You might not have heard of anyone use the word 'daypack.' So, let me introduce this to you. When we say daypack, we are referring to the type of backpack that's used for day trips or shorter trips, so it's usually a small backpack.
As you can imagine, daypacks are small, lightweight, and convenient. While they're mainly designed for short hiking trips, they are extremely versatile and they are also used for different purposes.
They are used by kids and teens at school. And when you come to think of it, it is reasonable. This type of bag is made to be as comfortable as possible and they have ideal size for what you need for a short period of time.
Another great thing about daypacks is their usability when you are on the go because they are lightweight and small. Some daypacks even have water bottle containers on the side.
Most of the time, there's a tube that leads to the front side of the daypack, which gives you the choice to drink while hiking, cycling, or just whenever you want. This is a really good way to keep you hydrated.
To make things complicated for you, there are a great number of options available to travelers in terms of buying bags. It may almost seem easier to just close your eyes and randomly pick a daypack.
It would definitely be faster than checking every bag available. Still, taking a little bit of consideration can get you the daypack perfect for your needs without putting must effort. Through that, you are able to save yourself a sweat.
To tell you honestly, looking for a new daypack is not as simple as it seems. You will be able to stumble upon hundreds of brands on the market and all these brands offer different sizes, models, designs, and features. You have to buy the daypack that's just perfect for your preference and needs among all of them.
To be able to find the best daypack for travel for you, the first step you have to do is to pick your daypack depending on the activity you are planning to do.
Most outdoor activities have its own requirements in terms of the type of pack you put on your back. Learning whether you want one appropriate for hiking or rock climbing alone can easily narrow the options significantly and save your time significantly.
Your activity is going tell you about the important needs that you'll have for your perfect daypack, stuff like the internal or external frame on top of materials and other features.
Size: Make sure to choose a daypack that has the size that will fit your needs. Make sure it is not too big and not too small. Make sure it will fit everything you need to bring on your trip and at the same time; it is going to be comfortable.
Shape: Daypacks come in different shapes depending on the kind of movement or activities you are planning to engage in. A daypack that is large and restrictive may be suitable for hiking, but a no-no if your hiking includes climbing.
Comfort: Not because your daypack can carry all your needs, you can simply forget the comfort it offers. Make sure that the daypack you are carrying gives you all-out comfort while you are using it.
Straps: The type of straps a daypack has is able to define where it sits and how weight is distributed throughout your body on top of the comfort the bag gives.
Compartments: At the end of the day, the purpose of a daypack is all about carrying your stuff. The daypack should enough compartments and pockets that are spacious enough to accommodate your gears and you need to make sure that they are going to last long.
Durability: When buying a daypack, of course, you want the bag to last for years. There are mostly two things that will decide how long your daypack is going to last. Of course, the first thing is that the daypack should be made of high-quality materials. It basically comes down to the sturdiness of the fabric used.
Secondly, the daypack should be comfortable. If you're not comfortable when wearing the pack, then you wouldn't want to endure the discomfort the bag brings you.
Carrying system: The carrying systems on daypacks vary quite a little. If you have no idea what carry system is it's everything that has something to do with the way how you carry the daypack, from the back panel to shoulder straps.It is important to ensure that the hip belt and shoulder straps are well-padded and that the daypack has an easy-to-adjust back panel.
Waterproof: It depends on you if you want to take advantage of this feature. For me personally, I didn't find the needs to get one that is waterproof since I don't always go on water-related activities. However, if you like kayaking or fishing, then I'd suggest for you to look for one with this feature.
Built from an ultra-lightweight nylon, the total dimensions of this daypack are 16.92 x 10.63 x 7.08. It has a compact pouch with a size of 6.29 x 5.90 x 1.97 inches. It comes with a pack-in-pocket that could also be used as an inner pocket.This bag has 3 zippered compartments, which makes arrangements of content extremely easy. May it be a day trip to the beach, hiking, or snorkeling, using this product will be so comfortable.
It's a perfect daypack for traveling and exploring. This backpack has two pockets for water bottles. This backpack has loaded of features, offering security, protections, and organization.There are exterior smaller pockets that provide an easy access to small stuff you put in it like mobile phone, action cameras, and others. The pocket located at the center has the capacity for carrying all the things you need for your travel.
The Free Knight packable backpack is another daypack perfect for traveling. This daypack was is a good choice for two main reasons.First of all, it has multiple pockets for all things you need! These pockets easily make your things organized. The main large pocket is ideal for a few shirts, towel, and gadgets. The second pocket is perfect for shoes or flip-flops. The smallest pocket is a perfect place for you to put your keys or credit cards.
And finally, the bottom pocket that basically turns the main bag into a mini bag for storage is a good place to put your mini snacks. It also has two side pockets where you can put water bottles. Secondly, the size is perfect and the weight is super-lightweight. When folded up, this daypack takes almost no room that it fits your pocket.
Possibly the best feature of this daypack is that it comes with a waterproof coating. So, it means that you can travel with it even when it is raining without having to worry about the things getting wet. Or in another instance, if you accidentally drops the daypack into some kind of water body, you don't have to worry about your stuff getting wet.This extraordinary daypack has a capacity of 20 liters, which means it is small bag and convenient. Nevertheless, it keeps things organized, well-managed and free from the risk of getting damaged. The daypack is made from high-quality Nylon. This specific choice of Nylon is tear-resistant; so, in case you have to go through bushes, even then the bag is going to protect itself from thorns, etc.
This packable daypack can be folded into the little pouch which was great as it makes it very easy for the user to see hold to fold the backpack up when not using it.This daypack is made of a water-resistant nylon fabric which makes it high quality and reliable. The zippers are smooth when needed to be opened and shut. This daypack has two side pockets for the water bottle and a big pocket in the middle that shuts with a clip.
The interior of this daypack is basically a big open bag with a little-zippered pocket over the bag. It's truly a large size of the bag and you are able to really put a lot of stuff in it. Traveling with this small bag would be extremely useful. It's extremely comfortable to wear and the straps are tremendously breathable.
OutdoorMaster Sling Bag is a multi-purpose and compact day pack that is ideal for travelers. It is lightweight single strap daypack constructed of a lightweight canvas such as polyester material which features an expansive main pocket.Another feature that I love about this is its hidden anti-theft pocket as well as the water bottle holder that can accommodate most bottle sizes. The shoulder strap is reversible, large, and softly padded, which makes this an ideal daypack no matter if you are a lefty or a righty.
No matter which one you choose from this list, you can assure that they are all high quality and you will get the job that you need from them.
Now, it is up to you which one suits your preference. Are you looking for one-strap daypack? Then go for OutdoorMaster Sling Bag.
Do you want a daypack that is easily packable for easy storage? Then go for Go2Pak Top Lightweight Packable Backpack or ZOMAKE Waterproof Ultra Lightweight Packable Backpack Hiking Daypack.
If your main concern is the weight, then you cannot go wrong with Free Knight 25L Packable Handy Lightweight Travel Hiking Backpack Daypack and Outlander Packable Lightweight Travel Hiking Backpack Daypack.
No matter which one you choose, you have to make sure that it meets your needs and preference. Again, I can't stress it enough that the probably the most important thing you have to consider is the comfort.
Do you have any favorite daypack? What is your favorite feature? Don't forget to comment them in the box below and let us know!


