text:
Competency Test: Obaseki Sustaining Unpopular Policy Of His Predecessor – Edo PDP
August 17, 2017 Edoko LOCAL, NEWS
The competency test introduced by the Edo State government to test the competency of some categories of civil servants in the state has drawn the ire of the state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with the party accusing Governor Godwin Obaseki of sustaining an unpopular policy of his immediate predecessor.
This is coming just as majority of the civil servants including teachers, who were supposed to write the competency test, shunned it and a pronouncement by Governor Obaseki that those who did not write the test among the levels 16 and 17 civil servants will not be promoted.
In a reaction on Thursday, the Edo PDP, however, took side with the civil servants who boycotted the test, advising the state government to cultivate the habit of organising in-house training for workers and to "stop dehumanising them in the name of competency test."
State chairman of the PDP, Dan Orbih in a statement issued in Benin Thursday, asked the Obaseki government to take a queue from the Ambrose Alli administration on content development for civil servants and stop testing the resolve of workers in the state.
He said, "Edo PDP condemns in strong terms the clandestine and wicked reintroduction of competency test by Governor Godwin Obaseki.
"The test itself is an illegal one as a restraining order given by the Industrial Court in 2014 against the conduct of such tests has not been vacated.
"With this, it has shown clearly that the only thing that has changed in the Edo government house is the personality because the present government is a continuation of former Governor Adams Oshiomhole's anti-people policies.
"We challenge the state government to come out with the real motive behind the competency test as it is a common knowledge that there is more than meets the eye in the exercise.
"Remember that Oshiomhole set up committee and wasted millions of taxpayers' money to organise the failed test in 2014. It is shameful that just like Oshiomhole, Governor Obaseki has shown great knack for frivolities."
Governor Obaseki, had on Wednesday defended the conduct of the test, saying t the test was not compulsory for all teachers and that it was unfortunate that many teachers failed to understand details of the test.
He said, "It is not competency test. It is part of strengthening the civil service. The test is part of promotion exercise. They are already competent and that is why they are working and in the service."
Tagged Competency Test EDO PDP Obaseki Unpopular Policy
BREAKING: Saraki, Dogara Visit Buhari In London
ONE HUNDRED DAYS ABROAD AND STILL POSING FOR PICTURES.
http://www.edokowilson.com/2017/08/17/competency-test-obaseki-sustaining-unpopular-policy-of-his-predecessor-edo-pdp/">


Share | In March 2009, I started track`g the financial institutions (FIs) on twitter (only 54 accounts back then!). It`ll always B the work in progress, so please don't hesitate to get back to me to flag any miss`g initiatives. My Visible Bank`g Social Media Watch Series ( twitter , facebook , blog , youtube ) gives me access to some great, & unique, insights. On regular basis, I share some of those key stats & insights w/ you, my blog readers , my twitter followers , & my facebook fans , & provide second-to-none recommendations to my clients. In August, I talked U through the top 10 most followed financial insititutions on twitter. I invite U to watch my video which`s still very relevant. Visible Bank`g Twitter Watch Series now track`g 1,355 accounts in 71 countries: banks, credit unions, insurance, credit card, & financial services & investment firms. I invite U to check the insights included in the slide below (data collected on 02/01/2011) & compare those figures w/ the ones from last month .


Baseball has mercifully returned. Granted, this only means one spring training game so far, but it is still wonderful to be able to read a Twins box score again.
There really isn't any insight to be gleaned from one spring training game, especially the very first one, but it is nice to see Glen Perkins throw two scoreless innings. Or see young third base prospect Danny Valencia go 2 for 2.
Or, for that matter, see Brian Buscher go for 2 for 2. Who needs this Crede guy, huh?
I am, of course, kidding.
The important thing is just the Twins are back on the field. And, for those who get MLB Network or MLB.tv, I can only imagine how satisfying it was to see a Twins victory, no matter how meaningless it was – especially after how last season ended.
Now it is time, though, to start focusing on the things that matter over the next month leading up to opening day: Stretching out the young starters to pitch more innings, getting Joe Mauer – the team's most valuable asset – healthy, and solidifying the final spot on the roster. And, realistically, there probably is only one open spot. Who the 25th man is likely depends simply on how many pitchers the team decides to carry.
I will work under the assumption, as well, that Jose Mijares will be on the major league roster. This basically leaves open the final spot for either another hitter (likely Matt Tolbert) or a 12th pitcher (likely Phil Humber). It is actually fairly comforting to know the team's only question mark is who will fill out the least significant role as 25th man. Of course that is assuming everyone post Boof stays healthy (knock on wood).
The real key to the Twins success, however, lies in the hands of one man. Manager Ron Gardenhire. The most important aspect of this season will be how he juggles the lineup, and keeps all his players happy. Who out of Delmon Young, Michael Cuddyer, Carlos Gomez, and Denard Span will be willing to accept a lesser role?
The answer is probably none of them.
And therein lies the problem. If Gardy cannot find a way to keep everyone happy – which should be an interesting conundrum, as he tends to make some suspect lineup choices – there will be chaos. If Gardy, however, can find a way to correctly juggle the lineup, this will be one of the deepest teams in the central division, if not the American league. Having Buscher and Harris on the bench, as well as one of the outfielders, turns a team who had almost no formidable bench options pre-Crede, into one with several decent hitters. Coupling both Buscher and Harris with one of the outfielders provides at least two capable hitters at all times.
These issues will work themselves out over the course of spring training. For now we can just relish in the fact that actual games are being played again. There will be plenty of time to worry about final roster decisions, and potential lineup cards over the next couple of weeks. For now, we should all just enjoy some early spring baseball.


If your stores don't cater to local shoppers' needs, they'll go somewhere else. But how can you produce hundreds or thousands of localized planograms? The answer is simple: JDA Planogram Generator. This solution automatically produces optimized, store-specific planograms that consider varying fixtures, assortments and performance data. You can automate high-volume planogram creation — freeing your staff to focus on category analysis, market trends and other strategic issues to fuel performance.
More POGs (PDQ) with myPG - Introducing Planogram Generator Client (myPG). Match POGs to local consumers using just your laptop!


While on vacation this summer, out and about in the wilderness that is Canada, we fulfilled our Sunday obligation as we always do by visiting the nearest local Catholic Church. And while we have come to lower the bar for these religious services, we had to admit that this time the celebrating priest left us much to think about.
His homily was essentially a mini tour of God's gathering power throughout history. And while his delivery was not the most eloquent that I had ever heard, he did impress me with a larger vision of the Scriptures than we were used to hearing.
In brief, he discussed the Lord's desire to bring in the Nations (i.e. the non-Jews) so that they too may be blessed, and the priest highlighted (as we often need to) that salvation is from the Jews.
The Church then was God's gathering force to accomplish this desire. It was and is essentially the vehicle by which the Lord makes, sanctifies and sends forth his ambassadors into the world. Far from being the political side of religion or what some have called a spiritual parasite, the Church is a life that brings spiritual life in Christ. Without it, the blessings given to Abraham could not be fulfilled. Without the Church, the Word of God found in the Bible could not reach the ears of every generation.
Of course, it is easy to be cynical about the Church because of who is in it. And often, when we hear of someone loving the Church, it can quite easily be because they have found a more subtle way to love themselves. But such thoughts never entered into the priest's homily, nor did he find time or the energy to refute them. His aim was to help us see what God has always been doing among us, and to that end he finished by recommending some reading on the subject (which I could happily say, was sitting on my table back at the camp site).
But you know; the whole experience has left me to reconsider how I choose my vacation spot. Up to this point, I have never done so based on the church that I would be attending. After all, I still have much to learn, and what better place to do that than in the middle of God's green creation, and from someone you would least expect. Can I plan for the same pleasant surprise to happen next year? Probably not, but wouldn't it be wonderful if it did.


Protaras a popular destination, is about natural coastal landscape, with rocks and underwater caves to discover. Cavo Greko, a protected nature park is for hikers or for boat trip stopovers. Fun parks, sea sports & snorkeling are just some daytime activities offered in the area.


