text:
"The Sculptor and the Marzipan Maker"
theheartbeat.substack.com
Beauty, art, and forbidden love in Boston, 1918: a story by Lynda Cohen Loigman, author of THE MATCHMAKER'S GIFT.
I fall in love with a lot of books. But it's rare that something will resonate so deeply with me, I need to climb out of my bathtub (where I do most of my reading) at 11 o'clock at night to email the author a thank-you note for writing such a gorgeous book. I've done it exactly once, with Lynda Cohen Loigman's novel The Matchmaker's Gift (out this Tuesday), a dual-perspective historical split between a young immigrant matchmaker in 1910 and her divorce-attorney granddaughter in 1994. Lynda and I soon met for drinks, and she's just as warm and wonderful IRL as she is on the page.
Her short story for Heartbeat is an utter treat, complete with sumptuous prose and an early twentieth-century backdrop. Violetta is about to enter a marriage that's more like a business arrangement, but then she meets a kind soul who sees her for who she really is. Can they find a way to be together? Enjoy.
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"The Sculptor and the Marzipan Maker"
One month before the Great War ended, Violetta left her tiny village of Avella for the crowded port of Naples. Compared to that now distant city, the people in Boston were even less welcoming. When she finally arrived in the North End, people bumped into her everywhere she turned. Instead of the hazelnut orchards of home, here, only buildings rose up from the earth. Instead of grass and pale pink primrose, the ground was covered with bricks and pavement, cobblestones and thick cement. Though she heard people everywhere speaking her language, it sounded different in the cold, briny air.
Her uncle was not particularly happy to see her, and for the entirety of her first night in America, she was kept awake by his snores, the shouting of neighbors, and the groan of pipes through the tenement walls. She was up and ready before the sunrise, worried that he might leave without her. The wind blew through her shawl as if it were paper, and by the time they arrived at Enzo's bakery, her ears were numb. Her uncle nodded his head toward a dark green awning. "There it is," he said. "Say hello to your future husband for me and don't forget to bring home some bread."
She was disappointed to be meeting her fiancé this way, but she knew her intended was a busy man. Enzo owned one of the North End's most successful bakeries and, as her uncle had already explained, he needed a wife who understood his priorities—someone from home who wouldn't expect the kind of life or attention he could not give. "A girl from Avella who knows her place," her uncle had said.
Inside the shop, scents of yeast and butter drove the smell of fish from her nostrils. Loaves of different sizes filled baskets on the floor, and the display case was piled with cookies and rolls. Violetta's stomach growled.
"Good morning," she told the wrinkled man behind the counter. "I am looking for Enzo."
The man narrowed his watery eyes. "He isn't here. Come back tomorrow." He waved her away to dismiss her. Customers began to crowd the space, throwing coins on the counter and calling out for what they wanted. Violetta did not move.
Thirty minutes later, a burly man carrying a sack of flour entered the shop. He looked to be in his thirties, strong and squat, with a full head of dark, curly hair. He set his sack down in the corner and approached her.
"I am Enzo," he said. "You are Violetta, yes?"
When Violetta offered a sheepish smile, he took her smooth chin in his rough, careless hand. "Your father's letter didn't say how young you were."
Violetta felt her cheeks redden at his touch. She was eighteen—old enough to cross an ocean alone, old enough to marry a man she'd never met.
Enzo let go of her chin and caressed a strand of her long dark hair. He fixed his eyes on her breasts. "He didn't say how beautiful you were either."
The next few days were difficult ones. Violetta had assumed they would marry immediately, but Enzo claimed that with the holidays approaching, he was too busy to plan a wedding. Besides, he needed her in the shop. Her uncle grumbled at the news. "I shouldn't be surprised," he said. "Enzo is a businessman above all else. He wants you to prove your worth to him first."
Violetta's heart sank at her uncle's words. Perhaps if she'd known that her future happiness depended upon her baking skills, she would have paid more attention long ago when her mother tried to teach her. The very idea was absurd, but if she wanted the wedding to go forward, she knew that she would have to learn.
Unfortunately, from the first attempt, it was clear she had no talent for baking bread. Her loaves came out spongy or grainy or burnt. Her cornetti were inedible. And no matter how hard Violetta tried, she could not manage to make a decent batch of the chestnut-filled calzoncelli cookies that customers ordered by the dozen. Enzo's smiles turned to scowls, and Violetta worried not only for her job, but for her promised marriage as well. Her uncle would not let her stay with him forever. What would she do if Enzo called off their arrangement?
Luckily, with Christmas less than two months away, the baker couldn't afford to lose a single employee. Displaying no other useful skills, Violetta was kept busy with lesser chores—peeling oranges and lemons, chopping dried fruits, and cleaning the bowls, bread pans, and trays. She scrubbed until her fingers swelled and her lower back ached from standing in place. But no matter how tired she was, she didn't dare to complain.
The job she enjoyed least of all was the blanching, peeling, and grinding of almonds to make dough for the frutta martorana. She hated the feel of the wet almond skins—like insect wings between her fingers. But the hand-painted, sculpted marzipan fruits were a sought-after holiday staple. No festive table was complete without the delicate candy-sized delicacies. One of Enzo's bakers—Luca, from Sicily—was put in charge of their production.
Violetta had seen frutta martorana only a few times in her childhood. Once, she had studied a marzipan "peach" for hours instead of eating it. The coloring was realistic enough, but the illusion was ruined by the rough, raised seam that ran across the glossy surface. Even at only ten years of age, she'd wondered whether she could improve the design. Now, as she watched the Sicilian baker sculpt his crudely formed shapes, she wondered whether it was finally time for her to have that chance.
She waited until the end of the day, when Enzo was in a good mood. Then she smoothed her flour-dusted hair and smiled her most deferential smile. "When I am finished with my other tasks, I would like to work on the marzipan fruits. I have some ideas that will bring in more customers."
His reply was skeptical, but he did not refuse her. "I doubt that very much," he said. "Everyone knows that Luca's frutta martorana are the best in the city."
Violetta did not contradict him, but she felt a long-buried confidence stirring from within.
How happy she would be to prove him wrong.
As a child, Violetta had never been at ease among the other girls and boys in her village. While they were busy playing among the hazelnut trees, she and her grandfather searched for the clay buried in beds along the river's edge. Look for where the mud begins to change color, he told her. Hold it in your hands, the texture should be like so. Together, they carried buckets of mud to the shed behind his cottage, where they mixed it with water and strained away the impurities. Then they wrapped it in cloth and hung it to dry.
At first, Violetta sculpted only animals. She had a fondness for the rabbits who made their home on the hillside, munching on patches of nasturtium in the sun. Hours would pass while she sat in silence, trying not to scare them away. Sometimes she fell asleep among the amber-colored blossoms, dreaming of cottony tails and long ears.
By the time Violetta was ten or eleven, she turned her attention to human subjects. Her models were mostly her siblings or the old men who played cards with her grandfather. Faces were always the biggest challenge. Eyelids and nostrils were difficult, but she found ears to be the most complicated of all. They were delicately opaque, endlessly variable. Like fingerprints, no two were alike.
When the other children saw the pile of clay ears she had made, they whispered about her strange proclivities. And when she began to sculpt nude bodies, both the children and their parents spread cruel rumors—Violetta was immodest, impious, shameless. When she turned seventeen, it became clear to her family that no one in the village would ever marry her. It was then that her father hatched the plan to send her to America to marry Enzo. In Boston, surely, she would be too busy baking to find the time or the energy to sculpt. The curiosities of her past would become a memory. She would become a wife and a mother, and all would be well.
As it turned out, even Luca had to admit that Violetta had a gift for his craft: the peels on her marzipan "lemons" were perfectly dimpled; the skins on her "strawberries" were seamlessly seeded. She made six dozen marzipan fruits and vegetables in vibrant reds, yellows and greens. Between drying, painting, and glazing, they took several days to produce. On the morning she put them out to be sold, they were gone before the lunchtime rush. The next day, she made ten dozen more. Soon, the lines at the bakery were wrapped halfway around the block. Customers clamored for her creations and Enzo took in more money than ever before. He began to smile at her again.
Still, he rarely spoke to her about anything other than her work. He never asked how she liked her new city, or whether she missed her mother and father. Every once in a while, she caught him staring, as if she were a pastry he wanted to devour. Despite the fact that he was her betrothed, Violetta sensed peril in those eyes. She made sure never to get too close and never to be alone with him.
A few weeks before Christmas, Violetta decided to make something she had seen only in her dreams. She had no idea how to explain it, so she did not ask for Enzo's permission. From the marzipan dough, she went about shaping dozens of miniature stella di natale. The Christmas flowers were barely dry the next day when she painted them in reds and pinks and whites. She arranged them in the window so that the bakery looked almost like a flower shop.
The lines around the store grew longer; people passing her in the street called out compliments for her work. But along with her growing sense of pride came a burgeoning sense of dread. She had been sent to America because there was no other option. But now, with the acknowledgment of her talents, she began to see another path. What if she could earn a living and find happiness apart from the marriage that had been arranged for her?
The next day, Enzo received an order for a prominent neighbor's holiday party. The man sent his housekeeper to order a dozen platters of Enzo's pastries, along with two hundred marzipan flowers crafted by the "famous marzipan maker." After he wrote down the order, Enzo paid a visit to Violetta's uncle to set the wedding date for the middle of January. That night, before she fell asleep, Violetta covered her face with her pillow and cried.
The next morning, she got to the bakery early. A young man she didn't recognize stood on the sidewalk with his nose pressed against the window. The morning moon hung in the still dark sky, but the light from the streetlamp illuminated his features—his full, warm smile and bright, eager eyes. "Have you ever seen such wonderful creations?" he asked. "What do you imagine they are made of?"
If he had been able to take his eyes from the window, he would have seen the smile that played upon her lips. "They're made of marzipan," she said.
"I wonder how they taste, don't you?"
Violetta began to laugh. "I have eaten my fill of them," she said. But if you come back when the store opens, I will be happy to save one for you."
"Do you mean to say that you made these?" He reached for her hand. "Tell me, please, what do you call them? Did someone teach you? How do you make them?"
She smiled at his barrage of questions while slowly pulling her hand away.
"You are an artist," he continued. "Not just an artist—you are a sculptor! I happen to be a sculptor as well, so you see, the two of us are the same." He held out his hand. "I am Giuseppe."
Without warning, her eyes began to tear.
"Are you all right?" the man asked. "Did I say something to offend you?"
"No, no, absolutely not. But if you will excuse me, I have work to do."
With trembling fingers, she opened the bakery door, shut it behind her, and sank to the floor. A flood of sweat streamed down the back of her neck. Somehow, this handsome, smiling stranger knew what was hidden at the core of her heart. Somehow, he had distilled her truest essence as easily as someone else might have said her name.
All that afternoon, while she shaped fruits and flowers, Violetta could not stop thinking about what Giuseppe said. An hour before closing, the cashier told her that someone was asking for her up front. With a hint of mockery he added, "The 'talented woman who makes the marzipan sculptures.' That is how he described you."
Violetta pretended to be displeased by the interruption, but the truth was, she was delighted.
When she got to the front room, there he was, deep in conversation with her fiancé. The sight of the two men together turned something in the pit of her stomach. While Enzo's expression was stiff and severe, the other man's was gentle and relaxed. Both of them smiled when she approached, and she did not know who to look at first. "Here is my bride-to-be," said Enzo. "Violetta, this is my cousin, Giuseppe. He carves monuments for Signore Lavezzello, the owner of the funeral home down the street."
"It is nice to meet you," said Giuseppe.
Violetta's heart hammered in her chest. How could the two of them be cousins? How could two men of such opposite temperaments have even a hint of the same blood in their veins?
"The same to you," she said demurely, following along in his deceit. So, you are a sculptor then?" Violetta glanced at Giuseppe's hands—hands that could shape and mold and create. Before she could stop herself, she imagined what it would be like to have his hands on her bare skin. Her breath thickened in her throat.
"I am," said Giuseppe. "And I must say, I am charmed by your creations."
Enzo smirked. "Her marzipan flowers have become so popular that I am going to raise the price. Who would have thought that I would make back the cost of her passage from Italy so quickly?"