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What's really different with the other design is the strap. This new Classic Petite watch comes with a mesh strap which is surprisingly very lightweight (although it's made from stainless steel!) and it doesn't feel itchy or heavy on my skin and it sits there comfortably. You can adjust the length easily.
Since I've never used a watch with mesh strap before, I was kinda confused at first. Then Fred helped me out and now I'm a master of securing my own mesh strap lol. I'll show you how.
If you're planning to get your new watch within these months, you can use my discount code "sharontravelogue" to get 15% off their retail price. You can only use the discount code when you're purchasing from their official website www.danielwellington.com.
The code applies to any product you pick. Here's how to use the discount code.
And yes, they do ship worldwide. And it's FREE OF CHARGE! Just simply pick your favorite piece from their official site and it'll be on your door before you know it, lol.
Oh, I can't wait to wear this with an evening gown! It should match perfectly.
Oh yes, I almost forgot, I'm thinking about writing more post about Style & Living. I'm currently changing my living habits to a healthier lifestyle. And I think it'll be interesting to read especially for you who has the same concern. I've been trying to live healthier and environmentally friendlier. It was not easy but actually, it's not that hard!
Yeah, maybe I should better write about my current habit. Just wait for it!
well been thinking about buying this but.. is there any possibility for us to change the strap? because as far as i know there is no straps with size of 14mm.
Thanks Summer for answering. And yes she's right. DW doesn't have any other straps for this model yet.
Hi Riska 🙂 Mine arrived within one week. I got mine shipped from Hongkong so I think it's pretty fast!
Sebelumnya Pos sebelumnya: Question: Why Am I Shy to Speak Up?
Selanjutnya Pos berikutnya: Ubud: My Favorite Things To Do!