FPS-10 is a single integrated A4 sheet which has one sticky label for your customer's shipping address.
The sticky label measures 110mm x 60mm and is easy to peel to add to the outside of your packaging. The integrated form can be printed with the sticky label positioned 188mm from head on the right hand side or flipped so that the label is situated on the left hand side.
FPS-10 integrated label form can help streamline your despatch process, saving you both time and money, as it allows you to print your picking note/customer invoice and address label on one convenient smart form. It reduces the risk of mislabelling parcels.


text:
Home Press Releases The Zamir Group Real Estate Opens New Office Serving Hudson County
The Zamir Group Real Estate Opens New Office Serving Hudson County
Top Bergen County Realtors Cement Position in Hudson County with New Office Designed to "Follow" Clients from Young Renters to Suburban Homeowners
Press Release – updated: Sep 26, 2017 05:00 EDT
HOBOKEN, N.J., September 26, 2017 (PRESS RELEASE JET) – The Zamir Group of Keller Williams Town Life has just opened a new office location in Hoboken, aimed at serving clients in Hudson County. The office, located at 108 Adams St in the downtown area, will cater to the needs of buyers, sellers, renters and investors and will be staffed by agents with extensive experience in the local market.
This opening represents the first physical Zamir Group presence in Hudson County, though the group has been serving the area for years. Currently, the group manages several hundred apartment units in Hoboken, Jersey City and beyond. Additionally, Zamir Group agents have closed sales ranging from individual residential condo units, to large mixed-use buildings and corporate commercial leases. Other services to be offered out of the new anchor location include relocation for overseas and out of area clients, condo conversion, project management and more.
Previously, the Zamir Group has made a name for itself as the top selling realtors in neighboring Bergen County, with offices in Tenafly and Fair Lawn. Founded by Broker Associate Zohar "Zack" Zamir, The Zamir Group has consistently ranked as top producers for the New Jersey Multiple Listing Service, as the #1 Keller Williams Group in Bergen County 2015 to date, as well as the highest sellers in the entire NJMLS for the year 2016 as well as the first two quarters of 2017.
We are very excited to have a physical location in Hoboken. We have long been involved in Hudson County, renting apartments and brokering commercial deals for years now. As we expand the number of deals and push into new markets like luxury condos, it made sense to have a local space to meet with our clients where they can feel at home in their own community.
Michael Thorry, Zamir Group Sales Associate and Hoboken Team Leader
The expansion office represents a clear commitment to growing business in Hudson County, and will combine with the Town Life office in Tenafly and the Zamir Group expansion in Fair Lawn to present a more comprehensive vision for North Jersey real estate. Young Hoboken renters looking to settle down in the suburbs can move from this new office to locations in Bergen County, and clients in Bergen County with older children starting jobs or school in Hudson County or New York City will be able to find familiar faces to work with for housing needs.
"We are very excited to have a physical location in Hoboken," said Michael Thorry, Zamir Group sales associate and team leader for the new office. "We have long been involved in Hudson County, renting apartments and brokering commercial deals for years now. As we expand the number of deals and push into new markets like luxury condos, it made sense to have a local space to meet with our clients where they can feel at home in their own community."
The Zamir Group's new office is located on the ground level of 108 Adams St in Hoboken, its phone number is 201-588-9875, can be reached by email at [email protected], or found online at www.ZamirGroupHudsonCounty.com.
Source: The Zamir Group at Keller Williams Town Life
Previous articleGroupdolists Announced as Allied Universal GSOC Partner
Next articleFeed Flavors and Sweeteners Market Worth 1,463.0 Million USD by 2022

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


A comfortable ride in a go-anywhere vehicle! Top features include cruise control, delay-off headlights, an outside temperature display, and much more. It features four-wheel drive capabilities, a durable automatic transmission, and a powerful 8 cylinder engine.


text:
Q: Como converto a data de POSIXct em PCICt para o calendário gredoriano? Estou tentando esse código no meu script
> tmax.dates <- as.PCICt(do.call(paste, ec.1018935.tmax[,c("year", "jday")]), format="%Y %j", cal="gregorian")

Contudo sempre aparece esse erro. Não sei mais o que fazer. Minha data está no formato por exemplo "2021-05-06" e quero passá-la para as.pcict
> Error in as.PCICt(do.call(tmaxdiario_junho, data[c("Year", "jday")]),  :
  could not find function "as.PCICt

`library(PCICt)`

    tmaxdiario_junho$data <- as.POSIXct(tmaxdiario_junho$data, format="%d/%m/%Y")

    tmax.dates <- as.PCICt(do.call(tmaxdiario_junho, data[c("Year", "jday")]), format="%d/%m/%Y", cal="gregorian")

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


text:
package com.intellij.openapi.application;

import com.intellij.openapi.diagnostic.Logger;
import com.intellij.openapi.progress.ProcessCanceledException;
import com.intellij.util.ExceptionUtil;
import org.jetbrains.annotations.NotNull;

public final class RunResult<T> extends Result<T> {
  private BaseActionRunnable<T> myActionRunnable;
  private Throwable myThrowable;

  private RunResult() { }

  public RunResult(@NotNull BaseActionRunnable<T> action) {
    myActionRunnable = action;
  }

  @NotNull
  public RunResult<T> run() {
    try {
      myActionRunnable.run(this);
    }
    catch (ProcessCanceledException e) {
      throw e; // this exception may occur from time to time and it shouldn't be caught
    }
    catch (Throwable t) {
      myThrowable = t;
      ExceptionUtil.rethrowAllAsUnchecked(t);
    }
    finally {
      myActionRunnable = null;
    }

    return this;
  }

  public T getResultObject() {
    return myResult;
  }

  @NotNull
  public RunResult logException(Logger logger) {
    if (myThrowable != null) {
      logger.error(myThrowable);
    }

    return this;
  }

  @NotNull
  public RunResult<T> throwException() throws RuntimeException, Error {
    if (myThrowable != null) {
      ExceptionUtil.rethrowAllAsUnchecked(myThrowable);
    }

    return this;
  }

  public boolean hasException() {
    return myThrowable != null;
  }

  public Throwable getThrowable() {
    return myThrowable;
  }

  public void setThrowable(Exception throwable) {
    myThrowable = throwable;
  }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
Spain allows Kosovo athletes to use national symbols
Updated : 1 year, 2 months ago IST
Madrid [Spain], Nov 15 (ANI): The Spanish government has decided to allow athletes from Kosovo to use their national symbols, anthem, and flag while participating in international sporting events being held in the country.
Ryanair sacks 6 staffers for 'fake' photo of sleeping on airport f
Dublin [Ireland], Nov 8 (ANI): Irish low-cost airline Ryanair has sacked six cabin crew for faking a picture of themselves sleeping on the floor at Malaga Airport in Spain, where they had to stay overnight owing to inclement weather.
Lopetegui sacked as Real Madrid manager
Madrid [Spain], Oct 30 (ANI): Julen Lopetegui was on Monday relieved of his duties as manager of Real Madrid following a dismal run of form in all competitions under his charge, culminating in the 1-5 drubbing at the hands of arch-rivals Barcelona on Sunday.
Gareth Bale to miss Wales clash against Spain
London [UK], Oct 11 (ANI): Ahead of a friendly match against Spain, Welsh footballer, Gareth Bale has been ruled out from the national side due to "muscular fatigue."
Renowned Spanish soprano Caballe dies
Moscow [Russia], Oct 6 (ANI/Sputnik): World-famous Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballe died at Sant Pau hospital in Barcelona at the age of 85, local media reported on Saturday citing the hospital.
Spanish rescue team spots 672 migrants in Alboran Sea
Madrid [Spain], Oct 1 (ANI/Sputnik): A Spanish maritime rescue team said on Monday that it had detected 672 migrants in the Alboran Sea, the westernmost part of the Mediterranean Sea, over the weekend.
Forca Goa to travel to Spain for pre-season
Panjim [Goa] August 20 (ANI): Forca Goa will be travelling to Murcia, Spain on August 22 for a run of pre-season games before the start of the fifth edition of the Hero Indian Super League.
David Silva bids adieu to International football
Madrid [Spain], August 14 (ANI): Spanish footballer David Silva has retired from the International football.
Triumphant U20 men's football team returns home
New Delhi [India], Aug 10 (ANI): The Indian Under-20 men's football team that created history by beating Argentina in the COTIF Cup arrived at Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport here on Friday.
Chelsea sign Kepa Arrizabalaga for record 72 million pounds
London [UK], August 9 (ANI): Chelsea have roped in Spanish goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga for a record 72 million pounds.
Hockey WC: India eves lose to Ireland in penalty shootout
London [United Kingdom], Aug 03 (ANI): Playing a first quarter final since 1978, the Indian Women's hockey team crashed out of the Women's World Cup on Thursday as they were pipped by Ireland in the penalty shootout.
Juventus set to sign up Cristiano Ronaldo
Turin, [Italy] July 10 (ANI): Star Portuguese footballer Cristiano Ronaldo on Tuesday left Spanish club Real Madrid to start a new journey with Italian club Juventus, in a deal that will cost over 100 million Euros.