He spoke about her as if she was an animal he had purchased to work in his fields. Violetta's heart sank with shame, but Enzo did not notice her silence. He led his cousin to the vast back room and showed him the most recent batch of her flowers, set out on metal racks to dry. Giuseppe stepped closer to see them more carefully. He traced one of his fingers over the unpainted leaves. "The detail on the petals in incredible," he said. When Enzo's back was turned, Giuseppe moved his fingers until they were just inches away from her own. "Incredible," he repeated.
The nearness of him gave off its own heat, which traveled up her arms and to the back of her neck. "The ovens make the room hot," she murmured, her cheeks blushing to a sudden, glowing red. Giuseppe nodded in agreement. "It is very warm, indeed," he said.
The next morning, he intercepted her before she crossed the street to the shop. "Will you walk a bit with me?" he asked. "You have half an hour before the bakery opens."
"I like to be early," Violetta answered. But she did not want to tell him no, and so, she fell into step beside him. As they walked up Salem Street together, he told her about the work he did, and the monuments he made. She had always longed to work with stone, but it was a luxury she could never afford. "How did you begin?" she asked.
"My grandfather and his brothers were traveling stone masons. As young men, they made a trip to Rome. My earliest memories are of my Nonno showing me the postcards of the statues he saw there. He dreamt of sculpting fountains instead of stone walls."
"My grandfather encouraged me to sculpt as well! And did your Nonno ever sculpt his fountain?"
Giuseppe shook his head. "No. He told me it was one of the great disappointments of his life that he had not been blessed with the necessary gifts."
"But he passed his knowledge on to you?"
Giuseppe shrugged. "I was the last of his grandsons, and he doted on me. It was his dream to take me to Rome, to visit the statues and the fountains he remembered."
"You didn't go?"
"His health turned poor, and it became impossible. Before he died, I promised him I would visit his favorite city one day. After he died, I came to Boston. It isn't Rome, but Signore Lavezzello has been very good to me. He secures the marble for my monuments and pays me well for my commissions."
"I would like to see your work."
Giuseppe suppressed a smile. "You will have to go to the cemetery then."
Later, she would wonder how she ever found the courage to respond so boldly. "Will you meet me on Sunday? The bakery will be closed."
The Washington Street Elevated took her to Forest Hills, where she met Giuseppe at the cemetery entrance. The grounds were more like a park than a graveyard: meticulously landscaped, bucolic, and peaceful. Tombstones of various shapes and sizes were organized along the narrow pathways—some ordinary, but some intricately embellished with lilies, sheaves of wheat, and twisting vines.
Giuseppe led her to an elaborately carved cross, made entirely of marble roses and poppies. It was a design she never would have thought to create – lavish and romantic, more love letter than tomb. "I carved this last year," Giuseppe told her. "For a young bride who died. Her husband had no photograph of her, so I made this for him instead. He swore he would never marry again."
Suddenly, Violetta found herself choking back tears. If she were to die after marrying Enzo, she had no doubt he would find another bride. For Enzo, their union was not about love, but a business arrangement of the most basic kind.
In a single motion, Giuseppe was beside her, pressing his handkerchief into her hand. She lifted her lashes to look into his eyes and felt a swell of tenderness rising in her throat. But when he leaned down to brush a strand of hair from her forehead, she took a step back and pulled away. No matter the desire that rose up between them, Violetta could not forget that she was tethered to another.
Over the next few weeks, whenever it was possible, the two of them met in Forest Hills. As they walked, they shared memories of the families they missed and the villages they had left behind. Together, they examined the grandest of monuments made by masters of their craft. Violetta confessed her childhood fascination with sculpting ears, and Giuseppe confessed his preoccupation with hands. They talked about the endless hours of practice, their obsession with detail, the way their siblings teased them.
"You are the only person I know who understands," he told her.
The more she got to know Giuseppe, the more Violetta dreaded her marriage to Enzo. Lately, in anticipation of their union, the baker had been making advances. He brushed up against her when no one was looking and whispered into her ear of what they would do on their wedding night. The more he whispered, the more she looked forward to the peace she found on her walks with the sculptor.
On New Year's Day, she brought a box of pastries to the cemetery. They ate them together as they stood in the cold, examining the feathers of a marble angel's wings. Thoughts of her impending wedding reduced her to tears once again. When Giuseppe moved closer to comfort her this time, she could not find the strength to step away. Their first kiss was of apricot, lemon, and fig—all the familiar tastes of home. After that, the sweetness burned away, like caramel over a white-hot flame. It was then that Giuseppe told her his plan for the two of them to marry. The rest of their kisses were whiskey and smoke—a stinging ache, a hint of fire.
Although Violetta wanted to be honest with Enzo, Giuseppe convinced her to hold her tongue. He told her stories of his cousin's temper, his violent outbursts, and his long-held grudges. Years earlier, one of Enzo's friends had become his romantic rival. The friend wound up with a broken nose, and the girl fled to a farm in western Massachusetts. It was rumored that Enzo had followed her there, but the owner of the farm hid her in his barn. In any event, she never returned, and the other man eventually moved away.
Unwilling to risk a similar fate, the pair planned in secret to leave Boston together. But because Violetta's wages were paid directly to her uncle, they had only Giuseppe's meager savings. In order to have enough money for the train fare and for a place to stay in New York, they could not hope to leave the North End before Giuseppe completed his most recent commission for Signore Lavezzello. As long as the monument was finished on time, he would be paid two days before the wedding. When Violetta contemplated the timing, she found that she could barely breathe.
There was no time for trips to Forest Hills now—only short, stolen moments on their lunch breaks. They began meeting daily away from the bakery, along the waterfront, near the North End beach. The view wasn't pretty—there were no sparkling waves and no green islands in the distance. There was only the narrow stretch of the harbor with a view of Charlestown on the other side. Beyond the tracks of the elevated train, a great metal tank dominated the view.
"What is that?" Violetta asked, when she first spotted the structure. Rising fifty feet high into the air, it had been painted brown to disguise its leaking seams.
"It's filled with molasses," Giuseppe explained. "Not for eating, but for the alcohol it makes. I don't understand it myself, but it has something to do with ammunition for the war. All I know is that the tank is always leaking. Some of the children leave pails beneath it to take home the drippings to their families."
"What a strange sight it is."
"People in the neighborhood don't like it. They say that it groans as if it might burst. I met a man from Naples who remembers when Vesuvius erupted. He says the tank makes the same rumble as the mountain made all those years ago."
"I was just a girl when that happened," said Violetta. "But I still remember the devastation—the way everyone was forced to start their lives over."
Giuseppe cupped her cheeks in his hands. "Sometimes to begin again is the greatest gift we can receive."
Day after day, to avoid being spotted, they met at that cold, unwelcoming place. While they listened to the moans of the molasses tank, Giuseppe would rub her frozen hands and whisper reassurances into her ear.
But as the wedding date grew closer, Violetta grew increasingly distraught. Enzo had intensified his advances. Even worse—he no longer felt any obligation to hide them from his other employees. "She'll be my wife in a few days," he boasted, pulling her tightly toward him. "Soon, she won't be able to say no to me."
As she pulled away, she tried to make excuses without triggering Enzo's temper. "You know I must finish my work," she said sweetly. "You don't want your customers to be disappointed."
"True," he said, relaxing his grip. "But you will have to teach one of the other girls soon. In a few years, we'll have too many children for you to have time for your little marzipan treats."
He said it as if her work meant nothing, as if her talent was his to deny. Just when she had finally proved herself, he was forcing another test upon her. How would he react if she did not become pregnant? And what terrible test would come after that?
Two days before the ceremony, Giuseppe found her before she had reached the beach. He'd caught up to her on Foster Street, as she was walking to their meeting place. "I could not wait to tell you," he said, his eyes ablaze with fresh hope. "The statue, finally, is ready, and Signore Lavezzello will pay me tomorrow." Relief washed over Violetta like a wave. Giuseppe swept her into his arms and kissed her with such fervor that she could have sworn she felt the cobblestones shudder beneath her feet.
Outside her body, she was dimly aware of a loud and ominous roar. From an overhead window, people were shouting. Hand in hand, she and Giuseppe ran to the end of Foster Street and stared down to the beach to where the molasses tank was erupting.
The surge of syrup from the tank knocked the firehouse off its foundation. The molasses flood hurled a truck into the harbor and tossed carts and horses into the air. Those unlucky enough to be caught in its path were buried beneath the lava-like rush. The more fortunate fled or were flung to places of relative safety. Giuseppe and Violetta watched from a safe distance as a tide of molasses crept toward their feet.
When it was over, the streets were flooded with goo for half a mile in all directions, and a sickly-sweet stench pervaded the air. Screams and sobs, panic, incredulity – Violetta could not make sense of what she had seen. Frightened survivors pushed their way past them, and the lovers were carried away from the terrible mess by the crowd.
They moved forward in silence, dazed by the tragedy, until they had left the North End behind. South and west, they walked and walked. When they were too tired to take another step, Violetta turned to Giuseppe. The devastation had made their path forward clear. She would not return to the bakery or even to her uncle's apartment. There was no need to collect her belongings. All that mattered was that they were safe. The disaster had released them both from everything that came before.
"We can never go back," she said resolutely.
"Yes, but what will we do?"
She did not hesitate before answering. "You will keep your promise to your grandfather, and the two of us will go to Rome."
At the train station, they showed the ticket agent their filthy, molasses-filled boots. He had heard rumors of the tank explosion from the newsboys passing by.
"My wife is in shock," Giuseppe fibbed. After he described more of what they had seen, the sympathetic agent wiped tears from his eyes. "Take these," he said, handing them free tickets. "Get your wife home to her family."
From Boston, they took a train to New York, where Signore Lavezzello wired Giuseppe's payment. The funeral director informed the sculptor that one of Enzo's customers had spotted the lovers on their last walk together, the day of the explosion. Everyone assumed they had been killed, but only Enzo refused to pray for their souls. "If they were together, they betrayed me," he declared. "But since they are dead, and I am alive, clearly, the good Lord took my side." Signore Lavezzello pledged to Giuseppe that he would never divulge the truth.
Three months later, they arrived in Rome with one small suitcase between the two of them. Tucked in the bottom of the case was a faded newspaper clipping: Death and Devastation in Wake of North End Disaster: Fifty Injured, Eleven Dead, with Many More Missing and Presumed Gone.
With the help of a letter from Signore Lavezzello, both of them found positions in a prominent sculptor's studio. When they weren't at work, they were walking the city, climbing its hills and sketching the statues. The early evening light on the marble fountains looked like something from their dreams.
Eventually, they had a studio of their own—a workshop where the slabs of marble and alabaster were sweeter than any bakery creation.
Decades later, when tourists visited the studio of the highly distinguished, talented couple, they often asked whether either of the pair had ever fashioned a sculpture of the other.
Their answer was always the same.
"We have no need for such an exercise," Violetta would say. "When you truly love another person, your memory is like a block of marble. Every day you spend together carves a mark upon your mind, so that when that person leaves this world, a perfect replica remains."
Giuseppe would nod in agreement. "There has never been a sculptor born who could make a greater likeness of my wife than the one I carry in my heart. Michelangelo himself could not carve a greater masterpiece."
Lynda's third novel, The Matchmaker's Gift, arrives 9.20.22. Her debut, The Two-Family House, was a USA Today Bestseller and a Goodreads Choice Awards nominee in Historical Fiction.
Next week on Heartbeat, get ready for a short story from Mara Mindell.
Follow Heartbeat on Instagram at @storiesbyheartbeat for upcoming behind-the-scenes sneak peeks at Mara's story!
Three quick things from Hannah:
I went to two book signings last week for The American Roommate Experiment by Elena Armas and The Most Likely Club by Elyssa Friedland. I love being back at book parties!
After seeing Elin Hilderbrand's Instagram pics of her writing in legal pads poolside and at the beach, I switched to writing longhand, too. I love having the freedom to write without being tethered to my laptop. I spoke to Huff Post about my favorite notebook to write in.
I'm curious — do you use a system to track what you've read or your TBR? I have a spreadsheet of books I've already read and an iPhone Note listing books I'd like to get my hands on. What about you?
© 2023 Heartbeat


