I'm convinced that for every person who wants a kale smoothie, there's someone else who wants a cinnamon sticky bun.
It's easy to look at the cupcake trend and say it was a bust. The chain that quickly comes to mind is Crumbs, which closed several dozen of its locations in 2014. In fact, this article chronicles the closings of popular chain bakeries like Mrs. Fields and Krispy Kreme.
So, who can be successful in this bakery business? I didn't have to look far to find the answer. In fact, all I had to do was walk a mile away from this office to Pinkie's Bakery in San Francisco.
Founder Cheryl Burr is diversifying her product offerings. She's taken over a 1,200-sq.-ft. kitchen to double the bakery's wholesale clients from 20 to 40 accounts. Pinkie's original SoMa location will produce American classics like muffins and bread, while the new Bernal Heights location will look to expand into croissants and French boulangerie-type pastries.
Speaking of boulangerie, La Boulange is preparing for a renaissance. Starbucks bought the beloved San Francisco bakery chain in 2012 for $100 million. After founder Pascal Rigo helped the Starbucks roll out new recipes across its chain, Starbucks suddenly announced in August that it would close La Boulange standalone bakeries in the Bay Area, while keeping the brand name for bakery products.
Meanwhile, Rigo said he will reopen six of the stores in San Francisco under the banner of La Boulangerie de San Francisco. Everyone loves a comeback, but the bakery faces one big challenge: increased competition.
Burr of Pinkie's is aware of this challenge. "When we opened in 2010, there was us and La Boulange, but now there is Craftsman and Wolves, Flour & Co. a huge upsurgence of 'micro-patisseries," she said.
If you're in the bakery business, this idea of micro-patisseries is a trend worth noting. Just from the examples in my own neighborhood, I see smaller bakery chains that are more in touch with their customer base and better at localizing their offerings. How can larger coffee chains enhance their offerings while still having that small-shop atmosphere?
It will take a talented staff, exceptional management and superior communication for quality control and inventory. No matter how you slice it, these are the fundamentals of a successful foodservice operation that brings in the bread.


Marketing in the modern era means you need to utilise the Internet to get the results you are looking for. Your website may look great and it may even have useful information on it, but if you are not using a top Digital Agency in Sydney, you are not going to get the results you are looking for. Rather than trying to tackle your website in-house, it is better to leave it in the hands of the professionals. Here are a couple of things to look for in a leading Digital Agency.
In order to get the results you are looking for, you need the Digital Agency in Sydney with SEO experience. This is because of the importance of the search engine in sending people to your website. Only with the best Digital Agency will you be able to not only show up on the search engine, but also have the ranking necessary to show up on the first page. After all, without first page ranking, it will be difficult for potential customers to find your website.
Another thing that a great Digital Agency in Sydney should be able to provide you with is an effective website. The website itself should have the SEO content necessary to attract the attention of the search engines, but it should ultimately be useful to the client. The best Australian web designers can help you to create the website that does both. You will be able to have a website that is easy to browse, contains useful information and make people want to return soon.
This entry was posted in Web Design and tagged web design, web development. Bookmark the permalink.


An ER physician at Atlanta's busy Mercy Hospital, Dr. Lydia Costa is no stranger to suffering. Still, the recent police slayings reopen barely healed wounds—and bring her face-to-face with her ex-husband, Ryan Winter.
As the body count rises and paranoia tightens its grip on the police force, Lydia and Ryan are pulled together by circumstances and fate…causing old passions to reignite despite their painful shared past. But as Ryan moves closer to discovering the killer's identity, someone is watching, placing both him and Lydia in mortal danger.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, or otherwise, without express written permission from the author.
The author acknowledges the trademark status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.
She disconnected the call without saying good-bye. With a muttered curse, Nate shoved his phone into the pocket of his suit coat. As he got out and closed the door, his anger reignited at the scratch that remained visible on the driver's side. He chirped the key fob and headed toward the elevator, the sound of his dress shoes echoing off the deck's concrete walls. He only hoped he didn't smell like booze. The last thing he needed was another knock-down, drag-out with Kristen. There'd been too many of them lately, and frankly, he was too goddamned tired. Eight years as a Narcotics and Vice detective, and to Kristen his excuses had become interchangeable—a drug bust, a prostitution ring, a warrant to serve on an illegal gambling operation. Any of them could be that night's culprit behind him getting home late.
So could a few drinks, he admitted, but he'd needed to unwind.
Above him, the lighting in the garage ceiling flickered. The condominiums were getting old and needed renovation, but the location was excellent, with easy access to I-85 and the zone five precinct near Centennial Olympic Park. They were also less than ten minutes from the high-rise where Kristen worked. Still, she'd been nagging him about moving to one of the newer, fancier—albeit smaller and pricier—loft apartments stacked along Midtown.
The fluorescent panel hummed, emitting an electrical crackle before leaving Nate in darkness. Grumbling, he pushed the elevator button and stared through the deck's steel barriers at the IHOP building that was now an all-you-can-eat Korean buffet. He waited impatiently as the mechanical coffin rumbled its way down to him, nearly drowning out what sounded like the faint approach of footsteps. He turned and peered into the grainy darkness.
The garage gave him the creeps. He'd talk to the super tomorrow—he didn't want Kristen down here in the dark. Despite the city's enthusiastic PR spin, crime inside the Perimeter had only continued to worsen. There were muggings, robberies and car-jackings these days even in the best parts of town. Not to mention, criminal activity always got worse in the summer heat. As the elevator neared his floor, the overhead light winked back to life. The convex curve of the security mirror to the right of the bay caught Nate's attention. A human form, clad in an oversize hooded sweatshirt despite the muggy night, was visible in the mirror's reflection.
Nate whirled. He extracted his weapon from his holster, losing his grip on the .38 as the blast hit him. He staggered and fell to the concrete floor. Surprise gave way to a screaming pain.
The light flickered off again as the hooded form inched closer. In disbelief, Nate pushed away, kicking clumsily with his feet like a wounded sand crab.
His gun was out of reach, lost somewhere in the deck's shadowy recesses. Behind him, the elevator doors slid open. His frantic pulse thudded in his ears. Nate tried to locate his cell, pawing at his coat pocket, but his fingers had grown numb and useless. His voice croaked out a cry for help that ended in a wet cough. He tasted blood.
Welcome Back to Apple Grove by Admirand, C.H.


text:
Aloe prostrata (previously Lomatophyllum prostratum) is a species of Aloe indigenous to Antsiranana Province (Ankarana), Madagascar. Here it grows in shady forests overlying limestone.

Description
This species is low-growing, non-caulescent rosette, with long (15-20mm), narrow (1.5-2mm), curved, dark-green leaves. The dark leaves have many pale, confluent spots and small (3mm) marginal teeth.
The plant is mildly stoloniferous, and can form clumps. The flowers are red, and are born on a simple, cylindrical inflorescence. The fruits are long-lasting berries.

Aloe prostrata subsp. pallida
The subspecies pallida can be distinguished by its pallid colour.  It has both paler leaves (light-green) and paler flowers (pinkish or yellow).

Relatives
It is part of a group of aloes which all bear fleshy berries, and were therefore classed as a separate group, Lomatophyllum.
Within this group it is closely related to the solitary, faintly lineate species Aloe sakarahensis.

References

prostrata
Endemic flora of Madagascar
Taxa named by Joseph Marie Henry Alfred Perrier de la Bâthie

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
Q: Is it possible to define the type of array needed in args? i would like to do something like this:
class CCC {}
function abc(array of CCC $variable)

Is this possible in php?

A: No.
You'll need to manually check:
function foo(array $arr) {
    if (array_filter($arr, function ($i) { return !($i instanceof CCC); })) {
        throw new InvalidArgumentException('Array must contain instances of CCC');
    }

    ...
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Today must Bloggers have this issue of configuring or hosting their Domain name. our Internet today have now become a knowledge hub were you can get what ever you want. And you know were the best part is? It doesn't work with power religion or any thing but your knowledge.
Now I know you are here to learn or to increase your knowledge about how to set your custom Domain.
It is not difficult to set up your domain, if you already own a blog then have that passion for it.
Visit www.Blogger.Com again then click save I think it won't save they would be an error 32 saying that we have not verify the authority to the domain.
Click on DNS zone file then choose classic DNS Manager.
Ose you giving what most pple will not give free.
I'm always having problem in the process. Don't know if it is my phone.
Thank you am very happy to come across this and it really helps.
Awesome post sir. This post is really very helpfull for new bloggers. You made it really easy to understand. Now we can set up our custom domain in blogger in just 5 minutes.
They now have been instructed about australian assignment help review & the climate states of better places and their patterns and relying on their own decision of climate they go to spots of interests completely guaranteed of everything.


