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Fabulous selection of coffee cards!Love the shakers.
every one of this is wonderful, but I confess to smiling the biggest over the "let's venti" sentiment. 😀 so cute!
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My goodness…again a lot of eye-candy on my screen….what wonderfull cards have been made with the new set by your Dteam.
Those design team creations are so YUMMY! Thank you for the coupon code and for being a sponsor of the Coffee Lover's Hop – you just rock!
Awesome coffee cards! I love them all! Thanks for being a Super Sponsor of the Spring & Summer Coffee Lovers Bloghop!
They all are amazing cards. Love the fun shaker ones.
Oh my goodness I love all the variations with that die!
A bunch of fun cards.
Wow, LoTs 2 see here, FuN inspiration! Thanks for being a super sponsor!
Wow. Love the new dies! Thanks for being a SUPER sponsor! Love all these great idezs!
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Love these cards–thanks for being a sponsor.


With a shortbread-like base and crunchy topping these pecan bars are satisfying in a sweet, buttery way, with a good dose of nuts to make them feel a bit healthy.
Funny how times change. When we were little, staying at school for lunch was the biggest thrill. Normally we'd walk home for lunch, playing in puddles or rolling in ditches along the way. Somehow we'd get home in time to eat a good lunch and be back to school within the allotted time.
But once in a while mom would go to town for the day and we'd get to stay at school for lunch. It was a novelty and opening our lunch to see what mom packed for us to eat was like unwrapping a surprise.
Back in the days when you could send nuts to school these pecan squares would get tucked in our lunch as a treat.
This recipe came out of the weekend insert in the Times Globe sometime in the early 1970s. I'm sure it caught mom's eye because the recipe makes such a big batch. You can mix them up in a flash and the sprinkling of nuts overtop makes them more filling than your average cookie which meant they'd last longer.
With a shortbread-like base and crunchy topping these squares are satisfying in a sweet, buttery way, with a good dose of nuts to make them feel a bit healthy.
For the base, beat together the butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat well. Stir in the flour and mix well. Spread in prepared pan.
Brush uncooked base with beaten egg and sprinkle over ½ cup of the brown sugar. Spread the nuts over the base then sprinkle with the remaining brown sugar. Bake for 20-25 minutes.


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Looking for a New Auto or Already Have One?
The best deal in town is at your favorite credit union – Reliance FCU. Whether you're looking to purchase a new/used auto or already have one somewhere else, now is the time to buy or refinance. Along with our money saving low interest rates you will get a $25 gas card. Apply online to get pre-approved. Let us help you keep your hard earned money in your pocket. Call Donna at 610-783-5229 x 13 for details.
Have your tax deposited directly into your RFCU account and you won't have to worry about someone stealing it from your mailbox. To electronically deposit to any RFCU account, you'll need RFCU's routing number –231981697.
Along with the routing number, you'll need to indicate a depository account number. You may use your member number to deposit into your Savings or Checking Account. Any deposits using the information from your check may be designated only to your Checking Account. Be sure to enter the routing number and depository account number carefully. No special symbols or spaces should be included. If an information error occurs, your refund check could be returned to the IRS for processing.
If you have questions or need assistance in determining your correct account number, please call RFCU at 800-458-7004.
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We invite you to join our growing family and discover the many benefits of Reliance Federal Credit Union membership!


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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


Cox Veterinary Laboratory – products you can trust!
Can be used to maintain collagen integrity and promote healthy muscle tissue. Vitamin C has also been shown to aid in the body's resistance to infection and promote the healing of ulcerated tissues.
Each lb contains 50,000 mg vitamin C.
Directions: Use 1/2 – 1 oz daily.


text:
Church Rallies Around Teacher Who Had Sex With Student, Films Video of Her Asking for Forgiveness
William Barber warns against 'simplistic calls for unity,' 'policy sin' at Inaugural Prayer Service
CP Current Page: U.S. | Wednesday, January 15, 2014 | Coronavirus →
By Morgan Lee, Christian Post Reporter Follow | Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Former Mary G. Montgomery High School math teacher Alicia Gray, 28, was convicted of having sex with a student under 19, in Mobile. Ala., on Friday, Jan. 10, 2014. | (Photo: Screen capture/Mark Wyatt/YouTube)
When Alabama pastor Mark Wyatt discovered that one of the members of his congregation had been arrested for having sex with her 14-year-old student, he said that he decided to ensure that the church remained a place where the former high school teacher felt loved no matter the verdict.
"We decided then and there that the degree of guilt and innocence would not be a deciding factor in how much we loved her," Wyatt, who pastors Deeper Life Fellowship, said in a video released last week.
Last Friday, Alicia Gray, 28, plead guilty to charges of second-degree sodomy, second-degree sexual abuse and being a school employee who has had sexual contact with a student younger than 19, after she was charged last February.
As part of a plea deal, Gray was sentenced to six months in jail and had to relinquish her teaching certificate, reported AL.com. She will also have to register as a sex offender.
Wyatt helped Gray create the video because he wanted to give her the opportunity to speak on how she had seen God work in her life.
In the video the former teacher asked for forgiveness for her "selfishness."
"I acted out of my own insecurities without thought and concern or anyone else's feelings," she said.
"I had pain in my own heart and a void that I thought I needed to fill through attention and all kinds of other things and that void was just needing Jesus," she added.
Gray said that she had felt her faith had helped her better understand where her true identity lay.
"I'm so thankful God has changed me and shown me my identity in Jesus Christ where I won't make the same selfish decisions and hurt other people," said Gray. ... [Moreover] because of my changed identity I don't have to be ashamed of who I am.
Gray asked for forgiveness from the sexual abuse victim, family members and "anyone else I hurt," and said that she was trusting that God could still redeem the situation.
"[I believe He can] take this situation that should have never ever happened and provide healing and rest in anyone who has been hurt," she said.
Wyatt, who hugged Gray in the last moments of the film, said that he believes that the situation had helped the woman better understand more fully how God saw her.
"Over the last 11 months, Alecia has had her identity redefined by the fact that she is a daughter of God and fully loved for who she is," he said.
Gray will begin her sentence at Mobile County Metro Jail on Friday.
More In U.S.
Catholic hospitals can't be forced to perform gender transition surgeries, court rules
Franklin Graham asks Christians to pray for peace during inauguration
Francis Collins says COVID-19 vaccines don't use 'fresh' fetal tissue: 'Absolutely not the case'
'Godfather' of pro-life movement Joe Scheidler dies at 93

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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…Avalanche's ethnicity?
While the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition #1 revealed that member of the second Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, Avalanche, was Greek and his name was Dominic Petros…
…when seen without his mask in Uncanny X-Men #141 he is clearly not of that ethnicity…
…and in Uncanny X-Men #223, Claremont reveals his real name to be Domenic Szilard…
…this surname, plus the spelling of "Domenic" indicative of his being of Hungarian descent.
In UXM #255, Claremont further reinforces the Hungarian connection by Avalanche being referred to as Janos…
…so I'm assuming he intended his full name was Domenic Janos Szilard. The surname Szilard means "solid, firm" and is the Hungarian vernacular form of Constantine.
Sadly Fabian Nicieza goes on to cement OHTOMUDE #1's faux-pas in continuity…
…a fact sadly held to since.
So now to my No-Prize explanation:
I would posit that Avalanche had a Greek passport under the name Dominic Petros, but it was just an alias.
As to why he travelled to and from Greece?!
In X-Treme X-Men #4, when searching for Destiny's Diaries, Ororo finds her will in which it is discovered that she has left Rogue as the sole heiress of her estate…
…and in X-Women it is further revealed this inheritance includes a villa on the Greek island of Kirinos.
So how long had Destiny owned a villa in Kirinos?
I would posit she had at least owned it before the second Brotherhood of Evil Mutants had gone public in Uncanny X-Men #142, and that the island hideaway had acted as a private training location for the team…
…Avalanche putting his powers to the test there without much external monitoring.
That is, the Cyclades chain of islands off the coast of Greece is known for regular earth tremors, so any such ones produced by his practice/ training with the team would not have been suspected as caused by a mutant.
Filed under: Claremont's X-Men | Tagged: Avalanche, Blob, brotherhood of evil mutants, Chris Claremont, Cyclades, Days of Future Past, Destiny, Destiny's Diaries, Domenic Szilard, Dominic Petros, Fabian Nicieza, Fred Dukes, Irene Adler, Janos, Kirinos, Mystique, Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe Deluxe Edition #1, OHTOMUDE, Pyro, Raven Darkholme, uncanny x men, X-Men, X-Treme X-Men, X-Women |	Leave a comment »


HomeReview: GitHub vs. Visual Studio Team Services (VSTS) – Should you switch?
There is an add-on for GitHub called ZenHub that enables true ALM management of github issues; using boards, backlogs, epics, etc. If we weren't already heavily invested in TFS/VSTS i would be pushing it for my teams. It feels like a fork of JIRA.


