2020 at $4.56.
Balance Sheet Highlights:
The company, as at January 31, 2020, recorded total assets of $1.02 billion, an increase of 3% when compared to $985.02 million recorded last year. This was as a result of the Company booking 'Investment' and 'Cash and cash equivalents' of $269.01 million (2019: $218.19 million) and $206.62 million (2019: $181.79 million). This was however tempered by the $138.59 million decline in 'Inventories' to $161.31 million (2019: $299.90 million).
Total Stockholders' Equity as at January 31, 2020 closed at $951.26 million (2019: $871.97 million). This resulted in a book value of $1.68 (2019: $1.54).
Rochelle Muncey 2020-03-04T13:51:22-05:00


Tendons, ligaments, intervertebral disc and articular cartilage in joints provide movement, stability and shock absorption for the body. Joint nutritional supplements may help prevent deterioration, improve flexibility and decrease pain. MSM (methysulfonylmethane) is a naturally occurring form of organic sulfur commonly found in foods. The processing of foods destroys MSM, rendering it non-digestible. Studies suggest that MSM acts as a natural anti-inflammatory and may help reduce pain and improve function in painful osteoarthritis.


Any active member interested in participating in the 2019 Turnaround at Philadelphia Energy Solutions SHOULD engage in the Contractor Pre-Processing.
Please Click Here for all important information.
If you have any questions please contact Business Agent Fred Green or Assistant Business Manager Dave Bruce at 609-567-3322 ext 3.


Things don't always work the way you expect and I've had my share of projects that flopped. The most recent was a Heathkit Cantenna rebuilt.
We all know they are a bit light duty for use with today's 1500 watt amplifiers. I had one around that wasn't very healthy after some extended amplifier testing and it bugged me. The mental gears started turning and meshed on the idea that I should use the new thick film resistors. After all, if that 3/4" x 4" carbon pole resistor (rated 50 watts?) could handle a Kw for a couple of minutes in oil then four 50 ohm 100 watt thick film resistors in series parallel on a 4 x 6" copper 1/4" slab in oil should be a lot better. The numbers showed that the pole resistor had about 7 square inches of conducting surface to the oil and the copper plate had about 44 square inches in the oil (48 less 4 for the resistor housings). To boot, I reasoned it was going to take some serious emery to even heat up that mass of copper.
WRONG! Those thick film resistors are rated at exactly the maximum amount of heat is they can transfer out through a relatively small ceramic pad on the back. Turns out, 100 watts means 100 watts with the best heat diffusion you can muster.
But, if you need a 100 or 250 watt dummy load that is very accurate, the thick film resistors are a nice way to go.


Who will decide what is Art?
Some complaints have sparked a city wide debate over what is art and what is graffiti. The wall has been painted for fifteen years and now the city has given notice to cover the wall or face fines and penalties. Some claim the wall art has been tagged several times.
Some are bothered by tags, others think the whole wall is distasteful. I don't have a dog in this fight but will follow its progress with great interest. It seems to settle this debate the city will have to 1. Define Art. 2. Define personal and business freedom. Who will decide what art looks good and what is unacceptable?
It should be noted this is not the only painted wall in Tahlequah. It is the only one the city has found in violation of city code. SO FAR.
Here is one possible way to cover the wall. Tahlequah could start its very own gum wall.


text:
Wonder 2016 – Press Release.
September 17, 2015 adm1nNews
The 16th Christopher Tower Poetry Competition, the UK's most valuable prize for young poets, has opened for entries, and this year students between 16-18 years of age are challenged to write a poem on the theme of 'Wonder'.
Established in 2000, the Tower Prizes are recognised as among the most prestigious literary awards for this age group. The first prize is £3,000, with £1,000 and £500 going to the second and third prize-winners. In addition to individual prizes, the students' schools and colleges also receive cash prizes of £150 and the three prizewinners are eligible for a place on the Tower Poetry Summer School. Three or four commended entries will receive £250 each. The names and schools of longlisted entrants will be published on the newly redesigned Tower Poetry website.
The entries will be judged this year by poets Alan Gillis, Katherine Rundell and Peter McDonald. The 2016 competition will build on the success of earlier competitions. Previous prizewinners such as Helen Mort, Caroline Bird, Richard O'Brien, Charlotte Runcie, Anna Lewis, and Annie Katchinska are now gaining further acclaim in other competitions or within the publishing/ writing world.
The competition is open to all 16-18 year-olds who are in full or part time education in the UK, students and schools can find out more information about the prizes and associated future events at www.towerpoetry.org.uk/prize, email or call 01865 286591. Follow us on Facebook or @TowerPoetry on Twitter or YouTube.
The closing date for entries is Friday 19 February, 2016. The winners will be announced on Wednesday 20 April 2016.