Epson L850 Printer Review, Price and Specification - This follower of Epson L800 can now print photos or files without linking it to a PC. Epson has actually been in the field of printers and MFDs for numerous years and the business has actually been thoughtful enough to send out across its latest children on the photo-printing block L850 professional/home photo printer. The Epson L850 is targeted at photo lovers and home.
Photo specialists will understand that no matter how huge the mobile phone screen or screen's resolution and pixel density are, absolutely nothing is as appealing as high quality printed photos. The very best aspect of Epson L850 Printer Review, Price and Specification is that printing photos now has exceptionally low expense. EcoTank (aka InkTank) innovation Epson presented couple of years back is now correctly practical, and the L850 not has affordable plastic of the case.
Through them you can print files or photos straight, without making use of PC and without requirement for any drivers. The only thing missing out on is the WiFi connection that would enable you to print files or photos wireless.
6 ink bottles (Bk, C, M, Y, LC, LM).
Driver and software application CD.
While printing comes with low expense for expert photographers or photo studios. As we understand, you can print 1.800 photos in 15 x 10 cm format with one refill.
In technical terms, the Epson L850 Printer Review, Price and Specification is a colour inkjet multifunction printer. Moving it around is challenging when put. With a height of 19.6 cm, it has a substantial footprint of 54.2 cm (width) x 38.6 cm (depth).
It is for that reason anticipated to be a great alternative for photo printing. It is more hassle-free to fill up the ink tanks as they are present outside the body of the printer rather than within the bay where the printing heads are positioned. One bad design element I might point out is that the detachable compartment real estate the ink tanks connects really freely to the printer body and the plan can be described lightweight at finest when compared to the building of the printer itself.
This MFD includes an openable flap with a drawer-like input tray at the back of the device and can allow an optimum of 100 sheets of A4 paper or 20 sheets of photo paper. It is unexpected to see that while there is a marker to show the position of this slider for CD/DVD printing, Epson has actually not supplied any marking for 4x6 photos, even though this gadget has actually been promoted to be for photo lovers.
A sd card slot is located at the front centre of the gadget and it can check out lots of sd card formats. Simply the left of the memory slot, you can see the PictBridge/USB port for direct printing from a suitable electronic camera or cellphone. This can likewise check out from USB drives as long as they have FAT32 file system.
The only hardware button over here is the power push button. There are no different buttons for colour and black copy, so you require to pick this in the UI and acquire a copy making use of the single copy button.
You can likewise access the sd card and unique print functions here. Images on the card can be seen in a slide program and you can even print an index sheet.
The Reprint/Restore function is an awesome one, letting you scan an old picture and bring back the initial colours (or a minimum of attempt to doing this) prior to reprinting. The UI is extremely much still the exact same as was in 7 years old Epson designs such as the TX700W, it is simple and quite slick to make use of.
The control panel is hinged at one end and can be rotated and locked into a position that lets you put it at a comfy seeing angle by pushing a button present at the. You can utilize the control and see panel quickly even if you are sitting on the mfd and a chair is put on the floor.
Needless to state, the MFD can be made use of to copy without linking to a PC. Unlike lots of other MFDs, you do not have a devoted Scan button, so you can not scan to a file, e-mail or image on the difficult drive at simply the press of a button.
The L850 supports just USB connection and there is no assistance for any cordless method such as W-Fi or Bluetooth, which is a surprise in this price section, specifically with the abundance of cordless gadgets. An excellent thing about this design is that the USB cable television can not be inadvertently pulled and unplugged.
The power cable television connecteds into the back at an unpleasant angle and unlike the USB cable television, it plugs just midway within the plug hole and I would not be shocked if it gets taken out mistakenly.
The general print quality is fairly great in healthy and finest quality. You likewise have the choice to print straight to CD/DVD deals with.
It makes use of 6 different ink tanks and is for that reason more cost-effective as they can be separately filled up and produce much better prints due to manage over 6 various colours. Hence, if we think about that the printer makes use of all the cartridges together and prints 1800 pages prior to all the cartridges are used up, the expense per page comes to just Rs 2, which is not bad for a colour print. If you think about just black prints, the expense per page drops to 1/6th of that value to simply 33 paise!
Epson printer driver offers 2 toll-free numbers one for service and one for buying ink bottles to be easily provided to your doorstep. It features a 1-year guarantee. Priced at Rs.27,000, this is a fairly costly out of reach of a lot of home users, however I will still suggest it for photo lovers due to its speed, economy, and exceptional photo printing.
Pros: Excellent photo print quality and speed, Easy to utilize swivel control board with colour LCD and slick touch controls.
Cons: Expensive, Heavy and large, No devoted "Scan" button, No cordless connection at its high price-point.


text:
Q: nodejs intercept send function with more that one functions i try to creating a simple interceptor to inject a console.log inside all middlewares. But i have a problem when inside a route i define more that one function.
const express = require('express');
const  moment = require('moment');
require('dotenv').config();
const app = express();

const config = {
    PORT: process.env.PORT,
    ENV: process.env.ENV,
    STATIC: process.env.STATIC,
    LABEL: (req)=>`${req.method} ${req.url} request timing`
}

//intercptor
const interceptor = function (...callback){
 return (req,res,next)=>{
     console.log(`info res.headersSent `,res.headersSent);
    const oldSend = res.send;
    res.send = function(data){
        console.log('SEND->',res.headersSent);
        oldSend.apply(res, arguments);

        console.timeEnd(config.LABEL(req));
        console.log(`INFO res.headersSent `,res.headersSent);
    }
    for(let i = 0 ; i<callback.length;i++){
        console.log(`res.headersSent [${i}]`,res.headersSent);
        console.log(">>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> execute")
        callback[i](req,res,next);
        if (res.headersSent) {
            console.log(`NOT EXEC!! res.headersSent [${i}]`,res.headersSent);
            return;
        }

    }

};
};

app.get('/example',interceptor(
 (req, res, next)=>{console.log('Hello from example 1!');next();},
         (req, res, next)=>{res.send('Hello from example 4!');},
))

app.post('/example',route(function (req, res, next){
console.log('this is example 1-B');
res.send('Hello from example 1-B!');
}))

when i send request in postman i recive "Hello from example 4!" on screen, but my server go down.
SERVER CONSOLE
**************************************************
                 CONFIGURATION
 PORT: 3001
 ENV: development
 STATIC: /public
 LABEL: (req)=>`${req.method} ${req.url} request timing`
**************************************************
info res.headersSent  false
res.headersSent [0] false
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>eseguo
Hello from example 1!
res.headersSent [1] false
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>eseguo
SEND-> false
GET /example?a=1 request timing: 32.235ms
INFO res.headersSent  true
NON ESEGUO res.headersSent [1] true
_http_outgoing.js:470
    throw new ERR_HTTP_HEADERS_SENT('set');
    ^

Error [ERR_HTTP_HEADERS_SENT]: Cannot set headers after they are sent to the client
    at ServerResponse.setHeader (_http_outgoing.js:470:11)
    at Array.write (C:\xampp\htdocs\node-server\node_modules\finalhandler\index.js:285:9)
    at listener (C:\xampp\htdocs\node-server\node_modules\on-finished\index.js:169:15)
    at onFinish (C:\xampp\htdocs\node-server\node_modules\on-finished\index.js:100:5)
    at callback (C:\xampp\htdocs\node-server\node_modules\ee-first\index.js:55:10)
    at IncomingMessage.onevent (C:\xampp\htdocs\node-server\node_modules\ee-first\index.js:93:5)
    at IncomingMessage.emit (events.js:203:15)
    at endReadableNT (_stream_readable.js:1145:12)
    at process._tickCallback (internal/process/next_tick.js:63:19)
Waiting for the debugger to disconnect...
npm ERR! code ELIFECYCLE
npm ERR! errno 1
npm ERR! node-server-test@1.0.0 start: `node index.js`
npm ERR! Exit status 1
npm ERR!
npm ERR! Failed at the node-server-test@1.0.0 start script.
npm ERR! This is probably not a problem with npm. There is likely additional logging output above.
Waiting for the debugger to disconnect...

Process finished with exit code 1

if i work with only one function in middleware, all work

A: my error!
const InterceptorSend=function(req, res, next) {
    var oldSend = res.send;

    res.send = function(data){
        oldSend.apply(res, arguments);
        console.timeEnd(config.LABEL(req));
    }
    next();
}
    app.use(InterceptorSend);
app.get('/example',
     (req, res, next)=>{console.log('Step 1');next();},
             (req, res, next)=>{console.log('Step 2');res.send('Hello from example 2');},
             (req, res, next)=>{console.log('Step 3');res.send('Hello from example 2B');}
    )