text:
Tag: Series Summary
The October Daye Series – Seanan McGuire
July 13, 2014 August 2, 2014 maddalena@spaceandsorceryLeave a comment
When I discovered the Newsflesh Trilogy by Mira Grant, I learned that she is the alter-ego for Seanan McGuire, Urban Fantasy writer, and I was of course curious: until that moment, my attempts at reading this particular genre had not ended well – the books I happened to pick up seemed centered on repeating clichés and cookie-cutter characters, so that I was convinced Urban Fantasy was not my cup of tea. But Mira Grant's writing prompted me to give the genre another try: now, after seven books in the October Daye series, I'm very happy I did, because Seanan McGuire is the kind of author who gives Urban Fantasy a good name, to paraphrase the old song.
October "Toby" Daye is a San Francisco private investigator, and also a changeling – half human and half fae, therefore never fully belonging to either world: the fae generally despise mixed bloods, their contempt in inverse proportion to the percentage of fae blood in any changeling, while humans must be kept in ignorance of the differences – some subtle, some less so – in their appearance, because the secret of faerie's existence is to be kept at all costs. When we meet Toby for the first time, she's chosen her human side and tries to build a normal life for herself: a husband, a child, a job she enjoys. But one of her investigations crosses the purposes of a powerful fae who transforms her into a fish, condemning her to several years of this limbo while the world goes on without her. Once the enchantment wears off, Toby's family has adapted to her sudden disappearance and moved on, and she finds herself alone and adrift, with no clear purpose in life and a defeated attitude that leaves little room for hope in her future. It's only through her reluctant involvement with the fae world, due to a brutal murder she's asked to investigate, that she starts – slowly and painfully – to come out of her shell, and to gain a new lease on life as she rebuilds herself literally from scratch, collecting friends and allies along the way.
The first book in the series, though still fascinating, feels somewhat slow, so I urge any potential reader to overlook that and to stay on board for the ride – it's the same advice I followed when I started, and I'm glad I did: this series gets better and better with each following book. The world-building expands in concentric circles, creating a fascinating tapestry out of the intersecting – but never really touching – realities of our primary world and faerie, and presenting a huge variety of fae and changelings, all with their individual traits that make them alien in appearance and abilities, and at the same time very human in their passions and desires. With each following book I've become more and more invested in these stories and characters, in the parallel world of faerie, with its complicated, often cruel politics and interweaving alliances, with its powerful allure. And of course I've become invested in Toby, her slowly growing family and her evolving personality – the clear trend of this series is growth, and I've found my initial patience more than amply rewarded.
What makes Toby special? First there is her single-mindedness: once she sets on a task, she pursues it with relentless determination, learning from the mistakes she makes along the way. Yes, she's not perfect, and that's another detail that endeared her to me – she's flawed, and fallible and accident-prone: unlike the cookie-cutter heroines I mentioned above, Toby is far from the all-powerful-ninja-warrior that seems the norm in this genre. She gets hurt, she bleeds, and she pays dearly for missing important clues, or for trusting people she shouldn't or not listening to sound advice. There's something approaching a death wish in her, more evident at the beginning and lessening as the story goes on. Or if not a death wish, then a grim determination in completing her chosen tasks, in fulfilling the obligations she takes upon herself with little or no regard for personal consequences, an attitude that speaks volumes about her psychological make up and also explains the strong loyalty she engenders in the individuals gathering around her like planets around a sun.
What's more, Toby manages all that in spite of her shortcomings as a changeling – on the contrary, she turns what pureblood fae consider a limitation into her main strength: she can go where individuals of both worlds cannot, she can perform feats denied to others. In short, Toby non only does not make any excuses for what she is not, but shows the world – both worlds – that strength can come from those very differences. And she pays the price for it every day, by giving of herself for the sake of others, with constant demonstrations of dogged selflessness.
With these premises, and McGuire's fresh outlook on the genre, it's hardly surprising that these books are gathering increasing success and acclaim: my direct experience is that they deserve it in full. Let yourselves be captured: you will not regret it.
My Rating: 8,5/10
The Newsflesh Trilogy – Mira Grant
June 28, 2014 August 2, 2014 maddalena@spaceandsorceryLeave a comment
Mira Grant (that is, Seanan McGuire) just announced the arrival of a new short story in her Newsflesh universe, so – in what is becoming something of a tradition for me – I thought about retracing my reading experience with her previous novels.
Zombies were not exactly my kind of narrative trope: not on the screen and certainly not in book form. So I'm still unsure about what made me pick up the first book of Mira Grant's Newsflesh Trilogy: probably some glowing review that underlined how different it was from the usual fare – no matter the reason, after the first few pages I was hooked, and at the same time discovered a new author, one that's quickly entered my "buy whatever comes out" list.
Mira Grant is the pen name of Urban Fantasy author Seanan McGuire – I plan on recapping soon her still ongoing, successful series about private investigator October Daye, but for now I'll concentrate on the alter ego who created this stunning, ground-breaking trilogy: Feed, Deadline and Blackout.
The premise: twenty-odd years from now the world will be dramatically changed by a zombie epidemic whose origins come from the accidental interaction of two experimental viral cures for cancer and the common cold. Exposure to this mutated virus (Kellis-Amberlee, from the names of the two scientists working on the projects) does indeed cure the targeted ailments but also resuscitates the dead – in the Newsflesh world it's called "amplification". There are two short stories that expand on this premise, and I recommend them both to better understand the train of events: one is Countdown (the tale of the incident that started it all) and the other is San Diego 2014: the last stand of the California Browncoats (the start of the epidemic seen through the eyes of the famous convention's participants).
The ground-breaking choices I mentioned come from the fact that the usual bloody scenarios of a zombie apocalypse are strictly kept as background information: yes, the un-dead move around searching for victims – not so much to consume their flesh but rather to spread the contagion, in a sort of viral prime directive – and there are whole sections of the world made uninhabitable by the concentration of zombies, but what Mira Grant focuses on is not the cheap thrill of blood-and-gore images but rather the way people and society have changed because of the epidemic.
Amplification has forced people to completely review their way of living: houses have become fortresses capable of withstanding massive attacks from the un-dead; pets above a certain body weight – say a small dog – are out of the question, because above that limit they are subject to amplification just as humans are, and the phenomenon extends, of course, to other common animals as cows or horses, whose mass makes them as deadly as infected people. And then there is the terrible choice that everyone must be prepared to face: when one of your loved ones, or friends, dies and then amplifies before your eyes, you have to decide between survival and the impulses of your heart. How would that change the unwritten laws of society? How would it affect ethics and morality?
Fear is therefore the main driving force of society: fear of the infected, of course, but also fear of excessive proximity or crowded areas – someone dying of a heart attack in a crowd could amplify and start a new outbreak; fear of contagion, that requires constant blood checks before entering any enclosed space, be it a coffee shop or one's own home; fear of whatever and whoever can't be controlled. An enlightening quote summarizes the situation all too well: "...we have embraced the cult of fear, and now we don't seem to know how to put it back where it belongs." Fear can also be a powerful means of control, because a scared and divided humanity is much more easily subdued – or lied to.
The antithesis of fear is truth, and its… paladins, for want of a better word, are bloggers: the first to recognize the threat of the virus and to spread the word when the government still hid behind carefully worded statements. Bloggers are, at the start of the story, a force to be reckoned with, and the new heroes of a world that keeps turning in upon itself with every passing day. Enter Georgia and Shaun Mason, highly successful bloggers who have been selected, together with their team, to follow the presidential campaign of candidate Ryman: this represents an enormous opportunity for visibility, but it will also lead them along very unexpected and terrifying paths.