Hello, I own a Bioloid Premium Robot (CM-530). Which WAS ALREADY WALKING BEFORE. But after some months of brake (and a fall from the table) it does not do anything anymore. Better said. When I start it up, it tries to get into the TYPE A pose, but this does not work. He looks quite twisted then. I know this means, that the servo are no attached in the right starting position in this case usually. But the weird thing is, that they were before. And the robot was not build apart.
Any help is highly appreciated. Even if there is just a web adress, where to order a new CM-530 controller. Thank you!


text:
How do you feel when you creates
CSB project involved great lecturers who put passion and a commitment in carrying on the design and the preparation of the Pilot Courses, which represent the core activity of our whole learning process as Erasmus Plus partners since 2018.
One of these lecturers is Prof. Enriko Ceko who, always surprises us. Here below he expresses for our blog some key points of his participation along the last 2 years.
"When I got involved in the Cultural Studies in Business project, in addition to daily work and family engagements, I had on hand many different activities that required dedication, special care and time.
Among these commitments, are two or three projects for waste management, a commitment to politics and the preparation of two books of an academic nature and the collection and publication of the best articles I have written in the daily press, the revision of some lectures in several managerial subjects, etc., who have been my babies for these 2-3 years, for which I had to take great care.
However, I was attracted by the subject and the belief that really together with all the participants from different European universities we could achieve a worthwhile result.
I have previously encountered history, literature, gurus and approaches to cultural studies, thanks to several visits to the UK as a previous commercial officer of the British Embassy in Tirana, visits during which I had the opportunity to closely watch the British universities system and the real aspects of cultural studies, the specifics of cultural studies in business, as a leap from cultural studies to cultural studies in a more defined field, a special discipline, something new, unprecedented, almost empirical, which made me even more curious and even more self-seeking to do the best I could as part of this project.
Reverting with a lot of curiosity, again just like a teenager to the curiosities and age trends, among the arguments, reasoning, deductions and inductions of the great authors of the economic, social, psychological, ethical, political, etc. writings of Adam Smith, John Lock, Karl Marx, Frederick Engels, Antonio Gramsci, Gustav Feuerbach, Emanuel Kant, and many others, before the opportunity to browse through the preparation of the syllabus and text of the course Cultural Studies in Business, which is already on the verge of publication, I had the opportunity to review, replenish, reconsider and re-evaluate my own views on what is our role in this world, what can we do more, what is our relationship with others, as researchers, as academics, as scientists, as creators of new horizons, perhaps even unexplored by others before, as people who look at reality differently.
At the beginning of the development of Cultural Studies in Business course with the second year Bachelor of Business Management students, of the University College "Wisdom", a period in which the movement of citizens was closed due to the pandemic of COVID - 19 , I communicated with a former teacher of mine, now elderly, who, after learning that I was dealing with, told to me: "You Enrico are lucky. Since you also deal with music and play the guitar, you find it easier than others. Think of it as an operetta. Do it with 15 acts (it was about the number of lectures), but make sure that each act serves to move on to the next act. Switch from minor to major and vice versa, play the chords, emphasized the melodic line. At the end, don't forget to leave the path open for others who will study and read your book".
Indeed, I knew how it works in music but I had neglected it in creating Cultural Studies in Business subjects. I was driven by the thought and idea of my teacher. It helped me to make connection between art and economics, between musical notes and economic situations, between guitar strings and different levels of depth in a subject, between the strength and tone of economic thought and the current state we are going through.
Throughout the course development with students I have tried to be as coherent as possible, even though the subject calls from the past, forces you to dig into the history of economic thought and seeks to reconsider and rediscover what others have said before to serve the students so that they do the same, but already according to their views.
I am fully convinced that all of us who are involved in this project have done the same and in this point of view, I find quite interesting the fact that almost all of us, although we did not know each other before, created a very good working group and cooperated with desire and passion to finally reach a valuable product and service not only for our students, but in general for academia, education, helping at creating the economic and business elite to our countries; this is exactly what is the best and most important thing of this project, which is in fact our common real and functional result.
We already have a syllabus, we have literature, we have experience, we have an exchange of ideas and views too.
I often say to myself: "Enrico! "You already have another baby."
Enriko Ceko, Lecturer at Wisdom University College of Tirana (Albania) and member of the lecturers team of CSP Pilot Course experimentation.