Jaguar's I-Pace battery-electric SUV has won the 2019 Car of the Year award in an incredibly tight contest between it and Renault's Alpine sports coupé. Formal voting ended with each car sharing 250 votes apiece; the first time there's been a draw in the Coty award since it was started in 1964.
In keeping with the rules, the votes were then recounted to see which of the 60 jurors voted each car ahead of the other; with that recount done, the Jaguar came out first with 18 first places ahead of the Alpine's 16.
This is the first Jaguar to win the award in the Coty's 55 years and a visibly delighted Ian Callum, Jaguar's director of design, received the award from jury president Frank Janssen.
"Wow, was that close or what," said Callum, "thank you very much. I don't understand why people make such a fuss over battery electric cars winning this award though; this is the future. It's a whole new Jaguar on a whole new platform and it's the most exciting car I've ever worked on."
The voting on the seven-strong shortlist was close, with five models taking the lead in the voting announcement which is done in the style of the Eurovision Song Contest, with each country announced at a time in alphabetical order. As well as the Jaguar and the Alpine, Ford's Focus, Citroën's C5 Aircross and Kia's Ceed hatchback each held the lead during the count and when the vote went to the last country, the UK, with six judges including yours truly, the leading vehicle was Kia's Ceed with 234 votes.


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Love, Lenny: Should I Let Her Go?
Introducing our "Love, Lenny" column, where the fantastic clinical psychologist Dr. Lian Bloch offers advice on relationship problems.
By Jessica Grose
In a romantic pickle? Get your questions answered by clinical psychologist Dr. Lian Bloch, in a feature we're calling Love, Lenny.
Q: I'm a 24-year-old woman who is in a relationship with a 29-year-old woman. She is getting stressed out about the age difference because she feels that she has to start thinking about having children soon and doesn't feel that I should have to worry about that yet. Also, my partner has only ever been in relationships with men and has never had to think about the alternatives to having kids, whereas I've had time to think about this. This is putting a strain on our relationship, as we are very much in love but have to think realistically as well. I feel like I should let her go so that in the long run her life will be easier, but I don't want to do that because I love her so much. I don't know what I should do. I would be so grateful for your help.
A. The good news is that you're dealing with this major decision in a mature, caring way. "It sounds like you're both concerned about stressing out the other with the impending decision about whether and how to have children. On the one hand, this signifies mutual respect and conscientiousness — awesome!" says Dr. Bloch. The bad news is there's no easy fix here. "Having children is a huge life decision that puts almost all couples through the wringer."
Many people find raising children to be deeply satisfying. But don't forget that having kids can be a prolonged bummer — an 18-year bummer. "Research suggests that having children marks a precipitous decline in relationship satisfaction, which shows signs of rejuvenation once parents become empty nesters," Dr. Bloch notes.
That said, the first thing to do is to assess the strength of your relationship independent of whether you want to have kids in the near term. If you decide that your relationship is solid enough to even entertain the convo, start by breaking down this huge decision into bite-sized chunks, so you don't choke on its enormity. Here's what the good doctor advises:
**You and your partner may want to start with a pro-con discussion and list-making pertaining to whether you want to have children together. Weigh the heavy hitters like career, finances, and childcare, but also seemingly mundane considerations like the impact on your social lives and free time — although for many people, this is an emotional and instinctive decision rather than a "logical one," and that's OK too!
**If you decide subsequently that you are interested in having children, then pursue resources to be informed about options. For example, if you would consider medically assisted reproduction, you may find it useful to read together The New Essential Guide to Lesbian Conception, Pregnancy, and Birth, by Stephanie Brill.
As to whether you should "let her go" so that her life will be "easier," you can't predict the future. Even if you're in a heterosexual relationship, making a baby isn't always just a matter of penis-in-vagina and then voilà! A healthy infant! Your current partner might need to use assisted reproductive technologies even if she were with a man, and families are made in all sorts of ways. It's 2015, dammit. If your relationship is a great one, don't cut it off because you're afraid the physical act of having kids might not be simple.
If you want your questions answered by Dr. Bloch, email submissions@lennyletter.com and put "Relationships" in the subject line.
From: Lenny
More From Lenny
Equal Pay Day Isn't a Holiday.
The Fight is Female
On Being Black and Uncomfortable at Harvard
The Lenny Interview: Cheryl Dunye
In Defense of the Emotional Haircut
Reaching Friendship Nirvana
What It Means When You Dream About a Pony
Asian-American Actress Constance Wu on Breaking Down Stereotypes
Chvrches' Frontwoman Lauren Mayberry Opens Up About Escaping Her Abusive Relationship
Why You Should Care About Local Politics
Should You Go Blonde? 5 Great Tips to Follow.
Beyoncé Just Remade a Cookout Classic
Should You Go into Business with a Friend?
Kristen Wiig, Ellen DeGeneres Completely Destroy 'Let It Go'
Do You "Let Yourself Go" When You're in a Serious Relationship?
Watch an Emotional Caitlyn Jenner Tear Up About Letting Go of Bruce in the 'I Am Cait' Season 2 Trailer


You have seen Juyal on screen, with his incredible dance moves and probably drooled over it too. Nicknamed Crockroaxz, he stormed into the television dance scene with his exemplary yet exclusive dance moves and then took the role of an entertaining and charming television host and has now plunged into the world of cinema with a few successful roles.
Juyal shot to fame with his unique 'slow motion' dance move in the third season of the successful reality show 'Dance India Dance'. Today he is among the most loved and admired television personality who dabbles dance, choreography, and anchoring.
Here is how a naïve Dehra Dun boy turned into a small-screen star stormed his way into the heart of women. No, we aren't speaking about his millions of women fans, there are two special women in his life and we'll explain the why's and how's.
You know Shivangi Joshi as a charming small-screen actress, famous for her roles in soaps on Colours TV and Star Plus. Rumor mills have been abuzz not so long ago of her close relationship with Juyal. Given that both Juyal and Joshi are from Dehra Dun and pictures of them partying together went viral on social media, they both were considered an 'it couple'.
Later, it was made clear that they both were good friends and nothing else.
Shakthi Mohan is a house hold name for those following dance reality shows on television. She is one among the most successful dancer/ choreographer in Bollywood today. Raghav and Shakthi share a common love for dance and were a part of the same reality show.
Shakthi was a judge on the show Raghav hosted and their close camaraderie on the sets got the gossip mongers busy.
Shakthi was also rumored to be dating Kunmar Singh, another successful dancer on reality shows who turned to a television host.
Though Raghav and Shakthi were a part of the same dance reality show and work together often, stories of their relationship were dismissed as baseless. Shakthi Mohan (born 1985) is older to Raghav by six years (born 1991) and it was said that they both weren't interested in a cougar relationship.
It was also said that Shakthi and Raghav are close friends and they do share a special companionship, but there is nothing romantic about their relationship. They respect each other as dancers and as good friends.
'Laila Majnu', once again on silver screen…..
LOVE is for ALL TIMES and AGES ….Love surely grows with time!


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Home > Legal insights > All > Banking and Financial Services > Australian Regulators Weekly Wrap — Monday, 28 November 2022
Australian Regulators Weekly Wrap — Monday, 28 November 2022
Investing time in your professional development within a rapidly changing financial services industry is challenging. To meet that challenge, the Australian Regulators Weekly Wrap is designed to keep you at forefront of your practice by quickly setting out the top 5 developments from the past week, analysis and practical considerations for the future.
FAR (Parliament): An unedifying week in Parliament, as Labor agreed with the Greens last minute to include $1M fines for Accountable Persons in the FAR legislation without any consultations. Only the great lobbying work of Anna Bligh and the ABA caused the Government to rethink its deal with the Greens — the legislation has now been pulled from the Parliamentary agenda. It is bloody-minded and excessive, as are the fines for ancillary liability, given the principles-based breadth of the regime, lack of guidance/case law and regulatory hawkishness now. Pure politics, and bad policymaking which impacts people's lives – both the Green and Labor should be ashamed of the debacle.
'Earning' crypto products (ASIC): ASIC has commenced civil penalty proceedings in the Federal Court against fintech company Block Earner alleging it provided unlicensed financial services in relation to its crypto-asset based products and that it operated an unregistered managed investment scheme. ASIC alleges that the Earner Product had 'Terms of Use' where the consumer, in acquiring, investing in or using the Earner Product, deposits or 'lends' money ('lend' being the expression used in the Terms) to Block Earner, and Block Earner undertakes to repay that money. Block Earner posed the question 'How is fixed yield generated?' on its website under 'Frequently Asked Questions' (FAQs). Block Earner initially answered by stating "Block Earner is able to generate returns by pooling customer funds and lending it to our trusted partners, who are all vetted in accordance with our risk policy, thereby receiving a favourable yield rate." The Terms provided that by using the Earner Product, consumers 'lend' the crypto assets (into which their AUD has been converted) to Block Earner, in return for daily interest which was paid in the same crypto-asset 'loaned' to Block Earner. Critically, users also agreed to grant Block Earner all rights and title to those crypto assets, for Block Earner to use at its sole discretion during the term of the 'loan'. That is, they had not control over the assets — they were in Block Earner's control. The crypto currency industry is in a difficult position until further clarity on the regulatory framework is put forward. Until then, the outcome of this case (which is covered in more detail in our article here), will be significant.
Crypto asset reporting framework (OECD): The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has published its report on the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) and Amendments to the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) after undertaking public consultation. The CARF has been developed as a global framework providing for the automatic exchange of tax information on transactions involving crypto assets. The new rules are very broad — they should capture more participants than are current held under CRS. The definition of Crypto-Assets targets those assets that can be held and transferred in a decentralised manner, without the intervention of traditional financial intermediaries, including certain stablecoins, derivatives issued in the form of a Crypto-Asset and certain non-fungible tokens. Entities or individuals that provide services effecting exchange transactions in Crypto-Assets as a business for or on behalf of customers would be considered 'Reporting Crypto-Asset Service Providers' under the CARF, and need to report transactions and conduct due diligence on users under CARF (it is similar to FATCA/CRS in this regard). The start date is unknown — Treasury needs to implement these changes in legislation, and likely within 2023.
Buy now, pay later (Treasury): BNPL products are not regulated under the Credit Act because they fall under the exemptions available to certain types of credit in the National Credit Code. Long the bete noirof consumer advocacy groups, who argue that BNPL's exclusion from responsible lending obligations can lead to poor consumer outcomes, the Government has released an options paper seeking views on three broad options that aim to provide a regulatory foundation for BNPL. The three options are: 1) strengthening the BNPL Industry Code plus an affordability test; 2) limited BNPL regulation under the Credit Act, including licensing and scalable unsuitability test; 3) regulation of BNPL under the Credit Act. I suspect the middle road will be taken, but in any case, it looks like there will be some form of credit checks which will apply to BNPL sector in the near future.
Breach reporting (ASIC): ASIC has released a breach reporting API for submitting reports under the regime. The API provides a machine-to-machine interface solution to submit these notifications. The API will make it easier for high-volume users by removing the need to manually input information into ASIC's form. You can read the specifications here, which I am excited about for personal reasons given the software we created for this purpose (see the Gadens breach manager here).
Thought for the future: "Laws are like sausages, it is better not to see them being made" Otto von Bismarck (1815–1898).
Liam Hennessy, Partner