text:
Savannah-Chatham school board to discuss updates to school construction, penny sales tax
Barbara Augsdorfer
The Savannah-Chatham County Board of Education will hold its first regularly scheduled meeting Wednesday since school opened Aug. 4 with full-time five-day-a-week instruction.
The board has been meeting by Zoom and later in person since schools were closed March 2020 because of COVID.
While the incidences of positive COVID exposures at numerous schools were identified during the first days of school, the school board agenda includes bell times, student transportation and updates to construction and renovation projects within the district.
More:More than 20 cases of COVID-19 exposure at Savannah-Chatham County schools since Wednesday
The meeting will be livestreamed starting at 2 p.m. Wednesday on the district's YouTube channel at youtube.com/user/SCCPSSCommunications. The public can attend the board meeting in person in the "Professional Learning Center" adjacent to the board room at the Whitney Administrative Complex, 2 Laura Ave. COVID-19 protection protocols are in place and face masks are required to be worn inside all school district buildings.
More:Live in person: Savannah-Chatham teachers, students return to school five days a week
Among the items on the agenda, the board is scheduled to ratify a vote on the adjusted bell schedules for K-8 schools – a decision that was made a few days before the start of school to allow the transportation department to create more bus runs to transport more students, according to the district.
Last week, school officials said parents of K-8 students who may have initially declined bus service for their students — or who hadn't responded to the survey at all — have until Wednesday to respond to that survey if they now need transportation for their student based on the new bell times. Surveys were reissued to more than 1,600 families.
Penny sales tax update
The board will also hear an update on projects completed or in progress funded through the Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (ESPLOST) III and projects planned for ESPLOST IV.
ESPLOST III projects include numerous upgrades to school roofing, labs, HVAC systems, and purchasing new technology and school buses.
ESPLOST is a penny sales tax that everyone pays. Approximately 55% of those funds come from tourists or residents from outside of Chatham County who shop and spend money within the county.
More:What parents, students, Savannah need to know when school starts Wednesday
"ESPLOST is really a wonderful tool," said Ann Levett, district superintendent, on Monday in a conversation with Adam Brimmer on The Commute podcast. "If you're in other parts of the country, you may not see this kind of building plan [or] this kind of action."
She added the community's support of ESPLOST indicates its love for children.
Most of the ESPLOST III major construction projects are completed or near completion and also coming in under or just slightly over budget. Among the construction projects funded by ESPLOST III, according to the meeting agenda, are:
• The new White Bluff Elementary School to replace the original buildings from 1957. The project's final cost was $21.2 million. The project came in $1.7 million under the projected budget and those funds were returned to the district's "unallocated" ESPLOST funds.
• The new Jenkins High School, which is nearing completion. The projected cost at completion is $68.3 million – with $1.3 million estimated to be returned to the unallocated ESPLOST budget.
• The new New Hampstead K-8 School, which scheduled for completion and move-in by January 2022. The projected cost at completion is $44.4 million with $277,000 estimated to be returned to the unallocated ESPLOST budget.
• The Islands High School athletic complex, with a final cost of $6.6 million. This project incurred an estimated budget overrun of $21,000, which was covered by the unallocated ESPLOST funds.
Additional construction projects include the new K-12 complex, with completion in mid-2023; the Beach High School auditorium; Woodville Tompkins gym and auditorium, and the Savannah High School stadium. These latter projects are in progress and nearing completion.
ESPLOST IV will be on the Nov. 2 ballot. Projects the district hopes to fund with the sales tax renewal are listed on the district website at sccpss.com.
"What a way to show your care for students than to have them operating in buildings that have been modernized or replaced, so that they can learn and experience the love of their teachers and their community in those spaces," Levett said on the podcast. "Plus they're great spaces for our community members to use as well."
Barbara Augsdorfer is the education and nonprofits reporter for the Savannah Morning News. Reach her at BAugsdorfer@gannett.com or on Twitter @Babs7983.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
What does the Bible say about crystals?
A lot of people are fascinated with crystals, many regarding them to possess mystical power that can be utilized for healing purposes. Some believe that crystals can also stimulate spiritual growth and bring about a positive transformation in life experience. Is it O.K. to be actively involved with crystal healing and crystal power? What counsel does the Bible give in this matter?
Crystals certainly are beautiful objects, for they were created by God. Portions of God's glorious heavenly city, the New Jerusalem, will be constructed from crystal. It's in the Bible, Revelation 21:11, & 18-20 NIV. "It shone with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. The wall was made of jasper, and the city of pure gold, as pure as glass. The foundations of the city walls were decorated with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation was jasper, the second sapphire, the third chalcedony, the fourth emerald, the fifth sardonyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, and the twelfth amethyst. "
When evaluating the appropriateness of using crystals for healing purposes, it is important to be aware of the fact that the majority of experts who promote crystal healing are involved in the occult. The word occult means 'hidden'. Occultism concerns itself with the study and utilization of supernatural influences, powers and phenomena that are normally hidden from the regular physical senses, and are generally considered to be outside the realm of traditional scientific observation. Occultists believe that human beings, and the world in which we live, are permeated by invisible mystical energies. They believe that these energies can be focused and directed by 'sacred stones', such as crystals and other talismans, so as to induce physical healing and spiritual enlightenment. In addition to involvement with crystal power, occultism is associated with other mystical practices such as astrology, numerology, divination, tarot cards, psychic healing, mediumship, spirit channeling, Eastern religions, ritual magic and sorcery.
What does God say about involvement with the occult? He warned the Israelites against it when they were about to enter the Promised Land of Canaan. It's in the Bible, Deuteronomy 18:9-12 NIV. "When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. Let no one be found among you who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord."
The use of 'sacred stones' for mystical purposes was common among the pagan peoples of the Bible Lands. Called amulets, these magical charms were made in the form of small pendants attached to a necklace or bracelet. They were worn to protect a person from negative energies, evil and injury, and also to bring good luck. God uttered a stern warning to the false prophetesses of Israel, who in their apostasy had adopted the pagan practice of wearing amulets. It's in the Bible, Ezekiel 13:18, 20 & 21 NIV. "This is what the Sovereign Lord says: 'Woe to the women who sew magic charms on all their wrists and make veils of various lengths for their heads in order to ensnare people. Will you ensnare the lives of my people but preserve your own? I am against your magic charms with which you ensnare people like birds, and I will tear them from your arms; I will set free the people that you ensnare like birds. I will tear off your veils and save my people from your hands, and they will no longer fall prey to your power.' "
The Bible categorizes the use of amulets as a form of pagan magic. Modern proponents of crystal power regard crystal healing to be 'benevolent magic', also known as 'white magic'. Occult magic can sometimes produce spectacular manifestations of power. Instances of this are described in the Bible. For example, Exodus 7:10-12 NIV, "So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as the Lord commanded. Aaron threw his staff down in front of Pharaoh and his officials, and it became a snake. Pharaoh then summoned wise men and sorcerers; and the Egyptian magicians also did the same thing by their secret arts. Each one threw down his staff and it became a snake." From a description of the two other miracles performed by Pharaoh's sorcerers, we know they were using occult powers, not sleight-of-hand stage-type magic.
Miracles, signs and wonders can often be the work of Satan. It's in the Bible, 2 Thessalonians 2:9 & 10 NIV. "The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing." Under the command of Satan and his principalities, demonic spirits manifest these miraculous signs. Revelation 16:13 & 14, "Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs." Spirits are angelic beings. Hebrews 1:14.NIV, "Are not all angels ministering spirits…?"
Occult magic was practiced during the era of the Early Church. It's in the Bible, Acts 8:9-13 NAS. "Now there was a certain man named Simon, who formerly was practicing magic in the city, and astonishing the people of Samaria, claiming to be someone great. And they all, from smallest to greatest, were giving attention to him, saying, 'This man is what is called the Great Power of God.' And they were giving him attention because he had for a long time astonished them with his magic arts. But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike. And even Simon himself believed; and after being baptized, he continued on with Philip; and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed."
Simon discovered that the power of God was far greater than the power of the Occult, and that true healing comes from the Lord. It's in the Bible, Psalm 103:2-4 NIV. "Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion."
In the Early Church at Ephesus, practitioners of occult magic become acquatinted with the Gospel through the ministry of the apostle Paul. They were converted, and then destroyed their occult textbooks. It's in the Bible, Acts 19:17-19 NKJV, "…the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds. Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver."
At the Second Coming of Jesus, practitioners of the occult will be prohibited from entry into the glorious New Jerusalem. It's in the Bible, Revelation 22:14 & 15 NIV. "Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. Outside are the dogs, those who practice magic arts, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters and everyone who loves and practices falsehood."
Failing to inherit eternal life, those who practice magic arts will, tragically, find themselves condemned to experience the second death. Revelation 21:2, 7 & 8 NIV, "I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."


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India vs South Africa 2nd Test preview: Confident hosts ...
India vs South Africa 2nd Test preview: Confident hosts aim to seal series at Pune
Tags: South Africa tour of India 2019, India vs South Africa, 2nd Test at Ranchi, Oct 10-14, 2019, India, South Africa, Test Series
Published on: Oct 10, 2019
Having gained a significant 1-0 lead in the three-match series hosts India will be confident of putting it across South Africa when the teams meet for the second Test beginning
Having gained a significant 1-0 lead in the three-match series hosts India will be confident of putting it across South Africa when the teams meet for the second Test beginning October 10. Except for a couple of sessions where the Proteas put up a fight, it was all India at Visakhapatnam.
Heading into the Pune Test, what India can do is to not relax and improve further on their 203-run victory. There were unending positives for India from the 1st Test. For starters, the decision to open with Rohit Sharma proved to be a smash hit as he scored hundreds in both innings and broke the record for most sixes in a Test by an Indian. With Rohit's success, the opening slot for the home season seems sorted.
Rohit's opening partner, Mayank Agarwal, also took a few steps forward in his journey as a Test cricketer. After failing to convert his first three fifties into big scores, Agarwal went on to hit 215 in his very first Test at home. It was an innings that proved Agarwal is hungry to make up for lost time. Things seem rosy for now at the top. How the Rohit-Agarwal pair performs away from home remains to be seen.
India's bowling in the first Test was also highly impressive despite the absence of their strike bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who has led the attack admirably for the last year. The spin twins Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja made the best use of the surface and troubled most South African batsmen en route to their record-breaking performances.
India was impressive in the pace department as well, particularly Mohammed Shami in the second innings, who ran through the opposition at a time when Ashwin was unable to get the breakthroughs. Shami's skills with the old ball have not only added a new dimension to his game but have also made India a stronger bowling attack all-round.
South Africa has not had much to cheer but for Dean Elgar and Quinton de Kock's hundred in the first innings at Pune. Skipper Faf du Plessis got some runs but as a leader, a lot more would be expected of him. The likes of Aiden Markram, Theunis de Bruyn, and Temba Bavuma would be expected to do much better than they did in the first Test.
The visitors would look to change things around with the ball considering the three spinners did not make much of an impact at Visakhapatnam. As such, there are chances that Dane Piedt or Senuran Muthusamy might make way for Lungi Ngidi. Of course, the last time India played here, against Australia in 2017, Nathan Lyon ran riot. The current Indian batting line-up though is much better suited to deal with the conditions, and South Africa also lacks a Lyon-type match-winner.
The weather, like at Visakhapatnam, is a bit of a worry. There is a prediction for rain with thunderstorms in Pune over the next 72 overs. However, superior drying facilities could reduce the damage.
India likely XI: Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Chesteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (C), Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Wriddhiman Saha (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami
South Africa XI: Aiden Markram, Dean Elgar, Theunis de Bruyn, Temba Bavuma, Francois du Plessis (C), Zubayr Hamza, Quinton de Kock (WK), Senuran Muthusamy, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi