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NEWS: Sony extends PS3's home cinema appeal with firmware download
By Andrew Everard
Sony is making its PlayStation 3 console even more attractive to home cinema enthusiasts with the arrival of its latest firmware upgrade. Version 1.80, which can be downloaded by clicking here, adds video upscaling to 1080p from DVD discs and older PlayStation games. The unit also gains 1080P 24fps output from Blu-ray discs, and RGB Full Range and Y Pb/Cb Pr/Cr Super White video output over HDMI.
The video side of the unit now supports xvYcc colour, and can also downscale Blu-ray output to suit older 720p-cabable displays Other new facilities include the ability to access your PlayStation 3 over the internet for remote play, the copying of saved data from PS and PS2 software to a memory card, and the ability to play music, video and pictures from network servers conforming to to DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) standards.
Finally, the PS3 has gained enhanced Super Audio CD playback capability.
Andrew Everard
Andrew has written about audio and video products for the past 20+ years, and been a consumer journalist for more than 30 years, starting his career on camera magazines. Andrew has contributed to titles including What Hi-Fi?, Gramophone, Jazzwise and Hi-Fi Critic, Hi-Fi News & Record Review and Hi-Fi Choice. I've also written for a number of non-specialist and overseas magazines.
Best home theatre speaker systems 2023: budget to premium home cinema set-ups