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Is There a Drug Epidemic in Hip-Hop?
Peter A. Berry
Peter A. Berry Published: December 20, 2019
Smith Collection/Gado, Getty Images
Another day, another episode of Hip-Hop Moments of Clarity, XXL's weekly podcast dedicated to deconstructing the hip-hop news cycle.
This week hosts address pop-punk band Yellowcard's decision to continue their $15 million lawsuit against Juice Wrld after his death, whether or not the rap world has a collective drug problem, Nipsey Hussle's former bodyguard allegedly attacking Blueface's manager Wack 100 and more.
The lineup for this week's episode includes XXL's Editor-in-Chief, Vanessa Satten, XXL's Executive Editor, John Kennedy (a.k.a. JFK), veteran journalist Shaheem Reid and hip-hop entrepreneur Rahman Dukes. This is the lineup for today's episode, but it's one that can change from week to week.
The topic of a potential hip-hop drug epidemic arises when hosts discuss Yellowcard, a group who is suing Juice Wrld, Interscope and more for allegedly using song elements from "Holly Wood Died" for Juice's breakout single, "Lucid Dreams." Juice Wrld died after suffering a seizure at the Chicago International Airport on Dec. 8, and sources have said that he swallowed several Percocet pills in order to hide them from authorities searching the private plane he was flying in.
Also discussed was the matter of the attack on Blueface earlier this week. People have alleged that, while at 2019 Rolling Loud Los Angeles, Nipsey Hussle's former bodyguard, J Roc, knocked out Wack 100. If that rumor is correct, then it's likely that the attack was brought on by Wack saying that Nipsey wasn't a musical legend in a couple of recent interviews. Wack had also justified Nipsey Hussle's alleged killer Eric Holder's purportedly killing the rapper in a leaked phone call. Wack has since said that he'd pay $100,000 to anyone who showed him a video of him getting knocked out at the event.
Additionally, the hosts also talked about 6ix9ine. The embattled rapper was sentenced to two years in prison and five years of supervised release in his federal racketeering case against him. With time-served and good behavior, he could be out from behind bars by July.
At another point of the podcast, hosts discuss the success of 2019 XXL Freshman Roddy Ricch, whose debut album, Please Excuse Me for Being Antisocial, debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Listen to XXL's Hip-Hop Moments of Clarity podcast on iTunes, Spotify and Stitcher. Check out the latest episode of the podcast on YouTube below.
Check out the latest episode of Hip-Hop Moments of Clarity below.
Rappers We Lost in the 2010s
Source: Is There a Drug Epidemic in Hip-Hop?
Filed Under: 6ix9ine, juice wrld, Roddy Ricch, Yellowcard
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Club Gaeilge (Thursday class) : No Club Gaeilge Class on Thurs. April 4th as the teacher is not available.
Eason Spelling Bee – County Final: Best wishes to Freya Coveney in the Dublin County final on Tuesday, April 2nd.
This year, we are asking the girls to create a head piece with an Easter theme – it can be a bonnet, cap, hairband etc. The girls can re-use an old hat and can wear it in on the day of the Easter Cake Sale, Friday, April 12th. One winner will be picked from each class on the day.
It is only a week to go now before one of our favourite events of the year comes up – the annual JACA Social Evening. This year it will take place again in the beautiful surroundings of the Westin Hotel on Saturday, April 6th 2019. It is always a most enjoyable evening for everyone and a great way for you to meet and catch up with the other parents in your daughter's class. This year, we will be entertained by some of the Intermediate Choir from the Senior School and also by students who played at the Strings concert on Valentine's Day. There are lots of amazing prizes to be won, a silent auction and also a fabulous Grand Prize!
What is the Grand Prize? Cullen and Co Jewellers (diamond specialists) are delighted to sponsor the main prize for the JACA Social evening – worth €5000! Co-owner and past pupil, Suzanne Gilhooly, will welcome the lucky winner, who will have the unique opportunity to either design a bespoke piece or choose an item of jewellery while enjoying a glass of champagne in the beautiful surroundings of their store.
You can book your tickets for this wonderful event through your class rep. We look forward to seeing you all on the night!
Currently, we have three of our J4 students boarding in Res. The two J4 classes went to visit Res on Wednesday morning. We saw the 6th, 5th and 4th year rooms. We also saw the rooms for Junior School students, the cafeteria, the common room and the two Prep rooms. We really liked visiting it and we got a delicious cupcake afterwards. Thanks to Mrs. Ginnelly, Catherine, the chefs and everyone else there who made us all feel so welcome. They were very nice. We would love to visit again!
Recently in J3R, we have been learning all about our amazing Solar System! The pupils have worked in pairs to create wonderful colourful and informative projects on each of the planets and they were looking forward to sharing their work with the rest of the Junior School. Our assembly today included a 'roll-call' of all the planets before allowing each pair the chance to discuss their work. It ended with a short quiz to make doubly sure that our audience were listening carefully! Well done, girls!
Hockey: The hockey season is over now during school time. However, the J3/J4 classes will continue to have their After School hockey class on Thursdays from 3-4pm.
A group of girls from J4-J6 will compete at the annual AIJS athletics event next Wednesday in Irishtown. The girls will leave the school at 12.15pm and return at approximately 3.30pm. Please make sure that your daughter has a packed lunch with her on Wednesday.


Invasion of the 60 foot Catholic School Girls!
Well, ok, maybe not entirely. What we have is basically the fourth season of Maria Watches Over Us, which Rightstuf recently licensed. It's certainly something that will be worth waiting for. But don't just take my word for it. Read the review, and THEN take my word for it.
As I'm sure most of you figured out, the review I posted on the 1st of April was complete nonsense and in no way a real review. However, since I don't want to cheat our readers of a review proper, here's the REAL review of ToraDora. Yep, this is my honest opinion this time around, and I promise to come up with something better for next year's April Fool's.
In the mean time, I'd like to make a proposition to our readers. Seeing as there's so few new interesting shows these days -- coupled with the fact that Norway just doesn't have a huge market for anime outside of imports -- I'd like to ask for some reader participation. Not in writing reviews, but choosing shows for me to start off my second opinion session in an attempt to continue providing this site with written material on a somewhat regular basis. What I need you to do is basically to visit my DVDaficionado page, which contains pretty much almost my entire DVD collection, and pick which anime shows you would like to see reviews written for, and then E-mail me the requests -- if you have any. Then I'll pretty much rewatch the show and provide a writeup on what I feel about the show and how it stacks up today, compared to the more recent titles available.
So yeah, on this blessed day, I got a new review for you. It's from a very well known show called ToraDora, and it will sneak into your bedroom at night and whack you with a kendostick!


Anne Fine, Lesley Glaister, and Erin Morgenstern (so I can tell her how much I loved The Night Circus!).
In bed is always the best place to read.
I am always drawn to post-apocalyptic fiction but lately I've read many books about abandonment. This is a theme that also appears a lot in my own writing.
Last Night In Montreal by Emily St. John Mandel. She wrote Station Eleven, which I loved.
An online owl now it's so convenient.
The Other Hand by Chris Cleave. It had no blurb as such so there was no indication of what the story was going to be about – not that this would have made it any less disappointing!
Keep writing! You might think your work is dire right now but it will improve.
Adult literary fiction – I enjoy character-based stories. And sometimes young adult fiction.