text:
Letters From the Synod-2018: #9
Reports and Commentary, from Rome and Elsewhere, on the XV Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops	Edited by Xavier Rynne II 10 . 15 . 18
"I HAVE IT TO DO"
Dean Gooderham Acheson, whom some consider the greatest Secretary of State in American history, may seem an odd choice as a posthumous counselor to Synod-2018. But let's remember that, in 1952, this son of the Episcopal bishop of Connecticut gave a magnificent address on the meaning of the Bible in American life, when the Revised Standard Version was inaugurated at a great public ceremony in Washington. So perhaps, at a Synod whose working document was a little thin biblically, Acheson may be considered amicus curiae: not as a worldly-wise statesman but as someone with things to say about the moral life and the dignity to which the young aspire.
In a 1957 letter to his former boss, President Harry Truman, Dean Acheson reflected on a lesson he learned from the senior partner who hired him at the prestigious Washington law firm of Covington & Burling. J. Harry Covington had been a long-serving Congressman and a key player in getting Woodrow Wilson the 1912 Democratic presidential nomination before returning to the practice of law. As Covington took Acheson under his wing, the future diplomat and architect of NATO noticed that his mentor and benefactor never said, "I have to do it." Rather, he said, "I have it to do." As Acheson put it to Truman, "What a difference! In the first, one is coerced into action; in the other, a free man assumes an obligation, freely contracted."
And therein lies a lesson for the Synod, and indeed for every Catholic. For, setting aside the lawyer's language of contract, J. Harry Covington's formulation, "I have it to do," summarizes precisely what Synod-2018 should propose to young adults as they receive Christian formation in the moral life.
How often is the moral teaching of the Church caricatured, and then dismissed, as a matter of "you have to do this"? But if the Beatitudes are the Magna Carta of the moral life and the moral law—both the moral law given in revelation and the moral laws we can know by reason—is the guard rail that allow us to journey to beatitude (and happiness, and human flourishing) without too many fender-benders or lurches into the ditch along the roadside, then a truly, radically converted Christian never says, "I have to do it." The radical disciple instinctively says, "I have it to do"—because the doing grows from my discipleship and is an expression of what friendship with the Lord Jesus Christ has taught me about my dignity, the dignity of others, what we owe each other in solidarity, and our eternal destiny.
The renewal of moral theology was one of the great goals of the pontificate of John Paul II, who was elected Bishop of Rome forty years ago tomorrow. In the 1993 encyclical Veritatis Splendor, John Paul sketched a path beyond the "legalism" of such concern to some in the Church today—a "legalism" that appears on both the Catholic left and the Catholic right. The "legalist" charge is typically laid against the latter, the conservatives or traditionalists. But progressive moral theologians also tend toward the legalistic, the difference being that they want looser rules more laxly interpreted. Protestations to the contrary, an awful lot of what imagines itself progressive Catholic moral theology is still wedded to a rules-centered concept of the moral life.
Veritatis Splendor (whose twenty-fifth anniversary on October 5 went unremarked by the Synod leadership) was an attempt to change all that, as John Paul sought to redirect Catholic moral theology by locating the moral life as a means to beatitude—toward the "eternal life" the rich young man in Matthew 19 is seeking. The rich young man, a kind of first-century yuppie, asks what he's supposed to do. Jesus suggests who he must become (i.e., a disciple who follows the Master unreservedly). What he's to do (i.e., freely make good choices as a matter of habit, or virtue) follows from that first conversion and smooths the path to the eternal life the rich young man seeks. That Gospel story and the Lord's linkage of the moral law to conversion, beatitude, and eternal life, set the dramatic context for the balance of John Paul's encyclical. In drawing out its implications, I hope I may be permitted to quote myself, from the section in Witness to Hope on Veritatis Splendor. For the ironies and problems addressed there are still very much in play in Synod-2018.
Many Catholic moral theologians who had vigorously criticized the pre-conciliar "manuals" for their rigidity and legalism never made a radical break with the cause of that rigidity and legalism—the identification of freedom with willfulness, and the opposition between law and freedom that results from thinking of the moral life as a struggle between God's will and mine. The basic, wrongheaded question remained in place: "How far can I go?" Some of the new moral theologies, by shifting the center of moral analysis from the moral act to the actor's intentions and the act's consequences, lowered the bar of Catholic morality by saying, in effect, "You can go farther." But that drained the moral life of its inherent drama and rewards, and failed to resolve the intellectual problem of freedom and its relationship to truth and goodness.
A lax version of the old manuals' legalism could not be considered a major improvement in Catholic thinking about the moral life. Genuine renewal in moral theology will come, the encyclical suggests, from retrieving and developing the idea that freedom, informed by reason, is ordered to the truth and finds its fulfillment in the goodness—the beatitude—of human flourishing, not in winning a few more skirmishes in the battle between God's allegedly arbitrary will and mine….
The threshold of hope, the threshold of human dignity, is not crossed by lowering the bar of the moral life but by reaching higher—and then, if one has failed, by reaching higher again.
Reimagining the moral life as a matter of "I have it to do" was at the center of John Paul II's message to young people on World Youth Days around the world. He would, of course, first summon the young to conversion, proposing that Christ was the answer to their questions and friendship with him the royal road to the happiness they sought. And then came the challenge, in many variations on a single, great theme: Never, ever settle for less than the spiritual and moral grandeur the grace of God makes possible in your life. You will fail; we all do. But that is no reason to shorten your horizon of expectation. When you fail, get up, dust yourself off, seek forgiveness from the Lord and reconciliation with those you've hurt. But never, ever settle for anything less than the greatness that God's life—grace—makes possible in your own.
Is this an impossible standard, a too heroic goal? I hope not. And I hope the Synod doesn't foreshorten the horizon of spiritual and moral possibility it proposes to the young adults of the mid-21st century.
- George Weigel
AND NOW, A WORD FROM MELCHIOR CANO
One of the curiosities of the current Catholic scene is the emergence of an extreme form of ultramontanism on the port side of the Barque of Peter. Not only does this insistence that a proper deference to the pope requires a blind acceptance, even celebration, of all his judgments; it also contradicts Pope Francis's own oft-repeated calls for arguments, serious conversations, and genuine dialogue within the Church, especially among bishops called to collegiality and synodality. To be sure, some of the more fevered criticisms of Pope Francis contribute little to wrestling with the serious problems confronting this pontificate. But to indict all criticism of and challenge to the Holy Father as "dissent" is not serious theologically; it betrays a certain nervousness about the plausibility of the prosecutor's own position; and it certainly isn't what used to be called "churchmanship," which is badly in need of revival these days.
A walk back in time always helps get the present into sharper focus, and thus it's worthwhile to revisit a man whose name is not frequently in play at Synod-2018: Melchior Cano. A Spaniard, Cano was a 16th-century Dominican theologian who helped shape the thinking of the bishops at the Council of Trent. That council, it will be recalled, met at a historical moment when the office of the papacy and the entire hierarchical constitution of the Church were under often-violent assault from certain Protestant reformers and their political allies, so the papacy as an integral part of the divinely-warranted constitution of the Church had to be defended. Cano also knew, however, that several pre-Reformation popes had made things much worse in Christendom, treading water when they should have been vigorously implementing the reformist Fifth Lateran Council. So he was not prepared to think of the pope as some sort of oracle whose every utterance bore the uniquely authoritative stamp of the Petrine office.
Thus a few words from Melchior Cano, O.P., which are worth everyone's reflection as Synod-2018 continues its work:
Peter has no need of our lies or flattery. Those who blindly and indiscriminately defend every decision of the supreme Pontiff are the very ones who do most to undermine the authority of the Holy See—they destroy instead of strengthening its foundations.
- Xavier Rynne II
TESTIMONIES FOR THE SYNOD
Dr. Deborah Savage is Professor of Philosophy and Theology and Director of the Master of Pastoral Ministry Program at the St. Paul Seminary School of Divinity in the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, Minnesota. Asked by LETTERS FROM THE SYNOD for a reflection on the Synod's theme of "Youth, the Faith, and Vocational Discernment," Dr. Savage responded with the following open letter to the bishops at Synod-2018. XR II
Dear Bishops,
I write to you with a real and fearful sense of urgency. Like a child who runs to her father when danger looms or confusion besets her, I write to plead with you on behalf of all your children—especially the youth you have gathered together for these days in Rome, but also on behalf of their friends, their peers, and their families. I write in the name of those who, like you, are tasked with guiding them. We are their parents, their teachers, their ministers and priests. I write to you now, bishops, because we need your help. Our children are drowning and we seem unable to do anything about it.
In the Instrumentum Laboris that set the stage for your deliberations at the Synod, I note that you affirm a point the Holy Father has made several times—that "[r]ealities" are greater than ideas." I have to admit that I am actually not sure what this means, since my understanding is that ideas proceed from a prior encounter with reality itself. Indeed, I have been taught that the measure of the truth of human knowledge is the extent to which it conforms to reality. But we can set that aside for now. I take this claim to be an indication that the point of departure for your work will be the lived experience of our young people. And if lived experience is now the touchstone of truth, that is where I shall begin. For the young people you have consulted have already given us a clue to what is at stake in your proceedings. In fact, the situation has recently been well described by one of your own.
In one of the first interviews to appear after the start of your collective efforts, Archbishop Anthony Fisher of Australia expressed surprise at what the young people he spoke with prior to the Synod pointed to as their first concern—their own mental health: "The biggest single issue they raised was mental health issues…a lot of young people suffer from depression, anxiety, poor self-esteem, issues with eating disorders, and other related issues." The archbishop continued, "I never would have guessed this was the first issue on their mind," stressing: "They care very strongly about mental health issues." The archbishop's report is perceptive; he has done us all a great service in highlighting this finding.
It is fairly common knowledge that the suicide rate among young people is soaring. The most recently available data from the Centers for Disease Control (in the United States) indicates that, among white children and teens (ages 10–17) living in the U.S. it increased 70 percent between 2006 and 2016. The rate of increase was higher among black teens, at 77 percent. Admissions to American pediatric hospitals of patients ages 5 to 17 for suicidal thoughts and actions more than doubled from 2008 to 2015. The Journal of World Psychiatry reports that this is also an international phenomenon, touching nearly every country on the planet. Scholars point to various possible explanations for these rising suicide trends, including the "loss of social cohesion, breakdown of traditional family structure, growing economic instability and unemployment, and rising prevalence of depressive disorders."
It should come as no surprise to any of us that our youth would express concerns for their own mental health. Their friends are suddenly, permanently gone, often without explanation or warning. No one is sure whose family it will strike next. It seems to be some sort of mysterious epidemic, apparently impossible to predict.
But it is not a mystery. We have only to consider the larger reality in which our young people live. For they have entered into a culture that truly is a "field hospital:" a battleground already littered with the wounded. They walk among men and women suffering from the diseases, both physical and spiritual, that began with the so-called "sexual revolution," itself a seemingly unstoppable force now scorching its way through our families, our institutions, and our public consciousness. Ours is a culture at war with itself, caught in a blindness that seems to have the entire breadth of humanity in its unholy grip. We face a crisis not only of faith, but of reason itself—for we have set ourselves against the givenness of things in the mistaken belief that we are the masters of our own destiny.
Bishops, there are few moments in history that can be said to represent a dramatic turning point in its trajectory. The birth of Christ is surely one, the Communist Revolution another. But what characterizes all such moments is the fact that those involved at the time had little real awareness of the significance their actions would have for future generations. Such things are usually known only in hindsight. This is the lot of humankind—that we seem unable to see clearly what subsequent generations will face as a result of our decisions. And though we might sympathize with those who have come before us, we also have the urge to shout to them across time and implore them to recognize the significance of what they are about to do. How I wish I could go back to 1968 and help people to see what was at stake when Humanae Vitae first appeared. There is no question now how prophetic its teaching was. That was a moment when the Church could have changed the course of human history. But because we did not listen then, the consequences of our choices have been visited upon our children.
I wonder if you realize that the Synod on "Youth, the Faith, and Vocational Discernment" is such a moment. I cannot be sure you fully grasp how critical this moment is to the future of our beloved Church—indeed to the future of humankind. I cannot bear the thought that we might miss this opportunity to help our young people and impact the culture in which they find themselves. And I truly wonder if you realize that the Church's teaching on the human person and the meaning of human sexuality is the last line of defense in the struggle for our children's souls.
I am the proud and grateful mother of a beautiful sixteen-year-old girl whom I love beyond measure. She is a gift to me, to my husband, and to the world, as all children are, and my task has been clear from the start: to put all of the energy and talent I possess at the service of her well-being. I felt confident at first, since I have at my disposal the vast treasury of wisdom found in the Church's teaching on the human person, our dignity, our potential, and our final end. With that as my framework, I began the slow process of forming her in the truth, preparing her to confront the many challenges of our time with intelligence and love. I felt supported in this quest by the Church, for my training had led me to have a firm faith in the Magisterium and in our priests and bishops.
I feel less sure of that now in these days of confusion and danger. For while I remain confident in the promises of Christ and in the Church that he founded, I note with real concern a certain ambivalence toward the truth itself in the Instrumentum Laboris, especially its expression of the perennial teaching on the human person and the meaning of human sexuality. In particular, I am confused that the list of "valuable resources" mentioned in your Instrumentum Laboris (at #17) as aids to the young does not mention the confidence they will find by conforming their identities to the truth found in Christ.
And so, I write to you now, all of you my spiritual fathers, to plead with you on behalf of those for whom I dare to speak. We humbly acknowledge that we are unable to change the course of history without your help. We ask that you remember that these are our children you have taken under your wing. Your central mission must be the salvation of their souls; all other considerations are secondary to that mission. Do not abandon them to the vicissitudes of a culture so clearly set on its own suicide. They need the wisdom of guides who bring clarity to their situation, courageous fathers who can provide the hermeneutic that permits them to diagnose why they are confused and often unhappy. The Church's moral teaching provides such a hermeneutic, for it is itself grounded in centuries of reflection on human experience seen through the light of Christ. We know without question that human beings are fundamentally ordered toward the true and the good. Indeed, we seek such things with a vigor that is relentless. This search is the signpost of youth—do not deny our children their one remaining hope of finding their way to its fullness.
Saint Catherine of Siena, pray for us.
More on: Synod on Youth
Articles by Xavier Rynne II