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


If you follow me on Facebook, you might have seen last night's post where I shared about a total dinner fail (vegan moussaka).
I was not looking forward to eating the leftovers today for lunch, either, until I discovered that I had some chana masala left over from Sunday's dinner. BINGO!
Before switching to a plant-based diet, I never would have considered combining these two dishes. I'm much more adventurous in what I eat and try now that all the animal fats aren't clogging up my taste buds!
The flavors of the moussaka and masala work really well together in the chickpeas give it a good boost of plant-based protein. Calling it: Chana moussaka.
What leftovers have you mixed together for a meal-time win?


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The opening round of the Southern Inland Junior Rugby Union competition kicked off last week with Young and Leeton hosting games. The Griffith Junior Rugby Union Club sent teams in the Under 6s, Under 10s, Under 12s, Under 14s and Under 16s age divisions along with the Rugby 7s teams in the Under 15s and Under 17s and the Under 16s tag rugby side. In what was a very successful day, the club picked up 10 wins and a draw from the 14 games played. The Short Blacks Under 10s boys and girls had a tough introduction to the 2021 season facing the host club the Leeton Phantoms, who based on other results are one of the strongest teams in the competition. The result was a 14-56 loss, however the team never stopped trying. The second game, was a little closer, going down to the Hay Whipper Snippers 7-30. The Blacks U12s sounded their intentions for the season with two thumping wins, the first over rivals the Phantoms 64-5 and the second a 58-10 win over Hay. This squad is made up of a number of "veteran" players who have been together since the Under 6s and many new to the game of rugby. This will be a team to watch out for during the season along with the Tumut Bullants and the Young Yabbies, who both came away from the first round with bonus point wins and share the top of the table. The Griffith Under 14s came away from Leeton with a narrow 12-7 victory over the Phantoms and backed it up with a convincing win over the Temora Tuskers 48-0. The Under 14s competition is generally an even, with the Young Yabbies setting the benchmark at this point in the season. The Griffith Blackbirds U15s 7s dominated the 2020 season finishing the season unbeaten, and the new squad, which featured only one player from last season, continued the strong tradition of girl's rugby with two superb wins over the Leeton Diana's 35-10 and a 39-14 win over the Temora Tuskers. RELATED The bonus point victories has placed the Blackbirds on top of the table. The Blacks U16s is virtually a new team, with a number of boys playing rugby union for the first time ever. Their enthusiasm, combined with the experience of the senior players resulted in two great victories, the first being a 22-17 win over Leeton which the Blacks score from an audacious cross field kick which resulted in a try with the last play of the game. This was backed up with a 30-0 shut out of the Temora Tuskers in the second game of the day. Based on other results there seems to be some disparity between the top three and bottom three, and at this stage the sides to watch are Griffith, Leeton, and the Wagga Crows. The Under 17s Blackbirds feature only two top age players, with the bulk of the squad being made up of last seasons Under 15 girls. Notwithstanding, the Blackbirds clocked up a 58-0 win over the Albury Steamers, before narrowly losing to the Leeton Diana's 19-24. The match against the Diana's was a great example of what 7s rugby was about featured some spectacular tries. With only three teams in action this round, both Leeton and Griffith are looking impressive however the relative strength will be gauged with the two teams meet again this weekend in Griffith where they will also face Wagga. The tag rugby competition in the Under 16 age division comprises of only three sides, with Griffith playing Albury in a double header. Following a 15-15 draw in the first encounter, the girls won the second match 20-15. The second round with see the Griffith Junior Rugby Union Club host the Leeton Phantoms, the Hay Whipper Snippers and the Wagga Crows, this Mother's Day, 9 May 2021. *** Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:
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May 4 2021 - 2:06PM
Junior Blacks start Southern Inland Rugby Union Junior competition in Leeton
Steven Parisotto
The opening round of the Southern Inland Junior Rugby Union competition kicked off last week with Young and Leeton hosting games.
The Griffith Junior Rugby Union Club sent teams in the Under 6s, Under 10s, Under 12s, Under 14s and Under 16s age divisions along with the Rugby 7s teams in the Under 15s and Under 17s and the Under 16s tag rugby side.
In what was a very successful day, the club picked up 10 wins and a draw from the 14 games played.
The Short Blacks Under 10s boys and girls had a tough introduction to the 2021 season facing the host club the Leeton Phantoms, who based on other results are one of the strongest teams in the competition.
The result was a 14-56 loss, however the team never stopped trying. The second game, was a little closer, going down to the Hay Whipper Snippers 7-30.
Photos by Steven Parisotto
The Blacks U12s sounded their intentions for the season with two thumping wins, the first over rivals the Phantoms 64-5 and the second a 58-10 win over Hay.
This squad is made up of a number of "veteran" players who have been together since the Under 6s and many new to the game of rugby.
This will be a team to watch out for during the season along with the Tumut Bullants and the Young Yabbies, who both came away from the first round with bonus point wins and share the top of the table.
The Griffith Under 14s came away from Leeton with a narrow 12-7 victory over the Phantoms and backed it up with a convincing win over the Temora Tuskers 48-0.
The Under 14s competition is generally an even, with the Young Yabbies setting the benchmark at this point in the season.
The Griffith Blackbirds U15s 7s dominated the 2020 season finishing the season unbeaten, and the new squad, which featured only one player from last season, continued the strong tradition of girl's rugby with two superb wins over the Leeton Diana's 35-10 and a 39-14 win over the Temora Tuskers.
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The bonus point victories has placed the Blackbirds on top of the table.
The Blacks U16s is virtually a new team, with a number of boys playing rugby union for the first time ever. Their enthusiasm, combined with the experience of the senior players resulted in two great victories, the first being a 22-17 win over Leeton which the Blacks score from an audacious cross field kick which resulted in a try with the last play of the game.
This was backed up with a 30-0 shut out of the Temora Tuskers in the second game of the day. Based on other results there seems to be some disparity between the top three and bottom three, and at this stage the sides to watch are Griffith, Leeton, and the Wagga Crows.
The Under 17s Blackbirds feature only two top age players, with the bulk of the squad being made up of last seasons Under 15 girls. Notwithstanding, the Blackbirds clocked up a 58-0 win over the Albury Steamers, before narrowly losing to the Leeton Diana's 19-24.
The match against the Diana's was a great example of what 7s rugby was about featured some spectacular tries. With only three teams in action this round, both Leeton and Griffith are looking impressive however the relative strength will be gauged with the two teams meet again this weekend in Griffith where they will also face Wagga.
The tag rugby competition in the Under 16 age division comprises of only three sides, with Griffith playing Albury in a double header. Following a 15-15 draw in the first encounter, the girls won the second match 20-15.
The second round with see the Griffith Junior Rugby Union Club host the Leeton Phantoms, the Hay Whipper Snippers and the Wagga Crows, this Mother's Day, 9 May 2021.
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The summer draws to a close. The heat dissipates, leaving just the feeling of autumn dread in its wake. School approaches. The movies and television on your Netflix to-do list dwindles. (Although, hey, if you're looking for recommendations, we have a few.) You've already re-watched Friends and Friends from College and you've even dabbled in the lesser-known gems like Crashing and Australia's Offspring. What's an avid television-watcher to do in August when the well runs dry?
This August, Netflix is serving classic hits. There's A Cinderella Story. We've got Holes. There's The Addams Family. There's all three Matrix movies.
And as per usual, Netflix is serving an array of originals, like the comedy Atypical starring Keir Gilchrist and the highly-anticipated Marvel mashup The Defenders.


text:
import re
from uuid import uuid4
from subprocess import check_output, CalledProcessError

from . import AudioTrack, ConvertHelper

from ..utils import (
    to_unicode as u,
    cli_escape,
    filename_safe,
    ensure_parent_folder,
    path_from_pattern,
)
from ..actions import (
    Action,
    SystemCallActionMixin,
    FileActionMixin,
)

class FLAC(AudioTrack):

    def __init__(self):
        AudioTrack.__init__(self)

    def validate(self):
        if u"_file" not in self:
            raise ValueError("The FLAC instance doesn't have an input file.")

def read_flac_file_tags(filename):
    cmdline = u'''metaflac --no-utf8-convert --export-tags-to=- "%s"''' % cli_escape(filename)
    try:
        p = check_output(cmdline, shell=True)
    except CalledProcessError as ex:
        raise ex  # for now, let's just raise this error.

    return p

class FLACConvertHelper(ConvertHelper, Action, SystemCallActionMixin, FileActionMixin):

    def __init__(self):
        ConvertHelper.__init__(self)
        Action.__init__(self)
        SystemCallActionMixin.__init__(self)
        FileActionMixin.__init__(self)

        self.flacs = []
        self.tmp_wav = {}
        self.files_to_copy = {}
        self.output_pattern = None
        return

    def add_flac(self, flac):
        self.validate_flac(flac)
        self.assign_tmp_wav(flac)  # Assign a temp wav file.
        self.flacs.append(flac)

    def assign_tmp_wav(self, flac):
        if flac[u"_file"] in self.tmp_wav:
            return
        if flac[u"_file"].endswith(u".wav"):
            self.tmp_wav[flac[u"_file"]] = flac[u"_file"]
        else:
            self.tmp_wav[flac[u"_file"]] = u"_tmp_%s.wav" % uuid4()

    def build_commands(self, **kwargs):
        self.build_temp_wav_commands(**kwargs)
        self.build_conv_commands(**kwargs)
        self.build_copy_commands(**kwargs)
        self.build_cleanup_commands(**kwargs)

    def build_temp_wav_commands(self, **kwargs):
        for source_file, wav_file in self.tmp_wav.items():
            if source_file != wav_file:
                self.add_system_call(1, command_ffmpeg(infile=source_file, outfile=wav_file, **kwargs))

    def build_conv_commands(self, **kwargs):
        pattern = kwargs.pop(u"pattern")

        for flac in self.flacs:
            outfile = path_from_pattern(pattern, flac)
            infile = self.tmp_wav[flac[u"_file"]]
            self.add_system_call(2, command_flac_conv(flac, infile=infile, outfile=outfile, **kwargs))

    def build_copy_commands(self, **kwargs):
        return

    def build_cleanup_commands(self, **kwargs):
        for tmpwav in self.tmp_wav.values():
            if tmpwav.startswith(u"_tmp_"):
                self.add_delete(3, tmpwav)

def command_ffmpeg(**kwargs):
    infile = kwargs.get(u"infile")
    outfile = kwargs.get(u"outfile")

    arguments = [u"ffmpeg", u"-i", infile, outfile]

    return u" ".join(arguments)

def command_flac_conv(flac, **kwargs):
    infile = kwargs.get(u"infile")
    outfile = kwargs.get(u"outfile")

    arguments = [u"flac", u"-V", u'''-o "%s"''' % outfile, u'''--best''']

    time_begin = kwargs.get(u"_time_begin", None)
    if time_begin: arguments.append(u'''--skip=%s''' % cue_index_to_flac_time(time_begin))

    time_end = kwargs.get(u"_time_end", None)
    if time_end: arguments.append(u'''--until=%s''' % cue_index_to_flac_time(time_end))

    pic_cover = kwargs.get(u"_pic_cover", None)
    if pic_cover: arguments.append(u'''--picture="%s"''' % pic_cover)

    for tag in flac.list_tags():
        if not tag.startswith(u"_"):
            arguments.append(u'''--tag="%s"="%s"''' % (tag, flac.get_tag(tag)))

    arguments.append(u'''"%s"''' % infile)

    return u" ".join(arguments)

def cue_index_to_flac_time(timestr):
    """
    This function converts the time string in CUE file to the format that FLAC accepts.

    Time string in CUE file:  00:00:00

    Time string in FLAC file: 00:00.00
    """
    r = re.match(u'''(\d+:\d{2}):(\d{2})''', timestr)
    if r is None:
        raise ValueError("Invalid time string: %s" % timestr)

    g = r.groups()
    return u'''%s.%s''' % (g[0], g[1])

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


A connection SCART cable to connect common AV devices such as DVD players, VHS videos, digital TVs and, of course, TVs. The cable is 1.5m long.
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text:
The Feminine Subject
Hardback By Susan J. Hekman
In 1949 Simone de Beauvoir asked, "What does it mean to be a woman?" Her answer to that question inaugurated a radical transformation of the meaning of "woman" that defined the direction of subsequent feminist theory. What Beauvoir discovered is that it is impossible to define "woman" as an equal human being in our philosophical and political tradition. Her effort to redefine "woman" outside these parameters set feminist theory on a path of radical transformation. The feminist theorists who wrote in the wake of Beauvoir's work followed that path. Susan Hekman's original and highly engaging new book traces the evolution of "woman" from Beauvoir to the present. In a comprehensive synthesis of a number of feminist theorists she covers French feminist thinkers Luce Irigaray and Helene Cixous as well as theorists such as Carol Gilligan, Carole Pateman and Judith Butler. The book examines the relational self, feminist liberalism and Marxism, as well as feminist theories of race and ethnicity, radical feminism, postmodern feminism and material feminism. Hekman argues that the effort to redefine "woman" in the course of feminist theory is a cumulative process in which each approach builds on that which has gone before. Although they have approached "woman" from different perspectives, feminist theorists has moved beyond the negative definition of our tradition to a new concept that continues to evolve. The Feminine Subject is a remarkably succinct yet wide-ranging analysis which will appeal to all feminist scholars and students as well as anyone interested in the changing nature of feminism since the 1950s.
Publication Date: 23 Sep 2014 Publisher: Polity Press
Susan Hekman is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Graduate Humanities Program at the University of Texas at Arlington.
Susan Hekman has written a brilliant and much needed book. She encourages contemporary scholars to pursue the radical, boundary-breaking project of bringing 'woman' into philosophical traditions and offers a shrewd analysis of what has impeded this project. This accessible book will be of great value to students of feminist philosophy, feminist theory, gender studies, and in fact, anyone who recognizes that the search for 'woman' is on-going and continues to evolve Carol Gilligan, New York University Feminist theorists are fortunate that Susan Hekman has written this well-argued book. It will no doubt be read with interest and delight and assigned to students for classes. It is a pleasure to see a mature scholar take account of the field with an engaging thesis. Eloise Buker, Saint Louis University
In The Feminine Subject, Susan Hekman has crafted an original account of feminist theory as a positive cumulative enterprise with discernible lineages to Simone de Beauvoir's The Second Sex. The intriguing result of this approach, which treats feminist theory as an 'evolving tradition,' is a feminism that embraces its differences within, rather than being undone by them. Christine Di Stefano, University of Washington