This is the very first Zonda 760 Roadster, I saw the frame under construction during a visit inside the factory the day of the Vanishing Point start in June 2014. Thanks to the latest pictures on Instagram the car seems to have been completed in last month.
This Roadster is characterized by the classic two-tone colour combination, in this case is very similar to the Zonda Tricolore, fully visible carbon fiber, half clear coated and half with a thin layer of blue paint. The spoiler has a tricolore stripe in the central part while it is not present in the rest of the bodywork.
The cockpit is finished in red leather but from these few pictures is difficult to judge. A special feature of this car is that it is the first 760 not to have led lights. For the moment the car has been pictured only with test wheels so their color, brake calipers, more details of the interior and the country of destination are unknown.
For the moment this is the last Zonda built but for what I know other Zonda will be produced. Finally, a Zonda without many customizations, they were annoying. But this is my own opinion.
"Finally, a Zonda without many customizations, they were annoying. But this is my own opinion."
Agreed. It's very classy. No stupid color accents, or unnecessary add-ons.


text: Ashley Garrett (Photographer; Former Director, All Souls Soup Kitchen; Former Vice President, Gold Card Marketing, MasterCard International) is an American photographer based in New York City. She specializes in production photos for theater, music and dance; she also shoots portraits and headshots for individuals. Prior to becoming a freelance photographer, Ashley marketed credit cards at both Chemical Bank and MasterCard and for close to two decades managed the All Souls Soup Kitchen, a privately funded organization that serves over 22,000 meals annually. Ashley began her career as a theater teacher and over the past twenty-five years has worked at a variety of schools, including the Amber Charter School and The Brearley School. Ashley serves on the boards of the New York Center for Autism Charter Schools, the Harvard Business School Fund, Parity Productions, and Statement Arts, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to bringing the creative and performing arts to underserved children. Ashley has an AB in theater from Smith College and an MBA from Harvard Business School.


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What's for Lunch, Honey Bunch?
For kids, the importance of a routine is colossal! Particularly for those who are still learning to tell time, it provides footing, it allows them to know what to expect and to anticipate. Routines ground the young, helping them to predict what will happen next. Despite inevitable opposition, children notice and respond well to an itinerary.
I always try to cue in my daughter of the daily plan, if possible the evening before. If there is an after school activity she is never surprised, she knows the plan. Over time, I trust that this will help build her foundation -- into becoming solid, confident and secure.
Routines are one of the many reasons it is great to be back to school -- to have structure, a schedule, a sense of time and place for everyone; it takes the guess work out of the week. I love it! While not everything goes smoothly, the routine helps our daughter feel that she is in the know.
But, one routine that I struggle with, along with half the parents that I know, is developing sensible, interesting and edible lunches. It is a consistent parental topic at school drop off/pick-up -- "what do you put into your child's lunchbox?"
I feel like I have tried everything, from letting her choose her items to putting fancy gourmand-worthy dishes in her box. Below are some suggestions (all are nut-free) that have worked in our family, and some are borrowed techniques from other frustrated parents. Remember don't overwhelm children with too many options. They do better with fewer choices and it can help limit the fussiness and waste.
Soups tend to work well. But, it is important to consider "fragrance." While a simple chicken vegetable soup will not likely evoke comments from fellow classmates, anything with curry or even a lentil soup will.
Children love carbs. Buy some quality cheese tortellini and boil in stock (chicken or vegetable, see previous post for recipe) in the morning before school. Add in peas during the last 2 minutes of cooking. Put this delicious treat in a small thermos. You can even put some in a larger thermos for your lunch!
Another pasta idea: there are some easy to make boxed Mac and Cheese products that can be prepared in the morning and placed in a thermos. Amy's (brand) and Back to Nature (brand) have great organic products that our daughter frequently requests. These boxes are fairly inexpensive too!
Hard boiled eggs are an excellent source of protein, but not that presentable. So cut them up with an egg slicer or make them into silly shapes.
The entire PACKiT lunch box is put in the freezer overnight and the contents remain cold for many hours during the school day. While it is very popular (with millions in sales), I am not a fan. Frankly, I would rather have a lunch box that keeps food hot!
Cut bread into interesting designs for sandwiches. And mix up the protein -- lately fresh mozzarella has been the cheese of choice in our house.
After your children discover they don't like sandwiches any longer, simply deconstruct it by separating the bread from the protein. This also helps prevent the dreaded soggy bread syndrome. Also, try small pieces of meat, cheese, even beans, separate or mixed.
Always include something you know your child enjoys. Our daughter fancies organic fruit gummies, or a nutritious granola bar. Stonyfield (brand) makes organic yogurt squeezers -- these always get eaten, and have lasted the test of time.
Create a surprise container. Everyday, surprise your child with a treat. Newman's Own (brand) makes sensible snacks. Also Zen (brand) makes organic pudding made with almond milk.
It's tempting, but don't do it!! There is little value added in putting junk food in the lunch. High calories are not the answer and high sugar will only result in sluggish behavior later in the day.
If your child is reading, place a little note into the lunch box. Make sure this note refers to something in the lunchbox. For example: Guess what I packed in here today?? Enjoy! Love, Daddy!
Our daughter has always had a taste for carrots and celery sticks in her lunch. But this does not seem to be the case for most kids. While raisons alone are a sensible lunch item, grated carrots mixed with raisons are even better.
Rice balls -- simple, gluten free and delicious. Use leftover rice from dinner and shape it into balls. Kids love them!
Pancake roll-ups filled with a favorite fruit also work well. Use the leftover pancakes that you cooked over the weekend.
Sushi Rolls were a huge hit in our house for a while. Try Cucumber or Avocado Rolls, also smoked salmon with cream cheese was popular-- lots of protein too.
Children adore rainbows. Organize the lunch box (and children can help with this) with the different ROY G BIV colors. You'll be surprised how well this works, especially for pre-schoolers.
Jello is an age-old treat! And now there are some tasty organic varieties.
Beverages -- water, water, water. We switched from juice to water early on by allowing our daughter to pick out her own water bottle. Now, she insists on using it. But, if possible, try to keep the beverage separate from the lunch box so they don't fill up on it, or encourage kids to eat a certain number of bites before taking a drink.
Wouldn't you say it's a fairly nice collection of lunch containers! We'll try anything!
Be sure to include fruit everyday. Apple or peach slices are standardly well received by most kids, as are blueberries, grapes and strawberries. Avoid bananas, they tend to be malodorous and can overpower the container (and classroom). Don't be afraid to venture out with less traditional fruits, such as mango, guava or papaya.
On Fridays, cut up a piece of pizza. It's simple and you know they will eat it!
I would be happy to share some links here on more lunch box ideas, but there don't seem to be that many out there. So I hope this helped!
In my family, as soon as we start to feel the September nip in the air we know the "carefree" days of summer have passed and the inner squirrel is soon to arrive. All those delicious fresh veggies are not going to be at farmer's market much longer. It's time to look forward to the fall harvest: kale, collards, cabbage (ahh -- and my famous cabbage Ribbolita -- recipe soon to follow). Luckily, these autumn leafy favorites are high in antioxidants (cancer fighters) and have other significant health benefits, such as lowering cholesterol (see below).
Mid-way between light summer fare and hearty winter stomach fillers are some amazing autumnal dishes. Further down is a delicious, and VERY simple bean and kale soup that everyone who tries seems to request the recipe.
But, before we get to the soup, it is worthwhile discussing stocks. While there are some delicious store bought stocks (check out Rachel Ray's Chicken Stock), it is best to make your own, provided you have the time.
They all start with the same base. Some call it the "cooking trinity" - onions, celery and carrots.
After chopping (they don't need to be diced) these veggies go into your largest pot heated with olive oil. Once softened, simply add in other chopped vegetables and common ingredients in the refrigerator: parsnips, turnips, garlic, parsley, dill, salt and pepper. You will enjoy how beautifully they mesh together in the pot.
Avoid using tomatoes, broccoli or other ingredients which will overpower the subtleness of the stock. These can be added into the soups or bases of the dish that you make with the stock, but not here.
I wish I could send over the smell -- it is culinary heaven.
Once all the vegetables are soft, I add chicken bones (rotisserie leftovers) or a whole chicken. As Thanksgiving nears, I will ask the butcher for turkey necks, as they give the stock a heartier, complex, less common taste. It will be used for gravies and for basting.
Kale and Bean Soup -- in only 15 minutes!!
Chop kale, mince garlic and dice onion and shallot.
Heat olive oil in large sauté or soup pan. Saute onion, shallot, garlic and whole stalk of rosemary for about 5 minutes.
Add drained and rinsed beans and let simmer for 10-12 minutes on low heat.
Double recipe if serving more than 2-3 people.
Simply put, kale is one of the healthiest vegetables on the planet. It grows well organically, contains beta-carotene, lutein, calcium, potassium, iron, magnesium, and other minerals. It has high concentrations of Vitamin A, Vitamin C and most importantly Vitamin K -- a crucial antioxidant which helps reduce risks of most forms of cancer. Vitamin K is also abundant in parsley, spinach and collard greens. Aside from its antioxidant properties, Vitamin K is important for normal blood clotting and bone health, and is used in treatment for people with Alzheimers.
Oh, by the way, cooked kale also helps to reduce cholesterol!
Just eat your Kale, Dagnamit!
1. Get it up and out of the face!
By now you have likely made your annual trip to your local box store to pick up your kid's school supplies. You probably have in mind what everyone will be wearing for their first day back to school. But have you thought about your daughter's first day of school hair design??
Braids are always stylish. And perhaps owing to the popular The Hunger Games and Game of Thrones series, even more so now than ever. They symbolize power and strength in women. Thankfully, they are easy and workable and have some range.
For my daughter, keeping hair out of the face all day while at school is a key consideration to any style. The above braid, which starts higher on the head, dutifully performs this task.
The sides braid is also effective in keeping the hair off the face, and adds a different twist (pun?) to a classic look.
The "don't try this at home" braid -- 4 strands! It took numerous tries to get it right -- over under, under over.
Charmsies bring the bling! They simply adhere to the hair after quickly pressing for a few seconds with a flat iron.
Every hair style looks a little better with some hair ornamentation. Go ahead, put that scarf in there!
Keep the styles classic while you can -- soon enough you won't be making the hair decisions!
5. Be Creative - Mix it Up!
Sorry, I just had to add in the Elsa wig (from Frozen).
Another twist on the braid. Just flip it back up on top.
...or, the scary Halloween Bun!
Colorful hair ties -- such a simple, delightful tool for adding color to any outfit. If placed correctly, these ties help evenly distribute hair tension, limiting breakage.
I am a firm believer in using organic hair products on children whenever possible -- limiting exposure to questionable chemicals -- parabens, phthalates, petroleums, etc. -- is always a good idea. The trick is finding products that smooth away the tangles and leave the hair soft and shiny.
I have been using the Burt's Bees line of products for our daughter since she was born. They are gentle on her hair and skin, and are made of all natural ingredients. I receive many compliments on her silky locks, and I attribute much of this to the faithful use of this product.
Recently, I have been trying new products and, of the bunch, would strongly recommend the Aubrey line (conditioners, mostly). This product is high in vitamins and seems to restore moisture, boosting shine. I also like the John Master's organic product line, but they tend to be expensive. Also, any of the Argon Oil products give hair shine and leave it with a subtle scent that girls enjoy.
If your child's hair seems beyond repair, try this truly organic (albeit crunchy granola) old-fashioned trick -- condition with a few tablespoons of mayonnaise. Seriously it works!
While unpleasant to discuss, my partner reminds me that many back-to-school editorials mention that autumn is the high season for unwanted hair pets (lice!!). Using conditioners is believed to have the added benefit of drowning these unsavory buggers.
Raking through my daughter's hair causes comments of displeasure from her every day. After purchasing countless brushes, I am a true believer in the Mason Pearson brush, but it is expensive, very expensive! Luckily, Scalp Master knocks off this brush, and is an effective alternative. Throw away those wire tooth brushes, stick to the mixed bristle.
If you have a boy, part the hair to the side or better yet, straight back, and you are done for the day!