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Leo T. Cronin
Creek through Trees
http://accessnca.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Creek-through-Trees.jpg
Shafter Grade Trail
http://accessnca.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Shafter-Grade-Trail.jpg
7282 Sir Francis Drake Blvd,, Lagunitas, CA
Allowed on trail but not in the creek
The Leo T. Cronin Fish Viewing Area, located along Lagunitas Creek in West Marin is one of Marin Municipal Water District's prime spots to view spawning (endangered) Coho salmon. At the small parking lot there is informational panels about the salmon, a bench and a vantage point from which to view salmon in the creek below. The best time to visit is November through February.
Shafter Grade
Less than .5 mile
Trail Overview: The draw here is to be able to view spawning salmon in Lagunitas Creek. The densely forested trail that follows alongside the creek is bumpy and in a wheelchair you can only go about 1000 feet before the trail splits and in either direction climbs very steeply and has uneven terrain. No worries though because up to that point you're able to see the salmon in the clear waters from many vantage points all while listening to birdsong that fills the forest. This is not necessarily a destination trail but deserves a stop on your way to the coast.
More Info: The trail has rough terrain and after about 1000 feet it climbs steeply.
Yes – designated accessible parking, van accessible, firm, level or slope no greater than 2%
Yes – At parking lot
Other Things of Interest:
There is a trailhead for the Cross Marin Trail across Sir Francis Drake Road from the parking lot; there's no crosswalk but everyone crosses here. The firm-packed dirt and gravel trail is lush with foilage that provides a screen from the nearby road. It's approximately a 1-mile hike to the developed area of Samuel P. Taylor Park after which the trail becomes asphalt for another few miles.


Oil changes are an important part of caring for your Porsche. They help the internal parts of your Porsche to keep working well. So where can you bring your Porsche to receive a superb, oil-change service?
From the selection of the correct oil – to the actual oil change – put your trust in Scientific Auto. Our factory-trained mechanics, technicians and service advisers will help put you and your fine Porsche back on the road as quickly as possible. Not only that, but we will treat you and your Porsche like a member of our own extended family.
Like any fine machine, your Porsche requires periodic scheduled maintenance – namely oil changes. Bringing it into a trusted, renowned service shop Scientific Auto for its regular oil changes helps to keep its engine running at its peak performance for as long as possible.
Scientific Auto's mechanics know the special tuning that your Porsche's motor needs. They know the correct grade and type of oil, whether it is a synthetic or a blend, or oil made by a high quality producer to use for your Porsche's motor, whether it is a Boxster, a Cayman, a 911, a Panamera, and a Cayenne.
We use only factory-specified and expert-recommended oils and oil filters, and our shops have the latest state-of-the-art equipment. Let us keep your Porsche running smoothly by allowing us to service your Porsche's oil needs.


Lycoming College is excited to welcome the incoming Class of 2019, including: Rebecca Forbes, of Lititz, Pa..
Colleges across the country are recognizing students from Veritas Academy for their on-campus success. Click any achievement to discover alumni from Veritas Academy, view their personalized Merit pages, and learn about what they are accomplishing.
Rebecca has not added any Education updates yet.
Rebecca has not added any Awards & Recognition updates yet.
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The mission of Oakwood University, a historically black, Seventh-day Adventist institution, is to transform students through biblically-based education for service to God and humanity. Oakwood is consistently recognized by national media, business and educational associations. US News and World Report ranks it perennially among the nation's "Best Colleges," both in terms of the "Historically Black Colleges and Universities" (HBCUs) and "Regional Colleges/South" categories; the magazine also ranks Oakwood among the top ten HBCUs with highest graduation rates. In its first-ever HBCU ranking, the September 2012 EBONY Magazine top-ranked Oakwood's science program. Additionally, Oakwood is the nation's fifth-ranked producer of undergraduate black applicants to medical schools, according to the Association for American Medical Colleges. Oakwood's ISO 9001: 2008 designation distinguishes it as the first and only HBCU, as well as the first and only Alabama and/or SDA higher education institution, so qualified.


1t happens hundreds of times each day – a customer receives information from us – but each interaction is unique.
It's just a moment in time – just one hand reaching out to present information about solving a financial problem to another outstretched hand.
We make sure everything we do honors that connection – from our commitment to the highest quality service in the world, to the way we engage with our customers and communities to do business with responsibility .
From our beginnings over thirty years ago, in every place that we've been, and every place that we touch, we've tried to make it a little better than we found it by providing financial solutions to our clients..
Commercial Capital Worldwide Funding, Inc., d/b/a www.kwikcashsolution.com is an financial company that deals primarily in providing financial solutions to the business community in a timely manner. Commercial Capital Worldwide Funding, Inc. specializes in commercial financial products, supplemental and alternative financial products.
Our purpose is to enable individuals and businesses to manage financial risk by solving financial problems. We provide financial products and services tailored to meet the specific and ever-changing financial risk exposures facing our customers. We build value for our investors through the strength of our customers' satisfaction and by consistently producing superior operating results.
We strive to be the acknowledged global leader and preferred partner in helping our clients succeed in the world's rapidly evolving financial markets.
Commercial Capital Worldwide Funding, Inc., is leading financial company specializing in business loans, commercial bridge loans for acquisition, construction, land, development, workouts, bankruptcies and foreclosures. Our creative financing expertise enables us to close on these equity-based commercial loans of $1 million to over $50 million in as little as 5 days! Commercial Capital Worldwide Funding, Inc., allows borrowers with assets to get the hard money commercial loans they need super-fast. So, no matter where in the world you do business, we make getting a hard money loan fast and easy.
Commercial Capital Worldwide Funding, Inc. was started many years ago by Eugene Porter, Jr., MBA, "Retired CPA to capitalize on the commercial loan requests we were getting from our residential customers. Over the years, we have learned the nuances of the Commercial lending arena and now have the team in place to provide the great rates and flexibility of a broker with the underwriting knowledge of direct lenders. In so doing, we can fill the void between the local commercial bank with its slow approvals, rigid terms, zero follow-up and restrictive criteria and the "hard money" lenders who will give you 15%+ rates. In fact, we will help structure the deal and can often get the loan approved with banks and lenders that you would be unable to get done. Plus, we are now correspondent lenders with several national banks–which means better pricing for you and your clients; and we have access to all of the nationwide lenders and direct conduits to Wall Street money. As the numbers of deals we do grow, and the database of lenders that respect our underwriting grows, our ability to provide truly the finest service and terms available is reaching new highs.
"Bankable Terms For Un-bankable Borrows"
Type: Loans for borrower with credit score at than 630(580) minimum.
1. Income Verification: Stated income, no tax returns required for approval.
2. Closing time Frame: 2 to 4 weeks from letter of Interest signing with timely receipts of documents.
3. DSCR: 1-2 x 1.25x, partial occupancy is okay as long as minimum DSCR is attained.
5. Subordinate Financing: Allowed up to 80% cumulative loan to value.
6. Escrow: Required For Property tax and insurance.
7. Submission: 1003, Tri-Merge FICO , property operating statement (if investment) or business P & L (if business occupied.
Loans given to existing businesses, primarily based on the cash flow of the business.
Personal credit score cannot be below 550. Client must not have too many NSF's in business bank account, must have at least 5 monthly deposits and maintain a balance.
A suite of products for people who have money saved in retirement accounts (401k, IRA, etc). These programs allow people to use these funds for business or investing purposes without the tax penalties.
Typically must have at least $35k saved in an eligible retirement account, however we do recommend that you send anyone interested in not matter what their retirement assets amount to. This program contains up front fees.
Business credit cards, in the business name and they do not show up on the personal credit of the guarantor. Can be done using a business partners credit if the main business owner does not qualify.
Clients obtain equipment leases. Works for a broad variety of equipment, and even potentially can go towards an store remodel.
Typically must have at least $35k saved in an eligible retirement account. This program contains up front fees.
Clients obtain funding through crowd funding websites such as kickstarter.com. The best benefit of this program is that you do not have to pay back the money you receive from your investors.
You must be willing to publicly discuss your business, and be able to create rewards or compensation for your investors. This program contains up front expenses.
A low interest loan from a bank or a non bank lender with some collateral provided in the form of a government guarantee. Ranges from $300k to $5mm. Typically 5 to 7 year loans from 6% to 7% interest.
Must have good business history and cash flow, good biz-owner credit, and some down payment and good collateral. Only acceptable starts are franchises on the SBA approved list.
Good personal and business credit (if any). Good cash flow required (projections for franchise startups). Good household income helps. Collateral helps, though not required.
Works for almost any industry or situation. Most companies save from 25% to 50% on their monthly fees.
Was your loan denied because of credit, income, employment or slow closing? Do not fret, we have conventional financing options? We do conventional financing and A-Paper fallout!
Commercial Capital Worldwide Funding is your funding source for all your commercial needs. Our funding sources are setting on way too much money and need to place it quickly with good loans.
Why choose Commercial Capital Worldwide Funding?
* Foreign Nationals - OK!
* We offer conventional and Subprime product - up to 80% LTV available!
* Professional, experienced and results-oriented service!
Hard Money Residential & Commercial PRICING!!
*Pricing below 2 points must have a 2 yr. Prepay. **Can be bought down to 1 year for 25bps to rate***NO add –on for no pre-pay on O/O consumer transactions.
Non Fannie/Freddie approved condo projects – OK!