These simple yet stylish metal and Leather necklaces have been very popular. We are down to just TWO the circular Live Laugh Love pendants. One light leather and one darker leather cord. Get them before they vanish.


text:
February 25, 2022 | Policy Corner
Dennis Price
ImpactAlpha, Feb. 25 – Bottom-up policies for access to capital in divested communities. Top-down strategies to reshape capitalism to work for all stakeholders.
"We think that the connective tissue between those two represent particularly fertile opportunities for our field," Fran Seegull of the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance said on ImpactAlpha's Call No. 38. "This is the time."
Agents of Impact gathered on The Call to make sense of rules for the next stage of capitalism that are being written into regulations in real-time.
"Between climate and human capital, this is probably one of the most important sets of disclosure rule makings in a generation at the SEC," said former SEC advisor Satyam Khanna.
Regulatory windows in Europe and the U.S. offer a moment to update rules governing corporate disclosure on climate risks and human capital management, says Seegull. More disclosure and transparency are things impact investors have been fighting for for decades.
Agents of Impact eye corporate disclosure rules on climate and human capital
Impact investors are also seizing on the strong demand for affordable housing, quality jobs, healthy food and all decarbonized things to drive the supply of needed goods and services. Congress is reconciling supply-side growth policies in the U.S. Innovation and Competition and COMPETES acts.
Such advances would cap a set of early wins under the Biden Administration for policies that mobilize private capital for public good. Already in the bag: Historic investments of nearly $12 billion into community development and minority deposit institutions to improve access to capital for minority entrepreneurs. Sign up to get updates from the Alliance.
Better data
The Securities and Exchange Commission is readying new rules as early as March for corporate ESG and climate disclosure. The European Union and the International Sustainability Standards Board are hammering out their own set of disclosure rules.
Khanna says the SEC is grappling with externalities and how to price them in a way that allows investors to hold management accountable. How far will they go? At stake: whether companies will have to report all of their climate impacts, including so-called "Scope 3" emissions, or only climate risks that directly affect their bottom lines.
"Investors want the information and they want the information because they want to be able to better allocate their capital to take into account what they see as risks in their portfolio," says Khanna.
Human assets
Institutional asset owners are demanding corporations account for how they invest in their workforces.
"We view human capital, not just as a cost to be managed, but as an important asset for firms," said Cambria Allen Ratzlaff of the Human Capital Management Coalition, a group of 35 institutional investors representing more than $6.6 trillion in assets.
The group is seeking requirements for companies to disclose high-quality information that is consistent, comparable and able to be benchmarked over time.
"It's really important that we're able to understand, evaluate and then make decisions with respect to how we allocate our capital and vote proxies," says Ratzlaff.
Impact investors show how 'supply-side' policies can leverage private capital for public good
A ruling at the SEC would make such information available not only to institutional investors but small investors as well, she says, allowing everyone to make "the fastest decisions possible that leads to market efficiency that's better allocated for the entirety of the US economy."
What's next? "Comment, comment, comment," says Ratzlaff. Ratzlaff says investors should let regulators know how more information will improve their ability to efficiently allocate capital. Be "specific and data-driven." The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance is coordinating investor comments and other engagement opportunities.
Seegull agreed that disclosure and transparency "are necessary but insufficient."
Still, "we have to balance our ambition and our goals and dreams with the regulatory windows that are open now," says Seegull. "Practicality and commenting and supporting the SEC, if they're subject to litigation, is the most important thing in the short and medium term."
The U.S. Impact Investing Alliance is an ImpactAlpha sponsor.


text:
Creative Time/SMU Symposium: Urban Engagement and Creativity
by Anne Bothwell 18 Mar 2011 10:53 AM
SMU and Creative Time sponsor a day-long symposium looking at art, architecture and social engagement. It's free, but you have to sign up.
First, SMU chose Creative Time as a recipient of its Meadows Prize. Then Creative Time issued a report on the state of the arts scene in Dallas. Up next: SMU sponsors a day-long symposium on April 9 examining the relationships between many aspects of art, architecture, social engagement and community building.
The panelists are diverse – from Rick Lowe, creator of Project Row House in Houston to Oak Cliff's Jason Roberts (Build a Better Block, Bike Friendly Oak Cliff, Art Conspiracy) to Tom Finkelpearl, the exec director of Queens Museum of Art. West Dallas and Brent Brown of City Design Studio show up on the agenda as well. You can register here.
Why is SMU doing this? Here's what Jose Bowen, dean of the Meadows School, says in the press release, which you can read in full after the jump:
"The Meadows School is pioneering a new model of art that connects social engagement and community relevance with employment. As of fall 2010, all freshmen at Meadows are introduced to alternative models of artistic practice – which includes everything from our own programs in music therapy and our interdisciplinary ensemble, Point, to our community artist partnerships with Big Thought – AND to the basics of how the various arts businesses, both nonprofit and for-profit, work. We've also introduced the country's first official minors in arts entrepreneurship and creative computing, as well as a new minor in arts management, and we will soon launch a new minor in cities and culture. All of this is designed to expose students to a broader array of art-making, which will prepare them both for community impact and jobs."
SMU'S MEADOWS SCHOOL OF THE ARTS HOSTS FREE PUBLIC SYMPOSIUM, "THE FREEDOM OF THE CITY: MODELS OF URBAN ENGAGEMENT AND CREATIVITY IN THE 21ST CENTURY," APRIL 9
Follow-up to recently released Creative Time report brings recognized innovators in art and architecture to Dallas
DALLAS (SMU) – On February 1, New York-based public arts organization and Meadows Prize recipient Creative Time and SMU's Meadows School of the Arts released a series of recommendations for fostering the arts in Dallas. The group identified 13 key elements necessary for the Dallas art community to thrive, and developed several recommendations for each element to further strengthen programs and structures and to create new opportunities.
In a follow-up to the report, the Meadows School will host a public symposium on Saturday, April 9, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. titled "The Freedom of the City: Models of Urban Engagement and Creativity in the 21st Century." Through individual presentations and panel discussions, the conference will explore the relationship between artists, architects, activists and social justice struggles, and examine new models of public art practice and architecture in the urban environment. The aim of the event is threefold: to disseminate information on exemplary public art/architecture projects that have taken place or are in progress in cities throughout the United States; to discuss the relevance of such approaches to the city of Dallas; and to generate public feedback on these and related issues deemed crucial to the well-being of the community.
Participants will include socially engaged artists, SMU and UT arts and architecture faculty, and prominent Dallas community builders. The symposium will be moderated by Nato Thompson, chief curator of Creative Time. Guest speakers include the following:
Dean Almy, Associate Professor of Architecture and Director of the Graduate Programs in Urban Design and Landscape Architecture, University of Texas-Austin
Brent Brown, Architect; Director of CityDesign Studio and buildingcommunity WORKSHOP, Dallas
Mel Chin, Artist; projects include Revival Field (use of plants to remove toxic metals from soil) and KNOWMAD (video game based on rug patterns of disappearing nomadic people); investigates how art can provoke greater social awareness and responsibility
Wanda Dye, Assistant Professor of Architecture, University of Texas-Arlington
Tom Finkelpearl, Executive Director, Queens Museum of Art, and author of Dialogues in Public Art
Rick Lowe, Artist; Founder of Project Row Houses, Houston, the Watts House Project, Los Angeles, and other community building projects nationwide
Cheryl Mayo, Executive Director, West Dallas Community Centers
Laurie Jo Reynolds, Artist; Soros Justice Fellow; projects include Tamms Year Ten, which led to prison reform in Illinois; fuses art with political activism
Jason Roberts, Founder and President, Oak Cliff Transit Authority; co-founded Art Conspiracy and Bike Friendly Oak Cliff; "Better Blocks" project organizer
Zoka Zola, Architect; winner of Architecture magazine's Home of the Year Award
The symposium will take place in the Bob Hope Theatre of the Owen Arts Center, 6101 Bishop Blvd. on the SMU campus. The schedule is below. Lunch and refreshments will be served. Admission is free, but registration is required. To register for the event, visit smu.edu/freedomofthecity or contact Leila Grothe at [email protected].
The symposium is an example of new initiatives at the Meadows School designed to help students discover myriad ways to use their artistic training after graduation, said Meadows School Dean José Bowen. "The Meadows School is pioneering a new model of art that connects social engagement and community relevance with employment," he said. "As of fall 2010, all freshmen at Meadows are introduced to alternative models of artistic practice – which includes everything from our own programs in music therapy and our interdisciplinary ensemble, Point, to our community artist partnerships with Big Thought – AND to the basics of how the various arts businesses, both nonprofit and for-profit, work. We've also introduced the country's first official minors in arts entrepreneurship and creative computing, as well as a new minor in arts management, and we will soon launch a new minor in cities and culture. All of this is designed to expose students to a broader array of art-making, which will prepare them both for community impact and jobs."
About Creative Time and the Meadows Prize
In October 2009 Creative Time received one of the inaugural two Meadows Prize artist residency awards from the Meadows School. Creative Time's residency took the form of a yearlong study of the Dallas art community to identify strengths and potential areas for growth. During the course of three weeklong visits to Dallas in 2010, Creative Time's team met with a wide range of members of the art community, including artists, curators, collectors, gallery owners, visual and performing arts organization leaders, school administrators, philanthropists, writers, community organizers and city officials. The resulting report, released on February 1, presented some 60 recommendations for both individual and collective action to help the Dallas art community thrive. The full report and ongoing community comments are posted on D Magazine's FrontRow site: frontrow.dmagazine.com/creativetime. The report is also available at smu.edu/creativetimereport.
Since 1974, Creative Time has presented the most innovative art in the public realm. The New York-based nonprofit has worked with over 2,000 artists to produce more than 335 groundbreaking public art projects that have ignited the public's imagination, explored ideas that shape society and engaged millions of people around the globe. Creative Time seeks to convert the power of artists' ideas into works that inspire social change and stimulate public dialogue on timely issues, while initiating a dynamic conversation among artists, sites and audiences. For more information on Creative Time and its projects, visit www.creativetime.org.
SYMPOSIUM SCHEDULE:
10:00 AM Opening remarks Jose Bowen, Dean, Meadows School of the Arts
10:05 AM Introduction Michael Corris, Chair, Division of Art, Meadows School of
10:10 AM Keynote Speaker Rick Lowe – "Art and Social Justice"
Theme A: Art
10:40 AM Speaker 1 Laurie Jo Reynolds – "The Worst of the Worst: Where Do
They Come From? Who Are They? Where Are They
Going?"
11:05 AM Speaker 2 Mel Chin – "April Update: Operation Paydirt/Fundred
Dollar Bill Project"
11:30 AM Panel discussion Nato Thompson, Chief Curator, Creative Time; Noah
Simblist, Associate Professor of Art, Meadows School of
the Arts; and speakers
Theme B: Community
12:35 PM Speaker 3 Cheryl Mayo – "West Dallas and the Arts"
1:00 PM Speaker 4 Tom Finkelpearl – "Can Artists Actually Make a
Difference in a City?"
1:25 PM Panel discussion Nato Thompson, Jason Roberts and speakers
1:45 PM Refreshment break
Theme C: Architecture
2:00 PM Speaker 5 Dean Almy – "Colonization"
2:25 PM Speaker 6 Zoka Zola – "Recent Works"
2:50 PM Speaker 7 Wanda Dye – "Engaging the Everyday City: Observations
and Interventions"
3:15 PM Panel discussion Nato Thompson, Brent Brown and speakers
3:45 PM Closing remarks Jose Bowen
Architecture & Public Art
Jose Bowen
About Anne Bothwell
Anne Bothwell is Vice President Arts at KERA. She invites you to join the conversation and connect with the arts community here on Art&Seek. View more about Anne Bothwell.