This is all I dare reveal about the story, because its hair-raising twists and turns must be discovered on their own: suffice it to say there is not one moment when the tension lets go, and where drama is delivered without pulling any punches – no matter how painful they can be to the readers.
What really matters, and what I can safely share here, is that it's a fascinating look at a profoundly changed society, and also a character-driven narrative that will keep you on your toes from start to finish.
Not the easiest of books, granted, nor something I would recommend before bedtime either – but still I urge you to read them, because Mira Grant's storytelling and powerful characters are worth the extra effort needed to find the necessary strength to do it.
The Expanse Trilogy – James S. A. Corey
June 21, 2014 August 2, 2014 maddalena@spaceandsorcery4 Comments
James S.A. Corey is the pseudonym for authors Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck, the first best known for his Long Price Quartet and Dagger and the Coin series, and the second for his collaboration with GRR Martin. Together they have penned one of the best space opera series I ever read and, to my extreme satisfaction, are hard at work on a second one: talking with Mulluane from Dragons, Heroes and Wizards about the new book, I thought it was a good idea to share a few details about the first three volumes, so here we go…
What makes these books stand out is the human dimension of backgrounds and characters: the words space opera often make us think about vast empires, galaxy-spanning wars and wondrous technology, but this is not the case here. The theatre where the action unfolds is our own Solar System in an advanced stage of colonization, where the older and more established outposts – like the Moon or Mars – enjoy a comfortable way of life, while the newer ones, like the civilization growing in the Asteroid Belt, still deal with problems like microgravity and its deep effects on human physiology, or the rising prices of air and water in a hostile environment. Political and economical tensions are always one step away from flaring into all-out conflict, and there are forces working – more or less covertly – to tip the balance one way or the other. Add to that a few realistic details like communications lag across vast distances or the problems of space travel, which requires a constant battle against the pain of acceleration – endured through the use of drugs – and you have a very relatable universe, as are the characters that people it.
Summing up the story is far from easy, especially when trying to avoid any spoilers, so I'm not even going to try. The first book, Leviathan Wakes, follows mainly two characters: Miller – a middle-aged police officer who has lost all his drive and motivations, and wakes up only when what looks like an open-and-shut case he's been assigned turns into something else, something both suspicious and frightening; and Holden, ex military now working on an ice cargo hauler: he's the kind of person who wants to do the right thing, to be a good guy, and more often than not makes huge mistakes, with unpredictable consequences. The novel alternates chapters between these points of view until the two men meet and face an unforeseen danger that adds some touches of horror to the story. The other two books, Caliban's War and Abaddon's Gate, expand on this core theme, widening the picture to include complex political scheming tied with economic interests, and convoluted games of power that still dare to go on despite an all-encompassing menace.
All this, however, is just background – a solid background, granted, that helps move the story along, often in unexpected directions. The real focus is on characters, on the way they deal with events, on the way physiological and mental changes affect people from the different habitats where human expansion brought them. One of the interesting aspects I encountered is indeed in these differences, because the physiological adaptation that has made the Belters thinner and taller than Earth norm, seems to have created a sort of racial differentiation that goes beyond skin color. In other words, we might go to space someday, but we will still bring our short-sightedness and prejudices along with us…
Most importantly, though, the novels deal with choices, with the often tragic consequences engendered by those choices, even when they are made with the best of intentions. Because we all know what paves the road to Hell, after all…
Holden, and his crew of almost-rogues, embody that concept very well: enmeshed against their will in something too big for them to handle, they try to do their best with the limited options at their disposal. In the first book there's a marked antithesis between Holden and Miller, between idealism and the need to set things right on one side, and tired cynicism on the other, the bitter acceptance of the impossibility of seeing the "good guys" win. Despite their differences – or maybe because of them – these two men form a strange alliance that will be the one of the driving forces of the story.
This focus on humanity goes on in the following books, exploring more deeply the characters of Holden's crew – a closely-knit group for whom I felt an immediate attachment – and several other players, big and small, who feel as fleshed-out and solid as the main protagonists. A special mention goes to the female characters, that the authors created without using a single strand of cliché in their DNA: Naomi, of the Rocinante's crew, smart, though and outstandingly excellent in her job, gifted with a wry sense of humor; Martian marine Bobbie, steadfast and powerful, a fighter in more ways than one, but still possessed of a softer side; shrewd politician Avarasala, who knows how to wield her power, and can cuss like a hardened sailor; minister Anna, gifted with a steel resolve under the caring attitude. They are far from perfect, but I liked them exactly for this reason – because they feel real.
Given that each of the separate books of the trilogy managed to raise already hight stakes, it's hardly surprising I was waiting with feverish anticipation to read the next installment (the first in a new trilogy, according to what I've read online): even though the main narrative threads have been brought to an end, many more have appeared and they would seem to point to a further widening of the picture, both in scope and in setting. Cybola Burn, the fourth volume, came out on June 5th and so far it looks very promising so… stay tuned for the forthcoming review!
Revisiting old favorites: The Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold
February 20, 2014 August 2, 2014 maddalena@spaceandsorceryLeave a comment
Some time ago I embarked on a re-read of this series, one of my all-time favorites, and discovered that the intervening years have only enhanced my enjoyment of the story, of Ms. Bujold's writing style and of her approach to important social issues.
It might be somewhat difficult to characterize this series: some have labeled it as "space opera", others as "military sci-fi", and so on, but the truth is that there is a bit of every sub-genre one can think about in Bujold's work, combined into a well-structured, compelling story that grows and expands with each successive book, gaining in power and depth as it entertains its readers.
The hero – or better, anti-hero – of the saga is Miles Vorkosigan, born with serious physical impediments on a world that makes strength and military prowess the pillars of society. Far from being crushed by his disabilities, Miles fights against them all his life, driven by the need to prove himself, sometimes beyond the limits of human endurance. He does indeed manage, through sheer force of will and great intelligence, to emerge and carve a place for himself, all the while regaling us with fun, exciting and wonderful adventures.
What I love most about Ms. Bujold's writing is that it flows along simple lines while at the same time managing to convey deep meanings and touch on significant themes: the mark of her ability is in the down-to-earth approach that needs no preaching to drive her meaning through.
Above all, Bujold's work is… well, "trans-generational" is the best way I can describe it: Miles' adventures can be quite satisfying both to young adults (to whom they can teach a great deal without ever being pedantic) as well as to older people. The style of writing is such that it can be enjoyed no matter your age or your preferences.
One of the reasons this character grows so quickly on his audience is that we look at the world through his eyes, experience his outer troubles and inner turmoil in a direct way. Far from self-commiserating on his shortcomings (even though they cut deeply), Miles faces them with wry, sarcastic humor that's often more mature than his years. What's more important, he's not one those stereotyped "boy geniuses" that we often encounter in books and tv, the ones that breeze through obstacles as if they weren't there, the ones, let's admit it, that we love to hate. Miles is fallible, he constantly doubts himself and he makes mistakes, sometimes fatal ones. His path is one of constant strife, against his shortcomings and against himself, and his victories are more often than not tainted by painful losses. This must indeed be one of the reasons Bujold's readers learn to care so much about him.
Once I encountered a sentence that sums up quite effectively this character: he happens on people – usually unsuspecting ones – and he changes their lives forever, whether they want it or not. This is true both for the fictional people in the stories and for the readers, especially those – like me – who rediscover his old stories or greet new ones with the same enthusiasm reserved for a dear friend.