Gethin Jenkins and Coenie Oosthuizen sin-bin: was Alain Rolland right?
Were yellows for Gethin Jenkins and Coenie Oosthuizen right?
<> at Millennium Stadium on November 9, 2013 in Cardiff, Wales.
LET'S SET the scene first: on Saturday at the Millennium Stadium referee Alain Rolland pulled out a yellow card and sent off the loose-head from Wales and the tight-head from South Africa.
It was a move that caused some onlookers to question the referee. The card was brandished following a series of collapsed scrums – an outcome that should become less likely following the introduction of the pre-bind and new sequence of the experimental law variations at the scrum – but while Rolland had previously warned Gethin Jenkins of Wales and Frans Malherbe that another collapse would result in time in the bin for both players, South Africa had acted by substituting Malherbe for Coenie Oosthuizen but as the next scrum inevitably met the deck the new prop and Jenkins were sent to the sidelines.
Now some commentators have criticised Rolland for introducing uncontested scrums to a nerve-jangling Test match – Paul Williams said in his blog on rugbyworld.com that it was like having "swingball on centre court at Wimbledon" – but the referee had set this move in motion minutes before.
Firstly, it must be noted that the changes to the scrummaging sequence were changed in order to ensure player safety; while entertainment value must also be a consideration, it runs as a secondary point some 10,000 lightyears behind that of looking after the athletes. So when the issue of collapsed scrums comes up in a Test match between two of the world's best with some of the most brutish, dynamic biff-traders in the game trying to squeeze the will out of each other, they cannot be allowed to pile in and drop. Sometimes players do not know best.
Which brings in the second point. We would all rather the referee was assertive and in control at one of the most technical and dangerous points of the pitch. You can nitpick about whether the binding on shirts was legal or safe all game and it must certainly be said that Rolland should have done more to police the put-in.
However, it is the early shove which made collapse all the more likely and while he did not mention this specifically in dispatches, by telling two props that they are on the tip of a pack collapsing and that they really ought to cut it out, he has begun to be assertive. In the end he had decided that enough was enough and that someone from each team should be punished.
Technical issue: without Adam Jones, who steadies Wales?
Referees taking a stand over an issue in order to keep the game safe and in order to halt the incessant re-starts can only be a good thing and had he been weak-willed he could have relented once a new prop came on, but Rolland didn't. He promised Jenkins a yellow and when he went down he got one. Oosthuizen had only hit one scrum, but what do you do: punish one side and let the other off with it? That would cause much more of an uproar than making everyone endure 10 minutes of uncontested scrums.
Which brings up two more important, wider points. If players at this level still don't have the technical wherewithal and knowledge to pre-bind, hit, hold and then drive without falling down then they are not as good as they can be and scrum coaches at club and country need to up their game alongside players who must know they have to adapt.
By the same token, too, referees need to be as strong as Rolland was, but much earlier. They can pre-empt this by being firm with players before the first scrum, telling them in no uncertain terms that there will be no pushing before the ball is in, by ensuring binds are sound and by making sure the contest for the ball is as even and safe as possible.
There is still some way to go for both international packs and referees.


text:
Perched
26 Jan — 9 Apr 2018 at the Pergamonmuseum in Berlin, Germany
Perched. Courtesy of Pergamonmuseum
Twenty-seven glass swallows by Felekşan Onar are moving into the Aleppo Room at the Museum für Islamische Kunst. With her installation, the Turkish artist wants to draw attention to the situation of Syrian refugees in her hometown of Istanbul.
Felekşan Onar's 2017 series of 27 mold-blown glass swallows directly relates to the pictorial world of the Aleppo Room: the colorful and lively peacocks, ducks and pigeons of the wall panelling stand in oppressive contrast to the small, fragile birds with trimmed wings resting on the floor. The work is not only reminiscent of the sad fate of the former flourishing metropolis, which has now been destroyed by the civil war, but also deals with the situation of Syrian refugees in today's Turkey.
Scenes near her studio in the Pera district of Istanbul have inspired Onar: "The stranded refugees find themselves in the midst of a chaotic city - they sit on stairs and sidewalks, not knowing what's coming next, where to go ... They have landed, but are unable to fly or move."
Felekşan Onar, born in Ankara in 1966, is an internationally acclaimed glass artist. She studied at Cam Ocağı near Istanbul and since 2003 she runs her own studio Fy-shan Glass in Pera, Istanbul. In her work Felekşan Onar experiments with various techniques in glassmaking.
Since 2013, the Pergamonmuseum has been undergoing staggered renovations as part of the Masterplan Museumsinsel. The renovations are based on plans by the architecture firm of O.M. Ungers. The hall that contains the Pergamon Altar will be closed until at least 2023.
Museum profile
More from Pergamonmuseum
Calligrapher to the King
7 Feb — 3 May 2020
Capturing Iran's Past
7 Nov 2019 — 26 Jan 2020
The Babel/Bible Conflict
5 Nov 2019 — 28 Mar 2020
Dream and Trauma
Permanent event
More in Berlin, Germany
Times of Waste
25 Jan — 22 Mar 2020 at Kunstgewerbemuseum
29 Jan — 23 Feb 2020 at Museum für Fotografie
Birgit Kleber
14 Feb — 29 Mar 2020 at Museum für Fotografie
6 Mar — 30 Aug 2020 at Neues Museum
More in Germany
7 Feb — 14 Jun 2020 at Hamburger Kunsthalle in Hamburg
Fantastic Women
13 Feb — 24 May 2020 at SCHIRN in Frankfurt am Main
Trade:Mark
13 Mar — 28 Jun 2020 at Kunstbibliothek in Berlin
Pop on Paper
3 Apr — 26 Jul 2020 at Kulturforum in Berlin