text:
Donna Tartt Shrine | Interview | Breaking Her Silence
Breaking Her Silence
by Malcolm Jones, Newsweek, October 21, 2002
Ten years ago Donna Tartt turned the literary world on its ear with her best seller, 'The Secret History.' Now she's getting ready to do it again. Say hello to 'The Little Friend'.
I could start with an anecdote, a revealing vignette, say, set in a Japanese teahouse in Manhattan where I met Donna Tartt for an interview (it tickles her that in this teahouse you can get green tea, the beverage at the heart of Japan's ritualistic tea ceremony, in a go cup).
Or I could talk about the frenzy of chatter filling up the shrinelike Web sites where her fans speculate endlessly about what she's been up to since her acclaimed, best-selling debut novel, "The Secret History," appeared 10 years ago ("My favorite rumor," she says with a giggle, "was that I'd bought an entire island, like Dr. No"). Or I could talk about the reception her new novel, "The Little Friend," received when it was published in the Netherlands last month (most salient fact: it sold 150,000 copies in one week).
It's tempting to just go on telling stories about Tartt, because she's a character—Mississippi bred, Bennington educated, a snappy dresser with an eccentric streak (she won't talk about her private life, won't even say if she's married: "As Mississippi John Hurt put it, 'Ain't nobody's business but my own' "). More important, she became a literary superstar on the basis of a single novel. She published "The Secret History" when she was 28 (the legendary editor and writer Willie Morris told her "I think you're a genius" when he met her at Ole Miss; she was still a teenager). "The Secret History" was the talk of the literary world, with critics competing to pile on superlatives. The Gothic tale of five New England college students involved in two murders, the book sold more than a million copies. But after that, there was not another word from Tartt, no new novel, year after year after year. And so the rumors started afresh. She was blocked. "The Secret History" was really the work of a boyfriend. And on and on.
But now there is a book, so enough already with the rumors. Because what you really want to know is, how good is it? In fact, "The Little Friend" is a terrific story—a much better book than "The Secret History." It's got a main character, a 12-year-old girl named Harriet Cleve Dufresnes, who ranks up there with Huck Finn, Miss Havisham, Quentin Compson and Philip Marlowe, fictional creations who don't seem in the least fictional. I read this novel a month ago, and since then I have gone back over —and over to keep company with Harriet. She is not a particularly nice kid ("Harriet," the book tells us when she is introduced 26 pages into the story, "was neither pretty nor sweet. Harriet was smart"), but she seems as real to me as my own children.
In the book's opening pages, Harriet's 9-year-old brother, Robin, is found dead, hanging from a tree in the Dufresnes yard on Mother's Day. At the time, Harriet is only a baby. Twelve years later she sets out to find his murderer. Her search occupies the rest of the book, and along the way we meet her loony mother, her dotty great-aunts, her magisterial grandmother and a clan of drug-dealing white trash who would scare anyone but Harriet halfway into the next county. The 38-year-old author etches each of these characters with indelible assurance. Any one of them could single-handedly dominate most novels. But Harriet outshines them all.
So the first thing I wanted to know when we met was just how much of Tartt was in Harriet. "Not as much as you might think," she replies. Yes, both Harriet and Tartt grew up in small Mississippi towns in the '70s. Both were loners, voracious readers with few playmates and surrounded by aging relatives. "Harriet is actually more a state of mind, a sort of no-nonsense trait that runs in my mother's side of the family. My great-grandfather used to talk about his own grandmother like that, and she must have been born in the 1820s or 1830s." And frankly, Tartt is much nicer, and a lot funnier, than the grimly determined little girl in this novel. You can't imagine Donna Tartt trying to kill anyone, certainly not with a cobra.


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HomeLooking Up by Bob EklundLooking Up – Bob Eklund
Looking Up – Bob Eklund
July 17, 2014 Looking Up by Bob Eklund 0
Building on 14 years of extraordinary discoveries, the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) has launched a major program of three new surveys, adding novel capabilities to expand its census of the Universe into regions it had been unable to explore before.
This new phase of SDSS will:
–Explore the compositions and motions of stars across the entire Milky Way in unprecedented detail, using a telescope in Chile along with the existing Sloan Foundation Telescope in New Mexico.
–Make detailed maps of the internal structure of thousands of nearby galaxies to determine how they have grown and changed over billions of years, using a novel optical fiber bundle technology that can take spectra of each different part of a galaxy at once.
–Measure the expansion of the Universe during a poorly understood five-billion-year period of the Universe's history when Dark Energy started to drive its expansion, using a new set of galaxies and quasars.
The new survey is a collaboration of more than 200 astronomers at more than 40 institutions on four continents, and it incorporates telescopes in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. With these two telescopes, the SDSS will be able to see the entire sky for the first time.
"Over the last fourteen years, many people have used SDSS data to make numerous discoveries that have revolutionized astronomy," said Michael Blanton of New York University, the director of the new survey. "We have mapped the large-scale structure of the Universe, traced out previously unknown structures in the Milky Way, and made unanticipated discoveries from asteroids in our own Solar System to the most distant quasars."
This new phase of the SDSS will provide a vast new database of observations that will significantly expand our understanding of the nature of the Universe at all scales, from our own galaxy to the distant universe. In our galaxy, the new SDSS will see hundreds of thousands of individual stars, including stars that were born at the birth of the Milky Way and stars born in the past few million years, just yesterday in cosmic terms. Measuring the compositions, positions, and motions of individual stars will reveal how the Galaxy evolved from the distant past to today.
"The SDSS has observed more than half a million Milky Way stars over the past fourteen years, which I call a good start," said Jennifer Johnson of The Ohio State University, the Scientific Spokesperson of the new SDSS. "However, from the Northern Hemisphere, the Earth blocks our view of a quarter of the Milky Way, and mostly obscures our view of the galactic center. So there are literally entire regions of the Galaxy that the SDSS has yet to see."
This new phase will complete the picture. In addition to the Sloan Foundation 2.5-meter Telescope in New Mexico, SDSS will use the 2.5-meter Irenee du Pont Telescope at Las Campanas Observatory, high in the Chilean Andes and home to the clearest skies on the planet. In addition to completing the full study of the Milky Way, the du Pont telescope will also observe stars in the nearby Magellanic Clouds, giving astronomers a better understanding of the Milky Way's immediate environs.
Fiesta La Ballona Coming Up – Aug 22-24
City Announces Applications Open for Baldwin Hills Conservancy Board