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DIRECTING RESUME
ACTING RESUME
Bio
Amy holds a Bachelor's degree in Theatre from the University of Denver, a Master's Degree in Education from the University of Colorado Denver, and a PhD. in Theatre from the University of Colorado Boulder. Amy recently published her first monograph, Disney Theatrical Productions: Producing Broadway the Disney Way, which is available from Routledge. The book explores the production practices of the theatrical producing arm of the Walt Disney Corporation, dissecting how the theatre company functions as an independent producer under the umbrella of a multi-billion dollar entertainment corporation. In addition to her work on Disney Theatrical Productions, Amy's research interests include contemporary theatre and musical theatre and its intersections with popular culture and digital media and digital theatrical technologies. Amy also has expertise and interest in American theatre, theatre history, acting, directing, and design. Amy has begun work on her second book, which will explore Broadway musical theatre in the first twenty years of the twenty-first century.
In addition to her research, Amy has been teaching theatre since 2005. She is an Assistant Professor of Theatre in Directing at the University of Northern Iowa where she regularly teaches courses in directing, script analysis, and musical theatre and directs productions in the department's season. She spent several years as the Education Programs Director for Inspire Creative, an arts organization in Parker, Colorado, where she developed a brand new theatre education program for students ages 5-18 in conjunction with the Town of Parker and the Parker Arts and Cultural Center. She has also taught children's theatre for the Aurora Fox and the Colorado Shakespeare Festival.
From 2008-2013 Amy ran the nationally acclaimed drama program at Heritage High School in Littleton, Colorado. Under Amy's direction, the department went from approximately fifty students to approximately two-hundred students. In Amy's time running the program, she produced five shows a season, and the program was named a BroadwayWorld.com School in the Spotlight. Amy's former students went on to study performance, design, and technical theatre at some of the best theatre schools in the country and working professionally all over the country including New York and Los Angeles.
In addition to her teaching and scholarship, Amy has been performing since she was five years old. The theatre bug bit her early when she played the Baker's Wife in Stone Soup at the age of five. She also spent many years singing with the Colorado Children's Chorale. some of Amy's recent roles include: Fastrada in Pippin and Mae in the Wild Party with Ignite Theatre, Ms. Andrew in Mary Poppins and Madame De La Grand Bouche in Beauty and the Beast with Inspire Creative and the PACE Center. Amy also co-created and performed in Anything You Can Do, I Can Do...? A Cabaret with colleague Jim Bray at UNI. The cabaret featured four UNI students and explored diversity and representation in musical theatre.
Amy is also an accomplished director. In August of 2012 she directed the Denver Regional Premiere of Spring Awakening the Musical at the Aurora Fox for Ignite Theatre. Her directing credits include: Oliver!, You're A Good Man Charlie Brown, Once Upon A Mattress, Almost, Maine, Antigone, Xanadu the Musical, The Diary of Anne Frank, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and numerous others. In the summer of 2014 she co-directed the critically acclaimed production of RENT for Ignite with artistic director Keith Rabin Jr. and she directed the zany fall 2016 production of Singin' in the Rain, at the PACE Center in Parker, Colorado. She also directed the stunning production of The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds for the Department of Theatre and Dance at CU Boulder in 2015. Since joining the Department of Theatre at the University of Northern Iowa, Amy has directed Hair, Legacy of Light, and Cabaret. Amy als directed Theatre Cedar Rapids' Athletic 2019 production of Newsies.
Amy has also served as a designer for numerous productions. She is an experienced projection and sound designer and has also worked as a scenic, costume, and lighting designer. Amy is also a music director and vocal coach.


The cleanest air in the U.S., as measured by the American Lung Association's State of The Air Report 2013, is in Prescott, Arizona. Specifically, Prescott's air is the cleanest metropolitan air in a 24 hour period for particulate pollution.
"Particulate matter," also known as particle pollution or PM, is a complex mixture of extremely small particles and liquid droplets. Particle pollution is made up of a number of components, including acids (such as nitrates and sulfates), organic chemicals, metals, and soil or dust particles.
Prescott, AZ: A picture perfect lifestyle.
"Inhalable coarse particles," such as those found near roadways and dusty industries, are larger than 2.5 micrometers and smaller than 10micrometers in diameter.
Prescott, AZ: A great flight plan.
"Fine particles," such as those found in smoke and haze, are 2.5 micrometers in diameter and smaller. These particles can be directly emitted from sources such as forest fires, or they can form when gases emitted from power plants, industries and automobiles react in the air.
READ MORE on EPA.gov site.
It's not just the 300+ days of sunshine nor just the challenge of high altitude flight training that attracts our student pilots from all over the nation.


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Q: MySQL UPDATE query (PDO) inexplicably not working I have been working on a website and recently added some changes to  it, despite attempting to comment out said changes, my UPDATE query is not working- I have been attempting to figure out why for the last 3ish hours to no avail.
if (isset($_POST['submit']))
{
    if (count($rated)<$_SESSION['id'])
    {
        $difference = $_SESSION['id'] - count($rated);

        $rated = implode(',',$rated);
        while ($difference >= 0)
        {
            $rated .= "0,";
            $difference--;
        }
        $rated = explode(',',$rated);
    }

    $rated[$_SESSION['id']] = $_POST['rating'];

    $ratings = 0;
    $ratingsadded = 0;
    foreach ($rated as $user => $rating)
    {
        if ($rating != 0)
        {
            $query = $db->prepare("SELECT id, active FROM accounts WHERE id = :id");
            $query->execute(array('id' => $user));
            $useractive = $query->fetch();

            if ($useractive['active'] == 1 || $user == 0 || $user == 50)
            {
                $ratings++;
                $ratingsadded += $rating;
            }
            else
            {
                $rated[$user] = 0;
            }
        }
    }
    $ratingtotal = $ratingsadded / $ratings;

    $query = $db->prepare("UPDATE accounts SET rating = :rating, rated = :rated WHERE id = :id");
    $query->execute(array('rating' => $ratingtotal, 'rated' => implode(",",$rated), 'id' => $user['id']));
    header('Location: ?user=' . $_GET['user']);
}

Note: The query at the very end is the one I am referring to.
Secondary note: I know that there are quite a few inefficiencies in my code.
Full code: http://pastebin.com/ybb71U6k

A: I think you are supposed to write your execute like this
$query->execute(array(':rating' => $ratingtotal, ':rated' => implode(",",$rated), ':id' => $user['id']));

Note : in front of every named parameter.
Reference: http://php.net/manual/en/pdo.prepare.php

A: Whilst Rajdeep has deleted his answers, I intended on responding with the following:
Thank you very much, whilst your answer was a tiny bit off, it pointed out the problem I had- I was using $user as a foreach key value and as a query result.
I have found the problem and it was a case of simple stupidity and assigning variables atop of other variables.
I am sorry for putting you all through the trouble of attempting to assist me for this.


Produce a core cv and then create other versions that are tailored for specific roles that you apply for.
Use the grammar checker in MS Word or Google Docs(free). Spelin and poore gramer will wrek youre chance of sucess!
Format the CV and be consistent with your technique throughout the document.
Use the header on page 1 for name. The footer on all pages for your address and contact methods. Any other pertinent personal detail should be put at the very end.
If you have a Linkedin, twitter, Facebook page or other social site that provides another dimension to your CV then reference it on your contact detail. If your Social image does not portray you in a positive way then take action immediately.
Build your CV around key words and phrases from the job description or advert.
Know where your CV is going. Make contact with the recruiter or employer, find out who is responsible and ask about the process and time scale involved.
Use an email that is either your name or a variation of your name. Never use comedic or pet names.
Identify each CV with your name and the date you created it.Save to a folder that has the job title and you applied as its name. Save all folders under a master folder such as CV2011.
If you know how to create a simple database then use one to organise your CV and career search.