text:
Citing Equity Issues, Founder of Atlanta BeltLine Leaves Board
We speak with Ryan Gravel to understand why the urban planner is leaving the project that has been his life's work for almost two decades.
Vanessa Quirk,
Ryan Gravel, founder of the BeltLine
Yesterday, the founder of the Atlanta BeltLine, Ryan Gravel, who first proposed the concept in his master's thesis back in 1999, stepped down from the Board of the Atlanta BeltLine Partnership (ABP).
The ABP is a private-sector organization that absorbed the more grassroots organization, Friends of the BeltLine, back in 2005 in order to raise capital for the project: a proposed 22-mile parkway encircling the city of Atlanta. Issues of affordability and equity have drifted to the backdrop of the Partnership's concerns, however, and fears that the development of the BeltLine could negatively impact Atlanta's most vulnerable communities prompted Gravel's departure. Gravel, along with fellow boardmember Nathaniel Smith, founder of the Partnership for Southern Equity, handed in a letter of resignation to the chairman of the ABP, Mike Donnelly, an executive vice president at Wells Fargo Bank.
The BeltLine is only one of many large-scale urban projects popping up across the nation in the wake of the High Line's success. However, as happened in the course of the High Line's development, these grassroots projects all too often become conduits of private interests—generators not only of greenspace and economic revitalization but gentrification and displacement. To learn more about the resignation, and its broader implications, Metropolis corresponded with Gravel over email.
His letter of resignation can also be found, in its entirety, at the bottom of this post.
Vanessa Quirk: You've been working on this project from the very beginning—it's been a huge part of your life for almost two decades. Why have you chosen to resign from the board now?
Ryan Gravel: First, I haven't always been on the board, and the board will remain strong without me—I'll always be there for anything they need. But for a lot of reasons, I need to focus on reminding people that the Atlanta BeltLine is for everyone. That's the vision that we rallied around well over a decade ago and that our incredible grassroots movement was built on. Accountability to that vision has been one of our biggest challenges since that time, mostly because it's hard. And although we've made a lot of progress and have accomplished a lot toward those outcomes, the rapidly recovering economy and incredible new growth in the urban core of Atlanta has made those challenges more urgent. Our follow-through with policies to ensure that growth benefits everyone—especially those on the lower end of the economic spectrum—has not been commensurate with the need. I would love for the Atlanta BeltLine Partnership to take a stronger lead on these issues, but there are many other ways to approach it. My resignation, along with Nathaniel Smith, founder of the Partnership for Southern Equity, comes as a constructive next step toward generating more attention and urgency to these goals.
VQ: In your letter of resignation, you say both investments and policies must become more intentional and urgent in providing for vulnerable communities. What would this look like? What has been preventing this up to now?
RG: The main thing preventing the most equitable outcomes is that while many of the needed investments and policies are known, actually implementing them is often very difficult. We're having a hard enough time just building the physical project, which is itself an investment for equity because of the communities it serves and the economy that it generates. Our challenge to go beyond that construction and make sure that its benefits accrue to the people who made it possible in the first place, requires that people speak up. I'm willing to speak up.
VQ: You also mention the need for accountability. Why is this important and how can it be achieved?
RG: The Atlanta BeltLine is a unique infrastructural undertaking because its vision was built by the people of this city. They took a kernel of an idea from my 1999 master's thesis and made it into the expansive vision for urban transformation that you see today. More than vision, they made it possible, literally. They empowered and eventually obligated their elected officials and others to put the nuts and bolts together so that it could become real. But you don't build a $4 billion infrastructure project with a grassroots movement. So the agencies and organizations that we created to implement our vision must be accountable to it. It's that simple.
VQ: Why do you feel the ABP must be more proactive in providing affordable housing?
RG: All we have to do is look at the lack of affordability in other cities like San Francisco and New York—similar pressures are at play here. It's a national problem as people flock back into cities. Seeing that, we could sit around and do nothing, or we could try to fix it. And we are—the Atlanta BeltLine brings both attention and tools to help do that—those efforts are well documented. But because of the scale and urgency of the problem, we have to be creative and look beyond conventional strategies. Our models for creating affordable housing seem inadequate. We need to innovate beyond subsidies and zoning, and unleash the private sector to help solve the problem. I don't know what that looks like exactly, but I'm confident we can figure it out if we try.
VQ: When ABP absorbed Friends of the BeltLine in 2005, it set about raising private money for the acquisition of new parks and trails. How did this negatively impact the direction of the project? And do you see parallels between this direction and that of other similar projects around the country?
RG: Land acquisition was essential in the early days of the Atlanta BeltLine. We wouldn't be doing it otherwise. And frankly, not only do we still have quite a lot of land to acquire, there are related challenges with the increased value of land. So in my mind, the role of the Partnership shouldn't be to tackle one task or the other. This is not an either-or. It's about doing both—and a lot more. We have to. I've just decided that I need to put all my energy toward equity. This is important to me because the commitments that I made personally over the last 15 years were not to abstract populations, but to my own friends and neighbors—people that I love. I want to do everything I can to ensure that the implementation of the project is accountable to them.
I talk and write a lot about these issues and similarly transformational infrastructure projects cropping up all over the country. They include the High Line (New York), 606 (Chicago), Lafitte Corridor (New Orleans), Bayou Greenways, (Houston), Underline (Miami), and the grandmother of them all, the revitalization of the Los Angeles River. They are redefining the future of cities, leveraging existing assets to support interesting, diverse collections of communities. They're transforming historic barriers into public meeting grounds and they're working. They are changing our way of life. But they also share similar challenges and opportunities around equity, and if we want these places we love to remain lovable for everyone, we have to get ahead on these issues.
VQ: Are you at all worried that by resigning you will —instead of encouraging the Board to get in touch with grassroots efforts and be more deliberate in pursuing equitable development—in fact be freeing them up to do the opposite?
RG: Not at all. I am confident that the ABP board remains committed to these issues. They are an essential part of our work going forward, and I'm sure they will remain a strong part of a growing coalition of voices going forward. We need them.
Courtesy Wikimedia Commons
Dear Atlanta BeltLine Partnership Board, Mike Donnelly, Chair,
It is with the upmost respect that we submit our resignations from the Board of Directors of the Atlanta BeltLine Partnership, (ABP). We are supportive of the organization's work, optimistic about the project's future, and committed to remain active in its implementation for the people of this city. At this critical moment, however, we feel compelled to concentrate our efforts more directly on making sure that the Atlanta BeltLine lives up to its promise and potential, and specifically, that its investments and supporting policies become more intentional about who they will benefit. We know you agree that its advantages must accrue to everyone, especially those who are otherwise most vulnerable to the changes it brings. We fear, however, that without more urgent and deliberate attention to these communities, we'll end up building the Atlanta BeltLine without achieving its vision.
That vision came from a big, diverse coalition of neighbors and local partners who defined what the Atlanta BeltLine is and who it is for. Because our movement was inclusive from the beginning, over the years there have been many people working hard to ensure affordability and economic opportunity for everyone. We were a part of that effort, but even so, today we see the project's success most threatened by inadequate attention and accountability to those outcomes. And while there have been success stories that we can be proud of, our coalition's progress has not been commensurate with the scale of the challenges at hand. The recent announcement of $7.5 million from TAD bonds, for example, will likely support fewer than 200 affordable units out of ABI's obligation to 5,600 – it is a drop in the bucket when compared to the need. As the economy roars back to life and growth in the city accelerates, this work is increasingly urgent and we feel strongly that our attention must be channeled directly toward it.
The departure of the Atlanta BeltLine Partnership's Executive Director, and the explanation offered both at the Board meeting on July 21 and in meetings since, have put us both in difficult positions between what we believe is inadequate attention to equitable outcomes and our own personal and professional commitments for the project. They have also highlighted the urgency to include the broader public in how these issues are addressed, and related to this, have helped illustrate to us an internal dissonance within the Partnership that has been present since its beginning.
By many accounts, when ABP absorbed Friends of the Belt Line back in 2005, the project lost a conduit for the grassroots, sometimes rabble-rousing voice of the people who had given it life in the first place, who had shaped its community momentum, and who are personally attuned to its social and economic impacts. ABP primarily refocused instead on raising private money for the acquisition of new parks and trails. This was also essential and urgent work, especially at that time. It literally laid the groundwork for much of the success we see today, and we should all be proud of that. Over time, however, this direction has proven uncomfortable with the uncertainty that often comes with community advocacy. We see our resignation, therefore, as a constructive first step in the correction of this historic mistake.
We believe that the primary accountability for the Atlanta BeltLine is not to private funders, civic partners, or to organizational leadership, but to the people of Atlanta who have given the most to make the project possible. If they had not believed in a vision for our future, and if they had not worked so hard and insisted on its implementation, we certainly would not be building it today. In fact, if not for the underserved, "blighted" communities of south and west Atlanta, the Tax Allocation District would not have been allowed under state law and the idea would be gathering dust on a shelf. There's little doubt our movement of city-wide, life-affirming change would have died a long time ago.
Understanding this accountability is essential, because we believe that who the Atlanta BeltLine is built for is just as important as whether it is built at all. Our earnest hope, therefore, is that our resignation not be construed as a lack of support for the project's continued implementation or a lack of confidence in ABP's vital role going forward. Rather, we hope it is the beginning of a more robust and effective coalition of voices that can ensure that the project's full, inclusive vision is realized. Only then can we call it a success. This will take all of us, and so as we move ahead, we look forward to continuing to work with the Atlanta BeltLine Partnership, Atlanta BeltLine, Inc., and others to achieve it.
With respect and thanks, please receive our resignations.
Ryan Gravel Founding Principal Sixpitch, Inc.
Nathaniel Smith Founder and Chief Equity Officer The Partnership for Southern Equity
Categories: Landscape, Planning
Tags: Atlanta, Belt Line, Equity, Gentrification