Aluminum fencing is designed to be aesthetically pleasing to the eye, and an alternative to the black wrought iron fencing from back in the day. The black wrought iron fence is a favorite fence style for security with an open air view. The downside of the wrought iron is the absolute certainty of constant rusting of the metal and the high cost of continued maintenance to keep that sharp look.
Aluminum fencing resembles the wrought iron and has no maintenance issues. That means no sanding, priming, or painting. Aluminum fencing will come in sizes from 3′ high to 8′ high with the most popular residential aluminum fencing being 4′ and 5′ high. Picket spacing is also variable with the most common spacing of less than 4″ to make it pool code compliant for spacing. We also have many customers with small dogs that prefer a tighter spacing of 3″ between the aluminum fence pickets. With all the variations in total footage, height and picket spacing and gates it is impossible to give a specific price for all fences so I will give you a range in pricing for a normal size residential aluminum fencing.
Taking time into consideration, the zero cost of maintenance for an aluminum fence over 5 to 10 years makes it an easy decision for consumers. Even after 10 years ownership and no maintenance the actual ROI on aluminum fencing is 65% vs less than 10% (plus all maintenance costs) for natural wood fencing.


I have sadly neglected my small corner of the internet in recent months. To the few who continue to visit, I apologize and thank you for your kindness.
I seem to be in a season where the writing is stopped up somewhere around my heart. A season where life often weighs a bit heavy. It's been a busy time as well, but I have come to the conclusion that there is no season of life where that isn't the case. The "busyness" comes in different forms - but come it does. If I'm to write, I can't use that as an excuse. The truth is, even when I've had a day with a bit of space in which to write, I fritter it away doing other things.
Some have said perhaps this is just a season where I need to take a rest from writing. That sounds like wise counsel to me, but something inside pushes against it. The thought of not writing doesn't sit well. I think I have another story to tell.
I hadn't intended to say all of this. I just wanted to let you know I'm still here. I've been posting pictures and writing small devotionals on Instagram and also linking them to FB. If you'd like to follow me there, my user name is simply @lindachontos (Instagram) and Linda Chontos on FB.
I'm going to try to begin writing here again once a week. I'm also going to try to get started on a story. If I'm completely honest, there's a little fear involved. I'm not sure I have another book in me. My book was met with such kindness, and I'm afraid I won't be able to pull it off again. There - I've said it!
Now I'm going to do what I did when I wrote "Sleeping Dogs." I'm going to ask the Lord to partner with me - a bit like Father Tim who was always so grateful when the Lord was "in it" with him. I'm going to give Him my fears, receive His peace - and give it a go.


Listed below are the answers and cheats to Luna levels 1377 to 1392 in Celestial Pack.
Luna CKRS is suppose to be Collar/Dress/Cheek but there is no way to connect those letters that I can see. Anyone have a suggestion? If one can't complete a game how do you move on?
Luna level 16: the words are coconut/loop/ocean. After swiping coconut & loop in all possible orders and tile combos it is not possible to get the tiles for the word ocean to line up to solve the puzzle. Help.


text:
Concrete slab for Villa Anneberg
In the end of augusti 2014 the digging and preperation to build the concrete slab to start. The ground where the house and garage is going to be placed is a old agricultural land. It was pretty easy to dig up the ground, no big rocks and other stuff that takes time to get rid off. About 40 centimeter into the ground was needed to dig to have a stable ground to build the foundation for the concrete slab.
Site for the upcoming Villa Anneberg
This is the site where we are going to build the Villa Anneberg. The site is about 1200 square meters. Below is three pictures taken from the same spot in different time of the year under 2014. The first one is shoot in the winter, the second in the spring and the third is taken in summer.
Villa Anneberg house build project
This is the latest house building project that, a Villa Anneberg from A-hus. Its going to become the new home for me and my family for the upcoming years.


text:
Why We Exist > Our Team
Eric and Sheryl Kolb, Co-Founders – Eric and Sheryl, building on lessons learned during their own experience caring for Sheryl's mom, Trish, started Songs & Smiles to help other families navigate the challenges of the Alzheimer's journey. Eric and Sheryl met and were married in Illinois. They moved to Texas in 1994.
Eric Kolb, Executive Director — Also known as our "Director of Songs," Eric loves singing and sharing with people who have Alzheimer's, helping them connect with their own joy-filled memories. He has worked for many years in public relations and publishing, including positions at the Texas Rangers Baseball Club and ClubCorp. He enjoys reading and building LEGO models.
Brad Newton, Director of Smiles — A talented improvisational comedian, Brad is helping us develop an interactive workshop demonstrating how improvisational comedy techniques can help caregivers better engage with their loved ones living with dementia. Brad is also a professional photographer and works with us to provide family photo sessions at care facilities in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
Sheryl Kolb, President — Sheryl is a former corporate meeting planner who now works for The Container Store. She loves creating memorable events for family and friends. In 2017, Sheryl created the first Songs & Smiles event as part of a family gathering and birthday party celebrating her mom's 78th birthday.
Melanie McGee, Treasurer — Melanie lives with her husband, Jeff, in Arlington, Texas, where they both work for The University of Texas Arlington. She currently is Director of Corporate Relations, having previously served as Director of MBA programs. A licensed CPA and Certified Fraud Examiner, Melanie earned her Bachelor's in Accounting at Louisiana Tech University and her Master's in Accounting from UT Arlington.
Melanie helps care for her aging mother, and she tries to spend as much time as possible with her grandson, Jacob.
Stacey VanBeek, Secretary — Stacey lives with her husband, Kelly, and their daughters, Grace and Sydney, in Brookings, South Dakota. A former corporate accounting professional, Stacey now serves as Business Manager for Flandreau Public School. She earned her Master's in Administration at South Dakota State University.
Stacey is a first cousin of Songs & Smiles co-founder Sheryl. Stacey and Sheryl lost their grandmother Olive to Alzheimer's in 2006.
John Ponder, Board Member — John, a successful manager and sales representative, lives with his wife, Nancy, in Dallas, where they have raised four children: daughter Anna and sons Joe, Mike, and Chris. A graduate of Davidson College in North Carolina, John is a Vice President at Graphic Communications, a division of Veritiv. His favorite meeting place is the golf course.
John helps care for his mother, who has dementia. He recently helped his parents move into an assisted living community.
You can help us create joy-filled connections during the Alzheimer's journey. We are grateful for our many volunteers, a group that has included many of our friends and family members. Please contact us to discuss ways you could be part of our team.
Co-founders Eric and Sheryl with Sheryl's mom, Trish, getting ready to cheer on the Texas Rangers at a World Series game in 2010
Our treasurer, Melanie, and her husband, Jeff, enjoying the entertainment at a Songs & Smiles family event in 2017
Our secretary, Stacey, with her husband, Kelly, and their daughters, Grace and Sydney, visiting Magic Kingdom Park in 2018
The Ponder family in 2017 (clockwise from top right): John; his wife, Nancy; daughter, Anna; sons Joe, Mike, and Chris; and dog, Rebbe
Sheryl's brother Larry welcoming attendees and introducing Meyerband at the first Songs & Smiles event in 2017
Eric's parents, Barry and Nancy, putting together information packets prior to the first Songs & Smiles event in 2017
Provide encouragement and support to those on the front lines.
Learn how to connect better with someone who has Alzheimer's.
Encourage others by sharing your own story.
Contact us about getting involved as a volunteer.