The standard deviation is the statistical calculation of numeric dataset which measures how much widely spread the set of numbers are as compared to the average of the numbers. The Excel STDEV.P function returns the standard deviation of a population based on the entire population of numbers.
The function has total 255 arguments.
number1: It is required and the first argument of population number.
[number2], ….): These are optional and between 2 to 255 arguments.
The arguments of the STDEV.P function can be numeric values, named ranges, arrays of values or cell references that may contain numbers, logical values, text values, empty cells, and text representations of numbers. It evaluates numeric values only, ignoring the text, logical value, empty cells and text representations of numbers available in cell references, ranges or arrays as arguments. However, logical values and text representations of numbers added directly as arguments in the STDEV.P function are evaluated as numbers.
The STDEV.P function has been introduced in Excel 2010 to replace the STDEVP function. The STDEVP function is still available for compatibility with Excel 2007 and earlier versions.
If none of the values are numeric in cell references, the function returns #DIV/0! error.
If any of values supplied directly as an argument is a text value, it returns #VALUE! error.
How can I fill in =STDEV.P only for collumns within one company?
I am using 3 INDIRECT functions to find and gather rows of adjacent values from different worksheets inside STDEV.P. I would like to repeat this formula for several consecutive columns. The problem is that when 1 worksheet result returns N/A the whole formula returns N/A. If I use IFNA in front of each INDIRECT function, the formula results are still N/A. Any other suggestions?


At the Web Foundation, we're marking International Women's Day by calling on governments to #BeBoldForChange — specifically, to be bold in prioritising policies that enhance women's rights online. Information and communications technologies (ICTs) are important tools for women's empowerment. Much has been written about the power of the internet to support women's economic participation worldwide; equally as important — though less discussed — is the internet's potential to expand women's civic and political representation.
The internet not only provides women around the world with access to important information about their legal and political rights, but it also provides a platform to amplify women's voices and build movements for change. Already this year, we've witnessed the incredible power of the internet to support women worldwide to organise and advocate collectively for government accountability to women's rights: January 21, 2017 saw women's marches organised in dozens of countries across every continent.
While reflecting on the importance of the web for women's political voice and women's rights movement building, it is also vital to recognise the formidable gender gaps in internet access, digital skills, and online rights and freedoms that continue to prevent the majority of women around the world from having a voice and participating as active citizens online. Gender disparities in internet access and use risk further marginalising women and ultimately will undermine efforts to foster a more gender equitable world.
Our Women's Rights Online research — carried out in urban slum areas in 10 developing countries — reveals extreme gender inequalities in digital empowerment. Across poor areas in 10 cities, women are 50% less likely than men to be online, and 30-50% less likely to use the internet for economic and political empowerment. The root causes of this are high costs, lack of digital know-how, scarcity of content that is relevant and empowering for women, and barriers to women speaking freely and privately online. This connectivity gender gap means that hundreds of millions of women and girls are denied access to online education, health services, economic opportunity, political voice, and much more.
Furthermore, the internet's role as a safe space for expression is being undermined by an epidemic of harassment and violence against women online, as well as growing intrusions on internet users' right to privacy. In 74% of countries included in our Web Index study, law enforcement agencies and the courts are failing to take appropriate actions in situations where ICTs are used to commit acts of gender-based violence. Our Women's Rights Online study found over six in ten of connected women and men aged 18-24 had experienced online harassment, rising to nearly seven in ten of the young women who use the internet daily. This is a matter of great concern for a number of reasons, not least because it was across this age group that we found greatest potential for women to leverage ICTs for empowerment.
If these trends do not change, the spread of ICTs could ultimately reinforce offline patterns of female subordination and silence. This may already be happening — while 62% of connected women we surveyed value the internet for posting comments about social, economic and political issues they care about, very few reported ever having actually done so. Our study also found that women in urban poor communities surveyed are 20% less likely than men to use the internet to find important information, and 52% less likely than men to express controversial views online. Another study by Intel found that in India and Egypt, one-fifth of women believe the internet is not appropriate for them.
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on women and technology (namely Goals 5b, 9c) provide a historic opportunity to halt and reverse growing digital inequality by turning political commitment into concrete interventions. However, without a major escalation of policy attention and investment, we run the risk that the technological change will continue to reinforce existing inequalities, social norms, and traditional gender roles.
Governments around the world have the power to turn this situation around by implementing gender-responsive technology policies that seek to further the rights and interests of women.
Protect and enhance women's rights online.
Primary & secondary school curricula must incorporate digital skills training, and women must have equal access to tertiary education opportunities.
Deliver affordable — or free — access to an open web.
Ensure relevant content for women is available and used.
Define, set and measure concrete gender-equity targets.