The purpose of HCR is to create an experiential day, that brings together academics in a transgressive, but not prescriptive ACTION. In the words of Clifford Shultz: the HCR performance always aims to be an epiphany – it is a small frame for collaborative research performed with some sense of radical urgency.
In that respect the HCR-day is reminiscent of past disruptions that cherish the 'revelatory incident' and it perpetuates the heretical disconnect from academic pursuits that prioritise the social re-production of research paradigms.
This year we have felt the sad urgency of the deeply passionate, but also desperately limited effect of recycling at the dump. The superfluence of stuff, not in the last place caused by complicit marketing, is countered by the efforts of the local artists that work at the San Francisco Recycling facility.
This year's concrete act of research following the tour of the waste dump involved the creation of an assemblage of consumable, consumed and consumptive objects at SCRAP studio. A set of objects gathered according to one's own sense of their value: expressive, monetary, moral, or otherwise. The assemblage provides the material condensation of aesthetic values of consumption, a microcosm of metaphors, an existential labyrinth of semiotic oppositions. In Maffesoli's words, aesthetics may have been 'the sign of post-modernity', but that doesn't mean that urgent aesthetic reductions have settled in the main stream of research, in the twilight of post-modernity in academia.
As personal poetic theatres in toucheable material instead of words, they implicitly contain the researcher's philosophy of presenting consumer culture, and illuminate a previously unknown individual penchant for expressive aesthetics. For some of the creations made during the day, see TRASHWORX in the tab at the top.
On a philosophical or theoretical level assemblages have been defined as lyrical samples of daily poetics and are successful in the dislocation of everyday objects. We made a small 'photo booth' to make stills of evocations at SCRAP: the essence of a poetic installation is enclosure and containment. The work made by partcipants are theatrical embodiments on the quietest of scales, at the time of the surreal imaginations of hockey mums, joe the plumber and the credit crunch.
To all who have contributed their creativity and have taken the risk to show a reckless fragility of expression and made poetry without words during the HCR day of 2008: thanks for your soulful collaboration!


113101. भांडवल बाजारात कोणत्या प्रकारचे व्यवहार चालतात ?
113105. जब आपको पाठ (text) एक पृष्ठ से अलग पृष्ठ पर ले जाना हो, तब सबसे अच्छा तरीका कौनसा हैं ?
113106. ताशी सरासरी 45 कि.मी. वेगाने जाणारी एक ट्रेन निर्धारीत वेळेत पोहचते. जर ती ताशी 54 कि.मी. वेगोन गेल्‍यास निर्धारीत वेळेपेक्षा निर्धारीत ठिकाणी 20 मिनीटे आगोदर पोहचते तर तिचे कापावयाचे अंतर किती.
113108. இயற்கை வாயு என்பது எதனுடைய கலவை?
113114. Which icon would you access in the printer window to install a printer drive?
113115. Dimension text is generally placed above the ________ line.
113116. નીચેના પૈકી કઇ બાબતનો ઇન્ડીયન પીનલ કોડમાં વ્યથામાં સમાવેશ થાય છે?
113117. एका वर्गात एकूण ९० विद्यार्थी आहे,८०% विद्यार्थी अंतिम परीक्षेला बसले व त्यापैकी २/३ विद्यार्थी उत्तीर्ण झाले. तर एकूण किती विद्यार्थी अंतिम परीक्षेला उत्तीर्ण झाले?
113118. Which type of painting literally means 'wax writing'?
113119. २००९-१० मधील निकषानुसार भारताचे दरडोई प्रतिमाह ग्रामीण आणि शहरी उत्पन्न अनुक्रमे [अंदाजे] किती आहे?
(B): ५६५ रु. , ८७९ रु.
(D): ९५४ रु. , १००४ रु.
113120. घटनेच्या आठव्या परिशिष्टामध्ये कोणत्या भाषेचा १९ वी भारतीय भाषा म्हणून समावेश करण्याचा निर्णय केंद्रीय मंत्रिमंडळाने घेतला ?
113124. Weight gain in normal pregnancy is ?
113125. मध्यप्रदेश के किस जिले में सबसे अधिक आरक्षित वन हैं ?
113126. किसी सांकेतिक भाषा में MONKEY को XDJMNL की तरह लिखा जाए , तो TIGER को उसी संकेत -भाषा में कैसे लिखा जाएगा ?
113128. A CASE SQL statement is which of the following?
(A): A way to establish an IF-THEN-ELSE in SQL.
(B): A way to establish a loop in SQL.
(D): A way to establish a data definition in SQL.
113129. விஜேந்தர் சிங் எந்த விளையாட்டுடன் தொடர்புடையவர்?
113131. While the US Asiatic Squadron was anchored in Manila harbor, the Navy of which nation harassed them?
113132. भारत के पहले कानून अधिकारी के रूप में किसे जाना जाता है?
113133. Which country is the source for the emergency provisions?
113134. हाल ही में तत्व की नयी अवस्था जैन-टेलर-मेटल (Jen-Telor-Metel) की खोज कौनसे वैज्ञानिकों ने की है ?
113139. The ratio of inertial forces to elastic forces is called the __________ number.
113141. மிகச்சிறிய பாக்டீரியாயின் வகை எது?
113143. There is a shift in our economy from a manufacturing to a service orientation. The increase in service-sector will require the managers to work more with people rather than with objects and things from the assembly line.
(A): art is for the sake of art and life.
(B): art is for the sake of art alone.
(C): artist realises his dreams through his artistic creation.
(D): artist should use his art for the sake of society.
113144. इनमे से किस राज्य की सरकार ने ठाणे क्रीक के किनारे के क्षेत्र को फ्लेमिंगो अभयारण्य के रूप में घोषित किया गया है ?
113146. When was Rime published?
113147. Much of the slowdown in negotiations occurred as a result of what issue?
113149. தென்னிந்தியாவின் பெரிய நதியாக கூறப்படுவது?