Rock Themed Show Thursday 22nd October Decadence at Full Service, Now in our 29th Year.
Thursday 22nd October 2009, Central London (WC1) Location. Rock Themed Show (it's My DJ, Mick ''Monsta'' Wood's Birthday). Floor Shows 7.00pm - 11.30pm (No Entry After 11.00pm) Private Dances Until 11.45pm*.
Members and Their Guests £20 in advance - £30 on the door, Non-Members £30 in advance (email me for more details).
Download Rules and Application Form at the website.
Adriana, Bonnie Simon, Cayman, Chun Li, Crystal, Crystal Pink, Dion, Elizabeth Michele Lawrence, Entyce, Eve, Foxiie, Georgia, Honey, Iris **, Jasmine, Jessica Jane, Karen Wood, Kat Baillie, Leah Jaye, Lois, Lola, Sascha Delish, Sasha, Stefany, Tammy Oldham, Taylor, and Tracy Venus.


text:
Apocalypticism
What Do You Take With You and What Do You Leave Behind?
I had the great good fortune to attend a talk at NYU in September 2016 on the environmental humanities—an effort to explore how to think or write about life in the Anthropocene amid climate change. This discipline endeavors to respond to the reality that assessing the impact of, or mitigating or adapting to, the environmental crisis is not simply about providing economic and policy pre- or proscriptions. Nor can it simply be about popularizing science or dumping data upon the public and hoping that an informed polity will pressurize politicians to pass laws that address the consequences to which those data point. Our attitudes toward the environment reflect our histories, cultures, and values—which is why environmentalism broadly conceived needs to take into account of the way we talk about and imagine ourselves as living and cultural beings within all kinds of ecosystems, biological and social.
As you might imagine, such a line of thinking is close to and expressive of the concerns of the Vegan America Project. I was particularly struck by the conversation between Rob Nixon and Ursula Heise (moderated by Una Chaudhuri) that questioned our tendency in the West to fall back on familiar tropes when we think of nature—such as the pastoral or the apocalyptic—to delineate how our social order might reflect environmental realities. Heise mentioned that an alternative to utopian or dystopian futures might be an "optopian" vision, whereby a society is neither perfectly good nor radically evil, but has optimized its possibilities and minimized its difficulties or undesirabilities.
I also very much appreciated Nixon's use of the English poet John Clare's phrase that we're all being "moved out of our knowledge." Clare (1793–1864) was writing at a time when the Industrial Revolution was uprooting many communities from the land and transferring them to the city and so radically changing the English countryside as a result. Nixon indicated that we're in such a time again, and considering ourselves being "moved out of our knowledge" might help us to find means to articulate our fears and feelings. To that extent, Nixon observed that scholars at the University of Exeter in England are working with the National Trust on what is termed "anticipatory history"—an effort to use England's records of its ancient past to anticipate whether to preserve a piece of land that will be within decades washed away by the sea or find an equivalent piece of land of equal or similar heritage value that could be saved in its stead.
Being "moved out of our knowledge" echoed for me a question that I've often found myself asking in recent years: "What do you take with you and what do you leave behind?" It's a question that aims at the heart of cultural, religious, ethnic, social, and psychological identity—one that is already affecting everyone within the remotest micro-nationality and the most sophisticated and globally integrated civilization, and every polity in between.
A case in point is some of those in the Maasai community, with whom Brighter Green works. As pastoralists, the Maasai—particularly the men—have long defined themselves by the cattle they live with. Boys herd them; the traditional rite of passage for a boy to become a man is through the tracking and killing of a lion to show that you can protect the cattle; marriage dowries are determined by the exchange of cattle; and wealth in general is revealed by how many cattle you own.
The Maasai face the challenges that confront many pastoral peoples today. Their populations are increasing, and so are the number of cattle. As they do so, their traditional lands are being overgrazed and desertifying, a situation not helped by irregular rainfall patterns and hotter temperatures across the region because of climate change. Pastoralists have always contested territories with agricultural communities, and these conflicts are intensifying as water resources and grazeable land grow scarce. Because the Maasai consider themselves an indigenous community, whose traditional territories go beyond geopolitical (and colonial) borders, they find it difficult to prosecute their needs in national parliaments, which are filled with members from communities that would like the Maasai to settle down and become agriculturalists. Because tourist revenue from visitors to national parks are a considerable source of income, Maasai encroachment into such parks to graze cattle and their pursuit of lions that may have attacked their cattle, or as an initiation rite, are unwelcome—even though all recognize that these parks are often on the most fertile land and were established by white settlers and colonial forces to keep black and poor Kenyans out.
In a discussion in New York City in 2016, we heard from our Francis Sakuda that Maasai men are, like many rural job-seekers, moving to the cities, where many become guards or nightwatchmen because their visual and auditory senses are more acute (the result of having tended cattle throughout the day and night when they were children). Those men that remain are becoming agriculturalists and even raising chickens, work that is traditionally assigned to women. Francis is acutely aware of the need for his community to bypass industrial development and use clean energy to power its way into the future. He wants the Maasai to use solar technology for its energy: to power lights, so that children, for instance, can study after dark; for refrigeration (to keep vaccines and other items freezing); and to enable access to the outside world through run televisions and to charge cellphone batteries.
When I asked Francis whether it was possible for him to imagine Maasai without cattle, he shook his head. The Maasai were too identified with cattle, he said, to abandon them completely. Nonetheless, he acknowledged that his community had to move with the times and that some of the changes that had already occurred were unimaginable previously.
It's easy for outsiders to romanticize the life of pastoralists, indigenous communities, or native peoples, and to assume that their relationship with the natural world and other animals was always one of respect and symbiosis, and unchangeable relationship extending back into the distant past. It's also as easy as it is for any community to present themselves to outsiders as the honorable bearers of an eternal vision of Man in harmony with Nature as a way to ensure they are granted more weight in discussions at governmental level and in international forums. Sooner or later, however, as the Maasai are discovering, any fixed identity will meet the realities of cultural change, political demands, and the limits of the ecosystem. And that is what Francis and his community are trying to negotiate.
It's my hunch that if the Maasai can give up cattle as a marker of wealth, masculinity, and identity, then Americans can do the same with the hamburger or the steak, or for that matter the cowboy and rancher can do with their cattle. These latter identities, constructed and developed throughout the nineteenth century by storytellers and showmen, such as "Buffalo Bill" Cody, and popularized through John Wayne and the Western, were always narratives that expressed the wish to be free of the constraints of the domestic and collective responsibility, and as a means of individual self-expression and stoical and singular masculinity. If they were constructed then, then they can be deconstructed and dismantled now. Or—as Francis and the Maasai are trying to figure out—they can be recoded to be something different; something more sustainable.
In the end, the question of what we take with us and what we leave behind not only asks us to think about who we are and with what or whom we identify ourselves, but to examine honestly just how attached we are to those characteristics and why they hold such a purchase on us. Environmental humanities offers a wonderful opportunity to reflect on the psychosocial complexities involved in those buzzwords of contemporary development specialists—adaptation and resilience—and our tendency to essentialize our own behavior and relativize everyone else's. I'm sure we'll have a lot more to say in the realm of environmental humanities in the weeks and months to come.
Planet Earth Is Cooked—Why Bother?
It's worth addressing still one more question that might be made at this stage about the Vegan America Project: and that is what we might call the nihilistic argument. We've already addressed those who claim that global warming is either a conspiracy cooked up by the Powers that Be or that its risks are vastly overstated. As we argued, the skeptics might add (not necessarily inaccurately) that in the short or medium term the changes to Earth's climate will benefit some areas even as other regions dry up or flood, leaving it a net neutral in spite of the accompanying misery that will likely descend upon tens of millions of vulnerable people or the decimation of numerous species of flora and fauna.
There are those, however, whose response to climate change might be "Bring it on!" They might comment that the human project on this planet has been one of destruction and that Earth will finally begin the much-needed "correction" to eliminate the predatory primate that has imbalanced Gaia. Earth produced (and destroyed) life for eons before the various hominins journeyed from Africa to carry out their massacres and it will do the same for eons after our sojourn here, before our sun in a couple of billion years expands and renders Earth uninhabitable.
By then, techno-utopians contend, "we" will be long gone to another solar system, or we'll have developed space stations that will allow us to orbit our fractured planet until it's reached a climatic equilibrium that enables some of us to return as recolonizers. Or we'll be composites of human and machine, capable of self-generation and no longer dependent on the decayed ecosystems of our planet or our bodies. Our virtual reality will be filled with virtual animal and plant life, and be so sophisticated that it will no longer be possible to tell what is real and what is not. In fact, the distinctions will be literally immaterial.
These are terrifying, attractive, highly imaginative, and deeply privileged notions. On the way to their achievement, millions of ordinary people and billions of ordinary animals will die and the level of suffering will be immense. Political structures—and the accompanying security and peace that R&D require—may crumble, leaving us no longer able to function at all, let alone launch our spaceships or retreat to our geodesic domes. Records of prehistory on this planet have shown that Earth can survive without a human presence—although that might not be possible were our actions to instigate runaway climate change—and we are, in the end, merely one species among many. Yet those who fantasize about or conceptualize a global apocalypse—whether those who will be taken into heaven at the End of Days or whisked away in a spaceship—always seem to find a way for a chosen few to imaginatively live beyond it, and to belong to that elect bunch. Either way, it seems beyond callous simply to write off the billions of victims as merely accidental casualties of our casually fascistic, adolescent utopian–dystopian daydreams.
Such fantasies are privileged because they also assume that the only species that matters is our own (in whatever form it takes in the future), and that we can wander around the universe trashing planet after planet in our quest for whatever it is we believe our unique destiny as (former) Earthlings is to be. Have we not considered the possibility that it won't be alien life on or from another planet that might force us to confront our lack of singularity, but the development over the next 200,000 years of another species right here on Earth that evolves a consciousness to trouble our moral senses? To return to my previous influences, that species might be one of our own making (like the Cylons in Battlestar Galactica or the apes in the new version of the Planet of the Apes series)—or through some unanticipated evolutionary "turn."
Do we really want to stop the possibility of such an evolution by wiping out all the other "higher" species on this planet? Wouldn't it instead be a safer bet to recognize that, because of our vaunted moral awareness and the biophilia that Edward O. Wilson argues is innate in us, we need the other species around us, and that an impoverished natural world might leave our soul shriveled, our sense of purpose blunted, and even the possibilities of our own physical, spiritual, or technological evolution cut off?