The city of Los Angeles' attempt to upgrade its municipal agencies with a communications cloud has hit a rain delay.
As Washington Technology reported in May, the city awarded Computer Sciences Corp. and Google a $7.25 million contract to build a cloud e-mail system to replace the existing Novell GroupWise service for the city's municipal agencies using Google's suite of Web-based productivity tools.
But Google missed a June 30 deadline to fully implement Google Apps into the various departments, according to a July 23 MarketWatch report.
"The delay is a setback for one of Google's most strategic businesses, and an illustration of troubles that large organizations can encounter as they shift to a so-called 'cloud computing' model, in which data and applications are stored and accessed online," MarketWatch's John Letzing wrote.
He said the Los Angeles Police Department's security concerns about Google Apps was the primary culprit for the delay.
Levin the failure to outfit all municipal employees with Google Apps by the deadline will require Google and CSC to reimburse the city for the extra costs.
Both companies have agreed to reimburse the city for the cost of the delay, which should only reach about $135,000, MarketWatch reported.
Meanwhile municipal workers will continue to rely on Novell Group Wise.
More than 10,000 city employees have been switched over to Google system, and Levin said she hopes to have up to 6,000 more on the cloud system by mid-August.
After that, she said, the city would focus on "a more detailed schedule" for getting the roughly 13,000 members of the police department switched over.
The police report acknowledged that Google has developed Gov Cloud, which could provide enhanced security.
But at the same time the law enforcement agency expressed concerns about Google Apps' data encryption, "segregation of city data from other data maintained by Google," and background checks for Google employees with access to police department information.
In addition, Letzing wrote that the report said department employees who have been using the software on a pilot basis have experienced "unacceptable" delays in receiving mail.
As a result, the police department said it could not migrate to Google by June 30, and instead received assurances that it could retain Novell's GroupWise software for roughly $60,000 per quarter.
CSC, of Falls Church, Va., ranks No. 10 on Washington Technology's 2010 Top 100 list of the largest federal contractors.
It is important to recognize that the LAPD does not have any issues with the security of its Novell products, especially GroupWise. GroupWise doesn't crash with Microsoft viruses, and provides robust delivery in disasters and emergencies. The LAPD doesn't want a new, inferior, less reliable, email system when they already have the most reliable and safest Enterprise system available. Who decided that something inferior would be a good idea?


text:
Apple supplier Foxconn to build a new $270 million plant in Vietnam for iPad and MacBook production
Apple supplier Foxconn has awarded a license to build a new $270 million plant in Vietnam, according to a new report. The expansion could be part of the tech giant's plan to expand its iPad and MacBook production lines outside of China to minimize trade war impact.
The new plant, to be developed by Fukang Technology, will be located in the northern Vietnamese province of Bac Giang. Once the plant is up and running, it is projected to be able to produce eight million laptops and tablets annually. Not only will this help Apple to diversify its supply chains, but the move will also be beneficial to Vietnam's economy.
In November last year, it was reported that Apple asked Foxconn to move some of its iPad and MacBook assembly from China to Vietnam following its earlier move to have AirPods and AirPods Pro assembled in the country. As per the report, the move was requested by Apple to diversify its supply chains away from concentration in China.
"Foxconn is moving some iPad and MacBook assembly to Vietnam from China at the request of Apple Inc, a person with knowledge of the plan said in November, as the U.S. firm diversifies production to minimise the impact of Sino-U.S. trade tensions."
This will not be Foxconn's first venture in Vietnamese production, with the supplier having already invested $1.5 billion in the country so far. Vietnam's government expects the supplier to increase its investment by $700 million in 2021 alone, with a reported 10,000 jobs set to benefit local workers.
The plant will be developed by Fukang Technology, a subsidiary set up by Foxconn for the project. We do not know when the factory's construction will be completed or when it would be ready to begin production.
In related news, the supplier is also said to be considering "investing $1.3 billion in Thanh Hoa province, 160 km (99.42 miles) south of Hanoi."
via Reuters
Apple partner Foxconn starts automotive services as Apple Car rumors heat up
Foxconn beats revenue estimates due to strong demand for iPhone 12 – Report
Apple is testing foldable iPhone at Foxconn factory in Shenzhen – Report
Previous Story VLC for M1 Mac update is now available for all users
Next Story Edge for M1 Mac is now available as a beta
watchOS 8.4 RC adds fix for Apple Watch charging bug


Anton Suryapin (born c. 1992) is a Belarusian photojournalist. On 13 July 2012, he was detained after publishing pictures of a protest by a Swedish advertising company in which teddy bears were airdropped into the country with slogans advertising freedom of speech.
The teddy bears were dropped on 4 July 2012 by Studio Total, a Swedish advertising firm. The group called the mission "Teddybear Airdrop Minsk 2012". A plane piloted by Tomas Mazetti took off from a town near Kaunas, Lithuania, and illegally entered Belarusian airspace, proceeding over the town of Ivyanets. The group then released 1,000 teddy bears holding cards and banners with protest slogans. When the Belarusian government denied that the incident had taken place, Studio Total released 90 minutes of footage of the flight, which Radio Free Europe reported that they had confirmed with experts had not been doctored. On 26 July, Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko acknowledged the drop had occurred as reported.
Following the drop, Suryapin posted photographs on his website that he said had been e-mailed to him by an Ivyanets resident. On 13 July, his home was searched, his computer confiscated, and he was detained as an accomplice. On 19 July, Studio Total founder Per Cromwell published an open letter in which he stated that the group "never told Anton Suryapin or indeed any other Belarus citizen in advance about what we planned to do. We love (respect) and admire them too much to expose them to such risks." The letter also called Lukashenko an "armed clown".
On 24 July, Suryapin still had been not been released from prison, leading BBC News and other sources to conclude that charges had been filed against him, as Belarusian law only allows ten days of detention without charge. Amnesty International described the arrest as "a further nail in the coffin of freedom of expression and association in Belarus", and named Suryapin a prisoner of conscience. Index on Censorship described the case against Suryapin as "ludicrous", stating, "Not for the first time, the authorities in Belarus have found someone to blame for something they say hasn't happened." The Committee to Protect Journalists called the charges "senseless" and called for Suryapin's immediate release.
On 28 June, 2013, Belarus' State Security Committee publicly announced that the criminal case was closed, and the charges against Suryapin and real estate agent Syarhei Basharimau (who had rented an apartment in the capital to two Swedes connected with Studio Total) were dropped. Bail conditions were lifted and they were allowed to leave the country if they wished.
^ a b "Belarus police detain student in 'teddy-bear mystery'". Google News. Agence France-Presse. 17 July 2012. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
^ a b c "Belarus urged to release "teddy bear" free speech activist". Amnesty International. 24 July 2012. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
^ "'Teddybear Airdrop' Takes Aim At Belarus Denials". Radio Free Europe. 24 July 2012. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
^ "Lukashenko confirms Swedish teddy bear flight". The Local. 26 July 2012. Retrieved 26 July 2012.
^ Tim Nudd (19 July 2012). "PR Firm's Teddy-Bear Drop in Belarus Leads to Arrests". Ad Week. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
^ Per Cromwell (19 July 2012). "'You're a clown': Swedish PR firm to Belarusian leader Lukashenko". The Local. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
^ "Belarus journalist detained for 'airlifted teddy bears' pictures". BBC News. 24 July 2012. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
^ Andrei Aliaksandru (20 July 2012). "The Curious Case of Belarus's Bears that Weren't Claim". Index on Censorship. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
^ "KGB puts editor in jail over photos of teddy bears". The Committee to Protect Journalists. 18 July 2012. Retrieved 24 July 2012.
This page was last edited on 2 October 2018, at 07:23 (UTC).