text:
Believeland, indeed: Indians take huge step toward World Series conquest
Bob Nightengale
CLEVELAND — OK, maybe it really is time to believe.
Maybe the city of Cleveland, which has experienced so much heartache, with generations watching the failures of their sports franchises, can, dare we say, be actually optimistic.
The Cleveland Indians, the other team in the World Series stricken by a historic drought, took one giant step toward ending that Tuesday night with a convincing 6-0 win against the Chicago Cubs in Game 1 of the World Series at Progressive Field.
It was the Indians' first World Series shutout since they last won the Series in 1948 and their fourth of this magical postseason.
The Indians have suddenly found themselves a modern-day Bob Feller, a flashy Lou Boudreau, a slugging Sandy Alomar and a closing bullpen duo not featuring Jose Mesa.
Magic formula: Corey Kluber, Andrew Miller dominant in Game 1 World Series win over Cubs
Suddenly, it's cool to be a Tribe fan - even with LeBron James and his aide-de-camps celebrating an NBA title next door.
The Cavaliers received their NBA championship rings an hour before Indians ace Corey Kluber threw his first pitch, and if Kluber keeps pitching like this, the Cavs might be the ones watching the downtown parade this time.
"We expect a shutout from him every time,'' Indians catcher Roberto Perez said. "I don't know where we'd be without him.''
Says Kluber: "I don't know where we'd be without Roberto.''
While the Indians, behind starter Kluber's six shutout innings, struck out 15 batters on this night, tied for the second-highest total in World Series history, it was Perez who became the first Indians player to hit two World Series homers in the same game.
"It's an unbelievable feeling,'' Perez said. "I've never had a night like this.''
While Kluber set a World Series record with eight strikeouts in the first three innings, it was Perez who became the first hitter to hit two home runs from the ninth spot in World Series history.
While Kluber joined Bob Gibson of the 1968 St. Louis Cardinals and Allie Reynolds of 1948 New York Yankees as the only World Series pitchers to strike out at least nine batters without giving up a run, Perez joined Yogi Berra, Johnny Bench, Gary Carter and Gene Tenace as the only catchers to have two homers in a World Series game.
While Perez raved about his pitching staff that has dominated everyone in its wake this postseason, going 8-1 with a 1.58 ERA, striking out 96 batters in 80 innings, the pitching staff has wildly praised Perez for making it happen.
It's really little surprise that Kluber, who could win his second Cy Young Award in three years, is turning this postseason into his own video game.
The stunner is that the man operating the joystick is the one making the difference.
Game 2 to 'start on time' despite potential rain
Yes, Roberto Perez, the same guy who hit .185 with a .285 on-base percentage and a .294 slugging percentage this season, hitting three home runs the entire season.
He now has three homers this postseason, two in four innings this night, including a three-run shot in the eighth.
"It gives me goose bumps,'' says Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor, who had three hits in Game 1. "It gets me going because I know how hard he works, day in and day out, what he's doing for Puerto Rico. He's amazing to watch.''
Oh, and what he's doing for the Indians is trying to carry them where they haven't gone in 68 years, losing just one postseason game this year.
"What he's doing has made all of the difference in the world for us," Cleveland backup catcher Chris Gimenez says. "We're not here without him.''
And, to think, three months ago, Perez wondered if he'd still have a job.
The Indians, with catcher Yan Gomes hurt and Perez and Gimenez struggling offensively, knew they had a huge hole. They searched for a catcher. And found their man.
They worked out a deal with the Milwaukee Brewers for All-Star Jonathan Lucroy, were ready to seal the dea, and made a phone call to Lucroy to seek approval, since Cleveland was on his no-trade list. Lucroy, who's a free agent after 2017, asked about their plans for him next year. They told him he would be an everyday catcher but also play first base and be a DH. Lucroy balked, thinking it would diminish his free agent value.
The deal was voided. Perez had new life.
Kyle Schwarber quickly shakes off rust to start for Cubs in World Series
"I don't blame them,'' Perez said. "I just had (thumb) surgery back then. I understood why he was trying to do, and I don't blame them. I'm just glad I got the opportunity to show the world, and people, that I can do the job.''
Perez and Gimenez, figuring one of them would be gone for sure when Lucroy arrived, huddled together for a pep talk.
"We sat down and said, 'This is going to be on us to get us there.' Well, he took the onus on himself that he was the one who was going to get us there.
"Here we are, he just hit two home runs in the World Series, man. I can't even imagine hitting one. Or getting a hit. It's so awesome to see.''
Says Cleveland center fielder Rajai Davis: "I think it was just a tip of the iceberg what we're really capable of doing offensively with the way we hit. And when your No. 9 hitter is hitting two home runs, that's kind of scary.
"Can you imagine this offense if our No. 9 hitter keeps hitting home runs. Ooh, look out.''
Really, the way Kluber and the pitching staff see it, they don't even need him to get a hit. He gets so many rave reviews with his game-calling and pitch-framing, they think that's worth a couple of runs a game.
"He makes those 50-50 balls look so good that in an umpire's eyes, that's a strike," Gimenez says. "That's huge for us.''
Certainly, Kluber couldn't stop praising Perez, saying he certainly wouldn't be 3-1 with a 0.74 ERA, striking out 29 batters in 24 1/3 innings this postseason, without him.
"He did an unbelievable job,'' Kluber said. "It's almost like he knew what they were looking for. He had them off-balance for the majority of the night. Really the only time that they got hits was really when I didn't execute a pitch.''
Then again, the way Kluber is pitching, he has a way of making every catcher look like Bench.
"Phenomenal, incredible, whatever superlative you can come up with,'' said Andrew Miller, who relieved Kluber in the seventh inning and pitched two scoreless innings before turning it over to closer Cody Allen. "We see it all the time. It's special. I know he's in Cleveland and it's not the spotlight of big markets, but he's as good as they come.
On ugly night for Andrew Miller, he has just enough to save Indians in Game 1
"Right now, he's as good a pitcher as there is in baseball. We want him on the mound every chance we can get.''
That could be in Game 4. And again in Game 7, if necessary. Kluber only threw 88 pitches and says he'd be just fine on short rest.
"I don't think you'd find anybody who would turn down a chance to go out there and pitch right now," he says.
The Cavs have already informed the Indians they are coming to Game 2 on Wednesday, which starts an hour earlier (7:08 p.m. ET, Fox) because of the threat of late rain. They won't be able to see Kluber, but if they hang around long enough, they'll get to see him plenty more before this World Series ends.
Indians, Cavaliers fans celebrate a night for the ages in Cleveland
"We need him,'' says Cleveland manager Terry Francona, the first manager to win each of his first nine World Series games, "and we're going to need him more.
"The needle on the gas tank doesn't point toward empty.''
Not in the new Cleveland. Now, it all looks half-full, and rising steadily.
Follow Nightengale on Twitter and Facebook
GALLERY: CUBS, Indians clash in World Series


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text:
/ GAMING
Video Game Release Dates
Fallout 76 Wouldn't Have Been Abandoned, Says Pete Hines
By Eric Garrett - June 26, 2019 03:52 pm EDT
Fallout 76 has been travelling a rough path ever since it launched last year, rivalling the likes of BioWare's Anthem and its rocky start. Both studios have been working hard to make things right with their respective titles in hopes to keep players coming back for more. Of course, a lot of negativity has surrounded either of the games, especially Fallout 76 and everything that happened outside of the title itself. That said, VP of marketing Pete Hines recently noted that Bethesda had never considered abandoning the troubled game, despite all of the outrage.
During a recent interview with GamesIndustry, Hines discussed how the team has been using lessons Bethesda learned from The Elder Scrolls Online to help with Fallout 76. He also mentioned how it has never been a part of the plan to abandon the game. "It's just in our DNA," Hines said. "I appreciate there might be folks who are tempted to throw up their hands and [call it quits], but that's just not how we're wired. We believed in it. The fact that it didn't go the way we expected and it had issues that maybe we should have foreseen and should have planned for doesn't mean we didn't believe in what the game was and could become."
This year's E3 provided plenty for Fallout 76 players to get excited about. A new expansion was revealed that will be adding NPCs to the experience, the freshly added battle royale mode seems to be a hit for many, and much more. The focus has been placed on trying to fix what is in place, while also looking ahead at what's to come. However, none of the criticism has motivated them to quite.
"BGS is a team that's made a lot of very highly successful things," Hines said. "Still, in my opinion, they are one of the most respected and decorated studios in the world. There is an element of pride -- not in a 'we don't quit and give up' way, but we need to show and prove that we are going to stick with it, and that we don't just hit some adversity and throw up our hands and go, 'Oh this is too hard, let's do something else.' That's not how we think about things, either as a publisher or as a studio."
Fallout 76 is currently available on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. For even more on the game trying to make a comeback, check out some of our previous coverage.
What do you think about all of this? Are you glad that Bethesda hasn't abandoned Fallout 76? Do you think it will become more popular with time and work, or is it time to look at what's next? Sound off in the comment section below, or feel free to hit me up over on Twitter @anarkE7!
ComicBook.com's Most Anticipated Video Games of 2023
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Xbox Game Pass Getting One of 2023's Biggest Annualized Releases
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New PS5 DualSense Controllers Seemingly Leaked
Overwatch 2 Season 3 Events, Price Changes Offer Players More Legendary Skins
The Crew Motorfest Announced by Ubisoft
Battlefield Mobile Cancelled by EA