text:
Justia › US Law › Case Law › Nebraska Case Law › Nebraska Supreme Court Decisions › 1974 › State v. Youngstrom
State v. Youngstrom
STATE of Nebraska, Appellee, v. Martyn Charles YOUNGSTROM, Appellant.
T. Clement Gaughan, Public Defender, Paul M. Conley, Deputy Public Defender, Lincoln, for appellant.
Clarence A. H. Meyer, Atty. Gen., Betsy G. Berger, Asst. Atty. Gen., Lincoln, for appellee.
*28 Heard before WHITE, C. J., and SPENCER, BOSLAUGH, SMITH, McCOWN, NEWTON, and CLINTON, JJ.
CLINTON, Justice.
The defendant was charged in the District Court for Lancaster County with the felony offense of having possession of a forged instrument with intent to utter. The information further alleged that the defendant had been twice previously convicted of felony charges and had been sentenced thereon, and was therefore a habitual criminal. The defendant entered a plea of nolo contendere and a sentence of 10 to 12 years was imposed. He appeals. We affirm.
The defendant assigns as error and contends: (1) He was entitled to a separate hearing to determine whether he had been twice previously convicted and sentenced on felony charges. (2) The acts constituting the felonies of which he was convicted have since the convictions and previous to sentencing in this case been classified by the Legislature as misdemeanors and therefore the prior felony convictions should not be used to enhance punishment under the habitual criminal statute. (3) The trial court erred in not permitting him to withdraw his motion to vacate the sentence imposed on April 12, 1973, and to resentence.
We will treat the assignments in the order in which we have listed them.
The bill of exceptions discloses the defendant has at all times in these proceedings been represented by counsel. He first pled not guilty to a charge of possession of a forged $75 check with the intent to utter. Thereafter in open court with the defendant and his counsel present, the State was granted leave to and did amend the information to allege in addition to the forgery charge: ". . . that on or about the 7th day of April, 1967, the said defendant, Martyn C. Youngstrom, was convicted of a crime, sentenced and committed to prison in the State of Nebraska for a term of not less than one year; that on or about the 18th day of November, 1969, the said defendant, Martyn C. Youngstrom, was convicted of a crime, sentenced and committed to prison in the State of Nebraska for a term of not less than one year; by which such convictions said defendant is deemed to be a habitual criminal." Thereafter, on the same day the amendment was allowed, the defendant withdrew his previous plea of not guilty. The record shows that previous to this withdrawal the defendant was advised as follows: ". . . do you understand in the event you enter a plea of guilty to this charge with the provision for the habitual criminal as included in the amended information that you will not be entitled to a trial by jury; you will not be entitled to any trial whatever; and the further disposition will be up to the Judge of this Court alone; and the penalty provided for possession of a forged instrument, under the habitual criminal act, would mean a sentence a minimum of ten to a maximum of sixty years? Do you understand that? DEFENDANT: Yes, sir."
It was then disclosed to the court that a plea bargain had been made, the substance of which was that the State would dismiss two other felony charges then pending against the defendant, one for burglary and one for forgery, if the defendant would plead guilty "to the charge of possession of a forged instrument, carrying, as it does in the amended information, the provision of a habitual criminal," and that the State would not make any recommendation to the court with regard to sentence.
The defendant acknowledged that the foregoing statement of the bargain was correct, but stated that he wanted "to plead just no contest." The State then indicated it had no objection to that plea.
The defendant then waived the 24-hour service of the amended information, stating: *29 "I would like to have a copy, but waive the right of waiting."
He was then rearraigned on the amended information which was read in its entirety, including the allegation of the previous felony convictions. He then pled, "No contest, Your Honor." The court, before accepting the plea, explained that it was for most purposes the equivalent of a plea of guilty and gave a detailed explanation of the effects of such a plea and what rights were waived by it. The court specifically called to the defendant's attention that the information included the habitual criminal charge which was not included in the one to which he had earlier pled not guilty. There then followed an explanation that the plea waived trial and proof. The defendant stated that he understood. There then followed a further explanation of the defendant's rights and the effect of the plea and the elicitation of facts supporting voluntariness and a factual basis for the plea of guilty. This concluded with the following:
"COURT: You still want your plea to stand; is that right, sir?
DEFENDANT: Yes, Your Honor."
The defendant, to support his contention that despite his plea he was entitled to a hearing on and proof of the prior convictions, relies upon the following portion of section 29-2221, R.S.Supp., 1972: "If the accused is convicted of a felony and before sentence is imposed, a hearing shall be had before the court alone as to whether such person has been previously convicted of prior felonies. The court shall fix a time for the hearing and notice thereof shall be given to the accused at least three days prior thereto. At the hearing, if the court shall find from the evidence submitted that the accused has been convicted two or more times of felonies and sentences imposed therefor by the courts of this or any other state, or by the United States, the court shall sentence such person so convicted as an habitual criminal."
An examination of the entire statute clearly shows that subsection (2) of section 29-2221, R.S.Supp., 1972, part of which has been quoted, is concerned with the situation where the accused is to be tried by a jury and is aimed toward preventing the verdict from being influenced by the prior convictions. It appears not to contemplate the situation where the defendant pleads guilty or nolo contendere and therefore has waived trial.
Suffice it to say that here the record discloses with great clarity that the defendant pled not only to the principal charge of possession of the forged instrument, but also that he intended to admit the prior convictions which give rise to the enhanced punishment.
Where the information charged the former convictions a plea of guilty confesses the prior convictions. The plea of nolo contendere is not any different in this respect. Brozosky v. State, 197 Wis. 446, 222 N.W. 311 (nolo contendere); People v. Hamlett, 408 Ill. 171, 96 N.E.2d 547; Witte v. Dowd, 230 Ind. 485, 102 N.E.2d 630; Wallace v. Lainson, 250 Iowa 854, 95 N.W.2d 277; Hahn v. People, 126 Colo. 451, 251 P.2d 316; Nash v. Commonwealth (Ky.App.), 272 S.W.2d 464 (pleas of guilty). We do not in this case have a situation where the defendant admits the crime but at the same time denies the prior convictions which give rise to enhanced punishment.
Defendant's second assignment is not well taken. The fact that the previous offenses at the time of their commission and at the time of conviction thereof were felonies and have since been by statute reduced to misdemeanors will not preclude their use under the habitual criminal statute to enhance punishment. In re Harincar, 29 Cal. 2d 403, 176 P.2d 58; People v. McConnell, 20 Cal. App. 2d 196, 66 P.2d 720; State v. Ambrose, 212 La. 1062, 34 S.2d 261; State v. Broussard, 213 La. 338, *30 34 S.2d 883; People ex rel. Kruger v. Snyder, 261 App.Div. 352, 25 N.Y.S.2d 644; Emert v. Thorn, 249 App.Div. 301, 292 N.Y.S. 58; Salatte v. Bowers, 185 Misc. 858, 57 N.Y.S.2d 571; State ex rel. Grandstaff v. Gore, 182 Tenn. 94, 184 S.W.2d 366; Davis v. State, 148 Tex.Cr.R. 452, 188 S.W.2d 177; People v. Kerschman, 283 App.Div. 811, 128 N.Y.S.2d 411; Igo v. State (Okl.Crim.), 267 P.2d 1082. We find no cases holding otherwise.
With reference to the third assignment, the record shows that subsequent to imposition of sentence on April 12, 1973, and after appeal to this court had been perfected, the defendant on July 19, 1973, filed a motion asking the court to vacate the sentence imposed on April 12, 1973, and resentence him on the forgery charge alone. The stated ground for this motion was the one with which we have dealt in connection with the first assignment. Later the defendant sought to withdraw his motion to vacate and resentence. The court refused leave to withdraw the motion, then purportedly set aside the sentence, held a hearing, received documentary evidence of the prior convictions, and then imposed the same sentence that it had on April 12, 1973. Defendant urges that we find all the proceedings after April 12, 1973, erroneous. Those proceedings were void as the authority of the District Court, after appeal to this court has been perfected, seems limited to granting a new trial on the basis of newly discovered evidence. See, State v. Brewer, 190 Neb. 667, 212 N.W.2d 90; Smith v. State, 167 Neb. 492, 93 N.W.2d 499; Smith v. Goodman, 100 Neb. 284, 159 N.W. 418; and perhaps certain matters ancillary to appeal; Dudgeon v. Dudgeon, 142 Neb. 82, 5 N.W.2d 133 (preliminary determination of sufficiency of supersedeas). In any event, in light of our determination of the first assignment, it follows that there was no prejudice to the defendant from the proceedings after April 12, 1973.