text:
Picture source
Person Male Born 14/1/1909 Died 22/6/1984
Categories: Seriously Famous, Theatre, Cinema
Countries: USA
Born Wisconsin, U.S.A. Film and theatre director. In 1952 he moved to England after being blacklisted by the House Committee on Un-American Activities. Directed three ground-breaking films, (with Harold Pinter as scriptwriter): The Servant (1963), Accident (1967) and The Go-Between (1971). Died at home, 29 Royal Avenue.
This section lists the memorials where the subject on this page is commemorated:
Information Commemorated at
Losey died in this house.
This section lists other interesting subjects.
Information Other Subjects
Tarquin and Zelfa Olivier
Tarquin is Laurence Olivier's film producer son by his first wife, Jill Esmo...
Frankie Howerd
Comedian and actor. Born Francis Alick Howard in York. He started entertainin...
Jean Simmons, OBE
Actor. Born Crouch Hill. Played Estelle in David Lean's 1946 Great Expectat...
Vitagraph
International film company. Formed in Brocklyn by J. Stuart Blackton and Alb...
Jack Buchanan
Actor-manager, song-and-dance entertainer. Born Helensburgh near Glasgow. D...


The author was 17 years old when she survived an airplane explosion. Her survival is unexplainable and considered a modern-day miracle. For 11 days, she crawled alone through the jungle, fighting for her survival. She then went on to live an inspiring life as a scientist continually drawn back to the terrain that threatened to take her.


text:
CTP Version of SQL Server 2008 Service Pack 1 (SP1) Available For Download
Posted: February 24, 2009/Under: Web Publishing/By: SY Tan
Microsoft has released the CTP version of SQL Server 2008 Service Pack (SP1). Users can use these packages to upgrade any SQL Server 2008 edition. This release has basically fixed the issues reported through the SQL Server community. Microsoft has highlighted that this CTP version is basically made available for general testing purposes only. It is not advisable to deploy the CTP version in the production environment.
Download the CTP version of SQL Server 2008 Service Pack 1 (SP1) via the link here.
Supported Operating Systems: Windows Server 2003; Windows Server 2008; Windows Vista
32-bit systems (x86)
– PC with Intel or compatible Pentium III 600 MHz or higher processor (1 GHz or faster recommended)
64-bit systems (x64, ia64)
1GHz or faster processor
Minimum of 512 MB of RAM (1 GB or more recommended)
675 MB of available hard disk space


text:
Literature From the Congo Basin Offers Ways to Address the Climate Crisis
The African continent is responsible for only 2–3% of the world's carbon dioxide emissions from energy and industrial sources. But it's alarmingly suffering from the effects of the climate crisis, as reports from the UN and others show. On the positive side, Africa has a huge potential for climate mitigation, especially thanks to its tropical rainforests.
Conservation Costs Are Rarely Reported, Making It Difficult to Prioritize Funding
The costs of conservation actions are rarely reported, making it difficult to decide on the best ways to protect and restore nature, a new study shows. It looked at nearly 2,000 peer-reviewed papers on wildlife conservation action and found that only 13.3% reported costs, and only 8.8% reported total costs.
Wildlife Don't Recognize Borders, Nor Does Climate Change. Conservation Should Keep Up
A set of studies focused on the China-Vietnam border demonstrates that the impacts of climate change will make transboundary conservation even more important for endangered species like the Cao-Vit gibbon and tiger geckos.
Conservation in transboundary areas is already challenging because of physical barriers, like fences and walls, as well as non-physical ones, such as different legal systems or conservation approaches between countries on either side.
Climate May Not Directly Drive Conflict But It's Critical For Building Peace
Climate change isn't a direct driver of conflict. Most scientists agree on this and it's reflected in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Working Group II Report. There isn't a straight line between climate-related risks and conflict-related outcomes.
The report compares the impacts of climate change with those of other global trends. The latter include "biodiversity loss, overall unsustainable consumption of natural resources, land and ecosystem degradation, rapid urbanisation, human demographic shifts, social and economic inequalities and a pandemic


In 1942 Torrens Creek was utilised as an ammunition dump during World War II. Call in to hear the stories of how this little town was nearly blown away.
The Exchange Hotel welcomes all travellers with cool drinks and great meals and you are invited to add your mark to the humorous graffiti gallery.
South of Torrens Creek is Moorrinya National Park. Moorrinya, meaning "ironbark" in the local Aboriginal dialect, showcases a perfect example of the desert upland bioregion. Bush camping is available by contacting the ranger on (07) 4741 7374.
White Mountains National Park offers short walking tracks for those wishing to explore this magic spot a little further. A lookout on the Overlander's Way gives an indication of the amazing colours and textures of the rock and wildflower displays during May to August. A bush camping area is available for self-sufficient and experienced bushwalkers only.
Camp site accessible by 4WD or high clearance vehicles only. Information and registration should be made by phoning 13 74 68, online at www.qld.gov.au/camping or at the Flinders Discovery Centre.
Leave your mark at the Exchange Hotel Graffiti wall.


text:
/*
 * Problem 3: Create a hierarchy Dog, Frog, Cat, Kitten, Tomcat and define useful constructors and methods.
    Dogs, frogs and cats are Animals. All animals can produce sound (specified by the ISound interface).
    Kittens and tomcats are cats. All animals are described by age, name and sex. Kittens can be only
    female and tomcats can be only male. Each animal produces a specific sound.
        Create arrays of different kinds of animals and calculate the average age of each kind of animal using
    a static method (you may use LINQ).
 */

namespace _03.Animals
{
    using System;

    public class MainProgram
    {
        public static void Main()
        {
            Dog[] dogs = new Dog[]
            {
                new Dog("Jaro", 7, true, "Golden Retriever"),
                new Dog("Sharo", 3, true, "German Sheperd"),
                new Dog("Doge", 5, true, "Labrador Retriever"),
                new Dog("Estel", 10, false, "Pincher")
            };