Earlier today at the Korakuen Hall there was an award ceremony for the East Japan Boxing Association October award winners.
The MVP for the month was the interestingly dressed Hiroaki Teshigawara (18-2-2, 11) [勅使河原 弘晶], who became the OPBF Super Bantamweight champion in October. He spoke to the fans today and revealed that he would be defending the OPBF title in February, though the opponent hasn't been named.
To prepare for his bout he's been training in the Philippines and clearly seems confident as we head into the new year of having another fantastic 12 months.
The Fighting Spirit award was won by Daishi Nagata (11-2-1, 5) [永田 大士], who lost in his own OPBF title bout but impressed in his performance. He spoke to the audience and stated that he was "honored to receive such an award" and that he would "be a champion next year," though revealed nothing about when he would be fighting again.
Naito and Nagata put up a war for the OPBF title!
Earlier today Japanese fight fans got a domestic treat the Korakuen Hall as Rikki Naito (23-2, 7) [内藤 律樹] battled against Daishi Nagata (11-2-1, 5) [永田 大士], with Naito looking to make his second defense of the OPBF Light Welterweight title.
The bout had originally been criticised in some circles, given that Nagata had been stopped by Vladimir Baez not too long ago, but that criticism was silenced by a fantastic back and forth war.
Nagata got off to a great start winning the first round on all 3 cards and being on the lead on all 3 cards after 3 rounds. He had managed to quickly establish his jab and find a home for his straight southpaw left hand. Naito however had done enough to be level on all 3 cards when the scores were announced after the 4th round, with all 3 judges scoring the bout at 38-38.
Nagata would have a good round 5 but the middle of the rounds saw little to split the two men, with rounds 6 and 7 both being Naito rounds before Nagata took round 8. This left the two men level on 2 of the scorecards whilst the third favoured Naito 77-75, when the scores were publicly announced for the second time.
Round 9 was a close one though in round 10 Nagata made a statement dropping Naito hard. To his credit Naito got to his feet and survived through the final round before rebounding well the following round to take round 11. Amazingly it went down to the last round, literally with all 3 judges having the bout scored at 104-104. The two fighters knew it was close and they both went all out looking to make a statement in an amazing round that left the decision really in the air.
The final bell rang and lead to the judges being called in, with all three having the bout incredibly close. The first judge favoured Nagata, 114-113, the other two however over-ruled him, scoring it 114-113 to Naito, narrowly retained his title in a second close defense. For Nagata the performance shows he's title quality and he will likely get another title fight in the near future. For Naito the win does little to establish him as the best in Asia, and we wouldn't be surprised to see him being dethroned in 2019, likely by stoppage.
There's a triple header taking place at the Korakuen Hall tomorrow, with the main event from that card being an OPBF Light Welterweight title bout.
The contest will see Rikki Naito (20-2, 7) [内藤 律樹] making his second defense of the title, as he takes on domestic foe Daishi Nagata (11-1-1, 5) [永田 大士] in what we expect to be a very competitive and exciting contest.
Today the two men took part in their weigh in and both men made the 140lb limit whilst looking in great condition.
Naito spoke about his edge in terms of career experience and skills, and that he wants to show his skills whilst looking for a KO win. He looked very confident, despite having been pushed all the way in his last bout, a razor thin over Filipino foe Jheritz Chavez. Nagata on the other sounded more determined and vowed to take the title. Nagata was a solid amateur and it seems like he'll be relying on his amateur background here. He's clearly the under-dog, but Nagata is a talent and is focused focused on scoring the upset here.
Related - Naito takes on Nagata in next OPBF title defense!


Find your suitable diy coasters sale from DHgate NZ site. Whether you want to enjoy your life or decorate surroundings around you, we provide an array of styles to help you make a better choice of square coasters online. Cheap wedding coasters heart might be everywhere but these in nz.dhgate.com are durable and safe. That means you could go through best black coasters without hesitation. Search for traditional coasters store at good reputation with free delivery to New Zealand from nz.dhgate.com.


This article was written in 1993 following the New Zealand leg of the World Harmony Run that year.
On Sunday evening incoming black clouds cover the Waitakere Ranges west of Auckland, hinting at rain, but on Monday morning the sky is clear for the beginning of the World Harmony Run in New Zealand.
We have planned a three-day Auckland wide relay, then three days of regional runs through each of the four largest cities to the South. Final destination – Wellington; our capital and southernmost point of World Harmony Run '93.
Precious McKenzie, power-lifting legend, meets us at our opening ceremony in Manukau, where 600 children stand to cheer the diminutive local hero. In this southern city, with its alliance of Polynesian, Maori and European New Zealand cultures, the issue of peace has immediate relevance. A household name, Precious gives the Harmony Run's theme of oneness a solid credibility.
Bald-headed for many years, Precious points with friendly irreverence to the equally bald headmaster and claims that they share the same barber. Everywhere there is laughter, smiling faces, smiling eyes. As he talks and jokes the barriers are tumbling down and we are dissolving into an easy familiarity. He is reaching out with his heart and offering the message of the Harmony Run in a powerful and memorable way.
Day two calls for a hectic tour of twelve schools in West Auckland. There are relay races, cultural items and songs; posters and banners are displayed, and the torch is touched by thousands of small hands.
A national children's TV show sends a camera crew and celebrity presenter along for a whole day. The programme will be seen by most of the country's youth, appropriately, for tomorrow's harmony grows in the hearts of today's children.
Our celebrities bring something unique and fresh to the Harmony Run, a special way of touching the children and making the message of the relay accessible and grounded in real life. The children know and love these faces from their favourite soaps and dramas – and here they are in person, talking about the Harmony Run.
At first awkward, the kids are suddenly moved – the Harmony Run comes to life, its message clearly felt. They rush to hold the torch. TV sports commentator Darren Young gets the tougher kids to 'high-five' with the person next to him and make a new friend. Pandemonium reigns as 700 children slap hands. They'll remember the fun and laughter after the day is over and something else will be left too, a seed of understanding.
At the middle of the next day we reach the great volcanic plateau. Snow-covered wintering mountains rise up on the horizon, a vast blue lake stretches before us and on all sides are the pale blue, faraway silhouettes of further mountain ranges. Everyone wants to run with the torch across these beautiful landscapes and soon our whole team is out on the road.
Later that evening we learn that Wellington will become a Sri Chinmoy Peace Capital – the fourth in the world. It's one of many New Zealand cities that have been dedicated to peace and honours both the real contribution of the World Harmony Run to New Zealand and the vision of its founder, Sri Chinmoy, for whom peace is both a supreme reality and highest achievement.
It's a wonderful finale to our Harmony Run. We feel privileged to carry the torch for this emerging new world of peace and to be a part of the global Harmony Run with its supreme and timeless message.
Returning to Auckland, we stop by a mountain lake to enjoy the immense silence. There on a small sign we place our last Harmony Run aphorism where it flutters like a small, triumphant flag. Someone will read it.
Peace in the oneness-world-home is the supreme fulfillment of humanity's birthless and deathless promise to God.


text:
Q: lighttpd eating all memory and CPU So my lighttpd was running fine for more than a year. Two days ago I decided to install Wordpress 3.0.1 (PHP was already in use by other tools).
So after some hours of very few hits (i might get 10 unique visitors per day at max), the system almost hangs with a load of 25-35, lighttpd eating all CPU and RAM (see top at the end of the post).
I read of similar problems, but none seemed to be exactly what occurs here. The "solutions" on the web were like installing a Wordpress Caching Plugin, which i did (W3 Total Cache). As the problem didn't occur during the night, I thought that was the problem. But right now the machine is totally overloaded, even OOM Killer is kicking in.
A lighttpd restart helps, but that's not a real solution.
System specs:

*

*Intel Celeron2Duo 2.2GHz

*4GB RAM

*Debian Lenny 5.0.6

*Kernel: 2.6.26-2-amd64

*lighttpd 1.4.19

*MySQL 5.0.51a

*PHP 5.2.6-1+lenny

Changing the hardware is no option, as it's a home server made for low power consumption. Ideas? Thanks in advance.
top - 10:34:04 up 19:03,  1 user,  load average: 25.98, 22.97, 12.51
Tasks: 155 total,  15 running, 140 sleeping,   0 stopped,   0 zombie
Cpu(s):  0.5%us, 95.6%sy,  0.0%ni,  0.0%id,  3.6%wa,  0.0%hi,  0.3%si,  0.0%st
Mem:   4062488k total,  4039436k used,    23052k free,      264k buffers
Swap:   979956k total,   979956k used,        0k free,     3012k cached
  PID USER      PR  NI  VIRT  RES  SHR S %CPU %MEM    TIME+  COMMAND
 3648 debian-t  20   0  136m 6972  116 R    7  0.2  30:48.27 transmission-da
 2569 root      20   0  196m  900  108 S    5  0.0   4:51.94 rsyslogd
  316 munin     20   0 30592  548  136 D    4  0.0   0:04.68 sendmail
 3377 root      20   0 66292 6864  208 D    4  0.2   2:01.44 python
 3188 www-data  20   0 4074m 3.1g  124 R    4 81.2  12:20.23 lighttpd

Edit: I installed a temporary restart script as suggested by LatinSuD. So probably tomorrow I can tell details about the interval of that issue.