text:
Investing in children: Double Up Food Bucks adds produce to the menu for low-income families
Stretching a monthly budget for groceries can be a challenge for many families, but for beneficiaries of the state's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) it is especially tough. Families that use SNAP often have to forgo buying fresh, nutritious local produce as it can be financially out of reach after buying other food staples and necessities.
How to help low income families afford fresh fruit and vegetables is the problem that Fair Food Network set out to solve in Michigan a decade ago with its Double Up Food Bucks healthy food incentives program.
Double Up matches SNAP, or food stamps, spent on fruits and vegetables. It makes fresh produce like tomatoes, corn, squash, beans and apples more affordable for low-income families and is a win for local farmers and local businesses because it channels more money into the local economy.
The initiative proved both effective and popular. It has expanded from Michigan to 26 states, including New Hampshire (with support here from the New Hampshire Children's Health Foundation and other funders).
SNAP is the nation's nutrition assistance safety net
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the cornerstone of the nation's nutrition assistance safety net. It serves a broad spectrum of low-income people. According to USDA Food and Nutrition Service's latest profile of New Hampshire SNAP households, more than 37,000 families receive SNAP benefits (out of more than half a million total households in the state).
Approximately 80% of SNAP households report at least one person in the household working, but the median income of SNAP households is a little more than $23,000 per year (compared to the state's $74,000 median household income).
The Double Up program provides affordable access to local fresh produce and encourages SNAP enrollment for eligible families. By taking advantage of SNAP, families have more money to cover other expenses," says New Hampshire Children's Health Foundation Program Director Patti Baum."
Small business is committed to the community
Liz Alpern leads the Double Up Food Bucks program on behalf of Fair Food Network in New Hampshire. She coordinates the program in several states and has worked with local grocery stores to introduce the concept to them. For locations interested in participating in Double Up, she works closely with store managers to implement the program and provides ongoing support.
Liz Alpern of Fair Food Network
To say that Liz is enthusiastic about the Double Up program is an understatement. "I love working with the small business owners and store owners in New Hampshire," she says with a light in her eye and a smile on her face, "Because they are truly committed to the community."
Fourteen independently owned grocery stores are now participating in the Double Up incentive program in the state including stores in Colebrook, Berlin, North Conway, Hanover, Keene, Laconia, Lebanon and Somersworth.
The way Double Up works is fairly simple. At the participating grocery store a SNAP recipient selects the fresh fruit or vegetables they want along with the rest of their groceries, pay at the cash register with their EBT card and automatically get a 50% discount on the produce portion of their purchase. (For example, $10 in SNAP money buys $20 in produce.) The participating store is reimbursed by Fair Food Network for the discount.
Pretty straightforward, right?
It is once it's all set up, and that's Liz's job.
"We try to approach stores with realistic asks about the implementation and the tools," she said. "Over the years you learn how to present the program so that it's not scary. The store managers understand that they don't have to change everything that they are doing and they don't have to buy new equipment."
Overcoming barriers to implementation
The hardest part for store managers is the technology piece, says Alpern. It usually just involves making a small technology tweak to the computer system behind the cash register. But that is one more technology tweak for the store and staff members need to be trained to use it.
"The resistance is never to the program concept," she says, "It's to the implementation."
"Now that we have 14 stores in the program many of them use the same computer programs at their registers," Alpern said. "So now a store in Colebrook can call a store in Berlin and they hear that it's not a big deal and this is how you handle it."
A triple-win
"People deserve quality food and it should be affordable," says Alan Reetz of Hanover Co-op Food Stores, which participates in Double Up. "From our perspective, it's in the DNA of a coop to provide access to that. For us, out of the gate the request to participate was a 'yes,'" he said.
"We understand the issues of people who are facing poverty and wanted to get behind the Double Up program to help close that gap," Reetz emphasized.
The big idea underlying the Double Up program is a "triple-win," according to Alpern. One, local farmers benefit. Two, local businesses and economies thrive. And three, low income families are able to eat healthier food. By making fresh produce much more affordable, farmers and stores sell more of it.
"The reasons we wanted to participate were first, to help local farmers. Second, to help the elderly who need good food. Most importantly, to help kids get more high quality produce," said Bob Fitzpatrick, store manager of Vista Foods in downtown Laconia, another local market participating in the Double Up program.
The store labels produce from local farms and Fitzpatrick has heard from his elderly customers in particular that they feel blessed that they can buy fresh local produce. "They're on limited incomes and can't buy much," he said. "This really helps them. I'm very happy that we are in the program."
The other challenge of Alpern's job in bringing the Double Up Food Bucks to New Hampshire was making SNAP beneficiaries in communities near participating stores aware of it.
"My biggest issue is getting the word out," she states.
"We provide signage for all the stores. It's a national brand so we have a lot of feedback on what works. We provide posters, register signage and bag stuffers. We also conduct training at DHHS offices," she said.
Fair Food Network partners with UNH Cooperative Extension. UNH Nutrition Educators are assigned to each location within the county they work in to conduct outreach and education among SNAP beneficiaries.
"When the program is introduced to consumers the question is, 'What's the catch?'" Alpern says, "But this program gets a lot of loyalty quickly. Once a customer uses it once, they will keep on using it."
Alpern works with stores when they train staff to take steps to reduce any taboo that might be associated with using the Double Up program. "We try to train the cashiers to be sensitive to it," she says.
"We don't have the funds or resources to get into every store," Alpern says, "But we are hopeful that by shining a light on the win to farmers, local economies and people of limited means, that the Double Up concept will be embraced by policy makers at both the state and national levels."
Learn more about Double Up in New Hampshire at www.doubleupnh.org.


Death of Mrs. John A. Erwin.
It is with feelings of deep regret that we announce the death, on Friday last, of that estimable lady, Mrs. JANE E. ERWIN, consort of John A. Erwin, of Cartersville.
Careering on the winged wind.
Thy triumphs, who shall dare explore?
Suns and their systems left behind.


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Q: Python type hinting a deque filled with myclass objects using Python 3.6 or newer, I want to type hint a function myfunc that returns an object of MyClass.
How can I hint, that myqueue is a deque filled with MyClass objects?
from collections import deque

global_queue = deque()

class MyClass:
    pass

def myfunc(myqueue=global_queue) -> MyClass:
    return myqueue.popleft()

for i in range(10):
    global_queue.append(MyClass())

A: In Python 3.9, you can use deque['MyClass']() directly.
If you are using Python 3.6.1 or higher, you can use typing.Deque:
from typing import Deque
from collections import deque

global_queue: Deque['MyClass'] = deque()

class MyClass:
    pass

def myfunc(myqueue: Deque[MyClass] = global_queue) -> MyClass:
    return myqueue.popleft()

for i in range(10):
    global_queue.append(MyClass())

Alternatively, you can do global_queue = Deque['MyClass']() instead -- at runtime, that'll construct a collections.deque object.
If you need to support Python 3.5, install the typing_extensions 3rd party library and do from typing_extensions import Deque. That library contains backports of types that were added after the typing module was first added to the standard library.