            Frog[] frogs = new Frog[]
            {
                new Frog("Kikirica", 13, false),
                new Frog("Jaba", 15, false),
                new Frog("Froggy", 5, true),
                new Frog("Nikoleta Lozanova", 10, false)
            };

            Cat[] cats = new Cat[]
            {
                new Cat("Street Excellent", 3, false),
                new Cat("Home Excellent", 5, false),
                new Cat("Persiiko", 1, true),
                new Cat("Garfield", 7, true)
            };

            Kitten[] kittens = new Kitten[]
            {
                new Kitten("Malcho", 1),
                new Kitten("Palcho", 2),
                new Kitten("Shalco", 1)

            };

            Tomcat[] tomcats = new Tomcat[]
            {
                new Tomcat("Kotio", 5),
                new Tomcat("Gosho", 4),
                new Tomcat("Pesho", 8)
            };

            double dogsAverageAge = Animal.AverageAge(dogs);
            double frogsAverageAge = Animal.AverageAge(frogs);
            double catsAverageAge = Animal.AverageAge(cats);
            double kittensAverageAge = Animal.AverageAge(kittens);
            double tomcatsAverageAge = Animal.AverageAge(tomcats);

            Console.WriteLine("Average age of the dogs: {0:F2}", dogsAverageAge);
            Console.WriteLine("Average age of the frogs: {0:F2}", frogsAverageAge);
            Console.WriteLine("Average age of the cats: {0:F2}", catsAverageAge);
            Console.WriteLine("Average age of the kittens: {0:F2}", kittensAverageAge);
            Console.WriteLine("Average age of the tomcats: {0:F2}", tomcatsAverageAge);

            Console.WriteLine(new string('-', 10));

            Console.WriteLine("Actions: ");
            Console.WriteLine(tomcats[0].Hunt());
            Console.WriteLine((cats[1].BeGracious()));
            Console.WriteLine(dogs[2].Fetch());
            Console.WriteLine(frogs[1].JumpAround());

            Console.WriteLine(new string('-', 10));

            Console.WriteLine("Sounds: ");
            cats[0].MakeSound();
            dogs[1].MakeSound();
            frogs[2].MakeSound();
        }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Q: R function with multiple input data frames and colnames as function arguments for updating a data frame I would like to write a function which updates one data frame based on the other data frame.
When the id is in the updated_data I would like to update the column product in created_data. If the id is not in the updated_data I would like to continue with the already existing value for product from created_data. It's just a fictive example and in reality I would need to update multiple columns not only product, that's why I am using it as an argument to my function.
However due to this function approach I am struggeling with accessing the columns.

# some fictive data
created_data <- data.frame(id = c("ab01", "ab02", "ab03", "ab04", "ab05", "ab06", "ab07",
                                  "ab08", "ab09", "ab10", "ab11", "ab12", "ab13", "ab14"),
                           rank = c(1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14),
                           colour = c("blue", "blue", "red", "purple", "yellow", "black",
                                      "green", "magenta", "black", "orange", "white",
                                      "orange", "lightblue", "magenta"),
                           product = c("shoes", "socks", "socks", "shirt", "jacket",
                                       "shoes", "socks", "socks", "shirt", "jacket",
                                       "shoes", "socks", "socks", "shirt"),
                           candy = c("mars", "twix", "kitkat", "bounty", "mars",
                                     "cookie", "cookie", "mars", "twix", "bounty",
                                     "twix", "twix", "twix", "twix"))

# some update data
updated_data <- data.frame(id = c("ab03", "ab07", "ab08"),
                           product = c("shirt", "trousers", "trousers"))

# one possible solution to solve the task without using a function
created_data$id <- as.character(created_data$id)
updated_data$id <- as.character(updated_data$id)

updated_data1 <- updated_data %>%
  rename(product_new = product)

results_without_function <- created_data %>%
  left_join(updated_data1, by = "id") %>%
  mutate(product = ifelse(is.na(product_new), product, product_new)) %>%
  select(-product_new)

# one trial for my function
update_fun <- function(orig_df, upd_df, column_to_update){

  orig_df1 <- orig_df %>%
    mutate(column_to_update = ifelse(id %in% upd_df$id, upd_df$column_to_update, column_to_update))

  return(orig_df1)
}

# another trial
update_fun <- function(orig_df, upd_df, column_to_update){

  orig_df1 <- orig_df %>%
    mutate(!! column_to_update := ifelse(id %in% upd_df$id, upd_df$column_to_update, !! column_to_update))

  return(orig_df1)
}

# results
result <- update_fun(orig_df = created_data, upd_df = update_fun, column_to_update = "product")

EDIT:
sorry for not being explicit enough. I know how to solve this problem without using a function, code above has been adapted. However my question is how to translate this solution to a function where created_data and input_data as well as the id and the product column are handled as input parameters.

A: This sounds like a merge operation.
Base R
merged <- merge(created_data, updated_data, by = "id", all.x = TRUE)
merged
#      id rank    colour product.x  candy product.y
# 1  ab01    1      blue     shoes   mars      <NA>
# 2  ab02    2      blue     socks   twix      <NA>
# 3  ab03    3       red     socks kitkat     shirt
# 4  ab04    4    purple     shirt bounty      <NA>
# 5  ab05    5    yellow    jacket   mars      <NA>
# 6  ab06    6     black     shoes cookie      <NA>
# 7  ab07    7     green     socks cookie  trousers
# 8  ab08    8   magenta     socks   mars  trousers
# 9  ab09    9     black     shirt   twix      <NA>
# 10 ab10   10    orange    jacket bounty      <NA>
# 11 ab11   11     white     shoes   twix      <NA>
# 12 ab12   12    orange     socks   twix      <NA>
# 13 ab13   13 lightblue     socks   twix      <NA>
# 14 ab14   14   magenta     shirt   twix      <NA>

At this point, product.x indicates the original product field from created_data, and product.y the new values. When the id is not a match, product.y is NA. We can use this to choose which of the two values to keep within product. (Actually, product was renamed product.x in this merge, so we need to rename and/or reform it.)
merged <- within(merged, { product = ifelse(is.na(product.y), product.x, product.y); })
merged
#      id rank    colour product.x  candy product.y  product
# 1  ab01    1      blue     shoes   mars      <NA>    shoes
# 2  ab02    2      blue     socks   twix      <NA>    socks
# 3  ab03    3       red     socks kitkat     shirt    shirt
# 4  ab04    4    purple     shirt bounty      <NA>    shirt
# 5  ab05    5    yellow    jacket   mars      <NA>   jacket
# 6  ab06    6     black     shoes cookie      <NA>    shoes
# 7  ab07    7     green     socks cookie  trousers trousers
# 8  ab08    8   magenta     socks   mars  trousers trousers
# 9  ab09    9     black     shirt   twix      <NA>    shirt
# 10 ab10   10    orange    jacket bounty      <NA>   jacket
# 11 ab11   11     white     shoes   twix      <NA>    shoes
# 12 ab12   12    orange     socks   twix      <NA>    socks
# 13 ab13   13 lightblue     socks   twix      <NA>    socks
# 14 ab14   14   magenta     shirt   twix      <NA>    shirt