text:
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WINNER 2018 ASSOCIATION OF CATHOLIC PUBLISHERS AWARD! - PRAYER AND SPIRITUALITY
WINNER 2018 CATHOLIC PRESS ASSOCIATION BOOK AWARD! - SPIRITUALITY
WINNER 2018 CATHOLIC PRESS ASSOCIATION BOOK AWARD! - FIRST TIME AUTHOR
INDEPENDENT PUBLISHER 2018 ILLUMINATION AWARD SILVER MEDAL WINNER (SPIRITUALITY)
2017 NAUTLUS GOLD AWARD WINNER - AGING CONSCIOUSLY
"Wonderfully well-written . . . . a book for all seasons."--Parker J. Palmer
"An invitation to more fully engage this stage of our journey and be enriched by it."--Richard Rohr
"Frank Cunningham reminds us that the 'vesper time' of life is a rich seedbed for spiritual growth."--Judith Valente
"Reading Vesper Time is like taking a long walk with a wise but down to earth friend. Relax with this book. It will nourish your tired soul." —Robert Wicks
From a writer, editor, and publisher in his eighth decade, Vesper Time addresses the yearning among elders for continued growth, expansiveness of heart, improvement of mind, and a meaningful understanding of our lives. As with Christianity's age-old practice of Vespers, or evening prayer, observed at the time of the lighting of the lamps just before darkness descends, Frank Cunningham views it is a time of life, when colors deepen and our experience of aging becomes spiritual practice. With humor and wisdom, he looks at five facets of this integral spirituality—memory, intimacy, diminishment, gratitude, and acceptance—offering guidance and encouragement for those who are on this stage in their journey of life.
Frank J. Cunningham is a former newspaper and magazine writer and editor; university writing instructor; and book editor and publisher of Ave Maria Press, Notre Dame, IN. One of the most successful religion publishers of his generation, since his retirement Frank has been discovering and enjoying, as well as sharing with others in talks and workshops, the spiritual practice of aging. He can be reached through http://www.vesper-time.com/
The Spiritual Practice of Growing Older
Frank Cunningham
Foreword by Joyce Rupp
Vesper Time Table of Contents 53 Kb
Discussion and Reflection Guide
In the Introduction to Vesper Time the author writes "I hope these stories, anecdotes and insights will have a ring of truth, that readers will recognize their own experience in mine, or that they will trigger relevant experiences. And that they will stimulate readers' own reflections about the gifts of their lives." He encourages readers to record their own thoughts, reactions, and reflections knowing that "surprising and unexpected details and insights emerge."
The following suggestions will help facilitate this process whether for personal reflection or in a group discussion. Before undertaking any of the exercises, please read the related chapter.
Memory is about discovering what the events of our lives tell us. What our relationships tell us. And what our hearts tell us.
1) Share an insight that connects together the events, dreams, and relationships that make up our lives. Is this your "arc of nourishment?" Explain.
Describe how this arc of nourishment shaped who you are today.
Elaborate on how this arc in some way acknowledges or points to a deeper self.
2) Identify several experiences, events, and or people who shaped who you are today? What do they have in common?
Were these experiences, events, and/or people in any way spiritual or graced?
In what sense did they nourish you?
3) "Childhood is the source of our sense of self." Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Why?
Tell a story from your childhood or teenage years that reflects an enchanted world.
How has that story shaped who you have become?
4) Reflect on the idea of the Catholic or sacramental imagination. Do you relate to this insight? Does it make sense to you? How has this been your experience?
5) In reflecting on these ideas can you write a short statement of who you are now? (See Vesper Time, page 22.)
1) Name some ordinary activities or moments in your life that point toward a deep intimacy with another. What in that experience makes it intimate?
2) Identify an experience by which you had to open yourself to another or others? Describe the experience.
Did you risk your emotional life in this moment? In what way were you vulnerable?
Was the experience valuable? Explain.
3) Where have you looked for God? How have you experienced God?
Think of our common religious experiences such as Sunday worship or doing a work of charity such as serving in a soup kitchen or donating funds or time to a worthy cause? Explain how you experienced God in these moments.
What is your experience of finding divinity in nature's architecture? Reflect on experiences such as being stopped cold by a sunset, or hearing a particularly beautiful presentation of a piece of music, or being mesmerized by a work of art such as a painting or a sculpture. How did you sense God's presence?
4) In your pursuit of intimacy have you ever gone where only love can go? Reflect on what the experience has meant to you? How did it enrich you?
5) Can you answer the question: Are you holding me Lord? Describe the moments when you felt this intimate holding.
DIMINISHMENT
1) In what ways have you experienced becoming invisible?
2) What did you miss most from your career or workplace? What do you miss least of all? Did you have an experience that was in effect being shaken by your lapels?
3) What do the phrases "being productive" and "keeping busy" mean to you now?
4) What kind of activities have you undertaken to experience new or continued growth? Do you consider any of them spiritual?
5) What steps have you taken to deal emotionally and spirituality for this time of life?
6) Tell the story of a friend or relative who has shown courage in the face of diminishment. What lessons do he or she offer?
7) Reflect on a personal setback and its ramifications? Was this a gift? How so? Does this offer you any insight into the paradox of suffering?
1) Let's follow David Steindl-Rast's suggestion here and
STOP: Take a few minutes to open your senses and your hearts.
LOOK: Think of this very moment as an opportunity. What gift do you find?
Some thoughts to focus on and discuss:
We are called to compassion.
Gratitude is the engine of generosity.
"Futile the winds to a heart in port."
Gratitude is the laughter of our hearts.
GO: Create a practice of gratitude, a ritual you can engage with some regularity.
2) Discuss ways of expressing gratitude beyond the normal expressions such as grace before meals or thanks for a beautiful day.
"I experience a genuine sense of gratitude when___________."
3) Why did only one of the ten lepers return to thank Jesus? What are the barriers to gratitude? What are some negative messages that steer our hearts to selfishness?
"We find it difficult to say thank you when___________."
4) Compose a prayer of gratitude. A moving example of this kind of prayer is Brian Doyle's Last Prayer found in his Book of Uncommon Prayer, or on-line.
5) Reflect on an important lifetime relationship, someone who helped you along the way, someone who took a special interest in you or saw potential or promise that you may not have seen yourself. Write a thank you letter to that person explaining how they affected you.
6) Write a letter of gratitude to your mom and dad. Start by thanking them for giving you life.
Draw on your own experience to tell of a time that you or someone else accepted the truth of the matter. Describe the process of getting there.
In the context of surrendering to the truth of the matter, do you think there can be passive acceptance and/or active acceptance? Think in terms of resignation vs. engagement.
In Farewell to Arms author Ernest Hemingway wrote: "The world breaks everyone and afterward many are strong at the broken places." Describe how an experience of brokenness has strengthened you. What was your source of strength?
Identify four or more significant steps in the development of your life story. Think of the steps as chapter headings in a memoir. In the coming days develop one chapter a day until you have outlined your story
Do you accept your story? Can you accept your brokenness?
Does this help you understand how to approach and live this, our final chapter?
Linda Douty, in Presence 04/17/2019, 02:25 PM
A wise companion for anyone eager to extract meaning from this final life passage. It will be beneficial for spiritual guides who accompany people who are aging and exploring thoughts such as these, or for a spiritual directee who may be caring for an aging family member or friend.
John Leonard Berg, in Catholic Library World 11/21/2017, 12:58 PM
A thoughtful little book that reflects on the issues and graces that influence the spiritual life as one grows older.... [Cunningham's] words are sensitive, validating, and encouraging as he describes the challenges and blessings encountered at each stage. This is not a work of psychology or philosophy but a loving affirmation of life nearing its completion.... Recommended for parish libraries and personal enrichment.
Robert J. Wicks, author, Riding the Dragon 12/07/2016, 09:21 AM
Reading 'Vesper Time' is like taking a long walk with a wise but down-to-earth friend . . . . Relax with this book. It will nourish your tired soul.
Judith Valente, PBS-TV 12/07/2016, 09:20 AM
Anyone who has gazed at the rising moon or the emerging stars at twilight knows the beauty of this hour of day. Frank Cunningham reminds us that the "vesper time" of life is a rich seedbed for spiritual growth.
Richard Rohr, Center for Action and Contemplation 12/07/2016, 09:19 AM
What good work Frank Cunningham has done . . . . His book is an invitation to more fully engage this stage of our journey and be enriched by it.
The World Is My Cloister
Act Justly, Love Tenderly
You'll Never Be Younger
Enduring Lives
The Way of Gratitude


CLEVELAND, Ohio—ImageIQ Inc. recently announced that it has partnered with the National Center for Regenerative Medicine (NCRM) at Case Western Reserve University, the Cleveland Clinic and the Cleveland Cord Blood Center (CCBC) in a new collaboration. ImageIQ will work to tailor customized image acquisition and analysis software, which was originally developed in concert with Cleveland Clinic researchers, to extract performance measurements on cord blood units to determine whether they should be preserved for future use.
The project will be funded by a Biomedical Program grant from the Ohio Third Frontier Program, which will also provide oversight while the NCRM provides administrative support. The project will be awarded approximately $2.5 million for its three-year duration, with a goal of developing and commercializing technologies that, in the words of Tim Kulbago, CEO of ImageIQ, "enable and drive the use of cord blood stem cells for research and clinical applications."
"The goal of the partnership is to establish Ohio as a region of excellence in the field of stem cell and regenerative medicine research and commercialization," says Kulbago. "More specifically, this applies to the ever-expanding popularity and use of cord blood-derived stem cells for clinical applications in cell therapy and regenerative medicine."
According to Kulbago, the Cleveland Clinic and the NCRM will provide stem cell research, clinical expertise and oversight during the collaboration, and the CCBC and its partners and collaborators will provide cord blood units, cell analysis technicians and "beta-site locations for developing, testing and validating the cord blood stem cell imaging and analysis system and software being developed."
For its part, Kulbago says ImageIQ will work with the collaborators to "use contextual design to develop, optimize and validate the imaging and analysis system." The automated quantitative analysis software will be paired with a cell culture imaging technology and will be used first at the CCBC. ImageIQ will develop an imaging and image analysis technology capable of assaying the quality of cord blood units before they are preserved and stored. The project represents a join effort between ImageIQ and the NCRM, Clinical Tissue Engineering Center (CTEC) and CCBC.
This is far from the first time these companies have come together. ImageIQ spent more than 10 years operating as the Biomedical Imaging and Analysis Core within the Cleveland Clinic. The company has worked with Case Western and the NCRM for almost 10 years, and has been working with the CCBC for approximately two years, Kulbago notes.
Umbilical cord blood stem cells have been steadily gaining popularity both in research and potential therapies. Umbilical cords and placenta that are left over after delivery are considered medical waste by hospitals and are usually discarded, notes Dr. Nicholas Greco, processing facility director at CCBC and adjunct assistant professor at NCRM.
However, these materials represent a viable source from which to harvest adult stem cells, he says.
The issue, Kulbago points out, is that cord blood banking is expensive, and the cost of banking a unit, specifically one that might not be usable for transplant, means that "this industry is facing a significant need to improve both the metrics and technology that help assess future clinical utility of a given cord blood unit before it is cryopreserved."
ImageIQ is a leader in cord blood stem cell technology, Kulbago says, a sentiment that Greco echoes.
"They have some unique software that would hopefully allow us to really better count stem cells in the units that we would provide. They have a track record of leading, cutting-edge technology from the Cleveland Clinic," Greco says, adding that the imaging analysis will hopefully allow them to design a better product for their customer base of blood cancers and for regenerative medicine.
"This project highlights the depth and diversity of expertise in stem cell biology and cell therapy that is available in Cleveland, and the rich collaborative environment that we have established in Northeast Ohio," Dr. George Muschler, an orthopedic surgeon, director of CTEC and the principal investigator for Cleveland Clinic, said in a press release.