text:
Biography « Luck Media & Marketing, Inc. – LuckMedia.com
MULTI-TALENTED HOUSTON BASED TRIPLE THREAT
PERFORMER'S DANCE, POP AND ROCK INFLUENCED DEBUT
EP 'SUPERSTITIOUS' IS PRODUCED BY LOUIS YOELIN,
WHO HAS WORKED WITH ROCK BAND VALORA AND
FORMER KSM SINGER AND EMERGING DISNEY ARTIST
Roberts, a Six-Time National Solo Dance Champion and
One of Music Connection Magazine's Hot 100 Unsigned
Artists of 2012, Runs Her Own
Non-Profit Dance Academy for Kids from
Ages 5-18 in the Houston Area
On the supercharged dance/pop title track to her highly anticipated debut EP Superstitious, Shevyn Roberts (www.shevynroberts.net) sings playfully about astrological signs and the things presumed to bring us good and bad luck. In the infectious song, penned by EP's producer Louis Yoelin, she may be looking up at the stars wondering which boy to hang with—but in real life, the multi-talented singer and dancer is fully grounded with an intense work ethic and a burning desire to get out there and spread her joyous sense of fun.
Fans in Roberts' hometown of Houston have been feeling her vibe for the past few years. In 2008, her video for the song "Wild Child"—a track from her first EP, produced by Dave Carlock (P!nk, Nine Inch Nails)—aired on the city's Hot TV. Later that year, she was a featured artist at Jingle Jam, a holiday time concert put on by 104.1 KRBE (Houston's #1 Hit Music Station) that included performances by Rihanna, Chris Brown and Gavin DeGraw. The following March, the singer performed as the only featured artist at the Britney Spears concert pre-party at Houston's House of Blues; she ended 2009 by opening for an about-to-explode Justin Bieber at the Verizon Wireless Theater. Roberts capped 2012 by being named one of Music Connection magazine's Hot 100 Unsigned Artists of the year.
In the type of cool digital collaboration that can only happen in the 2010s, Roberts originally hooked up with Yoelin online and developed their tracks by recording her vocals in Houston after receiving fully produced tracks that he sent from his studio in Los Angeles. Yoelin is currently working with several other young breakthrough female artists, including the rock band Valora (Hollywood Records) and former KSM singer and emerging solo artist Shelby Cobra (Disney Records). In addition to writing and producing tracks for them, he helped them sign their label deals. Yoelin's credits include singer BC Jean and song placements on numerous TV shows, including "How I Met Your Mother," "Criminal Minds," "The Hills" and "The Real World."
Fully reflecting the unique chemistry between Roberts and Yoelin, Superstitious includes the clubby dance track "It's On Tonight" (the one tune featuring her sharp rapping skills!), the edgy, relationship driven pop tune "Upside Down," the free spirited, rock-influenced "King of My Prom" and the energetic rocker "Better Than The First Time." The EP wraps with "Rock Wit U," which finds Roberts' sultry vocals chiming in after we hear the familiar sampled voice of the late Michael Jackson. That track was helmed by renowned Houston and Atlanta based producer Jay South.
During the few years she was developing her sound as an artist from the childlike, teenybopperish flow of her first EP to the mature and confident R&B on Superstitious, Roberts—a six-time National Solo Dance champion as a teenager with the American Dance/Drill Team School and Showtime International—in 2010 opened Shevyn's Dance Academy, a non-profit organization for kids ages 5-18 offering ballet, jazz and hip-hop dance classes (all the styles that Roberts does). The school—originally located in League City, Texas, now in Kemah, near the Kemah Boardwalk in the Greater Houston Area—has worked over the past few years with several hundred students.
If things had worked out differently, for all of Shevyn's later success as a dancer, actress and singer, she might have ended up an Olympic champion. When she was 8 years old, she was a competitive gymnast, training with legendary coach Bela Karolyi, and reached Level 7 in performance (10 is the Olympic standard).
Instead, her teen years were full of regional dance and drill team competitions and studio dance classes where Shevyn continually raised the bar for herself even as she won those many solo competitions. "My main thing was jazz and lyrical dance, contemporary dance," she says. "Lyrical dance is a bit like ballet, sort of classical in feel but with more feeling. I would do routines to Whitney Houston and Celine Dion and put a lot of emotion into it. My teams traveled to different cities in Texas, including Houston, Austin and Dallas where the nationals were. What's cool about the music I'm doing now is that as a live performer, pop/R&B still requires me to incorporate jazz into the mix. Hip-hop is part of it too, but it wasn't my expertise, so I tell the choreographers to give me a jazzier style. We create a hybrid I like to call jazzy hip hop."
Upon graduating from high school, Shevyn moved to Los Angeles to pursue acting—and quickly landed a spot on the Emmy winning soap opera "Days of Our Lives," on which she appeared five times. She simultaneously went to acting school and the Hollywood Pop Academy, where she worked on developing her musical talents and quickly realized that she liked singing more than acting.
Despite her burgeoning success as a recording artist and performer, Shevyn hasn't given up acting entirely. She recently starred in a romantic action film called "Because I Love You," and appeared on the red carpet for its premiere in 2012. Other recent media activities include performing her music and being interviewed on the "Great Day Houston" TV show and appearing on the cover of Storm Magazine, which did an exclusive interview.
Speaking of her multi-faceted career, Shevyn says, "All of this has definitely been a fun ride, though it's not all fun and games and involves a lot of hard work. It's great to be part of the performing arts and being able to express myself creatively in so many settings. I can't wait to get out there and perform more. I'm really excited about it!"
"Superstitious" is available for purchase exclusively at: www.shevynroberts.net


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Delhi : Motilal Banarsidass, isbn Jambuvijaya, Muni (2002 Piotr Balcerowicz Marek Mejor,., Essays in Jaina Philosophy and Religion, Motilal Banarsidass, isbn Jones, Constance; Ryan, James. Jainism and Hinduism influenced each other. Lyrics meaning conserverie la belle iloise bretagne. The balabhadra and narayana are brothers. The Jains claim their religion to be eternal, and consider Rishabhanatha to be the founder in the present time-cycle, the first of 24 Jain tirthankaras in Jain belief, and someone who lived for 8,400,000 purva years. Locally, this cavern is known as "Eladipattam", a name that is derived from the seven holes cut into the rock that serve as steps leading to the shelter. Jain worship may include ritual offerings and recitals. Forgiveness I forgive all my american market coupon living beings, may all living beings forgive. The earliest surviving Sanskrit text by Umaswati called the Tattvarthastra is considered authoritative Jain philosophy text by all traditions of Jainism. 19 Late medieval Jain scholars re-examined the Ahis doctrine when one is faced with external threat or violence. The tirthankaras of Jainism, such as the Mahvra (Vardhamana) set an example of leading an ascetic life by performing severe austerities for twelve years. Quantcast positions No data about being in Quantcast ratings.


text:
Q: execute extra observable/promise at the end of the http request I have an interceptor and I need to chain/execute a promise/observable when the request comes back from the server.  How can I do this in rxjs 6?
intercept(): Observable<HttpEvent<any>> {
    return next.handle(request)[DO-SOMETHING]
}

A: If you need to modify the http event:
return next.handle(request).pipe(
    mergeMap(request => yourPromiseOrObservable));

What does mergeMap do?

Projects each source value to an Observable which is merged in the output Observable.

And for more help.
If you don't need to modify the http event:
return next.handle(request).pipe(
    tap(request => yourPromise.then(_ => ;)));

What does tap do?

Perform a side effect for every emission on the source Observable, but return
   an Observable that is identical to the source.

Or, if you need to wait for the promise but don't modify the request:
return next.handle(request).pipe(
    delayWhen(request => from(yourPromise)));

What does delayWhen do?

Delays the emission of items from the source Observable by a given time span determined by the emissions of another Observable.


text:
Q: Azure DevOps YAML how to being notified about new task version In the graphical build editor there was a hint if there is a new version of a build task:

Is there any equivalent in the YAML editor?

Or is there any other option to find out, if there is a new task version available (besides searching the documentation)?

A:
Tasks are versioned, and you must specify the major version of the
task used in your pipeline. This can help to prevent issues when new
versions of a task are released.Tasks are typically backwards
compatible, but in some scenarios you may encounter unpredictable
errors when a task is automatically updated.
When a new minor version is released (for example, 1.2 to 1.3), your build or release will automatically use the new version. However, if
a new major version is released (for example 2.0), your build or
release will continue to use the major version you specified until you
edit the pipeline and manually change to the new major version. The
build or release log will include an alert that a new major version is
available.
Source Link

If you are using a deprecated task, you will also find this kind of info in log such as:

Even in classic editor, not every task was a hint if there is a new version, it's more related to two points:    1. Task Author 2. If old task is deprecated.

However, if I do the same with PowerShell@2to PowerShell@1, I get no
warning

Cause you could use either powershell version 1 or version 2 even though the higher version of one task is more recommended.
Besides, if you use other shortcuts in YAML without version specificed, it resolve to the PowerShell@2 task:
- powershell:  # inline script
  workingDirectory:  #
  displayName:  #
  failOnStderr:  #
  errorActionPreference:  #
  ignoreLASTEXITCODE:  #
  env:  # mapping of environment variables to add

You could also take a look at this similar issue: How do I specify "always latest" task version in YAML?

A: You task version is specified after @ so DevEnvBuild@1 means you have version 1 of this task. So please change to DevEnvBuild@2 and you are good to go.
And in terms of being notified about new version. I think there is no out of the box solution, but if I use version 1 I have a warning:

Which disappear in version 2


Dr. Bolnick received his Bachelors of Science and Doctor of Medicine degrees from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. He subsequently completed his internship and residency at the University of Miami Jackson Memorial Hospital.
After completing his fellowship in Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Dr. Bolnick was appointed Associate Professor at the University of Connecticut. In this capacity, he was responsible for the Fetal Echocardiography and CVS programs at the University. He also recently completed his fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at Wayne State University in Detroit.
Board certified in both Obstetrics and Gynecology, as well as Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Dr. Bolnick's research has been extensively published in medical journals and books. Licensed to practice in several states, he is a member of several elite professional organizations including American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine. Dr. Bolnick's ongoing research in Downs Syndrome screening, intra-amniotic infection, and preterm labor treatment have earned him peer recognition and respect. In addition, Dr. Bolnick takes great pleasure in teaching Ob/Gyn residents.
Dr. Bolnick enjoys spending free time with his wife and their children, skiing, and lifting weights. He is also very active in his synagogue.