(And then clean up the two new columns,
merged$product.x <- merged$product.y <- NULL

dplyr
library(dplyr)
created_data %>%
  left_join(updated_data, by = "id") %>%
  mutate(product = coalesce(product.y, product.x)) %>%
  select(-product.x, -product.y)
#      id rank    colour  candy  product
# 1  ab01    1      blue   mars    shoes
# 2  ab02    2      blue   twix    socks
# 3  ab03    3       red kitkat    shirt
# 4  ab04    4    purple bounty    shirt
# 5  ab05    5    yellow   mars   jacket
# 6  ab06    6     black cookie    shoes
# 7  ab07    7     green cookie trousers
# 8  ab08    8   magenta   mars trousers
# 9  ab09    9     black   twix    shirt
# 10 ab10   10    orange bounty   jacket
# 11 ab11   11     white   twix    shoes
# 12 ab12   12    orange   twix    socks
# 13 ab13   13 lightblue   twix    socks
# 14 ab14   14   magenta   twix    shirt

data.table
(I don't recommend shifting to data.table solely for this implementation: while its performance and speed are impressive, it also has a bit of a learning curve. Certainly try it, but the base R above might be best if you're just starting with merges.)
library(data.table)
setDT(created_data)
setDT(updated_data)

updated_data[created_data, on = .(id) ][
  , product := fcoalesce(product, i.product) ][
  , i.product := NULL][]
#         id  product  rank    colour  candy
#     <char>   <char> <num>    <char> <char>
#  1:   ab01    shoes     1      blue   mars
#  2:   ab02    socks     2      blue   twix
#  3:   ab03    shirt     3       red kitkat
#  4:   ab04    shirt     4    purple bounty
#  5:   ab05   jacket     5    yellow   mars
#  6:   ab06    shoes     6     black cookie
#  7:   ab07 trousers     7     green cookie
#  8:   ab08 trousers     8   magenta   mars
#  9:   ab09    shirt     9     black   twix
# 10:   ab10   jacket    10    orange bounty
# 11:   ab11    shoes    11     white   twix
# 12:   ab12    socks    12    orange   twix
# 13:   ab13    socks    13 lightblue   twix
# 14:   ab14    shirt    14   magenta   twix

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Ever So Juliet | Edinburgh lifestyle blog: Portugal!
Hello! So I'm back from the laziest week ever in Portugal (suffering mild post-holiday blues, wah) and wanted to share some photos of our trip. I'd never been to Portugal before but highly recommend it - we stayed in Villamoura, which is a pretty fancy town aimed at golfers & posh people with boats. Craig & I are neither, but we wanted somewhere that was super chilled & quiet, and this ticked all the boxes!
I found an amazing last minute deal through James Villas & we got a HUGE villa (this one, in fact) with a private pool for £350 for the week (it costs almost £1700 to rent in peak time, ouch!). It was so so so perfect. Super quiet, loads and loads of space, an orange tree in our front garden & our own pool for splashing about in.
We spent most of the week just lounging in the sunshine - it was hitting 30 degrees pretty much every day (I didn't burn though, hooray!), and reading books. I'm a pretty speedy reader so I powered through quite a lot - maybe almost ten books in a week? My favourite was the Chaos Walking books by Patrick Ness - they are aimed at young adults, but are AMAZING. Read them.
As this was such a lazy holiday I just lived in shorts the whole time. I didn't pack many shoes, just flip flops and my new sandals. I have secretly wanted a pair of Birkenstocks for years, and I can see why people rave about them - they are SO comfy!
There was a tiny bit of drama one day when poor Craig tripped over a step and almost sliced the bottom of his toe off! I thought he had just cut it a wee bit so headed off to get plasters and got the fright of my life to find him, pale white, standing in a pool of blood! Ahh. After a quick make-shift bandage and slightly stressful trip trying to find a hospital, he was bandaged up by lovely Portuguese doctors (and no stitches needed, phew!).
But apart from that little adventure, all was good and calm. We ate a lot of tasty food (there were amazing restaurants around the marina!), explored a Roman archaeological site (with original mosaic floors intact), watched the sunset on a huge quiet beach & daydreamed about what life would be like if we were rich enough to own a huge yacht.
Aw, it was awesome. I can't believe a week can fly by so quickly! I'm already planning our next big holiday... we've got big plans and it'll be quite exciting. More on this soon!
Oh it looks absolutely amazing! I really want some sunshine on a golden beach now.
That really does look like an amazing trip! I'm a little jealous of your vacation actually :) And you took some gorgeous pictures as well!
Amazing photos Juliet, looks like such a beautiful place - you got such a good deal too. Poor Craig and his toe!
This looks amazing, such gorgeous photos too. Can't believe the price of that villa either amazinggg :P. I'm going to Portugal with my family next year, this has made me super excited can't wait to take my camera and get some pretty pictures :).
Also stayed there (unfortunately not as cheap) and really enjoyed the Villa and surroundings. The funny thing is I sliced my toe on the rear patio also! :-) The place does need a slight makeover but a great place non-the-less for relaxing. Great pics too!


CITIC Telecom International CPC Limited ("CITIC Telecom CPC"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of CITIC Telecom International Holdings Limited (SEHK: 1883), reaffirmed its industry leadership by winning the prestigious World Vendor Awards 2011 - Best Hosted Solution. The recognition comes as the company prepares to launch two SmartCLOUD solutions and continue its Asia Pacific expansion.
The World Vendor Awards organised by Total Telecom focus on telecommunications industry vendors and use a panel of independent and impartial industry experts to judge entries. The Best Hosted Solution award was given to CITIC Telecom CPC's Managed Video Conferencing Service - VC² (VC-square). VC² was first launched in 2009 as the first service of its kind in Asia to adopt H.264/SVC (Scalable Video Coding) video conferencing technology for converged IP networks to provide IP-VPN HD-based Managed Video Conferencing Services. It provides a high quality, scalable, flexible and efficient solution at an affordable rate that eliminates the usual high costs required for setting up and maintaining a video conferencing system.
The award comes as the company recently announced a name change from CPCNet to CITIC Telecom CPC and is preparing to launch two new solutions in its third flagship series -- SmartCLOUD. Hitting the market soon are SmartCLOUD Compute, a virtual server solution that goes beyond ordinary offerings to deliver high-performance and high-availability with unprecedented value and management ease; and SmartCLOUD Mail, a suite of secure business e-mail management tools with strong mobility.
"CITIC Telecom CPC has strived to provide its customers with the best in quality and innovation by always anticipating and meeting their changing business needs," said Stephen Ho, CEO of CITIC Telecom CPC. "This has enabled us to keep ahead of market trends -- for example, our SmartCLOUD series will offer our customers a whole new level of flexibility and stability. We are very glad to win the World Vendor Awards and it will encourage us to continue innovating and raising the bar as we widen our service coverage to the Asia Pacific region and beyond."