A: Can you update to a newer version of lighttpd? 1.4.19 is very old (the newest 1.4 branch is 1.4.28). I know there have been a number of memory leaks fixed in that interval.
http://redmine.lighttpd.net/projects/lighttpd/repository/entry/branches/lighttpd-1.4.x/NEWS
How do you have php installed? If you're using fastcgi, do you have too many worker processes starting? Make sure you haven't done something problematic with mod_rewrite that's causing an endless loop. Normally lighttpd detects those, but Bug 1775 was fixed in 1.4.20, and might be your issue.

A: I'm running lighttpd on a TonidoPlug, so it's vital for me to watch memory consumption. To that end, I've cron'd the following script to run every 30 minutes. There's probably a better way to do it, but it works for me :-)
echo `date +'%Y%m%d %H%M'`,`free | grep "Mem" | sed -e 's/ \{1,\}/,/g' | sed -e 's/^Mem:.//g'` | cut -d',' -f1,3,4,6,7 >> memorywatch.dat

The column headers are: "datetime,used,free,buffers,cached" and the output records look like this: 20110613 1002,184716,329092,30548,129496
You can then import the file into Excel/OpenOffice at regular intervals to produce graphs.
In my case, I run a "sync && echo 3 > /proc/sys/vm/drop_caches" on a regular basis - hence the "heartbeat" style graph above. It's a work in progress and I'm making further tweaks.


text:
@class PMPlayer;

@interface PMTeam : PMParticipant

@property (nonatomic, strong) NSString *name;
@property (nonatomic, strong) NSString *photo;
@property (nonatomic, strong) NSSet *playerSet;
@end

@interface PMTeam (CoreDataGeneratedAccessors)

- (void)addPlayerSetObject:(PMPlayer *)value;
- (void)removePlayerSetObject:(PMPlayer *)value;
- (void)addPlayerSet:(NSSet *)values;
- (void)removePlayerSet:(NSSet *)values;

@end


Though millions of Americans suffer without.
Make us wonder what life is about.
Can all rob you of precious sleep.
As you lie without them and weep.
Or some other pill to obtain precious rest.
Improve our sleep to endure God's test .
The good, the bad and who we wish not to be.
Who fashioned all we hear, breath and see.
Our ability to reason, overcome and succeed.
Victims of exhaustion, worry and greed.


text:
Tag: Africa
Sudan police fire tear gas at Khartoum protesters
By Independent December 13, 2021 Africa, News, World 0 Comments
Sudanese police fired tear gas Monday to disperse hundreds of protesters who rallied near the presidential palace in Khartoum demanding civilian rule, witnesses said. It was the latest rally in recent weeks by Sudanese opposed to a military-dominated government in the...
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa positive for Covid-19
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa tested positive for Covid-19 on Sunday and was receiving treatment for mild symptoms, the presidency said in a statement. Ramaphosa, who is fully vaccinated, began feeling unwell after leaving a state memorial service for former president...
South Africa pays tribute to last apartheid leader De Klerk
South Africa on Sunday paid an official tribute to FW de Klerk, the final president of white rule, who freed Nelson Mandela from prison and steered the country from apartheid to democracy. De Klerk died on November 11 aged 85 following...
DR Congo, Uganda claim 34 rebels captured, hostages freed
A Congolese-Ugandan military offensive against the deadliest militia in eastern DR Congo has captured 34 rebels, freed hostages and destroyed camps, the two armies said on Saturday. Uganda and the DRC launched artillery and air strikes on November 30 against the...
Deadly unrest closing schools in Cameroon's anglophone region
There are no students in the playground of the high school in the Bomaka district of Buea — just the odd goat grazing on overgrown grass. Buea is the capital of Cameroon's Southwest Region — one of two regions gripped by...
Ghana To Vaccinate Returning Travellers On Arrival
By Independent December 11, 2021 Africa, Health 0 Comments
File photo: President of Ghana, Nana Akufo-Addo Ghana will from Monday vaccinate returning citizens and residents against COVID-19 upon arrival at the airport if they have not received the jab. Ghana's Health Service Director-General, Patrick Kuma-Aboagye disclosed this on Friday, amid...
Benin opposition leader sentenced to 20 years in jail
Benin opposition leader Reckya Madougou was sentenced on Saturday to 20 years in prison for terrorism by a special court in the capital Porto-Novo after a brief trial that her lawyers condemned as a "political attack". After more than 20 hours...
South Africa to roll out Covid booster shots next month
South Africa will next month start giving Pfizer booster shots against coronavirus, a health official said Friday, a day after the country reported a near-record high in daily cases of the disease. "The first people who will qualify for the booster...
Sierra Leone launches controversial census
Sierra Leone launched a nationwide census Friday, despite opposition groups pledging to boycott the process over fears it will be used to gerrymander electoral districts in the West African country. In a blow to the government, the World Bank has also...
30,000 flee to Chad after Cameroon violence, says UN
More than 30,000 people in northern Cameroon have fled to Chad after ethnic clashes erupted at the weekend, claiming at least 22 lives, the UN's refugee agency said on Friday. Violence broke out in the border village of Ouloumsa on Sunday...


Above the Vatican. The eternal symbol of Rome.
After having viewed the still gallery of Rome why don't you take a look at the Virtual Tour of Rome which includes some of the finest attractions to be seen in the Eternal City - the Vatican , Saint Peters , Spanis Steps or Piazza di Spagna, Piazza Navona to name but a few choice attractions!


A detainee of Guantanamo Bay who was born in Germany of Turkish descent had been tortured for four years prior to his release. His lawyer said he was held under perpetual neon light for years and was transported chained to the floor, AP reports.
Murat Kurnaz, 24, was flown Thursday to the U.S. military's Ramstein Air Base, where he was handed over to German authorities. Chancellor Angela Merkel and her government had secured his release in lengthy negotiations with the U.S.
Kurnaz traveled in October 2001 to Pakistan, where he was detained by Pakistani authorities and then turned over to the U.S. He had been held at Guantanamo, in Cuba, since January 2002, and lawyers were first able to visit him in 2004.
"Murat Kurnaz was tortured during this time," his lawyer, Bernhard Docke, asserted at a news conference in Kurnaz' home city of Bremen. "I heard from him yesterday that, for example, he lived in bright neon light for 4 3/4 years. This light is never switched off."
During his flight home on Thursday, "Kurnaz had his hands and feet bound," Docke added. "He was chained to the floor; his eyes were covered."
Kurnaz, who did not attend the news conference, has yet to appear in public since his release.
"Mr. Kurnaz wants to have his peace and quiet at the moment," Docke said. "He cannot yet really understand what happened."
Kurnaz was born in Bremen, in northern Germany, but holds Turkish citizenship.
U.S. officials maintained that he was a member of al-Qaida, based on what they said was secret evidence. But a later review of declassified evidence in the case showed no indication he was connected to al-Qaida, the Taliban or any specific threat, according to his attorneys.


Price: Tickets are $15 presale (available through Brown Paper Tickets ), $20 at the door.
This New Years Eve join The High Council, Marshall Law and Tryin' for a psychedelic musical jam band blow out like no other. Pacific Northwest jam scene mainstays, The High Council will release their second LP, a two-disk album entitled "Chasing The Sun"with a New Years Eve album release party at the new Substation Annex in Ballard.