A classical Greek mansion suitable for the gods of Mount Olympus, a weekend retreat with room for "toys" and a wheelchair-friendly ranch for a disabled retiree: What do these homes have in common?
From the sublime to the simple, there's a post-frame home to suit nearly everyone, according to builders working in the industry.
Looking at what is being built today, it's hard to believe that post-frame is the grown-up child of the old pole barn or, as Iowa builder Kim Gee says, "This ain't your grandpa's machine shed."
Brian Keane, president of National Barn Co./Legacy Homes, puts it this way, "We've seen people say, 'I want to turn a pole barn into a house' and it's taken off from there."
What builders already know and the public is learning slowly is that designs for post-frame homes are limited only by one's imagination.
Take the imagination of Nick Laskaris, owner of Mount Olympus Waterpark in the resort town of Wisconsin Dells. Laskaris drew on his own Greek heritage and followed the gods of Mount Olympus into a home design that rivals anything Zeus could desire. Built by Tom Jackson, a builder from the Wisconsin Dells area, it's a massive Wick Home whose exterior walls are covered with painted Styrofoam brand plastic foam.
Jackson and Laskaris met about five years ago when Laskaris, who owns several Wisconsin tourist attractions, was shopping for a huge addition to the Mount Olympus site. Other projects followed and when Laskaris was ready to begin construction of a home of mythical grandeur and epic proportions, he called on Jackson.
Because there were challenges with interior clearance heights and other aspects, conventional builders couldn't come up with an economical way to meet Laskaris' requirements, Jackson explains. So Jackson sat down with the artist from Laskaris' own creative staff, who designed the Styrofoam façade of another Mount Olympus feature. Then they worked with Eva Laskaris, Nick's wife, and came up with the house design, determined what was needed structurally and created an unusual plan.
The house boasts 15,000 square feet of living space in its 72- by 122-foot main wing with 27-foot high ceilings. The great room lives up to its name at a huge 52- by 60-feet. Then there's a pantry wing, an area for elevators and a six-car garage. It sits on a four-foot frost wall, without a basement. The main structure has a deep heel truss on a 72-foot wide clear-span truss with straight lower cord and a flat ceiling 27 feet in the air. The 14-foot windows are all 20 feet tall, said Jackson.
The house dominates a peninsula where local restrictions prevent property owners from obstructing others' views of the water. That means the highest point of the home can be no more than 35 feet.
The design called for the roof to slope to the center to accommodate a roof gutter system that drains toward the interior. Jackson designed that using rolled rubber roofing on the rather flat-pitched roof.
In framing the house, Jackson ran horizontal 2 x 6 girts, 16 inches on center. Over that, he placed treated plywood as a backing for attaching the foam material. On the foam, they applied a skim coat of plaster before painting it white.
Jackson says it's the most spectacular home he's been part of building and he is proud of the unique things that he could do there. "It was economical and fast – totally framed up and enclosed in less than two weeks," he says.
That immediacy was one of the things that convinced Laskaris that Jackson's plan was the way to go. "He's the kind of guy who, when he decides to do something, he wants it today," Jackson said of his client.
Yet, the owner and his family have not yet occupied the mansion, which was started in 2005. "It's a work in progress," says Jackson.
And, yes, Jackson met the local height requirement. The railing around the top of the house is within two inches of the 35-foot height limitation that local regulations demand.
Toward the other end of the spectrum is a low-cost two-bedroom, two-bath ranch that Kim Gee of Gee Systems built for her wheelchair-bound mother. "I thought, 'There's got to be a way to accommodate her needs,' Gee says. 'I didn't want fancy. It had to be conservative, low-cost per square foot, no basement, energy efficient with an easy, open floor plan."
The solution for Gee's mother features three-foot wide doors in every room, a master bath with walk-in shower, a bright, airy kitchen and two-car garage. Its vinyl siding and "low-maintenance everything" turned out to be just what was needed.
What Gee glimpsed in designing her mother's house has led her to a wider vision in home designs for the baby boomer generation, the first of whom are now turning 60. Some boomers are building homes for their 80-something parents, as well as considering their own future needs. Downsizing from large family homes, many boomers want versatility in design, energy efficiency, easy maintenance and the ability to live independently in their own homes long into their retirement years.
Gee recommends to those customers that they make their new homes easily adaptable to future physical limitations by incorporating walker- and wheelchair-friendly features, eliminating stairs and including features like walk-in showers.
"I also see post-frame as a do-it-yourself market," Gee says. She built a spec house, held an open house "and 50 people showed up, all for the same reason – 'I wonder if I could do this.' " "These guys would like to build their own homes but don't want to frame a house, just do the inside – the wiring, drywall, stud walls," Gee says. That's a whole other market I thought I could have."
But that's not the only market that is interested in what post-frame construction can offer. "I've seen a wide range," said Keane. "There are young couples, empty nesters, people who want low-cost, energy-efficient and they're tired of painting."
Keane and others note that, while there are no "typical" customers, folks who have country or rural acreage see post-frame as a good alternative. Whether it's the owners' homes or second homes/vacation getaways, post-frame has wide-ranging appeal.
Post-frame builders could expect to gain a lot of business from people with acreage in rural areas. The appeal of having a weekend place that houses the family, the guests and the "toys" is strong. Creative results are showing up among those who erect buildings with living quarters on one side and storage for boats, RVs, snowmobiles or all-terrain vehicles on the other.
This scenario is familiar to Kevin McCormick, who works in sales/design/estimating for Tradesmen Construction of Alexandria, Minn., an area knee-deep in little lakes and vacation getaways.
McCormick, who won the Residential Design Building of the Year in 2005 from Frame Building News magazine, is an expert in vacation homes and lodges. His winning home, a luxury hunting lodge designed for two Minneapolis businessmen, is a multi-level structure with vaulted ceilings, interior log trusses, a central great room with fireplace and many amenities. McCormick got his start in the industry at age 15, when he worked with his dad, a log home builder in Minnesota.
It's perhaps the scaled-down version of the luxury lodge idea that McCormick is seeing frequently in Minnesota today – people building 30- by 40-foot or 30- by 60-foot "boxes," putting overhead doors in a "toy" bay and finishing off the rest as living quarters.
Sometimes, the owner goes on to build a permanent, more luxurious, home on the property at a later date. When that's finished, he's free to convert the first "box" into a guest house.
But that's not everyone's dream. McCormick says a typical buyer is a retiree who wants a three-bedroom, two-bath home that's convenient and economical, has no stairs and no basement, but includes some conventional features. For those folks, "We often end up building concrete storm shelters that double as laundry rooms or storage areas," he says, noting Minnesota's penchant for severe weather.
Tami Newman, marketing coordinator for Wick Homes in Mazomanie, Wis., paints a different picture. She says a post-frame homeowner often is someone who grew up on a farm, moved to the city and now wants to get back to the country. Perhaps they bought several acres and want to build something that is both versatile and maintenance-free. Perhaps it has to do double duty: provide living space and house the family's hobbies – horses, antique tractors or a fleet of snowmobiles or ATVs. The building style lends itself to a second home on a lake, in the woods or as a hunting lodge. A South Carolina couple, for example, built a two-story post-frame structure that gives them living quarters upstairs and houses their business downstairs. At a recent seminar for post-frame dealers, says Gee, we were asked how many of us are doing "shed homes" and every one of us had our hands raised. The customer has driven this point, she says, because they are demanding something that is different, easy, affordable and has do-it-yourself potential.
The affordability factor is a strong appeal. While it's hard to come by a figure because costs vary widely by region, Keane fixes the number in the Tulsa, Okla., area at about a 15 percent difference in cost compared to conventional framing and masonry in a quality (not a cheaply-built) stick-built house.
Newman cites a brochure that claims between 20 and 40 percent less, but she said that's not easily confirmed because of regional market variations.
DIY-ers can get into a new house for about $21 per square foot, "a pretty affordable home with the sweat of your brow," says Gee, although she marketed a 40- by 48-foot house for under $70 per square foot, compared to $100 to $110 in the Iowa market where she operates. For other areas, she says, that might be low.
How quickly a post-frame building goes up is a big plus for people who were raised in the "instant-everything" generation. Keane points to the 30-day time line for having a shell built, compared to a 120-day calendar for a turnkey building.
Gee, who built a 24- by 32-foot addition on her own home, said people are amazed that it was up in five days. Then her own construction crews came in and framed the inside. She found that she liked the flexibility of the project. "Other than the bathroom, I could have moved any wall. In fact, I did. I took two feet out of one bedroom and added it to the living room," she said.
Gee is thrilled with the attractive addition, which has an attic truss. "People can't believe it's post-frame," she says. And while she was at it, she retrofit the rest of the house to make it accessible for future physical limitations. "It doesn't have to look like a wheelchair house, it just needs wider doors," she says.
Builders who want to help write the next chapter in the growing story of post-frame homes should be thinking like consumers.
If expanding the market comes down to education, post-frame builders would do well to emphasize the creativity that is offered in choosing post-frame for a vacation, retirement or special-needs dwelling. Consider, for example, the affluence, education and fierce independence of the baby boom population, which the U.S. Census Bureau puts at more than 78 million today.
Between now and 2030, when the last of the boomers turn 65, retirement housing is likely to undergo massive changes. Forward-looking boomers offer a lucrative potential market for practical, customized and versatile home designs. By that date, the Census Bureau projects, there still will be 58 million boomers alive and in need of housing. How many of them, today's builders should ask themselves, could be living in economical, versatile and efficient post-frame homes?
It's a market to take seriously.
Jeff Neihouser of FBi Buildings, whose company won first place in the Housing/Homes/Residential category of this year's Frame Building Expo Buildings of the Year, said the dual-purpose building on a lake was "an anomaly for us because we do very few homes, but this one turned out to be a winner."
"The customer had the design all planned out. He just needed us to build it," said Neihouser. "We didn't do the finish work, just the shell" of the 60- by 72-foot structure. "In building a house, you have to know lot of different trades, coordinate it all, be very much a custom-home builder. That's a challenge in this industry," he says, "but to build the shell of house is a pretty good application and cost effective."
Neihouser lists cost-effectiveness per square foot as a foremost attribute of post-frame home building. On the downside, a wasted space in the way the structure goes together is can be a negative. "You've got a 6-inch post with a 2 x 4, basically a big wall cavity compared to standard home, so it's some wasted space, not as efficient from a space standpoint," he says.
But overall, a post-frame multi-purpose building is so adaptable that you can have a creative residential area on one side and a practical application on the other side, he says. "That's a good combination in a weekend home – one structure versus multiple buildings."
Speed of construction is among the top selling points. One thing is the time frame to build, says Newman. It takes longer with traditional methods, where you're at the whim of the weather.
"A huge advantage of post-frame is that parts are assembled and (the building) can be completely enclosed in just a few days." Wick has just made that aspect even more attractive, she explains, with a new product called Sure Frame. It's a precision-cut onsite build product – a wall system – that is really revolutionary. All components come onsite marked and cut and the whole frame can be done in one day, she says. Just launched in February, Sure Frame is in its infancy, Newman says, and it's exclusive to Wick.
Other upsides to building post-frame homes include fire insurance breaks for homeowners because metal wall cladding and metal roofing leave mean there's less to burn. On the other hand, some insurance companies need better education in regard to the perceived potential for wind damage.
Education is needed as the industry progresses, Gee says. "The NFBA is doing a good job of educating architects and builders," she says, but I'd like to see education for insurance companies.
"They need to know that there are regulations (governing erection of post-frame buildings). "It's not like the Joe Blow guy who builds a shed that blows away. When a shed falls down, it's a black eye for any post-frame builder. When insurance adjusters search through the rubble, they're not looking to see if it's a Wick Home. All they see is a shed down … and lump them all together. Same with lenders."
In the same vein, building codes and covenants, especially in suburban neighborhoods, sometimes offer challenges, says Keane. "But you just don't know until you get into that county and see what their knowledge (of post-frame) is. If (officials) saw a poorly constructed post-frame in the past, they're reluctant (to issue permits). It leaves a sour taste in their mouth," Keane says.
On the other hand, if they're familiar with properly constructed (post-frame) buildings, they don't have a problem unless there's a covenant in a subdivision. "But the people that we deal with know they're going into acreage, not into a subdivision," Keane adds.
Several scenarios and a range of successful builders point to one thing: The post-frame future shows vast potential. From those clients who want a simple "box" to turn into a home to those clients who clearly are thinking "outside the box," the builder who is willing to be creative, to listen to customers and to go the extra distance has everything to gain.
Do builders have trouble getting potential post-frame house clients past the pole-barn image?
"Yes, you do when you first present it," says Kevin McCormick, who sells Reaves Buildings Systems of Sioux Falls, S.D. "It's difficult until you take them out and show them some post-frame homes."
McCormick drives clients past homes, offices and professional buildings such as veterinary clinics or offices – "the designs that anybody driving down the street wouldn't know are post-frame. They change their minds then, especially when they see that they can save money," he says.
"You always have the guy who wants the house he can't afford," McCormick says. But one of his most compelling selling points is showing buyers how much more house they can get for the money.
"On the other hand," he says, "there are people who come to us wanting a post-frame or pole building. They already know what they're getting."
That, quite obviously, speaks to the good results that come from educating the public through advertising, getting involved in seminars and shows and, perhaps best of all, the bonus of positive PR when satisfied customers talk about their experiences with post-frame buildings.
Reprinted with permission from August 2007 issue of Frame Building News.