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Goddess Meditations
Goddess Meditations was published in 1998 and taken out of print in 2002 because it wasn't selling as well as Llewellyn's "teen witch" books. When I wrote Goddess Meditations, I was holding several intentions. First, I knew that no one had written a book composed solely and entirely of meditations to goddesses before. (There have been several since 1998.) As a spiritual feminist, I wanted to create such a book. Second, I had been leading guided meditations in rituals, small and large, private and public, for about a decade. People had liked them and kept urging me to write a book. And, third, I wanted to deal with a number of issues in my own life. So I wrote the book. And rewrote it and rewrote it and rewrote it. All that writing led me through my own issues and gave me some important healing.
I still receive emails from people who find copies of the book and actually do the guided meditations. They love them. I've made friends with a few of these people, and one told me that the "dark work" meditations helped her through her divorce.
As I was writing the book, I kept thinking of two of my friends. One had recently died (stomach cancer) and another was dying (lung cancer). I wanted to honor the love and support these two women had given me through all the years of our friendships. That's why I wrote a meditation on death. Another woman, a former friend who is now deceased, had done something extremely hurtful to me. That's when I wrote this meditation on compassion, which I still like a decade later. It really works.
Whether you are a pagan monotheist who believes in The Goddess and She's All There Is, or you're a pantheist who sees the face (and breasts and vulva and arms and legs) of the Goddess in nature, or you're a polytheist who acknowledges all ten thousand goddesses by name and loves and respects them all—whoever you are, this is a book that can speak to all of us. It is my gift to you. I believe that compassion is needed in our world today more than ever. The goddesses invoked in this meditation are Tara, Kuan Yin, and Mary. Speak to the One who holds your heart in Her gentle hands.
A wise man once told me that the divine manifests in us, though us, and as us. Our task is to manifest compassion for someone who hurt us. This is not, however, altogether altruistic, for we all know that "what goes around comes back around." Isn't it better for compassion to be what comes back around?
Close your eyes, take a few deep, easy breaths, and bring to your mind's eye the image of the person who hurt you. You can visualize what this person really looks like or see a generalized image, but avoid cartoons or stereotypes, for our intention is not ridicule but compassion.
If that person's hurtful words or actions come with the image, observe them. Observe them from a distance this time. Don't take it personally anymore. Consciously separate yourself from the hurt and know that its power is puny beside the power of compassion. Let it be.
Now visualize the symbol of eternity, a figure 8 on its side. Enlarge the symbol until it is big enough to contain you in one of its loops. Visualize the eternity symbol as pink, then as pink light, then as flowing pink energy. Watch this pink energy for as long as you want to, feeling its warmth. Feel it caressing you as it bathes your body, emotions, mind, and spirit.
Suddenly the person who once hurt you appears in the other loop. See that person standing in the eternity symbol, beside you but separated from you by the cross in the center of the figure 8. What this means is that while you do not have to be close to this person, it is important to understand that he or she is nevertheless just as warmed and loved as you are.
Know that the person is part of the same compassionate energy you're part of, that he or she is feeling the same love, the same compassion, the same blessing that you're feeling. Let the energy flow around you both, equally and without judgment or favoritism, for as long as you want to.
Now another element comes into your vision. There you see Her—balanced on the very point where the two loops cross. There She is—dancing or standing upon the very center of eternity. Tara. Kuan Yin. Mary. She stands, as She has forever stood, upon the cross of compassionate energy. Soon you can see the source of all that flowing energy. It is She, of course. It flows from Her, from Her hands, from Her feet, from Her eyes, from Her heart, from Her womb.
As you watch, you can finally understand how the compassionate Goddess consciously sends Her loving energy out into a world that surely and sorely needs that love. She has vowed to love us, and Her compassion will come to use whenever we call Her. Forever.
This book must still be available in used-book stores because I keep receiving fan letters from people who found it, read it, and enjoyed it. Holy cow–I just found it on Amazon. BUY THIS BOOK if you want to work with the chakra goddesses or do what I call light work or dark work. My literary agent is trying to sell it to a new publisher. If she does, I'll be rewriting most of it. Send me a note and tell me what you think should stay the same.


The transportation sector refers to the general category of stocks relating to the transportation of goods or customers. The transportation sector is vast and comprises a wide range of individual industries, including major and regional airlines (also known collectively as air services), railroads, shipping firms, ocean freight haulers, trucking and firms more indirectly related to transportation such as supply chain management firms and other logistics providers.
In aggregate, the value added by the transportation industry as a percentage of U.S. GDP was 3% as of 2012. This average has been steady since approximately 1998. As you might imagine, the sector is economically sensitive and driven primarily by overall economic trends in the U.S. and world. When consumers and businesses spend less, the transportation industry suffers. Conversely, transportation firms see increases in activity when the economy is improving or in full swing at the business cycle's peak.
Additionally, the S&P Transportation Select Industry index provides information about the sector. The average market capitalization for the 42 key players in the index is $9 billion and ranges from $400 million to $82 billion. This indicates the sector is diverse overall, though the top players in the Dow Jones Transportation Index exert outsized influence on total sector trends.
The most important data in the transportation industry helps investors gain insight into the movement of goods across the globe. For instance waterway tonnage, as tracked by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Navigation Data Center, indicates the monthly tonnage volume of goods traveling across the ocean and other major bodies of water, including the Great Lakes region. Sources such as the Association of American Railroads (AAR) Weekly Rail Traffic Summary provide statistics on the percent change in monthly rail carloads and intermodal units. A review of September 2013 railroad statistics details a 14.4% jump in the transport of petroleum and petroleum products - confirming the increased popularity of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking across the United States.
In similar fashion, truck tonnage indices provided by the American Trucking Association let investors and analysts track activity across the nation's highways. The sale of U.S. No. 2 diesel prices is another way to track the trucking of goods, though in a more indirect manner because of the need to extrapolate fuel usage into actual goods shipments. But overall, increased trucking bodes well for trucking firms and the economy in general. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) provides manufacturing details and reported in October 2013 that supplier deliveries grew a very modest 0.2%, but the pace of deliveries is slowing and has been doing so for a couple of months straight.
Michael Porter's five competitive forces model is a great way to analyze any industry. Applying it to a specific segment of the transportation industry, the airline space, easily demonstrates why it is such a difficult business to compete in. Suppliers' bargaining power is immense because two firms, Boeing (NYSE:BA) and Airbus, provide the bulk of large aircraft to the world's major airlines. Planning costs can easily run into the tens of millions of dollars and make switching costs quite high. Rivalry among existing players is very intense, because airline travel is basically a commodity where rivals compete primarily on price. The threat of substitutes is also high and consists of any type of travel, though this is less of a concern for long-haul flights where there are really no substitutes to the speed and convenience of traveling by airplane. The only real positive from a competitive perspective is the limited bargaining power of the millions of individual flyers that have little collective ability to demand improved airline service and on-time flights.
It is also important for investors and analysts to track industry trends. For instance, at one point airlines that traveled to and from Taiwan faced a shortage of airport slots at mainland Chinese cities, which indicated that economic activity between the two countries remained robust and indicated an investment opportunity to an astute investor. Also in the airline space, mergers among large players have historically come across opposition from antitrust regulators who fear that individuals will be exposed to higher prices and worse service with too much consolidation (and supplier power) in the airline industry. And when firms in the automotive space have their investment grades lifted by credit rating firms, this generally indicates strength in the domestic and global automotive industry.
Returning briefly to the airline industry, on Sept. 9, 2013, United Airlines reported that its revenue per passenger mile, or key determinant of flying traffic, decreased 0.5% while consolidated capacity, a measure of available seat miles, fell 1.4% in August. The data confirmed that overall economic activity remained tepid as the global economy tried to shake off the recession caused by the credit crisis. In a presentation to investors around the same time, United Airlines detailed that the industry is transforming in the midst of anemic GDP growth, which is being driven by less fragmentation (more consolidation), capacity discipline that is helping maintain seat pricing, and the addition of new revenue streams such as charging for checking bags or obtaining more comfortable seats. Firms that operate international flights also have an advantage because these are highly profitable and coveted routes. Yet despite the strong industry trends, airlines are still highly dependent on economic growth, making analyzing leading indicators and other business activity, such as across other transportation firms, an important part of the overall analysis.
The transportation sector consists primarily of transporting goods across the global economic supply chain. A secondary service consists of transporting individuals around the world through airlines, railroads, boats, cars and any other transportation mode. The Dow Jones Transportation Index is a great way to gain insight into the dominant industry players that compete in every main industry within the transportation sector. By gaining an awareness of the bellwether firms and trends that affect these players, investors and analysts can gain an edge by analyzing the sector and looking to profit from understanding it.